Tag Archives: Round Up

Ground Breaking: 25 Non-Burger Dinners to Make with Ground Beef

Ground beef is such an easy, high quality staple to have on hand and there is no easier dinner than a burger, right? Our freezer is rarely without it and I’ve perfected so many burger recipes that it is hard to give up my Go-To. But every once in a while I start to feel like I’ve had enough.

NO MORE WIRE HANGERS BUN-LESS BURGERS!

I’ve been in a bit of a burger rut lately, so yesterday I compiled a list of recipes to help me break out of it. And because sharing is caring, I’m passing them on to you! Feel free to keep to yourself, pin with abandon or share with some of your Bored-With-Burger Friends too!

1. Damn Good Chili
2. Bacon Wrapped Mini Spinach Meatloaves
3. Italian Beef Hash with Mashed Cauliflower
4. Paleo Stuffed Peppers with Spanish Sticky Rice
5. Sun Dried Tomato Meatballs with Creamy Pesto (We can not get enough of these. OMG so good over spaghetti squash!)
Sun-Dried Tomato Meatballs with Walnut Pesto Spaghetti Squash
6. Taco Salad
7. Thai Basil Beef Lettuce Wraps
8. Paleo Shepherd’s Pie
9. Southwestern Frittata (Breakfast for dinner, casserole style. And it’s AMAZING!)
10. Joe’s Special
11. Italian Wedding Soup
12. Paleo Beef Stroganoff
13. Roasted Poblano and Pumpkin Chili
14. Ground Beef, Mushroom and Broccoli Slaw Lettuce Cups
15. Merguez Meatballs (using ground beef instead of lamb. The spice mixture is insanely delish!)
All I'm saying is Garrett is lucky to have me. ;)
16. Chili Dog Pie
17. Martha Stewart’s Garlic Chipotle Meat Kebabs
18. Lion’s Head Meatballs
19. Gyro Meat
20. Goulash Soup with Red Peppers + Cabbage
21. Sweet Potato Enchiladas
22. Sloppy Joe’s
23. Paleo Moussaka
24. Mexican Meatza (I know, Meatza sounds stupid. But it is STUPID GOOD!)
25. Spaghetti and Meatball Bites

Need some more Paleo recipe inspiration?

Live the Thigh Life: 10 Paleo Recipes to Make You Love Chicken Thighs
Porkapalooza: 15 Paleo Recipes for Those Who Love to Pig Out
30 Nights of Paleo Crock Pot Meals


A Month of Whole 30 Dinner Ideas

Hey Yo! Pin me!

When it comes to embarking on any nutritional challenges, the big question becomes WHAT THE HELL AM I GONNA EAT? In my opinion, the challenge of this is all relative to how you are currently eating and how much you like to cook. With the Whole 30 I can see how it could seem daunting. Honestly though, I think it’s just a matter of organizing your recipes. This has been my number one strategy.


Dinner has to get on the table nightly anyway, right? Might as well cook up some deliciously Whole 30 compliant food! One of the first things I did when I decided to do the Whole 30 was to grab a calendar and pick out 30 recipes I have eaten in the past and loved or recipes that made me excited to cook in the future. It helped with the WHAT THE HELL AM I GOING TO EAT anxiety. 🙂

Now, I’m not trying to ignore breakfast and lunch — uh…we definitely eat them around here. 🙂 But for me those are more routinized meals. For breakfast I’m making Easy Frittatas on the weekend (no cheese, obviously!) and serving with some fruit or spaghetti squash, or I do my standard hard boiled eggs with fruit or vegetables. Those work for me and are SIMPLE. I can’t whip up 3 fresh meals per day — I work full time, hit the gym multiple times a week, run this website and OMG NEED TO SLEEP!

For lunch I’m mostly sticking to salads with protein I cook up in batches (grilled chicken, browned ground beef) and homemade vinaigrettes (no honey during the Whole 30 though!) or I enjoy my dinner leftovers. So let’s get to the fun stuff. Let’s talk dinner! It’s 30 days, let’s make these meals good!

