Category: Paleo Diet

Ahhh … chili.

We had a few chilly days (like my play on words?) in Minnesota recently and I thought chili would be good to prepare as a precursor to autumn being right around the corner.

Never too soon to get ready as autumn is my favorite time of year.

This Paleo Beef Chili with Fresh Tomatoes has enough flavor to make you come to your senses yet not too many that you’ll lose your mind. (For those who don’t know yet, I don’t like my food too spicy so add more spice if you feel you need to.)

Here’s the simple recipe for you to try …

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chipotle powder
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• Dash of cayenne pepper
• 10 cherry tomatoes or 4 medium tomatoes, cut into small pieces
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 red pepper, chopped
• 1 yellow pepper, chopped
• Dash of Worcestershire sauce
• Salt, to taste
• Pepper, to taste

Directions

1. In a large skillet, melt the olive oil then add the onion and cook until it’s clear.
2. Add the peppers to the onion and cook until they are soft.
3. Next add the garlic and stir until everything is well combined.
4. Add the beef and cook until it’s thoroughly brown.
5. Add the spices, salt, pepper and make sure everything is well combined.
6. Allow this mixture to cook through for about 10 minutes then add the tomatoes and cook another 5 minutes.

Next, enjoy!

You can serve this atop a bed of lettuce, wrap it in lettuce leaves or enjoy it by itself.

This recipe was adapted from one I found at AllRecipes Paleo Chili.

For additional paleo recipes, click here.

This Spicy Beef recipe is spicy and sweet ~ what a treat to your palette!

I made paleo sambal oelek (a spicy chili sauce) from scratch to use in this recipe and was quite surprised how it turned out.  Kudos to the maple syrup!

The Spicy Beef is easy to make although the sambal oelek takes a tad more time but it’s worth it.

So ~ here’s the Paleo Spicy Beef recipe for your review.  I’ve included a link below to make the sambal oelek from scratch unless you want to purchase it at the market (may or may not be paleo).

Ingredients

• 1.5 large white onions, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoons fresh ginger, peeled and minced
• 1/2 tablespoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• Coarse salt and fresh ground pepper
• 1.34 pounds ground beef (approximately)
• 1 – 2 tablespoon homemade sambal oelek (depending how spicy you want it)

Directions

1. In a large skillet, saute the onions in olive oil over medium-high heat.
2. Add the garlic, ginger, coriander, cumin, and turmeric.
3. Season with salt and pepper then cook until fragrant.
4. Add the ground beef and cook through until it’s browned.
5. Stir in the paleo sambal oelek and cook through another 5-10 minutes tasting as you go along to adjust for more sambal oelek until you get the right spice flavor.

That’s pretty much it.  I served this on a bed of rice with sliced petite tomatoes and it was scrumptious!

Here’s the link for the homemade Paleo Sambal Oelek.

For additional paleo recipes, click here.

I made these burgers bite-size but if you wanted a full size burger you just need to add more meat when you grill them ~ just in time for summer grilling or even grilling them on the stovetop which is what I did.

These Paleo Spicy Grilled Lamb Burgers were truly a treat.  Even though I don’t enjoy spicy foods I put just enough red pepper flakes to give it a little “kick” without them being “too” spicy.

Let’s take a look at the recipe ~

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground lamb
• 2 tablespoons dried mint
• 2 tablespoons dried coriander
• 1 tablespoons dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried garlic or 1 teaspoon minced garlic cloves
• 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon olive oil

Directions

1. Preheat a skillet on medium heat and add the olive oil
2. Place the lamb in a large bowl then add the the mint, coriander, oregano, garlic, white wine vinegar, and maple syrup then mix everything together.
3.  Add the cumin, allspice, red pepper flakes, salt and black pepper then mix well.
4. Shape into 8 small patties (or 4 large ones).
5. Grill the burgers 5 – 10 minutes on each side, or until well done.

Pretty simple, no? I served these bite sized lamb burgers with rosemary roasted sweet potatoes and sliced tomatoes.

I’ll be putting this recipe on my “favorites list” as they really came out delicioso!

For additional Paleo recipes, click here.

This recipe was adapted from Spicy Lamb Burgers found on AllRecipes.com

This paleo Chicken Cauliflower Casserole is so simple to make that I will probably make it quite often.

I just happened to have some leftover cauliflower from when I made the Spicy Indian Cauliflower dish.  I’m always excited when I can use leftover ingredients from one dish as it cuts down on the budget. Makes sense, no?

This dish came out quite tasty. Pat, pat on my back. (I have some bragging rights, don’t I?)

Here’s the recipe for you to try ~

Ingredients

• 2 garlic cloves, diced
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• Sea Salt, dash
• 1/2 can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 1/2 cauliflower, cut into small pieces
• 4 skinless boneless chicken thighs, cleaned and cut into small bite size pieces
• 2 teaspoons olive oil

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400° Fahrenheit.
2. In a large skillet, add 1 teaspoon olive oil and when heated, add the onion and cook until it’s clear.
3. Add the garlic, basil and parsley to the onion, stir and let this cook for a minute or so.
4. Add the tomatoes and cauliflower to the onion mixture then season with salt.
5. Add the chicken pieces to the skillet mixture and stir everything together.
6. In a 9 x 13 baking pan (I used glass), cover the bottom with aluminum foil, add 1 teaspoon olive oil and use a pastry brush to coat the bottom of the foil.
7. Add the chicken mixture to the baking pan, cover this with aluminum foil then bake for approximately 40 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

That’s it!  Hope you enjoy it as much as we did.  I served this with half of a sweet potato and steamed broccoli.

