Homemade sunbutter and pumpkin butter saves bucks

Homemade sunbutter

Homemade pumpkin butter

Monday will be the day I get the results of my food sensitivity testing. I'm looking forward to uncovering something that has gone undetected in numerous elimination diets where you stop eating certain foods for a month or more, and then retest for reactions by gradually adding them back in.

They did the food sensitivity test on me rather than the allergic resonse test. I have never had an allergic response to any foods but instead have food intolerances which are far more difficult to figure out because sometimes responses don't occur for three days. It seems weird to hope something shows up but yet it might shed light on why I get certain symptoms, like upset stomach and chronic muscle pain caused by trigger points.

I'm hoping that the test doesn't show I have a problem with sunflower or pumpkin seeds because they are two of my very favorite foods. I have winced at the price but have purchased sunbutter and pumpkin butter for years. $6-8 for sunbutter and $10-12 for pumpkin butter recently inspired me to try making my own and see how much I could save.

I purchased raw sunflower seeds for $1.70 a pound in bulk and figured I would need 2 1/2 cups to make a pound of sunbutter. That equates to $4.25 for seeds compared to $6.99 for sunbutter which I paid at my most recent purchase. I calculate a savings of about $2.70.

Pumpkin seeds are a little more pricey, $3+. I haven't done the cost analysis on making my own pumpkin butter yet but I'll figure that out next time I purchase pumpkin seeds.

To make sunflower or pumpkin butter:

1. Begin by toasting one or two cups of seeds either in a skillet or baking sheet in low heat oven. I set the oven for 325 degrees and keep a close eye on the seeds.
2. Note #1: don't skip the toasting step. This is key to getting the seeds to turn into a creamy butter.
3. Note #2: The toastier the seeds the more intense the flavor.
4. Cool the seeds slightly.
5. Pour into your food processor and begin grinding. Gradually add in 2 or more tablespoons of grapeseed or other oil, and continue processing until you have a smooth paste.
6. Add a few drops of liquid stevia if desired.

That's all it takes to make some delicious sunbutter or pumpkin butter. It does take some time but if you eat a lot of the stuff it can save you some money.

Breakfast quinoa

Breakfast quinoa with fruit and seeds

I'm on a mission to break out of my breakfast rut. It's been protein smoothies for months and months and months until I can't stand it anymore. Things are definitely looking up with breakfast quinoa with fruit and seeds as well as breakfast sweet potato with pomegranate and seeds( http://catsinthekitchen.blogspot.com/2011/01/acd-diet-breakfast-pomegranate-sweet.html).

I love it when things are easy like both of these recipes. For the quinoa, I cook up one cup of quinoa the night before while I'm preparing dinner. I prepare the fruit topping and toasted seeds in advance too. I know this is beginning to sound complicated but the prep work saves you time in the morning when you don't have time. You also have enough for three or more breakfasts.

In the morning, I spoon about one-third cup into a bowl, pour on some hemp milk and pop the quinoa into the microwave for about 90 seconds. Top your quinoa with a little fruit and toasted seeds and you're ready to eat.

Here are the directions for making all the ingredients and assembling them into your breakfast quinoa.

Breafast Quinoa with Fruit Compote and Seeds

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup quinoa
2. 1/2 cup each raw pumpkin and sunflower seeds
3. 1 package frozen or fresh cranberres and  1 cup frozen blueberries
4. unsweetened hemp milk
5. liquid, alcohol-free stevia

Directions:

1. For the toasted seeds: Spread pumpkin and sunflower seeds on a baking sheet, sprayed with pan spray. Coat the seeds lightly with pan spray as well. Toast the seeds in a preheated oven set to 325 degrees for about 10 minutes. Check often and stir the seeds to prevent burning. Remove from seeds from the oven, allow to cool and store in an airtight container in the fridge.
2. For the fruit compote: Pour one package of frozen or fresh cranberries in a heavy saucepan and add 1/2 cup water. Cook over medium heat until the cranberries pop and continue cooking for several more minutes. Remove the cranberries from the heat and mix in one cup frozen blueberries. Sweeten with liquid stevia to taste. Store the compote in the fridge.
3. For the quinoa: Put one cup quinoa in a saucepan with two cups water. Cover and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to simmer and continue cooking for about 15 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed. Store the quinoa in the fridge.
4. For the breakfast quinoa: Heat up some quinoa mixed with hemp milk in the microwave for about 90 seconds. Top with some fruit compote and seeds and dig in.

