Homemade Pizza Sauce

This recipe isn't very difficult or revolutionary, but I made it tonight with my Portabella Steak Pizzas so I decided to include it on my blog.  My Italian mother (and grandmother) have always made homemade Italian red sauce (pizza/pasta/anything sauce), so I have really never known anything else.  Homemade is always more delicious, plus you know exactly what you are eating- nothing processed here!  It really doesn't take much time or effort to whip up a batch, and it is definitely worth it, especially when living Paleo!  Here is what you do:

Homemade Pizza Sauce

• 1 15 oz can tomato sauce (the plain just-tomatoes type)
• 1 clove garlic, smashed
• 2 T onion, chopped
• 1 T olive oil
• 1 t dried basil (use fresh if you have it)
• 1/2 t dried oregano
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/4 t black pepper
• dash of red pepper flakes (more if you like heat)

Preparation
In a sauce pan, heat up the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the garlic and onion and cook until the onion becomes translucent, stirring occasionally (about 5 min).   Add the tomato sauce and stir.  Add the spices and stir until incorporated.  Once the sauce starts to bubble, turn the heat down to low.  Simmer on the stove as long as you want, but at least 15-20 minutes for best flavor.  If you want to use this as pizza sauce, it is a good idea to fish out the garlic/onion chunks- especially the garlic- you don't want to accidentally bite into that!

Use this sauce for pizza, pasta (spaghetti squash if you are Paleo), or whatever your heart desires.  You'll see right away that store-bought is no comparison!

Grilled Steak with Pineapple Salsa

I found this recipe while searching for Paleo meal options the other day.  We all know that I love making salsas and I love pineapple, so this looked perfect.  I decided to alter the recipe a bit, and make it my own based on what we like, and what I had in my kitchen.  For the steak marinade, I wanted to use the one that my family has used for years- a secret family recipe, if you will.  However, all 3 of the ingredients are NOT Paleo-friendly, which meant I had to make some substitutions.  It tasted a bit different, but still delicious.  And luckily, it was actually nice and warm out (55 degrees in March is a miracle here), so we even got to grill outside!  Check out what I did:

Grilled Steak with Pineapple Salsa
(served us 2 with leftovers)

• 1 lb london broil steak (or flank steak)
• 2 T olive oil
• 2 T tamari sauce
• 2 T honey
• 1 c fresh pineapple, finely diced
• 1/2 c red or yellow bell pepper, finely diced
• 1/2 c red onion, finely diced
• 1/4 c cilantro, chopped
• juice of 1/2 lime
• sea salt

Preparation
Combine the oil, tamari, and honey in bowl and then coat the steak on both sides.  Allow it to marinade for 15-20 minutes (or more).  In the meantime, make the salsa.  Combine pineapple, bell pepper, onion, cilantro, lime, and season with salt to taste.  Refrigerate until you are ready to eat.  Heat the grill to medium-high and cook the steak for about 5 minutes on each side (depending on thickness- for flank steak it may be more like 3 min on each side) to cook it to medium rare.  Remove from the grill and allow the meat to rest for a few minutes.  Then, slice it as thin as you can.  Serve it by topping the steak slices with the salsa and enjoy!

You could eat this as a whole meal, but I also sauteed some mushrooms as a side (I have a thing about needing multiple items on a plate).  We had a lot of steak leftover so I will be reusing that for more meals this week.  You could also make the salsa with other meat/poultry or even by itself for a snack.  Enjoy it however you want!

Take 2: Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies

If you have read my previous post, Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies, you'll know that we really love chocolate chip cookies in this house.  You'll also know that my first attempt at making Paleo chocolate chip cookies was fairly successful, very delicious, but super messy.  So I wanted to try again with a different recipe and see how they would turn out- hopefully better than the first time!

Well, it was much better.  However, I still haven't mastered it yet- they weren't exactly what I hoped for.  But hey, it's only been two tries so far...  I used this recipe as a guide because it included almond flour- in the hopes that they would be a better (less messy/gooey) consistency.  That worked for sure. However, there are still some changes I am thinking about making, and hopefully the 3rd time will be the charm!  Here is what I did:

Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies
(makes 2 dozen)

• 1 1/2 c almond flour
• 1/2 t baking soda
• 1/4 t sea salt
• 2 T coconut oil, melted
• 1/2 t vanilla
• 1/4 raw honey
• 1 egg
• 1/2 c chocolate chips (use Enjoy Life if you are hard core Paleo)

Preparation
Combine dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, and salt) in a large bowl or Kitchen Aid mixer.  Mix wet ingredients (oil, vanilla, honey, and egg) together in a small bowl.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry mixture and mix until combined.  Add the chips, stir, and put the dough into the refrigerator.  Let it chill for at least 30 minutes. 

