The Whole 30 - It's what's for dinner.

Round three down!

Anyone can do the Whole 30 - YOU can do the Whole 30. I am frequently asked, "So, what DO you eat?" or told, "I don't think my boyfriend/husband would be into a diet." I wouldn't really call the Whole 30 a diet. It's a lifestyle change. It's about learning what foods make you're body (and mind) feel good. It's about breaking our addictions to certain foods or the daily sweet following savory cravings. It's not about being hungry and it's certainly not about being bored with your food. My boyfriend just completed his first Whole 30 (yayyy Justin!!! **proud girlfriend**), and he can attest - the food isn't the hard part. Not drinking beer/wine/milkshakes may be tough, but dinners don't have to be. Here are our Whole 30 dinners - hope they give you some ideas!

Day 1 - Slow Cooker Pulled Pork with Ghee Mashed Potatoes and Avocado Green Goddess          Dressing (No photo, sorry!)

Day 2 - Grilled steak with baked prosciutto wrapped asparagus spears with a golden beet and fig salad with walnuts and a coconut vinaigrette

           

Day 3 - Slow cooker shredded buffalo chicken stuffed sweet potatoes with homemade chipotle ranch on greens. 

This buffalo chicken is so easy!! I put a few breasts/thighs in my slow cooker with garlic powder, salt and frank's hot sauce (surprisingly Whole 30 approved). On low for 5-6 hours, shred with 2 forks and voila! Yummy shredded buffalo chicken! I usually make a big batch to eat over salads or wrapped in collard greens with a pickle and avo for lunch.

Day 4 - Orange cashew chicken on sesame oil sauteed cauliflower rice

Thank you to Jay's BakingMeCrazy for the recipe inspiration. I did not add any tapioca starch, omitted the honey, doubled the sauce, added half a chopped green cabbage, a chopped red bell pepper and a half a cup of raw cashews for crunch. 

Day 5 - Pork Egg Roll Bowl with Pineapple Sweet and Sour Sauce

Egg Roll Bowl inspiration here and sauce recipe here

Day 6 - Leftover Orange Cashew Chicken
Day 7 - Leftover Egg Roll Bowl

Day 8 - Sashimi platter with sweet sour daikon radish and cucumber salad

We got fancy on a Friday! My bootcamp class happened to be next to Wholefoods so I picked up some sushi-grade tuna and salmon before heading home It was hot - so the oven was not gonna get turned on... like at all. Hence, sushi for dinner! Served with coconut aminos (like soy sauce) and wasabi powder mixed with water (read the label!). I used the leftover sweet and sour sauce from the egg roll bowl and mixed with some spiralized radish and cucumber for an easy side salad. And notice the La Croix seltzer... in a wine glass... I love.

Day 9 - Hatch green chili ground lamb burgers with baked garlic rosemary turnip fries, homemade chipotle strawberry ketchup and salad with Tessamae's ranch dressing

Day 10 - Baked garlic salmon with homemade dill tartar sauce and bacon chard brussel sprout saute (delicious!!)

Day 11 - Slow cooker hatch chili pork tenderloin with pineapple served on romaine with cherry tomatoes, red onion and avocado 

Day 12 - Slow cooker Moroccan chicken with sweet potatoes and raisins on baby kale with tahini parsnip "rice"

Original recipe by Real Food with Dana - found here

Day 13 - Leftover Moroccan Chicken (such great flavors! This may have been my fave meal this round.)

Day 14 - Salmon cakes with dill pickle tartar on baby kale with olive egg potato salad

Recipe here

Day 15 - Sage scallion turkey burger with guacamole on arugula with cherry tomatoes
When I say "with" guacamole, I mean drowning in guacamole. I found that it was cheaper and easier for me to buy pre-made guacamole (read labels of course) this round. Also, the ground sage mixed in with the ground turkey gives it a sausage-like flavor.

