A Delicious Borsch Recipe
Holy Crap. Look out. It’s a Borsch recipe from someone who’s heritage didn’t have Borsch!
I can normally get all the ingredients from the local grocery store for under $25. You WILL have leftover ingredients, so get creative and come up with some other meal ideas with the extras!
HoKay. Below is the ingredient list (For the spices, I just do what feels right throughout the process)
Ingredients:
1 lb Stew Beef (or beef chunk, trimmed and cubed)
1 teaspoon each: dried basil, groun black pepper, smoked paprika
2 teaspoons sea salt
2 Tablespoons of olive oil
6-8 cups beef broth (more broth = more soup! I use two boxes of Wegmans organic or Swanson broth depending on sales)
1 medium to large onion, diced
3 Carrots, diced
1-2 Celery Stalks, diced
3 Large Beets, diced
2-3 Large Potatoes, cubed to about an inch
2 cups shredded cabbage (1/4 of a cabbage) (I slice mine by hand, it’s good enough)
2 Tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
2-3 green scallions, diced
FOR THE SAUCE!
1 medium onion, diced
2-3 cloves of garlic, crushed/sliced/diced/minced/whateva
1 small can (like 1 cup size) tomato sauce or puree
¼ Cup of Ketchup (you read that correctly)
1 cup water
¼ teaspoon each: salt, black pepper
Directions:
Here. We. Go.
- Coat the bottom of a large pot (I use a Dutch Oven) with some olive oil.
- Warm that sucka up over some low-medium heat.
- You’re about to sauté, not deep fry.
- Drop in the beef and cook thoroughly
- Add some salt and pepper to taste
- Once the beef is done cooking, remove from the pot and place in a bowl for later.
- Start sautéing your mirepoix (onion/carrot/celery mix)
- Once it’s all nice and cooked up, add the beef back into the pot, add the beets and add the broth
- Add a little more salt and pepper, add some paprika if you feel inclined and add some dried basil.
- STIR IT UP! MmmmMMMMMmmmmMMMMMmmmMMMMMmm
- Get that thing back up to a nice simmer, reduce heat to low and let it ride/simmer for the rest of the time.
- Set a timer for 45 mins.
- When the timer goes off, start making the sauce!
- Put some olive oil in a frying pan
- Sauté the onion and garlic until golden brown (you know what’s up)
- Add the tomato sauce/puree, ketchup, water, and salt/pepper
- Simmer until the sauce reduces down to a nice marinara consistency (probably about 10 mins or so)
- ADD THAT SAUCE TO THE POT!!!!!
- While you’re at it, why not add in those cubed up potatoes, they look like they could use a good soak.
- Set a timer for 10 mins.
- When that timer goes off, add in the cabbage, fresh dill, fresh parsley, and scallions.
- STIR IT UP! MmmmMMMMMMmmmmMMMMMMmmmMMMMMmm
- Set another timer for 5 mins.
- When the timer goes off, turn off the stove, remove from heat and cover.
- STIR IT UP! MmmmMMMMMmmmmMMMMMmmmMMMMMmm
- Let it sit for at least an hour.
- It should still be warm enough at this point so dish it out and enjoy!
- You can serve this delicious meal garnished with a sprig of fresh dill if you like to be fancy.
- If you want to go old school Russian hardcore traditional style, add a dollop of sour cream or mayonnaise on top.
- I know this sounds weird as hell, but I tried it with the sour cream and it was REALLY Freaking good.
- It kinda made it taste like a baked potato
- The sour cream will sort of separate out and look gross as little sour cream balls. It’s normal.
- It still tastes great.
- So good.
- MmmmMMMMMmmmmMMMMMmmmMMMMMmm
- So good.
- It still tastes great.
- I know this sounds weird as hell, but I tried it with the sour cream and it was REALLY Freaking good.
*To make this paleo, swap out the potatoes for some rutabaga. You just need to boil the rutabaga separately for about 20 mins before adding it into the soup*
If you have any questions, feel free to ask below. If you have any comments or suggestions, also, pop them down below!
Invigorating Veggie Smoothie
Super easy. Super tasty. Super healthy.
The following is for one beast mode serving or two normal servings.
1) 1 cup ice 1 cup water
2) 1 cup water
3) One handful of baby spinach
4) 1/2 of a cucumber (half peeled)
5) 1/2 TBSP of ginger (I chop it first)
6) 2 garlic cloves
7) 1 Apple (cored)
8) 1 Lime (peeled)
9) 1 TBSP of Honey
10) 1 TBSP of coconut oil
Just toss everything into a blender and let it do it’s job. Once you get a nice smooth consistency…drink it up!!!
***I find that when using a cheap blender you get a better consistency adding each item one at a time and letting it blend a bit before adding more***
Adjust to taste.
Enjoy friends!
Let me know what variations you come up with in the comments!
Paleo Ketchup
Posted by: Nicky
So I picked up a rotisserie chicken from Wegmans for dinner, and I started to crave ketchup to go with it.
I remember a while back reading one of my Grandma’s books about cooking during the Great Depression, “Clara’s Kitchen.” The book was written by Clara Cannucciari and her grandson, Christopher. It’s a great read, and many of the recipes incidentally happen to be paleo (Clara happened to be in her 90’s when the book was written by the way). I thought “if an Italian grandmother makes this, it must be good.” So I tried it. And it was goooood. And it took me less than 5 minutes to make. Check out the book if you get a chance.
There is some vinegar in this recipe, but it’s better than high fructose corn syrup. I imagine you could try to substitute lemon juice for the vinegar, but I haven’t tried it yet. It tastes good even without the salt.
