All posts by Lauren Bolanos

Dinner

Instant Pot Pulled Pork

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instant pot pulled pork

Instant Pot pulled pork is a quick meal in one pot, that you could easily make ahead of time for guests. You can use your favorite bbq sauce or make or your own. I’ll admit that I’m lazy and I usually buy mine. You can get paleo friendly bbq sauce at whole foods or online, and if you are on budget the whole food’s brand 365 has a great bbq sauce that’s not pricey. I also like Annie’s Naturals sweet and spicy organic bbq sauce. So there are plenty of options depending on your diet. I used Annie’s Naturals for the photo above, but I usually make do with what’s in the fridge.

I used to make this in the slow cooker, but the instant pot pressure cooks this for 45 minutes and it’s done. It’s seriously impressive. Although the instant pot definitely was a little scary compared to the slow cooker, it’s worth it. Just be sure to wear an oven mitt when quick releasing the steam/pressure. Better safe than sorry.

Instant Pot Pulled Pork
 
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Serves: 8
Ingredients
  • 2 pork tenderloins (about 3-4lbs)
  • 1 onion, sliced in half
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 cup of chicken broth
  • ½ cup of bbq sauce
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • a couple grinds of black pepper
Instructions
  1. Slice an onion in half and nestle it in the instant pot with with pork tenderloins.
  2. Then add two peeled garlic cloves whole, a bay leaf, chicken broth, sea salt and black pepper to instant pot.
  3. Add ½ cup of bbq sauce over pork tenderloins. Secure lid and make sure vent is sealed.
  4. Then set instant pot to manual and on high pressure cook for 45 minutes.
  5. Use quick release to release steam when finished.
  6. Shred pork and set aside.
  7. (optional) scoop out juice/liquid in instant pot and drizzle over shredded pork to keep moist, if eating later
  8. (optional) Mix in or drizzle fav bbq over shredded pork before you serve.

Dinner

Skinny Vegetable Coconut Curry

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skinny vegetable coconut curry

This skinny vegetable coconut curry is both vegan and paleo friendly. I’ve made lots of curries over the years but this is my first time posting one of my recipes. This is an Indian curry, using madras curry powder from Koshys that I got at my local Indian market. You can also use your curry powder of your choice or find the one I used online. I normally cook with full fat coconut milk from Native Forest, but I for this recipe I  used what was available at Trader Joes, and the consistency of their coconut milk is very light. So I would err on the side of using a light coconut milk if you have the option of choosing a light or full fat version.

This recipe ended up making a lot of food and curry freezes well, so I plan on using this recipe in the future for meal prepping. It would go great on it’s own to eat like a stew if you are paleo, but my husband prefers it with rice, and I don’t mind a little bit of gluten free rice on occasion. Either way, this curry will be a big hit.

Skinny Vegetable Coconut Curry
 
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Serves: 8
Ingredients
  • 1 (15 oz) can of tomato sauce (about 2 cups)
  • 1.5 (13.5 oz) cans of coconut milk (about 3.5 cups)
  • 1 large yellow onion
  • ½ tsp sea salt
  • 1 tsp grated fresh ginger
  • 3 tbsp madras curry powder (Koshys brand)
  • 5 carrots chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper chopped
  • 1 green bell pepper chopped
  • 1.5 lbs of chopped cauliflower
  • 5 cloves of garlic minced
  • 2 tbsp of avocado oil
Instructions
  1. Add 1 tbsp of avocado oil to a large pot or dutch oven on medium heat.
  2. Then add chopped onions and let them sweat for 5-10 minutes until they are reduced in size.
  3. Then add second tbsp of avocado oil, minced garlic, grated fresh ginger, and curry powder to pot and stir for a few minutes.
  4. Add half a can of coconut milk to the pot, and scrape any curry powder or garlic stuck to bottom of the pan.
  5. Then add chopped cauliflower, carrots, and bell peppers to pot. Vegetables should start to cook and steam in the coconut milk.
  6. Add 1 can of tomato sauce and the rest of the coconut milk and bring liquid to a boil.
  7. Then reduce liquid to a simmer, and let it cook on low for a few hours or until vegetables are cooked to desired firmness.

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Sauces

Nonni’s Sauce

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Nonni's Meat Sauce

This was my attempt at making Nonni’s meat sauce, which I grew up eating with her pasta and meatballs. I have a paleo version of her meatballs posted, and I add a few of them to the sauce for flavor. She also adds 1/2 cup of grated parmesean or romano cheese, but I opted to make this dairy free, and I was still happy with the results.

The sauce cooked down and really concentrated the tomato flavor, so you could skip the tomato paste, or water it down with water, stock, or wine. However, the concentrated flavor actually ended up being a good thing, since zoodles give off water when cooked. So, when I sauteed Non’s sauce and zoodles together the result was perfect.

