One of my favorite things about having a food blog is that it forces me to create new dishes and innovate with new ingredients every day. While following recipes was instrumental for me when I was learning how to cook, I rarely follow recipes nowadays and mostly use existing recipes as inspiration. Having said that, constantly creating new things in the kitchen can certainly get tiring. Especially when I know I need to keep track of my steps and proportions, creating recipes for my blog is a lot different than how I used to cook which was a bit more mindless and carefree. When I do decide to take a break from my daily creations, following an existing recipe can be such a relaxing experience. Especially when it's a recipe from someone who's ideas, story and overall mission I love. Another great perk of being a food blogger are all of the connections I've been able to make with like-minded bloggers and authors all around the country. Being able to support them, their blogs and their books is so rewarding. At the end of the day, it's not about any one of us succeeding on our own. Bringing whole, nutritious food to everyone that needs it is such an enormous task that it requires effort on the part of more than just one person. Just a few months in and I am so thankful to be a part of such a wonderful group of passionate and talented people.
I first met Caroline in a blogger group I am a part of on Facebook. Her story is pretty incredible. Having been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in college, Caroline was able to stay healthy by adopting a gluten-free, grain-free diet. While her doctors told her she could continue to eat whatever she wanted as long as she went on insulin, she instantly gained weight and felt horrible. After jumping in head first and adopting a paleo diet, she's never looked back and has been able to maintain her health through dietary choices. Caroline's journey enabled her to discover a love of cooking and an incredible talent for food photography. In fact, I recently reviewed Caroline's photography ebook, Scrumptious & Styled, which I highly recommend. Caroline recently released her first cookbook, All American Paleo Table. And, let me tell you, it is seriously drool worthy. There are countless (over 100!), classic American recipes from steaks to burgers to waffles and biscuits and gravy. I honestly wish I could name all of these recipes for you because Caroline hasn't left out anything when it comes to classic comfort food. You will just have to get the book and see for yourself!
Although I plan to make many, many more recipes from Caroline's book, so far I've made the Buffalo Chicken Meatballs and Chicken Pot Pie. Chicken Pot Pie was probably my favorite meal as a kid and I honestly haven't had it since adopting a grain-free diet. When I saw that Caroline had this recipe in her book, I knew I had to try it. I can't even begin to describe how amazingly delicious it was and I can't wait to make it again. It's always so nice to be able to add back into my diet some of my favorite childhood dishes in a way that doesn't make me feel sick or unhealthy. The crust on the pot pie is the same recipe as Caroline's breakfast biscuits and I even had some dough left over to try the biscuits on their own. I basically couldn't even let them cool before eating one right away. The only change I made with the biscuits was that I used Tin Star Foods brown butter ghee instead of butter. They turned out perfectly!
Buffalo wings are a classic dish in my household (stay tuned for the recipe!) so I was really excited to see such a classic game day dish turned into something new and unique in All American Paleo Table. And don't worry, Caroline includes a classic buffalo wing recipe in her book as well. I actually had some leftover dairy-free ranch dressing from another dish so I thought these Buffalo Chicken Meatballs would be perfect to prepare. Plus, Caroline was nice enough to let me share the recipe with everyone!
Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit and warm a large nonstick skillet to medium heat.
In the bottom of a mixing bowl, sift together the almond flour, salt and garlic. Add in the ground chicken and green onions. Use your hands to mix together the meat, incorporating all the ingredients, but be careful not to over mix because the chicken will become gummy.
Lightly grease you hands with coconut oil*, shape the chicken into small meatballs and set them aside on a plate. If the chicken becomes too difficult to work with, wash and re-grease your hands.
Drizzle the olive oil in the warm skillet, swirling around to coat all sides of the skillet. Sear the meatballs for 8 minutes, rotating every 2 minutes so that all sides are seared.
Transfer the meatballs to a baking dish, placing them close together so that all sides are touching. This is easiest if the baking dish is similar in size to the meatballs; I find that a 9 by 13 inch dish usually works well. Pour the hot sauce over the meatballs and place in the oven.
Serve over a bed of arugula with ranch dressing.
Don't forget to grab your copy of All American Paleo Table. I promise you won't regret it!