Venison Steak with Root Vegetables

marks-meal

An easy dinner with summer’s harvest veggies. This is a venison steak, thanks to our friend Mark, but you can buy a delicious grass fed steak too! Add in some local, fresh green beans and some sauteed root veggies (we used potatoes, carrots and squash), with a little pesto on top, and PRESTO! You have a delicious, healthy, low carb fat burning dinner.

Dandelion Green Omelet and Sweet Potatoes

gk-eggs-dandelion-greens-sweet-potatoesEver eat Dandelion greens? They are delicious–with a spicy bite a little like arugula, and full of massive amounts of nutrients. Try them this way–in an omelet. Add in a little bit of (raw) goat cheese at the end and enjoy!!

Saute greens in butter until tender, add beaten eggs, cook until almost done, fold in goat cheese and serve with browned sweet potatoes. Your day will start out RIGHT with this breakfast! (toast optional)

Mediterranean Chicken and Veggies

A quick and easy, but fantabulous meal! gk-med-veggies-and-chicken-jpgKeeping a rotisserie chicken on hand is the best way to find a base for an easy and quick lunch or dinner. Try this one from my friend  who is making a wonderful documentary about What to Eat.

Mediterranean Veggies with Rotisserie Chicken

Ingredients
Eggplant
Red onion
Red pepper
Green pepper
Zucchini
Fava beans
Olive oil
2-4 cloves garlic
Sea salt and fresh pepper
Oregano and/or basil
Grated Parmigiana Reggiano

Directions
In a big frying pan, heat the olive oil, and saute the onion and garlic till tender. Add other veggies and saute until tender. Add chopped chicken and heat for a couple minutes. Add oregano or basil if desired, serve topped with Parmigiana Reggiano (optional).

Light Lunch Salad with Mixed Nuts

For a light lunch, try this:

Micro greens, pecans, walnuts, almonds, etc and citrus dressing.

gk-salad-with-micro-greens-nuts-citrus-dressing

(Photo and recipe by Greg Kiger, What to Eat)

Salad Ingredients
Organic baby arugula, baby kale, micro greens or variety of sprouts, chopped red cabbage, etc.
Tomatoes
Any other greens or vegetables that are in season, especially locally grown
Pecans, almonds, walnuts

Citrus Dressing
Equal parts lemon and fresh squeezed orange juice
1 Tbsp olive oil
Sea salt and fresh pepper
Mix with fork or whisk and drizzle over salad

Dump a very generous amount of greens on your plate. Add leftover chicken, fish or beef–or a bit of canned tuna if you wish for added protein.

Seared Tuna with Micro Greens and Spinach With Balsamic Dressing

A simple lunch using whatever greens you have on hand–micro greens are delicious and bursting with nutrition. Can often be found at your farmer’s market or health food store. If you cannot find them, pick up some sprouted seeds–radish, sunflower, etc.

Add in some leftover seared tuna and viola! A lunch better than what you would find in a restaurant! microgreens-spinach-seared-tuna-balsamicmicrogreens-spinach-seared-tuna-balsamic

Detox, Skinnifying Green Smoothie

green-smoothie

This smoothie is a great start to a quick 2-3 day detox if you want to get back on track with your diet. It is delicious, satisfying, refreshing, and–it has some great fat-burning, detoxifying, diuretic ingredients. Try it–You’ll feed skinnier in just a couple of days!

Ingredients
1 large bunch of fresh parsley
1 large thumb fresh ginger, chopped up in smaller pieces
1/2 medium organic cucumber, chopped in chunks
handful of baby kale (or spinach, etc)1 tsp or small root of turmeric
1/2 sweet/tart apple, chopped in chunks
2 cups liquid–coconut water, kombucha, or spring or sparkling water
cinnamon if desired

Directions
Blend in blender until smooth. Be sure ginger is well blended. Drink up!

Try this for breakfast and lunch for two days and eat a normal low carb meal of protein and veggies. Amazing!!

