The most delicious dinner I've made so far....

I know my posting has been really sporadic.  Sorry about that.  I was trying to be super woman by taking 2 doctoral level classes, working full-time, working a 2nd job part-time, AND trying to workout and cook/eat Paleo.  Needless to say...I failed.  My saving grace has been required class attendance and signing up for a 10K training group, which gets me running twice a week.  Michelle and I completed our first 10K last Saturday so Happy Valentine's Day to us!  Otherwise, I have been failing.  I've been eating terrible, not sleeping, and feeling super stressed out.  I also started a new job, which has brought different challenges, while also allowing me the freedom of not having a commute that's longer than walking across the hall.  Additionally, I quit the second job and look froward to not stressing about deadlines.

A lot of Paleo blogs talk about autoimmune diseases and food intolerances.  I'm excited to go to a functional doctor in March to try and figure out what is going on with me.  What I know right now is that I feel terrible from indulging in dairy, grains (gluten free), and sugar.  So it's back to 30 days of clean eating.  Michelle took away my wine too. This made me very sad, but I'm sure I'll be fine.  I'm in day 2 and at the end of it...so yay!  Cheers to success (*raises a mug of tea)!

Do you love starches?  OMG...I LOVE starches!  Tonight's dinner tasted all kinds of delicious starchiness while incorporating protein and vegetables.  So now I'm trying to get back on the pure and clean eating, which means I have to start cooking again.  I totally skipped running tonight due to an injury, but also because I wanted to finish dinner.  What was it?  Shepherd's Pie!!!!  No...it doesn't have potatoes, it has cauliflower.  It was the best shepherd's pie I've ever had.  Thanks to The Paleo Mom, Against all Grain, and Well Fed for the inspiration around the dish.  

Kelly's Paleo Shepherd's Pie

Makes a very full dish - feel free to cut recipe in half.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Base

• 4 lbs. ground meat (2 lbs. ground pork and 2 lbs. ground beef)
• 5-6 stalks of celery, finely chopped
• 2 parsnips, finely chopped
• 1 large sweet potato, finely chopped
• 4 medium carrots (I prefer rainbow), finely chopped
• Coconut oil (for sautéing)
• 1 TB minced garlic
• 8oz can tomato paste
• 2 cups water
• 2 tsp. coconut aminos
• 2 tsp. dried rosemary
• 1 tsp. dried thyme leaves
• Finely ground salt and pepper to taste (I did 3 turns each on the grinder)

Cauliflower Topping

• 2 TB minced garlic
• 2 TB extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 heads cauliflower
• 6 TB ghee
• 1/4 c. coconut milk
• 3 tsp. sea salt

Base

1. Put the coconut oil in a pan over medium heat.  Let it melt and put in the carrots, potato, and parsnips.  Cover and let cook for 5 minutes - vegetables should be soft, but not brown.
2. Add the garlic and celery to the vegetable pan and stir until fragrant.
3. While the veggies are cooking, cook up the pork and beef in a large pan (I used a large pot) until browned.  Once done, drain off the fat and add the vegetables, tomato paste, water, coconut aminos, rosemary, and thyme.  Stir to combine and let simmer on medium heat until the water cooks down (about 10-15 minutes).  Once done, place in a 12X12 or 9X11 baking pan.

Cauliflower

1. Cut up the cauliflower heads and place the florets into a pan with a 1/2-inch of water.  Cover and let steam for 15 minutes.  Drain the water and place the florets into a food processor. 
2. Add the garlic, coconut milk, olive oil, ghee, and salt to the cauliflower.  Blend until it's combined and smooth/creamy.
3. Place the cauliflower mixture over the meat mixture and spread evenly.

Place the dish into the 400-degree oven and cook for 25 minutes or until the cauliflower topping is nicely browned (but not burnt).

This dish could also be prepared prior to assembly for us busy folks!

Cook up the veggies and place in a container - store in the fridge no more than 2-3 days

Cook up the meat with all the flavorings (but minus the veggies) and place in a container - store in the fridge no more than 2-3 days

When you're ready to assemble, combine the meat and veggies and place in the baking dish.  Prepare the cauliflower and add as the top layer.  Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes.