Udi's Blueberry Muffin Copycat Recipe

My son says, "Mommy call them better than Udi's.  No, call them better than Perkins."  After so many failed attempts I had him try, I am flattered by his eagerness.

So why the copy?  I had a reader ask me to duplicate Udi's Blueberry Muffins recently.  To tell you the truth, I NEVER ever tried Udi's Blueberry Muffins.  Truth!  Why?!?!  I already have the best blueberry muffin recipe ever right here on my blog!!!!  (laugh)....  In fact, I would have to drive an hour into town to even purchase those Udi's muffins.  But I live to serve so when our local tiny whole foods type store received in some of those muffins I squealed!  LITERALLY!!!    B~L~U~E~B~E~R~R~Y.......  Everybody in the store turned around to look at me.  I politely smiled right on through.

Upon trying the first muffin, all that sugar that I don't usually eat went right to the delight center of my brain!  So good!!  LOL..  So much sugar....  :-D.   I ate another one, hey its for the blog right? It's work!!!! I did a mini workout after to make up for it.  You guys KNOW Im on that diet right?!?!?  I literally gained 3 pounds during this experiment so back to the old diet drawing board. See how much I love my small niche of readers?  I gained 3 pounds for you guys!!!

The Udi's Blueberry Muffin texture reminds me of their white bread.  Same flour combination, proportions, measurements.  That same mostly tapioca starch type of chew balanced with the right amount of brown rice flour.  Not too much brown rice flour or it would get too dense. These muffins were not dense, but rather chewy and sort of light.  No light like their bagels are, where you can imagine them floating off your counter.

I dove right into the ingredient breakdown and trial baking.  At the store, I picked up the large package of blueberries, something told me I was going to need it.  Oh about 7 way too crumbly muffin batches later (where the muffin literally sucked the moisture right out of your mouth).... I finally got it right.  Moist, stays together without crumbling apart, just the right chewiness.  Is finally right and I can share it with you.

A few additional notes I wanted to mention.  Udi's uses a bit of dried blueberries.  A real true copycat would also use dried blueberries.  I THOUGHT I had dried blueberries at home.  Somebodies belly is now full of them instead.  I got to thinking.  Why the mixture of fresh and dried?  Is it to help alleviate costs of the fresh blueberries?  Is it to help ward off molding?  These muffins won't last long enough to mold, TRUST ME! LOL. I am not using dried blueberries in my muffins because I did not have any.  If you wish to do an exact copycat, go ahead and add a few tablespoons.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Oil
1/2 cup Water
3 eggs
1 teaspoon Lemon Juice
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1-1/4 cup Sugar

1 cup Tapioca Starch

3/4 cup Brown Rice Flour

1/4 cup Potato Starch
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
2 teaspoons Xanthan Gum

1 generous Cup Blueberries (plus a few extra for the side)
    (a few tablespoons of dried blueberries to dulicate Udi's exactly)
1 Tablespoon Sparkling Sugar for topping on each muffin



Preheat Oven to 425 degrees.
Grease Jumbo muffin tin well with butter.
     Alternatively line standard muffin tin with papers or greease muffin tin well.

• Add moist ingredients into a medium sized mixing bowl.  Mix until fully combined with a fork.
• Add dry ingredients and continue to stir until lumps are dissolved and gum pulls the batter together nicely.  Don't need to overdo it here
• Add blueberries and stir gently.
• Scoop 1/4 heaping cup into a standard sized muffin tin. Muffins cups will only be 3/4's full.  If you are using a mini muffin tin or a texas sized jump, same rule applies, 3/4's full.
• Bake muffins at:
• Jumbo at 425 for for 5 minutes then 350 for 25 minutes.
• Standard at 425 for for 5 minutes then 350 for 18 minutes.
• Mini at 350 for 12 minutes.

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Vanilla Ice Cream (paleo, gluten free)

The Elf on the Shelf on facebook told me it was National Ice Cream Day today (July 21st) so I figured I would share my newest creation.

Oh my..... this was the best vanilla ice cream I have ever made (so says my kids). The base was so good, it could have been a rock your socks vanilla pudding, which I may modify to be a pudding in the very near future.  I am having visions of making pudding up ahead of time for back to school snacks.

I am going off the beaten trail with the heavy cream and agave in this recipe. We are a coconut/almond milk using house but we do occasionally use Heavy Cream and have no issues with Dairy. I have tried replacing the heavy cream with Coconut Cream and the result is also a very nice recipe. As I stated before on my blog tho, I do not like all coconut milk in my ice cream!!  I find that all coconut cream ice creams sort of coat the tongue in an odd way that I just don't like.  Cutting it with the Almond Milk does the trick!

