I have found that I can tolerate goat cheese! And because I had some in the fridge after topping off my Meatza, I decided to use it up by creating a ‘Chipotle Cheese Dip’, which truly started out as a sauce to drizzle over a taco salad. Plan B always seems to be a better choice when I’m in the kitchen — I almost never finish a recipe with my original thought in mind…..so I just go with the flow. I am thankful my taco salad turned into this because it’s so good and soooo hard to stop munching on it so beware!
I gave up cheese many years ago (as most do who start eating a paleo lifestyle) and have never really had the desire to venture back into the cheesy world because I felt so good and quite honestly, didn’t miss it. Every now and then I’ll dabble with some grass-fed cheese but I do use sparingly. I have read that even people who cannot tolerate cheese/dairy at all, can tolerate goat cheese so I decided to give it a try & started using it here and there to see how I feel. I have had no issues at all with goat cheese so I am starting to use it more and more.
*Disclaimer — I know dairy isn’t “paleo” — and I know that I will probably get a little feedback on this subject but paleo for me, was getting back to the basics. I wanted to fuel my body with real food and food that our bodies were designed to digest. That said, after many years of eating this way and doing a lot of reading on the subject, I also find that there is an area of which we can take ourselves if we choose. I personally don’t eat rice or white potatoes but many of my fellow paleo peeps do AND feel fine doing so. It’s all about our paleo shade and where we feel our best and what our own bodies can handle. You know you. So while the rule of thumb is ‘no dairy’, I feel if you can get it from a reliable source & tolerate it, feel free to add it in to your diet if you choose to. More often than not, it’s not so much the actual food that disrupts our digestion, it’s how it’s grown/raised and/or processed.
I made this is my cast iron pan because it’s great that it can go from stove top to the oven! And I don’t mind serving in my cast iron — I think it’s pretty fun (just make sure you let the pan cool a bit before setting it out for serving — I like to take a wet/cold hand towel and wrap the handle …it’ll cool the handle down so there’s no burns while diving in) and does keep the dip warm a little longer than transferring to a bowl or dish. That said, if you don’t have a cast iron pan, cook up in your pan on the stove and transfer to an oven safe baking dish.
It’s addicting my friends…..I couldn’t stop munching on it! It’ll be great to serve at any parties you have or just a quick dinner to munch on while watching Netflix on a Friday night 🙂
- 1 lb grassfed ground beef
- 1/4 cup diced onions
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 1/2 cup (+2 tbsp) goat cheese
- 1/2 cup (+1 tbsp) chipotle sauce
- 1/4 cup cashew butter
- S & P, garlic powder to taste
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Melt oil in cast iron pan*. Sauté onions til slightly translucent. Add ground beef and cook/break up until just turned brown.
- In a pot or microwave, melt the 1/2 cup goat cheese and 1/2 cup chipotle sauce with cashew butter. Stir.
- Drain ground beef thoroughly...add back to cast iron and mix in your cheese/chipotle sauce. Smooth and lightly pat down into the pan with a rubber spatula or back of large spoon.
- Place into preheated oven for 10 minutes. While in oven, warm the remaining goat cheese and chipotle sauce and spread over top of meat dip with back of a spoon or a spatula when out of the oven. Let sit for 5ish min.
- Top with cilantro, green onions and tomatoes AND of course guacamole.
- Serve with plantain chips, celery or crackers!
- *Any pan will do -- just transfer to an oven safe baking dish when it's time to hit the oven.
