Tag Archives: low carb

Mom’s Spaghetti Sauce!

| 2 Comments | Beatty Protocols, Meals, Recipes

Mom's Spaghetti Sauce - Amanda NaturallyAhhh spaghetti. The epitome of comfort food. Slurping up those noodles, dripping in tomato sauce and covered in parm! Actually as a kid I was slurping up noodles covered in Becel margarine covered in parm…and I wonder why my belly was always sore! However, once I made it over to the spaghetti and meat sauce team, I was hooked. Making my own spaghetti sauce was one of the first things I learned how to make. In university I would make a huge bowl of pasta (whole wheat, cause you know, “healthy”) and simmer onions, garlic and fresh tomatoes on the stovetop with basil, oregano and maybe a splash of red wine if there was some leftover from the night before. Not too shabby for a 20 year old biosci student who was stressed beyond belief! 

 

This recipe, is a variation on the one my mom has Mom's Spaghetti Sauce - Amanda Naturallymade for my entire life, so I call it Mom’s Spaghetti Sauce! I believe the original recipe was in Chatelaine. It is, in my humble opinion, a perfect tomato sauce. And when you mix it with grass-fed ground beef? A bolognese that will make any Italian grandmother cry tears of joy. Okay so maybe I’m being a little melodramatic, but that’s only because homemade tomato sauce is AMAZING. Even using (organic) canned tomatoes! Trust me. It’ll change your life!

 

IMPORTANT: If you are going to put the time in to make your own spaghetti sauce (which is absolutely worth it, I promise!) be smart about it! Make as much as you can and freeze it in portions for a later date! The best thing is being able to pull homemade spaghetti sauce out of the freezer and dump it into sautéed ground beef. Toss that over noodles of your choice (I personally love zoodles or sweet potato noodles, but anything will do!) and you have a fabulous, home-cooked meal in less than 10 minutes. 

Mom's Spaghetti Sauce - Amanda Naturally

Mom's Spaghetti Sauce
Serves 12
Traditional spaghetti sauce, that is easily turned into a bolognese! Paleo, vegan, kid-friendly and delicious.
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Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
35 min
Total Time
45 min
Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
35 min
Total Time
45 min
Tomato Sauce Ingredients
  1. 2 tbsp fat (olive oil, tallow, lard)
  2. 2 onions, diced
  3. 4-6 cloves garlic, minced
  4. 2 cans organic tomatoes (I used Kirkland brand from Costco)
  5. 2 cans organic tomato paste (Kirkland)
  6. 1 tbsp oregano
  7. 1 tbsp basil
  8. 1 tbsp chili flakes (optional)
  9. 1 tsp sea salt
  10. 2 bay leaves
Bolognese
  1. 1 lb grass fed ground beef
Tomato Sauce Directions
  1. In a deep pot, heat 2 tbsp fat over medium heat.
  2. Add diced onions and sautee until translucent, about 5 minutes.
  3. Add minced garlic. Cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently.
  4. Add in canned tomatoes, tomato paste and all spices.
  5. Cover and simmer for 30-40 minutes.
  6. Serve over your choice of noodles or turn into bolognese (see below).
Bolognese
  1. Sautee grass-fed ground beef, seasoned liberally with sea salt, until cooked through. About 3-4 minutes.
  2. Add ⅓ of the tomato sauce, about 3 cups, to the cooked beef. Cook for a few minutes.
  3. Serve over your favourite type of noodle!
Notes
  1. This tomato sauce recipes makes enough for 3 meals for 4 people, so 12 servings. I typically use ⅓ of the tomato sauce and mix it with ground beef for 2 dinners and 2 leftover lunches. Divide the remaining sauce into 2 containers and freeze for a later date!
Adapted from Chatelaine
Adapted from Chatelaine
Amanda Naturally http://www.amandanaturally.com/

 

 What recipe did you always eat growing up that you can’t get enough of? Share in the comments below!