While I mainly use honey as my sweetener of choice, I used Agave in this ice cream because I actually ran out of Honey. Agave is what I had.  I just had to post the resulting recipe, tho, because of the raves I received from the children. My son says he prefers this recipe to the one that I use honey in because he does not like the taste of honey in an ice cream. You can't trick him, he notices it every time. Honey (in our opinion) takes on an odd taste once cooked on the stove top in items like marshmallows and ice cream that my children just do not like. We are, however, ok with it in slow low temperature items like baked goods. My recommendation for using honey in ice cream?  Honey burns very easily so the method I would recommend with a custard ice cream dish made with honey is to cook the cream, egg and arrowroot until thickened and then add honey once thickened (off of the heat).

This is the ice cream recipe I would use for special guests and holidays. Try it with the heavy cream and agave and see for yourself.

2 cups Heavy Cream (or coconut milk for paleo)
1 cup Almond Milk (unsweetened)
2 large eggs
3 tablespoons arrowroot powder
6 tablespoon Light Agave Nectar (or honey for paleo)
2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
tiny pinch of salt

• Combine the coconut cream, milk, egg, arrowroot powder, agave, vanilla and salt in a saucepan and slowly bring the mixture to a light boil.  You will just start to see bubbles erupt through the thickened mixture.
• Let mixture cool for 5 minutes, and refrigerate until cooled.
• Add to your ice cream maker and follow instructions according to your machine.

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Paleo Angel Food Cake

This Paleo Angel Food cake is not white like your Standard version because Coconut flour is slightly yellow.  If you are not a fan of Coconut Flour, don't worry.  I promise you, you won't taste it in there.  The coconut flour allows for the added protein and keeps this traditionally DRY cake very moist.  Plus, the Arrowroot is a starch which I traditionally like to stay away from while trying to loose weight.  I feel like the extra protein helps balance that a bit. It's ok, just close your eyes and taste it.  The texture is a dead ringer for the original version.  The honey gives it a slightly different flavor than the sugar would have but we just LOVED it.  It was sweet enough, it was spongey enough.  It's very addicting so be warned!!!  Top with Strawberry and Whipped Coconut Cream!!!

3/4 cup Arrowroot Powder

1/4 cup Coconut Flour

12 egg whites (about 1-1/2 cup)
1-1/2 teaspoon Cream of Tartar
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1-1/2 teaspoon Pure Vanilla
1/4 teaspoon Pure Almond Extract (optional)
1/2 cup Honey

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 

• Before you start, it's a good idea to whipe down your bowls and tube pan with a touch of vinegar on a paper towel. It will eliminate any grease, which could interfere with the egg whites' ability to rise. That's a Julia Child trick. 

• In a bowl, thoroughly combine Arrowroot, Coconut Flour. Get out your sifter and sift dry ingredients.  Set aside.

• In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until they start to foam. Add the cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, almond and vanilla extracts. Continue to beat until just about stiff peaks form. Slowly drizzle in the honey in a slow stream.

• Turn off beaters and set bowl aside. With a spatula, gently fold the dry ingredients into the egg whites, taking great care not to deflate the whites. You can not do this in the mixer, it WILL deflate your egg whites.  Folding is the only way you can mix in the dry ingredients.

• Spoon the batter into an ungreased tube pan. Slice a butter knife through the batter several times in order to get it distributed in the pan, then smooth the top. 

• Bake in a 325 degree (F) oven for an hour. Invert the pan (angel food cake pans have legs to allow this, if you are using something else, you may want to set up on something to serve as feet. (this helps to keep it from collapsing).

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No Corn Corn Dogs

As some of you may know, I have a son who is allergic to corn.  I strive to make his life as normal as possible as corn and corn syrup is in EVERYTHING!!!  Millet is what I am using to replace the corn meal in this recipe.  Millet is both yellow and gritty like corn meal is so I felt it would be a prefect replacement.  I was right!  While it does not actually TASTE like corn, I think the overall texture is the perfect replacement for corn in this dish.

The kids thought it was so good that the extra I made to keep at church for future corn dog nights disappeared before the 5:30 pm departure time.  GONE baby gone!  They loved them.  Makes me smile to see them love something so passionately.

