Restarting

I'll be honest with you. I have failed on Whole30. I really don't like it. It's restrictive and boring. I know, I know. You were going to say there's hundreds of things I could eat, right?! Yes, but my body wasn't really responding to it. Still too high in sugar, I guess.

So I'll stick with the sugar detox, thank you very much. I started that yesterday, we'll see how it goes! I've liked it in the past.

I made a couple of new recipes today. Do you like the pics? I got a new iPhone 6s and the camera is a noticeable improvement! The chicken piccata is gluten free, dairy free, Paleo, and Whole30. But definitely not flavor-free. Bursting with a light, lemony flavor, it invokes dreams of summer. The spaghetti squash isn't dairy free but could easily be made without the cheese.

Chicken Piccata

Serves 4

• 2-3 chicken breasts, filleted or pounded thin
• 1/4 cup arrowroot starch, divided (or cornstarch or rice flour, whatever you'd like)
• 4 T olive oil
• 2 T butter or ghee
• 2 T lemon juice
• 2 T capers, drained
• 1 c chicken broth
• 1/4 c white wine
• 4 T fresh parsley, chopped fine
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Lemons, thinly sliced

- Sprinkle several tablespoons of arrowroot on a small plate. Dredge filleted chicken breasts in the starch
- Heat olive oil in a large frying pan
- Fry chicken breasts until cooked through and golden brown
- Remove breasts to a paper towel lined plate to drain
- To frying pan, add butter and 2 T more arrowroot starch, to form a roux
- Add white wine and cook for several minutes to burn off the alcohol
- Add lemon juice, capers, and chicken stock to pan and whisk till slightly thickened (you can add more stock if the sauce is too thick)
- Add chicken back to pan and heat to simmering
- Lay lemon slices on top and sprinkle with parsley. Serve hot over pasta or zoodles or the spaghetti squash below!

Bacon and Romano Spaghetti Squash
Serves 4

1 large spaghetti squash

4-6 slices bacon
1/2 cup fresh spinach
1 T olive oil
3 T grated Romano cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste

- Cut spaghetti squash in half. Place in baking pan, open side down, with 1 cup of water in bottom
- Bake squash at 400 degrees for 30-45 minutes, until tender but not mushy
- Meanwhile, fry bacon in a frying pan. Drain on a paper towel and chop roughly
- Once squash is cooked, take a fork and scrape out into a bowl
- Add olive oil to fry pan and saute spinach until just wilted.
- Add squash, bacon, cheese, and salt and pepper to the spinach. Toss to coat and serve hot