ACD-diet breakfast: pomegranate sweet potato

Kona takes over the bed




Breakfast sweet potato

 
Kona, my golden retriever, has the right idea. She loves to sleep in but she does it her way. Her morning starts by getting up whenever I do as early or late as that might be. After gobbling up her doggie chow, she heads back to bed as pictured above.

Actually, that's not her bed of choice. She prefers to sleep by the fireplace on her doggie bed. I snapped the picture above when she jumped up on one of our beds to escape the evil vacuum cleaner. She's proof that it's not just cats that are afraid of vacuum cleaners.

While Kona snoozes, I get busy pondering what to serve myself for breakfast. Lately, sweet potatoes have been a bit of a favorite. For a long time, I avoided sweet potatoes because I feared that would bring back my candida. Now, a year into my ACD diet, I no longer fear them as long as I don't eat a whole sweet potato at one time. I usually eat a large one over three breakfasts.

Sweet potatoes with pomegranate and pumpkin seeds is one of my favorite recipes for breakfast.

Ingredients:

1. One medium or large sweet potato
2. 1-2 T. hemp milk, unsweetened
3. 1 T. toasted pumpkin seeds
4. 1-2 T. pomegranate seeds
5. Sea salt

Directions:

1. Bake sweet potato (I do mine in the microwave because it's faster, about 6-8 minutes, as opposed to 40 minutes in the oven at 400 degrees. Prick the sweet potato with a fork prior to baking.)
2. Let cool slightly.
3. Slice the top of the potato and use a fork to mash the insides a bit.
4. Drizzle on the hemp milk and mix in.
5. Sprinkle on the seeds and season with salt if desired.

Rutabaga-salmon scramble

Rutabaga-salmon scramble

Inspirations for good things to eat, like this rutabaga-salmon scramble, come from all sorts of experiences, cravings and sometimes unexpected places.  I was watching a show on PBS that features well-known breakfast spots in cities around the U.S. I don't know what compelled me to watch because I knew breakfast eateries would have all the things I cannot eat like pancakes, waffles, eggs, bacon, ham, etc. Maybe I just wanted to torture myself.

A potato-salmon-spinach scramble at one of the featured restaurants caught my attention. With the exception of the potatoes, it looked pretty ACD-friendly. A simple switcheroo of ingredients and I could have myself a dish that could be served for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Now I'm glad I watched that show because Rutabaga-Salmon Scramble made a great dinner last night. Here's the recipe.


Ingredients for 1 serving:
1 salmon filet precooked and cut into pieces
1 rutabaga., peeled, sliced and boiled until tender but still firm
1/4 onion sliced
2-3 large handfuls of fresh spinach
sprig of parsley for garnish
salt and pepper
2 tsp. canola or olive oil

Directions:

1. Saute onions in oil in large, heavy skillet.
2. Add rutabagas and cook until browned.
3. Add salmon pieces and continue cooking until hot.
4. Toss in spinach and continue cooking until wilted.
5. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Serve on a plate and garnish with parsley.

Swiss chard rollups

Swiss chard rollups

I hate going to the doctor. I think it's because I have had so many wrong diagnoses. I start dreading the appointment days ahead. If I could, I would call and reschedule or cancel the appointment.

Sometimes, I've actually done that but not yesterday. They drew lots of blood for testing. I think they sucked me dry because I turned white as a sheet and felt like I was sick the rest of the day.

One of the tests was for food intolerances. I've done elimination diets numerous times to test for food intolerances but never had a blood test. I need to find out if there is something I am eating that is contributing to my chronic muscle pain.

We also discussed the role of environmental mold sensitivity in chronic health problems. I have been extremely sensitive to mold for years and then of course, there's the whole candida problem. I will  post more on the environmental molds later.