Day 16 BREAKFAST -- Bacon Hotdog Potato Hash Breakfast Pizza

This was too good not to share. Cooked the bacon first - left the bacon fat in the pan. Added grated potato/carrot and cooked for 8-10 minutes until the bottom of the hash was golden brown and crispy. Cracked 4 eggs on top and covered until the eggs were almost cooked. Added bacon and Whole 30 hotdogs, cooked for another minute before slicing and serving.

Day 16 Dinner - Leftover sage scallion turkey burgers drowning in guacamole over salad

Day 17 - Greek stuffed turkey burgers with tahini sauce, almond crusted baked onion rings with roasted red pepper aioli and grilled romaine

These burgers are stuffed with roasted red peppers (you can buy a jar at Trader Joe's), chopped black olives, red onion, arugula and a tablespoon of tahini. Burger brainchild and tahini sauce recipe here.
Onion rings are dipped in egg and then a mixture of coconut flour, almond meal, garlic powder, paprika and salt before baked at 400 for 20 minutes (flipped halfway through). The inspiration for those was this recipe. 

Notice our seltzer-filled wine glasses :)

Day 18 - Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken with steamed broccoli and carrots on coconut oil sautéed cabbage and broccoli rice

Original recipe here - sans the honey obvi.

Day 19 - Taco pie with a plantain crust, topped with salsa, guac and cilantro

Day 20 - Leftover Taco Pie (also known as "mexican meat mountain")

My "meat mountain" looks nothing like the beauty created by Kristin at LivingLovingPaleo. Her recipe can be found here

Day 21 - Basil garlic meatballs with tomato sauce and spiralized zucchini (zoodles)

Day 22 - Grilled London Broil with baked delicata squash "fries" and a salad

Day 23 - Potato almond gnocchi with basil almond pesto, arugula and mushrooms with Trader Joe's Garlic Herb Chicken Sausage

This was time consuming. But oh, what an indulgent and delicious meal!  I used this recipe as a guide. Leftovers were eaten with scrambled eggs for breakfast EVERY DAYYY until they were gone. SO good. 

Day 24 APPETIZER - Prosciutto wrapped cantaloupe and figs

Day 24 - Baked chicken wings with red pepper aioli, baked dill carrots fries and garlic pepper potato skins and romaine leaves

After a steep 5 mile hike, we were hungry! Plus it was Sunday, soooo chicken wings. I saved the potato skins from the day before (gnocchi), tossed them in olive oil, garlic powder, salt and pepper and baked them for these tasty crispy potato skins. The drumsticks were not eaten this evening- I chopped up the meat and mixed with some Primal Kitchen mayo, curry powder, diced apples and onions for a chicken salad for the upcoming week's lunches.




Day 25 - Slow cooker bacon beef chili with sweet potato toast and guac

My boyfriend's parents were in town to join us for this meal. His mom told me this was the best chili she'd ever had --- and she lives in Texas!!!!!! This will now be my go-to chili recipe.
Also - sweet potato toast.. genius. You won't miss bread.
I used this recipe by Paleo Paparazzi as my guide, adding some extra veggies (chopped carrots) and using a heavy hand on the spices.


Day 26 BREAKFAST - Sweet Potato Toast with Raw Cruchy Almond Butter (Trader Joe's), sliced banana and a sprinkle of cinnamon

If you have a toaster, these are as easy as popping in 1/4 inch slice of sweet potato into the machine for two rounds. I don't have one - so I bake at 425 for 25ish minutes, flipping halfway through.




Day 26 - Spaghetti Squash Meatball Casserole

Satisfied any and all Italian food cravings! I mostly followed (that's right - I followed a recipe - kinda) this recipe from LivingLovingPaleo. I don't measure my spices (why dirty another spoon?!) and could not, for the life of me, find sugar-free pepperoni so I subbed a few slices of prosciutto. I also forgot to buy parsley, so I used basil instead.

Day 27 - Leftover Meatball Casserole




Day 28 - Roasted Carrot Thai soup with Asian Meatballs

Recipe inspiration found here.

