Almond Crusted Halibut

I did a recipe a while back with a macadamia crusted halibut, this time I wanted to use almond flour.

Almond Crusted Halibut
2 pieces of Halibut
3/4 cup almond flour
Salt and pepper
1 egg, whipped
Olive oil
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Season fish with salt and pepper.  Brush top of fish with egg, dip (top only) into almond flour, pressing it onto fish.  Preheat olive oil in a large skillet (one that can go into the oven) over medium-high heat.  Add fish nut side down and sear for 3 to 4 minutes until golden brown (make sure pan isn't too hot like I did).  Flip the fish and cook 3 minutes more.  Place pan into oven and cook for 8 to 10 minutes until done.

I served this with a baked Japanese Sweet Potato

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Smoked Salmon

I have made this soup before but this time I did things a little different and also served it topped with some smoked salmon.

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
1 butternut squash
3 carrots (I used several since ours came from our garden and were a small variety)
4 cups homemade chicken broth
1/2 cup coconut milk
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
Salt and Pepper to taste
Smoked Salmon, from SeaBear
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Peel squash, cut in half and scoop out seeds.  Cut squash into small chunks and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet.  Cut carrots (I didn't peel my carrots since they came from the garden) into chunks and place on cookie sheet with squash.  Drizzle with olive oil.  Place in oven and bake for about 20 minutes or so, until they begin to get soft and slightly brown.  In a blender (you may have to split this into two different batches), add part of the roasted squash and carrots, add half of the chicken broth and coconut milk.  Blend until smooth.  Pour into a large pot.  Repeat with the rest of squash, carrot, chicken broth and coconut milk.  Pour into pot.   Whisk in cumin, cinnamon, ginger and salt.  Stir as you cook it over medium high heat.
 Serve with salmon on top.  Also my husband wanted a dollop of sour cream on his.

Christmas Cocktails 2013

Several years ago I did a post with some Christmas Cocktails.  They were a huge hit.  Thought I would give it a try again this year.

Here are the two that were made:


Jack Frost
Into a blender add:
4 cups of ice
1 cup all natural, no added sugar, pineapple juice
1 cup Blue Curacao
1/2 cup Light Rum
Blend until smooth.  Pour into martini glasses.  This will make about 4 drinks.

Eggnog Martini (dairy free)
In a shaker add:
1 part Vodka
1 park Amaretto
1 part Eggnog (homemade, recipe below)
Crushed Ice
Shake and pour into a martini glass.

Homemade Eggnog
In a blender add:
1 egg (make sure that it is a fresh pastured egg)
few grains of salt
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon almond flavoring
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk

Pepperoni Snack Pizzas

I was looking for dairy free and gluten free things I could make over the holidays.  I came across this and thought holy cow this is perfect!  Not only is it super easy to make it, you can have it anytime you have a craving for pizza.  When you bake this it makes your whole house smell like pizza.  Not only can you make these but you can use any topping that you usually like to have on your pizza.

Pepperoni Snack Pizzas
1 package of uncured pepperoni slices (I used Applegate), if you can't find it head to your local deli and get them to slice it for you.  You want the large slices of pepperoni.
1 can tomato paste
Onion Powder
Oregano
Basil
Pizza toppings (thin sliced green pepper, sliced black olives, marinated artichokes)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Cover a baking sheet with foil.  Place pepperoni slices onto baking sheet.  In a small bowl, add tomato paste and a little bit of water (add just enough water to thin it out but you don't want a runny sauce).  Add onion powder, oregano and basil to taste.  Onto each slice of pepperoni spread on a little bit of sauce.  Add your toppings.  Place in oven and bake for about 10 minutes.  You want the pepperoni to be crispy on the edges.  Let cool slightly, eat and enjoy!

