Light & Crispy Waffles

makes 4-6 waffles

3/4 cups milk or non-dairy milk of choice
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

5 Tbsp glutinous rice flour
5 Tbsp sorghum flour
2 Tbsp tapioca starch
2 Tbsp almond flour
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

2 eggs, room temp.
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled (sub coconut oil if needed)
1 tsp vanilla

In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup combine milk and vinegar and let sit 5 minutes, allowing it to curdle slightly.

Preheat waffle iron to medium heat.

In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine eggs, butter, vanilla, and milk mixture.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in wet ingredients. Whisk to combine. Batter may separate as it sits, but just whisk it together again before ladling out batter.

Using a 1/3-cup measuring cup, ladle batter onto preheated waffle iron. Cook until steam stops coming from the sides of the machine (or until it's as nice and brown and crispy as your heart desires).

Top them off with the classic butter and syrup, throw on some fruit, or maybe a slather of preserves.

Enjoy!
Abigail

Prosciutto Wrapped Chicken

serves 4

1 1/2 lbs chicken tenders, or 1 full chicken breast cut into tenders
1 Tbsp avocado oil, or oil of choice
1/2 tsp salt
a few pinches freshly ground black pepper
10 slices prosciutto, each slice torn in half

Preheat oven to 375F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or silicone.

In a large bowl, combine chicken, oil, salt, and pepper. Stir to evenly coat chicken pieces. Wrap each chicken piece with half a slice of prosciutto and black on lined baking sheet with seam side down. 

Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through and prosciuttos has started to brown and crisp on edges.

Almond Crusted Chicken

serves 4

1 cup raw almond
1 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 cup honey mustard dressing (my favorite ones are the sweeter creamier ones, not the more vinegar based ones), plus more for serving
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 whole chicken breasts, cut into tender-size strips

Preheat oven to 375F.

Add almonds, garlic salt, and pepper to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until almonds are chopped finely, not quite fine as almond meal but smaller than rice. Transfer to a shallow bowl or baking dish.

Line a rimmed baking sheet or dish with parchment or silicone.

In a bowl, combine salad dressing and olive oil. Dredge chicken in dressing until well coated. 

One at a time, lift chicken pieces from bowl, allowing excess dressing to drip off. Then transfer to bowl with almond mixture and coat in almonds on all sides, pressing into crushed almonds to help stick. Once fully coated, place on lined baking sheet and repeat with remaining chicken pieces.

Bake for 15-20 minutes until chicken is baked through and almonds have started to brown. 

Serve with honey mustard for dipping. 

Enjoy

Turkey Meatballs

serves 6

2 tsp olive oil
1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup finely grated zucchini (after grating, be sure to squeeze out as much excess liquid as possible)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
1 lb ground turkey thigh
1 lb ground turkey breast
1/4 cup almond meal
2 eggs

Place saucepan over medium heat. Add olive oil and heat until it begins to shimmer. Add onions and sauté until onions begin to soften and sweat. Add garlic, zucchini, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Sauté for a few minutes more. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool slightly.

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a medium bowl, combine ground turkey, almond meal, eggs, and cooled veggies. Mix well. 

Using a small retractable scoop, scoop out meatballs and place on a silat or parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until cooked through.

Serve with your favorite tomato sauce and pasta. 

Parchment Baked Salmon

adapted from Pioneer Woman
serves 4

1 yukon gold potatoes, very thinly sliced (see note for Paleo, Whole 30, and AIP)
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed, each stalk cut in half
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
1 lb center cut salmon filet, cut into 2 filets
2 tsp olive oil
1 lemons, thinly sliced
sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
a few sprigs of thyme

Preheat oven to 375F. Prepare 2 large ovals of parchment paper, and fold it in half. 

Divide thinly sliced pieces of potato between parchment ovals and place on the bottom half of the parchment. Divide asparagus and red onion pieces between the ovals and place on top of potato slices. Drizzle with 1 tsp olive oil and then sprinkle with a few pinches of sea salt and pepper. 

Place salmon filets on the vegetables. Drizzle salmon with remaining olive oil and a few pinches sea salt and pepper. Top with lemon slices and thyme sprigs. 

Fold parchment paper over starting at one corner and pinching the edges over to close the packet. When the edges are completely closed, it will look like a calzone.

Bake the fish for 15 minutes on the center rack in the oven. Remove and unwrap, test fish and potatoes for doneness. Fish should be flaky in the center and potatoes are soft in center. 

Serve immediately.

