I decided to use the spices that my Paleo Pen Pal, Ronda, sent me this month to create a recipe that I’ve been playing around with in my head for a while…. Chicken Caprese. Here’s how I made it: Ingredients: 4 free range chicken breasts 1 cup of Italian salad dressing (I used Good Seasons) 2 tbsp Rosemary Chicken Herb Blend from La Madeline A few grinds of Trader Joe’s Himalayan Pink Salt 1 to 2 tbsp EVOO 4 cubes frozen basil (from Trader Joe’s) 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar 4 ½-inch slices of fresh mozzarella 4 ½-inch slices of fresh tomato Directions: On the night before… In a shaker bottle, combine salad dressing, Rosemary chicken blend and salt. Place the chicken breasts in a gallon Ziploc bag and pour the dressing-seasoning mixture over the chicken breasts. I didn’t use a Ziploc bag and it made for more cleanup, which is so unAmerican… Marinate in refrigerator overnight (or if you’re like me, over two nights, because you didn’t realize how long it would take to paint your nails for the black and white party…Wanna see how they turned out? Of course you do. See below.) On the day of… Preheat oven to 400ºF. Heat EVOO in an oven-safe stainless steel or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Remove chicken from Ziploc bag. Don’t rinse – just shake off any excess marinade. Sear chicken breasts for 2 minutes on each side – do not cook all the way through. After both sides...
Recipe: Paleo Crab Rangoon Deviled Eggs
Out of an attempt to use up some canned goods I had in my pantry, this delicious recipe was born. I found a can of crab meat I had bought some time ago when I was unpacking my pantry items to move them into the kitchen at my new apartment. I scooted it to the side, awaiting the day I was inspired to make something with it. Day after day, I’ve pushed this can of crab meat to the back. Then I found myself craving deviled eggs and crab meat at the same time. I grabbed my pot and followed these instructions to hard boil 6 easy-to-peel eggs (it really, really worked!!) and while those were simmering away, I chopped up two green onions… and pulled out the 6-oz. can of canned crab meat and put it in my Ninja blender along with 2 heaping tablespoons of mayo (recipe from Well Fed)… and added about 3/4 of the chopped green onions, some Himalayan sea salt and black pepper. I whizzed them up until well blended, then when the eggs were finished with their ice bath, I proceeded to very gently and patiently unpeel them… they turned out perfectly! I sliced each egg in half, dumped the yolks into the Ninja with the other ingredients, until the mixture was smooth. I scooped the deliciousness into a Ziploc baggy, snipped the corner, and pipetted the yolk mixture into the egg whites. Now I have a delicious snack to take with me to...
Paleo Kung Pao Chicken
![IMG_1155[1]](http://howichow.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/IMG_11551-300x300.jpg "IMG_1155[1]")
One of my favorite take-out foods is kung pao chicken. Tonight, I tried to recreate it using paleo-friendly ingredient substitutions (especially using coconut aminos instead of soy sauce!) plus I added a ton of veggies, so it made this a very filling meal by itself. I didn’t even eat it with cauli-rice like I had thought I would, although that would definitely round out this dish perfectly. 1 pound of chicken breasts (boneless, skinless) 1 teaspoon minced garlic ¼ cup pineapple juice Chop the raw chicken breasts into 2″ cubes, then put in a food processor with the other 2 ingredients. Pulse 2 or 3 times. This kind of shreds or thins out the chicken breast and will allow the pineapple juice and garlic to tenderize the meat. Don’t pulse too many times or you’ll end up with ground chicken! Refrigerate for at least an hour. ½ cup sherry ¼ cup coconut aminos 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder (or cornstarch) 1 ½ tablespoons coconut sugar 1 teaspoon hot sauce (or more if you like it spicier) 1 teaspoon black pepper Combine these 6 ingredients together in a 1 cup measuring cup, then stir until well mixed. Set aside. Once the chicken has marinated for at least an hour, put 1 teaspoon of coconut oil in a skillet or wok and stir fry the meat over medium-high heat for 6-10 minutes, until done. Remove the chicken from the wok, and add the following vegetable mixture to the wok: 2 green peppers,...
