Sheppard's Pie

So Paul always has something to say about my cooking. While I was prepping this he said "Hmm, that looks like a bunch of mush" but after taking one bite, his tone had changed into something that went a little like this, "Um, I don't even know how to put into words how amazing this is"

Thank you, thank you very much.

Yes, this is a recipe that I have been thinking about for some time. I have never had sheppard's pie before, but I remember seeing it once on another blog and wanting to try it out. He is my version:

Here is what you'll need:
1 head cauliflower
4 tbsp butter or ghee
3 tbsp olive oil
1 lb ground beef, (or turkey, or lamb, or bison, whatever you like)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 c frozen organic peas and carrots, thawed
1 c frozen organic green beans, thawed
1 tbsp oregano
1 tbsp thyme
1-2 tbsp almond meal
3/4 c mushroom broth (you can sub chicken or beef broth, I just happened to have mushroom)
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a pan, saute the chopped onions in the olive oil over medium heat. Once the onions are cooking for about 3 minutes, add in the ground meat and cook for about 5 more minutes or until the meat is browned. Next, add in the peas, carrots and green beans and continue to cook for about 3 minutes. Next you'll add in the spices, almond meal and the broth and stir everything together. At this time, reduce the heat to low and let simmer for a few minutes, or until your oven and cauliflower are ready.

To prep the cauliflower mash: cut the cauliflower into florets and place in a microwave safe bowl with 3 tbsp water. Cover, and microwave for about 3 minutes. Remove, check for softness, they should be pretty darn soft, if not, throw em back in for another 2 minutes. They should definitely be done after 5 minutes. Take off the cover and add 2 tbsp of butter or ghee and blend the mixture using either an immersion blender or food processor. You want the consistency to be a little thick. Add in salt and pepper to your liking.



Place the meat and veggies mixture into a 9"x9" pan, then cover with the cauliflower mash. Cut up your remaining 2 tbsp of butter or ghee and place it evenly on the top of the cauliflower mash topping. Throw that dish in the oven for 35 minutes and you will have the best tasting home cooked meal you've ever had since eating at grandma's house!

Salsa Chicken Snacks

Salsa chicken is one of the easiest meals I have ever made and it is so flavorful! You can also make it for more than just one meal.

Here is what you'll need:
Chicken breasts - however many you'd like
Salsa (about 3/4 c per breast)- try to find the salsa with NO sugar added!
Crockpot

Place the ingredients in the Crockpot on high for 4-5 hours or low or 8 hours. The chicken will come out nice and shredded and you can use it in tacos, atop bell pepper slices as seen below, with cucumber "chips" or over a nice bed of my Spanish Cauli-Rice. I think it tastes so good, I just eat it by itself. Enjoy!

Eggplant Mini Pizzas

So, I always buy the same veggies every week: sweet potatoes, zucchini, onion, broccoli, asparagus, bell peppers sometimes spinach and sometimes celery and cucumbers. I want to venture out more! I've tried Egglplant before and I didn't really like it, neither did Paul, but I decided to just go ahead and buy one the other day, and figure out something to do with it. So, here is what I made!

Here they are before being baked:

And after:

Now, as you can see, these are not Paleo. There is organic Mozzarella Cheese on them, which you can omit, if you are following the Paleo diet.

Here is what you'll need:
1 medium sized eggplant, sliced into 1/2" pieces
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
Garlic Powder
Can of diced tomatoes
Organic Mozzarella Cheese (from TJ's)
Meat of your choice (I used Pepperoni)
Basil

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Brush the Eggplant slices with Olive oil, then sprinkle each one with just a bit of salt, pepper and garlic powder. Bake for 8 minutes and then remove from oven. Next, I topped mine with pepperonis, then the tomatoes, then the cheese,then the shredded basil. Cook for 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted and enjoy!

You can easily make this a Paleo delight by omitting the cheese and adding more veggies. You could also use sausage crumbles or ground beef as your meat, instead of pepperonis.

Another Spaghetti Side...

Well, after baking the spaghetti squash on Monday I was left with about 4-5 cups of noodles and I wanted to use them, so I came up with this recipe that lasted us a whole two more days!

Here is what you'll need:
4-5 c spaghetti squash noodles
1-2 Tbsp Olive oil
8 garlic cloves, chopped
1 Tbsp Red pepper flakes
1 c. chopped tomatoes (I used the mini heirlooms from TJ's)
1 handful of spinach
Parmesan (optional- I used about 3-4 TBSP, and it was goooood!)
salt to taste
1 teasp black pepper

In a saute pan, heat the oil over medium heat, then add the garlic. Once the garlic becomes fragrant, add the tomatoes and saute for about 1 minute. Next, add the squash and the spices: red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, and parmesan. Saute the blend for about 5-8 minutes, making sure that all the squash has had a chance to be thoroughly mixed with oil and the spices. Add the spinach and continue to saute until the spinach is wilted. Plate the masterpiece and enjoy!

Chicken "Noodle" Soup

Another soup recipe? Yes! When it's cold outside and you have a husband that comes home late from a long day of training, you need to cook something that can simmer for a while... This was pretty darn good too!

Here's what you'll need:

2 Tbsp Butter or Ghee
1 Tbsp Bacon Fat (optional, but very great for adding taste!)
1 Tbsp Oregano
1 Tea Dried Parsley
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 box (8 cups) chicken broth
2-3 chicken breasts, chopped
2-3 carrots, chopped
1/2 large white or yellow onion, chopped
5 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/2 c chopped celery** I used the middle leafy part because it has good flavor
1 zucchini, chopped
Spaghetti Squash- as much as you'd like.

Start by baking your Spaghetti Squash- Preheat the oven to 375, Slice it lengthwise and place it on a greased cookie sheet, rind side facing up. Bake for 30 minutes and set aside. When the squash is cool, first remove the seeds and slimy middle parts, then "noodle" it by scraping the walls of the squash with a fork. A medium to large squash will make about 6 cups of "noodles", I only used about 2 cups for this recipe.

Get a large pot and heat up the butter and bacon fat. Once it is melted, add the onions, garlic, carrots and chicken to the pot. Next, add all of your seasonings: salt, pepper, oregano, parsley. Saute the chicken and veggies until the chicken appears to be about done, approximately 20 minutes. Next, reduce the heat of the burner to a low-medium and add chicken broth and celery. Let the soup simmer for about 30 more minutes. About 15 minutes into the simmer, add the zucchini and spaghetti squash. Keep an eye and give the soup a stir here and there.

Enjoy!!