Any excuse to make food that is Mexican-inspired, I am down for! I recently purchased a huge bag of fresh hatch green chiles and have been finding different ways to use them beside your typical enchiladas, casseroles, or sauces.
If you don’t have access to fresh hatch green chiles, you could use the canned variety in this recipe. It won’t have as fresh of a taste, but it will still be delicious, nonetheless!
Try this Hatch Green Chile Chicken Salad on a sandwich, with some crackers, on it’s own, or in a wrap like I usually do!
Feel free to use more or less jalapenos in the recipe to adjust to your heat level. We like things on the spicy side, so I tend to go heavier on the jalaps.
In this recipe, I use Primal Kitchen’s Egg-free Mayo, due to my husband’s new egg intolerance. I was super surprised to find that it tastes so much like regular mayo! If you have an egg sensitivity, definitely check this variety of their mayo out!
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Hatch Green Chile Chicken Salad {Paleo, Keto, Whole30}
This is one of the most simple and comforting soups that I make! The Instant Pot cooks this soup in 5 minutes. If you haven’t heard me say it before, here I go again…I LOVE MY INSTANT POT! For this recipe, I only quarter the onion, and use a bag of frozen cauliflower. There is such little work involved! This creamy soup is so versatile and can be a base for so many other soups. I usually turn it into a Loaded “Potato” Soup or a Cheeseburger Chowder.
It may be dairy free and low carb, but it is still super creamy! This soup tastes so similar to a Cream of Potato soup, but, instead, is filled with a much healthier veggie! Personally, I’m always in need of more veggies in my life! White potatoes have practically no nutritional value and are packed with carbs that turn into sugar. They are delicious and technically, WHOLE FOODS, but we should keep those to a minimum. Using cauliflower instead is a great, guilt-free substitute. Small changes like this every now and then can mean big things for someone’s diet and health.
P.S. If you do not have an Instant Pot or pressure cooker, see the notes below* for an alternative stovetop method. It will take a bit longer, but still be delicious! The only other appliance that you will need is some type of blender. I typically use a handheld immersion blender for this.
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5-Minute Instant Pot Creamy Cauliflower Soup {w/stovetop option}
Cashew yogurtsub sour cream or dairy free alternative of choice
Instructions
To the Instant Pot, add all of the ingredients with the exception of the yogurt and butter.
Attach the lid, turn the valve to seal, and set for 5 minutes (make sure its on High Pressure.) It will take 5-10 minutes to come to pressure, as well.
When the timer goes off, turn the valve, and do a quick release.
Once the pin has dropped and all of the pressure has released, remove the lid, and add the butter to the Instant Pot.
Use your immersion blender (or countertop blender) to puree the soup until it is completely smooth!
Drizzle with yogurt or sour cream before serving. ENJOY!
Recipe Notes
*Stovetop method:
In a soup pot over medium heat, saute onions in 1 tbsp of avocado oil, coconut oil, or ghee/butter. You'll want to dice the onions for this cooking method.
Once the onions have become soft and translucent, add the remaining ingredients (besides the butter and yogurt.)
Bring to a boil, cover, and cook for 3-5 minutes.
Reduce heat to low and let simmer for 10 minutes or until the cauliflower is cooked and very tender.
Remove from heat and add the butter to the soup.
Transfer the soup to your blender or a metal bowl to use the immersion blender.
Puree until completely smooth.
** Chicken Bouillon Paste - This is my favorite brand and one of my favorite things to use in dishes! If you decide to use Thrive Market (it's a couple dollars cheaper on there), send me an email and I can get you a link for a discount off your first order!
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!
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.
Add ground beef to skillet and sauté 5 minutes while breaking the meat up.
Stir in garlic and all of the seasonings to the ground beef and vegetable mixture and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
Remove skillet from heat.
In a large bowl, whisk together coconut milk and eggs.
Add milk mixture to the ground beef and vegetables and combine.
Transfer skillet to oven (or transfer to an oven safe baking dish first) and bake for 20 minutes.
Cool for 5-10 minutes before cutting.
Top with avocado, cheese sauce (see recipe note for my dairy free Pepperjack Cheese Sauce), green onions, salsa, or jalapeños before serving!
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.
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Instant Pot Chori Pollo Sopa (Chicken & Chorizo Soup)
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.
Add remaining ingredients to your Instant Pot and stir to combine. Hit the "Cancel" button to take it off of "Saute" mode.
Attach the lid and turn your valve to seal. Press the "Soup" button, adjust the time to 15 minutes, and let it cook!
When the timer goes off, turn the valve to vent, and do a QR.
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:
In a large soup pot over medium heat, sauté onions and jalapeños for 5-8 minutes until the onions have become translucent.
Add sausage and chicken to onions and peppers and cook for 5 minutes.
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.
Turn your soup down to low and let simmer until ready to serve.
Crockpot Instructions:
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.