1 Package Hebrew National Beef Franks (cut in half)
3/4 Cup Gluten Free Flour Blend (or Pamela’s Pancake/Baking Mix Gluten Free)
1/2 Cup Gluten Free Millet Flour
White Rice Flour (for coating)
1 Egg
1/2 Cup cold water

• In a medium bowl mix together flour blend or Pamela’s Baking Mix, millet, egg, and water. 
• Set  bit of white rice flour in a dish for dusting dogs with.
• Remove the franks from the package and pat dry with a paper towel.
• Take a Shish Kabob Skewer and insert it into the frank about 1/2 – 3/4 of the way, set aside and continue with the remaining franks. 
• Dip franks in white rice flour to coat completely (the batter will stick better this way). 
• In a medium sauce pan or deep fryer heat oil to 350° (about 1 – 1/2 inches for sauce pan). 
• Dip franks in the batter – it is not a perfect dip, you may need to move the frank around a little bit in a twist swirl pattern to get it all covered. Sometimes I even recruit a fork to help me.  (careful, not too too thick) You want it to cook on the inside as well as the outside. Tho this is only an issue with the oil.  The machine I linked below bakes them perfectly because you can only use as much batter that will fit in the slot.
• Add a batter dipped corn dog to each slot or appliance (minus the skewer you used to dip for the machine).  Alternatively, add three-four franks to the oil, turn often to brown all sides evenly. I take my deep fryer basket out for this job.  
• Cook each frank for a full minute or until machine light clicks as done.
• Remove corn dogs and place on a plate lined with paper towels. 
• Repeat this process until all the corn dogs have been cooked. 

I do have a deep fryer which works nicely but what I use is a Corn Dog maker similar to the one below.  My kids prefer it baked this way instead of frying.

NostalgiaProductsGroup PNB-900 (Google Affiliate Ad)

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Paleo Chocolate Cake

Do you know how you can tell if a "specialty diet" cake is good?  Take it to the superbowl party full of wheat eaters and look to see half eaten cupcakes laying around.  There were none.  Maybe they were too drunk to tell if the cupcake was good or not?  LOL.  No... Try the cupcake.  It is good.  I promise.

1/3 cup Coconut Flour
1/3 cup Almond Flour (Honeyville)
1/3 cup unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1/4 cup Arrowroot Starch
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Salt

4 Eggs
1/3 cup Honey
1/3 cup Coconut Oil, melted (or butter,softened)
2/3 cup Almond Milk
1/4 cup Sour Cream
1 tablespoon Vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

• Combine dry ingredinets and mix well. 
• Add in wet ingreidnets and fully combine.
• Add 1/3rd cup into regular sized muffin papers.
• Bake at 350 for 20 to 22 minutes.

 

 

Frosting

Modified from a recipe found at Elana's Pantry

 

1 cup Dark Chocolate chips

1/2 cup Coconut Oil

2 Tablespoons Honey

2 Tablespoons Coconut Nectar Sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/8th teaspoon Salt

 

Melt, Chill, Whip

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Easy Turkey Chili, a kid friendly recipe.

I am keeping it simple with this recipe.  This is a new twist on the Chili I traditionally make.  The addition of tomato paste and limiting the variety of spices and heat makes this a very kid friendly recipe.  My kids ate it and had good comments afterward which is a big deal in this house.  My kids are VERY picky eaters but will eat anything with Turkey in it.  So with that in mind and with help of my friend's Alison's recipe for Chipotle Turkey Chili I took my Christmas Leftovers and made it into a repurposed leftover.  You can use all leftover turkey (3 cups diced) instead of the ground meat.  Next time you find those Turkey Cutlets on sale at the supermarket you may want to give this a try.

1 pound of Ground Turkey
2 cups diced turkey meat, diced pre-cooked or leftover

1 large Onion, diced
1 jar of roasted Red Pepper strips, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon Garlic, minced

1 Tablespoon Chili Powder
1 Tablespoon Cumin
1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper

2 cans Chili Beans
14.5 ounce Can Petite Diced Tomatoes
1 6-ounce can Tomato Paste
1 cup Water

Toppping: Sour Cream

Brown ground meat in a hot skillet until no longer pink.
Add browned ground meat and remaining ingredients into a crock pot.
Cook 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low.

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Menu Plan Monday: Week of December 10th, 2012

It is all about Appetizers over at the GF Menu Swap and I have a few ideas for you too!  I have posted my ideas on my pinterest Christmas board because I was thinking of having a holiday party. Below here are a few low carb options for you.  (yes, I cross over to low carb sometimes, especially for the holidays).  

I love this idea!
Low Carb Cauliflower Pizza Bites
(using a muffin tin)

Peace, Love, and Low Carb's
Almond Parmesan Crusted Zucchini Crisps
I also love her buffalo Chicken Bites!

Roast Beef Wrapped Asparagus with Horseradish/Sour Cream Sauce
(just mix the two sauces and apply generously to beef)

And a Low Carb Angle on a Timeless Classic.....
Under The Big Oak Tree's Sweat and Tangy Meatballs (or all beef cocktail wieners)
can be converted to Low Carb with Reduced Sugar Ketchup,
a pinch of Chili Powder and Sugar Free Jelly

I am in no way ready for the holidays.  I mean gifts are all purchased, wrapping session planned for tomorrow thanks to my mother's help.  But as far as menu plan, cookies, and the fact that I was asked to do the tasting table for my son's holiday part has be feeling a bit overwhelmed.  Thank goodness for these themed menu plans to get my butt moving and planning.  LOL.  So at least I know some ideas for my holiday appetizers and I can make sure I have the ingredients on hand.  And now onto the menu plan:

Monday:

Photo and Recipe courtesy of Chef in Training

Ranch House Crock Pot Pork Chops with Parmesan Cauliflower Puree

I will modify this pork recipe to use the Paleo Creamy Mushroom Soup I have leftover still.

