Halfway into 2026. 

It has been a MINUTE since I blogged here and there is just SO much to say its hard to just jump back in with a recipe but 1. this Street Corn Chicken is just TOO good not to share with the people and 2. I honestly missed sharing and writing long form and I am so excited to be back here. 

Instagram has been my home of creativity, posting and writing for the past couple of years, but I feel like there has been much growth, transformation, hard stuff, and life seasons that I wanted to start documenting again. 

The kids are massive, or they feel that way, to compared to where they were the last time I posted here. 

Greyson is almost 10, almost as tall as me and is so smart, sweet and fantastic. He's thriving at church, wants to get into Ninja Warrior and starts a co-op with some of his best friends this summer.

Lexi is in kindergarten (homeschooled of course still) and is my ballerina-gymnast who loves all things music, baking and creative arts - so I basically birthed a mini-me. And I love it! 

Doug and I are still continuing to renovate our 1950's ranch home - trying to make it cozier and more inviting for friends and family more each month.

I'll save my story and updates for another post. Until then, enjoy this delicious southwest inspired dinner. 

Alfredo  is something I have been craving since going dairy-free in 2012. I haven't found a substitute or recipe that satisfied my in almost TEN years.

For a while, a local restaurant had a vegan alfredo that was AMAZING and I was in cream sauce heaven. That was until they decided to discontinue it from the menu, leaving me longing once more. 

I finally got into the kitchen with Grey and together we made this creamy, cheesey, nut-based sauce that was EASY and is now an Italian food staple on our menu. 

*I have had a lot of readers who can't do cashew or nuts and you CAN make this with JUST coconut cream and dairy-free milk. The taste is sweeter than I prefer but it's still creamy and delicious. Always feel free to comment with substitution ideas and I'll get back to you.

This one was the closest to a traditional alfredo when I tried multiple recipes in the kitchen, so I decided to share the cashew based cream sauce. 

​Bon appetite! 

Ingredients
​

• 12 ounces gluten-free fettuccini noodles
• 1 chicken breast, cooked and cut up into bite sized pieces
• 1 1/2 cups raw cashews, unsalted
• 1-2 tablespoons olive or avocado oil
• 1/2 medium sweet onion, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups unsweetened dairy-free milk
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast (more for a cheesier/stronger flavor)
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon sea salt (add more for saltier sauce)

​
Directions

• Cook and chop one chicken breast. Keep warm until sauce and pasta are ready.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil, then add the pasta and cook according to package instructions. Drain, then add it back to the pot and cover until the sauce is done.
• Boil 4 cups of water and pour over cashews. Soak 5-10 minutes. (Do not skip this step! If they aren't soaked or soaked long enough your sauce won't be as creamy!) 
• Meanwhile, heat the oil in a small pan over medium heat. Once hot, add the chopped onion and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes, until fragrant and the onion is translucent.
• Drain the cashews and discard the soaking water. Add them to a blender (I use the Ninja) along with onions, garlic, unsweetened dairy-free milk, nutritional yeast, lemon juice and salt.
• Blend until very smooth.
• Pour the sauce over the pasta and stir. If the noodles are still hot, serve immediately. 
• If the dish needs a warm up, cook when combined over low heat until ready to serve. 

Having entered my second trimester of this pregnancy and feeling better while still being on quarantine from pandemic 2020, it only means one thing - cook and bake all the things. 

With everything having been closed for so long (and with so much still closed), my little guy and I took to a nearby small hike early in the morning before the heat really kicked in and it was exactly what our hearts, souls and bodies needed. We had so much fun and it made him feel so proud to lead the way and make it all the way to the top. 

After a morning hike and lunch smoothies, we played in the sprinklers and sunshine until almost dinner time when I started to prep the enchiladas.

These are so simple to make and I believe my total time in the kitchen was around 40 minutes. We came in around 4 and we were seated and eating by 5. So nice. 

You can serve these alone (we did, with just a side of sliced avocado) - or to make a bigger meal you can add in some jalapeno cornbread, Mexican corn, taco salad or a nice Spanish rice. 

They are also delicious re-heated! We enjoyed them for lunch the next day as well with a nice sparkling water. 

Ingredients

• 2 C cooked and shredded chicken breast (i put two cooked chicken breasts in my Ninja blender for a few seconds, so easy!)
• 8-10 Gluten Free Tortillas (I used GF Mission for these, but you can use Cassava or Coconut Flour tortillas to make these grain free as well. You can also make homemade GF tortillas, my recipe is here.) 
• 2 C. vegan shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 3 TBSP. vegan butter (I use soy-free Earth Balance)
• 3 TBSP. gluten-free flour (I used Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1)
• 2 C. vegetable broth  
• 1 C. vegan sour cream
• 4 oz. organic diced green chiles
• sea salt and black pepper to taste

Directions 

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9x13 baking pan with avocado or olive oil spray. 
• In a medium bowl, mix shredded chicken and 1 C of the vegan mozzarella and add in salt and pepper. 
• Fill your tortillas with the chicken and cheese mixture, roll and place in baking pan. 
• In a small sauce pan, melt your butter. 
• Once melted, add your flour and whisk until warm and bubbling.
• Add in your broth and mix well. 
• Add in sour cream and green chiles and mix until well combined.
• Pour your warm sauce mixture over the tortillas. 
• Top with 1 C. vegan cheese.
• Bake for 20 minutes and serve warm! 

Well. Here we are. Back on the AIP diet.

