Beet Soup

This Winter sure is trying to go out with a bang! Holy snowstorms!

We only have 4 weeks left according to our buddy Phil. And while I'm ready to give my Winter coat a break, I'm still enjoying all of the warm beverages, soups, and stews that taste so great in colder weather. I've been using my snowy days at home as the perfect excuse to let a pot of chili simmer all afternoon, and I've been collecting soup recipes from friends and family (that I will then repost here as if they were my own... Love you guys!).

The last week-or-so, I've also been on a beet kick.

It all started when I baked beet-based cupcakes for my 32nd birthday party (#32!). Then I used the leftover beet purée as the sauce for a spinach and goat cheese gluten free pizza.

Yes, that is bacon. No, goat cheese is not paleo.
Neither is GF pizza crust. Live your life!

Shortly thereafter my Ukrainian heritage kicked in and I started toying with the idea of a beet soup. I was sure I could make a creamy puréed soup, like my ever-popular Roasted Broccoli version. And I knew the beets would cook up well with typical soup-starters like onion and garlic. But I wanted to be sure it was slightly tangy to mimic the flavor profile of my pizza, without the added goat cheese. After a quick scan through what-passes-for-my-pantry I decided a splash of vinegar would do the trick (and beet salad is delicious, right? so it couldn't totally ruin the soup).

This recipe came together nicely and tasted even better than expected (which is really saying something. I have very high expectations for myself). It definitely tastes like beets, though. So if you're a beet-hater like my father, please skip along to the next post (sorry Dad!). If you're a beet-lover like me, then I definitely recommend it! How often do you get to eat pink food?! 

 Beet Soup

Pink Soup!

Ingredients

3 medium beets, peeled and diced*

1 large sweet onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups beef stock

2 cups cauliflower florets

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar 

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 bay leaf

Salt and pepper

Instructions

Pour olive oil into a large pot and place over medium heat. Add diced onion and season with salt and pepper. Cook onion until it starts to brown. Add garlic and continue cooking until onions begin to caramelize (be careful not to burn the garlic). Add cauliflower florets and diced beets and toss together until the cauliflower turns pink. 

Add beef stock and bay leaf. Season with a pinch of salt and a few shakes of pepper. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and continue simmering until beets are tender. About 30 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool slightly so that you don't scald yourself on the next step.

Use your immersion blender to purée the soup until creamy (if you don't have an immersion blender, carefully pour the soup into your standard blender and purée until smooth). Return the soup to medium heat. Add balsamic vinegar and re-season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir continuously until it just starts to boil. Remove from heat. Makes 6 servings.

*Pro Tip: Peel and dice your beets in the sink. Literally. I cleaned the sink and then put the cutting board in it to work. Otherwise, your kitchen will look like you massacred a herd of My Little Ponies.

Baked Corned Beef Hash

It's been a while since I last explana-bragged about the sweat gear in my Silly Little Kitchen. So I figured it's about that time... This post is also quite timely because last weekend was huge for my Ninja Mega Kitchen System.

Yes there is a cult-of-the-Ninja. And you can hate if you want to. But I totally get it. My new Ninja was delivered only a few hours before CaveBoy moved out, so it (literally) sat on the shelf for a few months before I was motivated to get back in the kitchen and fully test its oft-praised features. Now I only regret waiting so long!

I had been coveting the Ninja for months because (spoiler alert) advertising works on me. And I wake up early on the weekends. And there is almost nothing to watch on TV but infomercials. And the end.

So after the third or fourth running, I finally decided I really did need a Ninja Mega Kitchen System. Not for me. But for all of you! Think of how many new and wonderful recipes I could create with such a tool at my disposal. So really this is all your fault!

I went online to place my order.

But wait! I "called" within the next 10 minutes, and the wonderful people at Ninja threw in a Ninja Mega Professional Prep System at no additional charge! And on top of that (for being so cute, I assume) they also gave me a Frozen Treat Accessory Kit. ChaChing!

Sweet deal, right?

So. Fast forward to last weekend.

A dozen of my favorite girls came over to celebrate my 32 years on Earth. The group was an amazing mash-up of my awesome worlds. The Fierce Ladies from the office came out in force, along with the CrossFit Beauties, and one of my #1 Loves from grad school. 

We drank (quite a few) margaritas and a few bottles of wine. I force-fed everyone shots of Fireball Whisky (whatever. it tastes like Valentine's Day). And then we went out and danced like crazy at the local 22-year-old-meat-market-that-passes-for-a-Club (they have a video DJ!).

But before that, we had cupcakes. Paleo Naturally Red Velvet Cupcakes made almost entirely out of roasted beets (like I said, these are good friends, people). And I used my Ninja food processor to puree the beets, mix the wet ingredients, pulse in the combo-flour, and otherwise rock the recipe in no time flat. And they tasted pretty good, too!

And then. The next day. After I had semi-partially recovered from my hangover (I'm getting too old to have any more birthdays), I got to work on Ninja experiment number two: Baked Corned Beef Hash. 

I'm a hash fan. I often keep freezer-bagged portions of sweet potato hash on hand to easily turn Saturday morning breakfast into something special. It's particularly great with the yolks of a couple "dippy" eggs oozing through the shredded veggies (my mouth is watering). And with Saint Patrick's Day coming, Whole Foods has corned beef back in stock. 

With my Professional Prep System (and it's shredder attachment), I was able to pull this recipe together with minimal effort and get back to convalescing on the couch. The flavor was amazing and exactly what I needed to make a full recovery! Enjoy.

Baked Corned Beef Hash

EXTREME CLOSE UP!

Ingredients

1.5 lbs corned beef

2 pink lady apples, shredded

1 large sweet potato, shredded (seriously, get the biggest sweet potato you've ever seen, or two medium)

1 large yellow onion, diced

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and pepper

Instructions

Cook the corned beef according to the package instructions (I put mine in the Crock-Pot because I didn't feel up to babysitting a simmering stock pot). Then set aside to cool.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine shredded/diced veggies and olive oil in a baking dish. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Place baking dish in oven. Cook until sweet potato shreds are softened, but not mushy. About 1 hr 20 minutes. Be careful not to let the bottom burn! I pulled mine out every 20 minutes to stir. 

Shred corned beef* and combine with cooked sweet potato mixture. Re-season with salt and pepper to taste.** Makes 5 servings.

*Note: CB recommends that you cube the corned beef into chunks instead of shredding it, so that it isn't all the same texture. I think she's probably on to something...

**Note: Yes. That's it. I told you it was hangover-proof. 

CaveLife: Planning Your Paleo Super Bowl Party

Over the past year and a half, I've posted quite a few appetizers, dips, salads, and treats. So I thought I'd pull the best-of-the-best together in one place and let your eyes help you decide what to share with your friends on Sunday.

You're welcome.

Appetizers

Pork Stuffed Pepperoncini

Herb Garlic Chicken Wings

Bacon Wrapped Chorizo Stuffed Dates

Jalapeño Poppers

Dips

Toasted Coconut Curry Chicken Salad

Buffalo Chicken Salad

Roasted Cauliflower Hummus

Salads

Shredded Carrot Salad

Three Color Roasted Vegetable Salad

Treats

Tropical Chocolate Chip Cookies

Pecan Maple Bacon Bars

Banana Cream Cake

Pineapple With Dark Chocolate Sauce

Jalapeño Poppers + Avocado Ranch

This recipe is brought to you by the kindness of one of my colleagues. She lives in a different city, and I've been working on a big project with her - long distance - for a few years. Last fall I was visiting her city and she invited me over to her house for a home-cooked meal (that type of kindness is a real blessing and luckily not too rare in my cubicle-bound world).

My colleague shook up a mean ginger martini, and she and her husband prepared a cornucopia of vegetable dishes (hot and cold). All were delicious, but the shining star of the evening was her husband's beautifully grilled ribeye. Now, if you haven't noticed, I'm a food-lover. I know an excellent steak when I eat one. So I started interrogating them about how they could possibly have made something so simple - that I have enjoyed countless times - so incredibly delicious.

That's when they let me in on their secret: Muzzy's Magic Texas Jalapeño Seasoning with Cilantro. They seasoned both sides of the steaks about 30 minutes before putting them on the grill. Super simple. Major pay off.

This revelation brought so many thoughts to mind. First: Be still my adopted-Texan heart! Then: Why have I never tasted this before? And finally: Where do I get some for myself?

