Makes about 30 nuggets

This is a great gluten free recipe to replace those unhealthy nuggets from “you know where” and still get healthy protein and fat into your kids’ diet. Almond flour is incorporated into the mix to thicken and hold the nuggets together and then once formed, they are dusted with a mixture of almond flour and coconut flakes to create a golden crust.

My favorite almond flour is from www.benefityourlife.com which sells organic and unpasteurized almond flour. I buy it in 6 pound bags and store it in my freezer. Did you know the good ol’ USDA mandated that all almonds grown and sold in the US must be pasteurized now? So even though you think you may be buying almonds in the store that say “raw”, they have actually been pasteurized. For more info on this crazy and overbearing governmental ruling, visit www.Cornucopia.org. Cornucopia is the only organization doing anything to counter this ruling. (There is also rumor that plans are under way to pasteurize pistachios, pecans and walnuts as well. Tell the gov. how you feel before it is too late)!! You can also buy almond flour from Bob’s Red Mill in the store or from Honeyville.com (I assume these are both pasteurized).

Chicken Mixture:

2 # organic ground chicken – a mixture of white and dark meat is good, but either will work

2 egg yolks from organic, pastured eggs

2 ½ teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 cup almond flour – blanched (skin removed is ideal)

1 teaspoon good salt

½ teaspoon ground white or black pepper

½ cup coconut oil (for frying), you could also use lard, chicken fat, duck fat or any other high heat good fat

Breading Mixture:

½ cup almond flour – blanched (skin removed)

1cup unsweetened shredded coconut flakes (fine or medium shred, not large)

1 teaspoon good salt

½ teaspoon ground pepper

Instructions:     

1. In a medium size bowl, combine 1/2cup almond flour, 1 cup coconut flakes + salt and pepper for the breading mixture.  Mix to combine.
2. In a separate bowl, combine the ground chicken, 1 cup almond flour, onion and garlic powder, egg yolk and salt & pepper.  Mix well until everything is incorporated.
3. Take about 1 heaping tablespoon worth of the chicken mixture, roll into a ball and then coat with the coconut and almond mixture.  Place on a cookie sheet or plate. Smash down slight with a spatula so they are more flat. Repeat with the remaining chicken.  This should make about 30 chicken nuggets or less if you make them bigger.
4. In a large sauté pan, melt coconut oil on medium-high heat.  Heat until the oil shimmers. Test it by dropping just a little bit of the nugget mixture in and seeing it is sizzles. If it does not sizzle, either turn up the heat or let it heat up longer. Keep testing until it sizzles when you place your nuggets in the oil. This will ensure the nuggets properly brown.
5. In small batches, place nuggets into heated coconut oil and cook on each side for about 3 to 4 minutes until browned.  Repeat with the remaining chicken nuggets.  Serve immediately. These are great with your own homemade ketchup or BBQ sauce.

Note: If your nuggets are more flat than tall, they will not take as long to cook. Reduce the cooking time by about 1-2 min while browning in pan.

This is one of the most delicious concoctions I have ever tasted. OMG, is it good!

This is one of the most delicious concoctions I have ever tasted. OMG, is it good! I bet you’re thinking “Eggnog, in the springtime?” Well, Yes! Why not!?! It is soooo good, why limit it to the fall time alone?

Only this eggnog is a little different as it is made with coconut milk and ideally the fresh, homemade kind you get straight out of the coconut. You can use canned coconut milk if that is your only option. I know it can be hard to find fresh young coconuts in small towns. But if you do have access to them, the cost and effort of getting them open is well worth it.

I know it can be hard to find fresh young coconuts in small towns. But if you do have access to them, the cost and effort of getting them open is well worth it.

I love incorporating coconut into my dishes as it is one of the world’s most powerful superfoods. It is full of healing fats, immune boosting lauric acid (which is only found in mother’s milk besides coconuts), electrolytes and is delicious and satiating.

Hello friends,

I wish you all a very Happy First Day of Spring! With the advent of longer days, spring rains and new flowers, it is a good time to let go of old things and to invite fresh, new energy into your life. Spring is a time of rebirth and renewal. And a great time to learn how to cook and grow nourishing, nutrient dense food. Please see my workshop page for details about my upcoming cooking and gardening workshops.

There is something very special and simple about putting my feet on the earth and feeling reconnected

One of the things I invite into my life this spring is being more grounded. Yes, even though my focus on health is one of the top priorities of my life, I too get ungrounded sometimes by being overwhelmed with work, travel and too much time on the computer or phone. The things that really reset me and bring me back to my body and to a calm state of mind are simply putting my bare feet on the earth. Fresh air, sunshine, long walks, yoga, swimming in natural springs, taking a sauna, drinking green veggie juices, prayer and contemplation all help too. But there is something very special and simple about putting my feet on the earth and feeling reconnected. In recent years, science has helped to explain that this simple act not only makes you feel better but is actually really therapeutic as well.

