Honey Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients

• 1 bag of small yams from Trader Joe’s (about 4 large yams from the grocery store if you don’t have a Trader Joe’s where you live)
• 2 tbls grassfed butter
• 1 tbls raw organic honey
• 1 tbls cinnamon

Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 350 line a cookie sheet with foil. Peel sweet potatoes and cut into cubes. Toss in melted grassfed butter honey and cinnamon. Spread them out evenly on the lined cookie sheet and roast in the oven for 25 minutes or until golden brown and tender

Holiday Brussels Sprouts – Everyday Paleo

Ingredients

·        3 tablespoons grass fed butter, ghee, or coconut oil

·        1/2 cup yellow onion, finely diced

·        1 lb Brussels sprouts, halved and then cut into strips

·        ½ cup walnuts, chopped

·        ½ cup dried unsweetened cherries, chopped

·        2 teaspoons raw organic honey

·        1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

·        1 tablespoon olive oil

·        salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1.      In a large skillet saute the onions in the the butter, ghee or coconut oil until they start to brown and carmelize.  

2.      Add the sliced Brussels sprouts and cook until the just become tender.

3.      Add the diced walnuts and cherries and cook for another minute or two and remove from heat.  

4.      In a small saucepan melt the honey, add the balsamic vinegar and olive oil and whisk together.

5.      Pour the dressing over the Brussels Sprouts and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serves 5-6.

Heirloom Tomato Salad - Weight Watcher

           Ingredients:

·                                  4 medium ripe tomatoes, sliced

·                                  1/4 cup red onion, chopped

·                                  2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

·                                  8 kalamata olives

·                                  fresh basil, sliced

·                                  kosher salt and fresh pepper

Instructions:
In a bowl combine onions, olive oil, salt and pepper. Let it marinate about 5-10 minutes. Slice the tomatoes and arrange on a plate. Pour olive oil and onions on top and season with additional salt and pepper. Top with fresh basil. Divide equally in 4 plates.

Grilled Harvest vegetables- Sharmaine

Ingredients:

• 1 small cabbage, cored
• 2 tbs olive oil
• ½-1 tsp onion powder, optional
• 1/8-1/4 tsp pepper
• 4 medium carrots cut in 1 inch pieces
• 1 small onion cut into wedges
• ½ pound whole fresh mushrooms
• 1 small green pepper, cut into pieces
• 4 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled, optional

Instructions:

Cut cabbage into 6 wedges, spread oil on cut sides.  Place cabbage on a piece of heavy-duty foil, about 24 by 18 inch.  Sprinkle with onion powder, if desired and pepper.  Arrange remaining vegetables and bacon around cabbage.  Seal the foil tightly.  Grill covered over medium-hot heat for 30 minutes or until vegetables are tender, turning occasionally

Grilled Corn, Avocado and Tomato Salad with Honey Lime Dressing

Ingredients:

• pint grape tomatoes cut in halves
• 1 ripe avocado, roughly chopped
• 2 ears of fresh sweet corn
• 2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped

Slice the tomatoes in half. Remove husks from corn and grill over medium heat for 10 minutes. The corn should have some brown spots and be tender and not mushy. Cut the corn off the cob then scrape the cob with the back of your knife to get the juices. Set aside and let cool. Dice the avocado and chop the cilantro.

Honey Lime Dressing:

• Juice of 1 lime
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp honey
• Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• Dash of cayenne pepper

Add all the dressing ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.

Combine the sliced tomatoes, avocado, cilantro and grilled corn and honey lime dressing and mix gently so everything is evenly coated. Be careful not to mash the avocados. Let the salad sit for 10-15 minutes to let flavors mingle. Enjoy

Good Greens

Ingredients

• 1 pound of bacon, diced
• 1 small red onion, sliced
• 2 cups sliced mushrooms
• 1 cup green beans, diced
• 2 bunches greens of your choice, finely diced (I used a huge bag of braising greens from my CSA which was a combo of kale, collards, and I think some turnip greens)
• 1 teaspoon rubbed sage
• Black pepper to taste

Instructions
In a large pan cook the bacon pieces and onion until the bacon starts to crisp.  Add the mushrooms and green beans and saute until the mushrooms are tender. Add the diced greens, sage and pepper and cook for another 3-4 minutes or until the greens are tender

Garlic Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients

• 5 cups sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
• 12 -15 whole cloves of garlic, peeled (cut the bigger ones in half lengthwise)
• 3 tablespoons coconut oil or bacon grease
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, minced
• Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions
Preheat oven to 400.  In a large mixing bowl, toss the sweet potatoes and garlic with the oil, cinnamon, thyme, salt and pepper.  Spread the potatoes evenly in a 9×13 baking dish. Bake for 35-40 minutes, stirring half way through the cooking time. Serves 5-6.

French Green Beans with Butter and Herbs Recipe

Use fresh herbs if available. If not, you can used dried, but use a quarter as much.

