
1. Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer
2. Silicon Mat
3. Immersion Blender
4. Food Processor/Blender combo
5. Crockpot
Products we use:
What’s your favorite kitchen appliance?
Enjoy!
Products we use:
What’s your favorite kitchen appliance?
I realize my last recipe post was about fudgesicles but I can’t miss an opportunity to share my Roasted Almond Chocolate Ice Cream recipe ? .
Brandon and I have an ongoing joke that we make the best ice cream. Okay, so we aren’t actually joking when we say this. We really do make the best ice cream.
Not that ice cream is something we should be eating all the time but the more affordable brands are full of unnecessary ingredients.
There is definitely a good reason to look at ingredient labels and spend a little more money for a higher quality product.
Did you know that carrageenan is a thickener derived from seaweed? Sounds harmless, right? Well, some animal studies have linked exposure to carrageenan to stomach ulcers and GI cancer. Other peer reviewed studies show that it causes inflammation, which is the root cause of many serious diseases including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, cancer and inflammatory bowel disease.
So, if you want to drop $5 on a pint of ice cream feel free to do so, otherwise make your own and save a bundle ?
Alternatives:
Sugar – cane sugar, beet sugar, blonde coconut sugar, brown coconut sugar would be great with chocolate ice cream!
Milk/Cream – full fat coconut milk
Cocoa – carob powder – or leave it out for vanilla ice cream!
Products we use:
Here is a great dairy-free recipe to make with this product: Honeydew sorbet
What’s your favorite ice cream flavor?
Now that its summer we all want ice cream, right?
I always thought I hated chocolate ice cream but one thing I love is fudgesicles in the summer time! Who am I kidding, how could I hate chocolate ice cream?
Brandon and I keep hearing the ice cream truck pass by our house but I swear it makes sure that we are not outside because we are usually outside most days of the week and he never drives by when we want him too!
This weekend I got creative and tailored a standard fudgesicle recipe to my food sensitivity results and then I got to thinking. How can I make this even more customize-able!? I want everyone to be able to eat fudgesicles if their heart desires.
But I guess, I do like other desserts too – like this sorbet 🙂
Alternatives:
Milk: whole fat coconut milk or 2% or whole cow’s milk – you need some fat!
Granulated sweetener: cane sugar, blonde coconut sugar, beet sugar
Liquid sweetener: corn syrup, brown rice syrup, honey, maple syrup, cassava syrup, coconut nectar, homemade simple syrup – I use this recipe to make my simple syrup
Chocolate: you can also use carob powder for a caffeine free version!
Flavor Extract: vanilla, almond, mint would all be great flavors – I would use ½ tsp if you use mint because it is strong.
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I’ve always struggled with finding a quick and easy breakfast that fits with my food sensitivities. Then I came across these cookies, made some modifications to meet my food sensitivities and BAM – my oatmeal breakfast cookies were born ?.
I started making these cookies a couple of years ago and got my whole family hooked – I even gave them out as Christmas presents! Oh the life of a poor post grad… Those were the days when it was acceptable to give cookies for family Christmas presents.
These past couple of weeks on the new job have been great…and busy! I love my cancer patients and survivors about a healthy diet but I am so glad to keep my private practice and continue my work with food sensitivity clients.
With my busy schedule of work during the day and food sensitivity clients in the evenings and weekends I am always looking for quick, healthy meals. I had forgotten about these cookies until recently and I’m excited to bring them back and share with all of you.
Alternatives:
The chia seeds and cinnamon are optional. Leave them out if you have not added this into your diet or do not know if it is a potential trigger food.
Allowed nuts – chopped pecans, chopped walnuts, or sliced almonds might be good options
Allowed dried fruit – banana chips, chopped unsulfured apricot, dried cranberries, dried blueberries
Allowed liquid sweetener – maple syrup, honey, brown rice syrup, corn syrup, tapioca syrup
Products:
What do you eat for breakfast?
Isn’t it pretty!
Alternatives:
Allowed liquid sweetener – honey, maple syrup, rice bran syrup, tapioca syrup, corn syrup
Almond flour – try cassava flour or make your own sunflower seed flour
Products:
What is your favorite sensitivity-friendly cookie recipe?
Most of us eat nuts and seeds on a daily basis – whether it is in the form of nut/seed butter, nut milk, or just plain old nuts and seeds. This tiny little nutrient packed superfood has found its way into many diets, however, to truly gain all of the benefits they require an extra step prior to your enjoyment!
Why not eat raw nuts and seeds?