Day 29 - Leftover soup and meatballs




Day 30 - Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken with Delicata Squash and Dill Carrot Fries

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnd we made it!



Day 31!!!! - Snickers Pie

You better believe this lady and her man earned some dessert!! Instead of ransacking the Wholefoods dessert section and shocking our cleansed systems, I made this healthy yet sinful pie. The only non-compliant ingredients were coconut syrup and, of course, the much-craved and well-deserved dark chocolate. Recipe inspiration found here.

And remember - you are NOT on a diet..... you are changing your life. :)Good luck on your journey!

This is how I roll...

 ...bun-less. Just because I no longer eat bread or cheese didn't mean I wanted to give up my love for burgers and fries. It's my most frequent craving! Though I can no longer consider myself a connoisseur or local critic, I can confidently say I've gotten really creative when it comes to what I slather on top, sandwich it between, or serve alongside. Bread and cheese aside (or rather afar - like not even in the house), burger night at our house is damn good! I present to you some photographic inspiration of the healthified savory ground rounds I've been grilling and devouring over here.

Grilled ground sirloin on a grilled paprika eggplant round topped with cilantro avocado mash and grilled onions. Served with homemade dill pickle ribbons and grilled zucchini fries (seasoned with Trader Joe's 21 seasoning)

Meat, grilled portobello, avocado mash and grilled onions meet a cabbage leaf (less messy!) and baked sweet potato fries

Grilled portobello topped with cashew cheese (purchased at Whole Foods), turkey burger with Tessamae's ketchup (seriously, order this stuff) and grilled onions. Served with cilantro chili jicama  slaw and baked carrot fries

Blurry photo, sloppy meal (ie. make sure you have napkins. Lots of napkins). Pile of baby kale, grilled portobello, burger, homemade roasted red pepper sauce (I'll post that recipe one of these days) and grilled eggplant round. Served with cucumber wedges and Tessamae's BBQ sauce

Late night out at the bar means I'm coming home sober and hungry. I said no to the watering hole tater tots but said yes to this midnight meal. Trader Joe's Frozen Turkey patties on salad greens, garlic avocado mash, homemade picked onions and cucumbers served with spiralized sweet potato strings fried in coconut oil. YUM! 

Hmmm... what day will be burger day this week?!  (cough... tomorrow... cough...)

Mango Jalapeno Cilantro Turkey Meatballs

It's been "Mango Mania" at Trader Joe's recently. Not quite sure what that means exactly... but the store is decked out in orange spheres and their "Fearless Flyer" newsletter included more mango-flavored products than I'd ever imagined. Mango dish soap, mango dog food, mango EVERYTHING!! So it was no surprise when I got a hankering for the sumptuous tropical fruit. I remembered a recipe from my favorite paleo food blogger, The Whole Smiths, and decided to recreate her masterpiece (original recipe here). She said these meatballs are one of her most popular recipes to date! I'm just glad they were delicious as the recipe makes enough for a week!

Served on butter lettuce with avocado and broccoli slaw mixed with my spicy ranch dressing

Mango Jalapeno Cilantro Turkey Meatballs
2.5lbs ground turkey (I mixed a lb of lean with an lb of organic)
1/2 onion, minced
1 cup minced mangos (I bought frozen and put a cup in the fridge to defrost)
5 cloves minced garlic
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
2 minced jalapenos (how much heat you want? Use one if you're a wimp)
3 eggs
1 cup almond flour
1/2 tbsp chipotle powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp black pepper

Oven at 375
Lay out foil on cookie sheets
Mix all ingredients in a bowl
Form mixture into meatballs (I made them rather large - 16 total)
Bake for 25 minutes until beginning to brown
Done!