Nonni's Sauce
 
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Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 2 country style pork ribs
  • 3 sweet Italian sausages
  • 3 cloves of minced garlic
  • 3-5 homemade paleo meatballs
  • 1 tsp of honey
  • 1 tbsp of tomato paste
  • 2 cans of tomato puree
  • 1 white onion chopped
  • chopped parsley (garnish)
  • parsley (a handful including stem)
  • ½ tsp sea salt or to taste
  • a few grinds of fresh ground pepper or to taste
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • ½ cup of water
Instructions
  1. In a large pot or dutch oven, saute chopped onions in olive oil for a few minutes on medium low heat.
  2. Then, add to pot minced garlic and stir for a few minutes.
  3. Add in country style ribs and sweet italian sausage and brown sides slightly, when finished browning turn heat to low.
  4. Then add two cans of tomato puree.
  5. Add ¼ cup of water to each can of empty tomato puree, swish it around, to get out all tomato puree and add it to the pot.
  6. Add tomato paste, honey, and a handful of parsley with stem and leaves to pot. Parsley will be fished out later.
  7. Cook on low for 1.5 hours minimum. The longer you cook it the thicker the sauce will get. 2 hours of cooking time is ideal.
  8. Salt and pepper to taste while cooking.
  9. When finished, turn off heat and let it come to room temperature before storing it.
  10. Before serving it, fish out parsley.

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Salads

Carrot Dill Salad

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carrot-dill-salad

This carrot dill salad is based on one of my favorite sides from Yalla in Culver City. It’s the perfect side of freshness to a heavy meat dish, and it’s really simple to make. I prefer to make it ahead of time so the carrots and raisins have time to soak up the dressing and soften a bit. The raisins, carrots, and honey all lend this dish a surprising sweetness, so even the pickiest of eaters will be happy for an extra serving. This can easily be transported to a BBQ or serve it with brunch on Easter morning.

Carrot Dill Salad
 
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Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 10 oz bag of shredded carrots (trader joes)
  • 3 tbsp chopped fresh dill
  • 1 cup of golden raisins
  • 3 tbsp raw red wine vinegar (Eden)
  • 3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
  • the juice of one orange
  • 1 tsp of wildflower honey
  • ½ tsp sea salt
Instructions
  1. Shred carrots in food processor if you didn't buy carrots that have already been shredded. Add to large bowl.
  2. Chop fresh dill and add to bowl.
  3. Mix in raisins, red wine vinegar, olive oil, the juice of one orange, honey and sea salt.
  4. Mix through and enjoy.
Notes
Make it ahead so that the carrots and raisins can soak up the dressing.

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Drinks

Easy Vegan Chai

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easy vegan chai

This easy vegan chai, will save you time and money in the morning. I wish I could take credit, but my husband Shameer came up with this recipe. I debated adding this to my website, since I use processed ingredients. However, convenience is king in the morning and both the Vanilla Almond Milk and Chai Mix are dairy free and non-gmo. However, they both contain cane sugar, so if you are being strict about your sugar intake than this recipe won’t be for you.

vegan chai ingredients

Both these ingredients combined in a 1:1 ratio, make the best vegan chai ever. It tastes just a regular chai latte, so your friends and family likely won’t be able to tell the difference.

Easy Vegan Chai
 
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Serves: 1 cup
Ingredients
  • 1 cup of Vanilla Almond Breeze Almond Milk
  • 1 cup of Oregon Chai Mix
Instructions
  1. Combine ingredients 1:1 in a large sauce pan, and heat until desired temperature.
Notes
After trial and error the Vanilla Almond Breeze Almond Milk tastes the best with the Chai mix for the perfect hint of Vanilla and the right about of sweetness. Other milks can be used, but flavor may vary.

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Reviews

Milk and Eggs Delivery Review

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milk and eggs delivery

Make a resolution to cook more in the New Year? I know I did.  Meal Planning using farm fresh healthy ingredients is one of the most important things you can do for you health and for your pocket book. Even though I would love to go to farmer’s markets and I generally don’t mind grocery shopping, sometimes, our schedules can get pretty insane and we need help.

That’s where Milk and Eggs comes in. They are a delivery service in Los Angeles that delivers you fresh milk, eggs, dairy, meats, vegetables, and fruits on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. Membership & Delivery are FREE and orders can be changed anytime. All vegetables, fruits, dairy, eggs, and meats will be the freshest available, and locally acquired.

The website was really easy to use. I did my order à la carte. I choose a delivery date, and it was delivered on time before I had to leave for work on Monday morning. Which was awesome, by the way, having a fully stocked fridge in the beginning of the work week. It forced me to cook more, since I didn’t want food going to waste, which saved me money from going out to eat or ordering delivery. Yes, I’m not perfect and don’t always cook or eat healthy food. Life happens, and all you can do is your best, and get help where you can. Did some waste happen? Yes, but that happens when I go grocery shopping normally as well.

Overall, I’m really happy with the service and can definitely see myself using it in the future.  Wishing everyone a Happy New Year!

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