Paleo Honey and Cranberry Cookies

I actually had an -unnamed and anonymous- reader ask why I hadn't posted a dessert recipe for a couple of weeks. I think it's hilarious that I have become the paleo dessert queen, when the point of this blog was originally to post healthy recipes. I pretty consistently paleo bake, I've just been living on dark chocolate and almonds the past few weeks. I try to give the people what they want though, so here is my latest cookie recipe. These are really great dipped in almond milk :-)

Paleo Honey and Cranberry Cookies:

Ingredients:

• 2 cups almond flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 6 tablespoons creamy almond butter
• 1/4 cup raw organic honey
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup Enjoy Life Chips

Mix almond flour, baking soda, and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, mix almond butter, honey, extract and water. Incorporate both wet and dry ingredients, then fold in dried cranberries and chocolate chips. I made about 16 cookies with this recipe, dropping them onto the baking sheet in rounded 1 1/2 tablespoons.  Don't leave them in balls, smash them down a little so they will bake all the way through. Bake on a foil lined baking sheet 8-10 minutes, then let cool completely and store in fridge.

Spinach and Bacon Stuffed Chicken Breast

I really like shoving stuff in chicken. Sauces and marinades get so boring after awhile, stuffing chicken opens up a world of culinary opportunity. Given that the theme of this blog has quickly gone from being about almond butter to being about bacon, I figured bacon was an appropriate ingredient for chicken stuffing. These are super yummy, enjoy!

Spinach and Bacon Stuffed Chicken Breast:

Ingredients:

• 3 chicken breasts
• 6 pieces of bacon
• 2 cups spinach
• salt and pepper
• olive oil

Cook bacon in skillet. When bacon is done, remove from skillet then cook spinach in bacon grease for about 30 seconds- just enough to soften it a little. Chop bacon. Make a slit in chicken breasts lengthwise (if you don't know how to cut chicken breasts for stuffing, google it). Season chicken on both sides with salt and pepper.  Stuff bacon and spinach into chicken, holding together with toothpicks if necessary. Grease the bottom of a baking dish with olive oil and bake for 35 minutes at 350 degrees.

Paleo Fish Tacos

I have to do some non-paleo baking this afternoon for a work event tonight (and because my partner is deprived of chocolate and refined sugar). I have a hard time refraining from tasting while I bake, so I needed a protein packed (and delicious) lunch to have before I take out the sugar and flour.  These fish tacos definitely did the trick, and they only took about half an hour to throw together!

Paleo Fish Tacos:

Ingredients:

• 2 white fish fillets
• 2 tablespoons garlic
• 2 tablespoons ghee or grass fed butter
• squeeze of lemon
• 1 avocado
• 1 small green pepper
• 1 small yellow pepper
• olive oil
• 1/2 sweet onion
• Lettuce for wrapping
• salt and pepper
• Cilantro and lime juice (optional, but a yummy addition)

Start by preparing two large rectangles of aluminum foil (big enough to wrap each fillet in). Place each fillet in the middle of one piece of foil.  Season with salt and pepper, squeeze lemon juice over each fillet, then rub 1 tablespoon of garlic on each. Cut your butter into 1 tablespoon pieces and place 1 tablespoon in the middle of each fillet (if you are using lime juice and cilantro also add to the fillet before wrapping in foil). Wrap foil around each, making a pocket for the fillet so none of the juices run out, then place on a baking sheet and cook for 25 minutes at 350 degrees on the bottom shelf.

While the fillets are cooking, saute peppers and onion in a skillet with olive oil and prepare lettuce on a plate. Chop avocado and add them into the skillet with peppers once the peppers are done cooking (only cook avocado about 30 seconds, enough for them to get warm). Once the fillets are done, take a fork and mash or shred the fish, then place on lettuce. Add avocado and peppers- voila!

Paleo(ish) Latte

So... I totally Paleo cheat. I would say most weeks I keep myself pretty close to 90/10- except Starbucks is literally two blocks away AND they have a drive thru (because after a million squats at 6 a.m. who wants to get out of their car if they don't have to?!) I realized I needed a healthier solution to my latte addiction, so I did some research, asked a few long-time paleoers, did some deep reflection whilst meditating (not really, but it sounds good) and finally came up with this.. taaadaa!

