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The Paleo Mom’s Thanksgiving Side Dish and Dessert Recipe Round-Up

November 19, 2012 in 2012

The Best Paleo Pumpkin Pie

Thanksgiving is just a few days away and I know that many of you are frantically preparing paleo-friendly feasts for your friends and families! I will be continuing to post all week, but I thought today would be a good day to take a moment and share with you some of my favorite paleofied side dishes and desserts for you to include in your meal preparations (wanted to give you enough time to shop for ingredients!).

Last year, I made a completely paleo turkey dinner for Thanksgiving (see this post) and I will be doing the same this year. I completely dropped the ball on ordering a free range turkey on time for the holiday, so I am now planning on cooking a leg of lamb with most of the traditional side dishes that I would typically serve with turkey (lamb and cranberry sauce is a pretty great combination!).

Eggplant and Wild Mushroom Stuffing

For me, the trick to any big meal is planning dishes that can either be made in advance or don’t require much tending. I try to limit the number of dishes where I have to actively stir something on the stovetop to two (this keeps my stress level much lower). I love casseroles and roasted veggies because I can prepare most if not all beforehand and then just pop into the oven while the turkey (or in this year’s case, lamb) is resting.

Below are some of my favorite dishes, both of my own and some from other blogs or books that I think are worth checking out.

Stuffing.

Baked Spiced Yams

If you are looking for a breadless stuffing recipe that feels like traditional stuffing and tastes amazingly good, my eggplant and wild mushroom stuffing is the recipe for you. The eggplant and mushrooms absorb the flavors of the herbs and the turkey juices as the turkey bakes (very analogous to bread). The texture and taste are very similar to the stuffing my mom made every year while I was growing up. This recipe has the benefit of being egg-free, nut-free, and meat-free (for those who don’t care for sausage-based stuffing recipes, which are very common in the paleo community). I was planning on making an all mushroom version of this stuffing this year, since I can’t eat nightshades, but I guess now, I’ll save that for Christmas.

Savory Roasted Taro

While I hope you try my stuffing recipe, there’s a few other recipes that look so good to me, and I felt like I would be remiss if I didn’t

point you to them as options. I’m a big fan of chestnut as a stuffing ingredient, so I have two different chestnut-based stuffing recipes to point you to. Eat Live Grow Paleo has a chestnut and sausage version that you might find tempting. Not Just a Man’s World has a chestnut and bacon version which looks awesome too. Wellness Mama has a root vegetable based-stuffing which can also double as a root vegetable side dish. A fun twist on traditional stuffing is the Thanksgiving Stuffing Meatballs from Practical Paleo (which I baked as part of my book review). You’ve lucked out because Diane Sanfilippo has published both her meatball and her cranberry sauce recipes on her blog Balanced Bites. I will be making Diane’s cranberry sauce this year.

Bacon-Braised Brussels Sprouts

A quick note on gravy, which seems to fit in here. I have always made pan gravey with broth made from boiling the giblets. Last year, I thickened with coconut flour, but this year, my plan is to make a pan gravy and thicken with arrowroot powder. Use arrowroot powder the same way you would any thickener. First, mix with some cold water, then pour into your pan or pot on the stove, bring to a simmer and let thicken a few minutes while stirring constantly.

Starchy Sides.

Root vegetables in all different forms are traditional at Thanksgiving Dinner. My family’s favorite is my baked spiced yams (which are really sweet potatoes). They taste amazing, the kids love them (my youngest calls them yam circles), and they are very easy. This year, I also plan to make some savory roasted taro root (most of the work can be done in advance, and this tastes the most like roasted potato of any root vegetable I’ve tried) in lieu of mashed cauliflower. For those who want to keep the starch to a minimum, I recommend my roasted butternut squash recipe. Another favorite of mine is the roasted carrot recipe from Eat Like A Dinosaur (which I made for my review).

Hot Cranberry Spinach Salad

Mixed roasted root vegetables are a classic side dish too (one that I often make and never measure anything). Autoimmune Paleo has a simple recipe that you could customize for your own tastes. Thyme, rosemary and garlic would all be good seasoning additions to this basic recipe. For those who miss their scalloped potatoes, this recipe from The Whole Kitchen looks awesome. If you allow some dairy into your diet (including cheese), you might also consider this recipe from Jes’ CrossFit Blog or the scalloped sweet potato recipe in Sweet Potato Power.

Non-Starchy Sides.

Hands down, my favorite decadent side dish is bacon-braised Brussels sprouts. I don’t think I could ever get tired of it. I am also planning on making my hot cranberry spinach salad, which has the benefit of cooking very quickly. Whole Family Strong has a recipe for roasted broccoli and cauliflower, which would be a great side dish. A more casserole-esque recipe is the roasted cashew covered broccoli from The Paleo Project. If green bean casserole is a tradition in your house, then you have to check out this recipe from And Love It Too.

