Tag Archive: gluten-free

Ding-dong! The beans are gone! (A paleo chili recipe)

January 27, 2012 | Tags: , , , , , , , ,
When I first learned about chili, I thought I had found the gateway meal that would lead me to the world of legumes.

From as far back as I can remember, I always had a problem with beans of most kind. I have tales from kindergarten about the chick pea situation in one of the soup they served weekly and how I had to negotiate a tolerable ratio for my bowl with the cook – the agreement was a single chick pea per bowl, but I had to actually eat it in front of an educator… it was an event every week -_-

Turned out I find legumes as undesirable in chili than in soup. Yet I like chili – how comforting it is in winter, how the spiciness helps with congestion, how it is full of flavor and how deep and complex this flavor can be. And just the process of making chili… it’s a bit like brewing a potion. I was therefore really glad when I heard Dr Sheldon Cooper say that real chili does not contain beans. AH!

In its bean-less form, chili happens to be a fantastic paleo meal that can be prepared in advanced and stored for these lazy days when you feel just like ordering pizza.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1 lb beef (chuck, tenderloin) in small cubes (I don’t know much about meat cut… I just bought cubed beef for braising, and re-cubed them smaller)
  • 1 tsp ancho chili powder
  • 1 tsp chili peppers flakes
  • 1 tbsp cumin seed
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 2 cups onions, chopped
  • 1/2 cup beef stock
  • 2 cans (28 ounces) of crushed tomatoes (or 1 can crushed, 1 can whole or diced tomatoes… I just prefer the texture of all crushed tomatoes)
  • 4 tbsp tomato paste
  • 3 bell peppers, chopped
Note - The original recipe suggested the use of dried ancho and chili peppers. I couldn’t find any, so I substituted for the powder and flakes. If you can put your hand on some, the recipe called for 2 dried ancho chili and 2 dried red chili pepper, that you need to soak in hot water for 30 minutes. Just sayin’.

Instructions

In a large pot over high heat, add half of the oil (1/4 cup). When the oil is hot, add cubed meat and brown on all sides. Remove browned cubes from the pot and set aside.

Combine remaining olive oil (1/4 cup), ancho chili powder, chili peppers flakes, cumin seeds, garlic powder, cayenne pepper and chipotle peppers in blender or food processor and blend about 30 seconds, until it looks like a paste.

Return your large pot to medium heat and cook ground meat until it’s nicely browned.

Add onions and seasoning paste to the beef and cook until the onions are slightly translucent.

Add the beef stock, bring to a simmer and cook until stock is slightly reduced.

Add in the canned tomatoes, tomato paste, chopped pepper and browned cubed meat.

Stir all ingredients and simmer for about 2 hours.

Eat what you can and store the rest!

Note - A chili recipe is always a work in progress. Next time, I will experiment with adding a bit of salt to it, as well as using whole canned tomatoes that I crush myself in the blender – I find that crushed tomatoes can be very sweet.

Adapted from the book Paleo Comfort Foods by Julie & Charles Mayfield.

6 Comments - Leave a comment!

Nuts for cookies: paleo cookie recipe

January 17, 2012 | Tags: , , , , ,
As one of the first 30 days challenges I intend to take in 2012, I decided to eat paleo for the entire month of January. My biggest difficulty was to find a little sweet something to replace my usual very sugary desserts and cravings. These entirely fruit-sweetened cookies are my saviours!

I know that to achieve weigh loss, it is best to limit the consumption of fruits and cookies – even if they’re very clean and paleo. However, I find it best to go slowly when attempting to make permanent beneficial lifestyle changes. Cutting all refined sugar was a big step for me, so for now I’m not restraining myself too much with these cookies. After 2 weeks though, I can already say that my urge for sugar – natural or refined – as dropped considerably. Usually, when I attempt that kind of experiment, I tend to dream about cake and ice cream, but this time I feel surprisingly clear-headed and sane and I have no fantasy about giant dancing anthropomorphic chocolate truffles. Yay!

These paleo cookies are made with coconut or almond flour, which pack them with nutrients, but also make them really, really filling. I’m pretty sure the elves used nut flours for their lembas bread…

Ingredients

  • 2 bananas
  • 3/4 cup almond butter
  • 1 tbsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/3 cup raw walnuts
  • 1 apple, peeled
  • 1/3 cup coconut milk
  • 1/3 cup coconut flour
Can’t find coconut flour? This recipe can be made with almond flour (or almond meal), which I think is a bit easier to find in grocery stores. Keep the same measurement, but skip the coconut milk. Coconut flour soak liquids like crazy, this is why it is often necessary to add coconut milk to it to adjust the texture. Cookies made with almond flour will have a different taste, texture and nutrients, but they will be just as good! I tried it!

Instructions

Preheat the oven at 350°F.

In a mixing bowl, mash the banana with a fork to purée consistency.

Add the almond butter, the cinnamon, and the baking soda and mix well.

Put the apple, the walnut and the milk in a blender, and chop to oatmeal consistency.

Add the mixture to the mixing bowl.

Incorporate the coconut flour and mix well.

Cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper – these tend to stick a bit more than cookies made with huge amount of butter.

With your hand or a spoon, place cookie dough on the baking sheet. Give them roughly the shape you want them to be, because they won’t budge in the oven. What you see there is what you’ll get.

Bake for 25  minutes.

Makes about 16 cookies. Or more. Or less. Depending on the size, you know.

These should be stored in the fridge and make an awesome breakfast, collation or dessert!

Use whatever food processor you have to get to a similar consistency. I only have a blender, so the coconut milk really help. Adapt accordingly to your tools…

You do not want a complete purée. Small bits give texture to the cookie. In a good way.

If you used almond flour, your mix will be more liquid. That’s why it’s not necessary to add the coconut milk.

I have found that both the coconut flour and almond flour version do not spread much in the oven, contrary to other cookies mix. Keep in mind when shaping your dough!

Adapted from Everyday Paleo, an awesome resources for… you guessed it… paleo recipes.

2 Comments - Leave a comment!