Pumpkin Coconut Beef Sauce/Soup (Paleo)

Last week, I had my annual Super Bowl Sunday Home-Alone-Cook-Off. Not going to lie, I’m no a football fan. I’ve tried watching games, but every time my mind begins to wander off to the 100 things I could be doing instead. And no, the Super Bowl is not the exception.

So every year, I have the house to myself and have my own party where I create my own recipes that I know my family would put their noses up to if they were around.

The arrangement works out nicely: I get to experiment in the kitchen and end up with a week’s worth of yummy food. I then eat while watching some Netflix with the game on in the background (for the halftime show and commercials).

Anyway, this was one of the end results:

Pumpkin Coconut Beef Sauce/Soup

Ingredients:

1 tbsp red palm oil (or avocado oil)

1 onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 tsp sage

1 lb. organic, grass-fed ground beef

1 cup chopped carrots

1 (13.5oz) can of full-fat coconut milk

1 (15oz) can of pumpkin

2 handfuls of fresh spinach

salt and pepper

For soup version– add in 1 cup vegetable/chicken/beef broth (if you just want a sauce, omit)

Directions:

Heat the oil in a pot and add in the onion, garlic, and sage. Sauté for 5 minutes. Add in the carrots and meat and cook until the meat is entirely brown. Add in the coconut milk and pumpkin and bring to a boil. Add in the spinach and cook until wilted. Adjust with salt and pepper, to taste. If you are making the soup: Stir in your broth here. If not, serve over rice or cauliflower rice.

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Greek-Inspired Stuffed Eggplant (Paleo)

This week, I am paying homage to one of my favorite types of food- Greek!

I’m so obsessed with all the fresh veggies, nuts, olive oil, and herbs that go into all this mediterranean yumminess! And so grateful for the mini Greek café that has opened near me 🙂

A fan of the “stuffed” appearance, I fit all my love into eggplant shells. But the real “hidden gem” is adding nuts into the meat filling (adds a surprise crunch!).   

Greek-Inspired Stuffed Eggplant (Paleo)

Ingredients:

1 large eggplant, cut in half longways

Avocado oil

1 lb grass-fed, organic, ground beef

1 purple onion, chopped

1 tbsp dried parsley

1/2 tbsp dried dill

1/2 tbsp dried oregano

salt and pepper

1 green bell pepper, diced 

1 large tomato, diced

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Olive oil

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. With a spoon, scape out the insides of eggplant shell, leaving a thin layer of “meat” attached. Chop scooped-out eggplant and set aside. Rub inside and outside of eggplant shell with avocado oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place eggplant skin-side-up on a greased baking pan. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, begin to brown meat in a deep skillet. As meat browns, add in onion, parsley, dill, oregano, salt, and pepper and cook for 5 minutes. Add in chopped eggplant and bell pepper and cook for 10 minutes. Then, add in tomato and walnuts and cook for another 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Once eggplant shells are finished, carefully flip over and spoon in beef filling. Top with parsley and a drizzle of olive oil before serving.

Note: This recipe makes a LOT more filling than will fill the eggplant. Try using extra filling in stuffed peppers, cabbage rolls, or simply by eating with a spoon 🙂