Chili Garlic Shrimp 'n Grits

Y'all, I can't say enough delicious things about this dish.

I started making different shrimp and grits variations six years ago during a cooking phase where I was would attempt to recreate our restaurant favorites. I continuously tweak the sauce a bit, depending on what I have in my pantry and fridge. As for our base, I've played with Parmesan polenta, cheddar grits, and goat cheese polenta recipes. This time I saw a shredded Gruyere in the cheese section, deciding to go for it. That was a fantastic decision.

You can make this more of a sweet and spicy by using sweet red chili sauce, which is what I usually do. This time I had a roasted red chili paste in the fridge from making my Thai turkey lettuce wraps, and I decided to use that which I felt created a more robust flavor. I also added garlic and together with the Sriracha and other ingredients, this made for a perfect sauce for the shrimp.

I try to make these a little healthier than traditional grits recipes, by using a butter/olive oil combo rather than all butter, and I do use a fat free skim milk instead of whole milk or half and half.

This recipe truly takes no time at all (20 minutes or less) and can be done in four simple steps. It does take a little bit of concentration to make sure you don't burn the butter (I did when making it last night because I let the pan heat up too hot, but it was my first step so I could easily start over) and that the grits consistency doesn't get lumpy.

Ingredients:
Recipe yields 4 servings

For Grits

• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp olive oil 
• dried parsley to taste
• dried thyme to taste
• 2 cups fat free skim milk
• 2 cups low sodium chicken stock
• 1 cup cornmeal 
• 3/4 - 1 cup of shredded Gruyere (I was kind of liberal in my cheese adding but would estimate it was somewhere between this amount) 

For Chili Garlic Shrimp

• 3/4 lb of shrimp, peeled and deveined 
• 3 tbsp. Ponzu (a citrus-soy sauce - great for cooking with fish!)
• 2 tbsp. red chili paste
• 1 tsp. mirin
• 1 tbsp. sriracha
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1 tbsp. minced garlic
• green onion (optional - for garnish)

1. First make the Chili Garlic sauce by combining the ponzu, red chili paste, mirin, sriracha, honey and garlic in a bowl. Add the shrimp and coat. Let it marinate as you start the grits. 

2. Using medium heat, warm a pot and add the butter, until it melts. Next add the olive oil, followed by the garlic. Once fragrant, add the dried spices (thyme and parsley). Turn heat up and add the milk and the chicken stock. Bring that to a boil. 

3. As you bring it to a boil, go ahead and add the shrimp and sauce to a skillet and begin to saute over medium heat. Stir/flip occasionally for an even cook. Shrimp will be cooked-through within 7-10 min. 

4. Once liquids have started to boil, bring the heat back down to medium-high and begin to whisk in the cornmeal, just a little bit at a time. It's going to feel like you have way too much liquid but you don't, I promise. Adding the cornmeal in slowly helps prevent it from clumping. Once all of the cornmeal has been whisked in and there is a smooth consistency, then add the cheese and whisk in until melted. 

You've completed the grits, your shrimp is cooked, now you plate and spoon out additional sauce for flavor. Garnish with green onions if you choose and enjoy!

Make a Meal: Skinny Meatloaf + Maple Whipped Sweet Potatoes + Parmesan Roasted Green Beans

On my previous cooking blog, I used to do Make a Meal Mondays, but then I decided not to limit to one day and would post a Make a Meal whenever I made a full meal worth sharing, rather than just a part of it. I found that oftentimes when I was searching for meal inspiration, I appreciated the full meal, not just an entree or a side, so that's what I wanted to provide when possible.

About a month ago, I thought I would finally jump on the band wagon of the InstaPot. We had given my parents one for Christmas two years ago and so I asked mom if I could borrow it to give it a test drive before we invested in our own. I was hesitant to use one because, and I've said this for years, I'm not a big fan of the crock pot. I used to use one all the time, and sure they can really help to make life easier, but call me super picky - there is a crock pot taste. I don't know how else to describe it, but though it make take me longer, I appreciate the taste and flavor from slow cooking in an iron pot than the crock pot. So I didn't know how I was going to feel about the InstaPot, but with another baby coming and our life with two under two getting closer, I thought now would be a good time to try it and see what kind of ease it could add to meal making and more so, the time of making food for our family.

Well, for anyone that follows my Instastories, you saw my first attempt with it was a bust. I had seen a meatloaf and mashed potatoes recipe that sounded like a great idea, but in my own experience, it just didn't turn out. I actually used my favorite go-to meatloaf recipe that I had found in a magazine years ago and continued to adapt into the way we liked it, but aside from that, I did everything this one told me to do for how to prepare it. In the end, the meatloaf was under-cooked, but the potatoes were burnt - and yes, I cooked with the proper amount of liquid it said to provide.

So I ended up finishing the meatloaf in the oven and scraping the burnt bits off the potatoes to still be able to make a tasty dinner. The experience did help me in realizing a few things:

1. I really loved my meatloaf recipe and we hardly ever make it anymore. Needed to change that. 
2. If I had made it my way to begin with, it would have only taken 10 minutes longer than using the Pot of Doom. 
3. and probably most importantly.... I didn't have an InstaPot. I had a Cuisinart Pressure Cooker. They are not the same thing, contrary to what I had thought. They require different instructions for cooking things, InstaPot being faster than a Pressure Cooker. Who knew? Not I. My mom enlightened me. 

Here I was thinking that InstaPot and a Pressure Cooker were interchangeable. I thought it was like brands of paper towels. One may be Bounty, the other Brawny but they are the same thing. Or like in the Texas, we call every soft drink a "Coke" but it could be a Sprite, or Dr. Pepper. I thought InstaPot was just a brand of pressure cooker and they were all the same. So we can attribute that to my dinner-making mess up.

However, since then, I have tried a few other things in my pressure cooker not InstaPot, while trying to use the correct instructions for a pressure cooker and it's just still not really working out for me. I just can't seem to get the timing right for the recipes I try. I would rather do it the "long way" since that seems to work better for me.

Not all is lost, though. That incident did remind me how much we enjoy our meatloaf recipe and it was Hadley approved, so as I made our meal plan and grocery list on Sunday, it was first up in our menu for the week. As for the time and ease aspect of making it, I used to make this quick and easy in 30 minutes for Max and myself when it was just the two of us. Add in a 16 month old who wants to be held all the time right now, and that did throw a little kink to it, but between tempting her with her own "nom noms" and distracting her in the high chair with some BabyFirst TV screen time, this recipe was quick in prep and completely doable with a small human.

So what makes the meatloaf skinny? It may all be tomayto/tomahto but I sub out heavier ingredients for lighter versions. For instance, instead of using all beef, I use half lean ground beef and half ground turkey. I also use 2 egg whites, as opposed to 1 full egg, panko breadcrumbs rather than biscuits or chunks of bread, and skim milk as opposed to whole. One last tip is that while I do not mind onion, many do, but I don't love the crunch of chopped onion in my meatloaf. So, I grate my onion instead. This helps to enhance the flavor, it really permeates. I do this in sauces too!

Speaking of sauces, the last directive I leave you with for this recipe. I used to make a ketchup sauce that was just really tasty, it was a typical meatloaf ketchup glaze. However, we discovered this Bronco Bob's BBQ Bacon Chipotle Sauce last year during Central Market's Bacon Fest. It was life changing. I tried it on the meatloaf and it was incredible, taking the place of a traditional ketchup-based sauce glaze. If you need a sauce you can whip up real quick, click here for one but note that the ingredients for it are not included below.

