Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe Paleo

Sweet and Sour Chicken, Colorful & Delicious

This recipe takes a bit of  time to prepare and cook the chicken, (about 25 minutes to prep and 20 minutes to cook)…BUT SO WORTH IT!  Serves about 4 unless you did what I did and kept nibbling on the crispy chicken pieces 🙂

• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
• 1/2 cup whole grain millet flour, stone ground*
• 1/2 cup coconut flour*
• 1 cup almond meal/flour*
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup pineapple, cut into chunks ( Fresh is best, but I used canned in its’ own juice)
• ½ cup pineapple juice (I used the no sugar added juice from the can)
• 1 cup sweet bell pepper, chopped (I used a combination of red & green for color)
• 1 cup sweet Vadalia onion, chopped;
• 3 tbsp. honey; (optional) (Local is best)
• 2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar (I use Bragg’s)
• 2 green onions or scallions, thinly sliced
• ¼ cup chicken stock (Try to find one with no MSG)
• ½ cup (or so) coconut oil ( I use Wildtree Organic Coconut oil, find it at mywildtree.com/myfatherswellness)
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

• In a bowl, combine the flours and season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Dip each chicken cube in the beaten eggs; then coat with the flour mixture.
• Heat half or 1/4 cup of coconut oil in a large skillet placed over  a medium heat.
• Cook the chicken until brown.  Work in batches and do not over crowd your pan.  You will have to add more coconut oil as you go. Takes about 10 minutes or until cooked through, turn so chicken is browned on all sides.
• 

  So golden & delicious…I could not resist eating a few!

  Set the chicken aside and drain on paper towels.

• Clean the skillet.
• Heat some coconut oil again over a medium heat

 

•  Add the bell pepper and onion, and cook for 2 minutes.
• Stir in the pineapple chunks, pineapple juice, apple cider vinegar, chicken stock, honey (if using), and salt and pepper to taste.
• Bring to a simmer and cook until the sauce thickens.
•  If you want to keep your chicken crispy, after all you worked hard to get it crispy…GOOD JOB!…add the sauce individually to your chicken as you serve it
• Otherwise…Return the chicken to the skillet.  Lightly mix to coat. Serve warm with green onions sprinkled on top.
• If you are NOT doing Paleo, you can serve over  brown rice, or Orzo.  
• *NOTE:  You can use any combination of nut or seed flours (or grain flours if you are not Paleo and/or do not require gluten free).  I like the subtle coconut taste.

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Tomato Soup, Creamy & Paleo

It is a cold & snowy New England day and this is the perfect soup!  It really hit the spot after hours of shoveling & snow blowing.  This is so fast & easy to make!

Creamy & Delicious!

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 large sweet onion, peeled and diced
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely diced
• One 28-ounce can crushed or diced  tomatoes (Try to find ones that have NO added sugar or other ingredients)
• 1 & 1/⁄2 cups chicken stock (Find one with no MSG)
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil or ( 1 TBSP Dried)
• 2 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

Instructions

1. In a large Dutch oven or soup pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions, and sauté until just about translucent, about 4 minutes. Stir in the garlic and sauté for 1 minute more.
2. Mix in the remaining ingredients, and simmer for 10 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
3. Carefully pour a cup or two of the soup mixture into a blender (JUST halfway full) and puree until smooth. Transfer to a separate container, and repeat with the remaining soup mixture, working in small batches.
4. Serve hot

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Sweet Potato Hash, Paleo

This is quick & easy to prepare.  This version allows the sweet potato to be just cooked through but firm.  It will easily serve 2.  To feed a bigger crowd or to have left overs, double the recipe.

