Crock Pot [keepin' the kitchen cool!] GLUTEN FREE Banana Bread

Wow, what a ride it has been these past ten months. There is much to update, so much I want to share that I've been unsure of even where to start. This post will break my writer's block/overload, perhaps, since it's just for fun! :)
The one health update I'll share today is that I am thrilled to report, my platelet count has been steadily climbing since I left the hospital in June! Yesterday it came back one point below NORMAL range!  God is healing me thru and thru!

So onto the banana bread fun!
I discovered this idea when we had a major heat wave the weekend of Mother's Day, and I wanted to make quick bread for the brunch, but did NOT want my kitchen to get any hotter than it already was!
Enter my favorite kitchen appliance: the crock pot! This recipe as my inspiration,
I made some modifications and voila, Banana bread in under three hours with no extra mercury rising in the house.

What you need:
1 3/4 cup Trader Joe's Gluten Free flour blend
1 tsp xanthan gum
2 tsps baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt

3/4 cup coconut sugar (check out Madhava brand Organic Coconut Sugar thru Subscribe & Save on Amazon!)
1/3 cup organic butter or coconut oil
2 cage free eggs, beaten
2 ripe, medium to large size bananas (or 3 small), mashed
1 tsp pure vanilla extract (I use Trader Joe's Pure Bourbon Vanilla Extract),
1/2 cup frozen organic blueberries

What you do:
Grease the crock of a 3 (ish) quart slow cooker with butter or coconut oil. Set aside.
In a medium mixing bowl, sift together all dry ingredients except sugar (flour, gum, soda, powder, salt).

In another bowl, cream together butter (or coconut oil) with coconut sugar until blended. Gently mix in beaten eggs, mashed bananas, and vanilla.
Add in the dry ingredients slowly, blending well with a whisk.
Stir in the blueberries (no thawing needed).

Pour batter into pregreased crock, smoothing the top with spatula. Cover and set to High. Walk away - you're basically done! :)

Check the bread with a toothpick after 2 hours. It will be done between two and three hours. (Slow cooker power levels vary by brand.)

When bread is done, toothpick should come out clean, but bread will be moist and oil sizzling on the edges. Remove lid and let cool/set up for five minutes. Cut into pieces and scoop out of crock, or turn out the whole loaf onto a plate and cut to serve
Enjoy!

*Sometimes it is recommended to prop open the lid with a wooden spoon when baking in crock pots. I've never done this, but know it's an option if bread is too moist/not setting up.

Update: This recipe is even more fool proof than I thought! I ran out of Gf flour blend but had ripe bananas to use, so I thought I woukd experiment.

I used 1 cup brown rice flour and 3/4 cup teff flour. I was much more lax with the mixing too, I just combined all the wet ingreds together, added the dry, and put in the crock. This time I set the slow cooker on Low and let it go 4 hours. It turned out great - moist and delicious again! it was just slightly darker in color because of the teff flour.

so there you go, this recipe is even more versatile tban we knew!

If you make any changes be sure and comment to share your experience :)

Red [Brown] & Blue Berry Muffins!

Just in time for the 4th of July, here is a recipe for Red and Blue colored muffins, free of gluten, dairy, eggs, soy, refined sugar, legumes, and very low in grains...

These muffins are delicious. Soft, moist (though a bit crumbly) in texture, the chestnut flour gives them a warm nutty flavor while the blueberries sweeten and the raspberries give a little tang. They are an achievement I'm most proud of!

I have tested this recipe three different times, changing at least one ingredient each time. The last test was done using mini-cupcake liners and my new mini cupcake tin I purchased in prep for Victory's first birthday.
They turned out well each time, which tells me that they are nearly foolproof muffins. It helps (and somehow feels more decadent) to eat them with a spoon in a little bowl; this way you're sure to get every last crumb in your mouth too!

This version I'm sharing with you was my third experiment. It uses the highest ratio of Chestnut flour, I'm guessing this is why these were the darkest in color of the three versions. It also uses the lowest amount of grains, so that's why I picked it to share. If you're interested in the other two (just as delicious) versions using rice flour and tapioca flour, comment and I will post them.

This recipe came about a few weeks back, when there was literally nothing to eat in our kitchen but a few ingredients. A few gluten free flours I wanted to get rid of, frozen berry blend mix from Costco, and part of a bag of Chestnut flour leftover from my birthday Carrot Cake Cupcakes. I pulled my Flying Apron Baking Book off the shelf and found a recipe for "Maple Berry Muffins." I modified it to be as Primal, grain-free and low-sugar as possible, and three baking sessions later, here are these muffins.

These taste so good, and look so pretty, that they may be making an appearance at Victory's 1st birthday party next month, complete with fresh blackberries from our garden! I hope you enjoy them as much as we have (that includes me, Hubs, my mom, our friends, our friends' kids, our neighbors... they are crowd pleasers)!

Red (Brown) & Blue Berry Muffins

Makes 10-12 traditional size muffins, 24+ mini muffins

What you need:

1 1/2 cups chestnut flour, such as Dowd & Rogers
1/2 cup sorghum flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1+ cup water
1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup grapeseed oil or olive oil
1/3 cup pure organic maple syrup OR 1/4 cup maple sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger, optional
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup fresh/frozen raspberries
1/2 cup fresh/frozen blueberries

*I have been reading Michael Ruhlman's Ratio, and I have to say, it pains me to list out these measurements for you, knowing that if they were weights instead, you'd be essentially guaranteed a perfect muffin. My blog may turn into a recipe-by-ratio, baking-by-weight destination in the future, because I am really loving that concept. In the meantime, go with your gut. Baking without gluten really isn't so intimidating or risky, just pay attention to the texture of your batter and have fun! That is what it's really about :)

What you do:


Preheat oven to 365 degrees. Prepare your muffin tin, using festive paper liners.
In small-medium mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients and set aside.
Using stand mixer, whisk together liquid ingredients on low until blended.
Slowly add dry ingredients to liquid mix, on medium speed, until smooth. Add water if mixture seems to need more liquid. Batter will be runny, similar to pancake batter, or a slightly watery brownie batter.
Scoop 1/4 cup batter into each muffin cup. Depending upon how much water used, you will get 10 to 12 traditionally sized muffins.
Drop berries (can be frozen still) on top of batter in each muffin cup.
Bake until golden and tops are slightly firm to touch. It took 20 minutes for my traditional size muffins to bake (check at 15), and less than 10 minutes for the mini muffins (check at 5 minutes).