Ingredients:
For meatloaf

Yields 3-4 servings

• 3/4 lb. lean ground sirloin
• 3/4 lb. lean ground turkey
• 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup fresh Parsley, chopped
• 1/4 cup grated onion
• 2 egg whites
• 3 tbsp. skim milk
• 2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp. garlic, minced
• Lightly season with salt and pepper
• Sauce (whatever you decide to use)

For Maple Whipped Sweet Potatoes

• 3 medium sized sweet potatoes
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tbsp butter
• Maple syrup

For Parmesan Roasted Green Beans 

• I follow the Skinnytaste recipe exactly, no need to retype it out! 

To begin, set your oven to 400 degrees. 

Chop your sweet potatoes, place in a pot of water on the stove on medium-high heat to bring to a boil. As those cook, use your hands to combine your ground meats, breadcrumbs, parsley, onion, egg whites, milk, Worcestershire and garlic in a bowl. Mold the ingredients into a loaf, then place in a baking dish. I like to line my baking dish with foil for easy clean up and to prevent the sauce from burning onto the dish. 

Bake in the oven for 35 minutes, then remove and top with sauce. While meatloaf is cooking, prepare the green beans as according to the recipe link above. Place back in oven and cook another 10 minutes. At this time, you can also put your green beans in too. 

While the meatloaf bakes, tend to your sweet potatoes. Once they are easy to pierce with a fork, remove. I like to use my large food processor for a very whipped consistency, but you can use electric beaters or a potato masher as well. First add the butter in with the potato chunks to get that nice and soft from the heat. Next add the brown sugar, and finally I take the maple syrup and add about two circular squeezes, then begin to mix. If using electric beaters or a potato masher, you may need a little more liquid such as milk, but if using a food processor, your consistency will not need the excess liquid. Blend or mash until all chunks are gone and keep warm until ready to serve. 

Remove meatloaf from oven and make sure internal temperature has reached 160 degrees. Let sit for about 5 minutes before cutting. During that 5 minutes, add the Parmesan to the green beans and bake for a final 5. 

If you follow these steps, the timing should all match up perfectly to complete each part of dinner to be ready to serve at the same time. Plate and enjoy!

Sweet & Sour Chicken Fried Rice

There's something about the new year that makes us crave Asian comfort food. We've loaded up on all the traditional holiday food so we want something totally different. Or maybe we are just looking for a different kind of carb and sodium source, who knows? On this night in particular, what we really wanted was our favorite soup dumplings but that's just not something I can make, and they were too far away to go get. However, we had the contents to combine two of our other favorite dishes, a fried rice and a sweet and sour chicken, which created a tasty little hybrid. 

I usually like to make my own sauces for a number of reasons. You know exactly what's going into them, you can make them to taste, and it allows for some flexibility and creativity. However, if you have a jarred sauce already, there's the convenience factor that sometimes cannot be beat. I had planned to do a sweet and sour chicken recipe coming up and grabbed a jarred sweet and sour sauce on a recent grocery run thinking that perhaps this would come in handy rather than making my own - and so it did. It also helped to have pre-chopped onions and chopped carrot sticks that Max had done for his daily snacks. From a prep standpoint, I just had to chop the carrots a bit smaller and the bell pepper, which were easy to do as the chicken was cooking.

You will only have 1 pan to clean afterwards and it takes just 5 simple steps to make. With the time saving helpers of pre-chopped veggies and jarred sauce, this meal took maybe 20 minutes to whip up and it definitely hit the spot with our family - even our pickiest eater, Hadley. If you want to turn up the heat and don't have small tot taste buds to consider, adding in some red pepper flakes or Sriracha would be a fun way to give it some heat!

Ingredients
Yields 5-6 servings

• 1 lb. chicken tenders, cut into 1 inch cubes
• 6-8 oz. sweet and sour sauce (I used this brand) 
• 1 cup onions, diced
• 1 cup carrots, diced
• 1/2 -3/4 cup edamame, deshelled (okay to use frozen, they cook quickly in the pan!)
• 2 eggs, lightly scrambled
• 1 microwavable Garlic Quinoa/Brown Rice blend (we use this one, add a second if you like your dish to be heavy on the quinoa/rice)
• Tamari or Soy Sauce to taste

1. In a large chef's pan, cook your chicken on medium high heat, doused in the Sweet and Sour sauce. When no longer pink, about 8-10 minutes, move chicken and scrape leftover sauce from the pan to a plate and set aside. 

2. With some remnants of sauce left in the pan, add your onions and carrots. Once onions are translucent, add the red bell pepper and the edamame. Once all veggies are soft, move to the plate with chicken. 

3. Now add your eggs to the pan surface and scramble until cooked to your liking. 

4. While your eggs scramble, cook your quinoa/brown rice package according to directions (90 seconds in the microwave) then set aside. 

5. When eggs are done, add the garlic quinoa/brown rice blend to the pan with the scrambled eggs and then give it some flavor with the Tamari (a gluten free, low sodium version of soy sauce) or Soy Sauce. Next add your veggies back in, followed by the sweet and sour chicken chunks. Mix it all together and you have yourself dinner ready to plate. 

Beef Bourguignon

I don't know about you but this December has been full of all things congestion, respiratory ailments and fever. After traveling for the holidays, our family came back a little more under the weather and in serious need of a home-cooked comfort meal. I have had a go-to pot roast recipe I rarely deviate from but decided to change it up and finally try a beef bourguignon.

I'll tell you, I thought I was saving this recipe for a nice dinner or a hosting opportunity. There's something about the name alone that just sounds all Frenchy and fancy. But when thinking of something to make and feed our family, it felt like a perfect sick-day-feel-better-pajamas-on-the-couch meal too, so it can go either way, dressed up or dressed very down! I look for dishes that are robust with flavor and this did not disappoint. It is important to reduce the wine to the point where it is syrupy, then slowly add in the other ingredients for the sauce, a little at a time, continuing to reduce, so that the flavors are very poignant in taste.

I followed this recipe as a baseline, but also took my own liberties. For example, I don't do mushrooms. Someone once looked at me and said how can you call yourself a foodie if you don't eat one of the most delectable flavors there is? Well, I have tried, it's not for me, and I get by. I just hate the texture of them and can't do it. They are a umami, so I know the flavor elevates a dish. I've cooked with them before if it's an easy discard but this wouldn't be that. I decided to use onions instead because that is my "umami". Instead of full on soy sauce, I did part soy, part Worcestershire for more diverse flavor. Finally, I used butter to give it that final kick of dimension for rich, velvety goodness.

I also like to shred my meat rather than cook it cubed. I feel like it is more tender and flavorful that way. However, this method can also soak up more of the juices or sauce which depletes from the final result when time to serve. Making this for the first time, I used potatoes in the cooking process and the amount of sauce in the pan worked well. If I were to omit the potatoes when cooking and save them for a cauliflower/potato mash or polenta, I would have wanted this to have a bit more sauce to it. If you plan to serve over a starch, I would go heavier on the liquids by about 1/4 a cup each so you have plenty of sauce to serve with your dish.

I use a dutch oven when "slow cooking" because the flavor to me is better, but many prefer to use the crock pot. For crock pot instructions, refer to the linked recipe above, but come back here for step-by-step cooking directions.

Yields 6 servings
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 2 hours

• 5 slices of bacon
• Salt and pepper
• 3 lb. beef chuck roast, cut into large sections (about 5 for that size)
• 1 cup red wine (I used a Pinot Noir which is a Burgundy and perfect for this dish) 
• 2 cups beef broth
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tbsp. butter
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 5 garlic cloves, sliced
• 2 tbsp. thyme
• 1 cup carrots, chopped
• 1 cup baby potatoes, chopped (I used smaller pearled potatoes and cut them in fourths)
• 1/2 onion, chopped in larger chunks
• fresh parsley for garnish

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. On medium-low heat, add the bacon to the pot and allow to crisp. As it does, it will create a nice pot of grease for you to use in the next step! While bacon cooks, season beef with salt and pepper. When bacon is crisp, remove and discard. 