Paleo Apple Crisp

I will probably make a salad too. In the olden days, salad was always the side dish that I made that nobody ate. I make fewer side dishes now so that we can all save room for salad. I’m on a big pomegranate kick these days since they’re just coming into season. I will probably make a variation of Against All Grain’s arugula salad with pomegranate seeds and blueberries (I’m on an arugula kick too)

Dessert

Pumpkin Pie Squares

If you are thinking of making a paleo pumpkin pie, then you need to try my version. It is creamy, tasty goodness and a recipe that I am extremely proud of. I also have a recipe for pumpkin pie squares, which have all the flavor of pumpkin pie, but are very quick to make. This year, I’m going to be experimenting with paleo apple pie recipes. If you like the idea of apple pie as a dessert, you might also try my paleo apple crisp.

I hope you found a recipe or two to inspire you above. There are so many great paleo recipe blogs now, that there certainly is no shortage of great recipes to try. I hope that whatever you cook on Thanksgiving turns out perfectly and I wish you and your families a relaxing, safe and fun-filled Thanksgiving weekend.

Tags: apple, casserole, cook, cooking, crisp, dessert, dish, dressing, paleo, Paleolithic, pie, planning, primal, pumpkin, Recipe, round-up, Salad, Side, starch, starchy, stuffing, thanksgiving, vegetable
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Beef Tongue with Rosemary Mustard Reduction

November 5, 2012 in Organ Meat

If you haven’t tried beef tongue, you are missing out. It is the most tender and delicious meat and can be prepared in a variety of ways (tongue tacos being especially popular). Although it is a muscle, it is more nutrient dense than other muscles, and like the heart, is really considered an organ meat. It’s also typically quite inexpensive. I buy 2.5-3lb grass-fed beef tongues for $6 each from my local farmer. You can also buy them from US Wellness Meats (although, they are considerably more expensive).

It can be a little strange cooking something that looks so much like exactly what it is (and I think we’re all a little used to being very dissociated from the animal our meat comes from). But, if you can come to terms with handling a giant tongue, then this recipe is absolutely exquisite. (Note: the whole tongue appearance thing doesn’t bother me at all. But if it does bother you, you could slice the tongue very thin, cube it, or even shred it before eating.)

Tongue is delicious but this sauce is crazy awesome. My only big mistake the first night we had this meal was that I didn’t make a side dish that could absorb all that extra sauce. I highly recommend serving with something like mashed cauliflower or cauliflower rice or even paleo biscuits just to mop up all that tasty goodness.

Variation: If you’re lucky enough to get lamb tongue, you can use several in place of the cow tongue. They only needs to be boiled for about 1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients (Beef Tongue):

2.5-3 lbs beef tongue
1 large sprig fresh rosemary (about 1½ Tbsp dried rosemary)
5-6 sprigs fresh thyme (about 2 tsp dried thyme)
8 whole garlic cloves
2 carrots, roughly chopped
3 stalks of celery, roughly chopped
1 medium onion, quartered
1 tsp salt
Water to cover, about 6 cups

Ingredients (Rosemary Mustard Reduction):

Cooking liquid from beef tongue
2 Tbsp brown or Dijon-style mustard (something grainy is especially good)
2 tsp lemon juice (wine could be substituted)
1 tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
4 Tbsp unsalted butter

Place the whole beef tongue in a large stock pot. Place vegetables and herbs around the tongue (ideally, it should be a pretty tight fit in your pot). You don’t even need to bother peeling the garlic or onions here. They are just in the pot to give flavor to the broth. Pour water over the top, just enough to cover the tongue.
Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to a simmer and simmer uncovered for 3-3½ hours. Check the level of the water every half hour or so and top up as required.
Remove the tongue from the pot and let cool. Pour the broth through a fine mesh sieve (or a few layers of cheesecloth) into a smaller pot and discard all of the vegetables and any other bits.
Bring broth to a boil and maintain a rolling boil until it has reduced to 1½ cups or less (about 10-15 minutes, depending on how much liquid you started with).
Add rosemary to broth and boil another 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat. Add butter, mustard and lemon juice. Wisk to combine.
Meanwhile, as soon as beef tongue is cool enough to touch, peel off the white leathery skin on the outside (you might need a knife to get it started, but then it should come off very easily) and discard. Slice as you like it (if your reduction is still going to be a few minutes, cover with tin foil to keep warm).
Pour rosemary mustard reduction over the tongue and serve!

Tags: beef, boil, cook, dense, Diet, Healthy, How To, lamb, low-carb, mustard, nutrient, organ, paleo, Paleolithic, peel, primal, Recipe, reduction, rosemary, sauce, simmer, tongue
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TPM Tidbit: How My Lawn Has Become a Source of Food!

October 17, 2012 in TPM Tidbits

Last fall, I discovered two giant puffball mushrooms growing in my backyard–delicious edible mushrooms, averaging 8 inches across and weighing 2-3 pounds each. Given how much trouble it is to get grass to grow in my backyard, giant edible mushrooms seems like a pretty great silver lining!

