Summery Citrus Sugar Scrub

It might be winter now, but this citrus sugar scrub feels as bright as a summer day! This was originally shared on my Modernish Homemaker blog which I no longer update, but with great real and non-toxic ingredients, this is a great winter scrub to make for yourself or as a last minutes Christmas gift...

Citrus is such an invigorating smell and sugar scrubs are great for exfoliating your skin to get a gorgeous summer glow. (One of the few healthy uses for white sugar!). So here's my recipe for an all-natural summer citrus sugar scrub.

Ingredients

2 tbsp. coconut oil

1 tbsp. jojoba oil

1 tsp. grape seed oil

Zest of one lemon

A few drops of grapefruit essential oil

1 cup granualted sugar

Directions

Melt the coconut oil in a small saucepan or in the microwave in a safe container (preferably glass). Then remove from heat and add the other oils and lemon zest. Finally add the sugar until the mixture is thick. Pour into a 1/2 pint container with a wide mouth. (I used canning jars).

You can easily double, triple, or even quintuple this recipe to make more to give as gifts or party favors.

Gluten Free Flour Blend

Most flour contains gluten - wheat, barley, rye all contain gluten and are unsuitable flours for celiacs and gluten intolerant or allergic people. Many people with GI and other health issues, such as myself, even go one step further and remove all grains and grain-like seeds, so even the usual gluten free baking flours and flour blends are not useable. You will also see that many paleo cookbooks call for almond or coconut flour. Unfortunately I find that these alone often give you less than ideal texture in paleo treats. (Or even a slight coconut flavor in the case of coconut flour). So I decided to make a paleo flour blend, similar to other gluten-free flour blends. It's not a perfect cup for cup replacement for all-purpose flour in recipes and the texture is still different than gluten containing flours but comparable to most gluten-free blends. If you are going grain free but want to indulge in the rare baked treat, here is my recipe for a gluten free paleo flour blend.

Ingredients

2 parts finely ground coconut flour

2 parts finely ground blanched almond flour 

1 part finely ground tapioca flour

The recipes is listed as ratios, so you can make as much or as little of this flour blend as you'd like. You may substitute almond meal for blanched almond flour, but the texture will be a bit grainier and your baked goods will turn out a bit darker because almond meal includes the brown skins of the almonds, where blanched almond flour does not. I recommend sifting the ingredients together a little bit at a time for the best blend. If you refrigerate a large batch (one that you won't be using up within a couple days) it will last longer. In any case it should be stored in a cool, dry and preferably dark place until needed. (Almonds contain PUFA oils including omega-3 and 6 which can go rancid in warm temperatures or when exposed to too much light).

You may use this cup for cup in most traditional recipes. Just keep in mind that you may need to add a little more liquid to your regular recipes because of the coconut flour. And again, the texture will still be a bit different than with regular all-purpose gluten flour. Still you'll be able to enjoy more of your favorite baked goods as rare treats while staying grain free. Bon appetit!

Gluten Free Biscuits and Gravy

Biscuits and gravy are quintessential comfort good. Warm, savory and filling. But most recipes are a tummy upset, break out or migraine just waiting to happen for the gluten intolerant. So here's my gluten free and digestion friendlier version of this classic comfort food.

Biscuits

This biscuit recipe is based on this recipe from Alton Brown of the Food Network, but modified to make it gluten and transfat free.

2 cups gluten free all-pupose flour blend
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoons coconut oil
1 cup buttermilk, chilled

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using your fingertips, rub butter and shortening into dry ingredients until mixture looks like crumbs. (The faster the better, you don't want the fats to melt.)

Next, make a well in the center and pour in the chilled buttermilk. Stir just until the dough comes together. The dough will be very sticky. Turn dough onto floured surface, dust top with flour and gently fold dough over on itself 5 or 6 times. Press into a 1-inch thick round. Cut out biscuits with a 2-inch cutter, being sure to push straight down through the dough. Place biscuits on baking sheet so that they just touch. Reform scrap dough, working it as little as possible and continue cutting.

