Butternut Squash, Kale, and White Bean Lasagna Soup

Butternut Squash, Kale, and White Bean Lasagna Soup - Made with less than 10 ingredients - sure to be a dinner staple during the wintertime. 

Ever since I made Pioneer Woman's lasagna soup ten years ago, I never got back to the normal way of making lasagna. When you find an easier, more efficient way of making something, why turn back? Amiright!? 

So to switch up the classic take on lasagna soup, I made it winter-inspired using butternut squash, kale, and white beans. For this recipe, I used spicy sausage but if you are plant-based, you can simply switch out for vegan sausage or an extra can of white beans. 

This lasagna soup is made with less than 10 ingredients, using one pot, and finished in under 30 minutes! So for my busy mom’s out there, this one's for you! 

Most of you know, I am a huge fan of Banza pasta! So to make this lasagna soup gluten-free, I used their brand spanking new line of lasagna noodles! With nearly two times the protein, three times the fiber, and nearly 30% fewer net carbs - it’s crazy how you can’t even tell the difference from traditional lasagna noodles!

If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo to #fromtherootsblog on Instagram. We love seeing what you come up with! 

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Butternut Squash, Kale, and White Bean Lasagna Soup - Made with less than 10 ingredients - sure to be a dinner staple during the wintertime. 

Ingredients: 

• 1 container lasagna noodles (uncooked)

• 1 can 28oz crushed fire-roasted tomatoes

• 1 container (4 cups low-sodium chicken stock) or veggie stock

• 1 can white beans (rinsed and drained)

• 1 container (16oz) spicy sausage or vegan sausage/extra can of beans

• 2 cups fresh kale (destemmed)

• 1 white onion (diced)

• 4 cloves garlic (minced)

• 1 butternut squash (about 1 ½ cups) cubed

• Dash or 3 of red pepper flakes

• 1 tsp salt

• ½ tsp pepper

Directions: 

1. Heat about 1 tbsp olive oil in a dutch oven or heavy-bottomed stockpot over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook until brown (about 5-8 minutes). Place sausage on a paper towel covered plate to absorb excess grease. 

2. While the pot has oil and grease from the sausage, add the butternut squash, and cook, turning occasionally, until just beginning to caramelize and soften (about 5 minutes). Add the onion and garlic to the pot, and cook until soft and translucent. 

3. Add the sausage back to the pot and add tomatoes, chicken stock, seasonings, and lasagna noodles (may have to break noodles into thirds to fit into the pot. If you think you need more liquid, add about 1-2 cups of stock or water. 

4. Cover, and bring the stock just to a boil, then turn the heat down to low-medium. Let simmer uncovered for about 15-20 minutes. Season with additional salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste. 

5. Add white beans and torn kale leaves, and continue to simmer until warmed through, about 5-7 minutes. Serve warm with crusty bread and enjoy! Great to garnish with fresh basil and additional red pepper flakes too.  Makes about 4 servings. 

Rosemary & Red Wine-Braised Short Ribs

Rosemary & Red Wine-Braised Short Ribs - These tender wine-braised short ribs will soon be your go-to for healthy comfort food. Ribs braised in a dutch oven and served over brown butter sage mashed sweet potatoes - can’t beat it!

‘Tis the season for comfort food, chaotic schedules, and holiday parties. What better dish to appease all three things than a staple braised short rib recipe, amiright?! That’s why I created a dish that requires one pot, very few ingredients (and most you will have on hand), and high-quality meat that is cooked in less time than most short rib recipes. 

In my opinion, braising short ribs is the way to go if you want to develop the best flavor!

The Art of Braising

1. SALT - Salt your meat generously on all four sides and let sit overnight or salt at least 30 min to 3 hours in the fridge. The longer the better! 

2. BROWN - Heat a cast-iron skillet on medium-high heat using quality oil. Sear meat on all four sides until you get a nice browning. More space between meat gets it brown(er). 

3. BUILD - Layer ingredients in the pan. I.e. use deglazing liquid from browned meat plus water/stock, add the meat back in, aromatics, and herbs. 

