Recipes – Page 46 – Gastography

‘Summer Is Almost Here’ Strawberry Mint Salsa

May 24, 2014December 29, 2014Recipes3 Comments

As this hard won Spring starts its slow inexorable crawl toward Summer’s temperature indulgences, I’m happy to see fresh red pops of color starting to populate the produce section. This season’s first strawberries – check. Early tomatoes – check. Salsa craving in high gear – check.

This salsa is bright, refreshing, and was perfect perched on top of a simple salad loaded with cruciferous greens and simple pulled pork (omit, of course, if serving vegetarians or vegans). A winner in my book.

Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, paleo and Whole30 compliant

‘Summer Is Almost Here’ Strawberry Mint Salsa

2 large strawberries
Half a shallot
3 leaves fresh mint
Juice of 1 lime
2 big pinches salt

Dice the strawberries and add to a small bowl. Mince the shallot (you’re looking for about 2 Tablespoons) and add to the bowl. Roll your mint leaves up into a little tube and chiffonade (cut into ribbons). Add to the salsa bowl. Sprinkle with 2 big pinches of salt and top with lime juice. Toss well to combine.

Serve with sliced cherry tomatoes, pulled pork and a glug of grapeseed oil over a bed of Cruciferous Crunch (kale + brussels + red cabbage + green cabbage salad mix sold at Trader Joe’s) for a tasty and healthy lunch.

Serves 1 for lunch. Can be easily scaled up and served in a myriad of ways – I’m thinking it would be especially nice over a light protein (chicken or fish) and would make a fine dip for plantain chips in place of standard red fruit salsa.

Larb-Inspired Paleo Thai Poultry Bowl

May 17, 2014December 29, 2014RecipesLeave a Comment

Larb. I can’t get enough of it. From Wikipedia:

Larb (Lao: ລາບ; Thai: ลาบ, RTGS: lap [lâːp], also spelled laap, larp, lahb or laab) is a type of Lao minced meat salad^[1]^[2]^[3] that is regarded as the national dish of Laos. It is also eaten in Isan, an area of Thailand of which its inhabitants are for a large part of Laotian descent. There are also Lao and Thai communities in the U.S., France, and England, resulting in larb being served in those areas as well. Local variants of larb also feature in the cuisines of the Tai peoples of Shan State, Burma, and Yunnan province, China.^[4]

Any way you slice it, larb is a deeply flavorful meat dish – usually served in lettuce wraps – and generally how I’ve experienced it, as a starter. I’ve had versions with so much lime my mouth tingled, versions that were so hot it made the endorphins fly, and versions that are decidedly more bland. I dream about larb.

This is one of those dishes I try to recreate from memory in a thousand different ways, but usually what I’m going for is crispy little nibblins of meat swathed in a fair hit of lime and chased by enough heat to at least tickle the back of the throat. Sticky rice is fantastic, but not something I generally eat – so I serve it in other ways. Lettuce cups would certainly be fantastic here, but they just don’t work very well in my household. So, bowl it is. Tonight’s rendition was served over a bed of salt and pepper roasted carrots in an effort to throw some veggies into the mix so we weren’t just eating a bowl of meat for dinner. This was a protein-heavy dinner and a light one at that. If you’d like to beef it up with more substance, feel free to make extra carrots or throw in some broccoli or cauliflower rice.

Gluten-free, paleo, and Whole30 compliant with adjustments

Larb-Inspired Paleo Thai Poultry Bowl

1 pound ground meat (I used turkey, pork and chicken are also good)
1 large shallot
1 stalk lemongrass
1/4 cup lime juice (I use key lime juice)
2 large cloves garlic
2 Tbsp. Red Boat fish sauce
1 tsp. sweetener (I used brown sugar, but honey or agave would be fine – omit if Whole30)
1-2 Tbsp. sriracha (if Whole30, use a compliant hot sauce)
2 Tbsp. cilantro
1/2 inch fresh ginger
2 tsp. sesame oil (check your labels if Whole30)
2 tsp. coconut oil

First, assemble your sauce. Mince the shallot (you want about 1/4 of a cup) and add half to a small bowl. To the bowl, add the lime juice, fish sauce, brown sugar, and sriracha. Grate the lemongrass, ginger and garlic into the bowl. Stir. Chop the cilantro and add half to the bowl.

