Recipes

Harissa Roasted Squash + Kale Salad

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Delicata squash is my new favorite thing. I’d forgotten how it basically tastes like fall candy. Y-tothe-U-tothe-M. This easy to slap together salad + squash combo makes a decadent dinner dish when paired with a quick pan seared duck breast. If your squash makes it that long – I had trouble getting the amount I did to the table and away from grazing hands.

As written, this recipe isn’t wholly paleo – if you want a paleo-friendly version, swap the olive oil you bake with out for coconut and omit the miso (or sub a little coconut aminos). 

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Harissa Roasted Squash + Kale Salad

For the Squash

1 delicata squash
1 Tbsp. harissa (my favorite brand is Mina)
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 bunch baby fennel

For the Salad

1 bunch kale
1 Tbsp. harissa
1 Tbsp. olive oil
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
Ras el hanout (optional but tasty)
Kosher salt

Preheat your oven to 425 F. Line a cookie sheet with foil.

Slice the ends off your squash and push the seeds out with a spoon. Slice into 1/4-inch rounds. Clean and trim your fennel.

Toss the squash and fennel with 1 Tbsp. harissa and 1 Tbsp. olive oil and arrange in a single layer on your prepared sheet – making sure not to crowd, working the fennel around the squash.

Bake 20 minutes, flip, and bake another 20 minutes or until browned and nutty on both sides.

While the squash is doing it’s thing, make the salad.

Wash and cut your kale into bite-sized pieces.

In a large bowl, whisk the miso, harissa, olive oil & lemon juice.

Massage the dressing into the kale and sprinkle with salt and ras el hanout. Continue tossing and massaging and adding salt & spices until all your leaves are glistening and your spice/salt level is where you want it.

Serve.

Makes enough salad for 3-4 and enough squash for the same (if you don’t eat it all before it hits the table). 

Pulled Pork Tacos with Pepper and Apple Slaw

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Seriously? I haven’t shared a pulled pork recipe this year? Really? I have trouble believing that, since I make so much pulled pork, but it looks like I have neglected you guys.

Well, that’s going to change today.

Pulled pork is one of my absolute favorite go-to meals to make on a Monday and nibble throughout the week. It’s cheap, makes a ton, takes zero effort, and can be dressed a million different ways – practically the perfect food. Plus: pork.

This recipe is how I’ve been eating my pork lately. I’ve been obsessed with the sweet/spicy combo Korean BBQ sauce brings to the party, and was overjoyed to find Napa cabbage in last week’s CSA box. Out of all the non-carby options for taco wrappage, Napa cabbage is my favorite. It’s pliable, holds a bunch, and has a great neutral crunch. I’ve eaten this meal four times this week, which is restrained for me (I used the last batch as an excuse to take down an entire huge jar of kimchee + a jar of quick pickles – in one week). Needless to say, I love this dish. Other fantastic additions include: the aforementioned kimchee & quick pickles, peaches, mangoes, pineapples, Sriracha, sauerkraut, zucchini strips, chipotle, and lime.

Gluten-free, paleo (check your labels!!)

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Pulled Pork Tacos with Pepper and Apple Slaw

Pulled pork – about 6 ounces per person makes a good tacos-for-dinner portion
2-4 Tbsp. Korean BBQ sauce (I used 365 brand from Whole Foods, which has both soy and wheat – there are some fantastic gf & paleo versions out there; check your labels!)
2-3 Napa cabbage leaves per person
1/2 bell pepper (I went for yellow)
1/2 tart apple (Fuji and good old Granny Smith are both good here)
1/2 lime
Salt & pepper

Heat your pork and toss with the bbq sauce. Thinly julienne the pepper and apple and toss with the juice of half a lime, plus a sprinkle of kosher salt and a few cracks black pepper.

To assemble, layer your cabbage leaf with a little saucy pork + top with slaw – lengthwise down the leaf seems to work best.

Chow down.

To Make The Pork

2-5 lbs. boneless pork shoulder (you can do bone-in, but it takes longer)
3 or so Tablespoons of your favorite seasoning (my favorite is an Eastern Carolina-style rub with enough black pepper to make me sneeze & lots of red chili flakes)
1/4 cup or so apple cider vinegar
Maybe a thinly sliced onion

Sprinkle your pork on all sides with the spice mixture, rubbing in as you sprinkle and flip. Add to a crock pot. Splash the vinegar over. If you want, a thinly sliced onion is also fantastic here. Lid and cook on high about 6 hours, or until the pork is falling apart and can easily be shredded with a fork.

