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Orange Marmalade Muffins

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Hello, friends! It’s been a long while since I have posted anything. I’ve been busy writing, parenting, and living.

The Corona virus has changed life pretty rapidly and remarkably in the past few weeks. While my kids are schooling remotely, I am trying to regain my footing in this new reality. Baking always eases anxiety! I craved something moist, barely sweet and rich in flavor. I found a few different recipes for orange muffins but I was appalled by the amount of sugar! So I halved the sugar and used raw honey instead. I took a page out of Ina’s book and added an orange juice glaze at the end for added sweetness. I think they are perfect and they are VERY moist. They taste just like orange marmalade. Perfect with a cup of tea!

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Orange Marmalade Muffins

Prep

Cook

Total

Yield 22 muffins

I baked these to use up some oranges I had in my fruit bowl, sprucing up a basic orange almond cake recipe. I halved the sugar and replaced it with raw honey. Feel free to add 1/4 cup more honey if you prefer this to be a VERY sweet treat. I think it's a perfect, moist and barely sweet orange muffin. Because you use the whole orange, including the rind, it reminds me of orange marmalade. Try these in the morning slathered with salted butter!

Ingredients

  • 6 medium naval oranges (I used Cara Cara)
  • 6 eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups fine ground almond flour
  • generous pinch of salt
  • 1/2 cup raw honey
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract

For Glaze:

  • juice of 3 oranges
  • 2 T honey or sugar

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
  2. Wash the oranges and place 3 of them in sturdy saucepan and cover with water. 
  3. Boil the oranges for about 30 minutes.
  4. While the oranges are boiling, line two muffin tins with paper liners, or butter and flour well. If using a cake pan, butter and flour well, and use parchment rounds for the bottom. Butter and flour the parchment as well. 
  5. Remove the oranges from water and let cool. Slice into quarters. Remove peel from 1 orange and set aside*. Add the orange quarters to a high-speed blender or food processor and blend. Keep it chunky. Set aside.
  6. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs. Add vanilla, salt, honey and mix well. Add the almond flour and baking powder and mix until just combined. 
  7. Add the pureed oranges to the bowl and mix well. 
  8. Using an ice-cream scoop, fill each muffin tin. 
  9. Bake at 400 degrees for about 12-17 mins (check often). They are ready when a toothpick comes out clean. If making a cake, use a 9 inch round cake pan and bake for about 40-50 mins.
  10. While muffins bake, juice three oranges and add to a small saucepan with the honey or sugar. Boil the juice for about 12 minutes until it reduces by about half and is syrupy. 
  11. While muffins are cooling, poke each one several times with a toothpick and spoon warm orange juice over each one. 
  12. Enjoy! 

Serve immediately, or refrigerate.

Notes

*If you are getting fancy, thinly slice the orange peel and toss with a few pinches of cinnamon and some sugar for decoration!

Courses Dessert, Snack, Breakfast

Go Ancestral in 2020

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As we start out a new decade, I’ve been thinking a lot about where I started in 2010 with my diet and lifestyle choices. Many, many things have changed, and I have changed as a result.

It’s becoming more and more apparent to me that fewer and fewer humans are able to live lives the way we were designed to live. It’s literally making us sick. I live in New York City, the original concrete jungle. My kids’ “recess” is on the city playground, or a black top. Some days they don’t even go outside! And I notice that this happens for me, too. Most of us are chained to desks, cars, and phones or computers for most of our day. Our ancestors knew instinctively what humans need. We still have this wisdom living within us, if we learn to listen.

Here are some easy tips for living a more ancestral life in 2020:

Get outside. You know how you always breathe a sigh of relief being in nature? There’s a reason people show nature scenes when they want to keep people calm. It’s literally working on our bodies on a cellular level. So walk to work, get outside, sit in the grass, climb a tree, hike anywhere (even Central Park has awesome climbing rocks!) and if you can, get some outdoor exercise. Notice the world, and the other people around you. Grass in your toes feels amazing because we are meant to be outside!

Eat animal foods. Animal foods provide the most easily digestible complete proteins, and contain the most bioavailable nutrients. Eggs, salmon, steak, duck, you name it. Eat close to the earth, the highest quality animal foods you can afford and don’t overcomplicate it. It doesn’t have to be expensive. Find a local butcher, or better yet, a farmer and get to know them. If you need coaching, reach out to me.

Ditch processed foods. This is very hard, as we are all so used to processed foods. But what would happen if you– for one month– didn’t eat anything from a package? If you ate meats, fish, eggs, vegetables, and fruits and nothing from a package? What might change? What might you discover?

