I completed my third week of being on the AIP. Consuming organ meats is encouraged on this diet. Why? Read this article to find out. I used this recipe to make chicken liver and made a few changes. I served the liver and sweet potatoes with sautéed greens.
Most (noticed I said most) of the children ate this meal. My oldest still has a strong aversion to chicken liver and this new recipe did not cause her to change her mind. But child number 5 after cleaning his plate and asking for seconds exclaimed, “THIS IS YUMMY!” I was so pleased but THEN my older children burst my bubbles by reminding me that child number five eats just about anything except for “FISS” (FISH). They couldn’t let me have my moment. Oh well. Give this recipe a try and let me know how it works for those in your family. Sorry I don’t have any pictures. Quite honestly it wasn’t a pretty dish but it was definitely palatable!
Chicken Liver and White Sweet Potatoes
INGREDIENTS
DIRECTIONS
White oven baked sweet potatoes
Liver and onions
I completed week 2 of Autoimmune Paleo Diet (AIP). YEAH! Below are some of the things that were on the menu.
-I made this seafood chowder and it was a huge hit in our home. I did not have any rutabaga on hand so I just used more white sweet potatoes. I strongly recommend giving this chowder a try.
–Salmon patties, topped with avocado, grilled onions and some left over chayote from last week.
-Fish tacos . I used lettuce as the shell and of courseI had some sliced avocado with it.
-Turkey burgers. Nothing fancy here folks, just seasoned some ground turkey with salt and black pepper with dried herb. I formed the mixture into patties and cooked on my cast iron griddle.
-Shrimp lightly breaded with seasoned tigernut flour and cooked in a little bit of olive oil. This was soooooooo good!
-I made a big pot of chicken broth. I froze some in mason jars and had a cup each day.
Sides
-Sautéed kale and onions
-Salad with romaine lettuce and shredded carrots
-Kale salad
-Sweet potatoes
-Sautéed spinach
Snacks
-Plantain chips
-tigernut flour mugcake I recommend mixing the gelatin in with the water and coconut oil first before adding the rest of the ingredients. This prevents the gelatin from clumping together.
After much deliberation, I took the plunge and began a round of the Autoimmune Paleo diet (AIP). Keep on reading to find out what I cooked to keep my taste buds singing and keep my mind off of what I could not have.
Sauces
In my humble opinion, sauce makes everything B.E.T.T.E.R.
Nomato Sauce– Nightshades are eliminated on this diet, so no tomatoes for me. This sauce proved to be a good alternative. I made a big patch and froze some of it. I plan to use it as an alternative for tomato paste and tomato sauce.
AIP Barbecue Sauce. This sauce was excellent! I made it JUST FOR ME. My intentions were to have it all week but my family had a sample and loved it too…so much for the all week idea. Instead of molasses I used 5 dates.
Sides
I made most of my sides at the beginning of the week, put them in mason jars and mixed and matched them with different protein throughout the week for breakfast lunch and dinner. I liked having a variety to choose from at each meal.
Yucca Fries (Cassava) These were so easy to make and absolutely delicious. I ate them with my barbecue sauce.
Butternut squash. I simply peeled and cubed the butternut squash, tossed them with avocado oil and sprinkled a little salt and popped them in the oven at 375 for 50 minutes. This method gives the butternut squash a really sweet taste and who doesn’t like sweet?
Oriental yams. I peeled and cubed and tossed with coconut oil and put it in the oven at 400 for 45 minutes. Keep watch as cooking time may vary. These were SOOOO GOOD! I typically roast them whole but decided to do something different. They are delicious both ways.
Cabbage. I steamed my cabbage with a little bit of olive oil with onions and garlic.
Protein
I was beyond thrilled when I made Jamaican style red snapper. To make it AIP friendly, I just seasoned with salt, vinegar, and onions and it still turned out flavorful!
I made pork tenderloins and orange roughy using this method. However to make it AIP friendly, I used tigernut flour instead of almond flour. I seasoned the flour with salt and a few dried herbs. Instead of dipping the pork and fish in the eggs, I dipped it in a little bit of olive oil and then coated it with the tigernut flour. Both were delicious with a hint of sweetness.
I baked 3 chickens using my fall off the bone method. I put some of the nomato sauce, along with some mushrooms, sautéed onions and garlic in the pan with the chicken. After the chicken was done, I blended most of the liquid in my vitamix blender to make one seriously delicious gravy!
Chicken liver. They stress consuming more offal on the AIP.
Snacks
While coconut is permitted on the AIP and I happen to LOOOVE the taste, I realize that I have a slight sensitivity and can only consume a little at a time. Of course I was super disappointed about this and was in denial for quite some time. I got to googling and discovered that there is an alternative that fits the AIP diet, this alternative is tigernuts. Tigernuts? Yeah that was my initial response as well. Read this article and be prepared to be enlightened. I bought some tigernut flour and raw tigernuts. I made tigernut milk with the raw nuts and sweetened it with a few dates (DELICIOUS).
Plantain chips-these are definitely my default snacks.
Fruit– I limited my fruit intake to one a day, I am realizing that my body doesn’t respond well to too much sugar, even if it is from fruit. I know…tell me about it!
Hope you give some of these recipes a try even if you are not doing the AIP. Happy cooking!
I love simple side dishes that makes my taste buds sing. The cucumber recipe below meets these qualifications. Give it a try and let me know if you like it. What is your go to simple side dish?
Simple Cucumber Salad Recipe
Ingredients
Directions
Place all of the ingredients in a mason jar. Close and shake the jar until the oil is evenly distributed on the content of the jar. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
To make this salad creamier, you can omit the olive oil and use a paleo ranch dressing instead. I have tried different paleo ranch dressing and have to say my favorite is the one from the Everyday Paleo cookbook.
I am Jamaican and yes I LOVE jerk chicken. When I make it I use the Walkerswood Jamaican Jerk Seasoning. It is an EXCELLENT seasoning. It is not dry but it is more like a paste. You can get it in either hot, medium or mild. I personally prefer the hot version. I typically rub it on my meats the night before I cook it. This allows the flavors to really get in the meat providing wonderful results. I sometimes put it on the meat and put the meat in a Ziploc bag and put it in the freezer until I am ready to cook it. This process takes the taste to another level. There is no need to add any other seasonings to your meats when using this product, it is just that good! I love putting it on chicken thighs, legs, and wings. I have also put a little of it in my ground meat when making hamburgers. When the weather permits, I put the meat on the grill. Cooking it in the oven works as well. I put the meat on a cooking wrack and cook at 400 for approx. 1 1/2hour (cooking time may vary depending on your oven).
The last time I made jerk chicken I served it with crispy baked okra , fried plantain, and a side salad. I encourage you to give it a try and come back and let me know what you think!
With a family of 8, as far as I am concerned EVERY NIGHT I am cooking for a crowd! Hence the fancy name, “Anika’s chili for a crowd.” Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
Anika’s chili for a crowd!
Ingredients
4 Ponds ground beef (can substitute ground turkey if you prefer, both yield delicious results)
2 tablespoon ghee or cooking fat of choice
2 medium onions chopped
2 cups bell pepper chopped
2 cups chopped mushrooms
6 garlic cloves minced
4 cans of 14.5 oz. diced tomatoes
2 cans 60z tomato paste
4 cups water
4 bay leaves
2 ½ tablespoon ground cumin
2 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon basil
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (add more if you like chili with a kick!)
Directions
Serve with side salad and this grain free “cornbread” or this Paleo “cornbread” muffin recipe