Zucchini Pasta Chicken Salad

Get out your julienne spiralizer!  It's time to make a healthy serving of today's recipe!  It gets better day after day as you eat the leftovers from your fridge, so I usually double this recipe.  I use my spiralizer on the thinest noodles setting, but you could make them any thickness that you prefer.

Spiralized Thin Zucchini Noodles

Zucchini Pasta Chicken Salad
Makes 4 Servings

2 medium organic zuccchinis
2 medium organic yellow squash
1 organic tomato, diced
1 cup black olives, diced (preservative free)
1 lb free-range chicken, cooked and shredded
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

DRESSING
1/3 cup olive oil
1 Tbsp Bragg's apple cider vinegar
Juice of half a lemon
1/2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp organic unsweetened mustard
Sea salt and fresh pepper, to taste

1.)  Using your spiralizer, make noodles out of the zucchinis and yellow squash.  (TIP:  Keep the zucchini and squash cores for soups/stocks or stir fry dishes.)

2.)  In a large sauce pan, bring a few cups of water to boil.  Place steam in bottom of pan and steam the zucchini and squash noodles for about 5 minutes or until tender.  Remove from heat and drain.

3.)  Toss together the noodles, chicken, tomatoes, olives, and parsley.

4.)  In a small bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients.  Pour over the salad and toss to combine.  Enjoy warm or chill for a few hours before serving.

Creamy Artichoke Soup

A great soup for spring/summer!  And it's super quick to prepare, too.  I've made this as a Core Plan soup with just a few redskin potatoes because they really add a creamy body to the soup.  However, you can make this Advanced Plan by simply replacing the redskins with 2/3 cup pureed white beans.

Easy Creamy Artichoke Soup
Makes 4-6 Servings

1 shallot, minced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 Tbsp coconut oil

32 oz organic sodium-free vegetable broth

2  9oz packs frozen artichoke hearts

4 small red skin potatoes, thinly sliced (peeling optional)

1/2 tsp celery seed

1 tsp dried cilantro

Sea salt, to taste

White Pepper, to taste

1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup organic almond milk, unsweetened plain flavor

1.)  In a medium pot, saute the shallot and garlic in coconut oil over Medium heat until softened.  Stir in artichoke hearts, potatoes, celery seed, cilantro, and vegetable broth.

2.)  Bring to a boil then reduce heat to Low.  Simmer for 20 minutes or until the artichokes and potatoes are fork tender.

3.)  Remove from heat.  Blend, carefully, until smooth with a steel immersion blender or in a glass blender in small batches.

4.)  To the soup, add sea salt, white pepper, lemon juice, and almond milk.  Return to a boil for 10 minutes.  Remove from heat and serve.  Top with a dollop of organic Greek yogurt (optional).

Lemon Bars

Lemon bars, lemon bars!!  These are Dave's f-f-favorite dessert in the whole world.  Well, next to ice cream of any flavor.  I've botched experiments in the past trying to come out with lemon bars close to the same texture and taste as "conventional" lemon bars.  It's taken me many trials, but this is it I think!

These come inspired by a patient who made these for a church function from a recipe she had found in another paleo diet cookbook.  I've made my own crust layer and altered the lemon layer to be Advanced Plan.  The original recipe called for honey.

These are must-make bars!  They haven't lasted long in our home..  Once Dave's nose got whiff, half the pan was devoured!  And that makes me happy.

Lemon Bars
Makes 18 Bars

CRUST
1 cup almond flour (fine ground)
1/4 tsp sea salt
2 Tbsp powdered xylitol*
1 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
2 Tbsp raw unsalted butter, melted
1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract

LEMON TOPPING
1/4 cup almond flour (fine ground)
1/4 cup powdered xylitol*
2 tsp Stevita Spoonable stevia
4 large free-range eggs
1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice

1.)  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line an 8-inch square baking dish with unbleached parchment paper.

2.)  CRUST   Combine the almond flour, powdered xylitol, and sea salt in a large bowl.  In a medium bowl, stir together coconut oil, butter and vanilla extract.  Stir the wet ingredients into the dry until thoroughly combined.  Press the dough evenly into the bottom of the prepared baking dish.  Bake for 15 to 17 minutes, until lightly golden.

3.)  LEMON TOPPING   While the crust bakes, prepare the topping.  In a blender or food processor (or by hand with a whisk), combine the almond flour, powdered xylitol, stevia, eggs, and lemon juice.  Blend on Medium speed until smooth. Remove the crust from the oven.  Pour the topping evenly over the hot crust.

5.)  Pop back into oven.  Bake for 15 to 20 minutes at 350 degrees F until the topping is golden at edges.  Let cool in the baking dish for 30 minutes, then refrigerate for 2 hours to set.  Sprinkle with extra powdered xylitol (optional).  Cut into bars and serve.


*The recipe for powdered xylitol can be found in Season's Eatings Holiday e-Book on page 47.

Cucumber Raspberry Mint Salad

I know, I know, it sounds weird to enjoy garlic with raspberries.  But seriously, this salad is delicious!  It's a spin off of the classic cucumber garlic mint salad.  Mine is refreshing and savory at the same time.  Give the dressing and cucumbers 24 hours in the fridge to blend together, then add the raspberries just at serving time.  The flavors work really well together!


Cucumber Raspberry Mint Salad
Makes 6 Servings

2 cups plain full fat Greek yogurt
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup fresh mint, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 medium organic cucumbers, quartered and sliced
1/2 cup fresh organic raspberries
Sea salt and fresh pepper, to taste

1.)   In a mixing bowl, whisk together yogurt, lime juice, mint, and garlic.

