Recipe: Paleo Meatballs & Veggies with Noodles 2-Ways

I don’t always consume nightshades because I have a bit of sensitivity to them, so I often enjoy creating variety with meals totally leaving out tomato, chilli, garlic, paprika.. basically all the good stuff lol and finding flavour without those common flavour options.

As most of you know, I also like to create meals that are quick, easy and super healthy. Sometimes my creative moments actually work out well and the other night was one of those occasions when I created a new meat and veg dish that got double thumbs up from Clint, woo! AND it made 4 meals worth in one go, bonus!

I decided to make meatballs, a non-tomato sauce and have some noodles… and I created Meatballs and Veggies with Noodles 2-Ways – delicious, super healthy, really easy to make, a total win!

Here’s the basic recipe I created but feel free to play around with it and make it work best for you and your family 🙂

MEATBALLS & VEGGIES WITH NOODLES 2-WAYS

Makes 4 serves

You’ll need:

500g mince (I used turkey, you could use chicken, lamb, beef etc)

1 cup pumpkin, peeled and diced

1/2 cup bone broth (grab our free e-book here if you don’t already know about bone broth)

1 large brown onion, peeled and finely chopped

2 large carrots (peel if not organic), finely chopped

Fat/oil for cooking in (I use rendered grass-fed animal fat, ghee or coconut oil)

2-4 tsp each of cumin powder, coriander powder and turmeric powder

Himalayan salt, pepper to taste

1 large zucchini, ‘zoodled’ using a noodle machine of some kind, or just peeled into long narrow strips

Optional: 1 packet konjac ‘Spaghetti’ noodles (available from supermarkets and health food stores) (I used these because Clint’s not a fan of a lot of zoodles, and these have great texture, more like ‘real’ noodles)

 

Do this:

1. Make small balls with the mince, by rolling around even amounts into balls in your hands
2. Heat a large fry pan to medium temp and add the fat/oil, carrot and onion. Place the meatballs in then put the lid on and allow to cook through
3. In a medium saucepan of boiling water add the pumpkin and allow to book completely through so when you pierce a piece with a knife it easily cuts through. Strain the water and place pumpkin in a food processor or blender
4. Add the spices, salt, pepper and bone broth to the pumpkin mix and blitz until totally combined and there are no more chunks. It won’t take long to become a sauce
5. Pour the sauce into the frypan with the veggies and meatballs, carefully stir, place the lid back on and allow to cook for a couple of minutes
6. Place noodles on plate or in a bowl ready then when the frypan mixture is ready (the sauce should be a little thicker, the meatballs are cooked through, the carrot and onion are soft) spoon it on top of the noodles
7. Done! Easy!

This made 4 serves so Clint had lunch ready for work the next day, it’s fine to have cold, and I had my dinner sorted for the next night. Yay!

Kids will love this  because pumpkin gives sweetness, noodles and meatballs are fun and it’s a bright coloured dish!

It’s so healthy because it’s jam-packed full of nourishing veggies, a little bit of meat, the bone broth contains gelatin and essential minerals, the turmeric is anti-inflammatory and the fat in there balances it all out nicely.

You could add some coconut amino (with or without chilli and garlic in it) to the sauce to give it a flavour boost. You could use different noodles. You can add different herbs and spices. This recipe is so versatile!

Enjoy! Please let me know how you go and how this idea helps you in the kitchen!

Aimee x

 

5 Things I’m Grateful For Today:

1. a fun day cooking with a friend
2. a really fun Primal Fitness Class yesterday
3. the Daniel Vitalis sleep podcast I listened to while writing this
4. going for nice walks at sunrise
5. walking barefoot everywhere and how good it feels

 

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Paleo Meetup Fun: Farm Tour at Hinterland Feijoas

Time for some fun on the farm!

As hosts of the Sunshine Coast Paleo Lifestyle Meetup Group one of our goals is to connect consumers to quality local producers and to help generate education and awareness around healthy farming practices and consumption of healthy foods. One of the ways we do this is by holding Farm Tour meetups.

From beef to fruit, whatever great local produce we can find in the region that’s paleo-friendly and where the producers are happy to let us on their property for a look around.. we make it happen!

Last Sunday we held a really unique farm tour meetup.. at the Hinterland Feijoas farm! Situated in Belli Park, among the rolling green hills of the Kenilworth area in the Mary Valley, Sally and Peter Hookey grow organic feijoa fruit on their beautiful property and sell their produce, along with jams, chutneys etc at their farm fate.

“Feeej.. what now?!” we hear you say!

