Garam Masala From Dried Spices (Whole 30)

Today’s post is 5 things you didn’t know about me.

1. I am scared of the dark. No, scared isn’t the right word. It’s more like terrified. It stems from when my apartment was broken into while I was home when I was younger.

2. I am a huge Star Trek nerd, all forms but especially Star Trek Deep Nine. I have collected the books and memorabilia since I was 12 years old.

3. I have 4 amazing nephews and 3 amazing nieces.

4. My favorite actor is Jeffery Dean Morgan. I have been a fan since people were going Jeffery Dean who? I got to meet him once, several years ago and it still makes me smile to think about it. Thank you, Ess.

5. My favorite books of all time are Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell and the unedited version of The Stand by Stephen King.

There you go, 5 things you didn’t know about me. Now you do.

Garam Masala

• Difficulty: Easy
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Adapted From Vegan Richa

2 Tbs corriander

1 TBS cumin

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp cinnamon

3/4 tsp cloves

1/2 tsp cardamom

1/4 tsp nutmeg

Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl. Mix well. Store in an airtight container in cool, dark place.

Coconut Curry Marinade (Whole 30)

This post is about random stuff that made me happy last week.

Be still my ever loving Star Trekkin heart. I just had to have these for my desk at work.

Seriously, how is this even comfortable? Ruby is literally, hanging on by her toenails. Its crazy but it makes me smile every time I see her doing it.

Before

Inspired by my friend, Ess’, awesome new haircut, I went and got a new hair cut.

After

I was going to go way shorter but my stylist said we can always cut more later but we can’t add it back once its cut. Its not a drastic change but I always feel amazing after a hair cut.

After my hair cut, I texted Ess and we met and hit our favorite stores downtown and then went out for dinner. One of the great things about downtown is all the non chain related places there are to eat. This evening we started at Poke Bowl for the main course and ended at The Silver Lining Creamery for an awesome ice cream dessert.

These are just a few of the things that made me happy last week.

Coconut Curry Marinade

• Difficulty: Easy
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Adapted From Eat The Gains

1/2 cup full fat coconut milk

1 TBS red curry paste

1 TBS curry powder

1 TBS lime juice

Salt and pepper, to taste

Combine all the ingredients and mix well. Add your protien of choice, cover and marinate at least 4 hours to overnight before cooking.

Sweet And Tangy Curry Vinaigrette (Whole 30)

Sometimes, when you have blogged as long as I have, you get the urge to shake things up a little bit. To that end, I am looking to make some changes to the look of my blog so don’t be surprised if you see what look like a lot of random changes when you visit over the next few days.

I would also like to shake up my content a little bit. This is where you come in. Do you have a favorite cusine you would like to see more small batch recipes for? How about favorite vegetable you would like to see more different ways to cook? Do you have a favorite recipe you love to make but you don’t because it just makes too dang much? Send it my way and Ill see if I can adapt it. Leave suggestions in the comments and send recipes to juliesflock13@gmail.com

Sweet And Tangy Curry Vinaigrette

• Difficulty: Easy
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From Go Dairy Free

2 TBS Balsamic vinegar

2 TBS rice vinegar

1 large medjool date

1 tsp curry powder

2 tsp dry mustard

Place all ingredients in a jar. Cover and shake like crazy. Store in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Curry Powder from Ground Spices (Whole 30)

Yesterday I got an email at work saying congratulations for your first 100 days at U.S. Bank. I can’t believe it been 3 full months since I started my new job and a month and a half since I finished training and got on the floor. Not bad for someone who was sitting at her desk crying because she was so overwhelmed and certain she couldn’t do it 3 weeks into training. I am proud of myself and what I have accomplished.

I am posting this curry powder recipe because since I have cleaned out and down sized my spice drawer I no longer have whole spices to make my usual curry powder with. This curry powder only uses ground spices. This is a very mild curry powder so if you like it spicy add cayenne pepper to taste.

Curry Powder

• Difficulty: Easy
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Adapted From The Minimalist Baker

1 TBS ground corriander

1 TBS ground cumin

2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp dry mustard

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp cinnamon

3/4 tsp cloves

1/2 tsp cardamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

Combine all the spices in a small container. Mix well. Store in an air tight container in a cool, dark place.

Chinese Pepper Steak (Whole 30) — A Review

I don’t usually get really excited about cookbooks. I love to look at them and try new recipes from them but very seldom does a cookbook make me want to try everything in it. Even more seldom does a cookbook make me want run out and tell people to buy a copy. ChihYu Smith’s book Asian Paleo makes me want to do both.

Things I Like:

1. Ever since my first Whole 30, I have turned to the crazy sauce lady. Sauces can take the most boring meal and turn into something special. There are tons of new sauces to try.

2. The recipes contain no added sugar and no grains, making them perfect for the Whole 30.

3. Her food tastes amazing.

Things I Don’t Like:

1. A few of the recipes require expensive or hard to find ingredients.

2. The recipes are s little prep heavy.

Although Asian Paleo isn’t a small batch cookbook, it is definitely worth adding to your cookbook collection.

Chinese Pepper Steak

• Difficulty: Easy
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From Asian Paleo

Beef:

1 lb sirloin steak

2 TBS coconut aminos

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp onion powder

2 tsp toasted sesame oiil

1 tsp arrowroot

Scant 1/4 tsp baking soda

Salt and pepper, to taste

Stir Fry:

Olive oil

3 – 4 cloved garlic, thinly sliced

1 large shallot, sliced into thin strips

Salt

1 green bell pepper, sliced into thin strips

1 red bell pepper, sliced into thin strips

1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce

Thinly slice the beef against the grain and place in a bowl. Add the remaining beef ingredients and mix well. Place in the refrigerator to marinate while you prepare the stir fry ingredients.

In a stainless steel pan over high heat, add 1 1/2 tablespoons of oil and sear the beef in batched until the beef is slightly crispy. Remove the beef and any juices from the pan.

Add a little more oil to the pan. Add the garlic and shallot. Season with a little salt and saute until fragrant, about 10 seconds. Add the bell peppers and a little more salt. Saute until the peppers become slightly soft but still crunchy. Add the Worcestershire sauce and the beef back to the skillet. Give the meat and veggies a good stir to coat with sauce. Taste and add a little more salt if necessary.