I did a thing yesterday. I booked a plane ticket to Denver for my birthday! I turn a whopping 29 years young in May and it’s my last birthday before motherhood. I am going with my mom and two sisters and staying with my aunt and her family in Brighton. I have been to Colorado many times but have never gotten the opportunity to explore Denver. Exploring is exactly what I want to do! I want to check out local cafes and restaurants and go on a hike at Red Rock. I am open to all experiences so if you live in or near Denver or have suggestions of what to do, tell me!
When I was young I could have easily lived off of buttered noodles, bread and Velveeta shells and cheese. Side note, just the other day I noticed my favorite dairy free cheese brand has dairy free Velveeta shells and cheese and I just about died. So many childhood memories came flooding back, but I passed on it as that could turn into a deep black hole for me. Anyways, I was a bread and pasta fanatic and had some variation of it almost daily. As my interest grew in health and nutrition I slowly started to eat less and less of these processed carbohydrates and when I went paleo I cut them out completely. As the paleo diet and whole food clean eating diet became more popular in society we started being offered better quality less processed options.
Within the last year, I started reintroducing gluten free bread and pasta into my diet because having these options gives me a better balance to my healthy lifestyle. I stick to quality high standard brands when it comes to these types of foods and have found bread and pasta options that work for my body and fit into my lifestyle. I enjoy pasta every few weeks to change things up and add variety to my diet. When I was strict paleo I felt very restricted and would eventually have a bad binge where I would eat all the “off limits” foods and of course feel like ish afterwards physically and mentally. The more I learned about the types of foods that made my body (and mind) feel good I noticed that I could have balance in my diet. I didn’t need to eat inside the lines of paleo and was able to start coloring outside the lines and experimenting with finding my healthy balance with food.
Finding a balance that works for your body, mind and lifestyle takes time, effort and experimenting. It is also completely worth it because it is possible to find balance, eat healthy, enjoy your favorite foods, look and feel good and reach your goals. If you are on this journey right now, keep going because your balance is just around the corner. If you haven’t started this journey I encourage you to start. Food balance is food freedom.
This dish turned out so good and I can’t wait to make it again! Feel free to use your favorite vegetables and pasta. Cheers to finding food balance!
- 4 ounces raw gluten free spaghetti noodles
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed
- 1 tbsp ghee
- 4 tbsp kerry gold butter
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 15 ounce can diced tomatoes
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 yellow squash, diced
- 1 bundle asparagus, diced
- 1 red pepper, diced
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- Place a large pot on the stove over high heat. Add enough water to cook the noodles. Once the water is boiling add the noddles and stir occasionally until noodles are cooked to desired texture. Drain the water from the pot, rinse the noodles with cold water and set aside.
- As the noodles are cooking, place a deep skillet on the stove over medium high heat. Add the kerry gold butter. Once the butter is melted, add the garlic and let cook for 1-2 minutes. Then, add the tomato paste and diced tomatoes and stir until the tomato paste is fully dissolved.
- Add the diced squash, asparagus and red pepper to the tomato sauce mixture and mix well. Reduce heat to medium, cover and let cook for 10 minutes stirring occasionally. After 10 minutes or once the vegetables are fork tender, reduce heat to simmer.
- Place another skillet on the stove over medium high heat and add the ghee. Once the ghee is melted add the diced chicken and cook until fully cooked through.
- Transfer the chicken and noodles to the tomato and vegetable mixture. Add the oregano, parsley, red pepper flakes and salt and pepper. Gently stir all ingredients until everything is fully combined.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!