Paleo Chicken Stir Fry with Shiitake Mushrooms & Baby Bok Choy

Stir fries rarely disappoint! They are quick, tasty and have the ability to please just about everyone! Simply put, they are "feel-good meals"! Tonight, my daughter and I picked out our favorite ingredient and built our dinner around that. Our ingredient: shiitake mushrooms! Oh, we just love those and any excuse to add those to a dinner makes for a couple of very happy ladies! I hope this stir fry makes you happy and feel good, too!

Recipe:

4 chicken breasts, sliced in thin strips

2 T coconut oil

4 baby bok choy

1 sweet onion, sliced

1 T fresh ginger, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

18-20 shiitake mushrooms, sliced

2 T toasted sesame seeds

1/2 C coconut aminos, divided

Marinate chicken strips in 1/4 C coconut aminos (for at least 20 minutes). In a large skillet, heat 1 T coconut oil over medium/high heat. Add chicken strips to pan and quickly saute until browned. Remove from skillet, and set aside. Add another T coconut oil to skillet and saute garlic, onions and ginger. After a couple minutes, add bok choy and shiitake mushrooms. Stir continuously. Slowly add remaining coconut aminos. When bok choy is slightly tender, add chicken strips back to pan. Toss all ingredients well and add sesame seeds and serve! (IF desired, drizzle with just a tad of sesame oil and a pinch of course grey sea salt). Enjoy!

Paleo Italian Pork Chops

I was SO proud that I remembered to take out some pork chops from the freezer (totally last minute) as I was running out the door this morning, but I had absolutely NO idea what I was going to do with them when I got home! In fact, throughout the entire day, a pork chop dinner never once again crossed my mind! Woops... so when I did get home I frantically investigated the pantry and refrigerator for ideas! Based on available ingredients (and personal cravings) I came up with an Italian-style pork chop recipe and it was really GOOD! ... And proof that you can have an unplanned (scour-the-pantry-for-ideas-type-dinner) with utter delicious successfulness! As long as the meat is thawed, anything is possible. Hope you enjoy! :-)

Recipe:

6 pork chops

3 eggs, lightly beaten

~3 T olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

14.5 oz can dice tomatoes

3.8 oz can sliced ripe black olives

3/4 C chicken broth

1-1/4 C almond meal

Spices:

3 T dried parsley flakes

1 T Italian seasoning

2 tsp. dried rosemary

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. onion powder

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

1/2 tsp. paprika

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a shallow bowl, lightly beat eggs together. In a separate shallow bowl, combine almond meal and all listed spices. In a large skillet (I used a cast iron) heat olive oil over medium heat. Trim pork chops of visible fat (if desired) and dip each chop into he egg mixture, then into the almond/spice mixture (coating evenly). Place coated pork chop in the skillet and brown for about 5-7 minutes on each side (until it's nice and brown and crispy). Place pork chops in a baking dish, set aside. Add minced garlic to skillet and saute until tender (add a tad more olive oil if needed). Deglaze the sauté pan with chicken broth. Add canned tomatoes and canned black olives. Stir well and bring sauce to a low boil. Pour sauce over the pork chops and place in the oven, uncovered. Cook for about 25-30 minutes.

Salmon & Kale

Oh my Gosh... my family RAVED over this dinner and crowned me queen of the kitchen! :-D

I wore my crown proudly all evening! The truth is though... this was an easy dinner to make and really didn't involve a whole lot of talent (but we don't have to let them know that)... I like being "queen"... if only for an evening!

Recipes-

Sauteed Kale:

1 T olive oil

2 shallots, sliced

5-6 oz shiitake mushroom, whole

1 T sesame seeds

1 bunch kale, break up leaves, discard thick stems

2 T coconut aminos (non-soy seasoning sauce)

Salmon:

8-10 oz. salmon filet (serves 4)

1 T olive oil

Approximately 1 tsp. black pepper

Approximately 1 tsp. ground ginger

1 T sesame seeds

1/4 C coconut aminos

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a heavy skillet (I used a cast iron) heat olive oil. Season fish on both sides with ginger and black pepper. When olive oil is hot, quickly brown salmon... about 3-5 minutes on each side (until nicely browned). Pour coconut aminos over salmon and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Place entire skillet in oven for 10 minutes.

While salmon is baking, in another skillet, heat olive oil and saute shallots until they start to caramelize. Add shiitake mushrooms, and stir in sesame seeds and coconut aminos. Add kale and mix well. Cook until kale becomes tender. The salmon and kale should be ready about the same time! Serve together on a plate... and become queen (or king) of the kitchen! :-) Enjoy!

Paleo Jerusalem Chicken

This week I'm focusing on healing foods and recovery! I may be out of CrossFit for the week, but I'm not out of the kitchen! Sometimes when you're frustrated over things you can't control, it's beneficial to focus on things you can control, right? So it has become extremely important to me to do whatever I can to elicit healing! I'm using food (in a good way). Yep... healthy, healing-type foods packed with micro and macro nutrients and lean proteins! The typical Paleo way, personified!

Ok, so I'm not sure if tonight's dinner was as much healing for my body as it was comforting for my spirits... either way, it served its purpose!!! Road to recovery is underway! I hope you enjoy this tasty dinner! :-)

Recipe:

4 skinless boneless chicken breasts

1 C organic chicken broth

4 cloves garlic, crushed and minced

1 yellow onion, chopped

1 C white wine

1 (8 oz) package sliced mushrooms

1 (10 oz) can artichoke hearts, drained (packed in water)

1 C coconut milk

2 T fresh chopped Italian parsley

black pepper

paprika

sea salt (to taste)

2 tsp. olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place chicken in a baking dish and sprinkle with some black pepper and paprika. Bake chicken for about 20-25 minutes. While the chicken is baking, saute onion and garlic in olive oil. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. When liquid is reduced by half, add the wine, mushrooms, and artichokes. Reduce heat and cook until mushrooms are tender and sauce thickens a bit. Finally, stir in the coconut milk (this gives the sauce that creamy texture and look). Pour all the sauce over the chicken breasts, and bake, uncovered, for an additional 15 minutes! Sprinkle with fresh Italian parsley. Serve with steamed zucchini (or vegetable of choice).

Scott raved over this! Hope you enjoy, too! It was pretty simple, delicious, and definitely comforting! ...Oh and made for excellent leftovers! I'll keep you posted as to its healing properties! ;-)

Steamed Brussels with Bacon and Shallots

You don't hear this often, but the BEST part of tonight's dinner was the BRUSSELS SPROUTS!

No joke! These were delicious. I highly recommend! This will make even the doubterest of doubters a believer in the magic of brussels sprouts. I could have macked on these all night! THANK YOU ANNIE for this delicious recipe. (You don't always go to the gym just to get a great workout, sometimes you get a great recipe, too)! Brussels sprouts are in season right now and will make an excellent side dish to any recipe! Enjoy! ... The kids will like 'em too, 'cause we all know: "bacon makes everything better".

Recipe:

about 15-20 brussels sprouts, cut in half

2 shallots, sliced

3 slices bacon, chopped

1/4 C chicken broth (or water)

sea salt and pepper to taste

Saute chopped bacon in a skillet. When bacon starts to crisp, remove bacon pieces, reserving bacon fat. On medium heat, saute the shallots in the bacon fat until they start to caramelize. Add the sliced brussels with the shallots. Cook together for a couple minutes. Add the bacon pieces back to the skillet along with the chicken broth. Toss all ingredients together well and cover with a lid for about 5-7 minutes (until brussels are tender).

A tasty side for just about any dish! :-)