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Polish Bison Pot Roast with Mushrooms

Few people think of Poland when they think of bison, yet Poland has its own wild bison. They live in one of the oldest forests in Europe, which had been left pretty much untouched. They are very similar to the much more famous bison of the United States. Bison were at one time considered a food for royalty and the nobles, and were hunted as a highly desired prestige food.

While the nobles would eat the choicest cuts, sometimes the peasants would get hold of the less prestigious cuts, like the chuck, and they developed some interesting recipes. This recipe was inspired by reading an old story where a pot roast of wild bison, "fragrant with mushrooms and cream," was served and found absolutely delicious. It also revived and energized the tired travelers.

Wild mushrooms were (and are) a favorite food in Poland, and they can give great flavor. If you can find Polish borowicki mushrooms, the flavor will be the most authentic, but porcini mushrooms will work fine, as they are closely related.

I have added onions (sure to be present in almost any Polish pot roast), and a few traditional Polish spices. The bison comes out very tender, and the flavor is different yet delicious.

3 USW Bison Polish Mushroom

Serves 4.

INGREDIENTS

1 U.S. Wellness Meats bison chuck roast

1/2 ounce dried wild mushrooms, either porcini or Polish borowicki

1 cup filtered water

4 tablespoons pastured butter

1 large organic onion, sliced

1 cup fresh crimini mushrooms, (or other fresh mushrooms), sliced

1/2 cup organic full-fat cream

1/2 teaspoon organic granulated garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground organic black pepper

DIRECTIONS

  1. At least 2 hours before you plan to cook the bison, remove it from the refrigerator so it can come to room temperature. Place the dried mushrooms in a small bowl, heat the filtered water to boiling, and pour over the dried mushrooms.  Let the mushrooms soak in the hot water for 2 hours.
  2. Heat 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat in a heavy bottomed pan until the butter is hot and bubbly. Brown the roast in the butter over medium heat until golden brown, about 5 minutes on each side. Remove the meat to a plate.
  3. Drain and dry the soaked mushrooms, and reserve the soaking liquid. Add 2 more tablespoons of butter to the pan over medium heat. When the butter is hot and bubbly, add the onions, fresh mushrooms, and the soaked dried mushrooms to the pan. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, for about 5 minutes, which should give the mushrooms a nice golden brown color.
  4. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Add the meat to a casserole large enough to hold it, and cover the meat with the onion-mushroom mixture, making sure that some of the mixture is at the sides of the meat. Strain the soaking liquid into a bowl (straining gets rid of any soil that might have clung to the dried mushrooms). Add one half cup of the strained soaking liquid to the casserole. Add the cream, and the garlic powder, and pepper. Stir well. Cover, and cook at 250 degrees for 3 hours, or until a fork goes easily into the meat. Serve and enjoy the wonderful flavors.

describe the imageStanley Fishman is a cookbook author and blogger who is an expert on cooking grassfed meat. Stanley uses traditional flavor combinations and cooking methods to make the cooking of grassfed meat easy, delicious, and tender. Stanley has written two cookbooks that make it easy to cook grassfed meat —Tender Grassfed Meat: Traditional Ways to Cook Healthy Meat and Tender Grassfed Barbecue: Traditional, Primal and Paleo. Stanley blogs about real food and the cooking of grassfed meat at his blog Tendergrassfedmeat.com.

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Roast Lamb Loin with English Herbs

Lamb loin is one of the most delicious and treasured cuts of lamb. Cooked to medium rare, or to a pink color, it can be so tender and absolutely delicious. Yet many people think they do not like lamb.

If you want great lamb, it is important that the meat come from a breed used for eating, rather than wool. Sheep with wool often have a very strong and gamy flavor to their meat.

The lamb should be grassfed, as lamb tastes very much like what the animal was fed.

The roast must also be cut properly, with the natural bone and fat.

