Tag: poultry

Paleo Pasta Puttanesc-ish

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Eggplants, man. What to do with a bountiful eggplant season when half your household hates them is quite the yearly conundrum. I’ve made meatballs with them, used them to lend silky body in meat-based Indian dishes, made a dipping sauce out of them, and have found a myriad other ways to tuck them into dishes well enough to hide the texture.

This go ’round, I opted for pasta sauce.

Gluten-free, paleo, whole 30

  

Paleo Pasta Puttanesc-ish
Globe eggplant (about 3-4 cups cubed)
Spaghetti squash
1 small onion
3 cloves garlic
1 lb. ground turkey
2 anchovies
5-6 roma tomatoes (about 2.5 cups chopped)
Dried mushrooms or mushroom powder (I used 2 Tbsp. dried porcini)
2 Tbsp. capers
2 big pinches red pepper flakes
2 Tbsp. + 2 Tbsp. tomato paste
4 Tbsp. + 2 Tbsp. worcestershire sauce
2 tsp. dried basil
2 tsp. dried oregano
Fat of choice
Kosher salt & black pepper
Optional: pecorino or parmesan

Preheat your oven to 375F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and set aside. Halve the spaghetti squash lengthwise, scoop out the seeds, season generously with salt, pepper and a drizzle of oil and place face down on the sheet. Bake 30 minutes.

While the squash is baking, make the sauce by whizzing together the eggplant, tomatoes, anchovies, garlic, mushrooms, capers, onion, red pepper, half the tomato paste, and 4 Tbsp. of the worcestershire sauce. Taste and season with salt and pepper as necessary.

When the sauce is ready to go, brown the turkey in about 2 Tbsp. fat of choice. Season with the remaining 2 Tbsp. tomato paste and worcestershire sauce, generous dashes salt & pepper, and the dried basil and oregano. Cook through and set aside.

When the 30 minutes on the squash is up, move the squash to the outer sides of the baking sheet and dump the sauce in the middle, spreading out so more surface area hits the heat. Bake an additional 15 minutes.

When the 15 minutes is up, check the squash. If a knife pierces the skin easily, it’s done. If not, let cook an additional 10 minutes, stirring the sauce before putting back in the oven. I let mine cook those extra 10 minutes, and then stirred the sauce once again once the squash was removed from the pan – letting just the sauce bake an additional 5 minutes.

Scrape the flesh of the spaghetti squash with a fork to create “noodles”, and toss with the sauce and the turkey. Taste once more and adjust seasoning if needed.

Serves 4

 

 

Braised Chicken Leg with Vegetables

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This homey and comforting dish makes the best of late Summer’s vegetable bounty. It’s delicious, a nice light dinner, and is relatively hands-off, once the chicken is browned.

  

 

Gluten-free

Braised Chicken Leg with Vegetables

2 chicken leg quarters, bone-in and skin-on
Fat Of Choice
1 small onion
4 stalks celery
1 ear corn
1 medium sweet potato
1 large clove garlic
Splash white wine
3 bay leaves
1/2 bunch thyme
1c. bone broth
Kosher salt & black pepper

Preheat your oven to 350 F. Salt and pepper the chicken on both sides. Place a large cast iron or other oven-safe skillet over medium high heat. Add a Tablespoon of your favorite fat and bring to temperature.

When hot, add the chicken. Brown on both sides, making sure to leave alone in the pan 3-5 minutes per side so it can do its thing.

While the chicken is browning, chop the onion and dice the garlic. Set aside.

Chop the celery, take the corn off the cob, and peel and chop the sweet potato. Set aside.

When the chicken is nice and brown, deglaze the pan with a splash of white wine. Add the onion and garlic, and stir for a minute. Add the rest of the veggies and stir. Let cook while you gather your stock and herbs.

Add the stock, herbs, and chicken (nestle the chicken in the veggies so it touches the bottom of the pan).

