Mexican Chicken, Rice and Beans

(Fair warning: this recipe is not paleo (it contains rice and beans), but it is gluten-free).  

This dish is inspired by my mom, who is an awesome cook and a master at throwing together crockpot recipes that always taste amazing.  Most of her crockpot recipes are not written down, and they're rarely the same each time she makes them, but she has made a dish like this one several times, and both Rem and I loved it every time!  

This one-pot meal is super delicious, EASY, and very filling.  It's great for when you're craving Mexican but don't want to take the time to prepare every component separately.  If you don't tolerate or like beans, you could easily add more veggies (peppers,  in their place or just leave them out.  I would imagine you could also replace the rice with riced cauliflower.  You could also change it up to make this an Indian dish rather than Mexican by swapping the spices below for turmeric, cumin, coriander, garlic, ginger, and curry powder, and swapping the beans for chickpeas.  Let me know if you try out any variations on this recipe!    

Mexican Chicken, Rice and Beans

2 1/2 lb uncooked chicken breasts or thighs, fresh (or frozen then thawed)

32 oz. can diced tomatoes, with juice

1/2 c salsa (I used Mrs. Renfro's habenero salsa- a super hot salsa!)

1 onion, diced

Sprinkle liberally over the top: 

cumin

garlic powder

pepper

oregano

Cook the above ingredients on HIGH in the crockpot for 4 hours (anywhere between 3 and 6 hours would work).

Then add:

2 cans drained and rinsed black beans

1 c uncooked basmati rice (I used Trader Joe's brand; you could use ANY type of rice for this)

Continue to cook on HIGH for 2 hours.  

Enjoy!

Sauteed Radishes and Onions

This recipe may sound odd, but it's my new obsession.  In our CSA box the past few weeks we've been getting watermelon radishes.  They look like this:

I'm not a huge fan of raw radishes, but I did some exploring online and found out that radishes can be sauteed and are very delicious this way.  I came up with this recipe to use those interesting new vegetables and I think I could eat it every day....

Sauteed Radishes and Onion

1 sweet onion
2-3 large watermelon radishes
2 T grass fed butter

Dice onion.  Cut radish into bite-sized pieces.  Add butter to a large skillet and heat on medium high.  Once the butter is melted, add the onion and saute until it starts to brown a bit.  Then add the radishes, as well as some salt and pepper, and continue to cook until the radishes being to soften.  Taste the radishes to see if you like them this way or continue cooking until they are even softer.  Enjoy!

Creamy Tomato and Shrimp Soup

Last weekend my sister came to visit me for a cooking and baking extravaganza!  We both love to bake, cook, and eat delicious food, so we had an amazing time going through our "to make" recipe files and choosing some new dishes to cook.  We cooked turnips with bacon, onion, and turnip greens.  We roasted spaghetti squash.  We baked banana cardamom bread, pear cobbler muffins, and brownie bites.  And we made the most delicious dinner: homemade sushi and this creamy tomato and shrimp soup!  It's sweet, spicy, and full of tender vegetables and shrimp.  The soup was perfect on the cool fall day when we made it, and as most soups are, it was great the next day as leftovers.  

Creamy Tomato and Shrimp Soup

Adapted from Food and Wine

1 T coconut oil
2 onions, chopped
2 green bell peppers, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
32 oz. can diced tomatoes
5 oz. can tomato paste
2 cups chicken stock
15 oz. can coconut milk (full fat)
2 lb. raw shrimp, thawed (we used medium, frozen, wild caught shrimp from Meijer)
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper (we didn't measure- just put in a bunch)
juice of 1/2 a lemon
1/2 c chopped fresh cilantro

In a large pot or dutch oven, heat the coconut oil over medium heat.  Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables start to soften and are fragrant, about 10-15 minutes.  Add the red pepper flakes, tomatoes, tomato paste, and chicken stock.  Let simmer for about 10 minutes.  Pour in the coconut milk, continuing to simmer for about 5 minutes.  Then add shrimp and cook for about 3-5 minutes more, or until shrimp are cooked through.  Just before serving, stir in the pepper, lemon juice, and cilantro.  Serve hot!  We ate it by itself but this would be delicious over rice or cauliflower rice.  

Mayonnaise!

I've been making homemade mayonnaise pretty regularly for quite a while now.  It is the perfect condiment to use as a salad dressing, on top of eggs, as a sauce for meat, as a dip for raw veggies, or as a dressing for chicken salad.