The rack of lamb split loin roast sold by U.S. Wellness Meats fits all these requirements perfectly. It comes from Katahdin sheep, a meat breed which is not used for wool. It is grassfed only.

And it is cut perfectly for roasting. The meat is in one piece, surrounded by the natural bone and a thin layer of the natural fat. Unlike supermarket lamb loins, the bones are not cut through. While cutting through the bones makes it easy to cut the meat into chops after roasting, it results in the loss of natural juices and flavor The uncut bones provide incredible flavor and juiciness to the meat, which is flavored by the bones and the fat. This also makes the meat more tender. The bones and fat are the two best spices you could have for this meat. The bones also make a perfect roasting rack.

In this recipe, I have added some English herbs that enhance the already wonderful flavor. There was a famous song that contained the words "Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme..." Few people realize that these herbs form a traditional English flavor combination, one that is fantastic with lamb.

Rackoflamb0734

Serves 2 to 4.

INGREDIENTS

1 U.S. Wellness Meats rack of lamb split loin roast

1 teaspoon organic fresh parsley, finely chopped

1 teaspoon organic fresh sage leaves, finely chopped

1 teaspoon organic fresh rosemary leaves, finely chopped

1 teaspoon organic fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped

1 teaspoon coarse unrefined sea salt, crushed

2 tablespoons U.S. Wellness Meats extra virgin olive oil, early or mid-season

DIRECTIONS

  1. About an hour before you plan to cook the roast, combine all the other ingredients in a small bowl and mix well. Place the roast on a plate, and rub the mixture all over the meat, fat, and bones. Let rest at room temperature for about an hour.
  2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
  3. Place the lamb bone side down in small roasting pan. Place the pan in the oven, and roast for 25 to 30 minutes, until done to your taste. 25 minutes should give you a medium rare roast. Using a sharp, sturdy knife, cut between the meat and the bones, which will give you a cylinder of delicious boneless meat. Cut the meat into serving pieces. Enjoy the wonderful flavor!

describe the imageStanley Fishman is a cookbook author and blogger who is an expert on cooking grassfed meat. Stanley uses traditional flavor combinations and cooking methods to make the cooking of grassfed meat easy, delicious, and tender. Stanley has written two cookbooks that make it easy to cook grassfed meat —Tender Grassfed Meat: Traditional Ways to Cook Healthy Meat and Tender Grassfed Barbecue: Traditional, Primal and Paleo. Stanley blogs about real food and the cooking of grassfed meat at his blog Tendergrassfedmeat.com.

US Wellness Lamb

We get a lot of questions about our lamb, so we thought we would create a special blog post highlighting our lamb producers, offerings, and recipes. We’re happy to report that our lamb is also a Missouri product. Raised just south of US Wellness headquarters near Perry, MO our lambs are 100% grass-fed and grass-finished. They enjoy lush Missouri pastures and plenty of rainfall. We harvest a mix of hair sheep and a special old world breed of wool sheep noted for their meat quality. 

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We have a variety of grass-fed lamb products available through our online store. We’re thrilled to announce the newest addition to the lamb category - the Lamb Tenderlioin. This cut is second to none in tenderness. Its exquisite taste will have you hooked after just one bite.

What other lamb selections do we offer? We have some real rarities! Think organ meats (Lamb Liver, Kidney, Heart, etc.) and Marrow Bones. We also offer a variety of chops and roasts. Lamb Loin and Rib Chops are a griller's delight. Just fire up the grill and thow on some chops. Our assorted Lamb Sweetbreads are a rare delicacy and we are pleased to be able to carry them. Sweetbreads are highly sought-after by chefs, adventurous home cooks and connoisseurs for their mild, sweet flavor.  Easy to prepare and very versatile, these offal meats can be sautéed, poached, grilled, fried, braised or roasted.  Demand exceeds our supply for this specialty selection, so we encourage you to order them when they are available. Another specialty selection is Lamb Tallow.  This can be used as an alternative for shortening, lard, or beef tallow. Add it to meat and vegetable dishes for added flavor with all the health benefits grass-fed fat offers. Unfortunately, we do not get tallow with every harvest, so we encourage you to order when it's available. To view all of our lamb selections, please visit our online store.