Braise 40-45 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and the veggies are tender.

Serves 2 for dinner, with enough leftover veggies for lunch. 

Paleo Slow Cooker Butter Poultry

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This is a paleo-fied version of one of my DH and my favorite Indian takeout treats. This version uses everyone’s favorite weeknight dinner helper to make an almost hands-free dish that can be ready when you are.

Gluten-free, paleo, Whole30 if you source your coconut milk and tomato paste well

Paleo Slow Cooker Butter Poultry
Based on Slow Cooker Butter Chicken Sliders by Kiwi & Bean

1 lb. poultry – I used boneless, skinless turkey breast
2.5 Tbsp. FOC (fat of choice)
1 large onion
4 cloves garlic
1/5 – 2 inches fresh ginger
1 Tbsp. garam masala
1 Tbsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. ground turmeric
Spice – I used a slight dust of ghost chili powder, the recipe calls for 1/2 – 1 tsp. cayenne
15 ounce can coconut milk – I used light, because that’s what was on hand
4-5 ounce can tomato paste
Kosher salt & black pepper
Something to serve with or on – I ate mine over chopped cucumber, the DH had a sandwich, cauli rice or zoodles would also be great

Heat the fat in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Chop the onion and add to the pan when hot. Chop the garlic and add. Peel and dice the ginger and add. Hit with a couple big pinches salt and a few grinds black pepper.

Cook until the onion is browned. It would be awesome if you waited until the onion was caramelized, but I have zero patience for all that.

While your aromatics are working, add your poultry to your slow cooker.

When your onion is caramelized or you can’t wait any longer, add the spices and cook, stirring, until the spices bloom and become fragrant.

Add the coconut milk and tomato paste. Stir to combine and break up any clumps and bring to a boil.

Dump into the slow cooker. Cook on High 6 hours.

When done, shred the poultry and toss well to coat in sauce. Taste and season more if needed.

Serves 2 – 4 depending upon your delivery vehicle

Chicken-And-Egg Zoodles

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I started this meal thinking a nice simple plate of cacio e pepe sounded delicious. But, I don’t eat pasta – and I didn’t have any parmesan. What I *did* have was some CSA fresh zucchini, some bacon ends, a bit of leftover baked chicken and some farm fresh eggs.

A delicious, dead simple, quick-to-prepare dinner was born. And, without heating my apartment to 900 degrees, or filling it with seared meat smoke. #winning

Paleo, gluten-free, whole30 if you source your bacon right

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Chicken-And-Egg Zoodles

4 ounces bacon
4 ounces leftover cooked chicken
1 large zucchini
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp. FOC (fat of choice)
2 eggs per person
More FOC
Salt & pepper

Heat a pan on medium. Chop your bacon and add. Brown. When the bacon is halfway browned, add the leftover chicken and 2 chopped cloves garlic.

Zoodle your zucchini however you accomplish this (I use a spiralizer that works like sharpening a pencil – there are a ton of ways to make noodles out of zucchini).

When the bacon is browned and the chicken is warm, add the zoodles to the pan and toss. Add 2 tsp. olive oil, a few cracks black pepper and a sprinkle of salt. Set aside while you fry the eggs.

Put your pan back over the fire and add more fat. Fry the eggs and use to top the “pasta”.

Serves 2

Pan-Roasted Chicken, Broccoli & Corn

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This is a simple to throw together one-skillet meal that’s as satisfying as it is easy.

Gluten-free

What the what kind of ridiculousness happened here? Sorry guys - the blurriness of this image hurts my eyes, but dinner was too good not to share.
What the what kind of ridiculousness happened here? Sorry guys – the blurriness of this image hurts my eyes, but dinner was too good not to share.