Next, turn up the heat to medium-high and add your sections of beef to the pot to sear in the bacon grease, about 1-2 minutes per side. This locks in the flavor and will make your beef even more tender. Once all is seared, remove beef to a plate and set aside. 

Next, add in the wine and turn up to simmer to allow the wine to reduce. Scrape the brown bits from the sides of the pan from the bacon and the beef. Reduce by about half and it should look a little syrupy, then add in the beef stock about 1/2 cup at a time, keeping the heat high. Next add in the tomato sauce, then soy sauce, followed by the Worcestershire. Let this all simmer together for about 5 minutes, then stir in the butter until melted. Final step for the sauce is to thicken it with the flour. Turn down the heat to medium and add the flour, about a tbsp at a time, and whisk constantly until all combined without lumps. 

Add the beef back in and settle around the pan, then add the garlic, carrots, potatoes, onion and finally the thyme. Give it all a big stir, put the lid on and place in the oven for 2 hours. 

When the timer goes off, remove from the oven and using tongs, remove the meat to shred on a plate, discarding any additional fat, then adding meat back into the pot. You can allow this to sit on the stove over low heat until ready to serve! 

For a bonus recipe, make this super easy and delicious roasted parmesan green beans side from Skinnytaste to pair with your Beef Bourguignon. 

Homemade Chicken Pot Pie

Before this blog, I had another one solely dedicated to cooking. It started when Max and I were dating, the two of us found cooking as a hobby that we loved doing together, and I needed a stress relief from the busy world of my work life. Writing had always been a passion, cooking had become one, so blogging allowed me to creatively combine the two and share with friends who asked for recipes.

After getting married, I wanted to morph that creativity a little more into a new outlet that covered other hobbies - such as traveling, party planning, homeowner type things - and created this domain. It sat untouched until I had the true need to write again after our loss. While that is a main outpouring of my writing, cooking became therapeutic again, and I called those recipe posts that I'd share Cooking for Comfort.

At least once a week we try to challenge ourselves with something we've never made before and a lot of times it is on the weekend for a date night in, or when we have more time to devote to it. Enter this recipe for a homemade chicken pot pie. Baking is not my forte, I prefer to cook by taste - adding a dash of this and a dash of that. Baking is a precise science that I don't gravitate towards, so when it came to this recipe and making the homemade dough, I left that up to Max's expertise. I was in charge of the filling and felt like I could experiment more and do it "to taste". We enjoyed making it, we really enjoyed consuming it, and it was even Hadley approved. 

Ingredients:
Yields 6-8 servings
For Pie Crust, from Two Peas and Their Pod

• 2.5 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 cup cold, unsalted butter, cut into cubes
• 1/2 cup cold buttermilk
• 1-2 tbsp. of water (if needed)
• 1 egg, beaten (to brush the crust as a final step)

For Filling

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup onion, diced
• 1/2 cup celery, diced
• 1 cup carrot, chopped
• 1 cup green veggie of choice (peas, broccoli florets, green beans - I went with green beans for this first attempt)
• 2 tbsp. garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp. fresh thyme, minced
• 1.5 tbsp. fresh parsley, minced
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 3/4 cup half and half 
• 3 cups shredded chicken (I used a rotisserie chicken for the flavor)
• Cajun seasoning to taste (Optional. I am a Tony Chachere addict and use it in nearly every dish, so this was no exception and my personal twist!)

First, make sure you have an oven rack positioned in the center and pre-heat to 400 degrees. 

Start with making the pie crust. In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt and sugar. Add the cubed butter and toss to coat. You need a moderate in size, clean, flat surface to then dump the ingredients out. Using a rolling pin, roll the butter into thin sheets incorporating it with the flour mix. Use a pastry scraper to scrape the rolling pin and bring the scraps back into a pile to continue to roll out. Continue this process until all the butter is flattened and worked into the dry ingredients. The mix will be flaky and dry. Place back in the bowl and into the freezer for 15 min to chill. 

After 15 min, remove from freezer and add the buttermilk. Using a spoon, stir the buttermilk into the mixture, making more of a dough-like consistency. If it still feels a little dry, add the water, one tablespoon at a time. Cut the dough into two equal amounts, flatten into discs and place separately in plastic wrap or ziploc bags. Let these chill in the fridge while you make the filling.

In a large skillet or chef's pan, heat the butter over medium heat. Once melted, add the onion, celery, carrot and green veggie of choice to cook for about 5 minutes or until vegetables are soft/onions are translucent. Next, add the garlic. Once fragrant, sprinkle the flour over the veggies, add the thyme, parsley and salt. Once coated in flour and seasonings, add the chicken broth and Half & Half, then turn the heat up a bit to let it thicken, stirring often. Once thickened, add the chicken. Final step is to season to your liking with the Cajun seasoning. 

Remove the pie dough from the fridge and sprinkle some flour onto your clean, flat surface. Rub the rolling pin with flour as well to help with it sticking to the dough. Use the rolling pin to roll out the disc to a flattened circle of about 12 inches and 1/4 inch thickness. Transfer the dough to a 9 inch pie dish and press into the dish, patting with fingers to make smooth and stretch more if needed. If there is extra dough over the sides of the pan, trim and discard. Fill pie with filling. Roll out the second disc and repeat the process, placing it carefully over the top of the pie and trimming excess dough if it hangs over the sides. Using your fingers or a fork, crimp the dough to seal the pie. With a knife, slit some lines into the pie. Using a pastry brush, brush the egg onto the top and crust of the dough.

Bake for 40 minutes, or until crust is golden brown. Let cool, then cut and serve! 

BBQ Brisket Enchiladas

This past weekend we had some friends travel in for our Foundation's annual golf tournament in Hudson's memory. It was a jam-packed few days but by the end of the weekend, cooking a delicious meal was exactly what I wanted to do to decompress. I hadn't made enchiladas in a long time, and wanted to give the Californians the best taste of Dallas, so I thought a shredded brisket enchilada would be a tasty treat. I looked at a sour cream sauce, a tomatillo/avocado sauce, a ranchero sauce, but nothing jumped out to me. Staring in the fridge, I saw our favorite bottle of BBQ Sauce and that's when the aha moment occurred. The combination using the creaminess of a sour cream sauce with a punch of that tangy, smokey BBQ flavor was exactly what was needed.

I took a major short cut with this recipe to save on time and energy. We did not smoke the brisket ourselves, instead I called the spot who has my favorite shredded brisket - Taco Joint - and they sold it to us by the pound. After allowing the onions to properly caramelize by cooking on low for 30 minutes, they had shrunk down so much, combining them with the brisket stuffing didn't seem right anymore. I decided to top the enchiladas with them instead - that way most were covered, but I left them off a few in case people didn't want onion. Doing it that way also allowed the flavor of them to stand out a bit more, rather than being hidden in the brisket.

As soon as I finished sauteing, saucing, stuffing, smothering - I told Max to prepare himself because this may be in contention for best thing I've made. Consensus agreed with that and this thrown-together dish is one I wanted to share! All in all, this was not a very time consuming endeavor but I would recommend the time preparation for a weekend when you have more time. I was able to prepare it while Hadley was down for a long nap, so it happened without interruption. This is a great meal to make in bulk - this recipe made 2 pans of enchiladas (16 total).

