A Quick Word On Mayo (w/ Honey Cole Slaw Recipe)

It seems lately there has been a lot of experimenting going on in my kitchen. After a couple of different interpretations of cole slaw, this is the one that has stuck around.

I always get a lot of questions about my use of mayonnaise. In reality, mayo is really a pretty wholesome food that unfortunately just happens to have been mucked up by modernization and food production techniques. In it's most basic form, it is just eggs, oil, and vinegar. We can get along with that right? Sadly, most you see on the shelves in a jar are made with soybean oil and preservatives. Even mayos boasting about their use of olive oil are usually made with primarily soybean oil. The Spectrum brand as seen in the photo is the kind I use. It is made with 100% canola oil which, while it isn't a spectacular choice, is much better than any soybean version. As always, if you have the time and means to make it yourself, please do, but for the rest of us... the Spectrum version will do in a pinch.

Honey Cole Slaw

1 package of slaw mix*
4 heaping tblsp. mayonnaise
2 tblsp. honey
2 tblsp. apple cider vinegar
Sea salt & pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Refrigerate overnight before serving.

*I seem to prefer the tricolor slaw as seen in the picture above (green cabbage, purple cabbage, and carrots), but this should work equally well with just green cabbage or broccoli slaw.*

That's all there is to it! Try it with some steamed shrimp or grilled pork.

Sesame & Tamari Tuna

I trust you have all had as great a holiday season as I have. I am now back at Appalachian and classes are in full swing. This semester is going to be quite a busy one, but I am really looking forward to it. I'll be working with Dr. Martin Root and a group of ASU students on a semester long study that hopes to show the effects of omega-3 supplementation in conjunction with exercise on women over 55. I'll be keeping you updated as progress is made.

Now, I'd like to get on with the post. Today, I'm giving you a recipe for tuna steak I tried the other night that turned out fantastic.

Sesame & Tamari Tuna

2 6oz. tuna steaks
2 tblsp. tamari (or soy sauce)
2 tblsp. avocado oil
1 pinch of dried ground ginger
1 pinch of garlic powder
juice from 1/2 a lime
2 tblsp. sesame seeds

Marinate tuna in tamari, oil, ginger, garlic, and lime juice for 30 minutes. Pour sesame seeds onto a clean plate and begin to heat a non-stick skillet to about medium-high heat. Place tuna steaks in sesame seeds to coat one side. Place in the dry pan, sesame seed side down, for about 3 minutes and then flip. Allow an additional 3 or 4 minutes on the opposite side for rare tuna and about 6 or 7 minutes for a more well done fish.

That's it! I had mine with some stir fried vegetables (zuchini, mushrooms, and yellow onion). Don't forget that you can click the thumbnail picture for a better view.

Enjoy the recipe. I'm looking forward to a great year!

Chicken Curry & "Rice"

It seems everyone is looking for a short cut or substitutions.

What do you eat instead of bread? What do you eat in place of rice? Chips? Pasta?

I'm not really a big fan of substitutions. We've been conditioned to believe that every meal has to contain a starch of some kind or we have conniption fits. I tend to think that we need to just overhaul our current perceptions of what our dinner plate is supposed to look like.

But I do have a confession to make. Last night, I made my very first plate of "cauliflower rice." This has long been a common recipe in the world of the "paleolithic" and "primal" food movements, but one I had never really given much attention to until now. This stuff looks and feels like rice, and hardly tastes like a vegetable at all.

So how do I make it?

Wash and cut a large handful of cauliflower florets. Place them in a food processor and pulse them until they reach a grain-like consistency. Grease a nonstick skillet with avocado/walnut/coconut oil or butter and add 1 tblsp. of almond flour. Let this mixture cook on medium heat for about 3 minutes. Add in your cauliflower, stir, and continue to cook until the cauliflower becomes a bit soft (about 8-10 minutes). Then, add 1 tblsp. of water, 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon, and 1 tsp. of cumin. Continue to cook until all the water has evaporated. Stir occassionally to prevent too much browning. You won't even know it's cauliflower!

I paired this up with some chicken and shrimp that I simmered in some unsweetened coconut milk (not coconut water), paprika, and spicy curry powder. You should be able to find canned coconut milk in the Asian/Thai section of the grocery store.

