protein – Urban Suburban Mommy

My friend Ali, the beauty and the brains behind those sensation Au Naturel Artisan beauty and edible products (goingaunaturel.com) showed me this one. Rather, she got my husband hooked on these little pretty-good-for-you treats and I can’t make them fast enough to keep up!

There’s no set recipe, it’s kind of nice that way, you just need to follow the technique and include anything you’ve got a craving for or have on hand. You can make them into balls or bars. You can eat them while they’re still warm or you can wait for them to cool – sometimes it’s hard to wait! Once you try these you’ll see how easy and quick these are and you’ll be making your own versions all the time.

What you need:

– 1/2 cup coconut oil
– 1/4 cup agave or 4 tablespoons maple syrup
– dash of vanilla
– 1 heaping tablespoon cocoa powder

These are approximate, I like to toss the ingredients from the container right into the sweetened coconut oil mixture:
– 1/2 cup steel cut quick oats
– 1/2 cup chia seeds
– 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds (shelled)
– 1/4 cup sunflower seeds (shelled)
– 1/4 cup raw almonds, slivered or crushed
– 2 pinches sea salt

You can add any seeds, peanuts, walnuts, pecans (crush nuts before adding), shaved coconut – even popcorn if you want. You can pack them with protein and make energy bars. You can make them with dried blueberries, goji berries and other superfoods for a power packed pick-up. You can really play with the flavours once you see how the sweetened coconut oil binds the ingredients together.

What you do:

On medium-low melt the coconut oil and then stir in the agave or maple syrup. Stir in the vanilla and cocoa.

Remove the pot from the heat and start tossing in pinches and small handfuls of ingredients. The oats make the balls bigger, helping the nuts and seeds to bind. You can keep adding ingredients until the mixture is thick and starts binding together. If it gets too dry, just return to heat and add a bit more coconut oil to melt – just very briefly. Keep tasting along the way. You can add a dash more sweet or more cocoa – bump up any flavour that you like.

When the mixture is nice and thick and starting to clump, you can either pour out onto a piece of wax paper on a tray or roll into balls and place on a tray.

Sprinkle lightly with sea salt.

Put the tray in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes to set.

You can eat this warm or cold. You can leave them in the freezer and the cocoa flavoured and sweetened coconut oil is chilled and hard – it’s kind of perfect for the summer heat!

The hottest (no pun intended) craze to hit the dinner table lately has been the skillet. It’s a one-pan flavour-infused meal that’s starting to show up on ever restaurant’s menu – and it’s so easy that you’ll fill your meal repertoire effortlessly.

Cure your best cast-iron and start chopping because Amanda, a mother of 5 and (and newly grandmother of 1 – congratulations!!!) from Texas, makes a mean Shrimp & Sausage Skillet. She shared this fast and easy recipe with Urban Suburban Mommy. And while she laughs off the idea of eating Paleo, she did take inspiration from a Paleo recipe she found recently on Pinterest. This dish looked so good we had to try – and share with you!

What you need:

– 1.5-2 sausages, sliced and pre-cooked
– 1 lb of shrimp (25 medium or 20 large)
– 2 cloves of garlic
– 3/4 cup green bell pepper,sliced
– 3/4 cup red bell pepper, sliced
– 1/2 yellow onion, medium, sliced
– 1 zucchini, sliced
– 1/4 cup chicken stock
– 2 tsp Old bay seasoning
– 1pinch red pepper flakes
– salt and pepper, to taste
– 3-4 tablespoons olive oil or coconut oil

What you do:

Over medium-high, heat skillet with oil. Meanwhile, season shrimp with Old Bay Seasoning. Cook shrimp about 3 to 5 minutes, tossing around to cook all sides, until they turn opaque. Remove these from heat and set aside.

Cook onions and bell peppers in skillet with 2 tbsps of olive oil or coconut oil for about 2 minutes
Add sausage and zucchini to the skillet, and continue to cook for another 2 minutes, just until veggies start to break down. Add the shrimp back into the skillet, along with the garlic, and cook everything for about 1 minute.

Pour chicken stock into pan and mix through to moisten everything. Add salt, ground pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste. Remove from heat, garnish with parsley and serve hot.

You can add this to a side of rice – like our fool-proof rice if you like. This skillet is full of flavour, with great protein and veggies. If you want to create a more exotic flavour you can opt to change up the spicing.

Consider:
Ginger and lemongrass for a taste of Thai
Coconut milk, turmeric and curry for an Indian craving
A burst of cumin, cilantro and chili powder for an untraditional Tex-Mex sizzle

You can use chicken, beef, pork, calamari, shelled crab or even tofu for your protein. Don’t be afraid to give your meats and seafoods a good sear before blending in the vegetables and broth. The cooking time is quick but you always want to make sure they’re thoroughly cooked before eating.

You can really play with the flavours of this and swap in whatever veggies you’ve got hanging around in your produce drawer. Eggplant, sweet potato, kale, turnip, just adjust your cooking time accordingly.

Enjoy, and let us know of any interesting skillets you’ve created! We’re all about this fast, easy and tasty dish!

Urban Suburban Mommy

Tag Archives: protein

Cocoa snack balls

The shrimp and sausage skillet – a 20 minute dish