Cumin

Green Enchilada Chicken Chili {Paleo, Whole30, & Keto options}

January 24, 2020

I love me some chili! My husband can’t stand beans so we usually leave them out. That’s the great thing about chili – it’s SO VERSATILE! You literally can put any veggies in it, throw in a protein, some seasonings, some sauce, and let it get happy!

This chili is no different. It’s very reminiscent of a corn chowder, but with a smokey mexican flare that is delicious.

Feel free to go crazy with toppings. Throw on some fresh tomatoes if you’re missing them from this dish, some sliced avocado, diced onions or scallions, cheese, sour cream, plain yogurt, crunchy chips, french fried onions, you name it.

I’m so glad I made a large batch of this…leftovers of chili just get better with time.

As the recipe name states, you can switch this recipe up to fit almost any dietary need or lifestyle. If you’re paleo, leave out the corn and dairy and sub in some dairy free cheese or sour cream and switch the corn for some chopped butternut squash or cauliflower florets or rice (or leave it out all together!)

If you’re keto, replace the corn and potatoes with squash, zucchini, or cauliflower. Also, pay attention to the sugar count in some enchilada sauces. You could also sub it out for some salsa verde that is low in carbs.

If you’re doing a round of whole30, leave out the dairy and replace with coconut cream or even some unsweetened almond/cashew milk will do the trick. For the corn, replace it with one of the previous listed veggies and if you can’t find compliant green enchilada sauce sub in some compliant salsa verde!

Really, if you have the base and seasonings right, you’re still gonna get that comforting chili flavor that we know and love!

Print Recipe
 Green Enchilada Chicken Chili {Paleo, Whole30, & Keto options}
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. In a large skillet or soup pot over medium heat, saute the diced onions, celery, and potatoes for 5-6 minutes until the onions and celery have started to soften.
  2. Add the chicken pieces and saute for 3-4 minutes until they've just started to cook on the outside.
  3. To the pot, add the remaining ingredients and seasonings.
  4. Bring the pot to a simmer then cover and reduce the heat to medium low.
  5. Cook for 25-35 minutes, stirring halfway through, until the chicken and potatoes (or whatever veggies you are using) are cooked through. As it cooks, it will thicken and if you are using potatoes, those may thicken the chili even more as you cook it. Feel free to add a little broth, water, or more milk.
  6. Top with desired toppings such as shredded cheese, sour cream, avocado, crushed chips, scallions, or some crushed red pepper or diced jalapenos for some heat!
Share this!

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!

Share this!

Spanish Cauli-Rice

April 23, 2018

If you’re searching for the perfect side dish for your Taco Tuesday (or any day!) … look no further! This Spanish Cauli-Rice is low carb, and still packs all of that perfectly-seasoned goodness of your typical spanish rice.

It comes together in minutes, especially if you have some store-bought riced cauliflower. That stuff is SO HANDY to keep around when you want a quick meal. However, you can easily rice up your cauliflower in your food processor or blender. Personally, I keep bags of frozen cauliflower florets in the freezer at all times. I thaw them slightly, and then throw them in my blender. I pulse it a few times until the cauliflower is the size of rice, and it’s ready to cook! Super simple!

 

Pair this Spanish Cauli-Rice with tacos or serve it in a burrito bowl with lots of toppings! It’s sure to be a hit!

 


Print Recipe
 Spanish Cauli-Rice
Cook Time 10 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Cook Time 10 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. In a saucepan over medium heat, sauté cauliflower rice in butter or oil for 3 minutes.
  2. Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine.
  3. Continue to cook for 6-7 minutes or until the cauliflower is cooked to desired tenderness.
Share this!

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!

Share this!

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

Share this!

Instant Pot Chori Pollo Sopa (Chicken & Chorizo Soup)

March 20, 2018
Cuisine

Chori Pollo has been a mexican favorite of mine since the first time I had chorizo. I almost always choose chicken over beef or pork, however, the combination of chicken with the spicy sausage is perfection and I can’t pass it up!

This dish combines all of those flavors with one of my other favorite things – SOUP! It’s also made in the Instant Pot – yet, ANOTHER one of my loves. However, you can make it on your stove top or in your crockpot, as well. It’s will just take a little bit more time.

