Coconut Lime Chicken Bites

Coconut Lime Chicken Bites

Serves 4

1  1/2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut

1 tablespoon finely grated lime zest

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 large egg

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

In a shallow bowl, combine the coconut, lime zest, cumin, and salt. Place the egg in a separate shallow bowl and beat lightly. Dip the chicken pieces in the beaten egg, shaking off the excess. Then roll them in the coconut mixture to coat. (I find it most efficient to work with a handful of chicken pieces at a time.)

Place the coconut-coated chicken pieces in an even layer on a rimmed baking dish or in a large glass baking dish. Bake for 25-30 minutes until cooked through. Serve immediately.

Heads up: Don’t over-bake the nuggets or they’ll be chewy and dry. Cut into one after 25 minutes and if it’s nice and white throughout, it’s ready!

Chicken Wings

My sister made these chicken wings that looked amazing the other night! Craving some chicken wings?! Give this a try!

Chicken Wing Recipe:

Here’s the recipe I used:

(Buy a pack of chicken wings and you will need to cut them in half at the joint)
– Pre -heat oven to 450
– Bring a big (probably the biggest pot you have) of water to boil
– Add in chicken wings and boil for 8 Minutes
– Remove from water and pat dry with paper towels
– Place chicken wings on cookie sheet
– Lightly coat with garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper
– Bake for 20 minutes, then take them out, flip them over and bake for 10 more
– Add 3/4 of hot sauce in a large sauce pan and heat on the stove ( When picking out a hot sauce check the ingredients first, I used our grocery stores version, Ralph’s [Kroger] but they are all pretty similar.)
– Coat both sides of wing, put on plate, enjoy

Honey Mustard Chicken

With the Super Bowl coming up this Sunday it is usually an occasion where we get together with friends and watch the big game! Don’t forget to take your paleo version of chicken wings to the party! Here is a great recipe from the Gluten Free Chef you should try!

Sweet raw honey and tangy mustard meld in the oven to create a delicious glaze and dipping sauce. For best results, I use fresh herbs.

Serves 4

2 tbsp olive or coconut oil

¼ cup coconut flour

¼ tsp sea salt

¼ tsp black pepper

4 chicken breasts or 6 chicken thighs, bone-in or boneless or 6 drumsticks or 1 lb chicken wings

½ cup raw honey

½ cup gluten-free Dijon mustard

2 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon

Preheat oven to 175 ºC. (350 ºF)

Heat oil in a large sauté pan over medium–high heat. Mix flour with salt and pepper. Coat chicken pieces with seasoned flour, shaking off excess. Brown chicken on all sides. Transfer to a baking dish.

Mix together honey, mustard and tarragon. Pour sauce over chicken and bake for 30 minutes. Midway through the cooking, turn and baste the chicken pieces once.

go here for the entire recipe: http://jimmyboswell.com/foodblog/honey-mustard-chicken-2/

 

Celebrate Food!

One of my favorite, hardworking friends, Jen R., made an amazing statement, “Eating paleo is a celebration of food!”  

In the beginning, paleo can feel challenging.  There’s new routines being established  that takes up your time and energy.  Meals start out boring, plus sometimes, your palate hasn’t really adjusted to meat/vegetables because eating Standard American Food is more exciting for your tastebuds. However, by this point, your tastebuds have had a chance to embrace the newfound flavors!  Before Paleo, I tasted nothing but bland, gross vegetables, but now I can taste the sweetness in Broccoli and new vegetables I never, ever ate in the past became bearable and furthermore, desirable!  Read an old post from my experience and reflection regarding the celebration of food!

It’s ok to make the same old foods once in a  while because we have to eat something and we need it to be fast!  BUT!  On the weekends, I suggest you find a recipe to help you explore new seasonings and new vegetables or a new way of baking, grilling, broiling, or sautéing your food! One night, I followed a recipe that turned into one of my favorite meals to make!  It’s Paleo Lo Mein found from the book Make it Paleo!  A meal like this is completely different because of the sesame oil and the coconut aminos.

