Yam N' Egg Salad.

Another new post so soon?? What's this?? Well.. I just so happened to have made something for lunch today that I rather enjoyed and thought I should share it with you all. :)

 

Egg Salad with Yams and Cilantro.

 

Ingredients:

1 or 2 small Yams (or sweet potatos.. Yams have a richer color and flavor so I prefer them)

3 Hard boiled Eggs

1/4 cup cilantro (fresh.. not packed)

3/4 cup chopped White Onion (or other.. Red is my fav! just didn't have any on hand.. Red would lend nice flavor and nice color to this recipe.)

1 Tbsp Dijon Mustard

1/4 cup Soy Free Vegenaise (vegan mayo.. has some brown rice syrup in it.. I have noticed I can have some rice and I feel just fine. There are many websites online that have recipes on how to make your own without the rice syrup.)

 

1. Wash off peel of Yams.. Poke four sets of wholes in your Yams with a fork. Place in a tupper ware container with lid on askew into the microwave for 5minutes exactly.. This will cook your yams but without adding in all the moisture that boiling the potatoes does.. (and less hassle!) Allow your yas to rest in the microwave while you do all your other work. This can be done in the oven with tin foil like baked potatoes if you prefer.

2. Now you can chop your onions, hard boiled eggs and cilantro and throw everything except your yams into a medium size bowl and mix together thoroughly.

3. Next chop up your yams (I prefer to leave the peels on.. you cane easily remove them by putting the hot yams into an ice water bath and the peels should just easily peel off.) as small as desired and mix it in with the rest of the ingredients but be careful because the yams will be scolding hot!!

4. Next you can play with this recipe.. eat it as is.. or throw it between some bread slices.. omit the egg and add tofu to make it vegan.. have fun with it! I was thinking of trying it again another day and adding a squirt of orange juice and some cinnamon.. weird a? I'll let you guys know if its good. :)

5. ENJOY! :)

 

Oh and I know its probably confusing because I call myself a vegetarian and here is an egg salad recipe.. Well I never used to eat any meat at all but when I found out about all of my food intolerances at first I didn't know how to cook for myself so one of the only things I knew how to make that was easy and wouldn't make me sick was eggs.. so I allowed myself to start eating some eggs that I got from a friends farm.. and very rarely some fish.. but most the time I get too grossed out ha! :) Some day my goal is to be completely vegan. :) :) :) One step at a time I suppose..

Anyway.. what did you guys think?

Ginger-Garlic Inspiraton.

Hello!! I am very excited about this recipe today...
The last couple of days I have had plenty of time on my hands so I have been baking and cooking up a storm and my belly feels very very happy. :)
Today I was chillaxing at home going through my newest cookbook..

 

This lady is a genius! She has SO many wonderful recipes.. I would highly recommend getting her book. I found it at Costco. At first I was nervous about putting forth all the money for it (about $20) but there is 150 recipes approx. and my mother can use the meat laden recipes. :) we have had a lot of fun using this cookbook.

 

Anyway.. whilst cruising the pages I came across two different recipes.. she has a recipe for a Ginger Garlic Broccoli and Cauli-Rice!! My mind started exploding with ideas!!!! I love ginger and garlic..  I put those spices in just about everything but I tend to over spice and so I had never tried those two by themselves!!Genius!! So.. immediately ideas of combining red peppers and green beans and ginger and garlic all started flooding my brain and as a result I went for this..

 

 

Gingered Green Beans and Cauli-"Rice"

 

Ingredients:

1/2 cauliflower head

3/4 cup chopped onion

2Tbsp coconut oil

2Tbsp Grapeseed oil

Approx. 1/2 cup red bell peppers sliced

Approx. 2 cups green beans(fresh)(1/2 10oz bag)

2Tbsp Fresh puréed ginger + 1Tbsp

4-5 cloves fresh garlic minced

3Tbsp Coconut Aminos (similar to soy sauce or braggs liquid aminos)

3/4 cup water

1tsp red pepper flakes

 

1. The first step is get all the prep work done. Once the recipe gets going it can get a little nuts so you will want to chop and puree everything that needs chopped or pureed. Part of the prep work is turning the cauliflower into cauli-"rice" this is simple.. All you need to do is throw the cauliflower florets from the 1/2 cauliflower head into a food processor and process until you get a rice like texture.. do it as fine or as coarse as you prefer.

2. On medium heat in a rather large skillet sauté your onions lightly with the coconut and grapeseed oils. Then add in red bell peppers and sauté a bit more. Next add in the garlic and cook until fragrant. Next add in the Green beans and cauli-"rice". Cook for about 5mins stirring pretty frequently.

