Saucing It Up and Whole30 Steak Stir Fry

Today was a sauce making day. I made ketchup, salsa and a stir fry sauce. I'm glad my food processor is still hanging in there even though it has multiple cracks. 

I made The Clothes Make the Girl's Kickass Ketchup. I followed her recipe exactly except that I omitted the mustard. I used 1/8 tsp cloves and allspice.

I also made the Food Network's Ree Drummond's Restaurant-Style Salsa, minus the sugar. It isn't as good as my friend Eleanor's salsa, but it is tasty, easy and makes a large batch. I was getting tired of just having hot sauce on my eggs in the morning. This salsa will be a delicious change. 

We have a lot of leftover steak from making fajitas this weekend and my FAVORITE use for leftover steak is Steak Stir Fry. Before Whole30 I would make a stir fry sauce with hoisin sauce, ketchup and some other ingredients. But hoisin sauce is definitely off the plan and the kind I buy locally isn't Tommy safe anyway. So I created a new stir fry sauce that is Whole30 and Tommy safe. And instead of rice we'll be having the stir fry with spiralized sweet potatoes. This sauce turned out really good (if I do say so myself). It's sort of sour, a little sweet and has a little spice. And it's super easy.  The flavors worked really well with the steak and sweet potatoes. Yum. 

If you haven't gotten the message, I'm loving my Paderno Spiralizer. It's such an easy way to make veggie noodles and hash browns too. If you don't have a spiralizer, you could always serve this stir fry over rice, millet or quinoa.

Stir Fry Sauce

1/2 cup Kickass Ketchup
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 tsp coconut aminos
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp tamarind paste
1/4 tsp granulated garlic (garlic powder)
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp ground ginger

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Stir until smooth.

Steak Stir Fry with Sweet Potato Noodles

2 sweet potatoes
2 cups cooked and sliced steak
8 oz can sliced bamboo shoots, drained
4 large cremini mushrooms, sliced
3 Tbsp oil, divided
1 recipe Stir Fry Sauce

Cooking the Sweet Potato Noodles
1. Heat 2 Tbsp oil in a dutch oven sized pot over medium heat.
2. Peel the sweet potatoes and chop a little off one of the short ends to make it flat.
3. Firmly press the sweet potato into place on the spiralizer, with the small spiral cutting blade.
4. Cut the sweet potato into spiral noodles. Repeat with the other sweet potato.
5. Add the sweet potatoes to the pot. Cook until crisp tender, carefully stirring the sweet potatoes so they cook evenly.

Preparing the Rest
1. Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
2. Add the mushrooms and saute until browned.
3. Add the steak and bamboo shoots. Saute for a couple minutes until warmed. 
4. Add the stir fry sauce and heat thoroughly, stirring continuously.
5. Pour the contents of the skillet into the noodle pot. Carefully stir together.

Whole30 Pad Thai

I love Thai food. But since Tommy is allergic to rice and peanuts (among other things), he hasn't had the pleasure of trying Thai food yet. I recently bought some tamarind paste and wanted to try and make my own Pad Thai. I couldn't find sugar free Fish Sauce locally and didn't feel like ordering it online, so I used anchovies instead. And dates as the sweetener to make it Whole30 compliant. There's definitely some room for improvement, but it was a lot better than a recipe I tried years ago for a healthier version of Pad Thai. 

The sauce tastes really strong straight out of the food processor. And it's very thick. But it mellowed out a lot when I added it to the veggies and chicken. Tommy only tried a couple bites with the sauce since he's never had tamarind before, but he LOVED it. I hope he still likes it tomorrow! 

I cooked the sweet potatoes and the cabbage together, but that didn't work out all that well. The cabbage needed more cooking time and the sweet potato noodles pretty much broke down into tiny pieces. So I wrote the recipe with the way I should have done it and cooked the cabbage separately and added it to the noodles at the end. 

Overall I would definitely call this a success. Of course it's not as good as authentic Pad Thai, but for an allergen friendly and Whole30 compliant recipe it was pretty good. I'll definite make this again. Probably with a couple tweaks...