When you dice onions, don’t forget your onion goggles!

Process

1. Heat wok or skillet over high heat.
2. Add sesame oil, minced ginger and garlic, and sauté for 1 minute to allow the flavors to infuse the oil.
3. Add chicken to the wok, and cook, stirring frequently for 3–4 minutes, or until the chicken is mostly cooked.
4. Add in broccoli, water chestnuts, celery, and shiitake mushrooms; sauté for 2 minutes.
5. Add in almonds, cabbage, and green onion (I used regular onions)
6. Pour in coconut aminos (2–4 tbsp).
7. Cook 2–3 minutes, until cabbage softens a little.
8. Remove from heat, and garnish with sesame seeds.

Ginger Lime Chicken Bites

I found this recipe from Paleo Magazine and haven’t tried it yet, but it looks amazing.  I’m eager to make it this week.  Is there a recipe you’ve been wanting to make? Bring your list when we go shopping after our meeting today!

Ingredients

Chicken:
1 TBSP coconut oil
3 boneless, skinless organic chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces

Sauce:
Juice of 1 organic lime
2 TBSP coconut aminos
1 TBSP olive oil
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
1 garlic clove, minced
1 TBSP raw, organic honey
1 tsp granulated onion

Topping:
Chopped green onions
Sesame seeds

Process

1. Mix sauce ingredients in a small bowl.  Set aside.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add chicken.  Cook chicken, stirring occasionally, until browned and almost done.  About 5 minutes.
3. Add sauce to skillet, turn heat to low and simmer, uncovered for another 5 minutes, or until chicken pieces are cooked through.
4. Top chicken bites with chopped green onions and sesame seeds.  Enjoy!

Cara’s Coconut Recipes!

Let us know if you try one of these recipes!

Coconut Curry Stir Fry

1lb Chicken, sliced

2 cups broccoli

1 cup coconut milk

1 1/2 tsp curry powder

1 tsp grated ginger

fresh spinach (I just put the whole container normally)

For the sauce, mix together coconut milk, curry powder, and grated ginger.  Stir fry the chicken and broccoli.  Once chicken is done, add the sauce and spinach. Cook it until the spinach is slightly wilted.

– – – – – – – – – –

Coconut Crusted Salmon 

2 salmon filets

1 cup shredded coconut

1/4 cup coconut flour

1 egg

1/4 tsp garlic powder

pepper to taste

Mix all dry ingredients in plastic bag.  Whisk the egg and coat the salmon filets.  Place them in the bag and shake until completely covered.  Bake at 375 for 15 minutes.

Chicken Cacciatore

I saw this recipe on Foodee; I don’t know if you have seen it, but at hoosiercrossfit.com to the right is a new paleo recipe every day by the Foodee Project.  I made a WONDERFUL chicken dinner last night, but I had to make a few changes.

This was the original recipe.

makes 4-6 servings

4-6 chicken thighs, skin-on (I used chicken strips. it’s all we had)
pinch kosher salt to coat chicken
pinch ground black pepper to coat chicken
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, chopped (I used 1/2 large onion)
8-10 mushrooms, quartered (I used about 1/2 carton of baby portobellows)
4 cloves garlic, minced (I used 2 large cloves of garlic)
1/2 cup white wine (I use a semi-dry Chardonnay) (I left this out)
28 oz. (1 can) diced tomatoes with juices (I cut up one tomato and didn’t use a can)
2 tbsp. capers, drained (I didn’t have capers, so I cut up some green olives)
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
5-6 fresh basil leaves, julienned

Directions

Lightly coat chicken with kosher salt and pepper.

Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken, skin side down, and cook until golden, about 5-8 minutes. Flip over and cook other side until golden. Remove chicken from pan and set aside.

