Savory Chicken Sausage Oatmeal

Okay I'm stuck on this savory oatmeal kick. This one was made extra amazing by adding the egg. This is more breakfast-like than the ham and cheese one, but breakfast for dinner or lunch is never a bad thing!

Ingredients:

1/2 to 1lb Italian chicken sausage

1/3 red onion, chopped

4-6 cloves garlic, minced

2 C chicken broth (substitute bouillon cube and 2 C water if needed)

1 C extra thick oatmeal

Supplies:

Medium pot

Measuring cup

Spatula or spoon

Serves: 2-4

Crumble the sausage in the pot over medium heat. Add chopped onion and minced garlic, heat until slightly tender. Add broth, increase heat and bring to a boil. Once at a rolling boil add oatmeal and lower heat back to medium. Cook 10-15 minutes stirring frequently until you reach your desired thickness. As long as you've used a very flavorful sausage, no additional salt or pepper is needed. 

I topped mine with a fried egg. 

The creaminess of the yolk added the perfect texture. 

You could also soft scramble an egg if you are preparing for tomorrow's breakfast. 

Ham and Cheese Oatmeal

My daughter loves oatmeal. Until she started going to preschool where they eat breakfast together, she had oatmeal for breakfast every morning ever since she started eating solid foods, and her grandpa eats oatmeal for breakfast every morning also. They even have matching oatmeal bowls. I'm not a crazy fanatic like they are but I enjoy a nice bowl of hot oatmeal every so often as well.

So when a co-worker brought a cup of microwavable steel cut oats to work, and let me try it, I was all over it! I tried it plain and to me it tasted like chewy brown rice - in a good way. Which got me thinking...

Why not use oatmeal and make something like fried rice? I've gone through several iterations of the concept, some more like fried rice, others more like the soft, goopy, oatmeal we're used to eating at breakfast.

Really, you don't have to follow a recipe at all. Like oatmeal, use the amount of liquid you think will yield the consistency you want. And just like fried rice, make the base (oatmeal) and then throw in whatever you want that you think will taste good! Of course, if you want it to be healthy, you should aim to add veggies and lean proteins... Here's one version that seemed to be a crowd pleaser.

Ingredients:

1 C roughly chopped ham

1 C veggies of choice, roughly chopped

3/4 C extra thick oatmeal

1 packet Lipton recipe secrets soup mix

1/3 C milk

1 C water

2-3 slices cheese of choice

Supplies:

Medium pot

Measuring cup

Spatula or spoon

Serves: 2-4

Mix soup packet and water in pot, then bring to a boil. Add oatmeal and bring back to medium boil. Add milk. Boil on medium for 15-20 minutes, stirring often. Once oatmeal reaches desired thickness add ham and veggies. Stir to combine then add cheese and remove from heat but continue to stir until cheese is melted and evenly distributed. Serve immediately. 

South of the Border Stew

Ingredients:

4 lbs meat, cubed (beef, lamb, pork or chicken)

1 yellow onion, diced

3-4 cloves garlic

2 C strained tomatoes (or 1 can tomato paste + 1/2 can water)

1/2 C broth of choice

2 Tbsp ground chipotle chili pepper

1 Tbsp ground cumin

1 Tbsp dried oregano

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

1 Tbsp red wine vinegar (substitute with white vinegar if needed)

Sea salt and ground pepper to taste

Supplies:

Blender/food processor

Slow cooker

Serves: 6

In your blender, blend everything except meat, salt and pepper until smooth. Pour into slow cooker. Season meat with salt and pepper then add to sauce. Cook on low 8 hours, stirring halfway through if possible. 

This is another recipe I got from the book Paleo Slow Cooking. I changed the chili powder the recipe calls for to chipotle chili pepper - you could go with the chili powder the recipe calls for if you don't have chipotle chili pepper. If using chicken I would cook for less time, maybe 5-6 hours. This recipe does have some bite to it so I would pair it with a nice sweet potato mash or roasted cubed butternut squash to balance the spice. 

