Its officially time for all the fall foods, and this recipe did not disappoint! The prep work is really all that you have to do with this one, making it pretty simple for the non-cooks out there. If you want to minimize some of that prep work I recommend purchasing already cut brussels sprouts, and/or marinading the chicken the night before. Since I basically tripled this recipe below to get enough food for meal prep, the cutting and chopping did take up some time for me. Once all that prep work is done though, all that is left to do is throw everything on the sheet pan to bake. I actually ended up having to do this in two batches with all the food that I had. My only note I had with this recipe was that next time I'd roast the brussles sprouts and bacon for 10-15 minutes first before throwing the apples and chicken on top. That is just my preference though because I love brussels and bacon together and much prefer is to be well-roasted. That note aside though, all of these flavors together still came out tasting delicious and comforting, as expected. I will probably be making this one a few more times this fall! 

Rosemary Balsamic Sheet Pan Chicken with Bacon and Apples
​Ingredients:

•  1.5 lbs chicken breast
•  1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
•  1/3 cup olive oil
•  Juice of 1/2 lemon
•  2 cloves garlic crushed
•  1/4 cup chopped rosemary
•  10 oz brussel sprouts stem cut off and cut in half
•  2 apples cored, peeled, and chopped
•  6 slices of bacon chopped
•  Salt + Pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Cut your chicken breast into smaller chunks or pieces. Set aside.
2. Make your marinade by blending balsamic vinegar, oil, lemon, and garlic. While motor is running, add chopped rosemary. Continue blending for at least 1 minute or until rosemary is well incorporated. Place chicken into a bowl or container with marinade. Marinade for at least 5 minutes, but up to 12 hours.
3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a large sheet pan with foil. Place brussel sprouts, apples, and bacon on the sheet. Add chicken. Brush any reserved marinade over sprouts and apples.
4. Bake for 15 minutes (depending on thickness of chicken). Bump up the oven to 425 degrees, and cook for another 5 - 10 minutes of cooking to get everything extra crispy!
5. Remove from oven and serve immediately. Salt and pepper to taste.

​Original recipe found here

I recently stumbled upon this Asian-inspired Paleo blog where I found this amazing recipe, and plenty of other delicious looking ones as well! This Chicken Stir-Fry with Cabbage and Shiitake turned out tasting like a true Asian stir fry and was actually pretty simple to make. I purchased matchstick carrots and bagged cabbage slaw to help minimize prep time. I also threw the shiitake mushrooms in the food processor to dice up real tiny, just so they would get lost in the stir-fry and the people I am cooking for didn't notice ;-). The only items left to prep are slicing the green onions, slicing or mincing the ginger (I preferred to mince), slicing the chicken and tossing with the seasonings. This is actually a step I goofed on - although the olive oil is listed under the chicken seasonings, that ingredient is just for when you are ready to cook in the pan. I accidentally threw it in with the marinade instead, not that I think it changed the flavoring that much. Anyways, I found that the chicken cooked much better in a wok then it did in my dutch oven, so I cooked in batches in the wok and used the dutch oven to prepare the rest of the stir fry. I only did this though because I increased the serving size to 15 for this recipe and had plenty of cabbage and carrots to cook. You can change the serving size of this recipe to your needs as well by going to the original recipe link below and adjusting the serving size amount up or down. Again, I thought this meal turned out tasting perfectly and was a delicious Asian stir fry! You will most definitely be seeing me post more recipes from this blog.

