Veggie Beef Jerky

This jerky is a great travel snack and easy for the kids to chew.

Beef Jerky

3 lbs ground beef, or other ground meat

2 cups shredded veggies, pulp from juicing works well

2 tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

4 cloves garlic

2 ½ tsp cumin

Mix together all ingredients in a large bowl or stand mixer with dough hook. Stop and scrap down sides as needed. Continue to mix until everything is well blended. 

Press to a 1/8” thickness on baking sheet with sides. Slice into strips using a knife or pizza cutter. 

Bake at 200° for 4 hours flipping and pouring off grease after every hour.  The grease is great for cooking with later.

Fruit and Yogurt Leather

I had a hunch that this would work but I was unsure until I saw a few blogs with recipes. Well I did a little experimenting and we have a delicious new on the go snack.

Fruit and Yogurt Leather
2 cups yogurt
1 cup fruit puree or fruit chunks

Blend ingredients together. Place on parchment paper on dehydrator sheets. I fold up the sides to make a little box when my puree is extremely liquid so it does not run off. Place the trays in the dehydrator at 135 F. I check on mine after about 4 hours but they usually need closer to 6. The longer you dehydrate the more crunchy they will be. Cut and peel off the parchment paper or roll the parchment and leather up and cut into strips. Store in an airtight container for 1-2 weeks. Ours never last more then a couple of days.

Honey, vanilla, and or spices can be added for different flavors.

Pumpkin Bites

This is a recipe I adapted slightly from the Healthy Snack to Go book by Katie Kimball. My kids love them and we have even made it as our Halloween pumpkin pie during GAPS intro.

Pumpkin Bites
8 eggs
2 cups pumpkin
4 tsp cinnimon
1 tsp nutmeg
1-4 tbs honey or maple syrup

Preheat oven to 350F. Whisk or blend together all ingredients with an electric mixer, blender, or strong arm. Pour the mixture in to a greased 9x12 pan. Bake for 30-40 min. They are done when the center is set and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool completely before slicing into little squares. Store in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks. They can also be frozen.

Options
Use butternut squash or other pureed winter squash for the pumpkin (carrots or sweet potatoes might work as well).
Use any pumpkin spice you may like instead of the cinnamon and nutmeg
We have made it without any sweetener or spices during intro.
Add butter, whip cream, or yogurt as a topping.

Chicken Chips

At one pint we had a huge amount of excess chicken from broth making. These are something I came up with to use up the chicken. I started with a recipe for chicken jerky and changed it to our liking.

Chicken Chips

2 lbs Cooked chicken or chicken parts and pieces

2 onions

2-3 clove garlic

2-4 cups cooked veggies

2 tsp salt

Any other spices or spice combinations you like

Puree all of the ingredients together into a thick paste. Add the veggies last to make sure you do not make the mixture to thin. Taste it for correct salt and spices.

Spread the mixture onto parchment or paraflez sheets to fit your dehydrator trays. Lightly run a pizza cutter over the puree to make strips.

Place in the dehydrator at about 110° for 5 hours. Check for crispiness and continue dehydrating until desired texture. After cooling store in an airtight container in pantry.