I paired these short ribs with my favorite brown butter sage mashed sweet potatoes but you can use any side dish you like! 

If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo to #fromtherootsblog on Instagram. We love seeing what you come up with! 

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Rosemary & Red Wine-Braised Short Ribs - These tender wine-braised short ribs will soon be your go-to for healthy comfort food. Ribs braised in a dutch oven and served over brown butter sage mashed sweet potatoes - can’t beat it!

Ingredients

• 3.5 lbs bone-in short ribs (use 3 lbs if using boneless beef short ribs)

• 1 can (28 oz) fire-roasted diced tomatoes

• 1 large white onion (sliced)

• 4 cloves garlic (minced)

• 2 cups organic low-sodium beef broth

• 2 cups red wine (cabernet sauvignon)

• 2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

• 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

• 1 Tbsp low-sodium Worcestershire sauce

• 1 Tbsp light brown sugar

• 4-6 fresh rosemary sprigs

• S&P to season to taste

Directions

1. Generously season your meat on all four sides with salt and pepper and let sit overnight or for at least 30 minutes to 3 hours in the fridge. The longer the better. 

2. Heat oil in dutch oven or cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. 

3. Add short ribs to hot oil and sear for 3-4 minutes per side until browned. Try not to move the short ribs once you put them down and make sure they have space between the meat. 

4. Remove the short ribs from dutch oven/skillet and set aside. They won't be fully cooked yet, and that’s okay!

5. Return dutch oven to stovetop and lower temperature to medium heat. Add sliced onions and minced garlic. If the pan looks too dry, add another splash of olive oil. Saute until onion is translucent, about 2-3 minutes. 

6. Add the broth and wine to deglaze the dutch oven. Make sure to scrape down any browned bits off the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. 

7. Add the rest of the ingredients (tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, sauce, brown sugar, rosemary sprigs, and S&P) along with the short ribs and mix until combined. Once the mixture is boiling, bring the heat down to low medium and cover the dutch oven with a tight-fitting lid. 

8. Cook on stovetop for 2 hours - 2 hours and 30 minutes or until short ribs easily pull apart with tongs/ fork or the meat is falling off the bone. 

9. Serve short ribs with reserved leftover broth over mashed potatoes or over brown butter sage mashed sweet potatoes. 

10. Garnish with fresh rosemary and pomegranate arils for a festive look!

Notes

• No dutch oven? That’s okay! The crockpot will do the trick. Just simply brown short ribs in a skillet and then transfer all ingredients along with short ribs in crockpot and cook on low for 7-8 hours. 

• If you do not wish to use wine or have it on hand, you can sub out the 2 cups of wine with more beef broth or use cranberry/cherry juice! The flavors will be different but still very tasty. 

Creamy Tomato Pesto Soup

Creamy Tomato Basil Soup - The creamiest, richest soup you have ever had that’s dairy-free! 

During the colder months, my mother would make homemade creamy tomato soup with grilled cheese. I’m not much of a soup person, but it was MY FAVORITE! Ever since then, I still drool dream about it to this day! What takes her soup above the rest is love (obviously), fresh herbs, and heavy cream. Well since heavy cream is a no go for this gut, I made a few changes to the recipe. 

It’s a very simple recipe, actually. If you are crunched for time and need to have soup asap, (because, don’t we all?) then you will only need five ingredients to make this soup. But, if you really want to make your mom’s old recipe jealous, whip up a quick pesto drizzle as a garnish. Dipping your dairy-free/gluten-free grilled cheese in that winning combination will not disappoint your taste buds, trust me.

For this recipe, if you are wanting a smooth, “bisque” texture, I would recommend getting a blender or immersion blender. Now, onto the recipe! 

If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo to #fromtherootsblog on Instagram. We love seeing what you come up with! 

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Creamy Tomato Basil Soup - The creamiest, richest soup you have ever had that’s dairy-free! 

