breakfast | To-Eat List

Microwave English Muffin (grain, dairy-free, paleo)

Posted on November 9, 2015 by Rachel Leigh

Ever since starting the paleo diet about a year ago, I’ve found it fairly easy to give up bread. If I feel like going off track, my first choice is usually something sugary or cheesy. I didn’t even like cheese before I went paleo, so I’m not sure why it’s one of my top cravings now… If you can tolerate dairy or at least good quality grass-fed dairy then I highly recommend smearing some cream cheese on this muffin, or melting some to make a grilled cheese. Yummy!

There was a time when I had just gotten back from Ireland (studying abroad) and all I wanted was highly-processed American food (think Reese’s and Cheetos) and that’s exactly what I ate. I would eat Reese’s cup after Reese’s cup and my body just had no idea what was going on. It hadn’t eaten such bad foods in my life. I don’t know if my body had changed since returning to the States, but I couldn’t get enough junk. Normally I have enough willpower to stop myself from eating something that I know will set me back weeks in my gut healing, but there was no stopping me. I was ravenous around candy.

Needless to say, I suffered for months after coming home from work every night and eating my weight in candy (no joke, I ate like 20 Reese’s cups a day). No wonder I gained about 10 pounds when I got back after losing a large amount of weight abroad. With little time to eat and contracting a nasty parasite in Europe, that was bound to happen.

This recipe is the closest thing I’ve found to an english muffin in the paleo world. It takes 2 minutes to mix up and cook, and all you have to do is slice it in half and give it a good toast then smear it in coconut oil or ghee. It’s not exactly the texture of a real english muffin, but it looks like one and satisfies my occasional need for bread in no time flat.

Microwave English Muffin (recipe from Primal Bites)

1 egg
1 tbsp coconut flour
1 tsp psyllium husk powder (I’ve used ground flaxseed too)
1 tsp olive oil (coconut oil or ghee work too)
1 tbsp water
pinch of baking powder
pinch of salt

// Whisk egg in mug or small microwave safe bowl.
Add all other ingredients to the whisked egg and mix until it’s a smooth mixture without lumps.
Microwave for 1-2 minutes or until middle has set and it’s not gooey.
Remove from the mug/bowl and slice in half and toast it in the toaster.
Smear the toasted english muffin with butter/ghee/coconut oil and scarf down!!

Frittata for One, Please

Posted on October 28, 2015 by Rachel Leigh

What do you do when you’re swimming in sweet potatoes, but sick of the same old recipe of roasting them?

You spiralize them and throw them into a pan of ghee and add eggs!

So simple, yet so delicious.

I have a bit of rant today just because it’s been brewing in my mind lately, but I don’t understand people who don’t know how to cook. Maybe it’s the fact that I grew up watching Food Network and idolizing Ina Garten, but I just don’t understand how someone can’t read a recipe and make something edible out of it. I feel like recipes are pretty self-explanatory. Am I wrong?! This frittata took no talent to throw together unless you consider sautéing a vegetable talent… or maybe preheating an oven is hard for people… I will never understand.

Okay, I’m done with that but at least I give you a frittata recipe in return for listening to me!

Veggie Frittata

2 eggs
2 tbsp coconut milk
1 sweet potato, spiralized
2 handfuls arugula
1/2 tbsp ghee
salt & pepper

// Preheat oven to 350.
Whisk eggs with coconut milk.
Sauté sweet potato in a small pan with ghee until slightly tender, then add the arugula.
Once the arugula has wilted, add the egg mixture.
Let cook on the stove for a couple minutes until the sides have set, then put the pan in the oven for 5 minutes, or until the top has set.

Consider yourself a cook now 😉

Coconut Flour Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls (dairy, grain, sugar-free, paleo)

Posted on October 26, 2015 by Rachel Leigh

Lately I’ve had this urge to bake EVERYTHING I SEE. The only thing that’s stopping me is my inability to stop eating my baked goods 5 seconds out of the oven. Rachel’s willpower = NONE. Then something changed. I woke up Sunday morning without an appetite. I thought, now is the perfect time to make something delicious that will last long enough for at least my roommates to snag a few bites.