Sit in the sun. I’ve spent most of my life being afraid of the sun. This past year I wore sunscreen quite sparingly, and even though I am fair, I didn’t burn. (There is a theory that an animal-based diet helps prevent and lessen sunburns. I don’t know if this is true, but I can tell you it was definitely my experience.) I was careful and thoughtful about my sun exposure, but I made sure to incorporate at least ten minutes of direct sun a day. It’s a fantastic source of vitamin D, which most people are deficient in, so I also supplement with a good vitamin D/vitamin k2 supplement.

Wear blue-light blockers. Many of you have probably heard of this, and with all our screen time these days it’s really crucial. You can get glasses that block the blue lights from lightbulbs and and filters for your screens so you can sleep better and rest your brain. Exposure to blue light can mess with your hormones and sleep, which can cascade into a big issue.

Connect with others. Human beings are social creatures. We aren’t meant to be alone, we are meant for connection with others. So start that book club, or knitting circle, or join that ultimate frisbee club. Go to church or volunteer. Make dates and try new things. Continue to evolve in your relationships and work on true connection. Your health will improve.

Slow down. Our world is faced-paced and most of us feel pressure to do it all! Say no to the things you don’t want to do. Slow down. Take time to do nothing. Read that novel sitting on your bedside table for the whole day. See how slowly you can eat a meal or take a walk. It will change you.

Happy 2020!

Herb and Mustard Marinated Lamb Chops

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This recipe is our favorite summer lamb recipe. It’s expensive, so we only do it a couple of times per year but I make a lot as they are so easy to throw on the grill. They are best eaten with your hands so make sure to have plenty of napkins handy!

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Marinated Lamb Chops

This is our favorite recipe that I've been making for almost 14 years. The tang of the vinegar helps tenderize the lamb and is the perfect counterbalance to the gaminess. The flavors of rosemary, garlic and mustard are rich and delicious. I always buy extra to make sure everyone has enough!

Ingredients

  • 3 racks lamb chops, trimmed and cut into individual chops
  • 2 cloves garlic (or 1 large), chopped
  • 1 T dijon mustard
  • 2 T red wine vinegar
  • 3 T chopped fresh rosemary (or try a combination of rosemary & fresh mint), or any herbs, like tarragon and thyme
  • 2 pinches sea salt
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • salt and pepper

Instructions

  1. Combine mustard, garlic, vinegar, herbs, olive oil,  jvdn fm pinches sea salt in a bowl and mix well. 
  2. Place chops in a large bowl or ziplock bag and pour marinade over lamb, making sure to coat evenly. 
  3. Marinate for at least 1 hour, longer if possible. Make sure to remove chops from the fridge about 30 minutes before cooking.
  4. Salt and grind fresh pepper over lamb chops before cooking. 
  5. Prepare grill or grill pan over medium high heat until hot and smoking.
  6. Grill each chop about 1 minute per side until medium rare (err on the side of less). Let chops sit for 10 minutes before devouring. 

A Coconut Lover’s Dream: The Coconut Custard Cloud Cake

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I did it! ALL I wanted for my birthday this year was to create the perfect paleo version of a fluffy coconut cake. And, people, this one is amazing.

Coconut cake and I have a long history. Bernice Stroud first introduced me to real Southern coconut cake when she would bring them to our family in her signature moss-green cake carrier. The cakes were good enough to sell, five layers or so with sweet 7-Minute Icing. (She also made a killer German Chocolate cake!)

For fifteen years my husband and I lived in the West Village and each birthday all I craved was a huge slice of coconut cake from Magnolia Bakery. I wasn’t particularly fond of their cupcakes, but the coconut cake was moist, dense, and light at the same time.

And coconut, well, it’s like my kryptonite. I keep three or fours cans of coconut milk in the pantry, as well as a few cans in the fridge if I want to make coconut whipped cream (refrigeration keeps the water separate from the ‘cream’). As a dairy-free person, coconut comes in handy all the time for sauces, baking, smoothies, and quick curries. (Coconut yogurt is also amazing!)

Not everyone is so fond of coconut, I realize. While it is profoundly upsetting to me that people may not appreciate this cake, I have included a lemon version (though not tested!) in the Notes. Again, props to paleoglutenfree.com for the amazing grain-free recipe!!!!

May you sleep on a fluffy cloud of coconut custard and merengue!

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Coconut Custard Cloud Cake

Prep

Cook

Total

Yield 1 8 inch layer cake

Here she is! The best coconut cake that is gluten, dairy, and grain-free! This cake has a fair amount of sugar in it, so from a health perspective, it's still a treat. 

This cake has three steps: cake, custard, and icing. The cake and the custard can be made a day ahead of time and kept in the fridge. The icing is best made fresh (and only takes 7 minutes!). 

Make SURE to toast the coconut- this step is crucial for giving the cake that depth of coconut-y flavor! 

Read Notes for a lemon version if coconut isn't your thing. 

