We’re back with another installment in our Guest Blogger Wednesday Series! Today we’d like to introduce you to the adorable Megan of Freckled Italian and Cave Girl Consulting. Megan creates some awesome, simple paleo meals, and her recipes are perfect for families and beginners in the paleo lifestyle. With her consulting company, Megan helps clients transitioning to paleo with a personalized approach, where those interested in changing to the grain-free life can get a tour guide and expert to help them navigate their lifestyle changes.
With this recipe, Megan demonstrates a great principal of changing your diet for the better, without having to sacrifice the flavors you love. We do this all the time with our recipes – we keep all the major flavor components of a classic favorite, and just change around a few things to make it paleo. It satisfies the craving without having to compromise on ingredients!
♥♥♥
I pretty much love everything about being Paleo, but when I gave up grains, dairy, and sugar I had no idea that I would go through phases where, three years later, all I want out of life is some non-Paleo food that I didn’t even care about before. Like muffins, or pizza. I know that everyone loves pizza on some level, but I just don’t remember ever adoring it or anything; so you can imagine my surprise when I woke up one morning a few weeks ago and wanted nothing more than a huge slice. For breakfast, lunch, dessert, whatever—I just “needed” it.
Luckily, Minneapolis is chock-full of places that honor gluten-free diets, so I was able to satisfy my craving in a pinch, but what if I don’t want to eat rice flour or xantham gum or whatever else it is that they put in gluten-free bread and pizza crust? I am often telling my Cave Girl clients to stop worrying about all the things they “can’t” have, and to start focusing on flavors. It’s fun to experiment and recreate the things you love about non-Paleo dishes in a Paleo way.
Enter the idea for pizza chicken! It might not actually be pizza, but it’s Paleo-friendly and has lots of delicious pizza flavors. Come on, we can do anything!
Ingredients
- 1.5 pounds of chicken (you can use thighs or breasts, it doesn’t matter)
- About 3 ounces of pepperoni
- Half of an onion, diced
- A couple tablespoons of olive oil
- One teaspoon of garlic powder
- One and a half teaspoons of dried oregano
- About half of a 28 ounce jar or can of marinara sauce (make sure there’s no sugar or corn syrup)
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Dried or fresh parsley for garnish
Instructions
- In a large pan or skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and sauté.
- Slice or cut up the pepperoni and add to the pan.
- Place the chicken in the pan and brown on one side. Flip and cover in marinara. Season with the garlic powder, oregano, salt, and pepper.
- Turn heat to low and cook for 10-15 minutes, or until cooked through (time will depend on the thickness of the chicken—just slice one open to be sure it’s done).
- Serve hot with a serving of vegetables—zucchini noodles would be perfect to sop up any extra sauce!
Notes
You can add any other pizza toppings to the sauce—I think black olives would be fabulous in this, but my husband doesn’t like them so I left them out (this time)! Have fun with it, and enjoy.
Connect with Megan!
Website
Blog
Cave Girl Consulting
Freckled Italian Facebook
Cave Girl Consulting Facebook
Twitter
[author] [author_image timthumb=’on’]http://paleoparents.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Meagan-square.jpg[/author_image] [author_info]Megan Flynn Peterson is a blogger and self-proclaimed foodie with dreams of a literary life. She has a master’s in Children’s Literature and an affinity for cultural studies, good food, bookstores, and those first few weeks of autumn. She runs a consulting business called Cave Girl, where she advises people on all things Paleo. Her hobbies include running, cooking, taking photos, crying over her favorite music, and blogging away at Freckled Italian.You can also find her on The Eighty Twenty, an online magazine for women who lean toward the Paleo lifestyle. She currently resides in Minneapolis with her husband, where she drinks coffee, writes personal essays, and tries to keep the house clean.[/author_info] [/author]
