Spinach and Artichoke Dip Stuffed Spaghetti Squash

I definitely outdid myself on this one. For those of you who don't know me, I am obsessed with dip. I would make spinach artichoke dip all the time and I would eat it just as fast as I made it! 😂 But this time, I added spaghetti squash, more veggies, and some meat to made this a meal. As an added bonus, the entire dish is dairy free! Yesssss it's so good I felt called to share this. This dish can be vegan as well if you remove the meat. It's still plenty filling with or without the meat. Check out the recipe for my Spinach and Artichoke Dip Stuffed Spaghetti Squash!

Ingredients:

• 2 medium spaghetti squashes, halved lengthwise

• 1 lb cooked meat of choice (optional)

• ** 1 cup cashews

• 1/3 cup nutritional yeast

• ½ cup almond milk or vegetable broth

• 2-3 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided

• ½ cup veganaise (or you can use regular mayo here)

• 1 lemon, squeezed

• 1 Tablespoon arrowroot starch

• ½ cup vegan Parmesan cheese (find the recipe here)

• 1 cup dairy free mozzarella cheese (can be found at Whole Foods or any health food store)

• 4 cloves of garlic

• ½ teaspoon sea salt

• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

• 1 can artichoke hearts, chopped

• 1 yellow onion, chopped

• 1 red bell pepper, chopped

• 8 oz Portobello mushrooms, chopped

• ** 1 8 oz bag of frozen spinach or buy a large bag of fresh spinach

• Parsley (for topping)

Directions:

** If you don’t have a high powered blender or a food processor, soak the cashews in 1 cup of water overnight, so they are ready to blend.

** If you decide to use frozen spinach, thaw according to directions on the package. Make sure it’s completely dry before adding to the rest of your vegetables.

1.       Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place spaghetti squash halves face down in a baking sheet with a drizzle of olive oil, salt, and pepper on each half. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until squash is fork tender.

2.       Chop your veggies. On medium heat, add a tablespoon of olive oil to a pan. Place the onions into your pan and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the peppers and mushrooms and sauté for another 5 minutes. Add the artichokes and spinach. Sauté until the spinach is wilted and your veggies are nice and soft. Add the mozzarella cheese and your cooked meal.  Stir until the cheese is melted.

3.       Place cashews, nutritional yeast, almond milk or veggie broth, veganaise, lemon, arrowroot starch, parmesan cheese, garlic, salt, and pepper into the blender. Blend until smooth and creamy. Set aside.

4.       When your spaghetti squash is done, let it cool for 5-10 minutes. Spaghetti all of your squash with a fork and add it to your vegetables. Keep the squash halves because you will use them in the following steps.

5.       Add the sauce mixture to your veggie mixture and stir to mix through.

6.       Turn the oven up to 400 degrees F. Spoon the mixture back into the spaghetti squash halves. Top with extra mozzarella cheese if desired.

7.       Bake for 15-20 minutes until cheese is melted. Top with parsley and enjoy! :)

Gluten and Dairy Free Pizza with Vegan Pesto

Note: This recipe is NOT vegan, despite it being gluten and dairy free. If you want this vegan, omit the prosciutto (Although I don’t recommend it because it seriously makes the dish taste 10000x better!)

Who ever thought that you could actually make a pizza healthy? I was over at my boyfriend's parents' house one evening and his dad made this beautiful Italian pizza with prosciutto, figs, and pesto. It was one of the best pizzas I ever had. I thought it was so creative because I had never heard of anyone putting such items on a pizza. This was my inspiration for this amazing pizza. I personally have some trouble eating gluten and dairy, so I felt called to recreate this delicious dish. With a gluten free crust, dairy free nut cheeses, and dairy free sauce as well as the addition of some more veggies, I bring to the table my version of this pizza.

