Let's Begin the Paleo...

Hello out there,

I have been away, having babies and raising babies and basically attempting to find my groove in this wild ride called parenthood and marriage. In case you were unaware, both are difficult (but wonderful) jobs that require all of my time and energy and there is very little left over for me. So my evenings have been spent sipping wine and reading the couple of pages of whatever book I have on the go. My one true outlet has been my cooking. Lately, my husband and I have been dabbling in this new eating fad known as Paleo - basically, eating like a caveman, if cavemen had access to the entire world of fruits and veggies and meat. Throw in a few extras; nuts and herbs and spices while removing all dairy, legumes, and gluten and you can imagine the difficulty that has arisen from being strictly Paleo while taking care of a two year old and a 6 month old. Overall, I have been pretty good and I am pretty sure, after a few run ins with full servings of dairy, that many of my digestive issues of the past can be linked to said dairy. This makes taking that out of my diet much easier (anything to avoid pain, really) but I do miss my pastas and the ease of bagels. However, the great thing about Paleo is the flavours. The dinners we have been making have been rich in flavours and absolutely delicious, though the recipes are often very time consuming and have many steps. Fortunately, they also result in leftovers for lunches which means an easy meal the next day. I am going to attempt to share some of the meals I have made as well as the meals I will make as I go.

I wanted to share the yummy paleo version of one of my favourite thai dishes, the Tom Yam Nam Kho soup. When I was pregnant and still working, I craved this creamy, tangy soup that smelled exotic and comforting. It was usually served with chicken at the Thai restaurant I would get it from but it is best made with prawns or shrimp. As I had pretty much all the ingredients plus some frozen shrimp, I decided to give this a try.  


Paleo Thai Soup 

Ingredients:

• 4 cups Chicken Broth.
• 3 1/2 cup Coconut Milk.
• Package of Champignon mushrooms, sliced.
• 14 oz Pre-cooked Shrimp tails, peeled.
• 3 Lemongrass stalks.
• 3 tbsp minced Ginger.
• Finely grated zest from 3 Limes (next time, I will put these into a processor, turning them into a fine powder)
• Juice from 2 Lime.
• 2 tbsp Fish Sauce.
• 4 Garlic cloves, minced.
• 5 Green Onions, chopped.
• 1 bunch fresh Basil, roughly chopped.
• 3-4 Thai Chili, de-seeded and finely sliced (depending on size, the thai chilis we get here are teeny tiny)
• 2 tbsp Coconut Oil.

Directions: 

In a large pot, heat up the coconut oil.
Crush or cut open the lemongrass stalks and let fry in the coconut oil for 5 minutes - keep the temp. low as it will burn quickly.
Throw in the lime zest then pour in the chicken stock.
Add 1 tbsp fish sauce, the minced ginger, the minced garlic, and bring to a gentle boil.
Let simmer for 10 minutes, then add the coconut milk and remove the lemongrass stalks.
Add the sliced mushrooms and green onions, cook for 1-2 mins.
Stir in the other 1 tbsp fish sauce and the lime juice.
Add the shrimps, remove the pot from the heat and let stand for a some 5 minutes before serving.
Serve in bowls, top with the sliced chili and chopped basil, to taste.