GAPS Burger Stack

The Backyard Farmer is now delivering grass fed beef at a great price! Sometimes there is nothing like a good, juicy burger. Grain free hamburger buns are not all that great; too dry, too dense, wrong flavors (shoot me a recipe if you have found a good one).  I really love iceberg lettuce, chopped burger-sized, a few layers thick on both sides of the patty with tomato and guacamole, a slice of bacon wouldn’t hurt either.  Unfortunately, it is messy and I always end up eating it with a fork, which led me to my burger stack idea.

It is pretty simple and versatile; all you need is a little creativity for a nice presentation.  Basically, you use whatever fixings you want and stack them in an eye-appealing way.  There are lots of flavor options;

Southwest; flavor meat with chili powder and cumin, stack with beans, cheese, salsa, guacamole.

Midwest; flavor meat with salt, pepper and onion powder, stack with iceberg lettuce, mayonnaise, pickle, tomato and bacon.

Middle Eastern; flavor meat with curry powder and ginger, stack with cauliflower rice, tomato, cucumber, yogurt sauce.

Italian; flavor meat with garlic and oregano, stack with eggplant or zucchini, mushrooms, marinara, parmesan and basil.

Thai; flavor meat with basil and mint, stack with shredded cabbage, shredded carrots, pineapple and sweet, creamy dressing.

Southern; flavor meat with creole spice, stack with smashed squash, cooked collard greens, bacon, onions and a cream sauce.

Jamaican; flavor meat with jerk seasoning; stack with cauliflower rice with peas, peppers, mango, coconut.

GAPS Moroccan-Spiced Stuffed Acorn Squash

Squash has been taboo around our house.  Only myself and the baby eat it with pleasure.  When you ask my eldest two what food they dislike the most, squash was sure to be their answer for four years running.  In fact, it is the only food that they have ever shown consistent distaste for. I had to be careful to call summer squash zucchini, not to taint it for the kids. If I ever used squash for anything, it had to be completely unrecognizable and called “pumpkin.”  A short while into the GAPS diet, I started using more and more squash.  They saw me buying it and cutting it all the time, but when it got to the table it was “sweet potato fries” or “sweet potato pudding” or “mashed sweet potatoes” or “pumpkin bars” or “pumpkin muffins” or “pumpkin crunch” or “vegetable noodles.” Yeah, I use a lot of squash.

This recipe laid it all to rest.  There was no hiding that they were being served squash for dinner, the one thing they detested the most.  They grit it and bore it and ended up admitting, that squash was no longer something they disliked.  Still, when I scraped out the last bit of squash from the skin and brought it to his lips he said “no, thanks.”  It still felt like a win, and this recipe is definitely a keeper!

I have been trying to make large portions of our tried and true recipe to reheat for another meal, or freeze for later.  I was able to put away a weekend’s worth of food for my kids that I gave my mother in-law to feed them while I was away.  It made things easy for her and kept me from worrying about what they were eating.

This makes a large amount, 8 servings.  But it is so good that it doesn’t go as far as planned.  I ate 2 servings for dinner tonight, probably could go for a third after typing this out.

4 acorn squash, halved and seeded

2 tablespoons coconut oil

1 large onion, chopped

4 stalks celery, chopped

3 carrots, chopped

1 banana pepper (optional)

2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons curry powder

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground allspice

1 pound ground meat, browned

1 cup meat stock

1/2 cup raisins or chopped apples

½ cup butter

4 cloves garlic, minced

Place squash, cut-side down on baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes, until flesh is tender. I cook these earlier in the day, turning off the oven after 15 minutes and leaving in the oven until dinner to keep warm.  Heat oil in large fry pan on medium high heat and add onions, brown slightly before adding celery, carrots and peppers.  I used the banana pepper for a little heat, any pepper would do here, you could also use cayenne.  Salt the vegetables well and let the pan come back up to heat before adding spices.  After about one minute, when the spices are nice and toasted and fragrant, add the cooked meat of choice (or even lentils) and broth.  Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer.  Leave the lid off to reduce the liquid.  Once the pan is nearly dry, add the apples and melt a whole stick of butter (yeah, baby!) in the pan. When the butter has melted, place the minced garlic in the pool and stir to coat the entire mixture.  Turn off the heat.  Salt the cut side of the squash, plate and fill with meat and vegetable mixture.
Links; Real Food Wednesday, Works For Me Wednesday

Italian Summer Over Broiled Polenta

Salsa gardens are becoming quite popular, but adding just a few more plants (zucchini, basil, oregano) expands your cuisine to cover Italian too!

