Brrrrr, it’s cold outside! We’ve gathered some delicious, healthy recipes to warm you up from the inside! Paleo Chicken Curry is packed with warming spices. Our Paleo Chocolate Chunk Cookies pair perfectly with a mug of hot cocoa, to get rid of that ‘cold to the bone’ feeling. And finally, Crockpot Ribs and Coleslaw make an easy Paleo dinner that won’t require slaving over the stove — so you can spend your day hiking or sledding and come home to a hot meal!

Paleo Chicken Curry

This is a great cold-weather food that makes the whole house smell yummy. It’s Paleo, dairy-free, grain-free, and gluten-free, plus it is very versatile – you choose your favorite veggies!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb chicken breast, cut into 1″ chunks
• 2 Tbs Perfect Coconut Oil
• 3 cups veggies; I used zucchini, cauliflower, carrots, and sweet potatoes
• 1/2 medium onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1″ piece of fresh ginger, grated, or 1 tsp ginger paste
• 16 oz can organic coconut milk
• 2 Tbs curry powder
• 1/2 cup bone broth
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Melt 1 Tbs coconut oil over medium heat.
2. Add chicken and cook through, about 5-10 minutes depending on thickness. Once cooked, remove chicken pieces from the pan.
3. Add remaining 1 Tbs coconut oil. Toss in onion and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, till onion is softened a little, 3-4 minutes.
4. Add harder vegetables first, like carrots and sweet potatoes, as these take longer to cook. I like my veggies al dente, so after 5 minutes I added the cauliflower, then the zucchini after another 5 minutes. Cook to desired firmness. Remove from pan.
5. Add the broth to the pan and deglaze. Use a wooden spoon to get all the brown bits off the pan. This adds flavor to the dish.
6. Add the curry powder, ginger and coconut milk. You may wish to start with only 1 Tbs curry powder and add more depending on your taste preference. Some curry powders are stronger than others, so you be the judge if you want more.
7. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.
8. Add the chicken and vegetable back to the pan. Stir till everything is nice and hot again, then serve.

Serving Suggestions:

If you are strictly Paleo and want to keep this completely grain-free, you can eat it as is, or serve over some bean sprouts or spaghetti squash. Otherwise, it is great over a bed of your favorite rice.

Hot Cocoa & Paleo Cookies

Chocolate is a favorite around here. And, let’s face it, what’s not to love? I was having a hankering for chocolate and cherry, so I found these awesome Paleo chocolate chocolate chunk cookies and I added cherries. YUM!!!! Not everyone likes cherries (I don’t get that) so I did half the batch with some raw organic cashews that we had. These came out quite tasty as well. And this hot chocolate is excellent. The kids loved it after an afternoon in the snow.

Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies
by gourmandeinthekitchen.com

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces 60% dark chocolate
• 1 1/2 cups almond flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 stick (8 Tablespoons) butter, cubed
• 1 cup coconut sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Optional
• 1/2 cup chopped nuts
• 1/2 cup fruit — I used thawed and drained cherries, cut into quarters

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Melt 4 oz of the chocolate in the microwave.
3. Combine the almond flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt and sugar.
4. Add the cubed butter and mix until well combined. It will be rather thick.
5. Add the eggs, vanilla and melted chocolate and mix until the dough is smooth. The dough will seem thin, it should look more like a brownie batter than a dough.
6. Roughly chop the rest of the chocolate and fold into the batter.
7. Add in any additional mix-ins like fruit or nuts.
8. Line baking sheets with parchment. Drop tablespoon size scoops of dough onto cookie sheets, a few inches apart. Bake until just set, 8 to 10 minutes. Do not bake the cookies to a crisp; they will be soft when you take them out of the oven, but will firm up as they cool, so be careful not to over bake.
9. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
10. Enjoy with hot chocolate or alone!

Hot Chocolate 

This hot cocoa recipe can be made Paleo or vegan if you use coconut milk. For even more coconutty goodness, check out our Coconut Hot Chocolate recipe!

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup coconut sugar
• 1/3 cup hot water
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 4 cups milk (dairy or non-dairy)

Instructions:

1. Add the cocoa powder, coconut sugar, salt andwater to a saucepan.
2. Mix constantly until hot, all melted, and well combined.
3. Add the milk. Heat to steaming, but do not boil.
4. Serve immediately.

Crockpot Ribs & Coleslaw

These are Paleo ribs are fall-off-the-bone good! Use baby back, St. Louis style or your favorite, if different. This barbecue sauce is the result of three tries to get something Paleo-friendly that the whole family would like.

Crock Pot Ribs

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs ribs
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1/2 onion, sliced

Directions:

1. Trim your ribs, then salt and pepper both sides.
2. Pour water into the crock pot. Place the ribs in layers in the pot. Top with sliced onion and garlic.
3. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hrs.
4. Preheat oven to 375°F.
5. Place ribs on a baking sheet. Discard the onion and garlic.
6. Brush both sides of the ribs with barbecue sauce (below).
7. Bake until the sauce caramelizes and sticks to the meat, 5-10 minutes or so.
8. Get out your napkins!

Paleo Barbecue Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 1 cup tomato juice
• 2 Tbs butter
• 1/4 cup raw, unfiltered apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 2 Tbs organic soy sauce (or coconut aminos for strict Paleo)
• 1/2 Tbs garlic powder
• 1 1/2 Tbs dried onion
• 1 Tbs coconut sugar
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/2 Tbs liquid smoke flavor
• Optional: more cayenne pepper for spicy sauce
• Optional: 1/4 cup honey for sweet barbecue

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a medium saucepan over low to medium heat.
2. Add all other ingredients and simmer for 10 minutes, to thicken it a little.
3. Add more cayenne if you like it spicier, or add 1/4 cup honey if you like a sweet barbecue sauce.

Paleo Cole Slaw Dressing

Gotta have cole slaw with ribs, so here’s a great recipe that is quick & easy.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp dry mustard
• 1/2 tsp celery seed
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 cup Paleo-friendly mayonnaise

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients.
2. Pour over shredded cabbage or your favorite raw shredded veggies.

By Kerrie Bross