Scrambling to put together a sweet treat for Valentine’s Day? Well, even if you’re not, dark chocolate covered strawberries are a relatively guilt-free little indulgence for any special occasion (or dinner party!). They couldn’t be simpler to make – I hesitate to even call it a “recipe.” 🙂 Hope you like ’em!
Paleo Slow Cooker Carnitas
I swear I have been meaning to do something with a pork shoulder for six months, and I just now got around to it. Seriously. And I really shouldn’t have waited – this super simple dish couldn’t have been easier, and it was delish to boot! I love that it makes a ton of super versatile meat – you can throw it onto romaine leaves for some gluten-free tacos, toss it into a frittata, or just chow it with some fresh avocado. Check out the recipe after the jump!
Yep, that’s right! I had the awesome opportunity to do a radio interview with CrossFit Radio’s Justin Judkins about my experience with CrossFit and transitioning from a gluten-rich, processed-food-laden diet to the Paleo lifestyle. Had a blast chatting with him about my experience cooking tasty Paleo food, and I’m thrilled to have had the opportunity to spread the word. Take a listen if you have a moment! It’s a free MP3 download on the CrossFit Journal website (Episode 206).
Bonus: Also interviewed on this episode is Annie Sakamoto, basically a legend in the CrossFit community!
PS – For all my fellow CrossFit Central clients & coaches… the article’s currently got me listed as a Dallas Central client, but it should be fixed shortly. 🙂
So, I was perusing my mounds of cooking magazines a few weeks ago and ran across this beauty. (BTW, I may have a problem… So. Many. Magazines.) It’s gorgeous, impressive, wonderfully Paleo, and more than a little intimidating. For several weeks, it stayed at the back of my mind – I figured I’d wait for a dinner party or even Thanksgiving to try it out, but on Friday Central Market was running a special on pork tenderloins, so I figured I’d give it a try. All by myself.
What I didn’t realize when I bought all the supplies (rookie mistake = not THOROUGHLY reading the instructions before shopping), is that I would actually need to do a little butchery to make this happen. As it turns out, it was a lot easier than I thought… I’m toying with the idea of a video instructional – anyone interested?
I didn’t really alter the recipe at all – it’s pretty stinking amazing to start with, so check it out on BonAppetit.com:
So, here’s a little photo account of the preparation. I’ll say up front that I really liked how this dish turned out… It’s a teensy bit complicated, but the flavors are lovely and you can’t beat the presentation. You can even make it a day ahead and then roast just before your dinner… perfect!
Let’s dig in… I’m a huge proponent of the mise en place style of cooking (French for “everything in place”). Especially with a dish with lots of components, I find it super helpful to get all my ingredients prepped and separated into individual containers. This can also help avoid any surprises mid-recipe when you realized that you totally forgot to buy mushrooms. Here’s my mise en place setup for this recipe:
Team Tryptophan Chowing Down
Another crazy week down! Last Tuesday, I had the pleasure of hosting some fellow CrossFitters from CrossFit Central at the house for a Paleo potluck dinner… we’re all on the same Lean Turkey Challenge team (Team Tryptophan!), and we’ve been focused on amping up our workouts and dialing in nutrition leading up to the holiday season. It’s been a great experience so far – met some cool new folks, trained with some awesome coaches, and I’ve even whittled the waist down just a bit over the past five weeks. We had seven folks join in the fun on Tuesday, and everyone brought a yummy Paleo dish to share – woohoo! Here’s what we had:
The food was absolutely delish, and I’m totally snagging the recipes… yum! I made a few things as well: oven-roasted chicken legs and thighs, spicy roasted pecans with cinnamon (which, by the way, I could NOT. STOP. EATING.), roasted sweet potatoes with apples, proscuitto-wrapped figs, and flourless chocolate cake bites. We had a great time hanging out and sharing our CrossFit/Paleo stories – looking forward to the big end-of-challenge competition on Saturday… bring it on!! Go Team Tryptophan!
Jess and Kristin getting things going...
Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Apples
I’m back! Whew! So sorry for the lag in posting – it’s been a crazy month, and we’ve either been out of town or had house guests the last four weekends in a row. Tons of fun, but it didn’t leave a lot of time for experimenting in the kitchen. Finally got some downtime with the hubs yesterday, and it really was a fantastic day – woke up to the rain (Rain? In Austin? Seriously??), went for a nice, easy Sunday run, practiced my double-unders & handstands, ate a delish bun-less burger at Hopdoddy (I tried the Llano Poblano – yum!), and then rounded things out with Halloween costume shopping on South Congress (going to rock it this year!). Just lovely. We capped off the day by cooking dinner together and then watching John Carpenter’s The Thing (the original)… really a fantastic film, and despite being made in the early 80’s, it totally stands up today.
So, back to the food! We made a couple of new dishes yesterday – all the recipes are coming shortly! Let’s start with my favorite of the newbies: Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Apples. Both P.J. and I agreed that this one just tasted like Fall and would be a really great Paleo Thanksgiving side option. Hope you like ’em! Check out the recipe after the jump…
Roasted Prosciutto-Wrapped Figs
I have a confession to make. I had never purchased a fig before this weekend. In fact, I didn’t even know what a fig looked like. (Whew! Thanks for letting me get that off my chest…)
So, how did I end up making this app over the weekend for our Paleo Dinner Party? Honestly? I scoured my loads of cookbooks (Ina Garten! Bobby Flay!) to find something that sounded fancy but that would be easy to make as well. Since I’m a huge fan of cured pork AND this fabulous Ina Garten recipe (from her book, “Barefoot Contessa, How Easy Is That?”) sounded sufficiently fancy, I figured I’d give it a try. This recipe is so stinking simple, there’s not much to change! Here’s what I made:
The Table Setting: Fun Linens, Tealights, and White Hydrangea Blooms in Short Water Glasses
I LOVE a good dinner party. Seriously. I honestly can’t imagine what I enjoy more on a weekend night than having friends in our home, eating food we’ve prepared, drinking good wine, and having a great time. Pre-Paleo, this was a pretty regular occurrence: whether it was hors d’oeuvres for 30 for my husband’s birthday or an intimate multi-course meal, I reveled in cooking for others. (We’ll just ignore the fact that my typical menus included bread-and-cheese trays, fried risotto balls, Italian pasta with cream sauce, and loads of gluten-rich baked goods. No one needs to know… it’s our little secret.)
In fact, one of my original reasons for resisting the change to a Paleo lifestyle was that I wasn’t sure I could still create delicious, gourmet food that was both Paleo and appetizing to our guests. I couldn’t have been more off-base! The Paleo lifestyle has such an incredible range of possibilities for creating incredible food, and I’m beyond excited to keep experimenting.
Bacon-Wrapped Mini Paleo Meatloaf
I grew up loving my mom’s meatloaf. Really! I have no problem with the idea of multiple ground meats mixed together with some veggies and tomato sauce and baked to perfection. The only way I can see making it better is to cut the gluten and add bacon (words for life, eh?). Most recently I tried the Seriously Tasty Paleo Meatloaf over at Health-Bent.com – loved it and wanted to make it my own.
So, here is my take on some fun mini-meatloafs that would be great for a casual get-together or family meal… and everyone gets their own! I’ve opted to include veggies directly in the loaf in this recipe, but if you’ve got persnickety young ones, it tastes great without ’em, too.
Me and my wonderful hubby, P.J. Life is good.
Hey out there… my name is Nicole Tanzillo, and I’m a foodie. For as long as I can remember, I’ve loved cooking, baking, and most importantly, eating. My tastes varied from the simple pleasure of (gasp!) Kraft Deluxe macaroni and cheese to the more sophisticated experience of truly amazing sushi to the caffeinated joy of a crisp, cold Diet Coke. I’ve always enjoyed cooking and baking, and I even had my own successful cake design business for a few years (Wicked Cakes). I regularly cooked five course meals filled with pasta, cheese, and carbs, and I loved hosting a good dinner party.
What did all this get me?
30 extra pounds of fat on my frame, constant heartburn, sleeping problems, and chronic allergies. Despite the fact that I was a pretty regular runner, I just wasn’t able to keep up with the excessive consumption, and my health was suffering. While I was content to live this lifestyle in my 20’s, I could see that this was not a sustainable lifestyle. I recognized that this was not the kind of mother I wanted to be, and that I was limiting my own potential and happiness across all facets of my life.
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