It has been determined that reconnecting with earth energy drops cortisol levels (your stress hormone) and eliminates electromagnetic energy that we collect from being around computers, cell phones, in front of TV’s, holding our Kindles and iPad’s. All of these devices may certainly make our life more convenient, but the health consequences have yet to really be discovered. One of the things you can do to counteract EMF’s (electromagnetic frequencies) and electronic devices is to go outside and walk around barefoot or simply sit with your feet touching the ground for one hour a day.

If you do not have time to do this or live in a climate that is too cold to do this, there is good news for you. Earthing products have been created to take the place of putting your feet on the earth. I have used an earthing pad for a long time and recently bought earthing sheets. I know this may all sound a little far out, but if you think about it in simple terms, just remember that a few hundred years ago, we were all much more connected to the earth in our daily lives. We ate directly from the earth and barely processed our foods, we drank water straight from the earth without it going through pipes, we may have slept on the earth or right above it, and we all went barefoot or wore shoes with leather or rubber soles instead of plastic so we could still feel the earth’s conductivity.

For more information and to understand more about this topic and how you can remedy over exposure to electromagnetic energy, please check out this book by Clint Ober, called Earthing.

I’ll let you in on a secret…I trick myself into eating liver, folks.

I call these patties “nutrient dense” as they contain several ingredients that have the most amount of nutrition of any food – pastured eggs, grass fed meat and liver. I know, I know, you probably groaned with displeasure when I mentioned liver. Many of us have memories of hiding it under vegetables or slipping it to the dog when mom wasn’t looking at the dinner table all those years ago.

These foods [organ meats] were known to be the sacred and vital foods to traditional cultures.

Well, I’ll let you in on a secret – I am not crazy about liver either. But, I know it is sooooo good for me so I find all kinds of creative ways to slip it into dishes so I don’t even know I am eating it. Yes, I trick myself into eating liver, folks. When obtaining liver, it is essential to get it from the best quality source available. I get mine at the farmers market from farmers I trust. You can also use any other kind of organ meat as well like kidneys, heart, and brain. These foods were known to be the sacred and vital foods to traditional cultures. They contain more vitamins than almost any other food. Eat once a week ideally or once a month minimum for optimal health. You can eat these patties for breakfast, lunch or dinner. You can also make up a batch and freeze them in the freezer and pop them out when you want a quick bite. I puree the liver in the food processor or blender but you could also chop it up into small bits and mix in with the ground meat.

This delicious gluten free, dairy free dessert really tastes like pumpkin pie. I served this dessert instead of traditional pumpkin pie to the GAPS crowd at the 2009 Weston A Price annual conference in Chicago. It was a big hit. If you can eat dairy, this is delicious topped with whip cream. Otherwise, coconut cream is also a delicious topping. If you are sensitive to any of the sugars below, you can substitute honey.

Supplies: 9 Inch Pie Pan

Ingredients

Filling:

• 1 recipe coconut crust (see below)
• 1 ½ cup pumpkin purée from pie pumpkin or sweet winter squash(see below)
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup rapadura cane sugar, maple or palm sugar
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• grated rind of 1 lemon
• 1 cup coconut cream (or coconut milk)

Directions

1. Cream eggs with sugar of choice. Gradually blend in other ingredients.
2. Pour into prebaked coconut crust pie shell and bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 45 minutes until firm.

Pumpkin Puree special hints/tricks:

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Place pie pumpkin or squash in oven and bake until tender or knife pokes through to middle easily, about 1 hour.
2. Once cool, cut in half and scrape flesh away from skin. Remove seeds and stringy part. Puree or mash well with fork.

Crust:

1. 2 cups desiccated coconut
2. 1/4 cup rapadura cane sugar, maple or palm sugar
3. 1/2 cup coconut oil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
2. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and transfer to a 9 inch pie pan and press firmly and evenly against sides and bottom.
3. Bake for 30 minutes or until crust is a dark golden color. Allow to cool to room temperature.

Crust special Hints/Tricks

1. Oversee mindfully, since crust burns easily. Could be crumbly when serving.
2. Once whole pie is baked, cut into slices thirty minutes after removing from oven. If you wait too long to cut the pie, the crust will harden and will be difficult to cut.

I served this dessert at the Weston Price conference in 2009 in Chicago. It was the first time a GAPS meal option had been offered at that conference.  It is simple, but yummy and very easy to make. Great served with whip cream or coconut cream.

Ingredients:

• 2 apples, peeled and cut into bite size chunks
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons rapadura cane sugar, maple or palm sugar
• ½ cup walnuts (ideally soaked and dehydrated)
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• pinch of sea salt

Directions

A Casserole dish is needed for this recipe.

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Toss apple chunks with other ingredients (except for walnuts).
3. Place in a casserole dish and bake for about 35-45 minutes or until tender; covered.
4. Top with walnuts and bake 15 minutes more uncovered.

This is my favorite kind of recipe – super simple and extraordinarily delicious.

