Just how did the first ever Paleo Camping Retreat go?

What happens when 3 modern cave-people who like good food, natural movement and spending time in nature get together and plan a weekend of fun for a group of people?

This!

10 people, 2 nights out in the country, camping in tents, surrounded by bush and wildlife, eating delicious healthy food and playing…

Otherwise known as the Paleo Camping Retreat 2015!

2015 Paleo Camping Retreat campers and hosts – Primal A Team!

The 3 all-things-primal-loving hosts:

Me – Aimee Clark

Clint Bauer

Dan Barrett the Aussie Paleo Chef

 

Where was this unique event held?

Well what better location than the beautiful Sunshine Coast, just past the hinterland, in the country town of Kenilworth.

And we bet you’re wondering how an event like this came about in the first place?

Well late last year we caught up with Dan the Aussie Paleo Chef from Canberra while he was in Brissie for a cooking event. We all got along like a house on fire and became instant good friends. A couple weeks later he invited us to host a camping retreat with him, incorporating all the things we love and are passionate about. We took all of about 10 seconds to ponder the offer and give our response of… Hell yes!

How could we turn down as opportunity like that, when it was something we’d already wished we could do ourselves but knew we needed another awesome primal team member to actually make it happen?!

So it was official, we were going to host a Paleo Camping Retreat! Woo!

We set the date for 1-3 May and worked hard to plan the event and get lots of great sponsors on board. The week leading up was exciting, Dan was flying up on the Thursday, it started raining in the region over the middle of the week and then when Dan was on the plane flying up Thursday morning, we spoke to the owner of the property the retreat was being held at who told us there was going to be some serious flooding come Friday. So we made the sad decision to cancel the retreat. Boo! Poor Dan found out as soon as he landed!

We told our campers the bad news, sat down and worked out a new date…  July!! A couple more months to wait, we could do that…

It was hard waiting, again! But eventually mid-July rolled around, Dan was back up here and it was actually going to happen. It did rain a little during the week, of course, but nowhere near as much as last time thank goodness! Mother Nature just had to tease us didn’t she!

Day 1:

We spent Friday setting up the camp at the private Kenilworth property, with the day not going quite to plan and Clint ended up having to drive all around the Coast trying to collect food and other items, and didn’t get back to the campsite till late in the afternoon when our 7 campers were arriving. So Day 1 was a bit of a shemozzle but we got there. We helped our campers who were bringing their own gear set up their tents and beds, and had tents and beds set up for the others. We had already started a fire to get coals happening for the Roo Tail Stew Dan was cooking up for dinner. Our campers arrived to a nice smoky sunny welcome.. the best way to start a camping weekend!

Because our day had gone way off track, we didn’t get to sit down and properly welcome everyone until late, and no one felt like doing much that evening, so we sat around the fire, waited for dinner and started to get to know each other.

What a great bunch of people we had… 5 adults, some Clint and I already knew, some we didn’t, and 2 teens created a diverse and interesting group of campers. Dan was looking forward to meeting everyone for the first time.

The stew for dinner was delicious, and really healthy, full of fresh organic produce supplied by Garry at Sunshine Organics, with local kangaroo tail supplied by a local chef and farmer. Then everyone was treated to paleo marshmallows to toast over the fire! One camper in particular, Shannon, told me she was so excited about these, even having a dream about them that night! She said she’d loved marshies growing up and was so happy to find a really healthy version of them. I was stoked to hear that of course!

Browning the roo tail pieces on the fire

Only lanterns and fire for light – such relaxing ambiance

Hot stew, hot chocolate with marshmallows, and a fire to warm us up

The sky was a little cloudy so star gazing wasn’t an option but this cloud cover meant we’d be enjoying a warm night in our tents.

Day 2:

Us hosts were up at 6am to get a big cooked brekkie happening and slowly our campers started rising. Actually some took a little longer to get themselves up and out of their snugly warm sleeping bags, so I decided to walk around yelling loudly, threatening to eat all the fried eggs, bacon and sausages if they didn’t hurry up haha, that got ‘em up!

We boiled some water on the fire so folks could make a hot cuppa for themselves. We had Montville Coffee, Planet Organics teas and chocolate to choose from. As well as delicious raw and cinnamon creamed honey from Hello Honey Australia, and creamy coconut caramel and chocolate spreads from Niulife to create some magic in a mug. YUM! Along with the cooked goodies, and paleo granola from Analuca, brekkie sure was a feast!

