Hearty Paleo Stuffing

I love stuffing but I have yet to find a gluten-free option that I find worthwhile. I also avoid grains for the most part and this paleo recipe is a delicious option, even if you aren't gluten-free or paleo.

Makes about 6 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 head Cauliflower (chopped into small florets)
• 1 Tbsp + 1/4 cup Organic, Grass-fed Ghee or Coconut Oil (melted)
• Sea Salt & Black Pepper (to taste)
• 1/4 cup organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 4 cups Portobello Mushroom (diced)
• 1 Leek, medium (chopped)
• 3 stalks Celery (diced)
• 1 cup Walnuts (roughly chopped)
• 1 Lemon (juiced)
• 6 Garlic (cloves, minced)
• 1 tbsp Thyme (finely chopped)
• 1/2 cup Parsley (chopped)
• 1/2 tsp Sea Salt

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Toss your cauliflower florets in 1 Tbsp of melted coconut oil or ghee (recommended for flavor), and season with sea salt and black pepper to taste. Spread the cauliflower across your baking sheet and roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking time.
3. Remove cauliflower from oven and set aside. Reduce oven heat to 375.
4. While your cauliflower roasts, place a frying pan over medium heat. Add half of your remaining ghee or coconut oil and saute mushrooms, leek and celery for about 10 minutes or until the mushrooms are soft.
5. In a food processor, add the walnuts, lemon juice, garlic, thyme, parsley and sea salt. Add the rest of the ghee or coconut oil and roasted cauliflower and pulse (do not blend) until the mixture reaches a coarse, stuffing-like consistency. Do not over process as you want the mixture to be coarse. Note: If you don't mind some manual labour, you can skip the food processor and use a fork and knife to finely chop the stuffing. Once it reaches a good consistency, spoon the mixture into a baking dish.
6. Place in the oven and bake for 1 hour. Stir every 15 minutes or so to prevent burning.
7. Remove from oven and transfer into a serving dish. Enjoy!

Variations:

Meat Lover: Add cooked organic bacon bits, sausage or ground grass-fed meat into the mixture as you add it to the baking dish.

No Nuts: Eliminate the walnuts and use pumpkin seeds instead.

No Portobellos: Use crimini or chanterelle mushrooms instead or eliminate mushrooms altogether.

No Leeks: Use onions of shallots instead.