Hello long lost friends! I recognize it's been almost two months since my last blog post (which is what warrants the sincere apology).  In my defense, I think I have a pretty good reason for being M.I.A.: I'm pregnant!

We found out the week before Thanksgiving, and shortly after my last blog post I started to suffer from morning (read: all day) sickness.  Needless to say, that and the hustle and bustle of the holidays allowed for some unplanned, but much needed, time off from blogging.

At 14 weeks I'm starting to feel much better.  My energy levels are increasing (as well as my mid-section) and I'm back in the kitchen!  I only had a couple weeks where I had weird aversions to food, mainly I couldn't eat anything hot.  Everything I made had to go straight into the fridge to cool off before I could stomach it.  Weird.  It was hard to even be in the kitchen as I had zero energy and the thought of most food just didn't sit well.  Thankfully that ended around week eleven and I've been slowly working my way back to normal.

Currently I'm craving Mexican food, but I recognize this is not a blog about Mexican food, so I'll try and mix it up a little.  With the Superbowl coming up this weekend (Go Broncos!) I thought a yummy flatbread would be perfect for your gameday celebration.  It's not traditional football food - but I promise you, it will not disappoint.

My local co-op has these fabulous pre-made sprouted grain pizza crusts available, and I've been buying them frozen so I can keep them on hand.  The spouted grain adds such a lovely crunch to the pizza, but you can certainly sub with your favorite pizza dough recipe!  The carmelized onions add a sweet favor that just can't be beat.  Even if you don't like onions, I urge you to try them this way. 




Butternut Squash & Carmelized Onion Flatbread

serves 4-6

1 small butternut squash, peeled and cubed

1 large yellow onion, sliced real thin

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided

salt & pepper

crumbled goat cheese

Your favorite pizza dough, prepared according to the recipe


Start by heating your oven to 400 degrees.  Place your cubed butternut squash on a cookie sheet and toss with 2 T of the EVOO.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast for about 35 minutes or until tender.  Meanwhile, in a saucepan, heat the remaining 2 T of EVOO and add your sliced onions.  Sprinkle with salt and turn the heat down to med-low.  Stir the onions every couple of minutes, but cook them until they begin to soften and get brown and carmelized.  This should take about 10-15 minutes.  Be patient - this part takes time(;  Add the garlic when you have just a few more minutes left of cooking.

When the squash is done, remove it from the oven and, using a potato masher or similar kitchen gadget, mash the squash into - well, basically mush.  This is going to act as your "sauce" for your flatbread.

Roll out your pizza dough and spread the mashed squash on it as you would spread sauce.

To that, add those beautiful onions and garlic and then top with crumbled goat cheese.  Cook according to the pizza dough recipe.

Slice and enjoy!




Until next time....(and I promise it won't be nearly as long as the last time!)

XoXo,

Nicole

Would you believe that I've never made or eaten spaghetti squash?  I told a friend that today and she couldn't believe it.  It seems I'm behind on this one (among many other things), but that all ended with this delicious "pasta" dish.

I love when an idea comes together.  Don't get me wrong, I am a planner - but sometimes, when menu planning, the general idea is there but it takes some trial and error in the kitchen to actually develop the recipe.  That's what happened with this dish - minus the error (thank goodness).

To be honest, that's what's happening with my life right now - I feel like a lot of things are coming together through trial and error.  I suppose everything in life, for the most part, works that way.  You just cross your fingers that the outcome is favorable - or in this case, delicious.

 

I started by cooking my spaghetti squash using this method from a popular Paleo food blog, Elana's Pantry.

Then I began making my sauce:

1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3 T EVOO
1 package organic chicken tenders
1 t dried oregano
1/2 c dry red wine
1 can crushed organic tomatoes
1 t coconut palm sugar
2 T capers
salt and pepper

Start by heating the EVOO over medium heat, add your onions and garlic.  Make sure the temperature isn't too hot - you don't want to burn the garlic.  Season with salt, pepper and oregano, and let cook for 5 minutes until the onions start to sweat.  Add the chicken tenders to the pan and let them brown.  Flip the chicken pieces, and continue to let the onions carmelize.  You should have a nice brown color on them.

Add in your red wine and let it cook until the alcohol is burned off (when it stops smelling like alcohol).  Add the canned tomatoes and more salt and pepper, as well as the sugar and capers.  Let it simmer for about 10 minutes more until the chicken is cooked through. 

Serve over the spaghetti squash and sprinkle with parmesan cheese (optional).

What's your favorite way to eat spaghetti squash?

Enjoy!
XoXo,
Nicole

There is nothing more exciting than seeing so many varieties of winter squash at the farmers market or grocery store! 

Ok, so maybe there are more exciting things - but I do love the fact that there are so many varieties - which means tons of new recipes!  Winter squash are so versatile, and there seriously are a hundred different things you can do with them:  you can make soup, roast them, puree them, eat them in salads, etc.  Or you can stuff them - which is what I love to do!

The great thing about stuffing squash is that you can honestly put just about anything in there.  I had some veggies that needed to be eaten up, so I sautéed them and added them in.  You can add meat, grains, herbs, even dried fruit!

For this dish I added meat, but you could easily leave it out and still have a very hearty meal.

Stuffed Acorn Squash
serves 4

2 acorn squash, halved and seeded
1 lb. ground bison, or your favorite ground meat (optional)
1 medium eggplant, peeled and cubed
1 green pepper, seeded and diced
2 heirloom or beefsteak tomatoes, diced
1 small onion, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
salt & pepper
Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (optional)

Heat your oven to 400 degrees. Place the squash halves into a baking dish, skin side up, in about a 1/2 inch of water.  Cover the roasting dish with foil and roast for about 30 minutes or until the squash is soft.

While the squash is roasting, start cooking your meat over medium high heat- depending on the type of meat, you may need to drain off any grease.  Return the pan to the heat and add the veggies, tomatoes, garlic and onion and continue cooking.  Season with salt & pepper.

When the squash is done roasting remove it from the oven and drain off any
remaining water from the dish.  Fill each squash halve with the meat
filling and top with cheese.  Return to the oven and roast for another 10
minutes.

What is your favorite winter squash?

Enjoy!
XoXo,
Nicole