Paleo(ish) Latte:

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups of your favorite brew
• 3 tablespoons heavy grass fed pastured cream
• 1 tablespoon organic pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 tablespoons raw organic honey

Put cream in the blender (or Magic Bullet) and blend about 2 minutes until the cream becomes a little foamy. Add vanilla extract and honey to hot coffee, then pour cream on top. YUM.  Add unsweetened cocoa or a piece of melted dark chocolate for a mocha replacement :-)

Skillet Sweet Potato Fries

I ate these last night and then was really slow in CrossFit today. I have no idea if there is a correlation, but I thought I should warn you. I'm pretty sure carbs like sweet potatoes are supposed to be consumed right after a tough WOD, but I really like them after a tough day at work. I'm on the hunt for a good ketchup alternative if anyone has a good recipe!

Skillet Sweet Potato Fries:

Ingredients:

• 1 large sweet potato
• coarsely ground sea salt
• pepper (rainbow peppercorns from TJ's are AMAZING)
• 2-4 tablespoons coconut oil

Cut your sweet potatoes into the size desirable. Heat coconut oil in high heat skillet. Once the oil is hot, throw the fries in and cook about a minute, turn fries over and cook another minute. Turn heat down to medium-high and add salt and pepper. Cook another 4-5 minutes on each side depending on how crispy you want them.

Avocado Meatballs

So there is this term, "kitchen sink" that all the other cool Paleo recipe blogger kids use to describe a meal that has been thrown together from leftover ingredients in the fridge. I guess technically these are kitchen sink meatballs, but I associate my kitchen sink with germs (that's where you wash your meat, and your hands, ew) so I just can't call them that.

Avocado Meatballs:

Ingredients:

• 1 lb grass fed ground beef
• 1 - 1 1/2 ripe avocado
• 10 oz chopped mushrooms
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons almond or coconut flour
• salt and pepper

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl (your hands are your best mixing tool in this instance), then form 12-15 meatballs. I broiled mine, about 8 minutes on each side and flipped on the 8 minute mark. You could also cook in the skillet in coconut oil. 

*Flipping the meatballs is actually easier with a large spoon than a spatula :-) Happy cooking!

Chicken Thighs with Coconut Ginger Mushroom Sauce

I know what you're thinking "she posted a recipe without bacon?!" It turns out I do eat other meats (and vegetables), proof is in the picture- I ate everything on this plate and it was delicious :-)

Chicken Thighs with Coconut Ginger Mushroom Sauce:

Ingredients:

• 1 lb chicken thighs
• 1 sweet onion
• 10 oz chopped mushrooms
• 1 can coconut milk
• 3 tablespoons chopped garlic
• 3 tablespoons ginger
• salt and pepper
• coconut oil
• olive oil
• pinch of arrowroot powder (optional, this is a starch, not totally Paleo)

Prepare one high sided skillet for the sauce and another for cooking the chicken thighs. Cook chicken thighs in coconut oil. Meanwhile, prepare sauce: saute onion and garlic in olive oil. Add coconut milk and turn heat to medium-low. Add ginger, salt, and pepper. Cook about 10 minutes, add arrowroot powder to thicken sauce if you choose to use it. Then add cooked chicken thighs to sauce and cook another 5-8 minutes.

Egg Cups (and a few words on Paleo Faileos)

Someone was asking me not long ago how I manage to make every one of my recipes perfect the first time. Quite honestly I'm flattered by the misconception, but I figured I should come clean just in case I get really famous one day and am forced to cook something new on national television. I mess up all the time. Like sometimes they are big mess-ups that end up in the trash. The more I cook the less that happens- I made it a good five weeks and then this happened:

They don't look awful, but the bacon was undercooked and the egg should have cooked for a shorter time period. HOLY PALEO FAILEO BATMAN. Anyone who claims that cooking doesn't require critical thinking is sadly mistaken.






So, in the spirit of paleo faileos, I thought I would share how I learned from my mistakes and made the recipe a million times better (and edible, since undercooked bacon is actually kind of scary, despite what the cavemen might have claimed). The problem with this recipe was that the egg needed less cooking time, and the bacon needed more. The runny egg also didn't last long within the bacon mold after I took this picture. So, here's what I did:

You were probably thinking I would give up on the bacon and use something naturally round like an avocado. Not so, I don't give up on bacon. I wrapped my bacon like this in the muffin tin and cooked it for 10 minutes before adding the egg. Who has critical thinking NOW, booya! The moral of the story? Never give up on yourself, or bacon. Here is the final product:




Paleo Egg Cups:

Ingredients:

• 8 pieces of bacon
• 6 eggs
• 1/2 avocado
• 3/4 cup mushrooms
• salt and pepper

Wrap bacon as shown above and cook at 350 degrees for ten minutes. In the meantime, whisk eggs and chop mushrooms and avocado. Mix and add salt and pepper. Pour into bacon cups, place muffin tin on a cookie sheet (so bacon grease doesn't drip onto your oven) then bake an additional 17-20 minutes. Let cool, then scoop out with a large spoon. 