I MUST give a shout-out to Paleoglutenfree.com. She is amazing and this cake recipe is based on her lemon-vanilla cake, with a few adjustments. 

This recipe yielded one 9 inch layer and one 8 inch layer. Note that this cake doesn't rise and fluff up as a normal cake would. If you want three layers or a nice sizable layer cake, I would double the recipe (but make sure to adjust baking time!). 

The recipe for the custard makes more than you need, so you will have extra (to eat with a spoon!). 

 

 

Ingredients

TOASTED COCONUT:

  • 2 cups finely shredded coconut

FOR CAKE:

  • 2 cups raw white sweet potato (Japanese sweet potato), minced in a processor (about 2 medium potatoes)
  • 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
  • 1/2 cup maple syrup
  • 1/2 cup coconut sugar, or cane sugar (I used slightly less)
  • 4 large eggs
  • 3/4 cup cassava flour
  • 1/4 cup coconut flour
  • 1/4 cup coconut milk
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt

FOR TOASTED COCONUT CUSTARD:

  • 2 cups full-fat coconut milk
  • 1/2 cup cane sugar
  • 3 T tapioca flour (or arrowroot flour)
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 whole egg
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

FOR ICING:

  • 4 egg whites (leftover from making the custard)
  • 1 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • pinch of salt
  • 2/3 cup water
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

FOR TOASTED COCONUT:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 
  2. Spread coconut on baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes or until golden. Set aside.

FOR CAKE:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease the bottom and sides of two 8 inch cake pans with coconut oil. Place parchment rounds on the bottoms of each pan. 
  2. In a food processor, mince sweet potato. 
  3. In a large bowl, combine sweet potato with all the ingredients. Using a hand mixer, blend ingredients until well incorporated. 
  4. Divide batter between two pans, tapping each pan on the counter to release air bubbles. 
  5. Bake cakes for approximately 25-35 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean and the middle of the cake feels firm and bouncy when touched.
  6. Cool completely before removing from pan. 

FOR CUSTARD:

  1. Pour coconut into a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Do not let boil.
  2. In a medium bowl, combine sugar, tapioca, egg, egg yolks, salt, and vanilla. Using a whisk or a hand mixer, blend ingredients into well-mixed. 
  3. Using a small ladle, add some hot coconut milk to the egg mixture, whisking well and quickly. This is tempering the eggs. Stirring well after each ladle, adding about half the coconut milk to the egg mixture. 
  4. Pour egg mixture into the coconut milk and whisk continuously over medium-low heat. The mixture should begin to thicken nicely.
  5. Keep whisking. After a few minutes, the mixture should be very thick. Remove from heat. 
  6. Pour mixture into a glass bowl. Place plastic wrap over the surface of the custard and poke holes with a knife to allow it to cool. Place bowl over another bowl filled with ice and place in fridge or freezer to cool down. Custard should be thick. 
  7. When the custard has cooled, mix in 1.5 cups toasted coconut.

FOR ICING:

  1. Combine egg whites, sugar, vanilla, tartar, salt and water in a large bowl big enough to fit over a saucepan of boiling water (or a double-boiler if you have one). 
  2. Using a hand-held mixer or immersion blender, beat egg whites over hot water (make sure bowl does not touch the water in the saucepan) until stiff peaks form and egg whites are glossy. This should take about 7 minutes!
  3. When stiff and glossy, remove from heat and set aside. 

ASSEMBLE CAKE:

  1. Place the bottom cake layer on a cake platter or cake stand. 
  2. Spoon custard onto cake layer and spread thin. Repeat with next layer, spooning custard over cake. 
  3. Ice cake with generous icing. 
  4. Sprinkle top of cake with remaining toasted coconut. 
  5. Serve at room temperature or chilled!

Notes

  • For a lemon variety, substitute fresh lemon juice for coconut milk and add 2 T lemon zest to batter. 
  • Make a lemon curd by adding 2 T lemon juice to custard recipe. (Omit the toasted coconut.)

 

The Battle of the Chickens: Titan Games edition

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Hello after a long break! Here we are in the middle of winter in NYC. Thankfully next week we are headed out of town to a warm destination and I cannot wait.

The winter blahs are upon us, for sure. It’s been mostly cold, wet and grey in the city, without much snow. Boo.

I always crave hearty, warm dishes and nothing says comfort like a roast chicken.

The key here is to find the best quality chicken you can. We get ours from our favorite butcher, and always try and get pastured chickens. It’s important from a few different standpoints. It’s better tasting. I can’t tell you how many guests we have had for dinner that claim it’s the best chicken ever. But starting with a good quality bird makes all the difference.