Enjoy for days.

Paleo Almond Coffee Creamer

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It seems like homemade almond milk has been everywhere on the blogosphere this summer, and I spent almost the whole season holding out – running from its charms – denying that it’s not only crazy simple to make, but cheaper than buying the good stuff – and puts my mind more at ease than buying a carton of milk with added chemicals. Turns out, it’s cheaper even than my beloved coconut milk.

Here’s the cost breakout for home almond milk vs. store almond milk vs. coconut milk in my area (NYC):

“Regular” Storebought Almond Milk
Blue Diamond – the best of the readily commercially available options, IMHO

Cost: $3.29 for 64 ounces
Servings: 32 (2-ounce servings)
Cost Per Serving: $0.10

Fancy Storebought Almond Milk
Califa Farms – a brand with no added crap

Cost: $3.79 for 48 ounces
Servings: 24 (2-ounce servings)
Cost Per Serving: $0.16

Homemade Almond Milk
Made by me with whatever flavorings I want to add and no added crap

Cost: $5.99 for a 16-ounce bag of almonds from Trader Joe’s, which yields just at 5 cups of nuts – with 2.5 cups of water per batch, we’re looking at about 100 ounces of milk.
Servings: 50 (2-ounce servings)
Cost Per Serving: $0.12

Canned Coconut Milk
My favorite is from Trader Joe’s and it has no added crap.

Cost: $0.99 for 14 ounces
Servings: 7
Cost Per Serving: $0.14

The cheapest alternative for my morning coffee looks to be “regular” almond milk – but for pennies more, I can make my own and avoid unnecessary added chemicals. I think that’s a good trade-off. Plus, it’s fun to make.

All you need to make almond milk is a high-speed blender (I have a Vitamix), a mesh bag of some sort (I use one I got for free at the botanical garden a few years ago), some water and time.

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Almond Milk

1 cup almonds
2.5 cups water
Pinch salt

Soak 1 cup almonds in water 12 – 24 hours. Drain and rinse.

Add the drained almonds to a blender with 2.5 cups water (I prefer lukewarm to warm). Blend. Add a pinch of salt and blend some more.

Fit a mesh bag over a bowl. Pour the almond milk into the bag. Lift and squeeze until you can’t get any more liquid out.

Funnel the liquid into containers – I’ve found that splitting the batch between 3 small re-sealable pop bottles works the best for clean retrieval + optimal flavor selection.

My Favorite Coffee Creamer Flavorings

Whiskey Cinnamon (1 tsp. Honey Jack + 1 tsp. ground cinnamon in 1/3 of a batch)

Maple Vanilla (1 tsp. maple syrup + 1 tsp. vanilla extract in 1/3 of a batch)

Pumpkin Spice (1.5 tsp. pumpkin pie spice in 1/3 of a batch)

Keeps about a week in the fridge

 

What do I do with all that leftover pulp? Make cookies! These are pretty great. I’m also dying to try these crackers. 

Paleo Peach Crumble

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I don’t go for desserts often, but I find myself lately with a glut of fresh almond meal that needs using (more on why later) – dessert seems like the logical outcome. Plus: peaches. Can we talk about peaches that have been graced with heat?

d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s

This recipe isn’t instant, but scales beautifully to serve more – these peaches would be absolutely fabulous with some of that coconut whipped cream I made for a party, or some of my favorite 1-ingredient ice cream.

Vegetarian, Vegan, gluten-free, paleo

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Paleo Peach Crumble

2 peaches, halved and pitted
1/4 c. almond meal (either plain from the package, or leftover from making almond milk)
1-2 Tbsp. melted ghee
1 tsp. vanilla (optional – if you use plain flour, it would be a nice touch)
Cinnamon or Pumpkin Pie Spice
Kosher salt

Preheat your oven to 375 fahrenheit. While your oven is coming up to temperature, either grab some oven-proof ramekins or line a cookie sheet with foil. I love the ramekin for baking this item because it looks pretty, feels fancy, and puts my ramekins to better use than being a handy cherry tomato-to-mouth conveyance method.