Sweet potatoes stay firm & add color to this easy dish

Ingredients

• 1 medium sweet onion, diced
• 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large sweet potato
• 1 lb kielbasa or smoked sausage, diced  (I use one with no nitrites, no nitrates, no MSG)
• 1 tsp or to taste, Greek style spices (See my recipe below) Or spices you like

Directions

• Heat oil on medium heat in a large skillet, add onions and cook about 5 minutes or until translucent.
• While this is cooking, microwave your sweet potato until slightly soft but not cooked through.  (You can also partially cook your sweet potato in the oven the night before and use from cold.  This is a great way to use up left overs.  If sweet potato cooks all the way through before adding to the pan, it may be soggy, but still tastes good).
• Allow sweet potato to cool for 10 minutes. Dice sweet potato into about 1 inch cubes.
• Reduce heat in pan and add sweet potato, kielbasa and Greek spices
• Gently toss or stir to cover ingredients evenly.
• Saute for about 10 minutes or until sweet potato is done or if using already cooked leftovers…until all ingredients are hot.

Greek spice recipe:

Takes about 5 minutes, makes just over 1/4 cup and will keep for about a year (Mine never stays in the house that long!) I triple the recipe because we use it so much.

• 2 tsp sea salt
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp dried basil
• 2 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp dried rosemary, ground**
• 1 tsp dill weed
• 1 tsp dried marjoram
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme, ground**
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• *1 tsp cornstarch *NOTE:  Cornstarch is NOT PALEO…Some people add it to the mix for a more free flowing mix.  I do not  and mine always is okay.  It is up to you.

Add all ingredients except rosemary & thyme into a bowl.

**Mix rosemary & thyme in a spice grinder just until ground.  Mix in with other ingredients.  Thoroughly mix together (You can put them all in a blender/spice grinder and pulse to mix)  Store in a airtight container.

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Chili, Paleo

I was looking for a way to substitute beans in my traditional chili recipe.  My husband went on line and together we looked at a few.  Here is our “tweaked” version.  We added what works for us and took out what didn’t.  All the colors make it a  great visual for the palate too!  This is on the mild/medium spice level.

Full of vegetables and flavor!

• 1 lb ground beef (grass fed, if you can)
• 1 large sweet onion, diced
• 2 medium sweet peppers , diced (I used 1 red, 1 green)
• 2 medium/large sweet potatoes, peeled and medium diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 29 oz (2 CANS) diced tomatoes, NO sugar added or 4 large fresh tomatoes, diced
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar ( I used Bragg’s)
• 2 tsp cayenne pepper (you can use 2 Tbsp chili powder instead for a kick and/or 1 tsp chipotle chili powder…CAUTION, this one is SPICY))
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 Tbsp paprika
• 1 Tbsp dried oregano or (2 Tbsp fresh & chopped)
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• pepper, to taste
• cilantro, for garnish

Directions:

• Heat  dutch oven or large skillet over medium heat. Add ground beef and let it brown.  Drain off any excess fat.
• Add diced onion, peppers, sweet potato and garlic to the pan.  Season with sea salt & pepper.  Let everything saute for about 5 minutes or until onion is translucent.
• Add the spices to the pot, stir to cover vegetables. Let mixture saute for about 5 minutes, keep an eye that it does not burn on. This step is important to let the spices roast and combine with other ingredients.
• Add the apple cider vinegar to the pan, use a wooden spoon to scrape the bottom & sides of pan where most of the flavor is!
• Add the diced tomatoes and stir everything together.
• ( I transfer all my ingredients into my slow cooker and cook on low for 4 hours.
• Or you can cover and bring to a boil.  Then reduce heat and simmer with the lid cracked for at least 20 minutes…more time, more flavor!
• Season with additional sea salt & pepper, if desired
• Garnish with cilantro, if desired

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Gluten free, Paleo friendly Coffee Cake

Gluten-free, Paleo and delicious

As a Certified Nutritional Counselor, I am always checking out the newest  “fad” and other diet plans that are out there.  Right now, I am researching Paleo.  Although I do not agree with all of the ways, there is much merit to it.

In the 12 week series of classes that I teach, I recommend staying away from all processed foods, sugars, and other “white” foods. Omit or at least Limit caffeine and stay away from grains for first 6 weeks, then whole grains  are slowly added back in.  Great way to find out if you have any sensitivities or intolerance to grains.

