The Paleo Pact

PALEO Cleanse made the Amazon Best Seller list!

Baked Apple

If there was ever an indisputably healthy dessert, this is it!

Baked Apple has been a favorite after-dinner treat of mine ever since I was a young girl. Its slightly tart, slightly sweet and slightly textured taste always intrigued me and it wasn’t until recently that I realized just how easy it is to make…

INGREDIENTS

1 whole apple, skin on
1/8 cup raisins or dried cranberries
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon honey or raw agave nectar

RECIPE

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Core the apple and fill the center with raisins or cranberries (or a combination of the two).
Place the stuffed apple in an oven-safe dish, pop it in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
Remove the dish from the oven, sprinkle cinnamon and honey/agave over the center of the apple and place the dish back in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes.
Scoop the apple onto a plate and drizzle any excess honey/agave from the oven dish over the apple or around the plate for decoration.
Enjoy warm.

Camilla Carboni

PALEO Cleanse made the Amazon Best Seller list!

Raisin Walnut Cookies

Cookies are always a favorite to bake when we have guests coming over, and this gluten-free, egg-free and refined-sugar-free recipe, that follows the base recipe featured in our book Quick & Fantastic Paleo Cookies, is a safe bet to serve on virtually any occasion.

Raisins offer a natural sweet sensation while providing the body with numerous vitamins and dietary fiber. Walnuts also offer natural healing properties and together add delicious flavor to a cookie I can’t get enough of.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup grass-fed butter, kept refrigerated
1/2 cup coconut palm sugar
1 ½ tablespoons honey or raw agave nectar
1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
1 cup tapioca flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 ½ tablespoons water
1 teaspoon natural vanilla extract
1/2 cup unsweetened, dried raisins
1/2 cup walnut pieces
Arrowroot flour as a non-stick base for rolling

RECIPE

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
Place parchment paper or foil sheets over your baking sheet to prevent your cookies from sticking.
Combine the tapioca flour, coconut flour, baking soda and sea salt in a small bowl.
In a food processor (or using a large bowl and an electric hand mixer) beat the butter and sugar for approximately 2 minutes, or until fluffy.
Add the dry ingredients, water, agave and vanilla extract to the butter and sugar mixture and beat until well combined.
Lightly dust arrowroot flour on a clean counter.
Place the cookie dough, raisins and walnuts on the dusted counter and combine them using your hands.

Using a rolling-pin, roll the cookie dough until 1/4 inch thick and then cut out your cookies using a cookie cutter.
(If ever the dough is too sticky to handle, simply add a small amount of arrowroot flour at a time until it becomes manageable.)
Place the cookies on your lined baking sheet and bake for 12 to 14 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.

This recipe makes about a dozen cookies.

Camilla Carboni

PALEO Cleanse made the Amazon Best Seller list!

Christmas Pie

Merry Christmas to You, our wonderful Paleo friends!

Since Christmas is a time to be thankful, we wanted to let you know just how grateful we are to you for sharing this journey to health with us. Your friendship, comments, advice and support are what keep us going and words can’t adequately express just how appreciative we are, Thank You.

Christmas Traditions

Christmas is different in every household. Mince Pies were a staple holiday treat throughout my childhood in South Africa. My boyfriend’s Italian heritage meant that family style pasta was a tradition at his family Christmas gatherings. What is your Christmas tradition? We would love to hear it! And have you been able to make that tradition Paleo?

A Taste of the Holidays

Since I left South Africa (over eight years ago now) I have craved Mince Pies. I’m not quite sure why they are not a huge hit here like they are back home, but I am determined to change that!

Mince Pies are not mincemeat pies–they are the traditional English Christmas treat with stewed fruit and festive spices–or in other words, pure deliciousness!

This year I couldn’t let another Christmas go by, so I put myself up to the challenge and not only did I make my first Mince Pie ever, I made it Paleo (and alcohol-free):

INGREDIENTS

Pie Filling

1/2 cup water
6 apples, cored and chopped
1/2 cup pitted prunes, chopped
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup unsweetened, dried cranberries
1/2 cup coconut palm sugar
1/2 cup honey or raw agave nectar
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 cup grass-fed butter, cut into pieces
2 tablespoons grated orange peel
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Pie Crust
+ Everything included in the Paleo Pie Crust recipe

RECIPE

In a medium pot or large sauté pan, bring all of the Pie Filling ingredients to the boil, then reduce the heat slightly and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the filling is cooking, make the Paleo Pie Crust.
Once the Pie Crust has baked, reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
Let the pie filling mixture cool before scooping it into the baked Paleo Pie Crust.

Top the mixture with a thin crumbled layer of unbaked Paleo Pie Crust dough to ‘seal’ the pie.

Place it in the oven to bake for another 30 minutes.
Remove the pie from the oven and let cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.

Tip: The pie filling can also be made in advance and refrigerated for a few days, or frozen and used later when a Christmas Pie craving kicks in.

May this Christmas be your sweetest ever,

Camilla Carboni

PALEO Cleanse made the Amazon Best Seller list!

Pork Stuffed Squash

It’s fall and we’re inundated with squash, from pumpkin patches to decorative pieces and extensive in-store displays. But the question always arises: what can be made of these fine looking vegetables?

This recipe is simple, delicious and plates gorgeously. It’s a fantastic dish to serve as a Halloween or Thanksgiving appetizer, or together with a salad as a healthy main course.

INGREDIENTS

1 Carnival squash, top cut off
1/4 cup sliced yams
1 teaspoon garlic
1 dozen raisins
1 teaspoon tallow (we love Fatworks grass-fed beef tallow)
1/4 pound pork, cut into thin, short strips
1 tablespoon red wine

RECIPE

In a small pot, bring the squash and yams to the boil and cook until tender.
Meanwhile, in a small sauté pan, melt the tallow over medium heat.
Add the pork strips and cook slowly until browned, before adding the wine.
Once the squash and yams are cooked, scoop the inners out of the squash (most of it will consist of pips).
In a small bowl, place any remaining squash flesh, along with the yams, garlic and raisins, and mix the ingredients together.
Stuff the squash with the yam-garlic-raisin mixture and then top with the wine-marinated pork.
Place the lid back on the squash (this not only looks great but helps to keep the dish warm) and enjoy while hot.

This festive recipe serves one.

Here’s to wishing you a very happy start to your fall festivities…

Camilla Carboni

PALEO Cleanse made the Amazon Best Seller list!