Italian Zoodle Salad

Zoodles are my thing!  Now that we are slowly (super duper slowly) creeping toward warmer weather, zucchini plants will start producing this awesome veggie and I will be in zoodle heaven!  

 My desire for fresh cool salads increases in hot weather and I created this Italian Zoodle Salad recipe so that I could enjoy a fresh, delicious, nutrient dense salad.  

First, I spiralize a couple of small zucchini and place the zoodles in a bowl or in this case, because we were going camping, a plastic container.
*Tip: Costco now carries frozen spiralized zucchini noodles :)

Then, open a can of black olives, slice each olive in half and add to the zoodles.  

Thinly slice a red onion and throw that in with the zoodles.

And then add shredded carrots.

Tip:  I use organic pre-shredded carrots to make my life simple.  Fred Meyer and Walmart both carry shredded carrots that are organic. 

I make my own Italian dressing in a jar and shake it up really good after adding all the ingredients. 

Lastly, add the Italian Dressing and stir. Let marinate in the refrigerator for a few hours to get the full flavor absorbed into the veggies.  Stir occasionally to keep coating all the veggies.  Enjoy!

Italian Zoodle Recipe

2 small zucchini, spiralized

1 6 oz can of large pitted black olives

1 medium red onion

1 cup of shredded carrots

Dressing

1/2 cup of avocado or olive oil

1/3 cup of apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning

1 tablespoon of honey

1 teaspoon of salt

Place all veggies in a bowl and mix.  Set aside.

For the dressing, add all ingredients to a mason jar.  

Shake until well blended.  

Pour the Italian Dressing over the mixed veggies. 

Stir very well coating all of the veggies with the dressing.

Cover and place in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours, stirring occasionally. 

Teriyaki Chicken Thighs

I am in LOVE!  Actually, I am in love with many things, but right now I'm referring to my love affair with my new Pit Boss Smoker/Grill.  When things were beginning to go crazy and shut down in our world I went and purchased the Pit Boss to make the time I am spending at home even better.  Yes....cooking meat relaxes me and makes my day brighter.  I suppose that is a good thing since meat is such a healing factor in the AIP diet.

This is a recipe that I created for Teriyaki Chicken Thighs.  It is super easy.  If it wasn't it wouldn't be on my blog :)  Of course you can use any other parts of the chicken, but thighs are a great source of Vitamin K2 which is important in both bone and heart health.  I prefer to get the majority of my nutrients from real food.  So chicken thighs it is!  I also use Coconut Aminos in my cooking instead of Soy Sauce because it is naturally gluten free, soy free, and much lower in sodium than traditional soy sauce.   Also, you are getting amino acids in your meal, and they are crucial in fueling the body to perform at maximum capacity.

To make my Teriyaki Chicken Thighs I begin by mixing the sauce ingredients in a measuring cup.

Then I place the chicken thighs in a zip lock bag and pour the sauce over them.

I squeeze the air out of the ziplock bag and place it in the refrigerator to marinate.  Occasionally, I flip the bag over to distribute the sauce and allow each thigh to marinate.  You can leave them in the refrigerator for an hour or overnight.  The longer they marinate, the more flavorful they will be.  

Then I place them on the grill at 375 degrees.  Cook for 15 minutes, flip and cook for another 15 minutes.  I like mine a little more done so depending on your preference, you can cook an extra 15.  Just make sure that when you pull them off of the grill they have reached an internal temperature of at least 165 degrees.  

When they are done, take them off of the grill and enjoy :)

Teriyaki Chicken Thighs

8-10 Chicken Thighs
1/8 cup avocado or olive oil
1/8 cup orange juice
1/4 cup coconut aminos
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
2 teaspoons minced garlic

• Mix all ingredients together except for the chicken 
• Place the chicken thighs in a shallow dish or gallon zip lock bag for easy clean up
• Pour the marinade over the chicken
• Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours
• Place on preheated grill at 375 degrees and close the lid
• Cook for 15 minutes and then flip and cook for another 15 minutes 
• Use a meat thermometer to make sure the thighs reach 165 degrees  
• Remove from the grill onto a platter and enjoy :)

Roasted Veggie Recipe and AIP news!

You guys!! I have been doing it all wrong.  What am I doing wrong?  The AIP (Auto Immune Protocol) diet.  I am one of those people who look at recipes, menus, diets and gives them my own makeover.  That in itself is all fine and good if the recipe or meal turns out great.  But, doing this with a solid, well researched, scientifically based Auto Immune Protocol did not work!  

I am 2 days into the Protocol right now.  My swelling and pain are reducing dramatically in just that short time.  Let me tell you what I did wrong so you don’t make the same mistake.  

I purchased books such as The Healing Kitchen, and partially read them, grabbed the list of approved ingredients and came up with my own eating plan while even adding some other non approved ingredients. I did this because it just looked boring and uneventful to this die hard foodie.  Let me tell you, there is a reason behind that plan and it works!  