Mushrooms can be very difficult to identify and if you get it wrong, it can be very dangerous (I urge extreme caution to anyone thinking about eating any wild mushroom that they aren’t 100% certain they’ve identified correctly). However, giant puffball mushrooms have no poisonous lookalikes, so we decided to give it a cautious try. I cooked up one and half of the giant mushrooms in a variety of ways over the next few days. They were delicious! White, spongy, mild. Yum! The leftover half of a mushroom got broken up and scattered around my yard, with the vague hope that some of the spores would spread.

Um, they did.

This year, we have already had nearly two dozen puffballs growing in the backyard and even a couple in the front yard. The weather is still warm, so it’s tough to catch the mushrooms before they “ripen” (as the mushrooms get ready to release their spores, they first turn dark and slimey inside and not so good to eat). As the weather cools over the next month or two, it should be easier to harvest them at the right time.

This photo is of three giant puffballs that I picked on Monday (with a large apple to give you a sense of scale!). The one on the far left was actually too far gone and got composted. The other two got cleaned, chopped into 1” cubes, and frozen, destined for Thanksgiving Stuffing this year (they are a mild tasting mushroom and very sponge like, so I think they will be an excellent substitute for eggplant in my Eggplant and Wild Mushroom Stuffing recipe since I can’t eat nightshades). I may not have a good yard for vegetables or even for grass, but giant puffball mushrooms seem to like it!

Tags: cook, Food, giant, grass, growing, How To, identify, lawn, mushroom, mushrooms, paleo, pick, puffball, Recipe, wild
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Heart Roast

May 21, 2012 in Main Dishes, Organ Meat

This method of cooking heart meat was inspired by a quick internet search looking for cooking temperatures for rump roast. It suddenly occurred to me that this might be a good way to cook heart, since it also can be fairly tough. Well, it was an epiphany. The roast was tender with an amazing flavorful (that rich steaky flavor that heart meat should have and not that almost liver-like flavor that it can have at times). My 2.5 year old even snuck around the table and ate all of my 5-year old’s meat when she wasn’t looking! Good thing there was more! This will likely become a weekly staple in our house from now on. Heart is definitely my favorite organ meat. I buy mine from a local farmer, but both US Wellness Meats and GrassFed Traditions sells them. The heart I used was on the small side for a beef heart, but I am confident that this would work up to about a 3-4 pound heart size. If the heart you want to roast is on the 4-6 pound side, I think you can make this even more simply by putting the roast in a pan (make sure it’s one that can handle high temperature cooking) and putting it into a 500F oven for 20 minutes. Then reduce the temperature to 275F (open the door so the oven cools down to 275 quickly), add the onion, cabbage and broth to the pan and cook for 20 minutes per pound for rare (I have done this successfully with a 4 1/2 pound roast). This would work beautifully with lamb heart as well.

Ingredients:

1½ -3 pound beef or lamb heart
1 medium yellow onion
4 cups shredded cabbage
3-4 cloves garlic, crushed
½-1 tsp Salt, to taste
¼-½ tsp cracked Pepper, to taste
¾ cups bone broth (chicken or beef)
2-3 Tbsp tallow (or other good cooking fat like extra virgin coconut oil)

1.    Trim any vessels or tough sliverskin off the heart meat. This is easiest with a very sharp boning knife. Hearts are typically cut open already (part of the USDA inspection before you can buy it). If not completely open, finish the cut so the meat can lie flat.
2.    Prepare some lengths of butcher twine. You’ll want 1 to go the length of the heart and then 1 per inch around the width of the heart.
3.    Coast the inside of the heart with crushed garlic, salt and pepper. Roll the heart up into a roast shape with the seasonings on the inside (I found it easier to cut the heart in half lengthwise, and rotate one half around so that my roast didn’t have a fat side and a skinny side). Tie the lengthwise truss first. Then start tying the widthwise trusses every inch or so down the length of the heart, tucking in any bits as you go. This does take some practice, so don’t worry if it’s not perfect your first time (plus you can always cut a truss and redo it if you need to). When your heart is trussed, sprinkle more salt and pepper around the outside.
4.    Slice onion into ¼” thick semicircles. Preheat oven to 275F.
5.    Heat an oven-safe skillet, roasting pan or shallow pot over medium-high heat (I used a cast iron frying pan). Add tallow to the pan.
6.    Place heart in pan and sear on each side, rotating every minute or slightly less with tongs until all sides browned. Once browned, remove from the pan and set aside.
7.    Add onion to the frying pan and cook, stirring frequently, until starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Add cabbage to pan and stir, until wilted, about 1 minute.
8.    Pour broth into the pan. Lay the roast on top of the cabbage and onion. Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes per pound for rare (25 minutes per pound for medium-rare).
9.    Remove from the oven and let rest 10 minutes. Remove the trusses, slice and enjoy! Serve with cabbage and onions. Also, the broth from the pan can be thickened to make gravy or poured au jus style over mashed cauliflower or turnips.