A delicious, nourishing soup I invented tonight - full of the golden beauty of buttercup squash, the nourishing goodness of chicken and tumeric, and the noodle effect of spaghetti squash. Exact quantities not given, as it's one of those throw-in-what-you-have soups. Use the basic idea and adjust to suit.

Home-made chicken broth/stock*
Spaghetti Squash
1-TBSP coconut oil
Diced onions
Left over roasted veges - I used mostly buttercup squash, with some butternut and sweet potato
Cooked chicken, diced or shredded
Salt to taste
Tumeric
Chopped chives or other fresh herbs
Coconut cream (optional)

*Chicken stock is super easy to make - just fill a big pot with chicken carcasses (I save the carcasses from roast chicken, putting in a bag in the freezer until I'm ready to make stock), cover with water, add salt to taste, bring to boil, cover and simmer for about 3 hours. Cool and strain. 

Note: any roast veges could be used; they give the soup bulk and make it more filling, as well as adding colour. Pumpkin or squash of any kind is great, as are sweet potatoes. You could also try marrow/zucchini, roasted beets, carrots, parsnips etc.

Cook spaghetti squash: preheat oven to 180C/350F. Cut squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out seeds. Place cut sides down on baking paper lined tray. Prick all over. Bake for 35 mins until soft to feel when skewer inserted. Cool slightly, then holding one half in a dishcloth to avoid burning your hands, scrape out the flesh with a fork. It will come out in spaghetti-like strands. 

Melt coconut oil in a large pot. Saute onions until beginning to brown. Pour in chicken stock. Puree roast veges in a food processor, adding some chicken stock if needed to liquify. Add to soup pot. Add chives, tumeric and salt. Bring to boil and simmer 10 mins. Add shredded chicken. Heat through. Add spaghetti squash, stir to combine. Optional: swirl in coconut cream. Serve.

A little coconut oil for frying
​1kg (2lbs) lean grassfed beef mince (ground beef)
​2 rashers natural bacon (optional)
1 onion
3 TBSP fresh herbs - whatever is fresh in the garden. Ideas include oregano, chives, parsley, sage and thyme

Melt some coconut oil in a frying pan. Saute diced onion until beginning to brown. Tip into food processor. Add fresh herbs to food processor, and blitz until finely chopped. Cook bacon, if used, in pan. Roughly chop, add to food processor, and pulse a few times until more finely chopped. (Processing these items makes them mix into the beef better, and as a result the patties stick together way better without anything else added to bind).

Place raw beef into a large bowl. Add contents of food processor. Mix thoroughly with hands. Separate into 12 even sized sections. Roll each section into a ball, place on a baking tray lined with baking paper, and flatten with a spatula. 

Place any patties not being used immediately into freezer on baking paper lined tray and freeze then bag. 

To cook: fry fresh patties in coconut oil about 5-8 mins a side until well cooked. OR, place fresh patties on lined oven tray and bake 180C/350F for 20 mins or so. Cook frozen patties in oven for 30 mins. They don't fry very well from frozen.

To serve: I like to saute up a combo of onions (red or brown), cabbage (red or green) and zucchini or sliced marrow, and mushrooms (any any other seasonal vege combo - I also sometimes toss in cubes of left over roasted pumpkin or sweet potato), in a little olive oil, with a dash of sea salt. Delicous with some baked patties for breakfast or lunch! 
In the first pic above, I have also added a spoonful of homemade applesauce - see THIS recipe.

I have an autoimmune disorder - Hashimoto's Thyroiditis - which affects me in a large number of ways. In order to be well, I need to follow a strict diet. The one that works best for me is the Autoimmune Protocol, also known as Autoimmune Paleo. The really good thing about this is that I can grow a large portion of my diet right in my own backyard! :-) So it works really well with the whole homesteading and thrifty living thing. 

I'm creating this separate sub page on my site specifically to share recipes that fall within this protocol. Of course, you don't have to have an autoimmune disorder to use them - they're all great tasting, very healthy, nutrient dense recipes which are good for anyone! I just want to make it easy to find the right ones for those following this protocol. 

Here's a summary of the foods to avoid and the foods to include shown in two graphics - taken from the Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook (which is an excellent resource, as is the entire website; the cookbook is under Beginner Resources): 

Ok, recipes to follow! :-)