Today marks day 4 of the January Whole30 and so far things have been great! While I’ve had some cravings (I’m lookin’ at you cheese and chocolate) things haven’t been too bad. We’ll see how the next few weeks go, but for now I’m enjoying the healthier foods and testing my willpower. I’ll do an official Whole30 checkin at the halfway point, so keep an eye out for that! I’ll be sharing how things are going and what I’ve been eating.
BUT if you want to keep up with all the fun Whole30 shenanigans, check out my Instagram stories! I’m sharing how my days are going, every meal I eat (to keep me accountable, and because people voted and said they wanted to know – ha!) and how I’m balancing life as a breastfeeding mom, working out and doing the Whole30. It’s a mess, but a fun crazy one.
As for today’s recipe, I’m SO excited to share it with you. I had a random craving for some chicken spaghetti the other day and decided to try my hand at making a Whole30 version of it. While yes, it does lack the gooey creaminess you get with cheese, it’s packed full of flavor, makes a TON of food (I’ve been eating on it for a few days now) and is hubby approved.
I made my favorite cashew cream sauce, some homemade “Rotel tomatoes” and used spaghetti squash in lieu of pasta. While I cooked the chicken myself, you could also use a Whole30 compliant rotisserie chicken instead to make the recipe even easier. I definitely foresee us making this delicious chicken spaghetti (squash) time and time again!
Printingredients
- 3 chicken breasts
- 1 large spaghetti squash
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 pint cherub tomatoes, diced
- 1 bell pepper (or 3 jalapenos if you want more spice), diced
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 cup mushrooms, diced
- 1 cup cashews
- 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (if not using jalapenos)
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp thyme
- Salt & pepper to taste
Directions
- Preheat oven to 375. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
- Cut the spaghetti squash in half with a large knife, and scoop out the seeds with a spoon. Drizzle each half with 1/2 Tbsp olive oil, and brush it to coat the entire squash.
- Fill a glass dish with 1/2 cup water in the bottom, then place the squash in the dish. Bake for 45 min- 1 hr or until the squash is tender and can be shredded with a fork.
- Meanwhile cook the chicken breasts in the water until the internal temperature reaches 165, about 15-20 minutes. Once they are done, remove and set aside.
- In a large skillet, heat the other Tbsp of olive oil. Cook the tomatoes, onion and bell pepper (or jalapenos) until the tomatoes are soft and the onions are translucent. Add the mushrooms and continue to cook for another 10 minutes.
- Shred the chicken breasts and add to the skillet.
- In a blender cup or food processor, blend together 1 cup of cashews and 1 1/2 cups of chicken broth until totally smooth. Pour into the skillet, and mix together. Add more liquid until desired “sauce” consistency has been reached.
- Season with paprika, cayenne, garlic powder, thyme, salt and pepper.
- Shred the squash with a fork so it resembles “spaghetti”. Place all the spaghetti squash in the glass dish. Top with the chicken and veggie mixture, and bake for 10 minutes to help blend the flavors and to make sure everything is nice and warm.
- Enjoy! Store leftovers in glass containers for up to 5 days in the fridge.
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