Paleo – Page 7 – Backdoor Hospitality

Coconut Ginger Butternut Squash Soup

Starting Monday, Ben & I will be joining our gym’s call to partake in the “Lean & Green Challenge.” Before I divulge into what it entails, let me say that I can already imagine the expression on your face as you continue reading. And I’m actually looking forward to it (in some respects). It is a Paleo eating style, which means we will be eating as Paleolithic people. You got that? Okay, well, it means we only eat lean meats, vegetables, limited fruit, nuts & seeds and good fats (olive oil, coconut oil, nut oils, nut butters, etc). That means we will not be eating any grains (containing gluten and gluten-free), dairy, sugars, or legumes (yes peanuts are a part of that).

I, of course, prefaced it with what we can eat, because most people upon hearing what we can’t eat automatically ask, “Well, what CAN you eat?” The next question, “Kamille, why are you doing this? What does this mean with baking?” Good question! Ben and I have been looking at our Family Mission (reading this great book) and our top priority is getting our family healthy. Ben joined Jogo in March, me in August, my mental health turned for the worse and we want more from life. Friends & co-Jogomates have testified the goodness of doing Paleo. How aches, pains, intestinal problems, weight around the gut, etc went away after following a Paleo food lifestyle (Robb Wolf), along with regular cardio-exercise. So really, I would have to ask myself, “Why wouldn’t I join the “L&G Challenge?”

And about baking…well, to be quite honest, I haven’t really wanted to bake much these days. Maybe it’s a mixture of exercise, lack of time, demands of family? And maybe I’m just burnt out. What I am excited about is loving my family in these next 30 days by preparing & cooking food that will be good to their body, help me menu plan (for once anyway) and most likely have a tighter rein on the food budget. Plus, we have a 1/2 a cow in our deep freezer, so here’s to using it. One of my recipes is this soup, which puts a twist on an Autumn classic. The coconut is subtle enough, which is why I didn’t use a whole can (but you certainly could) and plays on the creaminess known to the butternut squash. The ginger adds bite & spice to make it come a bit alive. Stay tuned as our family embarks on this adventure, and hopefully share a recipe or two:)

A Year Ago: Simple Meals & Juxtaposition

Coconut Ginger Butternut Squash Soup (printable recipe)

If you want to substitute the water for warm chicken broth, go right ahead, because it would add a greater depth of flavor to it.

Ingredients:

2 butternut squash, peeled, seeds removed, cut into 1 inch cubes

1 small onion, roughly cut into large dice

extra virgin olive oil

kosher salt

1/2 cup coconut milk

3-5 cups water

2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp finely grated ginger

Garnish options: olive oil, kosher salt, red pepper chili flakes, cilantro

Directions: Preheat oven to 425. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Place butternut squash & onion on parchment paper. Drizzle with olive oil, mix around with hands, sprinkle a bit of salt on top. Roast for about 30-35 minutes, check the squash (a fork should pierce right through).

Add the roasted squash & onions in batches to the blender. Add 1/4 cup coconut milk and about 1/2 cup of water. Put a towel on top of the lid to avoid getting burnt by the steam. Blend until completely pureed. You most likely will need to add more water along the way. Continue doing this, until all the squash/onion mixture is pureed; as well as, the coconut milk is gone.

Transfer the puree to a large pot and bring up to medium heat. Add more water, 1/2 cup portion at a time, until you get the consistency you prefer. Add ground ginger & freshly grated ginger (using a microplane zester). Add salt to taste. If you need a bit of acid, then squeeze in the juice of 1/2 a lime–taste and if you think it needs the other 1/2–go ahead and add it.

Ladle into bowl, drizzle a bit of olive oil on top, along with red pepper chili flakes, some cilantro and a pinch of coarse salt.

Beet Salad Done Right!!

I’ve been suffering from a bit of writer’s block. In college when it came time to write my history papers I would fumble & fumble with the introduction. And that’s how it’s been feeling when I sit down to write a new post. I can’t seem to find just the right words to begin. But, in a way, it’s exactly how life is going in the here & now. Take breakfast for instance. It’s 8:00 and I’m actually showered & ready, so breakfast should be a snap. Not quite. When I came downstairs I found my “risen bread” to be not so risen, but quite fallen. I didn’t want to waste it, so I began thinking what I could do instead.

Then, insert two little girls under the age of four asking for, “Mama, can you put Shortcake Swing on?” Me: “Yes! (still looking baffled at my dough). And since I didn’t move in .milliseconds I was asked the same question again. Then, Tayers needed her boots on like sissy. Oh, but my hands were sticky, so go and wash, help with said boots, then back to dou…oh wait, there’s dirt all over the floor. Find broom. Another question asked of me. Me wondering if I had something I was doing in the kitchen. By the time I got back the dough was sticking to the board. Eventually, I made a sad excuse for a breakfast pizza (eggs cooking on top, dough a bit soggy [because it was intended for bread in the first place]); however, the girls didn’t seem to mind.

