Avocado Chocolate Chip Cookies (Paleo)

Goodness gracious, I feel like I’m getting old.

Friday was my little brother’s high school graduation. But in my mind, I still see him as 12 years old. Which doesn’t actually make too much sense as he’s now a foot taller than me

So just in name of reliving childhood a bit, Ive got a chocolate chip cookie recipe to share! Ok, so there’s avocado in it. But come on, coming from me, what else do you expect?

IMPORTANT TIP WHEN MAKING THESE: I don’t know if it’s just me, but baked avocados kinda have a weird taste. Luckily, I’ve learned the secret to using them in a baked good: Wait a few hours (or preferably the next day) before digging in! Not only does all traces of avocado disappear, but the baked good gets a super rich taste and the avocado prevents the cookies from getting hard/stale! I recommend making these at night to have the next day, or in the morning to have later that night.

Avocado Chocolate Chip Cookies (Paleo)

Ingredients:

1/3 cup tapioca flour

1/3 cup coconut flour

1/3 cup honey

1/2 tbsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 avocado

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

pinch of stevia

3 tbsp chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 and grease a baking sheet. Place all ingredients (except the chocolate chips) in a food processor and blend. Stir in chocolate chips. Spoon cookie batter onto the baking sheet and bake for 18 minutes. Makes 18-20 cookies.

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Chocolate Avocado Muffins/Cupcakes (Paleo)

I don’t know if it’s just me, but baked avocados kinda have a weird taste. Luckily, I’ve learned the secret to using them in a baked good. Wait a few hours (or even the next day) before digging in! Not only does all traces of avocado disappear, but the baked good gets a super rich, chocolatey taste and stays nice and moist!

Score!   

So, I usually make these chocolate muffins/cupcakes early in the morning (to have that night) or at night (to have the next day). They are so worth the wait!

Ingredients:

1 ripe avocado

2 eggs

1/3 cup applesauce

1/4 cup honey

6 tbsp almond milk

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/3 cup coconut flour

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp stevia

Optional: chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and spray oil over muffin tins.

In a food processor, blend together the avocado, eggs, applesauce, honey, milk, and vanilla. Add and blend in coconut flour, coca powder, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and stevia. Stir in chocolate chips, if using. Pour into muffin tins and bake for 20 minutes.

Let cool completely (to get rid of slight avocado-y taste). These taste even better the next day!   

Cabbage, Onion, Bacon, and Avocado Salad (Paleo)

Bacon might as well be a museum artifact in my house. Why? My dad has a very strict “you can look, but not touch” policy towards the stuff.

Consequently, we have a lot of “untouchable” bacon buried in our freezer.

For some reason, he believes that if he gives us free reign with the bacon, it’ll all be gone by the end of the week. I’m actually not a big bacon person, but when denied, the desire for it tends to grow…

Which is why, when my dad leaves town for a few days, I sneak a pack down from the freezer to add to meals and whatnot. Shhhhhhhh! 

But hey- I don’t feel guilty because I know he makes some for himself when my brother and I are out of town.

Another family quirk to talk about in future family therapy…

Anyways, I had to dispose all of my contraband before my dad returned, and this was an effective and yummy way to use some up!

Cabbage, Onion, Bacon, and Avocado Salad (Paleo)

Ingredients:

3 strips of thick, organic bacon

1 onion, chopped

1/2 head of green cabbage, chopped

salt and pepper

1 avocado, diced 

Directions:

In a skillet, cook the bacon until crispy. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and blot off the extra fat on the bacon. Set aside.

Without removing any of the liquid fat, add the onion to the skillet. Let cook over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, stirring every so often.

While the onions are cooking, crumble your bacon into small pieces.

Once the onions have had their 10 minutes, remove with a slotted spoon, place in a bowl, and set aside.

Add the cabbage to the bacon skillet (depending on the bacon you use, you may need to add extra fat at this point- I didn’t need to though) and cover with a lid for 5 minutes. Afterwards, take off the lid, add salt and pepper, and sauté for another 5 minutes, until the cabbage has shrunken down sightly. 

Add the onions and bacon back into the skillet and mix around for another 2 minutes, adding salt and pepper to taste. Transfer contents to a serving platter and gently stir in the avocado chunks. Serve.

Deconstructed Sushi Rolls (Paleo)

I was so excited to try my own “sushi” recipe. Instead of using the traditional sushi wraps, I had planned to use cucumber peeled into thin slices with a vegetable peeler.

After I had all my ingredients assembled and ready to wrap, I started with the peeling. A quarter of the way through, however, I came to the realization that this was way too much work. Especially since I would be able to down a whole batch of rolls in a 1/100 of the time it would take me to make them.

And, to be honest, I probably would not go through the hassle to make these rolls again if they required so much work. Nor did I want to give anyone the false impression that I would be by posting the recipe.

Sooooo… to make life easier, I chopped up the cucumber and added it to the mash- thus making my “Deconstructed Sushi Rolls.”

But to keep a bit of the ‘fancy’ factor, I scooped these up into “sushi balls” with an ice cream scooper 🙂

Deconstructed Sushi Rolls (Paleo)

Ingredients:

1 (14.5 oz) can of salmon, drained of excess liquid 

1 Avocado, mashed

1 cup raw cauliflower rice

2 tbsp coconut aminos

2 tsp dried ground ginger

1 cucumber, cubed

Shredded carrot

Directions:

Combine all ingredients (except carrot) in a bowl until evenly mixed. Use an ice cream scooper to plop into balls. Top with shredded carrot for a garnish, if desired.

Broccoli Salad with Avocado Dressing

I always feel weird sharing a salad recipe as it’s more of a suggestion list than an actual ingredient list. For me, salads are pretty much whatever you have on hand tossed together.

However, I am sharing this “recipe” as I really liked how the idea of using a broccoli base turned out. Just a bit different from the usual lettuce or spinach base. Plus, with Memorial Day outdoor BBQs coming up, you don’t have to worry about the broccoli becoming soggy and whatnot 🙂

Broccoli Salad with Avocado Dressing

Ingredients:

1/2 of an avocado

3 tbsp plain yogurt

1 tbsp lemon juice

lemon zest

salt

______

2 heads raw broccoli, cut into very small florets

1/2 of a red onion, finely diced 

1/2 cup cooked and crumbled bacon

1/2 cup sliced or chopped almonds

1/2 cup carrots, grated

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions:

In a food processor, blend together avocado, yogurt, lemon juice, zest, and salt. Place dressing in fridge to chill. Add remaining ingredients into a large bowl and toss. Before serving, mix in avocado dressing.