Around 10 years ago, chia seeds exploded onto the food blog scene as a “superfood” ingredient – both for its tendency to form a viscous gel when soaked, and for its fiber and omega-3 content. While plant-based omega-3s aren’t as useful to the body as an omega-3 you would get from fish or a supplement, it’s still a great way to make a tasty dessert that works with Paleo and Primal guidelines. Because of their neutral flavor, chia seed puddings are fun to experiment with, and a great way to enjoy dessert if you’re avoiding traditional pudding ingredients.
Read MorePaté sounds intimidating on so many levels. Chances are, you didn’t grow up making or eating it. You have to use a French accent when you pronounce the é at the end as “ay.” Then there’s the part where it’s made of liver, and the concept of organ meats may make you think twice. We put together a chicken liver paté recipe that’s easy to make and softens the gamey flavor of liver with aromatic onion, garlic, and herbs. We also use dijon mustard and balsamic vinegar to add a bright backdrop to what will become your new favorite dip.
The rich, creamy spread pairs best with some crunch, so we’re serving it with sliced fresh vegetables. You could also try it with your favorite almond flour crackers.
Here’s how it’s done.
Read MoreBackyard gardens are putting forth the last of their bounty, and late summer vegetables are at their peak of freshness. To squeeze every last drop out of your harvest, give fermentation a try. Fermented vegetables date back hundreds of years. Back before we had freezers, people had to preserve food somehow. Somewhere along the line, someone figured out that salting food and letting it sit for a week creates a crunchy, tangy pickled vegetable that tastes better than what you started with. A lot of people find home fermentation to be intimidating. And it can be, at first. As long as you sanitize your cutting boards, jars, and tools with boiling water before you start, there’s a great chance you’ll end up with a beautiful pickle at the end. Here’s how to do it. Home Fermented Vegetables: Pickled Giardiniera Recipe Serves: 10-20, depending on serving size Time in the kitchen: 15 minutes, plus 5 days hands-off fermentation time Ingredients 1-2 heads cauliflower, cut into small florets 6-7 carrots 5-6 stalks celery 1 red bell pepper 1 large leek 1 lb. green beans 1 tsp. black peppercorns 3/4 tsp. mustard seeds 4 bay leaves 4 cloves garlic, smashed 1 small bunch oregano 3/4 tsp. red pepper flakes (or 1-2 sliced jalapenos) Water Salt Directions Using boiling water, sanitize whatever vessel you plan to use for your fermenting. Use care not to burn yourself! Wash all of your veggies and chop them. Double wash your leeks as they’re notorious for being very sandy. We recommend a 3.5% salt solution for your fermenting. To figure out how much salt you need, weigh your crock or jar on a small kitchen scale. Tare the scale while the empty jar is on it so the weight reads as 0g. Fill the jar with water until it’s a few inches from the lip of the jar. Record the mass of the water and then multiply the amount by 3.5% to find out how much salt you need. Pour the water out and add the appropriate amount of salt to the jar. Then, subtract the amount of salt you added from the total mass of the water that fits in the jar. This will give you the mass of water you need to add to the jar. At this point, pour the salt solution you created out into another jar, you’ll need it in a minute. Layer your crock or jar with all of the chopped veggies, the peppercorns, mustard seeds, bay leaves, oregano and red pepper flakes. Pour enough of your salt water solution into the jar so the vegetables are fully submerged. Alternatively, you can keep the salt water solution. Add a few crock fermentation weights to the top which will keep all of the vegetables submerged. Cover your jar with the appropriate lid. We used an airlock lid kit, which has a small hole in the lid that the airlock attaches to. Fill the airlock with the appropriate amount of water based on your … Continue reading “Pickled Vegetables, Two Ways: Home Fermented and Quick Pickles”
Read MoreBrownies are the classic bake sale staple that can take you right back to childhood…the ooey-gooey texture, the overwhelming aroma of chocolate, the fudgy middle. Growing up, the absolute best brownies were a treat for special days at school. Dusted with powdered sugar, these dense squares would taste so good (until you were falling asleep at your desk at 3pm, in a full sugar haze).