Note: Don't stress too much about getting them perfectly done. The beauty of baking without eggs is that even if your muffins turn out to be not quite done, they won't hurt you!

Enjoy! (I know you will!)

These would be delicious set on top of a small bowl of coconut milk ice cream... Excuse me while I steal away to my kitchen to see if I have what's needed to make that happen ;)

Have a festive 4th of July with family, friends, fireworks, or whatever else helps you celebrate all that our nation's freedom has given you. We are so blessed to live in the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave. Happy birthday America!

Birthday [Carrot Cake] Cupcakes

Thursday was my birthday, and I made myself a special treat. Carrot cupcakes. Free of grains, gluten, dairy, eggs, soy, almonds, refined sugar...

This was my first experience with chestnut flour - baking or eating - and I must say, it will definitely not be my last. (I'm glad I signed up to get a small bag of it every couple of months through Amazon.com Subscribe & Save!) The cupcakes turned out moist, soft, and cinnamon-y delicious. Chestnut flour has swag.

I frosted the cupcakes with a quick glaze-style icing I made from palm shortening, shredded coconut, maple syrup, local honey, and coconut oil. I spooned that on while it was still liquid, then topped them with leftover grated carrot and organic dried coconut flakes and left to set.
These were good by themselves, better enjoyed with a cup of coffee, and best with a bowl of coconut ice cream on the side!
The recipe made ten cupcakes, and it was the perfect amount to share with my husband and enjoy my birthday. I ate more than half of those ten in about twenty-four hours. It was my birthday and I indulged.

I saw the recipe featured last month at Brittany Angell's gluten-free, dairy-free site Real Sustenance, and bookmarked it for my special day. If you have never checked out Brittany's blog, head over there now and look at her recipes. I have made two of them now, these cupcakes and the Samoa cookies (original recipe). She is very talented and I'm so glad to have found her blog!

I made the cupcakes according to Brittany's recipe, with a few ingredient changes, less sweetener, and a misstep in mixing. It is a forgiving recipe, because they still turned out great! I give her all credit, however I only will list the ingredients I used and the steps I took to make these cupcakes.

[Grain-Free, Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Egg-Free, Soy-Free, Almond-Free]

Carrot Cake Cupcakes

Recipe credit: Brittany Angell, RealSustenance.com

What you need:

• 1/4 cup natural applesauce (no sweeteners added)
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1/4 cup grapeseed oil
• 1 teaspoon gluten-free, alcohol-free vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cup Chestnut flour
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon 
• 1/4 cup Sucanat
• 2 teaspoon baking powder 
• 1 cup washed, peeled, grated organic carrots (I minced mine in the small food processor)
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar*

What you do:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Line muffin tin with 10 paper liners.

Measure wet ingredients (applesauce, coconut milk, grapeseed oil, vanilla, and vinegar) into a large bowl, stir together to combine.

Add in the dry ingredients (chestnut flour, cinnamon, sucanat, baking powder) and blend with a spatula. Pour in grated carrots and gently fold together until batter is evenly mixed.

Scoop the batter into muffin cups and place into the oven. Bake for 30 minutes.

(Cupcakes will be finished when toothpick comes out clean.)

These cupcakes are delicious. It was fun sharing them and hearing the reactions - "full of flavor," and "If I hadn't been told already that these are gluten-free and dairy-free, I wouldn't have known!" "Yummy!"

I'm happy to report to you, grain-free does not mean delicious dessert free. You can come up with a special birthday treat for any diet. Do you have a favorite annual celebratory treat that needs converting or replacing, to be safe and healthy for you and/or loved ones? Do share and I'd love to brainstorm with you about substitutions and new ideas. And check out RealSustenance.com for more great ideas.

Playing around with cupcakes and my Gerbera daisy plate

It was a treat to find my Gerbera daisy plant blooming on my birthday.
I thought it didn't make it through the late ice storm we had,
but it's got two beautfiul red flowers on it now!

Another birthday, another year of life and many things to be thankful for. Every year I am a little surprised at how different a birthday is as an adult. I don't know why it's taking me such a long time to adapt to that difference from childhood. But it is better, especially when you have a best friend/spouse and a precious baby girl to spend it with. 28 years of life accomplished, and so many more to come!

Why You May Need to be Grain Free! Watch & Consider

This five minute interview with Dr. Peter Osborne is worth watching. Some quick bullet points it covers:

• Typical gluten free diets include heavy amounts of corn and rice
• Proteins have been found in corn that are identical to proteins in gluten - the gluten-sensitive immune system reacts the same to these proteins, and don't heal
• Lectins, chemicals found in beans and seeds, act like gluten, creating leaky gut walls
• Leaky gut leads to more and more food allergies
• Seeds were created to produce and perpetuate life, and so they have protective chemicals to prevent extinction - when we eat these, they end up in our gut. Don't assume they don't harm you!
• Grains induce intestinal permeability and autoimmune disease
• Study published: 92% of celiacs did not recover on a "traditional gluten free diet"
• In comparison, often when a person goes grain-free, they are healed completely
• "Healthy whole grains" are promoted on commercials... but aren't healthy!
• Gluten is now tied to 190 autoimmune diseases!

My family has been 99% grain free since January (no gluten, dairy, or soy since last year), and it has worked wonders for my health and the activity of autoimmune disease in my body. PLUS, my basically healthy husband has lost 30 POUNDS (with no changes to his activity level - just food alone), has no more foot pain despite his 6-7 miles of walking on concrete floors at work each day, and more energy each day.