Day 1: Chocolate Chili over spinach with avocados and green onions. I add a little extra kick to this since Garrett enjoys his food MOLTEN LAVA HOT.
Day 2: Thai Green Curry over Cauliflower Rice Curries are so easy you almost don’t need a recipe. Simmer your favorite meat and veggies in a coconutty broth, pour over cauli rice and enjoy!
Day 3: Baked Salmon with Basil Walnut Pesto Yep, Garrett has agreed to eat some salmon for this month and we’ve got a freezer stocked full of it and a garden overflowing with basil. Match made in heaven.
Day 4: Apple and Bacon Rosemary Pork Burgers I love a good burger…just call me the Paleo Rachael Ray — I could have a burger every night and never make the same one.
Day 5: Herb Topped Tri Tip Steaks with Sauteed Radishes Meat + Radishes are such a winning combo. And even though I LOVE raw radishes, sauteeing them just does a little something. I definitely recommend.
Day 6: Ginger Chicken Two great tastes and all that 🙂
Day 7: Moroccan Chicken Despite never being able to spell it correctly the first time, I have never had a recipe with Moroccan flavors disappoint!
Day 8: Masala Chili with Kale + Kohlrabi Chilis are great to make batches of on the weekend. This one is uniquely flavored and uses two of my fave veggies: Kale and Kohlrabi.
Day 9: Deconstructed Gyro Salad Another make ahead weekend recipe and the greek flavors are refreshing!
Day 10: Grilled Lamb Chops with Chimichuri served with a side salad and some grilled veggies doused in oregano olive oil. I freaking LOVE little mini lamb chops but never make them for myself. Let’s remedy that, STAT.
Day 11: Mexican Meatza I’ve made this so many times and love it more and more every time I do. It pairs well with a tomato and cucumber salad. Crispy, spicy, refreshing, delicious.
Day 12: Mexican Hash Egg Bake Breakfast for dinner is always fun, but you gotta spice it up a bit!
Day 13: Baked Mustard Lime Chicken If I can’t have honey mustard chicken, then this recipe will have to do!
Day 14: How about a crockpot meal? I mean, it’s been 2 weeks, treat yourself to some laziness in the kitchen already!
Day 15: Mexican Chicken Lime Soup Make it up on the weekend, eat it all week!
Day 16: Apple Dijon Burgers topped with Caramelized Onions + A Fried Egg What did I tell you about burgers. Love. Just make sure your dijon does not have wine or sugar in it!
Day 17: Southwest Meat Loaf I’m sorry, I would anything for meat loaf. (But I won’t do that! OOOOOOOOH NO.)
Day 18: Bison Sweet Potato Chili – Dreamy! And not gamey! I swear.
Day 19: Turkey Satay Burgers — get your sweet and spicy fix in burger form.
Day 20: Sun Dried Tomato Meatballs with Creamy Pesto Everyday Paleo can do no wrong, right?
Day 21: Rogan Josh Indian food is amazingly flavorful. And this dish is no exception.
Day 22: Paleo Pad Thai Because after 22 days of clean eating you might have a hankering for fast food. (Ok probably not.) Regardless, this will taste better.
Day 23: Crockpot Asian Style Carnitas Listen I would eat trash can style carnitas. I love pork! But these are waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay better than that!
Day 24: Caramelized Italian Pork Chops with Sweet Onion Jam This is an absolute favorite in our house. YUM!
Day 25: Crockpot Brazilian Chicken Curry Juli’s recipes are always fun and sassy! This looks like a great mix of flavors with easy preparation.
Day 26: SB+J Burger served with some BBQ 3000 sweet potato fries and some veggies. I’ve never made this, but I’m a fan of the Peanut Butter and Banana style Elvis Burgers. OMG. Can’t wait to try this.
Day 27: Roasted Butternut Squash Coconut Curry Soup This has amazing flavor and warmth. Plus it is rich and hearty and easy to make!
Day 28: Bo Kho – Brisket with Lemongrass I love me some brisket and never miss an opportunity to make some!
Day 29: Moroccan Zucchini Boats – Get rid of that overflowing zucchini from your garden! And I still can’t spell Moroccan right.
Day 30: Ok, there HAS to be some leftovers right? You’ve done a lot of cooking! Tonight you are having “mustgo.” As in EVERYTHING IN THE FRIDGE MUST GO.
Day 31: Mexican Food. Juuuuuust kidding. Just wanted to see how many of you actually got down this far. 🙂

