This meal is hearty enough to be satisfying on a cool evening yet light enough not to weigh you down. It’s also quick to the table – in thirty minutes or less depending on how small you dice the apple. Give this a try the next time you want a quick, hearty meal! It also pairs well with a rice pilaf or butternut squash risotto.

• 2 tbsp. sour cherry jam
• 1 cup cranberries, fresh or frozen
• 1 medium apple, diced
• 1/4 cup apple juice
• 1/4 – 1/3 tsp. thyme
• 10 twists black pepper (about 1/2 tsp)
• 4 pork chops, about 1″ thick
• 1 large bunch lacinato kale, de-stemmed and leaves torn
• 1 tbsp. avocado oil

Preheat oven to broil. Salt and pepper pork chops and begin making the sauce (below) while the oven preheats.

Sauté the apple in a small saucepan over medium heat in a little avocado oil or butter. When the apple begins to soften, add cranberries, jam and apple juice. Stir to incorporate and simmer on low-medium, breaking up the cranberries and apples as they soften to create a thickened sauce. Add thyme and pepper and simmer on low for 5 more minutes, or enough liquid evaporates to create a chunky applesauce consistency.

Broil for 7-10 minutes then flip the chops and continue to broil for 3-5 minutes, monitoring closely. Remove and let rest.

While the sauce is cooking, sauté the kale in a little oil. Add 1-2 tbsp. water to steam-saute the kale until it is bright green and wilted.

Assemble the plate by placing the pork chop on a bed of kale and adding the compote atop the dish. Serves 4.

Since football season is here it means that HOT WING SEASON is here! The great thing about hot wings are that they are an easy crowd pleaser that can be made to be fairly healthy. Here’s a Instant Pot Hot Wing recipe you can take with you to the next game – you’ll look like a culinary bad ass, but Instant Pot does most of the work!

This recipe is gluten-free and paleo-friendly and is adapted from The Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker Cookbook which has recipes for all kinds of eaters. I’ve cleaned it up by following instructions to broil instead of fry the wings and by making my own hot wing sauce, which is easy and keeps the dairy and gluten-free folks happy!

Bomb-Diggity Game Day Hot Wings

• 3 pounds chicken wings
• 1 cup water
• kosher salt
• 2 cups wing sauce (see recipe below)

Add chicken wings and water to Instant pot. Season with salt to desired taste. Selected ‘Manual’ and ‘high’ pressure on Instant pot and set time to 10 minutes.

While Instant Pot is cooking the chicken wings assemble the hot wing sauce:

Hot Wing Sauce

• 1/2 cup avocado oil*
• 3 tbsp. honey
• 1/3 cup sriracha
• 1-2 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp. coconut aminos
• 2 limes, juiced

Combine all ingredients in a blender or vitamix until garlic is well blended and set aside.

When the wings are finished, use the natural pressure release for ten minutes and then manually release any additional pressure. Removing wings and place upon a cooling rack to drain or press them dry between paper towels. Preheat oven to broil.

Dump wings and sauce into a large bowl. (you may want to reserve a little bit of sauce for dipping; its totally up to you!) Mix until sauce coats those wings well! Line a baking sheet with foil (for easy clean up) and lay wings on the baking sheet. Broil for 5 minutes, or until crispy. Flip wings and broil for 3-5 more minutes, then remove.

Serve with celery sticks and your favorite hot wing dip.

*I use avocado oil instead of olive oil because it is a mild flavored oil that has a high smoking point. Olive oil should not be used for broiling, frying, or sautéing due to its low smoke point. If you have an olive oil that is reportedly acceptable for such purposes its quality is highly questionable.

Last week we went camping for the first time this year. Our Squish (who isn’t so little and Squishy anymore!) had a terrible camping experience last fall and we have been hesitant to go out again. Thankfully he had a GREAT time playing and sleeping in his outdoor “Ohm”.

Rose Infused Honey

Rose Body Oil

*Commercial honey is pasteurized and filtered so fine that no pollen remains. Given that the FDA identifies honey as having pollen in it, can it even be called honey at that point? Sometimes it is also diluted with corn syrup, imported from China, and otherwise not the healing, healthy food you’ve read about. All enzymes and vitamins have been destroyed.

**Apricot oil is derived from the pit of apricots. It is a light oil that makes skin velvety soft. It’s great to apply upon dry, parched skin and won’t feel heavy or greasy when used topically, making it a favorite of massage therapists. It can also be used in hair as a hot oil treatment.

Resources:

Learn more about commercial honey here: http://www.motherearthnews.com/real-food/comparing-commercial-and-locally-produced-raw-honey-zbcz1412.aspx

This recipe is a simple derivation from the recipe used in the movie Chef, which was a hit amongst foodies in 2014. The original recipe can be found here.
This pork roast is an easy and highly flavorful dish that is most authentically served alongside fried plantains or sliced, tucked into a homemade plantain wrap and served with a salad. Simple and Merry makes my favorite plantain wraps recipe, which you can find here.