Whole30 Pad Thai

3 grilled chicken breasts, diced
1 head green cabbage, sliced thin
1 large sweet potato, spiralized
2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
4 medjool dates, pitted
1.5 Tbsp tamarind paste
2 anchovies fillets
1 Tbsp coconut aminos
Juice of 1 lime
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1. Combine the dates through red pepper flakes in a food processor until smooth.
2. Heat 1 Tbsp oil over medium heat in a dutch oven size pot. Add the cabbage and saute until tender. Remove cabbage from the pot and set aside for later.
3. Add the remaining oil to the pan. Cook the spiralized sweet potatoes until tender but still firm. Add the cabbage, chicken and sauce. Carefully stir to combine until all ingredients are warm.

Whole30 Double Batch Meatloaf, Onion Sweet Potatoes and Roasted Prosciutto Brussels Sprouts

The last two weeks I made double batches of meatloaf. It's just as easy to make a double batch as a single. The leftover meatloaf is great diced up with veggies and eggs for breakfast. Or even by itself as an after workout snack. 

Whole30 Double Batch Meatloaf

2 lb ground pork
1.25 lb ground turkey
1.25 lb ground bison
1 cup dry minced onions
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup Sweetener Free Ketchup
2 Tbsp coconut flour
2 tsp salt
2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp ground sage

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two rimmed baking sheets with tin foil.
2. Combine onion and coconut milk in a small bowl. Let sit for 5 minutes.
3. Pour all ingredients (except for 1/4 cup of the ketchup) into a very large bowl. Mix thoroughly with your hands.
4. Split the meat mixture between the two pans and form into loaves. Spread the 1/4 cup remaining ketchup over the top of the loaves.
5. Bake for 50 minutes. Optional, broil for the last two minutes to form a crust.
6. Remove from oven and let it rest for at least 5 minutes before cutting.

Roasted Prosciutto Brussels Sprouts

1 lb Brussels sprouts, trimmed and quartered
1 oz prosciutto, cut into chunks
zest from 1/2 of a lemon
oil
salt
pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Layer Brussels Sprouts, prosciutto and lemon zest in a 9 x 13 baking dish.
3. Drizzle with oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss together.
4. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring once

Onion Sweet Potatoes

3 sweet potatoes
2 Tbsp oil
1 Tbsp dried minced onions
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Peel and cube the sweet potatoes. Toss all ingredients together in a 9 x 13 baking dish.
3. Bake for 35-40 minutes, stirring once.

Whole30 Greek Taco Salad

Earlier this week I bought a pound of ground lamb at the grocery store with no real plan for it. I was just excited that it would be a nice change and we already know Tommy can eat lamb. I was looking up ground lamb recipes and stumbled upon Jeff Mauro's Greek Taco Recipe. We have enough of these ingredients to be able to make something very similar. And it didn't take very many adjustments at all to make it Whole30 compliant. I also added chopped avocado to the salad. 

I only had 1 lb of lamb, so that's what I used. And I had giant regular yellow onions and not red onions. For the red wine I used red wine vinegar. For the cucumber and tomato relish I used 1/4 of an onion since my onions were huge. I made my own tatziki sauce that fit the program. The sauce was the best the second day and then got weird after a couple days. 

The first time I had the salad it was delicious. But the leftovers weren't as satisfying. I think the sauce is best prepare in advance and then the salad is best the first time. 

Whole30 Tatziki Sauce

1 cucumber
Pinch of salt
1 cup cream from a can of coconut milk
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp dried basil

1. Peel the cucumber and grate it on the big hole side of a box grater. Place the cucumber in a collander fitted over a bowl and season with a pinch of salt. Let sit for 10 minutes.
2. Squeeze the cucumber to remove more liquid. Combine the cucumber and the remaining ingredients in a bowl. 
3. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours. Stir before serving.

My New Favorite Meal - Buffalo Chicken Alfredo with Sweet Potato Noodles

I've made Brittany Angell's Buffalo Chicken Alfredo with Sweet Potato Noodles twice in the last two weeks. It's soooo good. It's rich, creamy, a little spicy and so satisfying. I barely had to modify it to make it Whole30 compliant. Both times I doubled the sauce and added more veggies to the sweet potatoes to make it a one dish meal. It is really delicious reheated as leftovers too. 

