Guys, I love making up recipes, I really do. But sometimes, there is something out there that comes pre-made that is as good as I can do. Which takes me to this dip.

It starts with our friend, Adina (hey girl hey!) who makes this killer dip for parties that involves corn and beans and avocado and salsa of some kind and it’s effing good. I keep meaning to get the recipe from her, but I always fail. It’s perfect on chips and I can only imagine it’d be great as a layer in enchiladas or quesadillas.

So this past week, I’m at Trader Joe’s, and I see their Cowboy Caviar. I know, a dumb name, but you guys it’s delish. It’s a little spicier than I normally would go, but it’s worth it. So here’s a trick for perfect party dip: mix a jar of Cowboy Caviar with two diced avocados, and BAM. Something close to as good as Adina’s party dip. In basically no time. You don’t even have to tell anyone that’s how you made it. (Except, hey book club girls, that was what that dip was. Whoops.)

It’s great to throw together for a precursor to dinner if you’re short on time, or to add to your rotation for party foods – how easy would this be to bring to a friends? (Hint: so, so easy.)

Don’t have a TJs nearby? I’m sorry about that. Write me and tell me where you live and I’ll send you a jar. But, in the meantime, you can make a mean dip similarly with a jar of black beans, a jar of chunky salsa, some corn, and a jalapeño. Go forth and make perfect dip that everyone will be impressed with! Recipe below.

Type: Snacks

Author: Jennie

Difficulty: Easy

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Servings: 8-10

Ingredients

• 1 jar Cowboy Caviar Salsa
• 2 ripe avocados.
• 1 bag tortilla chips

Directions

1. Dice avocados. Add to jar of Cowboy Caviar Salsa and mix well.

2. Serve with tortilla chips and keep your secret well!

I was talking with a friend about grocery shopping recently and how I meal plan, and I thought it was time to re-share this here, since it’s been awhile.

So here’s how I do it. In a perfect world, Sunday mornings are for planning. I plan out the week, starting with weekly plans. Then, I plan one less meal than I need, accounting for leftovers, a last minute dinner with a friend, or a night of grilled cheeses or frozen ravioli, because life just happens, you know? Then, I head off to the farmers market, then the grocery store, and my whole week is planned. I get a little help from this pad:

On the back, I make my grocery list, separated into 5 sections:

Produce
Meat
Dairy
Shelf
Freezer

I grocery shop at Trader Joe’s most often, so I start in the produce section, but start where it makes sense for you – usually, it makes sense to start with the shelf, then work your way to the cold sections of the store, ending with meat, which should be kept the coldest and picked up last. This way, you’re not running back and forth throughout the store, running back to get this or that. (Which let’s be honest, I do every time anyways.)

So, what are some of our go-to meals? Honestly, guys I am just as busy as you. Here’s what a typical week looks like:

Carne Asada Fajitas or Tacos are a big player in our house. They make GREAT leftovers, especially on a salad or as nachos later in the week. You can personalize them to your tastes (more veggies, more cilantro, or more salsa!) and they are FAST.

Another thing we make a lot is Stir Fry. This Paleo Shrimp & Bok Choy is a great option, but I mix it up depending on what’s available from the farmer market and what sauces I have in the fridge.

We are also big fans of pesto & spaghetti squash. We tend to have this with chicken sausage; if spaghetti squash isn’t in season, we’ll do whole wheat pasta. We do this with red sauce, too, and mix up the chicken sausage (TJs has a whole bunch of flavors!)

This Lemon Hazelnut Pasta is another go-to around here. It’s so fast, it can be meatless, and it’s full of spinach. This could be spiced up with some hot pepper & shrimp, but I leave that up to you.

We also eat A LOT of Chicken Quesadillas so I have to make that recipe for you soon, because it’s just so easy and so delicious (healthy? Maybe not. But I add lots of kale.)

I hope this is helpful intel for you guys and that it helps jump-start your meal planning. What are some of your go-to dishes that you make over and over? Do any of them need a makeover to be more healthful? Let me know, I’ll help ya out (and am always looking for new recipes!)

Hey-o, folks! Today, I want to talk to you about my tiny garden. When we lived in Hollywood, I had a couple of plants on the porch, but when we moved somewhere with a backyard I knew that I wanted a garden with actual veggies. Luckily we already had some citrus trees and a pepper bush (tree? Plant?) when we moved in, but I wanted to expand. You guys know I love cooking and writing recipes, and this felt like a natural next step.