Raw nuts (and seeds) contain phytic acid – the storage form of phosphorus in plant tissues. So why is this a problem? Phytates binds to minerals in your GI tract which can cause irritation and contribute to potential nutrient deficiencies. Of course you could take phytase in the form of a supplement – like Pure Encapsulations Digestive Enzyme Ultra – every time that you eat nuts and seeds but I think there is a simpler (and cheaper) answer! Before we get to that there is one more big reason to soak and dehydrate your nuts and seeds. Raw nuts also contain enzyme inhibitors, which prevent the nut or seed from sprouting prematurely in nature. This is great for the nuts in nature but when they have been gathered for consumption something has to change. Eating too many raw nuts that still contain enzyme inhibitors can contribute to the binding of minerals and again lead to digestive strain.
How does soaking and dehydrating help?
Soaking raw nuts and seeds in salt water and then dehydrating at a low temperature (around 105-115F) tricks the phytates and enzyme inhibitors into a neutral state. The combination of minerals and low heat helps break down irritating compounds, while preserving beneficial fats and proteins. This process increases the bioavailability of important nutrients (notably the treasured B vitamins) and activates helpful digestive enzymes that increase nutrient absorption. If you do not want to complete this process yourself it is possible to purchase, however, the cost can be significant in comparison to purchasing raw nuts and soaking/dehydrating them yourself.
If you look to purchase these nuts, they are different from sprouted nuts as sprouting is a much lengthier process.
If you’re not sure if you need to soak/dehydrate your nuts, here are a few questions that might be able to help direct you:
If you answered yes to any of the above questions, you will likely benefit from soaking and drying nuts prior to snacking on them.
Below is a great graphic that indicates the time that nuts/seeds should be soaked – and if you feel like going the extra mile you can try sprouting!
To prepare your nuts/seeds for soaking, first measure out 4 cups of raw nuts into a bowl. Cover with filtered water and mix in 1 TBSP of sea salt. After soaking, place nuts/seeds in your dehydrator at 105-115F for 12-24 hours. Throughout this process I find myself snacking! Turn off the dehydrator when your nuts/seeds have achieved a crunchy texture and no longer seem water-logged 🙂
Keeping the temperature under 118F maintains its “raw” status and does not comprising any of the nutrients. If you do not have a dehydrator you can dehydrate nuts in your oven at its lowest temperature – preferably at least close to 150F. Continue to watch your nuts as time will vary based on method of dehydrating.
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Let us know which nuts/seeds you dehydrate!
Today I spent the day shopping and cooking. It was a wonderful day but now my feet hurt! I started the day making my enchilada sauce and mac and cheese (for Brandon) and then I had to go searching for our Halloween costumes. We’re going to a Halloween party on Friday night and yes, we have waited until now to decide on our costumes. We decided to be robbers… easy right? no! I would have never thought it would be so hard to find a long sleeve black and white striped shirt for a man.
Anyway, I have been doing a lot of reading/listening to webinars and research about the role of fat in our diet and how the current nutrition guidelines are essentially killing us. Ever since the 90’s when we went through the low-fat craze the rate of obesity has been increasing exponentially. Why? Because when the food industry removes fat from their foods it tastes like cardboard – so they add sugar in its place! Snackwells cookies anyone?
So here is a novel thought. We should be eliminating refined carbohydrates from our diet (i.e. sugar, white bread, etc) and adding more fat! I’m not talking about fat from fast food items, or processed goods but instead eating more avocados, eggs, nuts and healthy oils like olive oil and coconut oil.
As I listen and read all of this research I have been tweaking my diet to include more nuts and not being afraid to eat more avocado. I think it is safe to say that I am consuming considerably more calories but I have already lost 2 pounds! I’m not starving myself or logging my calories but instead being conscious of my carbohydrate intake and choosing full fat options when I have them – like full fat cheeses and milks. I am trying to keep my carbohydrate intake to 60-100g per day but this is plenty if you are not eating bread, pasta, and other heavy carb meals.
A calorie is not a calorie! Food is information for your body and everything is interpreted differently.
Alternatives:
Most of the ingredients in this recipe are needed for a traditional tzatziki. If you are sensitive to garlic, this could be omitted but understand the flavor will be different than traditional. The pepper can also be omitted without much change to the recipe.
Oil substitute – use any mild oil here – liquid coconut oil, olive oil, nut oils, etc.
What’s your favorite Greek food?
This morning I woke up and it was very overcast and cold outside. I made tea and sat at my kitchen table to study Chemisty – just like I do every weekend. This week I have been testing out a hydrolyzed beef protein powder from Designs for Health called PurePaleo meal – its a true paleo protein source. They offer whey protein, pea protein and their newest product is a hydrolyzed beef protein! I had to try it because most other most protein powders I can’t tolerate. I am lactose intolerant so whey protein is no good. I am sensitive to green peas, so I try to stay away from pea protein. I guess a soy isolate would work but beef protein was intriguing!
