Lamb Meatballs

First, I have to give credit where credit is due.  Primal Blueprint Quick & Easy Meals is probably my go-to cookbook when I'm feeling uninspired or am lacking on ideas for food prep.  It truly is quick and easy, and every single recipe I've made has been a winner.

When I was at the store last week I picked up some ground lamb on sale (yes, cheap meat!) and set out to make the lamb meatballs that can be found on page 179 of the cookbook.  I was lacking an item or two (pine nuts and something else) so I decided to improvise a bit and make a few additions/substitutions.  My recipe is below.

• 1 1/4 pound ground lam
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 2 tablespoons grated romano cheese (parmesan would work fine if you have that)

Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix until combined.  Using a cookie dough scoop, or whatever you have (my scoop is a little over a tablespoon, I think), form meatballs.

In a large skillet over medium heat, melt1 tablespoon of your choice of fat/oil (I used some bacon grease, man that is one of my favorite smells ;)  Add the meatballs and cook for 2 minutes, then flip and cook for another 2 minutes.  Cover and turn heat to medium low for 10-12 minutes or until the meat is no longer pink in the middle.

The result?  Tasty!  They were a little heavy on the cumin, even with the extra meat (the original recipe calls for 1 pound of ground lamb, but my package was a little over so I used it all), and I got 18 meatballs instead of the dozen that the original recipe called for.  These will make a great emergency protein snack.

Green beans with caramelized onions and bacon

Super quick and super easy side dish alert!

I'm having dinner tonight with two girlfriends, we've started monthly paleo dinners and it's really nice to have other people who eat how I do, so we can get together, eat some healthy, delicious food and catch up with each other :)  Juliana is hosting tonight so I threw together a side.

• 1 bag frozen (or fresh if you've got them) green beans.  I bought the frozen french cut green beans, they just look a little fancier ;)
• 1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 4 strips of bacon
• Salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet over medium heat fry up your bacon.  When it's finished removed and put on a paper towel to absorb grease.  

Turn the skillet down to medium low and add the garlic and onions and saute until the onions start to caramelize (and your kitchen smells completely delicious)

Add the green beans and stir to combine everything.  You can use the beans straight out of the freezer, or you can let the beans thaw in the bag and drain the excess liquid.  I did an in between and there was some water in the pan, so if you have that problem, then just let it simmer until it's absorbed.

Meanwhile, turn your broiler on to high.

When the beans are almost finished, toss in the bacon (that you have no doubt crumbled while you were waiting for the onions to caramelize).  Then, wrapping the skillet handle in foil if it's not oven/broiler safe, stick under the broiler for 5-10 minutes or until the beans get crispy and slightly browned.

Season with salt and pepper.

Zucchini Fries

Hello world!  I'm alive and well, just been using a lot of cookbooks/old recipes/food not worth mentioning which is why I haven't posted much lately.

Today though, I have a new treat....Zucchini fries!

My apologies in advance, I kind of threw this together and as usual, didn't measure, but this is something that you can alter based on how much you are making.  And a helpful step if you have the time is after you slice the zucchini, wrap it in paper towel and let it sit for a couple of hours to draw out some of the moisture (although who knows, maybe they will be crispier if you don't let them dry out??).

Anyway, you will need:

• Zucchini
• Egg
• Almond meal
• Cayenne pepper (optional)
• Garlic powder
• Onion powder
• Salt
• Pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine the almond meal and spices in one dish and whisk an egg in another.  Dip thinly sliced zucchini in the egg then dredge through the almond meal mix.  You want just a light coating on these, too much and we all know how almond meal tastes when its caked on (gross).  

Arrange the zucchini strips on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 20-30 minutes, flipping zucchini over halfway through.

I baked mine for 10 minutes on each side, and I probably could have baked them just a little bit longer, but the coating was starting to get crisp, and I definitely tasted the flavor of the seasoning (if I had to guess, I'd say I used 1/2-3/4C of almond meal and maybe 1/2-1 teaspoon of garlic powder and onion powder and 1/4-1/2 of cayenne...I really need to get better about measuring).

