Berry Good Cobbler

I have a favorite cookbook that I use all the time. You’ve heard me talk about it before. It’s called Everyday Paleo by Sarah Fragoso. I’ve only had it for a year and it’s already dog-eared, water marked and stained. It has great recipes that I don’t feel guilty eating because they’re paleo and the bonus is that they taste fantastic. I have many favorites from this cook book but today I want to share the Berry Cobbler recipe. With the unofficial start to summer last weekend it’s time to break out dishes like this. For us here in the Northeast, strawberry season is just around the corner to be followed by all the other delicious berries. Having grown up in the Midwest in a family and community of bakers I sometimes miss delectable desserts like cobbler but not anymore. With this delicious recipe I feel like I’m indulging in a very guilty pleasure. I hope you enjoy it. You could also make this with blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, a mixture of berries, peaches or apples or frozen berries like I did since fresh aren’t yet in season. Here is a link to her blog with the recipe.

 

Berry Good Cobbler

3 cups fresh or frozen blackberries (I used 1 package of frozen organic blackberries and 1 package of frozen mixed berries which was slightly more than 3 cups) (or other fruit of your choice)

1 egg

1 ½ cups almond meal

2 Tbsp coconut oil

2 Tbsp cinnamon

Drizzle of raw organic honey or maple syrup

Unsweetened coconut milk

 

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees

Pour the blackberries into a pie pan.

In small bowl, mix together the egg, almond meal, and coconut oil and shake in the cinnamon. Stir well until the mixture starts to crumble. If you wish, drizzle a bit of raw organic honey on top of the blackberries.

By hand, evenly crumble the almond meal mixture on top of the blackberries and bake in your preheated oven for 35 minutes.

Serve in bowls with cold coconut milk poured over the top.

You should check out the book.

Supplements Are A Leading Cause Of Liver Injury In U.S.

While the above statement may make some of you uncomfortable, a recent study found just that.  As high as 18% of liver injuries are linked directly to supplement use according to a recent review by the National Institutes of Health. On the surface this sounds very frightening until we consider some of the facts behind this study, not the least of which is that all the authors on the study have financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry.  Watch the video below for more information.

Fresh Avocado Tomato Salad

I love backyard BBQ’s! The problem is that not everyone we know eats the way we do so when we’re invited to a cookout I try to bring a dish that everyone will love but that’s not loaded with carbohydrates. This salad is always a hit! It’s so fresh and so tasty that it can be eaten by itself like we do or used as a dip for all the chips that will be lying around the party. Another great thing about this dish is that it only takes a moment to whip up so you don’t have to spend hours in the kitchen on a beautiful day.

 

Fresh Avocado Tomato Salad

For a large batch to take to a party you’ll need:

5 ripe avocados, pit/skin removed and chopped into large bite size pieces (You don’t want them too hard and you don’t want them mushy)

1-2 cups of organic cherry tomatoes sliced in half

½- ¼ of a red onion, finely diced

1 cup of fresh cilantro, chopped

1 lime cut in half (if you roll the lime under your hand for 30 seconds or so before cutting it in half you’ll release more of the juice)

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Optional 1 jalapeño, finely diced

 

Place avocado, tomatoes, onion, cilantro and jalapeño if using into a bowl, sprinkle with salt and pepper and mix all ingredients. Squeeze both halves of the lime into the bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Mix together. It can be eaten right away but if you allow it to sit for a few hours before serving it enhances the flavor.

 

It’s easy and tastes like summer! I hope you enjoy it with your friends and family this weekend!

 

Salad Dressing And Sauce

One of the questions we are most often asked is, “What kind of salad dressing can I use?” To which we reply oil and vinegar. And then people look at us like we’re crazy and we hear, “You mean there is nothing I can use out of the entire salad dressing aisle?” The problem is that most commercially made salad dressings are full of stuff that we don’t recommend you eat like soy and/or canola oil, high fructose corn syrup and/or sugar and/or artificial sweeteners and lots of preservatives. Don’t be fooled by advertising on the bottle saying “made with olive oil”. Upon reading the label you will see that soybean or canola oil come first on the list and maybe somewhere at the bottom they’ve added a little olive oil so they can make their claim. Unfortunately, they also add a ton of preservatives to give it a long shelf life. The same is true of sauces and marinades. What are you supposed to do? Are you doomed to only have oil and vinegar for salad dressing for the rest of your life? It’s really not that bad, you know!