Banana Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients:

2 cups instant oats

3 ripe bananas, smashed

1/3 C apple sauce (unsweetened)

1/4 C Almond Milk

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup "treats" of your choice (raisins, carob nibs, etc)

Supplies:

Cookie sheet

Parchment or Silpat

Yield: 20-24 cookies

Preheat oven to 350F. Mix all ingredients together well. Spoon onto Silpat or parchment lined cookie sheet. These won't melt down like "regular" cookies so you don't have to worry about them melding together. Shape them how you want them to end up (flatten into regular cookie thickness, since they won't melt down). Bake for 15-20 minutes. 

I got this recipe from my mom - not sure where she got it. If you don't like banana this probably isn't for you. This is another one that could be dessert or breakfast - with a hard boiled egg or some other protein. I might use one less banana and replace with some puréed zucchini or something to increase the nutrition next time. I'll definitely post if I try it and it's successful. 

Indian Stew

Ingredients:

4 lbs boneless beef or leg of lamb*

2 whole cinnamon sticks

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

4 medium carrots, chopped

1 Tbsp cumin

1 Tbsp coriander

1 tsp chili pepper*

2 Tbsp fresh ginger, minced OR 1 tsp dried ground ginger

4-6 cloves garlic, minced

Salt & pepper to taste*

Supplies:

Slow cooker

Serves: 4-6

Throw it all in and cook on low for 8 hours. That's it!

*I got this recipe from a book that Husband gave me: Paleo Slow Cooking by Chrissy Gower. Her recipe calls for leg of lamb but a)I don't care for lamb and b)cheap, tougher, boneless cuts of beef are cheaper than lamb where I shop. Also, her recipe calls for 1 Tbsp of cayenne pepper rather than the chili pepper but I realized too late I didn't have any cayenne (what?!) and I was not about to go back out to get it. Her recipes don't call for salt and pepper usually, maybe because it's assumed you need to season your food, so we don't have to be told? Or maybe because we really aren't supposed to add much salt on a paleo diet. Too bad. I need it. 

Next time I would do two things differently: stir after 3-4 hours because the liquid from the veggies and meat cooking down doesn't cover the meat so the meat can end up not tender like you would expect from a slow cooked stew. Also, add a sweet potato or two and reduce the amount of meat by the same volume - I want more veggies to meat ratio. 

Oat Breakfast Bars

Ingredients:
2 C uncooked instant oatmeal
1 C homemade Almond Meal
1 C dried fruit of choice (ex: raisins, chopped medjool dates, chopped prunes, etc)
1/4 C coconut sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 C total seeds and/or chopped/sliced nuts of choice

1/4 C raw honey

1/4 C peanut butter

1/2 C water

1 egg white

Supplies:
Medium bowl
Wooden spoon or sturdy spatula
9x13 baking pan

Yield: 8-12 bars

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease pan or line with parchment paper. Combine all dry ingredients (including fruit) and mix well. Combine honey and peanut butter in one microwave safe measuring cup. Microwave in 10-20 second increments till peanut butter stirs easily. Add water to the same cup, stir, then add to dry mixture, stirring well.  Add egg white and stir until well combined. Mixture should form a sticky ball, well held together but not too wet (think Rice Krispies treats). Spread evenly in pan pressing down. 

Bake about 15 minutes or until center is firm. Remove from oven, cut into bars, but do not remove from pan until fully cooled.

The oatmeal makes this non-Paleo, but certainly cleaner than store bought granola or breakfast bars.

Shoyu Chicken

Ingredients:
4 to 4.5 lbs chicken thighs (skin on or skinless)
1 C shoyu (soy sauce)
1.5 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
3-4 cloves garlic minced
1 inch ginger, grated
1/2 C coconut sugar
1/2 C honey
3 Tbsp vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
1/4 tsp ground black pepper

Supplies:
Slow cooker

Serves: 6-8

Put all ingredients in slow cooker, liquid should almost cover chicken. I prepped this the night before and let it sit in the fridge, covered, overnight.

In the morning I stirred it a bit and turned the slow cooker on high for the first hour to minimize temperature lingering in SalmonellaBreedingVille, then turned it to low for 3-4 more hours. Serve with vegetables.