Pronounced “fee-joah” this neat little fruit is in the guava family, is really high in Vitamin C and antioxidants, is super versatile to use and tastes delicious!

Rows of feijoas

We were lucky enough to have a private tour of the farm to learn more about this seemingly-strange and hard-to-find fruit, starting with Sally telling us all about the feijoa fruit, where they originated from, why they decided to grow them and what they do with their produce. Then Peter walked us around the orchard explaining how the fruit is grown and all the farming practices involved.

Sally educating us on this unique fruit. Photo by Montage Moments http://www.facebook.com/mons.montage.moments/?fref=ts

Clint just wants to chomp on this giant feijoa but it’s too old to be good eating

 

It’s an interesting fruit to touch and smell

Off we go to see the actual fruiting trees

Fruit a plenty on this tree

Peter explaining how they prune back the trees, when and why in order to get the most out of them

Even the kids got into it

 

It sure is an interesting fruit to grow and our members listened carefully to Peter explaining the processes involved

It was terrific to spend time in the fresh air, getting lots of sunshine, surrounded by like-minded people and learning new things.

Not only did we get to tour the farm, we were allowed to have a picnic there as well, and what better spot and views could we possibly ask for?!

Perfect picnic spot

Tara and Andrew get comfy on the lounge while Aimee catches up with Sally

Plenty of yummy food for everyone

Ladies lunching!

Paleo Choc Mint Slice thanks to Alyce… yummo!

Spoilt with a heap of At One bars thanks to Tara and Andrew! http://www.facebook.com/AtOneFoods

Sweet potato pancakes and iced Hibiscus Thyme tea thanks to Monika and fluffy moist muffins make by Janelle

Paleo picnic food galore! What a feast!

Sampling the feijoa goodies and stocking up to take plenty home

Peter and Monika having a chin wag

Twinkle Toes entertained the kids (and big kids!)

As did the horse!

What a great meetup it was 🙂

We really appreciate the support of the farmers who let us roam their properties and bug them with questions!

And of course we love seeing meetup group members coming along and benefiting from these experiences. Also a big thanks to everyone for bringing such delicious foods along… what a feast we had!

We only had a small group come along on Sunday but they were all enthusiastic and keen to learn. From the feedback afterwards they all enjoyed the event and here’s what a couple of members shared with us…

“I hd a very enjoyable Farm Tour at Sally and Peter’s Hinterland Feijoas farm last Sunday. I learnt all about Feijoas, how the grow, what they need and what they can be used for. I got to taste the fresh fruit (tree ripened) which was delicious, as well as jams and chutneys. Peter also explained to us what it means to him to be a certified organic farmer, the requirements, certification process and his dreams for the future and the future for organic farmers. Our group concluded the tour with a shared Paleo picnic and great conversation. A lovely day out in the hinterland in Belli Park. Thanks for organising Aimee and Clint 🙂” ~Andrea

“I think it was great to get out and visit a fantastic little business like this. Passion, authenticity, respect for the Earth, and dedication to a quality product – that’s an inspiring thing to see. Not only that, but it was a beautiful location, fantastic weather and lovely people to share a picnic with too!” ~Andrew of At One Foods

We’re glad the meetup was enjoyed by our members! We had a great time too!

It was a low fruit yield this year for Sally and Peter, due to the past 2 dry years. So there was no fresh fruit for sale but we were fortunate enough to grab a container of feijoa pulp which we then turned into a delicious paleo crumble using some native bush foods and a green banana flour topping!

Check out the recipe…

PLUM PINE & FEIJOA CRUMBLE

Stewed fruit:

Add 1 cup feijoa pulp to a medium saucepan with 1/2 cup plum pines halved (or swap for regular plums), 2-3 tbsp raw honey and 1/2 tsp pure vanilla (powder, paste, as long as it’s 100% pure and organic). Bring to a simmer and, stirring often, allow to cook down for about 5 mins or until plums have softened completely. Taste the mixture and add more honey if needed. Once cooked to your liking, remove from the heat and spoon into serving cups or bowls.

Crumble topping:

In a small non-stick fry pan on low heat add 1 tbsp ghee, 3 tbsp desiccated coconut, 3 tbsp green banana flour (grab Natural Evolution products here) and 2 tbsp raw honey. Stir with a spoon to combine the mixture and continue to stir, keeping it moving so it doesn’t burn. You’re looking for a golden brown colour all through the mixture, with some lumps and chunks still there for texture and crunch. Once you’re happy with it, spoon the crumble over the stewed fruit in the bowls or cups and serve!

 

The world’s first Green Banana Flour recipe e-books are now available! Click HERE

 

You could even add Paleo ice cream to the top before serving (recipe in Paleo Kitchen Creations e-book here).. YUM!!

