Paleo Nut Bark

This recipe is simply an adaptation of the Candy Bar recipe. 

Here is what I did: 

Line a rimmed pan with foil or wax paper. I used a cookie sheet. You may need to experiment with size and it depends on how thick you want your bark to be. 

3/4 cup coconut oil, melted

3/4 cup cocoa

Mix well. Add sweetener of your choice to taste. I used:

2 Tbsp granulated erythritol (any powdered sugar substitute will do)

10 drops liquid stevia

I don't like it at all sweet, so feel free to add as much as you like. Too much liquid may affect the final texture.

Mix well. Pour half out onto your prepared pan. While it's still liquid, add nuts or other fillings of your choice. Pour the remaining chocolate over fillings so they're coated. 

Filling Variations: 

Any nuts or seeds of your choice

Dried fruits

Cocoa nibs

Coconut

 I used about a cup of pecan halves and a small handful of cocoa nibs.

I finished with a small sprinkle of the granulated erythritol, just because I like the little added crunch! It's exactly like regular sugar in that regard.

Place pan in refrigerator or freezer until firm. Break or cut into pieces and store in refrigerator or freezer.

A little funny story - while making this, I decided to mix the pecans in so they would be well coated. I store my nuts in the freezer, and had gotten them out to come to room temperature as I was mixing the rest. But I forgot to check first! The instant I poured them in, the coconut oil hardened. I could have ended up with some awesome pecan clusters. I ended up sticking it in the microwave for 20 seconds to soften it back up enough to spread it properly. Lesson learned!

No-bake cookies

Daniel's favorite. Quick, easy and delicious!

½ cup milk

2 cups sugar

1stick butter

4 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

Mix the above in a heavy saucepan. Stir frequently and bring to a boil; let mixture boil for EXACTLY one minute.

Remove from heat and add:

1 cup peanut butter

1 Tbsp vanilla

Stir until smooth. Add:

3 cups oats (regular or quick is fine. I prefer regular because quick can be  bit soggy.)

Mix thoroughly. All the oats should be completely coated with the chocolate mixture. Drop on wax paper by spoonfuls. I always place it in the freezer for a few minutes to set faster, but if you're willing to wait, you don't need to do that.

You can leave out the cocoa if you like. Chunky peanut butter is also good!

Green Chili Rice

We had this last summer at a home-cookin' type restaurant. I searched high and low for a similar recipe and ended up using a combination of several different recipes and my own tweaks, until I got it right. One difference between mine and the other recipes out there is the amount of chopped green chilies - mine is about double, which is how we like it (the chilies are not spicy at all). If you don't care for as much, use the smaller cans or just one of ones I call for.

The kids LOVE this! It would be a great potluck dish as well. I think it could easily be turned into a main dish by adding some chopped chicken.

Green Chili Rice

• 2 cups uncooked rice
• 2 cups sour cream
• 1 can condensed cream of celery soup
• 2 - 7 oz. cans chopped green chilies (undrained)
• 2 Cups shredded colby-jack cheese 
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Cook rice according to package directions.

Mix the sour cream, soup and green chilies in a large bowl.

Add cooked rice and seasonings; mix well. 

In a 9 X 13 pan, put a layer of rice mixture, then a layer of cheese. Repeat, ending with cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees, covered, for 35 minutes. Remove cover and allow to brown for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Dump Cake

You know what a "dump cake" is, right? You have just a few ingredients and you just DUMP them into a pan to bake. They are super easy at home, and very popular on Scout camp outs. We cook them in a Dutch oven, using coals for the heat (top and bottom). Yummy!

The standard Dump Cake uses canned fruit, a cake mix, and a stick of butter. Some recipes call for cutting the butter into pats or bits, some call for melting. Either way is fine. I go with pats because it's less work!

Flavor variations are endless - experiment to find your own favorite! I am posting some of ours below. You can use no-sugar-added fruit, gluten free cake mix, margarine (yuck. just saying), whatever your taste buds or health needs require. Even throw some fresh fruit into the mix. The key is you need the juice from the fruit, and some sort of liquid for the top.