Tuesday:

Making the last of those Turkey Croquettes

Again, made paleo with Almond Flour bread croutons and Paleo Creamy Mushroom Soup

Wednesday:

Fried Sausages, Peppers and Onions

Thursday:

Roasted Chicken Breasts, Creamy Spinach and Broccoli

(going to enhance some Cashew Cream to make this spinach dish)

Friday:

Low Carb Pizza Night and Caesar Salad

Saturday:

Rosemary Roasted Pork Loin

Sauerkraut, Cauliflower Rice and Green Beans

Sunday:

TBD

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Extraordinary Life's Cookie Recipe Collection 2012

Cake Mix Cookies: 

For the EASY Baker

Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

Gooey Butter Cake Cookies

Soft Cake Like Sugar Cookies

Paleo/Primal Cookies: 

For the PALEO Baker

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Snickerdoodles

Made from Scratch: 

For the From Scratch Baker

Drop Cookies

Chewy Oatmeal Cookies

Peanut Butter Blossoms

Wedding Balls or Snowball Cookies

Molasses Cookies

Cookie Press Butter Cookies

Italian Almond Cookies

Cowboy Cookies

Roll Out Cookies

Roll Out Butter Cookies

Gingerbread Men Cookies

Roll Out Shortbread Cookies

Chocolate Chip Rollout Cookies

* * * * *

Thinking about getting a head start on your holiday baking?  How you store your made ahead cookies for the holiday is probably a matter of experience.  I have read a few different methods over the years.  I personally like to make the cookie dough up ahead of time and freeze until baking day .  In my opinion, a fresh baked cookie ROCKS!  I will either shape the dough into disks for roll out cookies and freeze, drop cookies onto a baking sheet, freeze and bag, or just roll dough out into a tube to slice and bake later.  Make sure to wrap your dough well.  Defrost in the refrigerator overnight.  Follow recipe according to directions for that particular cookie.

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Roll Out Butter Cookies

These are more than your ordinary roll out cookie!  The magical combination of ingredients make this buttery good with an incredible texture.  It is now my GO TO cookie for any occasion.  They keep their shape nicely.  Not too kept tho, as I have found that cookies with sharp edges are too dry.  Not these cookies!  You can both see what you cut out as well as enjoy the buttery goodness.

1 cup (2 sticks) Butter, Room Temperature
1 cup Sugar
1 Egg
1 tablespoon Vanilla
1/2 teaspoon Almond Extract
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Cream of Tartar
1 teaspoon Xanthan Gum
1-1/2 cups Brown Rice Flour (Superfine)
3/4's cup Arrowroot (or Potato Starch)
3/4's cup Tapioca Starch (also called Tapioca flour)
2 Tablespoons Vanilla Flavored Instant Pudding

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

• Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. This is an important step, don't rush it!
• Add egg, vanilla, almond extract. Mix until fully incorporated. 
• Add dry ingredients (salt, tartar, gum, flour, pudding) to a small bowl off to the side and mix well. 
• Add to wet ingredents and mix until dought JUST starts to putt together.  If you squeeze dough together with your hands, it will hold onto its shape. 
• Spilt batter into two balls. Roll out batter between two parchment papers to a 1/4's inch thickness.  alternatively I will sometimes cut my shapes out first and then chill the cookies on the sheet.
• Chill batter for 10 minutes
• Take batter out from fridge and cut into shapes.  
• Promptly put into preheated oven and bake for 10 to 12 minutes.
• Allow to rest on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Bake for 8 to 9 minutes.

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Gluten Free Copycat Stovetop Stuffing

In a hurry to meet up with my daughter for Thanksgiving Dinner at school, I created this Gluten Free version of an old favorite.  Triple or Quadruple he batch and make this dish ahead up until the last two ingredients (water and butter). Store it in your pantry to make a great quickie side dish anytime.  My daughter loved this!  I found it to be a dead ringer for the boxed stuff.