What's for dinner?

I did a pair of posts about a month ago suggesting some options for breakfast and lunch. Now, here's an easy and great dinner for after a good workout or long day. In the mood for a sweet potato, but don't have an hour and a half to bake one? Try this.

Sweet Potato Fries

2 small sweet potatoes (frenched)
1 tblsp. olive oil
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp. sea salt

Preheat oven to 400F. Toss potatoes in olive oil and spices and coat evenly. Place skin side down on a aluminum baking sheet. Bake for 35 minutes. Set oven to broil for an additional 4 to 5 minutes.

Broccoli

2 C broccoli
2 tsp. butter

Set a pot of water on the stove on high and bring to a boil. Place broccoli in a colander and create a steamer by placing the colander over the pot of boiling water. Steam uncovered for about 8 minutes. Transfer broccoli to a hot pan with broccoli. Cook until butter melts and coats broccoli evenly.

Orange Dill Salmon

1 large salmon fillet (thawed from frozen)
1 tsp. sea salt.
2 tsp. dill
1 tsp. pepper
juice from 1/2 an orange
2 tblsp. olive oil

Preheat oven to 400F. Coat salmon in olive oil, spices, and orange juice. Place on a broil pan skin side down. Bake for about 25 minutes until thoroughly cooked and flaky.


That's it! Get those potatoes goiand salmon going while the oven preheats. Get them in the oven. Walk away for 20 minutes then come back and work on your broccoli. You've got a fantastic meal in about 35 minutes.

Intro to Coconut Flour

Like almond flour, coconut flour is another perfectly healthy alternative to insulin spiking wheat flours and made in a similar manner. The oil is drained from the coconut meat and the result is processed into a fine white powder. It is an extremely dry and fiber rich flour, so a little goes a long way. It is great for more dense texture.

Coconut is a food with a very high saturated fat content, but don't let this worry you. It is a very natural fat that has many benefits.

Unfortunately, coconut flour is not a direct substitute for wheat flour either. Like I said, it is very dry and requires a lot of liquid to maintain a batter consistency when baking.

So let's try it out.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

1/2 C coconut flour
6 large eggs
1/4 C honey
1/3 C applesauce (unsweetened, no preservatives)
2 tblsp. poppy seeds
zest of 1 whole lemon & juice from a 1/2
1/2 tsp. baking powder

Whisk eggs, applesauce, lemon zest, juice, baking powder, and honey. Add coconut flour and continue to mix. Fold in poppy seeds. Grease a muffin tin with coconut oil and pour in batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. You should get 6 large muffins with this recipe.

While you're here, I'd like to let you know that I've recently opened up to comment section to anyone (not just Blogger members) so feel free to leave comments, feedback, requests, etc.

Intro to Almond Flour (w/ Blueberry Muffin Recipe)

I hope this post finds you all well and I trust you've tried a recipe or two.

Let's talk for a little bit about almond flour.

You might be thinking I've got to give up muffins, cakes, ice cream, cookies, and all that other stuff that makes life so wonderful if I want to be healthy. It's just not worth it.

And you would be exactly right. I'm not telling you to give these pleasures of life up, but I am asking you to consider making them in a little bit different way than you may be used to up to this point. We know that the wheat flour in most of these items is bad for us because it is all carbohydrate, turns almost instantly to sugar, spikes our insulin, and causes all those dreaded "diseases of civilization." Right?

Enter almond flour. It's made from nothing but ground blanched almonds making it a completely natural alternative to processed wheat flour. It also has a few carbohydrates, but plenty of healthy fat to help tame insulin's response. Unfortunately, almond flour can't simply be substituted for wheat flour in each and every instance, but with a little experimenting and research, you can make just about anything. It is becoming more and more widely available and has been a staple in French baking for years. If you're local chain doesn't have it, try a health food store or online.

Here's something to start you off with (in addition to the awesome pancakes). This is a blueberry muffin recipe I took and made my own using a little guidance from elanaspantry.com.