Ingredients:
(makes 16 enchiladas)

• 1 large sweet onion, sliced in rings
• 4 tbsp. butter (divided - 1 tbsp. and 3 tbsp.)
• 1 tsp. brown sugar
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 3 tbsp. flour (I used wheat flour for no other reason than that is what was in my pantry)
• 2 cups of low sodium broth (I had chicken broth - beef or veggie broths would work fine, too)
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2-3/4 cup BBQ sauce (our favorite is Austin's Own brand in medium heat)
• 1/4 tbsp. cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1 tbsp. garlic granules
• 2 lb. brisket
• 10 - 16 Tortillas of choice (I prefer to work with flour tortillas when it comes to enchiladas. The fresh out of the oven whole wheat from Central Market are my favorite)
• Lots of cheese. Get a big bag, or two small bags. Monterrey Jack or Cheddar. I used both. 
• Green Onion, for garnish
• Avocado, for garnish

1.) To start, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. 

2.) Sauteing: In a saute pan, heat the olive oil on medium high heat, then add 1 tbsp of butter. Once melted, add the brown sugar and mix. Add onions and move around with tongs to try to coat. Turn the heat down to medium low. Some people cover and that does make them cook faster, I do not because I feel like covering just steams them, makes them soggy from condensation, and doesn't truly caramelize the onions. Make sure you can come back to the pan a few times to toss the onions for a more even cook. 

3.) Saucing part I: As your onions caramelize and your oven heats, start the sauce. The first best practice of sauce making is the roux. This will allow your sauce to hold a thickness and coat your 'ladas with flavor rather than a runny liquid. In a shallow sauce pan, heat the 3 tbsp. butter. Once melted, add the flour tablespoon by tablespoon, whisking together with a smooth consistency before adding the next. You should have a thick base - if you do not, add a little more flour. Slowly add the stock/broth, about 1/4 cup at a time, continuing to whisk over medium high heat. Let the combination rest on medium-high heat to thicken up a little if needed. 

4.) Saucing part II: Remove the sauce pan from the heat, then add the sour cream. Whisk well to prevent curdling. Then add the BBQ sauce. Take a taste test - if you want to add a little heat to the taste, then add the cayenne. My BBQ sauce wasn't spicy enough and my sauce was missing that kick, so I used cayenne to achieve it. 

5.) Stuffing: Once your sauce is ready, spoon about 1/4 cups worth over a large glass pan to provide a thin base to keep the tortillas from drying out. Taking a tortilla, use the spatula to swipe sauce down the middle then fill with brisket and top with 2 pinches of cheese. Fold one end up to close off one side, then roll the stuffed tortilla up. Place in the baking dish seamside down. Continue process until your baking dish(es) are full, or you are out of stuffing. 

7.) Now we Smother: My brisket had a lot of delicious juices left over, so I brushed that over the tops and edges of the tortillas for flavor and again to help from them drying out. Next I poured the sauce over top, making sure to get down on the sides and edges. Next, top with your caramelized onions, followed by your cheese. 

8.) Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes to keep moisture in and prevent cheese from browning/contents from drying out. 

9.) Remove from foil and cook another 5 minutes uncovered to allow that cheese to bubble and slightly brown up. 

10.) Remove from oven, garnish with green onion and avocado if you choose. Serve and enjoy! 

Salmon Chimichurri Salad

A year ago when I was pregnant with Hadley, Max made our favorite salmon dish. I loved that meal, I couldn't wait, I took one bite of it and that bite came right back up. Salmon officially repulsed me from that time on. When I was pregnant with Hudson I didn't really have many food aversions, fish certainly didn't bother me, and we always had salmon once a week for those omega 3's.

After Fishgate 2016, I honestly didn't know if I'd want to eat salmon again. Once Hadley was born, it took a while for me to want to eat fish at all. It didn't sound appealing until more recently. I started slowly with sushi and then one day, I really wanted salmon. Maybe it has to do with springtime and gravitating towards fresh greens and fish, but I'm loving this salad and we are making it weekly. It is filling enough for both of us and a quick/easy make!

Ingredients:
Yields two servings

For Salad

• 2.5 cups of Hearts of Romaine lettuce, chopped  
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup red onion, chopped 
• 1/2 cup feta cheese
• Zoe's Salad dressing - I used to make my own red wine vinaigrette and that was great and all but for ease, my favorite salad dressing is from Zoe's. Pick up a bottle and use it on everything!!!  I toss just the lettuce in about 2 tbsp. of it. 

For Salmon Chimichurri

• 2 salmon fillets (I like 4 oz, Max likes 6 oz or more)
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro
• 1 cup fresh parsley
• Red pepper flakes, to taste (I like a hearty sprinkle, it plays well off the red wine vinegar!)
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/2-ish cup of olive oil (pour yourself 1/2 cup, you may not need to use it all)

1) We like to cook our salmon on our Green Egg but I will defer to you on how you cook it. Either on a grill (grill 3-4 minutes on each side), a Green Egg (get to 350 degrees and cook for 15 minutes, do not flip), in the oven (400 degrees for 12-15 minutes, do not flip), on a skillet (high heat, cook on each side for 3-5 minutes). So we will call step one, MYOS (make your own salmon). I don't do anything to it, don't put anything on it, just let it cook naked. I also love to cook my halved cherry tomatoes. I make a little "roasting pan" out of foil and throw them on the Green Egg as well. 

2) While the salmon is cooking on your designated method, make the chimichurri by combining all ingredients except for the olive oil, in a mini food processor. Pulse, pulse, pulse it and then add in the olive oil a little at a time between pulses. Using the full 1/2 cup will give you a pretty runny chimichurri but some people prefer that. Use however much olive oil to reach your desired consistency. 

3) Once chimichurri is done, assemble your salad with the lettuce, red onion and feta. If you roasted your tomatoes, keep them set aside for now. If they are going in raw, add them to the salad. Pour 2 tbsp. of dressing and toss. Plate the salad. If you did roast your tomatoes, add to the plate once salad has been tossed in dressing.

4) When salmon has reached its desired doneness, when pairing it with a salad, we like to remove the shiny/scaley side. So using the spatula, just run it slightly above the bottom scaley side, lifting the fillet up off of it. Set on your bed of greens then using a spoon, top the salmon with the chimichurri. 

Oh My Gosh Goulash

Recently, Max and I were reflecting on our Germany and Austria babymoon and found ourselves pining for one meal in particular. While in Salzburg, I enjoyed the best bowl of goulash soup in the whole wide world - according to me and my limited range of goulashism. In the moment while enjoying this bowl of greatness at the cutest little Austrian pub, I filed that one away as something to make again during the winter.

Here in Texas, we aren't having much of a winter, however, we can pretend. This was easy guys and as much as you can buy from the grocery store pre-chopped, the less amount of time it takes you to do, which in my book means even easier. I started this dish when I got home from work, was able to accomplish changing clothes, changing Hadley, nursing Hadley and decompressing while watching an episode of Grey's Anatomy (yep, started that one from the beginning again) - then viola, dinner was ready. It is a great meal to make when planning to have leftovers to eat throughout the week. I researched various Viennese versions and created a combination of a few different ones, including my Beef Goulew shared last year, with ingredients I thought would work best - and they were perfect together. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
Yields 6-8 servings

• 2 lb. sirloin, cubed (1 inch)
• 3 tbsp. flour
• 2 tbsp. sweet Hungarian Paprika, divided in half
• 1 tbsp. garlic granules
• salt and pepper
• olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 packet of onion soup mix
• 2 tbsp. tomato paste
• 1 cup red wine (I like to use a Merlot - it enhances the flavor and the guy at the wine store told me that Merlot and Bordeaux are better to use over say a Cab because of the acidity levels - and I'm sure there was more to that explanation but I claim baby brain.)
• 3 cups beef broth
• 1 tsp. parsley
• 2 tsp. Worcestershire
• 1 tsp. soy sauce (I use gluten free tamari)
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1-2 cups chopped carrots (I like to get these pre-chopped to save on time)
• 2 cups potatoes, cubed (small, like half inch)
• 1 tbsp. Cornstarch (optional)
• Water (optional)
• Sour cream (optional garnish)

1.) Combine the flour, 1 tbsp. paprika, garlic granules and salt & pepper in a large mixing bowl, stirring to combine. Add the cubed meat and toss to coat. In a dutch oven, braise your beef in about 2 tbsp. of oil on high heat, browning on all sides. Remove and set aside.