Bake until biscuits are tall and light gold on top, 15 to 20 minutes



Gravy

1/2 lb. of gluten free ground sausage (many brand names have MSG, be sure to check ingredients)
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
Salt and pepper to taste
Arrowroot starch to thicken

Brown sausage in a large saucepan on medium heat, once cooked through (but not well done) add the milk and cream. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add arrowroot powder a pinch at a time to thicken (it took about 1 tbsp. for me), remember it will continue to thicken when removed from the heat.

Foodie Fridays - Paleo Caldo

Fall is on the air with our crisp cool mornings of late - which means it is soup season!

Caldo de Res is a soup common to Hispanic cultures, especially Mexico. My grandmother made it for us often when we'd visit, and it was my favorite of her soups. Caldo de Res is a great "kitchen sink" or "stone soup" type recipe with a beefy bone broth base and a wide variety of cold hearty veggies thrown in. The traditional version is a bit different than this paleo-friendly adaptation using lots of green veggies, but the result is just as satisfying.

I make a large batch of this soup then divide it up into freezer safe glassware to keep until needed. Then I take it for lunches and such. The nutrients from the bone broth, meat and marrow and all those green veggies make this a super food soup.

Ingredients

• 2 quarts water
• Beef short ribs, bone in (Beef shank will work as well)
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 head cabbage, chopped
• 1 zucchini, chopped
• 2 red potatoes, chopped (optional)
• 1 hatch or poblano green chili, de-seeded and chopped 
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 bunch cilantro (optional)
• Salt to taste (I use about 3 tbsp. of full-spectrum real sea salt)

Instructions

Pour water into a large stock pot, dutch oven or slow cooker on low heat. Add short ribs to water along with salt to begin broth. Allow this to cook for at least an hour before adding your veggies.

Chop your cabbage, onion, zucchini, and other vegetables into spoon-able sized bites. Then add to your broth pot. Add more salt to taste. Cook for another hour, stirring occasionally, then serve. Yields 8-10 servings.

I love to have this soup with a quesadilla or a couple tacos (the real kind, made with non-GMO corn tortillas pan fried in lard and filled with pulled chicken or pork). Corn tortillas are obviously not strictly paleo, but just the soup by itself is paleo friendly and can be modified for special diets such as GAPS or autoimmune paleo.

Enjoy!!

Foodie Fridays - First Freeze Chili and Cider

Since moving to Colorado my family's tradition has been to make chili the evening after the first hard freeze, usually some time in October. I like to add a cup of warm spiced cider to go along with my chili.

Quick and Dirty Chunky Beef Chili

1 lb. beef stew meat
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed minced (1 tsp. if from a can)
Chili powder, paprika, cumin, seasoned salt and pepper to taste (I use a LOT of chili powder)
Lime juice to taste

Add ingredients to a sauce pan on medium heat until it starts to boil, then put down to simmer and let simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. I find that the onion, tomato and stew meat have enough moisture for the texture I prefer in my chili, but if you like yours a little more soupy, adding a cube or two of frozen beef bone broth is a good addition. Serves 2-3. To stretch into more servings I suggest serving with quesadillas, made with gluten free corn tortillas of course.


Fall Spiced Cider

1 gallon apple juice or cider
2 tbsp. maple syrup or raw honey
1 cup pomegranate or cranberry juice
Mulling spices
Cheese cloth or tea strainer

Pour liquid ingredients into a large sauce pan. Simmer on low to medium-low heat (higher heat destroys all the great vitamin C in the juices). Put 1 tbsp. of mulling spices into a cheese cloth bag or tea strainer and add to the pot. (Technically you can put them in loose, but then you have to be careful not to pour them into the drink, and you also can't take them out and reuse them for a fragrance simmer pot). This recipe freezes well, so you can make ice cubes out of the left overs, then pop them into a mug to reheat any time the urge for a cup of spiced cider strikes.

