Bacon and Green Chile will make almost anything taste better, including Brisket.

As I was searching around in the deep freeze, I came across an unsuspecting slab of Brisket that was just screaming to be removed from it’s frigid demise.  So I rescued it, let it thaw to remove the unwanted icy crystals and then lovingly warmed it up in our crock pot for one of the most delicious meat dishes I’ve made in a long while.

One of the things I love most about New Mexico is the abundance of Green Chile.  It’s not just reserved for the typical Mexican fare either.  National chain fast food joints even put it on their burgers.  We just love it.  So some New Mexican Green Chile only added to the all naturally smoked, Nitrite free bacon that I got at Keller’s, our local market.

The Brisket came from a lovingly raised Piedmontese cow in the lush pastures of Northern Utah’s Piedmont Ranches.  There is a big difference between Piedmontese beef verses other breeds.  Of course, I always recommend 100% grass fed, never “finished” on grain.  Piedmont Ranches never gives their cows any hormones, anti-biotics or grains.  They are 100% Naturally raised, the way God intended.

So here’s my recipe for slow cooked, Bacon Green Chile Brisket:

• 1 Brisket-about 2 pounds
• ½ pound of thick sliced Natural Bacon
• 1 onion
• 10 cloves (ish) of garlic-about 1 Tablespoon minced
• ¾ Cup of 505 Green Chile
• Sea Salt
• Black Pepper

Start by chopping the raw bacon into about ¼ inch pieces.  Lay it out evenly in the bottom of your slow cooker.  Chop the onion and lay it on top of the bacon pieces.  With a sharp knife, slice a grid into the top of the brisket.  This allows you to work the green chile and garlic into the meat for better flavor absorption.  Then place the brisket with the green chile and garlic on top of the bacon/onions.  Grind some natural sea salt and pepper onto the top of the brisket.

Turn the crock pot on high and cook for at least 3 hours but it’s more tender if it slow cooks for at least 5 hours.  I haven’t tried this dish cooking it longer than 5 hours but I’m guessing it would be just fine.

We served this with Cauliflower Fried Rice and Bacon, Brussel Sprouts for a pretty tasty meal.

I’d love to hear your comments below after you’ve tried this recipe of Bacon Green Chile Brisket.

When I mention to people that I make an Amazing liver dish that my kids love to eat, they think I’m nuts. Well, I may be nuts but I’m a pretty healthy happy nut.

So if you too want to be a healthy happy nut, try making this Gourmet Meat dish. At least that’s what we call it in our home.

It all started one day when I finally got the nerve to eat liver. I’d eaten liver numerous times as a child but not since I’d been an adult. So I was home with only my 2 youngest children, Aaron and Avery. They were 3 and 4 at the time. Being a smart dad I know that words are everything. I told them all morning that for lunch we were going to have something called “gourmet meat” and that they were going to absolutely love it. They were so excited. They helped me cut up the onions and cook it and by the time I served it they were pretty excited to eat it. In fact, when their teenage siblings got home just as we were sitting down to eat they both ran to the door and exclaimed happily that “Dad made gourmet meat.” My teenagers were not as excited about it but they have mostly learned to enjoy it…or at least eat it.

So here’s how to make liver that your kids will love…or gourmet meat.

You’ll Need

• 1 pound of grass fed liver (Buffalo liver has a milder flavor)
• Several slices of thick bacon
• 2 onions
• Coconut oil
• Garlic or onion powder
• Sea Salt

Cut the raw bacon into ¼ inch or so pieces. Set aside. Cut the onions in strips. Set aside.

I use 2 different frying pans to make this liver dish but you may be able to get by with one if you cook a smaller quantity. Begin cooking the bacon pieces stirring frequently for about a minute or so then add the onions. Sometimes I will add extra coconut oil just to make sure I’m getting plenty of healthy fat. The goal is to have the bacon cooked just right but not overcooked by the time the onions are done. Let them cook until they are done and serve on top of the liver.

