Thanksgiving

Its Thanksgiving time! Have you started planning your paleo meal yet? I know I have. Here's what I'm planning so far: turkey, butternut squash souffle, stuffing, sweet potato casserole, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans and tapioca rolls and of course dessert! Pumpkin and apple pie! Yum Yum!! (I will not posting be every recipe but feel free to email me at paleorae@gmail.com if you would like a certain recipe to make you holiday delicious!! ) Here is a yummy recipe for stuffing! https://www.julianbakery.com/paleo-gluten-free-stuffing-made-with-paleo-bread/ Hope your Thanksgiving is delicious and remember to give thanks!

chocolate sunflower butter cups!

I was literally obsessed with peanut butter cups when I was little. Here's some homemade cups but paleo! Ingredients - cup raw honey to taste 1 cup sunflower seed butter 2 teaspoons vanilla 1 tablespoon organic butter or ghee (if you use ghee, add a pinch of salt) 11 ounces of dark chocolate (I used 10 ounces of 65 percent and added about 1 ounce of 100 percent cocoa) Directions: Double boil the chocolate with the butter. Take spoonfuls of chocolate and put into silicone muffin cups. While the chocolate is still warm and mobile, hold up and tilt each cup while rotating a full 360 degrees, to lightly coat the sides about halfway up. Place in freezer to set. Mix honey, sunflower seed butter, and vanilla until well-blended. Roll into balls and flatten to make little disks. Place disks into cups, cover with chocolate, and put in the freezer again to set. Once set, about 10-15 minutes, pop out of the silicone, place candies into cute paper cups and enjoy!

New awesome Paleo bread

I've been trying out new recipes. This one taste like a whole grain bread but its Paleo! My husband even loved it! I caught him cutting a slice and eating it plain with pasture butter. Yum!

1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon Apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 1/2 cups almond meal
3/4 cups arrowroot powder
4 eggs
1/4 cup ground flaxseed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Mix all wet ingredients into all dry ingredients. Pour into slightly greased bread baking dish. Bake for about 40 minutes. Enjoy!

Hot cocoa for 2

I'm working on getting all the recipes I usually enjoy all fall/winter long perfected before my kids start begging me for them. This was delicious!

1/4 c unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 c palm sugar
1/4 c pasture raised heavy whipping cream
1- 1 1/2 c almond milk

Pour all ingredients in sauce pan on low- medium heat. Bring to slight simmer and remove from heat. Enjoy

* Add 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract for mint cocoa

pumpkin coffee creamer

So I stopped drinking coffee for a few months because of all the mystery ingredients that are in coffee mate (the flavors I liked anyways) so my wonderful mother who also eats a paleo diet ran across this recipe, modified it a bit then made it. This recipe is so yummy you will have the urge to put a straw in it and drink it plain. Sooo delicious!!! 2 cups pasture raised heavy cream (full) ½-3/4 c canned pumpkin 4 tsp pumpkin pie spice 2 tsp cinnamon 2 Tbs vanilla 2 Tbs maple syrup Blend well, add to coffee Raw pasture raised heavy cream is paleo. If your not into dairy of any kind then try this recipe with mimic cream (nut cream) or coconut cream! Its absolutely delicious!!

Fall is in the air...

One of the things I use to really look forward to about fall was Starbucks pumpkin spice latte... Yummmm but after starting eating the Paleo way I realized I can't drink that yumminess anymore! Noooooo but I created a Paleo version. Obviously doesn't taste exactly the same but its pretty damn good! Especially with a pumpkin cupcake, donut or apple spice cake! 1 shot of espresso 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice 1 1/2 tablespoons coconut sugar 2 tablespoons pumpkin puree 1 cup hot almond milk Mix all ingredients together and pour into your favorite coffee cup and enjoy the taste of fall! pal

Apple spice muffins

Fall is in the air!
I started off making vanilla muffins but ended up with apple spice when I finished! Sooo delicious!

