Over the holidays I went to Ecuador to visit my in laws and had some new foods.  The very first thing that I ate when I got there was “Bolones de verde”.  What it is is plantains, fatty pork bits and cheese mushed together.  It tastes great and its paleo!  It is a very traditional breakfast and you would have it with black coffee.  You can find them everywhere in Ecuador and they are very inexpensive.

The “fatty pork” bits are called chicharrones and they are not very healthy but they have tons of flavor.  In my paleo version I used bacon bits and it’s such a great combination of flavors!  I completely took out the cheese from the recipe and I’m sure for Ecuadorians it would be a Bolones de verde crime but they taste great without cheese if you are not used to eating them.  I’m sure you could use goat cheese if you really wanted another flavor to add to it.

The main ingredient in this dish is plantains and boy oh boy are they surprisingly nutritious!  They are the green counterparts of bananas and are known as the cooking banana.  Plantains are a staple in Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean and Asia and are severed boiled, steamed, baked or fried.  Most of these countries serve them as vegetables. 

Plantains are extremely nutritious as they are high in beta carotene which helps to protect eyesight.  They also contain probiotics which aid in colon and kidney health and they are high in potassium which helps lower blood pressure.  Diabetics have to be careful when eating them on a regular basis because when a plantain ripens, the high starch content changes to sugar. 

When a plantain is green, it can be difficult to remove it from the peel so the best way to open it is to slice just the peel down the plantain lengthwise and take it out of the peel.   This amazingly nutritious food is so versatile and easy to make you may find yourself adding them to any meal you can!

Serves 4

Ingredients

4 green plantains, removed from peel, cut into 1” tall pieces

6 slices of bacon, cooked and sliced

8 Tbs. coconut oil

4 eggs, fried sunny side up

Julian Bakery coconut paleo bread

Directions

1. Heat 5 Tbs. oil in a large pan over medium high heat and add the plantains standing up.  Cook them on each end for 15 min.
2. Once cooked, add them to a large bowl and mash.  Add the bacon and mix to combine and form into balls (smaller than a baseball but larger than a golf ball)
3. In a large pan, add the remaining oil and cook over medium high heat and add the plantain balls.  Cook on all surfaces of the ball until crunchy
4. Serve with toasted Julian Bakery bread and an egg on the bolones de verde or on top of the bread and enjoy!

 By: Paleo Princess

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