Almond Flour Crusted Chicken

I have really been craving fried chicken lately and had some inspiration that I could tweak the really great fish recipe I posted recently. So I got into the kitchen and got busy.  I thought since I wouldn't have the "crust" on both sides of the chicken, the breasts should be cut in half to reduce the thickness.  It worked out perfectly!  With that I used a lot of inspiration and the traditional seasonings that I would have if I had been doing my traditional fried chicken and this is the result:

Almond Flour Crusted Chicken with Green Salad
and Homemade Ranch Dressing

Not only was I excited for how well this turned out, but I used it again for Chicken Parmesan and it was amazing! I will even list the marinara sauce recipe I used for it below the main recipe just in case it sounds too good to pass up. = )

Ingredients

• 2 Chicken Breasts, cutting thickness in half to make 4 chicken cutlets
• 1 Tbsp. Bacon Grease or Butter
• Salt and Pepper

Lightly season chicken cutlets with salt and pepper and sear both sides in frying pan with fat.  Remove to 9x9 baking dish and cover with seasoned topping.

• 1/2 c. Almond Flour
• 1/4 tsp. each: Salt, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Paprika
• 1/8 tsp. each: Pepper, Poultry Seasoning
• 1 Tbsp. Melted Butter

Mix together almond flour and seasonings to distribute well, then add in butter to create a crumbly mixture.  After topping the chicken (leave loose or lightly tamp down, up to you) bake for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees or until lightly golden brown.

Marinara Sauce

• 1 Tbsp. Butter
• 1/2 lg. Onion
• 2 Roma Tomatoes, Diced
• 1 Tbsp. Cabernet Sauvignon Wine
• 2 oz. Tomato Paste
• Water (enough to thin to desired consistency
• 1/2 tsp. Cider Vinegar
• 1/4 tsp. each: Salt, Basil, Marjoram
• Pinch of Oregano
• (Adjust seasonings to desired taste)

Saute onion in butter over medium low heat until soft.  Add tomatoes and wine.  Let simmer about 5 minutes.  Add everything else (I added some leftover sauteed mushrooms that added a bit of heaven!) and stir/whisk until smooth.  

For the Chicken Parmesan, I cooked the chicken as up above and removed chicken from the over and spooned the sauce over the top of the chicken and topped with shredded parmesan cheese.  Then returned back to the oven for about 5 minutes.  Serve with a heaping delicious serving of buttered spaghetti squash and you have an amazingly nutritious meal. =) 

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Grain Free Chocolate Cake

I was looking through one of my Pinterest boards for a grain free brownie recipe tonight and could NOT remember which one I had previously made that we really liked... What's a girl to do???  Well, I decided to try something new and I am SOOO glad I did. I made a couple of adjustments since I'm only using honey sweetener to stay and close to GAPS legal as possible, and while it did not turn out to be something I think resembles a brownie, it would give any flour based chocolate cake a kick in the caboose! Spongy and moist... and the fact that my husband CAN'T stay out of it even by threatening him within an inch of his life speaks volumes! He's being very supportive of my grain-free changes for my health, but he misses and notices with I've changed things. Topped with the Ganache recipe I recently found, adjusted for it's richness since it was just a little tooooo much for hubby, we have found a hit!

Post Note: as it turns out, it WAS the original recipe I was looking for, not a new one after all. I didn't realize it until I saw that I had commented on the recipe several months ago and completely forgot! 

This isn't the best picture, but when I made it the first time
we ate is so fast I didn't get a chance! Yes!!  It's THAT good!

Ingredients

• *Double the recipe if making 2 round cakes or for a 9x13" pan.
• 3/4 c Almond Flour
• 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 1/2 c Melted Butter plus extra for buttering baking dish
• 1/4 c Cocoa Powder
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 c Raw Honey
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly butter one round cake tin or 8x8 baking dish with butter.
2. Mix almond flour, baking soda, salt, and cocoa. Set aside.
3. Combine melted butter, honey, eggs, and vanilla, stirring until well mixed.
4. Pour liquid into flour and cocoa mixture and still well.  Batter is going to seem a little on the thin side but it's going to bake up beautifully!
5. Pour batter into prepared dish. Bake for 25-35 minutes until toothpick comes out clean without overcooking. 

Ganache Recipe

• 1/4-1/2 c. Heavy Cream
• 3/4 c. Bakers Chocolate pieces
• 1/4 c. Honey
• *8 drops of Peppermint Essential Oil

Heat cream and honey until warm over low heat.  Remove from heat and add chocolate pieces and peppermint oil and stir until chocolate is melted and all the cream is incorporated.  Let cool and stir well before spreading over cake. 

Baked Cod with Feta Basil Crusting

Sometimes you try look for a recipe to get the ideas flowing and run into something that requires a tweak here and there but turns out SOOO amazing you know your tastebuds have died and gone to heaven!  That's where the Grain-free Baked Cod with Feta Basil Crusting came from.  Originally from this recipe, I needed to make it grain-free.  And I didn't have any fennel... or white wine.  In fact, to be honest, I just bought my first ever small cube of wine for cooking just last week.  I'm hooked!  I love the flavor it imparts with sautéing!

Ingredients
(Serves 4)

• 4 Tbsp. Ghee or Butter, divided
• 1-2 Stalks Celery, chopped
• 2 Cloves Garlic, minced
• 3 Roma Tomatoes, diced
• Splash of Cabernet Sauvignon (maybe 2 Tbsp.)
• Salt
• Pepper
• 3/4 c. Almond Flour
• 1/4 tsp. Dry Basil
• 2-3 oz Feta Crumbles
• 1 lb. Cod Fish Fillets (about 3/4" thickness at most.  I sliced part of one piece in half thickness-wise and it was perfect!)

Preheat oven to 425F with rack the oven rack in center. In 12" oven-proof skillet, sauté celery in 2 tbsp ghee over medium heat until about translucent. Meanwhile combine almond flour, basil, and feta.  Melt remaining ghee/butter and stir in with feta mixture. Set aside.  

When celery is ready, add garlic, tomatoes, salt, pepper, and wine to pan.  Continue over medium to low heat until bubbly, about 3-5 minutes.  

Move tomato mixture evenly around pan or transfer to baking dish.  Lay fish fillets on top of tomatoes and cover evenly with feta mixture.

Bake about 15 minutes or until feta topping is lightly golden.