Place your halved peaches cut side up in/on your cooking vessel and sprinkle with pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon and a pinch of kosher salt.

In a small bowl, combine the almond meal and ghee and work with your fingers until you have crumbly flour. Sprinkle over the peaches (you don’t want a whole heap here – go for a moderate amount and the crumble will toast more evenly).

Bake 25-30 minutes, or until the peaches offer no resistance to a fork and the topping is nice and browned.

If desired, drizzle with some honey or maple syrup and top with a dollop of coconut whipped cream or scoop of 1-ingredient paleo ice cream.

Serves 2-4, depending upon how heavy a dessert is warranted. 

Charred Corn & Leek Salad with Carrot Top Pesto

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Mmmmmm….. summer CSA corn. It’s not paleo, but damn is it ever good. And we’ve been swimming in it at our house – the best ears we’ve had in years, too. North Carolina Silver Queen, eat your heart out.

This salad is nutty and sweet from the toasting the corn gets and savory from the leeks – with a nice hit of smokiness from bacon and a side of carrot top pesto (waste not, want not) to round out the herbaceous notes.

Gluten-free

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Charred Corn & Leek Salad with Carrot Top Pesto

2 ears corn
3 leeks
Coconut oil
2 Tbsp. carrot top pesto (see recipe below)
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground chipotle powder
2 slices thick bacon

First, char your veggies. Set your broiler to High, cover a cookie sheet with tinfoil and prep your veg. Shuck the corn and halve the leeks lengthwise (don’t forget to rinse). Brush with coconut oil and broil until charred on all sides – the leeks will be done first.

While the veggies are caramelizing, chop the bacon and fry. Drain and move to a large bowl. Add the vinegar, cumin, and chipotle. When the leeks and corn are browned to your liking, remove from the broiler and let cool a bit. Chop the leeks and add to the bowl. Remove the corn kernels (I shave off one side, flip onto the flat side and chop down the side of the ear as close to the cob as possible) and add to the bowl. Toss. Add the pesto, toss and taste for seasoning.

Serves 2 as a side dish if you use smallish corn and leeks.

 

Carrot Top Pesto

1 small bunch carrot tops (about 1/2 c.)
Olive oil
3 Tablespoons parmesan (optional)
1.5 tsp. citrus juice (I used lime)
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
Salt & pepper

Add the carrot tops, parmesan, red pepper flakes and a generous pinch salt and pepper to the bowl of a food processor. Process until broken down. Add olive oil in a stream while the machine is running until you get the consistency you want. Add the lime juice and give another couple whizzes. Taste for seasoning and add more if necessary.

Makes enough to double the salad recipe. 

Paleo Shake-N-Bake Zucchini Fries

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I think I’ve found my favorite way to eat a surfeit of zucchini: as fries. This version bakes up crispy if you’ve cut your fries right, doesn’t have too much breading, and provides a really decadent-feeling side dish for something summery like a bunless burger. Delicious!

A note on fry cutting: You want fries roughly the size of fast food fries here – think Wendy’s over KFC. Fry wedges are great, but they just won’t get crispy.

An additional note on greasing the cookie sheet: Do not, under any circumstance, skip this step. You will have a mess on your hands and a whole lot of inedible mush.

Paleo, gluten-free, vegetarian, vegan

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Paleo Shake-N-Bake Zucchini Fries

1 medium zucchini
1/2 cup almond flour (you can use coconut, but I prefer almond)
1 Tbsp. of your favorite all-purpose seasoning
1 Tbsp. garlic powder (optional, but I love it)
Coconut oil

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F and foil a cookie sheet. Brush the cookie sheet with coconut oil.

Cut your zucchini into fry shapes – shoot for Wendy’s size.

Add the almond flour and seasonings to a large ziploc bag.

Add half your fries and shake like you’re frying chicken.

Pick your fries out of the bag and arrange on the pan – don’t crowd.

Bread the second half and add to the pan.

Bake 15-20 minutes (until the side touching the pan is browned a little)

Flip and bake an additional 15 – 20 minutes (browned on both sides).

Let sit a few minutes to continue firming up. These fries won’t get as crisp as potato fries (the skinniest will), but they will firm up enough to approximate fries and they taste damn good.

Serves 2 as a side. 