I so enjoyed the meal that they doubled-down on their kindness and sent me home with my very own bottle of Muzzy's Magic (we're friends for life at this point. how could we not be?). I've been using it on everything. Chicken. Pork. Beef. Everything. So when I decided to take a stab at protein-packed, bacon-wrapped jalapeño poppers, I knew I had the perfect seasoning in my spice cabinet.

If you're not lucky enough to have Muzzy's Magic in your spice rack, you can make an adequate replacement with salt, pepper, and garlic. But don't kid yourself, it won't be the same. I strongly recommend (to a friend) that you order a bottle!

Jalapeño Poppers

Seriously, take my advice. Toothpicks are important!

Ingredients

12 large jalapeño peppers

1 1/2 lb chicken breast

12 strips center cut bacon

1/2 cup coconut milk
Muzzy's Magic (or Garlic Powder, Salt and Pepper)

Toothpicks (recommended)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place chicken in a baking dish and season liberally with Muzzy's Magic. Bake at 400 degrees until chicken is fully cooked. About 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool enough to touch.

While the chicken bakes, split the jalapeños in half lengthwise and remove the stems and seeds. Then slice each bacon strip in half. 

Shred the cooled chicken. Mix in coconut milk and re-season with Muzzy's Magic to taste. Press a small ball of chicken mixture into each jalapeño half and wrap with a  bacon strip. Secure the bacon to the jalapeño with a toothpick (recommended. I skipped this step to save time, and made a mess of everything! Haste makes waste....). 

Arrange stuffed-and-wrapped jalapeños on a backing sheet. Bake at 400 degrees until bacon is fully cooked. About 20 minutes. 

Avocado Ranch

Ingredients

1/2 cup homemade paleo mayo (and yes! you should pasteurize your egg)

1 ripe avocado

2 tablespoons lime juice

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Salt and pepper

Instructions

In a small bowl, mash the avocado with lime juice, garlic, salt and pepper. Then fold in the mayo. Serve immediately (the avocado will begin to brown, so you don't want it to linger too long before serving).

Banana Muffins + Bonus Recipe

So. Things have been pretty fantastic lately.

I moved into a fancy, new single-girl cave that also happens to be right in the center of my social universe (location, location, location!). And even though it has been freezing, I'm doing my best to learn my new neighborhood.

I've walked my reusable bags to the grocery store (which totally counts as a workout, by the way). I've met friends out for drinks and sushi and other-more-different drinks. All without getting lost or catching frostbite. Last night I pushed the limits of my new land navigation skills and headed to a concert outside my immediate five block radius (winning!).

And then, this morning, when I woke up with the slightest-touch of a hangover, I was so happy to find a dozen paleo banana muffins all boxed up on my kitchen counter. I baked them as a birthday treat for one of my co-workers (he won't miss one, right? or two?), and I hadn't even thought about how great they would be as hangover-food!

OK. That's a lie. Maybe I secretly thought about it a little bit. But I mean. If you can't/won't/don't eat normal hangover-food, what else are you supposed to do?

Banana Muffins

Such a pretty little life-saver.

Ingredients

3 eggs

2 large bananas, mashed

1/2 cup tapioca flour (starch)

1/2 cup coconut flour

1/2 cup grass fed butter, softened

2 tablespoons raw honey (optional but recommended)

2 tablespoons dark rum (or pineapple juice)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, combine dry ingredients (coconut flour, tapioca starch, baking powder, and salt). Make sure everything is evenly distributed throughout the mixture.

In a medium bowl, cream together butter, eggs and honey (if desired). Add rum, vanilla, and mashed banana. Whisk to combine.

Slowly add dry ingredients to the banana mixture. Whisk to fully combine.

Spoon batter into 12 muffin cups. Bake at 350 degrees until the edges are brown, the center is firm, and the muffins pass the toothpick test. About 30 to 35 minutes.

Bonus recipe: Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

Artistic, right?

Even before I ditched wheat, I often complained about store-bought muffins and popular muffin recipes (yes, I know I'm the worst). If you add frozen blueberries to your vanilla cupcake batter, does that make it health food?! Or appropriate for breakfast? But! If it's acceptable to turn cupcakes into "muffins" why not turn muffins into cupcakes? Just add 1 cup dark chocolate chips to the batter, and frost with dark chocolate icing. Voila!

This recipe re-make was such a hit, the CrossFit boys didn't believe they were Paleo. We can debate the finer points of that definition later. Bottom line: these cupcakes are processed-sugar free, grain-free, and delicious. Enjoy.