Coconut Beef Curry with Fennel Cucumber Salad

Hello again,

So this is an update on my progress and a few new tasty Paleo recipes I whipped up!
I've fallen off the bandwagon a few times lately, namely with potatoe chips (JUUUUST a few times) and soy milk in those tasty cappucinos that are so helpful during midterm season!

Curry beginnings

For a while there I was subsiting off of cabbage and almond butter, but I went and did quite a few rounds of shopping and along with my staples foods (eggplant, veggies and lots of fruits) I decided to get creative and picked up some fennel, beets, coconut milk and a bunch of new spices (coriander being my favorite!)

I started with a good easy coconut curry, grilling up some beef strips and combining a few veggies in my pan!
I added the coconut milk and some spices, using curry powder, cumin, chilli flakes, coriander, pepper, salt and chives, letting it cook up and reduce a little.
I served it over some fake rice (i.e. mashed steamd cauliflower) with a side of sliced cucumber!

The cucumber gave me a great idea for using my fennel, and I took a look at my favorite paleo recipe index on theclothesthatmakethegirl.com, where I found a delicious looking salad! The recipe called for paleo mayo as a dressing component, but instead I made a great emulsified one with mustard, maple syrup, lemon juice, salt and garlic in my blender! With a mandoline I sliced my fennel (GREAT FREAKING KITCHEN TOOL, i love these things) and cut up my cucumber. This was an amazing salad and the dressing really made it amazing. The key is to combine everything and then add the olive oil really slowly, drizzling it into the moving blender.

Chop the good fennel tops and sprinkle over the salad for a good garnish!

There's a few more posts on the way from my cooking adventures, but I hope you're all inspire to try these ones out. The curry is really good with all kinds of meat, and I've found the leftover coconut milk is awesome in teas and coffee as a dairy substitute!

Day Twenty-Seven: Wilted Kale Salad

Keeping with the salad theme I changed my mind at the last second as I was about to make some more kale chips. Remembering a delicious meal I'd had once at my grandparents', I pulled out my recipe book to finally make Wilted Kale Salad!

The dressing is another I can add to my slowly growing list, and its packed with good fats. With a 1/4 avocado, black pepper, garlic powder, olive oil a tiny bit of soy sauce and a little lemon juice (one wedge's worth should do it!), I just mixed it all up with a fork!

To wilt kale, first you have to take the stems out. Once it is in bite sized pieces in a bowl, add a little bit of water and a little sea salt. Then basically just squeeze it and mash it up with your hands until it goes an even darker green and begins to look wet all over, spinach-like sort of.
I combined this kale with my dressing, before topping it with cucumber, chickpeas, pumpkin seeeds, mushroom and red onion. This was a great salad, if maybe a little sour. I think this was a combination of too much lemon juice and my not being very used to using salt, but next time I'll tame it down on both counts!

A great lunchtime fix! Probably not great for leftovers, though perhaps once everything sets it might gain a little more subtlety that would add even more layers!

Some might be asking where the protein component is here, but rest assured I paired it with some leftover chili and felt plenty full and recharged!

Adios for now!