grain-free -

April 23, 2019

The Original Easy Paleo Fudge Recipe

Homemade chocolate is such a decadent treat! This easy paleo fudge recipe is rich and satisfying and so simple to make!

True story: I’ve been playing with various paleo fudge recipes for years. At Christmas I made one that tasted JUST like conventional fudge, but it was a gooey mess. One year I tried using cacao butter and it was too heavy and made me feel sick.

Lots of paleo fudge recipes have to stay refrigerated to hold up, and others call for large amounts of coconut ingredients, which have a strong flavor.

This paleo fudge recipe has none of the above problems! While we place it in the fridge to set up initially, it’ll hold up at room temperature all day long (or for as long as it lasts!). Keep in mind, it will melt in your hands if you try to savor it too long like my kids do, however.

I used just a small amount of coconut butter so as to impart just enough texture without changing the flavor. And believe me when I say, this fudge doesn’t make me feel sick, but I COULD make myself sick on it because it’s hard to stop eating it!

My easy paleo fudge recipe: ingredient notes

This recipe does have sugar in it because it calls for chocolate chips, so let’s just get that out of the way. You could always use my homemade chocolate chips to keep it totally refined sugar-free, but it probably will not set up quite as well. (Note to self: trying that next.)

Aside from that, it’s sweetened with a combo of maple syrup and raw honey, my favorite way to sweeten things (as noted in this vanilla soft serve recipe). You could also use just one or the other.

You’ll also find cashew butter, but you could theoretically use any nut or seed butter. Cashew butter has a creamy, fluffy texture and a nice, neutral flavor, so it’s what I went with. I can’t promise that another nut or seed butter would have the exact same results, but it’s worth trying if you have a different one on hand. (If you use something different and it works well, let us know in the comments!)

Finally, you can top this paleo fudge recipe with anything your heart desires. I really like chopped nuts in fudge, but my kids are partial to sprinkles, so I used these naturally-colored sugar crystal sprinkles and they thought the fudge was extra special and fancy (it kinda was!).

This fudge really does come together quickly and easily and is much less finicky than conventional fudge recipes. Find the full recipe below.

Print Recipe

Easy Paleo Fudge

Cook Time5

Total Time5

Course: Dessert

Servings: servings

Author: Jaclyn

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips I use organic, soy- and dairy-free chips like this
3/4 cup cashew butter
1/4 cup coconut butter not oil, also sometimes called "coconut manna"
1/4 cup ea maple syrup and raw honey or 1/2 cup of one or the other
1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

Line an 8 X 8 glass dish with parchment paper.
Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan and place over medium-low heat on stove top.
Stir ingredients as they melt, and remove from heat once totally smooth and melted (this should only take a couple minutes).
Pour the fudge into your prepared dish and smooth top with a rubber spatula. It's ok if it doesn't reach the edges of the pan completely. It doesn't have to be perfect. 😉
Sprinkle nuts or sprinkles on top, if desired, and place in refrigerator for about an hour or so to set up.
Cut into small squares (this fudge is rich and a little goes a long way!) and serve. Store in an air-tight container or in the refrigerator if you prefer (though the texture will hold up at room temperature).

December 10, 2018

Paleo Gingerbread House Recipe

I absolutely love baking holiday treats with my kids, and even though we avoid grains, dairy, and artificial ingredients, we get creative to make some pretty fun treats, like these paleo gingerbread houses!

When I wrote my healthy holiday cookbook Nourishing Holiday a couple of years ago, I knew it had to include a gingerbread man cookie recipe. I started off by creating these fun gingerdoodles cookies, then adapted them to create gingerbread men, which is the finished recipe you’ll find in my cookbook.

I don’t know why I’ve never thought to make gingerbread houses out of the dough, but this year, we were determined to find a way to make paleo gingerbread houses. It worked perfectly, and I found some better/healthier choices for frosting and candy decorations. Basically, this is probably the most fun my kids have had with food since we overhauled our diet, so I’m feeling like a million bucks.

Paleo gingerbread houses: worth the mess!

I know I’m not the only mom who typically avoids messes and big projects. I don’t consider myself a super fun mom. But I want to be, and I want to be more joyful in general, so I’m ending this year with a bang by letting my kids get covered in frosting and put together these cute little houses. We might even make them again before Christmas.

After recently learning that laughter actually boosts your immune system, I’ve determined to laugh more this next year. It doesn’t come naturally, to be honest. Having a child with complex medical and behavioral problems, and just being stretched thin in general as a mom, I think it’s easy to move through the every day hustle and bustle, some days without even so much as smiling.