Once it is chilled, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper, and scoop dough into balls onto the baking sheet.  Smaller is better.  Bake for 9-10 minutes or until they turn golden brown.  Remove and allow them to cool on the cookie sheet for about 5 minutes.  Remove to a rack until cool.  Store in an airtight container.

For the Future
Like I said, these cookies were very successful and I had little to no trouble transferring them to the cooling rack (the parchment paper may have helped with that).  They taste great and the consistency is good.  The thing I didn't expect was that these cookies spread out a lot.  Like, a LOT.  Like, one side of the sheet ended up as one big cookie blob.  So first of all, next time I am going to make them smaller.  Second, I am going to try some recipe changes to make them thicker and less spread-y.  Here are my plans:

• not melting the oil- I think that makes them spread too much, so I will use softened oil instead
• adding baking powder- I think this may help make them rise rather than flatten
• chilling the dough longer- the firmer the dough, the less spreading

Let me know if you have other suggestions or if you have a recipe that makes perfect Paleo cookies already!  Hope this serves as a good starter recipe for you, and stay tuned for my next attempt in the coming weeks.

1 1/2 cups sifted blanched almond flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted (melted, not softened)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup maple syrup

1 whole egg

1/2 cup Enjoy Life chocolate chips

- See more at: http://fastpaleo.com/the-best-paleo-chocolate-chip-cookies/#sthash.oiYTegjx.dpuf

Paleo "Peanut Butter Cups"

The other day I was craving chocolate, as always, so I decided to make another chocolate-based dessert.  This time, I used a recipe I found on Pinterest to make Paleo fudge, or as I prefer to think of these as- "peanut butter cups." Obviously they are not made with peanut butter, so really they are more like "almond butter cups."  Even so, they are really delicious and a great Paleo treat.  I wouldn't recommend eating 5 in one sitting (1 or 2 at most would be best), but they taste great and are really easy.  Check it out:

Paleo "Peanut Butter Cups"
(makes 1 dozen)

• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup  almond butter
• 1/4 cup raw honey
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Melt coconut oil.  Blend all ingredients together in a food processor or with a mixer.  Pour into a muffin tin (divide evenly among the cups).  Use liners if you want, but I poured it right into the pan and they popped out fine.  Freeze them for 10 minutes. Use a knife or small spatula to pop them out, and keep them sealed up in the refrigerator.

Easy enough!  In my opinion (and my husband's), these taste a lot like Reese's cups. They are definitely a healthier version, and are a great treat in moderation.  Hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

Paleo Chocolate Pudding (with Avocado!)

This morning I was on a roll with some Paleo breakfast cooking/baking (made a fresh batch of my Bacon & Egg "Muffins" and Pumpkin Muffins), and I decided to keep it going with some dessert!  I came across this recipe on one of my millions of Paleo recipe searches, and it looked so easy and delicious that I had to try it! As my faithful readers will know, I love chocolate.  Anything chocolate is good!  Well this chocolate pudding recipe was clearly nutrition packed (avocados & bananas!) and looked super tasty.  So I tried it out!  Here is what I did:

Paleo Chocolate Pudding
(makes 2 servings)

• 1 avocado, peeled and pitted
• 1/2 banana (or the whole thing if you want)
• 1 T coconut oil 
• 1 T raw honey
• 2 T cocoa powder

Mix all the ingredients together in a food processor or blender until smooth.  Refrigerate, and it is ready to eat!

It's that easy and it really does taste great.  You can taste the avocado/banana a little bit, but it has a great pudding consistency and is definitely a healthy option for dessert, or even a snack.  With all natural ingredients including a super food, you can't go wrong- enjoy!

