Yay for fall! It’s my favourite season and NOT because of pumpkin spice lattes and comfy sweaters. Though those things are nice. I like the way nature renews itself by shedding that which no longer serves a purpose. I love the smells of decay and the brisk air. The reflective feelings that naturally rise up when any season shifts, but particularly this one. The opportunity for renewal is ripe for the picking. Which I why I thought it was a great time to do a whole 30 full body reset.
After a summer of plenty with treats and hearty glasses of wine to last the winter long, it’s time. I’ve been starting to feel sluggish and dependent on treats for a little burst of energy. And you know what, I just hate that feeling. Call me a control freak but its nice not to rely on anything for energy and that get up and go we all strive for.
But you guys, I really hate doing this stuff alone. It’s the worst and it makes fighting those urges to reach for dark chocolate and a glass of red all the more difficult. SO I’ve created a little Facebook group and I’ll be posting weekly Whole 30 approved meal plans and shopping lists, because thats the hard part. So if you’ve been contemplating treating yourself to a detoxifying elimination diet, if you’ve been struggling with poor digestion, a few pounds that don’t want to vacate, lack of energy or hormonal imbalance then maybe now is the time to give your body a break.
Join the 30 day detox challenge Facebook group HERE or if you don’t do Facebook then just keep an eye out on the blog for the weekly meal plans and shopping lists.
Yesterday I went to the farmers market and the poutine truck was there. They have some pretty impressive renditions on the classic poutine, including donair poutine and buffalo blue cheese poutine, tempting to say the least. But instead we got some gorgeous fresh northern pike and breaded it with shredded coconut, yum. But the craving for poutine, once you have it, doesn’t just go away. So today I whipped up a worthy equivalent, minus the gravy, and oh my did it hit the spot. In case you were wondering, loaded implies a bunch of spicy beef cooked with onions and garlic, goat feta and aged raw cheddar cheese,fresh tomatoes, peppers and a big ole pile a guacamole in the middle. These loaded tex mex sweet potato fries are healthy yet satisfying enough to meet any comfort food criteria.
This is a filling meal for two, or a nice snack or starter for four. Once you start, its hard to stop, and you are pretty much guaranteed to lick the plate clean.
In a large bowl, add oil and sweet potato, toss until evenly coated.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread an even lay of sweet potato fries, bake for 25 minutes.
Heat a small amount of oil in a frying pan and add onion and garlic until slightly golden. Add the Worcestershire and beef and cook on medium high heat until the juices start to release and the meat starts to brown. Turn down the heat until thoroughly cooked.
For the guacamole, mash together the avocado, garlic, lime, sea salt, tomato and cilantro
When the fries are done, top with cheese, beef, tomatoes, peppers and serve alongside fresh guacamole.
I’m a lover of freshly ground unique spices, the type that transport you to faraway lands. The ancient combinations of herbs, roots and seeds that grow together and have been used together for thousands of years. Raw Spice Bar specializes in these special blends that pair ancestral combinations with the modern twist of being delivered to your door step every month.
Delivery subscriptions are all the rage, from a new pair of panties every month to craft charcuterie, the options are endless. For foodies and anyone looking to try new recipes, raw spice bar provides 3 different spice blends freshly ground, high quality and 3 different recipes. This month the theme was Persian New Year, though I made this recipe up with their Mast-0-Khiar spice blend, I tried the one for braised lamb shanks with advieh, a spice blend of green cardamom, angelica and a few others. They were to die for and so easy to throw together.
Mast-O-Khiar is a spice blend made from dried mint, dill, rose petals and black peppercorns. Paired with tahini, lemon juice, olive oil and sea salt, it makes a unique Iranian inspired salad dressing that goes really well with earthy beets.
