May 7 2014

Paleo Candied Bacon

Posted on May 7, 2014 by aHeapingCup

Oh mama.

These are seriously good. The perfect sweet, salty and spicy combo.

They’re like spiced mixed nuts, but bacon. Which is so much better, because bacon.

Totally Paleo too, so totally guilt-free. Ok, maybe not totally guilt-free. But definitely a yummy snack made out of paleo-friendly ingredients. If you’re not paleo-ing then use just brown sugar instead of coconut sugar.

This is what you need:

The red chili flakes are optional.

I love the spicy kick but if you don’t like too much heat, the cinnamon alone will be enough.

Begin by preheating the oven to 350F.

Then place a wire rack on a lined baking sheet.

Lay the bacon on the rack.

Sprinkle on enough coconut sugar to coat the bacon. I used about 1/4 – 1/3 cup.

Drizzle on as much maple syrup as your heart desires.

Remember to use pure maple syrup if you want to keep it Paleo.

Smear or brush the syrup and sugar over the bacon to create a glaze.

Finally, sprinkle on some cinnamon and red chili flakes, if you’re using them.

Bake for about 20 minutes and then check on the bacon.

I felt like mine needed some more sugar to help create a thicker candy coating.

I then baked them for an additional 15 minutes until they were a deep brown, but not burnt!

I have no words.

*Walks backwards while making intense awkward eye contact*

*Starts walking forward again, still maintaining eye contact, asks you to subscribe to my blog while waving a piece of candied bacon in your face*

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May 6 2014

Beet & Goat Cheese Salad w/ Orange Thyme Vinaigrette

Posted on May 6, 2014 by aHeapingCup

Time for a salad recipe!

After Cinco de Mayo, I may have had one Gluten-Free Baked Tortilla Chip too many and this salad is such a tasty way to get back on track. The dressing is a new favorite. I’m gonna try it on other salads and maybe even as a marinade. Hmmm…

If you’ve never tried this combo, you don’t know what your missing. Sweet roasted beets, tangy goat cheese and a little crunch from the pecans. Balance of flavors and textures all day er’day. The orange thyme vinaigrette sets this apart from other beet and goat cheese salads. So fresh and herb-y.

You need beets:

Golden beets are so pretty. They’re so bright and colorful.

It’s like they’re constantly batting their eyelashes at me and making me blush and giggle. I love the mix of the two types of beets, but you can go for any kind.

You also need a small amount of goat cheese, so I got the tiniest size available.

Begin by preheating the oven to 400F.

Cut the tops and bottoms off of the beets. You can save the beet greens for another time and cook them like you would any dark leafy green.

Separate the golden and red beets on separate sheets of foil (to prevent the red beets from bleeding and staining the golden beets), drizzle with oil and a liberal and democratic sprinkling of S&P.

Then wrap them up into little bundles of beet joy.

Bake for about 50 minutes or until they are fork tender.

I usually bake until I catch a whiff of them, then I stick a fork in them and they are usually perfectly tender.

While the beets roast, make the Orange Thyme Vinaigrette.

You need orange and thyme, and time. And lame.

You need extra virgin olive oil as well.

Remove the thyme leaves from their stem and place them in a small jar or bowl.

Add the juice of an orange, an equal amount of olive oil and a dash of S&P.

Whisk or shake until emulsified and set aside or chill in the refrigerator.

Once the beets have cooked through, remove from the oven and allow to cool enough to handle.

The skins should peel off easily. A paper towel helps rub red beet skins off without staining your fingers.

Slice the beets into rounds and set aside.

Throw some spring greens into a bowl, drizzle some of the vinaigrette on and toss.

Place on a platter and top with the sliced beets.

Sprinkle on some goat cheese and pecans.

Sprinkle on a final dusting of S&P and a tiny drizzle of dressing.

Eat!

The perfect bite.

Sweet, tangy, healthy and a little indulgent.

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May 5 2014

“Fuego” Jalapeño Poppers

Posted on May 5, 2014 by aHeapingCup

These babies are addictive. Like, heroin-level addictive. But not nearly as harmful.

Some suggestions on modifications are using soy chorizo instead of pork chorizo, which I used. Or maybe beef chorizo.

Also, I used queso fresco because it’s a Mexican cheese and this is my last Cinco de Mayo recipe before the big day and it melts really well too. You can use cream cheese, cheddar, even mascarpone.

If you wanted to go dairy-free then don’t even bother. I mean, yes, you could use veggies instead but I’m a firm believer that jalapeño poppers need cheese. There is only one word for a popper without cheese: sacrilege.

This is what you need:

The Mexican crema is like a crème fraîche but Mexican. This recipe is not dairy-free at all. Get over it. It’s a holiday.