Update the nostalgic classic with Fudgy Keto Zucchini Brownies. This delectable treat is the perfect solution for any leftover zucchini lying around after making zoodles or zucchini bread. With just a ¾ cup of shredded zucchini, eggs, chocolate and a handful of pantry staple items, you can whip mouthwatering chocolate zucchini brownies up in just thirty minutes.
Read MoreArtichokes are a mysterious vegetable, and a lot of people are intimidated by them. How do you cook an artichoke? How do you cut into it? What parts do you eat? And how does it taste? You may have had marinated artichoke hearts that come in a jar, or you’ve noticed little strips of artichoke in your spinach dip. But eating a whole artichoke is a lot different than having prepared hearts. In this article, I’m going to show you how to prepare and eat an artichoke, along with my favorite dipping sauces. Are Artichokes Good For You? Coming in at 6g of net carbs per whole artichoke, it’s something you’ll want to add to the rotation if you’re keto. Artichokes are also an antioxidant powerhouse, and they have lots of gut-happy resistant starch. How to Buy Artichokes If you’ve never bought whole artichokes before, you might wonder how to choose good ones. Here’s what to look for: Tight leaves. Your artichoke should look like a giant flower bud. Leaves should not be curling out like a blooming flower. Heft. Pick up a few, and feel their weight. Heavier artichokes are fresher, and lighter ones are older and perhaps dried out. Brown streaks on the outside, or not. A little browning on the outside is nothing to be concerned about. Some people say that the ones with brown streaks are sweeter because the frost that caused them brings out the natural sugars. Once your artichokes are cleaned and steamed properly, the leaves and heart are excellent vehicles for dips. How to Cook an Artichoke (Steam Method) Serves: 2-4 Time in the kitchen: 45 minutes, including 35 minutes steaming time Ingredients 2 artichokes Primal Kitchen® Mayo with Avocado Oil, or Rosemary and Garlic Vegan Mayo if you cannot tolerate eggs 1 lemon Fresh cracked black pepper Directions To prepare an artichoke, first cut off most of the stem on top, leaving about ¼” of the stem left intact. Cut off the tough bottom of the artichoke, about 1” worth. Use kitchen scissors to trim the tough prickly ends of the artichoke leaves. Cut a lemon in half and rub the cut side all of the cut end of the artichoke. Set up a steamer by filling a pot with some water and a squeeze of lemon. Once the water is boiling, set the heat so the water is at a steady simmer. Set up the steamer basket inside and place the artichokes in the basket cut side down. Place the lid on and allow the artichokes to steam for around 30 minutes, 35 minutes if they’re quite large. You know they’re finished when you can put a knife through the center of the stem with little resistance. Allow the artichokes to cool. Combine your favorite Primal Kitchen Mayo with a squeeze of lemon and fresh cracked pepper. How to Eat an Artichoke This part is easy. Once your artichoke is cooled, peel the leaves off of one by one, dip in … Continue reading “How to Cook and Eat an Artichoke”
Read MoreIf you’ve ever had a meat or jerky bar made of finely chopped dried meat and perhaps berries, you may be familiar with pemmican. Pemmican consists of lean, dried meat – usually beef nowadays, but bison, deer, and elk were common back in the day) which is crushed to a powder and mixed with an equal amount of hot, rendered fat, usually beef tallow. Sometimes crushed, dried berries are added as well. For long periods of time, people can subsist entirely on pemmican, drawing on the fat for energy and the protein for strength, and glucose, when needed.
Vihljamur Stefansson, eminent anthropologist and arctic explorer, went on three expeditions into the Alaskan tundra during the first quarter of the 20th century. His discoveries – including the “blond” Inuit and previously uncharted Arctic lands – brought him renown on the world stage. People were fascinated by his approach to travel and exploration, the way he thrust himself fully into the native Inuit cultures he encountered. Stefansson studied their language, adopted their ways, and ate the same food they ate. In fact, it was the diet of the Inuit – fish, marine mammals, and other animals, with almost no vegetables or carbohydrates – that most intrigued him. He noted that, though their diet would be considered nutritionally bereft by most “experts” (hey, nothing’s changed in a hundred years!), the Inuit seemed to be in excellent health, with strong teeth, bones, and muscles. He was particularly interested pemmican.
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