I really like creamy polenta for breakfast and even more leftover, where I cut it in cubes and fry it in butter.  Some stores sell the corn grit labeled "polenta," since they are virtually the same thing.  Corn meal is a finer grind that will work in a pinch. I have tried soaking to unlock the B vitamins as Nourishing Traditions recommends, first in lime, then whey, but it ruins both the flavor and the texture.  Any suggestions? You can buy tubes of premade polenta in health food stores if you are looking to save a step, but I prefer making it myself.


2 cups corn grits
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 onion, chopped
1 pepper, chopped

2 teaspoons sucanat

2 medium summer squash, diced
2 garlic cloves
2 large tomatoes, diced
1 handful purslane (optional)

1/2 cup fresh herbs (oregano, thyme, parsley, basil)

1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup fresh parmesean, shredded
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Heat chicken stock to boil, whisk in grits salt and pepper.  Stir constantly.  When mixture starts to thicken, add milk and continue to stir and cook until very thick and can be heaped on a spoon.  Pour into 9x13 baking dish and let set up in fridge for 20 minutes or up to 3 days.  Cut into 10 equal bars, carefully remove from dish onto a sheet pan and broil each side for 5 minutes or until slightly browned and crispy.

Heat coconut oil in large fry pan, add onions and peppers.  Cook to soften about 5 minutes and push to the outside of the pan.  Sprinkle sucanat in the center of the pan and add squash, tossing to coat in the sugar.  Let caramelize on medium heat, turning once. Add garlic and tomatoes until garlic becomes fragrant and toss in purslane and herbs with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.  Plat up by placeing a scoop (about 1/2 cup) vegetables on a piece of broiled polenta, sprinkle with cheese and extra virgin olive oil. 

Another polenta recipe I would like to try;  Polenta Mini Pizzas

links; Real Food Wednesday, Works For Me Wednesday, Ultimate Recipe Swap, Cooking Thursday, Simple Lives Thursday, Things I Love Thursday, Pennywise Platter

College Student Cooking {Potatoes}

Dear Kate,

Like Mom, you may think potatoes will make you fat and have no redeeming value.  Potatoes have gotten a bad rap from the low carb enthusiasts to the common junk foods;  French fries and potato chips.  I will make a case for these veggies ANY day of the week.  They are a real food with all that real nutrition to go with them.  Easy to find, easy to afford, filling and tasty.  We just need to use them for good instead of evil.

It is worth buying organic, conventional is sure to have soaked up lots of bug poisons.  Leave the skins on, as with most produce the greatest concentration of vitamin lies in the layer just beneath the peel.  Scrub them well and imagine the possibilities.

You could start out with a regular baked potato by rubbing the skin with oil and baking for an hour in a 350 degree oven.  You could grate them on your cheese grater, make patties and fry then in butter.  You might cut them into cubes, coat with oil and seasoning and steam/fry them until tender.  Or slices would be nice too.  You could even quarter and boil them for fork mashing later.

Potatoes make a nice bed for a great many traditional and untraditional. Bacon , chives, chili, cheese.  Pour spaghetti sauce on top and s sprinkle of cheese and you have a “potato pizza”.  Sautee onions and peppers for a “potato fajita”.  Steamed broccoli (or spinach) over a potato with cheese and you have ”cheesy potato broccoli un-soup.”

And my favorite…

Potato Bruschetta

4 medium baked potatoes

¼ cup finely chopped red onion
1 large ripe tomato, diced
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped (grab some from the garden next time you are here)
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Combine onion, tomato, garlic, basil, cheese and olive oil in a small bowl.  Split open potatoes, sprinkle with salt and pepper and spoon tomato mixture evenly over all four of them.

Obviously, you would just make one at a time unless you were feeding your friends J

Another variation of this that is super easy is to find/make a nice chunky salsa, strain off the juices and put the chunky part over your potato.

