Sometimes, steak can be intimidating, right? I know I used to feel that way about it sometimes. …Especially cuts like flank and skirt steaks! Don’t be afraid! If you don’t feel like getting out the grill, or if you don’t have a big cast iron skillet, (Really, if you don’t have one, get one!) this recipe is for you!
Everything gets mixed up in one big bowl, tossed on a lined sheet pan, and cooked in the oven. It doesn’t get any easier than that! You are, however, required at one point, to turn the broiler on, and to flip the steak, but I don’t feel like that’s asking too much. 😉
Afterwards, you are left with a juicy steak and super crispy veggies! Please note, you do not have to cook the veggies for the full amount of time. We prefer them VERY crispy, so they get the full treatment!
Although this meal is quick, resting the steak outside of the oven is just as important as the quick cooking process! Do not cut short, skip, or omit that step!
Also, marinating your steak is totally optional! Life doesn’t always permit extra time to do so! 😉
Optional: If you have the time, you can marinade the steak. (However, it is not necessary.) In a ziploc bag or shallow baking dish, mix together 2 extra tbsp of oil and a tsp of each of the spices listed above. Coat both sides of the steak with the marinade and let it sit for 1-2 hours in the refrigerator.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Chop your vegetables into bite size pieces. The brussels are usually fine just cut in halves.
In a large bowl, toss the chopped vegetables, oil, and seasonings (except for the steak seasonings) until everything is coated evenly.
On a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spread out the vegetables.
Bake for 15 minutes - half way through, flip the vegetables.
Remove the sheet from the oven and set your oven to the BROIL - High setting.
Move the vegetables to the edges and position the steak in the middle of the pan.
Drizzle with more olive oil and sprinkle half of each of the seasonings on each side. (If you marinated your steak, you do not have to season your steak again.)
For a medium steak, broil for 6 minutes on the first side, flip and broil for another 3-4 minutes on the remaining side.*
Remove the steak from the baking sheet, cover with foil, and let it rest for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, slice the steak, against the grain, and serve with the vegetables.
Top with garlic herb butter for extra flavor!
Recipe Notes
*Cook for 1 minute less for Medium-rare and 1 minute longer for Medium-well.
My favorite way to make cheese sauce involves cashews, however, there are some allergies out there that do not permit eating those. So I wanted to come up with a comforting, cheese-like sauce anyone could enjoy!
I like to mix this with cauliflower rice or paleo pasta for a “Mac ‘n Cheese” inspired meal!
It’s even delicious as a soup! (Mind you, I LOVE SOUP!) There is no guilt involved in eating this sauce because it is PACKED with veggies. It’s a great way to sneak in a new vegetable that your kids may not normally want. They won’t even know that they are eating a….SQUASH! That’s right! The main ingredient in this “cheese” sauce is a vegetable! The color it adds is amazing! I swear, the cheddar-cheese color of this sauce makes it taste even cheesier!
My instant pot comes in super handy with this recipe! It cooks the squash in less than 5 minutes! CRAZY! If you haven’t heard about the Instant Pot craze…get on it! It’s my favorite appliance! SO WORTH EVERY PENNY!
Disclaimer: THIS IS NOT AN ACTUAL CHEESE SAUCE. IT IS NOT GOING TO TASTE THE SAME. However, to those with dairy intolerances or those who just want to eat better, it is delicious and nice way to change things up!
Cook your squash however you prefer! See recipe notes for different cooking methods.*
To a blender (you could use an immersion blender too!), add your cooked squash and remaining ingredients.
Blend until smooooooth!
Recipe Notes
*
You can cut the squash in half (long ways), remove the seeds, and roast it in the oven for 30-45 minutes at 400 degrees, or until soft. Then scoop out the insides of the squash and add it to your blender.
You can peel it, remove the seeds, chop it into 2 inch chunks and boil it until it's soft.
OR You can cook it in the Instant Pot, like me! I peel it, remove the seeds, chop it up into chunks and cook it for 4-5 minutes on HP. It comes out perfect!
Tip: I cook the other half of the squash at the same time. Then, I freeze the cubes for smoothies later! OR you could double the recipe for more "Cheese" sauce!
Chicken tenders…for kids young and old! They just never get old! These cutlets are wonderful served over creamy pasta, cauliflower rice and gravy, or make them into tenders and dip them in some good ol’ RANCH! You can’t go wrong. Totally kid-approved!
