Name: One-Pan Chicken and Rice Recipe
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 4 pieces chicken (I use bone-in skin-on chicken thighs); salt and black pepper, to taste; 1 tablespoon avocado or olive oil; 1 yellow onion, chopped; 3 garlic cloves, minced; 1 cup uncooked long grain white rice; 2 cups chicken or vegetable broth; 1 tablespoon lemon juice; fresh chopped parsley, for serving

Desserts

Healthy (& vegan!) Pumpkin Spice Latte

By Samantha Russo October 26, 2022

Learn how to make the best vegan pumpkin spice latte at home! Better (and cheaper) than Starbucks, my pumpkin spice latte recipe is delicious, completely vegan, and refined sugar-free.

vegan pumpkin spice latte being poured into a mug

Ahh, the pumpkin spice latte. It’s perhaps the most beloved beverage of the Fall season, and for good reason! It’s deliciously sweet and spicy, and cozying up with one on a cool Fall day just feels right. People seem to really love the Starbucks version, but it’s loaded with sugar, sodium, preservatives and other ingredients, which you can see here. It’s also super expensive (almost $6 for a venti), so making this healthier version at home just seems like the better option!

What You’ll Need to Make a Healthy Vegan Pumpkin Spice Latte

Milk: Regular milk works fine, but I used almond milk. Check out the section below for alternative dairy options.

Pumpkin Puree: Sweet and savory, pumpkin puree plays a starring role in Thanksgiving desserts and drinks, including this fall-favorite latte. Make sure you’re buying pure pumpkin puree, and not pumpkin pie filling!

Maple Syrup: My pumpkin spice latte recipe only uses natural maple syrup to sweeten it, instead of refined sugars.

Vanilla Extract: Many recipes do not call for vanilla, but to me, it’s a must for added depth of flavor.

Pumpkin Pie Spice: Pumpkin pie spice is a delicious combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, an allspice that works really well with this recipe.

Espresso or Strong Coffee: If you need a major boost to get you going in the morning, I definitely suggest making this with 2 shots of espresso, but brewed, strong coffee works fine too!

two pumpkin spice lattes in mugs with a mini pumpkin on the side.

Adjust This Recipe to Your Dietary Needs

Make it Dairy-Free: You can use regular milk if you’d like, but for this recipe I used almond milk. Others prefer coconut milk or oatmilk – the choice is yours!

Make it Caffeine-Free: If you need caffeine-free, use your favorite strong decaf variety.

Tips on Making Pumpkin Spice Latte

You can use granulated organic sugar instead of maple syrup if you don’t want to go the refined sugar-free route.

If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice, you can use ½ teaspoon cinnamon and a pinch each of nutmeg, ground ginger and ground cloves.

overhead image of two pumpkin spice lattes with cinnamon sticks on top.

5 from 1 vote

Pumpkin Spice Latte (Vegan, Refined Sugar-Free)

Learn how to make the best vegan pumpkin spice latte at home! Better (and cheaper) than Starbucks, my vegan pumpkin spice latte recipe is delicious, much easier and quicker to make, and completely vegan and refined sugar-free.

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 5

Total Time: 10

Servings: serving

Ingredients

2 cups milk I used almond milk
2 tablespoons pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons maple syrup or any liquid sweetener
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
2 shots espresso or ½ cup hot coffee

Instructions

Heat milk in a small saucepan over low heat.
Once simmering, add in the pumpkin puree, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and pumpkin pie spice. Whisk vigorously for about 30 seconds or until frothy then remove from heat.
Divide the espresso or coffee between two mugs, then pour the pumpkin-spiced milk over the top.

Video

Notes

Optional: top it off with vegan whipped cream or a cinnamon stick!

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving

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30 Minutes or Less

One-Pan Chicken and Rice Recipe

By Samantha Russo October 3, 2022

Quick, easy, and super delicious one-pan chicken and rice! Full of flavor, with a handful of simple ingredients you likely already have on hand. This chicken and rice recipe is the perfect weeknight meal, ready in just 30 minutes!

overhead image of chicken and rice on a plate with lemon, parsley, and white wine on the side.

