Sunday, September 6, 2009
Diet Friendly Pasta
I'm have problems finding spaghetti sauce that doesn't contain at least one of my Do Not Eat foods. After figuring out this recipe, I won't miss it.
Cook appropriate pasta for your diet according to package instructions. I used brown rice pasta.
In a saucepan, heat about 1/8- 1/4 c olive oil, a couple of glugs of balsamic vinegar, and a couple minced cloves of garlic. Once garlic is sauteed, add about 2 T of dried basil. Then add a couple of chopped tomatoes. Cook until the tomatoes are soft. Add another glug or two of vinegar for good measure. Add some salt and pepper to taste and throw in a pinch of red pepper flakes.
Toss sauce and pasta together.
Tastes very fresh and is full of flavor.
Cook appropriate pasta for your diet according to package instructions. I used brown rice pasta.
In a saucepan, heat about 1/8- 1/4 c olive oil, a couple of glugs of balsamic vinegar, and a couple minced cloves of garlic. Once garlic is sauteed, add about 2 T of dried basil. Then add a couple of chopped tomatoes. Cook until the tomatoes are soft. Add another glug or two of vinegar for good measure. Add some salt and pepper to taste and throw in a pinch of red pepper flakes.
Toss sauce and pasta together.
Tastes very fresh and is full of flavor.
Whoo-hoo!!!
After 3 years of searching, I'm FINALLY feeling better! Still unsure what the exact problem is, but I went to a functional medicine doctor who put me on a different diet that is actually working. It's very strict, but in two days, many of my symptoms went away. TWO DAYS!!!! I don't have pain anymore, I can breathe, my innards don't feel like they are on fire, and I am not horribly bloated.
Given the fact that the diet is used to determine allergies or intolerances to certain foods, I am assuming that part of my problem is that I am allergic or intolerant to something(s). I am having some more tests run, but am confident that I will get some answers.
Even if I can't add any foods back in to my diet, I am happy. It's really draining to be in pain for 3 years and so it's really motivating to eat in a way that I'm not in pain.
Interestingly, I grabbed a can of lentil soup yesterday and looked on the back for offending ingredients and it said it had less than 1% soybean oil (bad for me) and sugar (also bad for me). I figured- gee- that not that much. I'm sure I'll be fine. I ate it and some of the symptoms came back. I'm going to have to be careful!
Given the fact that the diet is used to determine allergies or intolerances to certain foods, I am assuming that part of my problem is that I am allergic or intolerant to something(s). I am having some more tests run, but am confident that I will get some answers.
Even if I can't add any foods back in to my diet, I am happy. It's really draining to be in pain for 3 years and so it's really motivating to eat in a way that I'm not in pain.
Interestingly, I grabbed a can of lentil soup yesterday and looked on the back for offending ingredients and it said it had less than 1% soybean oil (bad for me) and sugar (also bad for me). I figured- gee- that not that much. I'm sure I'll be fine. I ate it and some of the symptoms came back. I'm going to have to be careful!
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Peanut Sesame Dressing
Hi, I'm Vanessa, an old friend whom Megan invited to join in on the food adventures. Our family focuses on eating whole foods. Since we are a young family with two kids, a newborn and a two year old, food at our must be simple to prepare, cheap, and at least somewhat toddler friendly. Also, since I currently nurse about half of my waking hours, this will all be typed with one hand (impressive, no?)
Dinner tonight:
Peanut Sesame Dressing
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1/3 cup brown rice vinegar
1/4 cup maple syrup (honey or agave nectar would probably work too)
3 T water
2 T tamari (or soy sauce)
1 T minced peeled fresh ginger
2 cloves garlic
1 1/2 t toasted sesame oil
1/4 t crushed red pepper flakes
1 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves
Blend the peanut butter, vinegar, maple syrup, water, tamari, ginger, garlic, sesame oil, and crushed red pepper in a food processor until smooth and creamy. Add the cilantro and blend just until finely chopped.
Dressing will keep for 2 days, covered and refrigerated.
Serve with grilled chunky vegetables and brown rice, or alternately quinoa or grilled whole wheat flatbread.