In the meantime as I wait for my results, I cannot eat the Swiss Chard Rollups pictured in this post unless I modify my own recipe. I made it right before I eliminated nightshade veggies (tomatoes, peppers). But maybe you can enjoy it. I know I did.

Swiss Chard Rollups

Ingredients:

1. 4 medium Swiss chard leaves
2. 1/2 cup Silken tofu
3. 1/4 cup diced red bell pepper
4. 1/4 cup diced zucchini
5. Salt and pepper
6. 3/4 cup homemade or safe marinara sauce
7. 1/2 baked spaghetti squash

Directions:

1. Cook the Swiss chard leaves in boiling salted water for one minutes or until wilted.
2. Remove the stem at the bottom of each leaf.
3. Mix together 2 T. marinara, silken tofu, red bell pepper, zucchini, salt and pepper to taste.
4. Divide tofu/veggies mixture among the Swiss Chard leaves. Roll each one, tucking in the sides so the filling won't seep out.
5. Place stuffed leaves in a small baking dish and top with the remaining marinara sauce.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.
7. Scoop out the meat of spaghetti squash.
8. Serve the rollups over the spaghetti squash.

Beet chips

Don't let the appearance of these beet chips fool you. They look a little dark but they are so-so delicious.
I haven't eaten beets in a long time because of their carb count. But I have to get some carbs now that I'm following the caveman diet where grains are not allowed (kind of like the ACD diet). And beets in moderation are even allowed on the ACD diet. Just remember the word "moderation" with these chips.

Beet Chips (makes 4 servings)

Ingredients:

1. 2 medium beets
2. 1-2 tsp. olive oil
3. sea salt

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Peel beets and slice thinly with a mandoline slicer. Note: The beets have to be thin to get crisp. My mandoline slicer blade was a bit dull and my slices were a little too thick which may account for why they got dark before they got done.
3. In a bowl, toss the beets with olive oil
4. Spray a large baking sheet with pan spray.
5. Spread the beet slices out on the sheet in a single layer.
6. Sprinkle with salt.
7. Bake until the edges of the beets begin to dry out. This takes a long time especially if the beets aren't thin enough. Plan on 30 minutes for super thin slices and 40-50 minutes for thicker slices.
8. Check the beets often and remove individual chips as they get done.
9. Transfer to a wire rack to cool and crisp.
10. Don't eat them all at one time!

Caveman diet and poached salmon

Poached salmon

Two weeks ago I scratched nightshade veggies off my eating list in hopes of reducing a chronic pain issue I have. I almost felt like I was going through withdrawal when I stopped eating my favorite red bell peppers, jalapenos and spices made from peppers (paprika, cayenne, chili powder). I also realized just how much of this stuff I consumed each day.

Here's my logic for cutting out nightshade veggies:

• Tomatoes, peppers and goji berries are touted for their health benefits. But these nutrition-packed foods have a dark side for those who experience intolerance or allergic reaction. Plants from the nightshade family may cause, or contribute, to arthritic symptoms.

• Nightshade plants produce drug-like chemicals, called alkaloids. These alkaloids - nicotine, atropine, capsaicin, solanine, and tomatine - build up in the body’s tissues and may produce pain and inflammation in the joints and muscles. Nightshades were originally used as ornamental plants because of their toxic nature.

• One 20-year study, of 1,400 volunteers, found nightshade to be a causative factor in arthritis in sensitive people. In another study, 72.7 percent of the 763 participants reported a marked lessening of arthritis symptoms when they strictly eliminated nightshade foods and/or tobacco.

• The best way to diagnose intolerance is to follow a “no nightshades” diet for at least one month. That means you avoid eating all nightshade vegetables and spices. You also abstain from tobacco use as well.
  
  Here's a list of nightshade veggies:
• Nightshades are plants from the Solanaceae family, including tobacco, potatoes, eggplant, hot and sweet peppers, tomatillos and gooseberries.  Spices and condiments made from nightshades include cayenne, chili powder, curry, paprika, ketchup and Tabasco. All nightshade foods contain nicotine in some form.

