Easy Guacamole Recipe

Guacamole is a healthy and deliciously creamy creation that is really versatile. It can simply be served with tortilla chips, as pictured above, or in more complex dishes like tacos or salads.

Easy Guacamole Recipe Ingredients:

• 2 large ripe avocados
• 2 limes
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup cilantro

Easy Guacamole Recipe Directions:

Place peeled avocados, fresh-squeezed juice from 2 limes, garlic powder, salt, and cilantro into a food processor or blender. Mix until the ingredients have a smooth consistency.

Guacamole lasts for about 4-5 days in the fridge if it is tightly sealed.

Chicken Mexican Soup Recipe

Two of my favourite things are Mexican food and soup. This led me to the next logical conclusion: Chicken Mexican Soup!

Chicken Mexican Soup Recipe Ingredients:

• Split chicken breast (both halves)
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 5 cloves garlic
• 5 celery sticks
• 4 medium carrots
• 1 white onion
• 8 cups chicken broth (click here for chicken soup broth recipe)
• 2 cups of water (if needed)
• 1 can diced tomatoes (796ml)
• 3 chopped tomatillos
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• Cilantro
• Shredded cheddar cheese
• Avocado
• Tortilla chips

Chicken Mexican Soup Recipe Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush the split chicken breast with olive oil, salt, and ground black pepper. Roast for approximately 45 minutes. When the chicken has cooled down, remove and discard the skin and shred the chicken.

Tip: To save time, you can purchase an already roasted chicken from the grocery store.

Prepare the basic soup base in a soup pot. Click here for instructions.

Add chicken broth, can of diced tomatoes (including the liquid), chopped tomatillos, cumin, and garlic powder. Bring the soup to a boil and let it simmer for approximately 45 minutes, or until fully cooked. If the amount of liquid in the soup gets too low, add water. Incorporate the shredded chicken and cook for another 5 minutes.

When you are ready to serve the soup, top with some fresh cilantro, shredded cheddar cheese, avacodo slices, and tortilla chips.

Star Anise and Orange Chicken Wrap Recipe

Star Anise and Orange Chicken Wrap Recipe

I recently became bored of the typical flavour combinations that I cook with and decided to venture out. While watching a show that featured Provence, a region of France, I learned that star anise and orange are a popular flavour combination in that part of the world. Since then, I have been playing around with this inspiration and created a Star Anise and Orange Chicken Wrap recipe.

Star Anise and Orange Chicken Wrap Recipe Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
• 1 tablespoon grape seed oil (or olive oil)
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 2 tsp orange rind
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp ground star anise
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 12 corn tortillas (1 package)
• 1 tomato
• 1 avocado
• Romaine lettuce
• Feta cheese

Star Anise and Orange Chicken Wrap Recipe Directions:

Combine greek yogurt, grape seed oil, orange juice, orange rind, diced garlic cloves, ground star anise, ginger, black pepper, and salt in a bowl. The orange rind will give the sauce a more intense orange flavour.

Chop the chicken breasts into cubes and add to the sauce. Let the chicken marinate in the sauce for at least a few hours. I let it marinate in the fridge overnight.

Add chicken mixture to a frying pan on medium high heat. Cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain excess liquid and cook for another 5 minutes. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook corn tortillas for 3 minutes and remove from oven. I use corn tortillas because they are are gluten-free. However, you can use your preferred type of wrap.

Add some chicken, tomato, avocado, romaine lettuce, and feta cheese. Enjoy!

 

 

 

Bacon and Spinach Spaghetti Squash Recipe

It seems like spaghetti squash recipes have officially invaded the consciousness of pop culture flavor. They currently are in season and are filling the shelves of all grocery stores. Adding to the excitement is that everyone is talking about how healthy they are.

Despite their popularity, they are still a bit of mystery when it comes to cooking them. This recipe shows that it is actually easy to cook spaghetti squash and proves that the hype is real; spaghetti squash is so delicious that you will forget it is low-carb.

Bacon and Spinach Spaghetti Squash Recipe Ingredients:

• 1 spaghetti squash
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 large white onion
• 200g back bacon
• 1 bunch spinach
• 1 can tomato sauce (796ml)
• 1 can sliced mushrooms (284ml)
• 1 can diced tomatoes (796ml)
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese

Bacon and Spinach Spaghetti Squash Recipe Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Cut the spaghetti squash in half, lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds, brush with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place face-down on a baking dish that is lined with aluminum foil. After baking for 25 minutes, remove from oven, add in approximately 1 cm of water and put back in oven for another 25 minutes. Initially, the olive oil locks in moisture. During the second phase of cooking, the water will help steam the spaghetti squash.

After a total baking time of 50 minutes, remove from oven and let it cool down. Take a fork and ‘rake’ out the squash from the rind. The raking motion will produce spaghetti-like noodles.

While the spaghetti squash is cooking, you can prepare the sauce. On the stove top, in a large pot, cook diced onion and back bacon in olive oil on medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until onions are opaque. Add in spinach and cook for another 3 – 4 minutes, continually stirring. This will wilt the spinach, while preventing it from becoming charred.

Add in the tomato sauce, mushrooms, and canned tomatoes. Make sure to drain the excess liquid from the diced tomatoes before adding to the sauce. Simmer on low heat for another 20 minutes. Add in parmesan cheese and stir.

Place desired amount of spaghetti squash in a bowl and scoop bacon and spinach sauce on top.

Turkey Chili Crock Pot Recipe

Fall has officially begun, which means it is time to start cooking hearty meals again, like chili. This turkey chili recipe is really simple to make, produces a warm and delicious flavor, and is really healthy.

I love cooking recipes like this one, because it is naturally gluten-free. I don’t have to think of any “work-arounds” or substitutions to tweak this recipe to be gluten-free.