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Ok…here is where you come in, you all. Lots of us are doing this challenge together, so drop some recipes in the comments of your favorite Whole 30 compliant dinners. I’m talking Quick Dinners, Simple Dinners, BBQ Dinners, Fancy Dinners for Guests. You name it! Let’s help each other out!

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Thirsty Thursday: Wishful Drinking

My Whole 30 starts in exactly 6 days and I will not be drinking for the entire duration. Even though I don’t drink very much anymore (maybe twice a month?) I ALWAYS enjoy a good cocktail, a cup of red wine, or a glass of beer from my favorite liquor store, and I’m going to be completely honest the thought of NOT HAVING THE OPTION TO DRINK for 30 days does get the low-grade anxiety pumping. But I’ll do it, and I’ll deal with it and I’m sure I will survive, but this weekend — I may have to mix up a last cocktail hurrah. 🙂

Perhaps you might like to also? If so, here is some inspiration:

1. The Salty Chihuahua

Have I ever told you about the drink that changed my life? It was a Greyhound made at a random bar in San Francisco called Lion Pub. Well, perhaps it also had to do with the fact that instead of a random bowl of beer nuts they had an awesome cheese tray. That helped too.

This looks like that delicious greyhound mixed with a little margarita action. I feel we’re doing SOMETHING healthy for ourselves even though we are drinking, right? (sigh!) I’m a complete sucker for drinks made with fresh squeezed juice, plus I love the mix of sweet and salty. Such a good flavor combo! And giant bags of grapefruit are so cheap at Coscto right now. Tempting.

2. Ruby Red Cherry Citrus Sangria

Hello lover!

It’s no secret that I love a good sangria, and we probably do not need to beat the dead horse that is my love for stone fruit. This is obviously right up my alley!

To be honest, this one might actually get made this weekend if I can figure out what the hell “Cherry Herring” is.  In case it doesn’t can someone make a batch and drink it for me in August? You know, pour one out for your homie? Come on!

3. Creamsicle Mimosas

I have an entire bottle of champagne leftover from our Bodega Bay Weekend. I am as shocked as you are. While I don’t have Marshmallow Vodka, I do have a bottle of Whipped Cream Vodka that may make a nice substitute. Perhaps we will have a fancy breakfast cocktail this weekend.

Man, I’m just envisioning a drunken weekend all of a sudden. That is not the point of this at all. It is tempting though…very tempting! 🙂

As strongly advised by the authorities to never drink and drive. If in case that you are involved in an accident and get charged with dui, take note that you are entitled to have an attorney.

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I’m being a little bit dramatic and I certainly don’t intend to binge on alcohol or crap food prior to our Whole 30 experience, but I am definitely giving some thought to the things that I think I *will* be missing and trying to devise some strategies to change my perspective or help myself ignore the issue altogether.

Have you ever given up alcohol — or anything you really enjoy — for an extended period of time? I would love to hear how you did it!


Live the Thigh Life: 10 Paleo Recipes To Make You Love Chicken Thighs

So remember how I used to be afraid of chicken thighs? But then I found some easy recipes and now all of a sudden I am a Chicken Thigh Ambassador? Well I think it’s time that ambassadorship got a hashtag.


I racked my brain and obviously the only one that truly represents the essence of amazing-ness that is the chicken thigh was #thighlife. I mean, RIGHT?? I think it’s got a certain panache. Don’t you think 2Pac liked chicken thighs? I bet he did.

Anyway, if you are still on the fence, I’m going to urge you one last time to give chicken thighs a chance. Wait, who am I kidding, this will not be the last time. But in case you needed some inspiration, here are 10 recipes from around the internet that might get your creative cooking-wheels spinning! I’ve included some substitutions if you want to make sure they are paleo.