I've seen some lessening of pain, along with getting physical therapy. But that's not the end of the story for me. There are more foods that can be contributing to my pain. I'm not sure which ones but I definitely suspect chocolate.

The easiest way for me to find out is to get a blood test for food sensitivities which I probably will. That will take awhile so in the meantime, I have opted to follow the Caveman Diet which is kind of like the strict anti-candida diet. You basically eat unprocessed fish and turkey (no chicken), veggies and fruit, and seeds/nuts.
Find about more info at http://dietsexplained.wordpress.com/2008/05/10/news-flash-caveman-diet-goodyour-diet-bad/

I've always loved salmon but now I'm looking for more salmon recipes. Please share if you have some.
Here's my current favorite.

Poached Salmon
 
Ingredients:

1. 16 ounces wild salmon
2. 2 cups chicken broth (I fudged on this one and bought Imagine free-range, organic chicken broth but I noticed it contains "natural flavor" which potentially could include paprika or other nightshade spice. I need to make up some of my own veggie broth because chicken is supposed to be avoided. )
3. 1 tsp. whole peppercorns
4. 1 bay leaf
5. 4 scallions

Directions:

1. Heat a skillet with 2 tsp. olive oil. Add salmon filets, broth, bay leaf, peppercorns.
2. Cook in liquid until just about done, about 6 minutes. Add scallions and cook another minute or so.
3. Serve with other veggies or on a plate of greens.

Note: Keep me in mind if you have some "clean" recipes for salmon. I'm going to need some variety.

Skinny cocoa

Pumpkin's pose of tranquility


Sometimes, don't you just feel like finding a sunny spot and taking a little catnap? I think Pumpkin, my buddy, has it down pat. I think he looks so adorable in his pose of tranquility.

I've been having a little trouble keeping him from incessantly asking for food. I guess he's suffering from winter boredom. He's a house cat but I don't want him to get tubby. Every day, I measure out his food allotment and that's all he gets no matter how cute he acts or how much he begs.

Unfortunately, we humans don't have someone to restrict us when the winter munchies strike. I admit lately I've been doing my own share of winter overgrazing. But I have a solution in the form of a low-glycemic cocoa drink.

Ingredients for skinny cocoa

My skinny cocoa is simple to make but extremely satisfying. It's low-glycemic because it's made with unsweetened chocolate-flavored Almond Breeze, water, tea and no-alcohol stevia. It's kind of a chocolate tea latte. I find it keeps me away from dreaming of other chocolate confections.

The drink probably has at most a whopping 45 calories if you use a whole cup of Almond Breeze. Feel free to substitute some other alternative dairy beverage, chocolate flavored.

Here's how I make it:

1. Fill a heavy mug with half water and half Almond Breeze.
2. Heat in the microwave to a boil, about 3- 3 1/2 minutes.
3. Remove from the microwave and drop in one tea bag. My two favorite flavors are pictured above. For mint cocoa, I add peppermint tea. For vanilla cocoa, I use the Sleepytime Vanilla.
4. Add liquid stevia to sweeten and get ready to sip a delicious cocoa drink that won't spike your sugar levels.

Carob sunbutter cups

Carob sunbutter cups

I'm still on my kicks to make treats. I haven't made my all-time favorite for a really long time because I didn't realize unsweetened carob chips were available. I found some that are even dairy free at http://www.barryfarm.com/nutri_info/baking%20supplies/carobchipsunsw.htm. These are so good you really don't even need much stevia because the carob and sunbutter are naturally sweet. And they are ACD friendly!

Sunbutter/Carob Cups


Ingredients:

1 bag vegan unsweetened carob chips

1/4 cup unsweetened sunbutter (sunflower butter)

Liquid or powdered stevia to taste (use the non-alcohol added variety)

1 mini-muffin pan

Melt carob chips in microwave. Add stevia and stir to blend. Spoon 1 tsp. or so into each section of the mini-muffin pan. Top with 1 tsp. sunbutter. You can top with additional melted carob chips if desired. Refrigerate until set. Makes 12 cups.