1 1/2 teaspoons Parsley
1 Chicken Flavored Bouillon powder (or Cube that has been fully crushed)
2 Tablespoons Onion Flakes
1 Tablespoon Celery Flakes
1/2 teaspoon Pepper
1/4 teaspoon Sage
1/4 teaspoon Poultry Seasoning
6 Slices of Udi's Bread of my Udi's Copycat Bread (diced small)

1/2 cup Water
2 Tablespoons Butter

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

• Place bread cubes on cookie sheet and spray with Olive Oil.
• Bake cubes for 10 minutes until just hard on outside, and slightly soft on the inside.
• Crumble bread crumbs a bit with your hands.
• At this point you can add spices and bread crumbs to a ziplock baggie to store or 
• Comine in a small Bowl for immediate cooking.
• Boil water and butter over medium heat.
• Add bread/spice mixture and stir well.
• Allow to sit covered in pan for a few minutes.

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Paleo Vanilla Cupcakes

I really enjoyed eating these cupcakes.  You know, I really do not like coconut four but I did like these.  They stayed moist until the very last cupcake a week later. I love how you use such a tiny bit of ingredients to achieve so much yield.  They kept nicely both on the counter overnight (I accidentally left them out) as well as a week uncovered in the refrigerator.  In fact, I wish I had one right now!  Aren't these cupcakes cute?  They were made to look like a spider with a dark chocolate truffle on top. My son seen it somewhere on facebook and insisted I copy it for Halloween! LOL.

1/2 Coconut Flour
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda
5 Eggs
1/2 cup Coconut Oil (or Butter)
1/2 cup Honey (or Agave Nectar)
1 Tablespoon Vanilla

Add the first three ingredients into a food processor and pulse until fully combined.
Add the next four ingredients and mix until fully combined.
Full muffin tins 3/4' of the way up.  This batter makes about a dozen cupcakes.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.


Other GREAT Paleo vanilla cupcake recipes on the web:

The Wannabe Chef makes a Vanilla Cupcake
The Silver Spatula has a nice collection of Vanilla Cupcake recipes too
Check out Comfy Belly's Very Vanilla Cupcake

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Menu Plan Monday: Week of November 5th, 2012

Hey guys, I finally lost a few pounds.

And I ate pizza all week, go figure! Hubby came home from Italy and gained 3 pounds.  I TOLD my doctor it could be done!  LOL.  Truthfully, 3 pounds is not that bad considering he "had" to eat wheat.  It's so much easier for Celiac's to go Paleo,  no way we could eat wheat, even if we had do.  :-D

It is Thanksgiving Dessert week over at the Gluten Free Menu Swap.  I am actually starting to get my mind wrapped around the idea of Thanksgiving. It needs some extra thought this year because it will be paleo.  In fact, I started a pinterest board with my ideas.  Next is to try out and make these ideas my own.  My mind wanders back to my first gluten free Thanksgiving and the challenges I experienced back then.  My biggest challenge at our first Gluten Free Thanksgiving was the pies and the stuffing.  The pies were an easy fix, I simply went to the Whole Foods market and purchased like 6 of their Gluten Free pie crusts.  They were awesome.  If you are new to either making Thanksgiving dinner or being Gluten Free, go pick up their crusts and I promise you, you won't be sorry.  Otherwise head on over to Celiac Family where she lists all the great gluten free crust ideas on the web today!  

What do we like to have for dessert on Thanksgiving?  Our preferences are an eclectic blend and I try and accommodate everyone for Thanksgiving Dinner.  What ends up happening is we have way too many pies.  My mom and son likes Coconut Cream Pie, I like Pumpkin Pie, my brother and sister like the Cranberry Walnut Pie.  Sometimes I like to add a Pumpkin Cheesecake in there too.  

Sunday:

Almond and Romano Cheese Encrusted Pork Loin Chops, Green Beans

Monday:

Green Leaf LettuceTaco Dinner Night with Guacamole
Maybe I will try to make my kids a Taco Bowl with our
Enjoy Life Tortilla's!

Tuesday:

Roasted Chicken Legs, Cauliflower Rice, Spinach

Wednesday:

Church Night
Hayride, Roasted Hotdogs and Marshmallows over Campfire
(Making Marshmallows and Graham Crackers again!)

Thursday:

Crock Pot Roast Beef, Mashed Cauliflower, Broccoli

Friday:

Low Carb Coconut Flour Pizza Curst

Saturday:

Pan Seared Strip Steak, Sauteed Mushrooms, Butternut Squash Puree

Sunday:

Roasted Pork Loin, Sauerkraut, Mashed Cauliflower

Looking for inspiration? I can help in three different ways.

1. Head on over to Orgjunkie.com and visit Laura's Menu Plan Monday.
2. Visit Heather at Celiac Family, the Gluten Free Menu Swap headquarters!
3. You can also view my past menu plans here 

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Almond and Romano Cheese Encrusted Roast Pork Loin Chops #PorkParty

So my husband and I snuck off to the city one day last week while the kids were in school.....and we had a blast! Costco Cash in hand, we set out to explore the store.  I was enchanted by their selections. It is definitely an upscale wholesale club with great prices. BUT, I was there on a mission and I refused to allow myself to be distracted too much.  TO THE MEAT CASES!    I did buy other cuts of meat besides pork as well as other items like Olive Oil and spices. For today, I am going to show you the pork loins.

