More fall cooking: Low Carb Shepherd's Pie

Low Carb Shepherd's Pie

This is downright comfort food...but you don't have to feel guilty...it's healthy! It's perfect for cooler weather and the added touch of spices makes it so complex and flavorful you won't want to stop eating it. This recipe was adapted from a paleo version I used to make so I've added back the cheese, because who doesn't love a cheesy top layer? 

Top Layer

1 large head cauliflower, cut into florets
2 tbsp butter, melted
1 tsp spicy brown mustard
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar
Fresh parsley, to garnish

Bottom Layer

1 tbsp coconut oil
1/2 large onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
2 lb. lean ground beef, turkey or lamb
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 cup beef broth
1 tsp dry mustard
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp allspice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste (we use a little Cajun seasoning for a little extra kick)

Directions

Steam the cauliflower for 12-14 minutes, until tender. Drain and return cauliflower to the pot. I use 2 bags of frozen steamable cauliflower and steam it right in the bag. Add the butter, mustard, salt, and pepper to the cauliflower. Using an immersion blender or food processor, combine the ingredients until smooth. Set aside.

Meanwhile, heat the coconut oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, and carrots and sauté for 5 minutes. Add in the meat and cook until browned.

Stir the tomato paste, broth, and remaining spices into the meat mixture. Season to taste with salt and pepper or Cajun seasoning. Simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Spread the meat mixture into a 9 x 12 baking pan and spread the pureed cauliflower on top. Sprinkle the cheese on top and place under the broiler for 5-7 minutes until the top turns golden. Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve.

*Nutrition facts based on 90% lean ground beef, sodium content does not reflect actual added salt.

Nutrition Facts
Servings 8.0
Amount Per Serving
calories 338
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 20 g	31 %
Saturated Fat 11 g	53 %
Monounsaturated Fat 0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 100 mg	33 %
Sodium 371 mg	15 %
Potassium 176 mg	5 %
Total Carbohydrate 5 g	2 %
Dietary Fiber 2 g	9 %
Sugars 3 g
Protein 32 g	65 %
Vitamin A	29 %
Vitamin C	3 %
Calcium	22 %
Iron	13 %
* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.

A touch of fall: Sugar Free Maple Cinnamon Pecans

Sugar Free Maple Cinnamon Pecans

It's finally Fall in Louisiana! So I decided to treat myself to a little snack. I love those fresh roasted, cinnamon glazed almonds and pecans they make right when you enter the Renaissance Festival and you just can't leave without them. These aren't quite as crunchy, due to the no sugar or oil, but they were definitely delicious and really hit the spot.

Sugar Free Maple Cinnamon Pecans

3 cups pecans or other favorite nut

1/4 cup sugar free maple or pancake syrup (I used DaVinci* from netrition.com)

1 TBSP Cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix together all ingredients and toss to coat pecans. Spread out on parchment paper and bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until pecans start to brown slightly, this will give them a slight crunch.

We also suspect that if you toss in a little melted butter it may give them a little more crunch. We will try that next time and report back, but we liked them just fine like this.

*DaVinci does contain splenda, but there are others out there that use Stevia or other keto friendly sweeteners, but we like the taste and don't seem to be affected by Splenda when used in small amounts.

Serving Size: 1/2 cup pecans, 3 net carbs

Nutrition Facts
Servings 6.0
Amount Per Serving
calories 345
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 36 g	55 %
Saturated Fat 3 g	15 %
Monounsaturated Fat 20 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 11 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 0 mg	0 %
Sodium 10 mg	0 %
Potassium 206 mg	6 %
Total Carbohydrate 8 g	3 %
Dietary Fiber 5 g	21 %
Sugars 2 g
Protein 5 g	9 %
Vitamin A	1 %
Vitamin C	1 %
Calcium	3 %
Iron	7 %
* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.

Chipotle & Coffee Dry Rub

• I discovered this delectable recipe courtesy of slimpalate.com but of course I tweaked it a bit for my own taste. The beauty of this rub is that it can be used on almost any type of meat. I personally tried it on a thick cut, boneless pork sirloin (pictured below), but I'm so ready to try this on steak and chicken as well. This recipe is also easily adaptable if you don't limit your diet to paleo by subbing brown sugar for the coconut sugar or cut it out if limiting sugar or carbs altogether.

