Let's just be VERY clear about something....just because this dessert is gluten free doesn't mean it's "Paleo". I can't in good conscience describe this decadent dessert in the same terms as my ribeye on the grill, or my omelette. If you're looking for a special treat, this cake is worth the carbs!

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup coconut flour, sifted
• 1 cup melted butter
• 10 eggs
• 5 large carrots, peeled and shredded
• 1 cup pure maple syrup (reserve 1 tablespoon for date mixture)
• 1 T cinnamon
• 1 T vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 10 medjool dates
• Chopped raw walnuts for garnish

Directions:

1. In a food processor, using the grating blade, shred carrots.
2. Place carrots in a large ziplock bag. Pour maple syrup over carrots and let marinate in the fridge for an hour.
3. Preheat oven to 325.
4. In a small mixing bowl, add sifted coconut flour, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda.
5. In a large mixer, blend eggs, vanilla, melted butter, and *date mixture.
6. Add dry ingredients to wet and blend.
7. Stir in grated carrots, discarding excess maple syrup that they soaked in.
8. Grease two 9 inch cake pans with butter. (You can also line the bottom of the cake pans with parchment paper for easier removal)
9. Pour batter into pans.
10. Bake for 35 minutes. Test center with a tooth pick-if the tooth pick comes out clean, then the cakes are done.
11. Remove cakes from oven and cool.
12. Frost cake, garnish with walnuts, and serve!

*Date Mixture:

1. Remove pits from dates and place in a microwave safe bowl.
2. Add one tablespoon water to the dates and microwave for 30 seconds.
3. Mash with a fork, add 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup, and mash with a fork again.

• 16 oz full fat cream cheese
• ½ cup maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons grated ginger root

Directions:

1. Bring cream cheese up to room temperature.
2. Blend all ingredients with a hand mixer or Kitchen Aid Mixer.
3. Use right away, or refrigerate.

It is no secret by now that Bill LOVES his Big Green Egg. Heck, I love it too. We are always looking for delicious recipes we can cook on our egg and this recipe was a home run. If you don't have an Egg, this would also be delicious cooked low and slow on your grill or in the oven.

Ingredients:

2 Pork tenderloins (1.5lbs each) (These come as 2 roasts in a 3lb package at Meijer)
10oz crimini or portobello  mushrooms chopped
1/2 package  baby spinach (about 75g)
2 slices thick cut bacon - chopped
2 garlic cloves - minced
2T butter
1/4c white wine or vermouth
4 green onions, chopped
60g chevre cheese
100g feta cheese
1T fresh thyme leaves chopped
salt to taste
pepper to taste

Crust:
1T fresh thyme leaves chopped
1T fresh oregano leaves chopped
2tsp Kosher salt
2tsp fresh ground pepper
1/4c stone ground dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic finely minced

Directions:
First you'll need to prep the roasts. Remove all silver skin from the outside of the roasts. Then butterfly the roast so it lays open nice and flat. Place a piece of saran wrap over the meat, then pound it with a mallet until it is about an inch to an inch and a half thick. Meat should be nice and even when you're done - no lumpy spots! Set aside.

For the filling, you'll need a deep saute pan. Melt the butter over medium heat, and saute mushrooms, garlic and green onion until softened. Add chopped bacon and cook until crisp. Add spinach and saute until completely wilted.

Add the wine/vermouth to the pan and scrape all the edges of the pan to incorporate all the pan drippings into the mushrooms. Cook about 5 more minutes, or until all wine has evaporated.

Stir in the cheeses and thyme and remove from heat. Stir until the cheese is melted and creamy.

Spread a thin layer of filling over both loins, leaving about an inch of space from the edge. Now carefully roll the loins together and tie with butcher's string. I tied it about every 2 inches. Make sure not to tie too tightly, as this will squish out all the filling.

Coat the outside with the crust and allow roasts to come to room temperature before cooking. (this allows for a more even cooking) Bake at 375 50-55 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches about 145 - 150. Let rest under foil for 10 minutes before serving.

DELICIOUS!

Let's be honest. This recipe isn't all that complicated, but it's DELICIOUS. I like to enjoy this recipe with 1/2 of a baked potato with mountains of butter, salt and pepper. The blue cheese comes across nicely with the avocado and bacon, but if you're not a blue cheese fan then you might want to substitute a fine parmesan instead.

