40 Paleo Broccoli Recipes

Broccoli is not only one of the most nutritious vegetables around, but it is also one of the easiest vegetables to find here in the United States and many other countries around the world.

Broccoli is a great source of vitamin C, vitamin K, folate and chromium. It is also an excellent source of dietary fiber, pantothenic acid, vitamin E, choline, manganese, phosphorus, vitamin B1, beta carotene, potassium, copper and many other nutrients (Click here for a more detail nutritional value). It is also know for its cancer fighting properties. Researchers believe a substance called isothiocyanate in the broccoli activates some  genes that fight cancer and switches off others that fuel tumors. (1)

I recently discovered that Costco sells large bags of organic frozen broccoli for great price, so I have been searching for new ideas on how to prepare it. Here is a small collection of assorted Paleo Broccoli Recipes.

Breakfast

Broccoli and Citrus Superfood Salad by Happy Health Nut
Broccoli Banana Muffins by The Paleo Mom
Broccoli Breakfast Bowl by Paleo Amore
Broccoli Frittata by Life Made Full
Broccoli Sausage and Egg Muffin by 4 Hour Ginger
Salmon and Broccoli Omelette by Hollywood Homestead
Savory Broccoli Pancakes by Canada Girl Eats Paleo
The Reverse Omelette by Real Food RN

Entrees

Asian Ground Beef, mushroom and Broccoli Lettuce Cups by Nom Nom Paleo
Asian Stir Fry by Elana’s Pantry
Bacon Beef Broccoli Fusion by Life Made Full
Better Than Take-Out Beef and Broccoli by Mark’s Daily Apple
Chicken and Broccoli Stir-Fry by Life Made Full
Chicken Broccoli Pie by Strictly Paleoish
Paleo Honey Chicken by Paleo Effect
Shrimp and Broccoli by Meatified

Salads

Baby Broccoli Salad by Hollywood Homestead
Bacon Broccoli Salad by Life Made Full
Bacon Grape and Broccoli Salad by Paleo Leap
Detox Salad by Real Food RN
Romanesco Salad by Hollywood Homestead
Salty Sweet Broccoli Salad by The Clothes Make The Girl

 Sides

Broccoli Breadsticks by Purely Twins
Broccoli Fritters by PaleOMG
Broccoli Tempura by Hollywood Homestead
Buttered Broccoli with Lemon by Real Food Whole Health
Caramelized Broccolini with Garlic Butter by Real Food Whole Health
Raw Broccoli Bars by The Healthy Family and Home
Roasted Pecan Broccoli by Slim Palate

Smoothies

Blueberry Broccoli Smoothie by Original Eating
Broccoli Banana Smoothie by Raw Food Recipes
Broccoli Grapefruit Detox by Incredible Smoothies
Broccoli Mango Smoothie by Really Healthy Foods
Watermelon Broccoli Smoothie by Original Eating

Soups

Broccoli Cheese Soup by Real Food Whole Health
Broccoli Cheese-Less Soup by The Paleo Homesteader
Broccoli Turmeric Soup by A Harmony Healing
Chicken Broccoli and Sweet Potato Soup by Meatified
Curried Cream of Broccoli by Nom Nom Paleo
Sun-dried Tomato Broccoli Soup by Civilized Caveman Cooking

 

Sources:

1. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/07/22/how-broccoli-fights-cancer.aspx
2. http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=nutrientprofile&dbid=82

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Beef and Vegetable Soup (Olla de Carne)

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 Here is another Costa Rican traditional dish! Cooking this hearty beef and vegetable soup took me many many years back, when I used to be the pickiest eater ever. There were only about 3-4 dishes I would eat: rice with chicken, rice with canned tuna, mac & cheese, and Olla de Carne, so coming home to the smell of this used to make me so happy.

The smell of the crock pot kept me around the kitchen all day, by the time dinner came I had already eaten a big portion of it…raw!

A crock pot is the easiest way to make it but I am also giving you stove top instructions, you can change the vegetables to whatever you have available, you can add squash, yam, sweet potato, green plantain, cabbage etc.

