Paleo Campfire Cookout

We like to camp, and recently headed down to San Onofre for an easy weekend of surfing, tent sleeping, and hanging with friends.  

There are some hard things about camping:

1) Getting a site.  These suckers in California get booked fast, so you're limited on the spontaneity.  And on a side note, there are 70+ CA state parks set for closure in 2012, so I can only imagine what a hot commodity some of these sites will be next year.

2) The cleanup.  You know when you get home and everything is covered in dirt, stale campfire smell and seawater?  There is no washer big enough....

3) Cooking.  Oh wait...this is the easy part!  Well maybe not as easy as sitting on the beach, but with a little prep, it can come close. And you don't have to be tied to hot dogs, and with some tools you can throw out those sticks (unless you're saving them for s'mores)

Marinate some chicken (I used bone in thighs) in olive oil, garlic, rosemary (or any herbs) , salt & pepper and place it in a large ziplock plastic bag. Place the bag in the freezer overnight, and pack in the bottom of your cooler the next day.  It will act as an icepack, and be thaw by the time you need it. 

Chop some veggies (I used bell peppers, zucchini, yellow squash and cherry tomatoes), place them in a big plastic bag with a little salt & pepper.  

When you get your fire going, place the chicken in a flat grill basket - these are also good for grilling fish and shrimp - and put the veggies in another.  Have a beer and flip/toss as needed! 

Barramundi & Coconut Vegetable Chowder

I have a bunch of cookbooks and get a few food magazines (I cry a little every time I think about my beloved Gourmet), and I really enjoy the challenge of taking recipes that sound delicious, but don't necessarily fit in with our style of eating, and turning them into paleo-friendly dishes.  I channel my favorite chefs, put on one of my many aprons, crank the iPod and have my own little test kitchen session.  Sometimes it works...other times, it's pretty apparent my modifications were less than stellar and our dog Brody gets a nice meal, but in any case it's an adventure.  This recipe came out better than I could have imagined, and there were no leftovers to be had.

I adapted this recipe from the October Bon Appetit magazine, where they took it from Happy Restaurant in Boulder. 

For the chowder:

Heat 1 tbs oil in a large pot - add 1 cup diced onion, 3 kaffir lime leaves (if you can't find them, you can use the zest and juice frPublish Postom 1 lime), 3 large fresh basil leaves, 1 tbs minced fresh ginger, 1 chopped jalapeno with seeds, 2 smashed garlic cloves.  Stir occasionally for 4-5 minutes, then add 3 cups canned coconut milk, 2 cups vegetable broth, 2 tbs salt, 1-2 tsp chili oil, and 1 15oz bottle fresh carrot juice.  Reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered for 1 hour.  Strain out the solids - pressing them to get all the liquid out - and return liquid to pot.

Peel and cube (removing the seeds) of 1 small acorn or delicata squash, then boil until soft.  Add the squash cubes, 1 carrot peeled and cut into matchsticks, 1 red bell pepper cubed, 1/2 cup sliced water chestnuts, 1 small head of grated cauliflower and 2 cups chopped sugar snap peas to the broth.  Simmer for about 5 minutes, or until the vegetables are just soft.

For the fish:

Rinse and pat dry 4 small fillets (I used Barramundi, but you can use any fish really).  Add salt and pepper, and 1 tbs flax seed meal to each fillet, pressing the flax seed meal into the flesh.  Heat up 4 tbs coconut oil in a saucepan, and place fish skin side up*/flax seed side down into the pan.  Cook approx 4 minutes each side.

Serve with avocado slices, lime wedges and fresh basil

*note on cooking fish, the skin side attracts the heat, so if you're broiling fish, skin goes down, if you're grilling/frying, skin goes up! 

Brussels Sprouts, simple & delicious

I like eating Brussels sprouts. We ate them a lot growing up and I remember Dad putting apple cider vinegar on them, or Mom dipping them in mayo. I think this recipe is by far the easiest and tastiest way to have them, as well as much healthier than mayo. There are many people who would rather have teeth pulled or fight a rabid dog than eat these folate packed flora from the cabbage family, so this is a great way to bring them on board.

The citrus makes this a great dish year round, and the almonds add a great finishing crunch. No soggy bland sprouts here!


When you're selecting Brussels sprouts, look for ones that are uniform in size (so they'll all cook evenly) and try to pick the smallest ones out of the bin (the bigger ones tend to be bitter - not wise if you're trying to convert someone!). They're packed with iron, vitamin C, folate, thiamine and fiber. This is a recipe you can throw together in less than 15 minutes!

What you'll need:

• olive oil
• Brussels sprouts - about 4 per person if served as a side
• 2-3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 fresh lemon
• sliced almonds

Instructions:

• Remove small outer leave from Brussels sprouts and cut in half
  
• Mince garlic cloves
• Drizzle pan with olive oil and add garlic
• Turn heat on low and saute garlic for 1-2 minutes
• Add Brussels sprouts to pan with a pinch of salt and cook until tender
• Squeeze one lemon over pan and toss
• Garnish with slivered almonds and serve

You can also add a splash of balsamic vinegar when you are finishing the Brussels sprouts, or garnish with walnut pieces or pecans.