So for my birthday in June, Jeff got me a raised bed to garden in. We planted basil, tomatoes, bell peppers, jalapeños, and a spaghetti squash. The first four were a great idea; that last one was a mistake, but we’re getting to that.

We planted on June 12, and now 3 months later, everything is taking over everything else and things.are.happening. It’s crazy how slowly it goes and then BOOM there are tiny tomatoes and bell peppers and nearly-ripe jalapeños and you’re making fresh basil pizza.

Look how cute that spaghetti squash was…before it took over the entire garden! Now it’s actually escaped entirely and has vined down the side of the box onto the ground…we’ll see where it goes, I don’t have faith that I will be getting a spaghetti squash anytime soon. I’ve been taking progress photos as we’re going along, and here are some of the more recent shots of the jungle:

Look at those jalapeños! They’re almost ready to become pico de gallo, any day now.

I also spy many a tomato. There are at least 8-10 of them on the vine, and they’re growing bigger and bigger, probably as I type this. As we get actual produce harvested, I will let you know what we end up with, but so far it’s been fun to watch nature. So cool, you guys! I have been using the Vegetable Gardening in Southern California book for reference, plus my dad of course who can walk me through how to prune my plants and what to let grow. It’s been a great experience both to see how much land is needed to grow food (I need like 10 gardens to actually produce what I’d want to be bringing in, but hope to expand next summer!) and to finally have some land of my own to cultivate.

Do you guys have gardens? Tell me what you’re growing and how long you’ve had your gardens!

We first posted this a few years back as a great paleo dessert, and in the spirit of apple season I thought it was time to bring this back…we hope you enjoy it as much as we do! It’s a great, simple recipe that’s perfect when you’re craving something sweet. Thanks to Ellen for putting this one together.

*****

This is a quick, tasty recipe when you’re hungry for dessert, whether you’re paleo, doing a Whole30 or just looking to make a dessert with whole foods. I’ve had this pudding recipe a la mode, and I’ve used it as a filler for crepes. I think it would also taste great in a paleo pie!

(If you’re looking to fill crepes, check out this crepe recipe!)

Note: This recipe requires a food processor. However, there’s only 6 ingredients.

Type: Paleo, Snacks, Treats

Author: Jennie

Difficulty: Easy

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Servings: 2-3

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup roasted unsalted cashews
• 2-3 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 banana
• 1 apple
• 3-4 dates
• salt to taste

Directions

1. Pour the roasted and unsalted cashews into food processor. Pulse.

2. Add 1 tbsp of olive oil at a time. Blend until creamy. (When it comes to making the cashew butter base, the key is to only add enough olive oil to get the creamy texture. If the olive oil taste overpowers the cashews, you've gone too far!)

3. Cut up banana and add to the mixture. Blend.

4. Dice apple and add to mixture. Blend but it's OK to leave apple chunks in the mix.

5. Cut up dates and use as garnish or mix in, salt to taste, & enjoy!

Folks, it’s almost fall, I write this to you from outside (where I almost need long sleeves) and it’s already solidly September. Labor Day has come and gone, school is in session, and when I get home from work it’s nearly dark out. Fall is on us, and I can’t pretend I’m not excited. We’ve had the windows open for days, and it’s been a delight. Our garden is starting to fruit (jalapeños, bell peppers, all the basil, and tomatoes!) and we’re so excited for a new season. So here’s what we’ve got:

Apples
Bok Choy
Brussels Sprouts
Corn
Pears
Persimmons
Plums
Potatoes
Radishes
Snap Peas
Turnips

We’ve got some delicious things on the docket for this month, now that the oven can come on again without eating popsicles in the corner of another room wondering when dinner will be done.

This Tofu Stir Fry we made recently had bok choy and I would gladly throw in Brussels sprouts and snap peas in a heart beat. It’s already been made again around these parts and is quickly becoming one of our fave things. Use the protein of your choice – we used pork last time!

We’ve been into dessert lately (OK, we’re always into dessert) and this Pear Crisp is no exception. We’ve started seeing pears around and we are THRILLED.

Looking for something more savory but still want to involve fruit? Try this Hunger Games-inspired Apple Tart. It’s got caramelized onions. It’s got goat cheese. It’s got rosemary. It’s got heart. It’s basically perfect.

There’s something about end-of-summer corn that really lights up my eyes, and now that the nights are a little cooler, this Corn Chowder is definitely going to be made. I’m getting my hands on all the corn on the cob I can before the season’s over.

What are you guys cooking this month? Any good, solid go-tos that have made their way into your rotations?