2 1/2 cups almond flour
1 cup coconut sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
2 medium apples
3 eggs
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup almond milk

Preheat oven to 350.
Peel and dice apples. Mix in bowl: flour, sugar, spice, baking soda. Then mix in apples, eggs, vanilla and milk. Mix well. Pour batter into lightly greased muffin tin. Bake for 35-45 mins. Then enjoy!!

Chicken and dumplings!

I've always been a sucker for southern foods or comfort foods. Now my goal is to recreate all the foods I've always love in a healthy Paleo way! These chicken and dumplings are pretty close to the regular thing!

Soup
1 pot of boiling water
Teaspoon sea salt
2 stalks of celery
2 carrots
1 large onion
1 zucchini
3 chicken thighs
1 can or cup of natural chicken broth
Pepper to taste

Dumplings
1 cup almond flour
1/2 cup arrowroot powder
Pinch sea salt
2 eggs

Get soup started first, cut chicken into small pieces and add into boiling water. Add broth then prep all veggies into bite size pieces. All all into water and simmer for 20-25 minutes.

Start dumplings. In bowl add flour, arrowroot, salt then add eggs. Mix together then place in freezer for about 15 mins. Remove from freezer and spoon out mixture rolling into small balls. Place on plate then place back in freezer. For.another 15 mins until firm. Add dumplings to simmering pot of soup. Cover and simmer for 15 mins or until dumplings have puffed and floated to top of soup. Serve!

I personally was extremely pleasantly surprised by this recipe. Yummy! Both my kids loved it as well!

Fall time is coming!!

I'm all about squash in the fall! Butterut, PUMPKIN especially! Acorn etc etc... Anyway, I found an awesome recipe for squash and sausage shepherds pie.

2.5 lbs butternut squash (peeled seeded and cut into chunks)
5 tbsp butter
1 tsp sea salt
1 lb maple apple chicken sausage
8 oz sliced mushrooms
3 cloves garlic
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup sliced carrots
1/2 cup chopped cauliflower

Preheat oven to 425f
Cook squash in boiling water until tender.
Drain add butter and mash.
Chop sausages in 1/2 then in quarters. Mix in bowl, minced garlic, carrots, mushrooms, cauliflower and broth. Pour in baking dish and top with squash. Bake for 15-20 mins. Top with green onions if desired. Yummy!! Enjoy!

Paleo Celebrations

A few months back I wrote a cookbook called Paleo Celebrations. Today I got it open for sales. My cookbook has recipes for special occasions and holidays. Please enjoy!

5 minute brownies

Sorry I haven't posted lately. I have been super busy with my kids birthday parties and much much more. Anyways I had a great idea to make quick paleo brownies tonight in the microwave. And it totally worked! 1 c almond flour 1 egg 1/2 c coconut nectar 1/4 tsp baking soda 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract 1/2 c chocolate chips 2 tbsp cocoa powder Mix all ingredients together and pour into little coffee cups, silicone cupcake wraps etc.. microwave on 10 power for 4-6 minutes(depends on the strength of your microwave) they are super quick and delish!!!!

Paleo Chicken and Waffles

Decided to go southern today.

Waffles
2 eggs
1/4 cup coconut palm sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
1/4 cup almond milk
1 1/2 cups almond flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon arrowroot
2 tablespoons coconut oil

Chicken

1 chicken breast cut into strips
1 cup almond flour
1 teaspoon of each paprika, garlic powder, onion powder and sea salt.
1 egg

Mix together all ingredients for waffles and scoop 1/2 cup into hot waffle iron.

Pre heat oven to 350F
Whisk egg in a bowl. Mix together almond flour and all spices in another bowl. Dip chicken strips into egg then dredge in almond flour mix. Place on lightly greased baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes.
Serve chicken on top of waffles and drizzle with maple syrup or honey if desired

paleo crackers

I apologize I haven't updated lately. Busy busy busy! Daughter is back in school as of last week. I'm working hard on an amazing website and much more! Anyways here is a great recipe for crackers! I like to eat them with cinnamon almond butter. 3 cups blanched almond flour 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt 1 cup sesame seeds 2 eggs 2 tablespoons coconut oil Preheated oven to 350°F Mix all dry ingredients in 1 bowl. Slowly add all wet ingredients and mix slowly. . After mixed well (you can add 1 teaspoon of dried spices for alternative flavors) cut 4 pieces of parchment paper to the size of a baking sheet. Cut dough in half and roll between 2 papers on baking sheet.remove top sheet of parchment and Repeat with remaining dough. Cut rolled dough into bite size/ 1 inch by 1 inch crackers. Bake for 12-14

minutes. Let cool on baking sheet.