Ingredients:

For the Crust:

** You can use Trader Joe’s Gluten Free Pizza Crust or the following:

• 4 cups almond flour

• 1 packet of stevia ** optional

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 1/2 cup butter, melted

• 4-6 Tbsp. water, divided

For the sauce:

• ½ cup of vegan pesto (Find the recipe here)

For the Toppings:

• ½ cup prosciutto, chopped

• ½ cup white onion, chopped

• ½ cup Dairy free mozzarella cheese (you can get this from Whole Foods)

• ½ cup cherry tomatoes, chopped

• 4 oz Portobello mushrooms, chopped

• ½ cup figs, chopped

• ½ cup kale, chopped

• ½ cup vegan parmesan cheese (recipe found here) Note: You can use cashews instead of brazil nuts

• balsamic glaze to drizzle on top

Directions:

1)      To make the crust, combine all of the ingredients except the water. Mix well with your hands. Add the water tablespoon by tablespoon, mixing the flour until mixed through. You can skip this step if you buy the crust. Follow the directions on the package.

2)      Preheat the oven to 425 Degrees F. Chop your veggies and set aside.

3)      Split the crust in two pieces. On a pizza pan, form a crust shape with your hands as flat as you can, making sure the crust is formed evenly.

4)      Add desired sauce, toppings, and cheese on your pizzas.

5)      Bake for 20-25 minutes until the ends of the crust are golden brown. Enjoy!   

Chicken and Roasted Veggie Shawarma

How many of you have felt like they have fallen in a rut with your eating habits? It happens to all of us from time to time. I’ve been doing a lot more cooking lately. I realized before I started the Clean, Burn, Shape Challenge that I was going out to eat a lot more than I thought. My bank account confirmed that for me. I felt that I was losing connection to my purpose. My stomach was feeling upset from all the heavy food I was eating. But that’s okay. We all fall off the wagon sometimes, and it’s in our control whether or not to get back on. For me, the constant bloating was enough to make a shift in my eating habits. I went back off gluten and dairy and since then, I have been feeling way better. My stomach feels lighter and I feel more connected with nature. Throughout the 10 days of the challenge, I made 100% of my meals from home and I felt like a bad ass! It feels so good for me to feel a connection with my food because this is my gift I get to share with the world, and I am so grateful for that!

When I went abroad a few years ago to Israel, one of my favorite dishes that we got to eat was Shawarma.  Let me tell you, it was way better over there than you can find at any “fast food” Mediterranean restaurant. Yeah, they may seem “healthy”, but I read the ingredients on what they use at Naf Naf Grill and Roti Mediterranean Grill. I was extremely disappointed that both of them use soybean oil in all of their meat and some of their vegetables because it is one of the unhealthiest and most processed oils aside from rapeseed oil. But that’s another story that I will save for another time. I almost went there to save some time from all the meal prepping on Clean, Burn, Shape until I found this out. Luckily, I found a really simple homemade alternative that tastes wonderful. The best part is that it contains all clean ingredients including my homemade roasted red pepper hummus from my most recent cooking demo. I’m super excited to share with you my Homemade Chicken and Roasted Veggie Shawarma.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs

• ½ red cabbage, thinly sliced

• ½ jar of bread and butter pickle chips, chopped

• 4 oz portobello mushrooms, chopped

• ½ yellow onion, chopped

• 10 oz spinach, wilted

• 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil divided

• 3-4 large cloves garlic, minced

• 2 tsp cumin

• 2 tsp paprika

• 1 tsp allspice

• 3/4 tsp turmeric

• 1/4 tsp garlic powder

•  1/4 tsp cinnamon

• 1 pinch cayenne

• Salt and black pepper

• ·Nonstick cooking spray

• ** One batch of roasted red pepper hummus (homemade or store bought)

** Recipe for my homemade hummus can be found here or check out my cooking demo here

** Note: I put the Shawarma seasonings on my vegetables, but you can put it on your chicken as well. If you decide to season your chicken, marinate them in a plastic Ziploc bag with the same seasonings listed above with 2-3 Tbsp. olive oil for 2-3 hours before cooking.

