What I Ate Yesterday: Osteria Coppa Restaurant Review

Today's post is dedicated to a delicious restaurant I'm in love with right now: Osteria Coppa, in San Mateo, CA. I haven't done a restaurant review in a while, but Osteria Coppa is officially my new favorite restaurant in the San Francisco Bay Area. Having now eaten there twice and both times being close to perfection, I can safely say that you NEED to check this place out if you're in my neck of the woods.

A Crafty Gourmet's Version of The Spunky Coconut' Persimmon Scones

A few weeks ago, one of my favorite bloggers, The Spunky Coconut posted an incredible recipe for Persimmon Scones. I'm a huge fan of persimmon, which is why I made a Vegan Persimmon & Cranberry Cheesecake for Thanksgiving. I'm also a fan of persimmon for all of its health benefits, specifically its ability to treat gastrointestinal inflammation and hemorrhoids. We've also been seeing a significant resolution in our daughter's "lung heat" since she's been eating more persimmons.

I decided to try making her Persimmon Scones, but since I'm avoiding almond flour right now, I decided to substitute sunflower seed flour. Also, the recipe seemed to call for a bit too much sugar for my taste so I reduced the sugar. Finally, I didn't have psyllium husk powder, so I used ground flax seeds. The scones or cookies, which ever you prefer, turned out very well, so I'm sharing the recipe with you! This recipe is vegan, grain-free, nut-free and paleo friendly.

The Spunky Coconuts Persimmon Scones 
(A Crafty Gourmet Remix)
Dry Ingredients
1 cup sunflower seed flour
1/3 cup coconut flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
1 tbsp ground flax seeds
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp vanilla

Wet Ingredients:
1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
2 tbsp water
1/4 tsp vanilla liquid stevia

1 large ripe Hichaya or 2 ripe fuyu persimmons

Process:
1. In a bowl, mix all dry ingredients and then using a mixer add in wet ingredients. You can also use an "S" blade on your food processor to do this as well.

2. Using an ice cream scoop, scoop out dough onto a sheet of parchment or Silpat mat and press down in the middle to create a little pool for the persimmon

3. Peel the persimmon and mash with fork to create a puree

4. Using a spoon, place puree into the dents in the scones

5. Bake for 12 minutes at 375 degrees

6. Let cookies rest for 10-15 minutes. The Spunky Coconut recommends you freeze them to let them harden.

7. Enjoy!

Why I Ate Lamb Oysters, aka Lamb Balls. Yes Those Balls!

You know I'm a fan of offal, but this time you may think I went too far. I've officially crossed over to the dark side of offal consumption and I've cooked Lamb Testicles (aka Lamb Oysters, aka Lamb Fries) in my own house! Oh and I liked them!

Almost Paleo Pizza With Grain-Free Pizza Crust

Pizza: probably one of the most craved foods for people following a Paleo diet. Today, I satisfied my craving, but the pizza was not completely Paleo friendly. I choose to follow the 80/20 rule, although for me its more like 90/10. I don't believe in dogmatism and I'm certainly not a hard liner. Getting to the Paleo diet has been a process of self-experimentation to relieve my severe pain and other symptoms. Chris Kresser, L.Ac speaks about this exact point in a great article  he wrote a couple of years ago about food fascism and the 80/20, and having had an eating disorder in the past, I try to make sure that I stay open and flexible with my food choices even when I am restricting various ingredients.

HUGE GIVEAWAY VALUED AT OVER $300!!

To celebrate reaching 300+ likes, I am giving away a prize package worth over $300!

I am grateful to Barlean's, Bright Earth Foods, CocoKefir, Kyle Dine, Selina Naturally and Wish Garden Herbs for sponsoring this giveaway.

What You Get if You Win:

Barlean's
1 Bottle Organic Greens
1 Bottle Flax Oil
1 Bag Chia Seeds
1 Bottle Olive Leaf Extract Capsules
1 Bottle Olive Leaf Extract
1 Box of Omega Swirl To-Go


Bright Earth Foods
1 Bag Chlorella
1 Jar Raw Choco
1 Bag Himalayan Salt
1 Jar Superfood Smoothie Mix

CocoKefir
1 Bottle CocoKefir
1 Jar CocoYo

Kyle Dine
Food Allergies Rock CD

Selina Naturally
1 Bag of Makai Pure Sea Salt
3 Jars of Seasoned Celtic Salt (Celery, Rosemary, Smoked)
1 Jar of Sesame Salt

Wish Garden Herbs
1 Bottle Sleepy Nights for Kids
1 Bottle Digestive Ease
1 Bottle Genius Juice
1 Bottle Emotional Ally
1 Bottle Kiss Ass Immune Activator


To be eligible, you must sign up for the my newsletter below. I will be periodically sending one. I promise I will be sending you any spam. Then proceed to the Rafflecopter widget for additional requirements.

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Coconut Cashew Bread: Paleo, Grain-Free, & Refined Sugar Free!

Today, I just had to make bread, Coconut Cashew Bread! I haven't had bread for a couple of months, since I've been grain free. I don't normally have bread cravings, but there were a few posts on my Facebook feed today that made my mouth water. I just couldn't resist! I had to bake bread.

Hanukkah Recipe: Brisket & Tzimmes

Hanukkah is coming up and no Jewish holiday meal is complete without a brisket! Brisket is the most popular cut of meat cooked by Ashkenazim (Jews of Eastern Europe). According to an article in the JWeekly, "Brisket is a beef cut taken from the breast section beneath the first five ribs, behind the foreshank. It is an inexpensive boneless cut that requires long, slow cooking to break down the collagen in the connective muscle tissues and achieve tenderness. Poor Eastern European Jews favored this cut because it was low in cost and high in taste and volume."