Let’s talk about nuts. It’s about time since I told you a while ago I would explain why I took them out of my diet. I’m an assh*le. Good spot to put an asterisk huh?
Anywho, nuts. So I cut out nuts lately. If you’ve read my blog before, you know I’m super down for nuts. Like, love nuts. Almond butter sings to me. I make homemade nut butters to calm my nerves. Or make me smile. BUT, my body doesn’t really like nuts. As I’ve talked about in past posts, my body has changed drastically within the last year. Along with how my body reacts to different foods. You see, when I first started eating almond butter, I lost a balls ton of weight and had a crap ton of energy. Now, when I eat almond butter, I’m bloated like nobody’s business, I don’t feel very good and I almost feel fatigued or weighed down. I wasn’t sure if nuts were the main culprit so I just decided to cut them out completely to test out the theory. I’ve also been told by many people that cutting out nuts can help with acne. Well, it’s been almost 3 weeks without nuts and feel awesome. I don’t feel like I’ve lost any weight nor do I feel like my skin looks better, but I’ve had compliments from a couple people saying I look leaner and my skin looks better. I think they are liars, but whatever. Laura cut out nuts with me and she says the same thing, she feels better and her body is working better. To say the least, our digestive tracts are working awesome. You’re welcome Laura, I’m sure you appreciate me telling the world wide web that.
I’ve still had a random nut tastes here and there. Making some nut butter for my crush last week and making sure it didn’t taste like crap was one of the times. He’s real good lookin. Then yesterday, I filmed some cooking videos with my wonderful friends Ian and Patrick from Again Faster, in hopes of making it onto the CrossFit Journal, fingers crossed!! But I cooked up some of my favorite paleo desserts and still didn’t even eat much of them. I didn’t even crave them that much. Very impressive for me because they were my favorite desserts. Ian even said my Sticky Apple Bars were the best thing he’s ever eaten. Badass. So I just left the rest of the desserts in the fridge for Rj of CrossFit Deco…since it was his kitchen. Thank you Rj, we would have literally died of suffocation or heat exhaustion in my little dink of a kitchen space.
So here is what I think about nuts. I’m not against them, I’m really not. I think they are great for some people. And almond butter was one of the things that helped me eat paleo in the first place. But I honestly do think I have an allergy to nuts. I don’t think my body processes them very well. Hopefully this f*cking acne clears up soon and nuts were the whole reason behind having adolescent zits. Fingers crossed twice!!
So since I just bashed nuts, I made a recipe with them today. Sorry no nut people, but it had to be done for this recipe. Somethings gotta give. I just wanted to say that. But I do give you guys TWO different options for this dip. A paleo-fied version and a cheese version. I eat cheese once in a while because it’s delicious and I don’t feel like poo poo after I eat it, so I thought I’d make a second dip version for you people out there that still eat dairy. Paleo purists, stop hatin’.
OH, omg I almost forgot to tell you…my buddy Jon will be providing you all with a wonderful celebrity guest post on Friday! Jon is pretty cool. He’s funny. And has abs that go for days. You will not find any lovey dovey sh*t on his post. Jon doesn’t love me. He loves CrossFit. And paleo. So he’s gonna get science-y on us. How cool is that? He’s going to talk about post workout nutrition. And make you all understand why you eat healthy. I don’t get that stuff. Nor care. Thank you Jon.
4th of July Spinach and Artichoke Dip (two ways!)
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 2-4 1x
Ingredients
Version 1 (no cheese)
- 2 (14oz) cans artichoke hearts (mine were in brine), chopped
- 16oz frozen spinach
- 1 cup cashews, roasted and unsalted
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Version 2 (with cheese)
- all of the ingredients above
- 2 ounces goat cheese at room temperature
Instructions
For Version 1:
- Add frozen spinach and artichokes to large saucepan over medium heat and sprinkle with just a bit of salt.
- While your spinach thaws and artichokes warm up, pull out your handy dandy food processor.
- Place cashews in food processor and turn on. Grind until your cashews become a flour then begin to pour in your olive oil until you get a creamy consistency. Kind of like a super creamy cashew butter.
- Once your spinach is completely thawed and it’s all good and warm, drain the excess water from your saucepan and add spinach and artichoke to a large bowl.
- Add your creamy cashews and seasons to the bowl and mix thoroughly.
- Serve with sweet potato chips or veggies!
For Version 2:
- Follow all steps above.
- Add goat cheese to your cashews and spinach and artichoke mixture. Mix well to combine.
- Serve with sweet potato chips or veggies!
I just made the non-cheese recipe and it is really fantastic! Juli, thank you for posting a wonderful alternative to a party staple. I will make this over and over again:)
I just recently started paleo and found your website and LOVE it!!! You are too funny!! I made this and the sweet potato brownies yesterday and they are awesome. I am a horrible cook so was really excited that I didn’t screw up your recipes. Thanks for sharing and I look forward to making many more of your recipes.
I was skeptical about this recipe but it was soo amazing!!!! I loved every bite of it. I added the cheese in since it was a holiday 🙂
I made this for my part of the 4th of July BBQ and it was a huge hit! I decided to wait to tell people it was actually good for you until there were just scrapings left in the bowl. Then I said, HA it’s Paleo!!! For some reason I have family members give me crap about eating paleo so it was great to pull a fast one on them. Afterwards I had to pass out this website to everyone so they could make it themselves. Thanks for another hit!
Yummy!! I pretty much made a meal out of this dip and celery sticks!! Great recipe, thanks.
Hey hun.. so I posted this recipe on my instagram and my blog (ALWAYS give you credit) but I got asked to put the recipe in an article.. I said I wouldn’t have a problem with submitting it as long as you got recognized for it. Tasty25.com if you want to check it out.. just thought Id throw it your way.. pretty much my excuse to talk to you because I have an e-crush on you 🙂 and think your recipes are KICK ASS! Best wishes!
Hey! Totally feel you on the acne thing. I’m like, okay, I got through my teens, why can’t I just leave this shit behind?! A few months ago I found acne.org – it’s this guy in SF who has perfected this simple regimen that works wonders. He formulated a cleanser, strong benzoyl peroxide, and moisturizer. In just a few weeks, my totally fucked up face has been 99% cured of all blemishes. It’s incredible. I can go outside again without feeling like a 13 year old!!!! Now I feel obligated to pass the wisdom on to anyone else having this issue! I know I sound like a crazy ad but this stuff really changed my life. Good luck + keep the awesome recipes coming!
Dumb question. Can you use fresh spinach? It’s all I have on hand :/
yes, you’l just have to cook it down first
This dip is amazing! My wife has been making all of your recipes and so far, this dip and paleo berry bars are can’t live without items. I just was co winner of a paleo contest at my affiliate, and the credit goes to my coaches, your recipes and my wife for making them. You are awesome!
I’m sure the dip is amazing, but you turned me on to sweet potato chips with this post.
When I first saw the post I thought that looks good, but I am SO OVER eating dip from celery sticks. When I saw the sweet potato chips I headed to the store for the ingredients for the dip and these nummy, nummy chips.
My chunky, chip loving butt managed to eat most of the chips on the ride home, so alas I haven’t tried the dip, but I love you oh so much for introducing chips back into my life.