Blueberry Muffins

2 C almond flour
3 large eggs
1/3 C applesauce (unsweetened, no preservatives, etc.)
1/2 C agave (or honey)
1/4 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 vanilla bean
1 C blueberries (frozen, unsweetened)

Whisk eggs, applesauce, salt, baking powder, and agave until uniform in consistency. Slowly add almond flour and continue to whisk. Slice vanilla bean, scrape out out the pod, and whisk that into the mixture as well. After a batter has formed, fold in blueberries with a spatula. Pour the batter into a muffin tin greased thoroughly with coconut oil. You should get 6 to 8 muffins. Place in a 350 degree oven for 25 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Curry Chicken Salad & Cobb Salad

So now you've got some ideas for breakfast. Here's some things to try for lunch. Keep in mind that both of these options are easy to pack and take with you to work or school. Remember to click the headings for photographs of the finished product!

Curry Chicken Salad

4-6oz. chicken breast, cooked
1 tblsp. mayonnaise
1 tblsp. brown mustard
1/4 C grapes, chopped
1/2 oz. walnuts, chopped
1/4 tblsp. parsley
1 tblsp. curry powder

Chop chicken breast and mix in mustard, mayo, parsley, and curry powder. Then gently mix in grapes and walnuts. Serve on half a bell pepper. Also try it as a sandwich with this fantastic bread recipe from elanaspantry.com. Pay careful attention to the products I have linked to. The mayonnaise has been selected because it is free of harmful soybean oil and the mustard contains only a few natural ingredients.

Bacon & Avocado Salad

4-6 oz. chicken breast, cooked
3 oz. mixed salad greens
1/2 oz. walnuts, chopped
1/2 avocado, diced
1 oz. pineapple, chopped
1 tblsp. red onion, chopped
1/4 C grapes, chopped
2 slices of bacon, cooked

Chop chicken breast and bacon. In a large bowl, place salad greens and top with the remaining ingredients.

Try this great homemade salad dressing (free of nasty soy oils and corn syrups) on your Bacon & Avocado salad.

Balsamic Dressing

1 C virgin olive oil
1/2 C balsamic vinegar
2 tblsp. agave nectar or honey
1 tblsp. parsley
1 tblsp. basil
2 tblsp. oregano
1 tblsp. brown mustard
pinch of sea salt and fresh ground pepper

Combine all ingredients in a medium sized mason jar and shake well.

Spicy Frittata

So you've been reading for a week or two now and are now ready to get your life on track. What can you eat? Here's a couple of recipes for breakfast. I'll be following these up with some lunch and dinner options as well. Be sure to click the headings for pictures of the finished products.

Spicy Frittata

This is what you'll need:

4 large eggs
2 slices of uncured, nitrite-free bacon
1 jalapeno pepper
1/2 red bell pepper
1/2 small avocado
1/4 C chopped white onion

First, set your oven to broil. Pan fry the bacon until almost thoroughly cooked. Remove and let cool on some paper towels. Pour out the bacon grease into a glass container to be disposed of later, but do not wipe the pan clean. We still want a little grease in our pan. Chop the red pepper, onion, and jalapenos to your liking and saute in the pan with the bacon fat. In about 5 minutes, when the vegetables begin to get a nice char, add the bacon and chopped avocado. Continue to saute for about 2 minutes. Crack and whisk eggs, then pour into the pan with the vegetables and bacon. Make sure to get the egg around and through everything. Allow the eggs to cook a bit and then transfer to the oven. Broil for about 5 minutes, or until the top is nice and brown. Top with your favorite natural, un-food-product-y salsa. (I like Jack's.) Play around with the number of eggs for your personal needs.

Primal Pancakes

This is one of my favorite breakfasts. It comes to you from Mark over at marksdailyapple.com. This is also a great introduction to almond flour (which I'll be covering more later). Now, even though these pancakes fit into the natural way of eating and are quite healthy, I'd still consider them a once a week treat rather than mixing them up every morning. Here's what you'll need:

1/2 C almond flour
2 large eggs
1 ripe banana
1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Whisk eggs in a small mixing bowl. Add almond flour and cinnamon and continue to mix. Cut the banana into manageable pieces and mash into the almond flour and egg mixture. Continue to whisk until mixture becomes a relatively uniform consistency. Grease a griddle with a bit of coconut oil and pour batter into three medium sized pancakes. When the bubbles in the middle of the pancakes begin to break, it's time to flip. Stack them up on a plate and top them with honey. You'll love them!