Spaghetti Squash Carbonara with Grilled Chicken

No picture? Why? Because I am a perfectionist and didn't get this dish to look appetizing in my pictures. I will let you use your imagination on how this looks. So let's start. Close your eyes, think of bacon. Bacon. That should be enough to want you try this recipe, right? No? Okay. Try adding grilled chicken and Parmesan cheese to that thought. That should do it.

I was super excited to make this recipe so that picky pants and I could try something full of flavor, yet a bit on the healthier side too. Well, yeah... I say healthy, and he immediately shuns the idea. Oh well. He liked the bacon though. So, if you're not as picky as him (which should include the entire universe), then you should definitely try this recipe. Crystal, a coworker of mine, says that it is one of the best dishes I have brought in... Whether she's just being nice or she really means it, well, that's up for you to decide. 

RECIPE

Ingredients

1 large spaghetti squash

2 chicken grilled chicken breasts

6 slices of bacon, cut in small strips (or more if you'd like)

1 tablespoon of minced garlic

1/4 cup of chicken broth

2 egg yolks plus 1 egg whole egg

1 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 
2. Cut the squash lengthwise in half, scoop out the "guts" and place flesh side down in a baking dish. 
3. Add 1/4 inch of water to the pan and cook for about an hour. If the squash is not soft, continue cooking for ten more minutes.
4.  Let the squash cool and then fork out the strands.
5. Add the bacon to a saute pan and cook until crispy. Add garlic and chicken broth and let the broth cook down. 
6. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and cheese. Lower the heat of the pan and then combine mixture to the saute pan. Be careful not to cook the eggs.
7. Once eggs are warmed through, add squash, salt and pepper. Fold in the mixture to the squash, top with grilled chicken and serve immediately. 

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Weekends in the fall are dedicated to one thing and one thing only... Football. College and NFL. If you don't know me, I am a huge NIU Huskies fan. My husband and I both graduated from NIU and will live and breathe Huskies football. While I dare not to comment(even though I have PLENTY of comments) on this weekend's game versus Arkansas, I still love the Huskies even though we do not have as strong of a team as we have had in the past. And well for my NFL team, I root for whoever is on my fantasy football team and DA BEARS. I am VERY competitive when it comes to fantasy football, SO DON'T ASK ME WHY I DIDN'T START DESEAN JACKSON THIS WEEKEND. Ugh, still crying about it.
Football, food and fun. Those three need to happen. And you definitely can't be watching a big game without good gameday food.
So this. THIS dip. It's amazing. And guess what, in the past, I have been making it ALL WRONG. But now I have made it easy and so, so good. The secret ingredient to this dip? Rotisserie chicken. It will change this dip.
We have a place in our local grocery store named the Flaming Bird. They grill an entire chicken on the grill and it is nothing short of amazing. Nice part about it? Only $6 for the entire bird. Yup, quite the steal. If I were to compare the taste of the chicken, it's a lot like El Pollo Loco which is awesome. If you have never had El Pollo Loco, go now.
Quick Notes:
-As for the spiciness of this dip, well, let's just say picky pants was able to eat it and not cry. So that was a good sign. I used Franks Hot Sauce on this dip, but you can use whatever buffalo sauce tickles your fancy.
-Also, if you are a blue cheese fan, sub out the ranch for blue cheese.
-Lastly, you can prepare this beforehand. Just refrigerate it and heat it up before the big game or event.


RECIPE

Ingredients
2 - 3 cups of rotisserie chicken, shredded
1 (8 oz.) package of cream cheese, softened
1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
3/4 cup of ranch dressing
1/2 cup of buffalo wing sauce


Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine all of the ingredients into 8x8 baking or small casserole dish. Make sure to mix everything thoroughly. You can sprinkle a bit more cheese on top if you want to get extra cheesy.
3. Cook for 25 minutes or until it is warm throughout. 

Pizza 'Spaghetti' Pie

Well, hello again. It has been a bit since I have written here but that's not going to stop me from sharing this AWESOME recipe with you. If you've been following my blog, you know that I have done the whole Paleo lifestyle and overall it was a good experience. I haven't done it quite some time, but I still follow all of the Paleo people that I love on Instagram. There is one dish that every single Paleo person would post and I told myself that one of these days, I would finally make it. And looky looky... I finally did. It's PaleOMG's Almost 5 Ingredient Pizza Spaghetti Pie. This is nothing short of amazing considering most of it is healthy. And well, leave it to me to add something else to not make it truly "healthy."

When some people see spaghetti squash, most are like, "ew, what?" My husband as the prime example. But also, I thought it was funny that when I went to buy the squash, the cashier didn't even know what the heck it was. He had to go and ask a manager. Nope, don't ask me... Ya know, the one who is actually purchasing the product. Or like my mom, not even knowing it was spaghetti squash when I sent her the picture(below), said "carbs." Well, mom, no. It's actually spaghetti squash, duh. Anyway, spaghetti squash. Where was I going with this again? I go on a rant and cannot even remember what I was going to type. Good thing I am typing and not talking or else I would have just stopped talking. SPAGHETTI SQUASH. Yes, there we go. It takes some time to make it. So prepare for that. It is not a quick meal to make but it is easy. Be careful when you are trying to cut the squash, because you don't want to chop your hand off or break your knife (like I did... The knife part, I still have both hands, thankfully).