Go here for more tips for eating on a dime.
links; Simple Lives Thursday, Ultimate Recipe Swap, Cooking Thursday, Things I Love Thursday, Foodie Friday

College Student Cooking {Thai}

Dear Kate,

While I was out shopping this week, I browsed the aisles for some healthy, college friendly products.  I am thrilled that you are broadening your horizons with international foods and taking a liking to them.  There is a brand that is found mostly in health food stores like Sprouts called Tasty Bites.  Their products are mainly Indian and Thai flavors and they use real ingredients, no salt, MSG, preservatives, colors, ect.  Take a look sometime and try some of the products out.

The line I recommend is the simmer sauce.  With these, you use your own brown rice and fresh vegetables for incredibly frugal and nourishing meals.  A 7 oz pouch of simmer sauce is $1.69, the package says it serves 2, but I can easily stretch it to 3 or even 4 servings with vegetables.  There were 5 different sauce recipes available including; Pad Thai, Satay Partay, Good Korma, Tikka Masala and Rogan Josh.

Here is a recipe I have come up with, using what I have on hand.  You might just use 2 or 3 vegetables, or throw in a scrambled egg or chicken even. Broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, asparagus, green beans, celery would all work good here.  You would most likely leave out the cilantro and look forward to having a refrigerator bigger than a nightstand one day.

1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 small red bell pepper, diced
2 carrots, sliced
1 cup snow peas, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1 pouch Satay Partay
1/2 cup water
3 green onions, finely sliced
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
2 cups cooked rice noodles

Heat oil in pot, add pepper, carrots and snow peas.  Cook 7 minutes, until carrots are just tender.  Add salt, sauce, 1/2 cup water and noodles.  Simmer for 2 minutes. If the sauce has gotten too thick, add more water.  Mix in onions and cilantro, chopped peanuts would be nice too.  If you want to replace the noodles with rice, cook rice separately and serve up vegetables with sauce over the rice.

Links; Monday Mania, Happy Homemaker Monday, Menu Plan Monday

Thanksgiving Pizza?

What a great holiday, food and family, the bomb.  We had a fun day in the kitchen, and a beautiful feast and an energizing sunset hike.  Now our fridge full of ingredients has turned to a fridge full of leftovers.  You know what I love to do with leftovers, right?

Use this yummy dough and top with Thanksgiving Day leftovers.  Any combination works turkey, potatoes, dressing, gravy, cranberry sauce, you can even top it with cheese because anything is good with cheese.  So when you get back from shopping, throw together a creative pizza pie.

Other great uses for leftovers;

Turkey Pot Pie

Turkey Barley Soup

Simple Turkey Brine

I swear by brining my thanksgiving turkey.  You can get fancy by adding a bunch of spices and herbs, but I just keep it simple with salt, sugar and water.  Alton Brown has a great Good Eat’s episode that got me started on brining my first turkey.  I have been impressed year after year with how tender, moist and flavorful it is.  If you get a more natural bird, it will not be saline injected, and therefore tends to have less flavor when not brined. 

Jenny at Nourished Kitchen is offering some incredibly useful online cooking classes for holiday cooking.  If you are like me, you are online trying to search for doable recipes that are made with quality and nourishing ingredients.  It is an overwhelming task to work your way through the mountains of holiday recipes to find just the right kind.  Take a look at what she is offering, and be sure to take advantage of the free thanksgiving mini lesson that is available now just for signing up for her newsletter.

1 1/2 cup kosher salt

1 cup sucanat

1.5 gallons pure water

ice

Boil salt and sugar in 2 quarts water until dissolved, ice down, put clean thawed turkey (well rinsed and giblet bag removed) in clean cooler (or pot or bucket if you have one that it will fit in.  Pour the brine and enough water to cover the turkey.  Find some plates and weight it down with cans so that it is completely submerged.  You can put it in the fridge if there is room, or keep it on ice.  I usually put the cooler outside and make sure there is plenty of ice.  Keep in the brine around 12 hours... at least 4, but not more than 24, it's flexible.