​​Paleo Chicken Stir-Fry with Cabbage and Shiitake
Ingredients:
Chicken seasonings

• 1.5 lbs chicken breasts, thin sliced
• 1 tbsp coconut aminos
• 1.5 tsp arrowroot powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ⅛ tsp black pepper + ¼ tsp coarse salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Other Ingredients

• 1 tbsp fresh ginger, matchstick shape
• 6 garlic cloves, sliced
• 6-7 bulbs scallions, sliced diagonally (separate white & green parts)
• 1 to 1 ¼ cups carrots, sliced to matchstick shape (or use shredded carrots)
• 5-7 oz. fresh shiitake
• 7-8 cups napa cabbage, diced to about 2-inch sections (separate stems from leafy parts)
• Small dash of chicken or vegetable broth

Stir-fry Sauce (stir-well with no lumps)

• 2 tbsp coconut aminos
• 2 tsp aged balsamic
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
• 1 tsp arrowroot powder

Directions:

1. Prep: Thin slice chicken breasts and mix well with coconut aminos, arrowroot, baking soda, and salt and pepper. Set aside in the fridge while preparing ingredients listed under “other”. Mix well “Stir-fry sauce” and set aside.
2. Chicken: In a well-heated 12-inch large stainless steel skillet or wok, add 2 tbsp cooking fat of your choice, sear the chicken breasts without disturbing over medium-high heat in one thin layer so to not overcrowd the skillet. Sear until golden brown. Do the same thing for flip side until they are almost cooked through. Cook in separate batches if need be. Set them aside.
3. Combine: Use the same skillet add 2 more tbsp cooking oil. Add garlic, ginger, and white parts of scallions. Season with a pinch of salt and saute until fragrant. Add cabbage stems and carrots. Season with little salt and keep stir-frying until the stems turn slightly softer. Add leafy parts of the cabbage, shiitake, and a dash of broth to lightly deglaze the skillet. Lightly toss the veggies then lower the heat to medium/medium-low and cover with a lid. Cook until the cabbage turns softer but not mushy (about 3-4 mins). Add sauteed chicken and give the stir-fry sauce another stir before adding to the skillet. Toss everything together and serve hot or in room temperature.

Original recipe found here

After hearing from a couple of good friends that this recipe is their favorite, I'm bringing this one back from when I last posted it in 2016. However, for some reason my sauce looks way darker then it did the last time I made it. The only difference this time around was I used my trusty Instant Pot to saute and slow cook in instead of a crock pot, and I left out the Arrowroot Flour. Which now that I write this out, I am sure that Arrowroot Flour would have lightened up the sauce color for sure. I am getting side tracked though. This meal still turned out delicious! I recommend using a can of full fat coconut milk for the most flavor. Garam Masala and Arrowroot Flour are the only ingredients that you may not have in your pantry already. Garam Masala is just a spice that you can find at most grocery stores. You can even search my site for recipes that use the spice to make sure you put it to good use! The Arrowroot Flour is just a thickening agent, which you can totally omit or swap for another thickening agent if you want. I skipped using it this time since the saute mode on the Instant Pot helps reduce/thicken the sauce up. I love these saucey recipes because I can easily heat up or microwave frozen plain cauliflower rice to pair with this, and be done with meal prep. Super easy, super quick, and super delicious! ​

​Slow Cooker Butter Chicken
Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp Organic Coconut Oil
• 3 - 4 whole Garlic, crushed
• 1 whole Onion, diced
• 1 3/4 cup Coconut Milk
• 3/4 cup Tomato Paste
• 2 Tbsp Arrowroot Flour
• 2 tsp Garam Masala
• 1 tsp Curry Powder
• 1/2 tsp ground Ginger
• 1/2 tsp Chili Powder, Add more if you like it hotter
• 1 pinch Sea Salt
• 1 pinch Black Pepper
• 2 1/5 lb Skinless Chicken Breast

Directions:

1. Heat coconut oil in a large saucepan on medium high heat
2. Add onion and garlic, cook, stirring frequently for approximately 3 minutes or until the onions have become translucent.
3. Add coconut milk, tomato paste, arrowroot flour, garam masala, curry powder, ginger powder, and chili powder, stirring until well combined and the sauce has started to thicken. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Add chicken to the slow cooker, then add the sauce and mix through the chicken
5. Cover and cook on low heat for 5 hours. Cover and cook on low heat for 5 hours.
6. Serve with coriander and your favorite side.

Original recipe found here