Ingredients

• 1 pound thin green beans (haricot vert), trimmed
• 1/4 cup red onion, chopped fine
• 3 Tbsp butter
• 2 Tbsp parsley, chopped fine
• 2 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves
• 2 Tbsp tarragon or basil, chopped fine
• 2 Tbsp chives, chopped fine
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Lemon wedges

Method

1 Bring a large pot of salty water to a boil. Prepare a large bowl of ice water. Boil the beans for 2 minutes. Plunge them into the ice water to stop the cooking and set the color. Drain the beans and pat dry on a cloth or paper towel.
2 Heat the butter over medium-high heat in a large sauté pan. Cook the onions until translucent, about 2-3 minutes.
3 Add the green beans and sauté for 2-3 minutes, stirring often.
4 Add all the herbs and some salt and pepper and toss to combine. Cook for 1 minute more.
Serve hot or at room temperature, with lemon wedges.
Yield: Serves 4.

Fragrant Indian-Spiced Greens

Ingredients:

•   1 pound fresh spinach
• 1 pound leafy greens (mustard greens, collards, or kale)
• 4 tablespoons coconut oil (refined for medium-high heat)
• 1/2 large white onion, thinly sliced
•  1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
•  2 green chili peppers, seeded and minced
• 1 cup chopped canned tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin seed
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• Sea salt to taste (optional if strictly Paleo) 
•  1 teaspoon garam masala 
• 1/4 cup water

Instructions 

Wash the spinach and greens well under cold running water. Spin them dry and chop them coarsely. Heat the oil over medium-high heat in dutch oven or large skillet with a tight-fitting lid. Add the onion to the hot oil and cook, stirring frequently, for 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic and chili peppers and stir-fry for a minute or two. Add the chopped tomatoes, ground ginger, salt (if using), and the garam masala, and cook, stirring frequently, until the tomato juices thicken a bit but have not evaporated. Turn the heat down to medium and add two handfuls of the spinach/greens mixture and stir well. When greens have wilted, add another handful of greens and stir and cook till wilted. Continue adding greens this way until they have all all been added. Add 1/4 cup of water, cover, and cook until the greens are tender. Serve warm.

Everyday Paleo “No Potato” Salad

Ingredients

• 2 heads of cauliflower
• 1 dozen eggs, hard-boiled and diced
• 1/2 a medium sized red onion, finely diced
• 6-8 celery stalks, finely diced
• A lot of dill pickles, diced
• About 1 1/2 cups of my Paleo Mayo with 2 tablespoons of dried dill and 1 teaspoon of crushed garlic added.
• About 1 teaspoon of yellow mustard
• Black pepper to taste

Cut the cauliflower into large florets. I used my pressure cooker to cook the cauliflower by placing the florets in the cooker, filling the cooker with about 4 inches of water, locking the lid, bringing to pressure and cooking for about 2 1/2 minutes. Remove from heat immediately and run the cooker under cold water to quickly bring down the pressure. Remove the lid and pour the cauliflower through a strainer and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process. You want the cauliflower to be soft but not mushy! If you do not have a pressure cooker, steam the cauliflower around 7-10 minutes, cooking until tender but not mushy. Rinse the steamed cauliflower under cold water to stop the cooking process. Drain the cauliflower well and pat dry with paper towels. Crumble the cauliflower into a large mixing bowl, add all of the remaining ingredients including the mayo, mustard, and pepper and mix well. Either eat right away or let chill for a couple of hours before serving. This salad was HUGE and could serve at least 15 people so cut the ingredients in half unless you are feeding a crowd or want a lot of leftovers.

Paleo Mayo

Secret for better tasting mayo, use just plain ol’ Olive Oil, not virgin or extra virgin.  If the bottle just says “Olive Oil” it will not have such a strong taste!

2 eggs

2 cups olive oil

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon yellow mustard

1 teaspoon sea salt

1/3 teaspoon cayenne pepper

In a blender, add the eggs, vinegar, and mustard and blend together well – leave the blender running and slowly slowly slowly drop by drop or very slow drizzle add the olive oil.  BE PATIENT!!  Do not dump all the oil in quickly and give up!!  When the mixture begins to emulsify or thicken, only then can you be a bit faster about pouring in the olive oil but still take your time.  Turn the blender off once all the olive oil is in and the mayonnaise is thickened to your desired consistency.  Add the salt and cayenne pepper and mix well or blend again for another few seconds.

Now for the fun part – variations!!!  Always wait until after your mayonnaise is thick before you add seasoning but here is when you can get creative.  Add dried of fresh dill, fresh basil, or cilantro, garlic and onion, hot sauce, or even curry powder to make your own spreads, sauces and dips for just about everything as mentioned earlier in the post. Now, watch my video to see the fun twist that I put on our homemade mayonnaise!