Makes 4-6 servings

Ingredients: 

• 1 white onion (sliced)

• 4 cloves garlic (smashed)

• 1 Tbsp grass fed butter (or ghee, coconut oil)

• 5-8 sprigs fresh oregano (strip leaves from the stem)

• 1 can (28 oz) fire roasted organic crushed tomatoes 

• 1 can lite coconut milk unsweetened

Pesto drizzle

• 1 bunch (.75 oz package) fresh basil

•  ¼ cup oil

• 4 cloves garlic

• 1 Tbsp feta (or DF cheese)

Directions: 

1. In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and saute until translucent. Add can of tomatoes, oregano, and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes or until slightly thickened. 

2. To make the pesto drizzle, add basil, garlic, and feta to a processor. While the processor is on low, pour the oil through the feed tube gradually. Scrape down the sides and add more oil if necessary. Season to taste with salt and pepper and transfer to a small bowl. If you do not have a processor, finely chop ingredients and combine in a small bowl.

3. Transfer tomato mixture to a blender and process until smooth (remember, mixture is hot!). Alternatively, use an immersion blender, process until smooth.  

4. With soup over low heat, add coconut milk. Season to taste with sea salt, pepper, and optional red pepper flakes. 

When ready to serve, drizzle pesto and/or additional coconut milk and serve! 

Notes: 

• I love using this brand for organic canned tomatoes.

Baked Hot Chicken

A healthier twist on the classic Nashville hot chicken. Baked, gluten-free, dairy-free, and full of spicy flavors!

Living so close to Nashville, it’s imperative that you get Nashville hot chicken; it’s a cardinal sin if you don’t! As I’m getting older, my body takes a little longer to recover from all the grease and gluten. I mean, YOLO when you can but sometimes it takes a toll on your body!

What’s my solution? I created a healthier twist on the beloved hot chicken. I use coconut oil to decrease the amount of grease. I also chose to bake the chicken. That way, I’m only dying to get seconds and thirds instead of just dying from the grease! So, let’s talk about this chicken!

The trick to getting chicken moist and flavorful is all in the marinade. Typically, buttermilk is used in creating a moist chicken (sorry for using moist three times!). However, I used almond milk to keep this recipe dairy-free. The trick here is to add lemon juice or apple cider vinegar to the plant-based milk of your choice. The acidity helps to thicken and basically curdle the almond milk. You won’t even notice a lack of buttermilk, and when you add it all with pickle juice and lots of seasonings, you get an awesome Nashville hot chicken!

The breading is simple using a gluten-free baking flour. Lightly coat/spray the chicken with coconut or avocado oil to crisp the outer coat. Chicken thighs are best with this recipe as the skin releases mouthwatering juices into the meat underneath as it cooks. The skin also protects the meat from direct heat, which helps the thighs to cook gently and to retain its moisture.

A complexity of sweet and spicy flavors are incorporated into the hot chicken. What really takes the chicken over the top is using honey infused with chili peppers. I love using this brand as you can find it in most grocery stores!

If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo to #fromtherootsblog on Instagram. We love seeing what you come up with!

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Ingredients

• 2 lbs chicken thighs

• 3 Tbsp pickle juice

• 1 cup GF baking flour

• Hot sauce (optional)

• Coconut oil or avocado oil

Buttermilk mixture

• 1 cup unsweetened plant based milk (almond)

• 1 Tbsp ACV or fresh lemon

Seasonings

• 1 Tbsp cayenne

• 1 Tbsp smoked paprika

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• 1 tsp onion powder

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 tsp creole seasoning

• 1 tsp sugar

• ½ tsp black pepper

• Dashes of red pepper flakes

Directions

1. To make the “buttermilk”, add vinegar to the milk and sit for 10 minutes or until milk mixture is curdled/activated.

2. Whisk all seasonings together in a small bowl. Remove ¾ of seasoning mixture and coat the chicken thighs inside a Ziploc bag. Add the “buttermilk” mixture along with pickle juice and a couple dashes of hot sauce (optional). Toss to coat and refrigerate for 2 hours or up to overnight.