There is something to this, guys. Please watch and consider for yourself.

Jumping Off the Wagon

You guys, I've jumped off the wagon for a few days. No, not by eating gluten, dairy, or even soy or eggs - I can't ever eat those things. Still no garlic or citrus or pineapple - that would not be good. Nothing I know will outright cause allergic reactions. I went to the store and bought a basket full of treats and snacks, and some of them are very definitely NOT Paleo. I needed some help getting me through this hungry/exhausted/frustrated/completely baffled week. Here's what I got:

Yes there are some grains in there (rice). And some outright un-Paleo, unhealthy, completely junk-filled Swedish fish. But the rest is not half bad right?  :)

See? I'm not perfect in any respect, and eating Paleo full time while trying to take care of your family and home, breastfeeding a nine-month-old, dealing with chronic illness daily "stuff," and freakish allergic reactions - well it just doesn't always work out.

Do you know how hard it is to find grain-free snacks that do not contain garlic? I would be all over some beef jerky, but it's got garlic. I ran into garlic or the vague "spices" term listed on so many ingredient labels. What is the deal with that?

Somehow, I got "glutened" or ingested some other allergen the other day. I am still completely baffled as to what it was. I know something happened because I had the worst reaction I've ever had - brain fog, complete and total exhaustion physically, emotional ups and downs, itchy, sinus stuffiness, joint pains, headache... Oh was it HORRIBLE! Hubs and I have been calling and looking up the manufacturer information for the foods we ate and still haven't come across a clue. (By the way, Kraft customer service is VERY nice! We called them about some uncured Oscar Mayer bacon -nope, it wasn't that-, and Hubs was on the phone for fifteen minutes including speaking with an executive! Go Kraft, you really are trying hard to be accommodating and sensitive to those with food restrictions!)

But it's been a tough couple of days. Whatever this was it threw my guts into a flare up and I have felt more than ever before that I am not absorbing anything from what I've been eating. Just getting up and walking across our tiny house feels like dragging a cart full of boulders behind me. I don't know how much it affects my energy level when in a flare like that, but I am still breastfeeding as well and I was dreading feeding Victory each time, because of how exhausted I felt. And that's not something I want to be feeling!

So.

I jumped off the wagon. I bought some food I can grab right out of the cupboard. And a few treats to boot. And I'm only sharing this so you see that I too, am human. I am learning that, particularly with Autoimmune disease and following the Paleo AIP, it doesn't matter as much that you're eating "perfectly," as much as it matters that you are dealing with stress and not putting unhealthy pressure on yourself. So this is my little vacation off the perfect Paleo highway, and I'll enjoy it, and get back to grain-free, crap-sugar-free soon.
I'm okay with that :)

Do you ever take a break from something in your life? "Jump off a wagon" that you intentionally were on to pursue health?
Sometimes it's more important to give ourselves grace and a little break, as long as we're still keeping health in mind. Pursuing health, especially when you have autoimmune disease, is a life-long journey, full of ups and downs and adjustments. What is important is to keep moving forward and brush off the guilt and tough moments.

"Samoa" Cookies

A few months back I saw a great recipe at beautiful Real Sustenance blog: Gluten Free Samoa Cookies. (Grain/Egg/Corn/Soy/Dairy/Refined Sugar Free). Samoa cookies have always been my favorite, dating back to my year as a Junior Girl Scout. If you've ever read the label though, like me, you know that they are not very good for you. So I was very excited to find Brittany's recipe over at Real Sustenance, and saved it for a later date. Check out the recipe here.

I finally had the chance to make these cookies yesterday with a good friend. They weren't exactly like original Samoa, but they were EXCELLENT cookies, even compared with traditional cookies made with wheat flour and butter. We used spring themed cookie cutters - a flower, a tulip and butterfly. If I get the chance to make these again some day, I will just keep it simple with a circle cutter, because the shapes get covered by the blobs of caramel and you can't tell what they are underneath the delicious toppings. The shapes made it more festive though, so I'm still glad we did that.

The caramel is so delicious, the fact that you can't tell these are tulips, flowers and butterflies doesn't really matter!

First, I used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Shortbread mix to make the base cookies. It was one of the last grain items left in my kitchen, so it needed to be used up. This made my cookies gluten free but not grain free. However, they are free of soy, dairy and egg.

I made the shortbread cookies with substitutions for the ingredients called for on the recipe on the bag, which called for butter, water and an egg yolk.

I used the new Spectrum butter flavored palm shortening in place of butter or soybean oil shortening, and instead of egg yolk I mixed a heaping tablespoon of golden flax meal with 1/8 cup warm water, into a yolky-textured gel. I had to add water throughout mixing the dough, to get it to the right texture to roll out flat, but they turned out very well - if a bit hard. The golden flecks of flax meal in the white cookies looks pretty.

Once the shortbread cookies were cooled, I made the caramel. The original recipe had several options for each ingredient - what a blessing when you have dietary restrictions! I made it with the following:

• 3/4 cup organic virgin coconut oil
• 1 1/4 cup brown sugar (another item in the small "gotta get rid of this" section of my cupboard!)
• 1/4 cup agave
• half can of canned, preservative-free coconut milk (I LOVE Taste Nirvana!)

I was surprised at how long it took to get the caramel past 200 degrees; it was a stubborn pot that didn't want to boil! But finally after about 30 minutes, the candy thermometer was creeping up and we had our caramel. It was delicious! I think it's pretty neat that you can make caramel dairy-free, and I want to make it again for a special occasion to top coconut ice cream.

For the chocolate topping, we used Enjoy Life allergen-free mini chocolate chips (those things are AWESOME!) and my unsweetened coconut flakes were organic, small shreds from the bulk section of Whole Foods that we toasted on parchment paper in the oven for about 5 minutes

A tulip

It was definitely worth it to finally try out this recipe. I would love to repeat it every year around Girl Scout Cookie time, so I feel less left out. It's good to treat yourself once in a while :)

Happy Spring! Are you as thrilled as I am that it's finally here?!