Steak with Peppercorn Mustard Sauce

Filet Mignon au Poirve' with French Beans and Pomme Anna

Ever had a steak at a really nice restaurant? Chances are, they may have served it this way. This is a delicous classic and elegant way to serve a steak–easy enough for a weeknight–elegant enough for guests.

Peppercorns stimulate the taste buds, and help to increase hydrocholoric aid secretion in the stomach which improves digestion, especially of meat. Pepper also has antioxidant and antibacterial effects. And in addition, it helps your body breakdown fat cells for energy–especially if you normally eat a low carb diet.

Ingredients
4 4 oz grass fed beef tenderloins or other cut of steak
sea salt, coarsely ground
2 Tbsp multi colored, green or black whole peppercorns
4 Tbsp grass fed organic butter
1/4 cup minced shallot
1/2 cup dry red wine–or white
1/2 cup organic beef broth
1/4 cup Dijon mustard

Directions
Crush 1 Tbsp of peppercorns with a rolling pin, and press salt and pepper into steaks. Heat butter in cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add steaks, turn up heat to high and sear on both sides. Turn heat down low and cook 2-4 minutes–dont overcook! Remove steaks from pan, add shallots and saute for 30 seconds. Add wine, cook for another 10 seconds. Add broth, mustard and the rest of peppercorns and stir in. Spoon sauce over steaks and serve. Serves 4.

Quinoa Tabouli Salad

Tabouli middle eastern salad at glass bowl over floral napkin

this Middle Eastern salad normally uses cracked wheat, but quinoa is a much better, gluten free substitute. Quinoa is not really a grain, but a seed, and it is packed with antioxidants, nutrients and ALL the essential amino acids. Quinoa is high in protein, making it a good substitute for meat–it is also high in lysine, important for tissue growth and repair.

Quinoa also contains magnesium, manganese, copper, iron and phosphorus, along with antioxidants, B vitamins, and fiber–especially helpful to those who suffer from migraines, high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease. Quinoa also contains lots of riboflavin, a B vitamin needed for energy production.

This salad is great chilled, or served at room temperature. For added flavor and protein, add some raw or natural feta cheese on top.

Ingredients
2 cups cooked and drained quinoa (try red, black or a combination of colored quinoa)
1 cucumber, chopped
2 medium tomatoes, chopped, or 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 bunch green onions
1/2 cup fresh mint
2 cups fresh chopped parsley
2-4 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
1/4 to 1/3 cup feta cheese (optional)
cup up chicken for extra protein (optional)
almonds (optional)

Dressing
1/2 cup fresh lemon or lime juice
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
sea salt and fresh ground pepper

Directions
Cut up veggies for salad and toss with quinoa and dressing. If you have time, this tastes better after 2-4 hours when vegetables and quinoa soak up dressing better. Serves 4.

 

Sockeye Salmon Salad

Did you know all sockeye is wild caught? This is a big plus, so you know you are getting the best fatty oils and healthiest type of fish you can eat. Try this delicious salad!

Sockeye Salmon Salad
Most any type of wild caught salmon works in this salad, but sockeye salmon is definitely my favorite. You can find it canned and it’s delicious. Keep some on hand. Salmon contains a large amount of antioxidants, and the darker pink the flesh, the more antioxidants–as long as it is wild caught.

Salad with salmon, caviar and arugula on a white background

The pigment that helps to make salmon’s flesh pink is astaxanthin. Astaxanthin lowers C-reactive protein (CRP), which measures inflammation in the body and the blood vessels.

Astaxanthin may just be the best antioxidant for DNA protection. It’s 6,000 times more effective than vitamin C, 800 times more effective than CoQ10 and 550 times more effective than vitamin E or green tea.

The effect astaxanthin has on DNA is rather amazing. DNA is damaged by free radicals when you’re exposed to things like pollution, smoke, radiation and processed food. In one study, DNA damage dropped by 43% after subjects took astaxanthin supplements.

Wild caught salmon is especially rich in omega 3’s and the health benefits from this mega nutrient are endless! Salmon is also a great source of easily digestible protein, niacin, B6, B12, selenium, phosphorus and magnesium.

