Apple Thyme Muffins

2 cups blanched almond flour
2 tbsp coconut flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 medium Gala or Pink Lady apple, peeled (I don't bother), cored and roughly chopped
1/2 cup honey, maple syrup or blend of both
2 large eggs
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves

Preheat oven to 350°  (convection 325°) Line 10 cups of a standard muffin pan with paper liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda, ground ginger and salt.

In a good processor or blender, combine the apple, honey or syrup, eggs, olive oil, and thyme. Blend until smooth.

Pour wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and mix well to combine. Divide the batter among the lined cups

Bake for 20-25 minutes (convection 15 minutes) until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool completely before serving. Store in refrigerator in air-tight container for up to 2 days.

Makes 10 muffins.

Pork Tenderloin with Cherry Sauce over Mashed Cauliflower

1 tbsp coconut oil
1 1/2 pound pork tenderloin
sea salt and black pepper to taste
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 cup (or less) unsweetened dried cherries
1 sprig rosemary
1 large cauliflower

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium to medium high heat. Season the pork tenderloin with sea salt and pepper, place the tenderloin into the hot oil in the skillet and sear on all sides for 3 minutes per side or until browned all over.

Add the chicken broth, vinegar, dried cherries, and rosemary to the skillet with the pork, cover and cook for another 20-25 minutes, turning the pork over occasionally.

Meanwhile, steam the head of cauliflower until tender (15-20 minutes). Mash the steamed cauliflower with a potato masher and set aside.

Transfer the cooked pork loin from the skillet to a cutting board, cover with tinfoil and let rest for 5-7 minutes.

While the pork is resting, over medium heat reduce the sauce by half, stirring constantly. Discard the rosemary from the sauce. Slice the loin and serve over the mashed cauliflower, topped with the cherry sauce.

Serves 4-5

Prosciutto Egg Cups

You bake these tasty little morsels in muffin cups and we've noticed 2 things: 1. The eggs are very difficult to wash out of the cups and 2. Ordinary muffin cups are not big enough to hold a large egg, let along an x-large or duck egg. Andee came up with the solution: a silicon muffin pan. The egg easily washes right out and they're plenty big enough for the largest eggs without overflowing. Another option which works equally well is to use a paper muffin cup liner and spray it with vegetable spray before you add the prosciutto. They'll pop right out. They are delicious right out of the oven, while the eggs are still in the medium cooked stage but they can also be eaten at room temperature or even stored in the refrigerator and reheated a bit in the microwave. This is a perfect light breakfast or lunch you eat from your hand.

avocado oil or melted ghee for greasing the muffin pan (with the silicone pan you can skip this)
8 slices prosciutto
3 1/2 tbsp chopped fresh chives
3 1/2 oz grated cheddar cheese (optional, but we always add it)
8 eggs
salt and pepper to taste (if your prosciutto is salty skip the salt altogether)

Preheat oven to 375° and lightly grease 8 muffin cups.

Line each muffin cup with 1 slice of prosciutto, covering the bottom and sides as much as possible. Divide the chives and cheese among the cups then crack 1 egg into each cup, being careful to keep the egg IN the cup.

Season each egg with salt and pepper (careful with the salt) and bake for 15 minutes until the egg whites are opaque. Loosen from the muffin cups carefully with a butter knife and serve immediately, or store in fridge for up to 4 days.

Serves 4 - 8
 ALTERNATELY:
10 slices prosciutto, cut in half
1 med. sweet potato, roasted and diced
2 peppers, poblano or bell (I use one of each)
7-8 mushrooms
1 onion
4 cups spinach, chopped
12 eggs
salt & pepper
hot sauce, optional

Sauté onions and peppers and mushrooms. Add spinach and roasted sweet potato. Cook until spinach is limp. Beat eggs, add salt, pepper and veggies. Line cups with prosciutto, pour in egg mixture.
Oven 350° 15 minutes
Makes 12-20

Go-with Everything Celery Root Puree

Taken from the fabulous book, Around My French Table, by Dorie Greenspan, this is a great alternative to mashed potatoes, with a creamy, lighter texture and a subtle flavor that goes with, well, everything. We suggest Celery Root Purée topped with Short Ribs (recipe on blog).

3 cups whole milk
3 cups water
Salt
2 celery roots (celeraic), about 11/4# each, peeled and cut into 2-inch cubes
1 medium Idaho (russet) potato (about 10 oz), peeled and cut into 2-inch cubes.
1 small onion, quartered
5 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into 5 pieces, at room temperature
fresh ground (white) pepper
snipped chives for garnish

Bring the milk, water, and 1 tbsp salt to a boil in a large pot — keep an eye on the pot, the milk has a tendency to bubble up furiously. Drop in the celery root, potato, and onion. Adjust the heat so that the liquid simmers steadily, and cook for about 30 minutes, or until the vesetables are tender and can be pierced easily with the point of a knite. Drain, discard the liquid and shake the colander well to remove as much liquid as possible.

In a food processor, in batches if necessary, puree the vegetables until perfectly smooth, careful to not over do it. Add the butter and whir until completely incorporated. Top with a generous shower of snipped chives. Serve immediately. Will rewarm nicely in the microwave.

6 servings

Chili Beef Short Ribs in Slow Cooker

This is a fabulous, hearty meal, especially good for cold, winter nights but really fine for anytime. We usually serve with Celery Root Puree, below, and some lightly braised greens with balsamic, served altogether in deep plates or shallow pasta bowls. From Paleo Slow Cooking.

Serves 4-6

1 can tomato sauce
1/2 onion
2 Tbsp chili powder
2-3 garlic gloves
1 tsp ground pepper
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp ground mustard
3-4 pounds short ribs

Combine all ingrdients except the meat in a blender or foo processor and purée.
Place the ribs in your slow cooker and pour the blended mixture over them.
Cook on low for 8 hours. The meat will be just falling off the bone so you can discard the bones before serving.

Go-with-Everything Celery Root Purée
3 cups whole milk
3 cups water
Salt
2 celery roots (celeraic), about 11/4# each, peeled and cut into 2-inch cubes
1 medium Idaho (russet) potato (about 10 oz), peeled and cut into 2-inch cubes.
1 small onion, quartered
5 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into 5 pieces, at room temperature
fresh ground (white) pepper
snipped chives for garnish

Bring the milk, water, and 1 tbsp salt to a boil in a large pot — keep an eye on the pot, the milk has a tendency to bubble up furiously. Drop in the celery root, potato, and onion. Adjust the heat so that the liquid simmers steadily, and coof for about 30 minutes, or until the vesetables are tender and can be pierced easily with the point of a knite. Drain, discard the liquid and shake the colander well to remove as much liquid as possible.

In a food processor, in batches if necessary, puree the vegetables until perfectly smooth, careful to not over do it. Add the butter and whir until completely  incorporated. Top with a generous shower of snipped chives. Serve immediately. Will rewarm nicely in the microwave.