3. In a small bowl mix together red pepper flakes, 2Tbsp of the ginger and the coconut aminos. Stir that into the skillet. Next throw in your water and mix thoroughly so all the spices get dispersed evenly. Top with a lid and let boil/simmer down for about 10mins.

4. Remove lid and turn up to medium-high heat. Continue cooking until excess water is gone. (When excess water is close to gone add in the last Tbsp of ginger) In the last few minutes I like to start stirring less so that the veggies and cauli-"rice" can get a little roasted and slightly char.. Yum! :)

5. Enjoy! :)

 

This recipe was fun to make and even more fun to enjoy! I hope you like it! :)

My Kind of Tomato Soup.

Hey Guys! I have another recipe here for you!! Tomato Soup!! Not just any kind of tomato soup.. but MY kind of tomato soup.
I should probably give you some background knowledge as to where the desire to come up with this recipe came from.. SO. A few years ago I worked at this summer camp. Working at this summer camp is a place where some of my fondest memories of life as I know it were created. I mean at this camp people from various countries join on as staff and live there for about 3 months and really bond and become a family. It's hard work but man do I miss it! Anyway.. especially when the weather started getting cold out one of the things that was made for the staff a lot to eat was Tomato soup and Grilled cheese.
As you now see by me telling you only just a small part of the story its obvious that perhaps I may have developed a liking for said food items. Every time the weather starts getting colder or I find myself working hard outside for the day the desire for these food items is nearly unbearable.. (joking of course..) but I do find myself remembering fondly days sitting with the other camp counselors eating our grilled cheese and tomato soup.
Little did I know at that point that I was intolerant to Gluten, Dairy, Soy, Corn, Sugar and all grains.. yah.. I guess you could say that meal wasn't so good for me.. Figuring out how to make grilled cheese was hard yes but I managed.. (I'll show you my fav. GF bread and cheese replacement!!) But trying to figure out how to make the perfect Tomato soup or even finding a product just to buy with no milk or sugar or gluten... IMPOSSIBLE!! So tonight the craving grabbed ahold of me full force plus the added effect from the wintry cold and off I went!! So this is what I came up with.. hope you like it. :)

 

 

My Kind Of Tomato Soup

 

Ingredients:

Olive Oil 2 tbsp.

Onions 1/4 cup (sliced or chopped... I used some white and some shallots)

Agave 2 tbsp.

Honey 1tbsp. (I used a light clover.. substitute for possibly more agave or maybe maple syrup to make this recipe vegan.)

Cinnamon 1/4 tsp.

Mushrooms 1/4 cup (optional.. I used canned this time.)

Rosemary approx. 1/2 tsp (FRESH! approx. 20 leaves chopped)

Garlic Chopped/Minced 2 cloves

Tomato Sauce approx. 1 cup (My home canned went bad in the fridge so I substituted for Cadia brand pizza sauce.. ha!)

Coconut Aminos FULL 2 tbsp. (like soy sauce but 1million times better. Coconut Secret brand. Can never have too much..)

Canned Coconut Milk approx. half can or more to taste (full fat.. Native Forest brand)

 

Directions:

1. In a small sauce pan over medium heat put in your olive oil, onions and mushrooms. Sauté. (I like my onions just starting to get little bits of golden color.)

2. Add the garlic and fresh rosemary cook for about 30sec until fragrant and then add your agave and Honey. Let it come to a boil and stir frequently. Add cinnamon. Continue cooking this mixture until you really caramelize the onions.

3. Add in your tomato sauce, coconut aminos and canned coconut milk. Bring to a boil. (I tried to use my mother's canned tomato sauce but like I said it went bad so I ended up using Cadia Pizza sauce.. I think just regular organic tomato sauce would be just as good if not better.. don't get a cheap brand with lots of fillers as it will change the outcome of the soup. Well you can if you want of course. :) )

4. Optional step.. you could also put this soup into a blender or food processor until smooth but I personally like the chunks of veggies.. I leave the choice in your hands. :)

 

Feel free to play with this recipe.. I give you full creative control.. The only way to learn how to use your ingredients and to learn how they work is to get into the kitchen and try it out! :) So try it out an let us know. :) I thought about adding some red bell peppers or sweet potatos.. mmmm..

Anyway.. tonight I just had this soup with some of my happy camper GF bread. (www.happycampersGF.com) and I cooked up a potato in the microwave and then poured my soup over the top of it..mmmmmm! :)

 

Oh! I almost forgot!! I will show you my favorite brand of bread and my favorite brand for cheese replacement.