Pastured chickens are better for the earth, as the chickens are an integral part of a healthy regenerative farm. Pastured chickens eat and roam and forage on the pastures, which also contributes to those beautiful bright orange egg yolks they produce. Good healthy manure = good healthy bugs = good healthy chickens. Plus, supporting local farmers takes money away from Big Ag chicken producers. Put your money toward farmers, not companies!

Pastured chicken is also better nutritionally. Pastured chicken has less saturated fat and overall fat than conventional chickens, more Vitamin A and a higher amount of Omega-3 fatty acids. Conventional chicken can have a much higher amount of Omega 6 fatty acids, which in excess leads to inflammation and poor health outcomes. (All those processed foods and processed vegetable oils? Also very high in Omega 6.)

The chicken skin has lots of healthy Vitamin A (so does the liver!), so make sure to EAT THE SKIN. Both of these recipes produce delicious skin.

We’ve been watching the Titan Games with the Rock. My kids love watching the amazing competitors and then looking at me and Jeff and telling us we are in horrible shape and need to work out more. I love parenting!

I had two lovely pastured chickens the other day and decided to do my own battle. Instant Pot Chicken vs. Oven Roasted Chicken. Prepared exactly the same, which chicken would come out juicier and tastier? Read on to find out!

The basic roast chicken recipe I follow most often is this one because it’s so simple and if you have a good bird you don’t need a long of extra distractions.

I decided to make a spice rub this time. You can use this one or make up your own! Be creative!

Greek: garlic, oregano, lemon zest.
Tex Mex: chipotle, chili, cumin, coriander.
Indian: curry powder, cumin, coriander.
Italian: italian seasoning, garlic, lemon.

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Best Roast Chicken (Oven or Instant Pot)

Prep

Cook

Inactive

Total

Yield 6 servings

The key to the roast chicken here is to let it come to room temperature before cooking and make sure it's super dry. I let sit out for a couple hours and then wrap it in paper towels. This is what produces incredibly crispy skin. And do not salt the bird until just before you put it in the oven. (This doesn't matter as much when it comes to the Instant Pot.)

I have also written about this before, but most chicken recipes say the bird should be 165  when it comes out but in my STRONG opinion, this is a disaster. Take it out when it's 150 and let it rest for 15 minutes. 

 

Ingredients

  • 1 3-4 lb roasting chicken (pastured and organic if possible)
  • 1 T or more flaky sea salt
  • fresh black pepper 
  • 1 T avocado oil (for Instant Pot version)
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth (for Instant Pot version)

For the rub

  • 1 T brown sugar
  • 1 T smoked paprika
  • 1/2 T sweet paprika
  • 1 T chili powder
  • 1/2 T garlic powder
  • 1 lemon, cut in half
  • 3-4 sprigs fresh thyme

Prep Chicken

Chicken should be room temp or have been out of the fridge for 2+ hours.

  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Put oven rack in the lower position. 
  2. Rinse chicken, wrap chicken in paper towels and dry thoroughly inside and out. 
  3. Make spice blend by combining paprikas, chili powder, garlic powder in a small bowl. 
  4. Put cut lemon halves inside chicken cavity with thyme sprigs. 
  5. Rub spice blend all over chicken.

FOR ROAST CHICKEN

  1. Put chicken on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
  2. Sprinkle generously with salt, like a nice rain of salt. Grind fresh pepper on the chicken and immediately throw that chicken in the hot oven! 
  3. Cook for 30-40 mins until an instant thermometer reads 150 degrees in the thickest part of the thigh. 
  4. Set chicken aside for 15 minutes before carving. Serve with melted ghee/butter and good dijon mustard (a la Thomas Keller).

FOR INSTANT POT

  1. Turn IP on to Saute mode. Add avocado oil to the pot.
  2. Generously salt and pepper chicken.
  3. Add whole chicken, skin side down, to the Instant Pot. Cook for 5 minutes. Using large tongs or a wooden spoon, turn chicken breast-side up. Add chicken stock. 
  4. Turn instant pot to HIGH PRESSURE mode, close and lock lid. Cook for 25 minutes. 
  5. Let depressurize naturally for 8 minutes and then manually vent. 
  6. Remove chicken and let rest for 15 minutes. 
  7. Remove juices from pot and serve with chicken.

Courses Main

Cuisine Paleo, Healthy

SO… now for the winner! Well it’s hard, but we both felt that the original roast chicken recipe won. It had a firmer bite, with delicious crispy skin and the flavor of the actual chicken really came through. It does require a somewhat longer cook time, but not by much.

The Instant Pot recipe was more like a rotisserie chicken, still delicious and comforting, especially with the pan juices. This would make a great chicken soup, like this AIP version. Or, if you need shredded chicken for tacos, enchiladas, chicken salad or a casserole, this is a go-to recipe. It’s semi-quick for a weeknight dinner if you have an hour.

So there you have it! The Titan Games of Chicken. Enjoy and happy cooking!