Oh, what I also forgot to mention was the time when we finally ate…oh about 9:15. Because what ensued from the time I started to the time I finished, well, I have no clue at this point in the afternoon. I do know that I lost my marbles at one time with a bit more boisterous mama (some call it shouting) saying, “I need to think! Out of the kitchen…get out of the kitchen!” I think I was the one who needed an immediate time out and my apologies & reminding myself in front of the girls how we are to “use our words.” That’s what my introductions to posts feel like. My life at present is like the first time I learned to drive stick, a whole bunch of jerking stops not knowing how (or if I should) to begin again.

But you know, I find a bit of solace amidst of all this (granted, it’s almost 8 hours later). As I was picking up the toys, hats, shoes from the floor for the umpteenth time I thought of the people without kids (whether it be the barren, the empty nester, etc) and how this mere “inconvenience” is full of life. Our home is full of non-stop chatting, laughter, cries, music, movement & breaths. The silence is more than appreciated & needed, but there’s something about that little voice after nap, which gladly says, “Hi Mama!” There’s something about it all that I wish I could stuff it into a bottle so it never fades. It’s contentment in these little things, that makes a Monday feel like a Friday. This little salad does just that. The acidity from the marinated beets, sweet licorice blend from the fennel, and the creaminess from the avocado. You could eat it by itself or put it on top of salad greens.

A Year Ago: Superlative Chocolate Chip Cookies & Cabbage-Apple Salad

Beet, Fennel, & Avocado Salad

This salad can be eaten without salad greens, or with. I found a good washed kind from my Farmer’s Market (had kale, mustard greens, herbs, bibb lettuce). Be sure you don’t throw out your beet greens. You can either saute them up with a little minced garlic, olive oil & salt for later. Or, chop them up to use as part of your salad greens for this here salad.

(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

1 bunch of beets (if you can get a variety sold at a Farmer’s Market–that would be optimal)

4-5 small fennel bulbs (or 2 big ones)

2 ripe avocados

Raw Apple Cider Vinegar

Kosher Salt or Sea Salt

Olive oil

Mixed Greens

Directions: Chop the beet greens off (save them for later use by steaming or cut up & put as part of your salad). Scrub the beets, but no need to peel them. Thinly slice them using a mandoline. Put them in a bowl and pour enough raw apple cider vinegar to cover them. Allow them to marinate for minimum 2 hours. Once your beets have marinated (I marinated mine for 3 1/2 hours), drain them & if you want to barely rinse them, go ahead.

Slice the fennel with the mandoline (think thin as well). Put them in a ice water bath, then transfer them to a salad spinner to get the water out. The ice water bath shrinks the fennel, allowing it to be crunchy.

Transfer the beets & fennel into a bowl. Drizzle some extra virgin olive oil on top, sprinkle with salt & cubed avocados as well. Lightly mix with your hands. Place a portion on top of mixed salad greens. Drizzle with a little bit more olive oil and you’re good to go.

Mustard Roasted Cauliflower

As I’m sure we are all blown away by the wreckage on the news, internet, facebook, etc with the devastation in Haiti, it might makes us wonder about so many things in life. One thing I’ve been struck by is the certainty of my blessings. As I sat at the table last night eating dinner with my family, Ben shared about his lunch appointment that day and the first hand accounts of Mozambique orphans. His client spoke of witnessing a four year old child raising his 18 month old sibling, all the while searching through the garbage dump for food, clothing, & basic sustenance of life.

Both of us looking at our girls with their pretty little heads adorned with piggy tails thinking the same thing…”you girls are blessed.” Tears start to form as I look at my girls living in that condition and my heart breaks. My girls who know nothing of trial, or pain, or anything evil. Their innocence as they eat grilled cheese sandwiches and I think upon my comment about dinner before sitting down, “this is our humble dinner tonight, nothing fancy.” But this humble dinner would be the feast for those orphans in the dump.

And as I left for a meeting that night, I wept in the car. I wept thinking of the Haitian mothers who would never hold their babies again. Little bodies being crushed by falling buildings. Babies who would never hear their mother’s song, or feel the warmth of her touch, or the protection & love of their father, because they are now orphans. And what do I do with this anguish? I cry, I weep, I mourn. I cry with the mother. I cry with the father. I cry with the child.