This is definitely not Whole30 friendly, and is not Paleo friendly either, really. But shoyu chicken is a very traditional dish here in Hawaii so having this once in a while is one of the best ways to eat clean-er and still eat "local." That's what we call comfort food here in the islands. And the original recipe called for a cup of white sugar so at least there's that improvement! 

Recipe adapted from Food Network. 

Paleo Rolls

Ingredients:
1 C tapioca flour
1/4+ C coconut flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 C extra virgin olive oil
1/2 warm water
1 egg, whisked

Supplies:
Medium mixing bowl
Baking sheet
Parchment paper or Silpat

Yield: 8-10 rolls

Preheat oven to 350F. In bowl, combine the tapioca flour, 1/4 C coconut flour, and salt, and mix well. Add oil and water and stir well, then add egg, continuing to stir. You want your dough to be somewhat sticky and soft - you want a dough, not a batter. If your dough is too thin add a teaspoonful of coconut flour and stir again. Continue to add a teaspoon at a time combining well after each spoonful. Careful not to add too much or you'll end up with pilgrim hardtack. Once your dough is the right consistency, flour your hands with a bit of tapioca flour and roll into balls. Place on lined baking sheet. Bake 35-45 minutes depending on the size of your rolls.

You can also add herbs and spices. I made a couple with garlic powder, basil, oregano and parsley mixed in. I also made a couple with cinnamon and a teaspoon of coconut sugar. Adding coconut sugar will make the dough thinner so you'll need to add some coconut flour.

If you aren't jumping up and down, I don't think you understand how exciting it is to find a relatively affordable, easy, tasty bread recipe. Most paleo bread recipes call for a million ingredients, most of which are super expensive, and they just taste like nut loafs (because they are). This actually tastes like bread. And I get to put my wonderful Strawberry Jam on it instead of just longingly watching my family enjoy it!

Almost Grandma's Meatloaf

This recipe is NOT Whole30 friendly and the ingredient that makes it that way really shouldn't be left out

Ingredients:
1 - 1.5 lbs ground beef (85% lean or leaner)
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1/2 zucchini, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 tsp each oregano, basil, paprika, salt, garlic powder
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 egg
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Ketchup or thick (but not chunky) red pasta sauce

Supplies:
Standard loaf pan, nonstick or very lightly greased on the bottom
Medium bowl

Serves 3-4

Preheat oven to 350F. In the bowl mix all ingredients except ketchup/red sauce. Mixing with your hands is most effective. Make a loaf in the loaf pan, then spread the ketchup or red sauce over the top. This is optional. Cook in oven 1 to 1.5 hour. Let rest 5 minutes before slicing.

This is inspired by my Grandma's meatloaf which is SO good. But not even a little paleo friendly, which is so unfortunate. This one is still pretty good though. Pictured served with roasted asparagus.

Chicken Veggie Kabobs - No Grill

Ingredients:
3 chicken breasts
1/2 zucchini
1/2 red onion
1/2 tray mushrooms
Any veggies you want (peppers are another good one)
Or even fruit (pineapple is a good one)
Organic Ville Miso Ginger Organic Vinaigrette to taste

Supplies:
8-10 wooden skewers, soaked in water 20 minutes
Cookie sheet

Serves 2-4

Preheat oven to 325F. Cut ingredients into even sized chunks, about 1 or 1.5 cubic inches (or cut the mushrooms in half and make everything else the same size as that). Put on skewers making sure each one has the same or similar amount of each ingredient. If you're nuts like me you'll make sure the number of chunks are divisible by 8 or 10 and keep track and make a pattern. I told you, nuts. Season with salt and pepper to taste - add other spices or herbs like garlic powder, ground ginger, oregano, paprika, etc if you want. Drizzle or brush each skewer with a small amount of the dressing. Cook in oven until the chicken juice runs clear, about 30 minutes (depending how big your chunks were).

Of course, if you have a grill and have the energy, grilling is always tastier.

Serve with a ramekin of a little more of the dressing for dipping.

