What I Ate Wednesday

They fixed my MacBook just in time for WIAW! :) I'm so behind now on sharing my food and recipes. The husband has been crazy busy lately studying, teaching, playing in symphony ext so I have been doing WAY more cooking than I'd ever imagined I'd be doing...

I've seen lots of people make yummy things with avocados so I wanted to try something too. I bought a banana to mix with it...but my husband ate it... figures. So I just mashed it up, mixed in a couple tbsp of unsweetened cocoa powder and raw honey and threw a few raw almonds on top. Chocolate pudding for breakfast? It was so chocolatey and smooth.

Breakfast: Chocolate avocado

I made a paleo version of Chicken Briyani the other night and had some leftovers for lunch today. You guys know how I love my Indian food. ;) I'll post this recipe tomorrow. Hint: there are veggies in there.

Lunch: Chicken Briyani

I'm sure you are all starting to think I'm crazy for eating pizza what seems like every day. But it's so good and HEALTHY and it's actually pretty fun to make. Told you I would add some veggies this time.  You can find the recipe for this paleo pizza here or under the recipe tab.

Dinner: Pizza

 And obviously I had wine and chocolate. ;)

Dessert: wine & chocolate

Thank you to Jenn for hosting this fun weekly link up party! :)

Why I'm MIA...

My Macbook went on the fritz so I had to ship it off to be fixed. :( Very sad. So this is why I haven't posted anything since last Wednesday. Just didn't want you guys thinking I ran away forever! As soon as my computer gets back I'll be posting some new recipes. This weekend alone I made (another) more veggie filled pizza, butternut squash soup, and (a paleo version) of chicken briyani..Not to mention the awesome trip to the farmers market. See you guys soon!

What Laura & Her Puppy Ate Wednesday

I tried my hand at making pizzas this week with all paleo ingredients. It turned out pretty awesome! I ended up making them two days in a row and even ate some for breakfast. ;) You can find the recipe here.

Breakfast: Couple slices of homemade paleo pizza.

 I cooked some chicken a few days ago for dinner and had some leftover. I threw it in a salad with some cucumbers, tomatoes, kalamata olives, feta and homemade Greek dressing.

Lunch: Greek Salad

 I found this water at the store the other day so I figured I'd try it out to try something different. It was pretty good too.

Strawberry Natural Flavored Carbonated Italian Mineral Water 

Snack: I actually ate a handful of raw almonds but forgot to take a picture... so here is a picture of some walnuts. ;)

If you normally read my blog, you probably know I'm kind of obsessed with these Spiced Peach Pork chops. I think I even had them last Wednesday! I love simple recipes that taste amazing and that's exactly what this is. So! I made it again last night and am pretty excited that I have a bunch of leftovers for some lunches.

Dinner: 2 pork chops with peaches.

I made a side of steamed broccoli with butter to go with my chops. I love broccoli simple this way. 

Dinner: Steamed broccoli with butter

 When I got home from work, this is what I found. Apparently Penelope got bored and decided to eat half of her doggie bed for dinner... Then she was all, but momma I love you. How could you be made at that sweet face???

Penny's Dinner....

 You know I love my wine and chocolate... and then I read this article on MDA about why you should eat MORE dark chocolate!! Just what I needed to hear. He is fueling my addiction. ;)

Dessert: 85% cocoa dark organic chocolate and red wine.

Ok! Enough about me! Go over to Peas & Crayons and check out some other Eats.

Paleo Pizza!!

I have been wanting to make a paleo pizza since...well, since I started eating paleo! I finally picked up all the ingredients to make this recipe so today was the day. (I found a huge bag of flaxseed meal at Big Lots for $4!! It's usually $9). I have seen a few different recipes and I'll be sure to give the others a try to as I am curious. But for now, this is the one I'm eating. I got this recipe from Ben Kreps. The only difference is he was a good boy and added lots of veggie to his pizza. I promise I will next time!! I just was so excited to make this I forgot to buy extra veggies.

This crust is supper easy to make into any shape you want. Wish I would have known on Valentines day! Heart shaped pizza???

This is what my crust looked like before adding all the toppings. 

Ingredients:
4 eggs
1/2 cup of coconut milk (or full fat milk)
1/3 cup coconut flour

1/3 cup flax meal

1/2 tsp baking powder

Add any spices or flavors you’d like to get a tasty crust.  I personally add:

1 tbsp oregano

1 tbsp basil

garlic powder (Ben didn't give an amount so I added 1 tbsp)

Instructions:

Mix wet ingredients in a mixing bowl, or kitchen aide if you have one. In a separate bowl mix all dry ingredients. Ben said he sifted them, but I don't have a sifter-still turned out fine. Then pour dry ingredients in to mixing bowl with wet ones and mix until you have sort of a pancake batter consistency. Pour batter on to parchment paper in to your favorite pizza shape. Cook crust in oven on 350 for about 20 minutes, flipping at the 15 minute mark to make sure it cooks evenly. I think I ended up keeping it in an extra 5 minutes just because I felt like it. While it's cooking, prep other ingredients. Since I added mushrooms I sauteed them in a pan with olive oil. I also made my own pizza sauce. Take the crust out of the oven and add all toppings then place back in the oven on broil until it looks delicious! EAT!