Dinner tonight:
Peanut Sesame Dressing
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1/3 cup brown rice vinegar
1/4 cup maple syrup (honey or agave nectar would probably work too)
3 T water
2 T tamari (or soy sauce)
1 T minced peeled fresh ginger
2 cloves garlic
1 1/2 t toasted sesame oil
1/4 t crushed red pepper flakes
1 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves
Blend the peanut butter, vinegar, maple syrup, water, tamari, ginger, garlic, sesame oil, and crushed red pepper in a food processor until smooth and creamy. Add the cilantro and blend just until finely chopped.
Dressing will keep for 2 days, covered and refrigerated.
Serve with grilled chunky vegetables and brown rice, or alternately quinoa or grilled whole wheat flatbread.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Sprouting Adventures
All I can say is DISGUSTING! I spend a day or two wandering around the house wondering where such a funny smell was coming from. My sink had a few dishes in it, but not much and they hadn't been sitting there for very long. My garbage can- I clean pretty regularly. What on EARTH was I smelling?
Yeah.....so......the beans were rotting on my sink. The smell almost caused me to give up the whole sprouting nonsense. But I like BEANS.
So I think I've figured out the problem- I put too many beans in the sprouter. We will see what this batch does.
Maybe I should rethink starting a garden. I can't even sprout a few beans. And sprouts don't require dirt. Or fertilizer. Or rotating.
Yeah.....so......the beans were rotting on my sink. The smell almost caused me to give up the whole sprouting nonsense. But I like BEANS.
So I think I've figured out the problem- I put too many beans in the sprouter. We will see what this batch does.
Maybe I should rethink starting a garden. I can't even sprout a few beans. And sprouts don't require dirt. Or fertilizer. Or rotating.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Falafel
Falafel- another word the spell check doesn't recognize. But it should, cuz it's fantastic! I bought a mix this time to see if I liked it. I loved it. Falafel is a Middle Eastern dish made mostly from chickpeas. You dip it in a yogurt dill sauce (mix came with recipe) and typically have it in a pita. For my sake, I ate it on a bed of spinach, cucumber, and avocado. I was dying to add some tomato, but I was out. Yum!
As soon as I get my bean sprouter screen, I will try making it myself. Technically I am not supposed to eat beans unless sprouted, but now I have a reason to learn how to sprout them! JD and I snarffed the whole thing down in about 30 seconds flat. He's a good sport but he ALSO liked it.
Thanks, Vanessa, for the tip!
Monday, July 20, 2009
New Discovery
The health food store sells a puffed millet cereal. I am happy to report that it has only 11 carbs per 1 cup serving. Doctor it up with some fruit, and it's good.
Sunny Raw Nori Rolls
I have to admit that I was a little unsure of this recipe at first. For one reason- soggy sunflower seeds. I'm going to eat soggy sunflower seeds ON PURPOSE!?!? Actually, this was really good. I was shocked. And then I ate almost the whole half batch my own self.
Ingredient List
Serves 6
2 cups hulled sunflower seeds
8 green onions, green parts only, divided
1/4 cup cilantro leaves
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 Tbs. Bragg Liquid Aminos
4 cloves garlic (4 tsp.)
6 small collard green leaves, plus more for serving
8 sheets raw (untoasted) nori
2 carrots, peeled and cut into thin strips
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into thin strips
1 avocado, halved and thinly sliced
1 8-oz. container daikon sprouts or sunflower sprouts
Raw brown sesame seeds for garnish, optional
Directions
Place sunflower seeds in large bowl, cover with cold water, and soak 4 hours. Rinse, and drain.
Transfer sunflower seeds to food processor, and add 2 green onions, cilantro, lemon juice, liquid aminos, garlic, and ¼ cup water. Purée until creamy. Set aside.
Tear spines out of collard green leaves and cut to half the size of nori sheets.
Lay 1 nori sheet, rough side up, on cutting board. Place collard leaf piece on nori sheet, covering half of sheet nearest you. Spread 2 Tbs. sunflower seed mixture on collard green with spatula. Stack carrot strip, cucumber strip, avocado slice, green onion, and daikon sprouts in narrow line 1 inch from long edge of nori sheet. Fold nori sheet over vegetables, and roll sheet away from you as tightly as possible. Dab edge of nori sheet with water to seal and close. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Cut each roll into 6 bite-size pieces with serrated knife. Arrange pieces on bed of collard greens, and sprinkle with sesame seeds, if desired.
