Paleo Slowcooker Curry Beef Soup

Paleo Slowcooker Curry Beef Soup
Makes 6 Servings
Recipe found on Everyday Paleo

1 tbsp of Thai red curry paste
2 cans coconut milk (not light!)
1 cup chicken broth
2 pounds cubed stew meat
1 cup baby carrots
½ bag shredded cabbage
16 oz. sweet potatoes, sliced or diced
Optional: red pepper flakes to taste

Mix all ingredients in a crock pot and cook on low 8 hours or until sweet potatoes and carrots are soft and stew meat falls apart.

Nutritional Information: 521 calories, 22 carbs, 33 fat grams and 29 protein grams.

Review: Thee difference between full vs. light coconut milk  is amazing - this was SO tasty and brothy - lots of good fat, and lots of protein, too, from the meat. And of course, the sweet potatoes helped beef it up, too. If you're worried about calories being too high, sub in 1 can of light coconut milk. I'm realizing with Paleo that calories just don't matter - it's low-carb, higher-fat and higher-protein which is so hard to get used to. However, recipes like this remind me why - it's so much more satisfying and filling to eat this way, and this is a great recipe that supports this Paleo-style eating!

Chicken Lo Mein

Chicken Lo Mein 
Makes 4 Servings
Recipe inspired by Blog Chef

1 pound chicken
5 tbsp soy sauce
5 teaspoons cornstarch
1 tsp fresh ginger
1 tbsp fresh garlic
4 tsp sesame oil, divided
1 cups carrots, shredded
1 cup cabbage, sliced thin
8 ounce fat-free chicken broth
3 green onions (sliced)
1 package (10 oz.) Somen noodles (Japanese noodles; cooked and drained)

In a large bowl combine chicken, soy sauce, cornstarch, ginger, and garlic. Mix well and set aside for 10 minutes. Heat 1 teaspoon of sesame oil in a skillet over high heat. Remove chicken with a slotted spoon reserving marinade. Add to the skillet and stir fry until chicken is no longer pink (7-8 minutes). Remove from the skillet and set aside. Add another teaspoon of sesame oil to the skillet and add carrots. Stir try for 1 minute. Remove from the skillet. Add remaining 2 teaspoons of sesame oil and add cabbage and cook for 1 minute. Add chicken broth and the reserve marinade to the wok. Add the cooked chicken and vegetables. Cook until the sauce has thickened (about 1 minute). Mix the chicken and sauce mixture with the cooked linguini and mix in green onions.

Nutritional Information: 467 calories, 63 carbs, 6 fat grams and 37 protein grams.

Review: First, Somen noodles are kind of awesome. Even without any sauce, they have a lot of flavor straight out of the pot plain. I found them at Publix and couldn’t wait to use them. Now, I didn’t have to use 10 oz. (i.e. 5 servings) – but I figured I’d try them all. You can easily take this dish down in calories & carbs by using 4 servings instead. On to the dish – it was a lot of food and very filling. The veggies added a lot of crunch and flavor, and the sauce made up of spices and cornstarch had a great taste and went well with the somen noodles. Great dish, Austin was a fan, we’ll be having it again!

Baked Turkey Egg Rolls

Baked Turkey Egg Rolls
Makes 4 Servings (of 2 egg rolls each)
Recipe adapted from Annie’s Eats

2 celery stalks
½ head cabbage, shredded/diced
1 tbsp canola oil
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp minced fresh ginger
½ cup onion, diced
1 pound purdue 99% fat-free ground turkey breast
5 tbsp soy sauce
½ tsp red chili pepper flakes
1 tsp siracha
8 egg roll wraps

Chop celery into small chunks in food processor. Combine in a microwave safe bowl with cabbage and microwave, covered for 5 minutes. Add onion to food processor and chop until slushy. Add garlic and ginger until all are blended. Heat large pan over medium heat with oil. Spoon mixture into skillet and sauté in oil for 2-3 minutes. Add ground turkey and 3 tbsp soy sauce; cook until no longer pink, breaking up turkey further as you cook it. Drain any excess liquid and return to skillet. Add cooked cabbage and celery, remaining soy sauce and red chili pepper flakes. Stir until combined, remove from heat and allow to cool for 4-5 minutes. Heat oven to 400 degrees, spray a cookie sheet with non-stick spray and get out a small cup of water. Lay 8 egg roll wrappers on a big sheet of wax paper. Spoon mixture onto each, ensuring they have the same amount of filling. Roll each and seal with water. Bake for 10 minutes, turn and bake for 5 minutes or until browned.

Nutritional Information: 354 calories, 42 carbs, 5 fat grams and 34 protein grams.

Review: The outside was really crispy and they had a nice spicy taste. I thought the turkey added an interesting twist - I liked how much it broke up - the pieces were tiny and so every bite tasted meaty rather than cabbagey if you know what I mean! The ginger/garlic/onion mixture was a great add too, and made the turkey taste extra juicy. I also liked that the meal was two packed egg rolls, very filling and a good, light eat. I worried it wouldn't reheat well, but we tested it with a George Foreman and it crisped right up! So good to reheat at home, but not at work (unless you can bring a panini maker to work!).

Inside Out Egg Roll Stirfry

Inside Out Egg Roll Stirfry
Recipe adapted from allrecipes.com
Makes 4 Servings

1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 pound 96/4 ground beef
½ tsp siracha
½ tsp lawry’s seasoning salt
1/2 small head cabbage, shredded
1 red or green bell pepper, diced
4 tbsp light soy sauce
3 tsp cornstarch mixed with 1 cup beef broth
1 tsp ground black pepper
2.5 cups white microwavable rice, cooked with 2.5 cups beef broth and 1/2 tsp lawry's

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add oil. Sauté garlic for 5 seconds, then add ground beef, siracha and lawry’s. Stir-fry until beef is just brown, 5 minutes. Add cabbage and bell pepper, and cook until vegetables are tender, and beef is fully cooked, 7 minutes. Stir in soy sauce and cornstarch mixture. Season with pepper. Cook, stirring, until sauce has thickened.

Nutritional Information: 438 calories, 58 carbs, 8 fat grams and 29 protein grams.

Review: This was unexpected! I'd never cooked with beef broth before, so to cook it into the rice and meat dish added a lot of flavor. The lawry's added a lot to both dishes. It tastes just like an inside out egg roll (original recipe name: Beef & Cabbage Stirfry). It had lots of sauce and if you'd replaced the rice with an egg roll wrapper, I swear it would have been an egg roll. The servings were large so it was super hearty. Between the rice, beef and cabbage it was filling - almost like a chili.