Cilantro Cashew Crema

When at a taco shop (9 times out of 10 it's name ending in a 'berto's) I honestly used to order based off which items had sour cream on them. The old me thought, "the creamier, the better!" Nowadays, though dairy and I are no longer amigos, I still crave a glob of something cold and somewhat tart atop my lettuce leaf tacos or cheese-less chili rellenos (recipe to be posted soon). This cashew-based cream is versatile (I just ate it with kale and eggs) and easy to make. Adios leche! All I need are cashews :)

Cilantro Cashew Crema served on a Cheese-less Chili Relleno with a Cilantro Kohlrabi Slaw

Cilantro Cashew Crema
3/4 cup cashews 
1 large clove of garlic
1/2 cup water
1/2 heaping cup of chopped cilantro
3-4 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp avocado
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder

Soak the cashews overnight OR boil water, pour over and let sit for an hour. Rinse. 
Put cashews and all other ingredients in a food processor. 
Blend!
Add more water if necessary. 
Depending on the strength of your food processor, should be pretty creamy. 
Mine came out a bit gritty (my cuisineart is on it's last legs) but was still awesome.

Kickin' Ketchup

I am a condiment queen. When I cut the sugar out of my diet, the last thing I wanted to do was curtail my sauce intake.  I looove to dip, drench, dollop, mix and mop. I wanted to grill chicken tenders for a BBQ this weekend, so I needed something to submerge them in! Other than Tessamaes, I have yet to find any brands that offer a sugar-free ketchup. (Insert sad face emoji here) While Tessamaes is unbelievably good, it's a bit on the expensive side and only sold at Whole Foods -- which is not my go-to grocery store. So rather than make the trek to the clusterf*#k that is the Whole Foods parking lot, I decided to make my own!

Kickin' Ketchup
1 pint of cherry tomatoes (2 cups), cut into quarters
1/2 onion, minced
1 6oz can of organic tomato paste
1/2 cup chopped dates
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup water
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1.5 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp chipotle powder

Put all ingredients in a sauce pan over medium heat. 
Simmer for 15-20 minutes. Stir occasionally.
Pour into blender and puree until smooth. 
EAT ON EVERYTHING. 

Go Slow Jerk Chicken with Coconut Lime Cauliflower Rice

This is a perfect Sunday night dish (aka when you have time to let the chicken marinate). The complexity and spiciness of the meat goes really well with the creaminess of the "rice".   This was one of those "oh my goodness, I made this?!" meals - a real pat-yourself-on-the-back dinner. These island flavors brought me back to the idyllic, lazy beaches of Caye Caulker in Belize. Take it easy and go slow. Let the chicken season 'mon and get your island on. 

Go Slow Jerk Chicken with Coconut Lime Cauliflower Rice and Sauteed Beet Greens

Go Slow Jerk Chicken with Coconut Lime Cauliflower Rice 
1 tbsp olive oil 
1/2 onion, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 habenero pepper, minced (wear gloves!) (use 1/2 pepper if super small)
2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp dried thyme
2 tsp salt
2 tsp fresh oregano
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp all spice
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp red chili flakes
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2-3 lbs of boneless, skinless chicken breast

Combine all ingredients in plastic bag. Shake and massage spices in well. Let sit for as long as you can. Keep in fridge - take out of fridge 45 minutes before cooking.

Oven at 375
Heat 1 tbsp oil in cast iron skillet til hot (does it sizzle when you flick water on it?)
Add chicken to skillet. Cook each side for 5 minutes (should start to brown/blacken)
Put skillet in oven for 15-20 minutes until chicken juices run clear. Let chicken sit for 5 minutes before slicing. 

Coconut Lime Cauliflower Rice 
Bag of Trader Joe's Cauliflower Rice (best product ever!)(or grate 1.25 lb head of cauliflower)
3/4 can organic coconut milk
zest and juice of 2 limes
1/3 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1 tbsp coconut oil
1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Melt oil in pan at medium heat. Add cauliflower and stir well to completely coat. 
Fry for 7-8 minutes.
Stir in coconut milk, shredded coconut and 3/4 of the lime juice.
Bring to simmer but lower heat to avoid boiling. 
Simmer for 15 minutes - until liquid starts to absorb.
Stir in the rest of the lime juice, lime zest and cilantro. 
Cook for 10-12 more minutes. 
Remove from heat. Add salt to taste. 
Serve with something spicy!