Ingredients
8 oz 80/20 ground beef
1 slice (17g) of danish blue cheese
2 slices bacon
1 oz onion
1 oz avocado
1 large lettuce leaf

Directions
Fry bacon slices. Crumble, divide into thirds, and set aside, but leave warm bacon grease in pan.

Form two 4oz patties with ground beef. Place the slice of blue cheese and 1/3 of the crumbled bacon in between the two hamburger patties. Pinch the edges together to seal in the cheese and bacon. Season the outside with salt and pepper.

Grill over high heat for 3 or 4 minutes per side, flipping once. While burger is cooking, saute onions in reserved bacon grease. Remove burger from grill and place on large lettuce leaf. Top with sauted onions, sliced avocado, and crumbled bacon.

These little morsels are the most delicious yet horrifyingly ugly thing I have ever eaten. Hence, the name Yummy Uglies. If you're looking for a chocolatey treat without breaking the bank on your carbs, then this is the treat you've been waiting for!

Ingredients

1 bar (100g) 90% dark chocolate (Lindt)
8oz unsalted butter
3 T Heavy Whipping Cream
2T Honey
2tsp Vanilla extract

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a sauce pan and heat over VERY low heat until chocolate and butter are melted. Pour into ice cube trays (you'll need 2) and place in freezer until solidified.

They won't get real hard in the freezer because of all the saturated fat in them, but they'll stay nice and cold. When they're solidified, simply float the trays in a little warm water for about 3 minutes, and pop them out of the trays using a butter knife.

Each little morsel has 132 calories, 13g fat, 3.5g carbs and 0.7g protein.

In case you were holding out hope that the Wall Street Journal was authored by journalists who had a clue, I offer you this: New Ways Calories Can Add Up to Weight Gain.

I hope you were reading carefully because if you weren't, the author of the piece might have you believing his foolishness:

The findings suggest that it matters little whether a diet is high or low in fat, carbohydrates or protein, it's calories that build body fat.

You don't even have to hunt down the full text of the study being referenced to see that this is the wrong conclusion. Simply read to the end of the article and you will find this:

Carbohydrates were held steady at about 41% to 42% of calories while fat levels varied with the protein regimen.

What this means is that overeating by 1,000 calories a day while getting more than 40% of total calories from carbohydrates will cause you to gain fat no matter what your protein to fat ratios are.

Taking it a step further, we can read the full text to get the precise nutrient breakdown:

Low Protein Diet Daily Averages

6% protein (47g), 52% fat (181g), 42% carb (329g)

Normal Protein Diet Daily Averages

15% protein (139g), 44% fat (181g), 41% carb (380g)

High Protein Diet Daily Averages

26% protein (228g), 33% fat (129g), 41% carb (360g)

I hope they all liked carbs going into the study because that is a LOT of carbs.

The point I'm trying to make in all of this rambling is that you must not let a journalist or someone with a fancy title in front of their name tell you what to think. Every time you go to a site such as Yahoo! Health, open the newspaper to the health section, or turn the TV channel to The Dr. Oz Show, it is imperative that you seek out the actual data and draw your own conclusions. Otherwise, you risk becoming another sheep in the herd; a fat and sickly sheep at that.

Ingredients

6 green peppers, seeded
1 lb ground beef
2 c finely chopped cauliflower
1 c chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp basil
7oz tomato sauce
1 tsp soy sauce or 1/2 tsp tamari
1 tsp cider vinegar
dash of hot pepper sauce
tiny pinch of cloves

Directions

Immerse peppers in boiling water for 3 minutes. Sprinkle insides with salt, and set upsie down on a paper towel to dry.

Cook beef, onions, and minced garlic in a pan until meat is browned. Add cauliflower, tomato sauce and seasonings. Salt and pepper to taste.

Fill peppers with a spoon and bake in a dutch oven or covered dish at 375 degrees for  15-18 minutes.

EASY. DELICIOUS. BOOM.

This recipe is so easy and delicious that I make it for my family over and over again!

Ingredients
1-1/4 tsp paprika
1 T salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp ground cayenne
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried thyme
2 T olive oil
1 (3lb) beef tip roast (hint, look for the roast with the netting around it)

Directions

Mix all seasonings and olive oil in a small bowl. Allow mixture to settle for 15 minutes. Line a baking sheet with foil, place roast on foil, and coat all sides with mixture.

Roast 1 hour and 20 minutes at 350 degrees, or until internal temperature reads at least 145 degrees.

Let sit 15 minutes before slicing, or until you get too hungry to wait any longer. Once sliced, pour pan drippings back onto meat before serving.