Bountiful Baskets & Chicken Cattiatore

Okay, enough hiatis from this great digestive easy diet.  Oh I mean lifestyle.  I mean eating adventure! 

Before I talk about the delicousness I made for dinner tonight, I must go on a tangent and talk about Bountiful Baskets Co-Op.

They are located in multiple States.  Multiple locations.  No location by you in your State?  Or your location sells out too quickly? Start your own!  They don't allow churches but you can hook up with a local business, fire department, etc and use their parking lot in good weather and lobby in bad.  It's all volunteer and absolutely a great Co-Op.

But wait, what is it you ask?  I'm glad you did.  You did.  I insist.

On Monday morning at 10 a.m. (SHARP because Salt Lake City sells out quickly) I sign up. It's $15 and it's a random basket of 50% veggies and 50% fruit. You pick a site to pick up at and you get your basket on Saturday morning. They also have extras you can get such as an upgrade to Organic, homemade breads, granola, specialty packs such a Italian (includes things like herbs, garlic, tomatoes, zucchini, etc), big boxes of fruit (such as pineapple, 18 lbs of plums, etc). Just whatever they offer that week.

This week, as an example, our conventional basket for $15 had zucchini, green beans, green leaf lettuce, cauliflower, tomatoes, limes, plums (omg they are so good), nectarines, bananas, grapes, strawberries and mangoes.  

  

My only "gripe" is that they're not all local foods. They get items from Mexico, etc. BUT it's a great way to make sure we get a good mix of fruits and veggies for a good price. And you never know what you're going to get. Sometimes they have things I've never even heard of before!

Why did I go on this tangent? (Okay, technically I copy/pasted it from my Facebook comment from earlier...whatever ha!)  Because it's a great way to get my fruits & veggies.  I take the veggies I get from the basket and plan my meals. 

Like this one - Cauliflower.  I wanted to make Cauliflower Rice again.  What to make with it?  Well the only logical conclusion is Chicken Cattitore.  What?  You didn't make that connection?

Original Source for Chicken Cattiatore

Original Source for Cauliflower Rice

As usual, I changed the recipes.

Chicken Cattiatore and Cauliflower Rice

For the chicken

• 2 lbs skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 yellow onion, diced
• 15oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 14oz can tomato sauce
• 1 cup vegetable broth
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
• 2 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• sea salt and pepper to taste

For the cauliflower rice

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 yellow onion, diced
• 1/2 head cauliflower
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
• 2 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
• sea salt and pepper to taste

Instructions  

1. Heat up your grill. Once it’s nice and toasty, rub a bit of olive oil your chicken breasts and top with salt and pepper, then throw them on the grill. Let them cook for about 6-8 minutes on both sides, depending how thick they are.
2. While they are cooking, grab a large pot and put under medium-high heat. Add your olive oil along with the garlic and onion and let those cook down a bit.
3. Next, add your tomatoes, sauce, broth, and all other spices to the mixture and stir together.
4. Once your chicken is pretty close to done, take it off the grill and add directly to your tomato mixture.  Simmer on low.
5. Next, to make the cauliflower rice, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1/2 yellow onion to separate saucepan and cook over medium heat until translucent.
6. Place the cauliflower into a food processor and pulse until it has a grainy rice-like consistency. 
7. Add to the saucepan. 
8. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Add the fresh parsley and oregano and any other spices you'd like.
9. Let the cauliflower cook for 15 minutes, stir a few times to keep it from browning too much. 
10. Serve the chicken on top of the cauliflower rice with plenty of tomato sauce...and I mean plenty.  It's delicious. 
11. Make some noodles for the crazy people in your house if you have to.  :)

 Then eat!

Butternut squash lasagna

You read right. I said lasagna.  Delicious, scrumptious and amazing lasagna.  I couldn't survive without my lasagna.  Not even on this diet.  But guess what?  I don't have to!!!