What You’ll Need to Make This Chicken and Rice Recipe

Chicken – Any piece of chicken will work in this recipe! I used skin-on bone-in chicken thighs, because they pack in tons of delicious flavor. However, feel free to use chicken breasts for a healthier option, or chicken legs if that’s what you have handy.

White Rice – The rice in this recipe must specifically be long grain white rice. Other rices will have a different cook time/method, and simply won’t work. I used this brand of organic long grain white rice, but any will work!

Broth – Either chicken or vegetable broth will taste great! Though if you don’t have broth, you can use 2 cups of water plus one chicken or vegetable bouillon cube instead.

chicken and rice in a pan with a serving spoon.

Tips and Tricks

I recommend a large skillet with high sides and a tight fitting lid for this chicken and rice recipe. Since everything gets cooked in the same skillet, make sure the one you use is large enough to fit all ingredients! I use and looooove my Always Pan – I can’t recommend it enough.
You can make this in your Instant Pot if you’d like! To do that, sear the chicken then cook the onion and garlic on the saute setting. Then, add in all remaining ingredients, secure lid, and set to manual high pressure for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, your chicken should be cooked through, and your rice fluffy!

close-up image of chicken and rice in a pan with lemon slices on top.

Adjust This Recipe To Your Dietary Needs

Make it Gluten-Free: While this recipe is already both gluten and dairy-free, I always recommend double checking your rice to make sure it’s 100% gluten-free. Most rice is, but some contain trace amounts of gluten.

Make it Paleo/Grain-Free: For a paleo chicken and “rice” recipe, replace the white rice with cauliflower rice. To do this, reduce the amount of broth you use to just 1/4 cup, then cover skillet and cook until the chicken is cooked through.

One-Pan Chicken and Rice Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Recipe by Samantha Course: DinnerDifficulty: Easy

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

5

minutes

Cooking time

25

minutes

Total time

30

minutes

Quick, easy, and super delicious one-pan chicken and rice! Full of flavor, with a handful of simple ingredients you likely already have on hand. This chicken and rice recipe is the perfect weeknight meal, ready in just 30 minutes!

Ingredients

4 pieces chicken (I use bone-in skin-on chicken thighs)
salt and black pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon avocado or olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 tablespoon lemon juice
fresh chopped parsley, for serving

Directions

Pat chicken dry with a paper towel, then season well with salt and black pepper.
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place chicken into hot skillet, and sear for 2-3 minutes per side, or until golden brown. (You do not want to fully cook the chicken in this step, just sear it until brown).
Remove chicken from skillet, then add onion and garlic to the skillet. Cook 4-5 minutes or until onion is soft.
Add in the rice and cook for 1-2 minutes to toast the rice, then pour in the chicken or vegetable broth. Gently stir and lift any brown bits from the bottom of the skillet.
Return chicken to the skillet, then bring rice to a boil before reducing to a simmer. Cover skillet with lid, and leave to simmer for 20 minutes, or until rice is cooked. Remove from heat, add in lemon juice and gently fluff rice with a fork. Serve warm with fresh chopped parsley on top.

Recipe Video

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30 Minutes or Less

10-Minute Spicy Ramen (Gluten-Free Option)

By Samantha Russo August 25, 2022

This spicy ramen soup recipe is quick to make and soo much better than store bought ramen! The greatest part about ramen soup is that it’s easy to customize the way you want. You can choose between basic or gluten-free noodles and you can top it off with soft boiled eggs, green onions, chicken, tofu or seaweed – whatever you prefer!

close-up image of spicy ramen with chopsticks

Ramen noodles are a pantry staple for households everywhere. The packets are super easy to whip up and I can’t tell you how many times ramen has been my go-to during my school years! But, did you know you can just as easily make homemade ramen noodles in just 10 minutes?