I really like what one of my favorite companies, The Crowning Jewels, has to say about laughter here: “Laughter unlocks the seeds of purpose. Laughter is good for us. The Bible tells us that a joyful heart is good medicine (Proverbs 17:22).”

I want my kids to remember me being joyful, laughing, and not being too uptight.

I want to say yes more.

So when my kids started asking last week if we could make gingerbread houses, I said “Yes!” I quickly and easily found cookie cutters on Amazon, and you know I Prime-shipped those babies to get them here pronto. 😉

These Paleo Gingerbread Houses are not only paleo-friendly because they’re grain, gluten, dairy, and sugar-free, but they’re also GAPS diet-friendly if you omit the molasses. I actually prefer to make them with butter, but if you’re strictly dairy-free, you can make them with palm shortening. (Note: the cookie part is paleo and GAPS-friendly, read more about the frosting below.)

I’ve sweetened them with dates for optimal digestibility and to add health benefits like vitamins and minerals and fiber. They blend up easily in a high-powered blender like a Vitamix, or a food processor and give the dough some stickiness. You might be able to get away with an egg replacement in this recipe thanks to the stickiness of the dates, though I haven’t tried it yet.

A note on gingerbread house cookie cutters & more

I used this set of cookie cutters because they were very simple. After some trial and error, it seems the smaller pieces go on the sides and the bigger pieces are the roof. This recipe will make 2-3 houses with this set of cutters. There are also templates online that you can print out and trace onto the dough, but having the cutters sure made for tidy lines and quick, easy cutting.

We used organic frosting from the store. It has some powdered sugar in it, so it’s not 100% paleo-friendly, but I’m ok with that. You could also try making your own frosting with homemade coconut or maple powdered sugar, but I was all about keeping things easy this time.

I found naturally-colored holiday candies that don’t contain artificial ingredients, and I felt pretty good about using them, especially for how festive they look! We used these and these.

Really, you could use anything to decorate them, like nuts, seeds, dried fruit, or chocolate chips, but to be honest, getting a stiff enough frosting will be tricky unless you’re willing to keep it refrigerated. Either way, make these paleo gingerbread houses your own and have fun and laugh with your kids!

Print Recipe

Paleo Gingerbread House Recipe

Prep Time30

Cook Time15

Total Time1 15

Servings: Houses

Author: Jaclyn

Ingredients

2 cups blanched finely ground almond flour
1 cup pecans or walnuts
1/2 cup pitted dates
1/3 cup coconut flour
2 eggs
1/4 cup butter or palm shortening room temp
1 tsbp molasses omit for GAPS diet
1 tbsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350*.
In the container of a high-powered blender or food processor, combine nuts, dates, molasses, eggs, butter, vanilla, ginger, and cinnamon. Blend on high until smooth, using the tamper or scraping the sides as you go.
Pour the mixture into a large bowl and add almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda, and salt, and stir until a thick, sticky dough forms.
Chill in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes.
Turn dough out onto large piece of parchment paper or floured surface (tapioca/arrowroot starches are paleo-friendly choices). Place another piece of parchment paper on top, or lightly dust with starch before using a rolling pin to roll dough to 1/4" thickness. (You can divide dough in 2-3 balls to do this in order to have less dough to work with.)
Use gingerbread house cutters like this to cut out two of each shape: two walls, two roof pieces, and two pointed front and back pieces.
Transfer to a lined cookie sheet, then ball up remaining dough and repeat.
Bake 15-18 minutes, until cookies begin to brown on edges.
Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before assembling and decorating.

To put houses together and decorate:

Fill a piping bag, fixed with a small/medium tip or with a small hole cut in the tip, with frosting. We used this organic frosting and it worked well, though it will not get stiff like conventional frosting. It was thick enough to hold things together though. You could try a buttercream made with honey and keep it refrigerated in order to avoid sugar, but it will be hard to get a stiff enough frosting without starch or sugar.
Use frosting to attach the smaller rectangle pieces on the sides of each of the tall, pointed front and back pieces. Place the larger rectangle pieces on either upper side as the roof. Fill in any gaps with frosting.
Use the frosting to decorate the houses and affix dye-free candies to them. We used these and these. You could also use nuts, seeds, dried fruit, and chocolate chips to be more GAPS- or paleo-friendly, as candy still contains sugar, even if it's dye-free and organic!

August 16, 2018

The Animal Cracker Recipe for Paleo & GAPS Diet

It’s time to start thinking about yummy kid foods that are lunchbox-friendly, and this animal cracker recipe fits the bill! Find the recipe below.