A Very Hypoallergenic Afternoon :)

Recently, my husband and I received the gift of an afternoon out together, just the two of us. And how did we choose to spend it? We were out of town, and took the opportunity to visit some places we don't have at home: first, a stop at a gluten-free, vegan bakery for coffee and a treat, and then: wandering the aisles of Whole Foods for several hours, filling our cart with beautiful and hard to find where we live whole foods. (No pun intended!) Can you tell by our choice of date locales, that we love food AND eating this way?

The afternoon was so ... wonderful!

At the bakery, it took me a good ten minutes to decide what to get, as I told the clerk "I'm so overwhelmed that I can eat all of these things; I can't decide!" That was a wonderful problem to have :)
I finally decided upon a Linzer cookie, because it had more hazelnut meal flour than anything else - the closest to grain-free that I could get. I ordered a gingerbread hemp milk latte to go along with my cookie. Hubs ordered an almond milk latte and a berry scone. We sat at the bar in the window and thoroughly enjoyed our desserts and coffee. Oh, was the Linzer cookie a delight. Crispy crunchy sugary melt-in-your-mouth bites, and sweet sticky raspberry jam. Recreating that cookie is now on my ever-growing list of food to-do's!

I am so grateful for people who get inspired - either by personal necessity or for the people they love - and start businesses catering to us Celiacs and allergic. They possibly don't know how much it means to be able to enjoy an afternoon in a coffee shop or bakery with no worries of having a reaction to the experience. That's something I took for granted until I couldn't do it anymore!

My favorite picks from Whole Foods are:

• two jars of ghee (casein- and lactose-free clarified butter, made from organic cow's milk). I've heard that many dairy-allergics like me can safely have ghee. I have high hopes I'll be in that category too!
• two types of bulk dried coconut - organic medium shred, and conventional unsulphured wide chip. I love sprinkling these on my sweet potatoes and orange winter squashes
• organic chicken livers - Hubs gave me the O.K. to grind these up and add to a meatloaf, so he won't know they are in it but will get the nutritional benefits. Can't wait to try that!

What a fun and totally hypoallergenic afternoon it was. One for the happy-memories bank in my head :)

How To: Butternut Squash [for Breakfast!]

I guess you could say I'm on a winter squash kick. I posted about Spaghetti squash a little over a week ago, and here I am about to tell you all about Butternut squash. I think I am just so excited to [finally] be cooking and eating this stuff on a regular basis, and I want to get all I can before spring rolls around and the season for these is over until autumn!

One of the reasons I am so excited about winter squash is because it is so satisfying. Roast some in the oven with a little bit of coconut oil and pumpkin pie spices, drizzle the top with a touch of maple syrup if you like, and you're going to check the clock because you'll think you just arrived at dessert!

It isn't difficult to go from this:

to this:

Paired with mango chicken sausage for breakfast, and you'll be more than satisfied

Let me show you what to do, and you'll have some sweet golden nuggets to dive into in no time!

What you need:

one whole butternut squash

OR a great shortcut: a bag or two of peeled, cubed squash from grocery store (such as Trader Joe's)

coconut oil

optional though highly recommended: 

pumpkin pie spice

maple syrup

[minimally processed, gluten free, MSG free, nitrite free] mango or apple chicken sausage (also found at Trader Joe's, other stores)

What you do:

First, let me say that it seems safer to me when wielding a chef's knife, to be cutting something softer than a raw squash. So I start out by poking holes into the [rinsed and dried] squash, about three in a row every inch or two around the the gourd. Then I cook it on high in the microwave for five to ten minutes. This will make the skin more tender. Wait until it stops steaming and hissing before removing it, and use oven mitts to protect your hands from the heat.

Next, you want to peel the skin off the squash. Use your best veggie peeler and go to town. In some spots you may be able to just peel it off by hand. Once you see beautiful bright orange all around, cut it in half and remove the strings and seeds. Cut it into fourths, even eighths if that works for you. 

Here's my squash, peeled and cleaned, ready to dice

Then, working your way around the pieces, dice it all into cubes, as uniform in size as possible. Put the cubes into a Corningware type baking dish. I used a tart pan this time - no rigid rules here:

Get a big spoonful of coconut oil and put little pats all over the squash, like you would with pats of butter on a pie. (Oh dear. Why did I bring up pie? Moving forward quickly...) 

Sprinkle your spices on top of everything.

Pour a little bit of water into the dish. 1/4 to 1/2 cup water works well. You can always check it once it's cooked for a bit, and add more as needed. I find that most cooking and food is gracious to you as the cook :)

(If you haven't figured it out yet, I'll tell you now - I am not a scientific, precise cook. Use your best judgement with all my vague directions. I believe this way of cooking will build your culinary confidence and help you learn to trust your own judgment and palette.)

Put the baking dish of prepared squash into a preheated 350 degree oven, and check after twenty minutes. Give everything a gentle stir and continue to cook until the cubes are softened, steaming, and smell delicious!
Pull the dish out of the oven and let cool for a minute or two. Spoon some onto your plate, and if you like, drizzle a teaspoon of maple syrup on top.

Your plate may look something like this:

A sunny looking dish for a cold winter morning

This baked squash experience was several days ago. Today I used the shortcut method with Trader Joe's bagged, butternut cubes and the microwave:

I gave the squash cubes a good rinse (even though the package says they are pre-washed, it seemed like a good idea to freshen them up). I added the coconut oil, spices and water just the same as when baking, and even put it all in the same baking dish.

I microwaved it on full power for fifteen minutes, stopping every five minutes to check and stir. After the last segment of five minutes, I left the dish in the microwave for another five minutes to steam everything some more.

