Paleo Blueberry Banana Muffins

I had some overripe bananas and some blueberries so I decided to whip up some Paleo Blueberry Banana Muffins! This recipe comes from Nicole at Kale Junkie and it is creamy, moist, and the perfect amount of sweet. I don’t do baked goods often, but sometimes it’s nice to have something quick for breakfast, a midday snack, or for after dinner if I find myself still hungry. I stored them in the fridge and reheated and topped with nut butter whenever I needed something a little extra.

Ingredients (makes 8 large muffins or 16 regular muffins):

4 bananas

3 eggs

1/4 cup almond flour

1/2 cup coconut flour

1/4 cup melted coconut oil

1/2 cup nut butter

2 tb honey (I subbed maple syrup)

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

3/4 cup fresh blueberries plus extra to sprinkle on top

Pinch of sea salt

For complete instructions and original recipe go here.

The Montford Rooftop Bar

Stopped by The Montford Rooftop Bar on an unusually warm winter night just in time to watch the sun go down! Located in downtown Asheville, it’s one of our favorite spots to take in the mountain views, enjoy a glass of wine or a cocktail and get a bite to eat. Enjoy the free valet (we always give a few dollars tip, though). To get to the rooftop, walk in the entrance of the Hyatt Place Asheville/Downtown, and take the elevator to the left. Don’t forget to get a parking voucher from your server to give to the valet guy.

MENU: CLICK HERE

Hours

M-Thu: 3pm-10pm
Fri: 3pm-11pm

Sat: 12pm-11pm

Sun: 10am-10pm

Address

199 Haywood Street, Asheville NC 28801

Açaí Berry Protein Smoothie

Dreaming I’m back in Hawaii with this Açaí Berry Protein Smoothie. Sometimes I feel like a smoothie for breakfast/lunch, because 1) I like pretending I’m somewhere tropical 2) I can throw everything in the blender and eat it to-go 3) I always feel satisfied and energized yet light after drinking a smoothie. I stumbled upon the @sambazon açaí packets in the freezer section at the grocery store, and I’m glad I followed my intuition to buy them. They make a great addition to any smoothie, last forever in the freezer, and plus the açaí berry is nutrient dense and full of antioxidants!

For this smoothie, blend together:

• A handful of blueberries

• 1 Sambazon açaí berry packet

• 1 frozen banana (if not frozen just add a handful of ice to the blender)

• 1 cup coconut water 

• 1 scoop plant based vanilla protein powder, optional

• Unsweetened coconut flakes for topping, optional

Chicken No Parm by The Defined Dish

I came across this Whole30 Baked Chicken Parmesan by @thedefineddish months ago, and it’s now a meal I make regularly. It’s really easy, only a few natural ingredients, and fills me up so that I’m not hungry later on. I paired it with my lazy version of “the best kale salad ever”. This is one of those meals that I get excited about making and eating, because it tastes great and makes me feel great. Hope you’ll try it!

Ingredients (serves 4):

•4 organic chicken cutlets, pounded 1/4 inch thin

•1 cup Almond Meal (I used almond flour, because it’s what I had)

•kosher salt, to taste

•pepper, to taste

•1 tsp. dried parsley

•1 tsp. dried oregano

•1/2 tsp. paprika

•2 eggs

•extra virgin olive oil

•~1 cup of Rao's Marinara

For complete instructions, go to the original recipe here.

*Update: It looks like the link to this recipe is no longer available on her website. You can find a similar recipe of hers here: https://thedefineddish.com/baked-chicken-parmesan/ (and simply incorporate the ingredients above) or buy her cookbook which I’m guessing is where she moved this chicken recipe to.

Football Food Favorites

 “Are you ready for some football?!?!!”

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Decided on your Super Bowl menu yet? Here are our favorite tried and true, perfect for game day, pleases a crowd dishes!