As hard as this is to work in with a busy schedule, a career and a toddler, I am SO thanfkul to the holistic professionals who found out that this diet is SO healing and SO beneficial to calming our inflammation and auto-immune issues. And PRAISE THE LORD for meal prep. You NEED to be meal prepping. If you ever need help, reach out! I can talk to you about some easy tips. 

I've found for me, it's 100% needed to come back to this from time to time when I feel myself more sluggish, carrying excess water, inflamed or reacting more from cross-contamination. I haven't put many AIP recipes on the blog, because honestly, when I'm on AIP it means I'm not at my best and the energy for recipe creation and promotion usually isn't there. However, I am trying to turn a new leaf. 

I was so blessed in 2012 when this blog really started to take off because of the connections I was making with so many women, men and children who were needing to go gluten free, dairy free or soy free and it made my heart so happy to know I could provide safe and yummy recipes to those who needed them in their season or life of food restriction.

I want to make it a point to add more healing foods, more AIP options and more whole choices when it comes to entrees in 2019/2020. 

The baked goods are pretty and fun guys, but they have their place. And unfortunately their place isn't in my home or body right now. 

For this recipe, I've found it's hard to find organic ground chicken in the stores. If you invest in a meat grinder, you'll be able to grind higher quality poultry to make this recipe.  

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb organic ground chicken
• 1 medium uncooked sweet potato, finely grated (I peeled and cut it and put it in my Ninja)
• 2 Tbsp. grain-free flour (cassava, coconut, tigernut)
• 2 Tbsp avocado oil 
• 1/8 c. chopped chives
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1 Tbsp onion powder
• 1 tsp sea salt 

Optional: You could also add a small amount of grated apple, to make Chicken Apple Nuggets. 

DIRECTIONS:

• Preheat oven to 400 and line a baking sheet with parchment. 
• Combine ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix until well incorporated. 
• Wash hands and using your hands, roll meat and potato mixer into nugget shapes and place on baking sheet. (I needed two baking sheets to fit them all)
• Bake for 25 minutes or until cooked through.
• Serve with AIP friendly guacamole or vegan AIP coconut sour cream.

Have you incorporated an AIP lifestyle? What health changes have you seen? 

If you haven't, leave any questions below and I'd be happy to assist you! It's hard, but so so so so so so so worth it! 

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #MyNutrishDish #CollectiveBias

Spring is in the air and that means time outdoors with the family + crisp, cool recipes.

​Our Miniature Schnauzer Charlie adores this time of year because he knows it means days at the dog park, road trips around the state and exploring the backyard to his little hearts content. I'm also enjoying the slower pace of spring as we are wrapping an issue of the magazine and summer will be a more leisurely time to play with the pups and nest to get ready for baby. 

After spending an early morning at a local farm with the hubs perusing delicious goodies, it was time to return home for lunch and naps with the pup.

Many of you have been asking me, that when I'm not making Charlie's food from scratch, what I feed him. There are many seasons of life where one may not have the resources, the time or the funds to make homemade dog food to keep on hand. It's important to know what brand to trust to make sure your fur babies are getting the best, in not only flavor and texture, but in nutritional value.  It's a delicate balance to ensure they're getting all of what they need. 

We chose the DISH from Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® dry dog food line because, like we do, she uses whole ingredients in her recipes. Our pups are family to us and it's important, knowing what I do about food and what it can do for our bodies, that they also get the best of the best. It's formulated for all size dogs too, which makes it a match for our 13 year old senior lab as well. 

I've been a fan of Rachael's for many years now, the heart she has for dogs and the quality of her product lines. Having my dogs on a wheat and corn free diet (like mama, like pups) I was ecstatic to see this new product emerge. Also free of soy, gluten, by-product, fillers or preservatives, I feel confident in knowing it's a food that can grow with him as he grows from puppy into a little man and into his senior years. 

Once the pup was fed, it was time to whip up something for me and the hubs. With Sunday being our meal prep and plan for the week day, I wanted something cool, quick and easy. So I took cues from Charlie's decadent dish, the DISH Chicken & Brown Rice Recipe with Veggies & Fruit, to create the recipe below for my Spring Chicken Salad.

Using some of the same whole ingredients founds in Charlie's nosh - green apples, cranberries and chicken became the stars of our lunchtime fare. Serving it with my favorite gluten free brown rice crackers gave us the whole grains needed to round out our protein packed meal. 

This salad is cool and refreshing and serves 2. The cranberries offer a welcome sweetness while the tart apple and spring greens lend a nice crunch. 

It was the perfect compliment to the refreshing homemade lemonade we picked up at the farm this morning and I felt good knowing Charlie was enjoying a meal that was also packed with vitamins and minerals that his little energetic, growing body needs. 

If you are wanting to make the switch or want to try DISH from Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® remember to gradually introduce the food by incorporating it into your current dog food over the course of 7-10 days. Slowly replace your dog’s current food with DISH until it’s completely switched over. 

We found it at Target and it was simple to find, located in the Pet Supply and Dog Food section of the store. Many stores carry it, and you can check the store locator for a store near you. 

Charlie adores this food and gets excited for mealtime, which shows me it's an authentic win in our household. 

​And for those of you who know my heart for dogs, Rachael’s personal proceeds are given to Rachael’s Rescue, an organization that was created to help shelter pets in need. She has donated over $10M to date towards food, medical supplies and treatments for these unfortunate animals. A win/win for my dogs and those without a home. 
​

Have you tried DISH from Rachael Ray™ Nutrish®?  Or, do you have an adorable photo of your pup to share with me? Leave it in the comments below or contact me. Seriously can never have enough cute dog photos on the internet in my opinion. 

Do you have a favorite quick and easy go-to spring salad recipe? I'd love to try + taste! Share below!