The first time I used three smaller sweet potatoes and one head of cauliflower that I cut into florets and roasted. The second time I used one giant sweet potato and added leftover chopped broccoli to the cooked noodles.

I followed Brittany's recipe for the sauce and noodles. Check out her recipe here. I doubled her recipe for the sauce, except I used one whole can of full fat coconut milk for the cream, only used two tablespoons tapioca starch, one tablespoon of refined coconut oil for the butter and omitted the chili powder. 

This week's version was even better than the one I made last week. Last time I roasted boneless skinless chicken thighs in the oven. But they didn't crisp up the way I had hoped. This time I grilled boneless skinless chicken breasts seasoned with salt, pepper, smoke paprika and olive oil. The chicken was so flavorful with a nice crispy outside and super moist inside. My absolute favorite way to cook chicken.

Whole30 Carnitas Taco Salad

Over the weekend we made Carnitas Taco Salad. Oh man this was one of my Whole30 meals so far. It's delicious, filling and really really good as leftovers. I made the same pork as before (Carnitas Tacos) except I reduced the cayenne pepper. Last time Tommy had a spicy bite and burst into tears. So this time it was more mild but still had a little spice. I made an Whole30 compliant Avocado Lime Dressing. My usual favorite Creamy Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette contains sugar. And we still had Wholly Guacamole instead of whole avocados. I didn't really miss the cheese or tortilla with this taco salad. 

Whole30 Carnitas Taco Salads

Layer the following:

Lettuce

Sauteed Peppers and Onions

Carnitas

Tomato and Onion Relish

Guacamole

Avocado Lime Dressing

Sauteed Peppers and Onions

3 bell peppers (a mix of red, yellow or orange)

1 large onion

1 Tbsp oil

1/2 Tbsp garlic pepper (or a mix of dry minced garlic and red pepper flakes)

1/2 tsp salt

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium/medium low heat.

2. Add the remaining ingredients and saute until the peppers and onion caramelizes. 

Carnitas

3.5 lb Boneless Country Style Ribs
1/2 Tbsp smoked paprika
1/2 Tbsp ground black pepper
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt

1. Optional: Line Crock Pot with liner.
2. Combine all ingredients and cook on high for 4-6 hours or low for 8-10 hours.
3. Shred pork, discarding any big chunks of fat.
4. Using a gravy separator, separate out the fat and add the juices back to the pork.

Tomato and Onion Relish

1/4 of a medium onion, finely diced

3 Roma tomatoes, diced

1/4 tsp salt

Squeeze of lime juice

Combine in a small bowl.

Whole30 Avocado Lime Dressing

1/4 cup avocado oil

2 Tbsp guacamole

2 Tbsp lime juice

1 Tbsp fresh cilantro leaves

1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

1/2 tsp salt

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender. Process until smooth.

Meal Planning - Week of March 10

So far, cooking Whole30 dinners have been pretty easy to make for our whole family. I am glad that Whole30 is very similar to what Tommy eats anyway so I don't have to do many adjustments. We all have different foods for breakfast, and Tommy and I tend to have similar lunches. Last week we made a big batch of meatloaf and it was so good as leftovers. It was delicious as is and also with eggs for breakfast. So we're definitely having meatloaf again this week.

Today I finally received my Paderno Spiralizer and Coconut Aminos. Coconut Aminos are made from coconut tree sap and are a soy free alternative to soy sauce. I am so excited about my Paderno Spiralizer. It's sort of like a rotating mandoline. It allows you to cut veggies into noodles and other spiral shapes. I tried it tonight with sweet potatoes and it worked great! I'm so excited for another way to eat sweet potatoes. I'm getting sick of mashed and roasted sweet potatoes. 

Monday - Brittany Angell's Buffalo Chicken Alfredo with Spiralized Sweet Potato Noodles with cauliflower

Tuesday - Pork Lo Mein (Based off of Brittany Angell's Paleo Lo Mein with Spiralized Noodles)

Wednesday - Sweetener Free Meatloaf, Onion Sweet Potatoes and Carrots, and Brussels Sprouts

Thursday - Leftovers 

Friday - Brittany Angell's Paleo Crispy Coconut Mango Chicken, but with fish instead

Saturday - Turkey Pepper Stir Fry

Sunday - BBQ