On a plate or other flat surface, lay out the strips of liver and then sprinkle with garlic or onion powder, or both, and some Sea Salt. To cook the liver, let the other frying pan get hot for a couple of minutes on medium heat. When the pan is hot enough, add a tablespoon or so of coconut oil then gently lay the liver strips in the pan. As soon as the strips of liver lift from the bottom of the pan then turn them over. If they are sticking to the bottom of the pan they are not quite ready to turn yet. Don’t cook them very long on the 2nd side. I like to eat my meat medium rare. You can cook the liver rare if you want but if you cook it well done then it will not be as tender. Overcooking liver tends to make it “rubbery.” Don’t be afraid to use too much coconut oil. Again, it’s a very healthy fat.

Serve the liver warm, topped with the bacon and onions with or without a side dish. Without a side dish, this will feed approximately 2-4 people. It will feed more if you have guests that are not as excited about getting their daily multi-vitamins and minerals.

Please leave your comments below with your favorite liver story.

When you know how to make liver correctly, it tastes good enough to eat regularly. I hope you enjoy this “Gourmet Meat.”

We just made this amazing creamy tomato coconut chicken soup. We adapted the recipe based on something we cooked a couple of weeks ago at our latest Paleo cooking class with Jan from Jan’s on fourth street here in Albuquerque. At the cooking class we made it with shrimp but we didn’t have any on hand tonight so we used chicken and it was just as tasty as what we had at the class.

It reminded my wife of a soup made with octopus that we had when we are on vacation in Mexico.

Creamy Tomato Coconut Chicken Soup

You’ll Need

• 2-3 chicken thigh, cut into approximately 1 inch squares
• Coconut oil
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 4 scallions, thinly sliced, white and green parts separated
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• Sea salt to taste
• 1/2 t. crushed red pepper flakes
• 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
• 13.5 oz can coconut milk
• 1/2 lime

What to Do:

In a medium pot, put some coconut oil in the pan and brown the pieces of chicken. Be careful not to crowd the meat so that they brown properly. Once all of the chicken is browned put it aside in a dish to hold for later.

Then in the same pan sauté the peppers until slightly soft. About four minutes. Add white scallions, 1/4 cup cilantro, red pepper flakes and garlic. Cook one minute. Feel free to add more coconut oil if needed.

Add tomatoes, coconut milk, cooked chicken and salt to taste. Cover and simmer on low about 10 minutes to let the flavors blend together.

To serve, spoon into the serving bowls and top with green scallions and cilantro freshly squeezed lime and enjoy.

This is a great dish to let you get a good portion of amazing medium chain fatty acids from all of the Coconut milk.

For the shrimp variation of this you would simply skipped the chicken step and you one and a quarter pounds of jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined. You would not precook the shrimp though. Wait until after you have simmered the mixture for 10 minutes then add the shrimp and cook for just five minutes more.

If you have any interest to attend one of Jan’s cooking classes live, just send us an email to let us know you’re interested. Another alternative is to watch one of our classes we did.

After you tried this Creamy Tomato Coconut Soup we would love for you to share your comments below and share this on Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest.

Put a new Paleo twist on your next batch of Bacon Wrapped Dates.

Sunday afternoon after church is a time when my kids ask me if they can make a treat for us. They all love to cook and sometimes they want to cook something … well let’s just say less than Paleo.

However, being the Caveman Family that we are, when you can have something Paleo that tastes good and satisfies the sweet tooth, it’s so much better than indulging in something less healthy.

So recently when they were asking me the question, “Daddy, can we make you a treat?” I decided to let them try a new twist on this Paleo favorite, Bacon Wrapped Dates by adding the next best thing to bacon, Paleo Chocolate. You can get my recipe to make your own Paleo chocolate here.

If you’ve been paleo for any length of time you will know that these will cause an insulin response and are not considered low carb. However, if you are allowing yourself some carbs then these are the absolute best.

Here’s how you make this amazing treat.

You’ll Need:

• Dates
• Bacon
• Paleo chocolate

What to Do:

1. Depending on the size of the dates, I cut them in half or quarter. If they are too big they are too sweet and well…just not as good. Feel free to experiment with what you like. Then cut the strips of bacon in half. A half of a piece of bacon is enough to wrap around the date and more. Put them on a cookie sheet pan and bake them in the oven at 400 degrees for about 10-15 minutes. I usually turn them over after about 8 minutes. Cook them just until the bacon is done but not too crispy.
2. This is the toughest part: After you take them out of the oven resist the urge to eat them warm…mmm, they are so good. Instead put them in the freezer just long enough to get them cool so that you can dip them or pipe warm melted Paleo chocolate onto them as we did in this picture.

