Vegan Grain Free Carrot Cake Breakfast Muffins

I usually enjoy a savory breakfast of greens and eggs on weekday mornings, but every once in a while, I miss the latte and muffin breakfast I used to have a long time ago. When I get nostalgic for a sweet breakfast, I usually bake these great grain-free vegan carrot cake muffins. This recipe was inspired by this post from Gluten-Free Dish. I've made these mini-carrot cakes countless times and they are always a huge a hit!

Delcious Dinner Date: Spicy Kale Stew Inspired by RadishSF

It ended up being another slower week at A Crafty Gourmet headquarters. With the holidays and the terrible tragedy in Connecticut, it's been hard to concentrate on cooking and recipe development.

Last night, the hubby and I went to a small local restaurant in San Francisco's Mission District called Radish. Radish a cute place with a eclectic American menu with Southern roots. I was impressed that their flat bread was gluten-free and their sandwiches can be served on gluten-free bread. I'm excited about how many places are now offering gluten-free options, but I'm a bit concerned that gluten-free is becoming as processed as wheat is. I hope all these options aren't going to make more people grain sensitive.

The hubby and I both had a simple yet delicious kale stew that I just had to recreate at home for tonight's dinner. I usually don't eat a lot of nightshades, but since I've been feeling significantly better the last couple of months, I've been testing my body to see what if reacts to and what it doesn't react too. I'm happy to report that I've been okay with most nightshades, though I've had some difficulty digesting peppers. This stew is a in a tomato base. If you are allergic to tomatoes then you can try using more stock and the juice of 1 lemon, but I can't guarantee it will taste as good.

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If you don't by Monday, then I'm picking someone else!

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15 Minute Meals: Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie

Today I have another recipe to add to the 15 Minute Meals Series: Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie. This meal takes a bit more than 15 minutes to prepare, probably closer to 20 minutes. Also my Shepherd's pie is missing carrots, peas and corn which are often added to traditional Shepherd's pies, but it's full of yummy grass fed ground beef, organic onions, and sweet potatoes.

Another note, I did boil my sweet potatoes and pureed them, but Trader Joe's has mashed sweet pototoes with no other ingredients added, so you can easily have a few bags in your fridge to use when you don't have the time to cook them from scratch.

Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie
Ingredients
1 lb Grass Fed Ground Beef
1 yellow or red onion
1 tbsp duck fat
1 tbsp raw apple cider vinegar
1 tsp Raw Coconut Aminos
1/2 Celtic Salt
dash of pepper

Process:
1. Melt duck fat in a pan (I used stainless steel)

2. Add chopped onion

3. Saute for 6-8 minutes

4. Add beef, vinegar, salt, pepper, coconut aminos

5. Saute for 8 minutes

6. Place ground beef into a small loaf tin and add pureed sweet potatoes

7. Broil at 450 in Toaster Oven for 5 minutes.

8. Serve & Enjoy!

15 Minute Meals: Pan Seared Lamb With Brussels Sprouts & Fire Roasted Tomatoes

Firstly, I'm quite sorry for the long absence. I spend the weekend celebrating my 30th birthday and was tied up with preparations and celebrations! I'm going to be doing a post about the party, as the menu was almost gluten & dairy free thanks to the wonderful catering of Magdalena Banquet Hall in San Francisco, but I'm waiting on the photos to share.

All the celebrations and house guests didn't allow for a lot of time for cooking, so I came up with some simple Paleo recipes that don't require too much prep or cook time.  This is the first post of several more to come on the topic to 15 minute minute meals.

Many of the ingredients are from Trader Joe's and unfortunately the vegetables are not organic. I strive to eat about 90% organic but sometimes the need for convenience is more important than the need for being organic. Ideally, Trader Joe's would have a greater selection of organic products, but one can only wish. Luckily, I did find this gem there:

Yay for Pastured Raised Lamb at Trader Joe's! I paired the lamb with frozen Brussels Sprouts and half a can of organic fire roasted tomatoes with green chilies. The total prep time for the meal was 15 minutes, because sometimes you just don't have the time to slow roast fresh ingredients, but still want to eat good food.

Pan Seared Lamb With Brussels Sprouts & Fire Roasted Tomatoes

Ingredients

2 Pasture Raised Lamb Steaks

1 tbsp Duck Fat

1 tsp Celtic Salt

1 tsp Bavarian Seasoning

1/2 can Diced Fire Roasted Tomatoes

1 bag of frozen Brussels Sprouts

Process:

1. Melt duck fat in pan on medium heat

2. Cost each side of steaks with seasoning and salt

3. Place lamb in pan and sear for 6 minutes

4. In a dutch oven, place Brussels Sprouts and tomatoes and cook on medium heat for 8-10 minutes

5. Flip steak and cook on opposite side for 6-8 minutes

6. Serve & Enjoy!

My Personal Journey: Teaching Myself and My Child about Real Food

When I was child, my mother had a overwhelming fear that I would choke on my food. Because of this fear, she pureed my food until I was 3 years old. I didn't know about this until I, too, developed an overwhelming fear that my daughter would choke on finger foods, which also resulted me in pureeing much of her food.

Photo Credit: Cascadian Farms