Paleo Cookbook review/Buffalo Chicken Casserole

Well…if you follow me on instagram, you have seen a handful of meals this week, that I’ve made from ‘Paleo Cookbook‘ by Juli Bauer – otherwise known as PaleOMG! This is her 3rd cookbook and it is AMAZING! If you aren’t familiar with Juli (tho I’m pretty certain everyone is!) she is instafamous and a well known blogger with a huge following and fan base within the paleo community. Juli is one of my favorite bloggers and was actually the first person I followed when I started my paleo lifestyle. She’s so freakin’ cute too! She posted a cute little video on instagram when she received copies of her published cookbook ……..the excitement in her face and her dance moves were absolutely adorable! 

When I received this this cookbook, I couldn’t put it down. I had gotten home just about lunch time and it was on my doorstep….. I was pretty hungry and ready to eat but I couldn’t stop flipping through the pages long enough to make myself some food! It was just that fun to look through! I like to look at pictures and there were so many great shots. I love when a cookbook has a picture with the recipe – and tho my meals don’t always come out looking like the shots in cookbooks, I always like to  have an idea what it’s supposed to look like. 

The first recipe I tried was ‘Honey-Thyme Roasted Acorn Squash’ because of course I had to try something instantly and I had all these ingredients on hand! It was like fall had arrived. I’m pretty sure I’ll be serving these on Thanksgiving. These were easy and so tasty! The combo of sweet and savory….with crunch made these hard to stop at one – but I did because I had to share with my family, otherwise I might have eaten them all!

I love that her recipes don’t call for many ingredients that are hard to find …..and you likely have most of the ingredients in your kitchen already, for a lot of these recipes.

Then there’s this – ‘Blueberry Vanilla Chia PuddingParfaits’! Breakfast or dessert???? Who cares! It’s good…and good for you!!!! Again, I had everything on hand to make these so I prepped at night & it was an easy breakfast treat! If you know anything about me….I’m all about prepping ahead if possible to make weekday meals easy & relatively quick. This pudding can be made ahead of time and put into mason jars for a grab’n’go meal. 

What’s next? –> ‘Marinated Flank Steak, Chimichurri and Cilantro Cauli-Rice’! OMG….this was amazing! I can’t say enough about this meal because you just need to try it and you’ll know — words can’t describe how good it is! I might sound repetitive but again, ingredients you probably already have on hand and it is super simple to make. This meal was done in 30 minutes (aside from marinating)….from start to finish. But it tasted like I had been working on it for hours on end! I’m not gonna lie, I kinda felt like I could have served this at a 5 Star Restaurant (just sayin’) 😛 My hubby had to work so missed out on this meal but I made sure to save some so he could try it. I served it for breakfast and he LOVED!  

‘Moo Shu Pork’ is next! and this definitely didn’t disappoint! I’m embarrassed to say that I have never tried hoisin sauce so wasn’t sure how I’d like it but it was yum and definitely made me feel as though I was eating in a Chinese restaurant. There weren’t leftovers this time as the whole family was home and devoured it! This recipe actually had the Moo Shu Pork wrapped in her tortillas (that are modified for this particular recipe) but I served over cauli-rice as I had some already made up from the night before.  I’m definitely looking forward to trying these out in a wrap next time!

And now for the ‘Buffalo Chicken Casserole’! If you like buffalo sauce/hot wings, you will LOVE this! It mimics her infamous ‘5 Ingredient Pizza Spaghetti Pie’ that she has on her blog. There are a few more than 5 ingredients in this recipe…..which is ok because it really makes it a whole meal with veggies, protein and a spicy kick! I especially love that you put it all together and toss in the oven to bake for an hour so you can get other things done…..or just chillax for a while. No matter which you choose, your house will smell yummy as you anxiously wait for this baby to get out of the oven!

Btw, if you haven’t grabbed the book yet, do so now. If you like easy to follow directions in a recipe, you’ll love this book — if you like great photos in cookbooks, you’ll love this book — and if you like tasty food, you’ll LOVE ‘Paleo Cookbook‘! <— click here to order!

So without further ado – here’s the ‘Buffalo Chicken Casserole’ recipe! Check it out & then go make it! 

Buffalo Chicken Casserole

2015-08-06 21:11:06

Serves 4

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Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

1 hr 50 min

Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

1 hr 50 min

Ingredients

1. 1 medium spaghetti squash (about 2 1/2 pounds)
2. 4 tbsp butter, ghee or coconut oil, divided
3. 2 cloves garlic, minced
4. 1 medium carrot, diced
5. 2 stalks celery, diced
6. 1/2 medium yellow onion, minced
7. 1 small red bell pepper, diced
8. 1 pound ground chicken
9. 1 tsp garlic powder
10. 1 tsp fine sea salt
11. 1/4 tsp black pepper
12. 1 cup hot sauce (I prefer Tessemae's or Franks Red Hot)
13. 1/4 cup Super Simple Mayonnaise (page 274 or store-bought mayo - I use Sir Kensington's or Primal Kitchen Foods)
14. 3 large eggs, whisked
15. chopped scallions for garnish
16. sliced avocados, for garnish

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise. Place the squash cut side down on a baking sheet and bake for 30-35 minutes or until the skin gives when you press your finger to it. Remove the squash from the oven and reduce the temperature to 350 degrees.
3. Grease a Dutch oven or an 8-inch square glass dish with 2 tbsp of the butter.
4. Let the squash cool for 5 minutes, remove the seeds and then use a fork the remove the threads and place them into the greased baking dish.
5. In a large saute pan over medium heat, melt the remaining 2 tbsp of butter. Add the garlic, carrot, celery, onion and bell pepper and cook for about 10 minutes, until the onion is translucent. Add the ground chicken, garlic powder, salt and pepper and cook, using a wooden spatula to break up the chicken into small pieces, until the chicken is no longer pink, about 8 minutes.
6. Remove the pan from the heat, then add the hot sauce and mayo and mix well to combine.
7. Add the chicken mixture to the baking dish and mix well with the spaghetti squash threads. Add the whisked eggs and mix everything together until you can no longer see the eggs.
8. Bake for 1 hour or until the top forms a slight crust that doesn't give when you press it in the middle. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with chopped scallion and avocado slices.

By Juli Bauer - Paleo Cooking

Cocos Paleo Kitchen https://www.cocospaleokitchen.com/