This is the best part: Eat them up and enjoy the moment.

This is the worst part: You didn’t make enough of them. Better make some more.

If you like this twist to one of the greatest Paleo favorites, Bacon Wrapped Dates, write your comments below and share this page on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

Try this Paleo recipe for amazing Brussels Sprouts.

When I was a kid I have a very negative memory regarding Brussels Sprouts. Hopefully you have better memories but this one experience kind of sealed the deal for me for life…almost.

Then I found this recipe for Brussels sprouts that was not paleo but with some modification…mmmmmm.

This will work equally as well for other cruciferous vegetables like cauliflower and broccoli too.

Also, if you didn’t already see the article I wrote about how Brussels Sprouts will help you burn fat.

This recipe will feed 4-6 people.

You’ll Need:
1 ½ pounds of Brussels Sprouts
2-3 Tablespoons of coconut oil or lard
6-8 slices of bacon, diced
Sea salt and pepper
Aged balsamic vinegar

Procedure:

• Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Trim the outer leaves from the Brussels sprouts. Cut them in half and put them in a bowl. Drizzle the coconut oil or melted lard, sea salt and pepper. Then stir it all together to coat the Brussels sprouts.
• Dump the Brussels sprouts mixture on a foil lined baking sheet, keeping everything in one layer. Sprinkle the diced bacon on the Brussels sprouts put the tray in the oven.
• Roast them in the oven for about 30-35 minutes but every 10 minutes or so, “stir” them to keep the veggies completely coated in the oil. After they are done, drizzle your favorite balsamic vinegar and serve.

If you like this recipe, pin it, share it and tweet it.

So if you have a negative memory about Brussels Sprouts, make this paleo dish and you’ll have your kids screaming for more.

Bacon and treats. Should they go together in the Paleo world? I heard Robb Wolf say once that everything is better with bacon, even shoes. Well I don’t think I would go so far as to eat shoes wrapped in bacon but I think the combination of chocolate and bacon is absolutely amazing.

Paleo Bacon Truffles

You’ll Need:
½ cup chopped, pitted dates
6 pcs cooked bacon
¼ teaspoon sea salt
2 tablespoon raw cacao powder
1 tablespoon bacon grease
Raw cacao chocolate (recipe below)

In a food processor, mix the dates, bacon, sea salt, cacao powder, and bacon grease until the mixture is very soft and well mixed. The smoother the better. Then form into 1 inch balls and put on a cookie sheet and get them in the freezer for an hour or so. This will help the chocolate adhere better.

I’ve shared our raw cacao chocolate recipe in the past but just in case you haven’t seen it, here it is:

Raw Cacao Chocolate

You’ll Need:
½ cup raw cacao butter
½ cup raw cacao powder
Less than ¼ cup maple syrup

Melt the cacao butter in a double boiler over very low heat. Cacao butter melts at 96 degrees and you want to be careful that the mixture does not get much hotter than this to preserve the nutrients. After the butter has reached a liquid state, add the cacao powder and mix well. Then add the maple syrup and mix it well. If you have leftovers after coating your bacon truffle you can pour it in some chocolate molds and sprinkle a little sea salt on top and you will have another amazing treat that is full of anti-oxidants.

Take the balls of bacon/date mixture out of the freezer and roll them in the melted chocolate and put them back on the cookie-sheet. Then place them back in the freezer until they are solid.

You may have a hard time waiting very long to remove them from the freezer to eat them because these Paleo bacon truffles are one of my favorite treats.

I hope you enjoy this awesome Paleo Recipe as much as my daughter and I did.

My wife and all of our children except one of my teenagers were out of town. So she and I decided to get a little creative.

Many of the veggies we picked fresh from our garden. In my opinion, Paleo recipes are always just a bit better with fresh, from your own garden ingredients.