Zucchini!!  You can use zucchini as the noodles.  Cut the zucchini in 1/4 inch slices, lengthwise.  And yes!  Delicious!!!  I didn't even miss the noodles.  Not even my husband who thought it was divine.  In fact, as I look at the pictures I have below and type these words, I want to make it again.  *drool*

Let me tell you how to make my all-time favorite lasagna.  And if you must, you could also use oven-ready lasagna noodles instead.  :)

Marinara Sauce

First, always make your own marinara sauce.  Why buy it from a bottle?  Seriously.  I have two recipes I'll use.  But this week it was my Smoky Marinara - from Cooking Light.

Also, I cut the lasagna recipe in half but make all of the marinara because you can use it for other things.  :)

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh or 2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 (28-ounce) can crushed fire-roasted tomatoes, undrained
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, undrained

Directions

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic, basil, parsley, and oregano; sauté 1 minute, stirring frequently. Stir in vinegar and remaining ingredients. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes.

Butternut Squash Lasagna

And now, for the main event!  With Me modifications.  What?  Originally picked up from Cooking Light as well.

Ingredients

Cooking spray
1.5 cups chopped onion
5 cup fresh spinach
1/2 cup shredded sharp provolone cheese
1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 large egg
1 (15-ounce) carton part-skim ricotta cheese
2 cups diced peeled butternut squash
3 cups Smoky Marinara
2 medium sized zucchini, cut in 1/4 inch slices, lengthwise.  You'll need 12 slices total.
1/2 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. Heat a large Dutch oven coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 4 minutes or until tender. Add spinach; sauté 1 1/2 minutes or until spinach wilts. Combine provolone, parsley, basil, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, eggs, and ricotta cheese in a large bowl.
3. Sauté the squash in a skillet, in olive oil, until slightly browned and tender.  Approximately 15 minutes.
4. Coat the bottom and sides of an 8-inch-square baking dish with cooking spray. Spread 1/2 cup Smoky Marinara in the bottom of the prepared dish. Arrange 4 zucchini slices over sauce; spread half of the cheese mixture over the zucchini.  Arrange the squash over cheese mixture; spread 3/4 cup sauce over squash.
5. Arrange 4 zucchini slices over sauce; spread the rest of the cheese mixture over the zucchini.  Arrange the onion mixture over cheese mixture; spread 3/4 cup sauce over spinach mixture.
6. Arrange 4 zucchini slices over sauce; spread 1 cup Smoky Marinara evenly over zucchini. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup Parmesan. Cover the pan with foil.
7. Bake at 375° for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 30 minutes.

Then you'll have this!!!

And this after you let it sit for 10 minutes because you can't wait any longer!  

Meatloaf with Mushroom Gravy

I forgot to post this! All I did was took a pic and saved it as a post and left it at that. Crazy. It was so good. I hope I remember what I did. 

After some searching, I did find the meatloaf recipe I followed here: Paleo Meat Loaf 

I've never liked meatloaf with ketchup in it, so this worked great for me.  The thing that made me giggle with this recipe is it turned into a heap in the end - it didn't keep its form.  But I didn't mind at all.

I also didn't want the barbeque sauce on top (I couldn't find unsweetened), so I found a recipe for Salisbury Steak Burgers With Mushroom Gravy (which I MUST TRY!!!) and snagged the mushroom gravy portion.  Thickened with arrowroot powder it ended up a divine gift to my tongue and stomach. 

Wow, that was hard to remember.  I must post recipes immediately following!! 

I did make Me modifications.  Here you go!

Meatloaf with Mushroom Gravy

Meatloaf Ingredients

• 1/4 teaspoon dried sage
• 1 teaspoon sea salt (optional)
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 cup red cabbage chopped
• 2 Tbs skim milk
• 1/2 tsp hot pepper sauce
• 1/3 cup almond meal
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef

Mushroom Gravy Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons fat of choice (I used butter)
• 3/4 cup beef broth
• 3 oz skim milk
• 1/2 yellow onion, minced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 (8 oz) package mushrooms, sliced
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon dried sage
• 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder

 Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Combine all ingredients except ground beef in a large bowl, and mix.
3. When well blended, add ground beef and combine together with a fork.  
4. Place mixture into a non-greased loaf pan or shape into a loaf on a non-greased baking pan.
5. Bake, uncovered, for 75-85 minutes, or until an internal temperature of 160° F is reached (or until there is no pink in the center).
6. Let stand for 5 minutes, then slice and serve with Mushroom Gravy on top.