The big thing I was missing was the nutrient density part of this plan.  I did great with my bone broth, fruits, and meat.  But the veggies were lacking.  According to Dr. Terry Wahls, you should be eating 9 cups of vegetables per day!  What???  Yep it's true! The nutrient dense part of this plan is super duper important to aid in healing the body, which is what you are doing with AIP. 

I am now starting my day with a smoothie that makes sense to my healing. I put blueberries, a handful of leafy greens, full fat coconut milk, tart cherry juice, a little orange juice, Calm Magnesium Supplement (adds sweetness and magnesium) and water. 

For lunch I had grilled chicken breast with sautéed cabbage.  

Roasted veggies were on the menu for dinner.  

These veggies are amazing!  I buy the frozen Organic Normandy Vegetable mix from Costco for my roasted veggies. You can roast them in the oven or on the grill.  

So, now that I'm doing it right I will continue to create recipes that are AIP compliant to share with you.  I'm excited to see the positive results this time around.  

Roasted Veggies

•  4 cups veggies 
•  1/4 cup olive oil or avocado oil
•  2 Tablespoons of minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon of salt 

Mix the veggies with the oil, garlic and salt.  Place in a 9x13 baking dish.   Bake at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes.  

Lemon Chicken with Penne Pasta

For quite sometime, I have been adhering to mostly an AIP (Auto Immune Protocol) diet in an attempt to calm my Rheumatoid Arthritis, which is an Auto Immune Disease.  It has been beneficial
when I am strict and disciplined.  However, those of you who have followed my blog know what a difficult task this is for my foodie self who loves dinner parties.  So, I am rounding a corner now, and attempting to add in a few things to my diet and check for reactions.  I feel strongly that rice, especially brown rice,  has beneficial nutrients that our bodies need, so I am adding that in first.

I LOVE pasta! I MISS pasta! I am happy to report ....... I found a wonderful substitute to use in this recipe that I created!!  Brown Rice Penne Pasta by Delallo is by far my favorite gluten free pasta.

Delallo is a family company that began in Pennsylvania in 1950. They source over 200 products from Italy and The Mediterranean.  They have a wonderful website that I encurage you to check out if you love Italian food as much as I do.  (By the way, I purchase my Delallo pasta locally at Yokes).

Give this recipe a try! I think you will LOVE it.  Let me know what you think. Enjoy🙂

Lemon Chicken and Penne Pasta

Ingredients 

2 chicken breasts

1 medium onion

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon garlic powder

10 ounces Delallo Penne Brown Rice Pasta, cooked according to package directions
1 cup white wine

1/4 cup lemon juice

2 tablespoons capers

1 tablespoon dried parsley

Olive oil

Parmesan Cheese

Method

• Drizzle oil over the raw chicken breasts and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder. Rub the mixture into both sides and cover. Allow to marinate for 1 hour.
• While waiting for chicken to marinate, saute diced onion in olive oil until tender. 
• Remove from pan. This is a great time to cook the pasta as well.
• When chicken is done marinating, cut into bite size pieces and saute in olive oil until done. 
• Add the onions and sauté until caramelized (lightly browned) 
• Then add in the white wine and let simmer so that the mixture reduces by half. 
• Add in the remaining salt, garlic powder, lemon juice, parsley and capers. 
• Allow to simmer for 10 minutes. 
• Add in the cooked penne pasta, stir well. 
• Serve with Parmesan cheese sprinkled lightly over the top.

Welcome Back Granola!

My mornings are sweet and precious.  They are quiet and filled with coffee and devotions.  This is a special time of heartfelt prayer and conversation with my Heavenly Father. It is my time to focus before the world wakes up and fills my day with busy, but, sweet chaos.  

When I transition from my devotion time to breakfast, I struggle with my food options. When I started the AIP diet, I was disappointed by the breakfast choices.  They included the weirdest combinations of meat and vegetables.  None of the options went well with my sweet coffee morning bliss. So, I started researching ingredients that were AIP compliant and came up with a granola that is grain free and fits my life perfectly.  This scrumptious granola is great over fruit in the morning, as cereal with coconut milk,  or as a snack while hiking, kayaking, traveling, or even binge watching a Netflix show. 

The ingredients are simple.  Coconut is the main ingredient.  You can use any size of flakes you want.  Our local Walmart carries this organic brand for a super great price.  

Our local Natural Grocers stores sells these larger flakes in their bulk department for a super great price. 

So...... start with the coconut and mix it with maple syrup and your favorite dried fruit.  I use tart cherries because they help calm inflammation. 

Mix the ingredients well and place in a 9 X 13 pan lined with parchment paper.  

Place in the oven on 350 degrees and stir every 5 minutes until crisp and golden.

I have found that I can store this granola in a Rubbermaid container for a couple of weeks. Enjoy :) 

Sunshine Granola (AIP friendly)

2 cups of shredded coconut

1/4 cup of maple syrup

1/2 cup of tart cherries or your favorite dried fruit

• Mix all ingredients together 
• Place in a 9 X 13 pan that is lined with parchment paper
• Bake at 350 degrees
• Stir every 5 minutes until golden brown and crisp
• Store in airtight container for 2 weeks