Simple Whole30 Chili

I just realized that I had this shared on my other blog and NOT here, which is geared for WHOLE30 and PALEO stuff ... doh! So, here you go! Enjoy!

Yes, I do have a Whole30 Compliant chili recipe but Hubby isn't a HUGE fan of the chocolate in it ... as minimal as it is ... so when I saw this recipe, I thought, sure, why not, lets give it a whirl.

I'm glad I did!

AND ... it's perfect for the Sunday Soup theme!

Here's how I did it!

2 pounds ground beef (score, I even have marked down grassfed stuff in the freezer!)

1 onion, chopped fine (hubby hates chunky onions)

4 tbs tomato paste (you know to freeze your leftovers in a Ziploc bag and just break off what you need, right?)

3 tbs chili powder

1 tbs garlic powder

2 tbs cumin

1 carton of beef broth

2 14 oz cans of roasted fire roasted tomatoes or just plain diced tomatoes. The fire roasted ones are really worth looking for though, trust me!
generous dash of salt & pepper

In large pot, cook your ground beef and onions til no longer pink.

Drain the excess fat from the pan.

Add the rest of your ingredients and stir well to combine all.

Allow to simmer 45 minutes or so, giving a stir occasionally. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.

NOW.

I had this as just a simple bowl of chili. Topped it with some sliced green onions and a little chopped cilantro.

THEN.

I had this over a bowl of spiralized zucchini ... topped with some diced onions and a squeeze of lime ... oh yeah ...

AND THEN ...

I cooked up some spiralized WHITE sweet potatoes aka HANNAH (them things are HARD to find, by the way!) in some ghee on the stove, laid the taters out on a plate, added the chili and topped with some guacamole and a little salsa ... O M G! That was the BEST!

I need to make these again soon so I can get better pics and share the process!

SWOODLES ... to die for!

See, this Whole30 thing ain't so bad after all, is it?

Looking forward to sharing with some of these GREAT Parties ... go check them out!

*This post may contain affiliate links ... click here to read my disclosure :-)

The Perfect Veggie Dish

A little while ago, I was really, really in to fresh veggies: cucumbers, red peppers, green peppers, red onions, tomatoes, all tossed together with a light dressing.

I would eat that stuff daily.

DAILY

And then, I guess I just got over veggied out. It happens, you know?

But ... it's summertime and the peppers, the cucumbers, the tomatoes, everything looks so dang appealing in the produce stores that I just have to scoop them up ... to hell with the Freezer / Pantry / No Spend Challenge!

I could justify the purchases, honestly.

It is, afterall, Summertime! And that's the time when the full fledge BBQ/Pool/Outdoor parties are kicking in ... and psst ... it's also Whole30/Paleo approved but don't tell no one THAT!

Sunday morning rolled around and Princess and the Boyfriend texted us to say they wanted to maybe come over later in the day to hang out.  Not quite lunch time, not quite dinner time ... 

and because Princess is currently in AA (long story, but for her, alcohol does NOT improve her personal being) I (me, myself AND I) try to eliminate the alcohol factor when she's around, and really stay focused on healthy, happy foods. Well, just because, that's what a mom does to encourage their child, adult or not, to stay focused and on track (right?) ... 

Hence, Veggies.

Good, ripe, in season vegetables.

Lets get to it, shall we?

2 cucumbers (mine were seedless and picked up from ALDI for $1.29 each)

1 red pepper (picked up from Trader Joes, 79 cents a piece)

1/2 red onion (ALDI, 99 cents for 2 pounds)

3 roma tomatoes (picked up from ALDI, like 8 per bag for 99 cents)

3 tbs olive oil (Trader Joes)

2 tbs red wine vinegar (ALDI)

a generous sprinkling of oregano (Costco)

dash of salt and black pepper

Peel them cucumbers, slice in half and half again so you have 4 long spears. Chop up into bite size pieces.  If you have seeds in them and they are really seedy (not in THAT way), scrap the seeds out before cutting up. Toss in a large bowl (which I always, always pick too small of a bowl!)

Cut the red pepper in to bite size pieces and toss in the bowl.

Grab your tomatoes and cut in to 4 wedges. If really juicy, pull out the seeds and juicy stuff and then cut in to bite size pieces.

Dice the red onion in to small pieces. Not, like, tiny pieces, but certainly smaller than bite size ;-) Toss those in the bowl, as well.

Grab a small little bowl and mix up the oil, vinegar, oregano and salt and pepper and then pour that over them fresh veggies. Give it a quick stir to distribute the dressing, put a lid on it, and ideally, let it chill in the fridge for an hour or so. Not necessary, but it does taste even better chilled.

Me? I didn't have time. I was close to lobbing off a finger or two from those secret snatches of the fresh chopped veggies.

Go ahead, give it a try! Those BBQ/Pool/Outdoor parties are coming and you MUST be prepared!

Looking forward to sharing with some of these GREAT Parties ... go check them out!

*This post may contain affiliate links ... click here to read my disclosure :-)