Blueberry Cobbler

I didn't have much hope for this the first time I read the list of ingredients, but I was on a Paleo kick, it looked healthy, and I love me something sweet after dinner. I was torn between this and the macaroons.

Ohmagurd, seriously, I am so glad I made this. It was light enough not to weigh me down after gorging myself on melt-in-your-mouth salmon, but still sweet enough that I wasn't digging through the house for a piece of forgotten chocolate. I made a few adjustments for our own personal needs. My BF cracked me up when I served it. He said, "Where's the ice cream?" and headed for the freezer. He looked at me with a sheepish grin and said, "Sorry, it just looked like it needed to be served a-la-mode."

This is healthy enough it will be going in a semi-regular rotation. Yey!

I'm a little torn on the premise of Paleo. Advocates of the "diet" (I hate that word, BTW) tout that you can eat as much as you want, provided you're sticking to clean, healthy, Paleo foods and still lose weight or maintain a healthy weight. No counting, no tracking. At the end of the day, it still comes down to energy in, energy out. Another potential problem I see is that there are a lot of foods that are technically considered Paleo but that are high in calories (think nuts, avocados, etc.). It's easy to overdo it on these foods if you're not consciously putting an emphasis on vegetables, lean proteins and fruits. I actually read a statement on a Paleo blog that "75% of your calories should come from healthy fats." Um, in what universe, Fat Land? If you are truly making vegetables and lean proteins the center of your diet, then sure, gnosh away. But most of us don't. If you eat six servings of a Paleo friendly dessert, you are not doing your health any favors.

Anyway, back to the recipe. I had only bought one lemon at the store and used it on the salmon, so I used bottled lemon juice. I can only imagine how much tastier it would have been had I used a real lemon. I feel very lucky that there is another serving of this waiting in the refrigerator for us for dinner tonight.

Ingredients:
2 pints fresh blueberries
1 T. lemon juice (or better, the juice from one whole lemon)
1 cup raw, unsalted cashews
2 T. pure maple syrup
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
Few dashes each: Cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom
Pinch sea salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Arrange 6 oven-safe ramekins on a baking sheet.

Wash blueberries and remove any stems. Pour into a medium-sized mixing bowl and toss with lemon juice. Divide blueberries evenly between the 6 ramekins.

Pulse cashews in a blender until they become a powder, stopping to scrape sides as necessary. Pour cashews into the same bowl used for the blueberries (don't rinse). Stir in maple syrup, coconut oil and seasonings. Top blueberries with cashew mixture, dividing evenly between the 6 dishes. Spread mixture out slightly, but not all the way to the edges.

Bake for 35 minutes, or until blueberries are hot and bubbly, and cashew mix is starting to brown. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.

Resist urge to eat all six in one sitting.