Chili powder

Tex-Mex Breakfast Skillet

September 18, 2018
Course

Skillets like this one are my favorites to meal prep for the week. They are so simple to cook up, you can use just about whatever ingredients that you have on hand, you can have them for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, AND they’re delicious!

I’m a big fan of spices and flavor! There is no skimping in that department in my kitchen. This Tex-Mex Breakfast Skillet is packed with flavors of cumin, chili peppers, and charred veggies. You just can’t go wrong!

It’s the best when you have this meal prepped and all you have to do in the morning is reheat it. It’s so much better than other convenient, quick breakfasts out there. Plus, this one is good for you and will fuel you throughout your day!

If you want to take it to the next level, top this skillet with a fried egg! YUM!

Balanced Health

 

Print Recipe
 Tex-Mex Breakfast Skillet
Course anytime, Breakfast
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings
servings
Ingredients
Course anytime, Breakfast
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings
servings
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. In a large pan over medium heat, saute onions in avocado oil for 2-3 minutes until they've started to soften.
  2. This step is totally optional! While the onion cooks, char the bell pepper under the broiler for extra flavor. Slice the pepper in half, longways, remove the seeds and place on a sheet pan under the broiler for a few minutes or until desired charred amount of skin.
  3. Chop the bell pepper (charred or not) and add to the softened onions.
  4. Add in sweet potatoes and butternut squash. Stir together and cook for 5 minutes.
  5. Add in the breakfast sausage and break it up as it begins to brown.
  6. Add in all of the seasonings, as well as the nutritional yeast, if desired.
  7. Continue to stir the veggies and break up the sausage until it's almost completely browned.
  8. Cover and cook for 8-10 minutes or until the squash and sweet potatoes are soft.
  9. If desired, stir in a handful of chopped cilantro and 5-6 green onions.
  10. Enjoy immediately, as is, or top with a fried egg!
  11. Store leftovers in the refrigerator for quick breakfasts throughout the week!
Recipe Notes

* If you're sticking to keto and want to eliminate extra carbs, you can substitute 10 more oz of butternut squash for the sweet potatoes.

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Veggie Enchilada Soup

June 21, 2018
Cuisine

It’s the first day of summer and I’m in total soup mode over here! …what’s new though?

I’m always down for a bowl of soup and some avocado. I’m pretty sure I could live off of just that and be totally ok with it!

Besides a bunch of seasonings that you most likely have in your spice cabinet, this soup only has FOUR ingredients and only takes a little bit of chopping and stirring to bring it all together. It’s so easy and tastes oh-so-cozy.

All of the seasonings make it taste like it’s been simmering away all day long, but in reality, it’s done in less than 20 minutes on the stove.


Print Recipe
 Veggie Enchilada Soup
Cuisine keto, low carb, paleo, Whole30
Cook Time 18-20 minutes
Servings
small servings
Ingredients
Cuisine keto, low carb, paleo, Whole30
Cook Time 18-20 minutes
Servings
small servings
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. In a soup pot over medium heat, saute onions, squash, and salt in oil for 8-10 minutes until translucent.
  2. Add broth, tomato sauce, and remaining seasonings and bay leaves to the pot.
  3. Bring the soup to a simmer.
  4. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 10 minutes.
  5. Serve with your favorite toppings!
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Southwest Hamburger Helper

April 24, 2018

The name says it all: Hamburger Helper. I don’t know about you, but HH will always have a special place in my heart! Who’s with me?

This southwest take on the classic is total comfort food – the best kind of food, in my opinion. Give me some pasta, a creamy sauce, some ground beef and I am one happy girl!

This Southwest Hamburger Helper uses my Pepperjack Cheese Sauce, pasta, ground beef, and a few seasonings. It’s almost as simple as the original!

You can use any pasta you like – I like to use Banza Chickpea Rotini for this recipe. It’s high in protein and fiber with super-clean ingredients. Chickpeas aren’t paleo, but we do well with them – to each his own! Life’s all about balance. I also love Bellabondanza’s Green Bean fettuccine – it’s DELICIOUS, low carb, and packed with protein too. Do what works for you!


Print Recipe
 Southwest Hamburger Helper
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. In a large pot, cook the pasta according to the directions.
  2. While the pasta is cooking, brown the meat over medium heat. This should take about 5-8 minutes.
  3. Once the pasta is cooked to your liking, drain it and add it to your ground meat. (If you used good quality beef, you shouldn't have any fat to drain!)
  4. Add the cheese sauce and seasonings to the pasta.
  5. Combine ingredients and cook for another 3-5 minutes until the sauce is heated through and thickened slightly.
Recipe Notes

* Pepperjack Cheese Sauce recipe - follow the directions to make it into a pasta sauce. You'll need 2 1/2 cups of broth. You can use the entire recipe or only half, depending on how saucy you like it. The pasta may absorb a decent amount of it, as well.