In a recent training class, I learned a new trick. Instead of butter, use a can of carbonated beverage. Just pour over the top. It performs the same function as the butter, but is cheaper and easier to carry (no refrigeration needed). I do prefer the taste of butter, but on Scout trips we will be doing the soda from now on. Again, the flavor varieties are endless! We want to find a fruit to go with vanilla cake and root beer (think root beer floats!).

Each recipe is good for an 8-10 dutch oven or 9x13 pan, and makes 10-12 servings. Grease the pan!! Line it completely with foil for easier cleaning. Bake at 350 in the oven, or use coals at the campground. Instructions for charcoal cooking can be found HERE (< click).

Instructions for all recipes: "Dump" ingredients into pan, in this order: fruit, cake mix, butter or soda. Be sure each layer is spread out evenly, but do not stir. If using soda, stir it slightly into the cake mix to avoid dry spots, but be careful not to mix with the fruit. If using butter, place the bits evenly over the top. Bake at 350 for about 40 minutes, until cake layer is done.

Enjoy!

Original Dump Cake

1 can cherry pie filling
1 can pineapple, any form, WITH juice
1 box vanilla cake mix
1 stick butter, cut into pats or bits
(OR one can soda)

Chocolate Cherry Dump Cake

2 cans cherry pie filling
1 box chocolate cake mix
1 stick butter, cut into pats or bits
(OR 1 can soda)

Cherry Cola Dump Cake

16 oz. maraschino cherries WITH juice (remove stems!)
1 chocolate cake mix
1 can cola (try cherry cola or cherry Dr. Pepper for more flavor!)

Peach Dump Cake

1 29-oz can peaches
1 box vanilla cake mix
1 stick butter, cut into pats or bits
(OR 1 can soda)

Lemon-Blueberry Dump Cake

2 cans blueberry pie filling
1 box lemon cake mix
1 stick butter, cut into pats or bits
(OR 1 can soda)

Apple Spice Dump Cake

2 cans apple pie filling
1 box spice cake mix
1 stick butter, cut into pats or bits
(OR 1 can soda)

Alfredo Lasagna

This will be a work in progress.

I saw a recipe posted on Facebook for some Alfredo lasagna roll-ups. I am not interested in that much work, but I thought the idea sounded lovely. I searched for an existing recipe and didn't like anything I saw. So I decided to make my own, based on my regular lasagna.

Here is what I made.

ALFREDO LASAGNA

1 box lasagna noodles, uncooked

Sauce:

2 pounds ground or chopped meat (chicken, turkey, or pork)
1/2 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped

Cook and drain. Add:

2 quarts of alfredo sauce
1 T Italian seasoning
1 t salt
1 t garlic salt

Mix well and simmer for about 15 min.

Cheese mixture: 

16 oz of small curd cottage cheese (24 oz each)
2 eggs, beaten
1 T pesto sauce
1/4 parmesan cheese
1/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese

Mix well.

In a large lasagna pan (not sure the measurements. It's larger than a 9x13), layer as follows:

Thin layer of sauce
Dry noodles, broken as needed to fill the pan
Cheese mixture
Thick layer of sauce
Noodles
Cheese
Noodles
The rest of the sauce

I know that is out of pattern, but it's how I do it to end up with 3 layers of noodles. The noodle layers with just cheese in between is quite good.

This completely fills up the pan so I set it on a baking sheet. IT WILL OVERFLOW a little bit and you don't want that on your oven floor.

DO NOT top with cheese just yet unless you like it burned.

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Top with 2 cups of mozzarella cheese and return to the oven for 15 minutes more. The cheese will be slightly browned and really gooey. Y0u really don't want to cook it any longer than this.

Remove from the oven and let it sit for at LEAST 15 minutes. The longer the better, really. The sooner you cut it, the soupier it will be.


It was good, but didn't quite meet my expectations. It seems strange to me to post it anyway, but it was good enough for me to keep working on, and the kids absolutely loved it. So I'm posting my further ideas and will keep adding to this.

At the grocery, none of the bottled sauces were on sale, so I made my own. My recipe uses only butter and cream, which is why it was so so very rich. I think I would adapt my recipe for this by using milk instead, and thickening it with flour or cornstarch. Quantities are the same no matter which you use.