Coconut butter revisited

Homemade coconut/cacao butter

I am on a kick to come up with a healthy treat that's ACD friendly. Coconut has long been off my list because of the saturated fat that tends to upset my digestive tract. I have no gallbladder which means saturated fats don't go down well. And I have no self control. It's better if it's not in the house.

 For some reason, I decided to give coconut another try. I even had a bag of organic coconut tucked away in the freezer from my last coconut indulgence. I saw a video on the internet that showed how to make your own coconut butter out of coconut flakes. Premade coconut butter such as Artisana is expensive. It looked like a challenge to see if I could make my own.

All you do is pour some unsweetened coconut flakes in your food processor and start processing. I didn't want to make a ton so I just put in one cup of flakes. It takes about 20 minutes with some scraping of the sides to keep the mixture blending. Voila! It worked.

From scratch coconut butter

Things started getting dangerous once I had the coconut butter made. I decided to add cacao bits to make my version of Artisana's coconut-cacao bliss. I added 2 T. cacao bits and some stevia. Add more if you want more chocolate flavor.

Now, my problem is limiting myself. I eagerly gobbled up a couple of bites and stored the rest in the fridge.
I've been restricting myself to a bit sprinkled on top of berries as a dessert. By eating it sparingly, I have been able to avoid the dreaded stomach issues. I'm still mulling over other ways to use it. Please share your ideas.

Pimped up sunbutter



Pimped-up sunbutter with flax, cinnamon and hemp seeds


I had to eat something extra special to celebrate New Year's Day. My first thought was something with sunbutter which I absolutely love. But then, I thought why not try making a pimped-up sunbutter.

 Recently, when browsing the internet, I had come across a pre-made sunbutter with some yummy add-ins (vanilla, cinnamon, flax and hemp seed). It looked incredibly delicious. I almost ordered it until I realized it contained evaporated cane juice, just another name for sugar which is a no-no for candida sufferers.

That cinnamon/vanilla sunbutter was the inspiration for my pimped-up sunbutter but I made mine free of sugar. It was super simple to make and oh, so delicious. I spooned some on my hot quinoa for breakfast but it kind of got lost in the almond milk. The next time I'll try putting it on less milky quinoa.



Hot quinoa with designer sunbutter added.

  Pimped-up Sunbutter

Ingredients:

1. 1/4 cup unsweetened sunbutter
2. 2 T. ground flax seed
3. Few drop on alcohol-free stevia
4. 1 tsp. cinnamon
5. 2 T. hemp seed
6. Optional: alcohol-free vanilla or vanilla bean which I didn't have. I'll try that next time and trust me there will be lots of next times.
7. Note: If you want more,  just double or triple the ingredients.

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in a food processor.
2. Blend on high until smooth.
3. Store your designer sunbutter in a storage container.

No-egg cauliflower breadsticks

Kona keeping her feet mud free with her new Christmas booties.



First attempt cauliflower breadsticks with no egg.



This past year has brought me several health victories. I have candida and sinus issues under control, not that it's not an on-going battle to maintain the delicate equilibrium of good and bad bacteria. I know I still am susceptible. One of the most telltale signs is my winter problem with athlete's foot. I have to disinfect my yoga mat frequently, keep my shower clean as a whistle and put baby powder in my shocks daily to keep my tootsies free of this problem.

Even as New Year's approaches, I'm not planning to go whole hog and abandon my low-carb, low-glycemic diet. I guess it's something I will have to do for my lifetime. One health issue that I continue to tackle is chronic muscle pain that hasn't disappeared with the candida diet. My pain is somewhat arthritic-like but confined to only muscles, not joints.

I recently did some research on nightshade allergy/intolerance to help a friend who potentially has rheumatoid arthritis. As I read the symptoms, I began to see myself and decided to eliminate my lovely peppers and tomatoes from my diet. Nightshade vegetables can cause or contribute to arthritis symptoms in sensitive individuals. I have already eliminated potatoes and eggplants, also nightshade, so I thought what the heck. It's worth a try. In some studies, 70-80 percent of participants found relief from their pain by strictly eliminating nightshade foods. I've gone three days so far; too soon to tell.