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1. Mini Mexican Meatballs w/avocado crema

2. Bang Bang Cauliflower Bites

3. Burger Bar!

4. Easy Baked Fries

5. Assorted Deviled Eggs

6. Buffalo Chicken Dip

7. Wings, wings and more wings!

8. Buffalo Chicken Nachos

9. Cheese Burger Bites

Italian Sausage Seasoning Blend

 “You had me at pizza…”

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Obviously this is not pizza, but it is pizza soup! And it will be making several more appearances on my table in the cold winter months to come. Now, you can find hundreds of recipes for pizza soup online, but this one is from @thewholesmiths #goodfoodcookbook and it is the 💣 , she really turned this recipe into something special. I highly recommend her cookbook...it is so family friendly, with simple ingredients and processes...it has become my most used cookbook! •

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Italian sausage is called for in this recipe, but Icouldn’t find any #whole30compliant, so I added my own spice blend to ground pork and it worked perfectly! A great option if you don’t have sausage on hand (perfect for pork, turkey or chicken).

Italian sausage seasoning blend:

2 tsp fennel (I only had ground)

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp paprika

½ - 2 tsp cayenne pepper (all depends on how spicy you like it, I used ½ tsp and it was on the verge of too spicy for my “super sensitive to spice daughter”, I thought it was perfect. Start with less and add to your preference.

*I mixed this all in with 1lb. of ground pork, then salted the pork when browning. 

Grain & Dairy Free Charcuterie Board

Let me introduce you to The Ultimate Grain & Dairy Free Charcuterie Board, because who needs cheese and crackers when you have a spread like this? A fun game day appetizer to eat with friends that is sneakily healthy. For anything that is store bought, check the ingredients on the back to make sure they are grass fed and have 0 sugar, and try to avoid anything with ingredients you can’t pronounce. Pickle your own veggies if you can using Sarah’s Pickled Veggies technique.

What’s on my board:
Grapes
Dates (pitted)
Blueberries
Marcona Almonds
Cashews
Olives
Pickles
Pickled Okra
Sliced pear
Prosciutto 
Salami

What would you add to this Gluten and Dairy Free Board?

Roasted Romanesco

 "Friday I'm in Love" ~The Cure

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Let me introduce you to the prettiest vegetable there is...romanesco. It is in the cauliflower, broccoli, sprouts & cabbage family, with a flavor most similar to cauliflower. Definitely nothing to be afraid of, and definitely something you should grab if you see it in your grocery (I found mine @wholefoods)! A wonderfully simple addition to a special dinner to pretty up your plate, but not complicate your meal. What would you serve this beauty with?

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*I drizzled mine with evoo, salt and roasted the florets for about 20-25 minutes at 425º and served it with a spoonful of marinara, freshly ground pepper and vegan "parmesan".

For the vegan “parmesan”:
½ c raw cashews 
2 T nutritional yeast
⅛ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp salt
Add all ingredients to a food processor or blender and pulse until cashews break down to the texture of store bought parmesan.

The {Perfect} Salmon Dinner Salad

 ”All right! Stop whatcha doin'..."

And go ahead and tap that little bookmark right there and save this recipe! This is one of our many #restaurantrecreations that I upgraded with a perfectly cooked piece of salmon and some @tessemaes creamy ranch dressing. I initially tried the house salad at @thirstymonk south and loved the simplicity and balance, and just knew with the salmon and creamy ranch addition it would make the most delicious entree salad. Tessemae's Creamy Ranch is the absolute perfect dressing for this too...the dill flavor ties all of the simple ingredients together...this dressing and these ingredients are a match made in heaven!

Ingredients:

arugula

dried cranberries

walnuts

pickled red onions

salmon

How to get perfectly cooked salmon every time:

Dry your fish with a paper towel and lightly salt&pepper the fish. Heat a cast iron skillet on high and add avocado oil just before adding the salmon, skin side up. Give it a little shake so it doesn’t stick and then leave it alone to brown. The time here will depend on the thickness of your salmon, but about 3 minutes is a good time to flip (you can see the cook of the fish move up from the skillet, once it gets about halfway up the side of the fish, it is time to flip). Flip the salmon, (skin side down), turned off the heat, and cover with the skillet and let it steam until done, about another 3 minutes (I do not cook my salmon well done, so adjust according to your preference). Timing is going to depend on the thickness of your fish.

If you don't have Tessemae's Creamy Ranch:

Bummer! 😉 The dill is what defines this particular ranch, so I would either add fresh dill to the salad or mix in some dried dill weed to whatever ranch you are using. A simple dill vinaigrette would be nice too!