I heated up (nearly burnt, actually...) a mango chicken sausage and had that with my "shortcut squash" today for a brunch time meal. Everything was delicious. The flavors all went together nicely, and I have to say I'd pick that meal over a typical dessert! YUM!

Humble brunch today, with an almond milk latte ;)

So, what do you think? The season for whole winter squash is winding down. Will you get out there, hunt down a squash and try this? If you do, I'm sure you'll be hooked and next fall you'll be so excited when the squash appear again :)

If you have any tips for cooking squash or favorite seasonings to prepare it with, share with us by leaving a comment below.

Happy March, everyone!

Buffalo Buorguignon

Have you seen "Julie & Julia?" Remember the cute story about Bouef Bourguignon, and the scenes where Amy Adams is cooking the dish and it just looks so beautiful and delicious? The movie played it up to be so romantic. Well, I won't lie: I want to make some. It's on my "cooking bucket list." Anyone else have one of those? No? I know, I'm a food nerd. I like it that way  :)

When I saw a recipe for slow cooker "Beef Bourguignon" at Crock Pot 365 [my favorite place to find gluten free, slow cooker inspiration] and saw that it was completely do-able as a gluten free, dairy free, paleoish meal, I got excited! I knew I'd found a simple way to see if I liked the flavors of a Bourguignon roast before attempting the more intense Julia Child recipe, and it just so happened that we had buffalo stew meat in the freezer. I gave it a whirl and I have to say, I was delighted at how much the Hubs and I enjoyed it. The flavors came together very nicely in the slow cooker, the meat was tender and not gamey in the least. Delectable! You must get your hands on some buffalo stew meat and try this!

Slow Cooked Buffalo Bourguignon

adapted from Crock Pot 365's Beef Bourguignon

What you need:

1 pound buffalo stew meat pieces (grass fed beef would work)

4 slices uncured bacon

1/2 red onion, sliced

1 cup chopped carrots

2 tsp Tuscan style Italian seasoning (Herbs de Provence if you're a stickler for the traditional)*

1/2 tsp fine sea salt

fresh ground black pepper

2 cups red wine (I used "Two Buck Chuck" Charles Shaw Merlot from Trader Joe's)

*I looked up Herbs de Provence planning to make my own. It is a blend of basil, fennel, marjoram, rosemary, savory, thyme, and sometimes lavender. When I got to my spice cabinet I discovered that the McCormick Tuscan Style Italian Seasoning from Costco was very close and used that instead. It is a blend of thyme, garlic, marjoram, onion, rosemary, oregano, basil, savory and sage.

What you do:

I used my 3 quart slow cooker. Make whatever size you have work; this is casual slow cooking :)

Lay two slices of bacon in the bottom of your slow cooker. Top with onion slices. Put stew meat into crock on top of onions and bacon, and sprinkle on seasonings.

Lay remaining two slices bacon over the meat, and top with the carrots.

Carefully pour red wine over everything in the crock.

Cover and set to "High," and let it heat up until you can smell the wine in the air. Change the temp setting to "Low" and cook until meat reaches desired doneness (it took 3 to 4 hours here - I forgot to write down the exact time). If you like, you can take the lid off partway through cooking and stir everything, but then you will need to plan on some more time for cooking. Dish is ready when the carrots are tender and the meat is cooked to your desired doneness.

Serve with steamed Normandy vegetables drizzled with olive oil, and gravy. Make gravy by whisking together a little bit of juice from the slow cooker with a tablespoon of thickener such as cornstarch in a small bowl, then add it to the rest of the juices simmering in a small saucepan and whisk until thickened.

As Julia would say, "Bon apetit!"

Dinner

Leftovers for lunch

Speaking of Julia, here she is, cooking her famous Bouef Bourguignon on the very first episode of "The French Chef." So much cooking wisdom in these twenty eight minutes. What a neat lady she was...

How to: Spaghetti Squash

Whether you're going Paleo or simply deciding to pick up more whole, colorful foods every time you shop - your choosing to do that opens up many new windows of opportunity to try new or forgotten foods you probably wouldn't have picked up otherwise. On that note: have you experienced Spaghetti squash?  If not, I think you should give it a try.

Hello sunshine!

It's popular in the diet crowd [sigh] as a substitute for pasta noodles. I don't like to think of it as a "substitute." I want to embrace it for what it is: a unique, delicious vegetable, full of nutrients and beautiful pigment. It happens to resemble a man-made creation (noodles) but squash was here first. So... the real truth is that pasta wants to be spaghetti squash, right?  :)

Another selling point of squash - it is very affordable! I picked up two HUGE spaghetti squashes a couple weeks ago for just $2, because they were down to 20 cents a pound at the produce stand! Score!

Once cooked, the squash strands ("noodles") are moist and soft but have a delightful "crunch" when you're chewing. 

I have tried it several different ways, and they are all winning combinations. So, let's get cooking. First we'll prepare the squash and then try a few serving suggestions...

The fastest way to prepare this is to cook it in the microwave. Rinse and dry your squash(es). Poke holes all over the skin with a strong fork or knife. Pop it (them) in the microwave and cook on full power for at least ten minutes. You can tell it's ready when your fork or knife goes into the skin without much fuss. Use oven mitts to take it out of the microwave, and let it sit to cool for a few minutes. Once cook enough to handle, cut it in half around the "waist." Be careful of steam! Use a spoon to scoop out the stringy innards and seeds. You can save the seeds, clean them up, sprinkle on a baking sheet with chili powder and roast them for a few minutes at 350 for a great snack!

Unedible strands and edible seeds

Once you have two clean halves, you can cut them again the other direction if you need better access to the squash "meat." Take your fork and start to pull at the yellow cooked stuff. Squash "noodles" will start to come off, and you can put them into a bowl. Do this with each piece of squash until they are all clean, and you'll have a bowl of spaghetti squash ready to eat!

