Paleo Chocolate Cake In A Mug

There are plenty of nights when I want something sweet. I don't want to make something huge, because let's be honest I would eat the whole thing. This is where my genius invention originated. I found a few recipes for chocolate cake in a mug and modified them to be paleo. Anyone looking for a small (and healthy) treat should definitely give this a try. 

Paleo Chocolate Cake In A Mug 

4 Tablespoons Almond Flour 

4 Tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa Powder (I prefer Hershey's Special Dark)

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil 

2 Tablespoons Almond Milk 

1 Egg 

Sweetener of Choice: I use two tablespoons of honey, but you could add whatever you feel comfortable with. You could use raw sugar if that is your thing, or just straight sugar for my non-paleo friends. 

Add-Ons 

One cut up banana

Chunks of dark chocolate

Mix all the ingredients in a large mug. First mix the flour and cocoa powder together. Then add the wet ingredients. It is important to very thoroughly mix the batter. You don't want to end up with chunks of almond flour in your finished cake. Once your batter is mixed, you add whatever extras you want. I usually mix in a cut up banana and a few chunks of dark chocolate. If you want the lava effect like in the picture, add  the dark chocolate. 

Then microwave your cake for 2-3 minutes. My microwave is freakishly powerful so I only let it go for two minutes. I would recommend starting with two minutes, and then adding additional time if your cake fails the clean fork test. 

I make this at least once a week. It is an extremely tasty snack, and so easy to make. 

Happy microwaving =) 

Paleo Sweet Potato/Ham/Onion Quiche

Today I want to share one of my tastiest and easiest paleo meals. This is a sweet potato, ham and onion quiche. I make this recipe at least once a week for brunch or even dinner. 

1. Cut sweet potato into slices and bake at 400 degrees until soft and cooked all the way through. I got ahead and bake them in the pie dish to avoid unnecessary cleanup. 

2. While the sweet potatoes are baking, slice and cook onion until translucent and a little caramelized.  

3. When the sweet potatoes are cooked, take the pie pan out of the oven. Add three to four slices of ham over the sweet potato. Then, whisk 6 eggs. Pour the eggs over the ham and sweet potato. 

4. Top with the caramelized onions and bake at 350 for about fifteen to twenty minutes. You just want to make sure the egg is cooked all the way through. My oven runs extremely hot, so I would just keep an eye on it. 

 I love this recipe because the sweet potato makes a wonderful sort of crust that you usually don't get with paleo foods. The ham and sweet potato are delicious together. I am a fan of onion on pretty much everything. 

If you have ever wanted to try a paleo recipe, this is a great introduction. It is easy, tasty, and looks great. 

A Very Paleo Thanksgiving

We have started to think about our Thanksgiving menu. We will be at my in-law's house, but I want to make sure that we are contributing to the meal.

Picture From A Couple Cooks
My recipe is a little different, but their's looks very tasty 

1. Roasted Root Vegetables

This is one of my seasonal favorites. Just cut up sweet potato, carrots, sweet onion, parsnips, and red apple with the peel still on. Coat in olive oil and season with rosemary and sage. I usually roast them at 300 for about two hours. I stir them ever 45 minutes or so.

2. Paleo Cheese Cake

Lane made this recipe a few months ago. It is one of the tastiest paleo desserts I have ever had. I adore cheesecake, and the fact that the only added sugar is honey makes it even better.

From my go-to paleo website Food Lovers Kitchen

3. Mashed Parsnips

I made these to go with some short ribs last week. They are delicious, but kind of a pain to make. I highly recommend this recipe for anyone not going strict paleo. I modified it slightly for my version. I roasted the parsnips instead of boiling them, but would probably do both next time. I am thinking that I will boil them until half way done, and then roast them till soft all the way through. The roasting gets such awesome flavor that I hate to give it up all the way. 

Thanksgiving is one of the easiest meals to make paleo-friendly. However, I do miss the wonderful tastiness that is Pillsbury Crescent Rolls. 

More Baking Adventures

I have been on a baking spree this week. I saw a recipe on Pinterest for raspberry macaroons, and knew I wanted to create a Paleo version. 

Original Recipe

I simply left out the sugar and added two tablespoons of honey instead. They were really delicious, although did not look as nice as the pictures from the original website. Mine had a solid pink color all the way through, instead of the marbling of pink and white. 

I made mine in a muffin tin because I don't have the right kind of baking tray. This worked really well. They were delicious without the sugar. I highly recommend substituting honey for white sugar if you try this recipe. 

I also made banana bread using this recipe. I made two substitutions; maple syrup instead of honey and coconut oil instead of palm oil shortening. 

It was outrageously good. I actually like this better than normal banana bread. The middle got a little dense, but I've always had the same problem when I made regular banana bread. The macaroons were the perfect dessert, but I had the banana bread for breakfast today. It has a ton of almond flour, so I probably will only make this once a month if that. Almond flour is too pricey to make this an all the time kind of food. 

Even though these are paleo, I still consider them desserts and eat them sparingly. The banana bread doesn't have much sugar in it ( 1 tablespoon of maple syrup) but we try to limit our almond flour intake too. 

Two food posts in one week! I know this isn't a food-blog, but cooking is a huge part of my life. I love finding ways to adapt regular recipes to the paleo requirements. 

Eating Like a Dinosaur

It is hard to believe that I have been eating ( quasi ) paleo for a year. It seemed so daunting at first, but now just feels like second nature. I absolutely feel a difference in my body and my skin. Pancakes were one thing that I missed terribly at first. Until I found this recipe. These pancakes are delicious, and taste great with some grilled bananas and cinnamon.

via

• 3 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 ½ cups blanched almond flour
• ¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• grapeseed oil, for cooking (or for Paleo use coconut oil)

1. In a large bowl whisk together eggs, water, vanilla and honey
2. Add almond flour, salt and baking soda and mix until thoroughly combined
3. Heat coconut oil on skillet over medium low to medium heat
4. Scoop 1 heaping tablespoon of batter at a time onto the skillet
5. Pancakes will form little bubbles, when bubbles open, flip pancakes over and cook other side
6. Remove from heat to a plate
7. Repeat process with remaining batter, add more oil to skillet as needed

Y'all, these pancakes are amazing, without having the huge amounts of sugar that regular flour provides.