Print Recipe
 Instant Pot Chori Pollo Sopa (Chicken & Chorizo Soup)
Cuisine Mexican
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Cuisine Mexican
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. With your instant pot set to "Saute", cook onions, jalapeños, chorizo, and chicken pieces for 3-5 minutes or until onions have began to soften. TIP: Sautéing your food for a couple minutes in the beginning will help the pot come to pressure quicker.
  2. Add remaining ingredients to your Instant Pot and stir to combine. Hit the "Cancel" button to take it off of "Saute" mode.
  3. Attach the lid and turn your valve to seal. Press the "Soup" button, adjust the time to 15 minutes, and let it cook!
  4. When the timer goes off, turn the valve to vent, and do a QR.
  5. Serve with chopped green onions, sour cream, avocado slices or my Pepperjack Cheese Sauce (dairy free). See recipes notes for a link to the recipe!**
Stovetop Instructions:
  1. In a large soup pot over medium heat, sauté onions and jalapeños for 5-8 minutes until the onions have become translucent.
  2. Add sausage and chicken to onions and peppers and cook for 5 minutes.
  3. Add spices, broth, and cauliflower rice to your pot. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and cook for 20-30 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.
  4. Turn your soup down to low and let simmer until ready to serve.
Crockpot Instructions:
  1. Add all of the ingredients to your crockpot and stir to combine. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-7 hours.
Recipe Notes

*I thaw (or cook for a couple minutes) the frozen cauliflower and then pulse it in my blender for a few seconds to "rice" it. MUCH EASIER than breaking down a fresh head of cauliflower and "ricing" it. You can sub a bag of frozen riced cauliflower. It usually only comes in 12 oz bags; if you prefer not to use a partial second bag, reducing the cauliflower to 12 oz won't hurt the recipe.

**Pepperjack Cheese Sauce

Share this!

Southwest Ranch Dressing (Dairy Free)

March 14, 2018
Course

I’m pretty sure that I could drink ranch dressing like a beverage, almost. Or, at least, eat it like a soup. haha! I apologize if that grosses you out, I just love ranch. You’ve probably heard me say that before. I love it so much that the officiant of our wedding worked that into our vows. Yea, that’s how much I’m obsessed with it.

This dressing is up there with my favorite! It’s a spicy variation of it, and it is amazing! My husband loves it too. Anything that he can dip in this, HE DOES.

It goes great with chicken nuggets, chicken strips, wings, or on top of a burger. Just pour it over everything and you’ll be just fine!

I also use it for my Southwest Chopped Salad! If you love the chipotle flavors, you’ll definitely want to check this salad out!


Print Recipe
 Southwest Ranch Dressing (Dairy Free)
Course Dinner, Lunch
Servings
Ingredients
Course Dinner, Lunch
Servings
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Add all ingredients to a food processor or use an immersion blender and combine until smooth.
Recipe Notes

*If you don't have Primal Kitchen Chipotle Lime mayonnaise, that's ok. Regular/homemade mayonnaise will work, you will just have to add a couple tablespoons of fresh lime juice and extra seasonings. I'd start with an extra 1/4 tsp of each: chipotle powder, garlic powder, and onion powder - then add more if you feel that you need it!

**You can sub cashew, almond, or coconut milk. Just start with 4 Tbsp and add more until desired consistency is reached.

***Unless you know that you really like the dill flavor, start with only 1/2 tsp - then add more to your liking.

Share this!

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas (Gluten, Grain, and Dairy Free)

February 6, 2018
Cuisine
Course

I honestly have SO MANY COMFORT FOODS! Chicken Enchiladas are one of those foods! However, this dish used to be filled with a bunch of stuff that irritated my husband’s stomach, and just wasn’t good for anyone to eat a bunch of! Therefore, I knew I HAD to convert it to Paleo…for my poor husband’s sake – it’s one of his favorite meals. I really didn’t want to live without these enchiladas either. I love the creamy filling when it mixes with the green chile sauce. You could definitely sub a red enchilada sauce in this dish too! I just prefer the lighter flavor of the green sauce with these enchiladas. I typically prefer red sauces with beef. That’s just me! You do you. 🙂

You might want to double this recipe too! They freeze wonderfully, if there is any left, that is! My husband has to practice serious self-control around these things – especially since they’re made with my Paleo Tortillas/Crepes! He actually prefers these to any other tortilla. They have a bit of an eggy flavor, compared to other tortillas, and they hold up so well, in comparison! I don’t know about you, but some brands of tortillas, just completely fall apart and tear whenever you try to roll them up! NOT COOL. These tortillas do NOT do that – I PROMISE!

Print Recipe
 Creamy Chicken Enchiladas (Gluten, Grain, and Dairy Free)
Course Dinner
Cuisine Mexican
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Servings
medium enchiladas
Ingredients
Course Dinner
Cuisine Mexican
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Servings
medium enchiladas
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Prepare 2 batches of tortillas according to recipe. See notes below.
  2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
  3. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients, except for the tortillas, enchilada sauce, and green onions/cilantro.
  4. To each tortilla, add 1/2 cup to the center and spread it out, vertically.
  5. Roll up each tortilla and place in a baking dish. You might have to use a couple baking dishes.
  6. Repeat steps 3 & 4 until all of the filling and tortillas are used up.
  7. Pour enchilada sauce over tortillas.
  8. Bake for 20 minutes or until the edges of the tortillas start to brown and crisp up.
  9. Sprinkle with chopped green onions and cilantro before serving!
  10. If you can tolerate some dairy, feel free to sprinkle some raw, grass fed cheddar on top or top with a dollop of sour cream!
  11. ENJOY!
Recipe Notes

* Paleo Tortilla/Crepes

  • for the tortillas, I make them in an 8 inch non stick pan for enchiladas. Each batch makes 5-7, depending on how thick you make them.

