Still making paleo recipes. Or don't you CARROT all?

Dude. I know.  My subject titles are getting pretty bad.  In my defense, I've eaten far less cheese this month. So. 

Luckily, this concludes the month of paleo I begrudgingly completed for this blog.  It wasn't terrible but I don't know that it's something I would LIKE to do every day all the time.  I had been craving soup lately and since my previous recipes have been kind of meat heavy I thought I'd try something that vegetarians might be able to snack on.  And all this cold weather prompted me to look for something with a little heat. This time in the form of curry and ginger and cumin. 

Recipe #4: Curried Carrot Ginger Soup

Choice of libation: The 2013 reserve syrah from a niche winery in Sonoma county that happens to be called "Dawson Creek."  

  

Despite implications of the name, I didn't spew pretentious words and cry in my room to Paula Cole after drinking it.  It was actually wonderfully bold (much more Pacey than Dawson, I'd say), with notes of currant and blackberry.  The spiciness and fruit went really nice with the soup. (And the steak we had with the soup)

Choice of music: Uptown Special, produced by Mark Ronson. Of course you've probably heard "Uptown Funk" with Bruno Mars, which is a standalone hit.  But whole album is really worth listening -- in order if you can.  

I like this one and have always loved Mystikal.  Incidentally, I heard a censored version of one his more popular songs featuring the lyrics "shake ya face, but watch yourself..."  

I giggled for probably two minutes at the CVS.

Ginger and sweet onions...the beginning of many beautiful stories.

No need to justify anything for this recipe.  This IS practically a salad.

Okay, so don't do what I did and over blend it if you enjoy a thicker soup (which I do). I do like how powerful I feel when operating an immersion blender.  

I'm pretty sure that's normal and I don't need to talk to anyone about that.

 

These are pictures that other people took of the meal we ended up with.  Because Chad seared the sirloin, I didn't post the recipe.  I just figured this soup would make a better lunch or dinner side.  Which was a good call. Just know that actually this soup pairs really beautifully with a steak salad with balsamic dressing, roasted pecans, red onions and spinach.  No pictures exist because I was ACTUALLY EXPERIENCING LIFE AND NOT TAKING PICTURES OF IT. 

Also I might have just been too hangry to remember.  

stolen and heavily adapted from paleoleap.com

8 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
2 small zucchini, peeled and roughly chopped
1 small onion, diced
1 apple, peeled and roughly chopped
(I added one small sweet potato, peeled and chopped)
2 tbsp. fresh ginger, minced;
1 tsp. turmeric; (we didn't have tumeric, but I added 3 tbsp curry, 2 tbsp cumin and 1 tbsp chipotle chile powder)
Pinch of cinnamon;
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock;
1 cup coconut milk; (optional)
Cooking fat
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper;

Melt some cooking fat in a saucepan placed over a medium-high heat.
Add the ginger and the onion and cook until fragrant, about 4 minutes.
Add all the remaining vegetables, the apple, and the spices. Give everything a good stir, and cook until the carrots are soft.
Pour in the stock and bring to a boil, lower the heat and let everything simmer for 25 to 30 minutes.
Puree the soup using an immersion blender, or in batches using a blender.
Pour in the coconut milk, season to taste, and serve warm.

Catch a Tori: A New Series on ABC Family (also, what I ate for dinner last night)

I know, I know.  Another Tori Spelling inspired food blog entry.  I'm such a cliche.

I actually chose to make chicken cacciatore because for the most part it is already a paleo recipe as long as you don't serve it atop noodles or rice.  WHICH WOULD BE DELICIOUS.  But not paleo.

Ugh. I will be so happy when this stupid paleo month is over. What was I thinking?!

The Tori Spelling reference is just a happy accident.  My playwright friend, Brooke Allen and I sometimes pass the time by texting each other shows we think Tori Spelling might want to pitch to different networks.  I mean, she's already had some gems with True Tori, So NoTorious and Tori & Dean: sTORIbook Weddings.  But why stop there?  For example -- "Tori Tori Hallelujah" - Tori becomes a minster, "Building a MysTORI" - Tori and Dean buy an old resort and turn it into a murder mystery dinner theater, or "TORIst Attraction" - Tori Amos and Tori Spelling go on a tour as a girl band, but will they? or won't they? The chemistry is palpable!

But my latest submission for our ongoing list is more kid friendly.  "Catch a Tori"  -- a baseball, voiced by Tori Spelling who accidentally gets tossed out of a little league game into the limousine of a millionaire and travels all around the world, meeting other sports equipment! Come on, you know you'd totally watch five minutes of that show. 

Recipe #3: Chicken Cacciatore

Choice of libation: A virgin daiquiri (in honor of Donna's virgin status for the first 12 seasons of Beverly Hills 90210). It was paleo, because basically it was just frozen fruit blended with ice. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. 

