paleo BISCUITS and GRAVY for ANOTHER snowy day in CO

Happy Saturday everyone! Normally we would save this yummy breakfast dish for a Sunday morning, but when we woke up yet again to a bunch of snow we figured, why not make some Paleo Biscuits and Gravy right now??

B’s & G’s are Anthony’s (my fiance) all time favorite breakfast dish…but aren’t always the healthiest option. When we decided to give the Paleo diet a try this was one of the first recipes he missed. That was until we discovered Robb Wolf’s AMAZING biscuits & gravy recipe that is 100% Paleo!!! It follows the same basic steps as the traditional b’s & g’s, except for some new ingredients. This is actually one of my favorite recipes to make with Anthony since he loves it so much, and we have really great teamwork when it comes to this one! Usually he’ll whip up the sausage and gravy mixture and I’ll tackle making the biscuits. Paired with some tasty coffee and a good movie and tada…a wonderful start to Saturday morning!

Here’s the recipe we followed:

“Paleo Sausage Gravy

16 oz. country-style pork sausage
2 tbsp arrowroot powder
1 can coconut milk (shake it up before you open it)
1/4 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp dried, rubbed sage
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp salt

1. Heat up a skillet over medium-high heat and brown the sausage. Break up the sausage into fairly small pieces so it will cook easily, but I like to leave some bigger chunks in there too. Once the sausage is thoroughly cooked, remove it with a slotted spoon and set it aside. Discard most of the fat, but leave about a tablespoon in there, and leave all the stuck-on brown bits of sausage in the bottom of the pan.
2. Turn the heat down to medium. Add the arrowroot and stir it into the fat & brown bits, whisking constantly for about a minute so it doesn’t burn. It will get pretty thick and almost dry.
3. Add the coconut milk about 1/3 of the can at a time, and whisk together with the “roux” you just made, incorporating it thoroughly. Some of the browned bits should start to come off the bottom of the pan, too. This is what we want. Keep adding in the coconut milk until it is all incorporated. Add the fennel, sage, cayenne, salt and pepper and mix it in.
4. Add the sausage back in and incorporate throughout the gravy. Cook for a moment so everything is heated evenly. Serve immediately over biscuits.”

“Paleo Biscuits

1/2 cup coconut flour
1/4 cup almond flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp cold grass-fed butter (coconut oil is fine here too)
6 egg whites
a little coconut oil

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease up 6 cups of a muffin tin with coconut oil.
2. Put coconut flour, almond flour, salt and baking powder in the bowl of a food processor. Add the butter and pulse until the butter is incorporated. The butter pieces should be about the size of peas.
3. In a blender (or by hand if you’re feeling energetic), whiz the egg whites until they are frothy. Add them to the food processor and pulse a couple of times until they’re incorporated. Don’t go crazy though, just pulse it a few times until just blended.
4. Distribute the batter evenly into the 6 cups of your muffin tin. It should fill them about 3/4 full. These biscuits don’t rise, so that’s okay. Bake for 15 minutes until the tops are browned.
5. Pour your gravy on top, and enjoy.”

Now, you may notice a few differences from they typical b’s & g’s…but overall it tastes pretty gosh darn similar! We did cook the biscuits for a little less time because the first time we made the recipe they came out a little dry and crumbly. Also, don’t use too much arrowhead root (stick exactly to the recipe here.. otherwise .it will make the gravy sticky)!

Not too shabby for a snowy Saturday.

Thank you Robb Wolf! You can find the recipe at:

http://robbwolf.com/2011/01/05/gluten-free-sausage-gravy-paleo-biscuits/

Read Full Post »

respect yourself…leaving the peace corps

Exactly one year ago I celebrated my 23^rd birthday with an amazing family in Costa Rica. A family I hadn’t known for very long opened their hearts to me and treated me like another daughter. Ha, in fact my Costa Rican host mom in Heredia says that I’m her only chance to have a blue eyed, blonde haired granddaughter…they consider me part of their family.

At the same time, new friends made major footprints on my heart…(Ha, ha how could they not?? They knew the way to my heart, gifting me my all time favorite treat for my birthday; peanut butter!!) I have never felt so close to a group of friends as I do with those of Tico 23.

My 24^th birthday has been one of major reflection. It has been exactly one month since I left my role as a Peace Corps Volunteer early to move back home with my family in the United States. As much as deciding to join the Peace Corps was one of the toughest decisions I’d ever made, deciding to leave was equally, if not more, difficult. 

I do not regret joining the Peace Corps. It was the best decision I could have ever made at that point in time. It was a rewarding, humbling, at times infuriating and challenging experience, that is difficult to summarize in a few, short words. As a direct correlation of my experiences in Costa Rica I now, with confidence, know that I can do absolutely anything in this world. It was an experience that helped me feel empowered about who I am and the impact that I am capable of having on others.

