Avocado Egg Salad Wrap

I was looking for some simple snack recipes that fall within my guidelines to nutrition when I walked into what could quite possibly be THE MOST EPIC COMBINATION EVER! Anyone who knows me knows how much I love avocados for their simplicity and diversity as a great paring for many recipes including my new favorite, chocolate avocado frosting.  If you know me you would also know that I have a similar, yet not as deeply rooted affinity for the egg and its many uses. I've combined the egg and avocado now for many years, but never did I think of combining them in their most simple form.

In a pinch i've been known to squeeze a whole avocado, bite the top off and press the avocado mash through the opening as a quick nutritional snack, similar but much cooler (unless your doing it like this)

 than popping the shell off a hard boiled egg and eating it for one of the most well-balanced protein to fat combinations created naturally.

This wasn't the first recipe I found for the avocado egg salad, but I like the introduction of a few ingredients I don't typically use, and I definitely appreciate the necessity for variety in our food choices as another very important component to having a truly "healthy" diet. I made some modifications to fit my nutritional guidelines of NO GLUTEN, REFINED SUGAR/HFCS, AND NO DAIRY, but definitely wanted to give credit where due with the great presentation and creativity on Jenessa's Dinners. 

Ingredients (makes about 4 servings):

• 4 eggs, hard boiled
• 1 avocado, diced
• 1/4 cup fennel bulb, julienned into 1/2 inch matchsticks
• 1/4 cup radish, finely diced
• 1/4 cup chives, finely chopped
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• salt and (Cayenne Pepper instead of black pepper which is known to be hard on your stomach) to taste
• I would personally go with a small amount of the Soy-Free Vegenaise over the suggestion (a heaping tablespoon of mayo or greek yogurt if you want a smoother texture) to let the natural flavor of God's creation shine through and avoid introducing less desirable ingredients and dairy.

Most of the recipes served the salad over or in some sort of gluten, my recommendation is wrapping it in some healthy organic lettuce or other leafy green you enjoy!

Vegetarian New Mexico 3 Bean Chili

Ingredients

• 3 Organic Sweet Potatoes Diced
• 4 Tbsp. of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 Large Onion Diced
• 4 Cloves of Garlic Minced
• 1 Jalapeno Finely Chopped
• 2 Tbs. Finely Chopped Oregano (Or dry, i pull mine straight from the garden when available)
• Bell Pepper (Red, Green, and/or Orange)
• 1 cup dry Pinto Beans
• ½ cup dry Red Kidney Beans (Or cheat with a can of organics)
• ½ cup Black Beans (Or cheat with a can of organics)
• 2-12 ounce cans of organic tomato sauce
• 3 tomatoes diced
• A lot of Red Chilli Powder- Maybe half a cup (next time I’m gonna try and do it original style with the real red chiles boiled and blended down as if for enchilada sauce)
• Sea salt to taste
• 2 Tbsp. Raw Local Honey

Directions

Beans:

I grew up on rice and beans and I prefer making them from scratch as I shy away from pre-cooked packaged food habitually.  When cooking beans from scratch there is a process that if skipped can lead to problems (gastrointestinal problems a.k.a. flatulence). I prefer not to offend with any of my recipes so I follow these steps for the beans:

• Pour the beans on the table and separate out all the dirt and not so bean looking beans.
• Place in a large bowl of water (when I’m being picky I use the same water I drink - Alkaline) to soak overnight approximately 6 to 8 hours.
• Drain the beans and add new water (most important part that I used to try and be conservationist with, the only thing I conserved were the properties of the bean that lead to flatulence)
• Boil on low for 2 to 4 hours, I really just keep going till they are the consistency I prefer, soft and slightly starchy still.
• In the last 30 minutes I add 2 Tbsp. of Olive Oil, Sea Salt to taste, and ¼ of the onion to the beans.