2.)   In a salad bowl, toss cucumbers with yogurt sauce.  Season with salt and pepper.  Chill in refrigerator for 30 minutes.  Gently stir in raspberries just before serving.

How To: Eye Makeup Remover

I LOVE this DIY eye makeup remover.  For a while there, I was just using plain old olive oil to remove my makeup, but found it left my eyes extremely oily afterward, even after cleansing.  This is the perfect eye makeup remover blend.  It takes care of stubborn eye liner and mascara.  I use the natural stuff, but still, it's stuck on there for days unless you use something like this.  Give it a try!  It's pure, gentle, and nourishing.  Follow with a mild organic face wash (I prefer MiEssence Purifying Cleanser) and toner (I prefer MiEssence Balancing Skin Conditioner) before bed.

To be honest, I've had this blend of oils on hand (almond, apricot, and vitamin E) as I also use a similar mixture on my baby belly after the shower to help prevent stretch marks.  But if you don't have these already, you can find them pretty inexpensively at a place like Vitamin Shoppe, Whole Foods, or online on Amazon.com.  Be sure to read the ingredients and production process before buying to ensure a pure and safe product!

For mixing, storage, and use, reuse an old glass bottle or purchase one here or here.

Eye Makeup Remover
Makes 1 Month's Use

4 Tbsp almond oil
1 Tbsp apricot kernel oil
1 tsp vitamin E oil
2 drops chamomile essential oil

In your glass container, add all ingredients.  Screw on lid and shake until mixed.  Ready for use immediately.  Shake before each use.  Keep in a cool, dark place.  Shelf safe for up to 6 months.

You can use a cotton ball/swab/pad for makeup removal, but I'm all about using green and reusable products.  I have a small stack of soft organic cotton washcloths that I use strictly for makeup removal.  That way if they get stained, no big deal, since they're for makeup removal only.  (You'll find natural makeup doesn't really stain anyway...)  And the beauty of it is no trash!  Just throw in your weekly laundry bin and you're set.

Key Lime Pudding

So I've had a bit of a rough week here food-wise.  Dave and I attended an event this past weekend that had us there 8am-8pm both Saturday and Sunday.  In all the fun and work, we forgot to do our meal plan and go grocery shopping!!!  Monday came and we had that YIKES moment!  Neither of us really has time to make it to the grocery store during the week days (although I'm thinking of skipping out on an event I'm supposed to be at tonight and make a trip to Earth Fare before bedtime...).  We've been eating from what little we have in our pantry, which has mostly been steal cut oats for breakfast with frozen blueberries and coconut milk, black beans and salsa mixed together over spinach for lunch, and frozen broccoli and black beans for dinner.  That's been our life the past three days.  I'm getting sick of it!  If you follow this blog you know I love my variety, so this has been torture!

I just finished my beans & salsa salad for lunch, and boy was I craving something sweet.  We have a roommate here in Charlotte, and she had offered us two avocados she'd had on her counter for over a week.  She said she didn't know what to do with them.  I told her I'd whip her up something tasty.  ;)  And I saw in the fridge she had a bag of limes.  Eureka!  So here is my after lunch sweet treat, which I was inspired to make from my signature and most favorite dessert recipe Raw Key Lime Pie.  This simple twist on my key lime pie recipe is quick, requires just a few ingredients, and tastes SO GOOD!

Key Lime Pudding
Makes 3 Servings

2 organic ripe avocados
1/2 tsp pure liquid stevia
3-4 Tbsp lime zest (yup, zest the whole bag of limes!)
2/3 cup fresh lime juice (and yup, squeeze almost all of them!)

Add all ingredients to your blender and blend on High until smooth.  Serve immediately or chill for an hour or two before serving.  I topped with crushed almonds to add a little protein and mimic pie crust.  DEEEElicious!

I went ahead and used standard limes that you'll find at your grocery store (Tahitian).  However, you can definitely go ahead and use Key limes if you have them or find them.  Key limes are naturally sweeter than Tahitian limes, so you can go a little less on the stevia.

Zucchini Casserole

Still getting used to having fresh organic produce so early in the year.  Living in a warmer climate definitely has its benefits!  This side dish is great with grilled chicken.

Zucchini Casserole
Serves 6

2 tsp coconut oil
2 medium organic green zucchini, sliced into 1/2" pieces
4 organic scallions, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dried marjoram
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp fresh black pepper
2 medium organic yellow zucchini, sliced into 1/2" pieces
1/2 cup fresh dill, chopped
1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
5 free-range eggs, lightly beaten
5 egg whites, lightly beaten
1 organic tomato, thinly sliced
2 ounces organic feta cheese, crumbled

1.)  Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Heat 1 teaspoon coconut oil in a large skillet over Medium heat. Add green zucchini, half of the scallions, half of the garlic, 1 teaspoon marjoram, 1/2 teaspoon sea salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.  Saute until zucchini has softened and starts to brown, about 7 minutes.  Transfer to a large bowl and set aside.

2.)  Repeat process with yellow zucchini and remaining coconut oil, scallions, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon marjoram, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.  Transfer to bowl with cooked green zucchini; let sit until cooled.  Drain and discard any liquid.

3.)  Add dill, parsley, and eggs to zucchini, stirring to combine.  Pour into a 9-inch casserole dish.  Cover with tomato slices.  Sprinkle with feta crumbles.  Bake until set, about 1 hour.  Serve hot or at room temperature.