There are so many ways to customize ramen soup, but I like to make mine spicy with all sorts of wonderful ingredients that I always have on hand. So this recipe is for the spice lovers out there!

MAIN INGREDIENTS NEEDED TO MAKE Spicy Ramen

Ramen Noodles – Of course the main ingredient to Ramen soup is the noodles! I used gluten-free, but feel free to use the basic noodles if you prefer.

Broth – Use either chicken or vegetable broth as your base. Beef broth works, too, but will have drastically different flavor.

Sesame Oil – A little drizzle of sesame oil adds a nice flavor and sheen to the soup’s surface.

Fresh Ginger – You’ll need a 2-inch piece of freshly grated ginger. Dried ginger powder is fine to use as well, but fresh will give it a better taste and a nicer kick.

Soy Sauce – 1 tablespoon soy sauce, or feel free to use more to your personal taste. If you are allergic to soy, watching your sodium, or eating gluten-free, you can sub the soy sauce with tamari or coconut aminos.

Vinegar. 1 tsp rice wine vinegar.

Chili Paste – Chili paste offers a deeper spiced flavor than most powders and hot sauces, but if you can’t get your hands on any, sriracha works too.

Toppings – Top it off with soft boiled eggs, green onions, chicken, tofu or seaweed.

noodles being lifted out of a bowl of spicy ramen

ADJUST THIS RECIPE TO YOUR DIET

Gluten-Free: Use the gluten-free version of ramen noodles like I did for this recipe.

TIPS FOR MAKING THIS Spicy Ramen Soup RECIPE

This particular recipe will give you a nice and spicy ramen noodle recipe. However, you can very easily dial back on the spicier ingredients for a not-so-spicy experience. If you’re looking for even spicier ramen, add in some hot peppers or chili flakes.

Spicy Ramen Soup Recipe

4 from 15 votes

Recipe by Samantha Course: MainCuisine: JapaneseDifficulty: Easy

Servings

2

servings

Prep time

5

minutes

Cooking time

10

minutes

Calories

300

kcal

Total time

15

minutes

This spicy ramen soup recipe is quick to make and soo much better than store bought ramen! The greatest part about ramen soup is that it’s easy to customize the way you want. You can choose between basic or gluten-free noodles and you can top it off with soft boiled eggs, green onions, chicken, tofu or seaweed – whatever you prefer!

Ingredients

1 quart chicken or vegetable broth
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 garlic cloves, grated
2-inch piece fresh ginger, grated
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon chili paste (aka sambal oelek), see Notes
1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
6 ounces ramen noodles, I used gluten-free
Topping Options
Soft boiled egg
Cooked and shredded chicken
Sauteed mushrooms
Sliced green onion
Dried seaweed
Sesame seeds

Directions

Add everything except for noodles to a large pot and simmer over medium-high heat for 10 minutes.
Taste broth and adjust any seasonings as desired, then add in the ramen noodles and cook until tender.
Ladle broth and noodles into two bowls and top with whatever you’d like.

Recipe Video

Notes

Chili Paste: If you can’t find chili paste, you can use an equal amount of sriracha instead.

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30 Minutes or Less

Perfect Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies

By Samantha Russo August 23, 2022

Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside almond flour chocolate chip cookies! A super easy one-bowl, gluten-free dessert recipe everyone will love. These cookies are perfectly sweet, and stuffed with plentyyyy of melty chocolate.

Close-up of a stack of gluten-free almond flour chocolate chip cookies with a bite taken out of the first cookie.

Who doesn’t love a classic chocolate chip cookie!? These gluten-free almond flour-based cookies are sure to be a family favorite. These are perfect not just for the holidays, but for any night that you’re looking for a simple one-bowl sweet treat with lots of chocolate!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Pantry Staples: This recipe’s ingredients are all items you may have right on hand in your pantry, which will make this a super easy gluten-free chocolate chip cookie recipe to put together!
Versatile & Customizable: Feel free to add your favorite chopped chocolate or even chopped nuts for additional flavor and melty goodness!
Easy & Quick: These chocolate chip cookies only take 10-12 minutes to bake in the oven!