*Fast Friendly Opportunity(FFO)* (For those of us working on limited time budgets this is a great opportunity to double up the portion and freeze half for your next meal that includes beans)

Potatoes:
I find it easiest to work with the potatoes by broiling them

• Spread 1 Tbsp. of olive oil on whatever you use for broiling (I use my ceramic cookie sheet)
• Add the sweet potatoes in a single layer and drizzle another 1 Tbsp. of olive oil over the top of the sweet potatoes. 
• Sprinkle sea salt over the potatoes and set in broiler at around 475 degrees. I like to watch it carefully and spread them continually so they don't get burnt (Last time I forgot about them but the one burnt side didn't ruin the taste

Chili:

• Add 2 Tbsp. of ollive to a large sauce pan over medium-high heat
• Saute 1/2 of the onion (leaving a ¼ behind to add to the chili later)
• Before the onions start to brown add the jalapeño, garlic, and bell peppers.
• “This is how we do it!”  Ya had to get a little Montel J. on you, cuz I don’t know where I decided this was the way but I’ve been doing it since I was 10 years old making a big ole pot of chili to serve our unconventional family of 13 + as we always had a couple of the neighbor kids living with us. For some reason this next step has to be done here.(Make sure you already separated out the half you will refrigerate or freeze for another meal.)
• With the beans warming in a larger pot (If it’s the one you cooked them in, drain and save some of the water so the chili isn’t too runny), stir the dried chili powder in.
• Add the tomato sauce
• Stir in the sautéed veggies and the diced tomato, and let cook another 5 to 15 minutes.
• Add 2 Tbsp of local raw honey
• Taste and add more chili powder if it doesn’t quite taste chili enough.

Serving Suggestions (in order of healthiness):

• As a soup - The healthiest way I know to eat it is alone.
• Over a baked sweet potato. This option I really enjoy. Sweet potato is one of those paleo-friendly options that really tastes good.
• Over brown rice.

• Over Corn Chips. Normally you’d use fritos to make a pie, and I was able to find a brand at some health food store that were a little healthier. This is that kid friendly option that I break out occasionally so they don’t look at me like I’m completely unreasonable when it comes to their food.

However you eat it, I hope you enjoy!

(Photo sourced from http://www.myrecipes.com)

Siddeeq's Famous New Mexican Chili Beans

Ingredients

• 2 lbs Ground Meat - Thawed according to packaging if necessary (1 for this meal and 1 to freeze for later *FFO)
• 4 Tbsp. of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 Large Onion Diced
• 4 Cloves of Garlic Minced
• 1 Jalapeno Finely Chopped
• 2 Tbs. Finely Chopped Oregano (Or dry, i pull mine straight from the garden when available)
• Bell Pepper (Red, Green, and/or Orange)
• 1 cup dry Pinto Beans
• ½ cup dry Red Kidney Beans (Or cheat with a can of organics)
• ½ cup Black Beans (Or cheat with a can of organics)
• 2-12 ounce cans of organic tomato sauce
• 3 tomatoes diced
• A lot of Red Chilli Powder- Maybe half a cup (next time I’m gonna try and do it original style with the real red chiles boiled and blended down as if for enchilada sauce)
• Sea salt to taste
• 2 Tbsp. Raw Local Honey

Directions

Beans:

I grew up on rice and beans and I prefer making them from scratch as I shy away from pre-cooked packaged food habitually.  When cooking beans from scratch there is a process that if skipped can lead to problems (gastrointestinal problems a.k.a. flatulence). I prefer not to offend with any of my recipes so I follow these steps for the beans:

• Pour the beans on the table and separate out all the dirt and not so bean looking beans.
• Place in a large bowl of water (when I’m being picky I use the same water I drink - Alkaline) to soak overnight approximately 6 to 8 hours.
• Drain the beans and add new water (most important part that I used to try and be conservationist with, the only thing I conserved were the properties of the bean that lead to flatulence)
• Boil on low for 2 to 4 hours, I really just keep going till they are the consistency I prefer, soft and slightly starchy still.
• In the last 30 minutes I add 2 Tbsp. of Olive Oil, Sea Salt to taste, and ¼ of the onion to the beans.