Directions:

1)      Preheat the oven to 350 Degrees F. Chop your veggies (except the spinach) plus your garlic and put them on a foiled baking sheet with 2-3 Tbsp. olive oil. Pour seasoning on the veggies and mix well.

2)      Spray the baking sheet with nonstick cooking oil and place your chicken on a separate foiled baking sheet with hummus (I like to crust my chicken with it).

3)      Bake for 30-35 minutes until chicken is cooked through and veggies are slightly browned

4)      Once done, cut the chicken into small pieces and sauté for 3-5 minutes (although I skipped that step for time’s sake).

5)      In a separate pan, wilt your spinach and season with some salt and pepper.

6)      Combine veggies, chicken, and spinach into one pan and stir for 2-3 minutes.

7)      Top with more hummus if desired and enjoy!

Almond Flour Pancakes

It was a wonderful weekend of seeing my friend in the city with lots of warm weather.  We went to the farmer’s market and I was craving some of the delicious fruit from the stands after eating a savory crepe. I’ve wanted to make pancakes for a while since my boyfriend and I have been going out to eat at the local pancake house for the past few Sundays in a row. Since I bought apples and peaches, I thought why not make the pancakes and caramelize those on top? My taste buds were longing for some of that delicious, fall feeling of warm, cinnamon, sugary glazed goodness. While I am at it, I figure this would be great to have for my trip to Bass Center. Who wouldn’t want to bring healthy food on a vacation? It was a no brainer. I had to make these. And oh boy, they were exactly everything I was hoping for. Did I tell you that they are gluten and dairy free? Now you can have your breakfast treat without the guilt! With that being said, I’m absolutely delighted to share with you my recipe for almond flour pancakes with caramelized apples and peaches!

Ingredients:

For the Pancakes:

Credits to: http://thenourishinghome.com/2012/05/fluffy-little-almond-flour-pancakes/

• 1 1/2 cups blanched almond flour

• 1/2 tsp baking soda

• 1/4 tsp sea salt

• 3 large pastured eggs, room temperature

• 1/4 cup almond milk

• 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

• 1 Tbsp. honey (or maple syrup)

• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

• 1/4 tsp apple cider vinegar

• 1-2 tsp cinnamon (I love cinnamon, so I tend to add a lot)

For the Caramelized Apples and Peaches

• 2 apples and 2 peaches, cored and cubed (can use berries as well)

• 1 Tbsp. maple syrup (or honey)

• 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

• 2 Tbsp. brown or turbinado sugar

• 1-2 tsp cinnamon (I love cinnamon, so I tend to add a lot)

Directions:

1. Preheat griddle over medium heat.

2. Place all of the liquid ingredients into your blender, then place all of the dry ingredients on top. Cover and blend on low to start, then increase to high and blend at least 1 full minute.

3. Please note: The batter will be very thick like a thick cake batter. If it is too thick for your liking, a simple option to correct the consistency is to simply add an additional tablespoon of almond milk to the batter one tablespoon at a time, blending thoroughly before adding another tablespoon, until the desired consistency of batter is reached. Adding extra milk may make the pancakes a bit thinner (depending upon how much extra milk is added), but it should not dramatically impact the flavor.

4. Chop all of your fruit

5. Grease a preheated griddle for the pancakes and a preheated pan for the fruit each with 1 Tbsp. butter.

6. Ladle a ¼ cup of batter onto the griddle to form a pancake

7. Cook for a few minutes, until pancakes begin to dry out at edges and the bottoms are a golden brown. It’s important to keep a careful eye on them as almond flour pancakes burn easily. (I like to take a little peek under one of the pancakes to check, before flipping.)

8. Carefully flip and cook another few minutes until done, but not over-browned.

9. Serve hot off the griddle with cultured butter, pure maple syrup and a medley of fresh berries.