** You can substitute almond, cashew, or coconut milk instead. If using coconut milk, try to use the creamier part of it - unless you can find "culinary coconut milk" (that's similar to Nutpods!). If using almond or cashew milk, reduce amount to 1/3 cup.

Share this!

Paleo Tortillas/Crepes

January 11, 2018

Since the first day I made these, my husband has been obsessed! He actually says that he likes them better than regular tortillas. I have to admit that they do NOT taste like corn or flour tortillas. I can’t fake that corn taste. NO CAN DO. They actually have a bit of an eggy flavor that we personally love!



The best part about these is that they are almost indestructible. haha! They don’t break when you fold them up. A broken taco is a quick way to ruin your meal. 🙁 These tortillas will never let you down in that department!

These shells can also double as crepes! Fill them with eggs and veggies or berries and some coconut whipped cream for a yummy breakfast!



Print Recipe
 Paleo Tortillas/Crepes
Prep Time 2 minutes
Cook Time 5-10 minutes
Servings
tortillas
Ingredients
Prep Time 2 minutes
Cook Time 5-10 minutes
Servings
tortillas
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. In a bowl, combine all of the ingredients. When making tortilla shells for tacos, I like to add garlic powder, onion powder, and cumin for extra flavor - totally optional!
  2. Over medium-heat, pour 2-3 tbsp (a little bit less than 1/4 cup) of batter in a small nonstick pan** and swirl around to form a circle.
  3. When the edges start to curl up slightly, its time to flip! This usually takes about 30-45 seconds. I like to use a silicone, heat-resistant spatula. I just lightly slide it around the edges to loosen. Because of the nonstick pan, you should be able to easily slide the spatula around and flip your tortilla effortlessly.
  4. Flip and cook the other side for another 30-45 seconds.
  5. Repeat steps 2-4 until you have used up all of your batter. This recipe typically makes about 8 tortillas - give or take. It just depends on how thick you make them!
Recipe Notes

*I would not substitute anything for the avocado oil. I have tried coconut oil and butter. However, when added to the cold eggs, it solidifies and doesn't cook evenly. Therefore, the recipe will yield some clumpier tortillas.

**I use a 6-inch pan. Make sure to use a non-stick one! It's essential!

Share this!

Spicy Queso (dairy-free and vegan)

December 28, 2017
Cuisine

Before I get into this yummy dip, don’t judge this recipe just because it’s classified as vegan! I know that there are some of you out there that will! If you want, use chicken or beef broth and make it just dairy-free! 😉

Anyways……

Having a husband that is lactose intolerant has really changed perspective on things. I have to omit one of my favorite ingredients from every meal (CHEESEEEEEE!) or make two meals (who wants to do that?!) and risk antagonizing him with what I’m eating. Therefore, I have had to get very creative and come up with replacements that are still tasty and give us that cheese fix! Mind you, many dairy-free things are far from the original and by no means, taste the same. However, they are still delicious and help us not to miss all of that cheesy goodness so much. We still splurge from time to time on QUALITY dairy.

Give your body a break now and then from all of that cow’s milk. It’s filled with sugar, cholesterol, saturated fat and many times hormones that were pumped into the cows. It also has been linked to an increased prevalence of acne in many studies. It’s just not something you should be consuming large amounts of in every meal. You absolutely still need fat and calcium, but try finding substitutes elsewhere for a couple of meals! Your body will thank you!

Oh, look! Here’s a great substitute for a cheesy dip! 😛

I like to drizzle this queso over tacos or mix with some ground beef and taco seasoning for a jazzed up dip!

Print Recipe
 Spicy Queso (dairy-free and vegan)
Cuisine Dairy Free, paleo
Prep Time 3-4 hours of soaking cashews
Cook Time 5 minutes
Servings
cups
Ingredients
Cuisine Dairy Free, paleo
Prep Time 3-4 hours of soaking cashews
Cook Time 5 minutes
Servings
cups
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. In a high powered blender*: Combine all of the ingredients until a smooth, creamy sauce is formed. This usually tastes about 3-5 minutes. If you're having trouble getting the mixture to puree, add a bit more broth/coconut milk.
  2. Once blended, taste and add more salt to your liking! Serve warm with chips or tacos!
Share this!