I Might Be Back! (And a recipe for Cheesy Biscuits)

Well, hi everyone! 
It's great and scary to be writing this blog post for you. I've not blogged in over a year (has it really been that long?) and have had good reason. I've moved across the country, been dealing with some heath issues, and have been adjusting to a new job in a new city. Lots of overwhelming things. But thankfully God is good. And here I am, slowly gaining traction in my new life. 
See, I was planning on putting together a little cookbook but that got pushed to the (way) back burner. I think someday I will do it, but now is not that time. But I often have people ask me for my recipes so I thought I'd post some of them here for you lovely people. No guarantees on how often I'll post, but I promise will get a few good ones out to you! :)
I thought I'd kick off this new season of posting with a recipe that I've made over and over (and usually with my little nephew helping me) because they are just that good and easy. 
Cheesy Biscuits!
Yep, cheesy and buttery and grain/gluten free! Now, these aren't like Pillsbury flaky biscuits or the kind that you'd get at a diner with gravy.  These have a different texture- perhaps like a cheesy cornbread texture? (I've never liked cornbread, just so you know.) Anyway, they are prefect with any meal right out of the oven! Yum, just writing this post is making me want to go bake these right now. 
Ok, enough with the talk, here's the recipe (and photos!)

Fresh out of the oven!

Biscuits and gravy. YUM!

me with a tray of goodness :)

LC's Best Biscuits

• 1 ½ c fine almond flour ( I like Honeyville, but most kinds will work)

• ¾ c shredded mozzarella cheese (or whatever kind of shredded cheese you want.)

• 6 tbsp butter, softened

• 2 eggs

• 1 tsp aluminum-free baking powder

• 1/4 tsp xanthan gum

• 1 ½ tsp cider vinegar

• and dash of salt

- Preheat oven to 375º and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

- With a stand or hand mixer, combine all ingredients well.

- Portion out six to eight equal scoops of dough (free-form adds to the charm) about two inches apart on the cookie sheet.

- Place in oven and reduce heat to 350º.

- Bake for 12-15 minutes or until browned.

- Remove from oven and serve right away. 

*Please let me know what you think of them or how you altered them to fit your lifestyle. I'd love to know! 
Thanks for reading.
- Lindsay
© Lindsay Coleman - do not use or reproduce without giving direct credit and linking back to this post. 

- Dark Chocolate Covered Cookie Dough Truffles -

Merry Christmas Eve to all who celebrate Christmas! I do- it's my favorite holiday. I have some of the best memories that involve Christmas time with my family. Love it. This year, though, I won't be with any family during this lovely holiday. But I will be with my wonderful housemates and some friends from work. Since I will be at someone else's house for Christmas dinner, I wanted to bring a yummy dessert that I could still eat and other people could enjoy, too. I was going to make these cookies, but I decided instead to make dark chocolate covered cookie dough truffles. They just seem more fancy. :) 

I've made them once before a couple months ago and have been wanting to post the recipe here for all of you. The ones I made today are better than the first batch and I'm excited to give you this recipe. An easy and delicious holiday [or anytime!] dessert. You can top these with a dusting of cocoa powder or powdered ZSweet for a decorative touch.

Cookie Dough

• ½ c butter, really soft
• ½ c ZSweet, powdered [I buy granulated and powder when I need in the blender.]

• ¾ almond flour, firmly packed
• 2 tbsp coconut flour, firmly packed
• 1 tbsp finely ground flaxmeal
• ½ tsp real salt
• ¼ tsp cinnamon

• 1 tsp vanilla
• ½ c walnuts, chopped very small

- Beat butter and zsweet until mixed & fluffy.
- Add flours, baking soda and salt. Beat on low just until mixed well.

- Stir in vanilla and walnuts.

- Roll dough into about 20 balls.

- Cover dough and place in the fridge for 10-15 minutes.
[- While dough is chilling, make chocolate shell.]

Chocolate Shell


• 1 oz bakers chocolate

• 4 tbsp coconut oil [can use unsalted butter]

• ¼ c ZSweet, powdered [I buy granulated and powder it when I need to in the blender.]

• 3 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tsp vanilla

- In a small saucepan over low heat melt bakers chocolate, coconut oil, and ZSweet. Stir frequently.

- When melted, remove from heat and add cocoa powder and vanilla. Stir well to incorporate.