As I am testing out the AIP diet on myself I am eager to find easy dinners and meals that can be prepared with a wide variety of flavor. It’s very easy to get bored on AIP, so we gotta shake it up as much as we can!

Try this out and tell me know what you think!

AIP Cuban Mojo Pork

1 cup lightly packed cilantro, roughly chopped
1 Tbsp. finely grated orange zest
¾ cup fresh orange juice
½ cup fresh lime juice
¼ cup lightly packed mint leaves, roughly chopped
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 Tbsp. minced oregano
Sea Salt
3½ lbs. boneless pork shoulder, in one piece
Butcher’s String to tie pork together

DIRECTIONS

Place all ingredients aside from the salt and pork in a blender and food processor and pulse on low to finely chop the herbs and garlic. Add a tsp. of salt to the marinade and pulse again once to mix.

Set the pork in a large glass bowl or baking dish and cover with marinade. Cover and refrigerate overnight, rotating once to allow both sides to soak up the marinade.

Preheat the oven to 425° and set a rack over a shallow roasting pan. Transfer the pork to a cutting board and discard the marinade. Fold the pork under itself, into thirds if necessary, and tie with string to form a neat roll. Season all over with salt and place it upon the rack.

Roast the pork for 30 minutes at 425°, until lightly browned. Reduce the oven temperature to 375° and roast for 1 hour and 30 minutes longer or until a meat thermometer inserted in the center reads 150° – 160°
Remove the pork form the oven and to a carving board and let rest for 30 minutes. Remove the butcher’s string, slice across the grain and serve.

Make Ahead and Freeze:

Place all ingredients aside from the salt and pork in a blender and food processor and pulse on low to finely chop the herbs and garlic. Add a tsp. of salt to the marinade and pulse again once to mix. Place the pork and the marinade in an extra large ziploc bag or double layered plastic bag and use a rubber band AND butchers string to tie it together. Freeze for up to 3 months.

To cook, remove from freezer and thaw overnight. Preheat the oven to 425° and set a rack over a shallow roasting pan. Transfer the pork to a cutting board and discard the marinade. Fold the pork under itself, into thirds if necessary, and use the butcher’s string from the freezer bag to form a neat roll and tie it together. Season all over with salt and place it upon the rack.

Roast the pork for 30 minutes at 425°, until lightly browned. Reduce the oven temperature to 375° and roast for 1 hour and 30 minutes longer or until a meat thermometer inserted in the center reads 150° – 160°
Remove the pork form the oven and to a carving board and let rest for 30 minutes. Remove the butcher’s string, slice across the grain and serve.

Whole Foods has their annual chile fest in full swing! Hatch chiles and Pueblo chiles are hitting stores in the west. This year, instead of just buying a pre-made hatch chile product, I decided to take some roasted chiles home and play with them in the kitchen! We (the parents) are a little run down after summer travels and this soup really hit the spot after a week of especially heavy travel. I added astragulus root to the soup to help boost our immune systems. Between travel and back to school madness we are all ripe for seasonal sniffles! Astragalus is an adaptogen, meaning it helps the body adapt to stress, be it physical or emotional. It’s antiviral, antibacterial, and immune-stimulating properties make it an excellent addition to the diet during times of high germ exposure or lowered immunity. NOTE: Astragalus is a Th1 stimulant and thus can aggravate some autoimmune conditions. It can be omitted without affecting taste if you have a Th1 dominant autoimmune condition. The presence of warming, slightly spicy chiles make this soup a particularly lovely way to welcome the cooling nights of autumn into the household.

1 rotisserie chicken, shredded*
2 carrots, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 small onion, diced
3 quarts water
2 bullion cubes or 2 tbsp. Better than chicken bullion
5 strips dried astragalus root
2 roasted hatch or pueblo chiles, chopped
1/2 cup wild rice
1/2 cup brown rice

*If time and desire permits, the chicken carcass can be used to make 3 quarts of bone broth and replace the water in this recipe.

Place chicken, carrots, celery and onion in a large stock pot. Sauté for 3-5 minutes, adding a little water if chicken fat is insufficient enough to prevent sticking. Cover chicken and vegetables with water and bring to a low boil.
Add bullion, stirring to dissolve. Add remaining ingredients and turn heat to low, simmering for 45 minutes or until wild rice is tender and splitting.

Serve immediately. This soup will pair well with cornbread or a dollop of sour cream.

Make Ahead and Freeze:

Place chicken, carrots, celery and onion, bullion cubes, dried astragalus root, hatch or pueblo chiles, wild and brown rice into a gallon ziploc bag, label and freeze. On prep day, remove ingredients from bag and place into a stock pot. Add 3 quarts of water and bring to a boil, then reduce heat, simmering for 40 minutes or until wild rice is tender and split open. Remove astragulus before serving.

Instant Pot Instructions:
Place all ingredients in the instant pot. Add 3 quarts of water. Cook on Manual for 30 minutes, allow natural pressure release and serve. Remove astragulus before serving.