Now start the meat. In a large pan, heat the sesame and coconut oils over medium high heat. Add the meat and a couple pinches salt and cook, stirring to break up the big lumps, until cooked through. Add the sauce and stir to combine. Cook, stirring occasionally to avoid burning, until browned to your liking.

Serve in a lettuce cup or over roasted carrots, broccoli, or cauliflower rice. Serves 2 for dinner if used as the main component of the meal.

Bunless Banh Mi

May 10, 2014RecipesLeave a Comment

Y-U-M. This is a stellar dish, packed with tons of flavor and a good wallop of veggies – perfect for the (finally!) warmer days we’ve been having around here. This dinner (and later, lunch) didn’t bog me down and felt like exactly what I needed to be eating. I love it when that happens.

Gluten-free, paleo

Bunless Banh Mi

1 lb. ground pork

1 – 2 Tbsp. fat

2 Tbsp. Red Boat fish sauce

2 Tbsp. coconut aminos

1 tsp. honey

2 cloves garlic

2 scallions

1 inch ginger

1-2 Tbsp. lime juice

1 medium cucumber

2 medium carrots

1/2 c. apple cider vinegar

1.2 tsp. honey

Black pepper

Kosher salt

Shredded brussels sprouts

Cilantro

Radish

Chili aioli

First, get your carrots & cukes marinating for a quick pickle. Julienne your carrots and cukes and place in a small bowl. In a small saucepan, combine the apple cider vinegar, 1.5 tsp. honey, a big pinch of salt and a few cracks black pepper. Bring to a boil and then quickly pour over the veggies. Add water to bring the liquid level up to just covering the veg. Set aside 30 minutes to an hour.

On to the pork. In a large pan, heat your fat over medium and add the pork. Break up with your spoon or spatula and let work while you prep the sauce. In a small bowl, add the fish sauce, coconut aminos, honey and lime juice – grate the garlic and ginger and add that, too. Pour over the pork and quickly stir to mix well. Let the pork cook until it reaches the crisp little nibblins stage.

While the pork is cooking, thinly slice the scallions, tossing the white and light green parts in with the pork and reserving the dark portion for garnish.

Thinly slice the radish and chop the cilantro. Put aside.

Prep the aioli (to make the ailoi, blitz 1 egg, the juice of half a lemon, 2 big pinches kosher salt and a sprinkle white pepper with an immersion blender – drizzle olive oil into the mix until you reach a nice thick consistency. Once your aioli is made, combine with your favorite hot sauce).

To serve, spoon the pork nibblins over a cup – cup and a half of brussels and top with the carrot & cuke pickles, radish, scallion tops, cilantro and chili aioli.

Serves 2 for dinner + 1 for lunch.

Indian Spiced Meatballs In Coconut Sauce

May 3, 2014December 29, 2014RecipesLeave a Comment

This dinner earned high praise from the DH – the sauce wasn’t his favorite thing on Earth, but I loved it and he loved the texture – and he loved the texture of the meatballs. I think this method (cribbed from Melissa Joulwan of The Clothes Make The Girl) is going to be my general go-to from now on.

Gluten-free, paleo, and Whole30-compliant if you omit the sweetener

Indian Spiced Meatballs In Coconut Sauce

For the Balls

1 pound grass fed ground beef
A bit of onion
1 tsp. fennel seeds
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. granulated garlic
1/3 cup cilantro
2 Tbsp. warm water
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
1/4 tsp. baking soda
2 Tbsp. fat of choice

For the Sauce

6 cloves garlic
1/2 inch fresh ginger
1 tsp. ground turmeric
2 Tbsp. fat of choice
1 can coconut milk
Juice of 2 limes (if small – you’re looking for 1-2 Tbsp.)
Pinch brown sugar/tsp or so maple syrup or honey – or omit
1-2 tsp. hot hungarian paprika
Tomato (2 roma sized)
Black pepper
Kosher salt to taste

First, make the sauce. Mince the garlic, grate the ginger, chop the tomatoes and collect your other ingredients. In a medium pan, sautee the garlic and ginger over medium heat in 2 Tbsp. fat until beginning to soften. Add the turmeric and stir, cooking 1 minute more. Add the tomato and, stirring frequently, cook 5 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer 5 minutes more while you prep the meatball components.