New Year's Eve has me planning what to cook. But Kona, my 12-year-old pup, has been out frolicking in her new booties she got for Christmas. We decided to purchase some for her because she looks forlorn every time we have to leave her in the garage to let her muddy feet dry out before coming indoors. The booties solve the problem. She's so docile she doesn't care a bit when I put them on her or when she's running around in them.

I decided to try out some appetizer recipes for New Year's. The cauliflower breadsticks came out of seeing a post numerous places for cauliflower pizza. Unfortunately, the recipe uses egg and cheese. I am allergic to eggs and cheese is off limits for candida. My first attempt yielded tasty but somewhat flimsy breadsticks. That egg would be a great addition so if it's not a problem go for it.

Cauliflower Breadsticks
Ingredients:
1 cup riced cauliflower
1/4 cup garbanzo bean flour
salt and pepper
1 T. olive oil
herbs such as basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary
Optional: one egg

Directions:

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Spray and lightly oil a baking sheet.

To rice cauliflower, steam 1/2 head of cauliflower cut into florettes just until fork tender. Drain the cauliflower and place in your food processor. Pulse until the cauliflower becomes pearl-sized.

Mix 1/4 cup garbanzo bean flour with 3/4-1 cup water. Stir to blend. Let set until it thickens. It should be the thickness of thin pudding. Add olive oil, herbs, salt and pepper, and cauliflower. Stir to blend.

Preheat the baking sheet slightly in the oven to distribute the oil evenly on the pan. Spoon and spread the batter on the pan. The batter should  be thick enough to shape into a rectangle about 1/4-inch thick.

Bake for 12 minutes or longer until batter is cooked and set. Remove the pan from the oven. Allow the cooked batter to cool slightly. Then, cut into breadsticks with a pizza cutter.

Turn the oven up to broil. Place the breadsticks back in the oven until they are crispy but watch them carefully to prevent burning.

Allow the breadsticks to cool slightly again. They will be somewhat fragile until fairly cool.

I thought they were pretty tasty but next time I will add more herbs and try adding some chia slurry or flax slurry to get them to bind together better. If anyone has success with this, let me know.

Anti-Candida Christmas dessert recipe

What's Christmas dinner without dessert, even for us candida folks? My dessert uses some of the trail mix I talked about in my first post about by Christmas dinner menu at http://catsinthekitchen.blogspot.com/2010/12/anti-candida-christmas-dinner.html. It also makes use of my favorite vanilla tea smoothie recipe at http://catsinthekitchen.blogspot.com/2010/09/sleepytime-vanilla-tea-smoothie-acd.html.

I simply whipped up some of this smoothie in the morning and poured it into a freezer-safe container. I stored it in the freezer all day and took it out in the evening. After thawing it out slightly, I spooned it into my food processor and blended it on high into an soft-serve ice cream consistency. It really does resemble soft-serve ice cream.

Spoon this frozen dessert into a ice-cream dish and top off with a tablespoon of trail mix and voila: dessert for anti-candida me!

Merry Christmas everyone! 

Anti-candida Christmas dinner continued

The mock mashed potatoes came out oh so yummy. I'd say better than real mashed potatoes. The combination of rutabagas and cauliflower had a almost sweet taste which made the lack of butter unnoticeable.

I will serve this side dish as part of my candida Christmas dinner. Get the full menu in my previous post at
http://catsinthekitchen.blogspot.com/2010/12/anti-candida-christmas-dinner.html.


Here's the recipe I created for Mock Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:
• 1 head of cauliflower, washed, trimmed and chopped into pieces.

• 3-4 medium rutabagas, washed, peeled and cut into one-inch pieces.

• Chicken broth

• Hemp milk or other alternative dairy beverage

• Salt and pepper

Directions:

• Bring water to a boil in two large saucepans. You will need to cook the two veggies separately since the rutabagas will take longer to cook.

• Add a sprinkle of salt to each pot.

• Put the rutabagas in one pot and the cauliflower in the other.

