Side Dishes

Did you know that vegetables are the foundation of the AIP Food Pyramid? Here are some delicious ways to eat them! For other great recipes, see the full AIP Recipe Archive.

Instant Pot Garlicky Mashed Rutabaga (Paleo, AIP, GAPS, Wahls, Whole30)

Many people think that healing diets are restrictive, but for me it expanded the variety of foods I eat. There are so many delicious vegetables I never tried before going AIP. Rutabaga is one of those, and now it’s a favorite! It’s a beautiful blend of savory and sweet, and filled with nutrition to support healing. In this post I share my favorite recipe, along with the nutrients that make rutabagas a prime example of food as medicine.

How to Make a Paleo AIP Salad Bar at Home

Vegetables are the foundation of the Paleo AIP Food Pyramid, and salads are a great way to get plenty of variety. But no one has time to chop vegetables for every meal. The solution is easy – chop your vegetables in advance for quick lunches all week. But how do you keep them fresh? Which need airtight containers, and which need to breathe? What are some easy options for dressings and proteins? I answer these questions and more in this blog post. I’ve been keeping my own salad bar at home for years!

5 Tips for Healthier Smoothies

Most people choose smoothies because they think they’re a healthy alternative to fast food. The problem is that liquid “meals” like these can hit our bloodstream as sugar blasts, which isn’t healthy for anyone but especially people with autoimmune disease. So, what do we do? Here are 5 tips for making your smoothies as healthy as they can be (while also being delicious). And I also share my personal favorite smoothie recipe

Instant Pot Garlic Mashed Cauliflower (Paleo, AIP, GAPS, Wahls, Whole30)

Have you ever roasted garlic whole? It’s a completely different flavor – mellow and rich. It turns out that pressure cooking in the Instant Pot creates that same flavor in much less time, and it pairs beautifully with cauliflower. This recipe is delicious, fast, and nutrient-dense. I hope you love it as much as I do!

Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash with Duck Fat Apple Juice Glaze (Paleo, AIP, GAPS, Wahls, Whole30)

Did you know that you can cook a squash WHOLE in the Instant Pot? No more struggling to get that knife through the hard shell. Once it’s cooked, it carves like butter. The Instant Pot cooks the squash in minimal time, and this simple glaze makes it taste decadently delicious! Don’t have an Instant Pot yet? No worries. I included an oven/stovetop variation for this recipe, too.

4 Flavors of Cauliflower "Rice" | Phoenix Helix

4 Flavors of Cauliflower “Rice” (Paleo, AIP, GAPS, Wahls, Whole30)

I spent two months trying out different flavor combinations for this paleo staple, and in this post I offer my 4 favorites: Moroccan Spice, Asian Ginger, Scallion, and Plain.  Added bonus: Cauliflower “rice” cooks in 6 minutes and is far more nutritious than the rice it replaces. It’s full of vitamins and antioxidants, it’s sulfur-rich which supports our ability to detoxify, it’s anti-inflammatory, and it’s beneficial for our gut. On top of that, it’s positively delicious! 

Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage

Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage (Paleo, AIP, GAPS)

One of the complaints you often hear about the AIP is that it can be an expensive. There are no coupons for organic broccoli, and the “buy 1 get 1 free” sales at the grocery store feature junk food, not wildcaught salmon. Still, there are some foods that are incredibly good for you, while also being easy on the wallet. Cabbage is one of those foods, and this is my favorite way to prepare it. P.S. I never liked cabbage until I tried this recipe.

Melted Zucchini and Onions | Phoenix Helix

Melted Zucchini and Onions (Paleo, AIP, GAPS, Wahls, Whole30)

You know how overcooking veggies makes them bland and tasteless? There’s an exception to every rule. Sometimes, cooking them low and slow concentrates their flavor in a way that simply transforms them. That’s how I feel about this recipe. It’s easy to prepare, and luscious in flavor (the best kind of recipe.)

Coconut Creamed Collards (Paleo, AIP, GAPS, Wahls, Whole30)

The sweet flavors of coconut and shallot are the perfect complement to this mildly bitter green. Collards are also anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, detoxifying, digestion-enhancing, and are an excellent source of calcium. The perfect definition of a healing food!

Phoenix Helix Recipe Archive

Roasted Beets and Carrots with Grapefruit Glaze (Paleo, AIP, GAPS, Wahls)

There’s a reason Terry Wahls recommends that we eat three cups of brightly colored fruits and vegetables daily. Every color represents a different blend of micronutrients that our bodies need to thrive. This recipe is a nutritional powerhouse, covering the green, red/purple, and orange parts of the spectrum. An added bonus is that it’s both beautiful and delicious. Even though I’m on a restricted diet, I still love food, and recipes like this have an abundance of flavor that feeds my soul as well as my body.

Pink Grapefruit & Avocado Salad (Paleo, AIP, GAPS, Wahls, Whole30)

Have you ever eaten grapefruit and avocado together? If not, you’re missing out! This simple salad is easy to make, packed with nutrition, and totally delicious. Did you know avocados are anti-inflammatory? Or that grapefruit boosts glutathione, helping our bodies detoxify? Every time I research the nutrition behind recipes, I am newly amazed at the medicinal power of real food.

Crockpot Caramelized Onions

Crockpot Caramelized Onions (Paleo, AIP, GAPS, Wahls, Whole30)

If you’ve ever made caramelized onions the traditional way, you know they take almost an hour in a skillet over low heat, stirring occasionally. While this is an opportunity for cooking meditation, it can be challenging for the impatient among us! That’s where this recipe is a godsend. Just pop the onions in your slow cooker in the evening and walk away. In the morning, your house will smell amazing and you’ll have enough caramelized onions to store and use at a moment’s notice.

Phoenix Helix Recipe Archive

Honey Mustard Broccoli Salad (Paleo, GAPS, AIP Stage 1 Reintro)

Broccoli is considered a detox superfood. It contains a dynamic trio of phytonutrients that support all phases of our body’s detoxification. In addition, this salad is delicious! Note: Mustard is considered a Stage 1 Reintroduction, and most people do reintroduce it successfully, but if you’re still in the elimination phase of the AIP, just substitute your favorite AIP-friendly herb.

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