In a large bowl, add the beef, salt, and granulated garlic. Grate the onion and add to the bowl (you want about 2 Tbsp.). Chop the cilantro and add. Bash the fennel to break it up a bit and add. In a separate bowl, combine the warm water with the baking soda and cream of tartar; stir to combine and add to the meat bowl. Combine and shape into ping pong sized meatballs.

Add 2 Tbsp. fat to a large pan and bring up to almost shimmering. Drop the meatballs into the pan as you finish making them and brown on all sides, shaking the pan as you go – 5 minutes or so.

Add the sauce and let simmer until balls are cooked through and the sauce reduces a bit and becomes almost velvety – about 10 minutes.

Top with more cilantro if desired and serve.

Serves 2 for dinner + 1 for lunch

Tuna Meatballs with Tomato Sauce and Zoodles

April 26, 2014December 29, 2014RecipesLeave a Comment

I happen to love Jamie Oliver’s recipes – and am a big fan of his efforts to bring attention to what children are eating in school. He has one of my all-time favorite pasta recipes (a lovely confection involving homemade noodles, mascarpone & caramelized peppers) that my mind still wanders to when it conjures up a noodle craving. Some day, I’ll tackle a paleo-fied version! I also love how he thinks about ingredients and writes recipes – his site is one of my go-to sources when I’m feeling underwhelmed by the forces of inspiration.

This recipe is based on one of his – it’s paleo-fied and uses more budget-friendly canned tuna (sacrilege!) in place of fresh, though I imagine this dish would be even better with the fresh.

Gluten-free, paleo, Whole30

Tuna Meatballs with Tomato Sauce and Zoodles

Based on The Best Tuna Meatballs In A Delicious Tomato Sauce (Le Migliori Polpette Di Tonno) by Jamie Oliver

Sauce

1 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 onion
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp. dried oregano
15 ounce can fire roasted tomatoes with chiles
Kosher salt & black pepper
Possibly some vinegar
Water

Meatballs

1 can water-packed tuna, drained
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 ounce salted almonds
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. dried oregano
2 Tbsp. fresh herbs – I used basil, though parsley was what I really wanted (and didn’t have)
1 egg
1 tsp. black pepper

Zoodles

1 large zucchini

Dice the onion and garlic and add to a medium pan over medium/medium-high heat, along with 1 Tbsp. olive oil. Sautee the veggies until beginning to brown at the edges, stirring frequently to avoid burning. Add the oregano, tomatoes, salt, pepper and half a can of water and bring to a boil. Hard simmer/low boil 15 minutes, or until the water reduces out. Taste for salt/acid and add vinegar if needed.

While the sauce is working, knock out the meatballs. First, chop your almonds fine – or blitz them in a food processor – or bash them in a mortar – or in a baggie – just get them into tiny pieces. Chiffonade the basil. Combine all meatball ingredients in a small-ish bowl and work with your fingers until combined.

In a large pan over medium heat, bring 2 Tbsp. olive oil up to almost-shimmering. Add the meatballs as you form them into ping pong sized balls. You should get 6-7 meatballs of this size. If you want to serve more than 1 hungry person, consider doubling the meatball recipe.

Fry the meatballs until browned, jiggling the pan around every few minutes to hit all sides.

Make zoodles in the fashion you prefer while the meatballs are cooking. I used my bff the spiralizer and they came together in about a minute. If you like cooked zoodles, throw into the pan during the last minute or two of cooking – I happen to like them raw, so added mine directly to the bowl.

