Salmon chowder AIP

So- let me begin with- these photos are atrocious.  I am slightly ashamed that I would even put up something like this, but believe me the flavor will compensate.


I began with the standard mirepoix.  Carrots being 1# and the rest of the ratio to follow.  If you don't remember the ratio it is 2:1:1  (Onion/carrot/celery).  I also added one head of chopped cauliflower and roughly 8 cloves of chopped garlic.  Added enough coconut milk to cover the vegetables and plenty of salt to a large heavy bottomed dish and placed a tight fitting lid on top and set to simmer.

When the vegetables have begun to soften, I add in one bunch of chopped asparagus.

  If the asparagus is very tender and slight, I will just snap off the bottoms where ever resistance in the bend naturally breaks.  In order to get more out of the much larger stalks of asparagus, I use a carrot peeler and go down the bottom length of the stalk- removing the fibrous outer layer.This allows for much more of the stalk to be consumed without the obnoxious "strings" blocking the way.  You will still have to trim the bottoms- if the area you are cutting off is too tough, you will have to go slightly higher up the stalk.

The photo below is not off in color- I added purple carrots to the lot and it made the soup an interesting color.

In a separate pot- I add almost a teaspoon of red salt and a chopped head of cauliflower and about half its volume of coconut milk, place a tight fitting lid on it and then simmer until the milk is absorbed and just soggy cauliflower is left.

Once absorbed completely-  I take an emulsion blender to the cauliflower until mixed and most of the clumps have been pureed.  This is now the thickener in your "chowder".

Fold in the mashed cauliflower and then set in your raw pieces of fish and place a lid on it and simmer until cooked through- whether this be Salmon or Halibut or even shrimp- it all works well.

A decent handful of dill- chopped and sprinkled on top... 

Then a bit of lemon zest-

Stuffed Sweet Potatoes #1

With an absurdly busy day ahead of me I have to take my food with me- otherwise I would starve.  And I do mean that since my mindset wouldn't allow me to eat something off of my scheduled diet.

With the leftovers from yesterdays Cuban beef roast and an addition of the pickled red onion recipe here,  I have a quick meal from a previously baked then frozen sweet potato.

This may be the end photo from dinner tonight, but in truth, I re-stuff the potato with said ingredients, wrap in tinfoil and place on the engine block to cook while I am driving.  Lunch is ready when I am done with my appointment:)  Just don't forget to keep a fork in your purse!

Cuban Beef over Cauliflower rice

This is not a detailed photo of the dinner I made last night.  In fact it is of my second plate with spaghetti squash after I ran out of "rice" :)

____________________________________________________________________________

1 eye of round beef roast- yes- grass fed and organic- no grain finish
4 yellow onions- sliced in rings
10 cloves of garlic- or one very large head- peeled and smashed flat
3 large oranges- zested and segments quartered
4 C OJ
4 limes- 3 zested and juiced (divided) 1 reserved in wedges for final dishing
1 bunch of cilantro divided and diced
2T cumin (If not AIP)
1 head of cauliflower shredded
3 green onions diced small
2T salt divided

____________________________________________________________________________

Take your roast and rub it with 1T salt- get your grill piping hot and sear the meat on every available side- hot and fast.  Get a good brown/charred coating over it without cooking it.  Carcinogens- yum-   Then place in a heavy bottomed pot with half of the juice and enough water to make sure the roast is submerged about 1/3 of the way (don't let there be too much room on the bottom).  Sprinkle in the garlic cloves, onions and about half of the bunch of cilantro- cover with a tight fitting lid and place on a low BTU burner on low and let simmer for about 1 1/2- 1hr 45 mins.

Add the remaining juices, cilantro and cumin (if AIP, skip the cumin) into a sauce pot over medium- medium low and allow to simmer until reduced and thickened enough to spoon over finished dish.   Once prepared remove from heat and let rest until you can add the sauce to the original pot that the roast began in.  Mix both liquids thoroughly.


Remove the lid and pull out the roast on a plate.  Use a fork to shred apart the meat separating along the grains- feel free to use a meat mallet and beat it if you wish.  On a skillet (cast iron is my method, but you might want to use a heavy bottomed stainless pan- no teflon!)  heat over medium high with NO oil in the bottom- once the pan is hot- begin adding your beef and cook until a good portion becomes crispy on the edges but is still incredibly tender.  This process reminds me of making hash-browns.

 As you are cooking the beef- Heat on high a separate pan or wok and toss in the green onion and then the shredded cauliflower- flash cook for about 90-120 seconds stirring all the while.

Pull off the heat and serve immediately- topping with the pulled beef and a healthy plash of the reduction (juice).  Garnish with cilantro, fresh squeeze of lime, zest and a sprinkle of finishing salt.