Choice of music:  I actually forgot to play music while cooking this one, since it didn't take very long. But.  I'll just leave this here...

So.  There's that.

I love how little there is to do for this recipe.  The first step is to microwave most of the ingredients.

Then dump all the other ingredients in the slow cooker.

Then dump the microwaved stuff in with the slow cooker stuff

(and by the way, everything smells ridiculously good at this point)...

And you mustn't forget the antioxidants...

 I had errands to run. And by "errands" I mean "TV shows" 

and by "run" I mean "watch and fall asleep to."

A relaxing seven hours later, and this awesome bowl of food happened.  The broth was incredibly complex - I could taste the blackberry notes of the malbec underneath the umami of the mushrooms and acidity of tomatoes and peppers.  I will totally make this again. 

And when I do, it won't be uncharted terriTORI.

Stolen and adapted from nomnompaleo.com

2 onions, minced in my food processor

1/4 cup tomato paste (I like the stuff that comes in a tube)

2 tablespoons of butter

6 garlic cloves, minced

2 teaspoons of dried oregano

2 red peppers chopped

1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1.5 pounds cremini mushrooms, trimmed and halved if small or quartered if large

1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained

1/2 cup organic chicken broth

1/2 cup dry red wine (I used Bodega Elena de Mendoza malbec)

3 pounds of chicken (I used drumsticks and breast tenders because Chad refuses to eat chicken thighs)

1/4 chopped fresh basil

Dump the onions, tomato paste, butter, garlic, oregano, wild mushrooms, and red pepper flakes in a microwave safe bowl. Nuke everything on high for ~5 minutes, stirring occassionally, until the onions were softened.

Put the cooked aromatics in the slow cooker and stir in the cremini, tomatoes, broth, and wine. 

Seasoned the chicken with salt and pepper and nestle them into the slow cooker and mix everything well. 

Put on the lid and cook the dish for 4-7 hours.

Braise yourself, Nellie. It's a Beef Stew.

You know.  Nellie Oleson.  From Little House on the Prairie. That prissy spoiled brat who only liked what she liked and refused anyone who took it from her.  Each of us have a Nellie voice in our heads, pouting and screaming when we can't have what we want.  Things like dairy and grains and booze.  And what must we do with that Nellie voice?

That's right! We must beat her into silence. For today we are trying a paleo recipe because we publicly proclaimed we would try to do that for a month.   

Was that a very long-winded nonsensical introduction to justify using the name Nellie in my subject line?  Perhaps.  But it did help me find that awesome GIF.

Recipe #2: Paleo Mediterranean Beef Stew

Choice of libation: I tried to go a little fancier than last time's paleo beverage of...water.  So I Googled "Paleo mocktails" and after my computer was done laughing at me, it directed me to some websites.  One recipe was called The Paleo Cosmo and proclaimed it was "just like that Sex in the City drink!"  Ready for it?  Take some kombucha!  Pour it into a martini glass!  And...that's it.

Nope.  I didn't do that.  But I did muddle some lime and mint and poured in some chilled sparkling water.  And I served it in a martini glass. Not terrible.

Choice of music: Is Your Love Big Enough by Lianne La Havas. I know. I'm three years late on this artist and this album, but oh man I'm glad I found her.  She's 1 part neo-soul, 1 part jazz and 1 part acoustic singer songwriter. So good. Listen especially to the track "Lost and Found." It will make you feel all the feels.

Speaking of feeling all the feels, this will make you feel good about winter. Sweet and salty and comforting and warming. YES.

As mentioned before, the Paleolithic diet consists of mainly meat, vegetables and fruit -- things that might have been consumed by the early humans, the cave men.  I tried to be inspired by that GEICO commercial and short-lived ABC sitcom as I hunted and gathered at Mariano's.

I know.  Raisins.  I was skeptical too. 

But after I added the balsamic vinegar, it really did smell divine.

I thought booze wasn't allowed? Oh well. Who am I to question an internet website?  This is the 2011 Real Compania De Vinos Granacha and it is beautifully complex with notes of dark cherry. 

There are a lot of weird flavors I'm not used to putting together here.  Lemon slices on top of beef? With raisins? Really?  Another new thing to me was braising a stew in the oven. We'll seeeee...

About ten minutes before the stew I prepared the olive pesto with mint and basil.  Though the recipe didn't call for it, I also added some of the olive juice because the blender kept sticking.

Not bad you guys! I would have added garlic had I been thinking correctly, but still pretty flavorful. This will go on top of the stew, right before serving.

Here's the braised stew right out of the oven.  It actually turned out okay, but I think the meat would have been more tender if I had stuck it in a crock pot for 8 hours. When I make this again, that's probably what I'll do.

