Organic | Fashionably Living

Chicken and Spinach Béchamel Pasta

Posted by Rachel Ashley on Nov 23, 2012 in Fashionably Organic, Italian, Organic, Pasta | 0 comments

Italian food is my favorite! And guess what? I love pasta! Besides chocolate, its definitely a guilty pleasure of mine! This Chicken and Spinach Béchamel is quick and easy and of course super delish! I love cooking with spinach, because it is rich in vitamins and minerals, it is also concentrated in health-promoting phytonutrients and flavonoids to provide you with powerful antioxidant protection. We all know that spinach is the source of Popeye’s superhuman strength, which of course is a good reason to eat it, right!?! I love to cook, but the most important thing to me when I cook, is to cook meals that are healthy and good for you! There are so many foods out there that taste great, but they are horrible for you and the ingredients have damaging lasting effects! At Fashionably Organic, I have always made my dishes with a healthy spin, so you can feel comfortable eating each and every bite! I hope you enjoy this dish as much as my family did! Bon Appétit!

XO,

Rachel Ashley

Ingredients:

Organic Whole Wheat Linguine noodles

1 Bag of Organic Spinach

2 Organic Chicken Breast

1/2 sweet onion

2 cloves of garlic

Handful Fresh Basil

EVOO

Salt and Pepper

Béchamel Sauce (Or 1 jar of Alfredo Sauce)

Recipe:

Place a grill pan with a couple tablespoons of EVOO over a medium high heat and brown each side of the chicken breast about 3 minutes on each side. Then turn to medium heat and cover, for about 15 minutes, while you prepare the pasta and the Béchamel sauce. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the linguine pasta and cook until tender, but still firm to the bite, stirring constantly in the beginning to prevent it from sticking together, about 8 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large saute pan, heat the EVOO over medium high heat. Add the diced sweet onion and saute until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the minced garlic and saute until the garlic is golden brown and the sweet onion is translucent, about 3 minutes (being careful not to burn the garlic). Add the bag of spinach to the pan, season with salt and pepper and cook the spinach down, about 3 minutes. Meanwhile, chop a handful of fresh basil and set aside. Remove the garlic, onion, and spinach and place in a bowl to the side, while you prepare the Béchamel sauce. Once the Béchamel suace is prepared add the spinach, garlic, and onion back into the pan and stir. Drain the pasta and toss in the Béchamel, making sure each strand is coated. Uncover the chicken and shred. Add the shredded chicken and freshly chopped basil to the pasta and toss. Place the pasta in a shallow serving bowl and serve immediately! Garnish with a sprig of fresh basil. (QUICK TIP: If you decide to use a jar of Alfredo sauce, add the jar of Alfredo to the onion, garlic, and spinach. Drain the pasta, shred the chicken, add freshly chopped basil, more salt and pepper to taste, place pasta in a shallow serving bowls and serve immediately. Garnish with a sprig of fresh basil).

Ingredients for Béchamel Sauce:

5 tablespoons of unsalted organic butter

1/2 cup of whole wheat flour

4 cups of organic skim milk (for a richer flavor use whole milk)

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of pepper

Pinch of freshly grate nutmeg

Recipe for Béchamel Sauce:

In a saucepan, melt the organic butter over medium heat. Add the whole wheat flour and whisk until smooth, about 2 minutes. Gradually add the organic skim milk, whisking constantly to prevent any lumps from forming. Simmer over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the sauce is thick, smooth and creamy, about 10 minutes (do not let the Béchamel sauce boil). Remove from the heat and stir in 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of pepper and a pinch of nutmeg. If need be, season the sauce with more salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste. (The sauce can be made up to 3 days ahead of time, cool and pour into a mason jar, and refrigerate).

Baked Pasta with Spinach and Italian Sausage

Posted by Rachel Ashley on Nov 14, 2012 in Fashionably Organic, Italian | 4 comments

Don’t you just love pasta, especially cheesy pasta?!? This pasta is made with Italian chicken sausage, ricotta, mozzarella, Parmigiano-Reggiano and one of my favorite ingredients, spinach! Spinach is so good for you and in recipes like this you don’t even taste it, but you benefit from all its health benefits. This recipe makes for a great quick and easy family night dinner. You can prepare it ahead of time and put it in the oven 30 minutes before you’re ready to eat!

Ingredients:
Olive Oil Spray

½ cup of Parmigiano-Reggiano

1 cup of Ricotta

8 oz part-skim mozzarella, shredded

6 cooked Italian Sausages (you can also us uncooked)

12 oz of brown rice Rigatoni pasta

1 tsp EVOO

2 cloves of minced garlic

½ sweet onion, minced finely

1 bag (about 10 oz) of fresh spinach

4 cups of your favorite Marinara Sauce

Recipe:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 13” baking dish with olive oil spray. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. In a medium bowl, combine the Parmigiano-Reggiano, ricotta, and half of the shredded mozzarella cheese. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, drizzle EVOO and sauté the minced onion until translucent then add the minced garlic, about a minute. Add the fresh spinach and season with salt and pepper and cook the spinach down. Add the cooked/cut sausage to the skillet. (If you are not using precooked sausage, be sure to brown the sausage breaking it up into small bits until cooked through before sauteing the onion, garlic and spinach.) Add the marinara sauce to the skillet of sausage, onion, garlic and spinach and cook on medium high heat for 2-3 minutes, until the mixture thickens, then simmer on low. When the pasta water comes to a boil, cook the brown rice pasta until al dente. Put half of the cooked pasta into the prepared baking dish and top with half of the meat sauce. Spoon the ricotta mixture on top of the sauce in an even layer. Cover with the remaining pasta and the remaining sauce. Top with the remaining mozzarella and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes or until the cheese on top is melted with golden brown edges.

