primal cavewife

• Lay the rack of ribs on al foil and spread barbecue sauce generously on the ribs and rub it in with your fingers. Flip it over and do the same on the other side.
• Wrap the ribs with al foil and let it sit in the fridge for a couple of hours. I am usually pretty impatient so I just put it straight in the oven.
• Cook at 170C for 2 hours.

• Cut the mushroom up in smaller pieces and together with the herbs, put it through the food processor until they become tiny bits.
• Mix them in with the mince, egg, almond meal and salt and pepper.
• Take a little portion, press a little dent in the middle and place the cubed cheese in it and roll the meat mix around it to form a ball.
• Bake the meatballs at 180C for 15 minutes.

• Preheat the oven to 175C. Fry the onions in the oil over medium heat until golden brown.
• Add the cumin powder and turmeric. Fry for two minutes stirring the whole time and then add the lemon juice, salt and pepper.
• Crumble the ground meat into a pan and cook over medium-low heat until mostly done.
• Mix the meat, cabbage, onion mix and fruit with 1 egg. Pack into a casserole dish and sprinkle with the crushed bay leaves.
• Mix the almond meal with the remaining egg. Spread the mix out on top of the meat to make a thin almond crust.
• Bake uncovered for about 30 minutes.

• Preheat oven to 200C.
• Line baking tray with baking paper and set aside.
• Mix all the ingredients together with a fork or your hands.
• Roll the mix into balls and place them on the tray.
• Bake in the oven at 200C for 25-30 minutes.

I love zucchinis. Back in Canberra we used to grow them in the backyard and they would grow so big, bigger than the size of my arm and they are very easy to grow as well. This recipe is one of our favourites. Mine because of the zucchini and my boyfriend’s because of the amount of meat in it. Perfect for dinner for the both of us!

Ingredients:
4 medium zucchinis
300g mince, beef/lamb
1 tsp coconut oil
1/2 cup onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, pressed
1 can coconut cream
1 tbsp curry powder
1 tsp garam masala
1/4-1/2 tsp cayenne, depending on how spicy you like it
1/2 tsp cumin

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
• Cut zucchini in halves lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and set aside. The shell should be about 1/4 inch thick.
• Sprinkle the zucchini shells with salt and pepper and microwave, covered, for 3 minutes. Set aside.
• Chop the zucchini innards.
• Heat the oil over medium/high heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until onion is translucent. Add the mince and cook until browned. Drain the fat.
• Add the zucchini innards and sauté for a minute, until it just starts to soften.
• Stir in the curry, garam masala, cayenne, and cumin.
• Pour in the coconut cream, bring to boil, then lower to simmer. Simmer for about 10 minutes or until the sauce is thickened and creamy.
• Spoon the mince mix into the zucchini shells, ensuring not to add too much liquid.
• Bake for 10-15minutes.

I used to work at a bakery when I was still studying my Bachelor degree. I love the smell of pastry and bread. Smells so homely. I can still bake them now, but it’s no fun baking when you can’t share it with your other half properly. Even though it’s not the same without the smell of freshly baked pie, this is a close alternative especially for those cold winter nights to keep your bellies warm.


coconut oil
1.5kg beef mince
2 onions, chopped finely
4 medium carrots, chopped finely
dried herbs
2 bay leaves
8 tomatoes, chopped
2 cups bone broth
cinnamon

Mash Potato Topping:
1 large sweet potato
pepper
cinnamon
butter, melted

• Preheat oven to 190 degrees.
• Add coconut oil to a large frying pan and heat over a low/medium fire.
• Add the mince, onion and carrot and stir until cooked.
• Add the bay leaves and herbs and stir through for about a minute.
• Stir in the cinnamon, pepper, chopped tomatoes and broth, and cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Season to taste.
• Peel the sweet potato and cut it in thirds and boil it until it is soft. Drain the water and mash them. Season to taste.
• Pour the mince mix into a large casserole dish and cover with the mashed sweet potatoes. With a brush, glaze the top with butter.
• Bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

My boyfriend loves satay sticks because they are all meat and sauce. I thought I would try to make it for him as a surprise at home one day and then for his birthday for his 4-course meal. That day I made him a soup and prawn satay sticks for entree, a big scotch fillet steak and a chocolate mud cake.

You can make these satay sticks with prawns, chicken, beef, pork or lamb. I normally make these with chicken or prawns.

Satay Sticks
Ingredients:
soy sauce
sesame oil
sugar
corn flour
prawns, chicken, beef, pork, lamb

• Marinate prawns, chicken, beef, pork or lamb with soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar and corn flour. Put them on a skewer and fry them on a frying pan until they are cooked.

Note: I did use brown sugar instead of normal white sugar because I didn’t have any and it doesn’t seem to taste any different anyway. But you could try it and let me know what you think.

Satay Sauce
Ingredients:
2 tbsp chunky peanut butter
a dash of coconut cream
a dollop of sweet chilli sauce
a pinch of cayenne pepper

• Mix all the ingredients over a frying pan on medium heat until the mix is simmering. Add more coconut cream if it is too dry. Serve with the satay sticks.

Do you like lots and lots of meat? Then this may be a dish for you. My boyfriend likes to call it Meatslop because it’s not very attractive… and he enjoys slopping dinner on our plates when he’s serving. It may not look delicious, but it is very delicious if you like apples and meat.

Ingredients:
600g mince beef
2 eggs
3/4 cup desiccated coconut
2 carrots, grated
1 onion, diced
1 medium apple, diced
1 tbsp lemon zest, optional
1 tbsp lemon juice, optional
2 tbsp curry
1 tsp ginger, optional
1 tsp salt
1 tsp coconut oil

• Preheat oven to 170 degrees. Grease a loaf pan with coconut oil. Combine all the mince, eggs, coconut, carrots, onion and apple in a large pan mash it together until well-blended.
• Stir lemon zest, lemon juice, curry and ginger together in a medium bowl.
• Pour half the sauce into the bottom of the loaf pan. Press meat mix into the loaf pan and pour the remaining sauce on top.
• Bake, covered in an aluminum foil tent for 1 hour. Remove tent and bake for an additional 30 minutes.

Note: curry can be any kind of curry you like. I’ve tried thai green curry paste with coconut cream as well as indian curry powder with water. Just be creative and you’ll find one that suits your taste!