When ready to bake, remove and dry with paper towels.  Rub skin with butter or coconut oil.  For delicious gravy, stuff cavity with aromatics, but never stuffing.  If you have a roasting pan with a rack, that works good, otherwise you will have to get your oven rack dirty by placing the turkey directly on it with a sheet pan under it to catch the drippings.  Bake at 425 for 15 minutes, turn 180 degrees and bake another 15 minutes.  Lower temperature to 325 to finish.  Do not rely on the probes that come in the turkey, those are set to pop at 180.  Cook to 160, remove from oven, tent with foil and rest for 30 minutes before slicing.


links; Tuesday Twister, Real Food Wednesday

Bok Choy Lentil Pita Sandwiches

In our area there is a co-op called Bountiful Baskets that is wonderful.  I participate every other week when an organic basket is offered.  They really do a great job overall, offering high quality and a pleasing variety. Anyone who is working to up their fruit and vegetable intake, look for a like program in your area.  It really forces you to try new things and find new loves.

Once in a while I have to be super creative, like the week I got 8 bunches of bok choy! But there was good that came out of it.  I like the uniqueness of this meal.  I think it is so important to give thought to eating raw foods at every meal.  This is where the vital enzymes come to aid digestion and help you feel really good.  I have never sprouted lentils before, but would like to try that sometime here.  I did soak them in an acidic medium for 12 hours before cooking, which is better for digestion as well.

2 cups cooked lentils

1 cup purslane or bean sprouts

1 cup thinly sliced bok choy

1carrot peeled, and cut into strips

1 ripe mango peeled and diced

⅓ cup apricot jam

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

¼ cup cider vinegar

½ teaspoon curry powder
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

¼ teaspoon Tabasco sauce

salt and pepper to taste

Sprouted Pita Bread 

Combine the lentils, purslane, bok choy, carrot, and mango in a mixing bowl.  In a small bowl, combine the apricot jam, ginger, vinegar, curry powder, Worcestershire sauce, and Tabasco. Stir well and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle the sauce over the filling, and toss gently to coat all the ingredients.  Scoop filling into pitas and serve.

links; Menu Plan Monday, Tuesday Twister, Tempt My Tummy, Whole Foods for the Holidays

Roasted Vegetable and Garlic Quinoa

I am so happy when I see others diving into new territory and embracing it. You know you have "arrived"  when you start making your own original recipes with things you have on hand and they turn out great.  I have met just such person through my classes.  Kami, from Birth with Confidence has written this guest post.  She has put together some fabulous stuff I am so excited to share here on Taste is Trump.

I am a newbie to "real food," meaning, I've only been on this journey for about a year now, but it is a journey that has changed my life and my family's health. I feel happier, have more energy than ever before (quite a feat, for me), and am thinner than I've ever been. I am passionate about real, whole food and it is something I find great pleasure in learning about.Here is a simple, whole foods recipe that is not only incredibly nourishing, it is also delicious!

This recipe is extremely versatile. If you don't have the vegetables on hand that I listed, you can always use anything else. Other favorites of mine are asparagus, zucchini or yellow squash, sweet or red potatoes, and broccoli. If you prefer, you can roast the garlic along with the vegetables. I've kept it raw in this recipe in order to take advantage of the health benefits of raw garlic. It tastes wonderful either way!

6 brussels sprouts

1/2 head of cauliflower

1 red pepper, sliced

1 medium red onion, roughly chopped

5 grape tomatoes, halved

2 carrots, chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

salt to taste

1 cup white quinoa

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 cups water

4 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Herbes de Provence

The night before, soak quinoa in 1 cup water and 1 tablespoon lemon juice. 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place all vegetables in a glass dish and drizzle with olive oil and salt, to taste. Roast vegetables in oven for 20-25 minutes, or until slightly tender. Meanwhile, bring remaining 1 cup water to a boil. Stir in soaked quinoa mixture. Bring back to a boil and reduce heat to simmer. Simmer quinoa until water is gone. Remove from stove top and stir in salt, crushed garlic, a dash of balsamic vinegar, and herbes de provence to taste. Remove vegetables from oven and gently mix the quinoa into them. To serve, top with freshly shredded parmesan or romano cheese. Enjoy alongside a salad and crusty bread, to make it a fuller meal. Enjoy!


links; Works for Me Wednesday, Real Food Wednesday

Jaternice

All this talk and research about traditional foods has gotten me interested in what my own ancestor’s ate.  I would really like to do some more research and find where things went awry in my own history.  My forefathers’s lived in Iowa for four generations and were all into farming.  This means all the way through to my own parents, they had home grown vegetables, chicken eggs, fresh milk and meat from their own animals, mostly pigs.

