Paleo Bannana Muffins (gluten free!)

My favorite jewelry designer, Flavia Cardoso is known for her "delicate edgy" 14k gold pieces seen in everyone's ears in the fashion biz. She is one of those people who can turn a carrot and sarong into a gorgeous glamping tent on the beach. She has now applied that talent to paleo baking. These muffins are so fluffy and naturally sweet and insanely easy to make.

I love to suggest a paleo baked good to anyone who is breaking up with sugar. Why? Cuz all flours made from grains spike your blood sugar, increasing your insulin and causing you to store belly fat. Your body thinks flour is sugar. By saying #nobetch to flour and #yesbetch to almond or coconut "flour" (literally blanched and dehydrated and ground almonds or coconut) your blood sugar stays stable, you get lots of protein and good fat and you don't gain an ounce.

Ingredients

• 2 ripe bananas (the ripper they are, the sweeter they are)

• 1 1/2 cups almond flour

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1 tsp vanilla

• Pinch of salt

• 2 eggs, whisked

• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted

• 1/3 cup pecans or walnuts, chopped

• Optional: dates for extra sweetness.

• Galadriel's options : I added raw, unsweetened cacao nibs and unsweetened coconut as well as sliced almonds to mine.

Instructions

1. In a small bowl smash the bananas

2. Next add the eggs, vanilla and coconut oil to the bananas and stir until combined

3. In a larger bowl, combine all the dry ingredients (almond flour, baking soda and salt)

4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry mixture bowl – stir into a batter

5. Next add the chopped nuts or raw cacao nibs and stir well (save a couple of tablespoons of the nuts or coconut to top the muffins)

6. Pour batter into a muffin tin lined with baking cups – fill each cup about 3/4 full

7. Sprinkle remaining nuts or coconut on top of muffins and place in oven

8. Bake at 350º F for about 22-25 minutes (oven times and temperatures will vary – test done-ness by inserting a toothpick, if it comes out clean, they're done)

9. Store covered in fridge, or you can freeze these to enjoy later

zoodles with tomato sauce (dinner ready in 15 minutes)

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When my clients break up with sugar and flour they ask me mournfully, what about pasta? Sure, gluten free pasta a few times a year is a nice treat. However, this plant based, whole food staple is something you can make once a week. I serve it at most of my dinner parties. The more you crowd out processed food with veggies, the healthier you will be...the happier your waist line will be, your skin will have fewer zits and less wrinkles, your joint issues will reduce and your energy and mood will improve. My credo is: every meal, every day is at least 80% plants. This dish of zoodles and tomato sauce with ground turkey is a great example of that. The meat isn't the star, the veggies are.

Zoodles

First spiralize your organic zucchini to create your raw zoodles. I suggest one zucchini per person. You can find a sprializer for under $40 on Amazon or your local kitchen store.

Sauce

Now prepare your sauce. If you wanna do homemade I will worship you but if you are a busy person like me, an organic jar one will do. I personally like the Whole Foods brand because it has NO SUGAR added, contains no hydrogenated weird oils and hello it's only 2.99.

 Saute onion, garlic, carrots (optional) in olive oil until the onions are translescent. If you want to add a lean protein like organic ground turkey this would be the time. Now add your sauce and dried or fresh oregano and basil as well as salt. You could even add a splash of red wine if you want.

Serve

Place a large handful or two of spiralized zoodles into individual serving bowls. (side note I usually cut them a bit as some zoodles can be up to 9 inches long)

Pour the hot tomato sauce over the raw, vegan, gluten free zoodles. Top with fresh basil. I also top mine with nutritional yeast which contains all the B vitamins and gives it a cheezy flavor. B vitamins fight depression and give you energy. Many of my dinner guests like to top theirs with freshly grated parmesan cheese.

As you know I love fast healthy meals and I love an easy swap, such as swapping pasta for zoodles. This meal is so hearty and filling you will feel so inredibly satisfied without feeling overstuffed.

side note: I hope you have leftovers cuz you will probs crave this the second nite too. In which case, store the sauce and zoodles seperatly. If you store them together they turn to slop.

Enjoy!