Paleo Chocolate Chip Pancakes

In the spirit of cutting back on Paleo baked goods and eating less chocolate I made chocolate chip pancakes last night for dinner. In my defense, I only ate two even though I totally could have eaten four :-)

Paleo Chocolate Chip Pancakes:

Ingredients:

• 2 bananas
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 tsp pure almond extract
• 2/3 cup coconut milk
• 2 cups almond flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
• 1 tsp cinnamon or nutmeg
• 1/2 -3/4 cup Enjoy Life Chips
• coconut oil

Pulse bananas, extracts, eggs, and coconut milk in food processor. Add in dry ingredients. Fold in chocolate chips. Cook over medium-high heat in coconut oil (about a tablespoon per batch in the skillet).  Flip when pancakes start to bubble.

Paleo Chicken Strips

These chicken strips were so easy a caveman could do it (hahaha, does that ever get old?). These were also picky partner approved so you should be safe to serve them to your children or non-paleo friends and family members without anyone knowing the difference. 

Paleo Chicken Strips:

Ingredients:

• 1 lb chicken strips or chicken breasts cut into strips
• 4 tablespoons coconut oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups almond flour
• salt and pepper

Cut chicken into strips, if necessary. Beat eggs in a bowl. In a shallow dish mix salt, pepper, and almond flour. Heat skillet on medium-high heat and melt coconut oil. Dip chicken strips in egg, covering completely then dredge in almond flour mixture. Fry in coconut oil, flipping every minute so they don't get burnt. 

Spinach, Apple, Bacon Scramble

Last week at work someone stole my lunch. STOLE MY LUNCH. Can you believe that? Luckily one of my interns had an extra piece of fruit and I keep baggies of almonds in my purse, car, desk drawer, night stand, you know, all the usual places. Anyway, the next day I threw together this scramble because bacon and apple makes everything better.

Spinach, Apple, Bacon, Scramble:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup spinach
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 apple
• 3 pieces bacon

Scramble eggs until soft then add spinach. Cook on very low heat until eggs are done and spinach is soft. Add (cooked) bacon and apple to the skillet and continue to cook until all ingredients are warm.

Kale and Cherry Shake

I've increasingly become aware that I probably consume way too much fruit (and bacon, but I'm not sure how to fix that). As I focus more on how my body feels during my workouts and how well I sleep, fruit consumption seems to be directly related. After a little research (the internet knows all) my suspicions were validated. In an effort to cut back, I've been replacing half of the fruit in each of my morning shakes with a serving or two of vegetables. This shake was particularly amazing so I thought I would share!

Kale and Cherry Shake:

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup frozen cherries
• 1 cup kale
• 1/2 avocado
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon almond butter
• 1/4 cup water 

Boil the kale (without stems) until soft. Blend all ingredients together. 

Integrating Mindfulness into Your Next WOD.

"Mindfulness means being in the present moment on purpose and non- judgmentally." As a therapist, I say these words regularly (to my clients and to myself). I integrate some form of mindfulness into my clinical practice on a daily basis; facilitating healing through creative and holistic means has always been of great value to me. Mindfulness practice has become a regular element of my emotional survival working with victims of violence and abuse as well as a necessary element in the enhancement of my personal health. When I started eating within a primal framework, I was surprised by the lack of discussion around mindfulness- primal eating is based on the principle of simplicity and awareness (we eat simply- meat, veggies, nuts, and fruit and we are aware of where our food comes from). Mindfulness is also based on these principles 1. when we can simplify our external lives we are able to enhance our intrinsic experience and 2. growth of awareness can facilitate health and happiness. So what does this have to do with your next WOD? I'm getting there.

I started primal eating a few months before I began CrossFit. Going Paleo was (unbeknownst to me at the time) actually a huge step forward in integrating mindfulness into one more aspect of my life. Eating for fuel was not only a relief because I didn't have to count calories anymore, but I began to connect the food being put in my body with how I was actually feeling. Gluten made my gut hurt, dairy made my brain fuzzy, and don't even get me started on refined sugar. Once I became aware of the connection between the food going into my body and the way I felt after, primal eating was no longer restrictive, it was freeing. As I've gone through the last few months, the cognitive ability to continue to grow in awareness in this way has been the hand pulling me back up when I almost fall off the Paleo wagon.

