Pure & Simple Dry Roasted Almond Butter

I am on a roll! After yesterday's success with homemade almond milk, I decided to move onto almond butter today. I really hope my future children appreciate all of the hard work I'm putting in now so I will be prepared to feed them the most healthy and delicious food in the future! The only thing that would make this recipe more fulfilling would be if I grew the almonds myself. I thoroughly enjoyed my afternoon snack of a local apple with homemade almond butter and a cup of lemon herbal tea. It was a great choice considering I had all the ingredients in the house and didn't have to go outside into the 10 degree weather!

I am so excited to share that I am almost pre-certified as a health coach through the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. In a few more weeks I will be able to start meeting with clients and will be offering an introductory 6-month program. The best part is that I will be able to do this in person, over the phone, or over Skype, so location doesn't matter. I have been loving the program, and it is definitely keeping me busy on nights and weekends along with my full-time job! I am looking forward to helping people with their health goals with everything from wellness coaching to meal planning. I have a lot of fun ideas for the road ahead and can't wait to share them with all of you. In the meantime, go make some almond butter!

Pure & Simple Dry Roasted Almond Butter Makes 1.5 cups, Prep time: 2 min, Cook time: 15 min

Ingredients:
- 2.5 cups raw almonds

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Cook almonds for 10-12 minutes on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper
3. Transfer warm almonds into the food processor
4. Process almonds for about 5 minutes until smooth and buttery - you may need to scrape down the sides of the food processor every minute or two so it blends evenly

  

  

Egg-y Avocado w/ Sweet Potato

It has been quite the week! My first ever paleo cooking class is tonight (wish me luck), so I have a million things to prepare before all of the people arrive. I still haven't created the recipes for two of the three dishes, so I better get to it. All I know is that I will be wearing my cutest apron because I have learned over the years that looking the part is half the battle! Before I leave you this morning, I wanted to share a high and low moment from this past week. A little reflection on the past week is always a good thing, so here you go:

I have been thinking about my upcoming Avon walk a lot this week. One week from today, I will be walking 40 miles with my mom, Aunt Randi, and the rest of our "flock" to raise awareness for breast cancer. Last year was my first time participating in the Avon walk, and I can't wait for round two. I was doing a training walk on Wednesday, and as I was daydreaming about the walk and thinking about how great it will be, I crossed one of the walking bridges in the esplanade and came across my favorite heart puddle. This puddle is always here, rain or shine. It is always in the shape of a heart, and now it has a perfect autumn outline thanks to the falling trees. 

Switching gears, yesterday's Crossfit class really tested me for the first time. I was struggling with my box jumps during the warm-up and had a feeling I needed to scale down. As I practiced, I was feeling more confident, so I decided to keep the 20-inch box for the WOD. The workout was 18 min AMRAP of 15 box jumps, 12 push presses, and 9 toes to bar (ouch). After my fourth box jump in the very first round, I somehow lost focus and found myself laying on top of the box... for a long time. I took a second to get my bearings and realized that while everyone else was pushing hard, I was laying over the box like roadkill. My arm was scraped and bleeding, and I was totally disoriented because I didn't even know what happened. Christina came over to see if I was alright (thank you!), and I decided all I could do was scale down my box, push through the pain (and embarassment), and get back into my WOD. I ended up completing the entire workout and left with a really proud feeling. I think this is exactly what Crossfit is all about. 

   

As for this morning's recipe, the inspiration shout-out goes to Mal. While she is so busy up in Ithaca getting her MBA (and acing every test and winning every case competition...), she still manages to send me pictures of delicious food that help inspire new recipes. She refuses to eat a runny egg, but I will convince her to try this eventually!

Ingredients:

- 1/2 avocado, pitted

- 1 farm fresh egg

- 1 small sweet potato

- Olive oil

- Sea salt & pepper

- Sliced almonds

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees

2. Spoon out a little bit of the inside of your avocado to make the whole big enough for your egg

3. Make a foil "boat" for your avocado (see above) so it catches the spillage

4. Crack your egg into the avocado (note: a decent amount of my egg white spilled over into the foil - next time I will use a bigger avocado or scoop more out first)

5. Top with sea salt, pepper, and any other spices/herbs you like and bake for about 15 minutes (watch for desired consistency of the egg)

6. While the eggy avocado is cooking, heat a little olive oil over medium heat and add the chopped sweet potatoes

7. Stir reglularly and toss with sea salt and pepper. When potatoes are softening and getting a golden brown outside, sprinkle a few sliced almonds on top. 

8. When egg is done to your liking, carefully remove the foil boat out of the oven (be careful not to spill it!) and serve with sweet potatoes.