To make Mushroom Gravy

1.  Add your fat, onions, and garlic to a saute pan over medium-high heat. Let the onions cook until they become translucent. Add the rest of your ingredients including the milk, broth, mushrooms and seasonings, except for the arrowroot powder.
2. Mix together and let cook down a bit.  Once the onions are beginning to soften, stir in the arrowroot powder, cover the pan and turn the heat down low to let cook, stirring occasionally. 

More recipes! Lime Cilantro Pork Tacos, Turkey Thai Basil & Blue Cheese Steak

Last weekend we (fine me...I admit...lol I'm a kitchen hog) made some amazing recipes. Two that I got from the internet were:

Lime Cilantro Pork Tacos

Oh my....so good.  There were absolutely NO modifications to this recipe and they were not needed.  Ummm, did I get a picture? No way!!!  I ate it way too fast.  Just trust me when I say it looked as good as it tasted.  A bit messy....but no worries.  I licked it up fast.  Would be great on tortillas too, but was wonderful on the butter lettuce.

I'll paste the recipe here but full credit goes to the link above.

Lime Cilantro Pork Tacos

Ingredients

    2 tsp coconut oil
    1 lb pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut into 1/4" - 1/2" strips
    1/4 tsp sea salt
    1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper
    1 red onion, diced
    1 small jalapeno, minced
    1/2 cup chicken broth
    2 medium tomatoes, diced
    3 Tbs lime juice
    3 Tbs cilantro, chopped
    8 butter lettuce leaves (about 1 large head)
    2 avocados, sliced

Instructions

1. Wash and chop onion, jalapeno, cilantro and tomatoes.
2. Season both sides of pork with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
3. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  When hot, add coconut oil to pan.
4. Sauté pork  until lightly browned, about 4 minutes.  Remove pork from pan and place in a bowl.
5. Add onion and jalapeno to hot pan, and sauté until tender.
6. Add broth and tomatoes, and reduce heat to low. Simmer two more minutes, scraping pan sides and bottom to loosen any browned bits.
7. Return pork and juices to pan.  Stir in lime juice and simmer until pork is fully cooked.
8. Top with fresh cilantro and avocado, and wrap with butter lettuce leaves to serve.

Turkey Thai Basil

I did get a picture of this!!!   I was patient enough to wait 30 seconds before digging in.

I chose to do the wheat free tamari & honey choices in the recipe.  Also, with the baby bok choy, I love the baby bok choy juniors which are itty bitty and cute.  So I just threw a big handful in.  And the turkey was just some raw turkey that I cooked up fresh for this.  Oh so very good.  I did serve it on a little white rice. 

And again, a little copy/paste of the recipe.   You can get wheat free tamari at an Oriental Market.  They sell it near the wheat-full tamari & soy sauce.  (The tamari is a soy sauce that isn't part wheat.)

Turkey Thai Basil

Ingredients

2 lbs. leftover cooked turkey, cubed or shredded (chicken, beef or shrimp would work too)
3 Tbsp fish sauce
3 Tbsp coconut aminos (or wheat free tamari)
1 Tbsp water
1/2 Tbsp unrefined granulated sugar or honey (optional)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground white pepper
2 Tbsp lard
4  baby bok choy, leaves pulled apart, hearts halved
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
1 large onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 C lightly pack Thai basil leaves

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, combine turkey with fish sauce, coconut aminos, water, sugar, salt and pepper; stir until turkey is thoroughly coated and set aside
2. Melt lard in large wok or frying pan over medium-high heat
3. Add bok choy, peppers, onion and garlic and saute until softened, about 8 minutes, stirring frequently
4. Add contents of set-aside bowl (with the meat) to pan and stir for about 3 minutes until turkey is fully incorporated and heated through
5. Remove from heat and add Thai basil, stirring until basil wilts

Blue Cheese Steak

Then one I made because it's something I adore is New York Strip Steak with melted blue cheese and sauteed onions & mushrooms (in red wine) on top. Of course, no picture.  Why would I wait for a picture?  Come on!!!!

