I admit, tuna has never been a "sexy" pantry staple, but let me tell ya, during this quarantine, it's a pretty good ingredient to have on hand! It's healthy, shelf-stable, affordable, and a perfect protein for your stay-at-home lunches. If you can be picky, it's best to look for brands that use wild-caught tuna that's low in mercury, like Safe Catch or Tonnino. If you need some fresh produce and you're avoiding the grocery store, consider ordering from a local farm - I just placed an order through Farm Fresh to You so I can keep making my salads during this crazy time!

​Here are 4 fresh and delicious tuna recipes to brighten up your lunch time routine!

It's that time of year when all the citrus is absolutely bursting at the farmers markets and I'm taking full advantage of this juicy season! You guys know I'm all about a big, colorful salad, and this one couldn't be easier to throw together. It's super simple because these fresh ingredients just shine on their own and don't need much to turn them into a delicious salad. It really doesn't even require a "recipe" - just throw your favorite citrus over a big bed of lettuce, add some avocado slices, mint, and pistachios, dress it with a good olive oil, some lemon, and season with salt and pepper, and you're good to go!

Girl Scout cookie season is upon us and I have to say it's one of the hardest indulgences to resist. Maybe it's the deliciousness of the cookies, the nostalgia of eating frozen Thin Mints by the sleeve as a kid, or just the fact that I don't want to disappoint the adorable Girl Scouts by skipping out on their cookies, but saying no for the sake of being healthy is pretty tough... until now! Good news, my Thin Mint lovers, I have a perfect paleo-friendly recipe to satisfy that craving in a much healthier way, and I promise, they're so much easier to make than you'd think! Shoutout to my friend Lauren who inspired this recipe with the keto Thin Mints that she brought me right after I had Noah... let's just say they didn't last 24 hours in our house! 

I’ve always been a traditional chocolate chip cookie girl, but since white chocolate macadamia nut cookies are one of Mitch’s faves, I’ve been on a mission to make a paleo version that’s just as delicious as the ones he loves. After testing and retesting (and retesting), I have to say, these are seriously perfection. They’re soft, buttery, salty and sweet, with just the right amount of texture from the macadamia nuts and white chocolate chips!

If you're looking for a festive dessert to make for Valentine's Day, you really can't go wrong with chocolate covered strawberries. I wanted to make something cute and fun for Mitch, but given that I have minimal time for baking these days (Noah's naps are lasting about 20 minutes, help!), I needed something super quick and easy. Chocolate covered strawbs were the perfect solution - they only take a matter of minutes and I love that you can make them more special and fun by adding a variety of toppings. I mean... how cute did these turn out!?

A couple things to discuss when it comes to making this recipe as healthy as possible. First, the chocolate. I always use chocolate that's sweetened with unrefined sugars like coconut sugar. My favorites are from Hu Kitchen and Thrive Market. You can use either chocolate chips or a bar of chocolate that you'll chop up. Next, the strawberries. Because strawberries are listed as on #1 on the EWG Dirty Dozen list, which means that conventional strawberries are highly sprayed with pesticides (eeek!), it's important to go organic when you're buying them!

A couple recipe tips... You'll want to make sure your strawberries are totally dry before you dip them, otherwise you won't get a nice even layer of chocolate. So wash them in advance and let them dry before dipping.

For the toppings, get creative and mix it up with a few different ones! I love them with some chopped nuts like pistachios, walnuts, or pecans, some dye-free rainbow sprinkles (like these), mini chocolate chips, shredded coconut, and flaky sea salt. 

Wondering what the best way is to melt the chocolate? After too many times burning chocolate in the microwave, I've found the best way is in a double boiler, or a make-shift double boiler if you don't have one, like me! Here's how:​

• Fill a small pot halfway full with water and bring it to a low boil. Reduce to a simmer.
• Place a large heat-proof glass bowl on top of the pot. You don't want the water in the pot to touch the bowl, so pour some out if necessary. 
• Add the chocolate chips or a chopped up chocolate bar to the glass bowl with 1 tbsp coconut oil and stir every minute or so until melty and smooth. Remove from heat and get dipping right away!

Ingredients
1 lb organic strawberries, cleaned and dried
1 chocolate bar, chopped (or about a cup of chopped chocolate or chocolate chips)
1 tbsp coconut oil
Toppings: get creative! Try chopped nuts, shredded coconut, flaky sea salt, mini chocolate chips, rainbow sprinkles

1. Melt the chocolate. Either melt with the double-boiler method mentioned above with 1 tbsp coconut oil or if you prefer to microwave it, add coconut oil and chocolate to a heat-proof bowl and microwave in 30 second bursts, stirring in between. Be careful because if you overdo it in the microwave, it will burn and you'll have to start over! 
2. While your chocolate is melting, prepare your dipping station. Line a plate with parchment paper and get your toppings ready.
3. Holding the strawberry by the leaves, dip it into the chocolate, letting the excess drip off, and then place on the parchment-lined plate. Sprinkle the chocolate with your topping of choice. Repeat with the rest of the strawberries.
4. Place in the fridge or freezer to harden. It should only take a couple minutes. Enjoy!

Tip: Once the chocolate has hardened, store the strawberries in a cool location on your counter or in the refrigerator if you're not serving them until later. Best to enjoy within 1-2 days! 

Happy Valentine's, loves!