Stuffed peppers

This came from a recipe intended to be cooked in a slowcooker, so we have changed it a certain amount.
The portion sizes, we have found are about right, but you could just as easily use a whole pepper per person.

Stuffed peppers

2 large peppers
750g pork mince
half a cauliflower
2 onions
2 carrots
2 tsps garlic, crushed or chopped
3 tbsp tomato puree
2 tbsp plus 2 tsp dried mixed herbs
400g tin of chopped tomatoes

Put the cauliflower, carrot and one onion through the food processor until you have a crumb-like mixture.
Using a LARGE bowl, mix together these vegetables with 1 tsp garlic, 2 tbsp mixed herbs, the tomato puree and the minced pork.
Cut the peppers in half lengthways, so you make 4 'boats'.
Pack the meat mixture into the peppers.  Any left can be made into meatballs or patties.
Place the peppers (and meatballs) into a cooking dish that is a snug fit, so they hold each other up.
Cook at 190C for one hour.
While the peppers are cooking, prepare the tomato sauce.
Into a small pan, put the tin of tomatoes, 1 tsp garlic, one onion and 2 tsp mixed herbs.
Cook gently for about 20 minutes, so it is slightly thick.
Serve one pepper boat, with quarter of any meatballs, with tomato sauce.

In the dish

and with tomato sauce

Teriyaki chicken with cauli-rice pilaff

This is a simple way of serving chicken, although some people would consider that it isn't strict paleo - it certainly isn't suitable for whole30

Teriyaki chicken is made with a marinade.  A marinade needs to have vinegar and oil in it, and ideally to 'soak' into the meat for several hours.  If you are organised, you can mix up the marinade, bag the meat up with it and freeze it in advance.  It can then be marinading, while it defrosted.

Teriyaki Chicken

600-800g boneless skinless chicken pieces, cut into bite size chunks
1 clove of garlic, chopped or crushed
4 tbsp honey
150ml soy sauce
4 tbsp water
1.5 tsp ground ginger
3 tbsp olive oil
3-4 tbsp vinegar or white wine

Combine the marinade ingredients.  If you are going to freeze/chill this, place in a ziplock bag with the chicken.  If you are going to cook the chicken within the next few hours, you could put it into the cooking dish, if you have space to chill it while it soaks.

To cook:  Thaw if frozen.  Cook in oven at 180 C for 40-45 minutes; 30 minutes covered and then 10-15 uncovered.  Ensure the chicken chunks are cooked.  Use the marinade as a sauce over the cauli-rice.

Cauli-rice pilaf

I don't know where I got my recipe for cauli-rice pilaf, as I don't seem to find it again.  When I find it, I am happy to credit that source.

1 head of cauliflower, pulsed in food processor until rice-like
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp lard
2 carrots, grated
3 salad onions, sliced
1 clove of garlic, crushed or chopped
1 small onion, diced
1 tsp vegetable boullion
100g mushrooms, diced

Melt oils and add carrots, onions and garlic.  Saute until fragrant, about 3 minutes. 
Add mushrooms and cook 2-3 minutes.
Add cauli-rice, then boullion.  Stir to combine.  Add 2 tbsp of water to prevent it burning onto the pan.
Cook gently for about 5 minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste.
Very filling

Comfort food for winter

Thursday 3rd January 2013

We have found that Aldi sells a 800g pack of minced beef that still contains a reasonable amount of fat - a lot of the supermarkets have taken most of the fat out, so you need to add fat when cooking to prevent it sticking, which seems rather pointless.  Cauliflowers have been smaller this year due to the wet weather, but you need about 600g of raw cauliflower for the mash; you probably could use frozen cauliflower for this.

We had shepherd's pie from Mark's Daily Apple's Primal cook book, which uses cauli-mash as the topping.  There are various vegetables in the mince mixture - carrots, peas and green beans.  We use fresh carrots cut into small pieces and snap the green beans into shorter pieces while they are still frozen.  You could always use whatever veggies you had, and the mash could also been made from celery, celeriac or parsnips. 

This recipe is good as there is 30 minutes while it is in the oven that you can go away and do something else.  Easy and tasty, even for novice cooks - and they get to play with the food processor!