It wasn't HARD to make, but required a bit of patience to let the oil drip slowly into the egg as you mixed with the immersion blender.  I recently discovered a new recipe for homemade mayonnaise on The Healthy Foodie that has revolutionized my mayonnaise making!  You don't have to wait for an egg to come to room temperature.  You don't have to slowly drip the oil in.  Update your recipe file now to include this SUPER easy mayonnaise recipe!  The recipe calls for lemon/lime juice and light tasting olive oil, but I have subbed in equal amounts of apple cider vinegar (for the lemon/lime juice) and avocado oil (for the light olive oil) with equally delicious results.  If you haven't tried making your own mayonnaise, I encourage you to go for it!  You won't be disappointed!
Below are some mayonnaise flavors we regularly make and enjoy:

Roasted Red Pepper mayonnaise: after making the mayonnaise, add 4 jarred roasted red peppers, 2 cloves garlic and 1/2 tsp garlic powder.  Blend until peppers are completely blended into the mayonnaise.

Chipotle mayonnaise: after making the mayonnaise, add 4-5 adobo peppers (I use canned ones and rinse them before adding them to the mayonnaise).  Blend until peppers are completely blended into mayonnaise

Garlic and rosemary mayonnaise: after making the mayonnaise, add 1 T chopped fresh rosemary, 3 cloves fresh garlic, and 1/4 tsp coarse salt.  Blend until garlic is completely blended into mayonnaise.

Cilantro mayonnaise: Cilantro Mayonnaise

Curry mayonnaise: after making mayonnaise add (I use the curry mayonnaise in my Curry Chicken Salad) 3 T curry powder, 1 tsp ground ginger, 1/2 tsp garlic poweder, and 1/4 tsp each salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Blend until all spices are mixed in.

Paleo Fruit Pizza

My mom has always made THE BEST fruit pizza- you know, the kind with a chewy sugar cookie crust (my mom made hers with lot of butter and a secret ingredient-cream of tartar-which made it even better than using store bought cookie dough).  Needless to say, when I cut gluten and refined sugar out of my diet, traditional fruit pizza was out.  For a long time now I've thought about trying to make a paleo version of fruit pizza and with Rem's encouragement I finally got around to it!  The crust is a rich, crumbly short bread, spread with a thin layer of coconut frosting, then topped with cooked autumn fruit.  In the spirit of fall flavors, I added some cinnamon and cardamom to each component as well.  The remnants in this picture?  Yeh, that's all that was left after the day I made it.  Needless to say, this satisfied my craving for fruit pizza.  I have to say, my mom's is still the best, but this one comes in a close second!  Now Rem and I are playing a game of chicken, slowly stealing small bites since neither of us wants to be the one to eat the last piece.  I have a feeling it will disappear tonight...

Paleo Fruit Pizza

Crust:

½ c melted coconut oil

5 T maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla

Pinch salt

½ c coconut flour

¼ c arrowroot starch/powder

1 tsp each cinnamon and cardamom

Mix all ingredients with a fork.  Let sit 5 minutes or until slightly thickened.  Press into pie pan and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.  When it's done, the crust should be JUST beginning to brown around the edges.  Let crust cool, then frost and pour fruit on top. 

Frosting:

¼ c canned coconut milk

¼ c melted coconut butter (warm, but not hot)

1 T raw honey

1 tsp each cinnamon and cardamom

Beat with electric mixer until smooth.  Spread onto crust once it is cool.

Fruit Topping:

2 pears

4 plums

1 apple

1 T raw honey

1 tsp each cinnamon and cardamom

Chop fruit into small pieces and saute over medium heat in 1 T butter.  Add 1 T raw honey and cinnamon and cardamom while sauteing.  Cook until fruit is soft.  Let cool before pouring on crust.  

Tomato Basil Spaghetti Squash

I spent a long time trying to come up with a creative name for this recipe, but in the end I decided to just call it what it is.  Sometimes simple is better, right?  I combined some of the amazing produce from our CSA share this week to make this yummy dish that is refreshing yet filling.  

Tomato Basil Spaghetti Squash

1 large spaghetti squash, cooked and cooled (I recommend just making it a day ahead of time)
2 large tomatoes, chopped
1/2 c fresh basil, chopped 
2 cloves garlic, minced
freshly ground pepper (about 8 grinds)

In a large bowl, combine cooked and cooled spaghetti squash, tomatoes, basil, garlic, and pepper.  Before serving, add a sprinkle of sea salt.  Keeps in the refrigerator 1-2 days.  Serves 8 (large servings!)

Beef and Sauerkraut

Although sauerkraut is mostly known for it's role in the classic New Year's Day "Pork and Sauerkraut," it's too delicious not to include in other dishes at other times of the year. This easy meal is perfect for a weeknight when you don't have a lot of time to cook, or on the weekend when you want to cook up a BIG batch of food for the week.  In the latter case, just double the recipe and you'll be good to go!

Beef and Sauerkraut

2 lb. grass fed ground beef
1 onion, diced
salt
freshly ground pepper
1 lb. sauerkraut (from a jar, with cabbage and salt as the only ingredients)

Brown beef and onion in skillet until beef is cooked through.  Add sauerkraut and cook on medium high for about 10 minutes more, or until sauerkraut is hot.  Enjoy!  Yes, it's that easy!