Shannon enjoying a hot cuppa first thing

We needed by be ready and raring to go by 8:30am for our guided Bush Tucker Tour with the property owner Graeme of Witjuti Grub Bush Foods Consulting. He walked us around his land and educated us about native bush foods. At that time of the year there’s not a lot of fruit available so he bought out some frozen foods for us to try on top of the few things we found on the walk. Some were sweet while some were sour. Ok I lie, most were sour! Bush foods are very rarely sweet, most have a tart flavour. Although strangely enough the Finger Limes that were fruiting all over about 3 bushes near our tents were actually quite sweet. A few of us were squeezing the ‘caviar’ out and sucking it down.. not what we’d expected. We expected to be pulling fish faces! So that was a nice, and tasty, surprise. I was stoked so many Finger Limes were available because I was using them in my Gelatin Demo that day.

The bush tucker tour and chat begins

Picking bush foods right off the plant

Native berries often have very striking colours

Can’t remember what this fruit was called but it was actually really sweet and tasty

Bush foods for us to try

Native Aussie foods are typically sour and tart as opposed to sweet, and these two aren’t quite sure what they think of this fruit!

After the educational start to the day, we served up morning tea with some Cave Foods and At One bars, Analuca trail mix, gelatin lollies made by me, nice cold Coconut Groove coconut water, and tea/coffee.

Healthy snacks for morning tea

Next I gave my Gelatin Demo to a few eager beavers wanting to learn about gelatin, it’s benefits and how to use it. I made Finger Lime Panna Cotta (find the paleo panna cotta recipe here) which was for dessert that night. Those not watching had some free-range time to chill out. Some played, some read, some walked. Graeme stayed for the demo and was interested to see how bush foods can be used for healthy paleo dishes, yay, spreading the paleo love!

Clint was keen to get everyone up and moving after lunch so he took a Primal Play Workshop, teaching games and movements to help get the body and the mind working while improving fitness and having fun. Stick throwing/catching, medicine ball throwing/catching, Up Down No Hands, crawling, wrestling, tiggy, combo’s, it was a great mix of movements. Most campers hadn’t ever done that sort of thing before and one in particular, Nicole, got up and gave wrestling a go with Clint. She really stepped out of her comfort zone which was great to see!

A game of Hip Tiggy gets the heart rate up and the laughter started

Tog O War is fantastic for all-over strengthening

Getting some coordination training in with throwing and catching a stick

Weighted throwing and catching using a medicine ball (or a rock) is great too

Tiggy through the camp ground!

We moved to where the ants weren’t around and tried our hand at crawling

Crab walking (or inverted crawling) plus a game of Crab Grab is hard but fun!

Wrestling and rough-housing is natural for humans yet so many of us stop doing it past childhood, or never even did it during that time

Nicole stepped outside her comfort zone and had a wrestle with Clint. We saw her confidence soar after that activity!

One of Clint’s favourite challenges to set is Facing the Flinch. Putting yourself in an uncomfortable situation to build tolerance and comfort level. His challenge this time was for us to jump into the freezing cold creek!!

Putting on brave faces while Facing the Flinch in the cold COLD creek!!

Yes, it really happened, most of us did actually take a dip! It was so invigorating and another confidence-building exercise which is always a positive thing. I remember trying to walk out of the creek onto the bank and found it really hard.. my legs were going numb haha that was sure an interesting experience!

After that chilly activity we got changed, warmed up by the fire and watched Dan get dinner ready. We were looking forward to Eumundi Beef topside and veggies roasted in the camp oven, followed by Finger Lime Panna Cotta I’d made earlier.

The sun is setting and a fire brings a bit of light while Chef Dan chats about what’s on the menu for dinner

YUM! Roast beef, veggies and paleo sausages!

The campers dig into the night’s mighty feast

The pumpkin may have ended up a little mushy in the camp oven, but it didn’t bother anyone, overall the meal was delicious and followed by the panna cotta and more marshmallows, after which we walked to another part of the property away from the firelight to star gaze and chat, and it was a pretty good night really!

Toasting marshmallows over the fire

Then scoffing them down!

Camper Ross, a talented photographer, set his camera up overnight and captured these beautiful shots of the stars…

Star trail

Can’t see stars like this in the city!

Check out Ross’s other amazing photos here

Day 3:

The final day of the retreat <sniff>. The campers woke seeming happier and more relaxed which was great to see.

We wrangled up brekkie for them, of eggs, bacon, sausages, Dan’s amazing tomato sauce, granola and whatever goodies were left in the camp kitchen!

Happy and refreshed campers

The last of the Walker Farm Foods pastured eggs cooked up over the fire.. deeelish!

After brekkie we took some time to wander around the property, enjoying the sunshine and warmer temp. Some spent time sitting by the creek, some picked more bush foods and some played.