Leftovers?

Turn your salmon leftovers into a delicious cold salmon salad (make it like a tuna salad). Use the dressing instead of mayo (not as much though) and add in the chopped walnuts, dried cranberries and chopped pickled onions. Serve over bed of arugula or open-faced on a delicious piece of toasted bread (imo, this deserves something special, not grocery store wonder bread) or a decadent croissant.

Salmon Cake Eggs Benedict (Paleo & Whole30)

Have some free time this morning for a delectable homemade brunch? Try these Paleo Salmon Cake Eggs Benedict! This one takes some time and effort to create, so it’s a perfect weekend treat for yourself (and someone special?). All it’s missing are some mimosas…

Salmon Cakes (makes four patties, serves 2):

1 6oz can wild salmon (I used @wildplanetfoods wild sockeye salmon)

1 egg

1 T coconut flour

1 celery rib, diced

1 T fresh dill

1 T green onion, diced

1 T lemon juice

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

2 T coconut oil

For Hollandaise sauce (serves 2):

2 egg yolks

2 T ghee or grass-fed butter

2 T homemade mayo

Big squeeze of lemon juice

Pinch of cayenne

Dash of salt

For the poached eggs (serves 2):

2 eggs

Fresh dill for garnish

Instructions: 

1. Place hollandaise ingredients in a bowl and set aside. *Make sure this bowl fits on top of your poached egg pot (bowl will be placed on top of this pot to heat hollandaise sauce later)

2. Mix all salmon cake ingredients (except for coconut oil) in a large bowl. Form four patties from the mixture.

3. Heat coconut oil on large skillet on medium heat and let patties cook for 5-7 minutes on each side. *To make my patties perfectly round and to ensure they didn’t fall apart, I used the rings from mason jar lids as a mold to place my patties in. Just make sure you spray them with non stick spray so patties don’t get stuck in them.

4. While patties cook, make your poached eggs. Fill a small pot with a couple inches of water and place on medium heat. Crack the first egg into a small bowl or large measuring cup. When water reaches a light simmer, gently lower egg into the water using the bowl/cup to assist you. Repeat with the second egg. Set a timer for four minutes.

5. When timer goes off, remove eggs with a large spoon and place them on salmon patties. Remove any excess egg white, and pat dry if desired. *Leave the poached egg pot with water over heat for hollandaise sauce.

6. Turn heat to medium high and warm the bowl with hollandaise sauce ingredients in it by placing the bowl on top of the pot with the poached egg water and whisk until sauce thickens and is warm. Pour sauce over poached eggs and garnish with fresh dill and a pinch of cayenne pepper, if desired.

Salt & Vinegar Wings

 “I have the right to life, liberty, and chicken wings.” ~Mindy Kaling

It’s a football playoff kind of weekend and even if you’re favorite team isn’t in the running you can use it as an opportunity to test out some different recipes for THE big game coming up in a few weeks! And of course, wings should always be on the menu! These salt & vinegar wings from Alex @thedefineddish are addictive and AMAZING! They are savory and zingy and are the perfect wing to serve in place of (or alongside) the old faithful, buffalo wing. Put these on your menu, you won’t regret it! *Bonus tip: If you have tried our refrigerator pickled veggies, the liquid works well to toss these with, just add a little extra vinegar to adjust the zing!

For an alternative cooking method, in case you don’t have a wire rack, this is what I do:

Preheat oven to 425°. I lay out my wings on a parchment lined baking sheet (don’t crowd them) and cook for about 20 minutes, then flip them over. Then I flip them every 15 minutes or so up to about an hour, until they have reached the desired crispiness. I usually toss them in whatever sauce I am using at about the 45-55 minute mark and return them to the oven for 5-10 minutes. Perfectly crispy every time!

Homemade Mayo (Paleo & Whole30)

I’ve had a couple of friends and family members ask me how I make homemade mayo, so I figured I would share how I do it. It takes just a few ingredients (and an immersion blender... if you don’t have one I suggest getting one, they are great for blending sauces and soups), is a lot better for you than the processed stuff at the grocery store, is cheaper than buying, and once you have everything in the container, takes less than 30 seconds! There are many different varieties of homemade mayo and I’ve tried several, but this is my favorite. 