Talk to the guys at Witjuti Grub Bush Foods Nursery about native foods like Plum Pine!

 

Enjoy!

And we hope to see you at a meetup soon! Check here for our upcoming Paleo Lifestyle events and register for our newsletter so you never miss a thing 🙂

Clint & Aimee

Recipe: Chocolate Orange Biscuits

Last night I was in the mood for making some recipe ideas for my green banana flour ebook, but unfortunately I’d run out of eggs and since all the recipes I wanted to attempt needed eggs… I was kind of bummed (cue sad violin music). I really felt like cooking something, so I decided to throw together a few things and ended up making a really yummy batch of choc orange biccies! And with so few ingredients… that’s a huge win in my books!!

I really felt like cooking something, so I decided to throw together a few things and ended up making a really yummy batch of choc orange biccies! And with so few ingredients… that’s a huge win in my books!!

I didn’t use eggs, I didn’t use nuts, and what I did use was really basic stuff, so it’s a no-brainer I share this new recipe with you all!

 

CHOCOLATE ORANGE BISCUITS

You’ll need:

2 tbsp chia seed meal (chia seeds ground down well in a good blender)

2 tbsp arrowroot flour

1/4 cup organic desiccated coconut

2 tbsp coconut oil (liquified)

2 tbsp pure organic cocoa powder

1/4 cup pure coconut milk (I use Ayam)

2 tbsp honey

Fresh orange zest, or dehydrated orange peel, or orange essential oil – to your liking

Optional: 2-3 tsp cacao nibs for crunch

Note: this made 10 small biscuits, double quantities to make larger batch

Do this:

1. Pre-heat oven to 170 degrees Celcius and line a baking tray with baking paper
2. Add all ingredients (apart from cacao nibs) to the blender or food processor and blitz until well combined and there are no lumps left. I used my blender because I had pieces of dehydrated orange skin I wanted to break down and I wanted the desiccated coconut and chia meal to break down as much as possible. You could just add all ingredients to a bowl to mix together with a spoon, if not using dried out orange skin pieces, the result may not be the same but it’s up to you. The blender took very little time and did a good job, so I suggest using one for this.
3. If including cacao nibs add them into the mixture now and stir through so they stay whole and crunchy
4. Use a teaspoon to place big dollops of the gooey chocolate mixture onto the baking tray, about a tablespoon’s worth of batter for each biscuit
5. You can keep them quite close together, about 2cm apart as the mixture will only spread a little while cooking. To ensure they stay fluffy don’t press down the mixture with the back of your spoon, just dollop it onto the paper, maybe tidy up the edges a little so they’re all neat and round, then bake them as is
6. Place in the oven and bake for around 10-15 mins
7. They really don’t take long to cook and actually cool down quickly because they’re not dense at all. They’ll be ready to munch on in no time!

These are great for school lunchboxes and after-school play dates because there’s no nuts present. Yet they’re so soft and moist.. wow!

Keep in mind though that some people with digestion issues can find arrowroot and chia meal heavy on the gut, but what I like about this recipe is it uses so little of each of those ingredients and they go such a long way that if you or your little one only has a couple of these they’re pretty filling because of the good fats, and there’s little chance of then being left bloated. But always listen to your body, the same ingredients for one person (paleo or not) don’t necessarily work well for the next.

Enjoy 🙂

Aimee x

 5 Things I’m Grateful for Today:

1. Creating these yummy biccies last night!
2. The sun out today
3. Playing outdoors
4. Chocolate
5. Holding fun cooking demo’s and all the great people I meet through them

Recipe: Dreamy Creamy Triple Choc Chip Ice Blocks

It’s Summer, yay! And that, of course, means many hot days ahead, calling for cold food and drinks to cool us down.

So I have the perfect recipe for just that! And it’s a little decadent but super healthy at the same time… My Dreamy Creamy Triple Choc Chip Ice Blocks!

Sound good? Look good? Want to make them? Then here’s the recipe so you can do just that!

DREAMY CREAMY TRIPLE CHOC CHIP ICE BLOCKS

You’ll need these:

Ice blocks:

1.25 cups pure coconut milk

1/2 cup organic pure cocoa powder

1 cup organic banana, roughly chopped

1-2 tbsp raw honey

1 tbsp cacao nibs (plus extra for garnish)

Choc drizzle:

2 tbsp coconut oil

1 tbsp cacao butter

1 tbsp organic pure cocoa powder

1/2 tsp pure vanilla (powder, paste or beans)

2 tsp raw honey

(grab some of the ingredients for less than RRP in the Primal Pantry!)