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We have a variety of lamb recipes available on our Pinterest page, but we wanted to share a few of our favorites. Here are some tried and true recipes:

- The Domestic Man: Lamb’s Feet Soup and Rolled Lamb Loin Roast

- The Urban Poser: Lamb Lollipops

Slim Palate: Lamb Curry

Balanced Bites: Greek-Style Lamb Meatballs

The Clothes Make the Girl: Moroccan Lamb Kabobs

We welcome your feedback! If you have any lamb recipes or cooking ideas, we'd love to hear them. Feel free to post below or link to any favorite recipes you want to share.

Native American Bison Stew

Bison was the most important food to many Native American peoples, and they developed many ways to cook it. One of the most common ways was to make it into a stew, with several root vegetables and broth. It was traditional for large pots of this stew to be kept simmering throughout the day, so anyone who was hungry would have it available. The root vegetables used were usually not the ones that we have available, consisting of things like wild turnips, wild carrots, and other wild roots. But corn was often available, and used in the stews to provide a very nice taste. Sage and wild onions were also often used.

This stew is easy, and is true to the spirit of combining many root vegetables with bison meat. It is also a one-pot meal, containing many nutrients. It does not contain the same root vegetables used by the Native Americans—I use ordinary organic carrots instead of wild carrots, for example. But it is really delicious and satisfying. And tender.

I have found grassfed bison to be a wonderful source of energy, and one of the best remedies for being tired that I have ever found. The precut bison stew meat sold by U.S. Wellness Meats is perfect for this dish.

Grassfed Bison Stew

Serves four.

INGREDIENTS

2 pounds U.S. Wellness Meats bison stew meat

3 organic green onions, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh organic sage leaves, chopped

1 organic yellow onion, chopped

4 large carrots, peeled and chopped

1 cup organic corn kernels, (I use frozen organic corn kernels—no need to defrost them, just break them up into individual kernels)

3 medium potatoes, (or 2 medium sweet potatoes), peeled and chopped into 1-inch chunks

1 1/2 cups U.S. Wellness Meats beef marrow bone stock broth, (or homemade beef or bison broth)

DIRECTIONS

  1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Place all the ingredients in a large covered casserole, and mix well.
  2. Cover the pot and place in the preheated oven. Cook for 30 minutes.
  3. Stir the contents of the pot. Reduce the heat to 250 degrees, and cook covered for 2 hours, or until the meat is tender when pierced with a fork.

fishman 4271 resized 600Stanley Fishman is a cookbook author and blogger who is an expert on cooking grassfed meat. Stanley uses traditional flavor combinations and cooking methods to make the cooking of grassfed meat easy, delicious, and tender. Stanley has written two cookbooks that make it easy to cook grassfed meat —Tender Grassfed Meat: Traditional Ways to Cook Healthy Meat and Tender Grassfed Barbecue: Traditional, Primal and Paleo. Stanley blogs about real food and the cooking of grassfed meat at his blog Tendergrassfedmeat.com.

Organ Sausages: General Characteristics, Thawing Tips & Storage

We get a lot of questions about our wildly popular organ sausages, so we thought we would compile a special blog post to answer the most frequently asked questions. We hope you find this information helpful in choosing the perfect selection for you and your family.

describe the imageOrgan Sausages

-Liverwurst (Ingredients: beef, beef liver, beef kidneys, beef heart, water, sea salt, onion powder, white pepper, coriander, marjoram, allspice)

-Head Cheese (Ingredients: beef, beef heart, beef tongue, water, sea salt, onion powder, white pepper, coriander)