Looking through my grandmother’s cookbooks, it was obviously a pretty gradual change over time from real to processed to more processed.  Lard changed to shortening and margarine, unbleached flour to bleached white, cans of this and that started popping up and I found it interesting when a recipe was calling for a new pre-made product, it would be extra specific.  Another thing I noticed is that as the print date of the cookbook became more recent, there was less use of animal parts like tongue, feet and liver, cream and full fat dairy. 

I came across the recipe for Jaternice in a cookbook lovingly known in our family as “The Duncan Cookbook,” compiled by a town of mostly Czech immigrants, including my great grandmother. It is a charming, community compilation that was carefully typed out on a typewriter.  It reads:

Liver Sausage “Jaternice”                                                       Mrs. George Malek

Boil a pig’s head.  If too fat and large, trim off the fat.  Boil the heart, lungs and kidneys in the same kettle.  When all is done, grind up fine.  To one part of meat add two parts of stale bread.  If meatier sausage is desired, add more meat.  The bread must be soaked in water and squeezed dry.  Add pepper, salt and marjoram.  Other spices may be added also. Have ready beef casings cut into strips 6 inches long and tie one end.  Proceed to fill casings with meat filling and tie remaining end.  Put them in the liquid in which you have boiled the meat, putting it into one or 2 medium sized kettles. These should be not quite half full.  Let the sausages simmer.  Boiling rapidly will burst them.  When they come to the top, remove them from the liquid and lay out to cool.

My mother comes from a Czech line, which is where Jaternice originated, but this same recipe was shared around their community and went by many different names.  My parents both have fond memories of this dish as children.  Traditionally the meat mixture went into beef casings to make sausage links, but both my parent’s families served “the slop” over bread.  My mom remembers having to compete with all 7 of her siblings for seconds and would often gobble up the topping and sneak some more before the others would have time to finish their plate’s.

Zucchini Boats

You know those big, honking zucchini you find after you have been gone on a trip?  The ones that look more like clubs than something to eat.  These monsters are good for something more than zucchini bread, they make one heck of a boat!  Just slice in half lengthwise and hallow out the center where all the seeds and mushy inners are. Pack full of what ever you like, maybe polenta or rice, pilaf or spaghetti. I could even see it as a nice vehicle for tuna melts, sprinkle with bread crumbs and cheese, viola!

They take a good 30 minute bake to soften up and can be cut into sections for serving.  Also look for round “8 ball” zucchini at the farmer’s market, these are grown for stuffing!

links; Simple Lives Thursday. Real Food Wednesday and Works for me Wednseday.

Purslane Pizza {on Paper Plates}

It's just how some weeks go...short on time, short on energy, short on clean dished and short on groceries.  Still, no complaints with this standby crust, simple sauce and weeds from the garden.

I will be back next week with some fabulous recipes and a giveaway.  That's right, GIVEAWAY!  My first ever, so be sure to stay tuned, it is a good one.

Sourdough Spelt Pizza

My new go-to recipe for pizza dough, the flavor and texture are both amazing. I don’t know why I can’t get my bread to turn out like this, but this dough turns into a soft, stretchy, bubbly piece of art that yields the prefect crispy, chewy crust. Seriously, I used to not be a crust eater, now I am…unless it is burnt.

One thing that helps a lot is having a freshly fed starter to work with. This means, the night before, feed your starter and it will be ready to use in the morning. I use 1/2 cup starter and feed it 1 cup spelt flour, and 1 cup water. See how incredibly bubbly it is!

If you don’t have sourdough starter you can still do this recipe with just adding a pinch of yeast (less than ¼ teaspoon) when you mix the dough, then still let it rise all day. It will develop good flavor and improve digestibility, however, sourdough is even better on both accounts.

1 cup water
2 cups freshly fed sour dough starter
1/3 cup honey
1 tablespoon salt
3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
3 cups spelt flour
2 cup white flour

Combine all ingredients in mixing bowl, reserving 1 cup white flour. Knead 5 minutes, while kneading, add more white flour to achieve a smooth dough that sticks to itself more than to the bowl. Transfer to an oiled bowl and cover. Let dough rise for 6-8 hours on counter. Heat oven with pizza stone for 30 minutes at the highest heat (mine is 550 convection if you have it). Divide dough in fourths, roll out on a floured surface, transfer to parchment paper. Top and bake on a preheated pizza stone for 6 minutes or until crust is crisp. Let cool 5 minutes for cheese to set before cutting.