 

 

This is my favorite brand of bread!! They use all seed based flours.. no grains! Therefore more nutritional value and.. I can eat it!!

Ingredients for classy slice style: Water, Flour Mix (Whole Millet Seed, Whole Teff Seed, Whole Buckwheat Seed, Whole Quinoa Seed, Whole Amaranth Seed) Tapioca Flour, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Inulin, Pea Protein, Raisin Juice, Psyllium Husk, Yeast, Xanthan Gum, Sea Salt, Chia Seed, Cultured Tapioca Dextrose, Cumin.

 

Check out there website! www.happycampersGF.com

 

Oh and here is my fav. cheese replacement thus far.. :)

 

 

Works great for pizza, Grilled cheese and much much more! My fav. is the chedder style shreds but I just so happen to have a picture of the pepperjack style. :)

Ingredients of pepperjack style: Filtered water, tapioca and/or arrowroot flours, non-GMO expeller pressed canola and/or non-GMO expeller pressed safflower oil, coconut oil, pea protein, salt, inactive yeast, vegetable glycerin, xanthan gum, vegan natural flavors, lactic acid (vegan, for flavor), spices, garlic, titanium dioxide (a naturally occurring mineral).

 

Anyway get that bread in the toaster and get your grilled cheese on! its time to munch on some grindage. :) Have a good night guys!! :)

 

 



Brussels of a Lifetime.

Hey Strangers! :) How is everyone's day?? Mine is going pretty good. :) Just got off work and I thought I would make myself Some Maple Hot Cocoa with almond milk... Mmmmm.. unfortunately I didn't write it down.. :( So.. I don't have that for you today but I do have something pretty equally delectable. :)
How many of you like Brussel Sprouts? Probably not many.. Maybe you just haven't had them the right way?? Try this!! You will probably love it.. (I certainly hope so ha!) I actually made this at thanksgiving last year and it all got demolished. :)
Anyway.. enough chit chat!! Here is the recipe. :)

 

Cinnamon Crusted Brussel Sprouts with Balsamic Rosemary Glaze

 

Ingredients:

 

Coconut Oil(enough for pan approx. 2tbsp.)

Rosemary(approx. 1tsp.. Fresh is best.. I've used dried in the past.)

Cinnamon (approx. 1/8-1/4tsp)

Salt(to taste)

Pepper(to taste)

Brussel Sprouts(approx. 2cups chopped in half)

Onions(approx. 1/4 cup)

 

Glaze-

Balsamic Vinegar(approx. shy 1/4cup)

Maple Syrup(approx. 1/4cup)

Honey(approx. 1/4cup)

Lime-or lemon juice (approx. 1tbsp or more to taste)

cinnamon(approx. 1/4-1/2tsp)

 

1. Melt Coconut oil in the pan(may need to keep adding more coconut oil as Brussels cook). Toast up Brussels that were cut in half with the first set of ingredients until onions start to caramelize. Don't flip the Brussels around to much.. you want them to char a bit and get toasty on the open side.

2. When Brussels are done pull out of the pan. Set aside. Throw in second set of ingredients in with leftover spices and oils.. Turn up heat cook down to a glaze.. Once thickened up nicely pull from burner to cool and thicken further. Top Brussels with delectable glaze.

3. Enjoy! :)

 

I'm so sorry!! I forgot to write down specific measurements!! You can tell I am new at this a? Well I hand you guys this challenge.. I challenge you to play with these ingredients and do it to taste! It's a very forgiving dish and fun to play with. I have  experimented before and dusted the Brussels with a sweet curry in the first step before they got topped with the glaze and that was delicious too! :)

I promise I will make this recipe again and I will write down more specifics as I get used to blogging. Anyway.. I hope you enjoy these Brussels! :) Did anyone go for it?

Greetings From A Stranger.

Hello Strangers and friends alike.. Today I am starting a blog.. my older sister convinced me that I should.. and I finally gave in. :) I must admit I am excited!!
I think its probably customary that your first post kind of be an introduction of yourself and why you are starting a blog so here I go!
I don't want to bore you guys too much with the details so I will just give you a little blurb today.. a little teaser if you will..
So basically I am a vegetarian who has MANY food intolerances and I LOVE FOOD!! I love to cook. So mostly featured on this blog will be the challenges I face with all the food intolerances I have and hopefully I will be able to help some of you by sharing with you my trial by fire methods.. what failed and what worked.
So... Let us work together.. Teamwork.. I'll share with you.. You share with me.. We will learn together. :) Let the Journey commence! :)