Foodie Fridays - Not Your Mother's Meatloaf

This hearty fall meatloaf recipe is inspired by the meatloaf my mom used to make. So moist and juicy it never needed extra ketchup or sauce, and a great flavor! Unfortunately my mom's recipe called for crackers or bread crumbs and cream of mushroom soup - both of which usually contain gluten. So here is my gluten free spin on mom's meatloaf!

1 lb. ground beef - You can substitute any ground meat, such as turkey, venison, bison or lamb
1 cup gluten free bread crumbs - I made my own by setting out 4 heels from gluten free loaves of bread to stale and then crumbling them by hand
2 large eggs
2 tbsp. heavy cream
3/4 cup whole milk
1/4 cup chopped mushrooms - I used fresh, but you could use canned or dried as well
1 small yellow onion chopped, or half a large onion
1 tsp. sea salt
Seasoned salt, sage and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350. Mix all the ingredients in a medium bowl, you can use a spoon, but I prefer to use my hands. Once well combined add to a greased 5x9 loaf pan. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes, until the center is no longer pink. Serves 4-5.

Paleo 101

When it comes to overall health I have not yet found a diet that yields the same results as real food, and especially a paleo diet. I admit I'm not the most faithful paleo lifestyle liver, but I can say from experience that the more faithful I am to paleo the better my health. My digestion is better, my skin is clearer, my allergies are less severe, my joint pain is practically non-existant and I am closer to my ideal weight range the stricter my paleo lifestyle. I've seen a lot of misinformation out there on the interwebs about paleo, so this is my attempt to cover the basics of what to eat, the most frequently asked questions, and to point you towards some excellent resources that have more and better information than I.

What Do You Eat on Paleo?
Lots of real good food! Meats (preferably pastured, organic, humanely raised sources - it's better for the animal and for you, I promise), fish, eggs, lots of vegetables, fruit (especially berries - yum!), nuts, seeds and healthy fats (like olive oil, pastured ghee and coconut oil).

What Do You Not Eat on Paleo?
No grains. (That means no wheat, oats, corn, yes corn counts as a grain, etc. No quinoa either). No legumes (No beans, no peanuts, technically no green beans or peas - but those are in a grey area). No dairy, unless you tolerate it well - and then you should aim for pastured, organic sources - even raw if possible.

Is all that fat bad for you?
Heck no! It's all that sugar, not the fat, not even the saturated kind, that is killing you. Some fat is bad for you - trans fats are good for no one. I repeat - No One. Omega-6 fats (the kind you get from seed oils like corn and canola) are bad for you if not in balance with your omega-3 fats. Saturated fat is also good for you when it is in balance. (No it won't raise your cholesterol and give you heart disease - but sugar will).

Is all the red meat bad for you?
No. But if you're concerned about it you can always stick with poultry, fowl and plenty of fish! Not to mention lots of fruits and vegetables.

Where do you get your carbs?
From all those lovely vegetables and fruits! Paleo is not necessarily low-carb. Yes, you can make it low carb. (And if you have metabolic syndrome that's probably wise). But no, it doesn't have to be. Sweet potatoes, bananas, mangos and papaya are just some of the higher-carb fare that you are free to eat on a paleo diet.

Where do you get your fiber?
From all those lovely vegetables and fruits! (Really - and they come packed with many more nutrients and far fewer anti-nutrients than those whole grains that the food pyramid wants you to get your fiber from).

Okay, I'm interested, where can I find more information?
The two best books I've read on the paleo diet are Practical Paleo and The Primal Blueprint. Some other good ones include The Paleo Solution, Your Personal Paleo Code, Eat The Yolks and Primal Body, Primal Mind. For more info see below or check out these resources.