This post is part of Whole Foods for the Holiday's, Real Food Wednesday's and Pennywise Platter Thursday.

Coconut Curry Soup

Last summer I moved from eating any old meat in moderation to eating mostly wild game and pastured meat only sparingly.  Without knowing, that is when I wrote my Vegetarian-ish Teaser.  Flavors abound in fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs, while grains and beans add bulk to meals and give us sustained energy.  Through these past 6 months I have made lots of changes that all happened little by little.  It takes some creativity and a good resolve, but eating meat sparingly is O so doable.

Traditional American fare has become a plate of separates; large portion of meat with a starch and sometimes a small amount of vegetables.  When I eat American now, I just reverse the sequence with a large portion of veggies with a starch and sometimes a small amount of meat.  Simple.  It took my husband a little bit to accept this approach, his plate doesn’t always have the same proportions, but he is learning that a meal does not have to be centered around a large portion of meat to be satisfying.

This concept is a whole lot easier when we make more casseroles and soups because using less meat is not quite as noticeable.  This soup is meatless, though could very well have meat added for beginners.  The use of real chicken stock gives great flavor and lots of nutrition

Lemon grass is one of my favorite herbs.  It is hard to find so I am trying to grow my own.  Look at Asian Food Markets, the dried pieces from the grocery store is not the same.  I have also used 2 drops of lemon grass essential oil in a tablespoon of coconut milk added at the end of cooking with good results. 

I got the idea for this soup from Wildflower Bread Company.  Sadly, it is not on their regular weekly rotation.  With so much flavor,  a nice creamy smooth texture and small, soft bits for added interest, who could miss the meat? 

One 14-ounce can coconut milk

2 lemongrass stalks, tough outer portion removed tender portion only, chopped very fine

2 tablespoons grated ginger

2 teaspoons lime zest

1 tablespoon coconut oil

1 onion, finely minced

1 clove garlic

1 tablespoon curry powder

1 quart chicken stock

16 ounces tomato sauce

2 teaspoons salt

3 carrots, diced

1 celery stalk, diced

3 roma tomatoes, diced

1 red pepper, diced

1/2 teaspoon Thai red curry paste or cayenne to taste

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

1/4 cup coarsely chopped cilantro

In a large pot, combine coconut milk, lemongrass, ginger and lime zest, simmer for 10 minutes.  In a separate pan, sauté onions in coconut oil until soft.  Add garlic, then remove from heat.  Puree onions and garlic with curry powder, chicken stock and tomato sauce.  Add blended mixture, salt, carrots, celery, tomatoes and red pepper to simmering coconut milk, stir to combine.  Simmer until vegetables are tender, 8 minutes or pressure on high for one minute.  Stir in curry paste, lime juice, cilantro and serve.

links; Whole Foods for the Holiday's

Creamy Vegetable-Chicken Soup

THIS is what I mean by slow food.

Onions, carrots, celery, garlic and parsley are all things you can get in season right now.  I can buy them all from local farmers who use organic farming practices.

Nutrient dense, homemade chicken stock simmered with real vegetables and contains real chicken flavors without the chicken.  Nothing beats that delicious, lip smacking gelatin from a true bone broth.

Homemade noodles add such an amazing effect.  Here is a recipe for those so inclined.  If you are not up to making homemade noodles yet, soak some barley the day before and use that instead.  Barley is just as nourishing, but homemade noodles are so lovely.  The third option being brown rice pasta as brown rice is lower in phytates than other whole grains.

For kefir cream, just culture real cream with milk kefir grains and strain for a nice, thick, rich soured cream.  We love cream around here, fresh whipped cream makes anything a treat.  It is hard to find raw cream in my area.  The dairy where I get my raw milk does not have a real cream separator, so it is not pure cream and does not whip up.  I use Trader Joes brand, which is one of the only ones around that doesn’t ultra pasteurized and doesn’t add extra -- stuff.  Read the label, it should just be pure cream.

2 tablespoons butter

1 large onion, chopped

2 cups chopped carrots

2 ribs celery, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

4 cups chicken stock

2 cups noodles or soaked barley

1 cup frozen peas

1/2 cup kefir cream (or sour cream)

¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped

Sautee onion, carrots and celery in butter until softened.  Add garlic, salt pepper and stock.  Simmer gently for 20 minutes.  Add noodles and peas, simmer 3 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Stir a small amount of stock into kefir cream to loosen up and add cream to soup, add parsley and serve.  Don’t rush through, take your time and enjoy.