You see, I love sharing my food and enlightening people on how good paleo recipes can be. I get a lot of weird looks for things I eat or make, but that’s just because they don’t know what it is. My roommates had never heard of coconut or tapioca flour, but as soon as they tried these cinnamon rolls, all weary notions were out the window.

Honestly though, these cinnamon rolls could make a believer out of anyone! THEY’RE SOOOO GOOD!

The texture isn’t dry and cakey like most coconut flour recipes. The rolls are super moist, chewy and oh so gooey! I dare you to stop yourself from eating just one, like me (though I had another for “dessert”).

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls (Recipe adapted from The Spunky Coconut)

Dry Ingredients:
1 cup coconut flour
1 cup tapioca or arrowroot flour
2 tbsp psyllium husk powder
2 tsp baking soda

Wet Ingredients:
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
1 cup water
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp honey or maple syrup
1/2 cup melted coconut oil
1/2 tsp vanilla

Filling:
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (I used 1/2 pumpkin & 1/2 mashed banana for sweetness)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 to 1/2 cup coconut sugar (I used less than 1/4 because I used the banana)

// Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Whisk dry ingredients together. It’s very important so that the psyllium husk doesn’t clump up.
Combine wet ingredients in a bowl.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix really well using an electric mixer.
Press the dough out into a rectangle on parchment paper until 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick, and sprinkle with flour.
Spread filling evenly over dough.

Roll up dough and cut into 8 pieces.
Place the rolls in a pan, spreading them out.
Bake for 30 minutes, and let them set for about 10 minutes before eating.

I enjoyed them hot and straight outta the fridge 🙂

No Bake Protein Bars (grain, sugar, dairy free, paleo)

Posted on October 16, 2015 by Rachel Leigh

Hellooooo Fall. I’m not adjusting to the drop in temperature in Minnesota very well, so I’m spending a lot of time cozied up in my apartment either cooking or just lounging with a cup of tea and my thoughts.

One thought that came to my mind is, how do I cut down my egg consumption? I generally eat around 4 eggs a day which can be a bit excessive, so I was thinking of some new portable ways to get protein in me while I’m running from class and work.

The first month of school I had been eating Epic bars as my breakfast with a banana, but as soon as those bars go back to full price at Whole Foods, I bail. I’m not too happy to spend $3 on a not very substantial breakfast, but the $2 when on sale was more appealing. My stash ran out, so I turned to hard boiled eggs, but when my dinner is usually fried or poached eggs and veggies, I got sick of the egg world.

Enter the wonderful protein bar.

I usually put hemp protein powder in my smoothies, but most days I can’t take a smoothie with me to class, so I needed something I could throw in my bag for later, but it had to utilize my protein powder. I found this recipe on one of my favorite paleo blogs, and changed it a bit for my liking. They’re also no bake which makes them easy to whip up and freeze for a quick breakfast or snack.

No Bake Apple Pie Protein Bars (recipe adapted from The Big Man’s World)

1 1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup protein powder ( I used this hemp protein)
1 tbsp cinnamon
1/4 cup pumpkin seed butter
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup applesauce (I used my crockpot recipe)
1/4 cup coconut milk

// Put all dry ingredients in a bowl and mix well.
Melt the pumpkin seed butter and maple syrup in the microwave until very soft.
Combine all ingredients with the dry ingredients and mix well.
Add more coconut milk if too dry.
Push into a parchment lined baking pan or loaf pan for thicker bars.

Portion into individually wrapped bars and freeze until class time or snack time!

Raw Lemon Macaroons (dairy, grain, sugar-free, paleo)

Posted on October 5, 2015 by Rachel Leigh

I have a problem. A very delicious problem. I can’t stop making macaroons!! I eat like 6 a day which is fine because they’re full of healthy fats and minimal sweetness, so no need to worry about me, but my food processor can’t keep up with my macaroon demands.

I sit awake at night thinking of new things to put into these little balls of perfection. Pumpkin spice ones? Chocolate? Apple Cinnamon? Everything just sounds so good…

Raw Lemon Macaroons (recipe from sophistimom)

1 1/2 cups unsweetened finely shredded coconut
1/2 cup almond flour
3 tbsp coconut oil
4 tbsp maple syrup (grade B)
zest of 1 lemon
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of sea salt

// Combine all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until completely combined and kind of like a paste.
Using a tbsp, scoop out balls and refrigerate for 2 hours for the best texture.