Who has ever eaten some of one of those ham and onion-y cream cheese balls (sometimes rolled in pecans)? Growing up, I think it was at just about every single family event. I LOVED THEM! Spread some of that goodness all over a buttery cracker. MMM!
Now-a-days, the cream cheese is at a minimum (if at all) in our household. I’m constantly finding myself creating alternatives for so many of my favorite recipes that involved cream cheese.
This recipe is NOT for a cheese ball…it’s for a soup that was inspired by one! Oh-so-creamy, onion-y, and dairy free, this super comforting and hearty soup is sure to be a family favorite!
In a dutch oven or large soup pot over medium heat, sauté both kinds of onion in the butter or ghee for about 5 minutes until the regular onion is translucent.
To your pot, add your cream cheese and cook just until it's all melted and combined. This should take just a minute or two.
Once the cheese is completely melted, add the remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender. The longer you let this simmer the more the potatoes will cook away and thicken your soup. I always chop mine a bit bigger (I like a chunky soup anyways) that way I don't lose all of my potatoes in the cooking process!
...and you're DONE! EASY!
I serve these with MORE fresh, chopped green onions on top! You can never have too much green onion! 😛
In the past, whenever I would go out to eat, and Spinach Artichoke Dip was on the appetizer menu, I’d always order it! I loved all of that creamy, cheesy, goodness. Sometimes, I’d just make a meal out of it. However, I’d often leave the restaurant feeling overly stuffed, heavy, greasy, and just not so good. All of that cream and cheese can wreak havoc on one’s tummy – especially the dairy allergic or lactose intolerant tummies! Don’t get me wrong, the dip was always amazing…ALWAYS, but once I began paying more attention to my body and what I put into it, I really began noticing the effects food had on it. I consciously began asking myself, “Is it really worth it?” Now, I’m not saying to never order the spin-dip again. Just…maybe…try passing on it the next time, and going home and making this recipe the next day! (I know, it’s more work and definitely isn’t instantly gratifying. I promise though, it’s worth it!)
This version is packed with protein from the cashews and tons of flavor from onions and garlic – you won’t miss the cheese! (that much 😉 haha) If you’re someone that is lactose intolerant or has a dairy allergy, this is a great substitute to give you that fix!
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Spinach Artichoke Dip (dairy-free with vegan option)
In a sauce pan, saute onions in butter for 5 minutes or until they've become translucent and started browning.
While the onions are cooking, drain water off soaked cashews. In a food processor or high powered blender, combine cashews, broth, and coconut milk. Blend until the mixture has lightened and is very creamy. If the mixture is too thick to blend, add a couple tablespoons more of broth until it begins to blend completely.
If your spinach is frozen, follow the cooking directions until it has thawed enough to squeeze the moisture out. You want VERY LITTLE moisture left. If your spinach is thawed, simply wring out the liquid using cheesecloth. You will be surprised with how little spinach you're left with!
Once you've completely pureed the cashews, add the mixture, drained spinach, and remaining ingredients to the cooked onions. Cook the dip over medium low heat for about 10 minutes.
Taste and adjust the seasonings! If you want a cheesier flavor, you can add more nutritional yeast. If you want more garlic, (I ALWAYS WANT MORE GARLIC) add more chopped garlic or some garlic powder. I've found that when I add more nutritional yeast, I also have to add more salt amount as well. Use your own discretion! 🙂
Serve hot with tortilla (I like Siete brand chips! They're grain free and made with minimal ingredients!) or try some plantain chips! YUM!
Leftovers of this don't go to waste either. It's delicious when mixed with shredded chicken and cauliflower rice!
I’m always amazed at how evenly and quickly my Instant Pot cooks meals. It is one gadget that I seriously can’t say enough good things about! It’s been a year with my IP, I should just get used to it…
If you don’t have an IP, you could still cook this on your stove top. Just bake your spaghetti squash separately (it’ll probably take at least 30-40 min, depending on the size) or microwave it , for a quicker cook…then add it to your chicken taco sauce. Still easy, it will just take a bit more time and you’ll have to keep an eye on that pot. That’s probably my favorite part of the Instant Pot, I can set it and not pay any attention to it until the timer goes off and it’s basically ready! I can’t complain about that aspect a bit!
This “pasta” is made with spaghetti squash – so it’s totally guilt-free! If you’re a taco lover, this is a nice change from your typical tortillas, meat, and veggies. I use my jalapeño crema on top of this too! Love the bright, spiciness it adds!
Switch things up on your next Taco Tuesday …or Taco Thursday, Friday, or Saturday, and whip up this guilt-free “pasta”!
To your Instant Pot, add your onions, chicken, seasonings, coconut milk*, tomato sauce, and lime juice.
*(if you don't have coconut milk, use 1 1/2 cups of whatever milk you want!)
Wash and cut spaghetti squash in half - I do it the short ways, around the middle section - so you're left with two "cups."
