Paleo Mayonnaise/Chicken Salad

Paleo Mayo:

I am in awe of science right now. It's amazing to me what a few simple ingredients can make. If my high school science teacher had taught us to make mayonnaise instead of mixing scary chemicals in test tubes I would have been much more excited about science class. 

Ingredients:

• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tsp mustard
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• salt and pepper

Start by whisking egg yolks, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, and mustard in a bowl. Mix oils together in a separate bowl. Very very very slowly (drop by drop) mix in oil while vigorously whisking. As the mixture starts to thicken you can incorporate oil more quickly. When all oil is incorporated put mixture in a food processor. Add the rest of the lemon juice and salt and pepper and pulse for 10-20 seconds until desired thickness. Store in refrigerator in a glass jar.


Paleo Chicken Salad:

A dish that incorporates meat, nuts, and fruit is pretty much the primal eater's best bet when it comes to quick meals. Chicken salad is a great solution for meals on busy days, and a great excuse to use that Paleo Mayo you just made ;-)

 Ingredients:

• 1 lb chicken
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 3/4 cup chopped green grapes
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 apple
• 1 avocado
• 1/2-3/4 cup Paleo Mayo
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Boil chicken. Chop everything else and mix. When the chicken has cooled dice it and add. Mix paleo mayo and lemon juice together then incorporate. Enjoy over spinach or greens! 

How to be a Superhero

Okay listen closely. I'm about to give you some really important information.

How to be a Superhero:
1. Eat primal.
2. Play hard. Run hard. Lift heavy things.
3. Put organic free-range chicken bits in your dog's food.

Seriously, this was the most exciting moment in my house today. Tails were wagging like crazy and I was a superhero for about 30 seconds.

Of course you always run the risk that the picky one will only eat the chicken...

Really I just wanted an excuse to post pictures of my super cute paleo pups. :-)

Sweet Potato Bacon Hash

Remember when I said I love scrambles? If you don't remember you clearly have been skipping the random ramblings on my blog and only reading the recipes. Well, I'm over scrambles...now I love hash. And I don't mean weed. This sweet potato and bacon hash will get you high on Paleo life though.

Sweet Potato and Bacon Hash:

Ingredients:

• 4 cups cubed sweet potato
• 1 package uncured organic bacon
• 1 medium onion
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• salt and pepper

Saute onion with salt and pepper in olive oil. Add cubed sweet potato, cover and cook 5 to 7 minutes. Add water, cover and cook 10 minutes. Add (cooked and chopped) bacon and cook covered an additional 10 minutes. YUM. 

Honey Dijon Chicken Thighs

Honey is the new sugar. For real people, throw your sugar away.. unless you have a partner who still demands non-Paleo baked goods every now and again, in that case shove your sugar really really far back in a cabinet and leave your raw organic honey out on the counter. I didn't realize I was eating the fake stuff all these years! I probably consume way more raw organic honey than is recommended by avid Paleoers, if I turn into a bumble bee don't be alarmed. Not only will I eat the stuff by the spoonful, but I've also started to put it on any piece of meat I can get away with. Here is the latest and greatest in raw organic honey.

Honey Dijon Chicken Thighs:

Ingredients:

• 1 lb chicken thighs (bone in or out)
• 1/2 cup raw organic honey
• 1/4 cup dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 teaspoons rosemary
• salt and pepper

Here's what you do: Mix honey, mustard, olive oil, and rosemary until incorporated. Add an additional teaspoon of olive oil if the mixture looks too thick. Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper, then brush the entire mixture over chicken. It's really delish if you let it marinade all day. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

*I sprinkled rosemary and pepper on our roasted veggies as well! 

Turkey Hash

When I was growing up my mom made a lot of casseroles. It was an easy way to feed a family of four for a couple of nights without much complaint from the two picky red heads living in the house (I'll own it, I was one of them).  My best friend was a frequent visitor and her first stop when she came to our house was often the refrigerator to see what kind of casserole my mom had made that week. Those casseroles were some of the most comforting foods I remember from my childhood and adolescent years, and some of my fondest memories were eating the leftovers late at night with my best friend.  Most of those familiar casserole recipes are definitely not Paleo friendly- this Turkey Hash is the closest thing I've made and it was SO good. The picture doesn't do it justice. My partner even went back for seconds, score!

Turkey Hash:

Ingredients:

• 1 lb turkey
• 3 cups cubed squash
• 1 onion
• 1 cup water
• 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
• salt and pepper

Brown turkey. In a separate high sided skillet saute onion in olive oil. Add squash, cover and cook for 5 to 7 minutes. Add water, cover and cook 10 minutes. Then add cooked turkey, cover and cook an additional 10 minutes. Serve with veggies.

*You can use ground turkey or chop turkey breasts for this recipe. Also, cubing an entire butternut squash takes approximately 42 minutes. If you aren't a total penny pinching paleo I would highly recommend paying the extra two dollars for the pre-cubed squash to save yourself some serious time. 

Holy Moly...

Guacamole! This guacamole is so easy the cavemen probably made it ;-)

Ingredients:

• 3 medium avocados
• 1 firm tomato
• 1/2 white onion
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• Salt and pepper 

Mix all ingredients together. *I pulsed together all ingredients in a food processor after mixing because my avocados weren't as ripe as they should have been. I recommend using ripe avocados so you don't have to use the food processor.

Enjoy on salad or for raw veggie dipping!

Paleo Chocolate Cupcakes

My love for kitchen appliances stops with the food processor. My mom bought me a very nice one a few months ago and this weekend was the first time I touched it. The thing is freaking scary- that really huge blade looks so daunting and all the parts have to be attached just right. My partner is a saint for putting up with my grouching from the kitchen when I couldn't get the thing to work. However- TOTALLY worth it. The cupcakes I made are so yummy I will totally use the scary pain-in-the-butt kitchen appliance again if it means I get to have these delightful chocolate Paleo goodies on another occasion.

Chocolate Paleo Cupcakes:

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/3 cup honey
• 4 eggs

Pulse together all dry ingredients in a food processor. Add coconut oil and honey then pulse again. Add eggs and pulse one last time. Scoop batter into paper lined muffin tin-makes about 8 cupcakes. Bake at 350 for 15-18 minutes.

Chocolate Glaze:
Melt 1 cup Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips and 1/3 cup coconut oil over low heat in saucepan. Add 1 tablespoon vanilla extract. Refrigerate for 30-45 minutes then mix with hand mixer. Glaze cupcakes.

*This glaze hardens in the fridge, store your glazed cupcakes at room temperature.