Vanilla Cinnamon Chia Seed Pudding

Ingredients:
1/2 C raw chia seeds
1.5-2 C milk of your choice
3-6 dates, pitted and chopped
2 Tbsp agave nectar
2 Tbsp coconut sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Supplies:
Tupperware container
Measuring cup and spoons

Serves: 6-8

Mix the ingredients. Stir well every couple of minutes for about 20 minutes. Refrigerate. That's IT. That's how easy it is! I mix it right in the container I'm going to store it in because why create more cleanup?

Use almond milk or coconut milk (I used a combo because I had to use up my coconut milk). I adjusted the ingredient amounts adapting from about a gazillion chia seed pudding recipes on the Internet but its to my taste - if it's too sweet for you, drop some of the agave or coconut sugar. If it's not sweet enough, hey pile it on. But I mean, we're eating this type if food to mitigate insulin spikes so don't go too crazy.

Dessert? Breakfast? The chia seeds are filling and full of fiber so alongside an egg or some other small portion of protein I would not hesitate to call this breakfast. But it's yummy and sweet enough to satisfy those dessert cravings from my past life, so dessert fits also. You can't go wrong desserkfast! It's not the prettiest thing to eat but who cares it's going in your stomach, not the Louvre.

If you like this, you might also like Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding.

Paleo Friendly Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:
3.25 C almond meal*
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 eggs, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 C honey**
1/4 C agave nectar**
1/2 C coconut oil (liquid)
1 C pure chocolate chips***

Supplies:
Medium mixing bowl
Small mixing bowl
Cookie sheet
Parchment paper
Spatula and/or whisk
Teaspoon (not the measuring kind)

Yield: 36 cookies

*I used almond meal from making Almond Milk. If you do this you really need to dehydrate your almond meal well before using it. Also, the cookies hold together more easily if you use almond flour like Bob's Red Mill.

**The recipe I adapted called for 1/2 C of honey or agave nectar or pure maple syrup. I didn't have pure maple syrup but I love maple so I imagine that would be divine. I used 1/4 C each honey and agave because that's what I had.

***Use whatever chocolate chips you want. The recipe I adapted called for cacao nibs or vegan chocolate chips.

Preheat oven to 375F. Line your cookie sheet with parchment paper. Combine dry ingredients in the medium bowl (almond meal, salt, baking soda). In the small bowl combine the wet ingredients (eggs, coconut oil, agave, honey, vanilla extract). Add wet to dry and mix well. Fold in the chocolate chips gently last. Use the teaspoon and shape the dough into ping-pong sized balls. If your dough is too oily blast it in the refrigerator for a few minutes. Bake on middle rack for 10 minutes (plus or minus a minute or two depending on your oven and the size of your cookies. Remove and cool by sliding the whole sheet of parchment off the cookie sheet.

Your house will smell coconutty and there's a coconut flavor to the cookies but it's not as strong a flavor as the aroma would suggest. These are deadly yummy. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Recipe adapted from thebitesizedbaker.

Sautéed Wilted Kale

Ingredients:
Kale
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Balsamic Vinegar (optional)

Supplies:
Large nonstick skillet with lid
Non-scraping tongs
Paring knife
Large mixing bowl or large ziplock bag

(Ok this is kind of a cheat post because the method and ingredients are nearly identical to the kale part of the Almond Crusted Pork and Sautéed Kale post. Sorry.)

Trim the kale leaves off the thick stems. I find it easiest to hold the end of a stem in one hand with the the other end pointing down, and running a very sharp paring knife down along the stem - the leafy part should fall right off. If not - get a better set of knives. Rinse the kale and dry - easiest to use a salad spinner but I don't have one - I put the kale between paper towel and dry gently.

In a large mixing bowl or large ziplock bag, toss the kale with a very small drizzle of EVOO and an even smaller drizzle of balsamic vinegar. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Put all in the pan, heat on medium-low and cover. Check and stir/toss occasionally. When the kale is wilted like steamed spinach it is ready. If you like it a little more al dente, that's fine too. It's fine to eat raw so you can't really undercook this.

Use garlic instead of balsamic if you like, or sauté with whatever other spice you prefer. This is so easy. The only thing is, just like spinach, it gets really reduced in volume so if you feed people who need to have a visually full plate...get smaller plates. The photos don't even show how drastic it is - the first one is half the batch (it wouldn't all fit in my pan at once), the second photo is all of it.

Garlic Cauliflower Mash

Ingredients:
1 head cauliflower
3-4 cloves garlic
Salt
Pepper
1/4 C or less almond milk

Supplies:
Fine cheese grater
Large nonstick pan/skillet
Spatula

Grate cauliflower into pan. Grate only the florets part, reserve the stems for..I'll think of something later. If nothing else you can steam them and eat them later as a side dish. Grate the garlic into the pan as well. Season with salt and pepper and heat on medium stirring/tossing often. As the cauliflower cooks it should take on a slightly more "mashed" texture. Add almond milk little by little to desired consistency, mixing in the pan after each addition. Add any other seasoning you wish - this should be seasoned similar to how you would make garlic mashed potatoes. If you like gravy with your mashed potatoes you might like the cauliflower mash with Mushroom Gravy.