Macadamia Crusted Halibut with Sweet Potato Gnocchi

Macadamia Crusted Halibut
2 pieces of Halibut
3/4 cup macadamia nuts, finely chopped
Salt and pepper
1 egg white
Olive oil
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Season fish with salt and pepper.  Brush top of fish with egg white, dip (top only) into macadamia nuts, pressing them onto fish.  Preheat olive oil in a large skillet (one that can go into the oven) over medium-high heat.  Add fish nut side down and sear for 3 to 4 minutes until golden brown (make sure pan isn't too hot like I did).  Flip the fish and cook 3 minutes more.  Place pan into oven and cook for 8 to 10 minutes until done.

Sweet Potato Gnocchi
1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into small pieces
1 cup arrowroot powder
pinch of salt
1/2 egg (break egg into a bowl and whisk it.  Use only half of the egg)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Place sweet potato into a pan and cover with water.  Bring to a boil and cook for about 15 minutes until tender.  Drain.  Cool the sweet potatoes and then mash them.  Make sure that all the lumps are gone.  Add salt, egg and mix well.  Slowly add flour and mix the dough until manageable.  Roll them into thin logs with some arrowroot powder on your palms so that it doesn't stick.  Once you have rolled them into logs cut them into equal 1/2 inch bite sized pieces.  Here is a video on how to get the edges on them (I still could use a hands on lesson from a professional).  Line them up on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.  (DO NOT BOIL THESE, they will not stay together and all of the arrowroot powder that you used will thicken your water).  Bake for 10 minutes.  Serve with your favorite sauce.  (I made a simple sauce of canned diced tomatoes and some herbs, cooked it until warm and served over the gnocchi).

Cookies

Found this recipe on Elana's Pantry.  I have been wanting to make them for a while.  The cookies are considered paleo as well as gluten free, egg free, dairy free (if you don't use a chocolate that contains dairy).  I decided to call them cookies instead of trying to put some kind of label on them. Elana's recipe is for chocolate chip, which these are not.  Also, I split the dough in half and made some with macadamia nuts and the other half with Sunspire Milk Chocolate Sun Drops, I made this half for my husband, I am allergic to chocolate :-(

The original recipe calls for almond flour, I substituted hazelnut flour in its place.

Cookies (Paleo, Gluten Free, Egg Free, Dairy Free)
2 cups hazelnut flour
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup vegan shortening (I use spectrum vegetable shortening)
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup chocolate drops or 1/8 cup macadamia nuts (only if splitting the recipe, otherwise use 1/2 cup of chocolate chips or drops)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Combine flour, salt and baking soda into a food processor.  Pulse in shortening, honey and vanilla until a dough forms.  Remove from food processor, add chocolate.  (split the dough in half and add what you would like).  Scoop dough about 1 tablespoon onto a parchment lined cookie sheet.  Press down balls of dough lightly.  Bake for 6-8 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool on a wire rack for at least 15 minutes.  Removing them sooner will make them fall apart.

Macadamia Nut Cookies

Chocolate Cookies

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

On a cold evening there is nothing better than a nice bowl of hearty soup.  Had a butternut squash sitting on the counter just begging to be cooked.  Finally had a plan and decided to make soup. Along with this soup I also did a baked chicken.

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
1 butternut squash
3 carrots (I used several since ours came from our garden and were a small variety)
4 cups homemade chicken broth
1/2 cup coconut milk
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
Salt and Pepper to taste
Cooked bacon, cut into small pieces
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Peel squash, cut in half and scoop out seeds.  Cut squash into small chunks and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet.  Cut carrots (I didn't peel my carrots since they came from the garden) into chunks and place on cookie sheet with squash.  Drizzle with olive oil.  Place in oven and bake for about 20 minutes or so, until they begin to get soft and slightly brown.  In a large pot, add chicken broth, coconut milk, and spices, heat over low heat.  Add cooked squash and carrots.  Use either an immersion blender or an actual blender to blend the soup until smooth.  Serve with bacon pieces on top.

Baked Spaghetti Squash Casserole (gluten free, dairy free)

Came across this recipe the other day and thought this would be a great thing to do with the squash I have sitting in my kitchen.  We also bought the squash to cook and feed to our turtle (don't know if he will eat any of it or not).

The recipe came from My Heart Beets.  Lots of great gluten free and dairy free as well as paleo.