BalSAMic Roasted Brussel Sprouts

As a kid, brussel sprouts were the only vegetables I didn't like. I normally had no problem eating my greens but when I came to these tiny stinky cabbage-looking things, I just flat out wouldn't eat them. Fast forward to 20+ years later and I eat them all the time. I just enjoyed brussel sprouts for three meals in a row! Crispy, oven roasted brussel sprouts are a thing right now and I am 100% onboard with this cruciferous trend. The Whole Smiths Best Ever Brussel Sprouts is the original recipe -- I altered it ever so slightly to make these so-delicious-you-will-eat-them-all-and-then-make-more BalSAMic Roasted Brussel Sprouts. 

BalSAMic Roasted Brussel Sprouts
1.5-2 lbs of Brussel sprouts, cut off the end and chop into quarters
4 pieces of bacon, chopped (If you freeze the bacon for 10 minutes - it's easier to chop)(non-meat eaters... omit)
1 tbsp olive oil (2 tbsp if you are ixnaying the bacon)
1/3 cup raisins (I get sun-dried organic raisins from the farmers market. They are seriously the most amazing plump nuggets of deliciousness - taste like candy. Invest if you have the option!)
1/3 cup raw walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

Oven at 400 degrees
Heat skillet and partially cook bacon. It will be heated in the oven as well so, to avoid burning, I cooked only until starting to brown. 
Add contents of skillet and oil to a bowl with chopped Brussel sprouts. 
Mix together well with chopped walnuts. 
Spread onto foil-covered cookie sheet. 
Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and mix in raisins.
Return to oven for 10-12 more minutes (Will be quite brown and crispy when done).
While the sprouts are finishing up, heat balsamic vinegar over medium heat (a simmer) until it reduces, starts to thicken a little and tastes a bit sweeter (will probably take about 10-12 minutes).
Remove pan from oven and pour balsamic reduction over the sprouts.
Stir well and serve immediately!
Double the recipe if you're looking for leftovers :)

Also delicious if you include chopped carrots and/or sweet potato!

BalSAMic Roasted Brussel Sprouts served with Spicy Mustard Chicken Thighs

Overnight Asian Grilled Steak with Butternut Stirfry and Almond Slaw

Seeing as you can do most of the work for this dish the day before, this is a great Monday night meal. Make the marinade, chop the veggies and blend the dressing Sunday and all you have to do the next day is grill, saute and toss. While I do love challenges, I also appreciate easy. Shout out to Trader Joe's for their new "Butternut Squash Zig Zags"! They were delicious and made my prep work especially simple!

Overnight Asian Grilled Steak with Butternut Stirfry and Almond Slaw
1-1.5 lbs of Sirloin Steak
1.5 inch piece of ginger, minced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tbsp sesame oil
1/4 cup coconut aminos
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
handful of chopped cilantro

Combine all ingredients in a gallon plastic ziplock bag, give it a good shake and chillllll overnight.

When you are 15 minutes from being ready to eat, fire up the grill and let heat up for 5 minutes or so. I put the steak on right after I added the squash to the stirfry. I grilled 5 minutes on each side and then let rest for a few minutes before slicing. Exact time depends on how thick your steak is and how you like it cooked.


Butternut Stirfry
Small Spring onion, chopped
Box of Trader Joe's Butternut Squash Zig Zags (or 1.5 cups of chopped squash)
Head of broccoli, chopped (just the florets)
cup of Sugar Snap Peas
Tbsp sesame oil
1/4 cup Garlic Coconut Aminos
1/4 cup water

Heat oil in a skillet, add onions and stir til almost translucent
Add Butternut squash, coconut aminos and water. Stir and cover (This would be a good time to put the steak on the grill)
Cook til squash is almost tender (5-10 minutes)
Add broccoli, cover for 3 minutes
Add sugar snap peas and cook for a few more minutes. 
Done!

