Quick Tomato-Meat Sauce with Cappello's Grain-Free Pasta

First of all, my apologies for my lack of blog posts over the last two months. No excuses, as blogging is something I can do from just about anywhere, as long as I have a laptop and access to wi-fi.

Second, I have been doing a Whole30 for the month of October. I am almost finished! There are only three more days left. This is the second time I have done a Whole30. The first time was back in January (2013). I lost a little bit of inches and weight, but nothing significant. I can tell you that my sweet tooth did not change much. It came back with a vengeance (over time), hence the reason for the current Whole30. I'm not completely sold on my results. I've lost about the same amount of weight as in my first. My clothes do fit a bit better. I feel fine. I have a separate health issue I am dealing with at the moment, so I haven't been working out as much as I would have hoped/liked. The reason I'm not completely sold is that there are foods I want to eat post-Whole30 that aren't Whole30-approved. For instance, I purchased a sampler pack of Nikki's Coconut Butter and I cannot wait to give each flavor a taste. I also want to do some holiday baking around Thanksgiving and Christmas (check out my Pinterest board). I realize it will all still be "Paleo" but it's definitely sweet dishes. My sweet tooth didn't magically disappear. I still think about the 31st of October and making some Paleo pancakes or a Breakfast Cake. I enjoy treats in a different way than I did in my Pre-Paleo days, but I still love them. I do have a tough time with moderation when it comes to sweets. If I bake, I will have to freeze some and/or give some away to friends, family or coworkers.

And finally, the recipe. I created this dish on a whim. I knew I had a bell pepper, ground beef and tomatoes in the fridge. I thought I could put it all together and serve it over Cappello's Fettuccine.

Quick Tomato-Meat Sauce with Cappello’s Grain-Free Pasta

Serves: 3-4

Ingredients:

• 2 T. fat of choice
• ¼ onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 pound grass-fed ground beef
• 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
• A handful of spinach
• 2-3 T. chicken broth
• 2 t. dried basil
• 1 ½ t. garlic powder
• 1 t. dried oregano
• Sea salt and freshly-ground pepper, to taste
• 1 package of Cappello’s Grain-Free Fettuccine

Directions:

1. Heat your fat of choice in a skillet or frying pan over medium-high heat.
2. Add onion and green bell pepper. Sauté for 5-7 minutes, or until veggies are tender.  
3. Add the ground beef, breaking it up as it cooks, cooking until it’s no longer pink.
4. Season the mixture with all of your spices and herbs (including salt and pepper, to taste).
5. Toss in the tomatoes, spinach and chicken broth, stirring occasionally. Allow the mixture to cook for another 5-7 minutes or until the tomatoes start to break down and the spinach is wilted.
6. While waiting for the sauce to finish up and cook down, make your pasta per the instructions on the package.
7. Put a little nest of pasta on your plate and top with some of the tomato-meat sauce. Enjoy! 

We were able to get three servings out of this, but you could probably stretch it to four, especially if you add a side salad and/or veggies. 

Paleo Lasagna Soup

A while back, I ran across a recipe for lasagna soup over on Epicurean Vegan. Vegan does not always make for the best Paleo dishes, but it can be a great starting point. Her recipe used fake sausage, a bouillon cube and glutenous lasagna noodles. I wasn't about to ingest that combination of ingredients. Some of the swaps were easy. Italian sausage and ground turkey as the meat, homemade chicken broth instead of water and bouillon to make a richer soup and Cappello's grain-free lasagna instead of the glutenous pasta. I also found myself improvising as I was actually making the soup. I was completely out of oregano! What does a girl do when she runs out of oregano without having to drive two miles to the nearest grocery store since the onions were already sauteing on the stove? Yes, I could have asked one of my neighbors. They did come to the rescue when I ran out of chili powder the last time I made my chili recipe. Instead, it dawned on me that I had plenty of Italian seasoning in the cupboard. I Googled the main ingredients in Italian seasoning and it sounded like a perfect flavor for the soup. 