The Jalapeno we got from our garden was a bit “hot” so we only used one and this dish was perfect. So you can modify your recipe based on how spicy you like it.

In fact, this paleo recipe would probably be good with a little green chili. We’ll probably try that next time.

I love cucumbers and heirloom tomatoes. With the addition of the other ingredients in the Summer Salad, these 2 dishes complimented each other very well.

Southwest Butternut Beef

You’ll Need:
1 lb. Ground beef
1 onion – chopped
1 Jalapeno – chopped
1 Butternut squash
12 garlic cloves – chopped
Parsley
Cilantro
Coconut Oil

Procedure:

• Peel the butternut squash and cut it into 1 inch squares. Chop the onion, jalapeno, parsley and cilantro and put into a bowl with the squash and set it aside. Finely chop the garlic and put it into a small bowl to set aside.
• Use a little coconut oil in the pan to cook the hamburger without browning it. When the hamburger is done, add all the veggies except the garlic. Add more coconut oil. (It’s ok to be generous with coconut oil because it is a wonderful healthy fat) Stir occasionally. Cover and cook on medium heat until the veggies are almost done. Then add garlic, stir and cook covered for about 5 minutes or until the veggies are cooked adequately.

Summer Salad

You’ll Need:
1 cup heirloom tomatoes – cut in half Fresh Cilantro finely chopped
1 small avocado -diced
1/3 Cup(ish)Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 cucumber-diced
Sea Salt (to taste)

Procedure:

• Mix all ingredients together except for the avocado (it will become “mushy”). Stir it well to get the oil fully mixed in, then add the avocado and lightly stir. Serve.
• So if you have a little garden and you’re looking for some new Paleo recipes to use up all your fresh veggies, try these. And if you like them, please leave a comment below.

Feel free to share this paleo recipe with your facebook and Pinterest friends.

This is my favorite Paleo Ice-cream. I remember as a young child going into an ice-cream store and seeing this green ice-cream and I immediately knew that was what I wanted. When I tasted the cool mint flavor mixed with chocolate, I was hooked for life. Our ice-cream is just a bit healthier though. There is no green color or other added “garbage.” Just plain, amazingly tasty mint chocolate chip ice-cream, Paleo of course.

Also, the way I make this with the chocolate chips perhaps would be more appropriately called “revel.” To me it’s a faster and easier way to get chocolate chunks/revel.

Makes enough for a 2 quart ice-cream maker

You’ll Need:

Milk Mixture
3 cans coconut milk
1 cup almond milk
½ cup pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon celtic sea salt
1 cup dried mint leafs

Chocolate Chips/revel
½ cup virgin coconut oil (not the cheap stuff)
½ cup raw cacao powder
¼ cup pure maple syrup

Put the container that you will be putting the finished ice cream in, into the freezer before starting; this is important because you do not want the ice cream to melt at all before further freezing, or it will affect the texture of the ice cream.

Pour one can of coconut milk into a saucepan on medium heat, stirring constantly. As soon as the milk is hot, not boiling, stir in the mint leaves. Continue stirring for about 5 minutes. Once the mint/milk mixture has “steeped” for about 5 minutes, pour through a fine mesh strainer to remove all of the leafs. Mix the mint-infused milk with the remaining coconut milk and the maple syrup. If the mixture is warm or hot, chill it before you attempt to put it in the ice-cream freezer. Then pour the mixture into your ice-cream freezer. At this point you will need to add some almond milk to obtain the correct volume for your ice-cream freezer, about a cup. Then process according to your ice cream makers instructions.

As soon as the ice-cream begins processing you can begin making the chocolate chips. Put the coconut oil into a double boiler on low heat. You don’t want the mixture to get above 98 degrees. That’s when the nutrient content of the raw cacao changes. Keep it healthy. As soon as it is in liquid form, add the cacao powder and mix it thoroughly with a fork. When there are no more chunks, remove from heat and add the maple syrup. Then set aside and wait for the ice cream-to finish.