Spotted! We wandered off for some free-range time while the sun was shining and came across a kangaroo hopping through the property

View through the trees and smoke haze

Dan and Clint doing some primal movement after brekkie

We really wanted to pack as much fun into the last day as we could, so Clint set the Slackline up between a couple of trees and let everyone have a go.

Looking ahead toward the end of the slackline is a good tip for keeping balanced and moving forward

Nicole again doing something completely new and receiving lots of encouragement from others

Shannon’s turn

Playtime ended and we decided to have a bite to eat before we had to pack up camp. A few of us foraged in the bushes for leaves to use for tea and came up with Nettle, Lemon Myrtle and Aniseed Myrtle. Boiled up and strained, the flavour was amazing! Even our bush tucker guide Graeme gave it double thumbs up!

Freshly picked and brewed bush tucker tea

Tea maker extraordinaire..!

Fresh tea plus some snacks for the road, we ensured our campers had full bellies before they left to travel home.

Shannon, who writes the blog Eat Well Travel Often, actually made a video of herself doing something outside of her comfort zone… trying the bush foods tea and eating roasted crickets! Check out her video here

Anne enjoying the ‘Classic’ jerky thanks to our friends at Griffin Jerky

One of the downsides of camping would have to be the packing up part! Even though us hosts wanted to take care of most of that for our guests everyone chipped in and helped, so it didn’t take long at all. The trickiest part was folding the pop-up ensuites! But Clint working in a camping store is well practiced so he showed Dan and Shannon the technique!

Hold your tongue in just the right spot and it’s easy to fold up these things..!

Once the campers were all packed and ready to go we organised one last activity… a Forest Therapy meditation session.

We all sat by the creek while I took a guided visualisation meditation using nature around us, to really relax and rejuvenate the group. It’s the perfect way to use the healing properties of nature to the fullest and something we enjoy teaching to people whenever we can.

The ideal spot for some Forest Therapy

That, sadly,  concluded the first ever Paleo Camping Retreat on the Sunshine Coast! Our campers then said their goodbyes, to us and each other, and off they went back home to their regular lives.. but hopefully feeling happier and healthier from a great few days in the hinterland.

We think they enjoyed the retreat if the feedback they shared afterwards is anything to go by…

We want to thank all of our open-minded and lovely campers and all of our amazingly generous and helpful sponsors, you all helped make the first Paleo Camping Retreat a success and yes, there will be another!

We’re currently planning another retreat for Autumn 2016. If you’re interested in coming along, register your details here.

The sponsor list:

Walker Farm Foods, Sunshine Coast Spring Water, Hello Honey, RumblesPaleo, Wippells Organic, Cave Foods, Sherwood Rd Organic Meats, At One, Planet Organic, Natural Evolution Foods, Analuca, Evolution Screenprinting, Ecology Skincare, Tassie Tallow, Niulife, Broth of Life, Primal Collective, Coconut Groove, Noosa Basics, Griffin Jerky, Emmely Rackemann Health Coaching, Eumundi Beef, Montville Coffee, Sunshine Organics

To stay up to date with what Dan the Aussie Paleo Chef is creating in the kitchen, follow him on Facebook here and next time you’re in Canberra be sure to visit his cafe Elemental for a bite to eat!

To purchase your own bush foods starter kit for your garden, or to organise a tour for a school/community group, contact Graeme at Witjuti Grub Bush Foods Consulting here.

 

We hope to see YOU at the Paleo Camping Retreat 2016 here on the beautiful Sunshine Coast!!

Aimee x

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Hanging with some happy cattle, and a recipe for paleo slow cooked brisket

Healthy happy cattle make for happy healthy eaters of cattle!

Why? Think about it.. if animals are eating what they’re meant to be eating and are living a happy natural existence, people who eat them are receiving that health and happiness in some way because we’re eating what WE’RE meant to be eating!

Make sense?!

Clint and I are really passionate about connecting people to quality, ethical, sustainable, professional and genuine producers. This includes farmers who raise animals the way they’re meant to be raised.

In the time we’ve been hosting the Sunshine Coast Paleo/Primal/Real Food Meetup Group we’ve met some awesome paleo-friendly food and product producers. We’re probably not meant to have a favourite but we can’t help it, we do! lol

One of the nicest, most generous, educational and respectable producers we’ve come across is Farmer Susan of Eumundi Beef. She’s actually become a good friend of ours and we enjoy hanging out with her on the farm when we go there to collect our meat orders, often being treated to saying hello to new members of the clan such as brand new calves, new chickens and even a goose with a crooked neck who’s now part of their family! It’s a menagerie and we love it!