Turkey Chili Crock Pot Recipe Ingredients:

• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp turmeric
• 1.5 tsp garlic hot sauce
• 3-4 tsp olive oil
• 1 turkey breast (.5kg)
• 5 cloves garlic
• 5 celery sticks
• 1 green pepper
• 4-5 medium carrots
• 1 can mushrooms (284ml)
• 1 can black beans (540ml)
• 1 can lentils (540 ml)
• 1 can diced tomatoes (796ml)
• 1 can plain tomato sauce (680ml)
• 5 bay leaves

Turkey Chili Crock Pot Recipe Directions:

Chop the onion and place on the bottom of the crock pot. Turn the crock pot on to cook for 6 hours on high.

Combine black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, turmeric, garlic hot sauce, and olive oil. Mix it until it becomes a paste. Rinse turkey breast in water, pat dry with a paper towel, and brush on the spice paste (both sides). Place the turkey breast on the bed of onions.

Mince the garlic and chop the celery, green onion, and carrots. Add to crock pot.

Open the cans of mushrooms, black beans, and lentils. Combine in a strainer and rinse with cold water. Add to crock pot.

Strain the liquid out of the can of diced tomatoes and add to crock pot. Add the plain tomato sauce and bay leaves.

When the turkey chili is done cooking, remove the turkey breast from the crock pot and shred the turkey. To do this, I just use two forks. Reincorporate the shredded turkey breast back into the chili and mix well.

Tip: Shredded turkey breast helps to absorb any excess liquid that was produced in the process of the vegetables being cooked.

Cauliflower Pizza Crust Recipe

Using cauliflower as a main ingredient for pizza crust seems like a strange idea; however, it works really well. The fibrous texture and full flavor from cauliflower makes a nice base for this recipe. Many cauliflower pizza crust recipes just use cauliflower because the goal of the recipe is to be carb-free. Since my main cooking goal is to be gluten-free, I add rice flour to make the cauliflower pizza crust more fluffy, chewy, and bread-like.

Cauliflower Pizza Crust Recipe Ingredients:

• 3 cups cauliflower florets (frozen or fresh)
• 3/4 cup rice flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 3 tablespoons olive oil

Cauliflower Pizza Crust Recipe Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put cauliflower florets in a food processor on high for 1-2 minutes. Put the cauliflower into the microwave for 3 minutes and let it cool down.

Strain the cauliflower through cheese cloth. Squeeze the liquid out. This will prevent the pizza crust from becoming soggy. 3 cups of cauliflower florets will produce approximately 1 3/4 cups of cauliflower “flour”.

Strain water out of cauliflower

Mix together the cauliflower, rice flour, baking powder, egg, parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, ground black pepper, salt, basil, and garlic powder.

Split the dough in half and roll into two balls. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and brush with olive oil. Place one ball of pizza dough onto each baking sheet.

Brush olive oil on top of the dough. Press the ball of pizza dough with your hands into the shape of a thin pizza. Bake in oven for 10 – 12 minutes.

Cauliflower Pizza Crust

Remove from oven and add desired pizza toppings. I used tomato pizza sauce, canned mushrooms, roma tomatoes, baked chicken breast, and mozzarella cheese. Bake for another 8 minutes.

Cauliflower Pizza Crust with toppings.

Close-up picture of cauliflower pizza crust.

Note: This recipe makes two small pizza crusts.

 

 

Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe

This is the ideal cookie recipe when feeding people that do not have gluten allergies and restrictions. The combination of the oatmeal and teff flour give this cookie the inside chewiness and outside crispiness that a perfect peanut butter cookie strives for.

Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter
• 3/4 cup peanut butter (click here for peanut butter recipe)
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 1/2 cups oatmeal flour (click here for oatmeal flour recipe)
• 2 tablespoons teff flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix together the butter, peanut butter, white sugar, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla.

Add in the oatmeal flour, teff flour, baking soda, and salt.

Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll the dough into balls that are about 1 inch in diameter. Put 12 cookie balls onto each baking sheet.

Bake on 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes, or until cookies are light brown on top.

Tip: If you have left-over dough, roll into balls, put into a Ziploc bag and store in freezer. The next time you want cookies, they are ready to bake.

Citrus Mint Sparkling Water Recipe

This Citrus Mint Sparkling Water recipe is a healthy compromise when soda cravings occur. It has fizzy bubbles and an intensely crisp flavor without all of the added sugar.

Citrus Mint Sparkling Water Recipe Ingredients:

• 1 cup unflavored sparkling water
• 5-8 mint leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger root
• 1/4 lemon
• 1/4 cup grapefruit juice
• 3-5 ice cubes

Citrus Mint Sparkling Water Recipe Directions:

Muddle the mint leaves.

Finely grate the ginger root.

Squeeze the lemon.

Add in the unflavored sparkling water, grapefruit juice, and ice cubes and stir.

Daily Challenge: Monochromatic Backyard

Monochromatic

Basic Soup Base Recipe

The amount of different soup flavors are endless; however I use the same soup base recipe for most of my non-cream soups. I start with my base and then add different ingredients, depending on the type of soup that I am making. It is a simple combination of ingredients, but produces a flavorful soup base to build upon.

Basic Soup Base Recipe Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 5 cloves garlic
• 5 celery sticks
• 4 medium carrots
• 1 white onion

Basic Soup Base Recipe Instructions:

Mince the garlic and chop the celery, carrots, and onion. Add the vegetables to the soup pot with olive oil and fry on medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring every minute. This will help draw out the flavors from the vegetables, which will later infuse into the soup.

Suggested Soup Ideas:

• Chicken Noodle Soup
• Lentil Soup
• Mexican Chicken Soup
• Vegetable Potato Soup
• Ham Soup

For a scratch chicken soup broth recipe, click here.