Stay tuned for more macaroon variations, but in the meantime; whip these up and go to town 🙂

Raw Macaroons (dairy, sugar, grain-free, paleo)

Posted on September 30, 2015 by Rachel Leigh

You know that feeling when you find gold? When you know you discovered something great? You lose sleep thinking about it? You stand at the open fridge just staring at it?

Well that’s how I feel about this recipe. I’ve discovered a recipe that I absolutely love! It all started when I (kinda) made the mistake of buying Hail Merry Macaroons impulsively at Whole Foods last week. I ate the whole bag in just over a day, and kinda felt bad about it for 5 seconds. But ya know, they are just so dang good!! But the price… CRAZY!

I was looking at the ingredient list and thought to myself that there’s no way I can’t just make these at home in like 2 minutes. Well sure enough I did just that last night and the only reaction I needed from my sugar-lovin twin was, “HOT DAMN!!”

She was an instant believer, and she doesn’t even like coconut, but she mentioned that the chewy texture you get from both the coconut flakes and almond flour is super delicious!

Raw Macaroons (recipe My Heart Beets)

1 cup finely shredded coconut
1/2 cup almond flour (grinded my own so it was a course texture that I quite liked)
6 tbsp coconut oil
1/4 tsp sea salt
2 tbsp maple syrup

// Combine all ingredients in a food processor until it forms a sticky ball.
Using a tablespoon, scoop out round balls and place in a container.
Refrigerate for at least 10 min but a couple hours resulted in the best firm texture.

Eat them right outta your hand (according to my lovely pictures), but just try to stop at 1 of these! It’s impossible!!

Fruity Popsicles (dairy, sugar-free)

Posted on September 25, 2015 by Rachel Leigh

I’m on that popsicles grind these days. After such success with my first endeavor (here), I decided to try my frozen luck again and throw a bunch of few ingredients into my blender and freeze away.

Honestly, these popsicles had no crazy ingredients and weird combinations like the last avocado ones, but I had some coconut milk to use up so popsicles it was. They’re great for a nice little sweet dessert before bed, or I’ve even eaten them for breakfast as they are basically my morning smoothie in popsicle form.

The great thing about these popsicles is that they can be the base for pretty much anything. I just recommend using the frozen banana and coconut milk, but the other parts are endlessly swappable (is that a word?), so go out and grab a popsicle mold (mine’s from IKEA) and blend away. I promise they’re REALLY hard to mess up!

My roommate was so inspired by my popsicle making that she went out and bought a mold, and just froze some orange juice. While the creativity was not really there; the simplicity was. Popsicles are the simplest pleasure in life, I tell ya!

Fruity Popsicles

2 frozen bananas
1/2 cup coconut milk
1 cup frozen berries
1 tsp cinnamon
Optional: any fruit (pineapple, peaches, cherries, etc.), chocolate chips, avocado, and on and on

// Throw all ingredients into a high-powered blender.
Blend until super smooth, then add to popsicle molds and freeze overnight.

It’s that simple!!

Squash ‘Porridge’ (dairy, sugar, grain-free)

Posted on September 21, 2015 by Rachel Leigh

I’ve been in a breakfast rut. Nothing ever sounds good to me besides a huge stack of pancakes, but then again the thought of my stomach churning all day post-glutenous-pancakes sounds incredibly unappealing.

So I’ve been on the hunt for something that’s warm for these falls days, nourishing, and delicious. On the paleo diet that’s kind of easier said than done, especially when you’re low on time. None of those ‘magical’ overnight oats for this girl. I also try and avoid eggs for breakfast as they are usually a large part of my lunch or dinner (though I could easily eat them for every meal).

Breakfast ‘porridge’ to the rescue. I love me some starchy squash (in moderation, because it can be harsh to digest sometimes), AND I LOVE LOVE LOVE anything coconut so voila!

Squash + Coconut anything = a darn good way to get me outta bed.

So it was set. I would pick up an acorn squash (tend to be on the sweet side, which is perfect for breakfast) and some coconut flakes/milk.