These are made with a combination of gluten free flours and spices that make the crust, crispy and flavorful! Don’t let fried chicken intimidate you. These are a great way to try it out! They’re super simple to bread and fry – you’ll impress yourself! 😉
In a medium sized bowl (big enough to toss chicken pieces in), beat the egg and water. Set aside.
In a shallow bowl or plate, add 1/4 cup of arrowroot powder.
In a large bowl, mix together remaining ingredients (except for the chicken breasts).
On a cutting board, slice each chicken breast into 2-3 thin slices. (about 1/4-1/2 inch thick) You do this by placing the chicken breast, flat on the board, and laying your hand on top. Hold your knife sideway (parallel to your hand and the board), and cut into the breast. Eyeball it and cut 1/4 inch above the cutting board, leaving a thin chicken slice. I typically can do this 1-2 more times with each breast. It just depends on the thickness.
You can also make tenders, by simply cutting the breast into long chunks. Cooking times may vary with the thickness of the chicken pieces.
In a large, deep cast iron skillet (you could use a good, nonstick or heavy bottom pan/pot), heat oil over medium high heat. (it should take about 4-5 minutes to heat up)
Dip each piece of chicken in arrowroot powder, being sure to evenly coat all sides. Use a fork or your fingers! You might get a little messy! (It's worth it though!)
Follow by dipping each piece of chicken into egg mixture.
Finally, coat all sides of each piece with the seasoned flour mixture, being sure to pat the mixture onto the chicken.
Gently shake off excess flour and place each chicken cutlet into hot oil. Make sure it sizzles when you place it in there. That helps to get a nice crust on the chicken! (Do not over crowd the pan. I usually fit about 3 pieces at a time.)
Cook for 4-5 minutes or until the edges begin to turn golden brown and flip. You should easily be able to flip the chicken when it's done on the first side. If it sticks, do not flip, and cook for another minute or so.
Cook the chicken pieces for 3-4 min on the other side. The thinner you slice the chicken, the quicker it will cook! Usually, when both sides are evenly browned, it's done.
Repeat steps 7-12 until all of the chicken is cooked.
I like to keep the chicken cutlets/tender warm by placing them on a baking rack on top of a baking sheet in a 250 degree oven. It keeps them nice and crispy until you're done cooking them all!
Serve over pasta or rice, or with some Ranch or BBQ sauce! 🙂
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!
In a large skillet or sauce pan, add ghee/butter/oil and melt over medium heat.
Add the riced cauliflower and remaining ingredients to the pan.
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.
Clean and cook whole potatoes until you can easily poke with a fork or knife. However, don't cook them until they're falling apart! The second cooking will cook everything further! You can bake them for 45 minutes - 1 hour, depending on size OR microwave them for 20-25 minutes, flipping them halfway through.
Once potatoes are cooked, cut in half - long ways!
With a spoon, scoop out the center, but leave just a tad of potato around all of the inside. This helps keep stability. I like to push the limits here, myself. I scoop out as much potato as possible, so I can get a crispy skin!
Place skins on a baking sheet face down first - almost touching each other. (I like to line mine with parchment paper for easy cleanup!). Baking them face down and closer, helps them to hold their shape and not flatten out. Spray inside and outside of each skin with olive, coconut, or avocado oil. Feel free to sprinkle some salt on the outsides too - I love it!
Bake skins for 8-10 minutes, flip, and bake the other side for another 8-10 minutes or until desired crispiness is reached.
While the potatoes crisping up, combine remaining ingredients with the potato you removed from the skins. If you decided to add bacon, set aside the bacon pieces for the topping, and add the bacon grease to your filling. This addition is completely optional and not necessary! However, bacon grease makes everything better!
Taste your filling and adjust the salt and pepper! We like our potatoes, not only crispy, but SALTY! Therefore, I add close to 2 tsp to this recipe.
Once the potato skins are finished crisping up in the oven, remove them and add filling to each. Don't be afraid to go heavy on that filling! For this recipe, each half took about a cup of filling. Use it all or save some to snack on as these finish cooking! 😉
Top with bacon pieces and bake for 10 minutes or until the tops have just slightly started to brown up.
Top with more chives or sour cream alternative of choice and DIG INNNNN!
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)
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.
Just like the bagel! This seasoning mix is addicting! You can sprinkle it on biscuits or bagels before baking, on top of avocado toast, fried or boiled eggs, or just about anything else! It’s so yummy! If you don’t have black sesame seeds (like I don’t typically – just sub more white sesame seeds!) – it won’t make that much of a difference!