You get a lot of "noodles" from one squash! Put it into containers to refrigerate or freeze

A "breakfast option"

Here are a few ways I like to enjoy this squash:

Breakfast - Scoop a bowl of spaghetti squash and top with organic raisins and raw pumpkin seeds (optional to add a drizzle of maple syrup or sprinkle of sucanat)

Sweet Treat - Lay a base of spaghetti squash and top with homemade unsweetened applesauce, a scoop of coconut cream and a teaspoon of cinnamon. Yum!

Hearty Dinner - First, cook up some chicken Italian sausage (I like Isernio's because their products are made here in the Pac NW and have no icky preservatives or questionable ingredients). Lay a base of squash and top it with the cooked sausage, sauteed onions, zucchini and/or bell peppers, and marinara sauce. Ooh!


So are you going to give this great veggie a shot? You really should. Don't be a wimp. ;)
If you already love spaghetti squash, leave a comment sharing your favorite way to enjoy it. Have a wonderful President's Day, friends!

Slow Cooking: Spicy Coconut Chicken

Slow cookers, a.k.a. Crock Pots. Do you have one? If so, do you actually use it? Confession: I have three slow cookers. Actually, four if you count our GIGANTIC Nesco roaster. They were all gifts-I'm not an addict. However, now five years into my "homemaking career," if you will, I use all of them. It just took me a while to get into slow cooking.

Truth: Slow cookers are not the most glamorous kitchen tool, and the food they produce isn't always beautiful for photos. However, it is always delicious, and so simple and easy to get it that way. I think slow cookers are making a comeback with savvy cooks. In some cases, you can have a delicious hot dinner ready in the evening after just five minutes of prep work in the morning. Slow cookers save money because they can make just about any cut of meat moist, and it's hard to overcook something. And they are rumored to be one of the best ways to cook with a low energy cost - as low as two cents per day!

This recipe evolved from a recipe for Tandoori Chicken over at Crock Pot 365. I only made that dish once, with Greek yogurt. After a few weeks post-partum, all my food allergies came back in full force, and I couldn't have dairy at all. I wanted to make it again sans yogurt, so I did a little thinking and came up with a new twist to the dish: canned coconut milk as a yogurt sub. I also modified the spices (I'm allergic to garlic, so that went away with the yogurt). After cooking this on four separate, but all delicious, occasions, and playing around with the spices each time, I've landed upon what I think is the perfect combination of flavors. I also think my creation is unique and tasty enough to deserve it's own name. I'm calling it...

Spicy Coconut Chicken

What you need:

3-4 quart slow cooker (If you have a larger one, simply double the recipe. Leftovers of this dish are WONDERFUL!)
Fresh/thawed boneless, skinless chicken pieces. Try this combo: 4 small chicken thighs and 2 medium chicken breasts (I like Trader Joe's fresh organic, free range)
One can of coconut milk (Go for a brand without preservative chemicals, such as Taste Nirvana or Trader Joe's)
Bag of frozen broccoli or cauliflower pieces

1/2 to 1 tsp* of the following ground spices:
turmeric
curry
smoked paprika
cumin
coriander
ginger
crushed red pepper flake

*Use your taste as a guide. We love spicy around here, so for the real heat I recommend 1 full teaspoon of each spice.

What you do:

Put chicken pieces into the slow cooker (I used my 3 quart Hamilton Beach). Gently -to prevent splashing- pour half a can of coconut milk on top. Scoop each teaspoon of spice right on top of the chicken and coconut milk. Once everything is in the slow cooker, take a fork and start turning the chicken pieces, working from the bottom to the top. Get both sides of each piece coated. The spices will mix together on their own while you do this. When everything looks good and well coated, put the lid on, set the heat at Low, and cook for three to four hours, depending on thickness of chicken and power of your slow cooker.

At this point, add your frozen veg and keep the heat on Low. If the veg pieces are small, it won't take long to finish - less than twenty minutes. Dish up a plate: a piece of chicken, a few scoops of veg, and some extra sauce as there will be plenty. You can serve this on a bed of "riced" cauliflower for something extra. This is a great, convenient Paleo meal, it is super easy using the Crock Pot, and it has plenty of the three components we need: 1) lean protein (chicken), 2) healthy fats (coconut milk) and 3) vegetables (broccoli and cauliflower)!

Like I said, the slow cooker doesn't always produce aesthetically pleasing dishes, but this really tastes wonderful. Give it a try tonight!

Apple Cider Baked Doughnuts!

This morning was one of those special ones - I got up and the sun was shining, my body wasn't flaring, and I was ready to take on something new! (Don't you love that?) So, I baked some doughnuts. And oh my goodness, are they good. Stay with me here...

A few days ago I came across a recipe for Apple Cider Paleo Doughnuts over at Paleo Spirit. With a few modifications, I soon had six gluten-free, dairy-free, grain-free, egg-free, soy-free, Paleo, (vegan,) Apple Cider doughnuts on my counter top.

Now there's only one. And I'm trying to save it for my hubby. But I don't know if I will make it!

What a wonderful sight!

Apple Cider Baked Doughnuts

adapted from Paleo Spirit

What you need:

1/2 cup coconut flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of fine sea salt
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons melted coconut oil
2/3 cup warmed apple cider (I used a locally produced unsweetened, unfiltered, fresh pressed apple juice)

For the sweet sprinkle topping:

1/4 cup sucanat

1 tablespoon cinnamon

What to do:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Prepare your doughnut pan. I used canola oil spray, but I don't condone this for regular use! Next time I'm going to grease the wells with coconut oil and see how that works.

First, make your egg substitute. Put 3 tablespoons of flax meal in a bowl, cover with 1/3 cup warm to hot water. Whisk with a fork and let sit to gel.

Another option is to use homemade cinnamon applesauce* - it would add the binding capabilities of egg, plus more apple and cinnamon flavor! (I'm doing this next time!)

Next, get out two mixing bowls. In one bowl, use a fork to mix together the coconut flour, cinnamon, baking soda and sea salt. In the other bowl, stir together maple syrup, melted coconut oil, and egg substitute. Add the dry ingredients to the liquids and fold together. Pour in the warm apple cider and mix well.