I ended up making a second pizza and just brushed on some olive oil half way through and cooked it longer on 400 to make a crispier crust.

Ben made a fun little video for this pizza so I'm going to include it for your viewing pleasure. ;)

Coconut Curry Meatballs

My husband was out of town this entire week so I was left to my own devices... which is actually quit frightening for me. I have to cook? By myself?? What if I have questions? Panic attack in 3,2, 1... Ok so to avoid a complete melt down, I opted for one of the easiest recipes I could find: Coconut Curry Meatballs from Mark Sisson's Primal Cookbook Quick & Easy Meals. There are so many recipes in this cookbook I am just dying to make, but I was more than happy to start with this one. It's pretty much fool proof, which is obviously what I need!! Plus it's Paleo. :)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken (I used all thigh meat but Marks uses half thigh and half breast)

1 carrot (grated) (I had baby carrots so I used about 12)

2 garlic cloves

1/2 cup (unsweetened) shredded coconut

1 egg

2 tsp curry powder

1/2 tsp salt (you may need more)

a handful of cilantro or parsley (I skipped this)

Step 1: Put all the ingredients in the food processor and pulse until smooth. 

That was super easy right?!?

Step 2. Form meatballs, approximately 24.

 I only lost one meat ball to the floor before cooking. I think that's pretty good. 

I'm just going to quote the rest from the cookbook.

"Heat several tablespoons oil (I used olive oil) in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the skillet is hot enough so that a meatball sizzles as soon as it huts the pan, put all the meatballs in. Cook two minutes then roll the meatballs over and cook five minutes more. Put a lid on the pan and finish cooking for another 6-8 minutes."

And you have delicious Coconut Curry Meatballs!

These are actually in the appetizer section of the cookbook but I ate them as my meal with some steamed broccoli. You can make these for dinner or lunch like I did, or they are also a super easy finger food for a party. 

Spiced Peach Pork Chops & WIAW

He just laid there and starred at her forever. So cute.

Breakfast and Dinner today was these Spiced Peach Pork Chops that are to die for. I've made these several times and I absolutely love them. When I first saw this recipe, I was concerned, but it was love at first bite!

I posted this recipe forever ago but have changed it a little to make it paleo. Actually the only thing I changed was to sub the flour for coconut flour. If you want the recipe, just click that link. It's a super easy dish to make and I bet you'll be surprised how good it is!

Breakfast & Dinner: Spiced Peach Pork Chops.

I feel like there is a lot of brown going on here... oh well. Lunch today was these Coconut Curry Meatballs that I made last night. This was my first experience making meatballs and these are defiantly not your average meatball! 

I'll post this recipe tomorrow. 

Super easy!!! But sooooo YUM! (There are soooo veggies hidden in there ;)

Lunch: Coconut Curry Meatballs with a side of broccoli.

Ok, ok.... so I had chocolate and wine too. 

Dessert: Red wine & Dark Organic chocolate.

Wanna see what some other awesome bloggers are eating?? Check out Jenn @ Peas & Crayons for her What I Ate Wednesday weekly party. 

I'm also linkin up with Savannah because...well she is just awesome and you need to check her out!

Lori's Paleo Brownies

In the spirit of Valentines Day I'm sharing some love. <3

Lori @ What Runs Lori posted the other day about paleo brownies she made. Obviously I had to try them! I changed her recipe slightly but still basically the same. I'm going to put Lori's recipe on here so you can check it out or just go to her page so you can see what her brownies looked like. They did look a little different than mine.

I think I accidentally made Cake??

Makes 8 small cookies. Paleo, gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, soy-free.

• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 heaping tbsp honey
• few drops of liquid Stevia (or additional tablespoon honey)
• 2 extra-large eggs, or 3 smaller egg
• 1/2 tbsp olive oil or coconut oil, melted
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In a medium sized bowl, mix together the coconut flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Add in the remaining ingredients and mix until just incorporated. Let sit for one minute (for the coconut flour to soak up some of the liquid- trust me, resting the batter helps)- then mix again until all ingredients are completely mixed. The batter should resemble regular brownie batter- not too wet, and not too dry, either- slightly sticky.

If needed, add in more vanilla extract and/or olive oil or melted coconut oil.