See, here they are!
If you zoom in you will notice I paid $1.99 a pound at this store.

Good price right?  Plus this week Costco was offering $2.50 off!  So are you wondering what I made with my roast pork from Costco?  I sliced that massive loin up, it was way too big for our family.  First, though, I sliced 4 1-inch medallions off as chops for the recipe I am going to share with you today.

This new recipe happens to suit our Paleo Diet.  When we first started out on this diet, I was at a loss when it came to crusting items.  I had no clue what the replacement would be so I just did without.  Sure, I could do without the coating, but I did not want to!! :-).   You hear sometimes a nut crust being included on fish so I figured to take it to the next level.  This dish is heavenly.  So savory and flavorful and packed with protein. I strongly urge you to give it a try.  In fact, this dish is elegant enough to serve at a holiday party.  Have some friends over and have a party!

4 1-inch thick pork loin chops
1 egg mixed with 1 Tablespoon Water
1 1/2 cups Almond Meal
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Pepper
1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 teaspoon Onion Powder
Grated Romano Cheese (topping)
Frying Oil of choice ~ 1 inch

• Turn fry pan on medium heat to start to warm the oil.
• Prepare dishes by placing almond flour and seasonings in one dish and mixed egg/water in the other. Mix almond flour and spices to fully combine.
• Dredge pork chops in egg wash first and them fully coat with almond meal mixture.
• Place pork chops in oil and fry 4 to 5 minutes one one side.
• Flip chops over and grate some fresh Romano Cheese on top.  
• Fry an additional 4 to 5 minutes until nice and golden brown.
• Pork chops should be at least 145 degrees before taking out of pan and allowing to rest for a minute or two.
• Enjoy!

Here are some links to my families favorite pork recipes:

Alton Brown's Grilled Pork Tenderloin with a Lime Chipotle Marinade
Martha Stewart's Pork Tenderloin with Honeyed Butter
Paula Deen's Grilled Pork Tenderloin with an Orange Juice Marinade



PS ~ I am giving away a $50 Costco Cash gift card to one lucky reader.  Click HERE and enter through Rafflecopter. 

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Simple Mayonnaise Cole Slaw

We are a ridiculously simple mayonnaise type cole slaw kinda family.  SOMEBODY in our Church makes an awesome vinegar based cole slaw and some day I hope to get a hold of that recipe.  I always hated vinegar based cole slaw but that is until this church dish.  It even includes green peppers but it is sliced so thin you really wont mind.  Anyway, I digress.......at home we make this recipe.  It is so simple and always well received to the point that if its store bought the comment is, "that junk mommy bought".  LOL.  Anytime I can get kids to eat raw cabbage, is a good thing.

1/2 of a small head of cabbage, quartered and sliced very thin
1 cup of Mayonnaise (See Notes)
1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1/2 teaspoon Onion Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Pepper
1/2 teaspoon Mrs. Dash Table Blend

• Combine all ingredients in a large enough bowl and throughly coat to combine.  
• Place in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to marinade.
• Serve cold and enjoy!

Mayonnaise:

• Dukes Mayonnaise is a zero carb mayonnaise.  It is made with Soybean oil though which is NOT paleo.  
• You can quickly and easily make it Paleo by making your own Hellmans Mayonnaise with your stick blender and the cup it comes with 6 simple ingredients.  Click HERE to be directed to the recipe. 

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Paleo Pumpkin Pie Recipe

For Pumpkin Week on the Gluten Free Menu Swap I whipped up a pumpkin pie that is suitable to our new diet!  I just used my old recipe and swapped out the questionable ingredients.  My picky children especially liked the crust.  Gluten free crust is never going to be quite the same as the crusts we enjoyed as wheat eaters.  This nut crust, though, is so good in its own right.  The flakiness is being replaced by the tad crunch of the tiny nut bits.  We think it is a nice switch-off.

Crust
1 cup Raw Walnuts
1 cup Raw Pecans
1/2 cup Raw Cashews
4 Tablespoons Grass Fed Butter
1/4 teaspoon Salt

Filling
1 pie crust (above)

1 can of Pumpkin (or 2 cups fresh)
2/3's cup Granulated Coconut Sugar
2 teaspoons Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Ginger
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Cloves
1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg
1 Tablespoon Arrowroot Powder

3 eggs well beaten 

3/4 cup Almond Milk 

1 cup Coconut Milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

• Puree nuts in food processor until just about butter.
• Add butter and salt and fully combine.
• Press crust into an 8 inch pie plate.
• Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes.  Careful not to over brown.
• Take out of oven and set aside to cool while you make the filling.

