Five Paleo Dinners To Cook Next Week #4

Let’s be pirates!

That’s what Dave said when I asked what he thought we should be for Halloween. My dad will be visiting us next week, so the whole family—Dave, Dad, Smudge, and I—will be dressed like swashbuckling buccaneers. Halloween costumes, pumpkin-spice, spooky stories; it’s impossible for me to resist the stereotypical trappings of fall, and I don’t even want to.

Thanks to the blustery wind making our windows creak, the scratch of leaves skittering across the pavement, and my over-active imagination, this time of year makes me giddy, thinking of vampires, werewolves, gypsy curses… and good luck talismans. Which is a long way to say: I really think you should make the Vampire-Fighting Pork Stew included in this week’s list, and—blast from the past!—here’s the video of my pal Hilah and I making the recipe on her cooking show.

Beyond the vampire-fighting power of that recipe, there are four more paleo and Whole30 compliant recipes you could make for dinner next week, along with a recommendation for a creamy salad dressing with a kick and a savory paleo “granola” that’s Whole30 compliant and is a secret weapon to add crunch to salads and soups.

I’ve listed tips for how to work these recipes into your Weekly Cookup and suggested sides to go along with the entrées. Happy cooking!

Dinner Ideas (Whole30 compliant)

Vampire-Fighting Paleo Pork Stew

Cookup Tips: This tastes even better after a few days in the fridge, so you can make it up to 5 days in advance. It also freezes very well, so think about a double batch. It tastes really great on a bed of shredded cabbage that’s quick-sautéed withe a little olive oil.

Recommended Sides: Mashed Cauliflower, boiled potatoes, sauerkraut, or sautéed cabbage.

Mexican Meatza

Cookup Tips: The Meatza can be baked for the first time in advance, then just before eating, add the toppings and do the second bake.

Recommended Sides: This tastes really great Crispy (green) Plantains, or a salad with Cumin-Lime Dressing. Plantains can be boiled and smashed during a Cookup, then crisped in a pan just before your meal. The Cumin-Lime Dressing tastes fresh for about a week, so you can make that in advance, too!

Comfort Noodles

Cookup Tips: Prep the zucchini noodles in advance: sweat, rinse, squeeze, and store in the fridge. Then when you’re ready to eat, the Comfort Noodles come together in minutes! And if you make a lot of zucchini noodles, you’ll have them for other meals throughout the week.

Recommended Sides: This is a complete meal in a bowl and really doesn’t need sides. YAY! Although, if you wanted to beef it up a bit, you could add some cooked ground meat, along with the eggs.

Merguez Meatballs

Cookup Tips: Meatball “dough” can be made one day in advance and cooked the next day; cooked meatballs are good for about a week in the fridge, and they freeze well, so a double batch is a great idea!

Recommended Sides: These are nice served on a bed of Oven-Roasted Cauliflower Rice (and both can be baked at the same time, same temp!) and drizzled with Moroccan Dipping Sauce. You can grate the raw cauliflower into rice and store it covered in the fridge to cook just before eating. Moroccan Dipping Sauce tastes fresh for about 4-5 days.

Paleo Gado Gado

Cookup Tips: This is the perfect meal for a weeknight if you cook “generic” protein and veggies (and hard-boiled eggs) during your Weekly Cookup. This recipe uses chicken, but beef, pork, fish, or seafood also works—and any combination of steamed and raw veggies tastes good! You can even make the sauce in advance and store in the fridge for up to 5 days, so when you’re ready to eat, it’s just a matter of assembling the ingredients on your plate.

Recommended Sides: No sides needed!

Condiment (Whole30 compliant)

Southwestern Cumin-Lime Dressing

Cookup Tips: The Cumin-Lime Dressing tastes fresh for about a week, so you can make it in advance and drizzle it with abandon on your meals all week. The recipe includes a list of creative ideas for how to use up your jar of dressing.

Snack (Whole30 compliant)

Savory Paleo Granola

Cookup Tips: This can bake in the background while you’re prepping the rest of your Cookup, and you can keep it whole, as pictured, or crush it in a food processor to make “Magic Dust.” I like to sprinkle a little of this on salads to add crunch—or on top of soups like this Sweet Potato or Golden Cauliflower.

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