I don't have any propane but it's really easy to cook a steak on the stove in a cast iron skillet.  If it's a thick steak, you can sear it on the stove and then finish it off in the oven.  But the steaks I picked up were about 3/4 inch thick so they were cooked only on the stove for about 4 minutes and they were perfect.

Let's see.... 

Leave the steaks out on the counter for about 45 minutes.  Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high.  Season both sides of the steak with fresh ground pepper and sea salt.  Add to the hot pan and sear both sides for about 1 minute each.  Let cook on medium heat for another minute on each side.  Remove from heat and they should be medium rare.  You can also cover them during that two minutes if you like them a little more done.

Then I just sauté some mushrooms and onions in red wine & garlic until soft.  Melt some blue cheese on top of the steaks, top with the mushrooms & onions.  OMGG!!!  EXTERMINATE!  DEVOUR!!!!!!  Oh ya, I think I made some cauliflower rice on the side.  lol

Long time!

It's been a while, and it's time I made an update!   Work has exhausted me to the point where I am having difficulty finding time and energy to say anything here.

Things are going well for me.  It's been 5 weeks since I started down this path and I am still happy.  Although there are some serious challenges...

1. Refined sugar and white flour.  I can't believe how difficult it's been the last couple of weeks for me to say no to them.  I've made some slips.  

• Last weekend I admit I made a very deliberate slip.  The husband and I went on vacation to Park City, UT for the St. Patrick's weekend and I admit I did the following over the weekend: chicken wings in bleu cheese dressing, three beers, 2 margaritas and some bread with bruschetta (a couple of pieces).  The rest of the weekend was great eating because I cooked in the hotel room.  I was having fun!  And it was, frankly, worth it.  
• But then a couple of nights ago we went to a steak & seafood restaurant and they had some white flour rolls that looked so good.  Oh my God...they were amazing.  A sane person would have asked for the rolls to be removed.  But I, after eating my meal, decided to eat one.  Before all of this I would have had at least two of them, so I did well considering.  And again, it was worth it.

So to say that I am able to withstand the refined sugars and white flours completely would be lying.   For the most part I can.  But it's so hard sometimes.  I just keep chanting to myself that at least I'm not eating cheesecake or candy or donuts or pancakes or chips, etc.  Because that was the pre-me.  Ice cream... that one is really hard for me.  *whimper*

Is this anything like what an addict goes through when they quit drugs?  I'm sure it's not quite as powerful.  But that battle after with themselves to stay away?  To help me out I eat fruits and honey for the sugar.  Then sprouted grain bread for the flour.  Not a lot of it by any means.  It helps curb that craving.

2. Breakfast.  I'm still struggling with this.  Although I've gotten really good at eating a yogurt and fruit for breakfast and being good until lunch.  Nothing wrong with that I suppose. I keep waking up late so I don't have time to make breakfast, let alone eat it.  So I pack a couple of pieces of fruit and an organic Greek yogurt and go to work.  I don't want to eat a huge breakfast or anything, but something better than stressing out and snagging whatever I can would be nice.  I really need to bring ingredients to work for smoothies.  There is an awesome blender there after all.  And a freezer for frozen fruit.  I'm just used to eating a bowl of cereal or oatmeal on the fly.  Sigh...I miss oatmeal.  I didn't even eat it with a lot of crap in it.  Just whole oats, a teaspoon of brown sugar and some raisins/dried cranberries and I was a happy girl.  I <3 you oatmeal.
3. Eating too much.  The food we're making is too damn good!  IT IS!  I'm not struggling at all with getting enough calories.  
4. Not drinking enough water.  Why Me?  I love water!  I always have.  I've never had to worry about needing sugary drinks or flavors in my water because I love water!
5. Realizing that I can't control other people's impressions.  I keep getting irritated when people scoff at this or say things like "you don't need to lose weight!"  It's not about that.  It's about eating healthy for me.  And that just gives me stress and makes me feel annoyed.  But this is supposed to be making me happy, not stressed.  I can only control myself. 
   