Here are some great websites and blogs on the Paleo Diet and ancestral health:
Marks Daily Apple (author of Primal Blueprint)
Everyday Paleo
Whole 9 Life (authors of It Starts With Food)
Chowstalker
Balanced Bites (author of Practical Paleo)

Here are some more books for both the science and recipes:
Make it Paleo
Paleo Comfort Foods
The Paleo Diet Cookbook
Primal Blueprint Cookbook
Good Calories, Bad Calories
It Starts With Food
Well Fed



It should go without saying that I am not a doctor and while I am a strong proponent of the paleo diet because I've seen it work first hand, I do not know your unique situation or medical history. Always consult a trusted physician before undertaking a new diet or exercise program.

Foodie Fridays - Paleo Pollo Asado

Marinade Ingredients

Juice of 2 limes

Juice of 2 lemons

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup oil (I recommend olive or avocado)

1/2 cup of chopped cilantro

2 tsp. chili powder

2 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. paprika

2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 tsp. salt

Retain the limes and lemon after squeezing out the juice and cover the chicken with them if using a dish to marinate, or throw them in the bag with the chicken if using a bag. (I prefer to use a casserole dish because the acid in the citrus juice can cause chemicals to leech from plastic bags that I'd just prefer to avoid - plus a glass dish is reusable). This marinade will cover about half a chicken or 5-6 pieces of dark meat chicken. (I recommend using just dark meat, personally. Definitely use bone in and skin on cuts regardless though). Marinate for at least 30 minutes, but preferably over night.

Pollo asdo technically means grilled chicken, so if you have a grill or grill pan - cook them that way, if not then baking or cooking in a skillet will work just as well. Remove them from the marinade, but do not pat dry or otherwise try to remove any marinade that sticks to the chicken. Cook until cooked through and the citrus juices left on the skin form a crispy caramelized crust.

Foodie Fridays - Balsamic Berry Parfait

If you're a friend on Facebook you know that one of my favorite weekend activities is watching cooking shows on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Recently I saw an episode of Giada at Home where she made raspberry balsamic parfaits topped with caramel crunch. They sounded delicious, but what sounded even better to me was candied bacon instead of the caramel crunch. So this is my spin on the balsamic berry parfait, sending out summer with a bang, using the last of the season's berries in my balsamic berry bacon parfait.

Confession: I Suck At Keeping Gluten Free

The very first task I aim to tackle on my Crunchy Checklist is to just eat real food. I have been paleo full time in the past and know how well I felt all around when I was. Yet two years on, I still have a hard time getting and staying on the paleo wagon.

For instance, while I haven't been keeping strictly paleo lately, I had been keeping gluten free. Early in the season my allergies were getting really bad. It was taking me 2-3 allergy pills (meant to take just 1 pill for 24 hour relief) to get through the day, and still I was itchy and sneezy - just not as itchy and sneezy as I would have been without the medication. So I decided to see if going gluten free would help at all. Low and behold it did! Now, it could be the placebo effect, but then you'd think the placebo effect would have worked just as well with the allergy pill I was taking without necessitating a change in my diet. It didn't make my allergies completely disappear, but most days I didn't even need my allergy pill and on days I did just one pill was enough to completely alleviate my symptoms.

Then, just over a week ago, since the grass pollen season is all but over (and because I was craving a sandwich on chewy, yummy, gluteny bread.... *drool*), I decided to chance it with gluten. Over the last week I've had burgers, sandwiches, cookies and other snacks chock full of gluten. It was delicious.

Foodie Fridays - Gluten Free Chicken Nuggets and Honey Mustard

I've made a commitment, in an effort to both save money and eat more healthfully (no cheats), to cook all my meals at home unless I'm out of town and unable to do so. Which means taking time to make things I'd get at fast food or out of a freezer bag from scratch. It is worth the effort, in my book, because I know all real food is going into my food and the flavor can't be beat.