Last week in CrossFit, I realized that a similar concept applies to performing the WOD. CrossFit isn't easy, it's physically and mentally strenuous and the movements aren't easy to learn. After a month and a half of regular WODS, I just figured out last week how to deadlift 80 pounds so that my lower back doesn't hurt afterwards. While we have fantastic trainers who give great direction, I couldn't have accomplished that without the awareness of my own body in the present moment. In many ways, CrossFit demands mindfulness- when was the last time you were in the middle of a tough WOD and were thinking about anything aside from the present moment? The focus that it takes to correctly perform the tasks associated with CrossFit requires you to be present in the moment and in your own body.  This constant awareness of movement will eventually lead to constant awareness of action. Executing every movement with a focused and present intent to succeed is the only way to survive.

Just like the deadlift, mindfulness takes practice. Awareness is not an easy thing to come by, and just like any other skill mindfulness takes time and energy to truly develop. Taking a few moments every day to focus inward, focus on your breath, focus on how your food tastes, or clearing your mind through meditation, yoga, or a progressive muscle relaxation will make your next WOD that much easier (okay okay, not easier, but it might suck less). I realize that asking a CrossFitter to sit still for moments that are seemingly unproductive is a tall order, but the long-term benefits of mindfulness are not only good for keeping you on the Paleo wagon and getting you through the next WOD, a growing awareness of yourself and your body will have a long-term positive impact on your overall health and happiness.

Easy Paleo Brownies

I couldn't post three healthy dinner recipes without giving you a sweet high-calorie inspiration :-) I have such a sweet tooth, and can't stay away from Paleo baking despite some of my frustrations with the ingredients. A couple readers have also shared their frustrations with the difficulty of Paleo baking- the ingredients are really finicky. Here is the easiest brownie recipe I have come up with. I swear you just have to mix the ingredients and bake.

Easy Paleo Brownies:

Ingredients:

• 1 bar or 3.5 oz Lindt dark chocolate
• 1 cup almond butter
• 3/4 cup almond flour
• 3 tablespoons raw organic honey
• 2 eggs
• 4 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon vanilla

Melt chocolate over medium-low heat. Mix all ingredients until incorporated. Bake at 320 degrees for 20-25 minutes in a parchment lined baking dish.

Steak and Cucumber Salad

As the spring/summer season approaches, prepare yourself for an increase in (creative and/or weird) salad ideas. Last summer I tried every combination of meat, fruit, and vegetable and I intend to do the same this summer- with the addition of nuts since my new primal eating habits have opened them up as another protein option. I feel like every steak house in town probably has some version of this salad, but here is my primal ingredient combination. A little balsamic and olive oil make a perfect dressing.

Steak and Cucumber Salad:

Ingredients:

• 8 oz steak or beef tips
• 1/2 -3/4 cup cucumber
• 3 cups spinach
• handful macadamia nuts

Broil or grill steak and combine with other ingredients. Yum!

Pear and Onion Reduction- Pork Chops

Since my cherry balsamic reduction with kale last week, I've been brainstorming similar ingredient combinations that would provide light sauce reductions. The pear and onion married perfectly and was great with pork. I was surprised by the liquid reduction that came out of the pears, I actually poured it over green beans- because I will do anything to sweeten vegetables :-) 

P.S. The picture doesn't do this recipe justice, I slacked a little on my photography because I was so excited to eat it.

Pear and Onion Reduction- Pork Chops:

Ingredients:

• 1 lb pork chops
• 3 pears
• 1 onion
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon raw organic honey
• 2 tablespoons organic maple syrup

Cook pork chops by broiling on foil lined baking sheet or frying in coconut oil. Chop pears and onion and mix with olive oil, honey, and maple syrup. Cover and cook 5-7 minutes, then add pork chops and cover and cook another 5-10 minutes. 

Chicken Legs in Pineapple Ginger Marinade

Last weekend I had the rare opportunity to be with all of immediate family members in the same place (my apartment!) As a hostess during this rare occurrence, my goal was to fix meals that would feed all of us easily but take little preparation and cooking time. These were perfect, everyone loved them and the short prep left plenty of time for visiting a dog museum in Saint Charles and wandering around the Botanical Gardens with my lovely family!