Serve the zoodles topped with the meatballs and sauce – makes enough to serve 2 (zoodles and tomato sauce) – I ate all the meatballs myself and was happy with dinner. I imagine you could stretch the meatballs to feed two. This dish would be killer with the macadamia nut ricotta I made recently, too.

Black Salt & Whiskey Chocolate Pot De Creme

April 19, 2014RecipesLeave a Comment

Yum. Y-U-M. This dessert is a show stopper. It tastes crazy decadent, is easy to make, and it’s dairy free. The dessert trifecta.

Gluten-free and easily adapted to be paleo (just omit the whiskey and use all plain dark chocolate)

Black Salt & Whiskey Chocolate Pot De Creme
Based on Nom Nom Paleo’s Mexican Chocolate Pots De Creme

Pudding

2 cans full-fat coconut milk
4 large egg yolks
12-14 ounces dark chocolate (I used a combo of caramel black salt 70% dark chocolate & plain 85% dark chocolate)
1-2 shots of your favorite liquor (optional if strict paleo) – I used 2 shots of Honey Jack
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Black salt (or any nice flaky salt) for garnishing

Coconut Whipped Cream

1 can coconut cream, refrigerated for a few hours to solidify
2-4 tsp. Grade B maple syrup
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Finely chop your chocolate and place into a large bowl.

In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, add your coconut milk and egg yolks. Whisking/stirring constantly, cook until the mixture thickens and forms a smooth custard that coats the back of a spoon (20-25 minutes). Yes, I’m aware that constant mixing/whisking is a pain in the ass. It’s worth it. You need to watch your custard Like A Hawk to make sure it doesn’t overcook. Steaming is good/simmering is bad. You don’t want cooked eggs here.

When the custard is ready, take off the heat and pour into the chocolate bowl through a fine mesh sieve. The sieve will catch any lumpy bits of undesirably cooked custard and will result in a smoother finished texture. You want a smooth finished texture, right? Don’t cut corners here.

Now walk away. For Five Minutes. Don’t stir the chocolate custard, don’t look at it – don’t sniff it – don’t touch it – just walk away. Torture, I know, but do it.

After your five minutes in non-stirring purgatory are up, gently stir the custard into the now-melted chocolate with a spatula. Gently! If you stir too fast, you’ll end up with grainy chocolate. Once your chocolate is fully incorporated, add your whiskey and vanilla extract and stir again to combine. Divide the mixture into your serving vessels – I used eight 8-ounce mason jars and filled them about 3/4 of the way.

Refrigerate 4 hours to a day to set up. Now would be a good time to put the coconut cream into the fridge so it solidifies.

When you’re ready to serve, make the whipped “cream”.

In a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer), carefully spoon out the solidified coconut cream, leaving the coconut water behind. If you couldn’t find coconut cream and grabbed coconut milk instead, no worries – this trick works perfectly fine with a can of full fat coconut milk; you just won’t have as much yield.

Add 2 tsp. maple syrup and 2 tsp. vanilla extract and whip however you want (a stand mixer is awesome here) until stiff peaks form. This won’t take nearly as long as it would had you used dairy cream. Taste. If it’s still a little coconutty, add 2 more tsp. maple syrup and maybe a pinch of salt.

Spoon over the pot de cremes to serve. Sprinkle with black salt to garnish.

Serves 8+

Sweet Potato Galette with Pan Seared Pork Chops and Apple Whiskey Compote

April 12, 2014RecipesLeave a Comment

For this meal, I wanted something winter-y (pork and apples) and pretty (sweet potato galette). It was a good one.

Gluten-free, paleo-ish

Sweet Potato Galette with Pan Seared Pork Chops and Apple Whiskey Compote

Sweet Potato Galette

2 large sweet potatoes
1 Tbsp. ghee
Sprinkle parmesan (optional if strict paleo)
Salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 425. Brush some ghee over the bottom and up the sides of a large oven-safe pan. Peel and slice your sweet potatoes thin (I used a mandoline). Place a layer of potatoes – fanned out like cards – in the pan (I started in the middle and worked my way out, making sure to overlap a bit) and hit with a sprinkle of salt and few cracks of black pepper. Make another layer and hit with the cheese (if using). Stack another layer and brush with ghee. Continue layering until out of potatoes.