-Raw Uncooked Beef Braunschweiger (Ingredients: beef, beef liver, water, sea salt, onion powder, raw honey, white pepper, coriander, marjoram, allspice)

-Fully Cooked Beef Braunschweiger (Ingredients: beef, beef liver, water, sea salt, onion powder, white pepper, coriander, marjoram, allspice)

-Chicken Braunschweiger (Ingredients: beef, chicken liver, sea salt, onion powder, raw honey, white pepper, coriander, marjoram, allspice)

General Characteristics

Head Cheese and Braunschweiger will be milder in taste compared to Liverwurst. Liverwurst has the strongest flavor of all our organ sausages due to the kidneys being a vital ingredient. Weston A. Price members have made our Liverwurst the best selling organ sausage at the annual conference. Overall, it is our best selling organ sausage as well. It is the most diverse in the kinds of organs (liver, kidneys and heart); due to this diversity, Braunschweiger actually contains more liver. 

We personally love the Raw Braunschweiger. Because the Braunschweiger is raw, we are able to easily mix it with ground beef. This is particularly useful if you are new to incorporating organ meats into a diet. It has a consistency similar to bread dough. Once thawed, the Raw Braunschweiger will be quite soft as compared to the firmer, fully cooked sausages. 

Head cheese does not contain cheese! Historically, versions have varied greatly by region and culture; our Head Cheese is a simple cold beef sausage which contains heart and tongue.

Color variances are normal for all organ sausages- the outside of the product is typically darker and the inside lighter in color. We do not use any dyes in our products. 

Thawing Tips

You may notice purge or the water that is released every time you freeze and thaw meat. We use none of the phosphorus and dairy binders that the commercial sausage makers use to cover up this issue, so some customers are surprised to find a red liquid upon thawing. Although not the most visually appealing, this is a natural occurrence and no cause for concern.

The Liverwurst will show the most purge as it is richest in the organ meats compared to the Braunschweiger that will have just a bit, and the Head Cheese that rarely has noticeable purge.

The Chicken Braunschweiger is softer than the beef organ sausages. When slicing, we prefer to only partially thaw the Chicken Braunschweiger. We have found this allows for easier slicing of this organ sausage variety.

With the exception of the Raw Braunschweiger, the organ sausages are fully cooked and ready to be thawed and enjoyed. Slower thawing in the refrigerator will produce less purge as compared to faster thawing on the counter at room temperature.

organsausages

Storage

Once thawed, the organ sausages will last about a week in the refrigerator as we do not add preservatives or nitrates. If you like, the organ sausages may be partially thawed, portioned and refrozen. We use this method ourselves.

For some customers, organ meats recall flavors they haven't tasted since their childhood; for others, this is an entirely new experience. The palate may take time to adjust to the richness of organ meats. Many customers have commented that pairing the organ sausages with mustard or cheese, drizzling slices with olive oil or even chopping into chunks and using as a salad topping helped make this new flavor more familiar and enjoyable.

While most customers simply thaw and enjoy our cooked organ sausages, you may also enjoy some tried and true recipes including LiverloafUlster Fry, and Beef Bacon Braunschweiger Sliders.

Do you have a favorite organ sausage? Do you have any recipes or advice for someone trying organ sausages for the first time? Feel free to share your comments.

Grassfed Flat Iron Stir-Fry with Portuguese Butter Sauce

Grassfed flat iron steak has a wonderful, deep, beefy flavor, and can be very tender. But there is an issue, the steak usually comes with a big wad of sinew in the middle, and there are thinner parts of sinew in other parts of the meat. Sinew is not a pleasure to bite into.

The grassfed flat iron steak sold by U.S. Wellness Meats has a fair amount of the sinew already removed, but some does remain.

This recipe was designed to deal with the sinew issue, which is why it is cut up for stir-frying. The combination of traditional Portuguese flavors and the stir-fry format, along with the use of butter as a cooking medium, really works. In other words, this dish is flat out delicious, tender, with incredible flavor.