Ingredients:
1 cup avocado oil
Juice from 1/2 a lemon
1 tsp mustard
1/8 tsp salt
1 egg

Instructions:

1. Place ingredients in a wide rimmed, large mason jar or plastic container.

2. Place immersion blender directly over egg yolk at the bottom of the jar/container. Blend on high for about 10 seconds.

3. Slowly move immersion blender up and down for another 10-15 seconds until all ingredients are smoothly blended together.

4. Store in a closed container in the fridge for 1-2 weeks.

   *For video instructions, check out “Mayo” in our Instagram story highlights.

I use homemade mayo to make aioli, chicken/tuna salad, deviled eggs, and a plethora of sauces. I encourage you to try making your own mayo if you haven’t already!

Cucumber Relish

 "Variety is the spice of life."

I think one of the key aspects of staying on a healthy eating track is having a variety of condiments/toppings/sauces always available. I love that there are so many store bought options out there with quality ingredients and minimal fillers. But I also have several items that I make regularly to keep my tastebuds from getting bored. This is a simple spicy cucumber relish that can take so many dishes from boring to wow! Aside from eating it alone as a side and adding it to regular salads, I mixed this with tuna for a mayo-less tuna salad option, topped a one-pan "egg roll in a bowl" dish, and also topped a simply cooked salt & pepper salmon with this zingy, fresh relish.

Ingredients:

1 sm cucumber, quartered lengthwise and sliced thin

1 lg shallot, sliced thin

¼ thai chili pepper (bird's eye, serrano), finely chopped

2 T cilantro, finely chopped

For the liquid, I use my refrigerator pickling liquid and since I'm doing a whole30, I replaced the honey with the juice of a quarter of an orange. For this recipe, you only need about 1/2 cup of liquid.

Sweet Potato Mini Burgers

Need an easy, paleo, whole30 dinner for this weekend? Try these Sweet Potato Mini Burgers! My husband and I ate two each, and they left us full until bedtime, but they would also make a great appetizer at a party. Since we were eating them for dinner, we made the patties a little larger than if we were serving them as an appetizer… so feel free to play around with the “mini” size you want. 

Ingredients (serves 2 for dinner):

For sliders:

• 1/2 pound grass fed ground beef, divided into 4 mini patties

• EVOO or avocado oil

• Salt and pepper

Toppings:

• 1/2 of a large, fat sweet potato, cut into 1/2” rounds (4 total)

• 1/2 large avocado, smashed

• Salt and Pepper

• EVOO or avocado oil

• 4 small tomato slices

• Shack Sauce by Serious Eats: 1/4 cup homemade mayo, 1/2 T ketchup, 1/2 T yellow mustard, 2 slices kosher dill pickle (chopped), 1/8 tsp garlic powder, 1/8 tsp paprika, pinch of cayenne. Click here for original recipe.

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Season the 4 mini patties with salt and pepper and let rest at room temperature.

2. Season sweet potato rounds with a little salt and oil, spread slices on a baking sheet, and cook at 400 degrees for twenty minutes (or until soft), flipping halfway through.

3. While sweet potato cooks, make the shack sauce, smash your avocado (season with a little salt), slice your tomato, and set aside.

4. After flipping sweet potato rounds, start cooking the burgers. Heat a large skillet to medium high and add oil. Once skillet is hot, add patties and cook for about 2-4 minutes on each side depending on how done you like them.

5. You can arrange burgers and toppings any way you like! I put the smashed avocado onto the sweet potato, then added the tomato, then the mini burger, and topped it with the Shack Sauce. 