Banana Muffins

| 6 Comments | Apps, Snacks & Sides, Beatty Protocols, Breakfasts, Recipes, Treats

Banana muffins are my favourite. When I was little I used to always ask my mom to make “na-na muff-uffs”, which unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it) means that’s still what we call banana muffins in my parents house! They may or may not have a home movie of 2.5 year old me baking “na-na muff-uffs” at my fisher price kitchen one Christmas morning…

Banana Muffins - Grain Free Dairy Free - Amanda Naturally

Typical nutriton educators call muffins “cupcakes without the icing”, which is mostly true. Take a carrot muffin for example. Many people choose carrot muffins over chocolate chip, because they’re healthier! Would you choose carrot cake over chocolate cake for health reasons? No! Because you know it’s still cake! What ingredients are typically found in a cake? White flour, white sugar, eggs, butter and baking soda. And a muffin? Flour, sugar, eggs, butter, baking soda, oil… Same recipe, slightly different ratios.

Banana Muffins - Grain Free Dairy Free - Amanda Naturally

There are a lot of “healthy” muffin recipes out there, but usually the focus is all about reducing the fat and cholesterol by eliminating the eggs and any oil that may be involved. Since we know that eggs have been wrongly demonized and that fat is crucial for health, suddenly those “healthy muffin” recipes are even worse than the original! White flour + white sugar + no nutrients. Well that screams diabetes in the making. Yowza!

Banana Muffins - Grain Free Dairy Free - Amanda Naturally

Even I cannot deny how convenient muffins are. They are easy to grab for a quick pick-me-up, or a breakfast if you don’t have time to make a real one, or to throw in your kids lunch bags. So instead of saying all muffins are off limits, why not change the ingredients to make them work for you, instead of against? I was on the hunt for a recipe that did just this and was thrilled when I stumbled across this one over at The Spunky Coconut. Real, nutrient-dense ingredients that are full of health-promoting vitamins, minerals, fat and protein. This was a muffin I could get behind. 

Banana Muffins - Grain Free Dairy Free - Amanda Naturally

Of course I had to tweak it a bit – since that’s what I do! I didn’t have applesauce, so I subbed an extra egg and it worked great. I also started adding lemon juice and zest, because lemon blueberry is an awesome flavour combo. Then recently, I had a client request a banana muffin for her kids. Most grain-free, dairy-free banana muffins rely heavily on almond flour and/or nut-butter. Since all schools are nut-free in Ontario, that wasn’t going to work. So I used the shredded coconut/egg base from the blueberry muffin recipe as my inspiration. I hope you enjoy these muffins as much as I do!

UPDATE (July 2016): I now throw all of the wet ingredients into my blender instead of mashing by hand. It eliminates the need for super ripe bananas (which are great, but I don’t always have them on hand, so yellow banana work too now) and your eggs don’t have to be room temperature either.

UPDATE: (May 2017): I no longer add maple syrup! I forgot to add it a few times and didn’t even notice the difference. This makes me especially happy because my 9 month old loves these muffins now and I feel great about giving her these!

Banana Muffins - Grain Free Dairy Free - Amanda Naturally

 

Banana Muffins (grain free, dairy free)
Serves 12
An old-fashioned banana muffin made without gluten, grains, dairy or sugar! Paleo and vegetarian!
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Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
30 min
Total Time
45 min
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
30 min
Total Time
45 min
Ingredients
  1. 6 eggs, brought to room temperature
  2. ½ cup coconut oil, melted
  3. ¼ cup honey or maple syrup (optional, I don't add it anymore)
  4. ½ tsp vanilla extract
  5. 2 cups mashed bananas
  6. 1 cup shredded coconut, unsweetened
  7. ½ cup coconut flour, sifted
  8. ½ tsp sea salt
  9. ½ tsp baking soda
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line muffin tin with silicon liners.
  2. Combine wet ingredients in a bowl. (or add to a large blender, this eliminates the need for super ripe bananas or room temp eggs)
  3. Combine dry ingredients in another bowl.
  4. Add dry ingredients to wet and mix really well. It will thicken up after a few minutes.
  5. Using an ice cream scoop, scoop a generous serving into each muffin liner. They don't rise a lot, so fill them up to the top!
  6. Bake for 30 minutes, or until set and slightly golden.
  7. Let cool and enjoy!
Notes
  1. It is important to have the eggs at room temperature so they don't cause the coconut oil to solidify. If you don't have time to leave them out, simply place them in a bowl and cover with hot tap water for about 10 minutes, while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
  2. These muffins freeze really well so I always make a double batch and freeze half.
  3. You could totally turn these into cupcakes by adding dairy-free chocolate chips and icing!
Amanda Naturally http://www.amandanaturally.com/
Banana Muffins - Grain Free Dairy Free - Amanda Naturally

Do you have a favourite snack from your childhood that you’ve ‘healthified’? Share in the comments below!