I used boneless chicken thighs, chopped up and cooked with the onions. It was too chunky. From now on, I will use ground meat (chicken, turkey or pork). I will also add a vegetable - spinach, kale, or broccoli, maybe some chopped mixed veg like broccoli/cauliflower/carrot.

My son had several friends over and they all liked it.

Pesto Cream Sauce

A yummy combination of alfredo and pesto sauce. Great with pork or chicken! I dipped my steamed broccoli in it - MMMmm!!

If you don't want to use the flour, you can thicken with cornstarch (use half the amount called for flour) or simply replace the milk with cream.

1/4 cup pesto sauce
2 T butter
2 T flour
2 cups milk
1/2 cup parmesan cheese

Heat pesto sauce in a medium saucepan.
Add butter and stir until melted.
Add flour and stir until thick. (If using cornstarch, see note)
Stir in milk or cream. Simmer and stir until thickened. Stir in cheese.

Serve with your choice of meat and/or pasta!

***Note: If using cornstarch, add it at the end - mix with 1 T of water and add to bubbling sauce. Stir until thickened.

Roasted Radishes

Another yummy surprise discovered while cooking for Dad.

ROASTED RADISHES

1 package radishes
2 tsp Olive oil
Seasonings as desired 

1 Tbsp. coconut oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Put the 2 tsp. of oil in a baggie with whatever seasonings you want. Shake to coat.

Add coconut oil to a small oven-proof skillet and heat. Add radishes and saute, stirring occasionally, until brown spots form. Put skillet in oven and roast for 15 minutes, stirring at least once.

These were really delicious! Next time I'll try adding radishes to our usual roasted veggies (basically the same method with baby carrots and whole garlic cloves).

Paleo Candy Bars

I wanted to find a treat I could enjoy while eating paleo. My nutritionist wants me to eat some coconut oil and some raw organic chocolate every day, so I figured I could start with that.

The base of this candy is just that - equal parts raw, organic cocoa and coconut oil. You could just mix the two together and have a tasty candy (add a few drops of liquid stevia to your taste). I did just that for awhile. I mixed it in an old coconut oil jar, left it in the fridge and grabbed a spoonful (with a clean spoon, of course!) whenever I had a sweet tooth.

I got the idea to step it up a notch when I found similar items for sale online, for a hefty price. "I can do that!" I said, so I did!

I can think of tons of variations. Stir in a little nut butter, dried fruits, your favorite extract. I don't really taste the coconut from just the coconut oil, but you might, so plan your flavors around that. You can certainly leave out or vary any of the nuts, seeds, coconut etc. Remember, it's a very tasty just with the cocoa, oil and sweetener.

Virgin coconut oil's melting point is 78 degrees F, and it's soft below for a few degrees below that. Chilling will make it candy bar consistency. You will want to store these in the fridge or freezer and eat it immediately.

I have oval shaped molds, and put 2 Tbsp for each serving. An ice cube tray or mini muffin tin would work great, or you could spoon out onto tray. Refrigerate until solid, then pop out and store in a ziploc bag. As far as I know, they keep indefinitely. It's a great treat when you're craving something you shouldn't be eating!

Here are some of my favorites:

Spicy (or not!) Dark Chocolate

1 cup coconut oil
1 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cayenne pepper (leave out if you don't want spicy)
1/2 cup each: sunflower seeds, pepitas, coconut
1/4 cup chopped almonds
30 drops liquid stevia

Melt coconut oil over low heat. Remove from heat when melted. Add other ingredients, mix well. Pour into molds and chill until firm.


Cinnamon-Vanilla

1 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup almond flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp sea salt
40 drops liquid stevia
1/2 cup each: coconut, sunflower seeds, pepitas, chopped almonds

Stir 1 tsp raw cocoa nibs into each mold if desired.

Spanish Rice

I don't like most Spanish rice, but a few years ago I felt like having some and found this recipe. It's really simple and the entire family loved it!

* 2 tablespoons oil 
* 1 cup uncooked white rice 
* 1 onion, chopped
* 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
* 2 cups water
* 1 (10 ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chiles (your spice preference)
* 2 teaspoons chili powder, or to taste
* 1 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oil in a deep skillet over medium heat. Saute rice until brown, Add onion and bell pepper and saute until onions are tender.
2. Stir in water and tomatoes. Season with chili powder and salt. Cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, or until rice is cooked and liquid is absorbed.