Eating salmon even twice a week may help raise omega 3 levels as effectively as taking daily fish oil supplements. And those healthy fats in salmon help burn body fat, contribute to a healthy heart, protect against strokes, reduce inflammation in the body, fight cancer, improve asthma, protect your eyesight, and more.

Eating a diet high in astaxanthin and omega 3 fats protects skin against sunburn and wrinkles. The omega 3’s in salmon lift your mood and fight depression, improve memory and learning ability, and help with disorders like ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder). Healthy fats in salmon and other wild caught cold water fish also help prevent dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

Ingredients
2 cans (6.5 oz each) canned sockeye salmon, drained and chunked
3 Tbsp organic mayo (see recipe below to make your own)
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp capers, drained
1/3 cup finely chopped fennel root
1/3 cup finely diced red onion
Pinch of organic black pepper
1 Tbsp chopped fresh dill or 1/2 – 1 teaspoon dried organic dill weed 4-6 large leaves green or red leaf lettuce

Directions

Drain salmon and discard skin and any bones (if desired). In a medium bowl, combine ingredients. Add salmon and stir gently to combine.

Lay out lettuce leaves and place a scoop of salmon salad on each leaf. Serves 2-4.

Spicy Black Bean Veggie Salad

Black Bean Salad

blackbeansalsa

Black beans are rich in healthy fiber, which makes them a satisfying low glycemic snack, and they are full of a very potent antioxidant, anthocyanin—the same kind of antioxidants that grapes and blueberries are rich in! Of any bean, black beans contain by far the most antioxidants of any bean.

Beans also help stabilize blood sugar, and help prevent cancer, increase energy and fat burning metabolism, and are full of protein, vitamins and minerals.

You can purchase black beans already cooked in a can or boil your own from dry beans. Similar recipes often contain corn as an ingredient as well, but I don’t recommend using corn as it is high glycemic, fattening and genetically modified.

Try adding some chopped jicama for an extra sweet crunchy taste! This hearty salad is also a great side dish to grass fed beef dishes like burgers, steaks and more. Or try seasoning a chicken breast with a little cumin and chili powder and serve on top of this.  It’s also great alongside your eggs in the morning!

Since beans are a low glycemic carbohydrate, limit your serving size, and avoid eating it with chips, crackers, etc.

Ingredients
2  15oz/425 gm cans of black beans, drained and rinsed, or 3-4 cups cooked beans

1 ripe tomato, diced

1 red onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

Generous handful of fresh cilantro, chopped

1 small red, green or yellow bell pepper, chopped

1 small jalapeño, minced, ribs and seeds removed or hot pepper flakes

Juice of 1 lemon or lime

Sea salt and pepper to taste

A pinch of cumin powder

Directions

Combine all ingredients in glass bowl, mix and enjoy! Serves 4.

 

 

Mango/Peach Chicken Salad

Fresh chicken salad seasoned with pepper with lettuce, mango, red bell pepper and cucumber (Selective Focus, Focus on the meat in the front)

It’s too hot to cook right now, so a cooling, refreshing, slightly sweet and tangy salad with chicken just hits the spot! Peaches are in season most places but you can also use mangos or a combination of those bright yellow, vitamin A filled juicy fruits.

Ingredients
1 lb chicken breasts, grilled, baked or boiled, cooled and chopped
2 peaches or 1 medium to large sized mango
3-4 stalks celery, chopped
1/2 sweet onion chopped
1 sweet bell pepper
baby greens, spinach, leaf lettuce or bibb lettuce, chopped
2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar or lemon juice
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil or grapeseed oil
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper

Directions
Mix up all ingredients except salad greens, toss with dressing. You may keep in the refrigerator for several hours before serving over lettuce. Enjoy! Serves 4.

Fresh Veggies with Garbanzos, Garlic and Olive Oil

Fresh veggies and garbanzos

This lunch is easy and quick and a picture is worth a thousand words. I made this the other day and it was delightful–especially since veggies are out, local, fresh and bursting with flavor!