This is my favorite kind of recipe – super simple and extraordinarily delicious. The basic idea is to brown a whole chicken in a Dutch oven and then finish it off in the oven at low heat. This cooking method allows for the chicken to simmer in its own juices. The cooking times in the recipe are for a 4½ – to 5-pound bird. A 3½ – to 4½-pound chicken will take about an hour to cook, and a 5- to 6-pound bird will take close to 2 hours.

It is best to use a 5- to 8-quart Dutch oven with a tight-fitting lid. If using a 5-quart pot, do not cook a chicken larger than 5 pounds. Use the best chicken you can find, such as a free range, organic or locally pastured chicken. The amount of jus (remaining pan juices) will vary depending on the size of the chicken; season it with about ¼ teaspoon lemon juice for every ¼ cup jus. Thank you to Cook’s Illustrated for inspiring this recipe.

Check out this article published about me by Kevin Hargis of Texas Coop Power Magazine. He attended one of my cooking workshops and I think it made an impression!

The photo is taken at the workshop by Woody Welch, professional photographer and friend.

Create a healthy habit this New Year with a daily gentle cleanse. This is my favorite cleanse that I have been personally incorporating into my routine for about 12 years now.

It simply consists of blending a whole lemon with some water and olive oil.

It simply consists of blending a whole lemon with some water and olive oil.

There are few fruits that nature gives to us in the winter. Most fruits are available in the summer. The few fruits that are available come winter are tart, sour fruits like persimmons, pomegranates, grapefruits, oranges, and lemons. It makes sense that we shouldn’t eat sweet and sugary fruits in winter, a time when we sweat much less and are typically less active. Eating too much sweet and not building enough heat to burn it off can result in damp conditions in the body. This lends to the perfect breeding ground for conditions like candida as well as colds and flu’s. It is important to eat in season and eat the fruits offered by mother nature at the time she offers them. Lemons are perfect to emphasize at this time. They are sour, the flavor which helps the liver to purge excess that we might have accumulated from over indulgences from the fall harvest.

It makes sense that we shouldn’t eat sweet and sugary fruits in winter, a time when we sweat much less and are typically less active.

This drink is a mild version of the Liver-Gallbladder cleanse which consists of days of preparation and then a final cleansing day of drinking ½ cup of olive oil and about equal parts of lemon juice. The result is usually the release of many gallstones. Of course, doctors never tell you there is a $10 cure for reducing inflammation of the gallbladder and releasing gallstones that is much cheaper and less painful then removing your gallbladder (which you have for a reason, by the way!). But, this natural remedy, which I have performed many times on myself does exist and works! If you are not up for such an extreme cleanse, try this beverage which is a much milder version of the Liver-Gallbladder flush and is great to keep your liver and gallbladder just a little happier.

I know what some of you might be thinking – brisket cooked in a crockpot!? Yes… [a] crockpot is easy and keeps the brisket moist.

Let’s face it, life is busy. You want to serve something different and interesting for your Christmas or New Year’s party, but really don’t have time to make something complicated nor the time to pour through food magazines to figure it out. Okay, I will let you in on a secret…serve this dish and people will be talking about it for months to come and they will think you spent hours making it! Part of the charm of this dish is that it is made in the crockpot. I know what some of you might be thinking – brisket cooked in a crockpot!? Yes, you diehard BBQers, not everyone has a smoker. A crockpot is easy and keeps the brisket moist.

I have served this dish for my last couple of parties as well as at a catered event for one hundred women farmers and for a cooking workshop and everyone loved it every time. For a low carb version, you can serve the brisket in a cabbage wrap. It is crunchy and different than the typical tortilla wrap. Choose grassfed, pasture raised brisket for the healthiest option and to get your Omega-3’s over grain fed, feedlot beef. If you don’t have the budget or access to brisket, you can use shoulder or chuck roast.

Crockpot Brisket Tacos

Serves 6-10

Ingredients

• 3-5 pounds grass fed beef brisket (plan on ½lb. per person before cooked)
• 1 rough chopped onion
• 6-8 diced cloves of garlic
• 1 bottle of your favorite beer (optional)
• 2 cups beef broth – ideally homemade and/or organic

Spice rub

• 2 tablespoons good salt
• 2 tablespoons freshly ground cumin
• 2 tablespoons freshly ground coriander
• 1 tablespoon ground turmeric
• 2 tablespoons chili powder or a powder of your favorite chili (chipotle or ancho is great) or 4-5 ancho chilis

Instructions

1. Mix all spices together into spice rub and rub all over meat.
2. Place brisket in crock pot and place onions and garlic around brisket.
3. Add broth and beer.
4. Set on low to cook and cook for about 4-6 hours or until it is falling apart tender. Do not overcook or you will lose the flavor.
5. Once tender, remove from crock pot and slice against the grain on a cutting board.
6. Place back inside crock pot to keep warm and in juices.
7. Serve in corn or flour tortillas or in cabbage wraps. Napa cabbage works the best. Serve with taco fixins’ such as sour cream, salsa, cilantro, guacamole and shredded raw cheddar. Beans and winter squash soup also make a great addition to this dish.

Enjoy!