Here’s the recipe I followed from the book:
6 ounces tomato paste (homemade or canned)
1/4 cup water
1 clove garlic, pressed
2 tablespoons vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Mix together tomato paste, water, garlic, vinegar and salt and put in a sterilized jar. It makes about a cup. Keep refrigerated.
Enjoy!
Paleo Chicken Fingers
Posted By: Nicky
Chicken fingers are a quick and easy meal that I like to make at least once a week. I found this recipe at liveprimal.com and then made a few subtle changes. This site contains a wide variety of paleo recipes, so check it out: http://liveprimal.com/LPrecipes.pdf.
These chicken fingers are very easy to make. I try to keep the ingredients on hand. These can be cooked in a frying pan, but I find they turn out better if they are baked in an oven.
What you will need:
1-2 lb boneless skinless chicken tenders or chicken breasts cut into strips
1 egg, beaten
1/2 c almond flour
1/2 t sea salt
1 tsp poultry seasoning
1 tsp dry mustard powder
olive or coconut oil to line cooking sheet or for skillet
Set the oven to 375 degrees. Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and coat with oil. Place egg into a bowl and beat. Place the almond flour with seasonings into another bowl. Dip each chicken piece into the egg bowl and then dip into the flour mixture. Place each piece on the cookie sheet.
Place the cookie sheet in the oven for 30-40 minutes, turning halfway through. The chicken fingers are done when the juices run clear and there is no pink.
These can be eaten plain, topped with marinara sauce, or used in salads.
Enjoy!
Spaghetti Squash with Meat Sauce
This is an easy meal that I make about once a week. It’s better than real spaghetti. And yes, you can spin it on your fork like real spaghetti.
1 spaghetti squash
1 lb ground beef (grass-fed if possible)
Your favorite marinara sauce
Cut spaghetti squash in half lengthwise. Remove seeds and place cut side down on a cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil. Bake at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until fork tender. When the squash is done and cool enough to handle, scrape the insides out with a fork and you have your very own gluten-free spaghetti.
In the meantime, brown the ground beef. Drain any excess fat. Add marinara sauce.
Add the meat sauce to the squash.
Enjoy!
* I have not tried this, but you can microwave spaghetti squash if you prefer. According to http://www.wegmans.com: Place one squash half, skin cut side down (one half at a time), on microwave-safe dish; cover with microwave-safe plastic wrap. Microwave on HIGH 10-12 min, until tender. Repeat with second half. Let rest, covered, 10-12 min, until cool enough to handle. Carefully remove plastic wrap to avoid steam.
Posted by: Nicky
Paleo Pancakes
I was looking for something new to try for breakfast this week, and I came across this recipe for Almond Banana Pancakes on Mark Sisson’s website, http://www.marksdailyapple.com. The site has tons of primal recipes worth trying. I followed this recipe and the pancakes were absolutely amazing! I think they taste even better than real pancakes.
This recipe is quick and easy. I found that this recipe works well even if you use only 1 banana.
Here’s how I followed Mark’s recipe:
2 bananas
1 egg
1 heaping tablespoon of almond butter
Grass-fed butter or coconut oil
I mashed the bananas with a fork. Then I added an egg and mixed it with the banana using the same fork. Next I added the almond butter. It’s fine to leave some small banana lumps in the batter.
I greased the pan with grass-fed butter. It should work well with coconut oil if you don’t do dairy. Pour some batter onto the skillet (I made each pancake about 4 inches). The key is to cook the pancakes on low heat until the edges round. Then it is safe to flip them.
I served the pancakes with warm blueberries. I added some eggs and sausage on the side. Heaven!
FRIGGIN AWESOME PALEO CHILI
This is the recipe for some pretty good Slow Cooked Paleo Chili. Because this recipe does not include beans I add the green peppers and one of the onions in towards the end to give it a little more heartiness. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
2 lbs Grass-Fed Beef
2 Large Onions
2 Green Peppers
3 Garlic Cloves (Pressed)
2 T Chili Powder
2 T Crushed Red Pepper
1/2 t Cumin
1/2 t Garlic Powder
1 t Cayanne Pepper
2 14oz Cans of Diced Tomatos
1 Can of Tomato Paste (for a slightly thicker chili use a 14 oz can)
Steps:
1) Brown the beef and drain
2) Put everything in the slow cooker EXCEPT the 2 green peppers and the extra onion. (They get added later)
3) Cook for 3-4 hours on high or 5-6 on low
4) when you have roughly 1 hour left add the green peppers and other onion.
That’s it. It’s a simple, great tasting dinner!
Spice Rub Crock Pot Chicken
Last night I made this recipe I found on Sarah Fragoso’s http://www.everdaypaleo.com. Her site is full of delicicious recipes, and this is one of my favorites. Very easy and super tasty.
Joe and I served this with a side of mashed sweet potatoes and pearl onions with Kerrygold grass-fed butter.
Spice Rub Crock Pot Chicken
1 5-6 lb free range organic chicken – giblets removed, rinsed, and patted dry with paper towels
1 white onion sliced
1 tsp sea salt (optional)
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp cayenne (I use about 3/4 tsp)
1 tsp white pepper
1 tsp poultry seasoning
1 tsp garlic powder
Cover the bottom of the crock pot with the sliced onions. Mix all spices in a small bowl and then rub the spice mixture all over the whole chicken. Place the spiced chicken on top of the onions in the crock pot, cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours (depending on your crock pot). No need for any liquid, the chicken will cook in it’s own juices. Make sure you spoon the onions and a little bit of the juices over the chicken when you serve it.
The Recipe Girl is Here
Good morning,
I just wanted to let everyone know that Nicky Sciolino is now a contributer on the BarefootBuffalo website. Keep stopping by for some amazing recipe ideas.
Barefoot Buffalo 