Alas, we have an option for you to make your own salad dressing and a sauce. It only takes a minute and is as varied as the options at the grocery store provided you use a little imagination to alternate the ingredients. Plus, you know exactly what’s in it so you’re not getting a bunch of unhealthy preservatives. It’s a great idea for people who are following a gluten-free or soy free diet. Additionally, we have patients who keep a little bottle of their own salad dressing in their purse when they go out to dinner!

SALAD DRESSING

If you eat a lot of salad every week, I suggest making a large batch to have on hand. Otherwise you can make a small amount for your meal.

INGREDIENTS (not a complete list, use your imagination!):

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Balsamic Vinegar or Red Wine Vinegar or White Wine or lemon or lime (you’re seeing the variety!)

Finely chopped garlic cloves

Finely chopped shallot

Finely chopped onion

Rosemary/Basil/Parsley/Thyme/Cilantro/Dill/Oregano (again whatever herbs you like either fresh or dried)

Salt and Pepper

Dijon Mustard

 

Here is an example of one of our favorites to have on hand for a week.

1 cup of EVOO

¼ balsamic vinegar

2 finely chopped garlic cloves

1 Tbsp of finely chopped rosemary

Salt and pepper to taste.

 

Combine all ingredients into a shaker. Shake and serve! Voila!!

The great thing is you can taste it and see if it needs more of one ingredient or another and add it. If I’m using fresh ingredients I usually refrigerate it for the week.

 

SAUCE

This recipe is again from Linda, our receptionist. It’s incredibly easy and really fresh and light tasting. It can be used on vegetables or chicken or fish or you can use it as a salad dressing too.

 INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 c firmly packed fresh basil (optional: add a few springs of parsley leaves)

1/4 c fresh lemon juice

2 T Dijon mustard

1/3 c extra-virgin olive oil

Dash coarse salt & ground pepper

 

Blend basil/parsley, lemon juice, 1/4 c water and mustard on high-speed till smooth.  Add oil with blender running.

 

Now that it’s warmer outside we love to grill a bunch of meat to have on hand for healthy lunches and quick dinners. The problem is that chicken is great the first night but gets a little dry if you have to warm it up. This sauce is a great option to use if you chicken is a little dry the second day and even if it’s not dry. It tastes great!

 

Do you have a great salad dressing or healthy sauce recipe to share with us?

Medical System is the Leading Cause of Death in the U.S.

Below is a synopsis of a very well researched web article about just how many deaths per year our current medical system leads to.  I have also posted a link to the original article.

Original article

Portabella Hummus Melts

Oh, Pinterest, I do adore thee.

It can suck up my time faster than almost anything else on the planet, besides a good book, but occasionally I actually make something I’ve pinned to my board. That’s how this yummy side dish came to us. Even more exciting is that it’s a combination of 2 pins! Separately, I had pinned a link to “Best Hummus Recipe” and to these Hummus Melts. The Hummus Melts were originally on a toasted English muffin but when I saw the picture, I thought, “I bet those would be good on portabella caps!” And so here we are!

Last night I set out to make these. It was a tad ambitious considering we got home from the gym late. (I did however, dead lift 240lbs! Check out the picture on our Facebook page!) Despite the late start it all came together pretty quickly with a little help from Dr. Court AKA Grill Chef! The hummus is super easy to make and really does taste better than anything you buy in the store. These little melts are delicious. I do hope you give them a try and let me know what you think.

Portabella Hummus Melts

Make Hummus using this recipe and set aside. (I didn’t add the Tabasco sauce as Dr. Court’s stomach can’t handle it but it was wonderful without.)