2.) Lower heat to medium and add onions. Saute until translucent, scraping the brown bits off the bottom of the pan. Add the garlic and the bell pepper.

3.) Add beef back into the dutch oven. In a small bowl combine the onion soup mix, broth, tomato paste, red wine, remaining 1 tbsp. paprika, parsley, Worcestershire, and soy sauce. Whisk together then pour into the dutch oven. Set the timer for 90 minutes and walk away.

4.) 90 minutes later, that beef should be nice and tender, the flavors melded together beautifully, and your kitchen smelling phenomenal. Give it a good stir and then add the chopped carrots and potatoes. Allow it to cook another 20-30 minutes until both carrots and potatoes are easy to pierce with a fork.

5.) At this time, you can also choose to either thicken the liquid or leave it as is for more of a "soup" like consistency. If you would like to thicken, that is where the cornstarch and water comes in - which I learned was called "making a slurry". For a dish of this size, I use 2 tbsp. cornstarch in a small bowl, then add 2 tbsp. water, mixing to form the slurry. Once combined without any lumps, add it to the pot. Let it simmer to continue to thicken. Repeat this process 1 tbsp. at a time to reach your desired consistency.

Max likes his goulash with sour cream, so you can add a dollop or eat it plain!

Cornbread Chili Bake

We were in an Eatzi's a few weeks after Hadley was born when I saw a chili and cornbread bake and my mind was blown. Sure they go together like peanut butter and jelly but I had never thought to combine the two into one dish. You guys, this was revolutionary. Don't just serve your cornbread with chili, serve it IN your chili. The next day when shopping at the grocery store, I found what I needed and in three easy steps, I had a really tasty meal in under 30 minutes. 

This has been a great meal to easily make and take to others, to serve a group, and we have loved it just for the two of us to have then reheat for nearly a week of leftovers. You can make your own chili and use that, or you can do what I did below! 

Ingredients:

(Yields 8-10 servings)

• Cookwell & Company two step Chili mix (I've also had their green chili mix and highly recommend it)
• A honey cornbread mix, I use the Central Market Honey Cornbread and whatever ingredients the cornbread needs according to the box. 
• 1-1.5 lb ground meat (I've used both ground beef and ground turkey)
• Garlic granules, to taste
• Kidney Beans, drained and rinsed (optional, I like to add for additional protein, iron and fiber)
• Shredded cheese (flavor of choice, I do a mild Cheddar or Monterrey Jack)
• Green Onion (optional)
• Sour Cream (optional)

1.) Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees or whatever your cornbread mix says. While oven heats, brown your meat in a skillet and season with garlic granules. 

2.) While the meat cooks, grease a large casserole dish. Mix your cornbread in a bowl then pour the mix in and spread to even it. Cook for 10 minutes. 

3.) Once meat is cooked through, add to chili mix in a bowl and kidney beans if you opted to include. Spread on top of the half-cooked cornbread, top with cheese and pop in the oven for 10 more minutes. 

Remove when timer goes off and serve, garnishing with green onion and/or sour cream! 

Sweet Potato Turkey Chili

                             

Needing an easy, low effort meal, I pulled out a turkey chili recipe I started making a few years ago. I love to add butternut squash to my brisket chili, but I had a sweet potato leftover from a recipe I didn't get to last week and decided to add it to this instead. I also like to include black beans for added protein and fiber. This is a great big batch meal to make because it refrigerates well for leftovers or freezes well to come back to when needed.

Prep time will take you about 30 minutes - less if you have veggies already chopped up. Cook time is about an hour to an hour and a half for the most robust flavor, but it can be less if needed for your schedule. While you can make it in a crockpot, I always prefer to slow cook in a dutch oven. 

Ingredients:
Yields 6 servings

• Olive oil
• 1 lb. lean ground turkey
• Cumin
• Chili Powder
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 16 oz. can Fire Roasted Tomatoes with Green Chiles (medium heat)
• 6 oz. can tomato paste
• 2 cups sweet potatoes, small cubes
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup of low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 packet of taco seasoning
• Cheese, optional garnish
• Avocado, optional garnish
• Sour cream, optional garnish

1.) In your cast iron pot, heat the olive oil on medium heat and add the onion. Saute until fragrant, then add the garlic.

2.) Stir in the ground turkey, breaking it up into smaller bits and season with generous sprinkles of cumin and chili powder. Once meat has turned from pink to mostly white, add the red bell pepper, can of roasted tomatoes, and the cubed sweet potatoes, letting cook on high simmer for about 5 minutes to allow the vegetables to soften. 

3.) Next up add the beans, followed by the taco seasoning packet. Give it all a good stir and allow to cook together for a few minutes before adding the stock, mixing well to combine as you go. 

4. ) Turn the heat down to a simmer and set your timer for an hour. In the cast iron pot, I don't set and forget, rather it needs a little attention here and there to stir. After about an hour on a low heat, your sweet potato will be nice and soft, and all the flavors well blended. Feel free to cook longer, but it'll be good to enjoy by this point. 

5.) Scoop to serve and top with your favorite chili extras such as sour cream, cheese, and/or avocado. 

Chimichurri Steak and Potato Salad

Ladies, sometimes you just want lighter dinner fare, right? This is difficult when there's a man to feed because they want hearty. Or maybe sometimes you want a light meal but WITH a little hearty. This brings together the best of both worlds combining salad greens with some meat and potatoes. Putting it all together offers you a meal full of protein, iron, iodine and folate. You get your entrée salad, he gets enough food to be full. This may look like a lot of moving parts but once you get going, in the right order, you have it ready in no time!

I've made this with regular potatoes and tomatoes (first picture) and again this week changing it up adding avocado and the purple Peruvian potatoes. I used to work with a caterer who used Peruvian potatoes as part of a passed canape recipe and I always thought they were fun. With the Olympics going on, I decided to tap into all things South America with the Brazilian meat and Peruvian potatoes! Max enjoyed himself an Argentinian Malbec while I enjoyed delicious, clean and filtered water - unlike in Rio right now.

Version with Peruvian potatoes and avocado

Special note: This recipe does require the use of a grill and a small food processor to help you plan accordingly.

Grocery List:
Yields 3-4 servings

For Flank Steak
- 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup Tamari or Soy Sauce
- 3 tbsp. honey
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 lb. flank steak, trimmed of fat

For Chimichurri
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro
- 1 cup fresh parsley
- a hearty sprinkle of red pepper flakes
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/2 cup olive oil

For Salad
- Heirloom Red and/or Green Leaf Lettuce, rinsed, chopped (sometimes I do a mix of the two, top picture is with green leaf, second picture is with red leaf)
- 1 cup fingerling potatoes, chopped (the purple ones are Peruvian if you want a fun change up on your plate)
- Red onion, sliced
- Cucumber, peeled and chopped (I like to de-seed mine too)
- Avocado, cubed
- Cherry tomatoes, halved (optional)

Every time I make this, I plan to mix up the marinade and let the scored steak bathe in it overnight. However, I have yet to accomplish that. The longest I've been able to allow it to marinate before needing to start cooking is 1 hour, this last time I made it, it was 30 minutes. All of that to say - you can marinate it for 24 hours, or 30 minutes, whatever fits your cook time. If it's on the shorter end, no worries, you will still have a flavorful steak.

