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Okay, this is my last spaghetti squash recipe for awhile…I promise. But, you’ll be glad I shared this one.

So I was driving home from work this past weekend, cold and starved and ready for dinner, but I knew it would likely be awhile before I could get dinner ready. Fortunately, my husband is completely awesome and had dinner ready. That was such a great surprise!! There is something to be said about a meal tasting better when you don’t make it, but regardless, it really was fantastic!! Everyone in the family loved it and Tate even had 3 helpings!

I know the pictures aren’t super pretty, and maybe it was the US Wellness Meats bacon that made this meal so special, and the fact that Scott cooked it, but we just added another new staple to our family cookbook.

Here is what you need:

  • 1 spaghetti squash
  • 2 lbs grass-fed ground beef (or 1 lb ground beef and 1 lb ground pork)
  • 8 slices thick bacon, chopped (US Wellness meats)
  • celtic salt & pepper to taste
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 1 onion, finely diced
  • 1 stalk of celery, finely diced
  • 1 clove of garlic, grated or finely diced
  • 1 cup of canned coconut milk
  • 6 ounces tomato paste
  • 1/3 cup dry white wine

Scott said it was pretty easy to make. Start with your spaghetti squash. I think y’all have this by now, but just in case…preheat your oven to 400, cut the squash in half, scoop the seeds out, lay both halves face down and cook it for about 30 minutes or until soft.

While that is roasting, finely chop your onion and celery. Scott said this part was a little time consuming. Too bad he didn’t know to use the food processor! Anyway, then saute them in butter until they start to become soft and put aside. Then, cut your bacon into small pieces and cook until brown. Then, add the ground beef in the pan with the bacon and grease. Be sure you DO NOT drain your bacon fat. That would be a mistake! Once the meat starts to brown, add in your sauteed veggies, the spaghetti squash and the rest of your ingredients, cook for about 15-20 minutes on low and enjoy!

The kids topped theirs with Trader Joe’s Parmesan Cheese  (made with raw cow’s milk). It’s good stuff, if you do dairy! I hope y’all like it!

 

  • Cynthia - This is wonderful! I had some leftover tomato paste in the refrigerator from the weekend so it wasn’t quite 6 oz. I felt like I needed more but decided to use some tomato sauce that was also left over and added some Italian seasoning. It was great and I am not tired of the spaghetti squash recipes. I made the southwestern soup last week and it was a hit!ReplyCancel

  • landriav - Love hearing that y’all loved both recipes!! Awesome! And glad re the spaghetti squash. I still love it and use it all the time, I just want to be sure people aren’t wanting more variety. Thanks again for your comment Cynthia!!ReplyCancel

  • emilia - How essential is the white wine to the recipe? Can I use a little water instead?ReplyCancel

    • landriav - I’m not sure to be honest Emilia. You could use red wine I know. Or maybe even add just a little apple cider vinegar (like 1 tbsp) to get that acidic kick. Otherwise, if you just omit that, and don’t add water, I’m sure it’s totally fine! I hope you like it!ReplyCancel

It’s officially soup weather here in Atlanta. YES, finally!!

I started out making a buffalo chicken pasta, and it didn’t really turn out to be very good. Actually, it was awful. So, I decided because it is so cold out, and I already had a whole chicken, spaghetti squash, and some bone broth made, I would try to turn this into a buffalo soup. And, I thought it was going to suck too. But, much to my surprise it did not suck. Not at all. In fact, the whole family loved it and we ate ALL of this in one night…

In fact, 4 out of 4 of us loved it! It feels so good on the days you win! Yes, I am Super Mom today and I will enjoy that while it’s here because I know that doesn’t always last long! Until tomorrow night…

Anyway, it ended up being really easy to make, if you use the pre-cut veggies. Anyway, here is what you need for this whatchamacallit soup. For now, I will call it Southwestern Buffalo Chicken Soup.

  • Whole chicken (slow cooked or get a rotisserie)
  • 4-6 cups bone broth or chicken
  • 3/4 cup Tessemae’s Mild Wing Sauce (online) or use another wing sauce like this OR just use extra Hot Sauce
  • 1/2 tsp cumin powder
  • 1 tsp Pete’s Hot Sauce (or desired amount)
  • 1/2 cup avocado oil (Whole Foods or amazon)
  • 1 pack pre-cut tri-color peppers from Publix (You can also just use any mixture of red, yellow and/or green bell peppers. It is about 1 cup’s worth)
  • 1 small onion, chopped (I used TJ’s pre cut onion, garlic shallot pack. Skip the garlic if you use this)
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 tbsp celtic salt (depending if you use your own broth or what soup you buy)
  • 1/2 cup fresh cilantro
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • spaghetti squash (optional)

I used roasted spaghetti squash because I was trying to make that other meal. While it doesn’t soak up the flavor in the soup like it did for the pesto, spaghetti squash was still a really nice addition.  We all enjoyed having something a little more dense in our soup. If you don’t want to add it or don’t have the time, you can skip it, but I do recommend it.