Modern Design: Organic In Nature

Posted by Rachel Ashley on Jul 10, 2012 in Fashionably Interior Design | 0 comments

Modern design tends to be organic. It offers a sense of simplicity, by using clean lines, functional pieces and exhibits effortless style. Modern design tends to be orthodox in nature. Personally, I prefer a dollop of unconventionality. I don’t feel comfortable in a purely functional home, but I do appreciate it! I was inspired by these modern spaces and I thought you would appreciate them too. Just like fashion, the interior design world is constantly changing and recycling designs from 30 years ago. I love seeing designs from 30 years ago being used again today in their original form or reincarnated. My favorite style, would definitely be a mixture of old and new! I love seeing a modern chair thrown into a traditional room; its witty things like that, which turns a basic room into a fabulous room. I hope you enjoy these modern spaces and feel free to share your view points on modern vs. traditional design.

XO,
Rachel Ashley

Please Note: Pictures are NOT property of Fashionably Living’s

Ricotta Lemon Pancakes with Homemade Berry Jam

Posted by Rachel Ashley on Apr 8, 2012 in Breakfast, Fashionably Organic | 1 comment

INGREDIENTS

(makes 10 small pancakes = 2 to 3 servings)

For the Jam:
1 cup blueberries, raspberries and blackberries medly
1 tbsp Stevia
Juice of 1 lemon
Zest of 1 lemon
1 tbsp organic strawberry jam

For the Pancakes:
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tbsp Stevia
1 tbsp Chia seeds
1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1/2 cup almond milk (or your choice of milk)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 organic egg
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tsp canola oil or grapeseed oil (optional)
Juice of 1 lemon
Zest of 1 lemon
Egg Whites – 2 (optional: well whipped for more fluffy pancakes)

Recipe:

For the jam put your stove on medium-high heat, add berry medly to a small pot. Add the juice and lemon zest of 1 lemon and add the Stevia. Continue to stir and let the berries break down. Once the berries have been heated through, about 4 minutes, add strawberry organic jam. Cook for an additional 3 minutes to reduce and allow the mixture to thicken. Once the berry jam has thickened, remove from heat and set aside. The jam should thicken enough, that when you put some on a spoon you can run your figure down the back side of the spoon and the jam will stay sperated.

For the pancakes mix your dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl: whole wheat pastry flour, basking powder, baking soda, salt and Stevia. Add the chia seeds and mix. Set bowl aside.

In a seperate bowl combine the wet ingredients: ricotta cheese, almond milk, heavy cream, vanilla extract, canola oil, egg, lemon juice and lemon zest and mix well. Now add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and gently mix with a whisk. Do not overmix. In a seperate bowl wisk two egg whites until frothy and then gently mix into the batter.

Heat a nonstick pan on medium heat. Use a little oil or spray to coat the bottom of the pan. Use a 1/4 cup to drop the batter onto the nonstick pan or a ladle. Allow the pancakes to cook on each side until golden brown. Make sure you cook these through to avoid uncooked batter in the center. Add a stack of pancakes to a plate. Top with berry jam (or maple syrup)!

Enjoy!

XO,

Rachel Ashley

1 Peter 1:3
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…

Endocrine Disruptors

Posted by Rachel Ashley on Mar 14, 2012 in Fashionably Fit | 1 comment

Good Morning! I wanted to share with you a little bit about endocrine disrupters that we come in contact with daily. Some of the endocrine disruptions like pesticide laden food, we can avoid, but others like air pollution we can’t really run from. Unfortunately, America is focused more on the bottom line, rather than the health of the people in our country. You may be asking yourself right now, what is an endocrine disrupter; well here is a definition to help you understand what I am talking about. Endocrine disruptors are chemicals that may interfere with the body’s endocrine system and produce adverse developmental, reproductive, neurological, and immune effects in both humans and wildlife. A wide range of substances, both natural and man-made, are thought to cause endocrine disruption, including pharmaceuticals, dioxin and dioxin-like compounds, polychlorinated biphenyls, DDT and other pesticides, and plasticizers such as bisphenol A.

Endocrine disruptors may be found in many everyday products– including plastic bottles, metal food cans, detergents, flame retardants, food, toys, cosmetics, and pesticides. I know this is a heavy topic for some, but it is important for you to know what you’re up against; if you’re true desire is to live a healthy life! It’s sad that we have to fight to have a healthy lifestyle.

Unfortunately, Americas are accustomed to a quick and easy lifestyle, and usually that comes with fast food, long days and late nights, little or no time to work-out or cook at home. The rise of obesity is staggering, cancer is on the rise, and there are more and more people with health related issues than ever before. Did you ever stop to think what could be causing it? What has changed in America over the last century? Here is a list of a few environmental factors that have caused these epidemics in America. In short, watch what you’re eating, putting on your skin, and be sure to exercise daily! If you don’t have your health you won’t have much!

Things to Avoid:

Plastics (have been on the rise since the 1950’s)

Pesticides

Pharmaceuticals

Processed foods – artificial preservatives and colors, artificial sweeteners, high-fructose corn syrup, etc.

XO,
Rachel Ashley