Ingredients:

2 lbs of grass-fed stew beef
1 lb of grass-fed beef bones (optional)
2 quarts of water
1 small rutabaga
1 small parsnip
1 chayote
1 small yucca (cassava)
1 small taro root
2 carrots
1 small onion
1 celery stalk
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 bay leaves
1 tsp of ground cumin
2 tsp of dry oregano
Salt and pepper to taste
Fresh cilantro for garnishing

Preparation for Slow Cooker:

• Peel and chop the vegetables in large pieces.
• Mix all ingredients together and cook for 5 hours on high or 8 hours on low
• Serve and garnish with fresh cilantro

Preparation for Stove Top:

• In a large saucepan add the water, beef, onion, garlic, celery, oregano, bay leaves, cumin salt and pepper and cook over medium heat until meat is tender (this will take at least an hour).
• Peel and chop the vegetables in large pieces and add to the pot keeping in mind that some vegetables take longer to cook; in this case I would add the yucca first, cook for 5-7 minutes, add the carrots and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes and then add the rest of the vegetables.
• Continue to cook until vegetables are tender adding water if needed
• Serve and garnish with fresh cilantro

Leek and Almond Soup (Crema Reina)

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Leek and almond soup! Who would have though that combination could taste so good?I first learned about this soup while visiting Spain, where they call it “Crema Reina” which is translated to Queen’s Cream.  It is believed that this was Queen Marie Leszczynska’s favorite soup. This leads me to believe that this dish actually has a French name…if anyone knows it let me know.

Traditionally this soup calls for sour cream, which I omitted, though it is creamy and flavorful without it, dairy lovers feel free to add about ½ cup of sour cream at the end. Those who prefer soups over cream, just chop the vegetables in small pieces and sauté them in butter or olive oil, substitute almonds for ½ cup of almond flour and do not blend.

Ingredients:

1 quart of chicken broth
3 organic boneless chicken thighs or 2 breast
2 carrots
2 leeks (white and light green parts only)
1 medium onion
1 garlic clove
¾ cup of almonds
1 celery stalk
Salt and pepper to taste
Pinch of nutmeg
Juice from ½ lemon

Preparation:

• Chop the vegetables into large pieces
• In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, cook all ingredients (except the lemon juice), until vegetables are soft and chicken is well done
• Reserve 2 chicken thighs and cut in small pieces or shred
• Using a blender combine the rest of the ingredients together until creamy
• Transfer back to a pot or serving dish
• Add the lemon juice and shredded chicken
• Serve and garnish with fresh or dry parsley (optional)

 
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Gazpacho, a Spanish favorite

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Greetings from Chipiona, a small fishing village in the southern region of Andalucia, Spain! It´s been scorching hot here and what better way to refresh and replenish than drinking a cold, nutritious glass of gazpacho, drink my husband considers to be the ounce-for-ounce, healthiest food known to man or woman!

My husband was born and raised here, and contends that ounce-for-ounce, gazpacho is the healthiest food there is. (I argue that it is liver, but based on the popularity of my last liver recipe, I think I´ll stick to gazpacho for now.) In any case, gazpacho is a refreshing drink, served cold and chock full of antioxidants and other potent phytonutrients.

I am very tempted to add more herbs and spices to it.  However, in respecting tradition I will stick to the original Andalusian recipe.  Once I return home, I will experiment and add a bit of cumin or maybe even oregano.  Maybe serve it as a cold soup with some diced raw veggies or shrimp.

As far as our vacation, things have been really mellow. We wake up, eat a home-cooked “desayuno” (breakfast) at home. Afterwards, we hang out at the beach and then come back home for lunch.  There´s a saying along the lines of “When in Spain, do as the Spaniards” so lunch is followed by a mandatory siesta. Finally,  we go out for a little walk right at sunset, which happens around 10pm!  Dinner here is eaten around 11pm, so we are eating much later than we are accustomed to, but enjoying every bit of it. I am loving all the help I am getting with the girls from my mother-in-law. I could really get used to this lifestyle!

