Paleo Chocolate Mug Cake

I crave crave CRAAAAAAAAVE sweets since I started on the Paleo diet. Most Paleo recipes I’ve tried taste like cardboard or worse. One thing I miss since going on the Paleo diet is CAAAAAAKE. Well, after many recipes tried and tweaked, I have found something to satisfy my sweet tooth. It’s chocolate, and quick and easy to make. 

Paleo Chocolate Mug Cake

Ingredients:

3 tbsp of almond meal, extra fine

3 tbsp of cocoa powder, sifted (I used extra dark)

2 tbsp of honey

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp of vanilla extract

Making the Mug Cake:

Put all ingredients in a 12 oz. mug. Mix well with a fork. Cook in the microwave on high for 1 minute and 30 seconds or 2 minutes, depending upon your microwave. Pull it out of the microwave and the cake should be firm on the top. Top with dark chocolate drizzle, strawberry or raspberry jam, or whipped coconut cream.

Zucchini Noodles with Paleo Alfredo Sauce

Even being Paleo, I can go back to my Italian roots and whip up something delicious. My Paleo Alfredo Sauce has become my new favorite way to eat Paleo “pasta”. Hope you guys enjoy it as much as I do.

Zucchini Noodles with Paleo Alfredo Sauce

INGREDIENTS:

• 1-2 zucchini, sliced on a mandoline, then cut into matchsticks or julienne using a peeler
• 1 head of cauliflower, cut into florets
• 8 cloves of garlic, minced
• ¼ cup butter, melted
• 4 cups chicken stock
• sea salt and white pepper, to taste
•  ½ cup romano or parmesan cheese

Making the Noodles:

1. Using a julienne peeler, peel the zucchini. It will turn them into angel hair like noodles. You can use a mandoline and slice the zucchini on thin slice, but make sure you slice thinly for a spaghetti like noodle.
2. Put them into a microwaveable dish. Cover and cook for 2 minutes.
3. Drain the zucchini!!!! It’s a must. Zucchini are watery veggies and I usually have to drain them twice.

Making the Sauce:

1. Melt butter in a skillet over medium low heat.
2. Add the garlic cloves to the skillet and cook for 2 minutes or until
   softened and fragrant.
3. Put the cauliflower florets and chicken stock in a large pot. Bring to a boil.
4. Reduce heat, cover and let cook for 10-15 minutes or until tender.
5. Once the cauliflower is tender, do not drain the chicken stock. Instead, transfer
   the cauliflower to a food processor or you can use an immersion blender to blend.
6. Process for a few minutes until sauce is completely smooth and creamy.
7. Put back into the pot if the sauce seems runny, and cook on low until thick.
8. Add the grated cheese at the very last moment and stir into the sauce.
9. Serve over zucchini noodles or spaghetti squash.

Paleo Roasted Tomato Sauce

Here’s one of my go-to spaghetti sauces! You can make it fresh with tomatoes from your garden!

Roasted Tomato Sauce

(adapted from Martha Stewart)

Ingredients:

• 8 or 9 tomatoes (I used whatever was in my garden, plum, Early Girls, etc)
• 1 medium onion, sliced into wedges
• 1 carrot, sliced into 1/4 inch pieces
• 1 red pepper, cut into chunks
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 tsp of italian seasoning
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Coarse salt and ground pepper

Making The Sauce:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Cut tomatoes in half; transfer to one large (or two smaller) rimmed baking sheet; add onion, carrots, pepper, garlic, and Italian seasoning.
2. Toss tomato mixture with oil; season generously with salt and pepper. Spread in a single layer. Roast until tender, 45 minutes to 1 hour.
3. Transfer mixture (including juices) to a blender or use an immersion blender; pulse several times, until chunky.
4. Serve with zucchini noodles or spaghetti squash. I bought an amazing julienne peeler from Martha Stewart. It works wonders!!!!!!

Best Roasted Beet Salad EVERRRRRR

My beets in the garden are growing in abundance!!! I decided to make a salad worthy of these gorgeous beets from the garden!!!! Enjoy!

Roasted Beet Salad

3 to 4 medium red beets, quartered

10-15 radishes, halved

2 small red onion, quartered

1 carton of cremini mushrooms

3 tbsp of olive oil

1 tbsp salt

1 tbsp of fresh ground black pepper

lemon wedges, for squeezing

Make da salad:

Preheat oven for 425 degrees. Combine all the veggies together in a bowl. Add salt, pepper, and oil and toss veggies. Put them flat on a sheet tray to roast for 30-40 minutes until veggies start to brown. Take out of the oven and let sit for 10 minutes to cool. Serve warm with a squeeze of lemon juice on top.

Muah! delicious.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Carrots, and Jalapenos with Cajun Spices

So it’s been a while, I know … But a lot of things are happening for me. I was on an amazing trip for my spring break for more than a week traveling to New York City and Baltimore. I’m also approaching my graduation in my Masters program and a possible life-changing move out my small town! Hallelujah!

Anyways, I’m craving something spicy. So I decided to make this vegetable dish and it turned out amazing! Salty, spicy, and sweet… i mean what else could you want!

Here’s the recipe:

Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Carrots, and Jalapenos with Cajun Spices

Cajun Spice Blend:

2 tsp sea salt

2 tsp garlic powder

2 1/2 Hungarian hot paprika (you could use smoked or regular, whatever you have)

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 to 1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried thyme

Blend all the spices together with fork. Put in mason jar or plastic container to keep fresh. Makes about 1/4 cup.