Chicken Legs in Pineapple Ginger Marinade:

Ingredients:

• 6 chicken legs
• 2 cups pineapple
• 1/8 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup honey
• 4 tsp ginger

Place pineapple in food processor and pulse until pineapple has been shredded. Mix with honey, olive oil, and ginger. Marinade chicken breasts over night, then bake with all of marinade at 350 for 30 minutes.

Sweet Potato Cakes with Fried Egg

When I say sweet potato cakes with fried egg, what I really mean is extremely delicious recipe that I may or may not have eaten for breakfast and lunch one day this week :-D YUM. These are so good. I added bacon (of course) because if anyone is going to take a healthy eating framework like primal eating and figure out a way to make it as unhealthy as possible it will be me, and I generally will do so by means of bacon. In all seriousness, these actually aren't that awful for you if you've just done a tough WOD or gone for a long distance run- enjoy wisely.

Sweet Potato Cakes with Fried Egg:

Ingredients:

• 1 sweet potato
• 1 apple
• 1 egg
• Coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons coconut flour
• egg (or two) or frying

Shred sweet potato (without skin) and apple (with skin) either with a cheese grater or in food processor. Mix with egg and coconut flour. Plop into medium-heat skillet greased with coconut oil 1/4 cup at a time. Flip after about 30 seconds. Fry your egg in coconut oil while cakes are cooling. 

Chicken with Cherry Balsamic Reduction

I used to be scared of balsamic vinegar, it smells so pungent and that alone had me convinced it would over-power anything I put it in. NOT true! I was inspired to try a cherry reduction by a dish Elana posted on Elana's Pantry, I made a few alterations to meet my needs and it turned out great. This makes a really light meal, great for springtime!

Chicken with Cherry Balsamic Reduction:

Ingredients:

• 1 lb chicken breast or thighs
• 10-15 oz frozen cherries
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 3 cups kale (optional)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 2 teaspoons rosemary

Pound chicken to about 1/4 inch thickness, dry rub with salt, pepper, and rosemary then cook in olive oil until done. In a separate skillet, cook cherries in coconut oil for 2-3 minutes. Add in balsamic vinegar and stir until the cherries start to reduce a bit. Stir in mustard and kale (if you're using it). If you're using kale, cover and cook for 4-5 minutes. If not, just stir in mustard an additional 3 minutes or so. Add the chicken to the skillet with the sauce and marinade on low heat about 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Turkey/Pineapple Bowl

Spring is upon us, which means I feel it is necessary to put pineapple in everything I possibly can.. and bacon, but that was the case in the winter too ;-)

Turkey/Pineapple Bowl:

Ingredients:

• 1 medium-large sweet potato
• 2 cups cored and chopped pineapple
• 1 pound cubed turkey breast
• 8-10 oz bacon

Cube the sweet potato and toss in olive oil, then bake on a foil lined baking sheet for 20 minutes. Cook bacon in skillet, then remove and cook cubed turkey in bacon grease (yum). When the potatoes are done, add those to the skillet with the pineapple and cook an additional 3-5 minutes or until all ingredients are heated. Add salt and pepper to taste, although I don't think this dish needs any!

Bacon Wrapped Sweet Potato Bites

I took these babies to a dinner party last night and they were a huge hit. We were meeting new people and I wanted to bring a Paleo dish masquerading as a non-primal appetizer. No one was the wiser until I pulled out my zucchini bread. Being primal and socially appropriate is a balancing act, most people view primal eating as a restrictive lifestyle, so I take any and all opportunities to prove that my dishes are delicious. I figured bacon was a pretty safe place to start :-)

Bacon Wrapped Sweet Potato Bites:

Ingredients:

• 1 medium sweet potato
• 12 oz bacon
• Olive oil

Cube sweet potato (mine were about 1 inch cubes). Wrap half slices of uncooked bacon around each one then hold in place with a toothpick. Bake for 20-25 minutes on foil lined baking sheet at 400 degrees.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

In no way can I take responsibility for this recipe, I made it exactly as prescribed from PaleOMG's blog.  I have to give this gal credit where credit is due partially because I don't believe in plagiarizing, but also because her recipes are super creative and always delicious. She's also funny and brings an admittance of humanity to her blog rants. If you haven't checked her out the blog is worth a peek!