Saute up a few chopped cloves of garlic in some butter. Add your choice of veggies and steam veggies until tender crisp. Top with a generous squeeze of fresh lemon, extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, and pepper and dig in!

Mexican Turkey Lettuce Wraps

Mex turkey wraps

A little something spicy and delicious for an easy lunch or light dinner!

Ingredients
1 lb of ground turkey, either dark or white meat
garlic, minced
sea salt, pepper
pinch of cayenne
1/2 tsp or so of chili powder
1 tsp cumin
sweet vidalia onion
tomato
cilantro
salsa or hot sauce
green or red leaf lettuce
avocado
coconut oil, olive oil or butter

Directions
In a frying pan, heat up oil, add turkey, garlic, seasonings and cook till turkey is no longer pink. Chop up sweet onion, tomato and avocado and cilantro. Add turkey to large lettuce leaf, top with onion, tomato, avocado, cilantro and salsa. Mmmm-mmm. Serves 4.

BLT Salad

blt+salad+-+11874

Love Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato Sandwiches? This is a great way to enjoy that same great flavor, without the fattening bread–and with the addition of lots of green veggies, plus avocado!

Ingredients
Romaine, leaf lettuce, baby greens, supergreens, spinach, etc
Cherry tomatoes, sliced in half, or 1-2 larger tomatoes, chopped
4-6 slices natural bacon, cooked and chopped up
Avocado, chopped
Raw blue or goat cheese, optional
Extra virgin olive oil and apple cider or balsamic vinegar

Directions
Cook bacon ahead of time, chop. Clean and chop vegetables and lettuce. Assemble with generous amounts of bacon and avocado.
Add dressing before serving and garnish with cheese if desired.

Paleo Pumpkin Pancakes with Peaches

Paleopumpkinpancakes

Pumpkin is great any time of the year–dont just wait until Thanksgiving. These delicious pancakes are made with pure buckwheat flour, ground flax and vitamin A rich organic pumpkin. Buckwheat is not made from a grain, it is from a seed, so it is low glycemic and anti-inflammatory. Plus–in Colorado, we have these amazing peaches grown in Palisade, Colorado and they are the sweetest, freshest, juiciest peaches I’ve ever had!

Ingredients (all measurements approximate)
1 can organic pumpkin puree
1/2 cup pure buckwheat flour (not buckwheat pancake ‘mix’, this has wheat flour in it.
1/2 cup ground flax seed
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp of baking soda or baking powder
pinch of sea salt
pinch of nutmeg and cinnamon
water or almond/flax/coconut milk to thin batter if needed

Directions
In a big bowl, add dry ingredients and mix. Add eggs, vanilla, and liquid to thin to a medium batter. Heat up large flat pan and add tbsp or so of butter. Drop batter in pan to make small pancakes. Flip when pancakes have dry bubbles around edges. Garnish with fresh peaches or berries, grass fed butter and a drizzle of real maple syrup. Enjoy!

Southwest Veggie Scramble

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Delicious, easy to throw together, superhealthy breakfast!

This one doesn’t really take any specific ingredients, just pull out a few veggies you have in the fridge and get scrambling!

Ingredients
handful of kaleasparagus
mushrooms
onion
red pepper
tomato
Sriracha sauce or salsa
sprinkle of cumin
2-4 eggs, whipped with fork
Sliced avocado
Cheese if desired

Directions
Chop up veggies and add to large pan (except tomatoes) with 1 Tbsp butter. Over medium high heat, stir and cook till tender. Add eggs, tomatoes and cumin, cook till done. Garnish with sliced avocado, salsa or sriracha. Enjoy!

Grilled Veggies and Chicken Bratwurst

grilled veggies and chicken brats

Want and quick and supereasy dinner idea? Try grilling up some veggies with chicken bratwurst. Super fast, super easy!

