Chicken Sausage Bolognese, by Diane

This recipe comes from @kitchfix and it was a really interesting take on Bolognese sauce with a DIY chicken sausage! It also happened to be paleo, which I was a fan of, although you could easily swap in real cream and parmesan cheese at the end.

This sauce turned out like a rose sauce, slightly creamier than a traditional Bolognese. I found that as instructed the sauce wasn't nearly as flavorful as I was expecting, but I amped the flavors with spices and next time would cook the sausage longer (all listed below). It also came out way to acidic, so I would omit the vinegar next time (I used sugar to balance it out this time). The finished product was really good- I had it with zoodles, and also over sweet potato wedges. Making it again this week!


Ingredients:

For the Chicken Sausage:
1 lb. ground chicken
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp ground fennel seed
1/4 tsp chili flakes
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp each dry oregano and fresh thyme (chopped)

For the Sauce:
1/4 c EVOO
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 small onion, chopped
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp Italian seasoning
64 oz canned crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp. tomato paste
2 tsp red wine vinegar (I would omit this next time as the sauce was so acidic I had to balance out with 1 tbsp. sugar)
1/4 c raw unsalted cashews
1/5 c water
2 tbsp. nutritional yeast
2 tbsp. chopped fresh basil

Directions:

1. Combine all chicken sausage ingredients and set aside.

2. In a large soup pot, heat EVOO over medium high heat and add in onions and garlic. Cook until they start to brown, then add in the chicken sausage, salt, pepper, and seasoning. Cook the sausage until browned as well (this is important for the flavor, and was missing in the recipe!)

3. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, and vinegar and simmer for 30 min.

4. While the sauce simmers, combine cashews, water, and nutritional yeast until completely smooth. It will be liquidy.

5. After 30 min, stir in cashew mixture and basil. Simmer another 5 min and ready to serve.

Egg Roll in a Bowl 2.0, by Diane

This recipe comes from @themovementmenu, and I was intrigued because I loved the past version of this dish but this one had a better sauce. As it turned out, the sauce was pretty gross on this dish per the recipe, but it inspired me to make a much better sauce in the end (my version posted below!). I added shrimp in here too for extra protein, and baby kale instead of cabbage for better nutrients (although as you can see from the photo I needed more than a giant box of it, apparently!). Despite all the twists and turns, this dish was a great hit and I'd definitely make it again now that I know what to do.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. coconut oil
2 tbsp. sesame oil
1 lb. ground chicken
20-30 medium-sized shrimp (deveined and tail off)
1/2 large white onion, sliced into thin rings
2 cups julienned carrots
2 sprigs green onions, green and white parts, chopped
1/2 shallot, sliced into thin rings
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 inch ginger, shredded or minced
2 tbsp. rice vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce (or coconut aminos)
2 boxes baby kale (or, one box plus one small head of thinly sliced green cabbage)
1/4 cup almond or cashew butter
1/4 lime, squeezed
2 tbsp. honey (optional)
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
2 tsp fish sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
Water

Directions:

1. In a large saucepan or wok, heat the coconut and sesame oil. Add the chicken, cook until white, and drain (reserve the liquid and return it to the pan). Set the chicken aside.

2. With the liquid in the pan, cook the shrimp until just pink and no longer translucent. Drain (reserve the liquid again to return to the pan) and combine with the chicken. Set aside.

3. With the liquid back in the pan, add the onion, carrots, green onion, and shallot, and cook until slightly browned. If using cabbage, add in this step.

4. Add in the garlic and ginger, stir, and then add the rice vinegar and soy sauce. Scrape the pan to get all the bits into the sauce.

5. Add the kale and cook until wilted, then add the chicken and shrimp back into the pan. Toss to combine.

6. Make the sauce by adding the almond or cashew butter through fish sauce. Add a splash of water until it reaches a consistency you like and whisk to combine.

7. Drizzle the sauce over the egg roll mixture, and if needed add salt and pepper to taste.