Roasted Vegetables:

2 jalapenos, sliced in half (i kept the seeds in, but you can remove if they too hot)

2 medium sweet potatoes, cut into wedges

2 large carrots, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces on a diagonal

2 tbsp of garlic oil

Cajun seasoning

Making Da Veg:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Combine all veggies, spices, and garlic oil in a bowl and toss. Put spiced vegetables on a sheet pan (make sure all the veggies are flat on the pan). Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until veggies are brown.

Whoa! That’s some spicy deliciousness righhhhht therrrr!

DAY 12: MY PROGRESS WITH PALEO SO FARRRRRR…

It’s been 12 days. 12 grueling days of being on the paleo diet… maybe not so grueling. Actually it’s been rewarding. I have realized that things are definitely changing with my body due to this paleo lifestyle.

1. Energy, energy, ENERGY! It’s ridiculous how much energy I have these days! Before changing to the paleo diet, I always felt sluggish (sluggish may be too nice of a word), no I felt freaking EXHAUSTED! And I began over-compensating my exhaustion by drinking crazy amounts of coffee and tea , like 3-4 cups, to get through the day! Now, after almost two weeks on this diet, I can honestly say I drink about one cup per day (and sometimes none at all)! I wake up feeling refreshed and ready to start the day! Paleo is almost magical riiiiight nah!

2. My mind is CLEAR! My thoughts aren’t jumbled together anymore! I constantly felt like my thoughts were cloudy. It was hard to come to conclusions, formalize my thoughts, and make sense of things frequently. And I’m a graduate student in college, for Christ’s sakes! Due to paleo,  I have been able to do focus better, engage with others better, and provide meaningful input to others.

3. My sleep has improved EMMENSELY! I am not having a hard time falling asleep anymore. I am not waking up every hour on the hour wide awake. I am sleeping 7-8 hours a night and feeling amazing!

4. My body is becoming leaner! I never realized the amount our bodies bloat after eating gluten-laced foods. Since day 1, without eating gluten, I have officially lost 6 pounds. ANNNNND I am noticing that my stomach is as flat as can be! HELL YES! AH-MAH-ZING! Oh, and I should tell you that this is happening with minimal exercising going on here!

So that’s my progress so far. I am firmly believing that the paleo diet has been the cause of much of this change going on right now. I’m a 30 year old girl who weighs 128 lbs (right picture). I’m officially less than what I weighed in high school (left picture). Yes,  that’s right folks, I said HIGH SCHOOL. AMAZING!

DAY 2: SPICES, SPICES, AND MO’ SPICES

OK, so I know I am working backwards, but I am quickly realizing how important spice blends can be to make a dish go from zero to oh my god that’s f’in delicious. Since we can use spices like they’re going outta style on the caveman diet, Imma share a couple spice blends that I made up and are my “go to’s” for both paleo and non-paleo folk alike.

My Special Spice Blend

2 tbsp sea salt

1 tbsp of garlic powder

1 tsp of freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp dried rosemary

1 tsp of fresh lemon peel

1/2 tsp ground ginger

Put it in a salt shaker, Mason jar, or Ziploc bag and shake the hell out of it. It’s great on chicken, pork, and any type of fish. It’s ah-mah-zing. Period.

Barbeque Rub

3 tbsp of paprika

2 tsp of garlic powder

2 tsp of onion powder

2 tsp of sea salt

1 tsp of fresh cracked pepper

1 tsp of crushed red pepper (optional, if you want it spicy or you’re like me and dump half the bottle in there)

1 tsp of mustard powder

1 tsp of cayenne pepper

1 tsp of celery seed

1/8 0f a cup of coconut sugar

Put all the ingredients in a jar and in the words of the most influential rappers of all time, the Ying Yang Twins, “shake it like a salt shaker”. Trust me you’ll get rave reviews.

Curry Rub

3 tbsp of curry powder

1 tbsp of garam masala (if you don’t have that I mixed pumpkin pie spice with little bit of black pepper, and BOOM! garam masala)

1 tsp of garlic powder

1tsp of onion powder

1tsp of sea salt

1/2 of fresh black pepper

Pinch of coconut sugar

Put all the ingredients in a container and SHAKE IT UP. DONE. Easy peas-y, Japanese-y.

THREE SPICE BLENDS DONE-ZO. And it took no time at all! Hope ya’ll like these, I know they never stay too long in my house.

Happy cooking!

The “Paleo Challenge” (Possibly the Best or Worst Mistake I Ever Made)

OHHHHH…..Where do I begin???? Well it all started with the phrase “Let’s make it a challenge”. My gal pal, Patty, said this when she suggested that BOTH of us move toward a paleo lifestyle. Ummm… needless to say, I was reluctant because 1) I never knew anything about the paleo diet AND 2) just by her description alone of the foods we could eat, I thought to myself  “oh, hellllll nah”! Now, I’m an Italian girl who loves her pasta, potatoes, bread, and pizza (aka my potential downfall) and finding out that I have to give all of this up may be the hardest thing I could do.  But, I am motivated and really trying to get healthy. Sooooooo, the challenge: 30 days on the paleo diet in hopes of adopting this lifestyle or die tryin’. No cheating! HERE WE GO!