Sausage & Mushroom Spaghetti (Squash)

| 0 Comments | AIP, Beatty Protocols, Meals, Recipes

Sausage & Mushroom Spaghetti (Squash) - Amanda NaturallyWhen I first started cooking, I would follow a recipe exactly as it was written. As I got more comfortable in the kitchen, I started loosening up a bit. One tablespoon of oil? Approximately a quick circle around the pan. One tsp of cumin? I’d eyeball it in the palm of my hand. The more I practised, the better I got. I started to inherently know when an additional spice should be added, or what ingredients were okay to omit if I didn’t have them. Before I knew it, I stopped following recipes altogether! I learned some basic flavour combinations such as chill powder, cumin and oregano; lemon, garlic and rosemary; dijon and thyme – and started applying them to various  cuts of meat and veggie dishes. Now I rarely follow a recipe, which can actually make it challenging when I’m trying to post my recipes for you guys!

This recipe is a perfect example of that. I had a few ingredients in my kitchen, but no plan. I started with sausage and wanted to do something different with it. I mean, I love grilled sausages topped with sautéed onions and mounds of sauerkraut, but a girl’s gotta have some variety! I was trying to think about other ways that sausage is used and I instantly flashed back to the Sausage and Pepper Penne we served at the East Side Mario’s I worked at back in school. I decided on a pasta!

 Sausage & Mushroom Spaghetti (Squash) - Amanda Naturally

As I do with all my squash, I turned the oven on to 400F and threw the squash in whole as it was preheating, for 25 minutes. It has never exploded on me and it makes cutting it open WAY easier! After 25 minutes, cut in half width wise, scoop out the seeds and place cut side down in a pan. Roast for another 15-25 minutes until the skin gives slightly under pressure. Scrape noodles out with a fork!

Sausage & Mushroom Spaghetti (Squash) - Amanda Naturally  Sausage & Mushroom Spaghetti (Squash) - Amanda Naturally

Cook the bacon, set it aside and sautée the veggies and sausage in the bacon grease.

Sausage & Mushroom Spaghetti (Squash) - Amanda Naturally

Toss sautéed veggies and sausage with spaghetti squash. Top with the bacon and fresh basil. Voila – Sausage & Mushroom Spaghetti (Squash)! 

Sausage & Mushroom Spaghetti (Squash) - Amanda Naturally Sausage & Mushroom Spaghetti (Squash) - Amanda Naturally

Sausage & Mushroom Spaghetti (Squash)
Serves 6
Sausage & Mushroom Spaghetti (Squash) - an easy, low-carb pasta, jam-packed with healthy fats, protein and flavour!
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Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
40 min
Total Time
50 min
Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
40 min
Total Time
50 min
Ingredients
  1. 1 large spaghetti squash
  2. 4 pieces of pieces of bacon
  3. 4 sausages, sliced into bite sized pieces
  4. 1 cup of mushrooms, sliced
  5. ½ red onion, sliced thinly
  6. fresh basil
  7. salt salt and pepper
Instructions
  1. Cook spaghetti squash - set the oven to 400F and throw the squash in whole. After 25 minutes pull the squash, slice it across the circumference, width wise and scoop out the seeds. Place the squash cut side down on a baking sheet and bake for another 15-25 minutes, until soft to the touch. Set aside until you're ready to assemble the pasta.
  2. Cook the bacon until crispy. Chop into small pieces and set aside.
  3. Pour half of the bacon grease into another pan. Add onion and mushrooms. Season with sea salt and pepper. Sautee.
  4. Meanwhile, in the original pan, brown the sausage slices. Approximately 3-4 minutes per side.
  5. When the sausages are done, add the onion and mushrooms to the sausage pan. Using a fork, scrape the spaghetti squash into noodles into the pan. Season liberally with sea salt and pepper. Toss everything to combine well and distribute the yummy bacon grease.
  6. Serve in pasta bowls topped with bacon and fresh basil.
Amanda Naturally http://www.amandanaturally.com/
Sausage & Mushroom Spaghetti (Squash) - Amanda Naturally

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