When I shared on my personal Facebook page that I was having fun in the kitchen with this animal cracker recipe today, a friend commented “You’re so creative!” I do mention frequently here that I like to get creative in the kitchen, so guilty as charged I guess… but there’s so much more behind my motivation.

When you’re a parent of a kiddo who has to eat a special diet (but let’s be honest, all kids should be eating whole, real foods, regardless of their health or behavioral status!), it can become a sore subject between parent and child.

Kids can begin to feel like they are being deprived and can become resentful that they can’t eat the fun foods their friends eat at school, church, and sports or other activities. From the beginning of our paleo journey, I’ve made it a priority to remake all of my kids’ favorite foods and treats with healthy ingredients they can have.

In the same breath, I’ve made it a priority to teach them about nutrition, explain to them why our family eats the way we do, and make sure the majority of their diet is meats and veggies. (See: Is The Paleo Diet Healthy for Kids? for more information.)

But back to the fun foods. I’ve found that when I provide something that my kids feel is special, they don’t complain about not getting to eat whatever food-dye laced, gluten-filled, hydrogenated pseudo-food is being served up to their unsuspecting peers.

A while back, I started thinking about how fun it would be to recreate an animal cracker recipe with GAPS and paleo-friendly ingredients my kids could have.

I set to work searching for the perfect little cookie cutters and was a little nervous when all I could find was a set on ebay for less than $3 that would be coming from China. But, for less than three bucks, I was willing to risk them never arriving if that was the case. (I’ve since found some on Amazon that I’m not sure how I missed before, and I’ll share those with you below.)

Thankfully, they arrived, and surprisingly quickly. And they worked perfectly! Just look at these little cutie patooties!

One of my little guys mentioned that there was no camel, which I thought odd because they’ve never had “real” animal crackers! Which means that whether these taste just like the real deal or not, my boys think they’re the bees’ knees.

(Because these are GAPS diet-friendly, they contain no starches and are lower in carbs. This means they are a bit softer and more chewy than typical crunchy, starchy animal crackers. But still delightful!)

Yeah, you could turn this animal cracker recipe into any ol’ cutout cookie, but what would be the fun in that? Because of the adorable little shapes, these cookies are just… special.

Which means, when we pack them for snack at church or in a lunch box for our homeschool coop, I won’t get any flack because my kid can’t have whatever packaged food the kid next to him pulls out.

He has animal crackers. That mom made specially for him. And he can make the lion growl or make trumpeting sounds for the elephant and it’s ok to play with his food.

Sorry not sorry, Mister Zebra. Just another example of why animal crackers are so much fun!

My easy animal cracker recipe: the deets

So here’s the thing. These crackers are super duper simple. I based them off of my cheesy crackers recipe in my holiday cookbook Nourishing Holiday, but instead of cheese, I added a little honey and a smidge of vanilla and spices to create a lightly sweetened cookie-cracker.

But- they can be a bit tedious too. I’m not gonna lie, those adorable little cookie cutters were a pain in the behind. You have to wiggle them just right, and the thinner spots like elephant trunks and giraffe necks are prone to breaking. Thankfully, the dough is forgiving and it’s easy to smoosh parts back together.

If you want to keep them uber easy, I would suggest getting regular cookie cutters, which are bigger and don’t have little details for the dough to get stuck in.

But, if you love the authentic look of real animal crackers, these cookies cutters are your best bet.

The trick to tricky cookie cutters

Because the dough for this animal cracker recipe uses alternative ingredients, it’s a bit sticky, which means it sticks to the cookie cutters. I figured out if I pushed the plunger in and out as I wiggled the cookie cutter up off of the dough, it broke away pretty seamlessly.

You can also dip the cutters into a bit of starch before each use.

Mostly, it just takes a little finesse to get the dough from counter to cookie sheet. Let’s break down the steps.

First, you need to roll out the dough between two layers of parchment paper, to about 1/4″ thickness. Carefully use the cookie cutters to cut your shapes, using the tips above.

Transfer the shapes to a parchment or silicone-lined baking sheet. I like to use a thin fish spatula to do the transfer.

Once baked, allow the animal crackers to cool before transferring them to an air-tight container. Or eagerly waiting hands.

See the full animal cracker recipe below!