Tropical chicken soup

This is my version of Colombian Sanchoco. Soo yummy. But if your trying to lose weight, eating yuca isn't quite Paleo. It's natural but its a starchy root vegetable

Soup pot of water
Pound of chicken drum sticks or chicken thighs.
1 small bag of Goya yuca
2 green plantains
1/2 teaspoon of cumin
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
1 medium onion
1 large tomato
1 teaspoons saffron
Pepper (cayenne if you want a little more spice)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1 avocado
1 banana

Add everything into water and simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours until chicken is falling off boned. Taste and season as needed. Laddle into bowl and slice avocado and.banana over soup. Enjoy!

Why people fail on paleo

(This was emailed to me. It was so spot on I had to share!) Www.paleodietlifestyle.com The technical reasons These “technical reasons” are usually reasons why some people fail to achieve the proper health results on the diet even though they stick to it and feel like they do it correctly. There’s a lot of conflicting information out there when it comes to the Paleo Diet and some people are led to make changes based on some wrong information that aren’t good for them in the long term. Too much nuts or nut butter As I explained on my article on nuts and seeds, while they are natural and were most probably eaten by most of our ancestors to some extend, nuts and seeds can still be irritating to the gut and most of them have a bad fatty-acid profile. If you are struggling with your health or weight, I recommend limiting your consumption of most nuts and seeds and maybe even avoid them entirely until your health is under control and your digestion is perfect. If you remove them from your diet and add them back a little later on, you should be able to see if they affect you in a negative way or not. Not enough salt There’s no denying that excess salt can be a problem, but removing salt completely can certainly lead to issues as well. I’ve seen accounts of people who started having issues with low blood pressure on a Paleo diet that have be resolved easily by adding a little natural sea salt here and there in their food. Some people try to imitate our ancestors too much and forget that our ancestors probably went out of their way to get a little extra sodium in their diet. There’s a reason, after all, why salty is one of the main tastes we can discern. Not enough carbs A whole lot of people who embark on a Paleo diet become very carb-phobic and associate carbohydrates with instant fat gain. We have to keep in mind that fat gain is much more complicated than that and that we are well adapted to function on carbs or fat for energy. For this reason a lot of people limit their carbohydrate intake to very low amounts. Even when adequate amounts of fat are consumed to make up for the lesser amount of carbohydrates, limiting the amounts of carbs consumed by too much can lead to intense cravings and binging on unhealthy foods. Sources of starchy carbohydrates are especially feared because they are concentrated sources of carbs. If we start with the belief that carbohydrates are not bad per se we can then see why it doesn’t make sense to fear concentrated sources like starchy vegetables. Read up on Paleo 2.0 for the complete demystification of starchy vegetables. Also, while this is getting into an entire other discussion, being in ketogenic a state from time to time is a healthy thing, but being there all the time can lead to problems in the long run. I talk about that issue in more details on my article on the perfect macro-nutrient ratio. Carbohydrates in general shouldn’t be feared, carbohydrates from toxic sources like grains, legumes and refined sugar should. Not enough fat Again in trying to imitate our Palaeolithic ancestors, some people still believe that fat in general should be consumed in limited quantity. Those people suggest that wild animals are very lean and that our ancestors were not used to consume much fat. What’s often overlooked though is that even very lean animals have plenty of fat tissues around their organs or between their skin and their muscles. Modern science also shows us that saturated fat is a great source of clean and non-toxic energy while too much lean protein can certainly be a problem. Some people limit both fat and carbohydrate consumption, our two primary fuel sources, and either consume much more lean protein or consume less calories overall. For those who end up consuming too few calories, constant hunger is often felt and the energy levels usually plummet. Eat away at that healthy natural saturated fat and those sources of non-toxic carbohydrates. Not enough nutritious foods (nutrient deficiencies) This problem is not seen very often, but it can still happen. In our modern world eating a non-toxic diet is not enough and many vitamins and minerals are needed to deal with all the stress and bad environmental factors that surround us. This simply means that chicken and vegetables day in and day out is not going to cut it. You should strive to frequently eat foods such as meat from grass-fed ruminants, fresh wild-caught fish, homemade stock, fermented vegetables, seafood, organs like liver and bone marrow and a good variety of fresh vegetables. Too much fruits Fruits are certainly natural, but most of them are loaded with fructose, which becomes toxic when consumed in high amounts. Just because many fruits are loaded with vitamin C, potassium, fiber and many