I recommend using imported bay leaves, as the bay leaves grown in the U.S. are from a similar but different tree, and do not have the taste of the traditional ingredient. Smoked Spanish paprika also gives incredible flavor to the dish, but it is delicious with any good European paprika.

The time you stir-fry the beef depends on how you like it. If you like meat very rare, two minutes may be enough, but if you like it medium rare, three to four minutes would be better. No matter how you cook it, do not miss out on the wonderful cooking liquid, which makes a marvelous butter sauce, and is best poured right onto the meat.

3 Flatironstan

Serves four.

INGREDIENTS

2 pounds U.S. Wellness Meats flat iron steak

For the Marinade

4 tablespoons unfiltered organic extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons dry white wine

4 cloves organic garlic, finely chopped

8 imported bay leaves, crumbled, (optional, but they do add a lot of flavor)

1 tablespoon Spanish paprika, preferably smoked

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground organic black pepper

For the Cooking

3 tablespoons pastured butter

1 tablespoon organic extra virgin olive oil

DIRECTIONS

  1. Combine all ingredients for the marinade, and mix well.
  2. Cut the meat into pieces approximately 1-inch long, trimming off the sinew as you go, (I save the sinew and use it in homemade broth)
  3. Combine the cut, trimmed meat with the marinade in a glass bowl, and cover the bowl. Marinate 2 hours at room temperature. Alternatively, you can marinate it 1 hour at room temperature, and let it marinate in the refrigerator overnight.
  4. If you have marinated the meat in the refrigerator, remove it from the refrigerator 1 hour before cooking, so it can come to room temperature.
  5. Heat the butter and oil over medium high heat. When the butter is hot and bubbly, add half of the meat , and stir-fry at medium high heat for 2 to 4 minutes, or until the meat is done to your taste.
  6. Remove the first batch of meat to a warm place, then add the rest of the meat and contents of the bowl to the pan, and stir-fry for 2 to 4 minutes, until the second batch is done to your taste.

Combine the two batches, serve, and enjoy the incredible flavor. Be sure to pour the flavorful pan drippings over the meat, as they actually are a wonderfully flavored butter sauce.

fishman 4271 resized 600Stanley Fishman is a cookbook author and blogger who is an expert on cooking grassfed meat. Stanley uses traditional flavor combinations and cooking methods to make the cooking of grassfed meat easy, delicious, and tender. Stanley has written two cookbooks that make it easy to cook grassfed meat —Tender Grassfed Meat: Traditional Ways to Cook Healthy Meat and Tender Grassfed Barbecue: Traditional, Primal and Paleo. Stanley blogs about real food and the cooking of grassfed meat at his blog Tendergrassfedmeat.com.

Ulster Fry Recipe: How the Irish Cure a Hangover!

The Ulster Fry is an old dish that has long been a tradition in Ireland. This dish is still reputed to be one of the best cures for a hangover. There is some science behind this belief, as the dish is rich in animal fat, which supports the natural functions of the brain, and could help the body recover from an overdose of alcohol.

But you do not need a hangover to enjoy Ulster Fry. Aside from its brain health qualities, Ulster Fry is just flat out delicious and satisfying.

Traditionally, Ulster Fry contains bacon, two kinds of pork sausage, including blood pudding, eggs, potato bread, and Irish Soda bread, all fried in glorious bacon fat.

It has been very difficult to find decent sausages these days, as so many of them are made from factory meat and contain chemicals and other unsavory ingredients that I would not want to eat.

However, U.S. Wellness Meats has a number of great sausages that are made from quality meat, free of chemicals, which are perfect for the Ulster Fry.

Potato bread is not common in the U.S., but you can add two slices of it if you can find it. You can use any bread you like, including low-carb bread, for the Irish Soda bread. No matter what you use, it will be fried in bacon fat. If you do not eat bread, you can add another egg.

