Chilli Roasted French Beans

Now don't get me wrong, I love vegetables as much as the next paleo fiend but let's be honest they get pretty boring sometimes!

Here is a good way to spice up your green beans!

Ingredients
French beans
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Chilli - chopped very finely OR dried chilli flakes
Garlic - minced

1) Mix the olive oil - enough to coat the beans well - with salt and pepper, chilli and garlic - then stir through the beans until evenly coated.
2) Cook in the oven at a medium temperature for about 20 mins

Carrot muffins

Carrot Muffins

Ingredients
1 cup almond flour
1 cup coconut flour
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 cup argave nectar or honey
1/4 cup walnut oil
3 eggs
2 large carrots grated
1/2 cup dates chopped
1/2 cup walnuts chopped

1) Sift almond flour and coconut flour and add cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder and salt.
2) In a separate bowl mix eggs, argave nectar and walnut oil.
3) Add carrots, walnuts and dates to wet ingredients.
4) Stir flour mixture in.
5) In mini muffin cases bake for 10 min.

Pink Berry Muffins

I made these muffins using essentially the same recipe I used to the brownies as a bit of an experiment - and they turned out really well!


Ingredients
1/2 cup coconut milk
10 dried dates - chopped into small pieces
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/4 cups almond flour
2 eggs
Frozen berries - I used a few black currents, red currents, cherries and raspberries
A few drops of pink food colouring (not very paleo but I used the tiniest bit to make them more appealing!)

1) Blend the coconut milk with the dates until the dates are in very small pieces. Add the eggs, flour and baking powder (and food colouring if you want!) until mixed thoroughly.

2) Spoon the mixture into cake moulds and then press a few berries into the top of each one and bake for 10 mins.

Paleo Pork Rub

Ingredients
1 lemon - the zest and the juice
1 tablespoon of mustard (I used dijon but wholegrain would also work well)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoon of rosemary (fresh is best but I used dried and it worked well)
2 cloves of garlic - minced
1/4 cup olive oil

Pork

1) Mix all the marinade ingredients together and then coat the pork.

2) Ideally leave overnight but for at least two hours will do. If only leaving for a few hours leave the meat out of the fridge.

3) When ready to cook, seal the pork for a minute or two on each side on a hot griddle then cook in the oven for 30-45 mins.

I can't believe they ARE paleo brownies!

Wow! These are amazing! You must try them NOW! And the best bit...totally paleo!

Ingredients 
100g dark chocolate 70% or more (one large bar!)
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup unsweetened dried dates
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups almond flour
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1) Blend coconut milk and dates in the blender till dates are in small pieces
2) Melt the chocolate into the dates and coconut milk in a saucepan on a low temperature

3) Beat the eggs in a bowl and add the chocolate mixture
4) Add the almond flour, the sea salt and the baking soda
5) I baked them in mini muffin cases and 10 mins was a bit long so if you are doing them small I would recommend 8 mins....if you want to make bigger muffins you may have to experiment with timings...

Chicken and Bacon Mash

So this is a recipe which originally came from all the left overs I had but it worked so well that it has become a bit of a regular!

Serves 4

Ingredients
1 small white onion
Garlic
4 rashers of bacon
4 chicken breasts
1 packet of mushrooms
1 large butternut squash
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

1) Dice the onion and crush the garlic and fry in olive oil for a few minutes till soft.

2) Cut the chicken into chunks and add to the pan with a little salt and pepper. One the chicken is cooked on the outside add the bacon, chopped. Once the bacon has changed colour add the mushroom and cook until all the meat is cooked, on a low heat to make sure it stays tender.

3) Meanwhile boil the butternut squash and mash with a little butter and salt and pepper.

4) Serve the chicken and bacon on the mash.

Spanish Chicken

So my favourite Schwartz have come through again!

They have created these great spice packs which help you create delicious meals very easily!

They do contain some yeast and wheat products but only a very minimal amount as they are essentially just spices.

This one is my favourite but the Chicken Tikka is great too - and you can just substitute non-paleo ingredients such as milk for paleo friendly versions like coconut milk.

Spanish Chicken
1 yellow pepper
1 onion
4 chicken breasts
4 rashers of smoky bacon
1 tin of tomatoes
Olives
Olive oil

1) Dice the onion and chop the pepper and chicken into chunks.

2) Fry the onion in olive oil until brown. Add the chicken and bacon and some of the spice mix until the chicken in white then add the pepper and the rest of the spice mix and cook for a few minutes longer.

3) Add the tin of tomatoes, the olives and some water if necessary. Now simmer for 20 minutes until the sauce has reduced and is nice and thick.

4) Serve with whatever you like - roasted veg, butternut squash or cauliflower rice! My favourite however is to stuff roasted peppers with the sauce.

Chicken and Parsley Soup

This is a really nice chunky soup - and nice and light for the nice warm days we've been having recently!


Chicken and Parsley Soup
1 chicken breast
1 large leek
2 sticks of celery
2 carrots
1 small white onion
1 handful of chopped fresh parsley
2 garlic cloves
1 knob of butter
3/4 pint boullion stock (you can use any but I would definitely recommend this one)

1) Cut everything up into small pieces, including the chicken, and roughly chop the parsley
2) Fry the onion, garlic and leek for a few minutes in a knob of butter with some pepper.
3) Add the chicken and cook for a few minutes until sealed.
4) Add the carrots and celery and parsley and cook for a further 5 minutes on a low heat with the lid on, stirring occasionally.
5) Add the stock and simmer for 15 mins.

This makes three hearty portions! Feel free to add any veg you like, but I would say the parsley and celery really make this good!

Ginger and Garlic Stir Fried Greens

This is really quick and easy and goes very nicely with salmon!

Ginger and Garlic Stir Fried Greens


2 big leeks
1/2 white cabbage
2 courgettes
Squeezy garlic
Squeezy ginger
Sesame oil
Soya sauce

1) Thinly slice all the veg into strips
2) Heat the oil in the wok and add some squeezy garlic and some squeezy ginger and heat for about 30 seconds to release the flavour.
3) Add the veg and cook with a little soya sauce until as soft as you like!

Cabbage Salad

Now I must admit the name doesn't do it justice! But it tastes good! Especially with homemade burgers or steak.

Cabbage Salad
1/2 white cabbage
2 carrots
1 small onion
Fresh parsley
1 lemon
Salt and pepper
Olive oil

1) Shred the cabbage as thinly as possible and grate the carrots and onion.
2) Mix it all together and add the juice of 1 lemon, a good swig of olive oil and salt and pepper and a handful of chopped parsley.

Cottage Pie

A paleo twist to a good old classic!

Having a few problems with my camera at the moment but will get some photos up as soon as it is working again!

I made this out of a few left overs I had but it was so good I will definitely be trying it again! The sweetness of the suede really adds something to this - I'd choose this over potato any day!

Cottage Pie


500g beef mince
2 sticks of celery
3 carrots
1 onion
garlic
mixed herbs
1 tin tomatoes
salt and pepper

1 suede
butter

1) Dice the onion and fry in a little olive oil with the garlic until soft.
2) Add the mince and season with a bit of salt and pepper. When brown drain any excess fat.
3) Add the carrots and celery, diced small, add more salt and pepper to taste and mixed herbs.
4) When the vegetables are softer add the tin of tomatoes and some water if necessary. You want it to be quite liquidy so you can reduce it. Simmer with the lid off for about 20 mins until the water has gone and the sauce is quite thick. This process will really bring out the flavour.
5) Peel and cut the suede then boil for about 20 mins until soft enough to mash, and mash with a little butter and salt and pepper.
6) line an oven proof dish with the mince and then top with the suede and grill till brown.

Meatballs and Ratatouille

These meatballs were delicious, if I do say so myself!

I decided to make a ratatouille with them as I had the perfect ingredients for that, but I think they would also be delicious in a tomato sauce with thinly sliced courgettes - see recipe below.

Meatballs
500g lean mince beef
1 teaspoon of dried garlic
1 teaspoon of dried chili
1 tablespoon of mixed dried herbs
salt and pepper to season

1) Add all of the seasoning to the beef and work through with your hands until evenly distributed.
2) Roll the meat into balls.
3) Bake in the oven for 15-20 mins.

These measurements are very rough - feel free to play around with them, adding different spices and herbs if you prefer.

Ratatouille
2 courgettes
1 red pepper
1 green pepper
1 aubergine
1 onion
Garlic
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper
Mixed herbs
Balsamic vinegar
1 tin of tomatoes

1) Heat some olive oil in a pan and add the garlic and diced onion. Cook until soft.
2) Add the peppers, courgettes and aubergine - all cut into nice big chunks. Season with salt and pepper and mixed herbs.
3) When the vegetables are softer add the tin of tomatoes. Add a splash of balsamic vinegar then simmer with the lid off until reduced - if necessary add some water in with the tin of tomatoes.

Sliced Banana and Almond Butter

This is a delicious snack I have recently discovered. Almond butter is just like peanut butter, but with almonds! Perfectly paleo and even more tasty if you ask me. It tastes great spread onto banana slices and sprinkled with a bit of shredded coconut too.


My next thing to try with almond butter is a satay style sauce...will keep you posted!

Year of the root vegetable!

So you have probably heard about my butternut squash obsession by now...well in 2011 I have decided to branch out a bit! I do have some love for the good old parsnip, but I am developing a new love affair with the swede too. Last night I had mashed turnip with beef stew and tonight I shall be trying a celeriac for the first time!

Mashed Turnip 
So easy, it doesn't really need a recipe!

Ingredients 
Turnips
coconut milk (optional)
Salt and pepper

1) Peel and cut the turnip into chunks
2) Boil for 10-15 mins until tender
3) Drain, add the salt and pepper and a dash of coconut milk and mash

Yum, yum, yum!