Lots of fresh and steamed vegetables, fresh fruits, leans proteins, nuts, seeds, beans & legumes are allowed.  And for those who are not lactose intolerant, dairy in the form of yogurt, cottage cheese and sour cream.

So I have been looking for a good gluten free, Paleo coffee cake recipe.  I found one and tweaked it a bit.  It was DELICIOUS and MOIST!  Hope you like it!

COFFEE CAKE (Paleo & Gluten –Free)               Serves about 9.

INGREDIENTS, CAKE PART

¾ cup Coconut flour

¼ cup Millet flour (can substitute Almond flour)

½ tsp sea salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

8 large eggs (organic, if you can) or (4 large eggs & 1 cup eggs whites, cake will be a bit drier…just sayin’)

1 tsp baking soda

½ cup plain coconut milk yogurt or (plain yogurt if using dairy, NOT non-fat)

5 TBL coconut oil, slightly melted or (5 TBL unsalted butter)

¼ cup honey (local or clover is better) can use up to ½ cup for additional sweetness

1 TBL real vanilla extract

**INGREDIENTS, TOPPING (My FAVORITE!)

1 ½ cup unsalted nuts (I used almonds…use what you like)

2 tsp ground cinnamon

4 TBL honey (local or clover is better

4 TBL coconut oil, cold and cut into tablespoons or (5 TBL unsalted butter)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 325 F and adjust rack to middle position.

Place all the batter ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.  (Batter should be about consistency of cake batter, only a bit thicker) Pour batter into a well greased & floured 8 X 8 glass baking dish (*I brushed on olive oil liberally and dusted with coconut flour)

Clean your batter bowl and place nuts in food processor and pulse till coarsely chopped.  Add last 3 topping ingredients.  Pulse just until combined and ingredients bind together.  I mixed mine too fine; it’s better coarser than mine.

Drop spoonfuls of batter into batter and using a butter knife, swirl topping into top layer of batter.

Bake for 45 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool for 20 minutes.  Be careful when removing from dish.  You may have to go around the edges and under with a spatula before removing.  My topping mostly sunk to the bottom (Probably because I doubled it) so I just left the cake upside down.  Cut & serve right away.  Best when eaten the day it is made.  Enjoy!

*The first time I made this I used an air bake aluminum cake pan and just used oil…my cake STUCK a lot.  The next time I used a glass 8 X 8 baking dish, oiled and floured, MUCH BETTER!                                                                                         **Sometimes, okay MOST of the time I double the topping recipe.

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Basic gluten free Paleo bread

Really delicious…you wouldn’t think it was grain free!

Ingredients:

*1 1/2 cups blanched almond flour (you can make your own by grinding whole blanched almonds in a food processor or spice grinder)

*½ cup millet flour

*2 Tablespoons coconut flour

¼ cup ground golden flaxseed

¼ teaspoon sea salt

½ teaspoon baking soda

5 large eggs (or 3 whole and 3 egg whites) at room temperature is best

1 ½ tablespoons coconut oil (I use Wildtree organic)

1 Tablespoon honey (Local is available)

1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar (I use Bragg’s)

Directions:

1. Place flours, flaxseed, salt & baking soda in a food processor.
2. Pulse ingredients together.
3. Mix remaining ingredients in separate container and slowly add to flour mixture, pulsing after each pour just until mixed.
4. Transfer to a greased loaf pan. (I used a glass pan and I brushed the sides generously with olive oil)
5. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
6. Cool in the pan. I use a spatula to gently unstick any areas on the pan, and then it should slide out pretty well after it has cooled.
7. Enjoy! I like to drizzle a little honey on top.

NOTE:  You can add your favorite spices, nuts, fresh berries or other fresh or frozen fruits to the batter.

*You can also use any combination of the above nut & seed flours or any you prefer to get the flavor you like.

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