Pumpkin Pancakes (grain free, dairy free)

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Pancakes are a staple in many households and pumpkin just makes sense for fall.  Since you are adding a squash into this recipe, you are introducing some liquid.  Therefore, these pancakes tend to be more moist than some of my other pancakes, so don’t freak out if they are not exactly the same texture.
Pumpkin Pancakes (grain free, dairy free)
Ingredients:
1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup tapioca flour
4 eggs
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup coconut milk
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
Directions:
Mix together your dry ingredients and then add you wet ingredients until you have a batter.  Heat a nonstick pan over medium high heat and use coconut oil for the first batch to grease the pan.  Cook the batter on one side until the edges are firm.  Flip the pancake and cook for another 2 minutes or so.  After your first set of pancakes you can see how long you need to be cooking them on each side so they are cooked through since every stovetop is quite different!

Pumpkin Mousse Pie

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Let the pumpkin recipes begin. Pumpkin spice may be one of my favorite things about fall. If you try it in summer, it’s just not the same! So, I have been working on alternatives to pumpkin pie and pumpkin cheesecake. I love cheesecake…but don’t always want to make the splurge on the cream cheese from an unhealthy cow. ;( I am not a big fan of the texture of pumpkin pie. So, if pumpkin pie and pumpkin cheesecake had a baby, it would be pumpkin mousse pie!
Remember how I told you about my chocolate mousse pie? Well it’s amazing and so easy that I couldn’t resist the idea of switching up flavors. Once again, this is no bake. You need a kitchen aid mixer. If you freeze it, it is like ice cream cake. K? Good.

Pumpkin Mousse Pie

Crust:

  • 24 dates
  • 1/2 cup pecans
  • 1/2 cup walnuts
  • 1 Tbsp cinnamon
  • pinch of salt

Filling:

  • 2 1/2 sticks grassfed butter (at room temp)
  • 3/4 cup coconut sugar
  • pinch of salt
  • 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1 tsp ginger
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 4 eggs (at room temp)

Instructions:

Run your sugar through the food processor just to make sure it’s fairly fine and not chunky. Place the butter and sugar in the mixer on high with the paddle attachment for 1 1/2 minutes until fluffy and incorporated. Add the vanilla and pumpkin until incorporated. Put the whisk attachment on and turn the mixer to 6-7 speed and add an egg. Wait 5 minutes before adding the next egg.
While the egg is whisking for 5 minutes, put all your dates and nuts in the food processor and process until you get a mealy texture that you can press into the bottom of a pie pan. Put the larabar-esque crust into the pie pan and press down until the bottom is covered. Place in the fridge.
Now add the 2nd egg, and wait another 5 minutes.
During those 5 minutes, start your dishes clean up.
Now add the 3rd egg, and wait another 5 minutes.
Keep doing dishes.
Now add your 4th egg, and let it whisk for another 5 minutes.
Fold laundry.
Once the last egg is done whisking, Pour the mousse filling over the pie crust and put in the fridge for a few hours before serving. Done!

Ham (and Cheese) Crepes

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I had a patient let me borrow the cookbook “Every Last Crumb” because she ordered it but found many of the recipes called for xantham gum, which is less than ideal.  So, I wanted to take a look at the recipes and see if there was anything that gave me inspiration.  Well, I don’t miss bread products that much, so bread recipes just kind of go in one ear and out the other.  However, recently I went to a crepe place and every time I have crepes, I remember how much I love them!  You get where this is going…her book had a crepe recipe!  I was all over that like white on rice.  I could definitely see myself making these as an alternative to pancakes for brunch.  They are so versatile because you could make them savory or sweet.  In the cookbook, she made them sweet, so I just dropped out all the ingredients that go with sweet in order to make them savory.  Ham and cheese is a classic combo, but the possibilities are endless.
Crepes
Ingredients:
5 large eggs
3/4 cup + 1 Tbsp coconut milk
1 tsp butter
1/4 cup + 3 Tbsp coconut flour
1/3 cup +2 Tbsp tapioca flour
1/8 tsp salt
Stuffing:
Chopped ham and shredded cheese
Directions:
Heat some oil in an 8-inch or larger skillet over medium-high heat.  Place the ingredients in a blender and blend on high for 1 minute.  Pour 1/4 cup of the batter in the hot skillet and rotate the pan in a circular motion until the batter coats the entire pan.  Cook until you can flip it over in one piece, which will be about a minute.  Flip it over and cook for another 30 seconds.  Set aside and continue with the rest of the batter.
In another pan, heat your stuffing ingredients through.  Place those ingredients (mine were leftover ham and shredded grassfed cheddar) in the center of the crepe and wrap each side in and enjoy!