Oh trust me. I will be making this again.  It might look weird. But these weird flavors all go together to create a wonderful and balanced meal.  The olive pesto really brightens the dish up and the raisins end up complementing the balsamic and red wine.  

And you know me. I will compliment a red wine any day.

stolen and adapted from health-bent.com

2 lb. chuck shoulder, cubed

1 yellow onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 carrot, finely chopped

(I also added 1 bell pepper, chopped

and 2 stalks of celery, chopped)

3/4 c raisins

28 oz. can fire roasted crushed tomatoes

1 c red wine

1/4 c balsamic vinegar

1 lemon, sliced and seeds removed

salt and pepper to taste

Pesto:

1 handful of basil leaves

1/2 handful of mint leaves

1/2 c green olives (about 20)

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

In a dutch oven melt your fat (I just used 2 tbsp olive oil). Salt and pepper the cubed chuck pieces, add them to the pot and let them brown on each side. Don’t fidget with them or remove them until you see a visible brown crust on the meat. Remove and reserve on a plate.  To the pot, add the onion, garlic and carrot. Let them sweat and saute until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the meat back to the pot, along with the tomatoes, raisins, red wine and balsamic vinegar. Stir to combine. Top with sliced lemons.

Lay a piece of parchment paper of the the top of the pot and press it down into the pot (I forgot to do this, but it was fine). Place in the oven and braise for 2 hours. Taste the meat, it should be super tender, if it’s not give it another half hour or so.

Once you’re about 10 minutes from the stew finishing; combine all the ingredients for the pesto in a mini food processor. Pulse until everything has come together.

When the stew is out of the oven, take the lemon rinds out, but leave in the flesh…it’ll separate very easily. Swirl in the pesto and serve.

"Emjoy Gavino eats like a bird," said NO ONE, EVER.

It is a new year, y'all. And this blog, much like the casting associates of "Celebrity" Apprentice, needs to step up the game. So I am taking my 52 new recipes in one year and adding specific challenges each month.  And because in December I seemed to only digest cheese and booze, this month I've decided to explore PALEO RECIPES!

Yeah, yeah, I know what you're thinking.  But I didn't say I was actually adopting the paleo lifestyle - eating only meat, fish, vegetables and fruits, avoiding cheese, grains, caffeine and alcohol, and you know, probably crying a lot.  No. I'm not going Paleo.  But I will make a few recipes using those restrictions just to try something new.  

Recipe #1: Mahi Mahi with Pineapple Salsa

Choice of libation: Water with lemon. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Choice of music: "Another Run Around the Sun" by Ben Taylor, which is terrific.  Ben is the son of James Taylor and Carly Simon and you can totally hear that in his voice and his guitar riffs. Acoustic rock, slightly 70's, it's an easy album to chill to.

Truthfully, I started with this recipe because it was cold and I didn't feel like leaving the house and we happened to have all the ingredients in our kitchen already.  

I realized the other day, I never made one dish with seafood in it last year.  That's silly. I love fish. I do miss living in Seattle where I wasn't wary of where the seafood I was eating came from. And these mahi mahi filets from Trader Joe's frozen section weren't ideal, but what can you do?  Well. Rub a crap ton of spices on them, for one thing.

This only takes a little more than 10 minutes to cook!  THIS IS SO EASY!

Rainbow in a bowl. Is not what they called me in high school.  But this is a really delicious salsa.

Yes. That IS brown rice under that fish, which ISN'T paleo, but that wasn't part of the recipe, 

so I will allow it. Also I will allow it because IT IS MY BLOG, DANGIT.  

It did feel a little weird eating a dish that is probably more suited to summer time when you could see your breath outside, but it was really flavorful, and with the ginger and pepper, there was a little bit of a kick to it. We both finished our plates and I didn't even put any cheese on it.

stolen and adapted from juliasalbum.com

2 cups pineapple, chopped in small cubes

1 cup tomato, chopped in small cubes

1/4 cup red onion, minced

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped finely

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice

(I also added 3 tablespoons grated ginger)

Salt and pepper to taste

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 pound white fish (black cod, halibut, tilapia, mahi mahi)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon cumin

Mix all chopped ingredients for tropical fruit salsa in a large bowl, add lime juice, add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside to let the juices combine together.

To prepare seasoning for the fish, mix salt, pepper, paprika, oregano, cumin in a small bowl.

Heat large skillet on high heat. Season fish on non-skin side with salt & pepper and other spices generously. Add oil to the hot skillet: the oil should sizzle. Add fish to the skillet non-skin side down (skin side up) and sear for 4 minutes, moving the fish around the skillet to make sure oil coats the surface of the fish and that the fish is not sticking to the pan while searing.

After these 4 minutes, turn the fish over to the skin side and sear for another 3 minutes on high heat. After searing on the skin side, you can actually remove salmon skin easily at this point and discard, if you don’t like to eat it.