Easy-peasy Paleo/Whole30 appetizer: salami & mango

We have some great friends we've known for ages, and we have a collective birthday dinner every April. And we've done this every year, starting before we all had kids -- more than 24 years ago!

Usually we go out, but sometimes we pull together a collective gourmet meal, and with the hubs and I doing Whole30 this month, eating at home is always easier than eating out, so we invited everyone over.

We all chipped in on some pricey but oh-so-amazing steaks from Whole Foods, which my hubs grilled up to absolute perfection. Joni brought a dish of baked asparagus with tomatoes and sundried tomatoes -- sprinkled with Parmesan for the rest of them, served without for us Whole30-ers. And I didn't miss the cheese at all; it was delish! Cindy brought a tasty selection of fresh fruit for dessert; I made some banana ice cream to go with it. (The Kitchn has a recipe that just uses bananas, but I added some coconut milk and a splash of vanilla. Toasted pecans were a nice topper, too.)

For the appetizer, I threw together this incredibly simple dish. It sounds like a weird combo, I know -- I got a skeptical look from at least one person when I described them -- but the combination of the salty salami and the sweet mango just works! 

Here's how you do it.

First, cut the cheeks off a mango. I find the kind with yellow skin is usually smoother than the red/green skinned kind. They're sometimes called "champagne mangos." Whatever.

This video shows how to cut a mango; you just need to watch from 0:39 to 1:14 -

Then, leaving the skin on, cut very thin slices diagonally, not cutting through the skin, as shown in the video. He used a spoon to scoop them out; I use a knife.

You want your slices really think; about 1/16" of an inch. 1/8" will be too thick, because it'll be harder to get the salami to stay folded.

Then taking one salami slice at a time, add a couple slices of mango, put a small smear of guacamole or smashed avocado next to it -- this is the glue the holds it together -- then fold it over.

Repeat with the remaining slices. You should be able to get about a dozen pieces out of one mango, maybe more.

To make sure this is Whole30 compliant, look for sugar-free salami if possible, with minimal processing and chemicals.

It makes a beautiful  plate, and the contrast of flavors is quite happy! It would also be at home on a brunch or luncheon table. And it's so super-simple, I sometimes have it for an afternoon snack. Try it; I think you'll be hooked, too!

Paleo/Whole30 Dinner: Coconut Shrimp on Spinach Mango Salad

This Coconut Shrimp recipe from Paleo Leap...

...on top of this Asian Spinach Salad recipe from Love and Olive Oil (with some mangos added)...

...got us this deeelicious dinner tonight!

I made the shrimp without any changes, and added mango to the salad. (Any eagle-eyed readers might also notice sunflower seeds in the bowl, but I think they were unnecessary.) Taste- and texture-wise, the avocado got lost in the mix, I think, but it adds a nice color to the visual experience. And, of course, some healthy fats!

Tasting the dressing as the recipe calls it, I was worried it would be too sour, so I added some fresh-squeezed orange juice and a bit of date paste, but once I tasted it mixed into the whole salad, with the sweetness of the mangoes and oranges, I'm not sure that was necessary. 

The contrast between the delicately crunchy shrimp and the smooth mangoes, between the tart dressing and the sweet fruit -- mmmwah!

This is Whole30 compliant! If I weren't avoiding processed foods, I'd be tempted to buy ready-breaded coconut shrimp to speed the process. It wasn't hard; just kinda time consuming. Might go a little quicker if you had a two-person assembly team.

Easy, make-it-your-own fish taco bar

Great for buffet-style party food. Or pleasing a family of picky eaters!

(This not my photo. See below for source.*)

I was recently asked for my recipe for fish tacos. "It's not so much a recipe," I said, "as it is a collection of ingredients." Which makes it great for feeding a group with diverse tastes or dietary needs.

And much of it can be done ahead of time: everything except for the avocado can be sliced, chopped, or mixed ahead of time. The fish can be seasoned ahead of time, but will taste best if it's made just before serving.

Then everything gets laid out buffet style for everyone to make their own.