Carefully pour out and discard 2/3 of the remaining oil and chicken drippings from the pan. Add onion, garlic and mushrooms to the same pan and cook over medium heat until the onion is tender, about 5-8 minutes. Add the tomatoes and their juices, capers, wine and oregano and stir to combine. Season to taste with additional salt or pepper if needed. Return the chicken to the pan. Bring to a simmer and simmer, uncovered, over medium-low heat for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Once chicken is cooked, remove and heat sauce on high to thicken for 5-10 minutes, if necessary. If very liquidy, boil until it reduces to desired amount.

Garnish with julienned basil and serve.

Because I was using chicken strips that cook faster than breasts, I first put the onions, garlic, and mushrooms in a pan w/ olive oil and continued to stir for a while. I had a second pan w/ olive oil in it for the chicken. I seasoned the chicken with basil and pepper.  When the onions were translucent and the mushrooms looked like they were cooked I added the tomatoes and olives.
While all this was going on, I shaved zucchini spread olive oil around them, then broiled them to make them crispy. It was yummy! My picture isn’t fancy, but my meal was really tastey!

 

The Kitchen Sink Salad

This is a recipe I found from Everyday Paleo. This would be a great salad to make in the evening and prepare it in a plastic container for tomorrow’s lunch.  Salads are fast, but can get boring. Keep exploring, and try new recipes like this one!!

“One thing I love about eating paleo; as long as you have some protein, veggies and some good fats anything is possible!  For lunch yesterday I threw together a salad that was tons more fun than the standard lettuce and chicken.  It was a “kitchen sink salad” of sorts, I tossed together everything in the kitchen but the kitchen sink! Below is what I put in my version and I’m sorry that some of the measurements are not spot on but that is what will make this recipe your own!  Get creative and let me know what YOU come up with!”

A FUN Salad!

 

The Kitchen Sink Salad

4 chicken breasts, cooked and diced

4 hard boiled eggs, cooled and diced

1/2 head of purple cabbage, diced

1 English cucumber, diced

1/2 head broccoli, finely chopped

Handful of sliced almonds

1/4 cup of flat leaf Italian parsley, diced

Lots of olive oil

Splash of balsamic

Squirt of spicy brown mustard

A few shakes of dried dill

Lots of black pepper

A bit of sea salt

Toss and you’re done!

Explore your options

Holy Cow! Welcome back. It appears I got lost for quite a while. Now I’m back again.  I had too much coffee this morning; not enough food. I know this because of the nauseous feeling from the caffeine.  I wasn’t really interested in eating, although I felt hungry.  Shaun came home and made a snack – smashed avacado and tuna. What? weird.  But it wasn’t! It’s so yummy and now my belly feels satisfied!  You never know what two weird things you can put together.

Speaking of weird snacks, my goal this week is to do more exploring.  Last Superbowl Sunday a friend made Beet Chips and Sweet Potato chips.  They were amazing and way better than the way I tried making it previously.  Expect to see a recipe SOON!

I wanted to update the blog with a recipe to try. I found it on www.everydaypaleo.com and it’s for chicken soup.  It’s supposed to be 47 degrees this weekend so you might want to make it before it gets “hot” this weekend 😉

Chicken Chili Soup

3 cups chicken breast, cooked and chopped (I used leftover grilled chicken breast)

1 onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 jalapeno or Fresno pepper, seeds removed and finely diced

2 – 4 oz cans of diced green chilis

4 cups chicken broth

2 tbsps olive oil

2 tsps ground cumin

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Black pepper to taste

Fresh cilantro, diced

Avocado, diced

In a large soup pan, sauté the onion, garlic, and jalapeno together in the olive oil until the onions are tender.  Add the canned green chilis, cumin, oregano, cayenne pepper and black pepper.  Stir together and add the chicken broth.  Bring to a boil, turn down to medium low, and simmer for 10 minutes.  Add the chicken and cook for another 5 minutes.  Serve with fresh cilantro and avocado.