So there you have it. The negatives.  Well gee, now it sounds all bad!!!  No way!!!!  This is so awesome. 

1. I can still have them, but in moderation.  As it should be.  I just need to break that habit.  I have other, pure, options that I can pursue if I want something sweet.  And I really do enjoy things that are not too sweet.  Vegetables for one.  Carrots especially, which I don't eat enough of.  When  I was a baby I actually turned an orange tint because the only baby food I would eat was carrots.  True story.  Carrots. Nothin' better!  
2. I really am okay with just eating a little for breakfast.  And smoothies would rock.  More planning!  I need to get more "on-the-go" options for breakfast.  I also need to stop having to scramble, when I'm already late for work, to grab something to take with me.  It's really a PITA.
3. Moderation, again, is the key here.  Also, I shouldn't complain too much since a lot of the food is vegetable heavy.  But I can really put the food down, I tell you what!  I just need to learn how to back off the delicious.  I've never had that ability.
4. I still haven't stopped to grab any water since I started writing this.  Seriously.   This is not even "diet" related.  I'm just bad this way.   I'll get better as summer rolls around.
5. I believe I addressed this above.  Just chill.

I do feel better than ever before and like how I am eating.  I have less stomach problems - indigestion, heartburn, etc.   And it's a lot more whole foods.  Not as much organic or "grain-fed" as I'd like, but that's so expensive.  I work it in as I can.   Now I think I'll go grab a glass of water.

Roast lamb and cauliflower rice

Ohhhh.  Yes, that is the sound of pleasure I'm making after this dinner.   I still have the lingering taste of rosemary and garlic and I'm not in any hurry to stop it. 

I was making the weekly menu of chicken, steak, chicken and more chicken when I thought, "NO!  I need, no, I DESERVE something fantastic."  I thought pork, fish...eh...something special that I don't have often.   And then it hit me!  Lamb!  More specific - a leg of lamb.  After staring at our finances and realizing that even though I'm spending a ton of money of whole foods that we are spending less money overall and that yes, we can afford this, I packed the hubby off on a three store search for my lamb.  

Yup, three.  I guess Utahns don't eat lamb.  I can understand why.  $$  Plus there's Mary's little one.  I like deer too.  Circle of life.  And I could not be detoured.   Oh sure...we could have gone to Costco and picked up a lamb on steroids, but I only wanted a small one.  And at the third store, there it was.  In all its glory.  All 2.48 lbs.  Boneless leg of lamb.  $10.99/lb.  $27.30.  And worth every penny.

Now what to serve on the side?  Steamed broccoli?  Check.  Cauliflower rice?  Say what?  That's a big check too!  Turned out great! 

Now even though I made this last, I'll start with it first.  Just to help with any confusion.  I found on a couple of websites reference to Cauliflower Rice which is just cauliflower pulsed into a rice-like consistency and then pan fried with whatever you want to put in it.  So no it's not rice.  Just looks like it.   And below is how I did it.

Cauliflower Rice

Ingredients

• 1 head cauliflower
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp garlic, minced
• 1 small onion, chopped
• Fresh rosemary, to taste (I just used one "twig" I guess you can call it. I have no idea.  Took the leaves off and chopped them up)
• Sea salt & fresh ground pepper, to taste

 Instructions

1. Place the cauliflower into a food processor and pulse until it has a grainy rice-like consistency. 
2. In a skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat.
3. Add the garlic and onion to the pan and cook until the onion is translucent.
4. Mix in the rosemary and cauliflower.  
5. Season with salt & pepper.
6. Saute for approximately 10-15 minutes.

 I tell you something...it was marvelous.