Indiany Beef Bowl with Zucchini, Eggplant and Leeks

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I’ve gotten stuck on vaguely Indian-spiced bowls of beef + tons of CSA veggies lately. I partially blame this place and it’s Chipotle-like bowls of meat + lettuce + toppings awesomeness.

This dish started out as a semi-sincere rip of their beef keema salad bowl, which is enchanting. And then I got to tinkering/looking into the fridge to see what CSA veggies needed eating immediately before I went to pick up the new batch.

And a new franken-bowl was born.

Gluten-free, paleo, Whole30 compliant

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Indiany Beef Bowl with Zucchini, Eggplant and Leeks

1 lb. ground beef
1/2 large onion (about 1 cup diced)
1 green bell pepper
1 bunch leeks (about 2 cups sliced)
Roasted eggplant (about 1 cup “guts”)
1 medium zucchini
2 cloves garlic
6 cloves
1 tsp. ground cardamom
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. turmeric
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. yellow mustard seeds
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 Tbsp. garam masala
Fat Of Choice
Salt & pepper
Juice of half a lime

First, prep your aromatics. Clean your leeks, halve length-wise and slice into thin moons. dice your onion. Chop the garlic.

Heat 2 Tbsp. Fat Of Choice (I used ghee) in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the aromatics and cook, stirring frequently, until the leeks have softened and the onions are translucent.

While that is cooking, grab your spices and beef.

When the aromatics are ready, add your spices + liberal pinches of salt and black pepper and stir to combine. Let cook until fragrant (about a minute).

Add the beef and cook until just browned, breaking up and stirring frequently as you go.

While the beef is working, chop the pepper, zucchini, and eggplant.

When the beef is just browned, add the veggies and stir to combine. Let cook, stirring frequently, 10 minutes or until the veggies are soft. Taste for salt & pepper and adjust as necessary. Turn the heat off and hit with the lime juice.

Serves 2 for dinner + 1 for lunch.

 

To make roasted eggplant: Place a large foil-lined sheet about 6 inches under your broiler. Poke your eggplant (I used skinny purple Japanese and streaky purple & white varieties) with a fork a few times and broil until blackened (5 or so minutes, depending upon the size of your eggplant). Flip and blacken until the whole thing is black and yields to a poke – you want no resistance left but not a fiery mess. Let cool and peel the burnt skin. Save for a bunch of applications. 

Sausage, Chard & Sun-Dried Tomato Stuffed Peppers

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Mmmmm…. stuffed peppers. When the CSA gives you pepper abundance, I can’t think of a better use of one or three than as a little bowl for some meaty goodness. Yum.

Gluten-free, paleo, Whole30 (if you use compliant sausage)

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Sausage, Chard & Sun-Dried Tomato Stuffed Peppers

1 lb. Italian sausage
1 bunch swiss chard
1 (14 ounce) can fire roasted diced tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 onion (about 1 c. chopped)
Sun-dried tomatoes (about 1/4 c. chopped)
3 bell peppers
Coconut oil
Salt & pepper
2 tsp. dried basil
2 tsp. dried oregano

Preheat your oven to 450 F. Chop your onions and garlic.

In a large skillet, heat 1 Tbsp. coconut oil. Add the onion and garlic and cook until the onion is translucent.

Add the sausage, slipping them out of their skins, and cook, stirring and breaking up the links, until browned.

While the sausage is browning, slice the chard into ribbons and chop the sun-dried tomatoes. Halve your bell peppers lengthwise and pull out the seeds.

When the sausage is ready, add the chard, hit the mixture with a liberal pinch of salt and pepper, and add the basil and oregano. Cook, stirring frequently, until the chard is wilted.

Add the canned diced tomatoes and stir to combine. Let cook 3-4 minutes.

Add the sun-dried tomatoes and stir to combine. Taste for salt and add if needed. Sautee an additional 5 minutes.

Stuff the mixture into your pepper halves and bake 20 minutes or until the peppers are soft.

Serves 2 for dinner + 1 for lunch. 

 

 

Unstuffed Indian-Spiced Eggplant

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This past week, I was plagued blessed with a ginormous eggplant. How ginormous? Bigger than my freaking head. I happen to like eggplant, but my DH? Not so much. The last time I made him eggplant that wasn’t blended to obliteration or diced and fried, the poor guy put a bite into his mouth and it tumbled out toddler-style. The texture of any type of summer squash is tricky for him – eggplants quadruply so. But, we love CSAs. So I have to get tricky. This dish circumvents the eggplant sponginess by first baking it (like you would if you were making baba ganoush) and mixing it into the finished dish until it is almost indistinguishable from the rest of the ingredients. Win!