I also do not regret leaving the Peace Corps. It took me quite some time to realize that leaving would not be the end of the world. In fact, around 33% of all volunteers actually leave service early for a variety of personal reasons. It would not ruin my future career goals, nor would it mean that I would be shunned by the Peace Corps community. It took me several heart to heart conversations with many people to come to the conclusion that it would be okay for me to leave, and then one day it just clicked. Costa Rica no longer was where I needed to be at this point in time.

Throughout all of my decision making, this quote strongly resonated with me:

“Respect yourself enough to walk away from anything that no longer serves you, grows you, or makes you happy.”- Robert Tew

And so I began the process of moving my life. I finished my service on a high note, having completed a successful and impactful JumpStart camp. My last week in country was a rush, and I remember not feeling like I could quite fully process my emotions. Was I excited to go home? Or was it more nervous? Was I making the right decision? I packed up, quickly completed all of my medical checkout procedures (including more blood being drawn! Ick), exit interviews,  a language proficiency exam, and the most difficult part, saying “see you later” to my amazing friends.

The thing about decisions is that no matter what, they must be made, and they must be made whole heartily with no looking back. Since being home I have gone through swings of missing Costa Rica…the people and friendships more than anything. Looking back on some of my first few blogs I realize that I did reach many of my original goals I had set for myself upon leaving for Costa Rica (https://poursomeamor.wordpress.com/2012/02/18/revisiting-my-motivation/)

I now feel confident with my Spanish abilities, having acquired a “advanced high” level of Spanish (that’s near native!!). I also feel like I helped break, or at least open eyes, toward some common stereotypes just by having good, open conversations. Maybe I didn’t’ convince anyone to believe differently through our conversations, but I did at least show that not everyone shares the same beliefs. I also taught a heck of a lot of English, and feel sooo happy when my past students continue to communicate with me (IN ENGLISH) via Facebook, Skype, etc. One of the things that Peace Corps staff constantly reminded us was that each person’s experience would be completely different. I feel satisfied with the way mine turned out.

Moving to the present moment, my life back home in Colorado is starting to take shape again, and I am constantly reminded why I love this place I call home.

I am able to attend yoga classes frequently, and it is wonderful to focus on my practice again, sharing space with other like minded yogis. I am doing a wonderful work exchange with Core Power Yoga that allows me to receive unlimited yoga! Once the growing season begins, my fiancé and I will begin volunteering once a week at a local farm, Native Hill Farm in exchange for fruits and vegetables. We’re both excited to be outside getting our hands dirty! Starting next fall I will be returning to Colorado State University for my MA in Spanish and will more than likely accept an offer to be a Graduate Teaching Assistant teaching beginning level Spanish classes!!

The main thing I love though, is being able to be near my family and spend quality time with them during all the changes in their lives right now. My fiancé and I are looking forward to finally start building our lives together, in the same country!

I plan to keep this blog up and running with my thoughts, pictures, artwork and crafts, and perhaps even take it in a little different direction- recipes and food concoctions! Thank you all for reading and for your continual support on my various journeys!!

And remember,

much love,

Riley

Read Full Post »

peanut butter sauce stir fry.

 

A while back I was with a group of my fellow Peace Corps buddies on a wonderful beach in Guanacaste, and that’s where I was first introduced to this awesome recipe. If you know me well at all, you know that I am a sucker for peanut butter. I must admit, I was a little hesitant to put peanut butter on a stir fry dish, but I figured why not, it’s good on just about everything else! The main change I made when making this dish at home for my family was to substitute the rice for “cauli-rice”.

I give you, stir fry with peanut butter sauce!

 

Ingredients:

Stir-fry:

2-4 chicken breasts

Head of cauliflower

Minced garlic

Soy sauce

Pepper to taste

Vegetables of your choosing (I used broccoli, carrots, and  bell peppers)

 

For the sauce (in the words of my friend, Taylor):

a dollop of peanut butter

1 clove sauteed garlic

1 mississippi count of water

Sriracha sauce- to taste

Enough soy sauce to make mixture liquidy

 

 

 

To begin, it’s a good idea to marinate your chicken. I chopped up the chicken breasts and stuck them in a zip lock bag with some soy sauce and a tiny bit of Sriracha for about 30 minutes.

After the chicken, you’ll want to start with the cauliflower. Break off chunks and put them into a food chopper. Grind up the cauliflower to the desired texture, so that it resembles “rice”. Later on, when you’re ready to eat you’ll want to place the “rice” in a microwave safe bowl with some pepper and cilantro and put it in the microwave to steam for 1 minute.

 

 

 

 

Once your chicken has soaked up some flavor, move it into a saute pan to cook. Moving on, now it is time to chop up all your vegetables, and sauté them with some garlic and a little bit of soy sauce for flavor. While the veggies are cooking take a quick second to make the delicious sauce.

Mix the peanut butter, soy sauce, water, Siracha, and garlic into a microwave safe container, and gradually warm it up in the microwave, stirring until everything is nicely blended together.

 

 

Now all that is left is to put it all together! Place your stir fried veggies and chicken on top of your cauli “rice” and pour the peanut butter sauce on top!

 

 

Read Full Post »