Almond Slaw
a handful per plate of Trader Joe's Cruciferous Crunch (or any other crunchy slaw mix - I've used broccoli slaw too!)
Dressing:
1/3 cup of raw almond butter
tsp garlic coconut aminos
tbsp rice wine vinegar
tbsp apple cider vinegar
water (enough to break down the almond butter into a lighter dressing consistency)
Mix, taste and add whatever other ingredients you see fit!
Drizzle (or pour) onto greens!

While I mentioned that this was the perfect Monday night dinner... Leftover steak on greens with Almond Slaw Dressing is also the perfect Tuesday lunch!

Almond Chicken Tenders with Turnip Carrot Fries and the BEST Ranch Dip

Whoever said healthy food is boring has obviously never eaten at my dining room table. It was a Friday night and I was craving "bar food". Seeing as how I am currently not drinking and can't really eat out, going to a bar for dinner was out of the question. So here it is - my version of this comforting meal...

Almond Chicken Tenders with Turnip Fries and Chipotle Ranch Dip
1.5 lbs of chicken tenders
1tbsp olive oil
1 egg, whisked in a shallow dish
1/2 cup almond meal
1/4 cup coconut flour
1 tbsp garlic powder
2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp paprika
salt and pepper

Mix all dry ingredients in a shallow bowl
Season chicken with salt and pepper
Dip in whisked egg and then dip into dry ingredients
At this point, prepare Turnip Carrot Fries and get into oven. Then, heat skillet to cook the chicken. 
Add a tbsp of olive oil to a hot skillet
Add chicken to the skillet. Fry for 4-5 minutes each side or until fully cooked. 

Turnip Carrot Fries
1 large turnip, peeled and sliced into fries
4 large carrots, cut into quarters and chopped into fries
tbsp coconut oil
tsp chili powder
tsp garlic powder
tsp salt

Oven at 425
Toss fries with oil and seasonings
Lay out on foil covered cookie sheet
Bake for 10 minutes
Flip and bake for 7 more minutes

the BEST Ranch Dip
1/4 cup avocado oil + 3 tsp
1 egg
dash of mustard powder
tsp salt
tsp paprika
tsp onion powder
juice from 1/2 lemon
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
4 tbsp of chopped herbs (dill, parsley and chives)
dash of cayenne pepper
1/2 avocado

In a food processor, combine 1/4 avo oil and egg until well combined and somewhat thick
Add seasonings, lemon juice, vinegar, herbs and dash of cayenne. Blend well. 
Add in 1/2 avocado and remaining 3 tsp of avocado oil. 
Taste - add 1 more tbsp apple cider vinegar if needed. 
Serve on anything. 
**** Note: This ranch is soo much better if you add a BUNCH of cholula hot sauce!

Almond Chicken Tenders with Turnip Carrot Fries and Garlic Coconut Aminos Seared Baby Bok Choy
Served with the BEST Ranch Dip, Tessamaes Ketchup and Tessamaes Buffalo Sauce. 

Apple Cherry "Cheese Biscuits"

    Neither cheesy nor a biscuit, this low carb treat makes the perfect breakfast or mid-day snack. I'm not promoting snacking but let's be realistic - we're human and we get hungry between meals. Last week was Teacher Appreciation week at school. For the other teachers, this meant a bevy of treats - brownies, cookies, and chips, oh my! For yours truly, however, this meant a week of closing my eyes and nose every time I walked into the office to avoid the tempting sight and scent of freshly baked chocolate-anything.  Thankfully, I had an arsenal of these yummy biscuits and I survived!   
   If food blogger Jessie B's "Cheesy" Zucchini Biscuits met the Whole Smith's Apple Cherry Frittata, this would be their love child. When you can't kick your cravings for pancakes or pastries, start grating some apples and whip up these bad boys!