If you have some grain-free (gluten-free or low carbing) guests, they can simply assemble everything on a plate without the tortilla and eat it with a fork. Dairy-free: leave off the sour cream and cheese. Don't like spicy: leave off the adobo sauce. Whole30 compliant: skip the tortillas and leave off the sour cream and cheese. There's still plenty of flavor there!

The part that is (sort of) a recipe is the adobo-cream spread; the original recipe I started with called for 1 c. of sour cream, 2 canned chipotle peppers seeded and diced, and 1/4 t. salt or garlic salt. (That's for 4-6 servings.) Now, instead of the peppers, I just use the adobo sauce from the can (this skips the dicing step; it's also milder), and eyeball the proportions. Stir till well combined; taste and adjust for taste. It should taste a little uncomfortably spicy, because it will be just one component.

This is the sauce; I get it at Dillon's...




The fish can be either tilapia or mahi mahi. Plan on about 4 to 5 oz. per person. Just season with salt and pepper; optional but nonessential additions might include ancho chili powder and/or cumin. Then, either pan-fry the fish (easy if you're cooking for one or two), or bake them according to package directions (easier for more people).

Then I lay out all the ingredients for people to make their own; in addition to the fish and the adobo cream sauce:

• warm corn and/or flour tortillas
• thinly sliced cabbage, sprinkled and tossed with a little lime juice or rice vinegar,
• thinly sliced or small-diced avocado
• thinly sliced or small-diced mango (optional, but nice)
• coarsely chopped cilantro

Other optional additions which I don't use but you might like:

• a Mexican cheese, like shredded Monterey Jack or crumbled Cotija
• diced onions
• diced tomatoes
• plain sour cream
• Ranch dressing

I like to smear the adobo cream (or plain sour cream) down the middle of the tortilla and put the fish on top of that, so that the juices from the fish mingle with that to make a nice sauce. It also keeps the fish juices from making the tortilla soggy.

Enjoy! :)

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*Image source: another fish taco recipe (this one much more detailed) at Ambitious Kitchen.

Grilled pork tenderloin with easy al pastor glaze and mango salsa

This sounds fancy-pants, but it was an easy weeknight dinner that I kinda threw together.

It started with an extra mango and some cilantro in the fridge, left over from fish tacos a couple days ago. What to do with that? A spicy and/or salty pork dish would be a nice counterpoint, so I picked up a couple pork tenderloins.

Mid-afternoon, I trimmed the pork and put both pieces in a baking dish, and slathered one of them with this impromptu glaze:

- a good bit (maybe 1/2 cup?) of some bottled "Tacos Al Pastor" sauce I had on hand (Target's "Archer Farms" brand)

- a sprinkle or two of cayenne (if you're not a spice wimp like me, you might want more)

- a scant 1/2 teaspoon of ancho chili

- a drizzle of honey (a teaspoon or more, maybe. want it sweet? use more!) 

(I seasoned the second tenderloin with cumin and a couple other things, to be made into Cuban sandwiches tomorrow night.)

So the tenderloins sat in the fridge for a few hours, covered and marinating in their glaze/rub. Forty minutes before dinner time, I took them out and let them sit at room temp for 20 minutes, before grilling till the interior temp was just over 140 F; then a few-minute rest. You could also cook them in the oven; find directions for that here.

While the pork was cooking, I chopped up the mango and a small handful of cilantro. Tossed that together with the juice of one lime wedge. 

Sliced the pork and topped with the mango mixture. (Roasted cauliflower for the side dish.) Verdict? The hubby said, "If I ordered this at a restaurant, I'd be very happy with it." Wow! 

How To Peel, Cut, Core, and Dice: Tips for Fruit and Vegetable Prep

The Kitchn has compiled a super-handy list of 20 tips and how-to's for prepping various fruits and vegetables. Some of the more interesting entries:

How to peel a head of garlic in 10 seconds. Two bowls, a solid surface, and you're 10 seconds away from a bunch of naked garlic cloves.
How to peel roasted red peppers.
How to cut a mango.
How to dice an avocado.
How to dice an onion.
How to core a head of iceberg lettuce.
How to seed a pomegranate.

See the full list of 20 items.