Serve with your side of dipping sauce (I whisked together a couple of tablespoons of olive oil mayo with a little bit of lemon juice, super tasty!).

I had two small zucchini that I made up as a test and I ended up eating the entire dish, oops!

Super rich, chocolately paleo pudding

I was talking to Hillary, my CrossFit coach this morning and she told me about the pudding she recently made with avocados in it.

I know what you're thinking.  Avocados?  In pudding?

However, I've seen several variations of recipes floating around the web for this, and since I had 1.5 avocados (the other half was put in a smoothie this morning) that were destined for the trash the next day because they were so ripe, I set out in search of a solution.

Here is the link to the original recipe, my variation is below.

• 1-2 ripe avocados.  Like, super ripe, skin is black and a little mushy and you are contemplating throwing them out because you didn't use them in time.
• 2-3T dark chocolate cocoa powder
• 2-3T honey (depending on your level of sweetness)
• Dash of vanilla extract
• 1/4-1/2C of coconut milk

In a food processor, combine the avocados, cocoa powder, honey and vanilla and blend until smooth.  Gradually add in coconut milk until your level of desired consistency is met.  I probably added a little over 1/4 cup, and it came out nice and thick and creamy.

This is a very rich pudding, so a little will go along way if you are craving something chocolate :)  Also, it is so thick that it makes a great dip for fruit!

Goat cheese stuffed mushroom

OMG, LOVE!  2 of my favorite things (mushrooms and goat cheese) together as one.

• 1 large portabello mushroom cap, stem and gills removed
• Goat cheese

• In the cap of the mushroom, spread some goat cheese and stick under the broiler until the top is browned.  Remove from broiler and put in a skillet over medium heat and cover for 5 or so minutes (until the mushroom is tender)

Salmon Hash

So I'm not the biggest fan of salmon, so what did I do?  Bought a piece of salmon.  Yeah, I know, I don't make much sense.

Last night I seasoned it with some lemon pepper seasoning, cooked the salmon up in my cast iron pan, and took a bite and realized "nope, I don't like this".  But I wasn't about to waste it and thought about giving it to Charlie this morning so he'd have a super treat with his dog food, but this morning came up with a better idea.  Originally it was going to be an egg/salmon/turnip scramble, but I had other ideas.

In a small skillet, melt some bacon grease (or your fat of choice) and add a couple of handfuls of grated turnips (you know, out of the bowl of grated turnips you've had sitting in the fridge for a few days that you haven't gotten around to eating yet....or if you are using fresh, make sure you squeeze the excess liquid out of it).  Saute those for several minutes until they start to brown, then add in some salmon and a drizzle of EVOO and stir until it's heated.  Season with salt and pepper.

The result?  Pretty damn tasty!  And since I have salmon and a bunch of turnips left, I think I'll be eating this for a couple of days.  You could also make a bigger batch and just reheat as needed (which I will probably be doing for some quick post workout meals).

Chicken with sundried tomatoes, olives and mushrooms

The other night I was supposed to have a Skpe dinner date with my primal eating buddy, Sarah, but work interfered and our dinner was postponed.  So this afternoon, after realizing I didn't have anything for lunch, I thought this was a perfect opportunity to make it.  The original recipe can be found here, my adaptation is below.

• 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half
• 1/4-1/2 cup of sundried tomatoes, sliced thinly (I have a giant jar of marinated tomatoes from Costco, I just counted out 20 and used the liquid that came off of it as well)
• 1/4 cup of sliced mushrooms
• 1/4 cup of olives, sliced in half (I used pitted kalamata olives)
• 6 cloves of garlic, sliced thin
• Extra virgin olive oil
• 1T dried basil
• 1T dried parsley
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375.

In a large baking dish (my big rectangular Pyrex dish fit the chicken perfectly) arrange the chicken.  Season with EVOO, salt, pepper, basil and parsley on both sides.  Top with the garlic slices and spread an even layer of the tomatoes, mushrooms and olives.

Cover the dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked thoroughly.

Serves 4-6

UPDATE:  Okay, so I just enjoyed a piece, and while it was pretty tasty, I feel like it was lacking a little flavor.  If you've got some artichoke hearts on hand, definitely toss those in the mix too.