One of the things I've often been tempted to just buy is chicken nuggets. Unfortunately, most conventional nuggets out of the freezer section or at the fast food place are full of gluten, fillers, hydrogenated fats and tried in unstable polyunsaturated seed oils. No thank you. So this is my real food spin on a classic.

Foodie Fridays - Stuffed Calamari

I originally posted this recipe on my old blog, hence the text in the picture, but I think it holds up. Enjoy!

Ingredients
1 large egg
1 tbsp. coconut or almond flour (gluten free or all-purpose flour will work as well)
2 oz. crab claw meat
6-7 shrimp, cooked, peeled and chopped
10-12 calamari bodies (tentacles removed)
2 green onions, chopped
1 tbsp. coconut manna (aka coconut butter)
Curry powder, sea salt to taste

Directions
Thaw and rinse your calamari bodies and set them on a plate. Beat 1 egg in a small mixing bowl, then stir in flour, chopped shrimp and crab claw meat. Then add coconut manna and green onions. Add a pinch of sea salt. Add curry powder last a little bit at a time to taste (you can always add more, you can't take it out once it's in though). The mixture should have the consistency of a thick paste or cookie dough.

Preheat oven to 350. You can try to stuff the calamari with a small spoon - but I found it easiest to just get messy and use my hands to stuff about 1 tbsp. of the mixture into each calamari. Then put them on a foil lined baking sheet, lightly salt them and then bake until firm (about 15 min). Serve them up plain, in lettuce wraps or over a salad. Make great appetizers or a nice seafood meal. Yields about 1 dozen.

What is Real Food?

The first item listed on my Crunchy To Do List was to "Just Eat Real Food", and I put it first for a reason. I know if I go crunchy in no other area of my life, just eating real food will make a tremendous difference in my well-being.

A couple years ago I had some attacks of abdominal pain that put me in the emergency room. Subsequent testing never gave me a firm answer on the source of the pain, but I was ultimately diagnosed with IBS-D. Since then I have researched several differing, but often overlapping, views on what foods would improve my health and well-being. All of the diets listed below are what I would consider to be "real food" - that is, based on whole ingredients (not processed and packaged junk) and traditional foods.

The one that ended up working best for me has been paleo, which is why paleo is included in the website address for this blog. Though I've not always been on the paleo wagon (and that's one of the reasons this blog exists - is to help keep me accountable by giving myself an audience) - the stricter I have been the better I have felt overall.

Depending on your situation one of these "real food" diets might work better for you than another  - but the common ground is clear - make pastured meat, wild caught fish, natural fats, and whole fruits and vegetables the cornerstones of your diet for better digestion, reduced inflammation, clearer skin, good energy levels, reduced disease risk and better holistic health for life. I like how Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, Liz Wolfe of Real Food Liz puts it as well.

Here is more information on all of these diets so that you can find the best option for you and your family.

Foodie Fridays - Summer Zucchini and Carrot Bread

I love squash breads! I made this recipe for the first time a couple years ago and took half the loaf to work where it got rave reviews from the other library staff. It's super moist and just about as healthy as you can get for a sweet treat (short of a piece of fresh fruit). I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

1 medium zucchini squash, grated
1 medium carrot, grated
3 eggs
1 cup gluten-free all-purpose baking mix
1/2 cup almond meal
1/2 cup coconut flour
1 cup butter (or coconut oil) melted
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tbsp. maple syrup
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
Spices to taste (I recommend cinnamon, nutmeg, clove and ginger - I use lots of cinnamon!)

Preheat oven to 325. Grease two 4x8 loaf pans (or you can use a greased or lined muffin tin and a 9x5 loaf pan like I did). Combine sugar and eggs well. To this add melted oil (butter or coconut or both), vanilla and maple syrup. Once well blended add the dry ingredients and veggies to the mixture. The texture should be a thick, but not stiff, batter. Fill your loaf pans (or muffin tins) to about 3/4 full and then bake for 40-60 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.