Paleo Banana Pancakes

I have a hard time enjoying "Paleo-ized" breakfasts.  But, after experimenting with many different recipes, this one my husband begs me to make often.  The original recipe was from The Little Foodie with some minor adjustments.

Photo from The Little Foodie

Paleo Banana Pancakes

Ingredients

Coconut oil, to cook with
1 banana, mashed with a fork
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup almond flour
2 Tbsp coconut milk
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp cinnamon (adjust to taste)
Pure cocoa powder (optional)
Maple syrup (optional)

Directions

Heat a skillet or large frying pan over medium heat and add about 1 Tbsp of coconut oil when hot.

Mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl.

Pour about 1/4 cup of batter mixture into the hot oiled pan for one pancake, cooking about 3 to 4 pancakes at a time.  Flip the pancake when the edge starts to look dry and you see bubbles throughout the pancake (about 2-3 minutes).  Continue to cook the pancake until the batter is cooked all the way through (about 1-2 minutes).

Remove the pancake from heat and serve immediately.  You can add an extra sprinkle of cinnamon and/or some maple syrup if you prefer.

Notes

If you want chocolate banana pancakes, start with about 1 Tbsp of cocoa powder added to the batter with the other ingredients and adjust the amount to your taste.

The pancakes can be kept warm in the oven if they will not be served immediately.

Pancakes are great improvisers, so feel free to try these with other ingredients added to the batter or on top.  Some examples include: shredded coconut, berries, apples, walnuts or pecans, etc.

Enjoy!!

Paleo Fudgesicles

It's almost time for the heat of summer and bikini season (joy).  Keep on course with your Paleo efforts with this AWESOME, refreshing treat.  Warning: these are additive!!  My favorite version of these came from the genius of the The Creekside Cook.

Photo from The Creekside Cook

Paleo Fudgesicles

Ingredients

1 13 oz can of coconut milk (full fat, of course!)
1/3 cup pure cocoa powder
4 Tbsp maple syrup (or 2 Tbsp honey)
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of kosher salt

Directions

Combine all the ingredients in a blender and blend until the mixture is smooth and homogeneous (about 1 min).

Allow the mixture to sit for a minimum of 30 minutes to allow the cocoa to absorb the coconut milk.  This will make the result much more creamy, but this step can be skipped if you are in a rush.

Give the mixture one more quick blend before pouring into the mold of your preference.

Place in the freezer for at least 3 hours before enjoying.

Notes

Our blender is disappointing and so I use our immersion blender for this recipe and it works just fine.

This recipe is seriously delicious and tastes very nearly like the real thing!  Enjoy!!

Perfectly cooked, easy to peel, Hard Boiled Eggs

How do you get perfectly cooked hard boiled eggs that are easy to peel?  It's simple, timing.

Perfectly Cooked, Easy to Peel, Hard Boiled Eggs

Ingredients

1 dozen eggs
Ice

Directions

While the eggs are still in the fridge, fill a large sauce pot about 2/3 full with water.  Put on high heat until the water comes to a full hard boil.

Carefully lower the cold eggs into the boiling water and bring the water back up to a boil.

Reduce the heat from very high to high and allow the eggs to boil for about 8 minutes.

Turn off the heat and allow the eggs to continue to cook in the hot water on the hot burner for about 3 more minutes.

Remove the eggs from the heat and use an ice bath to cool them and stop them from cooking further.  You can do this by either pouring the hot water out and rinsing the eggs in the sauce pot a couple times with cool tap water or by removing the eggs from the sauce pot and into a bowl with an ice bath already prepared.

Once the eggs have cooled, eat them or store them in the refrigerator.

Notes

The key to the eggs being easy to peel is how fast the temperature change occurs.  The faster the temperature change, the easier it will be to peel the egg shell.  No need to add anything to the water.

Cooking the eggs via large temperature difference causes the egg to cook unevenly (from the outside in).  The extra time of the eggs sitting in the hot water will allow the yolk to cook through without overcooking it.