Strawberry Jam

Ingredients:
2 C roughly chopped fresh strawberries
2 Tbsp chia seeds
2-4 Tbsp sweetener (suggested: agave nectar or coconut sugar)

Supplies:
Hand blender or food chopper

Chop or blend strawberries until desired smoothness is achieved. Add chia seeds and stir in sweetener. Refrigerate and stir occasionally, much like the process for the various Chia Seed Puddings I've posted. There are no preservatives and so unlike store bought jellies and jams, unless you use a canning system, use within a week or two.

Goes really well atop Paleo Rolls!

Pumpkin Pie Chia Seed Pudding

Ingredients:
1/2 C puréed pumpkin
1/4 C homemade Almond Milk
1 Tbsp each: ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground allspice, ground nutmeg
3 Tbsp honey or coconut sugar
1/4 C chia seeds

Combine everything well and store in the refrigerator. Wait at least 25 minutes before serving. Depending how clean you're eating, this would be amazingly delicious with a dollop of Cool Whip. If you like this you'll probably also like Vanilla Cinnamon Chia Seed Pudding or Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding.

Herb Rubbed Pork Roast

Ingredients:
4 lb pork tenderloin
1 tsp each of:
   Basil
   Cumin
   Mustard
   Onion powder
   Parsley
   Rosemary
   Thyme
   Salt
   Pepper
1 Tbsp olive oil

Supplies:
Large ziplock bag
Medium roasting pan

Mix herbs in bag. Add tenderloin and shake (think Shake n Bake). Refrigerate 24 hours. Preheat oven to 375F. Place tenderloin in shallow pan greased with olive oil. (Add vegetables around the roast if desired. I places asparagus spear in the pan.)  Cook on lower rack 35-40 minutes or until internal temperature is 160F. Let rest 5 minutes before carving.

Almond Crusted Pork Medallions

Ingredients:
1/4 C Almond Meal
1/2 tsp each basil, parsley, onion powder
1/4 tsp mustard
5-6 medallions 1/2 inch thick (I cut mine from a pork tenderloin the rest of which I will be roasting)
Salt & pepper
1 Tbsp olive oil

Supplies:
Small bowl
Tongs
Medium nonstick sauté pan

Serves: 2

Mix almond meal and herbs, season medallions with salt and pepper. Toss in almond meal mixture and coat well. This can be done ahead of cooking and stored in the fridge. Heat half the olive oil to medium heat. Once the pan and oil are hot, place medallions in pan gently. They should sizzle but not loudly. If it's loud, turn your heat down. Flip after a couple minutes after a crust is formed on the bottom of the medallions. Add the rest of the olive oil around the pan. Continue to cook until firm or internal temperature is 160F. If you had left over almond meal add it to the pan to toast and use it to top your vegetables or as "croutons" for a salad.

Pictured here served with sautéed kale.

Off the Wagon

Alright so I have to say (though the radio silence on my part makes it obvious) I fell off the wagon recently. I could list all the various special occasions that happened in April or talk about the two and a half week "intermission" from my workout class, trainer and workout buddies. Doesn't matter, it's all excuses.

But it's ok, because I just learned something about building resiliency. Without going through the whole thing (it's pretty in depth) I'll just try to briefly explain why occasionally going "off-plan" actually builds a stronger habit change. If you have a series of small successes and then a fair sized failure, you're more likely to pick up again, set a reasonable goal and continue to have small successes. If you succeed for a sustained period of time with absolutely no failures or obstacles, the moment you falter (and you will, because you're human), that one failure will be too crushing to overcome and you're much more likely to give up entirely.

Therefore, I'm back to clean eating for May. It's getting harder to come up with new recipes to post but I'll try. Stay tuned - I have Almond Crusted Pork Chops 2, Herb Rubbed Pork Loin, and some kind of chicken coming up in the next several days.

Spice Matrix

Check out this spice matrix that helps me when I need to pull something out of the air! Got it from Adventures In Spice.