After the ice-cream has processed long enough, take the frozen container out of the freezer and immediately put the ice cream in it. The way I do this in order to get chocolate chips/chunks is to layer about an inch or so of ice-cream in the container. Then drizzle some of the cooled chocolate mixture onto the ice-cream and it will immediately begin to harden. Then I lightly stir it to “break up” the chocolate chunks. Repeat this process until you’ve used all the chocolate mixture. Then put the ice-cream into the freezer, because the ice cream will melt rather quickly. Keep it in the freezer till you are ready to eat it; if you leave it in there for a while, you might need to let it soften a little before eating it.

So if you have any sort of an emotional attachment to chocolate chip mint ice-cream like I do, this is the healthiest paleo alternative around.

Before I share this amazing Paleo Chocolate treat with you, I must share some important info regarding chocolate and how it could possibly be healthy.

Can chocolate actually be healthy?

Well, cacao is what it is called before it is processed and becomes the cocoa powder that makes all the yummy chocolate treats.

Raw cacao powder has not been heated and actually contains a whole bunch of antioxidants and is really beneficial for our health.

One of the benefits is Serotonin.  Eating chocolate stimulates your body to create serotonin which can help to relieve stress from high cortisol.  Serotonin is also the pre-cursor to melatonin production which will help us sleep well.

What makes chocolate unhealthy is not the cocoa, it’s the dairy, sugar and fillers.

So if there was a way to make your own Paleo chocolate treats using raw cacao and without all the bad stuff, wouldn’t it be great?

So here’s my recipe for Paleo Chocolate Candies

You’ll Need:

• ½ Cup raw cacao
• ½ Cup raw cacao butter
• ¼ Cup pure maple syrup
• Sea salt

I buy my ingredients online through Amazon.  Make sure you get raw cacao, not cocoa.  It’s more expensive but that’s where all the nutrients are.

Use a double boiler to melt the cacao butter.  Do this on very low heat.  Be patient because raising the temperature of the butter will make this Paleo Chocolate treat be less healthy.  You want it to be melted but not heated to preserve the nutrients.

After it’s melted, add the raw cacao powder and mix it to get out all the lumps.

The maple syrup should also be lightly heated, about room temperature should be fine, so that when you start mixing it with the chocolate mixture it doesn’t set up too quickly.  Add the maple syrup.  Stir it well then pour into chocolate molds.

I like to add things like pine nuts, raw almonds or freeze dried strawberries to mine.  Then I sprinkle my favorite sea salt on top.

After it’s all in the molds, make sure you gently tap them to get out any bubbles.  Put them in the freezer and they’ll be ready to eat within minutes.

If you don’t have molds, you can just pour it out on wax paper on a cookie sheet.  After it’s solid you can chop it up for paleo chocolate chunks.

This Paleo chocolate treat should still be treated like a treat and should only be eaten when you are okay with getting a few extra carbs.

I’d love to hear your story after you’ve tried this yummy Paleo chocolate treat and feel free to share this with a friend. Or pin it!

We ate this amazing Paleo cauliflower fried rice for dinner last night. I thought I would share it with you if you are new to the paleo scene so that you could see how easy and tasty it is to replace some grain dishes with a paleo alternative. This recipe is included in The Gastronomical Caveman Cookbook: the art of choosing, cooking and eating good, healthy food.

In my opinion, the coconut oil and the garlic make this paleo cauliflower fried rice so much better than any fried rice could be.

You’ll Need:

• 1 head organic cauliflower – steamed
• 1/2 red onion – minced
• 3 garlic cloves (or more if you like) – minced
• 2 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 egg
• 2 tbsp. coconut flour
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• Black pepper to taste
• 3-4 tbsp. coconut oil (more if you like)

In a large mixing bowl, add the minced onions, garlic, and basil. Place the steamed cauliflower in the bowl as well and add the egg, coconut flour, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Using a potato masher, mash the cauliflower down to the consistency of rice. Mix all the ingredients well. Heat the coconut oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the cauliflower rice and sauté for 7-10 minutes or until the “rice” starts to crisp up a little and the onions are tender. Remove the rice and keep warm in the oven.
This is great with a chicken dish.

After you’ve tried it, leave a comment and you can feel free to share it on facebook and pinterest.

So next time you are planning to have fried rice with dinner, try this Paleo cauliflower fried rice version for a change.