Shape one tablespoon batter into small cookie shapes and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Bake on middle rack for 8-10 minutes, or until desired softness or crispness is achieved. Under-baking creates be best “brownie” texture.

Ok! That was her recipe. What did I change? I didn't have stevia so I used 3 tbsp honey. I did add some extra coconut oil (didn't use any olive oil). And I had "large" eggs so I used 3. I didn't have parchment paper either so I buttered a glass baking dish and just poured all the batter in there. I also ended up baking them for about 20 minutes. Maybe that is why they turned out looking like cake! I liked the taste but wouldn't mind them being sweeter. ThankS to Lori for sharing this recipe!!

Do you guys have any paleo dessert recipes you want to share with me?? :)

I Can't Stop Eating SUSHI!

I didn't take a picture of my breakfast today. I feel like 90% of the time I eat bacon and eggs for breakfast. I need to branch out! I just love bacon SO much! ;) Well anyhow, I did take a picture of the breakfast I made for Matt. He actually eats paleo the majority of the time since we eat together but I am happy to cook him what he wants. Well, today he wanted a breakfast biscuit. Even though I have a love hate situation with cooking, I actually really enjoy cooking breakfast. Probably because I have had more practice with it. He said it was delicious. :)

Matt's Breakfast: Egg & Sausage Biscuit with Strawberry Preserves. 

Matt made some more masala the other day so I had some for lunch. The recipe is under the recipe tab if you are interested. Other than the millions of spices and coconut milk in the sauce, it's just chicken and cauliflower.

Lunch: Chicken Tikka Masala

We have been on a sushi kick lately! Obviously I don't usually make a habit out of eating rice. But I've always said my one exception is sushi. It's just to freaking good to pass up. Plus, this place down the street from us uses minimal rice as you can see. I know this isn't the best picture ever but we got it to go and my camera died after I took the first picture-and since there was no way I could resist the sushi temptation any longer- it was the first, and last picture.

Dinner: Sushi

I'll have a few recipes to post this week (starting tomorrow) so come back to check them out!!! Matt is out of town this week so I'm having to cook things.... there could potentially be a lot of tears, but lets hope not. Wish me luck!

Brussels Sprout Melt Down

If you saw the video from Ellen with Kristen Bell's Meltdown, well you need to see it. It made me feel a little better to know I'm not the only one this happens to...

Breakfast: 2 fried eggs & 2 slices bacon. 

 If you read my post yesterday, you know I have some serious anxiety about cooking. If I don't have a recipe in front of me with exact amounts of every single ingredient, how and when to add them, ext. I may possible have an anxiety attack. (This is why my husband is usually in charge of cooking). Well... the other night my husband was teaching and I decided to make the brussels sprouts that I've seen him make a thousand times. I even called to ask how much of everything goes in. I mean, there are only 4 ingredients and brussels sprouts are one of them. How hard can it be right? Apparently REALLY hard. For some reason I had in my head that he said to add 1 cup of apple cider vinegar, when in reality he said only 1/2 cup. As soon as I poured that entire cup into the sprouts, I immediately knew it was wrong. I stood there for a second and starred at the brussels sprouts siting in a pool of vinegar. Then, like a 5 year old, I started crying hysterically. I literally sat on my kitchen floor with my wine and cried for 20 minutes over brussels sprouts! Ok...so maybe a drunk 5 year old?? Either way, it was not pleasant.

After I finally composed myself and came back to reality, I just got a slotted spoon and pulled everything out of the vinegar. The worst part is, they still tasted great! ha. A little more mushy than I would like, but still delicious non the less. I'm still slightly traumatized.

They are in a tupperware in this picture because it was leftovers. I was obviously too busy crying to take a proper picture.

Lunch: chicken & brussels sprouts with bacon and walnuts.

 After that thrilling experience would you believe I attempted to cook again the next night?? I did! Luckily this time everything worked out just fine. Mainly because I didn't have a recipe and just threw a bunch of food I wanted to eat into a pan together... Maybe recipes are the problem after all? I dunno.

Ingredients: Cauliflower, chicken, green beans, mushrooms, 1 egg, tamari, coconut oil.

I shredded the cauliflower in the food processor then cooked it in a pan with coconut oil. Next I added some more coconut oil and added the mushrooms and green beans. Then I added some leftover chicken I cooked the night before, (that part turned out great. I cooked them in olive oil with Italian herbs and some sea salt.) After every thing was heated I added some tamari. Last, I poured in the egg that I had just beaten and stirred everything together until the egg was done cooking. I wasn't sure how it was going to taste but turns out it was pretty good! I even had leftovers that I saved for today's lunch and it was just as good as the first time.

Dinner: Fried Cauliflower with Chicken & Veggies.