For your whole chicken, cook it in a slow cooker for 4-6 hours on low.  I added salt and pepper to it as a rub. After it’s done, peel back the skin, tear off some meat, dip it in the juices left over in the slow cooker, and try to save some for the soup. Okay, now, tear the rest off and put in a big bowl.

If you roasted your spaghetti squash (cut in half, clean out the seeds, place face down on cookie sheet on 400 for 30 or so minutes until soft), scrape that and add it to your bowl with the chicken. Next, add to avocado oil, Tessemae’s hot sauce to the chicken/squash bowl and mix it all together. While that is soaking in the flavor, get  big pot, turn it on high and melt your butter. Then saute your chopped veggies (the onion, garlic and sweet peppers).  Once that all starts to brown, add in the chicken and squash (if you used one). Then add in the rest of the ingredients including the broth, cumin, cilantro and salt and pepper to taste and that’s it! It sounds like a lot of work, but it’s not, and it REALLY hit the spot! Did I mention we ate it all!?

Stay warm out there!

  • Eileen - O.M.G. I just made this soup on this terribly rainy and cold day — and it hit the spot! The kids even loved the spiciness of the chicken, which is huge for their sensitive tastebuds 🙂 THANK YOU for this recipe – I love it love it love it!ReplyCancel

  • landriav - HA! SOOO great to hear Eileen!! Thanks for telling me! 🙂ReplyCancel

  • Amy Johnson - So I decided to try this for the first time while having 2 friends over for a little Christmas gift exchange. I would ONLY dream of trying a completely new recipe if I was 1000% confident in the person’s recipe and of course that person is you. You really NEVER disappoint and you certainly didn’t fall short here. My friends went back for seconds and maybe even thirds until they could eat no more. We just sat around and talked about how amazing the soup was. How flavorful it was and different and healthy! Like everything else you make…I’m just so happy your recipes are free! Really you are a talented cook! so glad your chicken pasta didn’t work out.ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Amy, what a great note!! Honestly, I was afraid it didn’t turn out well. I was almost nervous reading your note. You are so sweet and I’m so glad it turned out well. Thank you for sharing that with me. It was so nice to read! Happy holidays!!ReplyCancel

  • Brooke Bready - Just made this it was simply…. AMAZING! I would have never have thought a cup of wing sauce would be good in soup but I was wrong.ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Aw, so great to hear y’all loved it Brooke!! Thanks for sharing! 🙂ReplyCancel

  • Melody - Honey, this sounds fabulous. I am curious though. Why avocado oil and why so much of it?ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Hi Melody! I like the flavor of the oil plus it dilutes the hot sauce some. That’s all. 🙂ReplyCancel

  • Kayla - I can’t wait to try this soup and the cauliflower soup but I am curious – can I make a batch and freeze some? It’s just me most of the time and I’d love to have some on hand for rainy day!ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Hey Kayla! You could just make half the recipe. It does last about 4-5 days so I will eat this for breakfast, snacks etc and I can usually go though it alone pretty quickly. But, I am sure you could freeze. The Buffalo Soup would freeze well and I think the Cauliflower would too but haven’t tried it so can’t say for sure. I hope you like the soups!ReplyCancel

  • Amanda - Holy Moly!!!!! Incredible soup!!!! I could eat the entire pot myself; I can not wait to have a dinner party so I can wow my guests. Next time I am going to double it for sure, now I just need to find an extra slow cooker for the chicken……..ReplyCancel

    • landriav - HA! You’re the sweetest Amanda!! You’ve actually got me making it again after reading your review. Thank you!! 🙂ReplyCancel

  • Lorri Melynchek - I do not have avocado oil. Can I substitute with something else? I’m eager to cook this soup! ☺️ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Hey Lorri, you could probably just use some olive oil and be fine but I havent’ tried it so can’t say for sure. I hope it turns out! 🙂ReplyCancel

      • Brandy - I used a smaller amount of the avocado oil, and have also used just some olive oil. It doesn’t really need much. I love love love this soup!ReplyCancel

  • Lindsey Turner - I tried this tonight and it was delicious! I think I added a bit too much hot sauce because it was on fire!