Line the pot with a double layer of tinfoil. You can use your trivet, if it fits. For the spaghetti squash I used, the handles of the trivet wouldn't allow the lid to close. If you can fit it all in there with the trivet, by all means, use it. It'd work the same.
Place your halved squash on top of the tinfoil layer. Close the lid, seal the valve, press the "Manual" button*, then press the "+" button until the screen reads 8. The pot will switch to "On" while it preheats.
*Make sure it's on High Pressure (if it is on Low Pressure, just press the "pressure" button to get it to High)
Your pot will take about 15 minutes to come to pressure. If you want to speed this up, you could sauté the onions and chicken for a few minutes before adding the other ingredients. For me, this cuts the preheat time in half or more, also you could reduce the cooking time as well. However, then you have to stir and watch the pot more than before. So, do whatever YOU feel like doing. Experiment! When it comes to such a quick cooking time, if something isn't done enough to your liking, it's easy to add a couple extra minutes!
When the timer goes off, do a QR (quick release), and open the lid. Remove your squash and divider.
Make a slurry with the arrowroot powder and almond milk or water and add that to your sauce and stir. Your sauce should thicken in seconds. Personally, we like our pasta saucyyyy. If you want a thicken sauce, you can always make more slurry and add it. Once it's thickened, turn the pot off by pressing "Keep Warm/Cancel."
Remove the inside of your squash, shred, and squeeze excess water out of it. If you don't do this, you will have a VERY saucy pasta - not necessarily bad - but definitely on the "wet" side.
Add your squash to your pot and stir.
Serve it up!
It isn’t much of a secret that I am obsessed with soup. Who else decides where they’re going to eat out at based on what soup they have that day? Or is that just me? 🙂
I try to turn every meal into some type of soup. (or a casserole. I have a problem.) I wasn’t sure what I was going to make when I started chopping up the cauliflower…but I have to say, it turned into something really good!
I looked over and saw a jalapeño on the counter, so that guy ended up in this pot as well! I usually get a response like, “that shouldn’t be a question, honey,” whenever I ask my husband if I should put jalapeños in something. So, if I think for a second, that I should put one in there, I usually do! If they’re not your thing, just skip that part! It doesn’t add much heat once you remove the seeds, but it gives it a nice charred pepper flavor (because I roast it!) which is delicious.
There’s just something about sitting down with a bowl of creamy soup that soothes the soul. At least that’s what soothes my soul. Again, I have an obsession with soup. How could I not, though? SOUP IS LYYFEE. Growing up, whenever you’d get sick, mom would make you soup. You’d ALWAYS feel better. There’s just something so comforting about that bowl of goodness. FYI, there’s actually some medicinal properties involved in that homemade chicken noodle soup. It heals if it’s made properly! BONE BROTHHH!!!
Alright, enough already…recipe time!
Just kidding, P.S. You may want to double this recipe if you’re cooking for more than 2 people or want leftovers.
P.P.S. You could totally make this in your Instant Pot! Follow the same directions, but once you add the milk and broth, set your IP to High Pressure and cook it for 5-8 minutes, or so. It’ll cook FAST! Once it’s finished, stir in your arrowroot slurry to thicken it up!
Bake chopped cauliflower and jalapeño on a greased/lined baking sheet for 10-15 minutes or until the edges start to char.
While the veggies are roasting, begin to sauté the ham, onion, and ghee in a large soup pot over medium heat.
After 10 minutes or so, remove your veggies from the oven. (and turn your oven off! I'm bad about that!) Your cauliflower and jalapeño should have some good char on them. You can leave them in there a few minutes longer to get even more char. All of those charred little bits adds tons of good flavor! Whatever you like! Be sure to watch them, though. They can burn fast at this temperature!
Slice your jalapeño in half, remove the seeds*, and dice.*The seeds come out SUPER easy after you've roasted it. If you prefer to do it before roasting, have at it!
Add the cauliflower and jalapeño to your ham and onions.
Add all of your spices to your soup pot, stir, and sauté it all for a couple minutes. I can still smell that smoky paprika cooking. Seriously, invest in that stuff. It's so good!
Next, add 2 cups of your broth (set aside 1/2 cup), coconut milk, and bay leaves. Simmer for 15-30 over medium/medium low heat - the longer the better. Soup only gets better as it cooks away on the stove. I'm just impatient and need to eat it as soon as possible!
Taste test! Now is the time to add more salt or pepper!
After simmering for some time (or however long you can wait!), combine the remaining 1/2 cup of chicken broth and arrowroot powder to create a slurry. Add the mixture to your soup and stir* for a minute. This will begin to thicken everything up. *Make sure to stir from the bottom. Sometimes, the slurry will fall towards the bottom of the pot and thicken everything much faster down there. Then your soup will have gravy-like chunks in it. No good. ...well, gravy-like clumps don't sound all that bad to me. Remember, though, I like my gravy! Anyways, STIR IT GOOD!
There you have it! Scoop yourself a bowl, top with some chopped green onions, and go get cozy! You mood will INSTANTLY improve!