Baked Spaghetti Squash Casserole
1 spaghetti squash
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound ground beef
5 large garlic cloves, minced
1 red onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1 egg, whisked
salt and pepper to taste

To cook the squash:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.  Cut squash in half and scoop out the seeds.  Drizzle cut sides with olive oil and place cut side down onto a cookie sheet.  Bake for about 45 minutes or until tender.  Using a fork scrape the insides of the squash out (it will look like spaghetti).

To make the casserole:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  In a large skillet over medium heat, add 1 tablespoon olive oil.  Add onions and a pinch of salt.  Cook until onions are tender and translucent.  Add garlic, stir.  Add ground beef and spices.  Once beef is about brown, add the tomatoes and spaghetti squash and mix all together.  Add egg to mixture then pour it all into a greased casserole dish.  Bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden on top.

Hot Ham Sandwiches

We have another pot luck dinner to go to tonight.  I thought about making the meatballs again from the other night but thought better of it.  I wanted something simple and easy.  I have made this recipe in the past and people love it.  The original recipe calls for the use of apple juice, since I am allergic I substituted pineapple juice.  The original recipe also actually calls for sugar, which we no longer use in this house.  I converted the recipe using honey and molasses. Serve this with or without buns, hawaiian sweet rolls are a favorite.

This recipe is close to being paleo but not quite.

Hot Ham Sandwiches
12 Servings
3 pounds thinly sliced uncured deli ham (about 40 slices)
2 cups pineapple juice
2/3 cup honey
1 tablespoon molasses
1/2 cup sweet pickle relish
2 teaspoons prepared yellow mustard
1 teaspoon paprika
Separate ham slices and place in a 3 quart slow cooker.  In a bowl combine the pineapple juice, honey, molasses, relish, mustard and paprika; mix.  Pour over ham.  Cover and cook on low 4-5 hours or until heated through.  Place 4-5 slices of ham on each roll with a little bit of juice.

Hawaiian Meatballs

I have a pot luck dinner to go to tomorrow night.  I went ahead and made my meal tonight which will save me time tomorrow and all I need to do is put it in the crock pot and warm it up.  You can also double this recipe which is what I did.

Simple and Easy!

Hawaiian Meatballs
1 pound ground beef
1 egg, beaten
1 clove garlic, pressed
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon coconut aminos (you can also use soy sauce or tamari)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Place all ingredients into a large bowl.  Form meat into 1 inch balls.  Place meatballs into a baking dish that has been sprayed with olive oil.  Place into oven and cook for 15 minutes, remove from oven and turn meatballs over, return to oven and cook for about 5 minutes more.

In a small bowl combine:
2 tablespoons arrowroot
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons coconut aminos
Mix well with a whisk, set aside.

In a large saucepan add:
2 tablespoons ghee
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup diced green peppers
1 can pineapple chunks in natural juice, reserving juice
Over medium high heat, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.  Add the arrowroot mixture and the following ingredients to the pan.
1/2 cup vinegar
3/4 cup reserved pineapple juice
1/2 cup honey
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ginger
Simmer, stirring constantly until mixture thickens.  Add cooked meatballs and serve.

If you are serving this the next day like I am, I placed the sauce and the meatballs into my crock pot, pot.  That way all I need to do tomorrow is place it in the electric part of the crock pot turn it on and serve.

Breakfast Bars (Grain Free and Dairy Free)

I have made these bars before and really enjoyed them.  This time I changed it slightly.

Breakfast Bars (Grain Free and Dairy Free)
1 cup almond flour
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup coconut oil
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon water
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup hemp hearts
1/4 cup blanched slivered almonds
1/4 cup raisins
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  In a food processor add almond flour, salt and cinnamon, process to mix.  Add coconut oil, honey and water and process.  Add in coconut, pumpkin seeds, hemp hearts, almonds and raisins; process until thoroughly mixed.  Press mixture into a greased 8x8 inch baking pan (I used a rubber spatula to help me with this).  Bake for 20 minutes until lightly browned.  Remove from oven and let cool.  Cool completely before cutting.