Chicken Cauliflower Casserole

For additional paleo recipes, click here.

Sometimes I go to Costco (a large warehouse store) and purchase food that, unfortunately, has to bought in bulk.

I always seem to pick up a package of 6 peppers and thus this paleo Stuffed Bell Pepper recipe. My go-to book for vegetables is called 1000 Vegan Recipes which has some really great recipes. (Doesn’t the phrase Bell Pepper make you think of the limerick “Peter Piper Picked A Pack of Pickled Peppers?”)  (laughing)

I adapted the recipe, especially removing the beans, and present it to you below.

Feel free to substitute yellow or green peppers ~ as long as it’s a fairly large pepper, it should work fine for you.  Although I don’t have a preference in peppers, I realize some people do.

Ingredients

• 2 large red bell peppers
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, minced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 12 ounces mushrooms, lightly rinsed, patted dry and chopped
• 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
• 1 tablespoons dried parsley
• 1 tablespoon dried dill
• 1/4 cup dry flax meal
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

1. Cut the bell peppers in half lengthwise and remove the seeds and membranes.
2. Cook the peppers in a pot of boiling water to soften ~ about 3 to 4 minutes, then drain and set aside.
3. Preheat the oven to 375º Fahrenheit and lightly oil a 9×13 inch baking pan and set it aside.
4. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat then add the onion, cover and cook until it’s softened.
5. Add the garlic and mushrooms and cook, uncovered, for 5 additional minutes.
6. Add the walnuts, pecans, parsley, dill, half the flax meal and the chia seeds to the mushroom mixture then season with salt and pepper and let this cook through for another 5 minutes.
7. Stuff the softened pepper halves with enough of the stuffing mixture to fill the peppers then arrange the stuffing side up in the prepared baking pan.
8. Cover with foil, bake for 20 minutes then uncover, sprinkle with the remaining flax meal and continue baking until the peppers are hot ~ about 10 minutes longer.

This was truly delicious! I paired this with a Spinach Turkey Frittata  (although I substituted beef instead of turkey) and it was perfect.

Adapted from the recipe found at 1,000 Vegan Recipes, Pg. 335, to paleo-ize.

For additional paleo recipes, click here.

I’m still craving Indian food and found this nice Spicy Indian Cauliflower recipe that I had to make a few changes on to paleo-ize.

I’m not normally a fan of cauliflower but this was simply delicious. I did cut back on the cayenne from 1/2 teaspoon to 1/4 teaspoon and it still had a bite to it.

Let’s take a look at the recipe ~

Ingredients

• 1 medium head cauliflower, cut into small flowerets
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup shredded onion
• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/2 cup diced tomatoes (I used canned)
• 1 tablespoon ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne
• 1 teaspoon maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon Kosher salt

Directions

1. Steam the cauliflower until just tender, about 5 minutes, then set aside.
2. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat then add the onion, ginger and garlic and cook this through stirring occasionally until it’s soft.
3. Stir in the tomatoes, coriander, cumin, cayenne, maple syrup and salt.
4. Add the steamed cauliflower and stir until the cauliflower is coated with the spice mixture.  (Add a small bit of water if it gets too dry.)
5. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook until the cauliflower is tender, about 5 minutes.

I served this paleo Spicy Indian Cauliflower with Indian Chicken with Gravy and Grilled Zucchini.

Adapted from the recipe found in the book 1000 Vegan Recipes.

For additional paleo recipes, click here.

I could eat Indian (from India) food every day if … my husband liked it as much as I do. He’ll go to Indian restaurants with me ~ maybe once a year. I may have to declare myself single for a day and treat myself to lunch all by my lonesome just so I can eat Indian food more often.

That being said, I have found that Indian restaurants tend to serve food in little bowls that seem to cost a lot of money. So ~ sometimes it’s not cost effective to eat there.

This Paleo Indian Chicken with Gravy is scrumptious. The ginger, cumin and garam marsala spices just burst in your mouth with flavor. Yum!

Let’s take a peek at this recipe, shall we?

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons ghee (clarified butter or you can use regular butter)
• 3 chicken legs, skin removed
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 onion, minced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger root
• 1 small tomato, coarsely chopped
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon garam masala
• 1 tablespoon ground turmeric
• 1/2 serrano chile pepper, seeded and minced
• 3/4 cup water

Directions

1. Heat the oil and ghee in a large pot over medium heat.
2. Cook the cumin seeds in the oil for a couple minutes.
3. Add the onion then cook and stir until clear.
4. Stir in the garlic and ginger then cook until the onions brown.
5. Stir in the tomato, tomato paste, garam masala, turmeric, serrano pepper, and water then cook another 5 minutes.
6. Lay the chicken into the sauce and mix it with the seasonings in the pot to coat them.
7. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to low then cook until the chicken until it’s thoroughly cooked ~ approximately 40 minutes.

And that’s it! The chicken came out so moist and tender and, as I mentioned before, the flavors were delicious.

The original recipe was found at All Recipes and I paleo-ized it by changing the vegetable oil to olive oil. I also decreased the amount of chicken needed and adjusted the rest of the recipe for “just the two of us.”

I served this meal with curried sweet potatoes.

For additional paleo recipes, click here.