This post is part of a series called What’s for Dinner?, in which I invite my favorite bloggers, business owners and online personalities to share with you their own go-to recipes, the favorite meals, snacks, drinks they make over and over again. You’ll get to meet some of my online friends, and we’ll all get some new (fantastic) recipes to try!
My guest blogger today, Aileen Swenson of Nourishing Happiness, is a wealth of knowledge about the science behind how the nutrition in your food (or lack thereof) affects your physical and mental health.
Aileen lives in my hometown of Winona, Minnesota, and is a passionate advocate for improving your mental health—and happiness—by feeding your body the nutrients it needs to function optimally. What struck me most about Aileen when I first met her was the boundless energy and passion she brings to the topic of food, nutrition and well-being—it’s palpable when you’re in a room with her, and you can feel it in the words she writes on her blog.
Those who love making things from scratch like me will love Aileen’s recipe collection—she makes her own yogurt, sour cream, kombucha, ranch dressing and more! I can’t wait to try her recipe for DIY sour cream.
And with that, I’ll hand the reins over…
What’s for dinner, Aileen?
Blue Cheese Chicken Divine offers a fancier, more sophisticated, taste in my simple meat and fauxtatoes (cauliflower “mashed potatoes”), GAPS healing, kid-friendly world. It is the first recipe submitted by a Happy Nourisher to be converted into a GAPS healing one. GAPS (Gut and Psychology/Physiology Syndrome) promotes healing of many mental and physical illnesses via a grain-free, sugar-free, real food diet infused with delicious broths, fats, ferments, and juicing. My six kiddos love this recipe!
Aileen’s Go-To Recipe: Blue Cheese Chicken Divine
1 butternut squash, peeled and cubed- 2 tablespoons lard* or butter, melted
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ cup lard* or butter
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 cup bone broth
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice (juice of 1 lemon)
- 1 teaspoon rosemary
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 cup Parmesan or other white cheese, grated
- ½ cup blue cheese, crumbled
- ½ cup homemade sour cream or cream cheese (drained homemade yogurt)
- 1 bag fresh baby spinach
- 2-3 cups cooked chicken, cubed
Coat butternut squash with lard or butter, sea salt, and pepper. Bake in oven at 450 degrees Fahrenheit for about 15-20 minutes until slightly crispy. On stovetop, sauté onions in lard or butter until onions are clear. Add broth, lemon juice, spices, cheeses, cream, and spinach. Simmer until spinach looks wilted. Add chicken and baked butternut squash cubes. Serve over spaghetti squash noodles, caulifried rice, or plain cauliflower rice. Enjoy!
* I render lard from fat from pigs (fed no GMOs) from a local farmer. Check out my video on rendering lard. Most commercial lards are hydrogenated, thus are an unhealthy processed factory fat that our bodies do not recognize as food. You matter! Eating real farm fats matters! Check your local farmer’s market, co-op, or WAPF local chapter to find an organic pig farmer near you.
Aileen Swenson, Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, Certified GAPS™ Practitioner, and creator/blogger of Nourishing Happiness, promotes healing and happiness through cooking and information classes, both group and individual. Her heartwarming children’s books, Moby’s First Day of Kindergarten and Moby’s First Day of Summer Vacation, encourage autism acceptance, peer advocacy, and eating real food. Connect with Aileen on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, WordPress, and Google+.