natural anti-oxidant doesn’t mean that the fructose in them is less toxic. A few pieces of fruit per day shouldn’t be a problem at all, but over-doing it could be the reason why so many fail to lose the desired weight even on a Paleo diet. Here is also yet another reason why starchy vegetables should be the carbohydrate source of choice. Starchy vegetables are converted to glucose only when digested so they are the healthier choice for most. Forgetting about the other aspects of the lifestyle While diet is the main focus of this website and is certain the central point of the Paleo diet lifestyle, other lifestyle factors play a very important role on health and shouldn’t be forgotten. The three main other lifestyle factors to keep in mind other than diet are exercise, stress and sleep. Failure to have healthy habits in one or more of those other lifestyle factors can greatly limit or hinder your results. Bad sleep quality or lack of sleep can be especially harmful and no amount of healthy food is going to make up for it. Any lifestyle change is a challenge Some people thrive on challenges, while many others choose to run away from them. For those of us who have experienced great success on the Paleo diet, it can be difficult to comprehend why one would do anything less, but this can be understood quite simply: It is easier to keep doing the same thing, and a lifestyle change is rarely easy. For someone who hasn’t put a lot of thought into what it means to be Paleo, it can be quite stressful. The idea of eliminating foods that you have consumed your whole life on a very frequent basis and not fully understanding what will fill that gap is scary. Furthermore, without enough information, how is one to comprehend that eating grains, refined sugar and vegetable seed oils are so toxic to your health while they often don’t seem to be causing any issues. Without taking it one step further and learning about what being Paleo means to your overall health, it seems much easier to just bail out. And unfortunately, this is what happens plenty of times. Not fully committing Doing the diet only to some extend is something that a lot of people seem to be doing. I hear from plenty of followers daily who say they are not noticing a difference after making the switch, but then again, they also have not committed themselves all the way. A friend of mine decided to give the diet a shot. She took the challenge head-on and committed herself 100% from the beginning. A few weeks into it, temptation got the better of her, what was one bowl of pasta going to do? It’s hard to believe, but she felt the repercussions of this for the whole following week. Fatigue, stomach aches, nausea, you name it. But it all makes sense, if you eliminate all of the unwanted toxins from your diet and flush your body clean, but then dabble with something toxic, bad reactions are to be expected. Someone that cheats frequently has not even allowed their body to dispose of all toxins; thus, they have yet to achieve their optimal state. So for those of you still questioning how you are feeling on the diet, if the results aren’t at their best it could well be because you are preventing that from happening by not fully committing to the diet changes. Cheating and eating less desirable foods can be perfectly fine when done from on an unfrequent basis, but I strongly recommend to people who first commit to the diet to do it fully for at least the first 30 days to let their body a chance to get rid of the bulk of the toxins and get nourished by the much more nutritious foods of the Paleo diet. Paleo orthorexia This reason happens to be the polar opposite of the above. We have all encountered extremists in our life and we know what they are like: latching on to something and there is absolutely no other way, so don’t even try to convince them otherwise. I don’t believe that there is anything wrong with this, in fact, there was a time in my life when I was exactly like this. That being said, it’s a problem when the extremist is not well informed. It is one thing to follow something because you believe it is the right thing to do, but it’s another when you don’t know why it’s the right thing. Perhaps just because someone with a voice said so? When being a part of the Paleo community, there are two things we have to keep in mind; we are not Cavemen anymore and we don’t know for sure what our ancestors ate anyway. Society has evolved and we have to evolve too. At the click of a button I can share this article with you, I can share recipe ideas, I can even keep you informed on my every move via various social media outlets. With evolution, we have gained access to something that our ancestors did not have, like modern science for example. Perhaps hundreds of centuries ago, no one knew what butter was, or a white potato was not something consumed in most parts of the world, but nowadays, we can prove that these things aren’t bad for us on a fundamental and structural level. Just because they were not consumed then does not necessarily mean we need to continue running from them now. If we fail to make these somewhat harmless additions to our diets, our eating habits will become much more difficult to maintain over time, leading to the inevitable collapse. Another part of Paleo orthorexia is trying to do things too perfectly. I still see people counting their calorie intake or trying to calculate the amount of each vitamin or mineral they consume. This amount of attention to details is often a recipe for failure because it