Caramelized Onion Dip

There’s something about football season that brings people together in our circles; and when we gather, we eat. Dip is an easy way to serve up a lot of vegetables for a crowd, but unfortunately supermarket platters are expensive and normally packed with junk. We’ve made dip before, and it was a hit; but I wanted to try something new.

Growing up, and even to today, my dad was known to snack on potato chips with sour cream dip. It’s a guilty pleasure of mine, too, which inspired me to concoct this caramelized onion dip. It’s a great version of the classic dip with shallots, onions, and coconut cream instead of sour cream, yogurt, or a combination thereof.

Our caramelized onion dip is best made the day before, and it’s great for game-day snacks or dinner party appetizers. With both savory and sweet flavors, it’s a crowd pleaser. We hope you’ll give it a try with your favorite vegetables, or some well-sourced potato, taro, or other tuber chips.

Banana Bread Bites

I love banana bread. Growing up, there was nothing better than my grandmother’s fresh, warm banana bread. My favorite part was the just-under-cooked center of the loaf. Unfortunately, I’m not a baker like Grandma Statz. I can bake. Sometimes I will bake. And, occasionally, my baking works very well (e.g. check out my Orange-Cranberry Bread). But I am not a baker.

So, I was really intrigued and excited when I completed this recipe the first time. Admittedly, I was aiming to make banana cream pie-like balls or macaroons. (Brent loves Banana Cream Pie, and if you haven’t tried our recipe for it, you should.) When I took my first bite of these, however, the texture and flavor were nothing like banana cream pie. Instead, it reminded me of that just-under-cooked center of banana bread. The best part? There’s only a little cooking and no baking required!

Buffalo-Style Cashews

It’s football season, so I am admittedly slightly obsessed with buffalo-flavored everything (did you know that Buffalo Wild Wings has a great chart for what is gluten-free on their site? Perfect for going out for the game and navigating the menu). That being said, one of my favorite previous treats was Snyder’s of Hanover’s buffalo-wing pretzels. They’re greasy, salty, crunchy, and awesome—they just make me feel like garbage with the additives and wheat.

These cashews are a great way to get that kind of experience at home and make a fun project of it, too. The instructions have variations depending on how intense of flavor you want and level of crunchiness. We know you will love these in addition to your Sunday (and Saturday, and Thursday, and Monday) ritual, just so long as you don’t wipe your hands on your jersey.

Coffee-Banana Breakfast Smoothie

We brew coffee every morning. For years, we used an inexpensive french press. However, about 3 or 4 months ago, we retired the french press and decided to try something new: the Chemex Coffee Maker. We love it! The coffee is never bitter and we never get bits of coffee grinds in our coffee. It’s wonderful and we highly recommend it.

In addition to coffee, we usually make a few eggs with sauteed greens and bacon. Yet, sometimes we do not have time for all of that. So, on these hot summer days, we simply turn our coffee (which we tend to chill before drinking) into a breakfast smoothie. This coffee and banana smoothie is simple and fast. Plus, it provides a rich flavor and a caffeine boost we enjoy while filing our stomachs.

Quick and Easy Paleo Trail Mix

We often make a lot of large meals in bulk in order to get through the week with minimal cooking during the week—especially pulled pork, chili, and salmon. When it comes to snacks, we haven’t done much in terms of specific meals; instead, if we’re feeling peckish, we generally just have small portions of the other larger meals.