Farmer Susan raises a small herd of 100% grass-fed Murray / Angus cross cattle on her small sustainable property in Belli Park near Kenilworth. With a background in Biochemistry and having gone through major health challenges, she’s really passionate about raising healthy happy cattle to benefit her, her customers and the environment. She does it well too, her meat is delicious and her farm is a beautiful country oasis!

Like us, Susan wants to help provide education to consumers. So she’s only too happy to host farm tours on her property, showing people around and teaching them all things healthy grass, soil and cattle.

As with other grass-fed beef farmers we’ve met, Susan likes to think of herself more as a grass farmer than a cattle farmer! Isn’t that cool?!

In the hopes of connecting as many people as possible to as many good quality local food sources as possible we enjoy organising farm tour meetups. So a few weeks ago we held our second at the Eumundi Beef farm; a tour with Susan then a picnic afterwards. It was sensational!

We started by viewing the washing-machine-like biodynamic fertiliser producing machine, learning about what it does and seeing the healthy soil-textured final result.

 

Next we walked to one particular paddock that contains incredibly healthy soil and learning about the different layers and how long it took Susan to dig through the top soil when she first started her grass-fed farming adventure 5 years earlier. She said it took all day to dig through just that top layer! With her continual hard work and persistence it’s now the right depth and is working well for the sake of the pasture and the animals.

 

Then we were treated to feeding and patting the famous Eumundi Beef cattle themselves! The kids and adults alike always enjoy this part because it’s terrific to witness cattle looking so healthy and nourishing, munching away on the healthiest pasture possible, and to get up close with them, there’s really no better way to ‘meet your meat’.

And this time… there were a few cute fluffy little calves to see! Bonus!

 

Susan showed us around the different paddocks all at different stages of growth. She told us about the various plant species growing, which of those are pests and even explained to us the different lengths of grass which matters because cattle need to be put on pasture growing at a specific height. It was so fascinating!

On the way back to the homestead we met the local chickens and guinea fowl, including a breed of heritage chooks being raised for meat.

 

.. which, while we were all away, may have gotten into some of the biscuits left on the picnic table…! Sneaky little things! We suspect these few were the culprits…

Susan also had a group from Slow Food Noosa visiting for the tour, which was great to see. They had their own gathering after on the homestead deck, while our group picnicked under the gazebo enjoying lots of paleo tucker brought by our members, and stunning views of the property.

 

All of our meetup members brought delicious paleo-friendly foods to share around and we provided honeycomb and gelatin lollies, plus a slow cooked cut of Eumundi Beef brisket which was loved by all! I’d only ever slow cooked brisket once before and not with the flavouring I wanted to use for the meetup, so it was a total experiment and I’m stoked it was hugely successful! (see recipe below)

 

After the food was all gobbled up, Clint helped the kids burn off any excess energy left after the walk around the farm by playing some games on the open grassed area near the house. What prettier playground could they have asked for?!

There’s not a whole lot to be unhappy about when you’re out in the country, on a beautiful farm, surrounded by lovely people, eating great food, and watching the sun setting behind the gum trees. Bliss!

What a way to end a fantastic day!

 

Oh and we can’t forget the produce! Before we headed home a few of us grabbed some meat and bones. There’s not always a lot of stock available because it’s a small sustainable farm, but we grabbed what we could!

On certain packs, too, Susan includes a tag containing the heritage details on the beast you’re buying which is exceptionally cool. We love this and it’s just another aspect of such a respectable and ethical small local business.. the kind of business that should be promoted and supported.

So another successful farm tour meetup is done and dusted. We’re looking forward to organising another Bone Broth cooking workshop at the farm in the coming months, and to the next farm tour meetup next year sometime. Until then, be sure to get on Facebook and show your support to Susan and what she does by Liking her page, inviting your friends to Like it and maybe even check out her products sometime, either at the Farm Gate on Friday afternoons or at the Peregian Beach Markets. You won’t be disappointed!

Thanks to all our members who came along, we appreciate the support you show for our group and what we’re trying to do for the community. We love catching up with familiar faces and making new friends and we love hearing how much everyone enjoyed the event!

A big thanks also to friend and member Ross McNeil of Ross McNeil Photography who captured some of the above images on the day. And for bringing the yummiest cupcakes ever!!

And last but not least.. thanks to Farmer Susan for having us, for all of your amazing knowledge and passion, and for donating that sensational piece of grass-fed brisket!

