Healthy Italian Nachos (GF)

I use to be a party-er. I spent most weekends of my 20’s in bars, having lots of drinks with friends. Drinking & dancing the night’s away often led to waking up on Saturday (& Sunday) and craving a big greasy lunch. While I can think of many-a-favorite guilty pleasures during that time, Old Chicago’s Italian Nachos are towards the front of the list.

My 20’s were definitely a time when I did not understand my body, or the foods I put it in. I look back on that period, and It was just a constant binge cycle. I ate “healthy”, aka counted calories, lived on SmartOnes & 100 calorie packs; I was also forcing myself to complete cardio works outs 4-5 days a week. And then went to the opposite end of the spectrum on the weekends. I was not only binge drinking 2-3 nights a week, but also eating thousands of calories by way of fast food all weekend long. And I know some would say “everything in moderation”, but trust me I wasn’t consuming in moderation.I was constantly 5 days on, 2 days off. It was a roller coaster & I almost always felt like my physical appearance was failing me but was in denial as to why. At that point, I had a someone of “all or nothing” mindset, and it was a constant battle with myself.

Fast forward to today, in retrospect I was never giving my body whole foods. I didn’t build meals based on quality ingredients- but really was just focusing on Low fat, Low Calorie Items – and in hindsight I now understand not all fat and calories are created equal. Okay, that kind of went off on a tangent. So to bring this back to my point: I use to eat a lot of junk. And now that I eat better, it doesn’t mean I don’t still love some of those food items. There are still times that Will & I head to Old Chicago, just so we can get Italian Nachos & Pepperoni Rolls, but you all know my passion is re creating some of those “not so good” foods & stacking them full of quality, nutrient dense ingredients!

And there you have it: a yummy, dippable, sharable tray of goodness!