Print Recipe

Animal Cracker Recipe for GAPS and Paleo Diets

Prep Time30

Cook Time8

Total Time38

Servings: dozen

Author: Jaclyn

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups finely ground almond flour
2 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp coconut flour
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice or ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp baking soda
dash salt

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350*.
Combine dry ingredients in a medium sized mixing bowl.
Add wet ingredients and mix using a hand mixer. Dough may become a bit crumbly.
Roll dough into a ball and place on a large piece of parchment paper, laid on a flat surface. Add another large piece of parchment on top.
Roll out dough using a rolling pin, to about 1/4" thickness.
Use animal-shaped cookie cutters to cut out shapes. If using plunge-style cutters, gently wiggle and push plunger in and out as you pull away from the dough.
Gently transfer shapes to a lined baking sheet, spacing cookies about an inch apart. A thin fish spatula can help with the transfer.
Bake for about 8 minutes, until lightly golden on the edges. Allow to cool before serving or storing in an air-tight container.

July 26, 2018

The Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe | GAPS Diet + Paleo

Although I have a healthy chocolate chip cookie recipe here already, I’ve been wanting to recreate one that is GAPS Diet-friendly, meaning no starches, honey-sweetened, and using a chocolate chip recipe without sugar. I am more than thrilled to report that after several attempts, I finally nailed it! You’ll find my GAPS Diet Chocolate Chip Cookies below.

Ah, chocolate chip cookies, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways…

I have remade chocolate chip cookies every which way for every type of healing diet I’ve done. I’ve replaced the eggs and butter to make them vegan; I’ve made them gluten free (these are truly the absolute best if you want to really indulge and don’t mind some real deal sugar); and, of course, I’ve made my paleo version, which, if I say so myself, are the best paleo chocolate chip cookies I’ve tried to date.

Of course… since our family has been primarily on the GAPS diet for the last couple months, I knew at some point my cravings would get the best of me. I HAD to to make a healthy chocolate chip cookie recipe we could have on GAPS.

I’m happy to say that after several attempts, I came up with the perfect GAPS chocolate chip cookie recipe! (Not that the fam didn’t appreciate all the recipe testing, but I’m so glad I kept tweaking until I got them just right!)

Why you’re going to love my healthy chocolate chip cookie recipe

I was a little apprehensive about using almond flour for my chocolate chip cookies, although it was the obvious choice for the GAPS Diet, as it’s high in fat and protein and low in starchy carbohydrates.

Early in my paleo baking days, it seemed that the popular almond flour chocolate chip cookie recipes needed to be pressed down while baking, or you wouldn’t get the nice, flattened classic cookie. (And I’m just not a huge fan of cake-y cookies that don’t go flat.)

It turned out that almond flour worked perfectly, and with just the right combination of ingredients and technique, you won’t have to flatten these bad boys out. They spread perfectly as they bake.

In addition, if you’re sure to get a very finely-ground almond flour, the texture isn’t too different from the classic cookies you’re used to that use wheat flour, especially if you take the extra time to sift it.

It had truly been a while since I’d treated my boys to a good chocolate chip cookie. They celebrated through every iteration of these GAPS-style ones, but we all agreed, this final version was the best of all. I made them up early this week while the boys played outside (after the 109º weather had subsided).

Something about summer and sunshine gets my creativity flowing and I want to bake, which makes no sense when it’s over a hundred degrees outside. I also enjoy throwing down a nice, cool, refreshing popsicle now and again. But for some reason, summer and chocolate chip cookies go together in my mind.

Summer so far has been a combination of hiding from the heat and watching (too much) Netflix, now-banned video game playing, running in circles around our property, using questionable judgement while riding the four wheeler, and chasing and catching various critters.

This week’s ~~unlucky captive~~ pet is a sweet, little bunny who has somehow survived in this home with four boys for something like four days now.

My oldest plopped her down while I was photographing these cookies and I couldn’t resist capturing her absolute cuteness.

Bright yellow flowers, (healthy) chocolate chip cookies, and baby bunnies. Yes, this feels like summer. As summer should be.

Gosh, I hope she lives because she is just the sweetest, cutest thing. She eats every little piece of kale, grass, and strawberry my boys put in front of her little nose, and we’re giving her water with colostrum, so I’m feeling like she has a good shot.

But you came here for my healthy chocolate chip cookie recipe. Ahem. I’ll get on with it.

Listen, it’s chewy. It’s just a little doughy in the middle; just a little crispy on the outside. Sweetened only with honey for optimal digestion and absorption. Higher in protein and fats and lower in carbs (if you wanted to make them keto, I think you could sub some stevia glycerite and make some small adjustments, but I haven’t personally tried it).

Basically, these cookies are dangerously good. Even Mr. Incredible, who wouldn’t flinch at eating a conventional, junk-filled chocolate chip cookie, said they were killer. I believe his words were “I ate like ten of them.”

I hid a baggie of them away and then accidentally ate all but one myself. Oops. The Mister was thrilled when I whispered that I had saved him one and where he could find it.