Pan-Roasted Chicken, Broccoli & Corn
Adapted from Pan-Roasted Rosemary Chicken from Bon Appetit

1/2 chicken or 2 quarters chicken, bone-in and skin on
2 Tbsp. fresh rosemary
4 cloves garlic, divided
3 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
1 shallot
1 Tbsp. fresh thyme
1 small head broccoli
1 ear corn
1/4 to 1/2 cup stock
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
Splash apple cider vinegar
Salt & pepper

Chop the rosemary and two of the garlic cloves. Mix together with 2 Tbsp. of the oil and spread over the flesh side of the chicken. Cover and chill 1 hour to overnight.

Preheat the oven to 400 F with a rack in the lower third. While the oven is heating, pat the skin side of your chicken dry and hit with salt and pepper. In a large cast iron (or other ovenproof) skillet, heat the last Tbsp. oil over medium-high and add the chicken skin side down. Let brown while you chop the veggies and the oven finishes heating.

Chop the broccoli, and de-cob the corn. Add to the sides of the chicken, hit with salt and pepper, and roast uncovered about 25 minutes or until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh reads 165 F.

While the chicken and veggies are cooking, prep your add-ins. Dice the shallot and remaining 2 cloves garlic. De-stem the thyme. Collect your broth, butter and vinegar.

Pull the chicken and let rest, skin side up, on a plate.

Sauté the shallot, thyme and garlic in the pan juices over medium heat until softened. Add the broth and vinegar, scraping up the browned bits, until the sauce reduces a bit and the vegetables are nice and coated. Add the butter and stir until combined.

Serves 2 for dinner, with enough chicken leftover for lunch 

 

Thai Basil Chicken & Greens

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This was one of those providential ‘throw my CSA veggies at a recipe’ dishes that happened to work out well. I love it when that happens. This dinner was inspired by this recipe for three-cup chicken, but I didn’t have scallions – and I had carrots, beet greens and carrot greens to use up so those went in instead.

Gluten-free, paleo

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Thai Basil Chicken & Greens

3 Tbsp. sesame oil
1-2 inches ginger, peeled and sliced into thin coins
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
2 pinches red pepper flakes
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs, chopped into bite-sized pieces
5 small carrots, cut into rounds
8 c. greens (I used a mixture of beet greens and carrot tops), chopped
1 tsp. coconut nectar (or other sweetener)
1/4 c. rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp. coconut aminos
1 c. basil leaves, chopped

Heat 2 Tbsp. oil over high in a wok or your largest skillet. Add the ginger, garlic, onion and red pepper flakes and stir-fry until fragrant (about 2 minutes).

When finished, scrape the aromatics to the side of the pan and add last Tablespoon of oil + the carrots. Toss. Add the chicken and stir-fry until browned (about 5-7 minutes).

Add the coconut nectar, vinegar, and coconut aminos – stir. Reduce the heat to medium and add the greens. Sauté, stirring frequently, until the greens are wilted and the stems (if you’re using something like chard or beet greens) are just tender (about 10 minutes).

Turn off the heat and add the basil. Stir.

Serves 2 for dinner

Broiled Peachy Chicken

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I love summer peaches. Like, eat them every day for lunch and dream about them during dinner love. My DH: not so much. So, I was happy to jump in the kitchen and make a riff on this NY Times roasted chicken recipe when he was out one night last week – and I must say, this dish worked out just fine.

Gluten-free, paleo

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Broiled Peachy Chicken

2 peaches, pitted and sliced 1/2 inch thick
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 oz. double-smoked bacon, sliced into batons
2 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
1 Tbsp. vermouth
2 Tbsp. sliced garlic stalks (can sub regular garlic)
1 inch ginger, peeled and grated
1 bunch baby spinach
2 radishes, sliced thin
2 Tbsp. fresh basil (optional: I didn’t have it, but it would have been lovely)
Kosher salt & black pepper

Preheat the oven to 400F. Halve and slice the peaches, chop the chicken, slice the bacon and garlic stalks and grate the ginger – adding to an oven proof dish as you go. Sprinkle with the rice wine vinegar and vermouth. Toss to combine. Hit with salt and pepper. Toss. Hit with salt and pepper again.