Chipotle & Coffee Dry Rub

• 1 Tbsp finely ground French Roast or other dark coffee
• 1 Tbsp Smoked Paprika
• 1/2 tsp chipotle chile powder
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp ground allspice
• 1/2 Tbsp sea salt
• 1/2 Tbsp ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon coconut sugar (optional)

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Pat dry the meat of your choosing and sprinkle rub on each side patting lightly, turn over and repeat on other side. Place rubbed meat in plastic bag and store at least 1 hour or overnight  in refrigerator. Remove 20 minutes prior to cooking. 

Pre-heat flat skillet on medium heat with coconut or other high heat oil and cook on each side, time depending on desired wellness or thickness of meat.

The point is...this rub is super easy and delicious any way you want to use it, so...

Bon Appetit!

Paleo Loco Moco

Loco moco is a traditional Hawaiian comfort food. There are many variations, but the traditional version consists of white rice, topped with a hamburger patty, a fried egg, and brown gravy.  From the first time we tried it in Honolulu, we were hooked. There is also a very delicious version right here in New Orleans at Beachbum Berry's Latitude 29. If you've never tried it, go...now! I even threw paleo out the window to eat this plate of deliciousness. While theirs is a bit fancier and richer than the homestyle version, it inspired me to go home and concoct a version we can eat on a regular basis, so here it is.

1 lb lean grass fed ground beef

 4 green onions, chopped (divided in half)

1 clove garlic (minced or pressed)

Sea salt & ground black pepper to taste

2 cups organic beef stock

1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced (optional)

2 tsp Arrowroot powder

1/4 C cold water

1 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce (see below for paleo version)

3-4 eggs

1 head Cauliflower, riced

Chop cauliflower into small pieces and pulse in food processor until a crumbled or "rice" consistency is reached. Steam in steamer or pot with small amount of water until tender, about 5-8 minutes, drain any excess water.

While cauliflower is steaming, combine ground beef, half of green onions, garlic, salt & pepper and form into hamburger patties. In large skillet or grill, brown patties over medium heat on each side. 

Remove from skillet and drain any dripping from burgers, leaving some of the browned bits in the bottom of the pan. Add beef stock and Worcestershire while scraping the pan to mix in the browned bits. Bring to a simmer, in the meantime, mix together arrowroot and cold water to form slurry. Add to broth while simmering. Simmer until a thick gravy forms then add remaining green onions and mushrooms. Place burgers back into the gravy and simmer until mushrooms and onions are tender. 

Spray a small skillet with a small amount of olive oil and fry eggs individually until desired doneness (we like ours over easy). Plate the burgers on top of steamed cauliflower, spoon gravy over the top of the burger and add the egg on top. 

Homemade Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 cup organic apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp water
2 tbsp coconut aminos
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp mustard powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp black pepper

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan and slowly bring to a boil while stirring frequently.
Let simmer for about a minute for the flavors to develop.
Cool and store in the refrigerator.

paleo chunky-monkey ice cream

I'm not sure if I even remember what ice cream tastes like! So while people are posting their Facebook photos of their first tub of Blue Bell in almost a year, I am sitting here wondering what all the fuss is about? So as my husband informs me of the listeria contamination that apparently the rest of the world knows about, he is probably wondering what rock I was living under and I am wondering why I never noticed it wasn't in grocery stores...oh yeah...because I never buy ice cream! 

Ice cream is one of those things I stopped buying many years ago for several reasons. One of them being if it's in the house I will eat it. The second one being if I don't eat it first, my husband will eat the entire half gallon before I even get a taste! I'm not a big sweets fan to begin with but every now and then I like a little dessert. I just don't like what it does to my body afterwards, you know...cellulite, saddlebags, bra bulge...all that fun stuff you get to deal with when you get older and your metabolism just isn't what it used to be. I used to try to stick with "less guilty" options such as dark chocolate, granola, or a frozen fruit bar, but since switching to Paleo the options got even more scarce.

