Monday, December 2nd, 2013

Almond Butter Coleslaw: Raw Vegan Paleo Gluten Free Recipe

by Kristen in almond milk, cabbage, gluten free, paleo, recipe, vegan

Cabbage

Crunchy organic cabbage + sweet oranges + creamy dressing —–> a unique and delicious salad.

Almond Butter Coleslaw

Yields 4 to 6 servings

Dressing ingredients:

3/4 cup raw almond milk
1/2 cup raw almond butter
2 tablespoons raw coconut vinegar or apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
dash of freshly ground pepper

Salad ingredients:

1 head purple cabbage, cored and chopped (or shredded)
2 tomatoes, chopped
4 oranges, peeled, seeded, and chopped
1 handful raisins
7 olives, pitted and chopped

Dressing instructions:

In a blender, combine the raw almond milk, raw almond butter, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Blend until smooth.

Salad instructions:

In a large bowl, combine the cabbage, tomatoes, oranges, raisins, and olives and toss to mix.

Add the dressing and toss until the dressing coats the salad ingredients.

Flickr photo credit

Great Holiday Gift Ideas

by Kristen in Kristen Suzanne

The holidays are here. Our xmas tree is up (has been since November 16). Ooooh how I love this time of year. Food! Gifts! Family! Errr… I mean Family! Food! Gifts! There, that order is better.

It’s Holiday Time!

As the holiday shopping season is about to begin I wanted to share some of my favorite things that some special people in your life might also love.

Holiday Tree with Scrub Daddy sponges underneath ready to be wrapped

Christmas Tree with Scrub Daddy Sponges underneath

Looking for something to put in someone’s stocking?

Scrub Daddy Sponges – These very popular sponges are all the rage now that they’ve been on Shark Tank (one of my favorite TV shows). Using cold or hot water changes the stiffness of the sponge to help you clean everything from pots and pans to counter tops to everything in between. Buy the 4-pack for the best value and you will have 4 stocking stuffer gifts to divide amongst four of your most cherished family and friends.

Bamboo Hands – For the person on your list that has plans for healthier eating come new year… bamboo hands are a great little incentive gift. They are the coolest salad tongs and will do just the trick in helping your loved one eat more salad. Hey, it sounds good, right?

Egg Beater – This egg beater is the cat’s meow for the egg lover in your life. It makes me feel a bit old fashioned when I’m using it (in a good way) but it also does a totally kick butt job. Love it. (Read some of the many ways we enjoy pasture raised eggs here.)

Offset Spatula – Everyone needs at least one offset spatula in the kitchen. They make for the perfect spreads whether you’re spreading butter on toast or frosting a cake or making a raw gluten free cheesecake.

Looking for something to inspire better cooking?

Omnivore Food Journal

by Kristen in food journal

Omnivore Food Journal

Mini Breakfast #1

Wild Caught Salmon Roe

Supplements: Glutathione, Soil based probiotic
Iced Mostly Decaf Bulletproof Coffee (coffee, organic coconut oil, grass fed unsalted butter, vanilla, high vitamin butter oil)
Kamea had salmon roe, Kit’s Organic Bar, Garden of Life children vitamin and chlorella

Recipe Bison (or Beef) Mexican Stew Slow Cooker Paleo Gluten Free

by Kristen in gluten free, grass fed bison, paleo

Mexican Stew

When we buy grass fed red meat, we opt for both grass fed bison and grass fed beef. Bison is reputed to have lower fat and cholesterol than beef (not that I’m concerned about that though – we just appreciate variety). So, when cooking with bison, I’ll often increase the fat in my dish by adding avocado, grass fed butter, or coconut oil.

Here’s another easy recipe using a slow cooker (one of my favorite kitchen appliances, you all must know that by now though, right?) that delights my entire family. It’s just a handful of ingredients because that’s all you really need for delicious home cooked food.

Recipe Glory Muffins (Paleo, Gluten Free)

by Kristen in almond flour, banana, Breville, carrots, gluten free, paleo, recipe

Glory Muffins in Hartstone Pottery

This delicious, healthy, and gluten-free recipe was adapted from Dr. Weil’s Carrot-Banana Muffins in his True Food cookbook. If you want it paleo style, then use the coconut oil option over the butter oil options.

Glory Muffins is one of our favorite muffin recipes because the flavor is wonderful and the different textures make for a fun experience. You should definitely make these.

Recipe Garam Masala Orange Chicken Paleo Gluten Free

by Kristen in Breville, pastured chicken, recipe, roast chicken

Although I often just like having my chicken made in a slow cooker as a stew or soup, this recipe deserves a spot in the chicken recipe rotation because it’s so damn delicious.

Garam Masala Orange Chicken served with carrots and greens.

Garam Masala Orange Chicken (paleo gluten free) with carrots and greens.

I’d say we have chicken probably once a week, and when we do, it’s with the skin on and it’s always pasture-raised AND organic. I was excited to see that I could buy it online – and soy-free to boot! – from Good Earth Farms, since I wasn’t able to find it at any stores. Pastured chickens are small by nature since they’re not loaded with chemicals, hormones or anything nasty.