NOTE: For paleo, Whole 30, and AIP sub white sweet potatoes for yukon gold. Create parchment pouch with just sliced potatoes and bake for 15 minutes before adding asparagus, red onion, salmon, lemon and thyme. Follow recipe as written. For AIP, omit black pepper.

Mini Meatloaves with Potatoes, Leeks and Broccoli

adapted from Southern Living
serves 4

5 Tbsp olive oil
2 tsp chopped garlic (about 2 cloves)
1 tsp lemon zest, plus 2 Tbsp fresh juice (from 1 lemon)
1 tsp salt, divided
3/4 tsp black pepper, divided
3 cups broccoli florets
2 leek, whites only, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1/2 lb red potatoes, cut into wedges
1/2 lb lean ground beef
1/2 lb ground pork
1/4 cup grated carrot (from 1 carrot)
1/4 cup grated yellow onion
1/4 cup almond meal
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tsp coconut aminos (sub tamari, if desired)

Preheat oven to 400F. Whisk together oil, garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper in a large bowl. Add broccoli, leek, and red potatoes. Toss to coat. Spread the vegetables on a rimmed baking sheet (foil-lined for easier clean up). Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. 

Meanwhile, combine beef, pork, carrot, onion, breadcrumbs, egg, and remaining 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper in a large bowl. Mix gently just until combined. Shape into 4 (2x3-inch) loaves. Remove pan from oven, stir vegetables and push to one half of the pan. Carefully place meatloaves on pan. Return pan to oven and bake until meat is cooked through and vegetables are tender, about 35 minutes.

Whisk together ketchup and soy sauce in a small bowl. Spread over meatloaves, increase oven temperature to broil and broil until sauce begins to brown, about 2 minutes. 

Enjoy! 

NOTE: For Whole30, be sure to use approved ketchup and sub white sweet potatoes. 

Salisbury Steak

adapted from realplans.com
serves 4

1 lb ground beef
1 clove garlic, minced
1 small yellow onion, minced, divided
2 tsp coarse sea salt, divided
4 cups beef stock (sub chicken or veggie stock if needed)
2 Tbsp dried thyme
1 1/2 tsp arrowroot starch
2 tsp filtered water
2 Tbsp bacon fat (sub coconut or avocado oil if desired)
1 lb cremini mushrooms, sliced thin

In a large mixing bowl, add ground beef, garlic, half the onion, and 1 tsp salt. Mix until well combined.

Form the meat mixture into patties and set aside while you prepare the sauce.

In a medium saucepan, bring stock, thyme, and remaining salt to boil over a moderately high flame. Continue to simmer until reduced by half. In a small bowl, combine arrowroot powder and filtered water. Pour into sauce and stir to incorporate. Remove sauce from heat and set aside.

In a large skillet, melt half the fat over medium-high heat. Cook the remaining onions until they begin to soften. Add the mushrooms and continue sautéing until the mushrooms are soft. Transfer mushrooms and onion mixture to a plate and set aside.

Melt remaining fat in the skillet and add the ground beef patties to the hot fat, searing on both sides until nice and brown on the outside but still pink in the center.

Smother the patties with sautéed mushrooms and onions. Top with the sauce. Continue to simmer over a moderately low flame until the steaks are cooked through.

Serve hot, topped with mushrooms and sauce, over a bed of mashed sweet potatoes or cauliflower rice. 

Braised Chicken Thighs with Carrots & Lemon

adapted from Southern Living
serves 4

8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, trimmed (about 3 lbs)
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt, divided
1 tsp black pepper, divided
2 Tbsp salted butter (sub any oil)
1 lb large carrots, halved lengthwise and cut into 1 1/2-in long pieces
2 1/2 Tbsp arrowroot starch (can sub all-purpose flour or cornstarch)
2 cups chicken broth
4 thyme sprigs
1 lemon, sliced
3 cups hot cooked mashed potatoes for serving (optional)

Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Sprinkle chicken with paprika and 3/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Melt butter in a large enamel-coated cast-iron skilled with lid over medium-high. Place half of chicken, skin side down, in skillet; cook until skin is golden brown, about 6 minutes. Remove chicken from skillet; repeat process with remaining chicken.

Add carrots to pan, and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 7 minutes. Add arrowroot to skillet; cook, stirring often, 1 minute. Add broth, thyme, and remaining salt and pepper; bring to a boil. Place chicken, skin side up, on carrots. Partially cover with lid; reduce heat to medium-low, and cook until chicken is done, about 20 minutes. Remove thyme sprigs. Stir in lemons, and, if desired, serve over mashed potatoes.