Paleo Chicken Nuggets
![IMG_1118[1]](http://howichow.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/IMG_11181-300x300.jpg "IMG_1118[1]")
These nuggets were the result of my craving for Chick-Fil-A’s chicken nuggets. They’re gluten-free AND dairy-free, and even my husband liked them…which says a lot. Ingredients: ½ pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts about ¼ cup of pickle juice 1 cup almond flour 1 tablespoon coconut palm sugar 1 teaspoon paprika ½ teaspoon black pepper ½ teaspoon garlic powder ½ teaspoon celery salt ½ teaspoon dried basil ¼ cup coconut milk (or almond milk) 1 egg 2 tablespoons butter Directions: Wash the chicken breasts in cold water. Pat dry. Cut into nugget-size pieces. Place in a container, pour pickle juice over chicken, cover container and place in fridge for 1 hour. After the chicken has marinated in the pickle juice for an hour, whisk together coconut milk and egg in a medium bowl. Prepare flour mix for dredging by combining all dry ingredients in a separate, medium-sized bowl. Pre-heat oven to 350F. Melt butter on a baking pan by placing butter in the middle of the pan and setting in the oven as it starts heating. I only left it in there for 4 minutes, then I used a pot-holder to pull the pan out and coat the pan evenly with the melted butter. Begin preparing the nuggets by dunking the chicken into the egg/milk mix, then dredge each individual piece in the flour mixture and coat well. This is how I set up my counter, and the baking pan was to the left of the flour mix. This kept...
Paleo Tuna Patties – Fast Recipe for One Person!
I’ve been trying to eat fish more frequently in order to get more Omega-3′s in my diet. Honestly, I hardly ever eat fish. Not that I don’t like it- I actually love almost all kinds of fish. I just don’t like cooking fish because it makes the house smell. I was thinking about what to make for lunch today, and really wanted salmon cakes like my Granny Ree used to make. I went to the grocery store and bought a can of wild salmon. For the record, I had never bought canned salmon before. I opened it up and shouted, “What the HELL!” There was skin and bones up in that. And it looked congealed and nasty. So maybe it’s my fault for having had unrealistic expectations, but I assumed that canned salmon would come like canned tuna does. Just thinking about that nastiness makes my skin crawl. I tried to separate the skin and bones, but the skin basically disintegrated in my hands, only freaking me out even further. I understand that the skin and bones are perfectly safe to eat, but I don’t want to eat them. So, I hate to waste food, but I threw the salmon out. I was seriously that grossed out by the whole thing. That’s how I ended up making tuna patties for my lunch today. I had bought a few 2.6 oz packs of tuna in water to have on hand for quick lunches during my long days on campus, so ...
Mexican Chicken Salad
I’ve had a hankerin’ for chicken salad for a while. I made my standard seasoned salt/pepper and mayo chicken salad last week with some leftover Publix Mojo Rotisserie Chicken, but that just didn’t do it this time. A little too plain. I just needed something more. I somehow stumbled onto this recipe for Spicy Mexican Slaw with Lime & Cilantro from Kalyn’s Kitchen that really peaked my interest. With the hot July sun blazing down on us here in Georgia, it’s critical to my healthy eating efforts to have something quick, filling and cool on hand for those times when I’m starvin’ but can’t bring myself to turn the oven or stove top on to cook anything. I pretty much stayed within Kalyn’s recipe, but adapted it to my tastes. Also, I used the pre-packaged cole slaw vegetable mix (look by the bagged lettuce) instead of chopping up my own green and red cabbage. The only prep I had to do was chopping up the cilantro, green onions & chicken! Almost too easy. Except I still had to do the damn dishes, because I don’t have a maid. Both my co-workers and in-laws taste tested this one in addition to me, and everyone gave it two thumbs up. I’ll be mixing this into my chicken salad rotation throughout the rest of the summer! Mexican Chicken Salad Ingredients: For the salad mixture: 2 chicken breasts (approximately 1 pound), cooked & chopped 1 package (16 oz) slaw veggies (Mine had green...