Ingredients
Chicken bratwurst, sliced down the middle
Zucchini
Yellow Squash
Sweet Onion
Tomoto
Fresh herbs, salt and pepper
Olive Oil

Directions
Cut up veggies and sausage, drizzle with olive oil, herbs, salt and pepper. Sprinkle with a little hot sauce if desired. Heat grill to medium high heat. Grill, turning frequently, till veggies are tender and sausage is cooked through. Serve with quinoa, sweet potato or alone.

Fresh Cucumber and Tomato Salad

my cucumber salad

Cucumbers are not the sexy new superfood but they are pretty awesome in their own right! They are a great source of conventional nutrition like vitamin C and vitamin A, and they contain a great source of manganese and antioxidants, including a substance called cucurbitacins. Cucurbitacins actually block cancer cell development and along with the lycopene in the tomatoes, this is a power-packed salad. Add some tuna to it for a complete meal!

Ingredients
3 fresh tomatoes, chopped
3-4 small cucumbers, sliced
1 sweet onion, sliced
Fresh oregano, thyme, or basil chopped
1 tsp raw sugar
2-3 Tbsp virgin olive oil
Lemon juice or 1 Tbsp apple cider or balsamic vinegar
sea salt and pepper
Can of Albacore tuna, optional

Directions
Chop up veggies and mix with dressing. Tastes better if prepared ahead of time and allowed to soak up flavors.

Coconut Flour Pancakes

Pancakes on a white background

These are delicious served with fresh fruit or used as a grain-free ‘muffin’ to hold your eggs. My favorite way is to use these and make a healthier version of an Egg McMuffin. Simply make the pancakes and freeze or refrigerate, heat in toaster or pan and add a piece of natural ham or canadian bacon, an egg and some greens. Breakfast on the go!

Ingredients
•    1/4 cup coconut flour
•    1/8 tsp baking soda
•    Pinch of salt
•    1/3 – 1/4 cup coconut milk
•    2 tbsp organic, cold-pressed coconut oil
•    3 eggs
•    1-2 tbsp honey
•    1/2 tsp vanilla extract
•    Maple syrup to taste
•    Grass-fed butter for cooking (Kerrygold and Anchor are my favorite brands)

Directions
Thoroughly mix the eggs,coconut and honey together. Add coconut milk and vanilla extract. Add coconut flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix, but not too much! Melt a dab of butter in your skillet and then using a measuring cup, add a little batter to the pan. I recommend figuring out how many pancakes you’d like to make beforehand so that you can use an appropriately sized cup or ladle. This recipe should yield around 8 or so pancakes.

 
*The lecithin contained in the egg yolks gives you the texture of the pancakes, so if you’re not happy with the overall consistency then I would recommend adjusting the egg quantity before anything else.

Jerk Chicken (or Pork) with Pineapple/Mango Salsa

chicken+with+pineapple+salsa(photo courtesy http://healthyandgourmet.blogspot.com)

This is the perfect time of year to enjoy grilling outside and this is the epitomy of a refreshing, delicious summer dish. The jerk seasoning on the chicken (or pork) sets off the cool, sweet taste of the pineapple salsa perfectly. This chicken is best on the grill, but you can also make it on the stovetop as well–preferably in a cast iron skillet. Jerk seasoning is a spicy, sweet seasoning from the Caribbean. It can be found as either a wet or dry rub, but I prefer the dry rub. I make my own mix, but its generally easy to find in the store already mixed up.

Ingredients
2-4 lbs boneless, skinless breasts, or thighs or pork loins or pork chops
Jerk seasoning (recipe below)

Salsa
Pineapple and/or mango, chopped in small chunks
1/2 red onion
2-3 cloves garlic
1 small red or green jalepeno pepper, ribs and seeds removed and minced
fresh lime juice to taste

Directions
Heat grill to medium heat, brush grates with oil to prevent sticking. Coat chicken in jerk seasoning, and grill. Turn one or two times. The jerk seasoning with will burn because there is sugar in it, so try not to let it get totally charred, but a nice bit carmelized brown is great.
Meanwhile, chop and mix up fruit salsa. Serve with a generous dollop of fruit salsa on top. Sweet potatoes round out this dinner perfectly!