Apple Cherry "Cheese Biscuits"
3 Granny Smith Apples, peeled and grated
Apple juice (squeeze grated apples and use juice)
1/2 tbsp cinnamon
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp water
cup of raw cashews
1/2 - 3/4 cup of frozen cherries
1/4 cup coconut flour
shredded, unsweetened coconut to sprinkle on top

Oven at 375
Add cinnamon and grated apples to a large bowl
In a food processor, combine cashews, lemon juice, water and apple juice. Should form a chunky cashew butter (so good - try not to eat it all)
In a separate bowl, mix yummy cashew butter with 2 eggs. Stir until completely combined. 
Add egg-cashew batter to grated apples. Stir in coconut flour until batter-like consistency. You may need to shake in a bit more flour. 
In the same food processor (no need to clean it yet!), add cherries and pulse until all chopped. 
Add cherries to batter and stir. 
Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil (or parchment paper for all you fancy pants)
Grease cookie sheet with a bit of coconut oil to prevent sticking.
Spoon batter onto sheet. Makes 8-10 biscuits. Sprinkle with coconut. 
Bake for 25-30 minutes until firm and golden brown. 
Let cool before removing from pan. 
Store in the fridge. 
Enjoy! 

Sweet Potato Sausage Poutine

Last Monday began my second round of the Whole 30. What's a better way to kick off the best challenge ever than with a plate of poutine!! Now if you're familiar with the rules, you may argue that I am breaking them with SWYPO and, technically, you might be right. But seeing as I've only eaten "the real" poutine several times in my lifetime and it certainly has never been created in my kitchen, I had no concerns as to whether or not this paleo experiment was compliant. My relationship with gravy fries does not run deep... or at least it didn't, until I met this meal. 

Step 1, make the sausage. 

Homemade Sausage

tbsp coconut oil (or other oil of choice)

lb of ground pork

tbs chopped fresh parsley

tbs fresh thyme

1/2 tbsp ground sage

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp red chili pepper flakes

salt and pepper

Combine all ingredients. Form into patties and cook in a skillet until brown on both sides. Now you are ready to make this masterpiece. 

Sweet Potato Sausage Poutine

2 large sweet potatoes, cut into "fries"

2-3 homemade sausage patties, crumbled

1/4 cup organic pepperoncinis

1/4 cup diced onion

4 cloves garlic, minced

1-2 cups spinach or kale

Avocado Garlic mash ( 2-3 avos mashed with tbsp grated garlic, squeeze of lime juice, chopped cilantro or parsley, salt and pepper)

GRAVY (recipe below)

Oven at 400

Toss sweet potato strips with tbsp oil, minced garlic and salt

Lay out on cookie sheet covered with aluminum foil

Bake for 10 minutes. Flip fries and bake for 10 more minutes.

Heat up onion in skillet. When translucent, add sausage and pepperoncinis til warm. Reserve in bowl until ready to assemble.

Meanwhile, make GRAVY

Paleo Gravy

1 cup homemade broth

1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 tbsp almond meal

1 tsp coconut flour

Combine ingredients in saucepan. Bring to simmer and reduce til thickened. Add seasonings of choice. 

Pour gravy into serving bowl. 

In the same skillet (no need to rinse, gravy adds flavor), add spinach/kale and heat til wilted. 

Now you are ready to assemble!

Bottom layer: Sweet Potato Fries

Next up: Sausage and Pepperoncinis

And then: Wilted spinach/kale

Lastly: HUGE dollop (can I even call this a dollop) of Avocado Garlic Mash

Serve with the side of gravy, Tessamaes Ketchup, and Tessamaes Buffalo sauce. 

I DID NOT eat this entire plate- my boyfriend helped. We licked the plate clean and it was amazing! Usually a huge plate of fries equals a swollen belly and bruised ego. This, however, was a feel good meal in so many ways. Enjoy!