*Fast Friendly Opportunity(FFO)* (For those of us working on limited time budgets this is a great opportunity to double up the portion and freeze half for your next meal that includes beans)

Chili:

• Add 2 Tbsp. of ollive to a large sauce pan over medium-high heat
• Saute 1/2 of the onion (leaving a ¼ behind to add to the chili later)
• Before the onions start to brown add the ground meat and cook thoroughly (I don’t play with bacteria so I cook my meat until I’m certain - it is suggested to cook meat to 165 degrees on a meat thermometer)
• As the meat comes to completion add the jalapeno.
• “This is how we do it!”  Ya had to get a little Montel J. on you, cuz I don’t know where I decided this was the way but I’ve been doing it since I was 10 years old making a big ole pot of chili to serve our unconventional family of 13 + as we always had a couple of the neighbor kids living with us. For some reason this next step has to be done here. Stir the dried chili powder into the meat mixture and cook a while till it smells like some good chili.(Make sure you already separated out the half you will refrigerate or freeze for another meal.)
• Add the tomato sauce to the meat and chili mixture and cook for another 5 minutes.
• With the beans warming in a larger pot (If it’s the one you cooked them in, drain and save some of the water so the chili isn’t too runny), pour the chili meat mixture into the beans.
• Stir in the tomato, onion, bell pepper, garlic and let cook another 5 to 15 minutes.
• Add 2 Tbsp of local raw honey
• Taste and add more chili powder if it doesn’t quite taste chili enough.

Serving Suggestions (in order of healthiness):

• As a soup - The healthiest way I know to eat it is alone.
• Over a baked sweet potato. This option I really enjoy. Sweet potato is one of those paleo-friendly options that really tastes good.
• Over brown rice.

• Over Corn Chips. Normally you’d use fritos to make a pie, and I was able to find a brand at some health food store that were a little healthier. This is that kid friendly option that I break out occasionally so they don’t look at me like I’m completely unreasonable when it comes to their food.

However you eat it, I hope you enjoy!

(photo sourced from www.weismarkets.com )

Paleo Spicy New Mexico Grilled Turkey Legs

Ingredients:

• 3 large turkey legs
• 3 Tbsp. Red Palm Oil

BRINE:

• 4 cups water
• ¼ cup sea salt
• 2 Tbsp. raw honey
• 1 tsp. dried rosemary
• 1 tsp. dried thyme
• ½ tsp. cayenne pepper

Dry Rub:

• ½ tsp. garlic powder
• ½ tsp. onion powder
• ½ tsp. dried rosemary
• ½ tsb. dried red chili flakes
• ½  tsp. dried thyme
• Dash sea salt
• Dash cayenne  pepper
• ½ tsp dried fennel

Equipment:

• Large Pot with Lid or Large Tupperware for Brining
• Measuring spoons
• Measuring cups
• Large saucepan
• Stirring spoon
• Paper towels
• Small mixing bowl
• Oven Mitts
• Meat thermometer

Directions:

• Combine all brine ingredients in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir to combine and bring just to a boil. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature. 
• Place the turkey legs in a large pot or tupperware and pour the brine over the turkey legs. Seal the container and place in the refrigerator Allow the meat to marinate for 12-24 hours.
• Preheat grill to medium-high heat.
• Mix the dry rub ingredients.
• Remove the turkey legs from the brine, rinse under cold water and pat dry with paper towels.
• Rub the dry rub all over the turkey legs and make sure to get some under the skin where you can.
• Sear drumsticks on the grill for approximately 3 minutes per quarter turn.
• After searing all sides, move drumsticks to a part of the grill where they can cook by indirect heat. (See notes below).
• Cook drumsticks via indirect heat for an additional 50–60 minutes.
• The grill temperature during this time should read around 300°F.
• Turn drumsticks 1/4 turn every 10 minutes until they have reached an internal temperature of 180°F.
• Baste drumsticks with red palm oil toward the end of their cook time, about the last 20 minutes or so.
• Reapply as necessary.

Notes

This recipe uses an indirect cooking technique on the grill. If you have a gas grill, turn one burner off and leave the remaining burners lit at medium heat. Place the drumsticks over the burner that has been shut off. If you have a charcoal grill, move the drumsticks to the coolest spot on the grill or raise the rack. The objective is to slowly cook the turkey so that it does not burn or dry out.

(photo sourced from kalamazoogourmet.com)