1. Lemon Chicken Thighs
2. Korean Chicken Thighs (use your favorite soy sauce substitute)
3. Gingered Chicken Thighs (sub soy sauce and maybe sun butter for the peanut sauce?)
4. Turkish Chicken Thighs (sub coconut milk for the yogurt if you don’t do dairy)
5. Greek Chicken Thighs
6. Filipino Chicken Adobo (again with the soy sauce substitute)
7. Baked Pumpkin Chicken Thighs
8. Braised Chicken Thighs
9. Grilled Marinated Chicken Thighs (substitute chicken broth for the beer if you don’t do beer. The spice mixture looks awesome!)
10. Honey Spiced Chicken Thighs

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Do you have any tried and true chicken thigh recipes that have converted your friends? Leave ’em in the comments!


Say Hello To My Little Friend + 4 Must Try Smoothies

So I bought a new toy.

photo

It’s the Ninja Kitchen System 1100, and I have to say I’m officially in love.

You see, my old blender fell to its fiery death back in October and it just wasn’t high on the priority list of things to replace throughout winter. But with spring all up in my grill, I was really starting to miss my smoothies! Especially post workout — in the summer it is an ABSOLUTE MUST! Obviously I’d love a Vitamix or a BlendTec, and even though I KNOW how great they are and probably worth every penny, I just don’t want to spend $300+ on a blender. Call me cheap. It’s okay, I’ve been called worse. 🙂

So when The Ninja went on Sale at Costco and claimed that it could blend, juice, crush ice, make soup and knead dough, all for $97 — I decided it was time to take the plunge! Well, actually my mom bought it, I used hers for a week, AND THEN I decided to take the plunge. And I’m so glad I did! It’s been great to be able to make some smoothies these last couple of weeks and as such I’ve taken to pinterest, as you do, and found a few recipes that are destined to be Ninja-fied in the very near future. (click on the pictures to take you to the recipes)

Chocolate Banana Smoothie via Multiply Delicious

It’s a classic combo that never tastes bad! I like to freeze my bananas to make my smoothies extra cold. In the summer we end up going through BAGS of frozen bananas, it’s kid of crazy!

Vanilla Macadamia Smoothie via Green Lemonade


If you say macadamia nuts, I say LET’S EAT! Or..uh, rather drink in this instance. I’ve never met a macadamia anything I didn’t like.

Grapefruit Smoothie via Golubka

I think this looks delicious and sounds intriguing. Grapefruit? In a smoothie? I will definitely report back.

Blueberry Cucumber Smoothie via Paleo Diet Lifestyle

Another intriguing flavor combination that I’m looking forward to trying. Cucumbers are so refreshing and blueberries ALWAYS make a good smoothie ingredient, so we shall see….

Of course I’ve already made a million Green Smoothies, but that’s a given right? Whoever invented drinking spinach was a genius!

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Got any To-Die-For Smoothie Recipes in your back pocket? Share ’em in the comments!


Porkapalooza — 15 Paleo Recipes For Those Who Love to Pig Out

The other white meat is surprisingly versatile and in my area, seemingly always on sale!  Here are some breakfast, lunch and dinner ideas to make you want to lick your chops and pan sear them too!

1. Pan Grilled Ginger Honey Pork Tenderloin (sub coconut aminos for soy sauce)
2. BBQ’d Pulled Pork (NOT in a crockpot)
3. Pork Fried Rice
4. Paleo Al Pastor Tacos
5. Pork Tenderloin with Cilantro Pesto
6. Garlic Crusted Pork Roast
7. Pork Adobo
8. Thai Caramel Pork
9. Whiskey Pulled Pork
10. Asian Pork Lettuce Wraps
11. 3 Olive Tapenade Pork Chops (use this tapenade recipe, the one in that post doesn’t work.)
12. Stovetop Pork Carnitas (I LOVE THESE – well as much as one can love a pork dish.)
13. Carmelized Italian Pork Chops with Sweet Onion Jam
14. Mediterranean Stuffed Pork Loin
15. Turnip and Pork Hash

