Paleo AND Gluten Free OR Vegan/Vegetarian "Chicken" with Bolognese Sauce and Garlic-Buttered Lemon Broccoli

Paleo, Glegan Dinner in 45 Minutes

That time spent gazing in the fridge wondering what's for dinner...

There's a bag of multi-colored carrots from Trader Joe's that just stares at me every time I open the door. Oooo, there's some left over already skinned, de-boned and sliced rotisserie chicken. For vegan or vegetarian sub not-chicken strips. I just read about spiralizing a potato and there's a potato on the counter. And yissss, I see the left-over bolognese sauce I faked a couple nights ago. (Started with mirepoix, added red wine (cook dry), Better Than Bouillon Beef, red wine vinegar, a half-filled jar of marinara, and cream to taste... a lot, and buzzed in blender. But that's another blog). For vegan/vegetarian sub marinara.

So maybe I could stack a bunch of layers, each with its own flavor. 

• Steamed broccoli with a bit of butter or coconut oil, lemon and S&P. mmmm.
• Love me some orange-glazed carrots, but not the sugar. My hack: add the juice of half an orange (those absolutely to die for Heirloom Oranges you can only get once a year available now for about 5 minutes at Trader Joe's), and after roasting add a few drops of Orange Extract to bump up the flavor. Yes, I have orange extract in my cupboard. I'm pretty much a flavor geek. I don't want the sweet. I want the orange.
• Rotisserie chicken or Chicken-less Strips w. S&P, 'nuff said.
• Bolognese sauce or Marinara, so good.
• Crispy spiralized, garlic roasted potatoes w S&P, just right for the top!

Ends up it's Gluten Free AND Paleo and could be Vegan OR Vegetarian! 




Yum!!!




INGREDIENTS Serves 2

4 C        Broccoli (Fresh)

1 1/3 C  Thinly sliced Carrots (2-3 large carrots)

1 T         Orange Juice

1            Medium Potato washed, not peeled, spiralized

1T+1t     EVOO, divided

5 1/3 oz  Rotisserie Chicken (skinless, de-boned) or Chicken-Less Strips

1/2 C      Bolognese or Marinara Sauce

2 t           Butter or Coconut Oil (for Broccoli after steaming)

1 1/2 T    Lemon Juice (for Broccoli after steaming)

5-7 drops  Orange Extract (for Carrots after roasting)

Few Shakes of Garlic Powder (for Potatoes before roasting & Broccoli after steaming)

Himalayan Pink Salt & Freshly Ground Pepper




INSTRUCTIONS

Set oven to 400 degrees (set to roast if convection)




Sprinkle S&P and EVOO over carrots & potatoes separately

Sprinkle garlic powder over potatoes

Toss both separately

Spread separately in single layer on each half of parchment paper lined cookie sheet or jelly roll pan

Roast carrots & Potatoes together at 400 degrees for a long time to get really brown and crispy maybe 30-40 min. Toss half way through.




Steam Broccoli

After steaming, drain, add butter/coconut oil, lemon juice tiny bit of garlic powder and himalayan pink salt & freshly ground pepper to taste. 




Warm the Bolognese/Marinara Sauce




Warm up rotisserie chicken, keep warm
Or use Chicken-less Strips (needs S&P)

The the carrots and potatoes are done when lightly browned. Sprinkle few drops pf orange extract over carrots right on cookie sheet. Toss gently to distribute flavor




Layer on each of two plates:

Broccoli

Carrots

Chicken

Bolognese Sauce

Potatoes




NOTES




You can scale-up the whole thing for a family and serve it on a platter! So pretty!

You could make the veggie layers anything you want. Just make sure each layer is yummy all by itself! 




2 2/3 oz of chicken may not seem like enough per serving, but it really is, because you'll be full with all the veggies and deliciousness!




Next time for a lower carb version, I'm gonna try crispy spiralized roasted garlic zucchini on the top. I think you'd need to spiralize, salt and drain for at least 15 min, then blot in paper towels to remove excess moisture so they'll crisp up. Just now thought of sprinkling Malt Vinegar on top. mmmm.




OK. Potatoes may not be paleo, so substitute sweet potatoes or zucchini. Next time, I will. Really just wanted to spiralize a potato. :)




What is shown in pic is 1/2 of a medium to large potato, skin on. 




Here's the nutrition info for Chicken/Bolognese version: 

488 cal, Fat: 21g, Carbs: 45g - 9.6g fiber = 35.4g, Protein: 32.1g. (from my Lose It! app).

Subbing Zucchini for Potato yields:
413 cal, fat: 21 g, Carbs: 26.8 - 7g fiber = 19.9g net, Protein: 32.1 g. Wow, 15.5 grams fewer Carbs!