Bake 20 – 30 minutes or until the chicken and bacon are cooked through.

Serve over a bed of baby spinach with sliced radishes.

Serves 2 for dinner

Rhubarb & Rosemary Chicken Cabbage Salad

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Rhubarb is my new jam. I already knew I loved it in strawberry pie (and jam!), but had no idea what to do with this bright, punchy vegetable on the savory side of life. This salad came about as I was playing in the kitchen during lunch, trying to use up the last bits and bobs of various vegetables lounging in my crisper drawer. I think it turned out well.

Gluten-free, paleo, Whole30

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Rhubarb & Rosemary Chicken Cabbage Salad

1/4 head Savoy cabbage
1 hand full fresh green beans
1/2 stalk rhubarb
6 grapes
6 ounces grilled rosemary chicken breast
1Tbsp. pomegranate molasses
2Tbsp. grapeseed or pistachio oil
1Tbsp. fresh thyme
1 big pinch Kosher salt
Few grinds black pepper

Shred the cabbage (you want about 2c.).

Chop the green beans (you want about 1/4c.).

Dice the rhubarb (you want about 1/4c.).

Halve the grapes.

Chop the chicken.

Chop the thyme.

Add all to a large bowl. Drizzle the pomegranate molasses and oil over top, hit with a big pinch Kosher salt and a few grinds black pepper and toss to combine.

Serves 1 for lunch

Fennel & Orange Slaw with Chicken

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This recipe is based on a Facebook post from one of my favorite veggie enthusiasts, Yotam Ottolenghi. I love Ottolenghi’s recipes – and how that man thinks about flavors, textures and colors. His cookbooks Jerusalem and Plenty are instant shake me out of my rut go-tos and the first place I turn when I have veggies on the mind.

This salad looks a little involved, but can be a great way to use up random odd bits you have lying around the kitchen.

Gluten-free, paleo, Whole30, Vegan & Vegetarian if you omit the chicken

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Fennel & Orange Slaw with Chicken

1/4 head Savoy cabbage
Dill
Orange (I used Cava Cava)
Kale
2 medium carrots
1/4 bulb fennel
1c. green seedless grapes
1/2 orange bell pepper
6oz. shredded rotisserie chicken per serving
1Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp. pistachio oil
1 tsp. your favorite mustard
Big pinch Kosher salt
Few grinds black pepper

Shred the cabbage. Chop the kale, orange pepper and dill. Process the carrot and fennel (I shredded on a mandolin). Segment and chop the orange. Halve the grapes.

Add all to a large bowl.

Whisk together the apple cider vinegar, salt, pepper, oil and mustard to form a dressing.

Pour over the salad and massage by hand to incorporate.

Plate and top with chicken.

Serves 2-3 (adjust chicken accordingly)

Avocado Chicken Burger

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This recipe makes a nice light burger that’s juicy, delicious from the fat, and a nice change from beef. It’s perfect with a sriracha mayo or asian-inspired dipping sauce, too. 

Gluten-free, paleo, whole30

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Avocado Chicken Burger 

Based off the Chicken Avocado Burger recipe by Laughing Spatula 

1 pound ground chicken 
1 avocado, chopped 
Juice of half a lime 
2 tsp. granulated garlic 
2 tsp. onion powder 
1 egg, lightly beaten 
1/4 c. – 1/2 c. almond flour 
2 big pinches Kosher salt & a few grinds black pepper 
2 Tbsp. coconut oil 

Knead all ingredients together but the almond flour and avocado chunks. Your mixture should look really wet. Add half the almond flour, check to see if your mixture holds together (loosely is fine). Add the rest if needed. 

Once your mixture is burger-able, gently fold the avocado into the mix. 

Portion into 4 burger patties and pan fry over medium-high in 2 Tbsp. coconut oil 3-4 minutes per side (until cooked through and browned). 

Serves 4