Once leftovers are established- I set aside the meat for the next three days of snacks and lunches- first post to come tomorrow.

AIP Breakfast no-oat-meal

AIP "oat"meal

"NOatmeal"

Since going 100% dedicated AIP in January I have come a long way with developing taste within such limited cooking material.  For those of you who know me and have eaten with me, I l.o.v.e. my food and flavor.  I often say I was a much better cook when I ate everything:) but now I feel better and have seen changes I can't even begin to share unless you have gone AIP yourself.  As it stands I will always dance with the rules of AIP.

  I see a lot of varying options for this kind of no oat oatmeal, but I figured the fruits and the cream would be what pulled it together for this time of year.... AND once again I lead off the directions with the same photo of spaghetti squash as I did yesterday.  I batch cook in large quantities because I like to do the work once and have leftovers for the week and the freezer.  Breakfast is no different.  Living AIP means you can often wind up eating lunch for breakfast....and it is a terribly hard thing to practice.

____________________________________________________________________________

12 cups cooked spaghetti squash

3 3/4 cups shredded non sweetened coconut

7 cups unsweetened coconut milk

3 mashed bananas

3 large granny smith apples- peeled and diced- save the peel for your smoothies

1/3 Cup dried cranberries

Salt to taste (Start with 1t)

Cinnamon to taste (Start with 1T)

____________________________________________________________________________

Cook your spaghetti squash and the shred out with a fork until you have 12 cups in total.  Package up any remainder for another meal or place in a ziplock and freeze.

Put the 12 cups of squash in a dish and take an emulsion blender to it until about 1/2 -3/4 of it is cut down.  You don't want to completely eliminate the texture but you definitely want to get it more smoothed out.

Once your squash is to the texture you like, add in at least 1t of salt, about 1T cinnamon and the coconut and begin to fold together.  Once again- hit it with the emulsion blender until the consistency is much more like a cooked oatmeal.  I left the shredded coconut whole this time because I wanted to experiment with the texture.  Being AIP you tend to get over coconut fast but find a lack of texture is what suffers in your meals- This was a decent compromise for me.

 As you are mixing, begin to cook over medium heat and add in your coconut milk.  Once hot- begin tasting and adding in more salt and cinnamon as desired.

Once hot and with a slight simmer, add in your apples 

Then fold in your cranberries

Simmer for a short while longer- until the thickness resembles a loose oatmeal.  

As your noatmeal cools- take a can (or 2) of coconut milk out of the fridge, open the lid and collect the cream that has separated from the coconut water into a mixing bowl.  Whip until it becomes fairly firm and -poof- you have whipped coconut cream for your noatmeal.  It does not firm up quite like cow cream, but it will begin to be what looks like whipped cream and at this point I put it in the fridge to keep fluffy.

I can eat a lot of food in one sitting- this is shockingly filling- this bowl is quite small and I was stuffed after breakfast!

I did the caloric breakdown for the oatmeal itself- per 1 cup

Calories- 104.8g

Sugar- 6.42g

Fat- 5.8g

Carb- 9.9g

Protein- 0.9g

I add in about 2T whipped, non sweetened coconut cream and 1/4 of a banana.  The caloric increase takes the totals to:

Calories- 156.06g

Sugar- 9.92g

Fat- 8.43g

Carbohydrates- 16.9g

Protein- 0.9g

Spaghetti -Squash, "cream" & bacon bake

Spaghetti-squash, "cream" and bacon bake

AIP friendly

As we dig further into the fall season- I have procured an abundance of spaghetti squash.  Luckily for me, it is my favorite. So comes the endless supply of healthy bases of all foreseeable meals:) 

____________________________________________________________________________

Enough cooked squash to almost fill your baking dish

4 C (1 small head) of red cabbage quartered, cored and sliced

Up to 1# butcher cut bacon

5 large garlic cloves diced

2 large yellow onion

1 large sweet potato

1 can coconut milk

salt to taste

Bake *350 until heated through

***I never cook with exact measurements, I use what is on hand and adapt to taste.  If you love cabbage, use more cabbage and less squash.  If you only have one onion- so be it.  Most of my recipes do not require exact measurements unless asked for caloric values.

 ____________________________________________________________________________

Take and half what will be enough squash to fill your roasting dish almost full.  Hollow out each one and then cook your preferred way.  Mine is to quarter the entire squash after hollowing and then lay within a large cooking pot with a bit of water in the bottom.  I also add one very large whole sweet potato for the sauce.  Secure a tight fitting lid and steam away over low heat until finished.