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Fajita Taco Meat

April 3, 2018

On any given day, if you ask me if I want tacos or nachos, 9 times out of 10, I will say YES. This fajita-inspired, taco meat is perfectly seasoned with spices you probably already have in your cabinet. Therefore, no overly-salted, seasoning packet needed here! This meat combines all of the flavors of fajitas in an easy-to-cook, foolproof dish!

It goes great on tortillas or piled up on chips with tons of toppings…including my dairy free Pepperjack Cheese Sauce. I think I make a batch of that almost every week! Ready to dig in, yet? Here’s the recipe!

Print Recipe
 Fajita Taco Meat
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. In a nonstick sauce pan or cast iron skillet over medium heat, sauté peppers and onions in oil for 3-4 minutes or until they have just began to soften.
  2. Add your ground beef to the skillet and begin to break it up.
  3. Add all of your seasonings to the ground beef and continue to break it up while it cooks.
  4. After the beef has browned on all the edges, (this should take about 5 minutes), add the water.
  5. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5-10 minutes until most of the liquid has cooked away.
  6. And...you're done!
Recipe Notes

*If you are using the cheapest ground beef for this, depending on the brand, you will often find that the fat content is higher, therefore, there will be more grease. Depending on how much fat is left after browning, reduce the water to 1/4 cup, first and see if you need more liquid after that.

My ground beef ratio is usually 85% lean/15% fat and I never have to drain excess. Personally, it's worth the extra dollar or two to buy quality meat. Just keep that in mind!

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Mexican Potato Bake

March 27, 2018
Cuisine

The only thing that I like just as much as Mexican food is potatoes. I like them in just about every form. This dish combines diced sweet potatoes, but you could substitute your favorite potato instead. Japanese sweet potatoes or red potatoes would be delicious!

With the addition of sweet peppers, chipotle peppers, ground beef, and mexican spices, you’ll whip up a casserole that’s spicy, addicting, and a nice change from typical mexican food.

…which is still absolutely delicious. Change is nice though!

I like to top mine with avocado and dairy-free cheese sauce. You could go crazy with so many different toppings for this! Sour cream, greek yogurt, green onions, salsa verde, the list goes on and on! It would all be tasty!


Print Recipe
 Mexican Potato Bake
Cuisine Mexican
Cook Time 35 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Cuisine Mexican
Cook Time 35 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. In a large cast iron skillet (if you don't have a cast iron skillet, you can you a large soup pot or deep nonstick pan, and then transfer to a baking dish), sauté onion, peppers, and potato in oil for 5 minutes or until onions become translucent.
  3. Add ground beef to skillet and sauté 5 minutes while breaking the meat up.
  4. Stir in garlic and all of the seasonings to the ground beef and vegetable mixture and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
  5. Remove skillet from heat.
  6. In a large bowl, whisk together coconut milk and eggs.
  7. Add milk mixture to the ground beef and vegetables and combine.
  8. Transfer skillet to oven (or transfer to an oven safe baking dish first) and bake for 20 minutes.
  9. Cool for 5-10 minutes before cutting.
  10. Top with avocado, cheese sauce (see recipe note for my dairy free Pepperjack Cheese Sauce), green onions, salsa, or jalapeños before serving!
Recipe Notes

Pepperjack Cheese Sauce

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Taco Cauliflower Rice

February 19, 2018
Cuisine

It’s hard for me to eat plain food. I LOVE seasonings. When it comes to rice, I never really enjoyed plain white rice. However, cauliflower rice has a nice mild flavor that makes rice SO much more enjoyable for me, personally. It just needs some butter and S&P too – sorry, not sorry! 😉

I decided to take this rice to the next level. With the help of a handful of seasonings, I was able to add tons of flavor, then I piled on some steak and toppings for burrito bowls!  After making this rice, I probably could have left the steak out of the bowl and been just fine! This rice reminded me so much of taco meat! So, for vegans out there, you could totally swap this recipe in for some psuedo-ground meat on your next tacos!


Print Recipe
 Taco Cauliflower Rice
Cuisine Dinner, Side dishes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Servings
cups
Ingredients
Cuisine Dinner, Side dishes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Servings
cups
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. In a large skillet or sauce pan, add ghee/butter/oil and melt over medium heat.
  2. Add the riced cauliflower and remaining ingredients to the pan.
  3. Cook for 10-12 minutes (stirring every few minutes) or until cauliflower is softened and done to liking. You can use frozen or fresh cauliflower rice. Cooking times may need to be adjusted for frozen.
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