Spoon dough into the doughnut wells, enough to be level with the pan surface. I used a full size doughnut pan with 6 wells, and the amount of dough was exactly perfect to fill each one to the top. Put pan into preheated oven. After 15 minutes have passed, check on the doughnuts. They will be soft to the touch even when done, but when they are ready, the edges will be browned and when you tap the dough with your finger, no batter will come off. My doughnuts were ready after 20 minutes of bake time.

Let sit to cool and "firm up" for a bit, 10 to 20 minutes. I had to feed my little one, and when I returned after 20 minutes the doughnuts were spongey-soft but firm enough that most of them came out of the pan in one piece when I turned it over onto a cutting board. 

For the finishing touch, use a silicone/pastry brush to moisten the doughnut tops and sides with melted coconut oil, and sprinkle on a mixture of sucanat (or coconut sugar, or whatever pretty crystallized sweetener you like) and cinnamon.

These doughnuts are very soft, almost spongey, and remained that way all day. Absolutely no problems with coconut flour-drying out issues here! They have a moist coffee-cake-like texture, but they are fragile; don't expect to pick one up and eat it like a "crap-filled Hostess" doughnut (ok, that quote was from my husband just now). My taste tester said they remind her of old fashioned Dunkin Donuts - the cake style ones that had cinnamon sugar topping. If you are comparing these to that kind, I'd say they are as good if not better! I’ll play around with it some more to see if I can get them firmer (maybe less liquid?), but the taste is in need of NO upgrades! Another day, another reason to be thankful for the food we're meant to eat! :)

30 Minute Meal: Valentine's Edition! "A Night in Spain"

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Uh-oh. Did you forget?! It's not too late! Grab a few things on your way home from work today, and you'll be set for a lovely night in with your love/bff/munchkin/whoever you're blessed to spend time with this evening. Hopefully they (and you) like fish, because you're about to get an easy-peasy, delicious way to prepare one of the ocean's best inhabitants: Red Snapper.
Wow, I didn't realize until just now how fitting that is for today - RED snapper for a day full of RED hearts and roses :)

So here we go. A couple weeks back, I bought red snapper for the first time. I needed it to make a Rachael Ray "night in Spain" meal I've had my eye on for a while. I finally took the fish out of the freezer and made the meal this week. It was super easy for how pretty it looks.

I can't seem to find the recipe anywhere in Rachael Ray's impressive online index of recipes, so I will give you the quick version. By the way, it's from a 30 Minute Meals episode that I have on DVD. Yes, I have a Food Network DVD, and I want more! Watching other people cook beautiful food is so much fun, and helps me stay motivated and creative in the kitchen. Now you have one of my secrets...

"A Night in Spain" Menu
-Sunset Sangria
-Spanish Spice Rubbed Red Snapper with Green Olive Salsa
-Roast Asparagus with Toasted Walnuts
inspired by Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Meals

First off, if you'd like sangria to go with your meal tonight, put this together before you head off to work. (Hopefully you have a bottle of red wine in the house. According to Rach, a Spanish Rioja or a Chianti is best, but use whatever you've got.)
Get out your prettiest glass pitcher, give it a rinse because it's inevitably dusty from disuse (don't we all need to get out our pretty dinnerware more often?) and dry. In the show, Rach explains that sangria works in a ratio of 3's. Here you'll see that: Pour in 3 spoonfuls of sugar, 3 "glugs" of dark spiced rum, and 3 spoonfuls of orange liqueur. Toss in 2 cinnamon sticks. Pour in enough Rioja (etc) to cover and mix these things together. Next, slice your fruit. Any combination of fruit you want or have in your kitchen works, especially leftover fruit salad. FYI, Rach used 1 lemon, 1 orange, 1 freestone peach, and 1 plum. Drop fruit into the pitcher. Top off the pitcher with wine, and place in the refrigerator to "marinate" all day. By the time dinner is ready, you'll have sangria!
To serve, pour into your glasses and top off with club soda or seltzer water. Now get some Spanish music going on iTunes, and you're ready for your international culinary adventure!

Here's what you need:
One pound red snapper - with or without skin (FYI: Red snapper skin is edible!)
EVOO
Spanish spice rub*
Roma tomatoes
red onion
can of green olives (or fill a container at your grocery's olive bar)
lime
cilantro/flat leaf parsley
sea salt and black pepper

Optional:
fresh asparagus
walnuts
avocado

*Mix ahead of time - one palmful each of: coriander, cumin, sweet paprika, plus coarse salt and black pepper

What you do:
First, make the salsa. Seed and chop the Romas, chop the onion, slice the olives (of course pit them first if needed). Mix everything in a bowl, then drizzle with lime juice, salt, pepper, and cilantro or parsley as you like. Add some crushed red pepper if you like heat. Set aside to "let the flavors marry" - as Rach would say :)

Preheat your stovetop grill to medium-high heat. If your fish has skin, make several diagonal scores on each side. Drizzle EVOO onto both sides of the fish and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle on the spice rub and work into the fish (again, on both sides). Once the grill is hot, place the fish presentation (skin) side down and cook for about four minutes. Flip, cook about four more minutes, then plate (skin side up). That's it! See? Easy peasy!

Rach makes a side of steamed green beans with toasted almonds to go with the snapper, and piles everything (beans, nuts, salsa) on top of the fish. As we've learned recently, green beans are not a vegetable but actually a legume and therefore not Paleo-friendly.
As an alternative, I suggest a side of roast asparagus with toasted walnuts. You can easily work that into your dinner prep. Start by preheating your oven to 375, get the asparagus washed and trimmed and into a baking dish with a drizzle of EVOO and dash of sea salt and pepper. Just check on it a few times and give the dish a gentle shake to move the stalks around. You can toast the walnuts in a pan on the stovetop while you make the salsa. See? Easy peasy!