I recently got a spiralizer and have officially fallen in love. Almost every vegetable is spiralizable (new word) and beets are no exception. This time I roasted them (after spiralling) to bring out their natural sweetness. You could also eat them raw for a fresher, juicier variation. If you don’t have a spiralizer, fear not, you can cut the beets into chunks, roast them until tender and slice them thinly before dressing. Served alongside fresh greens, with a bit of plain yogurt or goat cheese this is a truly uniquely delightful flavour combo. I hope you love it as much as I do.
3 Beets, peeled and spiralized Or cut into chunks and roasted
4 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbs lemon juice
2 Tbs raw tahini
1 Tbs mast-o-khiar spice blend (dry mint, dill, rose petals and black peppercorn)
1/4 tsp sea salt
fresh greens (optional)
plain yogurt or goat cheese (optional)
Instructions
To roast the spiralled beets, set oven to 400 and spread on baking sheet, roast for 15-20 minutes until soft. For chunks of beets roasting time will be a bit longer, just until tender and then thinly slice.
Let the beets cool.
Combine olive oil, lemon juice, tahini, spices and salt until smooth and pour over the cooled beets, toss and serve alongside fresh greens with a drizzle of plain yogurt or a few chunks of goat cheese.
Do you worry about potentially undercooking it and having to put the whole lot back in the oven?
Or maybe overcooking it and ruining all that effort?
But a whole roast chicken is also alluring, the whole house smells intoxicating and it’s easier to find free range whole chickens for a good price.
Around here I usually make a whole roast chicken once a week, and then boil the carcass for homemade stock to add to soups and sauces. Often I save the fat to cook with, you could also make gravy if you wanted to go all out.
Chicken fat or schmaltz is really really yummy, it makes everything you cook it in taste amazing. Especially when infused with the red hot spices the chicken was cooked in. The schmaltz from this particular recipe was bright orange from the paprika. To separate the schmaltz from the juices, pour off the liquid and allow to cool in the fridge. When cool the chicken fat will form a layer on top of the now gelatinous chicken juices and you can just scrape that off. The jelly is nutrient dense and you can make gravy with it or add it to stocks.
Making gravy from the pan juices is really simple too and an added bonus to top your chicken with. For paleo gravy I like to thicken with tapioca starch or arrowroot flour, for the drippings from one chicken I typically mix 2 Tbs flour with 2 Tbs cold water. Simmer the chicken drippings/juices on low and stir in the flour until desired thickness is achieved.
Homemade chicken broth is super nourishing and makes everything more delicious. If I cook rice I usually do it in chicken stock and even just drinking it by itself is so satisfying. But our families favourite standby is leftover roast chicken soup, loaded with flavour, packed with veggies and a bit of satisfying rice to top it all off.
So today, in a bid to convince you to make roast chickens part of your kitchen repertoire, I’m going to share with you the recipe for this delicious chicken AND the recipe for the best ever leftover roast chicken soup.
Cooking whole roast chickens doesn’t have to be scary and intimidating. It’s really simple once you have the technique down. There are a million and one variations and ways to flavour your chicken but today I wanted to share with you one of my favourites, red hot roast chicken. This fiery rendition has a bit of smoky sweet and spicy, its also a brilliant golden-red hue, which makes a roast chicken look all the more delectable.
Now here’s are the keys to the perfectly moist, delicious roast chicken every time…
This is the easy chefs way of cooking a whole chicken, there are further steps one could take to get to the next level like brining and trussing but for simplicities sake here’s my take.
– Let your chicken come to room temp. before popping it in the oven.
– Thoroughly dry the skin before adding seasonings, this helps the chicken to get a crispy skin.
– Lay the chicken on a bed of large chunks of sliced onion, this raises it just slightly so the air can circulate underneath and the skin doesn’t stick to the bottom.
– I find cooking the breast side down produces a more moist breast, normally the legs take longer to cook than the breasts and they end up being dry but this way they stay tender.
– Don’t be shy with the spices, we’re only able to season the exterior so make up for that by liberal amounts of good salt, pepper and whatever others herbs and spices you want to add. For a classic roast chicken, stuff the cavity with fresh thyme, a punctured lemon and plenty of garlic and onion.