What You’ll Need to Make Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies

Butter: I used Myoko’s Vegan Butter to keep my cookies both gluten and dairy-free. However, you can certainly use any type of butter you’d like. Just be sure to let it come to room temperature before baking, this’ll help whip together the butter and sugar in the first step.

Brown Sugar or Coconut Sugar: Either one works! I used coconut sugar because it’s less processed than standard brown sugar. But I recommend you use whatever you have on-hand. Brown or coconut sugar give these almond flour chocolate chip cookies a deeper, more intense flavor!

Almond Flour: Of course, these wouldn’t be what they are without plenty of almond flour. With any recipe that calls for almond flour, be sure to use blanched almond flour – not almond meal. Almond meal will yield a more grainy and crumbly cookie, which is not what we’re looking for here.

Chocolate Chips: I can’t lie, I’ve got a pretty heavy hand when it comes to the chocolate chips. I used both chocolate chips AND chopped chocolate in my almond flour chocolate chip cookies. The end result was chocolate in every bite – yum! Though, again, feel free to use whichever you have on-hand when baking these cookies.

How To Make Gluten-Free Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies

Combine Your Wet Ingredients: Beat together the butter, coconut oil, and sugar in a large bowl with either a hand or stand mixer for 2-3 minutes. Add your egg and vanilla extract until well combined
Assemble Your Batter: Add in almond flour, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a spatula or large spoon until combined then, fold in your chocolate.
Bake & Cool: Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.

Close-up of a bite taken out of an gluten-free almond flour chocolate chip cookie topped with flaky sea salt.

Tips and Tricks

The cookie dough will appear more wet than standard cookie doughs, but this is ok! Simply scoop them onto a baking sheet, tidy up the edges of each cookies, then throw them in the oven to bake. They’ll still bake up beautifully, trust me!
For a softer cookie, bake them for only 10 minutes. Or, for a crispier, more well-done cookie, bake these cookies for a full 12 minutes. And always keep a close eye on them toward the end so they don’t burn!

A stack of six gluten-free almond flour chocolate chip cookies with milk on the side.

Adjust This Recipe to Your Dietary Needs

Make it Dairy-Free: Easily make these cookies dairy-free by swapping the butter for non-dairy butter. Also, make sure the chocolate chips you’re using are dairy-free (most aren’t).

Make it Vegan: For vegan almond flour chocolate chip cookies, take the dairy-free option above, as well as swap out the egg for your favorite vegan egg substitute. While I haven’t tried this version myself yet, I have high hopes it’ll work!

Make it Paleo: For a paleo cookie recipe, use coconut sugar instead of brown sugar, and softened coconut oil in place of the butter.

overhead image of almond flour chocolate chip cookies with flaky salt on top.

5 from 2 votes

Perfect Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies

Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside almond flour chocolate chip cookies! A super easy one-bowl, gluten-free dessert recipe everyone will love. These cookies are perfectly sweet, and stuffed with plentyyyy of melty chocolate.

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 10

Total Time: 20

Servings: cookies

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, softened
2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted (or 2 additional tablespoons of butter)
1/2 cup brown sugar or coconut sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg, at room temperature
2 1/4 cups almond flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chocolate chips

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Beat together the butter, coconut oil, and sugar in a large bowl with either a hand or stand mixer for 2-3 minutes.
Add in the vanilla extract and egg, beat until combined.
Add in almond flour, baking soda, and salt, this time stirring with a spatula or large spoon until just combine.
Fold in the chocolate chips, then scoop tablespoon-sized balls of cookie dough onto prepared baking sheet. Place each cookie about 2-3 inches apart, and lightly flatten with the palm of your hand.
Bake cookies 10-12 minutes or until golden brown, then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