It turns out that I was right. Shocker 😉

Enough about my love for carby veggies and coconut, here’s the real gem… Though it looks like something not so appetizing, I promise it’s delish!

Squash ‘Porridge’

1 acorn squash (any squash will work)

2 tbsp coconut flakes

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup coconut milk (any milk will work)

optional add-ins: chocolate chips, dried fruit, nuts, seeds, etc.

// Cut squash in half and roast in 400 degree oven until tender 30-45 min.

Let cool then scoop out and place in a bowl.

Sprinkly on the coconut flakes, and drizzle on coconut milk.

Grab a spoon and start shoveling (into mouth…)!

I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend! Anyone do anything particularly exciting to begin the fall season?

Coconut Flour Pancakes (grain, dairy, sugar-free)

Posted on September 16, 2015 by Rachel Leigh

My diet has been anything but exciting in the last month. Unless you consider brussel sprouts and eggs for every meal something to write home about… so when I woke up without a hangover last Saturday I thought, “Let’s actually put some thought into my brunch!”

I’ve been trying to stay away from nuts/seeds so coconut flour would have to do. I took inspiration from some fellow bloggers and whipped up a fluffy batch of coconut flour pancakes for myself.

My roommate was making Bisquick waffles at the same time, ironically… It really brought me back to my freshman in college days when I would host ‘Waffle Wednesday’ in my tiny dorm room. I would whip up batches of Bisquick waffles, but would always use chia seed eggs instead of real eggs because why not?! Those waffles were a hit, I tell ya!

These pancakes tasted just as good though, and I credit that slightly to me cooking them up in a pan of my Homemade Ghee. That way they could get nice and crispy on the outside to contrast the fluffy interior.

Plus they take T-minus 2 minutes to throw together, so what’s not to love! Bye bye Bisquick!

Coconut Flour Pancakes (Serves 1)

2 tbsp coconut flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
2 tbsp coconut milk
1/2 tbsp coconut oil, melted

ghee to grease the pan/griddle

// Combine all ingredients in a bowl, and mix thoroughly.
Let batter sit for a few minutes so the coconut flour can absorb the liquid a bit.
Spoon big dollops in a pan, and cook for 3 minutes then flip and cook another 3 minutes.

Flop onto a plate and enjoy with your most favoritest toppings from your childhood 🙂

Homemade Ghee

Posted on September 14, 2015 by Rachel Leigh

When I switched over to a grain, sugar and dairy-free lifestyle, I didn’t realize that I would end up missing DAIRY the most. It pains me to have to ask for “no cheese” when I go out for brunch or I’m really craving a burger (bun-less). I just miss that rich and creamy taste that only cows can provide, or goats because goat cheese is life!

Also, after spending 4 months in arguably the ‘Dairy Capital of the World’ (Ireland); I really started to miss my butter. Don’t get me wrong, I can eat coconut oil like there’s no tomorrow, but sometimes I just wanna to fry an egg in something buttery and sinful (but not that sinful). Sooooo along came GHEEEE!!

I was a bit intimidated to make it at first because I wasn’t sure if my homemade ghee would end up being 100% dairy-free, but it turns out it’s pretty obvious if it is or not (make sure there aren’t chunks in your end product). If it’s clear and gorgeous, you’ve got yourself some darn good ghee! Plus you just saved a couple bucks making it yourself! Winner.

So here’s how to do it…

Homemade Ghee

2 bricks of grass-fed butter (I used Kerrygold)
cheesecloth or coffee filters
canning jar or any glass storage

// Place butter in a medium saucepan on medium heat.

Meltdown the butter then turn the stove down to low or medium-low.
Continue cooking and the butter will go through a fizzy and very bubbly stage, but that’s supposed to happen.

After about 15-20 min the butter will have settled and the milk solids will have browned and are either floating or sunk to the bottom.

Keep cooking for a few more minutes and then remove from heat.
Strain through a cheesecloth, or coffee filter; making sure that non of the burnt solid pieces make it through the strainer.
I store mine in the refrigerator but it can be stored at room temperature. I’m just weird like that!

Slather on grain-free toast, or fry up some ‘fluffy almond flour pancakes‘ in it. NOM NOM NOM, butter for all!!