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Kitchen Inspiration: 5 Recipes I’m Dying To Try Right Now

Sometimes there is just too much inspiration and not enough meals! Here are some fun things on my recipe radar that I thought you might like too.
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1. Braised Brisket Stew

Sizzle posted about this recipe recently and I thought to myself: Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. PIN THIS RECIPE IMMEDIATELY. And I did. I’ll be substituting sweet potatoes for white potatoes and enjoying every delicious looking bite!

2. Slow Cooker Coconut Ginger Chicken

I looooooove Thai flavors almost as much as I love my Crockpot, so this recipe is definitely going to make an appearance in an upcoming meal plan soon. I will use a different thickener, but I think the spice blend looks divine!

3. Lime Infused Honey Crusted Chicken

This recipe comes originally from Sunset magazine, which HELLO, is basically my bible. Gone are the days of Cosmo! It’s such a simple marinade that will impart a ton of flavor, I’m sure of it. And as soon as Garrett gets us some more propane (HINT HINT, babe!) these puppies will be hitting the grill!

4. Orange Peel Shrimp

This recipe will take some tweaking (arrowroot for cornstarch, maybe sub OJ and honey for store bought marmalade??) but it just made me crave some citrus-y shrimp. Layered over a heaping pile of cauliflower rice, I can almost taste the sweet heat!

5. Paleo Brownies

AndreAnna posted this on Facebook earlier this week and it looked like a fun sweet treat — perhaps for Valentine’s Day? I have high hopes for this recipe because I would love a little grain free chocolate indulgence.

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If you don’t follow me already, I keep all of my Paleo inspiration over here on Pinterest.

Any new recipes that you are just waiting for the opportunity to cook???

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30 Nights of Paleo Crock Pot Meals

November is in full swing and if your calendar looks anything like mine, the rest of the year is going to go by in a flash! This is the hardest time of year to keep to healthy habits but it is also the time of year when our bodies need them most. Practice a little self-love this year and don’t let your calendar be the boss of you!

To keep myself eating healthy while I’m busy this season my plan is to Meal Plan (Like A Boss!) and take advantage of my beloved Crock Pot. Maybe you would like to do the same?

In case you need a little inspiration to brush the dust off of your slow-cooking sanity saver I compiled a list of 30 Paleo-Friendly Slow Cooker Recipes.

Hope you enjoy them!

(And, of course, the holiday season!)

1. Smokey Roast
2. Tex Mex Crock Pot Carnitas
3. Lemon Garlic Crock Pot Chicken
4. Braised Short Ribs with Figs
5. Crock Pot Jalapeno Roast
6. Garlic Beef Stew with Cauliflower Mash
7. Slow Cooker Lemongrass and Coconut Chicken Drumsticks
8. Creamy Cashew Chicken Soup with Kale
9. Crock Pot Pernil
10. Sweet & Savory Sage Stew with Pumpkin
11. Crock Pot Salsa Pork Chops with Cumin
12. Slow Cooker Chicken Mole
13. Crock Pot Braised Beef Shanks
14. Balsamic Roast
15. Slow Cooked Asian Pepper Steak
16. Slow Cooker Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic
17. Pork Loin and Butternut Squash Stew
18. Southwestern Pot Roast
19. Crock Pot Italian Meatballs
20. Crock Pot Thai Green Curry
21. Mexican Shredded Chicken Stuffed Peppers
22. Crock Pot Pork and Green Chili Stew
23. Slow Cooker Boeuf Bourguignon
24. Easy Asian Lettuce Wraps
25. Slow Cooker Roast Chicken and Gravy
26. Crock Pot Greek Stew
27. Italian Style Chuck Roast
28. Crock Pot Jambalaya
29. Caraway Chicken with Belgian Endive
30. Slow Cooked Cinnamon Pork Loin with Parsnips

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It’s official, you have no excuse to not make dinner! 😉

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