Lower oven temperature to 325 degrees.

• Combine pumpkin, sugar and the next 4 ingredients in your stand mixer with whip attachment. Beat well. 
• Add in milk and eggs. Beat until combined well. 
• Pour into an 8 inch pie crust.
• Bake at 325 degrees for one hour

Other great Paleo Pumpkin Pie Recipes on the Web:

Everyday Paleo's Pumpkin Pie Video
Mark's Daily Apple Ultimate Walnut Pie Crust

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Book Review: Make It Paleo by Bill Staley and Hayley Mason

The authors of this book own the web site The Food Lovers Kitchen.  If you click on this link and recognize it as one of my previous referred to links then you are correct.  I have been featuring their recipes and linking them up in my menu plan since I went Paleo in May.  I am never disappointed in any recipe they had posted there and that is a rare find for me.  So..... (long dramatic pause).....imagine my surprise when I was selected to review this book!!!!!  *happy dance*

This is a huge book jam-packed with over 200 grain-free recipes.  I mean, it barely fit inside my mailbox!  The recipes are easy to read and easy to follow with very clear instructions.  I am not kidding you, its true!  I have certain family members who ask me to make videos because sometimes they say a recipe can confuse them. I tend to be camera shy so I keep refusing.  Anyway, I digress, I think you can read this book and understand clearly how to prepare the dish with results as good as the photos inside.

Speaking about the Photographs inside.  They are beautiful and very telling.  Very large and colorful and true to recipe.  I also love the fact that above each recipe comes with a small story.  Not too wordy but just enough to fully appreciate the recipe and understand why it is in the book.  I am a lazy reader really and if you have too much to say before the recipe I may just not make it.  LOL.

As I worked though the book I became increasingly more impressed.  I am not pulling your leg here.  If you are not the cook book buying just-use-what-you-can-find-for-free kind, you may want to make an exception here. This is THE book you should buy first when starting off on your Paleo Adventure.  In fact, this book will most likely show up as Pollyanna gifts this Christmas :-). The book covers may food related issues.  For example, you are newly Paleo and don't know what to serve for a party?  This book solves that problem.  I love the menu suggestions page.  Each little menu is surrounded by those gorgeous pictures.  Try the dark chocolate cake for your birthday parties, it was incredible!  The chapter called "The Paleo Kitchen" is very informative. The know your cuts and seasonal produce pages are done in a very easy to understand format.  This chapter also covers oils, herbs and other key ingredients.  It even covers thickening agents which was a hot topic for me when I first went Paleo.  It is a complete and through Book with everything you need to know about your Paleo Kitchen.

So did I make anything in the book to back up these claims?  You bet-cha!  In fact, I started with the desserts.  Because we think way too much about desserts I guess.

First up, the Brownies!   The best we ever ate, in fact (no matter what diet we were on).

Second in the line up of tried desserts, the Chocolate Chip Cookies (made into a cake).  I wish you could ask the recipients at the party how much they liked it.  I just used my oiled up hands to smooth it.

Next on my hit list to make in the dessert arena is the Gingerbread cookies.

Below are the Entrees that children liked enough to try again.  HEY, this is a big deal around here.  I happen to have the worlds most picky kids.

Smoked Paprika Chicken Thighs.  I guess we love the flavor of smoked paprika around here and it is a key ingredient to our favorite dinner's spice blend (taco seasoning).  Does it remind them of tacos because of the paprika?  I don't know, but they loved it!

Herbed Chicken Skewers.  Both children loved eating their meal off of a stick!  So very primal right?  LOL.  I loved how quick and easy it was to pull together.

Lemon Garlic Roasting Chicken.  Now the name of this recipe turned me off initially since I really don't like lemon flavored foods.  Allow me to assure you that this dish is wonderfully flavorful and the lemon is just an enhancer.  In fact, my 7 year old daughter ripped off a leg to save for her lunch the next day!!!!    That sort of stuff just makes me smile.

I can go on and on with what recipes I want to try, there are just too many.  I had the book since September and completely lost tract of time.  I had to rip myself away from the book and kitchen and jump on here and give you a shout out about it so the list stops there.  I am very excited to continuing my recipe trials from this book.

My Final Words

This book is named Paleo but it really applies to everyone trying to follow a whole foods diet!

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Paleo Custard Ice Cream Base

Shall I call this Paleo?  Technically it is NOT paleo with sweetener in it.  I add sweetener for my children because......well.....lets just say that I am again imposing my ideas of childhood on them!!!  What is a childhood without sweets?  So I like to add 2 to 3 tablespoons of some kind of sweetener to any of my desserts just for my kids!  I have grown so far from tasting and enjoying sweet foods that I find the taste of sugar overpowering beyond 3 tablespoons.