Cover the whole pretty shebang with foil and bake 25 minutes. Remove the foil and bake an additional 20 minutes, or until browned. Take out of the oven and let cool.

When cool, place a large plate (larger than the pan) over the pan and flip quickly. Your galette – if you used a sufficiently nonstick pan – should flip onto your plate. If you’re lucky, this will be in one piece. If you’re me and weren’t careful while doing your layers and let some cheese snake its way to the bottom, yours will come out in pieces. It’s still good, even if it isn’t pretty.

Serves 4

Apple Whiskey Compote

While your potatoes are baking, make a sauce.
1 shallot
2 tsp. ghee
1 apple (I used Fuji)
1 tot Honey Jack (or your favorite brown alcohol)
1/4 cup water
Sprinkle salt
Sprinkle cinnamon
Sprinkle nutmeg

Peel your apple and chop into half-inch pieces. Dice the shallot.

In a small pan over medium-low heat, sautee the shallots in ghee until beginning to soften. Add the apple and honey jack and let cook 1-2 minutes. Add the water, salt and spices and let simmer, stirring occasionally, until the apples have softened and most of the water evaporates.

Whiz with a blender if you want a smooth sauce.

Serves 4

Pan Seared Pork Chops

1 pork chop per person (I used inch-thick boneless butterflied chops)
Salt & pepper
1 Tbsp. coconut oil

Heat a large pan over medium high. Add the coconut oil and bring up to almost smoking. While that is working, pat your chops dry with paper towels and sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. Place in the pan and sautee 3 minutes per side, or until your desired doneness has been reached.

Let rest 5 minutes before serving.

Serves however many you need to serve

Roasted Carrot Strings with Meyer Lemon Cream & Basil

April 6, 2014December 29, 2014RecipesLeave a Comment

Zoodles (carroodles?) are fun. I’m still loving the spiralizer I finally broke down and purchased and although the waste ratio is a little high on thin carrots, I’m still behind whipping a pound of carrots into strings for dinner. Kind of exhausting after an intense arm workout, but worth it.

Gluten-free, paleo, Whole30, vegan, vegetarian

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Roasted Carrot Strings with Meyer Lemon Cream & Basil

Adapted from Meyer Lemon Roasted Carrot Strings with Lemon Garlic Sauce from Running to the Kitchen

1 pound carrots
3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 Meyer lemon (or 1 lemon + a squirt orange)
Kosher salt & fresh cracked black pepper
1/4 cup basil leaves

Meyer Lemon Cream

1/4 cup coconut cream (you can either buy a can of coconut cream or put a full-fat can of coconut milk into the fridge for a few hours so the cream rises and solidifies a bit)
2 cloves garlic
Juice of 1 Meyer lemon (or 1 lemon + a squirt orange)
1/2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp. chipotle powder
Kosher salt & fresh cracked black pepper

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. While your oven is heating, spiralize your carrots into strings (or use a julienne peeler or cut into very thin strips).

In a large bowl, combine the olive oil with the juice of 1 lemon, a big sprinkle salt and a few cracks of black pepper. Whisk to combine. When the carrot strings are done, add to the bowl and toss to combine.

Cover a baking sheet with foil and lightly grease with ghee or coconut oil. Spread the carrots evenly on the baking sheet and pop into the oven. Roast for 20 minutes, tossing every so often to promote crispness.

While the carrots are working, make your cream. Mince the garlic and chiffonade the basil. In a small bowl, mix the coconut cream, juice of 1 lemon, apple cider vinegar, a big pinch salt, few cracks black pepper and chipotle powder. Taste for zinginess and salt. Add more acid or salt if needed.

When the carrots are finished, remove from the oven and serve with the lemon cream. Sprinkle basil over to garnish.

Serves 2 for dinner.

Macadamia Nut Ricotta Dessert Snacks – 2 Ways

March 29, 2014December 29, 2014RecipesLeave a Comment

Even though these two variations on a theme are kind of like incomplete thoughts, I thought they warranted a blog post because they are both so good. I happily munched on both for an afternoon snack – and they would have both been great bulked up by, say, a sliced apple.