1. Start by scoring the steak with a paring knife. For those that are not familiar with scoring meat, instead of me describing it to you, I found this video for you! I am a visual learner so I thought others would appreciate this instead.

2. Mix the ingredients for the marinade in a bowl. Put steak and marinade in a ziploc bag and allow it to soak up the flavors for as long as you are able to allow.

3. Within 30 minutes of putting the steak on the grill, go ahead and begin the rest of the cooking process. Start by heating your grill to 400 degrees. Once heated, you will cook it for 7 minutes and then flip to the other side to cook for another 5 minutes. Once the steak is done, cut it against the grain with a serrated knife (best cut for a flank steak). Again for the visual learners, here you go!

4. Next, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. While it is heating, cut your potatoes into bite sized chunks. Toss in olive oil and then sprinkle with salt and garlic granules. Bake for 15 minutes or until slightly browned on cut surface and easily pierced by a fork. If you decide you want to do cherry tomatoes, I roast those in the oven with the potatoes to blister them a bit. Potatoes on one side of pan, tomatoes on the other.

5. In a small food processor, add all of the ingredients for the chimichurri and then pulse until smooth. Set aside until time to serve.

For the most even salad ingredient distribution, plate a heap of lettuce first, followed by the potatoes, red onion, cucumber, avocado, tomatoes (if you use them), then strips of steak. As a finishing touch, spoon the chimichurri over all this goodness and enjoy!

Paleo Avocado "Caesar" Salad with Almond Crusted Chicken

Spring weather has come early in Texas so we've been enjoying some lighter fare around the dinner table. This dish is a delicious and nutritious fix for those looking for a fun new way to jazz up an entrée salad. It's light enough for a lady and hearty enough to qualify as dude food. One thing I loved was that it was both eggless and anchovy-less too. Some of you may be asking then how is it a Caesar dressing? Using a vegan and gluten-free dressing recipe base I found and adapted from Detoxinista, you can replicate the tastes well enough not to miss those ingredients.

This meal gives you a healthy dose of protein, fiber and omegas by using kale, brussels sprouts, avocado, and almonds (instead of breadcrumbs) for a little texture. Can it get much better than that? I don't think so. If you are not following a Paleo diet and would like to bulk it up even more, add some quinoa or pearled couscous.

This recipe yields two plentiful servings and will take you all of 30 minutes or less in 5 simple steps.

Ingredients:

• 2 chicken breasts ( I prefer to get cutlets, the filet cut of a chicken breast, so that fat is already removed and it cooks more evenly)
• 1/2 cup almonds
• 2 tsp. dried parsley
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. paprika
• 1 egg
• 1 bunch of kale, stems removed, chopped
• 20 brussel sprouts, shaved (I do this using my shredding disc attachment tool for big food processor to help save time)
• Grated Pecorino Romano cheese

For the dressing

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard (I prefer the Organicville brand, it's Paleo approved)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small avocado, smashed
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar

To begin, pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees and prepare a baking dish lined in aluminum foil.

1.) In a small food processor, pulse the almonds until finely chopped. Next add in the parley, garlic powder and paprika. Pulse until well blended and set aside in a shallow dish.

2.) In a separate bowl, whisk the egg. If you are vegan or do not want to use dairy at all, brush coconut oil over either side to accomplish this next step. Dredge the chicken in the almond mixture, coating both sides. Place the chicken in the baking dish and bake for 20 minutes, or until cooked through.

3.) While the chicken is baking, make the dressing. Excluding the olive oil, place all ingredients in the small food processor. Blend until smooth and then slowly add the olive oil to emulsify. Set aside.

4.) Let's talk about kale for a hot minute. It's fibrous and can sometimes be a little too tough which often turns people away from an otherwise fantastic green. When making kale salads, you can soften the leaves by massaging them with dressing. Take about half a tablespoon of that reserved dressing and pour it over the chopped kale. Using your hands, begin to massage the greens - start big tossing all the leaves and then using the universal "money" hand motions, rub the individual leaves. How's that for descriptive? Do this for about 2 minutes, that's all it takes! Once the kale is massaged, add the shaved brussels sprouts and toss with a tablespoon more dressing to evenly coat.

5.) Once done, remove the chicken from the oven and let it cool slightly. Plate your greens, sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese, drizzle with a spoonful of additional dressing if like my husband and the more sauce the better is desired, then top with the chicken.

Paleo Cauliflower Fried Rice

I discovered a new tool this past Sunday on my food processor, one that I have never bothered to use, but one that has changed my life. I used... the shredder disc. I am still a kitchen novice sometimes, too.

The lady that helped me check out at the grocery store earlier that day asked me what was on my menu for the week and she's the one that gave me the idea to use it. I had an a-ha moment like, oooh so that is what it's used for?! I may have giggled in glee as I stuffed the cauliflower florets down the tube in the top and watched as the disc spun, shredding the cauliflower. The result looking like fresh snow powder. It made me really happy. Then I decided to stove top cook a Paleo teriyaki salmon on the griddler and it was a mess, so then I wasn't so happy. I will be utilizing the oven for that next time.

This was ridiculously easy to make and we have been enjoying the leftovers for lunch. If you haven't had riced cauliflower before, you may be like my former self, thinking does it really taste good? The answer to that is yes. I honestly couldn't tell a difference because the cauliflower absorbs the flavors and has a similar-enough texture to rice when shredded. If you want to add meat to a veggie packed dish, salmon was a great choice, or you can also do ground chicken or turkey mixed in, season in a little 5 spice powder. Mmmm, yes. This remake just went on my meal planning list for next week too.  

This is a quick and easy weeknight fix, taking less than 30 minutes in 5 easy steps from chop start to plated finish. It is all the things y'all. It is Paleo, Gluten Free, Primal, Whole 30, Vegan (if you do not add in the meat). Most of all, it is good.

Oh and snaps to my friend Casey for the straight from Japan chopsticks and pretty stick holder!

Ingredients:
Yields 4 servings

• 1 large head of cauliflower, chopped into individual florets
• 1 tbsp. coconut oil
• 1 cup carrots, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• Half of one onion, diced
• 2 tbsp. of Tamari, divided into 1 tbsp. and 1 tbsp.
• 1 tbsp. Coconut Aminos (this is found in the Asian Food Aisle with other sauces)
• Red Pepper Flakes (optional)
• Green onion (optional)

1.) I used my Cuisinart Food Processor to rice the cauliflower. Take the shredder disc and attach it to the step adapter. Then secure the stem adapter onto the blade shaft.

 

Secure the top and turn that sucker on. Feed the florets down the shoot and voila!

2.) In a large sauté pan or a wok, heat the oil on medium high heat, then add onions. Cook until translucent.

3.) *OPTIONAL STEP* if you decide to cook this recipe with meat, this is when you would want to add it. I would cook your ground meat for about 8 minutes, continuously stirring and breaking up the chunks.

4.) Add the veggies and 1 tbsp. of tamari then cover. Cook untouched for about 8 minutes.

5.) Add the riced cauliflower to the pan, along with the remainder of the Tamari and the Coconut Aminos. Season with red pepper flakes if you would like a little heat.

Once it is all well tossed and combined, dish out into bowl and garnish with green onion.

Paleo Make a Meal: Maple-Pecan Crusted Salmon + Garlic-Chive Cauliflower Puree + Sweet and Spicy Roasted Brussel Sprouts

That may be the longest post title I'll ever have.