John's Marinara Sauce

Recipe by my husband, John.

John created this a few years ago for my Dad's special diet. We love it! I freeze it in small containers so there is always some available. Ice cube trays work great - pop out and store in a plastic bag once frozen.

MARINARA SAUCE

Ingredients:

1 28-30 oz can crushed tomatoes 
1 cup Miripois (roughly diced bell pepper (1/2), onion (1 medium) , carrot (2) , & celery (3 stalks))
1/2 cup vegetable stock or water
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp sea salt
I tsp fresh oregano – minced
1 tsp fresh thyme – minced
1 tsp crushed red pepper (if desired)
3 bay leaves
2 tbs olive oil

Procedure:

Place the olive oil in a cast iron Dutch oven. Sauté the miripois & garlic over medium high heat until the onions are translucent (about 5 minutes). Add the crushed tomatoes, vegetable stock, herbs, salt, red pepper (if desired), & bay leaves. Simmer stirring occasionally for an hour (or longer – longer is better). Remove bay leaves & serve. 

Note: This recipe freezes well. We usually use some immediately and freeze the rest in ice cube trays. A few cubes can be added to dishes for instant marinara!

Lemonade

The ultimate summer drink, Lemonade is popular year 'round with my crew. We have a Meyer lemon tree. When it produces, it produces a LOT. The kids are in heaven when that happens - they get to make fresh lemonade every day!

The rest of the year they make it with fresh lemons if they can get them, but usually that is too expensive. Second best is bottled lemon juice.

They've been making it all by themselves since they were six years old. I even bought an electric citrus juicer just for them! The recipe is time-tested and in our opinion, perfect in every way. I hope you enjoy!

FRESH LEMONADE

1 cup sugar
4 cups water

Mix into a sugar syrup. I never boil the water - just stir well and let it sit for awhile, stir again and go do something else, then stir again. It should be completely dissolved!

1 cup lemon juice

Mix into the syrup. Chill (if you are really patient. We never are), pour over ice and enjoy!

This also makes fabulous freezies, whether in a popsicle mold or just any old plastic cup. Happy summer!!

Parsley Potatoes

A delicious accompaniment to any meal.

PARSLEY POTATOES

1 1/2 pounds red potatoes
1 small onion, chopped
1 whole garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon canola oil, or vegetable oil or butter (I used olive oil)
1 1/2 cups vegetable or chicken broth 
1 cup minced fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

In skillet, saute onion and garlic in oil or butter until tender. Set aside. Scrub potatoes and then dice into large pieces. In large saucepan, boil potatoes in broth (plus added water to cover); drain when tender (roughly 15-20 minutes). Stir in extra butter, parsley, salt, and pepper. 4 servings.

Corn Salad

A delicious, refreshing summer salad. Kick it up a notch by adding some fresh chopped jalapeno!

CORN SALAD

3 cups fresh corn kernels (roughly 6 ears) OR 16 oz frozen corn, slightly cooked
1 tomato, seeded and diced
1 avocado, diced
2 scallions, thinly sliced OR 2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

LIME DRESSING
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon finely minced garlic
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt
pepper

In a large serving bowl, combine corn kernels, tomato, avocado, scallions/onion, and cilantro. To make the dressing, in a small bowl, whisk together all of the dressing ingredients. Combine the dressing with the salad and gently mix. 6 servings.

Mary and Mommy's Super-Duper-Deluxe Mousse Stuff

This was invented in 2008, for the triplets' 7th birthday. We love chocolate mousse cake from a local bakery and wanted to make our own. We used this on top of a sheet cake, but I think it would have held up as a filling between layers. It's also delicious as a pudding on its own! Leave out the powdered sugar and use sugar-free pudding mix and it's even low carb. 


Mary and Mommy's Super-Duper-Deluxe Mousse Stuff
1 pkg, instant chocolate pudding mix
2 T cocoa powder
4 T powdered sugar
1 -1/2 cups heavy cream

Put it all together, and beat until it's thick - then it's done!