Ginger Roasted Vegetables with Pecans

1. 1 1/2 cups pecans
2. 4 medium carrots (3/4 pound), peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick on the bias
3. 2 large parsnips (1 pound), peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick on the bias
4. 1 medium head cauliflower (2 1/2 pounds), cut into 1-inch florets
5. 1 small butternut squash (2 pounds)—peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch dice
6. 1 pound brussels sprouts, halved
7. 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
8. 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
9. Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
10. 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger

1. Preheat the oven to 425°. Spread the pecans in a pie plate and toast until fragrant, about 6 minutes. Let cool.
2. In a large bowl, toss the carrots, parsnips, cauliflower, squash and brussels sprouts with the olive oil and nutmeg and season generously with salt and black pepper. Spread the vegetables on 2 large rimmed baking sheets and roast for 30 minutes, until the vegetables begin to brown. Scatter the pecans and ginger over the vegetables and toss well. Continue to roast the vegetables for 25 minutes longer, until they are tender and golden. Scrape the vegetables into a bowl and serve hot or at room temperature.

Mark Sawyer's Southern Greens

1 bag Southern Greens Blend, washed (mixed turnip, collard, mustard greens- got from Trader Joes)
1 cup bone broth, or chicken stock
1 small diced sweet (vidalia style) onion
1 package of Trader Joe's turkey kielbasa, diced, or 1 package of Trader Joe's Sun Dried Tomato Basil Chicken brats, diced
pinch of salt

Put everything into a ginormous pot. Bring to a simmer, and simmer for about 20 minutes until greens are done and onions are soft. Use a slotted spoon or strainer to get the good stuff out (there will be alot of broth left).

Enjoy

Spinach and sweet potato frittata

Ingredients:

3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 teaspoons salt - I used Aloha Spice's Pele's Fire Seasoning Salt. If ever in Hanapepe, Kauai, go to their shop! Alohaspice.com
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 sweet potato, thinly sliced
1 small yellow onion, diced
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 10 oz box frozen chopped spinach, thawed and water squeezed out
optional: sliced mushrooms
4 eggs
1 cup almond milk
If going primal, you can add 1/2 cup shredded cheese of choice- we used a Mexican blend and it turned out good.
Non-stick cooking spray- we use olive oil in the Misto: http://www.amazon.com/Misto-Gourmet-Sprayer-Brushed-Aluminum/dp/B00004SPZV

Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Put a baking sheet into the oven to preheat.
In a large bowl, combine 1 T. olive oil with 1 tsp. salt, garlic powder, and 1/4 tsp. pepper.
Add the sweet potatoes to the bowl and toss to coat. Remove the baking sheet from the oven, and add the sweet potato slices, making sure they are all in a single layer. Transfer to the oven and bake for 8 minutes.

In the skillet, heat the remaining 2 T. olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic, mushrooms (if using them), and spinach, and sauté for another 2 minutes.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, almond milk, and remaining salt and pepper. Mix in the cheese, if using, along with the onion and spinach mixture and set aside.

Spray an oven-proof skillet with non-stick cooking spray or olive oil from the Misto. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees. Remove the sweet potatoes from the oven and add them to the skillet in a thin layer covering the bottom of the skillet. Pour in the egg mixture and transfer the skillet to the oven. Bake until the eggs have set, about 30-35 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature, directly from the skillet. Enjoy!

Carrot and Parsnip Puree

This is a great alternative to mashed potatoes. This is also a great recipe to make and put into 2 cup containers for ready made veggies for the week.

Ingredients:
1 pound parsnips, peeled, and diced
1 pound carrots, peeled and diced
1 small onion, diced
8 cloves of garlic, minced
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup chicken stock... or bone broth - check out my post on bone broth (known as "meat tea" in the Grenell house) - the stuff is awesome, and full of health benefits: http://cfppaleo.blogspot.com/2012/06/bone-broth-so-this-recipe-is-not-fancy.html. Note that any kind of bones work for making stock- I have done combinations of beef, turkey, or chicken. 
seasoned salt
black pepper

In a skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Add parsnips, carrots, onions, garlic, and chicken stock. Bring liquid to a boil, cover the skillet, and cook vegetables on low heat for 30 minutes. Add vegetables, a pinch of salt and pepper, and 1 tablespoon of butter to food processor to mash.

Sweet Potato Casserole

serves 4-6

Sweet Potatoes:
3 large sweet potatoes
1/8 cup honey
1 egg
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
pinch of salt

Topping:
1/2 cup almond flour
1 tablespoon coconut flour
1 Tablespoon honey
pinch of salt
2 Tablespoons melted butter
1/2 cup chopped pecans

1. Peel sweet potatoes, cut into large cubes, and then bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes, or until soft.
2. Place sweet potatoes in food processor to mash.
3. To mashed potatoes, add honey, egg, butter, coconut milk, vanilla and salt. Stir until well combined.
4. Pour into a 9x9 square baking dish
5. For the topping, combine almond flour, coconut flour, honey, salt and melted butter into food processor.
6. Stir in chopped pecans
7. Sprinkle topping over mashed potatoes
8. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees until topping is golden brown.

Josh and Jen's dirty burgers

This recipe is for 2-4 people - 2 if you are really hungry and looking for a "cheat" meal

Sweet Potato Hash:

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and shredded in the food processor
1 large white onion, sliced into large rings
6 large white button mushrooms, sliced

Bacon: 8-10 slices

Meat: 2 pounds grass fed beef

2 eggs, or 1 egg per burger

Optional: If looking for something a little sweet, add 1 chopped apple. We used a SweeTango apple.

Sauce Options:

For a ranch type sauce, combine 1/4 cup spicy paleo mayo + 1/4 cup coconut milk, shake of dried dill, garlic powder, onion powder, dried thyme, dried parsely, and 1 T lemon juice in a small bowl

Or you could use guacamole, or spicy mustard (from the store- no sugar added).

1. In a large skillet, cook bacon. When fully cooked, transfer bacon to a plate with a paper towel to drain. Keep the bacon grease - its magical. If using the chopped apple, cook the apple slices with the bacon.
2. In the bacon grease, cook the shredded sweet potato.
3. In a seperate smaller skillet, saute the onion rings and mushrooms. When fully cooked, and sweet potato is almost done, combine onions and mushrooms to the sweet potato skillet.
4. In the smaller skillet, cook 2 eggs, or 1 egg per burger, over easy. Don't overcook the eggs - the goal is to have the yoke a little runny.
5.  After the sweet potatoes have been cooking for about 15-20 minutes, its time to start the burgers. Make 2 large burger patties, or 4 smaller ones. Go BIG if you are starving. Grill until they are medium well.
6. Assembly: On a plate, add one burger patty, top with one egg, bacon, sweet potato hash, sauted mushroom and onions, and add desired sauce.

ENJOY!!

Kim Juen's ranch dressing

¼ cup Paleo Mayo 

¼ cup Coconut Milk - canned 

½ tsp Dill 

½ tsp Garlic Powder

 ¼ tsp Onion Powder

 ¼ tsp Chives 

1 Tbsp Lemon Juice 

Optional * ½ tsp Parsley - did not use 

Optional * ½ tsp Thyme (I say, try it without and if you think it needs a little more zing, then add these 2 optional spices ;) 

Sea Salt and Pepper (to Taste) did not use 

Mix all until incorporated. I like to use a Bullet, but that’s just me…(if you buy it, you’ll love it, i promise!!) **Note: all of the spices that I used were dried. You can use fresh if you like, but I thought you’d like to know that it will still turn out if you use dried herbs.