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Paleo Lemon Artichoke Pesto Chicken “Pasta” with Spinach too!

Wow, was this good! It tastes almost creamy but there is really nothing bad at all in this dish. No dairy or cheese, but almost feels like it should have some in it. Super healthy and has to be one of the top dishes I have made. This is a repeater for sure. I used ribbons of zucchini as my spaghetti but you can also use spaghetti squash or any type of stringy squash.

Indredients:
* 1 lb chicken cut up into little pieces
* 2 large zucchini’s. I used a curly peeler that makes them look like spaghetti
* 1 jar of artichoke hearts.
* 2 cloves garlic
* 1/2 cup Italian parsley
* 1/2 cup fresh basil
* 1/3 cup chopped walnuts
* 4-5 tablespoons of olive oil
* 4-5 tablespoons of vegetable broth
* 1/2 lemon juice
* 4 large handfuls of baby spinach
* salt/pepper

1. First thing I did was sprial cut the zucchini. Get a pot of water going and have that start to boil. Set aside for a while. You DO NOT want to overcook your spaghetti “noodles”. If you do, they will become mush. So this is the last thing you do.

2. In a saucepan add some olive oil, or butter. Melt down and then add one of your diced garlic pieces. When that just starts to become fragrant, add your artichoke hearts and cook these until they turn a tad brown or cooked well.

3. Add your walnuts, olive oil, clove of garlic, and vegetable broth in a food processor and puree until smooth. When the artichokes are done cooking, add them to the mixture and puree well.

4. Add your parsley, basil, and 1/2 juice of a lemon and mix until creamy smooth. If you like chunky artichokes in your sauce, then leave a few of those out and add at the very end, just chopping a little bit. Taste and if you like more of a lemon flavor, then add more lemon. Make sure to add a dash of salt and pepper to the mix as well!

5. Take your chicken and cut into small pieces. Add a little more olive oil or butter to your saucepan you cooked the artichokes in and cook your chicken until just brown on the sides. When your chicken is almost cooked, now is the time to drop your zucchini spaghetti into the water. Only leave in for a few minutes until soft. Think al dente, even though it isnt real pasta.

6. Add about 1/2 cup of the artichoke mixture to your chicken along with about 4 large handfuls of spinach. Cook until the spinach has wilted and become soft.

7. Add in your cooked ‘spaghetti’ and the remainder of the sauce to the saucepan. Mix well together until everything is combined.

8. Serve with a little fresh basil on top and one of the remaining artichoke hearts.

ENJOY!!

My favorite go to “pasta” and sauce

02 Jul

So this is my all time favorite recipe to just go to when you dont know what else to make. Especially if you have people over for dinner and are trying to explain that yes, eating paleo can still taste good without pasta! The secret to this is just making sure your pasta sauce is nice and filling with all sorts of yummy veggies in it.

Ingredients:

Medium size spaghetti squash (I swear the only place I have found these are at Whole Foods)
1-2 lbs turkey meat
1 purple onion chopped
1 package mushrooms chopped
1 zucchini chopped
1-2 garlic cloves minced
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
2 tbls italian seasoning
1 tsp salt
jar of organic spaghetti sauce (There is a great one at Trader Joes, just watch the sugar content. Go low sugar!)

First take the spaghetti squash and cut it in half. These are a pain in the ass to cut open so just be careful and dont slice your hand off in the process. Take the halves and scoop out the seeds. Sprinkle with olive oil and some sea salt and put in the oven face down on a cookie sheet for about 30 minutes at 375. You will know its done when you can stab it with a fork and it slides right in. Take out of oven and put aside while you cook your sauce.

Now I ususally cook my turkey and my veggies seperate but I just like making more work for my boyfriend I think with all the dishes I pile up (Oh, thats the agreement around here. I cook, he cleans. Working out great). But you can cook the turkey meat and then add the vegetables to the same pan if you want. Anyhow, cook the turkey meat and add the seasonings to it. In a seperate pan, put some olive oil in the pan and add your chopped onion and garlic. When the onions become transparent add the mushrooms and zucchini. When they are cooked but still firm, add the cooked turkey meat to the pan and mix together. Pour the entire jar of spaghetti sauce on top and simmer together while you start to work on your cooked spaghetti squash.

Take the squash and grab a fork. You will take the fork and scrape the entire inside of the squash out and you will see that it comes out in little stringy pieces. Hence, why they call it spaghetti squash! You will get a ton of the ‘meat’ out of these two halves. I usually put them into a big bowl like spaghetti and then we take our serving and pile the sauce on top. Avoid putting any butter or parmesean cheese unless you are having a cheat day. But even then, just a little!

I would say serve with some garlic bread and your good to go! But… I have yet to find a recipe for garlic bread while eating paleo. If you find one… email me!

Bon Apetit!

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