Paleo Lasagna Soup

Adapted from Epicurean Vegan

Serves: 8

Prep time: 5 minutes   Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 T. coconut oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 12 oz. bulk Italian Sausage (I used Mulay’s Sweet Italian Sausage by removing the casings)
• ½ pound ground turkey
• 1 T. Italian seasoning
• 1/8 – ¼ t. Red Pepper Flakes (depending on how much heat you prefer)
• 2 – 14 oz. cans diced fire-roasted tomatoes
• 1 cup spaghetti sauce
• 6 cups chicken broth, preferably homemade
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 package of Cappello’s lasagna noodles, torn into bite-sized pieces
• Sea salt and freshly-ground pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Melt coconut oil in a soup pot over medium-high heat.
2. Add onions and garlic, stirring occasionally, for 5-7 minutes.
3. Add Italian sausage and ground turkey and break up with a wooden spoon, stirring to incorporate with the onions and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, about 6-8 minutes or until no longer pink.
4. Season with Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, sea salt and pepper.
5. Add diced tomatoes, spaghetti sauce, chicken broth and bay leaves. Stir until combined.
6. Bring soup to a boil, lower the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10-15 minutes so the flavors can meld.
7. Add the lasagna noodles right at the end, stirring so they don't clump together. Cook for only 30-45 seconds. Remove from heat immediately.
8. Serve alongside Paleo garlic knots and a side salad or sauteed vegetables for a delicious meal. 

Note: Cappello's Pasta can be purchased at many Colorado stores (check out their website for a complete listing). Unfortunately, if you live outside of Colorado, it's only available through their website. I would highly recommend asking your local health food store or market to carry their pastas. 

Hope you enjoy! Now that I've tested out the lasagna noodles, I will definitely be trying them in a true lasagna dish. I'm not sure which type of lasagna yet. I also may try making cashew ricotta cheese, or maybe even Vegan cheddar cheese for crumbling on top or in between layers. 

Creamy Tomato Soup with Spinach and Grass-fed Ground Beef

It's winter. The temperatures are chilly. Soup warms the soul. I've become quite fond of soups. I used to think soups weren't very filling. This one hit the spot. In my Pre-Paleo days, I used to make a creamy tomato pasta soup using heavy cream (or half and half), mini pasta and lots of parmesan cheese. I had to make some adjustments to the soup. I wanted to make a heartier soup, but still have tons of veggies. I threw together the below recipe and loved it. My husband commented how it was much better than the Mexican food (cheat meal) we ate the night before.

Creamy Tomato Soup with Spinach and Grass-fed Ground Beef

Serves: 5-6
Paleo Rating: 9 Clubs

Ingredients:

• 2 T. olive oil or coconut oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 cups chicken broth (preferably homemade)
• 28 oz. can diced tomatoes
• 2 T. fresh basil, torn into small pieces
• 1 - 1 1/2 cups cashew cream (instructions below)
• 3 large handfuls of spinach
• 1 1/4 pounds grass-fed ground beef
• Sea salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions:

1. Heat oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Saute veggies until tender and onions are translucent. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. 
2. While the veggies are cooking, brown the ground beef in a separate pan, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. 
3. Add chicken broth, diced tomatoes and basil to the veggie mixture. Bring to a boil. 
4. Puree the soup with an immersion (hand) blender or blend in batches in your food processor or regular blender. 
5. Add the spinach and ground beef to the soup. Allow the spinach to wilt. 
6. Add the cashew cream and stir. 
7. Ladle into bowls and enjoy! 

To make the cashew cream:

You'll need 1 cup of raw cashews, soaked in water for at least 6 hours (you could do this the night before or the morning of and leave it all day). Drain and rinse them. Put them in your high-speed blender (I have a Vitamix) and cover with cold water. Blend until smooth. That's all there is to it. You may have a little extra, but it can be used in your morning omelettes. Just mix it with some nutritional yeast to give it a cheesy flavor. 

This soup would be delicious with some Paleo Herb Crackers or Paleo bread. My personal favorites are Against All Grain's Grain-Free Sandwich Bread or Real Sustenance's Flaky Biscuits (I used coconut oil instead of butter).