From: vegetariantimes.com
Ingredient List
Serves 6
2 cups hulled sunflower seeds
8 green onions, green parts only, divided
1/4 cup cilantro leaves
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 Tbs. Bragg Liquid Aminos
4 cloves garlic (4 tsp.)
6 small collard green leaves, plus more for serving
8 sheets raw (untoasted) nori
2 carrots, peeled and cut into thin strips
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into thin strips
1 avocado, halved and thinly sliced
1 8-oz. container daikon sprouts or sunflower sprouts
Raw brown sesame seeds for garnish, optional
Directions
Place sunflower seeds in large bowl, cover with cold water, and soak 4 hours. Rinse, and drain.
Transfer sunflower seeds to food processor, and add 2 green onions, cilantro, lemon juice, liquid aminos, garlic, and ¼ cup water. Purée until creamy. Set aside.
Tear spines out of collard green leaves and cut to half the size of nori sheets.
Lay 1 nori sheet, rough side up, on cutting board. Place collard leaf piece on nori sheet, covering half of sheet nearest you. Spread 2 Tbs. sunflower seed mixture on collard green with spatula. Stack carrot strip, cucumber strip, avocado slice, green onion, and daikon sprouts in narrow line 1 inch from long edge of nori sheet. Fold nori sheet over vegetables, and roll sheet away from you as tightly as possible. Dab edge of nori sheet with water to seal and close. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Cut each roll into 6 bite-size pieces with serrated knife. Arrange pieces on bed of collard greens, and sprinkle with sesame seeds, if desired.
From: vegetariantimes.com
Why this page?
So I can use another adorable background from Aqua Poppy. Honestly, how cute can you get?!? This page is basically the same as the Santini Stew page except they are all recipes that conform to my new diet. That means there won't be very many. Sigh....
I could have added these recipes to the rest of my recipes, but I thought I could be more whiny here. Besides, I rarely make the ones on Santini Stew (shhhh! don't tell!) and these I will have to live by. And I can't seem to find any food blogs that are about recipes for my kind of situation. I am unfortunately going to have to frequent the vegan-ish sites. Scary.
So as you can see I'm still a little grumpy about my eating restrictions. I started all in to it, then there was a little trauma that entered life, then I ate everything not nailed down and have been struggling to get back on it since then. I've felt frustrated, depressed, annoyed, and everything in between. But I've come to realize and accept the fact that things just plain have to be different. Life doesn't revolve around food and I will figure it out even though I have to enter the world of ingredients with funny names like quinoa (even spell check doesn't know what that is), sprouted 'stuff', and millet. Actually, I am not as bummed as this all sounds- I like being dramatic. I found a couple of things that have helped and I'm gunna post them here so I don't forget. If you are interested in eating weird stuff, stay tuned. If you already eat weird stuff, email me the recipes!
I could have added these recipes to the rest of my recipes, but I thought I could be more whiny here. Besides, I rarely make the ones on Santini Stew (shhhh! don't tell!) and these I will have to live by. And I can't seem to find any food blogs that are about recipes for my kind of situation. I am unfortunately going to have to frequent the vegan-ish sites. Scary.
So as you can see I'm still a little grumpy about my eating restrictions. I started all in to it, then there was a little trauma that entered life, then I ate everything not nailed down and have been struggling to get back on it since then. I've felt frustrated, depressed, annoyed, and everything in between. But I've come to realize and accept the fact that things just plain have to be different. Life doesn't revolve around food and I will figure it out even though I have to enter the world of ingredients with funny names like quinoa (even spell check doesn't know what that is), sprouted 'stuff', and millet. Actually, I am not as bummed as this all sounds- I like being dramatic. I found a couple of things that have helped and I'm gunna post them here so I don't forget. If you are interested in eating weird stuff, stay tuned. If you already eat weird stuff, email me the recipes!
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