Chicken Al Pastor Egg Bake, by Diane

This week I decided to combine two recipes that I had saved on Instagram from the Whole30 feed- chicken al pastor and carnitas breakfast bake. I liked the chicken al pastor recipe but couldn't figure out what to eat it with, and I liked the carnitas breakfast bake but had just finished off pork from this week and wanted a change. I thought the two dishes would perfectly complement each other, and I was a fan of using the crockpot this week since my gas bills have been insanely high from using the oven so much in the past few weeks of summer when I've been baking everything from scratch for lunches and dinners. This turned out really good!!

A note on the marinade for the chicken- I tasted it and thought it was disgusting and got pretty upset that the flavor of this whole dish was going to be off on the first step. However, I decided to let it go and see if cooking it changed the flavor and I was right, it did! The result after 3 1/2 hours was chicken that practically fell apart when I went to shred it and was so flavorful and delicious! This would have been awesome in tacos. Another note, this dish took way longer to cook than the posted 30 minutes, closer to an hour for me until the eggs on the top were fully cooked (there goes my attempt to lower the gas bill).



Ingredients:

For the chicken al pastor:

2 lbs chicken breast
1/2 c each pineapple and orange juice
2 chipotle peppers (I couldn't find these in my store so I subbed in extra chili powder, Tony Chachere's, and some cholula)
4 cloves garlic
2 tsp each cumin and paprika
1/2 yellow onion
1 lime, juiced
2 tsp vinegar
1 tsp chili powder
Salt and pepper (I left these out be I had already used Tony's)

For the egg bake:

12 eggs
3 tbsp milk of choice
12 mini sweet peppers, thinly sliced
1/2 yellow onion
1 small can diced green chiles
1 cup pico de gallo
Salt and pepper


Directions:

1. Place all of the chicken al pastor ingredients EXCEPT chicken into a blender until smooth. Place the chicken in the bottom of the crockpot, pour the marinade over top. Cover and cook on high for 3 1/2 to 4 hours.

2. Shred the chicken and return to the pot for another 10 minutes.

3. Preheat oven to 350.

4. Whisk together the eggs, some of the liquid from the crockpot, and milk until frothy, then pour into a large casserole dish along with the remaining ingredients and chicken. Mix well and even out the top.

5. Bake 30-35 minutes, top with avocado or guacamole and cilantro.

Sweet and Smoky Brussels Sprouts Slaw, by Diane

I made this as a side dish to go with my sausage patties for lunches this week. I have been getting so much inspiration from Instagram for healthy Whole30 recipes lately! I added the first step to get more flavor, but you can always cook the shallots separately. I also added sunflower seeds and currants for extra crunch and sweetness. This came out really good, the different flavors worked well and it was quite addictive and crunchy! The only complaint is with the title, there is nothing smoky in the salad so I'm not sure why it was called that but it's a very good side dish to have on hand.

Ingredients:

1 1/4 brussels sprouts, shredded
1 medium shallot, thinly sliced
5-6 strips bacon, chopped (I subbed in prosciutto here)
1/3 chopped dates
1/3 cup toasted almonds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
2 tbsp currants
1 medium lemon, zested and juiced
1 small orange, juiced
1 date
1 garlic clove
2/3 avocado oil or evoo
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dried thyme

Directions:

1. Cook the bacon and shallot together, placed on a paper towel lined plate and set aside.

2. Combine brussels sprouts through currants in a large bowl.

3. Blend the remaining ingredients until combined well, pour over the brussels sprouts mixture.

Blackberry Sage Sausage Patties, by Diane

These were my lunches for the week courtesy of another Whole30 recipe I found on my feed. They were really easy to make and very flavorful! The flavor combination was really interesting, I think you could substitute berries and easily make them with ground chicken too. The only sub I made below is that blackberry seeds always get stuck in my teeth so instead of placing the whole berries into the patties I put them through a strainer and put the juice into the patties to make them more flavorful as well. I did crush one blackberry on the top of each of the patties for looks :)

Recipe by @therealfoodrds

Ingredients:

1lb ground pork
1/2 tsp each dried sage and thyme, garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup blackberries
Oil for cooking (I used coconut)

Directions:

1. Mix all of the ingredients through pepper in a bowl. I put the blackberries through a strainer and put that liquid into the bowl as well in this step.