You also need jalapeños to make jalapeño poppers. Who knew?

Begin by preheating the oven to 350F and getting the chorizo in the pan and cooking.

The kind I got wasn’t in a casing. If your chorizo is encased just cut through the casing and squeeze the meat out into the pan.

While the chorizo is cooking, cut the jalapeños in half, deseed them and remove the white membranes. I find that using a spoon helps. Also, I left the stems on and cut through them because it looks better to me. If that’s too much of a hassle for you then just cut the stems off, it’s not like you’re going to eat them anyway.

Once the chorizo is cooked through, drain it on a few paper towels.

After the chorizo has cooled down a little bit, add it to a bowl with the the cheese. Break the chorizo & cheese down into crumbles and combine them well.

Stuff the jalapeños with the chorizo & cheese mixture thusly:

Place them on a lined baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes or until the chorizo has browned and the cheese is all gooey. Here is a before and after:

Yum.

Now it’s time to make-a the sauce-a. “Mama mia, papa pia, baby got a diare-hey!” (Name that movie).

For the answer in a 3 second clip, click here.

Back to the sauce.

It’s a Mexican crema Sriracha sauce.

So good. Soooo goooood.

I used a 2:1 ratio of crema to Sriracha, but adjust for your desired heat level. If you’re unsure just add a little bit of Sriracha at a time and taste until you get the perfect ratio.

Drizzle the sauce on the poppers and put them in your mouth.

They are little bites of spicy heaven.

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I think you should definitely subscribe to my blog (by typing your e-mail in the box below and clicking subscribe), because it’s all about pro flavor around here.

No amateur flavor from me.

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May 4 2014

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa Verde

Posted on May 4, 2014 by aHeapingCup

Salsa verde. I’ve always had a special place in my belly, I mean heart, for it.

A good salsa verde has the perfect balance of smokey and fresh and yummy.

I really recommend the extra step of roasting the ingredients. Some people boil them, or blend them raw, but I find that roasting them gives the salsa a flavor you cannot achieve otherwise.

So, this is what you need:

Tomatillos:

They’re like green tomatoes but with cuter outfits.

And then you undress them:

Rinse them well to remove the stickiness.

*Insert undressing/stickiness innuendo*

Slice open a jalapeño.

I kept the seeds in and the spice level was pretty low to me. So, I would leave the seeds in, unless you’re really sensitive to heat. Or you’re a little bitch. Whichever feels accurate for you.

Place all the ingredients on a baking sheet. Make sure to leave the skins on the onion and especially the garlic cloves, or they will burn.

Arrange the veggies like this:

Broil until charred like this:

Once cool enough to handle, peel the jalapeño, onion and garlic:

Place everything into a blender and add the cilantro and juice of a lime.

Blend until it reaches the consistency you like.

This is how I like my salsa verde:

Enjoy in all kinds of yummy Mexican dishes.

Or try them with my Gluten-Free Baked Tortilla Chips:

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May 4 2014

Cherry Tomato Salsa

Posted on May 4, 2014 by aHeapingCup

I love this idea. Using cherry tomatoes gives this salsa so much more of an intense flavor.

Sometimes tomatoes can be a little bland, but I got some orange and red cherry tomatoes bursting with sweetness and it just takes this salsa to the next level.

It couldn’t be easier to make.

This is all you need:

If you’re really OCD you can cut the tops of the tomatoes that have stems:

If you’re only partially OCD, like me, then cut off the stems of 3 tomatoes before deciding life’s too short for this shit and that this is why you spent all that money on a food processor. Then toss all the tomatoes in the processor, stems and all. More fiber and minerals, you tell yourself.

Then roughly chop an onion because that’s the least you can do. Sheesh.

We stopped saying sheesh in the 90’s right?

Ok.

Place everything in the food processor and add the juice of a lime and some S&P.

Do NOT blend it continuously.

Just pulse until desired consistency is reached. If you blend it continuously, you run the risk of over blending.

Enjoy with my Gluten-Free Baked Tortilla Chips.

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“You like me, you really like me!”

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May 3 2014

Gluten-Free Baked Tortilla Chips

Posted on May 3, 2014 by aHeapingCup

Brace yourselves, this is the first of a few more recipes I will be posting for Cinco de Mayo.

I love Mexican food, and a Mexican holiday is the perfect excuse to have some. Although, I never need an excuse to eat Mexican food. Or any other food. Forget what I just said.

Oh, look! Tortillas!

Make sure you get gluten-free tortillas. I know that the Guerrero brand white corn tortillas are gluten-free. Just check the ingredients and make sure there isn’t any gluten/wheat.