For more slow food recipes, check these out:

Butternut Squash Gnocchi

Winter Roasted Side

Spinach, Fig and Prosciutto Pizza

Feel-Good Granola

Mayonnaise

this post is part of Real Food Wednesday's, and Whole Foods for the Holiday's

Butternut Squash Gnocchi

Ever since my beloved Pasta Pomodoro shut down in Mesa, I have been searching for a recipe that replicates the unbelievable flavor of their butternut squash ravioli. It was kinda like a, fall-flavored sugar cookie if you can imagine that! Mmmm. One thing I learned when experimenting with homemade ravioli is that it ain’t easy. The dough, the filling, the assembly, then the boiling and finally the sauce. There was too much to go wrong. I usually ended up with a pot of boiling orange water and floating squares of pasta, a huge mess to clean up and only a few prized ravioli that held together.

So on to gnocchi; it is a dense dumpling type pasta, typically made with only potatoes and flour. I really found it quite enjoyable to make and although mine didn’t come out looking so hot, they tasted delectable. The whole grain sprouted flour takes away from the brilliant orange of the squash leaving you with more of a brownish gnocchi, but that was all made up for in taste.

I consider this pasta super healthy if paired with the right sauce. Many people think that means low fat, but fat is just what this pasta needs. An unhealthy sauce in my book is one that starts with a stick of margarine, fat free “cream”, or a can of Campbell’s Soup. I like a brown butter crispy sage sauce or a really thin white sauce made with real cream and a strong cheese. I wouldn’t recommend marinara for this flavor combination.

butternut squash (3 lbs)
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
5 cups sprouted flour

Cut the squash in half, scrape out the seeds and roast at 400 degrees for 50 minutes. Let cool and puree in blender or food processor. Spread evenly on two half-sheet pans and let cool to room temperature. Transfer to mixing bowl, season to taste with salt and pepper, add almond extract if desired and mix in the flour with dough hook for 3 minutes. The dough should be very tender and smooth and slightly sticky. Divide into 12 pieces, using extra flour roll each portion of dough into a ½-inch thick snake. Using a dough scraper, cut the snake into ½-inch pieces. Continue rolling and cutting with each piece, as you work, arrange the gnocchi in a single layer on a silpat-lined baking sheet. Let dry for up to 2 hours. Freeze flat and transfer to a container or bag once frozen, keeps in freezer for 3 months.

To cook gnocchi, boil a large pot of water, add gnocchi (frozen is fine). Continue to cook until they float to the surface. in 2 or 3 batches in a large pot of boiling, salted water, stirring occasionally, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until they float to the surface of the water. Toss in a simple sauce and top with parmesan cheese.

This post is part of Real Food Wednesdays, Whole Foods for the Holiday's

Fish Stroganoff

Years ago when we had Dish Network, 30 Minute Meals was my favorite program. My recipe creating skills blossomed during that time. I never even realized how much Ms. Ray had to do with said blossoming until I saw this recipe. My mom had seen her make it on her show and liked how it sounded with all the vegetables and all (I guess it’s hereditary) so we looked it up and made it for dinner.

The recipe is very versatile. Use any veggies you have on hand; green beans, asparagus, broccoli, zucchini carrots, peppers, mushrooms, peas, corn, onions…We have had it with a different combination of veggies each time, but one thing that makes the meal for me is a nice fillet of fish.Wild salmon and smoked tuna or wahoo are divine, but even a can of tuna would be quite lovely.

½ pound brown rice rotini noodles, cooked with ½ cup starchy water reserved

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, pressed

1 bunch broccoli, cut into small chunks

1/2 pound carrots, sliced or julienned

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons flour

1 cup chicken or vegetable stock

1 tablespoon dijon mustard

1/2 cup sour cream

½ pound cooked fish, broken up

2 teaspoons dill

1/4 cup chopped parsley

2 tablespoons lemon juice

salt and pepper

Sautee the onion and garlic in olive oil, cook 4 minutes. Add the broccoli and carrots and continue cooking for another 1 minute. Push the veggies to the sides of the pan to make a well and drop in the butter to melt. Sprinkle the flour over the melted butter and cook for about 1 minute. Add the stock, mustard, reserved pasta-cooking water and sour cream to the pan and whisk to combine and simmer until the sauce has thickened. Add the cooked pasta, fish, dill, parsley and lemon juice to the pan, season with salt and pepper, and toss to combine.