 

Now for the recipe…

 

Aimee’s Paleo Slow Cooked Brisket

1.5-2 kg grass-fed brisket

1/2 cup coconut amino sauce or coconut or ‘not soy’ sauce (I use Matakana because they don’t contain nightshades. Available here)

3 tbsp organic All Spice powder

Salt and pepper to taste

Ghee, coconut oil, or fat to fry in

 

1. Cut the brisket into chunks small enough to place in the slow cooker but not too small. They should just fit width and length ways

2. Heat a large fry pan and add cooking fat

3. Place a chunk of brisket at a time on the pan and brown the edges. This seals in the juices and helps add flavour later

4. Once all brisket is browned, place in the slow cooker and pour over the All Spice and sauce. Ensure all surfaces of the meat are coated with the sauce mixture then place the lid on

5. Cook on low for around 12-15 hours so the meat becomes as tender as possible before eventually turning to mush

6. Remove from the slow cooker and allow to rest on a plate or board for 15-20 mins. Slice as desired and serve

7. Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge. But really, there’s not likely to be leftovers! 😉

 

ENJOY!!

Aimee

 

5 Things I’m Grateful For:

1. Farm tours and picnics at Eumundi Beef!

2. Delicious grass-fed beef from Susan’s farm

3. Pretty sunsets

4. All the lovely people I meet at these gatherings

5. Paleo chocolate cupcakes… <drool>

 

 

Beating those pesky Winter Blues

With the sudden onset of this current cold snap throughout New South Whales and southern Queensland it seems like Winter has finally arrived, especially because up until this point we were experiencing pretty mild temps really. In general though, the colder months and shorter days tend to make even the fittest person want to roll over in bed of a morning to stay warm under the blankets or to reach for the extra helping of warm comfort foods during the day.

I call this period of lower motivation the Winter Blues!

Today I want to share 5 quick tips on ways you can overcome the Winter Blues and to make the most out of this time of year…

1. Sun time – Yes the days are short and cold, but when you manage to get yourself out in the sun sure are in for a treat!

 

Spend some time each day lying in the sun.  This sun not only helps to warm us up but it’s a great way to get that vitally important Vitamin D; something a lot of people are missing out on in the cooler months of the year.

 

You can get a really cool phone app called D-Minder which helps track how much Vitamin D you’re getting versus how much you need.

D-Minder is a great app we use often

If you’re brave and have a private spot to sun yourself, consider doing what Daniel Vitalis is promoting at the moment…  the #NakedSunTime Challenge (check it out on social media)!  The aim of this is to expose your whole body to the sun and have no visible tan lines. Not for vanity reasons but purely for the amazing health benefits.

naked sun time on the balcony

2. Play outside – Instead of going to the gym, how about attempting to get outside to play or exercise? This again gets you outside in our natural surroundings and is far more beneficial then working-out inside.

 

Even if you only do this in your lunch break it’s a great way to get the body used to the colder weather.

playgrounds aren’t just for kids! take advantage of one near you

Stuck for ideas on what to do? Click here for some inspiration

 

3. Expose the body to the cold – Yes, you read that right! More often than not people feel the cold and rug up as much as possible to make themselves feel toasty warm. Why wouldn’t you?!

 

I enjoy doing this too, of course, but this year I’ve made a conscious effort to let myself be exposed to the cold weather more often than usual. I do this by going barefoot outdoors, trying to minimise the use of my jumpers and even jumping into the cold water at the beach.

barefoot…

 

to watch the sunrise on a chilly winter’s morning

The reason I do those things is to build up my tolerance to the cold weather. It’s a new thing for me this year and already I’ve noticed my usual sissy attitude to the cold has improved.

 

So why don’t you give it a go?

 

4. Work-out and play in a group – It’s much easier to face the cold and work-out if you’re with a group of people. The motivation you can give each other, the ideas of things to do, team work is really helpful at this time of year!

get your friends involved for some fun outdoors

Find a group of friends who are willing to face it with you and get moving together.  If you don’t have keen friends or colleagues, you can always join our Primal Fitness Class

 

5. Warm up by a fire – This is one of my favourite things to do in Winter! If you have the space at home outside, consider getting yourself a brazier or fire pit and sit around it at night.

 

It’s a great feeling to sit around with the orange glow in the night. It’s a terrific way to have some down-time from the busyness of our daily lives and helps us reconnect and converse with friends, family and our loved ones.

a brazier like ours is about $20 from Bunnings

For bonus points head straight to bed after a fire without turning the house lights on.  The orange glow of the fire will make you nice and sleepy so you should be out like a light. By avoiding the bright unnatural indoor lights your melatonin levels stay balanced.

 

You could also consider making healthy marshmallows and roasting them on the fire. Who doesn’t enjoy that?! It’s a nice treat to help you enjoy the experience even more. You can grab the recipe in Aimee’s Sweet Goodness with Gelatin e-book here.

These are a few of my favourite ways to beat the Winter Blues and I hope they help you in some way.  We’d love to hear from you if you have any great suggestions to add to these!