comes from the wrong assumption that the amount of calories consumed should be consciously controlled. Strong cravings We have already touched on this topic in the previous heading “Not fully committing”, but it certainly goes deeper than just nibbling on something you shouldn’t. A common struggle when making any diet change in one’s life is to leave the old behind. This could happen for various reasons, but mostly because our bodies crave the things we used to love that we can no longer have. That, or our minds convince our bodies that we need what we are missing, when in fact, your body is not even craving it at all. Either way, it is something difficult to get a handle on, especially when the things we are craving are things that we are actually addicted to. It can sometimes seem hard to believe, but with bad food we consume things that are physically addictive. Two of the most common would have to be gluten-containing foods and sugar. Perhaps this explains to you why you were experiencing head-aches during your transition period, or episodes of extreme hunger. For some, it becomes so difficult to manage that they either drop the diet completely, or end up slotting themselves into the “Not fully committing” category. So how do you manage fighting the temptations? Well, when it comes to food, stopping cold turkey seems to be the easiest option in the long run. Just like jumping into cold water, it’s much easier to just jump right in than to get into the water gradually. The longer you keep on consuming foods that you are addicted to, the harder it will be to move away from them. You are also not doing your body any favor by continuing to ingest such toxic foods. If you are committed, it will pass in time. Pricey lifestyle Sometimes I think it’s kind of crazy that we would ever consider putting a price on our health. In fact, when I began following a Paleo Diet, I had a small food budget and I feared that I would not be able to afford the best quality of food for myself. But at that time, my health was my number one priority, so I had to make some compromises in other aspects of my life to ensure it stayed this way. In no way am I denying that it doesn’t cost more to lead a healthier lifestyle, but the cost difference is so minimal compared to what it means for your future. There are various ways around the higher costs associated with being Paleo, but you certainly will have to work a little harder to save here and there. One great way is to plant your own herb and vegetable garden during the growing season. If you don’t have the ability to do so, consider joining a Farmer’s Co-op. You should also consider following a set meal plan. This helps a lot, because when all meals are planned, you are just purchasing what you need and do not have to worry about over-spending on things that will go to waste. Be open to spending a bit more time in the kitchen preparing your meals. It always costs more when you purchase something pre-made, although this is not a luxury often available to the Paleo community anyways. Finally, get connected with a local butcher or farmer. I frequent a few and I am always lucky to get my hands on a great variety at very reasonable prices. If I’m lucky and someone has excess of something, I buy it all up at a low price and stock up my freezer! I also have one butcher who has no use for some organ meats, as he doesn’t have a large enough market for it, so he just throws it my way at no cost. You can always read up my money saving tips article for more ideas on how to save money with healthy food. As I said, there is always more work involved when you want to cut corners and spend less. In my mind, there is no extent that I wouldn’t go to ensure I live an optimal healthy life, and in the case of being Paleo, I really don’t think that extent is far from being attainable. The convenience factor This is something that people who are not fully committed really struggle with. As already mentioned, following a Paleo Diet means more time dedicated to food and food preparation. Not only this, but for those who are concerned with the origin of their meat, fruits and vegetables, there can be a great deal of work involved in setting up connections with local farmers and butchers. Once this is established, you may have to cope with traveling a short distance to collect your fresh produce and meats. All this considered, is it really enough to pull the plug on such a healthy alternative lifestyle? It sure isn’t for me! I quite enjoy the relationships I have made through various suppliers. Believe it or not, I have also built much greater bonds with people over food preparation. Sure you can’t always whip up a huge meal in minimal time, but why not make the food a central part of your life. It’s something that we all encounter on a frequent basis throughout our daily lives, so no matter how much someone likes the topic of food, at least you know that you can relate on some level about it. What I am really trying to do here is give you ways to turn something that seems really inconvenient into something that is not that big of a burden after all. Conclusion If you currently struggle with either achieving the desired health results or simply with sticking to the diet and lifestyle, I hope this article was helpful in giving you pointers on what habits to change or in giving you a motivational boost to stick to your guns and battling through the harder parts. While the journey can sometimes seems long and hard, changes always seems easier when looking back.

