Your Personal Paleo Code: The 3-Step Plan to Lose Weight, Reverse Disease, and Stay Fit and Healthy for Life (40 page)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Place the acorn squash halves cut-side down in a baking dish (or two dishes if necessary) and cook for 30 to 45 minutes, until done. Meanwhile, rice the cauliflower: pulse the small florets in a food processor. Place the cauliflower, now in small pieces, in a pot with the chicken stock, cover, and steam over medium-low heat until softened, about 5 minutes. While the cauliflower is cooking, heat the fat in a sauté pan over medium heat and sauté the onion and celery
until translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms and continue cooking for an additional 5 to 10 minutes. Add the spices. Cook, stirring for a few additional minutes, allowing the flavors to mix.

Remove the acorn squash from the oven and set aside until cool enough to handle. Scoop a small amount around the edge of each acorn squash to make the opening a little bigger. Take the scooped squash and mix it into the cauliflower mixture; this gives the stuffing a nice orange color. Fill the acorn-squash halves with the cauliflower stuffing until heaping.

Feel free to add ½ cup of chopped nuts of your choice to the cauliflower mix for some extra crunch.

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Heat the fat in a cast-iron (or ovenproof) skillet over medium heat, add the onion, ½ teaspoon of the salt, and ¼ teaspoon of the pepper, and cook until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the squash cubes and continue to cook, stirring lightly, until the squash is cooked through but retains its shape, about 10 minutes (do not let it turn mushy). Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, coconut milk, parsley, and remaining ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Pour the eggs into the skillet with the squash and place it in the oven. Bake until the eggs are just set, about 10 minutes. If the top is not browned, place the skillet under the broiler for 1 or 2 additional minutes. Cool briefly, cut into wedges, and serve, accompanied by the salad greens tossed with shallot vinaigrette.

Shape two hamburger patties from the ground beef. Heat the lard in a sauté pan over medium heat, and sauté the hamburgers for 4 to 5 minutes
on each side. Remove and keep warm. Add the mushrooms, salt, and pepper to the skillet and sauté until browned, stirring in the lemon juice while cooking. Add the garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, and parsley and cook for 3 more minutes. Serve the hamburgers topped with the cooked mushrooms and garnished with parsley.

Blanch the broccoli in boiling, salted water for 5 minutes and then refresh with cold water. Drain and set aside.

In a sauté pan, heat the fat over medium-low heat. Add the onion and gently cook for 5 minutes. Add the ginger and cook for about 3 minutes more. Stir in the garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add the red pepper and coriander and cook until the pepper is softened, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, season the cod with salt and pepper and lay the fillets in a pan. Cover with water and add a bay leaf if using. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and cover the pan. Allow the cod fillets to simmer for 8 minutes. They should be fork tender. Remove from the cooking liquid with a slotted spoon and keep warm.

Heat the remaining fat in another sauté pan over medium heat (you can use the same pan you cooked the cod in, if you wish), add the broccoli, and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. When the red pepper sauce is cooked through, turn off the heat and stir in the lime juice. Plate the cod fillets with the broccoli. Divide the sauce between the two plates; garnish with cilantro, and season with salt, if desired.

Gently fold together all the ingredients except the mixed greens and cilantro in a bowl. Serve the tuna with mixed greens on the side and garnish with cilantro.

Toss the zucchini noodles in coarse salt, let drain 20 minutes in a colander, and then plunge into a pot of boiling water for no more than 1 minute. Remove the noodles, refresh in cold water, and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the turkey, onion, garlic, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, egg, and parsley, and salt well. Shape into four patties. If grilling, grill the burgers for about 6 minutes on each side. If cooking on a stovetop, heat the fat in a large skillet over medium heat and cook 6 minutes on each side. Three minutes before the burgers are done, heat the fat of choice in a skillet over high heat and sauté the zucchini noodles for no more than 2 minutes. Serve the burgers accompanied by the noodles.

Marinate the chicken breasts for 1 to 2 hours in brine (3 tablespoons of sea salt dissolved in 1 quart of water). This can be done in advance and helps to keep the breasts moist during cooking. Grill the breasts on low heat, 10 minutes on each side, and then thinly slice them lengthwise. In a small bowl, combine the olive oil with the apple cider vinegar, salt, pepper, shallot, and Dijon mustard to make a vinaigrette. Arrange the romaine on a plate, and top with the sliced red onion, grapefruit, chicken, and black olives. Pour over the vinaigrette and garnish with the tarragon sprigs.

To make the dressing, blend the raspberries, balsamic vinegar, and mustard in a blender. Transfer to a small mixing bowl. Whisk in the olive oil and thyme. Set aside.

Season the salmon fillets with salt and pepper. Heat the fat in a sauté pan over medium-high heat, add the salmon fillets, and cook for 5 minutes on each side.

Meanwhile, in a large salad bowl, toss the greens and nuts (or bacon pieces), 4 tablespoons of the dressing, and any other salad ingredients you want to include. Serve the salmon fillets accompanied by salad.

Preheat the oven to 300°F. To a food processor or blender, add the shallots or red onions, garlic, ginger, chilies, and dried kaffir lime leaves, if using. (If using fresh lime leaves, set aside, as they will be added later.)
Pulse until combined into a purée and set aside. (You can also do this by hand using a mortar and pestle.)

In an oven-safe pot with lid, add the beef and coconut milk. Stir in the spice purée. Then stir in the turmeric, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.

Prepare the lemongrass stalks: Peel off the tough outer layer and discard. Cut off the stem end and the green tops to end up with about a 10-inch piece of lemongrass. Place the stalks on the cutting board and bang on them with a kitchen tool (such as a potato masher or pestle) to release the flavor. Place them in the stew whole (you will remove them later, as you would bay leaves). If you are using fresh kaffir lime leaves, similarly bruise them using a mortar and pestle and add them in this step (to remove with the lemongrass later).

Heat the stew, uncovered, on the stovetop over medium heat until it comes to a simmer. Cover and place the pot in the oven. Cook for 3 hours, stirring once or twice. Carefully bring the pot back to the stovetop and uncover. Remove the lemongrass (and fresh kaffir, if using) with tongs and discard. Bring the stew to a simmer over low heat. Cook, stirring often, until the meat is tender and the sauce has reduced by half, about 45 minutes. Stir constantly toward the end of the cooking process.