A note on the chocolate chips

I knew that in order to make a truly GAPS-friendly chocolate chip cookie, I would have to make the chocolate chips homemade. So I did! And it was so easy and only took a handful of ingredients. Honestly, I had them made in about half an hour.

You can find my easy chocolate chip recipe here, but if you’re not into homemade (or patience), you can always grab a bar of Pure 7 chocolate or a Honey Mama’s bar, both of which are sweetened with honey.

However, making them yourself will save you money and, I think they taste better in these cookies.

You can get your hands on your own batch of dangerously good, but not-so-sinful chocolate chip cookies using the recipe below. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Print Recipe

Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Prep Time10

Total Time10

Servings: dozen

Author: Jaclyn

Ingredients

2 cups fine almond flour sifted for best results
heaping 1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup honey I like a thicker but not quite solid raw honey.
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup butter at room temperature but not too soft
1/4 cup palm shortening
2 eggs
1 Tbsp coconut flour
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Instructions

In a medium mixing bowl, beat butter and shortening on high with a hand mixer, creaming together until fluffy, about 30 seconds.
Add honey and beat once more until combined.
Add vanilla and eggs and beat until combined. Batter may become a bit clumpy looking. This is fine.
Add the almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda, and salt and beat with hand mixer until combined.
Stir in chocolate chips and pecan pieces by hand, then place bowl in refrigerator for 2-4 hours. Alternatively, you can freeze the dough for about an hour.
Preheat oven to 350*.
Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, or use silicone baking mats.
Scoop tablespoon-sized balls of dough onto lined baking sheet, two inches apart.
Bake for 15-18 minutes, until cookies are slightly browned on the edges.
For best results, allow cookies to cool completely before moving them, as these cookies are delicate.

Notes

*If you don't want to make chocolate chips, but still want to keep these cookies GAPS-friendly, you can use either a Pure 7 Chocolate Bar or Honey Mama's chocolate bar (I find them in the refrigerated section at the health food store), cut into chunks. I've tested both and both work well in this recipe.

Just be sure to share!

January 31, 2018

Gouda, Bacon, & Basil Stuffed Pork Chops

Why eat regular ol’ pork chops when you can eat stuffed pork chops? The latter (which I know you’re going to love!) can be found below. Be sure to check out my kalua pork for another flavorful pork recipe!

I really love when Mr. Incredible goes to the grocery store. Not only does he usually bring something home that I normally wouldn’t buy (and then eat guilt-free… hey, I didn’t buy it!), but sometimes he brings home things that are downright magical. Like the gouda stuffed pork chops he brought home last month. I wasn’t sure I would like them or that I even liked gouda… it turns out I did and I do.

Of course, buying pre-made foods at the store is 1. more expensive and 2. limiting when it comes to quality of ingredients. So, in my usual fashion, I recreated a recipe for gouda, bacon, and basil stuffed pork chops and they’ve become a family favorite. They’re that good.

If you can find ethically-raised pork, that is ideal for these chops. And if you can find grassfed gouda, even better. Gouda isn’t exactly a common cheese, so just do the best you can, mmmk?

Can gouda stuffed pork chops go paleo?

Technically, no, but I’ve been experimenting lately with dairy-free cheese spreads and have been really impressed with the Kite Hill almond cream cheese-style spreads. I would suggest stuffing the pork chops with one of these spreads, along with the crispy bacon pieces and basil. I think it would taste uh-mazing.

If you want to make these stuffed pork chops (and you do, trust me!), check out the details below!

Print Recipe

Gouda, Bacon, and Basil Stuffed Pork Chops

Prep Time15

Cook Time25

Total Time40

Servings: Pork Chops

Author: Jaclyn

Ingredients

4 boneless pork chops
4 oz gouda cheese
4 pieces crispy cooked bacon crumbled
1 tbsp chopped fresh basil
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp Real Salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp coconut sugar

Instructions

Start up your grill so that it's about 400º by the time you're ready to grill your stuffed pork chops.
Using a very sharp pairing knife, cut the first pork chop. Starting on the thickest side, cut from side to side. Cut into the chop, leaving about an inch on each side and creating a good-sized pocket, without cutting a hole (which is easier said than done, so cut carefully!).
Repeat with remaining pork chops.
Cut the gouda into thin slices, then divide into four even piles.
Combine the bacon crumbles and chopped basil, then divide into four even piles with the gouda.
Stuff those chops, each with a pile of your gouda and goodies
Combine the salt and spices, then pat over each pork chop, coating each side.
Place chops, stuffed side up, on the grill, and grill for about 20-25 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 160º.