2.  Shape the mixture into about eight patties, gently pressing a few berries into each one. I skipped this step because of what I did in step one.

3. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat, adding in oil for cooking. Place the patties into the pan being careful not to crowd them. Cook 2 to 3 minutes on each side until browned and cooked through.

Sloppy Joe Sweet Potato Nachos, by Diane

This recipe is another Whole30 find from Instagram. I have always hated sloppy joes, but I found two recipes both of which happened to pop up on my feed randomly and I thought if I mixed the two together it would come out well. I also liked that the "nachos" were sweet potato fries. It turned out really easy to make and it is SO good!!  I will definitely make this again, it was filling and something I looked forward to at dinner each night this week!


Ingredients:

2 large sweet potatoes
2 tbsp evoo/coconut oil
1 tsp salt and pepper or Goya
1 lb grass fed ground beef
1 small white onion, diced
6 small sweet peppers, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
6 oz tomato paste
3 dates
1 c water divided
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
1 tsp soy sauce
2 tbsp yellow mustard
2 tsp paprika

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350.

2. Cut the sweet potatoes lengthwise into fries, spread on a greased baking sheet and drizzle oil and seasoning, mixing well with your hands. Place the fries into a single layer and roast in the oven for 40 minutes or until tender. Set aside.

3. In a medium sauce pan over medium high heat, brown the ground beef and drain. Set aside.

4. In the same pan, cook the onions, peppers, and garlic until the onions are translucent. Add the remaining ingredients (except potatoes) and stir well.

5. Add the beef back into the pan, and bring to a low boil. Cover with a lid and simmer for 30 minutes or longer (the longer this cooks the better it tastes, I did about an hour!).

6. Spoon a portion of the sloppy joe mix over the sweet potato fries and enjoy!

Whole30 Ketchup, by Diane

Being on Whole30 now for about a month and a half is great, but I am really starting to miss condiments. I found a recipe for Whole30 compliant ketchup, claiming to be much better than store-bought ketchup, and the directions seemed really simple. I also happened to have everything in my pantry so I gave this a shot. I was nervous because of the mayo incident that happened early on in the Whole30, and boy was I right to be. This was terrible. My takeaway is that you can't recreate condiments at home. Honestly, don't make this.


Ingredients:

1 6oz can tomato paste
10 pitted medjool dates
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp lemon juice (about 1/2 lemon)
1/2 tsp salt, garlic powder and onion powder

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a medium sauce pan over low heat until it starts to simmer, then cook five more minutes.

2. Add the mixture to a blender, and blend well until the dates have completely mixed into the rest of the ingredients. If you don't have a blender that can accommodate hot liquid, wait until the mixture cools a bit.

Frenchy's Chicken Salad, by Diane

About 17 years ago my family and I vacationed in Clearwater, FL and we came off the beach into a casual beach shack called Frenchy's for lunch. My mom and I ordered the chicken salad pocket, which was a beachy type chicken salad with toasted coconut, grapes, and nuts in a pita pocket. We came back for that lunch about two more times during that week, and have since created this recipe at home. This week, I was really missing being at the beach and trying to decide what to come up with for lunch that would be Whole30 compliant, and I remembered this chicken salad. I could've sworn that I had posted this before, but like so many other recipes on this blog, I haven't. This is quick, easy, and a great go-to lunch, not to mention an interesting chicken salad recipe so things don't get boring.  I ate mine in lettuce cups instead of the pita pocket to make it Whole30 compliant and a bit healthier.

Ingredients:

1.5 lbs chicken, cooked and shredded or cubed
2/3 cup shredded coconut, unsweetened
1/4 cup nuts (I picked slivered almonds since I had those on hand)
1 cup red grapes, halved
1/2 cup mayo
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp dried rosemary

Directions:

1. Toast the coconut just until it browns in a small pan, watching carefully and stirring often so that it does not burn (this will happen very quickly so keep an eye on things). Set aside.

