Cosmic Rhino

I have to say that in addition to remarkable weight loss and performance improvements, the July paleo nutrition challenge at CrossFit Long Beach also brought some amazing recipes to light. Melissa made yet another amazing snack for us - pumpkin bread! She said it was very easy to make and I can vouch for its tastiness.

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups almond flour
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 pinch ground cloves
• 2 tablespoons butter

Here’s another one from Mei who brought these into the gym last night. The lucky ones who got to try them (me) went crazy over them. Ryan said they were like a macaroon so I’m going with that name. (Jill, the kids will love these!)

Ingredients

• 3 cups unsweetened dried coconut (or you can use unsweetened coconut chips for more texture)
• 1 1/2 cups raw macadamia nuts (or toasted, if desired)
• 1 1/2 cups raw walnuts
• 8 medjool dates (if dates are dry, you might need to add more. See Instructions)
• pinch of sea salt

Mei, one of my CrossFit Long Beach friends, just made this and said it was delicious. I wanted to share with everyone now because I can tell it’s going to be amazing.

On the spiralizer, I am shopping for one now. Mei has this spiralizer and loves it. She also recommends the horizonal kind, not the vertical ones.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 4 zucchini
• 2 handfuls basil (leaves removed from stems)
• 3 garlic cloves
• pinch sea salt (or any salt you have)
• juice of 1 lemon
• 3/4 cup olive oil

These gluten-free, sugar-free snack bars are a CrossFit Long Beach favorite. This is a simplified version of recipe from Mark’s Daily Apple.

Ingredients

• 1 cup toasted slivered almonds (at TJs)
• 1 cup toasted, salted pecans (at TJs)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut (Whole Foods or health food store)
• 1/2 cup almond butter (at TJs)
• 1/2 cup coconut oil (Whole Foods or health food store)
• 1/2 cup almond flour/ meal (at TJs)
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup dried unsweetened blueberries (at TJs)

Instructions

For this recipe, I modified my sister’s sugar-free no-bake brownie bites. I wanted to remove the honey and reduce the dates to reduce the overall natural sugar level. To substitute, I added shredded coconut and coconut oil. They turned out great. Here’s the recipe.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup toasted unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons almond butter
• 2/3 cup unsweetened dates, with seeds removed.
• 1/2 cup walnuts, crushed
• 2 cups almond meal
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 1/2 tsp salt

Instructions

1. In a skillet, toast coconut until golden brown. Remove from pan and set aside.

I’m posting this one for my sweet friends Melissa, Emily and Margie. My sister made these for the family a couple of weeks ago and they were a hit. So, I made them for Chad, and passed them out to friends both at home and at CrossFit Long Beach. They went very fast–good post workout recovery snack. I hope you like.

Ingredients

• 2 cups almond meal
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup unsweetened dates, with seeds removed. If you dates are really dry, you may need a few more.

This is a family favorite and I’m posting it at my mom’s request:

Ingredients:

• 1 organic whole chicken thawed
• 1 lemon
• Olive oil
• Salt, pepper and garlic powder (feel free to add any additional dry herbs if you have them handy)
• Optional: any fresh herbs like rosemary, thyme, oregano, fresh garlic

Instructions:

I’ve been working on a quick version of this Cosmic Rhino recipe and finally figured out the right formula. This version has no cream and uses Trader Joe’s frozen vegetables so no chopping required. I’ve been making this on Sunday so that we have breakfasts or lunches for the next couple of days already made.

Ingredients:

• 2 bags of TJs frozen spinach - I used the 10oz pesticide-free bag
• 1 bag of TJs frozed roasted bell peppers (red,  yellow, green) and onions.
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper

My mom was in the mood for a healthy but hearty stew and found this on WebMd. She said it was lovely with a nice flavorful broth and thickened up nicely.

Ingredients:

• 3 minced garlic cloves
• 1/2  onion (or more, to taste)
• 1 lb of lean beef, cut into 1″ pieces (grass fed, if you can find it)
• 1 cup of red wine (optional)
• 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
• 3 large carrots cut into 1 inch pieces
• 3 stalks of celery cut into one inch pieces

Here’s a great recipe from Girl Gone Primal. It was so good, my mom and sisters and I made it twice in one week.

Ingredients

• 1 large head of cauliflower
• 2 cups cheese (mozzarella, cheddar, or a combo of both)
• 2 eggs
• Optional herbs (thyme, fennel, oregano, basil & parsley all work wonderfully)

Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Line pan or pizza stone with parchment paper.
3. Rice the cauliflower by putting florets into a food processor and buzzing until finely processed (but not mushy). Place cauliflower into a microwave-safe bowl and zap for 6-8 minutes. You should end up with about two cups of riced cauliflower.