Until next time… move and play lots!

Clint

 

5 things I am grateful for:

1. Sunshine
2. QLD flogging NSW in the State of Origin
3. Sitting around a nice fire
4. Going barefoot
5. The ability to learn

Paleo meetups aren’t just about the food.. but it is a bonus!

Today we held a very laid back meetup at Earthly Wonders Emporium in Maroochydore, who just a few months ago started introducing paleo options to the menu. We thought it was about time we held a meetup there, so we did! It was lovely too. Just a small group of ladies came along and joined us for a couple of hours of eating, drinking and lots of chatting!

 

Thanks to the ladies who came along, it was lovely to see you all. And thanks also to Kelly and her wonderful team for hosting us! Clint’s special iced choc with mesquite, that he always asks for, was delicious as usual. My nettle tea was perfect. And everyone else seemed to enjoy their meals and drinks too. And it was a great setting for a lot of good conversation!

Sweet potato, eggs, meat, salad, all sorts of amazingness right there!

Dig in Lesya!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nettle tea was just what I needed today

Clint’s fave drink.. iced chocolate with mesquite powder. YUM!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The chats, as well as the food and drinks, were great today; we talked paleo of course including eating and other aspects such as movement and getting outside in nature. We also talked about what work we do, the stresses in our lives, some of our big goals for the future, and all sorts of things.

 

Clint and I really cherish these get-togethers – connecting with people like this, who are also on a journey to achieving good health and happiness, is a very special thing and we hope this meetup group continues to grow and supported by locals, so we can keep paleo going on the Sunny Coast, to help and inspire as many people as possible!

If you’d like to come along to future meetups at this cafe, or just any of our awesome gatherings, stay up to date with events here

 

Good night x

Aimee

 

5 things I’m grateful for:

1. Today’s meetup and the lovely people we spoke to

2. Organic and paleo-friendly cafes in our region

3. The amazing warm sunny days this week and being able to sit outside and soak up the Vitamin D

4. My raspberry plant about to berry this season

5. Good friends

 

Our almost-totally-paleo meetup group camping trip!

One of our fave things is camping. We love it. We’d pack up and be permanent campers if we could! We have our dream 4×4/roof-top tent set up in our minds and it’s a very nice sight! And we’d love nothing more than to spend our days traveling all around Australia and exploring this amazing country.

But until that’s an option, we’ll settle for exploring the region we live in. And it certainly ain’t bad! The Sunny Coast is surrounded by varieties of scenery and camping options. Because we host the Sunshine Coast Paleo/Primal/Real Food Meetup Group we thought why not organise a meetup camping trip?! So we did!

Unfortunately out of all the members who initially said they were keen, very few could actually come the weekend we had to plan it for. But that’s ok, a few did come and it was a super fun weekend!

We headed to Kenilworth Homestead about an hour’s drive from the middle of the Sunny Coast. Clint and I took my mum along who hadn’t camped since she was a youngster. She was a bit apprehensive about it but she had a great time! We knew she’d enjoy a few days out in the country!

 

the view as we arrived at the camp ground

The other campers were .. a friend and her 2 boys, and a friend and workmate of Clint’s with her daughter. It was a great bunch of people; friendly, fun, open, not-afraid-of-nature which always helps when camping! The friend and her two kids hadn’t been camping before so it was great to share that new experience with them and they all seemed to have a really good time. So yay!

We’d decided to make it an almost-totally-paleo weekend, with the exception of beverages. Ie. alcohol! Clint and I enjoy drinking alcohol when we occasionally get to go camping and we knew mum would want to take some wine, while Clint’s colleague would have some alcoholic drinks with her too. So that was fine and we totally succeeded with the food side of things! Brekkie, lunch, dinner, snacks.. everything was paleo-friendly.

Here’s some pics of where we camped…

 

campsite set up and ready to go

mist over the hills

sun and mist rise together in the morning

the old homestead

dew on the web

 

It wasn’t only cool to have a weekend away, eating good food but not having to worry about how ‘crappy’ (literally!) you’re going to feel the days following. It was also great to be spending time out in the country, with gorgeous sunrises, misty mountain views, the smell of fresh air, green grass to play on, creeks to explore in, no computer and TV to create distraction, gorgeous sunsets and the smell of a camp fire going.

<sigh> bliss!

We definitely enjoyed eating well and here’s some pics of what we took along and created that weekend…

Clint gets the fire ready

brekkie day 2: free-range bacon, pastured eggs, goat cheese and avocado

local sweet and juicy pineapple, yum!

brekkie day 1: paleo-friendly wraps with bacon, egg and avocado

Egg-free wrap for Aimee’s mum, with tomato, bacon, avocado and goat cheese

getting coals ready for tonight’s camp oven dinner

love a crackling fire at night

and camp oven meals! roast chicken in one and veggies in the other, yay!

