"Nobody Knows Beans About Chili 'Cause Chili Ain't Got No Beans."

I may lose my Texas residency by making this claim, but in my opinion, a true Texas chili should be made without beans.

Chili is a shortening of chili con carne, which means meat and chili. 

So here is a great recipe for a true (in my opinion) Texas Chili, and is Paleo!

Last Friday we had a massive ice storm here in Dallas that shut the city down for the weekend.  I started this meal at about 7 in the morning, and it made a great dinner at 3.  The leftovers were amazing too! 

If you would like to add some different flavors before you dice the peppers, you can roast them on the grill or in the oven just to where the skin blisters, it adds just a bit more smoky flavor. 

We served this to the kids, so I kept the spice down and didn’t add any cayenne.  If you want it spicy, then add in the cayenne or possibly habanero or more jalapenos.  Hope you enjoy this as much as we did!  If you can tolerate, dairy shredded cheese...

Paleo Chicken Thai See Ew

Every recipe I have ever cooked with coconut aminos seems to turn out amazing! This paleo chicken Thai see ew was no different. Every time I use coconut aminos I’m amazed at how much I really do prefer them over soy!  Coconut aminos are the aged and naturally fermented sap of the coconut tree.  Think of it like the maple syrup of the tropics.  They are much higher in some amino acids (the building blocks of protein) and much lower sodium than soy.  Plus it doesn't have all the potential allergic side effects of soy.  This makes it a great soy substitute.  Personally, I like the slightly sweeter and less salty taste of the coconut aminos over soy. This really was super easy and amazingly delicious Paleo Chicken Thai See Ew.  The carrots were an amazing replacement for the noodles.  The hardest part, which wasn’t really that hard was making the carrot ribbons.  Make sure you move fast after adding the broccoli, they get overcooked and soggy pretty quickly.  Hop...

We made the parsnips with and without the nutmeg and I have to say that I personally like the ones without much better.  I could still taste the parsnip but other than that the texture and consistency were the same as regular mashed potatoes.  If you are looking to avoid nightshade vegetables (potatoes) then this is a great option! 4 pounds parsnips, peeled and cut into small chunks

3 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup cream, optional
butter and salt to taste
optional: 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg and cinnamon

Combine parsnips with chicken broth and 3 cup water. With a lid, simmer until very tender (about 20 minutes).

Drain off broth. Mash parsnips with a fork or potato masher (a stick blender or food processor save time and effort).
Add enough broth back to the parsnips, and cream if you’re using it until desired consistency is reached.
Add salt and butter taste.  Enjoy!

This makes a great substitute for the typical ho-hum green bean casserole that we all grew up eating at the holidays.

1.5 lb. green beans
2 Tbs. Ghee
1 small onion diced
2 cloves garlic
8 oz mushrooms chopped
18 oz Coconut Milk
1 – 1/2 Tbsp Tapioca Starch (Flour)
Sea Salt & Pepper to taste
Fresh pepper
3/4 cups of Almond Meal

Clean and steam green beans.  Boil green beans for 1-2 min then quickly strain and put in cold water to stop cooking once al dente
Put green beans in medium size baking dish arranging them neatly (makes serving easier)
Cook the onions, mushrooms and garlic until soft in the ghee or grass fed butter.  Add to the green beans and arrange evenly
Mix Coconut milk and Tapioca Starch
Pour the mixture over green beans, which should cover them about halfway
Add salt and pepper to whole dish

Bake on 350 for 30 min, add almond meal to top then heat for 3-5 more min.  I turned the broiler on to brown and crisp the Almond Meal
Let dish cool 10 min before serving

I have never been much of a stuffing fan but this recipe is making me a bit of a convert!  It has all the great flavors of stuffing but none of the guilt if you are gluten or grain free eating.  I was really impressed with this meal and I can see it becoming a holiday staple at my house.

1lb ground pork sausage or ground beef
1/2 Sweet Potato, Chopped
5 pieces of bacon, diced
5 stalks of celery, diced
1 onion, diced
2 apples, diced
2 cups walnut pieces, very finely chopped/ground and soaked overnight (rinse several times before using)
or 1 cup pecans, chopped
1 cup cranberries dried
1 container of mushrooms, diced
2 teaspoons sage leaves, freshly chopped
1 teaspoon thyme, chopped fresh
¼ teaspoon rosemary, finely chopped fresh
½ tsp garlic powder
2 eggs
⅓ cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with foil, throw diced sweet potatoes/yams on it, toss with olive oil and salt and pepper. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or u...