To Make Truffles

- Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

- Remove dough from fridge.

- Place dough either one-by-one or a few at a time in to the chocolate and coat thoroughly.

- Remove from chocolate and place onto parchment.

- Once all of the cookie dough has been coated in chocolate, place in freezer for 15-20 minutes to harden the chocolate.

- Once the chocolate is hardened, serve or place truffles in an airtight container and store in the fridge.

*Enjoy! And, like always, if you make these please come back here and let me know. :) *

Merry Christmas and happy holidays! I hope you are blessed with peace and joy this season and in this coming new year!

- Mexican Meatloaf with Jalapeño Lime Cream Sauce -

Tonight was one of those nights where I just stared into my fridge trying to decided what to make for dinner- which would also be my main meal for the next couple days. I really wanted to make something simple, but something I've not made before... something simple with ground beef. Simple for me would be meatloaf. And it's flavorful & healthy. But I didn't want traditional meatloaf. I wanted something with character. With spice. I though for a second about how I could change it up and, A-ha! Mexican spice meatloaf. As I was getting the ingredients out of the fridge for that, I saw a carton of jalapeños I needed to use. Immediately I remembered the jalalpeño mushroom cream sauce I came up with a couple months ago that topped a quesadilla I had made. Though this time I didn't want a mushroom sauce so I decided to omit the mushrooms and add lime juice instead. 

Satisfied with my plan for dinner I got to making the meatloaf and while it was in the oven I made another test batch of brownies. :) I think this is my 5th test batch in a week to figure out how to make a delish grain-free, sugar-free brownie without following someone else's recipe. It's more challenging than I anticipated. Good thing I like challenges!

Anyway, back to the meatloaf- when it was done cooking, I poured some of the drippings into a skillet and made the jalapeño lime cream sauce. While that was simmering I cut a green bell pepper and half an avocado, plated them with the meatloaf slices and then topped it with the lovely sauce.

I was really excited to try this and didn't want to take the time to take pictures, but I shot one with my phone just in case this meal was blog-worthy. This photo below was, like, 30 seconds before I ate the meal all up. It was SO good. I could eat this everyday!

The meatloaf itself was tender, moist, rich, and filling- but not heavy. And the sauce complimented it wonderfully: a subtly flavored sauce that blended well with the spices in the meatloaf. The avocado added more richness and creaminess while the green peppers added a nice fresh crunch. What a tasty and simple to prepare meal. This will now be a staple meal for me. As it is full of super healthy fats and protein, while being low in carbs and is grain-free. I hope you enjoy it, too.

Mexican Meatloaf

• 1 ½ lbs grass-fed ground beef
• 2 organic eggs, beaten
• ¾ c blanched almond flour
• ½ onion, finely chopped• ½ green bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 small tomato, chopped
• 1 ½ tsp cumin
• 1 tsp chili powder
• ⅛ tsp cayenne [or more to taste]
• ½ tsp oregano
• 1 tsp real salt
• ½ tsp black pepper

- Preheat oven to 360º
- Mix all ingredients well.
- Place in loaf pan and bake for 40 mins.
- Let cool in pan at least 10 minutes.
- Slice and serve with jalapeno lime cream sauce.

Jalapeño Lime Cream Sauce

• 1 c water
• ½ c organic heavy cream
• 3 tbsp plain organic yogurt Or organic sour cream
• 3 jalapenos, seeded and chopped [save seeds from 1 pepper]
• juice from half a large lime or a whole small one

- Add everything into a pan and simmer for about 10-15 minutes stirring frequently.
- When sauce thickens and jalapeño pieces soften, it’s ready.
- Serve over Mexican Meatloaf  or any other dish you’d like and enjoy! :)

*As always, If you try this [or any!] recipe, please come back here and let me know. I'd love to hear how you liked it or any changes you made. :)

-What I eat...-

   Some of you- ok, lots of you- have asked me what I eat if I don't eat any grains, starches, or sugar. I know it's a surprising thing to hear someone say they don't eat grains, but rest assured, there's life on the other side of the grain&sugar train. 
Don't get me wrong here. Do I miss a buttery, warm chocolate croissant or oatmeal raisin cookies, a baguette dipped in olive oil, french fries, the quick convenience of a bowl of cereal or going to a restaurant and eating whatever? YES. 
But here's the thing: My health [and yours!]- physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual- is way, WAY more important than eating those foods. And that is precisely what I've discovered in the past months of changing what I put into my body. And I wouldn't go back.