Ingredients:

2 lbs of ripe tomatoes
1 red bell pepper (seeded)
1 garlic clove
1/8 of an onion
1 medium cucumber
salt to taste
apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar to taste ( I use about 1/4 cup)
3 tbsp of olive oil

Preparation:

• Using a high-power blender, blend (Like a vitamix) all ingredients, except the olive oil, until smooth. If you are using a regular blender you may have to cut the veggies in smaller pieces.
• Add the olive oil and quickly mix it in. If you blend the oil for too long the gazpacho is going to become thicker and “pinkish”

 

For a thinner consistency you may add water

Borscht

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Borscht is a popular soup in many Eastern and Central European countries. I have to admit that when I first learned about it, it didn’t sound appealing; to start I have never been a fan of beets and the idea of combining it with cabbage into a soup, didn’t help either.

The making of this blog has forced me to try to cook different things, even foods that I “thought” I didn’t like, but I was quite surprised with the results of this “experiment”.

Ingredients:

1 lb of nitrate free pork or turkey sausage (optional)
8 cups of beef broth (use vegetable broth for vegetarian or vegan options)
3 shredded beets
3 sliced carrots
2 medium turnips, finely chopped
1 medium onion
4 chopped Roma tomatoes
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 cabbage head, shredded
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup of fresh dill or 3 tbsp of dry

Preparation:

•  In a large saucepan brown the onions and sausage with the oil, breaking the sausage into small pieces.
• Add the broth, tomatoes, beets, dill, and bay leaves and bring to a boil.
• Add the carrots and turnips, lower the heat and cook for 15 minutes.
• Add the cabbage and vinegar and continue to cook until cabbage is tender.

Cauliflower Rosted Garlic Soup

 

 I was trying very hard to make this one pretty, so I bought purple cauliflower. Well, the cauliflower didn’t stay purple and the soup didn’t turn out all that pretty but at least it was very tasty.

Note to self: Next time just buy the cheap, plain, white cauliflower and invest some money in prettier bowl

Ingredients:

Olive oil

1 cauliflower head, cut into 2 inch pieces

1 medium onion, chopped

2 heads of garlic

5 cups of broth (vegetable, chicken or bone)

1/2 tbsp of dried thyme

Salt and pepper to taste

 

Preparation:

 

• Preheat the oven to 400 Fahrenheit
• Peel away the outer layers of the garlic bulb skin, leaving the skins of the individual cloves intact.
• Using a knife, cut off 1/4 to a 1/2 inch of the top of cloves, exposing the top of the cloves.
• Drizzle some olive oil on the exposed side of the cloves.
• Wrap in a parchment paper and then in aluminum foil.
• Place in a baking pan, cut side up and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until garlic feels soft when pressed.
• In a large saucepan  sauté the onions in olive oil until tender, add the rest of the ingredients, except the garlic and cook until cauliflower is soft.
• Remove from heat and add garlic.
• Using an immersion blender or a regular blended, combine ingredients until a creamy soup is formed

 

Tip: I bet this would taste good with a little bit of bacon… but so would everything else

“Creamy” Tomato Chicken Soup

Canned tomatoes… they sound so healthy and harmless, but did you know that acid in tomatoes breaks down the bisphenol-A from the can, leaching it into the food?
Don’t worry, this recipe will show you how easy it is to cook with fresh tomatoes; without the tart, salsa-like flavor. The secret is just to add carrots to it to give it a little sweetness

Ingredients:

2 tbsp of olive oil or coconut oil
1 medium onion cut in 8
2 large chicken breasts cut in pieces
1 cup of chicken or bone broth
1 tbsp of arrowroot powder
2 medium carrots
5 Roma tomatoes
1 1/4 cup of full fat coconut milk, canned or preferably homemade
1 tbsp of italian seasoning
1 tbsp of fennel seeds
1 tbsp of finely chopped garlic
8 oz of sliced mushrooms
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

• Saute the onions in the oil until tender.
• Add the chicken and brown stirring constantly.
• Meanwhile blend the carrots, tomatoes, arrowroot powder and broth until smooth.
• Add the tomato sauce, coconut milk, salt and spices to the chicken.
• Bring to a boil, cover, and cook on medium heat for 20 minutes.
• Add garlic and mushrooms and cook until mushrooms are tender.