 

 

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

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 It’s fall.  The only good thing about winter on the horizon is pumpkin spice everything, boots, scarves, and cute coats.  Just sayin’.  These cupcakes are the perfect indulgence if you choose to make a healthy treat for all your pumpkin spice cravings.  I am sometimes lazy and if you are too, then you could easily just turn this pumpkin/spice combo into pancakes.  Just take my pancake recipe and change out banana (or whatever other flavor) for pumpkin and add in the spice. Boom. Don’t be lazy.

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

  • 2/3 cup coconut flour, sifted
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 8 eggs
  • 2 Tbsp vanilla
  • 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
  • 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin
  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 1 Tbsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp cardamom
  • 1/4 tsp cloves
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
  • pinch all spice
  • 1 tsp ginger

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F.  Place all the ingredients in a mixing bowl except the melted butter and mix to combine.  With the mixer on low, slowly pour in the melted butter.  Pour the batter evenly into 12 SILICON MUFFIN LINERS and bake 22 minutes or until the center springs back when you press on top.  Cool completely before frosting.

 

Blueberry Fruit Rollups

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Blueberry season is transitioning into apple season, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t stock up on my favorite variety of blueberries!  I have a dehydrator that I don’t use that often and have always wanted to attempt fruit leather.  This year, I finally got around to it, and it was super easy.  I don’t usually snack that much, but if you have kids, this could be a really fun project and snack idea for them to participate in and enjoy the fruits of their labor!

You could use any fruit puree really, including any applesauce you may create from apple season!

Blueberry Fruit Rollup

Ingredients

  • 1 lb thawed blueberries
  • Juice from half a lemon
  • Tbsp of honey

Directions:

Puree all the ingredients in a blender and spread over a parchment paper-lined dehydrator tray or baking sheet if you do this in the oven.  Follow your dehydrator instructions. My dehydrator I used at 115F for 8 hours.  If you use the oven, place it at 170F and bake for 6-7 hours until it isn’t sticky when you touch it.  Roll it up, and enjoy!

Peach Salsa

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I speak quite a bit about whether buying certain foods organic actually matters.  I honestly have a different opinion than most people may think.  I think local over organic is MORE important.  Local AND organic is even better, which is why I love being a part of Rise Up Farms.  I know all my produce all summer long is coming from a farm down the street and is all organic!  Not many people can say that for $14/week!  If you aren’t a part of a CSA or have your own garden, try farmer’s markets or following the “Clean 15/Dirty Dozen” list.  This will at least help you avoid the crops that are the most heavily sprayed with pesticides.  The other perk of “organic” is that it is not GMO.  Beware of zucchini, because that is one piece of produce that can be GMO if you don’t buy organic.  Having said that, peaches are on the dirty dozen, and obviously don’t grow in Indiana.  Martin’s has had organic peaches the past couple weeks, and that always get me super excited!  I’ve made blueberry peach crisp, peach and thyme bourbon smash, and now peach salsa!

This salsa is great as a standalone salsa, but can also dress up some ahi tuna, burgers, or pork chops to bring your protein to the next level.  For this recipe, I made my burgers by combining ground beef and ground beef heart, and the salsa made them seriously delicious!  This is also the perfect recipe to use up some of those tomatoes coming out of the garden!

Peach Salsa

Ingredients:

  • 2 peaches, peeled and diced
  • 3 Roma tomatoes, diced
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 small shallot, diced
  • 1/2 of a jalapeno, finely diced
  • 1/2 of a lime’s juice
  • 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
  • salt to taste

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients and enjoy!  You could also use the food processor if you want a smoother version.

Blueberry Cobbler

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Remember how I told you that the Organic Blueberry Ranch was finally open?  Well, the other weekend, I was craving blueberries and really wanted to go pick some.  The only issue was that the variety being picked was not my favorite.   My absolute favorite is “bluecrop.” However, I decided to go anyway and figured I’ll have plenty of opportunity to get some bluecrop later.  When I showed up, guess what they decided to pick that day?!  Bluecrop!  I was in heaven.  I picked 4 lbs of blueberries, and less than a week later, they are almost gone.  I have made this cobbler twice now…in 1 week.  I have to say that it is the easiest dessert you could ever make and it is heavenly right out of the fridge.  I’m hard to please, and crisps/cobblers/and pies are not my thing.  So, for me to love this, it’s gotta be good!  Don’t blame me if the awesome blueberries are what make it so freakin’ delicious!

