Paleo Chicken Salad in Avocado Cups

I was very excited to make these after I saw the recipe online! As always the original recipe was altered to fit what we like.

Ingredients:

1 lbs of Chicken Breasts
2 Large Avocados
1 Quart Chicken Broth
2 Roasted Bell Peppers
1/2 Bunch of Asparagus
1/2 Red Onion, chopped
4 Bay Leaves
2 Cloves Garlic, finely chopped
Walnuts
1/4 C basil, chopped
1/4 C parsley, chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste


Mustard Herb Dressing:

1/3 C Parsley
1/3 C Basil
2 T Apple Cider Vinegar
1 T Gluten Free Dijon Mustard
1/4 C Extra Virgin Oil
1 t Minced Garlic
1/4 t Salt
Ground Pepper to Taste

Directions:

*To Roast Bell Peppers:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with coconut oil, set aside.  Cut the peppers in half and clean out the seeds and innards. Place them on a baking sheet skin side up.  Bake peppers for 15 to 20 minutes. Once the skins are brownish-black, remove from the oven and immediately place the peppers in a large ziploc bag. Close and let sit for 20 minutes or so (or until the peppers have time to cool and “sweat”). Once they have cooled you will be able to peel the skins right off. 

**To roast asparagus, toss asaragus in a little olive oil and season with a little salt and pepper.  Roast in the 450 degree oven for 5-10 minutes, depending on size of asparagus, while bell peppers roast.  Remove and allow to cool before cutting into small pieces.

For Chicken Salad:

Put the bay leaves and the chicken broth in a large pot with a lid and bring stock to a simmer.  Add the chicken breasts to the pot.  Return the broth to a simmer.  Cover the pot.  Turn off the heat.  Let the chicken steep in the stock for 30 minutes to an hour.

While the chicken is cooking, chop the other ingredients – garlic, almonds, onion, asparagus, basil, parsley, roasted bell peppers – and add to a large bowl.  Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.

When the chicken breasts are cooked, remove them from the broth and let them cool.  When they are cool enough to handle, shred the chicken breasts into bite-size pieces by hand.  Mix the chicken pieces in with the rest of the ingredients.

To Make Dressing:

In the bowl of a food processor combine parsley, basil, apple cider vinegar, mustard, garlic, and salt.  While food processor is running slowly add olive oil in a small drizzle.  You may have to stop the food processor to scrape the sides.  You want the mixture to come to a liquid consistency.  Add fresh ground pepper to taste.

Add dressing to chicken salad and toss to combine.

Serve chilled or at room temperature.  Or inside a halved avocado.  Take an avocado, remove pit, and place chicken salad in the inside. 

Makes about 6 to 8 servings of salad

We had so much of this left over that we were able to eat with spelt bread the next day! 

****Spelt Bread is great for those who are gluten sensitive or are on a gluten free diet! You can find it where the other bread is in your grocery store :) Enjoy!

White Chocolate Peppermint Bark

This is one of my favorite holiday treats and it is so easy to make! 

Ingredients:

1 box of candy canes

16 oz of white melting chocolate ( I use the brand Bakers)

Red food coloring (optional)

Crush the candy canes. The easiest way I have found is to put them into a ziplock bag and crush them with a spoon (not all the pieces need to be completely crushed). Set aside.

Melt chocolate over medium heat until there are no hard pieces of chocolate. Add a little bit of the crushed candy canes.

Pour this onto an un-greased cookie sheet (no wax paper is needed either) and move around to desired consistency with a spoon. Try not to make it too thin or it will be hard to get off of the cookie sheet. 

Optional- I use four drops of red food coloring--one in each corner-- and with a toothpick (or spaghetti noodle) swipe across the chocolate making whatever design you wish.

Sprinkle the rest of the crushed candy canes on top.

Place into refrigerator until firm. 

It should come right off of the cookie sheet when its done. Just break it up into pieces and enjoy!

Paleo Properties

The paleo diet is also a lifestyle change. Exercise should become a part of your life as well. As a family we participate in cross-fit which are short, high intensity work outs. The workouts are designed to maximize your workout in just a few minutes. (For more information about cross-fit please click here).

The simple basics to eating paleo are as follows:

1. Your meals should be high in fat (the good fat), moderate in animal fat and moderate to low in carbohydrates. Forget about calories and no portion control is recommended.

2. Saturated fats such as coconut oil, butter and beef tallow are recommended for cooking. (All the meat you consume should ideally come from a grass fed, free range animal). Oils such as avocado, olive and macadamia are great for dressings but not for cooking.

3. This is a meat high diet (think caveman, yes this is sometimes refereed to as the caveman diet. If you aren't sure if what you are eating is paleo, just ask yourself if Fred Flinstone would have access to it). This includes red meat, poultry, pork, eggs, organs, fish and shellfish. You do not have to utilize all of these, for example we do not eat any organs in our home. Do not be afraid of the fatty parts of the meat either, you want the protein.

4. Vegetables are a must and eat plenty of them. It doesn't matter if they are frozen, or not or raw or cooked. Sweet potatoes and yams are also a good source of non-toxic carbohydrates.

5. Eat a moderate to low amount of fruits and nuts. However, try to stay away from sugary fruits and nuts such as peanuts. Try to stay with fruits that are high in antioxidants such as berries. Almonds, walnuts and macadamia nuts are high in omega-3s.

6. It is suggested that you cut out all cereals and legumes completely. This can include wheat, rye, barley, oats, corn, brown rice, soy, kidney beans, pinto beans, navy beans and black eyed peas. However, we do not always follow this in our home but all those meals are made gluten free.

7. Try and eliminate sugar and dairy. This again is not something we always follow.

8. Eat when you are hungry and do not worry about eating a set amount of meals during the day.

9. Do not over exercise and try to eliminate stressors in your life. Cross-fit is great because it only lasts a few minutes and you do not have to do it every day. Yoga is also a great workout and allows you to alleviate some stress in your life.  As always, walking is great too--even if it is just walking up the stairs instead of taking the elevator.

If you would like more information about switching to a paleo lifestyle please check out Paleo Diet Lifestyle website.

The paleo diet is not a quick fix for weight loss. It is a lifestyle change and a great one!

Introduction

For the first time in my three years of marriage, I have really wanted to start cooking. So I did. However, as a family we try to eat very clean. We mainly stay true to a paleo and gluten free diet. It has proven to be a difficult change at times but it has become a fun journey to seek out the most delicious of recipes as well as trying new things!

For us a change to gluten free was a must but our decision to eat paleo was not. We sought out what would work best for our family in terms of eating cleaner. I however, have not always believed in cutting out foods I love, just downsizing the portions, but I have decided to make the change in support of my husband. It has been a fun change to find new ways to cook with foods and to know that we are providing our son with great nutrition! (I shall be attempting to make his own baby food as well)

I have provided various links to help further your knowledge in a lifestyle change to paleo as well as gluten free information.