Sunday, September 27, 2020

Paleo Creamy Ranch Pork Chops











Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Whole 30, & Paleo!

Ingredients: 

  • 4 large pork chops 
  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • 3 tablespoon ghee, divided 
  • 1 tablespoon garlic, minced 
  • 1 can chicken broth* 14.5 oz 
  • 1 tablespoon paleo ranch seasoning mix *
  • 1 cup coconut cream 
  • Salt and pepper,  to taste
  • 3-4 tsp arrowroot starch 


Paleo Ranch Seasoning 

1 tsp salt 

1 tsp pepper 

2 tbs parsley flakes 

1 tbs celery salt 

1 tbs garlic powder 

1 tbs onion powder 

1 tbs dill weed 

1 tbs dried chives (optional—I didn’t have any this time and it tasted fine without it) 



Directions

Season pork chops generously with salt and pepper. 

Heat large, oven safe pan over medium heat and melt 2 TBS ghee then drizzle olive oil. 

Add pork chops and cook 2-3 min each side. 

When cooked, transfer to a plate and cover to keep warm. 


Add 1 TBS ghee to pan, melt, and then add minced garlic. Cook for 1 min until fragrant. 

Add in chicken stock, 1 TBS ranch seasoning, and coconut cream. Stir and bring to a simmer. 

Mix in 2 tsp arrowroot starch with 1 TBS of cold water then stir into stock/cream mixture. Let simmer 2 min. 


If you want to thicken sauce more, add additional tsp + water mixture at a time and continuously stir until desired sauce thickness. 


Once sauce is at desired thickness, add pork chops back into pan and simmer 3-5 min. 


If pork chops are not reaching cooked temperature quickly, (145 F or above) you can add the pan to a preheated 425 F oven and cook 5-8 min. 




Serve with cauliflower rice (paleo/whole 30), regular rice (not paleo/not whole 30), and veggies. 


Enjoy! 





Friday, September 4, 2020

Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Cups







 

 

Makes ~12 Large Cups

Ingredients: 
 
1 cup PB powder, I used PB Fit
6 tbs of milk, separated I used almond milk 
2 scoop vanilla protein powder
2 tbs coconut oil 
1 1/2 cups of semi-sweet chocolate chips 

Directions: 
  
Line muffin tin with liners. I highly recommend silicone liners. 
 
Filling
  1. Mix PB powder and protein powder in a bowl. 
  2. Add in 1-2 tbs at a time of milk and mix thoroughly. Repeat until mixture becomes sticky/tacky. If you can grab it and roll it into a ball, you've added enough liquid. Over doing liquid is o.k., it will just be more messy creating the cups but equally as delicious.
Chocolate Coating
  1. Add chocolate chips and coconut oil to a bowl and melt in a microwave, 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between. You can also melt over a stove top using the double broiler method. 
  2.  Scoop 1 tbs melted chocolate into each muffin space and freeze 10 min. 
  3.  While they are freezing roll PB/protein mixture into ping-pong sized balls.--a little more than a tablespoon.
  4. When frozen, place PB/protein ball filling on top of frozen chocolate. Gently press on the ball and spread evenly over the bottom chocolate layer. I found dipping my finger in a little water helped do this easily.
  5. Scoop 1 tbs on top of filling and ensure it is covering all of it. 
  6. Freeze for at least 20 min. 
  7. Pop them out of the mold and store in the fridge or freezer. 

Enjoy!



Nutritional Info:
*Subject to change based on ingredients used. 
 
Using nestle semi-sweet chocolate chips
219 cals * 20 g carbs * 4 g fiber * 10 g fat * 11 g protein
 
Using Lily's semi-sweet chocolate chip
144 cals * 13 carbs * 11.4 g fiber *8.6 g fat * 10 g protein





Wednesday, September 2, 2020

Creamy Paleo Gnocchi, Sausage & Kale Soup







 



Makes ~8 servings
315 cals * 19.3g fat * 12.6g carb * 18.5g protein

Ingredients: 

1 lb Italian sausage, I used ground turkey but sliced would be great too! 
1 bag (12 oz) cauliflower gnocchi, I used frozen cauliflower gnocchi from Trader Joe's
1 bunch kale, washed, massaged, and shredded. 
1 cup cooked and chopped bacon, about 6 slices
1/2 yellow onion, diced
4 cups chicken broth 
1 can of full-fat coconut milk
2 tbs nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 red pepper flakes 
1 tsp garlic powder 
1/2 tsp onion powder 
1 tsp Italian seasoning 
1 tsp dried parsley flakes 
1/2 tsp paprika 
2 garlic, minced 
1 scoop  collagen peptides* optional --adds protein and a slight thickening texture
2 tbs olive oil 



Directions: 

Stove-top/Soup pot: 
  1. Heat a medium-large size pan on medium heat and add 1 tbs olive oil. Once oil is warmed, add onion and saute until translucent. Add in minced garlic and saute for 45 seconds. Add in Italian sausage and cook thoroughly. Set aside when done. 
  2. Heat a medium-large soup pot on medium heat and add 1 tbs olive oil to pan and dump frozen gnocchi in. Make sure they are spread out in a single layer and then DO NOT touch/move/flip them for 5 min. After five min, flip and let sear for another 5 min. You can move them around and sear all sides at this point, if desired.
  3. Add meat/onion mixture to the pot along with chicken broth, coconut milk, all seasonings, the nutritional yeast, and collagen peptides, if using. 
  4. Stir. 
  5. Let simmer on medium-high for 30 min. 
  6. After 30 min, add shredded and massaged kale to slow cooker 
  7. Add in cooked bacon.
  8. Simmer 15-20 min until  kale is wilted but still bright green. 
Serve and season with salt and pepper, as desired. 

Slow cooker: 
  1. Heat a medium-large size pan on medium heat and add olive oil. once warm, add onion and saute until translucent. Add in minced garlic and saute for 45 seconds or so. Add in Italian sausage and cook thoroughly. 
  2. Add meat/ onion mixture to slow cooker. 
  3. Add in chicken broth, coconut milk, all seasonings, nutritional yeast, and collagen peptides, if using. 
  4. Stir. 
  5. Cook high 3-4 hours, cook low 6-8. 
30 min before serving: 
  1. Heat medium-large sized pan over medium heat. Add 1 tbs olive oil to pan and dump frozen gnocchi in. Make sure they are spread out in a single layer and then DO NOT touch for 5 min. After five min, flip and let sear for another 5 min. You can move them around and sear all sides at this point if desired. 
  2. Add seared gnocchi to slow cooker. 
  3. Add shredded and massaged kale to slow cooker 
  4. Add in cooked bacon.
  5. Let simmer for 15-20 until kale is wilted but still bright green. 
Serve and season with salt and pepper, as desired.