This version uses grassfed organ sausage to make a delicious dish that is even healthier than the original, and just as tasty, in my opinion.

2 Ulster Fry

Serves two.

INGREDIENTS

4 fat slices of U.S. Wellness Meats Sugar Free Pork Bacon, (or 4 fat slices of U.S. Wellness Meats Sugar Free Beef Bacon Slices, combined with two tablespoons pastured butter)

4 one-quarter inch thick slices of U.S. Wellness Meats Liverwurst

4 one-quarter inch thick slices of U.S. Wellness Meats Bologna

2 slices bread, preferably a good Irish soda bread, but sourdough and even low carb breads will work. In fact, even a Paleo-type bread made of nut flours will work.

2 eggs, preferably pastured

DIRECTIONS

  1. Place the bacon in a cold, large frying pan. Heat the skillet over medium heat, and render the fat from the bacon, turning occasionally. Do not pour out the fat, you will need every precious bit of it. When the fat is rendered and the bacon is crisp, remove the bacon slices to a warm place, and add all the sausages to the hot bacon fat.
  2. Brown each side of the sausages, turning once. They will brown quickly. Remove the sausages to a warm place.
  3. Add the bread. Break the eggs into the pan. Fry each side of the bread in the bacon fat until crisp, and cook the eggs until they are set to your taste, thought they are best when somewhat runny. Be sure to baste the egg yolks with bacon fat as they cook. Divide the ingredients equally on two plates, and enjoy!

describe the imageRecipe and photo compliments of Stan Fishman, author of Tender Grassfed Meat and Tender Grassfed Barbecue. Stan’s mission is to promote and teach about how to cook tender grassfed meat, real food, and how to follow the nutritional wisdom of Dr. Weston A. Price. 

Savory Korean Short Ribs

Short ribs are one of the most flavorful beef cuts, with a wonderful texture. They have a deep beefy flavor, especially when they are grassfed. Short ribs are often thought of as a tough cut of meat, yet they are so tender when cooked right. Beef short ribs are very much appreciated in Korea, where they are often sliced thin, marinated, and grilled. The marinades always include some soy sauce, which is a problem for those avoiding soy. This short rib stew uses some traditional Korean flavorings, and my favorite substitute for soy sauce, Red Boat fish sauce. The apples may seem unusual, but they give a wonderful flavor to the dish. It makes its own gravy as it cooks, and is so easy. Yet it is one of the most delicious recipes for beef short ribs I have ever eaten.

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INGREDIENTS

  • 2 (1 pound packages) U.S. Wellness boneless short ribs
  • 1 (2-inch) piece organic ginger, finely chopped
  • 3 cloves organic garlic, finely chopped
  • 3 tablespoons Red Boat fish sauce
  • 2 tablespoons organic toasted sesame oil
  • 2 tablespoons dry white wine
  • 1 tablespoon raw organic honey, such as Really Raw honey
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground organic black pepper
  • 1 large organic onion, chopped
  • 2 organic apples, preferably Fuji, peeled and chopped into small cubes

DIRECTIONS

  1. Trim the fat on the ribs to no more than one quarter inch thick. cut the boneless ribs into one inch squares.
  2. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Place all ingredients in a sturdy casserole, preferably cast iron or enameled cast iron. Mix very well. Cover the pot and place in the oven.
  3. Cook for 3 hours at 250 degrees. This wonderful dish will be ready in 3 hours. Yes, it really is that easy.

Recipe and photo compliments of Stan Fishman, author of Tender Grassfed Meat and Tender Grassfed Barbecue. Stan’s mission is to promote and teach about how to cook tender grassfed meat, real food, and how to follow the nutritional wisdom of Dr. Weston A. Price. 

It's Turkey Time!