Video

Nutrition

Additional Gluten-Free Favorites

Gluten-Free Christmas Sugar Cookies With Sprinkles

Gluten-Free Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Perfect Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies

Gluten-Free Gingerbread Cookies

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30 Minutes or Less

Easy Healthy Taco Salad with Creamy Cilantro-Lime Dressing

By Samantha Russo August 18, 2022

A fresh, fully loaded taco salad complete with a creamy cilantro-lime dressing. Super quick and easy to make, this healthy lunch or dinner will become a fast-favorite!

creamy cilantro lime dressing being poured over a taco salad.

What You’ll Need to Make Taco Salad

Ground Beef – Or really any ground meat will do the trick. I’ve made this recipe with ground turkey in place of the beef, and it was just as tasty! For a vegan/vegetarian taco salad, refer to the “make it vegan” section below.

Taco Seasoning – A packet of taco seasoning will make your life a million times easier! It’s got all that taco flavor, in one convenient packet. It also adds some serious delicious flavor to the seasoned ground beef. I use and love the Siete Mild Taco Seasoning, it’s a total crowd-pleaser!

Lettuce – I used romaine lettuce, but really any lettuce will work! I love a good, crunchy lettuce for added texture, such as romaine, iceberg, green leaf, or butter lettuce.

Tortilla Chips – While optional, a small handful of crushed tortilla chips are what make this salad taste JUST like a taco. I recommend gluten-free Siete Tortilla Chips to keep it extra light and healthy.

Sour Cream – For a dairy-free version, use your favorite dairy-free sour cream to make the cilantro-lime dressing. I used this Forager Dairy-Free Sour Cream and it was delicious! But if not dairy-free, go ahead and use a regular sour cream instead. Or, if you’re in a pinch, plain unsweetened greek yogurt would also work in its place.

Cilantro – Tons of cilantro bring out the fresh flavors in this easy, healthy salad! Feel free to add more or less cilantro based on your preferences. Or, if not a fan of cilantro, you can totally leave it out of this recipe altogether.

overhead close-up image of a taco salad with cilantro-lime dressing on top.

Adjust This Recipe to Your Dietary Needs

Make it Vegan/Vegetarian: For a healthy vegan salad recipe, use cooked lentils, crumbled tofu, or chopped mushrooms in place of the ground beef. Also, take the dairy-free option below for a vegan cilantro-lime dressing.

Make it Gluten-Free: Use gluten-free tortilla chips in your salad, most are already gluten-free, but it’s always good to double check!

Make it Dairy-Free: Replace the sour cream in the dressing with your favorite non-dairy sour cream. I recommend Forager or Kite Hill dairy-free sour cream.

Easy Healthy Taco Salad with Creamy Cilantro-Lime Dressing

5 from 1 vote

Recipe by Samantha Course: Lunch, DinnerDifficulty: Easy

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

15

minutes

Total time

25

minutes

A fresh, fully loaded taco salad complete with a creamy cilantro-lime dressing. Super quick and easy to make, this healthy lunch or dinner will become a fast-favorite!

Ingredients

1 tablespoon avocado oil
1 pound ground beef
pinch of salt
1 packet taco seasoning
1/4 cup water
1 head romaine lettuce, chopped
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
2 avocados, sliced
1/2 red onion, chopped
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
For the creamy cilantro-lime dressing:
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
pinch of lime zest, optional but recommended

Directions

Heat avocado oil in a large skillet over medium heat, then add in ground beef and a big pinch of salt.
Cook until beef is no longer pink, breaking up the meat as it cooks. Then, add in taco seasoning and water, reduce heat to low and simmer until sauce has thickened.
While beef cooks, make the cilantro-lime dressing by adding all ingredients to a bowl and whisking together until smooth.
Assemble salad with all ingredients, then top with seasoned ground beef and creamy cilantro-lime dressing.