Juli Bauer, the HILARIOUS lady at PaleOMG, is a food genius. I cannot tell you how many recipes I have made from her cookbooks and blog. If you haven't checked out her site, do it now. Like I said previously, this is mostly her recipe, I just added more to it. Here's the PaleOMG's original recipe if you want strict Paleo.


RECIPE

Ingredients
1 large spaghetti squash
1 pound of Italian sausage
1 yellow onion, diced
1 jar of pizza sauce (anywhere from 8 to 14 oz depending on how saucy you want it)
2 cups of chopped mushrooms
3 eggs, whisked
2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
1 teaspoon of basil
1 teaspoon of thyme
salt and pepper
(You can also add whatever other meats or veggies you want to this dish)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cut the squash in half length wise. Scoop out the seeds and "guts." Place the squash cut side down on a baking sheet and bake for 35 minutes or until the outside softens. 
3. While the squash is cooking, you can start to cook the onion and mushrooms, or whatever other veggies, in a skillet along with browning the meat. Add your spices to the mixture of veggies and meat. 
4. Once the squash is done, reduce the temperature of the oven to 350 degrees and start to fork out the spaghetti threads. 
5. In a casserole dish, add your squash, veggie and meat mixture, pizza sauce, eggs, and 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese together. Once it is well mixed, place in the oven and cook for 50 minutes. You will start to see the top get brown nearing the end of the time which is good.
6. Add the last of the cheese to the top, and cook for another 15 minutes or until the cheese starts to brown a bit. 

Yes, I am still having it for lunch 5 days after I cooked it and it is still amazing. 

Jalapeño Ranch Dip

Why can't you borrow money from a leprechaun? Because they're always a little short. Ah hah... Yes, I'll be here all day, folks.

Ahhh... St. Patrick's Day.... An excuse to drink a ton and act a fool. Like we ever needed an excuse to do that any other day of the year. I was fortunate to have the day off because of my regular work schedule. I was going to make Corned Beef and Cabbage to be festive, but picky pants would rather have a burger for dinner. Ughhh. Whatever.
Green, green, green... What could I make that's green and wouldn't look absolutely repulsive? The first thing that came to my mind when trying to make something green... Kale. Nope, not about to be healthy when I am about to drink beer tonight. Next thing, jalapeños. Boom.
Chips and jalapeño dip. That sounds like it could start the night off right. I am a huge fan of Chuy's Jalapeño Ranch Dip, so what did I do? Yes, I tried to make my own concoction. Does it taste exactly like it? No. Is it similar? Yes. Is it spicy. Well, it depends on who you ask. PC is literally crying about it, while I continue to shovel the dip in. Great thing about this recipe? Add or subtract as many jalapeños as you'd like. Go getcha green on!

RECIPE

Ingredients
1 cup of mayo (I used light)
1 cup of sour cream (I used light)
3/4 cup of buttermilk (is there a light buttermilk?)
6 jalapeños, 4 with ribs and seeds out, 2 with seeds (change to your spice level)
1 hand full of cilantro
1 1oz packet of ranch seasoning (or two if you want it to be more prominent)
1/2 teaspoon of minced garlic
1 tablespoon of lime juice (about a half of a lime)


Directions

1. Throw everything in a food processor and blend until smooth. 
2. Serve with chips or put on a sandwich. Enjoy! 

Homemade Shredded Chicken Soup

You want bread??? Three dollars! NO SOUP FOR YOU! Come back... ONE YEAR.

Soup Nazi aside... What happens when you have a sick husband?  No, mom. You don't just tell him to take two Advil and go to bed. You make him soup. He's never really been a fan of lima bean, ack! (Okay, that's enough Seinfeld)

What goes into Chicken Soup? Whatever the heck you want, that's what. OR whatever your picky husband will eat. So, very basic ingredients were added. Conveniently, I had chicken cooking in the Crock-Pot. All the ingredients came from whatever I had around the kitchen. Feel free to add more veggies (I just didn't have much).

So, picky pants... I hope you liked this throw-it-in-the-pot Chicken Soup as much as I did.

RECIPE

Ingredients

One large chicken breast (slow cooked in the Crock-Pot)

2 cans of all natural chicken broth

2 cups of water

1 cup of leftover juice from the cooked chicken

1/2 of one large white onion, diced

2 large carrots, diced

1 tablespoon of olive oil

1 tablespoon of dried basil

1 tablespoon of thyme

1 tablespoon of minced garlic

2 teaspoons of garlic powder

1 bay leaf 

salt and pepper

Directions

1. Heat up your olive oil in a saute pan and turn on medium. Throw in diced onions. Once they start to soften, add your minced garlic, carrots, basil and thyme. Cook for about 5 to 10 minutes.
2. Add chicken broth, water, leftover chicken juice, garlic powder, bay leaf, salt and pepper to a stockpot and heat to medium. Once it starts to warm, add your sauteed vegetables and chicken breast. Because the chicken has already cooked in the slow cooker, it will make it extremely easy to shred. Let cook on medium-low for 15 to 20 minutes.  Take out the bay leaf, serve and enjoy. 