This product contains beef from animals raised in Sweden without hormones or antibiotics, and is free of any GMO grains, grasses, and/or ensilage. Besides the normal benefits of protein power this powder also has added collagen to help support muscles, cartilage and ligaments.
DISCLAIMER: I do not promote Paleo as a superior diet, however, I do believe that a low carbohydrate, clean diet can help kick start the weight loss process and help eliminate water weight up front to see quicker results and help motivate you to continue.
Anyway – I digress – I wanted to tell you about my Chicken Pot Pie. While trying this PurePaleo protein and I am trying to maintain a paleo diet but felt that the cold weather required some comfort food and thus paleo, gluten-free, dairy-free chicken pot pie was born.
About coconut oil
When shopping for coconut oil pay attention to the label. There is a definite difference between virgin coconut oil and refined coconut oil.
Virgin Coconut Oil – made from fresh coconut meat which contributes a very pure coconut flavor. It has a lower smoke point and is best for baking when you want the coconut flavor.
Refined Coconut Oil – made from dried coconut meat and is great for sauteing, stir-frying and baking. It has a higher smoke point and a neutral flavor.
Use the leftover chicken from our crockpot chicken recipe to make chicken pot pie later in the week!
Alternatives:
This recipe has so many possibilities for customization!
Thickening Agent: as listed in the recipe, corn starch and tapioca flour can both be used to thicken sauces. If you are not looking for a paleo or gluten-free recipe wheat flour can also be used!
Baking Powder: Store bought baking powder often contains corn starch. If sensitive to corn it is best to make your own in a 2:1 ratio (listed above) and keep this to use in place of store bought. Note: cream of tartar is a byproduct of wine making so only use it if you are not sensitive to grape.
Protein: any other leftover protein would work here! Beef (I would use a beef broth to make filling gravy), pork, turkey.
Vegetables: green beans, corn, broccoli, potatoes, carrots, cauliflower, green peas. I used canned green beans and frozen corn because I had it on hand. This is your opportunity to make it your own! If using fresh vegetables, pre-cook them before adding to filling. Omit onions if you do not tolerate them.
Milk: any milk would work here!
There are so many possibilities that I’m sure I am missing some! Let me know if you try something different!
Products:
Let us know what you tried in your pot pie!
Well as much as I tried I couldn’t hold on to fall very long. Leaves are covering the street and its been nasty cold lately (like 60’s and rainy cold)! Being in Chicago it will only get worse but I was enjoying the nice summer we had. Come Fall I always think of hot beverages (I mostly drink hot water… I know, weird.) I do have a weakness for fudge – the nerd in me wants to call it my kryptonite – but maybe that’s because I just finished binge watching Supergirl on Netflix.
Anyhow, I came across a fudge recipe the other day and just had to make it! This fudge recipe called for coconut oil, cashew butter and honey which sounded amazing but because of my sensitivity to fructose that was not going to happen. Honey is 100% fructose! So, I modified it! I love having an understanding of food and being comfortable changing ingredients because it opens up the world of food! You can make pretty much anything you want 🙂
Well, through my modifications I came up with Maple Almond Fudge – yumm!
Alternatives:
Nut butter – any allowed nut butter can be used!
Sweetener – maple syrup, honey, or brown rice syrup can be used to sweeten these babies 🙂
**Coconut oil is an important ingredient – this is what keeps the fudge solid. You can use coconut butter in its place if you have it on hand!
Products:
Did you make any variations? We would love to know what you tried!
The idea of Chinese food always sounds good. I always think that I love Chinese food until we order it from the typical Chinese carryout restaurant and I realize that I’m not sure what I loved about it… its heavy, salty, MSG-filled, and covered in random mystery sauces. Oh and it makes my IBS flare up!
Make your own! I love homemade Chinese food because it is light, filled with veggies, flavorful and totally customizable! Totally opposite of the restaurant version.
My favorite Chinese food is chicken fried rice. For this recipe I used the leftover Chinese restaurant white rice that no one eats because they always buy fried rice… If you are smart enough not to order Chinese food from a restaurant then you can make your own white rice or brown rice and use it in this recipe.
If you eat chicken and rice regularly and keep it around the house you can put this dinner together in a matter of minutes.
Alternatives:
Protein – Use thin slices of beef or small shrimp in place of chicken
Vegetables – Any vegetables are fair game here! Broccoli bits, chopped onions, zucchini, etc. This is one way you can truly customize your meal!
Soy Sauce – this is an important part of the dish but there are alternatives that you can buy. There are many brands of soy sauce. Kikkoman in particular has gluten-free soy sauce and tamari that has limited ingredients. Bragg Liquid Aminos is an alternative to soy sauce and tamari that is not fermented (better alternative for those that are tyramine sensitive). Bragg Coconut Aminos is another alternative that is soy free and not fermented.
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Do you make fried rice at home? What ingredients do you use?