This is not a quick meal. If you are looking for a quick dinner, make the eggplant a day ahead. Bonus: if you have a bunch of eggplant, cook up a whole tray – eggplant “guts” can be used in a bunch of different dishes – like, say, this pasta sauce or Strange Flavor Eggplant dip).

Gluten-free, Paleo, and Whole30-compliant

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Unstuffed Indian-Spiced Eggplant

1 Italian eggplant (the blackish purple kind)
2 Tbsp. coconut oil
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 an onion (about 1/2 a cup chopped)
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 tsp. dried oregano
1 Tbsp. granulated garlic
1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
1 tsp. ground coriander
2 tsp. ground cumin
Salt & black pepper
1/2 cup cashews
1 bunch kale
1/2 (14 ounce) can coconut milk
Citrus

Cut the eggplant in half length-wise and salt. Let hang out in a colander 1 hour to release a bit of juice and kill the bitterness. Preheat your oven to 350 and prep a baking sheet with tinfoil.

Bake, face up, until soft and slumpy (about 20 mins – 1 hour, depending upon how large your eggplant is).

While your eggplant is working, tackle the stuffing. In a large pan, heat the coconut oil. Add the onions and sautee, stirring, 1-2 minutes or until they just start to go translucent. Add the beef and cook, breaking up into smaller and smaller bits, until mostly broken up. Add the spices, along with a few cracks black pepper and generous pinches salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until browned.

While the beef is going, crunch your cashews up and slice your kale into ribbons.

Now would be a great time for your eggplant to be done. When it is slumpy and soft, scoop the “guts” out.

Add the eggplant guts, cashews and kale to the pan with the beef and stir to combine until the kale starts to wilt and everything fits into the pan without spilling all over the stove.

Add the coconut milk, stir to combine and taste. Add more salt/spice if needed. Cook 5-7 minutes, or until most of the liquid has evaporated. Finish with a sprinkle of citrus (I used the juice of 1/2 a lime). Serve.

Serves 2 for dinner + 1 for lunch. 

Chicken & Kale Zucchini Skillet with Harissa

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Yay for recipes that use up a chunk of my weekly CSA haul + contain protein. This recipe came about from a Google search for zucchini + kale. I stumbled upon this great looking zoodle/chickpea/harissa/egg combo and altered it to fit my non-chickpea-eating, protein-desiring dinner needs.

Gluten-free, paleo, whole 30 (check your labels!), easily made ovo vegetarian (just omit the chicken)

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Chicken & Kale Zucchini Skillet with Harissa

1 lb. chicken thighs
2 Tbsp. coconut oil
4 cloves garlic
1/4 c. red onion
1 (14 ounce) can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
3 Tbsp. harissa (I used spicy Mina brand, which is W30-compliant)
1 Tbsp. cumin
pinch saffron (optional)
1 bunch kale
Zucchini (I used 1 huge pattypan squash – about 4 c. shredded)
1 egg per person
Salt & pepper

Chop your chicken into bite-sized pieces. Season liberally with salt & pepper and sautee on medium-high heat in the coconut oil until browned and cooked through.

While the chicken is working, prep the veggies. Shred the zucchini (I used the shredding blade on my food processor, but zoodles would be great here), dice the garlic and onion, and chop the kale into thin ribbons.

When the chicken is done, remove with a spoon and set aside. Add the onion and garlic to the pan, reduce the heat to medium, and let sautee until just softened. Add the tomatoes, harissa, cumin, saffron, and a pinch of salt and pepper and let cook a few minutes.

Add the kale, stir, and let cook until the kale gets nice and wilted.

Add the zucchini and toss well to combine. Add the chicken back and let cook 3-5 minutes, or until the zucchini has softened a bit. Taste. Season with salt & pepper if needed.

Create little pockets for your eggs – 1 per person. Crack the eggs into the wells, cover the pan, and cook until the whites are just set (4-5 minutes).

Serve.

Serves 2 for dinner + 1 for lunch (with 3 eggs).