First, a little history.  My daughter has radical reactions to wheat,  not only Celiac but hives like a full blown allergy. Don't even let her breath next to wheat or she will get red circles under her eyes and gut issues exactly an hour later. For the most part this does not affect ice cream.  My son, however, is the silent sufferer. He has the just-mild-enough-to-not-have-radical-reactions sort of intolerances and allergies.  He suffers with a mild gut pain that builds over time and can suffer for 2 days to a week once the issue has reached its height.  But, immediately after taking in a toxin-to-him, he is fine. His issues are intolerances to Wheat and Casein but RAST tested mildly allergic to beef, corn and shellfish as a baby.  Keeping him away from beef and shellfish were easy.  The corn, however, was not so easy.  I am afraid I did not know enough about corn and its use as a sweetener back then.  He has outgrown the beef and shellfish allergy but now his allergy to corn is worse than ever.  He would literally rather starve then to eat a corn related product and suffer.

So ice cream...... lots of it is sweetened with corn syrup!  Not to mention that its main ingredient is dairy,  LOL.  So I have been tinkering with various substitutes lately.  I want something that suits our Paleo lifestyle while addressing our various other issues.  So first I start with these recipes:

3 Vegan Almond Milk recipes using Banana from Bay Area Bites

While I adored the banana ice cream the kids were offput by the underlying banana taste.  See....I close my eyes and think of the chocolate covered bananas I enjoyed as a kid.  Maybe my kids would enjoy these recipes better once I mastered a more exact replacement for the ice creams they liked from the store.

Coconut Milk Ice Cream recipe using strictly coconut milk

I thought the high fat content of the pure coconut milk was odd.  The ice cream sort of coated the tongue sort of like a heavy cream ice cream would.  So I mixed them.  The end result I really enjoyed the texture of.  I am re-introducing the egg as a thickener because while we have to eliminate a lot of items in our house, eggs were NOT one of them.  THIS is the recipe that works for us.  Best yet, its a base.  Use it to create your own master piece!!!

1 1/2 cups Almond Milk (unflavored or home made)
1 cup of Coconut Milk (equal parts cream/milk)
3 Tablespoons of Raw Honey (or Agave which is not paleo)
3 egg Yolks

• Heat over medium low in a saucepan both milk products and honey until coconut cream and honey are both dissolved and fully incorporated. Mixture is hot but not boiling.
• Place egg yolks in a bowl and whisk.  
• While whisking, slowly add a ladle full of hot milk into egg and continue to whisk.
• Slowly add egg mixture into hot milk mixture in sauce pan, whisking constantly.
• Mixture will slightly thicken and coat the back of your spoon (about 5 minutes).  Using a candy thermometer make sure your custard reaches 160 degrees!!!
• Turn heat off and allow to cool.  A sink with cold water half way up sauce pan will quicken the process if need be.  Just make sure to stir.  
• Place covered in fridge until ready to use.  If you have a fine mesh strainer, pour mixture through it and into ice cream makers bowl.
• Operate machine according to your manufacturer's instructions.
• Enjoy!

Add vanilla bean, coco powder, nuts, fruits.....whatever suits you!! 

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Paleo Chocolate Almond Milk Ice Cream (Gluten Free, Casein Free and Corn Free)

Paleo Chocolate Banana Almond Milk ice cream that is!  That sounds like a mouth full I know.  Look at this picture.  Doesn't it look fudgy?

When I close my eyes and taste this ice cream it reminds me of the chocolate covered bananas that I used to enjoy as a child.  It also makes me wish I could eat peanut butter again. I think it is this ice cream's destiny is to be with peanut butter.  I think I may have to order some SunButter, which is the closest thing to peanutbutter I have tried, and give that a whirl though the ice cream in the end.

My hubby would tell me that trying to replace too many of our old sugary sweets is trying too hard to eat sugar.  LOL.  But.....EVERY childhood should include ice cream!  I LOVE my Gelato electric ice cream maker.  In 20 minutes from start to finish we could be enjoying ice cream any time we like. It is almost easier and cheaper to just toss the ingredients together rather than run out to the store (which is not so close in my neck of the woods).

There are only 4 simple ingredients, why don't you give it a whirl?  Go ahead and make it your own by changing it up!  Add almond chunks, whirl in sunbutter, heck even toss in some dark chocolate shavings!!!  You won't be sorry!

1-1/2 cups Almond Milk
2 (or 3) Tablespoon Raw Honey
2 Tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1 large Ripe Banana, pureed until liquid

• In a saucepan over medium low heat, whisk almond milk, cocoa powder and honey until fully incorporated. 
• Place bananas into a food processor and puree until fully liquid. 
• Add Banana puree into the sauce pan with the cocoa mixture and stir to combine. 
• Place mixture in the ice cream maker and process for 20 to 30 minutes or until thick.
• Enjoy!

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