My chicken recipes are usually made with a pasture raised chicken that is 2 to 4 pounds (whole or pieced – to be honest though… when baking chicken I prefer it pieced because I stink at carving it post-roasting). This is enough to feed my hearty-appetite family (Greg, Kamea, myself) with some left over. With leftovers, I like to add it to my pastured eggs at breakfast or I add broth and make soup for lunch.

Food Journal

by Kristen in food journal

Sweet Paprika Baked Chicken (gluten free paleo)

Breakfast: Decaf Bulletproof Ice Cream Coffee (2 cups Upgraded coffee with homemade chocolate ice cream blended in)

Lunch: (Left over) Heart Stew (amazing stuff). Quart herbal tea. Supplements.

Dinner: Sweet Paprika Baked Chicken. Roasted Cauliflower n Garlic. Chocolate Almond Coconut Ice Cream (homemade).

Spiced Bison or Beef Short Ribs (Slow Cooker, Paleo, Gluten Free)

by Kristen in coconut aminos, gluten free, grass fed bison, grass fed butter, paleo, recipe, Short Ribs, slow cooker

Spiced Bison Short Ribs on Acorn Squash

I just had what must have been the easiest recipe in the world. As a result, I’m on the computer blogging about it because this easy recipe freed up so much time that I can share it with you.

Back story: I ordered grass fed bison short ribs a couple of months back, but they stayed in my freezer for so long because, frankly, I was intimidated by them. I’d never made ribs or short ribs, and I had no idea where to begin. Well, that’s not true. I did know where to begin. 1) My Slow Cooker and 2) Google.

My new motto… when in doubt, slow cooker.

Recipe How to Make Bone Broth Stock (Slow Cooker, Sous Vide, Oven, Stove)

by Kristen in apple cider vinegar, gluten free, offal, omnivore, paleo, recipe, superfoods

Beautiful clear bone broth made with the Sous Vide Supreme.

Beautiful organic grass fed beef bone broth made with the Sous Vide Supreme.

Bone broth (a.k.a. stock)… I love it.

One of the earlier foods I introduced into our diet after changing from vegan to omnivore was nourishing (and delicious) homemade grass fed bone broth (stock).

In culinary circles, stock (or as I’ll refer to it in my blog post, bone broth) is considered the foundation of cooking, and for good reason. A cup of broth seems so simple, and for the most part it is, but it can be used in so many ways. Bone broth really sets the foundational flavor for many recipes.

Michael Ruhlman writes about stock making, “It may be the most commonly avoided preparation in America’s kitchens, even though it’s the single preparation that might elevate a home cook’s food from decent to spectacular.” He also says, “If there’s one preparation that separates a great home cook’s food from a good home cook’s food, it’s stock.”

I hope those quotes inspire you to embrace stock (bone broth) making, and if you’re still on the fence, read on because I’ll show you how easy, fun, and wonderful it is to prepare.

*UPDATE – TODAY (10/25/13): Since writing this long post and scheduling it to appear, I’ve learned even more about making stock because I’m enrolled in a Classic Cooking school right now, and we actually learned about stock making today. I would say that my instructor would probably be intrigued with some of what I’ve written but he’d also probably be horrified. I had planned on adding to this post to reflect that, but I came home and saw that — oops — the post has gone live already. That being said… these are all still “pretty” legit and they make yummy bone broth. I will add to the bottom of this post what I’ve learned in school for the truly classical method, hopefully later today!

Warm bone broth going into a mug.

Making bone broth was something that really intrigued me once we ended our decade-long vegan journey. At the same time, I didn’t know much about it. If I remember correctly, we started our omnivore foodie life with organic, pastured-raised eggs, along with grass fed organic ghee and high vitamin butter oil, and then we added sardines (learn how you, too, can love sardines here).

Shortly after, I was mystically drawn to bone broth so I started playing around with it. Seemed weird, mostly because I was using the term “bone broth” yet I couldn’t help myself because it sounded wickedly fun. Bone broth is also referred to as stock (chicken stock, beef stock, fish stock), so when you’re talking to people outside the Paleo or Nourishing Traditions spheres, they might look at you like you have two heads if you say you make bone broth, which is really just good ol’ stock.

When I started the bone broth journey, I had no idea what to do or where to begin, but I quickly learned. It’s my hope to introduce this into your home if you’re new to it, with ease and excitement, because making bone broth (i.e., chicken or beef stock) is really fun and crazy easy. With a few simple tips, you will be well on your way.

Recipes For Sardines (Paleo, Gluten Free)

by Kristen in gluten free, paleo, recipe, sardines

Sardine Pate Recipe for Beginners

Sardines were one of the first animal foods we introduced to our diet when we went from vegan to omnivore late in 2012. At the time we weren’t ready to have other fish because we wanted to research mercury, toxins, etc. But, we wanted some fish, and our best bet: sardines because of their low trophic level and super nutrition. Some in the paleo world call them a superfood.

Did I like them? Well, honestly they skeeved me out a bit. I used to love tuna fish back when I was young, but sardines were a whole new ball of wax, coming with skin, bones and all. Yeah, sardines were the kind of thing my step-dad ate and I used to think, “Ewww, dude, you’re gross.”