 

So the food so far looks alright hey! For lunch on the second day we actually ate paleo sausages and jaffa panna cotta!! Why not?! You can do that when you’re camping!

paleo sausages. so simple and so good

Apart from eating, which is obviously a great part of camping, there’s also plenty of time for fun, games, exploring, relaxing and we all did all of that!

Clint pretending to throw Georgia in the creek

Larissa taking time out to catch up on some reading

Clint slacklining. There wasn’t two suitable trees nearby so the bullbar came in handy!

Georgia practiced a lot and kept getting better and better

Now Larissa’s turn!

Exploring the creek nearby; skimming rocks, wading, walking… re-naturing!

Beautiful flower on a fierce-looking thistle plant along the riverbed

 

Just sitting, chilling, smiling.. how camping should be!

 

Magical sunset ending a fun second day

We did try and not have our phones on us 24/7 so there’s not a photo of every meal we had but they were all definitely paleo-friendly and delicious. Nothing beats a camp oven roast, tea and coffee using a billy over the fire, bacon and eggs cooked on a gas stove, good company, beautiful scenery and being surrounded by nature.

When was the last time you went camping?

Have you ever attempted to do it paleo? If you haven’t yet but want to, now you know it’s definitely do-able.

Tell us about your paleo camping trips, we’d love to hear from you!

Clint & Aimee

 

5 things we’re grateful for today:

1. the rain on the garden

2. going camping

3. good friends

4. healing gelatin

5. each other

 

A paleo engagement party is definitely do-able!

Clint and I had our engagement party in January this year after he proposed to me just before Christmas. The party was a picnic and games afternoon at the beautiful Maroochy Bushland Botanic Gardens. We had about 40 people join us for an afternoon of frisbee, slacklining, bocci and quoits. Plus, a whole lotta delicious and healthy foods made mostly by my mum and I, as well as some suitable food kindly provided by the in-laws.

I had so many compliments on how good the food tasted and many requests for recipes so I thought I’d better blog about it so all the recipes are in one place for everyone to use and enjoy! (By the way, this is a post from our old blog!

Most of the food was paleo/primal, it was all gluten-free and all yum!

Here’s a rundown on what we created…

 

Smoky Tomato Dipping Sauce

Original recipe here

My variation: I tasted the mixture while following the recipe and noticed it still tasted like tomato paste even with the paprika and mustard powders added. So I added another 2 tsp paprika, plus 1 tsp turmeric powder. This made it not taste like tomato paste anymore and gave it more of a smokey BBQ taste.

Also, I decided to place the mixture in the blender and give it a whiz to make it really smooth instead of being full of onion and garlic bits.

The photo is the sauce with my brekkie of mince, eggs and fetta! I’d forgotten to take photos of food on the day of the party so if I had leftovers I took photos then!!

 

Chicken Liver Pate

Original recipe here

My variation: I pretty much followed that recipe but I added olive oil instead of rendered chicken fat.

This pate is a winner with anyone who tries it who’s always enjoyed store-bought varieties. But this one is so much healthier!

 

Beetroot Tapenade

This was my own creation. It was meant to be a smooth and creamy roast beetroot and fetta dip but mum and I almost completely burned and shrivelled the beetroot while in the oven, so when I tried to blend it to a smooth consistency it just didn’t happen and ended up a little chunky. I thought people would hate it but this was the recipe I had the most requests for! Amazing!

Recipe:

1. Peel and chop 3-4 large beetroots
2. Bake in oven with a drizzle of coconut oil, on 180 for… well I don’t know how long because mine was in a tad too long. Maybe go for 20min then check on it!
3. Once cooked, place in a food processor with about 1/4 cup olive oil, 2 tbsp sheep or goat fetta, 1 tsp apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper and blend until it’s about this consistency.

Tip: If you cook your beetroot a little too long and it blackens on the edges, that’s GREAT because that’s what I did and it tasted great! Just be sure to add a bit of stevia to the food processor… that’s my secret ingredient!!

 

Pumpkin Dip

I didn’t get a photo of this creation by my mother-in-law Marian but I had asked her to do a simple dip of roast pumpkin (she used 1kg), olive oil, herbs of choice and salt and pepper. The end result had a pumpkin soup taste about it but it was nice and thick. And very tasty!

 
Raw Chia Sesame Crackers

Another of my own creations and something I alter every single time I make them!