    I do have one simple request, the recipe itself was a bit confusing. I was having a hard time going back and forth to the correct part of the recipe. I ended up adding the salt that was originally for the whole chicken. Bummer.

    Overall it was a great soup!ReplyCancel

  • Kriss - Amazing! So amazing even my son liked it! I decided to use my Instant Pot to make this and glad I did. I left the spaghetti squash out but added some kale. Loved it. Thanks so much for Sharing this!ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Thanks so much Kriss! SO great to hear it! And good motivation. Might be time for me to get an Instant Pot.ReplyCancel

  • christine morrison - We inhaled this soup!! Thank you for another great, unique recipe.ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Aw that is so awesome to hear!! So happy yall liked it! Thanks for sharing with me!!!ReplyCancel

One thing I do miss now and then, especially this time of year (since going Paleo) are noodles. But fortunately, spaghetti squash is in season. What perfect timing!  And honestly, this soaks up flavor so much better than any “noodle” out there. And…it’s easy to make. Just slice, clean, roast and go!

While I love cooking this time of year, it is absolutely my most hectic time of year with work and all, so I have to try to make things that aren’t time consuming or at least take short cuts. This one is easy because there isn’t any chopping, and I really didn’t even had to do much cooking since I used an organic rotisserie chicken from Whole Foods. Yay! Two big time savers for me, although making an actual whole chicken really doesn’t take 5 minutes to prepare.

So this great recipe is a rendition from PaleOMG. If you don’t know her site, you need to check it out. Her meals are amazing!

Anyway, this is what you need for this paleo Chicken Pesto “Noodle” recipe.

IMPORTANT NOTE: If you use a whole chicken like I did,  then you’ll need to double all of the ingredients below. Or, just use about 1 lb of the whole chicken.

  • 1lb chicken (or whole rotisserie, but make sure to double all ingredients below if so)
  • 1 medium spaghetti squash, cut in half lengthwise
  • 1 can medium artichoke hearts, cut in half
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • ⅓ cup walnuts or pinenuts
  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 cup vegetable or chicken broth (I used bone broth)
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • ½ cup fresh parsley
  • ½ cup fresh basil
  • juice of 1/2 lemon (about 2 tbsp)
  • 1.5 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp pepper

Start by slicing your spaghetti squash in half, scoop out the seeds, and then put both sides, face down on a cookie sheet. Cook on 400 for 20-25 minutes or until soft. I do add about 2 tbsp of water to the pan. I’m not sure if you need it, but it seems to work well for me.

Now while that is cooking, turn your a pan on high, add butter and your garlic cloves and let it start to get brown for just a minute or two. As soon as it does, add in the canned artichoke hearts. Let cook until it all a nice brown, and then transfer to your blender. Then add your olive oil, walnuts, lemon juice, chicken broth and blend until smooth.

Oh, if you could only smell this once it was blended!

Then pull your parsley and basil part (no need to chop!) and add that to the blender. Now blend until smooth or you find a consistency you like. 

Next, tear apart your chicken, or cut (if you don’t have a rotisserie chicken) it into bite sized pieces and put in a large mixing bowl. If you are cooking your chicken, cut your raw chicken into bite sized pieces, cook it in some coconut oil with some salt and pepper until thoroughly cooked, and put it in your large bowl.

Next, get out your spaghetti squash, spoon or fork out the good stuff, and put that in the bowl. Lastly, add your pesto, salt and pepper to taste, and enjoy!!!

My kids loved this but they also love basil and artichokes so I thought they might like it. I loved it. And my husband just liked it. Boo Scott. He actually said it was good, but tasted more like a “dip”. I bet the pesto would actually make for a great dip! Oh well, can’t please them all, all the time…right? 3 out of 4 ain’t bad though!

Oh and lastly, I do apologize if there are any errors. There is just not enough time in the day lately but I did want to share this with y’all. If there are any mistakes, please let me know. I’m not good with details, and especially this time of year!

  • Chris Colwell - this sounds fabulous, and you are so funny about the being in a hurry and mistakes –
    I did notice you said cut the butternut squash in half….but we all knew what you meant!