3. When ready to cook, preheat oven to 425 degrees.

4. Prepare the flour mixture by whisking ¼ of seasoning mixture to 1 cup GF baking flour.

5. Working with one piece of chicken at a time, dredge chicken into flour mixture both sides and place chicken on a baking rack. Repeat until all chicken is coated.

6. Spray or brush tops of chicken with melted coconut oil or avocado oil.

7. Bake chicken for 20-25 minutes. Take chicken out and coat tops with hot sauce (optional). Flip the chicken and spray or brush bottom of chicken with oil until coated.

8. Place back in the oven and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes or until chicken reaches and internal temperature of 165 degrees.

9. Let chicken cool for 5 minutes and then drizzle honey with infused chili peppers (optional but so worth it!)

Turkey Taco Spaghetti Squash Boats

Turkey taco spaghetti squash boats is a great recipe to make for a guilt-free, low carb taco night. Perfect for meal preps and a hit among kids!

When I think of spaghetti squash, I think spaghetti = Italian, right? So, that is pretty much all I have done when cooking spaghetti squash. I have made shrimp alfredo, chicken parmesan, and the classic marinara to name a few, but it never occurred to me to use spaghetti squash in a different way. After posting a poll on my IG, it turns out many of you would like to see how spaghetti squash can be used for a Mexican inspired dish!

Needless to say, after experimenting I was surprised at how spaghetti squash and Mexican flavors paired so well together! My husband was hesitant at first but it was love at first bite for him -- he now asks for these squash boats every week!

Hey, if I can make this every week then I would be happy as a clam. For a #tacotuesdaynight, it has to be the easiest recipe to bake while preparing the toppings. While your spaghetti squash is cooking, you are preparing the meat mixture that goes inside the boats while prepping all the fun and healthy toppings. As soon as your boats are done baking, add all your favorite toppings and dig in! And the best thing when you’re done eating? You don’t have as many dishes to wash!!

You can make this recipe kid-friendly by omitting/using less of the spicier seasonings. Other than that, these squash boats would be great to add to your taco night! With that said, you will find that this recipe can be customized to your preference. For example, in my hubby’s boat, I added extra beans and cheese while my boat sticks to the recipe but with 5 maybe 20 dashes of hot sauce (love my spicy food)!

If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo to #fromtherootsblog on Instagram. We love seeing what you come up with!

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Turkey taco spaghetti squash boats is a great recipe to make for a guilt-free, low carb taco night. Perfect for meal preps and a hit among kids!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb lean ground turkey

• 3 cloves garlic

• 2 cans low-sodium black beans ((drained/rinsed))

• 1 large spaghetti squash

• 1 cup fresh salsa or pico de gallo*

• 1 tsp each garlic powder, ground cumin, and chili powder

• 1/2 tsp each smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, and salt

• 1/4 tsp pepper

• couple dashes of red pepper flakes

Toppings

Lime wedges, fresh salsa, pico de gallo*, romaine lettuce, cheese, avocado, cilantro, jalapenos, peppers, hot sauce

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Slice squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds.

2. Drizzle halves with olive oil and season with S&P. Place squash cut side down on baking sheet and roast for 45-50 minutes. When done, use a fork to scrape out the squash flesh.

3. While your spaghetti squash is cooking, make the meat mixture.

4. Drizzle oil in a skillet on medium-high heat. Add the minced garlic to the skillet and saute for about 2 minutes or until fragrant. Add the ground turkey and cook until slightly pink, then add all of your seasonings, fresh salsa, and black beans.

5. Turn the heat off and set meat mixture to the side.

6. Transfer cooked squash flesh to the meat mixture and combine. At this point, taste mixture to see if you need to add more S&P/seasonings/hot sauce for personal preference.

7. Transfer squash mixture to your now scraped spaghetti squash bowls and top with optional cheese.

8. Bump up the oven temperature to 400 degrees and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes until your cheese is nice and bubbly or your naked boat is nice and warm.

9. Top with your favorite toppings and enjoy!

NOTES

1. Pro tip: Place the whole squash in the microwave for 5 minutes for an easier slice!

2. Pico de gallo recipe

3. If you are using a smaller spaghetti squash, then use just 1 can black beans.