Time to prep for my cooking class! Updates will follow :) 

Paleo Seafood Trio

Huge news people! After meeting some great fellow paleo Bostonians last weekend, I was asked to teach a cooking class this weekend for a "Healthy Boston Adventures" meetup. There should be around 13 people coming to my apartment, and I will be cooking/teaching a 3-course paleo feast consisting of:

- Slammin' salmon cakes with avocado, strawberry, tomato, & lime salsa
- Acorn squash and grass-fed beef autumn casserole
- Crispy apple crisp (creative name, I know)

I just got home from Trader Joes after a huge shopping spree, and I can't wait for the class! I obviously love to cook, but this is my first attempt at a cooking class. I'm looking forward to teaching the group about paleo and showing them how easy and healthy the recipes can be. If it goes well, I would love to do more of them. I will post all of the recipes and a recap this weekend after the class! It should definitely be interesting because I have never made any of these things before, and I have to actually create the recipes before the group gets here. I decided to go with a salmon cake appetizer because it should be an easy, affordable seafood appetizer (and I just learned that Trader Joes has wild canned salmon). I absolutely love seafood, so on that note, I thought I would share a few summer seafood recipes I have made over the past few months. I highly recommend all three!


Wild Cod Lettuce Wraps topped with  Organic Peach/Avocado Salsa 

Ingredients:
- Wild cod (I used one frozen package from TJ - about 1lb)
- Olive oil
- Sea salt, pepper, & garlic powder
- 2 organic peaches, chopped
- 1 organic avocado, chopped
- Juice from 1/2 lime
- 1-2 cups brussel sprouts, halved
- Bibb/Boston lettuce cups

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Brush cod with a little olive oil and spices
3. Coat brussel sprouts with olive oil and spices
4. Bake cod and brussel sprouts for about 15 minutes
5. While fish and veggies are cooking, prepare salsa by combining peaches, avocado, lime, salt, pepper, and garlic powder
6. When the fish is cooked (should easily flake with a fork), pull apart pieces and put them in the lettuce cups. Top with salsa and serve with brussel sprouts. Perfect feast for roomie bonding night, right Katie? :)

Pecan Pesto Mahi Mahi w/ Summer Vegetables

Ingredients:
- Wild mahi mahi (I used one frozen package from TJ - about 1lb)
- Homemade pecan pesto (will post recipe separately - includes pecans, fresh basil, olive oil, lemon, salt, and pepper)
- 1 zucchini, sliced
- 1 summer squash, sliced
- 1 lb mini heirloom tomatoes, quartered
- Olive oil
- Sea salt & pepper

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Brush mahi mahi with a little olive oil and top with a dollup of homemade pesto. Bake for 15-20 minutes depending on thickness of the fish
3. While the fish is cooking, head some olive oil over medium heat and sautee the zucchini and squash for about 10 minutes or until cooked to your liking
4. Plate your fish on top of the summer veggie mixture and top with heirloom tomatoes


Very Berry Nutty Salmon Salad

Ingredients:
- 1 4-5oz piece of salmon
- 1-2 cups mache lettuce
- 1/4 cup raspberries
- 1/2 tomato, chopped
- 1 Tbsp. sliced almonds
- 1 Tbsp. raw sunflower seeds
- 1-2 Tbsp. paleo salad dressing (optional) - I used Steve's Original Wild Berry and love it!

Instructions:
1. Boil a pot of water. When boiling, add your salmon, cover the pot, and turn off the heat. 
2. Let cook 12-15 minutes
3. While your salmon poaches, arrange your lettuce, raspberries, tomato, almonds, and sunflower seeds on a plate
4. Top salad with salmon and add your favorite paleo salad dressing (or olive oil & lemon)

Recovery Paleo Bars

I know you're thinking that "Recovery Paleo Bars" are probably a post-workout snack full of protein. While they are full of protein (and deliciousness), these actually were made to "recover" from a day in normal society with other human beings. This may sound strange, but for those who don't know, I work from home everyday and have become frighteningly used to being in workout clothes and by myself. I am 100% a people-person, but I now get completely exhausted when I reenter the real world and have a day in the life of a typical business professional. After a solid day of 8+ hours of meetings downtown, I took a cab home and immediately changed out of my suit, heels, and stockings. I ate some leftover chicken soup while I finished my work for the day and knew that I would need to create a recovery masterpiece to get back to my normal self. This recipe was inspired by my love of larabars; you can use any nuts/seeds that you like, and I'm sure I will make a ton of variations with different fruits and spices as well. This is an extremely quick and easy recipe that is great for a snack or dessert. These are also great to make ahead of time before a trip so you know you always have something paleo on-the-go.

Ingredients:
- 8 oz. of whole pitted dates
- 1/3 cup almond flour
- 1 Tbsp. coconut oil
- 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
- 1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds
- 1/4 cup sliced almonds

Instructions:
1. Chop dates in food processor
2. Add almond flour until combined
3. Put date/almond flour mixture in a mixing bowl and fold in coconut oil
4. Add coconut flakes, sunflower seeds, and sliced almonds and kneed with your hands until fully mixed (it will form a thick ball)
5. Transfer ball onto parchemont paper and flatten (with hands, rolling pin, wine bottle, etc.) until a thin rectangle is formed
6. Trim the edges with a knife to form the shape you want
7. Stick in the freezer for 10 minutes
8. Take the bars out of the freezer, slice, and enjoy! 
9. Wrap the leftovers in plastic wrap, and call a friend to come over so you don't eat them all