    PS. The Thai Turkey burger has become one of our favorite regulars around here.
    Did I tell you how good it is the next day also?ReplyCancel

    • landriav - HA! Thanks Chris! And thanks re the “butternut squash”. It made me laugh. I knew there would be something in there. I appreciate you letting me know. And glad y’all are loving those burgers! We had them again last night! 🙂 Cant wait to see y’all next month!ReplyCancel

  • Randa - Made this over the weekend and we loved it!! Thank you!ReplyCancel

  • Randa - Forgot to ask though, where does the broth go?ReplyCancel

  • landriav - Sorry Randa, just add it to the food processor when adding the olive oil and other ingredients. Hope you like it!ReplyCancel

  • Dr Pebbles - NUT ALAERGY ALERT — I make pesto with garbanzo beans, and it worked great for this recipe.ReplyCancel

    • landriav - What a great idea for a substition. Thanks for sharing Dr Peebles!ReplyCancel

There is nothing fun or sexy about this post. If you’re young and/or your health is great, then you might want to skip it because I’m going to talk a bit about colonoscopy prep. For those of us who are getting older and need check ups like this, I hope this will help you think about some things before hand…

I plan ahead for almost everything – especially all things food related. When we go on vacation, I cook in advance so we will have food once we get there. For everyday life, I cook every Sunday so we have food for the week. But when I realized I was getting a colonoscopy and would not be able to eat for a day and a half, I thought, huh, I guess I don’t need to plan for a change. WRONG.

Anyway, as some of you may know I have an inflammatory bowel disease (ulcerative colitis), so I am suppose to get a colonoscopy every few years.  Since it’s been 10 since my last, I figured it was time to suck it up and get it done. The hardest part for me is the inability to eat for a day and a half.  I may eat healthy, but I eat a lot. Lately I haven’t been that hungry, so thought it wouldn’t be that big of a deal to just not eat for 36 hours. SO wrong! After waking up really hungry the first morning of my fast, I made a quick trip to Whole Foods. Standing at the smoothie bar, I made a desperate call to my doctor’s office to ask about whether green smoothies were in bounds. They weren’t 🙁  and I am told I can only have clear things like Jell-o, Gatorade , Sprite, apple juice and hard candies. Yuck! But, I needed to do something to keep my blood sugar up and my head clear throughout the day so had to figure out some options.

The first thing I got was something to drink because I didn’t want let myself get dehydrated. Coconut water is great because it has more potassium than a banana. This stuff is also great for long runs or bike rides. It doesn’t taste great, but it is MUCH better, and more efficient for our bodies than a sports drinks!

I think George has been watching the kids hop in front of the camera too much lately…

Unfortunately, the prepping process can strip much of your good bacteria, so it’s good to do all you can to boost your bacteria prior to the procedure. Kevita drinks are a great way to get extra probiotics. There are about 5 different flavors at Whole Foods.

By late afternoon, I was so needing more nourishment so I ended up melting some coconut oil in hot water and drinking that. I think I ended up ingesting about 4 tbsp throughout the day.  That helped clear my head almost instantly each time.

And my biggest savior was bone broth. With a zillion nutrients, enough salt to make you want to drink more water, and a little fat to fill you, this was the perfect thing to have around. Just make sure you strain it well, so it really is just a clear drink. Unfortunately I had to wait until I got back from Whole Foods to start cooking the thighs I bought (thought it would cook faster than a whole chicken) so I didn’t get to drink that until 4:00 but later afternoon and evening, I felt REALLY great.

The procedure went well, but I wasn’t able to eat until after 2:00 on Tuesday, which felt like forever.  The good news is the doctor said, “I don’t know what you are doing, but keep it up, your colon looks great and shows no signs of your disease!”.  That was really nice to hear, especially since prior to (and post) the procedure he stated again that I really needed to be on those 6 pills for the rest of my life. Phew! I haven’t taken them in 5 years and don’t plan on ever taking them again!!

In the wake of the procedure though, I have really upping my probiotics. I really believe it’s true about our good bacteria keeping our immune systems strong. Before the procedure, aside from being hungry and light headed in the morning, I felt totally and completely well. About 2 hours after the procedure, I began feeling like I was coming down with something. And now, still a week later, I have crud in my chest for the first time in YEARS. It’s so frustrating!! I am off to the drugstore to get some VSL-3 (a super strong probiotic) right after this write up. I think the whole thing really messed up my bacteria, maybe along with having to ingest more sugar (from the coconut water) than I normally would. Regardless, I suspect that the prep or the procedure lowered my immune system, which just goes to show the importance of having good bacteria in your gut!

One extra thing to add to the list for prepping next time…take extra probiotics!!!