-The internal temperature of a cooked chicken is 180F at the breast and 190F at the thigh. However, if you are like me and you don’t own a meat thermometer- the chicken is cooked when the juices run clear. Normally I puncture the crevasse at the thigh to check. An average roasting chicken (5-6lbs) will typically take 1 hr 2o minutes at 400F.
– Let it rest. It’s tempting to serve it up as soon as the chicken is out of the oven, but waiting allows the juices to seal and makes for more tender fall off the bone meat. Allow the chicken to rest for 10-15 minutes before digging in.
Red Hot Roast Chicken Spice Blend
1/2 Tbs sea salt
1 Tbs smoked paprika
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 tsp coriander seeds, ground
1 tsp cumin seeds, ground
1 tsp red chile flakes
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp ancho chile powder (or you can use regular)
Combine all the spices and sprinkle liberally over the whole chicken on all sides. Add fresh garlic, onion to the roasting pan and stuff a punctured lemon into the crevasse of the bird.
Vegetables rock. They never get boring, truly there must be millions of variations to get your veg in. While I’m starting to feel the itch for fresh spring veg, I’m also still ever so enamoured with hardy winter varieties. These roasted root veggies have all the flavour of stuffing without the bread. Perfect with roast chicken or turkey, you could even mix them up and throw them in the roasting pan with your bird.
There’s a little sage bush right outside my house, its starting to spring back to life and I’m enjoying the bounty of fresh sage. Crispy friend sage is sinfully delicious, but it also adds a certain aromatic lingering presence to all things hearty and roasted.
I hope you all had a great weekend, mine was jam packed with birthday cake and love as my little baby Mav turned 1. Such a big day, hard to believe it was just one year ago he came into our lives and made life so much more joyous. Being a mom has been such a trip. Did you fall into the parent role naturally? Or does it take time for everyone? It took awhile before I even thought of myself as a mother, there’s so much to learn and I’m sure it’s endless. Now I’m starting embrace this fairly new role, I am now the one who makes birthday cakes (delicious paleo ones) and kisses sore knees. About that cake, I really wanted to share it with you. Admittedly I am a terrible party planner but I ace the catering side of things. Perhaps I’ll make the cake again just so that we can photograph it and share the recipe, it was sooooooo perfect!
All cake aside, we’re talking root veg. This Roasted Balsamic Sage Root Vegetable Stuffing is about to become your new best friend.
My giant 110 lb pooch is laying on me as I write this. He’s the sweetest bubba, biggest cuddle bug, and most loyal wolf companion. I think I’ll have to invent some special dog treats to share the recipe testing duties with Ranger.
Today I longed for summer, I pined for the warm water and even the mosquitos, the dragonflies, the bees. My feet are itching for the warm earth. The celebrations of true love filled with toasts and endless dancing. The thick mist that rolls through the mountains early in the morning while I weed the garden and sip strong coffee.
Are you pining for summer yet?
I was thinking also about strawberries, the sweet little ones, freshly picked just hours before they would lose their prime, still warm from the red hot sun. You know the kind right? You squeeze them gently between your fingers and they become instant jam. Impossible to compare summers strawberries to those shipped from California barely ripe. I always aim to freeze ample amounts every summer. It never happens because they are too good, but I did have a little stash of berries in the freezer.
A humble amount of strawberries will do in this recipe. It’s delightfully summery, with the crisp red stalks of swiss chard and fresh sprouts locally procured. This strawberry balsamic vinaigrette will definitely be happening in bulk quantities as soon as those bright red berries come into my life again. I hope you’ll try this dressing with whatever salad variation you fancy and feel like summers right around the corner.
Hey I'm Chantelle, my alter ego would be a mermaid if I wasn't such a terrible swimmer. I love writing authentically and cooking in my pyjamas. My favourite pastimes include eating avocados, travelling the world and hanging out with a toddler.