TurkeyThanksgiving is right around the corner, and we are here to help make your turkey day more manageable! We usually receive many questions this time of year regarding turkey sizes, shipping, thawing and cooking so we wanted to put together a post that would hopefully help answer any questions that might arise.  If you have any other questions or concerns please leave a comment below!

 

First - you need the right bird!

  • We have certified organic, free-range turkeys available now ranging from 10-22 lbs.
  • We suggest ordering no later than November 13th to ensure a timely delivery and time to thaw the bird.
  • Figure one pound of turkey per guest.
  • If you don't like turkey, pork loin and prime rib also make great centerpieces to any dinner table!

Second - prepping is essential!

  • Allow enough time to completely thaw your turkey, according to the USDA it's best to plan for a slow, safe thaw in your refrigerator.
  • Figure thawing 24 hours for every 4-5 lbs.  So a 20-lb turkey would need to thaw for aproximately 4 days.

Third - cook the bird!

  • USDA cooking time recommendations are below:
Weight Unstuffed Timing Stuffed Timing
8-12 lbs 2:45 - 3 hours 3 - 3:30 hours
12-14 lbs 3 - 3:45 hours 3:30 - 4 hours
14-18 lbs 3:45 - 4:15 hours 4 - 4:15 hours
18-20 lbs 4:15 - 4:30 hours 4:15 - 4:45 hours
20-24 lbs 4:30 - 5 hours 4:45 - 5:15 hours

  • These times are based on a 325-degree F oven temperature.
  • Cook until reaching a 165-degree F internal temperature.
  • Allow your turkey to rest approximately 10 minutes before carving.

Finally - leftovers!

  • - Check out this blog post for ideas on how to best use Thanksgiving leftovers!

If you want to try some new or different Thanksgiving recipe ideas, here are some great links to check out:

Thanksgiving 

  The Food Lover's Kitchen - Thanksgiving Dinner

 

 

Whole9 Thanksgiving

  

   Happy Whole9 Thanksgiving

 

 

Everyday Paleo Thanksgiving

 

  Everyday Paleo Thanksgiving & Pumpkin Pie Cooking Demo

 

 

 

Mixed Seafood Paella

IMG 0656 WM2 640x392 resized 600Recipe and photos compliments of Against All Grain

Ingredients (serves 4)
1½ cup chicken broth
1 cup clam stock (use all chicken broth if you omit seafood)
6 littleneck clams, scrubbed clean
6 mussels, scrubbed clean
½ pound jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
6 ounces chorizo sausage, casing removed and crumbled (homemade or nitrate free)
2 chicken thighs, cubed (boneless and skinless)
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 roma tomatoes, chopped
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon saffron threads
¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
¼ teaspoon cracked pepper
1 head cauliflower (about 4 cups chopped)
¼ cup fresh parsley
lemon wedges for garnish

Directions

Place the cauliflower floretts in a blender or food processor, and chop finely until it resembles short-grain rice. Set off to the side.

Combine the chicken stock and clam juice in a saucepan set over medium heat. Keep warm while you cook the meat.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken pieces and sausage. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to brown the chicken on all sides.

Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil, onion, garlic, tomatoes, salt, paprika, pepper, and saffron. Continue to sauté for another 7 minutes until the onions have softened.

Pour ¾ cup of the broth mixture into the skillet, stirring to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Stir in the riced cauliflower and simmer for 15 minutes.

Bring the remaining broth to a boil, then add the clams and mussels. Cover and cook for 6-7 minutes, until the shells have opened up. Discard any that haven’t opened. Remove the shellfish with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add the shrimp to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes, until pink. Set aside with the shellfish.

When the cauliflower is tender and most of the juices have evaporated, nestle the shrimp, clams, and mussels into the paella. Cook for another 10 minutes then remove from the heat. Let the paella stand for 10 minutes before serving.

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Sprinkle the parsley over the top and serve each dish with a lemon wedge. Paella is best with a squeeze of fresh lemon right before eating.

Enjoy!

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