While the squash and s. potato are cooking go ahead and cook your bacon.  I use almost a full pound for the average 9x13 baking dish.  I also eat a high fat diet due to my lifestyle.  You add what works for you.  Between 5 and 6 pieces would be sufficient.   Once cooked and cooled, place on a heavy cutting board and dice into chunks and crumbles and divide.

                                              

After cooking all the bacon you desire for the dish- render off the fat into another container and put your onions on to caramelize in an estimated 1T rendered bacon fat- cook on just above low.  Below is a photo of what the onions should look like when done.

Once the onions are well caramelized, remove and add another 1T rendered bacon fat onto the skillet and add in your cabbage and salt as to sweat it- then wilt/brown for 3-5 minutes on med/low heat.  Once the cabbage has begun to show signs of browning add in the diced garlic.  Be careful not to burn the garlic- there is no coming back from that- there is only starting over the cabbage.

Once the cabbage has cooked down and the garlic browned, remove from skillet and place into another dish until needed. Once your squash has cooled enough to handle, shred along squash shell with the grain into a bowl/vessel large enough to accommodate stirring in your other ingredients.                 (I don't have a photo of what all the ingredients look like mixed together:/)                                                             Once all ingredients and half of the bacon are together check your salt needs (you may taste and add accordingly by folding in more)

After the sweet potato has cooled enough to handle, scoop out and put into a bowl with 1 can of coconut milk.  Either use an emulsion blender or a fork/whisk and blend thoroughly.

Pack your quash mixture into your baking dish then pour the sauce over the entire surface.  If your portion is smaller and you have reserve, the sauce may be frozen for a few months or added to your next smoothie.  Take the remaining bacon crumbles and top the sauce with it.  Once baked it takes on a cheddar cheese color.  This is one of those meals where the bacon and the coconut milk/sweet potato begin permeation after a day- so as the meals get reheated, the flavor tends to grow into a sweeter and smokier version of its start.

AIP Dinner with apricot duck sauce/ salad dressing

On the hot days coming down around me lately- I seem to crave a massive carcinogenic overload in the form of grilled chicken. Always chicken.... Yes, yes- I know- BBQ equates to toxic levels of carcinogens after time....so... I've been faced with the reality of not putting the ol' BBQ to work very often in the past few years.  But- even that fact does not interfere on the days I just can't do without.

I was in the mood for something a bit sweet, a bit tangy, a bit bright all over something smokey and deep....yet out of the predictable path of "Barbecue"... I wanted a duck sauce...that apparently met over an almost Greek-ish marinade undertone.

Chicken Marinade-

1 Cup apple cider Vinegar

1/4 cup Balsamic vinegar

zest and juice of 1 lemon

zest and juice of 1 lime

2 T finely diced garlic

4 T olive oil

liberal salting

Cover and allow to marinate for at least an hour

Now for the sauce...

This sauce is rather forgiving- as I discovered while making it AIP

2 Apples peeled cored then diced

1 Cup chopped dried apricots
2 T chopped scallions
1 T minced fresh ginger (freshly peeled)
1 T olive oil
1/2 C+/- white vinegar

combine all ingredients into small sauce pan with enough white vinegar to cover the apricots and other ingredients.  I allowed all ingredients to saturate for about 20 minutes and then topped with a bit more vinegar to adjust for absorption (you could also use water here if you want it toned down).  Simmer until all ingredients are tender and the sauce coats a spoon well.

Use the thickened sauce to top the chicken about 5 minutes before the grilling is finished.
*When grilling- I almost always use a type of wood for the smoke- this time it was Hickory.

What is left over- set aside and it will become a duck sauce salad dressing...

With an emulsion blender, I added a mango peach juice to thin out the dressing and as the blender was going I slowly added a tiny bit of oil at a time to emulsify into a dressing.  As I try to not use oil, I did not use much and it held perfectly.
(My kids use this "dressing" as a dip for sweet potato wedges)

As for the side dish- 

1 small head of purple cabbage- chopped

1/2 small green cabbage- chopped

1 medium red onion- chopped

1 apple- chopped

2 large carrots- chopped

1/2 t pepper (omit if strict AIP)

2 t raw honey (again- not used if strict AIP- the apples make up the difference!)

1/2 C apple cider vinegar

Add all ingredients to a medium sauce pot with a tight fitting lid and simmer for about 30-40 mins.  If you find the vinegar is still "soupy' at the bottom around 25 mins in- then remove the lid to allow evaporation to caramelize the apple pectin and/or honey if you've used it.

I an not usually a fan of sweet dishes, but this sweet-smokey dish was done with just the right amount of freshness that it was no where near the sickly sweet versions of listed sauces I have had in restaurants years prior.

AIP Dairy Free RANCH

I love flavor and complexity- I don't necessarily need sauce but lately... well, lately I have been needing some sauce- 

On a lot of days where I am overwhelmed by homeschooling, editing photos for weddings or just exhausted from getting my half acre garden prepped- I tend to just roast some sweet potatoes or carrots and dive into a salad.  While I never tire from roasted veggies with salt- I do eventually frown at quick salads with little inspiration.

I recently came across a recipe for dairy free ranch.  Being on AIP style eating I was interested until I saw the first ingredient was mayo.  I skimmed through the ingredients and tossed together my own version with what I had on hand.

1 can coconut milk

1 whole avocado

3 large garlic cloves diced tiny then smeared with the flat side of my blade

1 T dried dill

1 t  dried parsley

3 green onions diced thinly then chopped

1 t salt 

about 1/4 c apple cider vinegar- enough to thin to desired consistency 

As much as a good 1 t of fresh black pepper would be in this- strict AIP doesn't allow it- So... I just add a few extra cloves of garlic and a bit more onion to spice it up a bit.

If you can't tolerate raw garlic and onion- I would suggest dry roasting them until tender at a high temperature to bring out the depth then pureeing them into the liquid once cool.

Once all ingredients are in my quart mason jar- I use an emulsion blender to finish it off.  You must give the flavors time to merry.  At least an hour- or better- overnight.

It is not quite the ranch I recall, but it is also not far off in comparison if done right- it is not only a decent copycat but it is divinely creamy, deep and a great alternative to all the fresh bright vinaigrette dressings I've been making since January. 

Every night we go on our forage walk to collect half of our salad.  Tonight we were thrilled to see Lamb's Quarters sprouting everywhere.  Of course we harvested a ton of wild Violets and Dandelion leaves.  As you can see below- E eats more than he brings back:)

Before they all vanish- I will harvest several cups of these wild Violets and make jelly out of them.

Baby sprouted Lamb's Quarters that most people pull out of their garden or lawn convinced they are obnoxious weeds-  Tender, mild and a great addition to any salad.

While the blossoms, leaves and Lamb's Quarters were intended for the salad....they never quite made it in tonight. 

Like I said- I never fail to love roasted veggies with salt, but this is a staple duo-dip-dressing on many quick meals during the week. 

Long time.....

Hello old friend.....

  For the past several months I have been planning, taking and loading photos so that I would be prepared to kick this blog entry thing back up.   Unfortunately, I have been traveling and working out of state off and on...mainly on... since December 2014.

  I love to randomly input things in here, but have been beyond hard pressed to find the time.  Today I finished uploading the last of a wedding I shot over two months ago.  I know- 2 whole months and I "should" have been done editing.  Well, I take my time and it shows in the end.  With all that happened I am shocked it went as well as it did!   I had 2 serious injuries that occurred during the past 3 months and it has taken a very long time to heal- one of which just happened- who knows how long this will take to mend.

  Either way- I am prepared with half written entries and copious amounts of photos to start throwing back on here.

  In January of this year I underwent surgery to see why I have been unable to conceive after 32 months of trying.  I have seen the top specialists in 3 states with no progress or indication there is anything suspicious with my husband or myself.  All I received was a bigger and bigger list of pills and suggestions.  Lets be clear- I HATE pills. Finally I got the Dr who delivered my daughter to take me under the knife.  I was told I had a terrible case of Endometriosis and he successfully eliminated ALL of it.  "However", he said, "it will come back and you will want to have a hysterectomy because of the pain and discomfort".  He also said I would have the best chance of conceiving over the next 6 months....in fact he said he would be "shocked"if I was not pregnant in 3 months.  I am to understand this 6 month 'til doom window is there because it is predicted the endometriosis will be back in place that soon.  No pressure.

After I left the hospital I got back in contact with my friend Jodi.  She is always a few steps ahead of me with books she has read and once again reminded me to read The Autoimmune Approach by Sarah Ballantyne. So I did.  This book changed a great deal with how I approach things now that I know my issues that "will come back" might actually be reversed, alleviated or stunted.  Anything to extend my 6 month window of doom.
  Because of her book- In January I recently strictly began the AIP way of life to help heal the 2 autoimmune diseases I discovered I have.    Thankfully I already lived close to this kind of way of life so the transition was not drastic like it is for most people.  But...like I have always been- its all or nothing.  So I am fully invested to resolving my health concerns.

This brings me back to Jodi.
My dear friend, whom I value beyond words, just told me she has found she has another autoimmune disease and will be going back to non dairy life.  Her health means a great deal to me and even though she knows what she needs to do- I would like to help her get back to feeling well.  She helps keep me motivated, so it is the least I can do;)