In a deep, sauce pan over medium heat, add 1 tsp of ghee/oil and chopped green onions. Saute for 5 minutes or until soft. Set aside to cool.
In the same pan, over medium heat, add all of BBQ sauce ingredients and bring to a simmer. Cook for 5-8 minutes or until sauce has reduced slightly. Reduce the heat to low and cover while you prepare the meatballs.
In a bowl, mix together the remaining meatball ingredients along with the cooled green onions.
To the BBQ sauce, drop 2 tbsp size balls into the mixture until one layer has formed. It's ok if the meatballs are touching slightly, just DO NOT overcrowd the pan or try to stir them around just yet.
Increase heat to medium, cover, cook for 3-5 minutes.
Remove cover and shake the pan slightly. Gently flip each meatball. If you find that you do not have enough liquid in the pan, feel free to add about 3-4 tbsp of water.
On top of the first layer of meatballs, add another layer of the meat mixture, in 2 tbsp size balls. Cover and cook for another 10 minutes - shaking the pan every few minutes to slightly move the meatballs around. Repeat until you have used up all of the meat.
After 10 minutes, uncover the pan and gently flip the meatballs around, moving the ones from the bottom to the top. Reduce heat to low, cover, and let simmer for another 5-10 minutes or until you're ready to serve!
Serve these on top of cauliflower rice or as bite-sized appetizers!
I’d say that 99% of the population loves pizza! …including pizza-inspired dishes! These Pizza Cups will be no exception! I used italian sausage for mine and drizzled them with my Garlic Basil “Parmesan” Sauce, but feel free to use your imagination and mix in any toppings that you’d typically get on a pizza! Onions, green peppers, italian beef, pepperoni, mushrooms, bacon…the list goes on and on! Make plenty of these, they disappear quickly! They’re a perfect 2 (maybe 3) bite finger food for a party! Everyone will be grabbing these up.
The crust is made with cauliflower rice so it has much fewer carbs than the normal pizza crust one would serve. You can feel good about eating this pizza! 😉
In a bowl, combine all of the crust ingredients until everything is mixed up well.
Separate crust mixture into the openings of a greased cupcake pan. This recipe should make about 12.
Press mixture down into the bottom and slightly up the sides of each cup.
Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the edges start to turn golden.
While the cups are baking, crumble and brown the italian sausage in a saucepan over medium heat.
Once the sausage has all browned, add the remaining ingredients for the filling. Start with 1 tsp of salt and add more as desired. Feel free to add more/less fresh basil or even some oregano! The fresh herbs really add to the sauce!
Remove crust cups from the oven and filling each one with about 3 tbsp of filling. If you can tolerate dairy, sprinkle some raw grass fed cheddar on top!
Return cups to oven and cook for another 5-8 minutes.
Remove cups from pan and DIG IN! Drizzle with my Garlic Basil "Parmesan" sauce for extra goodness!!!
Buffalo flavored foods go hand and hand with sporting events, parties, and appetizers, in general. I love it! It’s the main reason I’m always ok with Super Bowl parties! 😉 I’m really there for the food and commercials, anyways! These Buffalo Chicken Cups are a great addition to your menu for the big game!
Speaking of buffalo flavored things, I make a few casseroles that are buffalo-inspired too! The possibilities are endless with that hot sauce. Check out my Buffalo Chicken Casserole recipe! It’s low carb, super tasty, and easy to throw together on a weeknight! Who doesn’t love a casserole?
In a separate bowl, combine shredded chicken and the remaining ingredients for the filling.
In a greased cupcake pan, drop 2-3 tbsp of crust batter into each opening. Press the batter up around edges to create a little cup. It should make about 14 cups.
Add 2-3 tbsp of the buffalo chicken filling to each cup.
Bake cups for 18-20 minutes or until the center of the crusts are done. You can check this by inserting a toothpick in the center. If it comes out clean, it's done!
After they have baked for about 20 minutes, remove the cups from the cupcake pan and ENJOY! I like to serve these with homemade ranch!
Optional step for extra crispiness: Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Transfer cups to a baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes until desired crispiness is reached!
Recipe Notes
I cook mine while I prep and cook the rest of the recipe. I use my Instant Pot! I set it for 25 minutes and two large chicken breasts are perfectly shreddable after that time. SUPER EASY!