This is almost exactly the same process as cauliflower fried "rice", except for cauliflower fried rice I would recommend blending the cauliflower submerged in water and then draining it because you get a slightly coarser texture closer to the size of rice grains.

This is pictured with Mushroom Onion Chicken.

Mushroom Gravy

Ingredients:
1 medium onion
2 trays mushrooms
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Parsley
Basil
Almond milk
Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Supplies:
Large nonstick skillet
Hand blender or emulsifier
Small mixing bowl

Slice mushrooms and drizzle with a very small amount of EVOO in the skillet. Season generously with garlic powder, onion powder, parsley and basil. I chose these spices merely because they were the first thing I saw when I opened the cupboard. Really, I took a photo as proof. Use whatever spices you wish. Don't forget to also season with salt and pepper. Sauté until mushrooms are cooked through, then add a small amount of almond milk (enough to cover the bottom of the pan) and bring to a medium boil. Simmer for several minutes then transfer to a small mixing bowl. You can do this ahead of time - I made my mushrooms last night to serve as a side dish to a different meal but sautéed three trays of mushrooms so I could have these to use for the gravy tonight. Slice the onion into thin slices. Back in the large skillet, caramelize the onions (and if simultaneously making Mushroom Onion Chicken sauté with the garlic also). Once the onions are golden and translucent, remove 3/4 of them to the bowl. (I used the other 1/4 in the Mushroom Onion Chicken, but if you're not making that go ahead and use the whole onion.) Blend with the hand blender. Add almond milk until the gravy reaches your desired consistency. Add salt and pepper as needed to taste.

I didn't put ingredient amounts because this really depends on your preference. If you're nervous, go easy at first and taste and add gradually. This makes kind of a lot of gravy so feel free to halve the recipe - Husband is a mushroom fanatic so I made a lot for him to use on whatever.

Mushroom Onion Chicken

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts
1 medium onion*
3-4 cloves garlic
1-2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt & pepper
Click here for Mushroom Gravy recipe

Supplies:
Large nonstick pan/skillet with lid
Pair non-scratching tongs
Small nonstick egg pan

Slice onion into thin slices. I used a whole onion because I used part of it to prepare the mushroom gravy. Mince the garlic. Put all the onions and garlic into the large pan, drizzle with half the EVOO and heat on medium-low heat, stirring/tossing occasionally. Meanwhile, slice chicken breasts into thin slices and season with salt and pepper. In small pan, heat a a small amount of the EVOO on medium to medium-high heat. Sear chicken strips quickly to get a golden color on each side then use the tongs to transfer and add to the large pan. Do this in batches if necessary. When all chicken has been seared and it is all in the large pan, cover the large pan, and turn heat to low. Keep slowly simmering and toss occasionally. Remove 3/4 of the onions and add to the sautéed mushrooms to be used for the Mushroom Gravy. Chicken is cooked when juice run clear.

This recipe is almost identical to the Chicken Breast and Sweet Potato recipe I posted previously. In these photos I served the chicken with Mushroom Gravy and garlic cauliflower mash. Not the most exciting and colorful meal but tasty and easy.

Filipino Adobo

Ingredients:
4 lbs beef, chicken or pork
2 C water
1 C shoyu
1/2 C vinegar
2 Tbsp agave nectar
1 finger ginger (about 4-5 inches)
5-6 cloves garlic
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp fresh coarsely cracked pepper
Salt & pepper to taste
Extra virgin olive oil or oil of your choice
2 Tbsp flour of your choice

Supplies:
Large pot with lid
Ladle or large spoon
Small bowl

Serves: 4-6

Cut the meat into 1-2 inch cubes. Cut ginger into several pieces (not too small - you want them easy to fish out later) and crush. Crush the garlic as well. Keep count of how many pieces of ginger you cut. In the bottom of the pot heat a small amount of oil. Season the meat with salt and pepper, then sear in the pot on medium high. Add water, vinegar, shoyu, garlic and ginger and bring to high boil. Once boiling, add agave. Reduce to medium and boil for 10 minutes stirring frequently. Add bay leaves and cracked pepper. Reduce heat to low and cover. Simmer slowly until meat is fork tender (about 2 hours for beef, less for chicken and pork). Once finished cooking, reserve meat in a separate bowl and fish out ginger pieces and the bay leaves. Remove all except about 2 cups of the juices (more if you want to make more gravy). In the small bowl, measure out 2 tablespoons of a flour of your choice. Mix with a small amount of cold water until smooth. Add to the reserved juices in the pot and bring to a boil stirring or whisking the bottom continuously. Return meat to pot or pour out gravy into the bowl with the meat.

I hate wasting, but the rest of the juices are so intensely flavored that you can't use it for much else unless you want to eat adobo flavor for a week.

Serve with veggies - I'm partial to steamed broccoli.