Kale Pine Nut Tart

Here is the other recipe that ya'll wanted!  This was absolutely delicious!

Ingredients for the Crust:
1 1/2 cups of almond four
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 TBS dried rosemary
2 scallions
1/4 cup grapeseed oil (you can substitute a different fat)
1 TBS water

Instructions for Crust: 

• In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, rosemary, scallions
• In a smaller bowl, whisk oil and water 
• Stir in wet ingredients into the almond flour mixture until thoroughly combined. 
• Press the dough into a 9 inch tart pan. 
• Bake for 15-20 minutes at 350. 
• Remove from oven and let cool completely before filling. 

Ingredients for Filling: 
3 cups of chopped kale
1 small shallot
1/2 tsp sea salt
4 large eggs, whisked
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup pine nuts

Instructions for Filling: 

• In a large pot with a steamer basket, wilt the kale over medium heat for 2-3 minutes until bright green. 
• Place the kale, shallot, and salt in a food processor and pulse. 
• Transfer kale mixture to a bowl and stir in eggs, cranberries, and pine nuts. 
• Pour the mixture into the crust. 
• Bake for 15-20 minutes until browned around the edges and cooked through. 
• Let the tart cool for 30 minutes and then serve. 

Salmon Frittata

Here is another favorite and quick meal!  This is one of the dishes that I made for my students.  Really, in the morning before class, I made two batches of this, the kale salad, and the apple cherry crumble.  All of those were super fast to whip up and stick in the oven while you shower or do other things.  The timer on the oven is my best friend!

So here it is:

Ingredients:
1 can of pink salmon
5 large eggs
2 small tomatoes
2 TBS fresh chives
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup coconut milk
2 TBS coconut flour
coconut oil for the pan (I usually use coconut oil spray).

Instructions: 
So simple!!!
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Chop tomatoes and chives.
3. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients (except coconut oil of course) and mix. 
4. Prepare a 9 x 9 baking dish by coating with coconut oil
5. Pour into the baking dish and bake for about 20-25 minutes until it is firm in the center.

Kale Avocado Salad

I can't believe I've never shared this recipe before! This has become a family favorite, usually present at all of our family functions.  It's also such a quick and easy salad to prepare when you are pressured for time.  I'm sorry I don't have pictures! 

Ingredients:
1 bunch of kale, sliced into strips (or 1 bag of kale pre-cut like they sell at Trader Joe's).  I also find that Lacinato kale works great for this recipe - but any kale is fine.
2 TBS olive oil
1 TBS lime juice
1 ripe avocado
1/2 tsp black peper
salt to taste

Instructions:

• In a large bowl,  combine kale, live oil, and lime juice.  Use your hands to massage the ingredients together. 
• Add the avocado into the salad with your hands until it's mashed and the kale is tender.  
• Add in the pepper and salt.  Toss to combine. 
• Serve!

Red Velvet Paleo Brownies

Hi there!

Because we eat so many vegetables at home, I often buy them in bulk at Costco.  During one of my last trips to Costco, I decided to buy beets in bulk.  Now, there's not much I had done with beets except juicing because they are awesome for recovery after intense runs.  So, beet juice is part of my pre-race ritual.  Anyway, so now that I found myself with way too many beets, what was I going to do with them.  I made salads, smoothies, ate them just as a side cooked with spices, made a paleoified version of Ukranian borscht.  So, the only thing I hadn't done, was make brownies!!!!My husband said, no way!  I don't like anything sweet with beets, I won't eat it!  Well, guess what, he's eaten half the batch of brownies and I just made them last night!  He also made sure there was no more batter left in the food processor container - scraped off every bit he could!  These really are fantastic! So here's what I did:

Ingredients:
1 bag of Lily's stevia sweetened chocolate chips
(you can also use Enjoy Life Dark Chocolate Chips or Chunks)
about 1/2 cup of coconut oil or butter (100g - I weighed it)
about 4-5 small cooked beets (Total 1 2/3 cup)
3 eggs
1/2 cups of coconut sugar
1 1/2 cup of almond flour
2 TBS cocoa powder
1 TBS vanilla extract
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp red chili powder
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts for garnish on the top

Instructions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2) Prepare a 9 x 9 square baking pan with a sheet of parchment paper and spray with coconut oil.
3) Heat the chocolate chips and coconut oil in a pan over low heat until it melts.
4) Place beets in food processor and process to a puree.
5) Add the melted chocolate and coconut oil, vanilla, eggs, and blend again.
6) Add the sugar and almond flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, chili powder and process again until you have a smooth batter.
7) Pour into the prepared baking pan, sprinkle the walnuts on top, and bake for about 30 minutes.  I then turned the oven down to 325 and baked for another 15 minutes.  The middle took longer to bake and I didn't want to burn the edges. When you test to see if they are done, you will get a little bounciness when you touch the top like you might expect, but when you put something in the middle to test, it will come out a little gooey.  Don't worry, when it cools, it will become firm, but these are sooo moist!

Now these are just estimates at this point because I didn't measure exactly and it was the first time I made these. However, because several people requested the recipe, I am posting it here even though it's still experimental.  I will make them again this weekend and update the recipe if needed.

These made an excellent pre and post workout snack! 

Enjoy!!!