Alright, let us begin.

Preheat your oven to 350F.

Cut the tortillas into sixths, by slicing them in half horizontally and then cutting them in a “X” shape.

Observe:

Also, you can brush the tortillas with oil on both sides before cutting them, or you can do what I did: arrange them on a lined and oiled baking sheet and then brush them with oil on top.

By now the oven should be preheated. I made two batches at a time.

After about 10-15 mins they should be crisp and golden brown. I found that the ones on the bottom rack were done quicker, that’s why I have a range of 5 mins. Check on your tortilla chips after 10 mins.

Once they are done they should look something like this:

Drain them on a paper towel and season with S&P, or maybe cumin too, immediately.

I will be posting some yummy salsa recipes too. You gotta dip these tortilla chips in something!

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Pretty please, with S&P and a pinch of red chili flakes on top.

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May 2 2014

Money May-garita

Posted on May 2, 2014 by aHeapingCup

I just wanna dive right in. So refreshing. You don’t have to be a fan of Floyd Mayweather to enjoy this drink.

But if you are a fan, and you will be watching the fight this weekend, you should really make this drink. It’s green, the color of money, money is the name of Mayweather’s team (The Money Team), it’s May and Cinco de Mayo is right around the corner, which means so are margaritas.

Therefore the name: Money May-garitas.

Get it? Get it?

Anyway this is what you need:

Optional tools are a cocktail shaker and a jigger:

If you don’t have them you can just use a cup with ice and stir with a spoon. To substitute a jigger, use 2 tablespoons for 1 oz and half a tablespoon for 1/4 oz.

Ok, so add ice to whatever the hell you decided to use.

Add an oz of tequila, or more if you’ve had a long day. Or a short day, you don’t need to justify this.

I used silver tequila but any kind you like is just fine.

Then add a 1/4 oz of blue curaçao.

Don’t overdo it, this stuff is pretty potent in taste and in color.

Then add 6 oz or 3/4 cup pineapple flavored Jarritos.

Jarritos are Mexican sodas found at Mexican markets and most grocers. I know that Wal-Mart sells them too.

Don’t ask me how I know that.

Finally, the juice of a juicy lime.

If your lime feels hard press down on it with both hands and roll it back and forth against the counter. That should release some of the juices. Apparently, nuking it helps too.

Shake or stir the hell out of the drink and add it to a salt-rimmed and ice-filled glass.

Hyphens.

Add ice, the juice from the shaker and a slice of lime for garnish:

Oh man, that looks good. Tastes good too, by the way. I had to taste if for work purposes.

You know how that goes.

If you’re rooting for Mayweather, this has your name written all over it. If you’re Team Maidana, then you should make this drink because you’re gonna need it. Oh yes, I did.

And if you don’t give two shits about boxing then you really need to make this drink and just call it a “May-garita,” because it’s May.

And finally, everybody should subscribe to my blog by typing their e-mail in the box below.

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You see what I did there?

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May 1 2014

Anti-Inflammatory Salad Dressing

Posted on May 1, 2014 by aHeapingCup

It’s officially salad season. You know, the season before bikini season.

I’ve been playing around with new salad dressings to make this season tastier. I wanted to make an anti-inflammatory dressing since I have PCOS (Polycystic ovarian syndrome) and just had a very unwelcome cystic acne flare-up.

Every ingredient in this dressing fights inflammation and is so healthy, plus the flavors are great together. Especially if you let it chill in the fridge overnight before you use it.

This is what you need:

Oh and don’t forget these items:

Look! An anti-inflammatory smiley face! That totally happened on accident. Totally.

So, I like to use mason jars to make dressings, because I can just screw the top on and shake it to emulsify it. I also mix eggs that way when I’m making scrambled eggs.

If you don’t have a mason jar, what the fuck, dude? And you can just use a bowl and a whisk.

So, add the chopped ginger and garlic to whatever receptacle you’re using.

Then add a teaspoon of turmeric.

Then the honey and lemon juice. A little S&P too.

This is how it looks in the jar at this point:

You wanna add twice as much olive oil:

Screw the top on and shake. Or whisk.

“It feels like I’m walking on sunshine!”

This dressing is great with wild-caught salmon and leafy greens, both of which are foods that fight inflammation.

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A Heaping Spoonful…

…abundance in all the right places.

Monthly Archives: May 2014

Paleo Candied Bacon

Beet & Goat Cheese Salad w/ Orange Thyme Vinaigrette

“Fuego” Jalapeño Poppers

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa Verde

Cherry Tomato Salsa

Gluten-Free Baked Tortilla Chips

Money May-garita

Anti-Inflammatory Salad Dressing