Basic recipe:

1. In a large bowl add 1 cup chia seeds and 1/2 cup sesame seeds
2. Add 2-3 cups of water, mix well and let sit for an hour or so. The water will absorb into the seeds and the mix will thicken. You can add more water if it’s too thick and you can’t stir a spoon in it easily
3. Add whatever herbs and spices you like. This time round I added dulce flakes, fresh parsley and thyme leaves, all spice powder and lots of salt and pepper. Stir thoroughly so all ingredients are well combined
4. Spread mixture onto baking paper in your dehydrator (purchase one here).
The thickness needs to be about 2-3mm, if it’s too thin the crackers will break too easily when they’re dry.
5. Depending on your dehydrator your drying setting and time-frame may differ, but generally it works to leave on medium setting overnight.
6. When crackers are completely dry, take them out, break them apart and serve!

You can also add minced onion, garlic, veggies etc. The variations are endless!

 

Lemon Thyme Meatballs

Original recipe here

Clint’s mum made these for the picnic and I think she stuck to the recipe. They’re so easy to make, simple ingredients and a delicious flavour 🙂

We also had a couple varieties of grain-free sausages from Yandina Butchery – chicken, pine nut and spinach, as well as beef, oregano and garlic. No flours are used!

 

Choc Brownies

Original recipe here

My variation: The recipe calls for quite a bit of honey or maple syrup – I use raw honey and I found using less is fine. 1/2 cup max in my opinion still ends up tasting terrific.

Also when I made this the first time for Clint’s birthday in December 2013, the amount you end up with after baking doesn’t look like it’d feed 16 people as suggested in the recipe, and as you can see from the photo above mine don’t look quite as high as the ones in the link. Sometimes I wonder where people get their serving quantity from because the recipes don’t often make as much as large a quantity as stated. Which is the case with thsi recipe. If you’re feeding 5+ hungry people I’d make double! For the engagement party I made a double batch and cut into bite-size squares so most people would get a try.

As for the chocolate chips, we don’t seem to have the same brands as the American recipes suggest but you can find dairy-free chocolate at health food stores, and depending on what other ingredients you want to avoid, even in the supermarket. Sweet William is dairy-free but contains other nasties many paleo-followers would definitely avoid. It just depends on your preferences and also your budget! Shop around. But if you don’t find any you’re happy with, just use a bit of extra cocoa powder instead 🙂

 

Juice Jellies

On the day I served up orange juice jelly lollies but you can use ANY juice or fruit pulp you like. It’s just grass-fed gelatin dissolved in hot water/juice and some stevia or other sweetener (raw honey, maple syrup etc) added in. Then set in the fridge. Easy peasy!

The photo above is frozen organic raspberries simmered then strained to remove the seeds. The measurement I find works best is 1 cup liquid to 2 tbsp gelatin. Any more gelatin and the lollies will become rock hard and unedible.

The orange ‘jellies’ (not ‘lollies’ because I didn’t add enough gelatin so they were a bit softer than I’d have liked!) were a HUGE hit on the day! The kids were eating gluten-free lollies but they all liked my jellies as well, and the adults all commented on how good they were!

If you’d like to join our Great Lakes Gelatin Co-Op to get your hands on the best quality gelatin powder, click here

 

Honey Coconut Macaroons

Original recipe here

My variation: I left out the lemon and just used shredded coconut, raw honey, egg whites, salt and vanilla. I would use dessicated coconut next time though, but the shredded still tasted really good.

I didn’t get a photo of my macaroons because they were snapped up pretty quickly on the day! But they looked almost exactly the same as the photo above.

I’m definitely making these again – they’re super easy to make, not too sweet and actually quite filling!

 

Sweet Potato, Chicken and Honey Bites

No photo sorry and these were totally my own creation. All I did was…
Peeled and chopped sweet potato, into about 20c piece size
Baked with coconut oil and raw honey until cooked through
Did the same with chicken breast
Then placed a piece of sweet potato and a piece of chicken on a toothpick

Easy!!!

I hope you find some of these recipes useful and they give you some inspiration in the kitchen, especially for parties! It’s a great feeling to be able to provide healthy foods – the kinda foods we eat 95% of the time and are passionate about – to friends and family and they actually enjoy them!

Please feel free to share this post with friends so they too can make delicious and healthy party foods. And please let me know of any paleo/primal party food recipes you love to use! I’d really appreciate it 🙂

Take care,
Aimee

 

 5 things I’m grateful for today:

1. Being engaged to Clint!

2. A fun morning at the Kawana markets then hanging out with a friend and her gorgeouos boys

3. Gardening today and finding the first berries appearing from the newest strawberry plants

4. Sunny winter days

5. Natural remedies for illness and injury