Paleo Shrimp Scampi with Cauliflower Rice Pilaf

Okay, so this meal isn't exactly shrimp scampi as you would know it, but it is my Paleo version.  This means, I omitted some typical scampi ingredients and added extra veggies!  I have made a similar shrimp dish before, but I always serve it with pasta, so I had to go with one of my trusty pasta substitutes.  We really love rice pilaf in this house, so I wanted to try and do the same thing but with cauliflower rice.  It turned out pretty well!  Here is what I did:

Paleo Shrimp Scampi
(served 2 with leftovers)

• 1 lb frozen shrimp, defrosted and tails pulled off
• 1/2 red bell pepper, cut into chunks
• 1/2 yellow bell pepper, cut into chunks
• 1/4 onion, chopped
• 2 c spinach, torn or chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 T olive oil
• salt & pepper
• 1 T fresh parsley, chopped

Preparation
Heat a skillet over medium on the stove and add the oil.  Once it gets hot, throw in the garlic, onion, and peppers.  Season it with some salt and pepper and stir.  Allow that to cook until onions are translucent.  Next, add the shrimp and allow to cook until they are just about pink.  At the last minute, add the spinach and parsley and allow the spinach to cook down.  Stir it all up and it is ready to serve!

Cauliflower Rice Pilaf

• 1/2 head cauliflower, grated (or food processed)
• 1/4 c onion, diced
• 1 T olive oil
• 1/4 c chicken broth 

Preparation
Heat a skillet over medium-high and add the oil.  Once it is hot, add the onions and cook them until translucent.  Add the cauliflower "rice" and fry it up until it starts to brown a bit.  Add the chicken broth and stir it around until the "rice" absorbs it, about one minute.  It is ready to serve!

All in all this whole meal probably took about 15 minutes to make, which is always a good thing.  Try your own variations on the shrimp "scampi" and add/subtract whatever you like!  We will definitely try the "rice" pilaf again, since it was a pretty good substitute for our usual rice dish.  Hope you enjoy it!

Almond Cream "Cheese" Spread

So the other day on Pinterest I found this recipe for Almond Cream "Cheese" that was supposed to be like a Paleo version of cheese.  Desperately missing my cheese, I wondered if this would really be a replacement for cheese.  I decided to try it out for myself to hopefully find my miracle Paleo-friendly cheese!  Well, I tried it and the consensus is: it isn't really all that much like cheese.  Don't get me wrong, it tastes great and is sort of cheese-like, but if you want good old cheddar & mozzarella that you can eat while doing Paleo, look elsewhere.  And then tell me when you find it!

Regardless, I really like this as a veggie dip.  I actually packed this for lunch with some cucumber and bell pepper slices, and it was a great way for me to get more veggies into my diet.  It's pretty soft (like cream cheese, but maybe an even softer consistency) and you really cannot tell that you are eating almonds, which is pretty cool.  I took the basic recipe and added herbs to make it pair with veggies, but I would also try to add honey instead for a sweeter treat (maybe with apple slices).  Here is what I did:


Almond Cream "Cheese" Spread
(makes about 1 cup)

• 1 cup blanched almonds (I used blanched almond flour to bypass the almond-grinding step, but whole almonds are fine too as long as you blanch them!)
• 1/3 c filtered water (you might even use less to make it a bit firmer)
• 1/2 t sea salt
• 1 t apple cider vinegar
• 1 t lemon juice
• 1 t dried parsley
• 1 t dried basil
• 1 t dried oregano
• 1 t dried chives 

Preparation
In your trusty food processor, blend together blanched almonds (or almond flour), water, salt, vinegar, and lemon juice.  Blend until smooth.  If you start with whole almonds, this may take a few minutes, but with flour it is pretty quick.  Add the herbs and give it another quick mix.  I would recommend chilling it in the fridge for a while to allow it to firm up a bit before serving.  Or, just eat it right away if you are impatient. 

1 c. Raw Almonds

1/3 - 1/2 c. Filtered Water

1/2 tsp. Celtic Sea Salt

1 tsp. Apple Cider Vinegar

1 tsp. Lemon Juice

- See more at: http://fastpaleo.com/almond-cream-cheese/#sthash.iaq5C7Ar.dpuf

1 c. Raw Almonds

1/3 - 1/2 c. Filtered Water

1/2 tsp. Celtic Sea Salt

1 tsp. Apple Cider Vinegar

1 tsp. Lemon Juice

- See more at: http://fastpaleo.com/almond-cream-cheese/#sthash.iaq5C7Ar.dpuf

That's it!  Really easy and fast (if you start with almond flour like I did).  If you try it, let me know what you think- does it compare to cheese??