Zucchini, Onion & Sausage Quiche (Grain-Free Crust)
Today, I wanted a break from my normal morning chow of french omelet with veggies and either bacon or sausage. I still wanted eggs, but something a little bit different. Since I’m on summer break from school right now and had today off from work, I had no plans to be anywhere. I decided to experiment a little bit with something I’ve been wanting to try my hand at for months now: a quiche, with a grain-free crust. I mentioned in the Zucchini Brownies post that I’ve had bad luck with grain-free baking in the past, but I’m getting braver all the time as I learn more and more about how to work with these different ingredients. That being said, today’s chow was an experiment, completely concocted in my head with the ingredients I had to work with. My very non-paleo husband, B, told me that he is excited to eat the quiche again for breakfast tomorrow. That’s amazing to me, considering my attempts at cooking generally fail big time. But this quiche, especially the crust, really is that good. B thought it was just as good as a wheat crust, if not better… those are his own words! SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! First, I made the crust by melting 3 tablespoons of butter in a 9″ pie crust. I was using a glass pie dish, so I just put the butter in the dish, threw placed the dish into the microwave and heated on medium/low for about 20 seconds until it was...
Easy Homemade Coconut Butter
My path to paleo was a winding one, and while I encourage people to explore it as a possible way of eating for themselves, it’s not for everyone. Nothing is for everyone. For example, I believe no one should eat processed foods at all if they are striving for optimal health, but that opinion doesn’t matter if someone is getting their food from a food bank & completely dependent upon whatever food is supplied to them. So I perhaps have a bit more of a relaxed approach to paleo eating: eat as well as you can, most of the time, but don’t get lost in semantics or dogma about what “is” or “isn’t” paleo–just eat as real as you can, as often as you can. I’ve spent most of my life fearing foods high in fat. Fat was the devil. My Weight Watchers leaders (I joined for the first time when I was 13) told me so, the health magazines I would devour told me so. I’ve learned within in the past year or so, since immersing myself in paleo blogs, research, and in my opinion most importantly, self-experimentation (n=1), that fat was not the enemy. I ate low fat through most of my teens, and yes, I’d lose weight, but the second I stopped being super restrictive, it’d pile back on and I’d blame myself for my lack of willpower. Our bodies need fat. It took months and months before I accepted that low fat diets aren’t the answer...
Flourless Zucchini Brownies
I can’t believe it happened: I found a “paleo” baked good recipe that I actually love. Not just like…but love. Do you like brownies? (Are you human and female?) Do you like zucchini bread? I harvested the second zucchini of the season last night, and needed to use it quickly because it had grown too big on the plant and wasn’t going to be good for much longer. I’ve heard rumors that this recipe for grain-free zucchini brownies was amazing, but honestly, I didn’t believe it. I’m all about using healthy ingredients when cooking, but when it comes to baking, I don’t want to waste my time making something that is just “meh.” I mean, seriously, most of the time when I use coconut flour to bake with it just comes out too eggy and sponge-like, which is frustrating when you were craving a cookie and not a sea sponge. Let me tell you, I don’t regret trying this recipe at all. At first glance, it’s crazy talk: a brownie with no flour whatsoever. Not even almond or coconut flour. How could this ever work? I don’t know the food science behind why, but it totally works. I prefer my brownies chewy and fudgy, and that’s the texture that these brownies produced. Since I used Sunbutter instead of almond butter, there’s little crunches of sunflower seeds throughout each bite. I think that’s what pushed these over the top for me. Maybe I should try to make these with almond...
Philly Sloppy Joes
Giving up wheat hasn’t been that hard for me. Aside from the crackhead-like withdrawal I went through for the first week, during which time nothing containing wheat could be within a 300 foot radius of me, lest I inhale every morsel. I got through that, and now I’m on the other side. The side where eating healthy can become boring and monotonous, where it’s easier to eat the same things day in and out. But that’s not realistic for me. I need variety in my diet. Plus, I love good tasting food and will never give that up. Thank goodness that bacon & healthy fats are considered paleo health food. So I’ve decided to spend this week trying to re-make the foods that I once loved, back when I used to eat things like Olive Garden breadsticks. Damn, I miss those breadsticks. I was talking with Brian about the foods I missed most, and for some reason, Penn Station came to mind. For those of you who haven’t experienced the deliciousness that is Penn Station, it’s a hot sub restaurant. No, that’s not giving enough props. They make the best freakin hot sub I’ve ever had. Especially the Philly Cheesesteak. Gahhhhhhhhhhh…………….sorry, I had a foodgasm. Their bread is without question the best part of their sandwich. So, having said goodbye to that beautiful piece of yeasty goodness, I can still eat the innards of the sandwich if I want to. Tonight for dinner, I made Crockpot Philly Sloppy Joe’s. It’s...