Shredded Zucchini Salad with Coconut Water Vinegar

Servings: 2
Preparation Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound zucchini or summer squash, grated or shredded
• 1 tablespoon mint, chopped
• 1 tablespoon dill, chopped
• 1 green onion, sliced
• 1/2 lemon, juice and zest
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped or grated
• 1 tablespoon coconut water vinegar
• 1 tablespoon raw honey
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon chopped nuts of choice, optional
• 1 tablespoon dried cranberries or raisins
• 1/4 cup feta or goat cheese, crumbled

Directions:

Shred zucchini and place in clean towel and squeeze dry.

Put zucchini, mint, dill, and green onions in a large bowl. In a small bowl, mix the lemon juice, zest, olive oil, garlic, vinegar, honey, salt, and pepper. Combine bowls, add nuts, cranberries, cheese, and lightly toss. If bolder flavors are desired, add more dill, mint, lemon, and garlic.

Chill in the fridge for several hours or overnight before serving, if desired, to allow flavors to optimize. It is just as tasty when served immediately.

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Holiday, Cranberry, Coconut Flour Muffins

Servings: 6 muffins/12 mini muffins
Preparation Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup (70 g) coconut flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon potato starch
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 4 eggs, (large)
• 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
• 1/2 cup (125 ml) maple syrup (or honey)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup fresh or thawed frozen cranberries

Directions:

Preheat oven to 360 degrees F/180 degrees C and grease a 12 cup mini muffin tin.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the coconut flour, salt, starch, and baking soda.

In a smaller bowl, beat together the eggs, coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla for about 1 minute.

Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix with a hand mixer on medium speed for one–two minutes or until well combined.

Stir in the cranberries (cut into pieces).

Spoon the batter evenly into the muffin cups. Bake for 20–25 minutes until a toothpick inserted in center of a muffin comes out clean (unless it hits a cranberry).

Let the muffins cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, and then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

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Grain-Free, Cranberry, Pecan Crackers

Servings: 8–10
Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

Dried Cranberries:

• 1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries
• 1 teaspoon coconut oil, melted
• dash of sweetener (optional)

Crackers:

• 2 cups raw pecans
• homemade dried cranberries (recipe above)
• 1 pastured egg
• 1 tablespoon grass-fed butter, ghee or coconut oil, melted
• 1–2 teaspoons sugar
• couple dashes of sea salt*

Directions:

Cranberries:

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.

Combine cranberries, coconut oil, and sweetener in a bowl. Pour onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet and bake for 2–2 1/2 hours. Remove from heat once the majority of berries look dried and set aside to cool.

Crackers:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the pecans and cranberries in a food processor and combine until pecans look like coarse sand. Add the egg, butter/oil, sweetener, and salt to the mixture and pulse until combined and dough forms.

Place the dough between two pieces of parchment paper and roll out to about 1/8 of an inch thick.

Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut crackers into desired size.

Bake for 10–12 minutes or until lightly browned. Thinner crackers will cook faster, and you may need to remove outer edge crackers before you remove the inner crackers.

Let cool to crisp up and store in an airtight container. I love using glass jars for my snacks!

Quick notes:

*Use more for salty crackers. I sprinkled the top of rolled out dough will a tiny bit more salt.

I did not want to use store-bought dried cranberries. They have added sunflower oil and white sugar. You can certainly substitute store bought, but you will probably only need 1/2 cup or less and leave out the sweetener altogether. These crackers will definitely turn out to be a sweeter version!!

You can use a dehydrator to dry out the cranberries. I chose the oven method since many people do not have  dehydrators.

Recipe and photo submitted by Kate, Highlands Ranch, CO.

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