Before you freak out on me and remind me that cheese is not paleo, please understand that I am aware of that. But I also like to give gluten free people or less strict people different food options. If you want to freak out, go ahead, scream into a pillow that I am a fake and you hate me. It’s ok. Let it out. I’ll rub your back. Now we can move on! Hooray!
Do you think they get the audience drunk or high on The Price is Right before the show? I can’t imagine that many people would get that excited about that show. It honestly makes no sense to me. I just saw a probably 24 year old newlywed couple about sh*t the bed when the husband got picked. You’re 24 years old and you’re freaking out about being on The Price is Right. I know they give the audience drugs. I just know it.
I think my Vegas bloat finally set in. Eating at restaurants for 3 days straight almost gets exhausting. The salt and weird oils I must have ingested are catching up to me. Not only do I feel like a little dough boy, but I swear I can’t breathe as well. Have you ever had that? Where you feel like you’re too full that you can’t take a full breath in? No? Whatever. I mean, I’m not complaining, but I like breathing. It’s pretty cool. So I’m hoping this bloat goes away soon. It probably would help if I weren’t creating recipes such as double chocolate muffins (recipe coming soon) and stuffing the batter into my face, but those are unrealistic goals. I love tasting the batter and risking salmonella. It’s like playing the game of life and winning when you don’t get sick.
Whoa. My brain is weird today.
Speaking of bloat, with this Valentine’s Day coming up, I’m ABSOLUTELY craving red velvet cake. Or red velvet pancakes. Or red velvet pancakes. I don’t really know what it is about red velvet, I mean it’s just red food coloring that’s added to cake mix, but they somehow taste so much better than regular cake. Anywho, I won’t be consuming red velvet cake for Vday, but I do know what I plan on making. Here’s the plan. Since I just got back from Vegas, I’m definitely not interested in going out to eat. So I just plan on putting on a new Netflix show and making something really exciting: quesadillas. You’re about to freak out on me again, but whatever. I found these gluten free tortillas at Sprouts called Potapas that are made from potatoes. They’re stupid amazing. So I’m going to make the boyfriend and I some slamming quesadillas. Then I’m going to top the night off with some Cappello’s cookies from their freeze and bake cookie dough. It’s to die for. Best paleo cookie dough AND cookies on the market. Period. It’s going to be a Valentine’s Day for the books. Whatever that means.
So, what are you making for this Vday? No matter if you hate it, you have to eat something delicious that day. You just have to. Now spill the beans on the goodies you’ll be consuming. Spill those beans!
Artichoke Lemon Pesto Lasagna (not strict paleo)
- Yield: 3-4 1x
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons cooking fat (butter, olive oil, coconut oil, etc.)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed in small pieces (or chicken thighs, if you prefer)
- 1/2 yellow onion, chopped
- 1 cup button mushrooms, roughly chopped
- 12–15 artichoke hearts, cut in half (I used canned artichoke hearts)
- ⅓ cup walnuts
- 1 garlic clove
- 4–5 tablespoons olive oil (add more for a more runny pesto)
- 4–5 tablespoons vegetable broth (add more for a more runny pesto)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ cup fresh parsley
- ½ cup fresh basil
- juice of 1 lemon
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 (12 ounce) package of Cappello’s lasagna sheets
- 1–2 cup freshly shredded raw cheese (I used Kerrygold cheddar cheese) -optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8×8 glass baking dish.
- Place a large pan over medium-high heat. Add cooking fat and garlic cloves. Once garlic becomes fragrant, add cubed chicken and onion to the pan and cook until cooked through and no pink remains. Once chicken is almost done cooking, add mushrooms to cook for just a minute or so.
- Remove mixture from pan and place in a bowl and set aside.
- Place the large pan back over medium-high heat and add the halved artichokes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and let cook until slightly browned and tender on all sides.
- Once artichokes are browned, add them to a food processor along with the walnuts, garlic clove, olive oil, and vegetable broth. Puree until smooth.
- Then add the parsley, basil, lemon, and salt and pepper. Puree once more until smooth. Taste and add more lemon and salt and pepper to your preference. If you want a more runny pesto consistency, add more olive oil and vegetable broth at this point.
- Once pesto is done pureeing, add the pesto to the bowl full of chicken and mix well.
- Now line the baking dish with two lasagna sheet (you may need to cut them to size, as needed). Add a place spoonful of the chicken mixture and spread out, then sprinkle with shredded cheese on top. Then another layer of sheets, chicken, and cheese. The top layer should be lasagna strips, topped with the last of the chicken mixture and some extra cheese on top.
- Cover the dish with foil and place in the oven for 20-25 minutes. Then remove the foil and let sit under the boiler for 2-3 minutes until the cheese bubbles and browns.
- Remove from oven, lightly cover with foil to help keep warm and let rest for about 5 minutes before slicing.
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So You’re Not that Strict Yo:
Creamy Rosemary Chicken Lasagna (gluten free, not strict paleo)
Meatball Cups (not strict paleo – gluten free)
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F*ck the (paleo) police! This sounds fantastic. Can’t wait to make it.
Hi! Are you by chance on Instagram?
Duh! Best thing ever. @paleomg
Have you come across any good recipes for making your own lasagne noodles with almond flour? The Capello’s noodles are 55 bucks for 4 packages, plus 20 dollars to ship….eeeek! I’d love to learn to make my own instead.
I bet g-free tortillas cut into lasagna-noodle sized strips would work, too. It might make it more enchilada’ish…but worth a try.
Thank you Missy, I really appreciate the suggestion!
I love your light-heartedness and sense of humor! Must share with my sistas.
I’m sorry, potato tortillas??! At SPROUTS!! Must give them a call RIGHT NOW!! I haven’t had a quesadilla in ages! Heck yes! Now to pray my Sprouts has them….
I am going to have to look for those potato tortillas at Sprouts in Austin. And I hope Capello’s starts distributing outside of Colorado soon – it is a bit pricey to have it shipped direct. This recipe looks delicious!
I’m a little upset you haven’t insta-ed ANYTHING with the new BF, but I’m sure you’ll get over it. Cause…you know…you have no idea who I am. Happy for you and I TOTALLY agree with posting realistic recipes like this for those of us who are just trying to be healthy and happy but don’t have major allergies and conditions!
You da best.
I won’t be disappointed in your cheese if you’re not disappointed in me wanting to make this just in a big pan with no noodles whatsoever (because I don’t have any gluten-free choices nearby and I’m too lazy to make the zucchini noodles). For V-Day, I made primal chocolate lava cake starting from dark chocolate I made myself, and then we ate that with banana-coconut “ice cream.” It was pretty fantastic.
Hot Damn! Do you get a happy ending with those noodles??? $$$$
So, I LOVED your other lasagna recipe and am excited to try this, but is there anyway other than buying Capellos? They’re SUPER expensive (like $18 a box with shipping!!) They taste amazing, but yikes! Just bite the bullet for a special occasion maybe?
btw, the show, the American’s on FX with Kerri Russell (Felicity) and Matthew Rhys (Brothers and Sisters) is AWESOME! HIGHLY recommend! easier to follow then House of Cards and kind of like Homeland with the suspenseful spy stuff.