Gorgonzola Stuffed Chicken Breast with Balsamic sautéed asparagus

This was an amazingly easy primal meal that we threw together last week.  I loved the Gorgonzola stuffed chicken and the combination between pan frying and baking.  You have to be very careful when you make the sauce, which was amazing by the way, because the handle is going to be really hot!  Hope you enjoy this primal meal. 4 chicken breast.

Ingredients: 

• 1/2 pound chilled Gorgonzola cheese crumbles
• 4 tbs. butter or ghee
• 4 tbs garlic
• 3 tbs Onion Toasted and dried (Penzey’s)
• 1/3 cup water
• 5 tbs. balsamic vinegar
• 1 lb asparagus spears  

Preparation:
Gorgonzola Stuffed Chicken Breast

1. Preheat oven to 425°F with rack in middle. 
2. Cut a deep pocket in the chicken breast.
3. Mix 2 tbs Garlic, 2 tbsp Onion, and Cheese.
4. Fill each pocket with one-quarter of cheese mixture.
5. Season chicken all over with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
6. Heat ½ of the butter in an ovenproof heavy skillet over medium-high hea
...

It has officially started!  The season of gluttony, late nights, early mornings and way too much sugar and stress.  Thanksgiving is a mere 4 weeks away and keeping true to the diet is next to impossible.  So, I thought that I would take the next couple of months and post paleo/primal meals that can help mitigate some of the damage done by the normal holiday staples.  Here are some of the better paleo holiday Thanksgiving side recipes I've prepared:

1.  Paleo Stuffing - I have never been much of a stuffing fan but this recipe is making me a bit of a convert!  It has all the great flavors of stuffing but none of the guilt if you are gluten or grain free eating.  I was really impressed with this meal and I can see it becoming a holiday staple at my house.    

2.  Paleo Sweet Potato Casserole - I really couldn’t tell the difference between non-paleo and this paleo casserole.  It really did taste amazing!      

3.  Paleo Green Bean Casserole - This makes a great substitute for t...

These were a big hit with everyone!  I would have added in a few shallots to mix up the flavors a bit but we used parsnips, turnips and butternut squash (yeah, I know, not really a root but it added a different color and flavor to the dish).

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs assorted root vegetables, peeled and diced
• 1 c apple cider (no added sugar)
• 3 tbsp Ghee or butter, melted
• 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup of chopped pecans
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
• 1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Mix together cider, 2 Tbsp coconut butter, salt and pepper in a bowl.
3. Add root vegetables, mixing until coated. 
4. Transfer to a baking dish
5. Bake 20 minutes, uncover and stir vegetables. Leave uncovered and continue cooking, stirring every 20 minutes until the vegetables are tender – about 1 hour more.
6. While the vegetables are cooking, place the nuts in a cast iron skillet and cook over low heat, stirring frequently to avoid scorching walnuts. 
7. Re
...

I am sorry to tell you that, no, there is not any safe meal replacement shake, powder, or bar out there that I have ever found.   These "meal replacements" are highly processed and fractionated “foods” - if you can really call them that.  Also, in my experience, they're usually laced with heavy metals, food allergens, and artificial sweeteners.  

In 2010 Consumer Reports noted significant levels of arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury in these powders.   In some of the powders, it was tested to be above the “safe” limits established by the pharmacopeia. 

Granted these are naturally occurring, but literally, those things will kill you, make you sick, and/or crazy! Even if you can find an absolutely pure protein that is tested to be free of heavy metals, these powders are still highly processed, fractionated proteins and during the processing, an isolated formation of MSG is produced. 

This formation of MSG causes a cascade of inflammation that most people don’t need in their lives!  I...

Often when a patient comes in, I adjust and change their diets by instructing the patient to eliminate grains and gluten. The next visit, usually within a week or two, they bounce into the office listing all the surprising and strange symptoms that brought them into the office initially have gone away!

These symptoms can be as broad ranging and far reach as a skin rash, or eczema, to severe and life-threatening autoimmune disorders like Multiple Sclerosis. There's a fascinating case where a man had severe neurological symptoms that mimicked ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease), even had an MRI that had the same lesions on the brain that ALS has, after he removed gluten from his diet all his symptoms abated and the MRI Lesion cleared.

Gluten is a terrible little protein, and gluten intolerance or sensitivity can be life altering. Symptoms of Gluten Intolerance or Sensitivity: