Pumpkin seeds are a great option if you’re missing popcorn or chips, OR if you’re like me, and you just love them. I save all winter squash seeds and follow the same recipe (tweaked only based on quantity of seeds). To get more nutrition from the seeds AND to make easier to digest, soak them overnight in filtered water.
Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
cleaneatingwithkatie
Pumpkin seeds are the unsung hero of pumpkin season. Pumpkin spice everything gets all the attention, but I'm a major fan of pumpkin seeds.
Soak seeds in filtered water overnight. Drain and clean
Preheat oven to 350° F. On a rimmed baking sheet, add seeds, several pats of butter (use your judgement here on butter to seed ratio, and sprinkle with sea salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
Since I don't melt the butter beforehand, be sure to mix seeds to make sure that all the seeds are coated with butter or they will burn.
Cook for 15-25 minutes. Here's how I really judge them: when the seeds have absorbed the butter and are golden brown. Enjoy!!
Cheese board, charcuterie platter, meat and cheese plate, whatever you call it, they are all the rage. This seasonal charcuterie platter made its debut at our Thanksgiving table in 2017 and a similar one appeared at Christmas that year as well. If you’ve already committed to a different dish – don’t fret, bring this to any upcoming gathering. Needless to say, this is more inspiration than a recipe – I encourage you to use your favorite cheeses and whatever fruits are in season!
Salami, smoked chorizo, and prosciutto are pictured here and just some examples of smoked and aged meats. Pate would be another good option.
Select a mixture 3-5 of cheeses.
Pictured here are Goat milk chèvre, mozzarella, and burrata (Thanksgiving) and I added manchego and Brie. I recently took a cheese making class where we learned how to make these three cheeses, hence why these are included in the cheese board. I do suggest a mixture of hard and soft cheeses. For the chèvre, I added bacon, figs, and a drizzle of honey (in the center of the Thanksgiving picture) and pomegranate seeds on the Christmas picture)
Add crackers and/or bread.
Here I have Jilz crackers and Simple Mills crackers
For the Christmas board I added homemade paleo bread
Add Seasonal Fruits and/or preserved fruits.
We have pears, pomegranates, and figs pictured here. For Christmas I included pears, mandarin oranges, pomegranates, and some quince paste.
Lastly, add some veggies and olives.
For Thanksgiving, we had olives and Sonoma Brinery pickles. For Christmas, I will also inlcude pickled green beans and cornichons.
As we are now in the winter months, my goal for this charcuterie platter is to include only preserved foods and in-season foods.
I hope you try out a Seasonal Charcuterie Platter in the coming months!
Here is a link to Farmcurious, where I took the cheesemaking class. She also sells kits for those that aren’t local. The kits include the recipes for how to make the cheeses :).
This recipe is inspired by a spaghetti squash dish I had in Salt Lake City when I attended the Young Living Conference in June of 2017. It was so good and filling that I knew that I needed to recreate my own version at home. Every time I make it, Jim raves about it!
Spaghetti Squash and Turkey Meatballs
cleaneatingwithkatie
I've included the sauce recipe that I use, BUT for a quicker version, my two favorite clean and tasty sauces are Rao's and Otamot. Feel free to substitute. This is a satisfying and hearty winter dish and I think will be a crowd pleaser.
Cut the top and bottom off of the spaghetti squashes. Then cut in half lengthwise and scoop out seeds. Place squashes flesh side down in a rimmed pan (like a jellyroll pan) with about a 1/4 inch of water.
Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a knife easily pierces the skin.
Meanwhile, in a large sauté pan over low-medium heat, add the olive oil, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, and all spices. Stir to combine.
Allow to come to a low simmer.
In a medium bowl, add the meat and spices. Mix together with your hands until spices are well distributed throughout the meat.
Form the meat into eight evenly-sized meat balls. Place meatballs in the sauce to cook.
When the spaghetti squash is cooked, remove from oven and allow to cool. Once cool, use a fork to loosen the flesh from the skin. Keep the flesh in the skin to allow for a "bowl" in which to serve the squash, sauce, and meatballs.
Cook meatballs in sauce turning over after about 25 minutes. Cook for about 20 additional minutes, or until meat is done in the center.
To serve, place one half of the spaghetti squash in a bowl. Top with meatballs, sauce, fresh parsley, and shaved parmesan.
I’ve been LOVING delicata squash lately and I’ve been seeing people get really creative with how they use it. The more creative they get, the more inspired I get. I decided to try out a simple stuffed delicata squash recipe and when it turned out pretty good, I knew I wanted to step up my game. Here is the result.
Stuffed Delicata Squash
cleaneatingwithkatie
Delicata squash is a new favorite of mine because the skin is edible when roasted meaning there's no need to peel it! Stuffing it with meat and veggies makes for the perfect hearty and filling fall and winter dish.
4delicata squashchoose larger ones that will be easier to stuff
1lbpasture raised ground pork(other ground meats will also work)
½medred oniondiced
2medcarrotssliced
3celery stalkssliced
112 ozbag of riced cauliflowerfresh or frozen
1tspcoconut oil
Spice Blend Ingredients
1tspsea salt
½tspfresh ground pepper
1tspdried oregano
½tspdried thyme
½tspdried parsley
½tspgranulated garlic
½tspgranulated onion
2tbspparsley chiffonadeoptional garnish
Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 350° F and coat a rimmed baking sheet with coconut oil.
Slice the delicata squash into 2 inch rounds and scoop out the seeds. Place on the coconut oil coated baking sheet and put in the oven to par-bake for 10 minutes.
While the squash is par-baking, combine the ground pork, riced cauliflower, celery, onions, and carrots in a large bowl. Mix in the spices and stir well.
After 10 minutes, take the par-baked delicata squash out of the oven. Being careful of the hot baking sheet and the hot squash, carefully spoon the pork and veggie mixture into the delicata squash rounds until over stuffed.
Continue baking for 25 minutes. When the meat is cooked through and the squash pierces easily with a knife, remove from oven. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Last year I started The 52 New Foods Challenge: A Family Cooking Adventure for Each Week of the Year, with 150 Recipes. My goal was to try the new food designated for each week and to blog about why others might want to try it too. Well, I didn’t quite finish it. 🙁 So I’ve decided to start it again. Many of the foods might not be “new” for me or for you, but I like the idea of trying new things and shaking up my day-to-day food routine.
Food Facts:
Good source of vitamins K, C, and A
Contains more than twice the the level of antioxidants of other leafy greens
Antioxidants include: beta-carotene, lute in, zeaxanthin
Good source of folate, fiber, manganese, potassium, copper, and calcium
It scores 1000/1000 on the ANDI score (a rating of nutrients per calorie)
Is good for preventing: cancer, cardiovascular disease, degenerative eye diseases, and stomach ulcers
Red leaf kale varieties have more nutrients than green leaf varieties
Has more calcium than milk!!!!!
Raw often has more nutrients
However, raw kale, like other raw cruciferous veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, brussels, etc.) can be goitrogenic, if you have thyroid problems – it is important that you eat cooked kale
For kale chips, 350 degrees produces the most nutrient chips
Butternut squash soup is something that I could eat nearly everyday during the winter months. Hearty, filling, healthy, and delicious. I found a recipe for it about 5 years ago, and since then, I’ve tweaked it to make it my own. I found the act of peeling the butternut squash simply ridiculous. It is insanely hard to peel a raw butternut squash. Then, while in Miami, a friend ordered some butternut squash at a restaurant and it arrived roasted with the skin on. MIND BLOWN. I decided then to stop peeling the squash for these three reasons. 1) It’s way too hard, 2) I’m going to puree the soup with an immersion blender anyways, and 3) the skin is where the nutrients are! So here is my favorite recipe for butternut squash soup. Enjoy!
Butternut Squash Soup
cleaneatingwithkatie
Butternut squash soup is one of my favorite fall and winter meals. I usually pair it with a sausage and then I have a balanced meal. Because you don't have to spend time peeling the butternut squash, this recipe is that much sweeter!
Place a vegetable steamer in a large stock pot. Add water, butter, and butternut squash. Steam the butternut squash until pierced easily with a knife.
Once steamed, place squash in stock pot (leave water in pot). Add carrots, celery, onions, and garlic. Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer.
Add all of the spices. Keep at simmer for about 30 minutes. Remove from heat, and allow to cool for about 15 minutes.
Use an immersion blender to purée soup (a regular blender or food processor will also work). Add lemon juice (don't skip the acid step!). Serve with a dollop of sour cream or plain yogurt and garnish with cilantro.
Keyword butternut squash soup, paleo, soup
Onions are a good source of vitamins C and B6, potassium, and manganese. They are also rich in antioxidants, particularly quercetin, kaempferol, and myricetin, which all play a role in cancer prevention. Onions also help to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis.
Carrots are good sources of vitamins A, C, B6 & K, biotin, potassium, thiamine, and fiber. They are also rich in antioxidants and good source of starchy carbohydrates.
Butternut Squash is a good source of antioxidant carotenoids, vitamins C, B1, B6, folic acid, and pantothenic acid. It is also a good source of potassium, manganese, and fiber. Dark-fleshed winter squash is shown to be protective against cancer, especially lung cancer, heart disease, and and type II diabetes.
October is finally here! I love PUMPKINS more than just about anything, so I am a excited that October is upon us. I’m not a PSL (pumpkin spice latte) girl, actually I don’t even drink coffee. I don’t like artificially flavored things, so even if I drank coffee, you couldn’t get me near it (no judgements if you are a PSL person)! With that said I do love to bake and cook with pumpkin puree.
My other favorite on this list is butternut squash. I’ll be posting my favorite butternut squash soup recipe soon. Keep your eyes peeled! What’s your favorite thing on the list?
A new month is here and with it comes new fruits and veggies. My favorite item on this list is Brussels sprouts. I could eat them nearly everyday. My other favorites on this list are Pears, Winter Squash, and Radishes.
I love roasting radishes with butter – they taste just like roasted new potatoes (a great alternative for those avoiding nightshades!). What’s your favorite thing on the list?
In September, I feel like summer foods are starting to “die down”, so in my mind, this is the one last month to get the summer foods in before they start disappearing for the season. I’m always excited to see apples appear back on the seasonal lists because I usually start boycotting apples in January/February. (They are about 3-6 months old by that point and to me, they begin to get that mealy texture around then.)
Go to your local farmer’s market this weekend and get some local food!
. My goal was to try the new food designated for each week and to blog about why others might want to try it too. Well, I didn’t quite finish it. 🙁 So I’ve decided to start it again. Many of the foods might not be “new” for me or for you, but I like the idea of trying new things and shaking up my day-to-day food routine.