It’s not a fun procedure, it’s not even fun to talk or think about, but as we are getting older, and our nation is getting sicker, I know more and more of us are having to get this done, so hopefully these tips will help. I wish I would have planned ahead but maybe now you can!

 

Today was the coolest day we have had so far this Fall, so I wanted to bake some nice warm treats for the kids for after school. Nope, it had nothing to do with my cravings for baked goods. It’s ALL about the kids. Sometimes it’s hard being so selfless…

Anyway, since it is finally fall, I wanted to bake something with pumpkin but I also wanted to make something that had lots of protein. These Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins were perfect! Not only are they high in protein, fiber and healthy fat but they are also low glycemic so you won’t have crazy blood sugar swings and your energy will be steady. They’re kind of the perfect snack, breakfast, you name it! The also make for a great pre-workout snack since the oil from the coconut is burned immediately as energy! 

Anyway, I have to say, they turned out to be AMAZING!!! My daughter, who tends not to like bake goods, even liked these! That is RARE! Tate ate five…yes five.  And I’m not telling you how many I had.

Ingredients:

  • 3/4 cup coconut flour
  • 3/4 cup coconut palm sugar
  • 2 tsp pumpkin spice
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 3/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp celtic sea salt
  • 9 organic eggs (room temperature)
  • 2 tbsp maple
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/3 cup coconut oil or butter, melted or avocado oil
  • 1/3 cup pumpkin purred
  • 2 tbsp coconut milk or milk of your choice
  • 1 cup dark chocolate chips, if desired

Before you begin, make sure you leave your eggs out so they can warm to room temperature or close to it. Otherwise the cold eggs won’t mix well with the melted coconut oil.

Directions:

  1. Preheat your oven to 350.
  2. Mix dry ingredients in a medium bowl.
  3. Mix the wet ingredients in a small to medium bowl.
  4. Now mix all (but the chocolate) ingredients together until blended well.
  5. Fold in the dark chocolate chips if you’d like. I did half with and half without.
  6. Now fill your silicon muffins cups (best baking investment ever) or paper muffin cups 2/3 of the way full.
  7. Cook for 25 or so minutes (until butter knife comes out clean) and eat while the chocolate is still melting!

Makes about 18 muffins.

Did I mention Tate had five? Good thing they are somewhat healthy!

“TATE!!! Where did ALL of the muffins go?”  This was his response…

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins
Author: 
 
Ingredients
  • ¾ cup coconut flour
  • ¾ cup coconut palm sugar
  • 1 tbsp pumpkin spice
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • ¾ tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp celtic sea salt
  • 9 organic eggs (room temperature)
  • 2-3 tbsp maple
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • ⅓ cup coconut oil, melted
  • ⅓ pumpkin purred
  • 2 tbsp coconut milk
  • 1 cup dark chocolate chips, if desired
Instructions
  1. Before you begin, make sure you leave your eggs out so they can warm to room temperature or close to it. Otherwise the cold eggs won't mix well with the melted coconut oil.
  2. Preheat your oven to 350.
  3. Mix dry ingredients in a medium bowl.
  4. Mix the wet ingredients in a small to medium bowl.
  5. Now mix it all together until blended well.
  6. Fold in the dark chocolate chips if you'd like. I did half with and half without.
  7. Now fill your muffin cups (spray with oil if not using paper or silicon) ⅔ of the way full. Cook for 25 or so minutes and eat while the chocolate is still melting!

 

  • Rebecca - Made these yesterday…they are awesome! Had to put them in here freezer to keep from devouring all of them myself! Thanks for another great recipe!!ReplyCancel

  • Lara - Made them! They are incredible. Whole family loves. Great school snack for Charlie.ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Awesome, so glad everyone liked them Lara!! 🙂ReplyCancel

  • Divya - Any tips on trying to make these without the eggs?ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Hi Divya! That is a tricky since these do require so many eggs. I would maybe try a recipe for almond flour instead or something that requires less eggs. Then you can try flax or chia seeds as a sub? Sorry Im not much help!!ReplyCancel

  • Lauren - Hi,
    I made these years ago and wanted to make them again for my son’s birthday esp since we have adopted a much healthier diet. Do you think we could sub almond flour or a gluten-free flour for the coconut flour? And same for the sugar, oil? He can’t have coconut…. Thank you!ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Hi Lauren! So sorry I am just now seeing this. Unfortunately you can’t sub coconut flour since it is so absorbing. You would really have to cut back on liquid or eggs.ReplyCancel