An AIP Mother's Day

"Work is love made visible." -Kahlil Gibran

Can you think of anyone in your life that has worked as long or as hard solely on your behalf, as your mother?  The work load of motherhood is relentless, yet even when she is not perfect in her efforts, there is rarely ever a mother who throws in the towel.  They just keep going, despite the load.  Why is that?  I believe it is the love.  All that working, working, working for the child is a way to make the love visible. 

There is a special mix of this love in the heart of every mommy dealing with autoimmunity.  The love is extra powerful, allowing the mother to not only handle the symptoms of her disease, but also still perform all the duties of motherhood.  If you are a mommy with autoimmunity, take a deeper than normal breath on Mother's Day and the time to recognize yourself for the incredible love you make visible every day through the work of mothering.

I hope you'll all enjoy this menu.  This menu is meant as a Mother's Day lunch or dinner.  Brunch is very centered around egg dishes and since AIPers aren't eating eggs, I wanted to go off the beaten track.  I also normally include two appetizers, three side dishes, and two desserts along with a meat dish and salad in my special occasion menus, but I pared down for Mother's Day.  I wanted the menu to be relatively simple and not time consuming (hence a slow cooked meat that requires no tending).  In my home, I will still be the one preparing the meal (as I'll bet is the case in a few other homes), so I wanted it to be a laid back affair.  (To be fair, I want to do the cooking, because I really enjoy it.  It is my "love made visible.")

Appetizer:

Cucumber Cups with Ginger-Lime Coconut Shrimp

Simply cut a cucumber crosswise at about 1 inch lengths.  Scoop out the center of each of the cucumber pieces to make a cup.  (A melon baller is ideal for this if you have one.)  Dice up the scooped out insides & place in a bowl.  Finely dice an avocado and a 1/4 of a red onion.  Add to cucumber mix.  Next sautee 1/2 lb. shrimp in 1 tbsp. coconut oil until just pink.  Set aside to cool.  Add 1/2 cup coconut milk, approx. 2 tsps. grated fresh ginger, 2 cloves garlic, and the zest & juice of one lime, and salt & pepper to taste, to your food processor.  Process on high for 1 minute.  Finely dice cooled shrimp and add to bowl of veggies.  Pour dressing over the shrimp/veggie mix.  Stir in dressing & fill cups with mixture.  

Main Course:

Brined Pulled Pork
Grilled Coconut Sweet Potato Kabobs with Coconut Whipped Cream Dip
Avocado-Blueberry Salad

Okay, our family is deeply in love with the brined pulled pork.  I've been making it for months now and have received nothing but rave reviews from all our friends.  Replace all nightshade spices with thyme & it will be AIP.  Don't worry, the flavor is still incredible.  The brining process requires planning, but is soooo worth it.  Plus, this cooks low and slow all day, so you can sit back & relax.

For the sweet potato kabobs, prepare just as instructed, but leave out the yogurt dip.  Instead, use the coconut whipped cream.  YUM!

The avocado-blueberry salad is very simple.  You need about 4 cups baby spinach, 1 ripe avocado, and about a cup of blueberries.  Scoop out the avo and kind of "massage" it on the spinach leaves.  It will make more of a "base" for the dressing and blueberries.  Sprinkle berries over the top and dress with a simple balsamic and olive oil.

Dessert:

Peach-Basil Sorbet

For this recipe, you'll need to invest in Mickey Trescott's (of Autoimmune Paleo) new e-cookbook.  It is only $19 and filled with loads of beautiful recipes to use in a Mother's Day menu or any special day.