Cajun Oven-Roasted Okra with Lemon-Garlic Aioli from The Defined Dish

Growing up in the South means growing up with fried okra, one of my favorite foods in the world. But nowadays, I avoid fried foods as much as I can, so I was delighted when I found this Cajun Oven-Roasted Okra with Lemon-Garlic Aioli from @thedefineddish for a healthy alternative. Crispy, tasty, with a little spice, these were a perfect appetizer before dinner. For the recipe go here: http://www.thedefineddish.com/cajun-oven-roasted-okra-fries-with-lemon-garlic-aioli/

Mini Potato Skins

 “The party has begun.” ~F. Scott Fitzgerald

These bite sized stuffed potato skins are a great addition to any party spread! And guess what? They are free of all the junk, but full of all the flavor. Make a big batch though, because these will go fast! My batch was potato, broccoli and onion and drizzled with @tessemaes avocado ranch, but you could customize them a million ways! 

Ingredients:

1 bag of small dutch potatoes

broccoli florets

olive oil

2-3T finely chopped onions

3T coconut cream (the thick portion)

2T nutritional yeast

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp salt

pepper

green onions for garnish

ranch dressing

*Boil your potatoes until fork tender. Remove from heat and let cool. Cut them in half and using a spoon, scoop out center and add to a bowl. Toss skins gently with olive oil and lay out on parchment lined baking sheet. Cook at 425° for 20-25 minutes until edges begin to crisp and brown.

*Steam broccoli until just fork tender. Chop into small pieces. Add equal amounts of broccoli to potato.

*Add coconut cream, onions, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, salt and pepper to the potatoes and broccoli and stir to combine.

*Once potato skins are cooked to crispy, remove from oven and fill each skin with potato/broccoli mixture. Return to oven and cook an additional 5-10 minutes.

*Remove from oven and drizzle with ranch and green onions.

Egg Casserole

This paleo breakfast casserole from Paleo Running Momma ticks off so many boxes, it’s perfect for almost any occasion! It is dairy and gluten free, fast and easy, hearty and nutritious and most importantly...DELICIOUS! Perfect for a brunch, breakfast for dinner or for meal prepping and eating throughout the week! I customized mine by using spiralized sweet potato and roasted broccoli (I tossed 1 spiralized sweet potato and about 1-2 cups broccoli florets with olive oil and roasted them in my casserole dish for about 15 minutes), along with the caramelized onions (never skip this!) and bacon and everyone loved it!

Pear and Prosciutto Salad

I have been all about the salads for lunch lately. My body is done with all the sugar, alcohol, and heavy food from the holiday and is craving some serious nutrients. Today’s creation turned out to be a Pear and Prosciutto Salad.

Kale was the base (arugula would’ve been great, too, but I didn’t have any, darn) and then I added:

• small pieces of prosciutto

• pear slices

• a chopped medjool date

• chopped almonds and whole almonds

I tossed it all in some olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette. Easy, delicious, paleo, and whole30 approved.

Peanut Butter Oats

Woke up this morning wanting something different than my usual scrambled eggs and avocado slices. I had bananas and oats, and I decided to add a little peanut butter for the most perfect, creamy, healthy, and filling breakfast.

For oatmeal:
1 cup unsweetened nut milk
1/2 cup oats of your choice (I used Bob’s Red Mill old fashioned rolled oats)
1 T organic maple syrup
1/4 tsp cinnamon 
1/8 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp chia seeds

For topping:
1/2 tsp coconut oil (melted) and 1 T peanut butter mixed together
One banana, sliced

Instructions: Add milk to small pot and bring to a boil. Add oats, and lower heat to medium-low. Cook until milk has mostly absorbed (about 10 minutes), stirring occasionally. Take off heat and add other ingredients and stir thoroughly. Add toppings and enjoy!

*You could also put oatmeal ingredients in a covered mason jar and let sit in your fridge overnight and add toppings in the morning to save time. Also, Bob’s Red Mill also comes in #glutenfree varieties!

Gluten Free Sausage Balls

My mom always makes sausage balls for breakfast for Christmas/Christmas Eve morning, and this time she made them gluten free just for me! She used local sausage, organic sharp cheddar, and gluten free flour, and no one even noticed they were different from the usual gluten-full recipe.

Ingredients:
-1 lb pork sausage (mild or spicy or both)
-10oz shredded sharp cheddar cheese
-1 1/2 cups @bobsredmill gluten free biscuit and baking mix

Mix ingredients in a bowl (she used her hands). Roll into golf sized balls and bake at 350 for about 25 minutes.