So, I can't answer the "What DO you eat" question without sharing what I DON'T eat. Here it goes!
[I will try to include links to articles about the things I post.] 


What I DON'T eat:
• Grains in ANY form- wheat, rye, barley, oats, rice, corn, soy, millet, etc, [long list. And if you buy anything that has a label on it, read it carefully. There's typically wheat &/or soy &/or corn &/or rice products in them.] [Here's an informative article about grains and starches. And Another really good article about how cutting out grains can heal lots of physical ailments]
• Sugar [takes on many different names, but it's all sugar]- refined, cane, corn syrup, brown rice syrup, beet sugar, coconut sugar, honey, maple, agave, sucrose, glucose, or high quantities of fructose, etc, etc. [Here's a fascinating article about sugars.]
• Artificial sweeteners- splenda, sweet&low, equal, etc.
• Unhealthy oils- canola, corn, sunflower, soybean, safflower, or anything hydrogentated.  [Here's a great article about oils.]
• Potatoes/Legumes [beans, lentils, etc]- starchy things are high in carbs which is what I avoid.
• Fruits- most fruit has quite a bit of fructose which is bad for our bodies, especially with how we typically consume fruit in our country- in large quantities. [** My experience: After cutting out fruit for a couple months I added it back in and within 2 weeks I stopped losing weight, felt really tired&heavy, my knees hurt again, and I gained 4 pounds. I had an inkling that my symptoms were from the fruit so I cut it out again and within days lost the 4 pounds I had gained and my energy levels were higher and stable again.] NOTE: One small [a level cupped-handful] serving of fruit a day is fine. And berries are best. I personally just haven't had a desired to add fruit back in yet but will eventually.
• Juice.
• Alcohol. [Though, I've read that wine is alright on occasion.]


What I DO eat:
• Organic, grass-fed Beef- ideal is grass-fed. But if I can't find or afford it, I'll get the best quality organic I can find. ["Just because beef is labeled "organic" doesn't mean it is grass-fed. The label must specify "grass-fed" to be truly grass-fed beef!" -Dr. Mercola in this article.]
• Organic chicken [I'm trying to figure out how I can get pastured chicken. More details later.]
• Organic, omega-3 eggs [trying to get pastured eggs. More details later.]
• Butter from grass-fed cows [like Kerrygold]
• Lots of veggies of all sorts! [there are some I don't usually eat because of a high sugar content. But if it's all that's available, I'l eat them.]
• Nuts & seeds- ideal raw then soaked & air dried or dried in the oven at a temp of 150º or lower.
• Nut flours & oils [primarily almond flour and oil, but there are others.]
• Coconut- flour, oil, milk [here's an article about coconut]
• Organic dairy [ideally from grass-fed cows]- cream, cream cheese, some other cheeses: aged raw milk cheese is best [and tastes so good.
• Natural sweeteners- Erythritol is my main choice, and stevia 
• Spices & natural minerals-in real salt
• *Other things that I'd eat if I so felt like it: fish [yum- sashimi!], pork, foul, other meats [as natural&minimally processed, organic as you can find.]


I might have forgotten a thing or two. But those two lists are a pretty good roundup. 
Also, this isn't some gimicky "low-carb" diet! This is a lifestyle- one that's lived day in and day out for life. There's not and "ending point" like there is with dieting. And that's such a great feeling because I can setting into this for the long haul.
Some of you might be wondering, "Don't you need carbs to survive?!" Here's my answer: I get sufficient carbohydrates [sometimes too many] from the nuts, veggies, and some dairy  that I eat. And here's a good quote: "Of the three macronutrients, protein, fat and carbohydrate, it is only carbohydrate that is nonessential to the human diet." -Dr. Joseph Brasco 
This just just about the types of foods to eat/not eat, it's also about the quality of the foods eaten. This is truly about long-term health. Not a "get thin quick" fad thing. But real health. 


I will write more later about my story and why I eat this way. Until then read up and learn and cook up some delish meals. :) I want to hear about your journey and will do my best to answer questions you've got. 


I hope this was helpful for you!


-Lindsay