Sure, there are loads of recipes for Paleo brownies, cakes and cookies...but they all still have a good amount of carbs and usually require dates or figs as a natural sweetener, both of which my husband is allergic to! I've tried some delicious almond butter bars and pumpkin options, but none of them really resembled the real thing. I've also seen some store-bought alternatives in so-called "health food stores" but most of them still contain loads of sugar and sometimes unwanted added ingredients. So when I stumbled upon a recipe for Coconut Milk Ice Cream it peaked my interest. I was elated when I read the ingredients, so I decided to give it a whirl, dusted off my ice cream maker and it turned out absolutely delicious! This is my version:

Chunky-Monkey Coconut Milk Ice Cream

4 egg yolks
1 can full fat organic coconut milk
2 Tbsp vanilla extract (not imitation)
2 medium ripe bananas
1/2 cup walnuts
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (at least 60% cocoa), optional
1-2 tsp Stevia or other natural sweetener of your choice

Bring water in a pot to a simmer and cover with a heat proof glass bowl to create a double boiler. Do not allow water to touch bottom of bowl. Heat coconut milk until hot but do NOT allow to boil. In a separate bowl whisk egg yolks. Temper egg by adding a ladle of hot coconut milk at a time while whisking the eggs. Do not allow the eggs to cook. After the eggs are brought up to temperature add the mixture to the double broiler. Whisk continuously until the mixture forms a thick custard. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely in the refrigerator before freezing.

Pour cooled mixture into frozen bowl of ice cream maker and turn machine on. Mash bananas and add to ice cream maker. Allow to run for about 15-20 minutes. Add Stevia or other sweetener, walnuts and chocolate and continue freezing process for 5-10 additional minutes or until thick and almost completely frozen. Pour into freezer safe container and place in freezer until completely frozen.

If you don't have an ice cream maker, you can place it in the freezer and stir vigorously every 20-30 minutes for about 2 hours until set.

And most importantly...
ENJOY! 

the "sort of" paleo parrotheads

So my husband and I have adapted a mostly Paleo diet for almost a year now and I have to say it's been an adventure. First of all, I say "mostly paleo" because beer and alcohol is probably the most anti-paleo thing you can consume...but let's face facts, omission of alcohol just doesn't fit in to our Parrothead lifestyle! Plus, if you've read any of my other blogs you would know we also home brew our own beer. So maybe we should say "Paleo Pirates"...or maybe not?

I have learned so many wonderful new recipes and have basically changed my entire way of shopping, cooking and thinking about food! So with this blog, I am going to start sharing my recipes that I have either adapted from others or invented myself...if only to help one other person that may need inspiration to live a more healthy lifestyle. I will certainly give credit where credit is due since without the help of others in the "paleo family" I'd be totally lost and confused. 

Whether it's Paleo, Whole 30, or just Clean Eating, it's rather refreshing to be able to control what you put into your body and feel so much better for it! Now, I know you're probably saying that putting alcohol into your body is the worst thing you can do, but my motto is EVERYTHING IN MODERATION! There are many studies that back up the fact that alcohol, again in moderation, is beneficial for a long and healthy life!

I am going to start off this series of recipes with a classic cocktail. Since it's all about making healthier choices, you should always use the most natural ingredients possible, using the most natural methods possible, which means little to no processing. We use 100% blue agave reposado or anejo tequila, which means rested or aged. A good tequila should have a very light golden color, which should only come from aging and not caramel or added color. There are many organic options to choose from as well. We also use fresh limes and no mixers. If the limes are sweet, that is all you need, however if they are tart or bitter, you could add a pinch of stevia or a dash of honey or other natural sweetener of your choice. Also be cautious of agave nectar, as most restaurants and bars will use it in a so-called "skinny margarita" while people don't realize most brands sold in stores contain as much fructose as high fructose corn syrup. In place of orange liqueur, you can use a squeeze of a fresh orange. You will also need a good lime juicer, we use our trusty handheld squeezer from World Market!

And so I give you...

The Paleo Parrothead Margarita

• 2 limes, freshly squeezed
• 1 1/2 oz 100% Blue Agave Reposado or Anejo Tequila
• 1 wedge orange, freshly squeezed
• 1/2 tsp of honey, if desired

Shake vigorously in cocktail shaker and serve over ice, garnish with lime and most of all, enjoy!