Paleo Bars/Granola

2 C.         Almond Flour/Meal

½ C.        Raw Pepitas (Trader Joes or www.nutsonline.com)

½ C.        Raw Sunflower Seeds

½ C.        Dried Fruit of Choice

½ C.        Flaked unsweetened Coconut

¼ C.        Coconut Oil, Melted

¼ C.        Honey

1 TBS.    Organic Vanilla Extract

½ tsp.    Cinnamon (or to taste)

Heat oven to 350

In a large bowl mix the almond flour, nuts, fruit and coconut until combined.  In a small bowl mix the wet ingredients and then add to the almond flour mixture.  With your hands mix until all the flour is moist.   At this point you can go 2 ways with the mixture: 

If you want granola, spread the mixture evenly on a foil or parchment lined baking sheet.  Bake for 15 minutes (or until golden brown) stirring around 2 or 3 times.  Make sure you rack is in the upper portion of the oven, the almond flour tends to burn easily.  Store in an airtight container.

If you want bars press the mixture (making sure to keep the mixture even, you want it to fill most of the cookie sheet so it should be about ¼” thick) onto the lined baking sheet and cook for 15-18 minutes.  Once cooled, you can break into chunks or cut with a knife into nice bars.  Store in a Ziploc bag.

Recipe by Terra Sittner

Beef Jerky

So here is the much anticipated Beef Jerky recipe. This is a great take-along, tide-you-over-till-your-next-meal kind of a snack. It's super easy, and if you have a plug-in wall timer, you can set it the night before and wake up to a fresh batch that's ready to go!











Ingredients
■2.5 lbs London Broil, Flank Steak , or any really lean cut of beef. (grass-fed is best, but not necessary)
■2/3 cup Organic Tamari (or Coconut Aminos)
■1/3 cup hot water
■1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
■1 Tablespoon Liquid smoke
■1 Tablespoon Garlic powder
■1 Tablespoon Onion powder
■1/2 Tablespoon Cayenne powder
■2 Tablespoons Red pepper flakes (set aside)



















Here's how I do it:
To slice the meat, I use a mandolin set to about medium thickness (about the size of thick sliced bacon). If you don't have a mandolin, hand slicing works, too, it just takes a little longer. Tip: put your meat in the freezer for about an hour to an hour and a half before slicing; this firms it up and makes it much easier to work with. :)

Slice all the meat and put it aside in a container. I use glass Snapwear containers



Stick it in the fridge for at least 6 hours, overnight is best. You don't have to, but whenever I open the fridge I give it a good shake or two.

When it's time to dehydrate, I take the meat out of the fridge, and place it in a colander. Using hot water, rinse the meat. Now it's time to start laying the meat on the trays. Be sure the meat doesn't overlap or it won't dry properly.

After you finish each tray, sprinkle some red pepper flakes over the meat. How much you put on depends on how spicy you like it. For my dehydrator, I set it to 160 degrees Fahrenheit for about four hours. You will want to check your own macine to make sure it's set for the correct time and temp.

The jerky is done when the outside cracks when you bend it. I had to do a few batches before I really got a feel for this, and you probably will, too. Fortunately, even the batches I over-cooked and under-cooked ended up yummy.

When its done, let the jerky cool to room temperature. Then, when I'm ready to store it, I put the jerky in a gallon size zip lock bag with a paper towel in it (to absorb any excess moisture) and stick it in the fridge.

That's it :) I hope you enjoy this delicious snack as much as we do!













In a microwave safe bowl, mix all the other ingredients together, except the red pepper flakes. Then, pop it in the microwave for about a minute. Next pour the warmed mixture over your meat, being sure to coat all the pieces. This is where the Snapwear comes in handy, just click the lid on and give it a good couple of shakes.

Asparagus Basil Salad

This super healthy Asparagus Basil Salad is a not just nutritious, it's a treat for the palate. Trust me, it's delectable, especially right now using wonderfully ripe vegetables at peak season. I found this recipe in Sunset Magazine. Actually, I didn't find it, our family friend Mrs. Rose found it and made it for Mr. Rose's 75th birthday, a fabulous little gathering that the boys and I attended when we were in Davis, California visiting my folks a couple of weeks ago.

For those of you that commented on my last post, The Gluten Free Diet, about family and friends that don't understand, accommodate or respect your dietary restrictions (or eating plan, as I prefer to say) Mrs. Rose made tons of gluten free food for us! And so, a yummy dinner was enjoyed by all.

However, IMHO, it really is up to us to maintain our boundaries and not eat food that makes us feel awful, just to spare someone else's feelings. I would rather hurt their feelings than hurt my body; has anybody else been in a situation like that?

In any event, here's a yummy salad that pretty much anyone can enjoy. If you don't do nightshades, it's still delicious without the tomatoes!

Asparagus Basil Saladprinter friendly
1 lb asparagus, trimmed and halved
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
1 ripe avocado, cut into cubes
1 cup sliced basil leaves
¼ cup olive oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
½ teaspoon celtic sea salt
½ teaspoon pepper

1.Steam asparagus for 5-7 minutes until fork tender
2.Place asparagus, tomatoes, avocado and basil in a large bowl
3.Stir in olive oil, lemon juice and mustard
4.Sprinkle with salt and pepper
5.Serve
I actually made a huge batch of this last weekend and ate it for breakfast and then had the rest for dinner with Turkey Burgers from my book, The Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook.

I am LOVING Mark Sisson's book The Primal Blueprint, the guy is a genius. And I am waiting for his next book to come out, which is the called, The Primal Blueprint Cookbook. If you haven't had a chance to look at Mark's site, marksdailyapple.com, head on over there and check it out. It is primal galore.

Bacon Wrapped Sweet Potato Fries with Chipotle Lime Dip

This was inspired by a dish we had during a recent trip to Charlotte, NC. When we look for new places to eat we typically use Urban Spoon and read reviews–that’s how we found this place. I have to say, we were pretty disappointed. It was one of those places where the menu read better than the food actually was. One example: mussels steamed in beer with herbs and what-not. Thought it sounded interesting, it wasn’t, pretty gross, actually. We did have one thing, though not very good, we thought we could improve upon–bacon wrapped tater tots. So here you have it, our version:




Bacon Wrapped Sweet Potato Fries with Chipotle Lime Dip
Ingredients
◦2 sweet potatoes, cut into thick matchsticks*
◦1 package bacon, don’t use thick cut
◦1/2 c mayo, using avocado oil
◦1-2 chipotles in adobo sauce
◦1 lime, juiced
Method
Get your oven to 425°F. Soak the sweet potato matchsticks in a bowl of cold water for up to 6 hours. This removes a lot of the starch from the potato. When you remove the potatoes, you can visibly see white starch granules at the bottom of the bowl. Drain the water from the potatoes and pat dry.

Slice each piece of bacon in half, lengthwise. Wrap 1 strip of bacon around 1 matchstick sweet potato. Lay on a baking sheet. Repeat until all the bacon is gone. If you have left over sweet potatoes, toss ‘em on the pan too, they’ll cook beautifully in all the rendered bacon fat.

For the Dip
In a food processor, pulse up the chipotle(s) and lime juice into the mayo.

Bake the fries for about 25 minutes on one side. You’re looking for browned bacon. Use some tongs to flip the fries over and bake for another 10-12 minutes, until browned.

Squeeze some lime juice on the fries. Serve hot and with the dip.



*You want a thick cut (not thin!) and keep the skin on. Here’s a rough how-to:





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