2. Toast the nuts in the same pan, with the same process. Although you will want to toast both the coconut and the nuts together, the coconut will brown much more quickly than the nuts so make sure you do this separately. Set aside.

3. Combine all of the ingredients together, stirring well.

Corn Sauce, by Diane

This is a bbq/cookout staple at our house, and we are all crazy for it!! I’ve completely forgotten to post it until now. It’s a fusion of ingredients that are inspired by Mexican street corn, not healthy at all, but totally delicious!! I listed the approximate amounts below, but honestly I just mix and adjust.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup mayo
3 tbsp ranch dressing
1 tsp crushed garlic
1 tbsp lime juice
1/2 tsp chili powder
3 tbsp grates Parmesan cheese
Sea salt
Optional: Cajun seasoning (we like fried chicken seasoning)

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and adjust seasonings, slather on charred corn off the grill!

Mexican Breakfast Hash, by Diane

Since I’m continuing on Whole30, I decided to make a dish inspired by quite a few of the breakfasts that I’ve seen on Instagram Whole30 accounts. This is delicious, fairly easy to make and super filling! Not to mention, it may be one of our best photos on this blog!!!  I didn’t picture this but I added fresh sliced avocado is to this as well!  Green chilies or sauce I would also be fantastic accompaniments!

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef, lean (I used grass fed)

1 tbsp coconut oil 

1 yellow onion, chopped

8 sweet peppers, various colors, deseeded and thinly sliced 

2 medium sweet potatoes, cubes into 1/2 inch pieces

2 cups greens (I used baby kale)

4 eggs

Seasoning: chili powder, garlic powder, cumin, salt, red pepper flakes, pepper (I used my beloved Tony Chacere’s seasoning instead of the last 3 of these)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Heat a cast iron skillet on medium high and brown the beef with the seasoning to taste. Set aside.

3. Add the peppers, onions, and sweet potatoes to the skillet, along with seasoning to taste. Cover with a baking tray to expedite the potatoes cooking. Cook until the potatoes are soft.

4. Add the beef and greens into the skillet, turn off the heat, and stir well. Adjust seasonings if necessary. 

5. Make 4 wells evenly divided ( I used the back of a large cooking spoon for this and it worked well!) and crack the eggs into the wells.

6. Bake until the eggs are cooked to your preference. I had a hard time balancing the whites and the yolks because I wanted the whites to be fully cooked but the yolks to be a bit runny, so you’ll have to experiment with this until you get it right, and don’t forget that the eggs continue to cook after you take the skillet out of the oven a bit.

Salmon Patties, by Cheryl

These were really good!!! I'm not the biggest fan of cooked salmon so putting this fish into patties with some yumminess sounded good to me. This recipe is gluten-free and paleo if you happen to be following either of those. I made a couple of substitutions, which probably don't make it paleo anymore, but instead of mayonnaise in the patties and the dip I used Greek yogurt. I used safflower oil instead of olive oil since it has a higher smoke point. I had thought of baking them, but the salmon would have definitely dried out. Fresh dill really made these and the yogurt dip pop. I will definitely be making these again! Yum!

Ingredients (original recipe from here):

1 lb fresh salmon
1/3 cup olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 almond flour
2 large eggs, beaten
2 tbsp mayonnaise (or plain Greek yogurt)
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1/3 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
2 tbsp fresh dill, finely chopped
salt and pepper

Lemon Dill sauce:
1 cup mayonnaise (or plain Greek yogurt)
2 tbsp dill, finely chopped
1/2 lemon, juiced
salt and pepper

Directions:

1) Preheat the oven to 425. Drizzle the salmon with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 10-13 minutes or until completely cooked through. Let cool for 5-10 minutes when done.

2) Dice the onion and pepper, and chop the dill and parsley.

3) Saute onion and pepper with some oil.

4) Flake the cooled salmon, removing the skin, into a large mixing bowl. Add all of the ingredients and combine with your hands until well mixed.

5) Form the salmon mixture into patties. Heat several tablespoons of olive oil in a pan and cook the patties for 3-4 minutes per side. Serve with the sauce.