Or maybe with some sort of baked good in a dessert?

For either dessert snack, scale up as appropriate. I had 1/4 cup left to play with, so ended up making two amuse sizes.

However you slice it, delicious stuff.

Gluten-free, paleo, vegetarian, vegan, and Whole30-compliant (basil lime version only)

Macadamia Nut Ricotta

2 cups raw macadamia nuts
Big pinch Kosher salt
1-2 Tbsp. lemon juice (juice of 1/2 to 1 lemon)
1/4 to 1/2 cup water

Blend the macadamia nuts, salt, 1 Tbsp. lemon juice & half a cup of water until smooth, adding more water if necessary to hit the right consistency. Taste for acidity and salt, adding more lemon juice or salt as needed.

This recipe seems to be everywhere on the Internet. I was finally spurred on to action by Nom Nom Paleo’s Food For Humans book – but have seen it 999 other places.

Macadamia Nut Ricotta with Lime and Basil

2 Tbsp. macadamia ricotta

Zest of half a lime

2 tsp. fresh lime juice

1 basil leaf, chiffonade

Combine the ricotta, lime juice and lime zest. Top with basil and more zest. Serve … on a spoon? I ate this one plain happily.

Macadamia Nut Ricotta with Orange and Honey

2 Tbsp. macadamia ricotta

2 tsp. orange juice (I used tangelo)

Zest of 1/4 an orange (or tangelo, which is what I used)

1/2 tsp. honey

Orange segments to serve

Honey to drizzle

Combine the ricotta, juice, zest and honey. Top with more zest and a drizzle of honey. Serve with orange segments.

Thai-style Ground Beef with Zoodles & Peppers

March 22, 2014December 29, 2014RecipesLeave a Comment

Mmmm…. Thai. I’ve been missing the tart/sweet flavors of Thai food in my life lately, and this meal was just the correction for that loss. This sauce is kickin – and could definitely be used on a salad if you have leftovers, or as a dipping sauce for some lettuce wraps. Yum.

Paleo, gluten-free and Whole 30 compliant

Thai-style Ground Beef with Zoodles & Peppers

1 lb. ground beef
1 large zucchini
2 cloves garlic
1 inch ginger
1/2 onion
1 red pepper
2 medium carrots
1 Tbsp. coconut oil
Cilantro (optional for you poor souls with the ‘this crap tastes like soap’ gene)

Sauce

1/2 cup canned coconut milk
2 Tbsp. almond (or other nut) butter
2 Tbsp. rice vinegar
2 tsp. Red Boat fish sauce
2 Tbsp. coconut aminos
2 tsp. sriracha (or other hot sauce – if you use the Whole30 sriracha from Nom Nom Paleo, this dish is even W30-compliant)
4 Tbsp. lime juice

In a large pan over medium-high heat, brown your ground beef until crispy. Remove to a paper towel lined bowl.

While that is working, mince your garlic and ginger and thinly slice the onion. When the pan is free, add the coconut oil and sautee the ginger, garlic and onion until softened (stirring frequently to avoid burning).

Add the pepper, which you’ve cut into thin strips. Sautee until beginning to soften, stirring frequently to avoid burning. Add the carrots, scraping up all the delicious browned bits from the meat. Sautee until the carrots are softened and everything is starting to brown.

While this is working, make your sauce. Whisk the coconut milk and almond butter together over medium heat to combine, making sure to beat all the lumps out. Cut the heat and add the rest of the ingredients. Turn the heat back on for a minute or two to thicken a bit and whisk to combine. Let sit while you zoodle.

I happen to like my zoodles raw, so I made them at this point. If you prefer yours cooked, add with the carrots.

Don’t forget to chop your cilantro, if using.

To serve: toss the beef mixture with the sauce and either spoon over the zoodles or throw the zoodles in and toss. Sprinkle with cilantro before hitting the table.

Makes enough to serve 2 for dinner + 1 for lunch

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