That's all there is to it. Plate your Red Snapper and spoon salsa on top or alongside the fish. Put some asparagus on each plate and a sprinkle of toasted walnuts. If you feel like you need more fat with the meal, add some slices of avocado to your plate. The creamy texture will be wonderful with the firm fish and salsa bites.

Voila!

I know, the food doesn't look super appetizing in this photo. But hopefully it gets you in the mood for a nice candlelit dinner at home!

I whipped up this meal in thirty minutes, including mixing the rub and making the salsa, while home alone with the little one and dealing with an autoimmune flare. So no excuses! ;)
And just think: No crowds or street parking to navigate, no reservations needed, no stress. A lovely night in with a perfectly date-worthy meal, for not a lot of time or money. You can't go wrong.

I wish you a wonderful Valentine's Day. Whether you have found your life's true love or not, soak up the truth that you are dearly loved by the One who created it all. And that makes you wealthy and whole!

Best Brussels Sprouts

After you make this dish, you may just join the veggie nerds club my husband and I are in, and instead of craving the usual suspects (chips, cake or caffeine?) you'll crave roasted Brussels sprouts with bacon. These are truly delicious. The sprouts get tender with an al dente bite, while the outer leaves crisp up and add a delightful toasted crunch. Oh, these are good.

I had been hearing about "roasted Brussels sprouts with bacon" as a general food concept for a while, and this past Thanksgiving I decided we needed to experience them. I found a recipe from the Food Network Kitchens, and Hubs and I tag teamed it. Since then, we've had these more times than I care to count. (Definitely nearing ten...) You need to make these today.

Is it weird that I never tasted Brussels sprouts until a few years ago? The first time I did, they were simply frozen sprouts steamed in the microwave, and I was an instant fan. These "mini cabbages" are treasures of the garden. Brussels sprouts are part of the cruciferous vegetable family, which means they are in the elite class of nature's cancer preventive, cancer fighting foods. For more Brussels sprouts nutritional trivia, look here

Best Brussels Sprouts
adapted from Food Network Kitchens

What you need:

• 4-6 slices bacon (uncured pork, turkey, or beef bacon <---from Trader Joe's)
• handful (1/4-1/2 cup) walnut pieces or sliced almonds 
• 1-2 pounds fresh Brussels sprouts, washed and halved or quartered
• fresh ground black pepper, to taste
• 12 to 15 inch cast iron skillet (any oven safe skillet will work but cast iron is truly best for this)

What you do:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Set skillet on the stove at medium-low heat (4/10). Cook the bacon until done, but not crisp. Remove from pan to a paper towel to cool and absorb grease.

Keeping the skillet at medium-low heat, add the nuts and toast for five minutes, stirring occasionally. While nuts are toasting, cut or break bacon into bite size morsels (approximately 1/4 inch).

When nuts are toasted, remove them to plate with the bacon pieces. Turn off the stove burner. Add Brussels sprouts to the skillet, sprinkle with fresh ground black pepper, toss together and get it into the oven. Roast for ten minutes, pull out skillet, give them a gentle stir and add in the bacon and toasted nuts. Put back into the oven for ten more minutes, or until the loose leaves on the sprouts look crisp and starting to brown. Taste test a sprout (after it's cooled a bit!) to make sure they are cooked through. Do NOT overcook the sprouts.

I would give storage tips, but we've never had leftovers and you probably won't either. So, there you go :)

Fast Food Mondays: Salmon Croquettes

Today I'm debuting a new weekly theme post: Fast Food Mondays. No, no, put down the car keys, toss that take out menu in the recycle bin, and put away your wallet. You DON'T need to go through the drive thru to come up with a fast family dinner solution for busy weekday nights. If you give it a try, I think you'll find that staying home and spending just a few minutes in the kitchen with common ingredients, you can have a satisfying dinner that doesn't break your budget or your eating plan.

Tonight we have Salmon Croquettes. One word: Delightful!
Isn't it true that some of the best creations come out of the most limited circumstances? When the refrigerator is looking sparse and the pantry is looking lean, all you need is a protein and Google to find a solution. Tonight our protein was a can of Alaskan pink salmon, and Google brought us to an outstanding index of canned salmon recipes at AlaskaSeafood.org. Inspired by several of the recipes found there, I came up with these truly delicious Salmon Croquettes. Time clocked from the can opener puncturing the lid, to a warm croquette sitting on my plate: twenty-five minutes. And that was without a prepared plan. With this as a guide, for you I'd say fifteen. So there you go: {real] fast food!

What you need:

• One 14.75 ounce can of Alaskan pink salmon, drained*
• 2 quail eggs (seriously!) OR 1 chicken egg OR 1 TB flax meal + 3 TB warm water, mixed and left for 5 minutes to gel
• 1/4 cup gluten free breadcrumbs**
• dried minced onion (approx 1 TB)
• dill (approx 1/2 TB)
• Dijon mustard (approx 1 TB)
• washed, chopped green onions (approx 1/4 cup)
• Lawry's seasoned salt (approx 1/2 TB)
• fresh ground black pepper (approx 1/2 tsp)

*You may pick out the salmon bones and skin to your satisfaction, but it is not necessary as the salmon is pressure cooked in the can. That process makes the bones and skin very soft and easily digestible. Leaving the bones in adds a great deal of calcium to your dish!
**Ener-G Foods makes a good gluten free variety for these purposes

What you do:

Using a fork, mash the salmon chunks as you would canned tuna fish. Add the eggs, bread crumbs and Dijon mustard and mix together. Then add your seasonings according to your taste. Blend everything together well.

Heat a cast iron skillet on medium heat, drizzling with a bit of grapeseed oil.
Form four patties with the salmon mixture. Place in the hot skillet and cook for eight minutes, flipping patties halfway through.

There you have it - a nutritious protein dish in less than twenty minutes.

Serving suggestion: Plate the salmon patties with a side of steamed broccoli or asparagus and (if you eat gluten-free grains) a small portion of wild rice.