But now onto the best part!!!!!  I got this recipe from http://paleocomfortfoods.com.   Since I have a smaller roast, I halved everything except for the sliced garlic and lemon.  :)  Then for the minced garlic I used three teaspoons of bottled, pre-minced garlic.

But I will not change a darn thing on this recipe below.  It was medium-rare at 145 degrees.  Oh oh yummy.  It took about 1 hour 15 minutes total (including the 30 at the higher heat.)  Maybe a little longer because I took it out at one point when I thought it was done and then realized I don't know how to read a thermometer.  Even that didn't ruin it!

Leg of Lamb

 

Ingredients

• 1 bone-in leg of lamb (6-8 pounds)
• 2 garlic cloves, slivered
• ¼ cup (6 g) Italian parsley, chopped
• 3 tbs. fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1-2 teaspoons sea salt
• juice of 1 lemon

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 F (205 C).
2. Trim the lamb of any excessive fat.
3. Cut about 10 or so ½-1 inch slits in the lamb, and insert the garlic slivers.
4. Combine the parsley, rosemary, garlic and salt in a small bowl and combine well.
5. Squeeze the lemon juice all over the lamb to coat.
6. Using your hands, massage the herb mixture all over the lamb.
7. Place the lamb onto a rack placed within a roasting pan.
8. Cook at 400 for 30 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 F (175 C) and cook for about 60-90 more minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 145-150 F (60-65 C).

And here it is!!!  Food Porn!

Sweet Potato Pancakes

Pancakes.  Oh God, pancakes.  Sweet, moist, excellent and delicious, they are the deliverers of all things wonderful - syrup, peanut butter and blueberries are just three of my favorites.  So you can imagine my sadness when I realized that I couldn't have pancakes, as I know them.  Pancakes!!!!

But wait!  There are options!!!  When the hubby and I were in San Francisco for our honeymoon, we went to this restaurant that was so amazing that if you don't go there immediately the next time you are in SF, I will call you a fool and laugh in your face.  The only trick?  You have to get there at the butt crack of dawn in order to get in to the place.  But oh, it's worth it.  Oh and don't be too put off by the ... unsavory neighborhood.

Dottie's True Blue Cafe

But let me tell you about the pecan pancakes.  Holy delicious.   I loved them.  And that memory makes me realize there is hope for me!  (Hey don't miss out on the whiskey-fennel sausage either...hmmmm...)

So now, why did I go off on this tangent?  Not to say that I made pecan pancakes.  Oh no.  That will be next weekend.   But to say that, because there are choices, I decided to try sweet potato pancakes with pure maple syrup!

I picked up the recipe for the pancakes from here: Sweet Potato Pancakes with Maple Pecan Coconut Butter

But I have to say "no" to coconut butter... and also the extra effort.  So, with true Melissa fashion, I changed the recipe a bit.  And I have to say that they don't have the texture or taste of pancakes, of course.  But dangitall!  They are delicious!!!

Sweet Potato Pancakes

Ingredients

3 large eggs
1 large sweet potato
1/2 cup almond butter
1/2 cup skim milk
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
olive oil

Directions

1. Microwave the sweet potato until it is fork tender (it took me 5 minutes). Then cool, peel and chop into pieces
2. In a blender add the sweet potato, almond butter, milk, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon nutmeg, and sea salt and mix well.
3. You want to have a pancake consistency. If it is too thin then add a little more milk.
4. Heat your griddle over medium heat (250 degrees is what I picked the second time I made them and I liked it better.  Took longer but easier to control).
5. Add olive oil to the skillet and pour in the batter, in whatever shape or size you’d like.
6. When the pancake begins to have surface bubbles near the center flip and cook other side (each side 2-3 minutes).  (I didn't have any bubbles...I just waited until they were browning on the bottom.  They're also very fragile, so be careful.)
7. Add more oil to cook surface as needed between batches.
8. Let your pancakes rest in the oven on “warm” on a paper towel lined plate until all batches are complete. (Or just in the microwave with no heat which is fine.  They stay warm.)

 Served with Pure Maple Syrup and Strawberries.  Oh ya...  I ate four.