Whole30: Paleo-friendly Meatloaf and Cauliflower Purée

Word is that during the Whole30, you’ll feel worse before you feel better. I didn’t feel bad in any way today, but I did feel my sweet tooth kick in this afternoon, so I ate a peach from my Saturday morning trip to the farmers’ market. It was a fabulous peach – tender and juicy. And since my sweet tooth – or rather insulin resistance – is part of what I’m trying to beat with this 30 day experiment, I ignored the fact that there were thoughts of chocolate running through my mind in spite of the peach. The good news? Chocolate lost. I won. (Not that there was any in the house to cheat with, anyway. Still.)

I made omelettes for breakfast, stuffed with sautéed onion, sweet bell pepper and broccoli. Lunch was leftover curry for me, leftover pan-seared chicken for E.

We had meatloaf for dinner, and it turned out pretty well. In lieu of the customary bread, crackers or oatmeal used in conjunction with egg to bind meatloaf together, I used some almond meal. Instead of the traditional ketchup, I used tomato paste. The only thing I would change next time is to baste the top with tomato sauce. The rest of the ingredients were pretty much what you’d expect from meatloaf.

Since mashed potatoes are off-limits during the Whole30, I also made cauliflower purée, which stood in remarkably well. I used to think of mashed cauliflower as reminiscent of the South Beach Diet (because, well, it is), but since I’ve now seen it show up on MasterChef as an accompaniment to numerous dishes which have received Gordon Ramsay’s stamp of approval, I figured I could be thus persuaded not to turn up my nose. And considering how often cauliflower purée gets abused in a Jessica Seinfeld-esque attempt to disguise vegetables, I sort of feel sorry for it. Poor cauliflower. Tonight, it played its own role on our table. Baby Girl devoured her serving with much aplomb. E declared it edible (while admitting he missed the PW mashed potatoes I usually make).

So we survived. We were full. Here are the recipes.

Paleo-friendly Meatloaf and Cauliflower Purée

For the meatloaf:
2 pounds ground beef, venison or turkey
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 eggs
1/2 cup almond meal
6 ounces tomato paste
1 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/3 cup tomato paste (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350°.

In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients (except the optional tomato sauce). If you’re using venison or ground turkey, you might want to also add 1/4 cup olive oil, to add moisture.

Here’s the ground venison I used:

Mix everything by hand until fully combined.

Pat into a loaf pan. I poked three holes in the loaf and filled them with tomato sauce, as you can see. In hindsight, I wish I had basted the whole top.

Bake 50-60 minutes, until done. If you like, use a meat thermometer. I always do. It helps me avoid under- or over-cooking.

For the cauliflower purée:
1 head cauliflower
1/2-3/4 cup coconut milk
Salt and pepper to taste

Cut the cauliflower florets from the stem. Steam or boil until tender (you can microwave it if you like – it’s probably the quickest method, although I rarely use the microwave to do more than warm leftovers).

Place the cauliflower in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the regular blade. Process, pouring in the coconut milk slowly as you go, and stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula if needed. When the cauliflower is fluffy, basically the consistency of mashed potatoes, you’ve added enough coconut milk. Season to taste and serve.

Serves 4 with plenty of leftover meatloaf!

For a printable version of these recipes, click here.