Chicken & Ranch Purple Potato Salad

Potato salads are my absolute favorite throw together lunch! We try to always have leftover meat of some kind on hand which makes it that much easier to throw last minute meals together.

The potatoes and scallions are sourced from the Farm Cart here in town. They offer a lot of great produce that we do not have the additional space for. Check them out if you have not already!

Ingredients

1 lb chopped & boiled (until fork tender) purple potatoes

2 cups shredded chicken

1/4 cup finely chopped scallions

1/4 cup Tessameas ranch dressing

1/2 tsp sweet paprika (I tend to add more depending on my mood)

1/2 tsp sea salt

Instructions

Add all ingredients together in a bowl and enjoy! Yes, its that easy!

Paleo Sea Salt Brownies

This recipe was adapted from our dear friend Laurel over at http://blog.sweetlaurel.com , not only is she the sweetest person you will ever meet... she is an amazing paleo baker!

Ingredients

1 cup maple syrup

2 large eggs

1 lb freshly ground almond butter

1/4 cup coconut sugar

2 tablespoons date butter

2 tablespoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup raw cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

2 pinches flaky sea salt for topping

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350.

Line a 9x9 baking dish with parchment paper and spray with coconut spray, set aside.

In order shown, place all ingredients into a high speed blender and blend until cocoa is fully incorporated.

Pour/scrape batter out of blender and into prepared dish, sprinkle with desired flaky sea salt.

Bake for 35 minutes.

Once baked, pull out of oven to completely cool before removing from pan to cut.

Grain Free Cut-out Cookies

This recipe comes from our dear friend Laurel over at http://blog.sweetlaurel.com , not only is she the sweetest person you will ever meet... she is an amazing paleo baker!

The only thing I changed is using ghee or butter instead of the coconut oil, as well as half vanilla extract and half vanilla bean paste.

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups Bob's almond flour

1/4 cup pasture butter (melted)

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tbsp Sweet Laurel grain free vanilla extract

1/2 tbsp vanilla bean paste

Instructions

Put all ingredients into the food processor, pulse until the dough forms 1 large ball.

Line a cutting board with one piece of parchment, put dough on parchment and press down to form a thick disk. 

Place a second piece of parchment on top of the dough and roll out dough to desired thickness. I prefer 1/4 " for nice thick cookies.

Put the rolled out dough on the cutting board in the fridge to cool for an hour. Preheating oven 30 minutes in to 350.

Take dough out of fridge and cut into desired shapes and carefully transfer to a parchment lined sheet pan. 

Bake for 6-10 minutes (turning halfway) or until they begin to turn golden brown. Allow cookies to cool on sheet pan.

Decorate with your favorite icing! 

Notes

When I formed a ball from the dough scraps after cutting, I made sure to work quickly so the dough didn't get too warm. I also put the rolled dough back into the fridge to cool while the first batch of cookies baked. 

I have found that these cookies store best in the freezer if you're making them ahead of time. 

Black Rice Risotto

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 cups Lundberg black pearl rice

2 tbsp ghee, pasture butter or avocado oil

1/3 cup shallots/diced - sourced from The Farm Cart

3 cloves garlic/diced

1/2 cup white wine

6 1/2 cups chicken stock or veggie stock

1 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

OPTIONAL 

1 cup finely shredded Organic Pastures cheddar

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Bring broth to a steady simmer in a medium sauce pan.

2. Melt ghee in a large saute pan over medium low heat, add diced shallots and cook until they begin to become translucent. 

3. Add diced garlic and black rice to the pan, stirring/toasted the rice for 3 minutes.

4. Pour the white wine into the pan slowly, stir ever minute or so until the wine has reduced. 

5. Sprinkle the paprika, salt and pepper evenly over the rice, stir to mix in. 

6. Add simmering broth a ladle at a time, stirring the rice every couple minutes until the broth reduces. Repeat this process until all broth has been added and the rice is al dente. Takes anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour depending on how your stove cooks.

Optional

7. Turn off heat, sprinkle cheese over rise and stir to mix in.

Notes

- If you choose not to add the cheese you may need more salt added

- My stove cooks really hot/fast so I actually had the heat on low. You're looking for enough heat to create a mild sizzle when the liquid is added but not too much that you see it sticking or burning on the bottom of the pan.

- I love using cast iron enamel cookware for risotto

Summer Must Have!

Sea & Summit Organic Sunscreen

Can you believe summer is already here? I can’t, time sure has been flying by!

I wanted to share with you guys what my #1 summer must have is. Sea & Summit’s organic sunscreen, which is also my favorite all year around daily moisturizer! If you’re wondering why I like it so much, here are a few reasons;

• A little goes along way
• It rubs in well without leaving you with a white face
• Leaves you feeling moisturized without feeling greasy
• Sea & Summit is a great local company
• It is all organic with only 7 ingredients…that you can pronounce!!!

I was able to sit down with Ryan (the founder / owner of S&S) recently to ask him three very important (in my opinion) questions about Sea & Summit.

What made you decide to start your own organic sunscreen line?

There are a host of reasons I started this company. 

One being my belief that if you wouldn't put it in your body, why would you put it on your body? Working outdoor jobs in the sun for 8 hours plus a day, I want to know the cumulative effect of what I'm using is healthy, not altering my hormones or contributing to some sort of cancer because of the chemicals in it. More so I want to feel good that I'm not contributing to killing our oceans like most chemical sunscreens do. 

A second is that all the natural sunscreens I could afford to buy on a outdoor seasonal job paycheck, didn't work. I would put so much on I looked like I had painted my face white for a day of lifeguarding or guiding at the Channel Islands and I'd still get burned. Being a ginger doesn't help. 

A third is I am really looking to be a part of something bigger than myself, environmentally and socially, and Sea & Summit has become that vehicle. 

What is your main goal in this industry?

My goal in this industry is to change Its transparency, or lack there of. People want to know where their ingredients are coming from and that they are being produced in an environmentally and socially just way. All kinds of companies use words like "sustainable" and "fair trade" and have no idea about their ingredients and more so, their supply chain. They just pick from a list. Don't get me wrong, that's a step in the right direction. But people want a more personal experience with no effort.  I want to eventually be visiting all my farms in various countries and making films about the communities who make Sea & Summit possible. I want to give the public complete transparency within the supply chain and quality skincare. Being a small fish doesn't make this easy. No one wants to give up this information to small companies.

What do you feel is the best way to help families when it comes to educating their children on sun safety / organic skincare?

I think the best way to educate families is to relate it to their own personal interests. Whether it be kids, grandparents, or friends, there are different reasons to go organic and natural for everyone. I don't push my beliefs on people who don't want to hear it, but most I feel are open to hearing how they can make a small decision with a big impact on their body, the environment, and not on their wallet. 

Ryan is absolutely right! It is extremely important to me to know where different ingredients are coming from and where/how they're being sourced. His beliefs and standards are what set Sea & Summit apart from the other companies out there in this industry! I know you will not be disappointed with the superior quality and feel of his organic sunscreen.

 MENTION THIS POST TO RECEIVE 10%    OFF ANY SEA & SUMMIT PRODUCT