*Lurong Challenge: use honey instead, add 1/8 cup to the berries and 1/8 cup to the topping.  Sub coconut oil for the butter.  1/4 of the entire thing would be your sugar quota for the day)

Paleo Blueberry Cobbler

  • 3 cups blueberries
  • 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • 2 Tbsp arrowroot powder
  • 1 and 1/2 cups almond flour
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1/4 Tbsp cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  In a cast iron skillet, fill the bottom of the pan with blueberries.  Depending on the skillet, you may have to use 4 cups.  Just make sure you fill the bottom.  Pour in the maple syrup, lemon zest, lemon juice, and a pinch of salt.  Fold in the arrowroot powder until you can’t see white anymore.  (This thickens the sauce that the berries make as it cools….so good).  In a bowl, use a fork to crumble together the almond flour, cinnamon, and butter.  Sprinkle over the top of the berries, drizzle the top with maple syrup and put in the oven for 30 mins.  Turn the oven to low broil and cook another 3 minutes or until the top of the almond flour starts to brown.    Watch it carefully!  No one wants burnt cobbler!  Get it out, let it cool.

I’m super impatient…so I could not wait to try it.  I ate it warm.  It was good.  I wouldn’t make it again.  I ate it again before bed while putting it away…holy moly!  It was amazing!  Hence making it twice in one week!   Wait until it cools down.  The flavors shine and combine much better at room temp! Follow my lead and eat it straight outta the fridge.

Summer Squash Casserole

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Let’s face it, I love picking vegetables from the garden! However, when I turn around and see that I am 5 zucchini deep because I haven’t used any in a couple days, it’s nice to have an awesome casserole that can use LOTS of squash, taste amazing, and be a little different from the typical grilled version. This is a recipe that I created a couple years back but didn’t realize it wasn’t on the new blog until I went looking for my own recipe yesterday! I made sure to get it on the new site just in time for all your squash needs. ;)

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Balsamic Marinated Chicken with Strawberry Salsa

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I have been really slacking on getting recipes posted! I’ve been so crazy busy, that they are piling up in a folder, and I need to purge a little. Several months ago, I posted about a cooking date with my friends that we do periodically. One of the dishes we made was balsamic marinaded chicken with strawberry salsa. It was super yummy and one of my other friends texted me the other day with chicken and strawberry, avocado salsa, which is what spurred me to post! The fruit pairs really well with protein and feel free to change it up for traditional tomato salsa instead. Tomatoes will be in season shortly and my guess is that you will need to find a use for them! Balsamic Marinaded Chicken w/Strawberry Salsa (credit to EMeals!)

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb chicken (boneless, skinless)
  • 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tbsp gluten free soy sauce
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp pepper
  • 2 cups fresh strawberries, chopped
  • 1 jalapeno pepper, minced
  • 2 tbsp fresh lime juice

Directions:

Whisk together the vinegar, soy sauce, and garlic and place in a large plastic bag. Add the chicken and allow to marinade for 3 hours to overnight. When ready to cook, discard marinade, sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper and grill. While the chicken is grilling, Mix together the strawberries, hot pepper, and lime juice. Serve the cooked chicken with salsa to top!

Sweet and Savory Popovers

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I saw these little guys on PaleOMG’s blog the other day, and thought to myself: “There’s not much to those. I bet you could make tons of flavors!” So, I decided that night that I was going to make one batch of six and in case it was an epic fail, I would make 3 savory and 3 sweet. I have thyme in my garden right now and tons of garlic scapes from the CSA so one flavor was garlic thyme. Cinnamon was an easy choice because who doesn’t love cinnamon? These are like pillowy dinner rolls with an indented center that would be amazing filled with custards, curds, compound butters, or whatever your little heart desires. When I made these, the process seemed to be very forgiving because my eggs were sort of a disaster. Farm fresh eggs means sometimes you get double yolks. I had 2 double yolks and decided that I was worried it may alter the texture. So, at least you know that a mishap like that will still allow for a good outcome!

Sweet and Savory Popovers

(basic popover from My Paleo Patisserie)

Ingredients:

  • 3 Tbsp arrowroot
  • 2 Tbsp coconut flour
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 4 large eggs, room temp
  • 1/4 cup canned coconut milk
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1 Tbsp ghee
  • Thyme/Garlic: a few sprigs of thyme and a minced garlic clove
  • Cinnamon: 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp coconut sugar (If you decide to do all one flavor, then double the flavor addition)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450F. In a small bowl combine the flours and salt. In another medium bowl, whisk the eggs up lightly and add the coconut milk, water, and flour mixture and combine until school. Put a little bit of the ghee into each of the 6 muffin tins. Put the muffin tin and fat into the oven for about 5 minutes and then remove. Put 1/4 cup of the batter in each muffin tin. Cook for 15 minutes and then reduce the heat to 350F and cook until golden brown, which could be another 15 minutes.