Who has influenced your cooking skills?

Saag

I know it doesn't look like anything spectacular, probably doesn't even sound remotely interesting to most of you. But if you have had the spinach based Indan curry “saag,” then you know it is worth gathering up a few more spices to create at home. I personally think saag is amazing, the flavors are well balanced, the texture is so creamy and what a nutritional punch! This recipe makes just less than 4 cups of curry. I, myself eat a full cup. That is ½ a pound of spinach!

A lot of foods I can create a recipe by just tasting them, not this one. The first time I had saag I didn't even know there was spinach in it! When I haven't got a clue I turn to allrecipes and recipezaar to get the low down on ingredients and techniques. I like these sites because they have a lot of varations of the same dish. Also, the recipes are rated with stars by people who have tried them along with reviews of how they may have changed the recipe to make it suit them. I take ideas from this one and that one, subsitute some of my healthy oils, sweeteners and whole grains and try it out.

Where do you go for recipes when you haven't got a clue?

2 tablespoons coconut oil

2 bay leaves

6 cardamom pods

2 medium onions, finely chopped

6 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons grated ginger

2 teaspoons cumin seeds, ground

1 teaspoon coriander seed, ground

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more for heat)

¼ teaspoon black pepper

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 pound meat, cubed (chicken thighs, beef, lamb, venison)

½ cup plain whole milk yogurt

2 pounds fresh spinach, chopped (or frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed)

¼ teaspoon garam masala

Heat oil in a large pot or pressure cooker on medium-high. Place bay leaves, cardamom pods and onions in the pan, fry for 5 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, cloves, cumin, coriander, salt, black and cayenne pepper, stir well. Then add the meat and cook for 2 minutes. Slowly incorporated the yogurt and add spinach handfuls at a time. Stir until spinach is completely wilted. Cover and simmer for 1 hour or pressure on high for 20 minutes, natural release. Remove lid and add the garam masala. Turn the heat to medium. Stir and cook another 5 minutes until most of the water in the spinach disappears and you have a thick, green sauce. Remove the whole spices (you may not be able to find all the cardamom pods which is okay, but at least remove the bay leaves) and serve with brown basmati rice and *garlic naan. To make this dish vegetarian-ish use less meat, paneer, or cubed red potatoes.

*For garlic naan I roll out 3 ounces of pizza dough, real thin. Then cook the dough on a 450 degree skillet and brush it with garlic oil. Not exactly naan but pretty darn good!

Lemon Chicken

Chinese restaurants give me the willies. I get sick just smelling the food. I have learned to stay away. Their low quality ingredients combined with the fact that their oil is used and reused over and over again until even their highly flavored, MSG laden sauces can no longer cover up the rancid flavor.

Did you know that grocery stores used to sell straight MSG? Now that the majority of the public knows that it is harmful it is hidden in common products and companies hope people don’t read labels and if they do at least they are not able to understand what they read.

The whole concept of chicken and vegetables with (brown) rice is a good one though, so we recreate.

1/2 cup corn starch
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, whisk with 1 teaspoon water
1/4 cup coconut oil
2 chicken breasts, cubed
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 tablespoon stone ground mustard
juice and zest of 1 lemon
½ cup pineapple juice
2 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup soy sauce
¼ teaspoon pepper

Combine cornstarch, cayenne and salt. Heat oil to medium-high. Coat chicken with cornstarch/spice mixture, then egg. place in oil and brown on each side. Combine vinegar, lemon juice and zest, pineapple juice*, honey, soy sauce and pepper. Pour mixture over chicken. Partially cover and let simmer on low for 10 minutes, until liquid thickens into a sauce. Serve over rice and don’t forget the steamed veggies. I keep mine on the side because I don not like them all saucy, but if you want to stir fry them and add them to chicken at the end, just up the sauce mixture by 50 percent.

*Since we don’t use a lot of pineapple juice, but I like to keep it on hand for sauces and dressings, I buy it in the frozen concentrate form and just scoop out a tablespoon at a time and add ½ cup water.