I don't know about you, but I always appreciate seeing a full meal put together so I'm not hunting and picking sides and mains. When it's a busy week and I have a lot on my plate (pun intended), I like to see the full picture of a meal for ease and convenience. Therefore, I wanted to present this to you in full.

We have a Soy-Mustard Glazed Salmon that is our go to almost every time we make fish because it is just that good. However, I needed something paleo-friendly and so I started hunting around for other salmon recipes. I found a few different variations of Maple-Pecan Crusted Salmon, which I thought would pair well with my cauliflower puree. Looking through those, I took what ingredients I liked and created my own blend. I had originally planned to make a kale salad as a final touch but saw an easy to make Brussels Sprouts pack at Whole Foods that were already seasoned in cayenne pepper and had a maple syrup drizzle. It all paired deliciously together!

Here is a full Make a Meal, with easy to follow steps that will make your prep and cook time no longer than 35 minutes. 

Ingredients:
For Salmon - yields 2 servings

• 2 salmon fillets
• 1 cup pecans
• 2 tbsp. pure maple syrup
• 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp. adobo sauce (if you don't have this, or can't find it, use red pepper flakes to give it some heat)
• 1 tsp. smoked paprika
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp. onion powder

For Cauliflower - yields 4 servings

• 1 head of cauliflower
• 1 cup vegetable broth
• Salt
• Pepper
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp. chives, chopped

For Brussels Sprouts - yields 4 servings

• 20 Brussels Sprouts, halved
• Cayenne Pepper
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1/4 cup Maple Syrup

1. To begin, heat your oven to 425 degrees.

2. Next, place the cauliflower florets in a pot of water, then boil until softened.

3. Toss the BSprouts in the maple syrup and cayenne (or sub red pepper flakes if cayenne is too hot). Spread out on a roasting pan, atop aluminum foil. Roast in the oven for 25 minutes.

4. In a small food processor, combine your pecans, syrup, vinegar, adobo sauce, paprika, garlic and onion powder, pulsing until it has a similar consistency to chunky peanut butter.

5. Spread the pecan mixture over top the salmon and bake for 12 minutes. (I wait until the BSprouts have 12 minutes left to roast)

6. Once the cauliflower can be easily pierced with a fork, drain and place the cooked florets into a large food processor. Add the veggie stock and garlic cloves, season with salt and pepper to your preference. Grind the contents until smooth and creamy. Add the chives and pulse until well mixed throughout the puree. Taste test and add more salt, pepper or garlic if needed.

7. All of this should culminate around the same time. Remove the salmon and roasted BSprouts from the oven then plate your delicious and nutritious Paleo meal!

Paleo Pulled Pork Chili

I was meal planning this morning. After completing the grocery list and sending to Max via email, he came back inside the house after a quick walk with George to say - it's really cold, how about chili tonight? With the brisket chili recipe on my speed dial since November, I decided to change things up this time and revise our meals for the week.

After talking with both my doctor and acupuncturist about a hormonal imbalance (yep, acupuncture started this week. Interesting experience but I think I like it), then the suggestion from a fellow loss mama regarding her experience going Paleo and the link that has with hormones and fertility, I've started following some new Paleo bloggers to learn their ways. My friends Casey and Shelby have been my Yodas in answering all of my so wait, is this Paleo? questions. For this recipe, I took my brisket chili and removed everything from it that made it non-Paleo. Then, I compared the remaining parts of my recipe with PaleOMG's Pulled Pork Chili just to make sure I was safe with all my ingredients.

How does this recipe compare to my Brisket Chili? For starters, I swapped butternut squash for sweet potatoes. Gasp! I know. Not that anything would be wrong with butternut squash, I just opted for a change up. If you google "are sweet potatoes paleo?" you will see that some say yes, others are a hard no - they are in the grey area. I chose to use them because of the nutritional components I'm looking for. I removed the black beans, the beer and added more stock (used veggie instead of beef stock - it's what we already had) and water. PaleOMG had a fun technique with garlic, so I adopted that and used her recipe's suggested tomato sauce + hot sauce to thicken the base. I used all my same spices, and removed the brown sugar. Overall, I would say this is a decent hybrid between her pulled pork chili and my brisket chili with a special bonus, it's totes paleo y'all. I also made this in a dutch oven, rather than how she made it in the crock pot. Cooking times would vary, the crock pot taking 8 hours on low. This takes 4 hours in the oven which is perfect for a day you are home around the house. 

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2 lb. pork shoulder roast, fat trimmed
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup salsa 
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1.5 - 2 cups chopped sweet potato (small cubes)
• 1 can fire roasted tomatoes with green chiles 
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 2 tbsp. tomato paste
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 1.5 cup veggie stock
• 3 tbsp. chili powder
• 1 tbsp. cumin
• 1/2 tsp. cayenne
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• Green onion (optional garnish)
• Avocado (optional garnish)

To start, heat your oven to 275 degrees.

1) In a dutch oven, heat a smidge of coconut or avocado oil on medium high heat.
2) Using a knife, cut a slit in the top of the meet, making a circle, in three places. Then stick a clove of garlic in each hole.
3) Season the roast with salt, pepper. Set the roast in the dutch oven and cover with hot sauce. Continue to brown each side of the pork roast (carefully keeping the garlic inside the meat), above 2 minutes per side.
4) Remove the roast and move to a plate. Add the onions in, scrape up browned bits from the pork and move the onions around in the leftover salsa. Allow them to cook until translucent - about 10 minutes.
5) Place the roast back into the dutch oven, add the cubed sweet potatoes, red bell pepper and fire roasted tomatoes with green chiles and turn down heat to simmer.
6) In a separate bowl, mix the liquids and spices. Whisk until combined.
7) Pour the liquids in the dutch oven, covering the pork and veggies.
8) Set in the oven and cook for 5 hours, or until pork will shred with ease (it should be fall-apart-ready, if the meat is still tough, cook another 30 minutes then test again).
9) Ladle into bowls, garnish with your preferred fixings.

Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad

My friend Casey brought this salad over for dinner recently and I had to have the recipe. This type of salad is my absolute favorite and I was thrilled to find an easy enough copycat recipe that is just as good as the restaurant versions I crave. She found it on the Pinch of Yum blog and shared it with me, so I must share it with you.

We added it to dinner as a side but it can easily be a full meal for either dinner or lunch.

Ingredients:
Yields 4 servings for a side

For Salad:

• 20-25 brussels sprouts (makes about 3 cups shredded)
• 3 slices of bacon
• 1/2 cup pomegranate arils
• 1/4 cup slivered almonds
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano

For Dressing:

• 1 shallot, chopped
• Juice of 1 orange
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 tbsp. honey (I added an additional tbsp to thicken)
• 2 tbsp. Greek yogurt
• 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard (I added this ingredient because after tasting it the first time without, I felt it needed something. This gave it another savory flavor and another dimension.)
• 1/3 cup olive oil

Start by frying the bacon over low heat until crispy. Remove and set aside to dry on paper towels. Crumble and set aside.

The shredding of the brussels sprouts is probably the most time consuming part of this, but using a box cheese greater makes it go by quickly. I always chop off the end of the sprout, then peel back the top layer leaves that are often discolored. Using the slicing blade on the cheese grater (located on the side), shred the sprout. You can gently massage them to help separate the sprouts from one another and fluff a bit.

Toss the shaved sprouts, bacon crumbles, pomegranate arils, almonds and the grated cheese together.

Place all the dressing ingredients in the food processor and pulse until creamy. This made a lot of dressing, I used about 1/4 cup of it and kept the rest for salad use later this week. 