Chocolate Zucchini Bread:

Ingredients:

• 1 medium zucchini (shredded)
• 2 eggs, whisked
• 3/4 cup nut butter
• 1/3 cup raw honey
• 1/4 cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons coconut flour
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp soda
• pinch of salt

Shred zucchini in food processor. Add zucchini to a bowl with eggs, nut butter, raw honey, and vanilla. In a separate bowl combine the rest of the ingredients. Incorporate all ingredients together. Bake in a greased loaf pan (or muffin tins!) at 375 for 25-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Coconut Mushroom Pork Chops

For me, one of the hardest things about being a primal eater is cultivating creativity when it comes to meat. I don't mind eating the same salad or drinking the same shake every day, but I like my evening meals to have some diversity. Pre-paleo days I experimented a lot with different sauces on the same cuts of meat. Although I'm branching out a little, the bone-out pork chop is one of the easiest to work with, so this week I tried a new sauce with the simple chop. The dry rub thyme really made this dish sing, and the coconut mushroom sauce was yummy!

Coconut Mushroom Pork Chops:

Ingredients:

• 6 pork chops
• salt, pepper, thyme
• coconut oil
• 1 large onion
• 10 oz sliced mushrooms
• 1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup coconut milk

Season pork chops with salt, pepper, and thyme on both sides. Sear in coconut oil a few minutes on each side. Remove from pan, and saute chopped onion and mushrooms in more coconut oil. Add garlic, sprinkle with salt, pepper, and oregano. Pour in chicken broth, bring to a boil then reduce heat. Add chops back to pan, simmer covered 10 minutes. Pour in coconut milk and increase to medium-high heat and cook an additional 10 minutes.

Maple Mustard Glazed Chicken Legs

Holy moly chicken legs are CHEAP. This was my first attempt at a recipe using only chicken legs, and I was pleasantly surprised when I only paid four bucks for six of them at Trader Joes. AND I didn't mess up the sauce, so it was legit a cheap kitchen adventure :-)

Maple Mustard Glazed Chicken Legs:

Ingredients:

• 6 chicken legs
• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup organic maple syrup
• 3 tsp thyme
• garlic
• 3 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 3 tablespoons stone ground mustard

Salt and pepper the chicken. Cook in olive oil, about 3 minutes on each side. Remove chicken from the skillet and add broth, syrup, thyme, and garlic. Stir well, then add mustard and vinegar. Cook for 3-4 minutes then add chicken back in. Cook an additional 5 minutes, then place chicken in baking dish and pour sauce over. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until chicken is completely cooked. 

Paleo Banana Muffins

The worst happened- I got sick. Then something even more horrifying happened- I had to miss CrossFit. I guess I was expecting Paleo to forever protect me from illness, but alas the Paleo barrier was not strong enough, and the head cold germs fought their way through and have been attacking me for the past two days despite my constant rest and water consumption. In my head I imagine the strong Paleo soldiers with bacon swords being taken down by the bad germs with baguette swords. It's the only time bread beats bacon, ever.

Thankfully I baked banana muffins over the weekend, I've been mushing them up so they go down more easily and pairing them with hot tea. You should make them and enjoy them whole with a glass of almond milk, that was my original intention :-)

Paleo Banana Muffins:

Ingredients:

• 4 bananas
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup almond butter
• 4 tablespoons grass-fed butter (or coconut oil)
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. With a hand mixer, mix bananas, eggs, almond butter, vanilla, and butter until incorporated.  In a separate bowl, mix dry ingredients, then incorporate with wet ingredients. Fill 12 muffin tins and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Breakfast Meatballs

I really love small food, and no, I'm not talking about mini doughnuts.. I mean small (paleo) food- packed with protein and easily portable. Hard-boiled eggs and nuts have recently been my snack foods of choice, especially on workout days when afternoon hunger starts to get the best of me. I think these meatballs may also make the cut. I originally made these for a Sunday 'breakfast for dinner', but the leftovers have actually made a really great mid-afternoon pick me up. And they contain bacon, so it's a win-win ;-)

Breakfast Meatballs:

Ingredients:

• 1 lb sausage
• 1 sweet potato
• 1/2 cup mushrooms
• 1/4 large onion
• 5 tablespoons organic maple syrup
• 7 slices bacon
• 1 tablespoon garlic
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook bacon and chop into small pieces. Shred sweet potato in food processor, then add onion and mushrooms and shred again. Combine sweet potato mixture with raw sausage, then add the rest of the ingredients and mix by hand in a bowl; form into meatballs. Bake on foil lined baking sheet 30-40 minutes.