Shredded BBQ Turkey Nachos

Who doesn't love nachos? I know my hand isn't raised.

The holidays are over and you have all this leftover turkey. What to do, what to do... Sick of turkey sandwiches? I know I am. Why not make nachos with that extra turkey? Turkey... And nachos... Weird? NOPE, not weird! So tasty. So easy. (That's what she said?) Inappropriate.

This recipe is so quick to make if you do have leftover turkey.... Shred turkey, add BBQ sauce, and cheese and chips. Bada boom, bada bing. Even add jalapenos and onions if you're feeling crazy. For me? Yeah, I was lazy.


Recipe

Ingredients
Leftover turkey
BBQ sauce
Shredded cheese (choose your fave, I used a Mexican blend)
Tortilla chips


Directions

1. Shred turkey.
2. Coat with BBQ sauce.
3. Distribute over chips.
4. Sprinkle cheese.
5. Put on top rack of oven and turn on the low broiler until cheese is melted.
6. Add whatever other toppings your heart desires and enjoy.

Roasted Turkey

Because I got married the week of Thanksgiving, I was not able to make a turkey. I probably could have, but the family decided to have pizza instead. Totally okay with it, but it is the first Thanksgiving I can remember that we did not eat turkey.

Speaking of my wedding, I was totally not a bridezilla like I thought I'd be... At least I don't think I was. Ask my sister if you want to know the truth. Anyway, everything turned out perfectly and the food was amazing. We had mac and cheese bites, crab cakes, and a station where you could eat brie cheese with fruits and crackers before the main course. There was a prime rib carving station, chicken wrapped roasted salsa verde something-or-another, wedge salad, cheese mashers, cornbread muffins, and roasted veggies. Mmm... It was all so good! You should have come!

Enough about me... Let's get talking about that bird. The first time I tried roasting a turkey, I was absolutely terrified. My mom or Nannah would always do it. So, when I found out that my mom wasn't going to be there for Thanksgiving, I knew I needed to step up and cook the bird. I remember studying for about a week on all of the cooking techniques, brines, and basting. I came across several different recipes and techniques, so I tried a little of each.

Sandra Lee had a pretty rockin' sounding herb butter. It was so easy to make and it made the turkey very flavorful.
Alton Brown is the cooking master, so I decided to use his "turkey triangle" technique and it browned the turkey evenly. It kept the white meat juicy and didn't dry it out.
And for the brine... Do whatever you feel. I just used extra ingredients I had around the house.


Recipe
 
Ingredients
1 turkey (duh!! I used a 15-pounder)
3/4 cup of butter, softened
1 1/2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
2 tablespoons garlic herb sauce mix (recommended: Knorr)
1 1/2 teaspoons crushed garlic
Celery
Carrots
2 large onions, diced

1 (32-ounce) container of chicken broth

Packet of fresh herbs poultry blend

1 lemons, sliced 

Salt

Pepper

 

Brine:

2 gallons of ice water

1 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup light brown sugar

2 lemons, sliced

2 tablespoons of honey

1 tablespoon of black peppercorn

(Add or subtract whatever you have or feel comfortable with)

 

Directions

1. Brine: Get a bucket big enough that will fit your turkey. Pour the water into the bucket and stir in the salt until it's completely dissolved. Once dissolved, add the other ingredients. Add your clean, thawed turkey to the brine mix. If the water does not cover the turkey, add more ice water. Cover and put into your fridge for 9-12 hours. 
2. In a bowl, combine softened butter, poultry seasoning, garlic herb sauce mix, and crushed garlic. Mix together until well combined. Cover and put in the refrigerator for 30 minutes (until firm but not hard).
3. Preheat your oven to 500 degrees. Remove the bird from the brine and pat dry. 
4. Use tinfoil to make a triangle that will cover turkey excluding the legs (refer to video in recipe above to get a better picture). 
5. Put carrots, celery, 1.5 cups of the diced onions and chicken broth into the bottom of a roasting pan. Place your turkey on top of the veggies.
6. Remove the butter from fridge and start to slice in thinner slices. Place half of the butter slices under the skin, distributing evenly. Use the rest of the butter to rub all over the rest of the turkey and inside the bird. Sprinkle salt and pepper to the outside of the turkey.
7. Add the rest of your onions, lemon slices, and poultry herb blend to the inside of the turkey.
8. Roast the turkey on lowest level of the oven at 500 degrees for 30 minutes. 
9. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees and add your "turkey triangle." Cook for 2 to 2.5 hours or until the inside of the bird reaches 161 degrees. This will depend on your oven. I recommend using a pop thermometer or one of those digital ones that beeps after it hits a certain temperature.