After the hummus is made:

Clean out stem and gills of 4-6 large Portabella mushroom caps

Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper

Grill for 5-10 minutes or just until they are starting to get soft

In the mean time:

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

And then:

Sauté 1/4 white onion, finely diced with 2 tsp garlic (about 2-3 cloves finely diced) and about 6 large handfuls of chopped organic spinach (1 large bag chopped or ½ of large Olivia’s Organics box) in butter or coconut oil and a dash of salt and pepper.

Once the mushrooms are soft, place them on a baking sheet. Dump out any juice that has accumulated in the cap. Spread ~1-2 Tbsp of hummus on them. Divide the spinach, onion and garlic mixture among the mushrooms and place on top of the hummus. Top with ~1 Tbsp of mozzarella cheese. Place under broiler until cheese is browned and bubbly.

Voila!

Enjoy with some organic, uncured bacon wrapped around grass-fed organic filet mignon or other healthy protein!

Natural Solutions for Migraines

Migraines can be debilitating.  For some, the occurrence of a migraine means laying down, curled up in a dark room for hours on end while their head throbs away.  While head pain is the most pronounced symptom other things like light and sound sensitivity, nausea and vomiting and general fatigue are not uncommon experiences.

Many are reluctant to take the powerful pharmaceutical agents that are often recommended to help alleviate the symptoms of a migraine. They can have unwanted side effects that can outlast the migraine itself.  There are natural options that exist.

Recently, the American Academy of Neurology and the American Headache Society reviewed the evidence that exists behind drugs and behind some natural treatments for migraines.  They found there is good evidence of effectiveness for a range of natural products to reduce the severity and occurrence of migraines.  For more information, watch below!

Cabbage and Beef Bake

I like casseroles. I’ll admit it. They are easy to make, usually have all our protein and veggies in one dish and we usually have leftovers. You can’t beat it!

About 2 years ago my friend, Stacy sent me this recipe which was one that her grandmother used to make. As she said, “it’s an oldie but a goodie!” I made it the original* way several times until we realized that Dr. Court’s digestive system can’t handle spicy food. At first, I was really disappointed because this is one of my favorites but then I started playing around with it. I have made it so many ways based on what we had in the freezer and pantry. I’ve made it with turkey burger, added shallots, used tomato sauce instead of tomato paste but the following version is what we have decided we like best. You’ll notice that this recipe contains rice. While we don’t normally eat much rice or grain we do have some once in a while.

Cabbage and Beef Bake

1 lb of ground beef (organic, grass-fed if possible**)

1 medium onion, diced

4 cloves of garlic, peeled and diced

4-5 cups of shredded cabbage

1 can tomato paste

1 can of diced tomatoes

1/2 – 1 can water

3 Tbsp of wild rice

1 pkg of frozen spinach or fresh spinach chopped

1 tsp of garlic powder

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In a large skillet brown the burger with onions and garlic. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

While the meat is browning use a food processor or a knife to chop up 4-5 cups of cabbage (about 1/2 of a large head of cabbage). Place the cabbage in a 9″ x 13″ baking dish and lightly salt and pepper the cabbage.

Once the burger is done add the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, water, garlic powder, rice and spinach and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 3 minutes.

Spoon the beef mixture over the cabbage. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 1 hour. Enjoy!

*Original Recipe:
Preheat oven to 325.  Brown 1 lb ground chuck, 1 chopped onion in 1 Tbsp. oil.  When browned, add in 1 can tomato soup, 1 soup can of water, 1 can drained rotel tomatoes, 4 Tbsp uncooked long grain rice, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 3 minutes.  Meanwhile, in a lightly greased casserole dish, place 4-5 cups of shredded cabbage and then spoon beef mixture over cabbage. Cover tightly with foil and bake x 1 hour.

** There are a number of CSA’s available locally which allow you to buy beef in bulk making it more affordable. For more information please contact the office. To find a farm near you check out: westonaprice.org.