Now do this:

Ice blocks:

1. Place all ingredients, apart from the cacao nibs, into a blender and blitz until you have a smooth consistency and there are no chunks of banana remaining
2. Stir in the cacao nibs
3. Pour mixture into ice block moulds (purchase from op shops, supermarkets, homewares stores etc)
4. Place in the fridge to set for a few hours

Choc drizzle:

1. Using the double boiler method melt the ingredients so there are no lumps of cacao butter remaining. The water can be simmering but doesn’t need to be at too high a temperature.
2. Once melted, remove from stove and allow mixture to cool down a little
3. Once the mixture has cooled down but is still runny, pour into zip-lock bag (cut the smallest of holes in one corner to make into a piping bag) or a proper piping bag
4. Place a large flat plate in the freezer
5. When the ice blocks have completely set remove them from their moulds and lie them down on the cold plate from the freezer (to prevent the ice blocks melting quickly) then grab the choc drizzle bag and pipe over the ice blocks however you like. Across-ways back and forth is easy and looks great. Sprinkle some cacao nibs over for garnish. The chocolate will set pretty quickly then you can serve the ice blocks!

Easy as that! I hope you enjoy these rich, creamy, chocolatey, healthy, delicious goodies over Summer 🙂

I sure enjoyed eating those 3 after I took photos! I had to.. they were melting, it was the hottest day we’d had in ages and it was a matter of life and mess! lol

To learn more paleo-friendly healthy, yummy, easy, affordable recipes feel free to contact me to organise a Private Paleo Cooking Workshop, or stay tuned on Primal E-News for upcoming cooking demo’s!

Aimee x

 

5 Things I’m Grateful For:

1. Yummy healthy Ice blocks on a hot Summer day!
2. Spending time out by a creek in the country yesterday and Clint catching 2 fish
3. Our talk at Nebo Organics tonight
4. New skills activity I learnt from Clint yesterday during our play session
5. The salt lamp in this office helping relax me as I work and study

 

Recipe: Paleo Vanilla Honey Custard

Clint is really loving my Fudgy Choc Brownies at the moment and one day while making them, recipe testing for my upcoming e-book, I decided to have another crack at making some custard to go with them.

 

My last attempt was a lumpy scrambled egg disaster so I kinda hadn’t been keen to try again since! But, I had a go, added plenty of vanilla and honey to give it a really nice flavour, and it turned out perfectly!Oh and I was a little gentler and more patient, that kinda helped!

I’ve tried it again a couple of times since, so I know it works and I’m excited to share my recipe with you guys!

 

HONEY VANILLA CUSTARD

 

You’ll need:

1 tin Ayam coconut milk (full-fat)

1-2 tbsp honey (depending on your taste)

3/4 tsp pure vanilla (I use Sunshine Vanilla black label, so good! Available here) or paste if you don’t want flecks of brown in the custard

1/2 tsp arrowroot powder

2 pastured egg yolks

 

Do this:

1. In a small-medium saucepan add the egg yolks and whisk well then set aside
2. Pour coconut milk into another small-medium saucepan and bring to a moderate heat slowly
3. Before the coconut bubbles/boils (it just needs to be warmed through), remove from the heat
4. One spoonful at a time add coconut milk to the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Add bit by bit, not too fast, otherwise the eggs might curdle
5. Eventually you can add the remainder of the coconut milk with no problems
6. Place that saucepan onto the stove, using low-moderate heat, add the honey, vanilla and arrowroot. Continue to whisk well for a few minutes until mixture thickens up a bit. Be sure to scrape the edges of saucepan properly to prevent egg cooking too much on the bottom
7. It won’t become incredibly thick, unless you add more to thicken it with like arrowroot but I find too much stays a tad grainy which isn’t pleasant. You will see the mixture thicken up though and when it’s ready, remove from heat and pour into a serving cup/jug

TIP: IF you did happen to get some lumps/curdling happening on the bottom of the saucepan simply use a strainer to remove the lumps, easy fixed!

Serve over fudgy choc brownies like I did, with some ice cream, or drizzle over a paleo cake or pudding, or just drink it cos it’s so delicious on it’s own!!

“Why the egg yolks and not the eggs?” you ask. Well mum and I both don’t often eat whites because we’ve learnt the yolk is the healthiest part and often whites cause people to have egg allergies. So as often as I can I try to make foods without whites so mum and I can both enjoy them, and when I tried custard both ways I actually preferred yolk-only anyway as it seemed to create a better consistency. You can use the whole egg if you wish, but you’d only need to use 1 for this recipe.

