Blackberry Glazed Porkchops

1-2 lbs  Pork Chops
salt and pepper, to taste
12 ounces fresh blackberries
½ cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons water
pinch of salt

Turn on your grill on. I had to use my george foreman grill because I still don't have propane.

Place pork chops on a plate and cover your pork chops in some salt and pepper on both side and press into the pork chop. While your grill heats up, place a small saucepan over medium heat on your stove top and add your blackberries, balsamic vinegar, water, and a pinch of salt. Let the sauce begin to mix together, stirring frequently to make sure it doesn't burn on the bottom. Turn heat to low and let the sauce simmer for about 3-5 minutes.Then pour half of the sauce into a bowl (you can leave the blackberries in the saucepan because you’ll just use them to top your chops off later).

Use a glazing brush to glaze one side of your pork chop then place that glazed side down onto your grill. Then glaze the other side, cover grill and let cook for 5-7 minutes per side. I glazed each side of my pork chop probably 3-4 times to make sure as much blackberry sauce as possible could be soaked up by the chop. Make sure your chop is cooked on both sides and cook completely through before removing from grill. (took me about 12-14 minutes total). Once your pork chops are all done cooking, add to plate and top with your leftover blackberry sauce that has been simmering and thickening up.

Recipe from PaleOMG

Beef Stew

1 lb stewing beef
2 tbsp bacon fat
4 cups beef stock
1 cup onion, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 28oz can diced tomatoes
1 cup mushrooms, chopped
1 tsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

In a large saucepan over a medium-high heat, combine the onions, celery, carrots, potatoes with the bacon fat. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the beef to the saucepan and brown. Add the tomatoes, beef stock, mushrooms and spices. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cover the saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer and cook for about one hour. Stir a few times during the cooking process. Remove the lid and cook uncovered for about 15 minutes. If the mixture is too thick at the end of the cooking process, you can add a little bit of water or stock.

Enjoy!

Recipe from Paleo Diet Lifestyle

Beet & Walnut Salad

4 medium sized red beets, stems and ends removed
1/3 cup walnuts, chopped
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar (I used black walnut and fig from Oliv)
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Goat cheese (optional)



Preheat your oven to 400 F. Wrap each individual beet in aluminum foil and place on baking sheet. Allow to roast in the oven for approximately one hour.

Remove beets from oven and allow to cool. Once cool enough to touch, remove from foil. While still warm, peel the skin of the beets off. Plastic gloves will be useful here in order not to stain your hands (i.e. look at the pic of my hands).

My kitchen looked like a crime scene when I was
finished peeling the beets!

Chop beets into large chunks. Place in a medium bowl and toss in the remaining ingredients. Allow beets to marinade in the dressing for a few minutes prior to serving. If going for pure paleo do not add the goat cheese however this salad just cries for it!

Enjoy!

Lemon Bar Trifle (Cheat Day)

This is the ultimate cheat day recipe! This by no means is Paleo but is super delicious!

Crust
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup butter, melted

Lemon Layer 
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups cold water
3 egg yolks, beaten
2/3 cup lemon juice
2 tbsp butter
4 tsp grated lemon peel

Cream Cheese Layer 
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 carton (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed

In a small bowl, combine flour and pecans; stir in butter. Press into an ungreased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Bake at 350° for 18-20 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

In a small heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, cornstarch and flour. Stir in water until smooth. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat; cook and stir 2 minutes longer. Remove from the heat. Stir a small amount of hot mixture into egg yolks; return all to the pan, stirring constantly. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir 2 minutes longer. Remove from the heat. Gently stir in the lemon juice, butter and lemon peel. Transfer to a large bowl. Cool to room temperature without stirring. Cover surface with waxed paper; refrigerate until chilled.

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Fold in whipped topping. 

Crumble the baked pecan mixture; set aside 1/2 cup for topping.

Just before serving, in a 3-qt. trifle bowl, layer 1 cup each pecan mixture, lemon mixture and cream cheese mixture. Repeat layers twice. Sprinkle with reserved pecan mixture.

I would say refrigerate the leftovers but who's kidding there will not be any leftovers. 

Honey Nut Cereal

1 cup whole almonds
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup pumpkin seeds
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup ghee* (or butter)
1/4 cup honey
1 egg white
2 tsp cinnamon


Preheat oven to 400 F

Pulse the first three ingredients in the food processor. Combine the food processor ingredients with the sliced almonds, coconut, and raisins. Then stir it up.

Melt the ghee/butter and honey together and drizzle over the mixture. Pour in the egg white and mix until well coated. Sprinkle on the cinnamon.

Pour evenly onto a large cookie sheet and bake for 15-20 min, stopping frequently to stir (5 minutes). Enjoy with almond milk or coconut milk and you'll never miss regular cereal again!

Recipe from the totally awesome Cavegirl in the Kitchen

Fresh Pineapple Salsa

1½ cups diced pineapple 
1 mini seedless cucumber, diced
1 jalapeño pepper, diced (remove ribs and seeds if you can’t stand the heat)
¼ cup diced red onion
¼ cup minced cilantro
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Juice from 1 lime
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper









Chop all ingredients and combine everything in a bowl and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Serve with chicken, pork or beef. 

That’s it!

Recipe from Nom Nom Paleo.

Caribbean Beef Burgers

1 lb ground beef
1/2 cup chopped mushrooms
1/4 cup red onion, chopped
1/4 cilantro, chopped
1 egg
2 tbsp jerk seasoning

Once onion, mushroom and cilantro are chopped add to ground beef. Add egg and jerk seasoning mix. Form into patties and place in the fridge to let sit for about 30 minutes. 

Heat BBQ grill or George Foreman Grill, my BBQ was unfortunately out of propane so I opted for the inside grill. Grill for 4 - 5 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Serve with pineapple salsa, veggies or a nice fresh salad. 

Caribbean Beef Burger with fresh pineapple salsa.