Paleo Carrot Cake Muffins

 Mmm...I came across this blog and recipe in my obsession on Pinterest. Over the last month, I have been wanting to be more adventurous with my baking Paleo treats. Although this recipe doesn't call for coconut flour, I experimented with making my own coconut flour by grinding coconut flakes into a powder (I made coconut shrimp from Everyday Paleo....delish). Anyways back to the carrot muffins. I love it when I have all of the ingredients on hand and I needed to use my carrots and an extra ripe banana so this recipe was great for me. The recipe only makes between 12 and 15 muffins and they disappeared rather quickly. I got suggestions that raisins would be a great addition to the muffins. I am excited to try out more Paleo baking treats :)

Ingredients: 
1 1/2 cups almond flour1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 tablespoon cinnamon/pumpkin pie spice
3 eggs
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 ripe banana, mashed
2 tablespoons honey
1 1/2 cups carrots, grated
1/2 cup pecans, chopped


Directions:
1. Combine dry ingredients (almond flour, salt, cinnamon, and baking soda ) In a separate bowl, combine wet ingredients (eggs, banana, oil, and honey).

2. Add the carrots to the wet ingredients and be sure that everything is thoroughly mixed.

3. Combine the wet and dry ingredients and mix all ingredients with a mixer (Oh how I LOVE my Kitchen Aid)

4. Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup,  scoop batter into lined cupcake pan and sprinkle with cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice (my absolute favorite ingredient)

5. Bake in a 325 degree oven for 20-25 minutes. Let cool for 5-10 minutes.

Enjoy :)

Paleo Chocolate Chip Orange Scones

I have been spending way too much time on Pinterest. It is an easy way to distract myself from all of the other work that I should be doing. It has been a stressful start to the new school year. However, I have been thoroughly enjoying the weekends to experiment with different arts and crafts projects and recipe adventures I have found from Pinterest. This weekend I made two delicious recipes from Elana's Pantry. If you haven't checked her out, she has some amazing gluten free recipes. I stumbled upon her blog earlier this summer, but didn't make anything until this weekend. I don't know why it took me so long because both recipes I made this weekend were super easy and amazing, I even had all of the ingredients at home already. I made the Paleo Bread yesterday (I will be experimenting on different variations soon and most likely sharing those later) and this morning I made these scones.

Paleo Orange Chocolate Chip Scones

from Elana's Pantry

Ingredients:

• 2 cups almond flour/meal (the recipe called for blanched almond flour, however I mixed  it half and half with regular almond meal and blanched almond flour)
• ¾ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ cup dark chocolate chips 
• 1 tablespoon orange zest
• 1 egg
• 3 tablespoons agave nectar

Directions:
1. Mix dry ingredients (almond flour,  baking soda, chocolate chips, orange zest) in large bowl.
2. Mix egg and agave together and combine with dry ingredients.
3. Knead the dough with your hands to create a ball (My dough was very sticky). Flatten the dough to about ½ inch thick circle.
4. Cut the dough into mini pizza slices and transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet.
5. Bake for 10-15 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

Step 3

Step 4

Enjoy :)

Paleo Pancakes

Yay for delicious Paleo Pancakes! I am not going to lie...I was somewhat skeptical about pancakes that would taste good and be Paleo. But I think I like these pancakes more than regular ones. They are also super easy to make and only have 3 ingredients! I can't wait to make them again :)

mmm.....

Paleo Pancakes

• 3 bananas
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup Almond Butter  

1. Mash bananas in a large bowl
2. Mix in eggs and almond butter until smooth (you can use more or less almond butter depending on your desired consistency)
3. Heat pan and coat with coconut oil
4. Use a 1/4 cup to pour batter in pan
5. Cook on both sides until brown (about 1-2 minutes on each side)
6. Enjoy with fresh fruit, honey, or maple syrup

Bananas, eggs, almond butter

Mash bananas in large bowl

Mix in eggs and almond butter until smooth

Use a 1/4 cup to pour batter in pan

Enjoy with fresh fruit, honey, or maple syrup

Egg Cupcakes

 This past weekend, I flipped through every page of Everyday Paleo and marked all of the recipes I wanted to try. One of those was Egg Cupcakes. I started my summer school classes for my masters this week and knew that I was going to have to have snacks for the day ready and have little time in the mornings. I made a batch and put them in the fridge for the week. I like them because you can eat them cold straight out of the fridge or I have been heating them up in the toaster oven and eating them with my favorite Chunky Salsa from Trader Joe's. I have been eating two in the morning for breakfast and really like them. Next time I am going to try out a few different variations of ingredients and probably less spinach to make them less watery.

Egg Cupcakes

  (adapted from Everyday Paleo)

• 10-12 eggs
•  1 cup peppers (I used red and yellow mini sweet peppers) 
• 1 cup squash (I used a yellow squash and zucchini from the Grower’s Market)
• 4 slices of cooked bacon (you can use more or less if desired) 
• 4 handfuls of spinach
• 2 cloves garlic 

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease muffin pan (I used Pam). 

 2. Whisk together eggs in a large bowl 

             3. Combine peppers, squash, garlic, and bacon in a food processor. 

          They should be chopped in small pieces and not be a runny consistency. 

4. Add to the bowl of eggs and mix.

5. Put the spinach in the food processor and chop. (I may have used too much spinach and will probably use less next time).

Add the spinach to the egg mixture.

6. Using a 1/4 measuring cup, pour eggs in muffin pan. 

7. Bake 20-25 minutes until center is set. (Makes about 18-20)