Enjoy 🙂

Free from: dairy/gluten/grains/nuts/soy. Contains egg and coconut

Aimee x

 

5 Things I’m Grateful for Today:

1. Sitting in t he sun outside for ages today
2. The latest Outback magazine coming in the mail today
3. All the new native raspberry seedlings that have popped up recently
4. Country music
5. Blogging!

Recipe: Easy Paleo Honey No-Soy Chicken

At our last meetup on the weekend Clint and I took along a few paleo goodies for t he picnic, and the honey soy chicken I made was a huge success.

 

Especially with my little friend Lachy who has a lot of food allergies and often can’t eat much at meetup picnics. I always try to include something he can have and this time he scoffed down the chicken, with a big smile on his cute little face. So I thought I’d better get this super easy, tasty recipe up on the blog for more people to enjoy!

 

Remember… my recipes are pretty much always really simple and easy, I’m not into overly fancy meals because often a lot of ingredients with a lot of processes involved in putting them together can  be confusing on the gut. So if you like my kinda view of cooking then you’ll like my recipes.. I hope 😉

 

HONEY NO-SOY CHICKEN

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celcius

You’ll need:

2 x free-range chicken breasts

3 tbsp coconut amino (for nightshade-free I use Matakana range available here, but otherwise use Niulife or a similar brand)

2 tbsp local raw honey

Salt and pepper to taste

Optional: crushed garlic, ginger

 
Do this:

For the time-poor folk…

1. Cut chicken into strips or cubes and place in a deep oven dish

2. Add the coconut amino, honey and salt/pepper

3. Get your hands in there and mix thoroughly so the sauce is coated evenly over the chicken

4. Place in the oven, uncovered, and set the timer for 20 minutes. Then at 20 minutes get the tongs or a large spoon and mix the chicken around so the inside raw pieces move to the outside and all chicken cooks properly

5. Place back in the oven for another 20 or so minutes or until all chicken is cooked through

6. There’ll be a lot of liquid at the end but I like using this as sauce for pouring over veggies as it can be placed in a container in the fridge and used later, or it can be simmered down on the stove right away to thicken up. Add some arrowroot to create a honey soy gravy

7. Store chicken in an airtight glass container in the fridge. It’s great served cold! If you include the liquid, you’ll find it’ll become jelly once refrigerated, yay!

Now for those with more time up their sleeves…

1. Follow steps 1-3 as above but then place in a container in the fridge for a few hours to marinate. This will infuse the flavours into the chicken more

2. Then cook and store as mentioned above

How easy is that!?!

It will go great sided with cauli rice, veggie mash or mixed into a salad
Enjoy 🙂

Aimee

 

5 Things I’n Grateful For Today:

1. A fun meetup at the Glasshouse Mountains and people enjoying my food

2. The 30 mins of magical #NakedSunTime I just got on the balcony

3. Wrestling Clint yesterday and finally getting him to the ground, woo!

4. My ‘Cowgirl’ mug cos it’s cool!

5. Country music

Paleo English Muffin recipe

Thanks kindly to Amanda McDonald for posting this recipe in our Sunshine Coast Paleo/Primal/Real Food Meetup Group Facebook Group recently!

Grab these:
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp milk of choice (pure coconut milk or almond milk, or half/half)
1 tbsp coconut flour*
½ tbsp melted grass-fed ghee or melted coconut oil*
⅛ tsp baking soda mixed with ¼ tsp Apple Cider Vinegar*
¼ tsp honey* (optional, can omit sweetener, but use full-fat canned coconut milk for milk of choice)
1 pinchsSea or Himalayan Salt*

* available in Primal Pantry

Do this:

-Melt the butter or oil in a round, glass or ceramic ramekin (can use a 3½ inch, 6 ounce ramekin).
-In a separate bowl, mix baking soda and apple cider vinegar together (it will be very fizzy and bubbly). Set aside.
-Add the remaining ingredients to the ramekin and whisk or stir with a fork briskly.
-Add the baking soda/ACV mixture to the ramekin and stir in well.
-Stir, scraping the sides until clump free, may have to stab at some stubborn clumps.
-Bake in the oven at 200°c for 12-15 minutes until the middle is firm.
-Take a knife between the bowl and muffin and slide around to loosen edges.
-When cool enough to handle, remove from bowl, and cut in half sideways.
-Toast in an oiled fry pan until lightly browned on each side (like a pancake). This is an important step, do not skip!
-Use a spatula to press the tops of muffins lightly down while pan toasting.

**Add zucchini and onion for a more savoury option or organic sultanas for a sweet version

Enjoy 🙂