Toss the salad with dressing and serve.

Short Rib Pot Pie

Next time you find yourself making this Butternut Short Rib Ragu, this too can be yours. After making the ragu for a girls holiday dinner, I found myself with leftovers and wanting to reinvent it for a new meal. I had been playing with another idea for a Cajun Chicken Pot Pie - I'll get to that, maybe around Mardi Gras - and that's when it occured to me that this little hybrid could be prettay, prettay good. 

All you need is the recipe for the short rib, some crescent rolls, a muffin pan and then you are set.

Each crescent roll tube will make 4 servings, so plan accordingly. Instead of ripping them apart in the triangles, leave them as one big rectangle. Set that into a large muffin slot on the tin, pressing down to create a small pie-like base. Fill with 1 large or 2 small scoops, then fold the sides over top.

Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

Chicken Curry and Veggies

 Going on the ninth consecutive night of cooking dinner at home, we were a little bored and having a hard time coming up with something inspiring. We sat there at lunch asking, "so what do you want for dinner?" "I don't know, what do you want for dinner?" Over and over...and over. We sounded like the vultures from the Jungle Book (please tell me you know what I'm talking about). Max finally had an a-ha moment and remembered one of the first dishes we made together, one of his favorites that we used to make a lot, then kind of forgot about as we continued to try new recipes.

This is a great low calorie, low fat, high protein dinner solution that takes all of 30 minutes to make if you grab pre-chopped veggies at your local grocery store. Both Whole Foods and Central Market have pre-chopped onions and sweet potatoes, as well as cubed chicken, so all you'd have to chop is the bell pepper.

Ingredients:
Yields 4-5 servings

• 1 lb. chicken, cubed
• 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp. Soy-Ginger Sauce, divided (I have the 365 brand)
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 2 cups sweet potato, cubed
• 3 tsp. curry powder
• 2 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• dash of cayenne
• 3/4 cup low fat, unsweetened coconut milk 
• Base of choice (rice, quinoa)

Boil the cubed sweet potatoes until, softened and you are able to pierce with a fork. Drain and set aside. While those are cooking, marinate the cubed chicken in the soy-ginger sauce.

In a wok, add the chicken and cook on medium-high heat for 10-12 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Remove from the wok and set aside.

Add the onion and bell pepper to the wok, allowing them to soften. Once the onion is translucent, add the sweet potato to the wok and turn up the heat. Cook the vegetables until lightly browned, then return the chicken to the wok to join the veggies.

In a small bowl, combine 1 tbsp. of the Soy-Ginger sauce and the coconut milk.

Sprinkle the spices over top the veggies and chicken, coating well, then pour in the coconut milk mixture. Take a taste and then add your desired amount of cayenne pepper to give it the right amount of kick for your taste. 

I used a brown rice/quinoa blend as a base and ladeled the curry over top. 

Buttermilk Pecan Pie

 

Growing up, buttermilk chess pie was a treasured favorite for both my dad and myself. A month ago I went to a luncheon at the Dallas Women's Club with speaker P. Allen Smith, gardener extraordinaire and overall, ultimate renaissance man. I was in awe of his Arkansas plantation and everything he does with it, check it out.

For lunch, they used a few of his recipes including this buttermilk pecan pie. I was skeptical because I do not love pecans. Yes, I am southern and do not care for pecans. There, I said it. However, I tried it because I couldn't resist the buttermilk pie aspect and ended up very pleasantly surprised by the combination. We each received recipe cards and I told my dad I was going to kick his hiney at our buttermilk pie bake off.

Quick funny story: the recipe card had a typo on it. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, please direct your attention to the highlighted portion of the document below.

 

Notice how it calls for 14 cup of flour. I couldn't comprehend how in the world a pie would call for 14 cups of anything, never the less, a thickening agent like flour. I then noticed the cup was not plural. I googled Mr. Smith and his pie to discover it called for 1/4 cup. If I had been on autopilot mode, I would have tried to do 14 cups of flour. Like the time I tried to make oatmeal chocolate chip cookies and didn't pay attention to the fact that I was using a 4 cup measuring glass and the recipe was, well, doubled with just oats by accident. This is why I don't bake y'all. Cooking allows me to just do ma' thing and add as I go to taste, baking requires me to pay attention and be precise.

For a non-baker like myself, this was easy as... well, pie. I used a store-bought crust and had this in the oven in just under 30 minutes. Candying the pecans taking up most of the prep time. This was so good, and I can't wait to serve it tomorrow. I'm having a personal victory of baking something from scratch that worked on the first time. So, if I can do it you can do it too. Do make sure you get a deep dish crust, my first pie was more shallow and didn't fit all of the filling. My second pie was a deep dish crust and it was perfect.

Enjoy! I may or may not be enjoying a slice as I finish typing.

Ingredients:
Serves 8

For the filling:

• 8 tablespoons (1 stick of butter, melted)
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 easy pie crust, unbaked

For the Candied Pecans:

• 1 cup pecan halves, plain
• 1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup dark corn syrup

Start with making the pecans first. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a jelly-roll pan with aluminum foil, and lightly grease the foil. In a small mixing bowl, combine the pecan halves and brown sugar, stirring in the corn syrup until well coated. Spread the mixture out on the pan and bake, stirring every 4 minutes as the glaze thickens, for 12 minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven and spread the pecans in a single layer on wax paper. Let the pecans cool completely (I put them in the fridge to assist with this).

Now heat the oven to 325 degrees. Combine all the filling ingredients in a mixing bowl and pour the mixture into the unbaked pie shell. Scatter the chopped glazed pecans evenly on top of the pie filling.

Bake for 1 hour or until set. Let the pie cool on a wire baking rack. Chill until ready to serve, then let it sit out to serve at room temperature.

 

Meatballs a la Max

Sometime after we got married (approx. three years ago), Max started making these incredibly tasty meatballs. The secret is in the different ground meats, pan searing them and then cooking them the rest of the way through in the sauce. On occasion we've played with making our own tomato sauce, but I just haven't mastered that yet, Newman's Own is still much better.

Ingredients
Yields 4-5 Servings

• 1/2 lb. lean ground beef
• 1/4 lb. ground veal
• 1/4 lb. ground pork
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 3 tsp. Italian flat leaf parsley, chopped
• Salt and pepper
• 1 cup Italian bread crumbs, stale and crumbled (* see note below)
• 3/4 c lukewarm water
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Pasta of Choice
• Sauce of Choice
• Red pepper flakes

Prep time is 30 minutes.
Cook time is 1 hour.

Roll up your sleeves, it's time to get your hands dirty. To start, combine the meat in a large bowl. Add in the garlic, egg, cheese, parsley, salt and pepper.

*For the bread crumbs. We like to get a loaf of fresh Italian bread from the grocery store, then using a mini food processor, grind up 1 cup worth. Then, lay out on a flat surface for a few hours to allow them to harden a bit. For optimal use, let the crumbs be exposed to air for 24 hours OR you can bake them in the oven at 250 for 10 minutes.

Add the breadcrumbs into the meat mixture, then slowly add the water, 1/4 cup at a time. Massage the water in so that it is well absorbed before adding more.

Next it is time to shape the mixture into meatballs, then set aside.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil on high heat. To lock in the moisture, pan sear the meatballs on each side until slightly browned, about 2 minutes, then remove. In a large pot, add the meatballs, then cover in a jar of sauce. Let the meatballs finish cooking in the sauce on low heat (simmer) for 1 hour. We add a few shakes of red pepper flakes to spice it up a bit.

Prepare your pasta of choice, then top with meatballs and sauce. Garnish with your favorite Italian cheese and additional parsley.