Awesome chicken BBQ sliders

As I promised.

2 green plantains
1 chicken breast
1/4 cup BBQ sauce
1 cup Cole slaw mix
1 avocado
1 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup Olive oil
1 egg
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1/2 an apple

Preheat oven to 350F.

Use 3 tablespoons of BBQ sauce to coat chicken breast and bake.

Heat coconut oil in skillet. Cut off end of plantain, slice peel and pull off peel.  Cut into 3 sections.  And fry until light Brown on all sides. Remove from pan and mash each plantain flat with something flat and solid like a cast iron skillet, clean flat rock, or if you happen to own a tostonas maker. Re fry until crisp. Place on paper towel to remove access oil and sprinkle with sea salt.

Boil egg in water for 45 seconds to kill bacteria then crack into blender and whip for about 1 minute, slowly add olive oil. Add 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar and 1/2 an apple. Season with salt. Pour over coleslaw cabbage mix.
Slice chicken breast. Slice avocado.

Build in this order.
Plantain, chicken, coleslaw, avocado and drizzle with leftover BBQ sauce!

Hope you enjoy! Absolutely delicious!

BBQ chicken sliders Paleo style

Fried plantains in coconut oil with roasted.BBQ chicken, coleslaw, avocado and drizzle of BBQ sauce.

That's just to make your mouth water. Step by step instructions will be posted tomorrow!!

Pancake morning!

My daughter asks for pancakes almost every morning! Definitely one of her favorite foods next to bacon and eggs. It's interesting how she use to eat gluten filled pancakes before we learned about Paleo. She prefers the almond pancakes. They are quite delicious!

1 1/2 cups almond flour
1/4 cup almond milk
1/4 cup coconut sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon arrowroot
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 eggs

Mix together all ingredients and pour into lightly greased skillet.

Enjoy!

FYI

As I'm sure you have noticed, this blog is still being worked on. New features have been added and will continue to be added. I recently added a translator so you can read my blog in any language now!!! Also a few other fun things. Check it out!! Chicken nuggets!! 3 chicken breasted (deboned and skinned) 2 cups almond flour 2 tablespoons arrowroot 2 teaspoons sea salt 1 teaspoon paprika 1 teaspoon onion powder 3/4 cup olive oil Preheat oven to 400°F Cut chicken into 1 inch pieces. Mix flour, arrowroot, and spices together. Dip chicken in oil then coat with breading mixture. Place on baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes. Juices will run clear and breading will be golden brown and crispy! Delicious with sweet potato fries for a mock fast food kind of night or lunch tor the kids with a side of carrot and celery sticks!! Enjoy!

Vanilla cake

This recipe taste like a nilla waffer cookie but in a cake! Super yummy especially with sliced strawberries on top!

2 eggs
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup coconut nectar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups almond flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Preheat oven to 350F.
Mix almond flour, baking soda and salt then mix in all remaining ingredients. 
Bake in greased baking dish for 35-40 minutes.  Let cool, slice strawberries and enjoy!! Yum