Bacon Wrapped Chicken

Ingredients:
3 chicken breasts
8-12 slices bacon
1/4 tsp chili pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
Salt & pepper
1 Tbsp honey (optional)

Supplies:
Small nonstick or glass baking dish
Toothpicks soaked in water (optional)
Brush (if using honey)

Serves: 3-4

Preheat oven to 350F. Cut chicken into strips about one inch thick. Season evenly with the spices and salt and pepper. Wrap each strip in bacon. Secure with toothpick if desired. Place strips in baking dish. Brush very lightly with honey. Put in oven on middle rack and cook for 45 minutes. At 45 minutes turn oven up to 400 and move dish to top rack. Cook for 5-10 more minutes.

This is pretty easy but you can't really go wrong with bacon. Serve with veggies (pictured with chopped spinach).

Stuffed Bell Peppers

Ingredients:
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
5-6 mushrooms, finely chopped*
1 bell pepper (any color), finely chopped
Left over chicken or pork or beef, finely chopped**
1 tsp tarragon
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp sage
1/2 tsp thyme
3 green bell peppers, halved and cleaned (best to use ones with four bumps instead of three)
Organic red pasta sauce (optional)

*the number of mushrooms is irrelevant - use enough to equal the same volume as the onion

**use enough of your leftover protein so the mixture is one part chopped onion/mushroom/pepper and two parts protein

Supplies:
Medium sauté pan
Mixing bowl
Shallow baking dish

Serves 3-6

This is a two part recipe (well technically three) because it works best with leftover protein (step 1) from another meal, and best if the filling is prepped and combined the day before (step 2) actually making the stuffed bell peppers (step 3). This time around I used leftover Cilantro Lime Chicken Breast, chicken slow cooked in taco seasoning, and Slow Cooker BBQ Pulled Pork. You also can use different chopped veggies - increase the nutrition by chopping some zucchini instead of bell pepper, for example. Combine your protein and chopped veggies and toss in the herbs, mix well. Sauté the whole mixture on medium until you start to smell the spices and the whole mixture is warmed through well. Store in an airtight container and refrigerate overnight. The next day, preheat oven to 325F. Cut the 3 bell peppers in half and clean out the seeds and membranes. Place the peppers in a shallow baking dish. Stuff the peppers with the mixture, top with your choice of red pasta sauce. Or top with a slice of white cheese (then it's not paleo). Bake uncovered for 45 minutes to one hour.

Paleo Pumpkin Cookies

Ingredients:
1/2 C puréed pumpkin
1/4 C almond butter
1/4 C honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 C almond meal
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/3 C chopped nuts of your choice (I used macadamia nuts)
1/3 C unsweetened medium coconut flakes
1/3 C cacao nibs or organic dark chocolate chips

Supplies:
Medium and small mixing bowls
Measuring cup
Sturdy spatula
Cookie sheet
Parchment paper

Yield: 20-24 cookies

For this to be paleo, the ingredients all should be pure/organic. Preheat oven to 350F and line the cookie sheet with parchment. Mix dry ingredients in the small bowl, and the wet ones in the medium bowl. Add dry to wet and combine well with spatula. Scoop batter onto parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes, depending on the size of your cookies. Cool two minutes before transferring to cooling rack. Store in airtight container in the refrigerator.

According to Butter In My Coffee, which is where I adapted this recipe from, this can be a breakfast biscuit as well. But as much as I love desserkfast, it feels too dessert-y and not nutritious (or filling) enough to be breakfast, even with the addition of an egg or two. Sure is a yummy treat though!

Cilantro Lime Chicken Breast

Ingredients:
3 chicken breasts, whole
1/2 red onion, chopped
1/2 C chopped fresh cilantro
3 cloves garlic minced
Juice of two limes
1 tsp cumin
Salt/pepper to taste

Supplies:
Slow cooker

Serves: 6-8

You can partly make this ahead of time. In a ziplock bag combine: chicken breast, chopped onion, chopped cilantro, minced garlic, cumin. Don't put the lime - the acid might begin to cook the chicken. I did this the night before but if you want you can do this and freeze. When ready to cook, defrost if frozen, then place contents of bag into slow cooker and add juice of 2 limes and salt and pepper. Set on low for 7-8 hours. If possible, at 6 hours open the crockpot and pull the breasts apart into shreds with tongs. If not, shred before serving. Or serve whole or in chunks.

Serve with vegetable of your choice.