My friend once asked the question of herself and God. When am I sinning? When I laugh at what God cries at. When I mock at what God scorns. When I judge at what God is extending grace to. So in this hour, I choose to cry for the broken, to scorn the flippant, to extend grace…and reflect upon how truly blessed I am.

Today I made this simple, mustard roasted cauliflower. It reminded me of how something so meager can be very fulfilling. And how it’s the little things in life, which are the most rewarding. I hope you will find your little blessings to be thankful for and give blessings to the people in the wreckage.

Mustard Roasted Cauliflower (printable recipe)

This is a simple meal for simple times and you can easily roast a couple of these slices then store some in the fridge for other uses. I love the combination of the salt, mustard and sweetness of the roasted cauliflower.

1 head of cauliflower
2 Tb Olive oil (or more)

2T Dijon mustard
Fine sea salt

Preheat oven to 400 F – Place the head of cauliflower on a cutting board, and slice it top-down into ¼-inch thick slices, some of which will crumble. Baste cauliflower with plenty of olive oil, dijon mustard and a bit of salt, spread it in a single layer on a heavy sheet pan (or two, if one looks crowded), and roast until golden brown and caramelized, turning bits and slices once or twice, about 25 minutes.

Heirloom Tomato & Watermelon Salad

There is so much going on around our house, well actually not really right now. It’s more like there’s so much going to happen within our family. My little nephew Lucas will be going in tomorrow to have an MRI to check the growth of his brain. At his six-month check-up the doctor was concerned about the growth of his head, because it was on the small side. She reassured my sister-in-law that it was either because he simply has a small head or his skull is already fusing together. If it was the later, then they would do surgery to ensure proper growth.

Well, he went in for a cat scan last week where the news wasn’t either of the possibilities. The technician reported that the scan showed there was some sort of pressure (I hate the ambiguity from doctor reports), which means he has to be sedated to have an MRI. Not as if that’s not enough stress, anxiety, & fear to put on a mama, but his appointment isn’t until 2pm. If you’ve never experienced an MRI than you might be a little lost as to why the appointment time is a big deal…bear with me. Our oldest had an MRI when she was 14 months, but it was first thing in the morning. They make you fast, but not just an hour beforehand–it’s much longer. So for dear Lucas, he won’t be able to eat anything after 7 am and then only clear liquids from that point until 11 am. After 11 am he isn’t allowed to eat or drink anything! I thought it was hard for my 14 month old, but for a 6 month old this really is difficult.

The good news is my brother, sister-in-law and nephew will be flying from AZ to see us on Wednesday. I get so giddy when family, friends, or guests come to stay with us, especially if they’ve never (or hardly) been to our neck of the woods. I think of all the food I get to make, the lazy morning Americanos or lattes to drink, walks by the water, and evenings on the deck while the kids go to sleep.

Even though I’m super excited to see them, I’m wearing a heavy heart for Adrienne as a mama who’s going through this with her little boy. I know the heart strings that get pulled when it comes to your child–it’s personal and we mothers can’t think logically. Our minds wander into that pit of fear and “what if’s?” Plus, they’ll be here when they get the results back from the MRI. If it’s good news than we get to rejoice and celebrate. But what if it’s bad news? We’ll embrace one another and cry, question God and ask him why is this happening to this young life?

The thing about it is I’m remaining hopeful for dear, sweet Lucas. I truly believe the MRI will come back as nothing. That the doctors will call on Thursday with positive news. That the only thing they found is that Lucas simply has a small head and the CAT scan was incorrect. It’s like the ultrasound at 19 weeks with my first and the doctor reported that there was a shadow under the left ventricle of the heart, which meant a possibility of Down’s Syndrome. I knew that everything was fine with my baby–I had a peace like on a warm summer day when there’s a gentle breeze ushering in from the water as the sun kisses your skin. There’s no threat of rain clouds or fear of a storm approaching. And I see Lucas sitting between his daddy & mama right next to me on the grass in that peace.

Heirloom Tomato & Watermelon Salad (printable recipe)

So come Thursday, I hope to make this wonderful salad again in celebration of good news!

Ingredients:

3 lbs variety of heirloom tomatoes, cut into wedges (try the Green Zebra)
1 small watermelon, cut into 1 inch chunks
1/2 red onion, cut into 1-in slices
1 or 2 avocados, cut into chunks
2 sprigs tarragon, take off stem (you can also add chopped basil)
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
3 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
Kosher Salt & Ground Pepper

Combine tomatoes, watermelon, avocado, & red onions in large bowl. Sprinkle with salt and mix with hands. In a measuring cup or large cup combine olive oil, balsamic vinegar, tarragon, and salt and pepper to taste. Dump onto fruit. Mix it up. Grab a bowl and fork and dive in.