• Cook until each is fork tender.

• Drain both cauliflower and rutabagas.

• Combine the two veggies in a large pot.

• Add a bit of chicken broth, milk of your choice, salt and pepper.

• Start the mashing process with a potato masher.

• Add more liquids if needed.

• Finish whipping with a hand mixer.

• Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.

There's one more recipe to practice: the mock vanilla ice cream topped with trail mix. That will be tomorrow.

Anti-candida Christmas dinner

The anti-candida diet has become so much a part of me that it seldom bothers me to sit across from someone eating desserts or bread or other carb-loaded foods. That is until the holidays roll around. Then, it starts to bother me again. All the traditional Christmas foods are paraded in front of me via advertising, parties, etc.

It's hard to not feel a bit resentful but this year, I've planned a counterattack because I want to stay as mellow as my cat, Pumpkin, sleeping under the Christmas tree in the photo above. I've carefully planned and even tried the recipes for my anti-candida Christmas dinner. Here's what I have planned for dinner:

1. Appetizer: cucumber slices, red pepper triangles and other raw veggies with chickpea dip.
2. Salad: mixed greens or spinach with dried cranberries and avocado.
3. Entree: roasted free-range turkey. 
4. Sides: mashed rutabaga/cauliflower blend; roasted brussel sprouts; green beans.
5. Dessert: ACD-safe vanilla frozen dessert topped with trail mix (cacao bits, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, dried cranberries).

I started my counterattack several days ago by making the dried cranberries. The ones you buy in the store are soaked in sugar which will not work for low-glycemic folks. I'm planning to use the dried cranberries in the salad and as an ingredient in the trail mix.

If you like cranberries a lot, it's a good idea right now to grab a few extra packages while they are cheaper and available, and stow them in the freezer. Here's the procedure/recipe I followed for drying cranberries.

Drying cranberries

1. Place one bag of fresh or frozen cranberries into a pot with water. Bring the cranberries and water to boil.
2. Allow the cranberries to sit in the water long enough to burst. Drain the water from the cranberries. Add stevia (either liquid or powder) and toss to coat the cranberries.
3. Spread the cranberries on a baking sheet. Place in the freezer for at least two hours. The instructions I followed indicated that cranberries dehydrate faster when frozen first. It still took a long, long, long time.
4. Place the cranberries onto a sheet in a food dehydrator. Allow to dehyrate for 12+ hours. Begin checking after 10 hours to remove the ones that are dry. Note: You could dry the cranberries in your oven as well at 250 degrees.
5. Store the dried cranberries in a container in the freezer until ready to use.

Well, that completes round one. Next up, making the trail mix which I will use as a topping for the vanilla frozen dessert.

This is super easy. Just toast some pumpkin and sunflower seeds either in a heavy skillet on the stovetop, or in the oven on a baking sheet at 325 degrees. I prefer the stovetop because I can monitor them more carefully. I start by spraying the pan with pan spray and dumping in one cup of each type of seeds. Spread the seeds around; spray with additional pan spray to coat; and salt to taste. Toast the seeds on medium heat until they begin to pop.

Allow the seeds to cool before mixing with 2 T. dried cranberries and 2 T. cacao bits. Store in the freezer to keep yourself from nibbling.

The mashed cauliflower/rutabaga mixture is my project for tonight. Post, directions and picture coming.

Low-carb cranberry salsa



I finally got a photo of my cat pal, Pumpkin, napping with his face down on his paw. It just makes me want to go love him to pieces but he'd never go for that. After all, he is a cat.

I've been trying to expand my fruit repertoire on my low-glycemic, ACD diet. I looked up the nutrition facts for cranberries and discovered if eaten without sugar, they are pretty low carb (6g of carbs with 2g of sugars and 2g of fiber in a 1/2 cup serving). Of course, cranberries without some sort of sweetener are pretty hard to swallow. But they taste delicious when added to a salsa blend or sweetened with stevia. Here's my recipe for Cranberry Salsa. It's tasty on grilled chicken or fish or as a topping on salad. It stores well in the fridge for several days.

Ingredients:

1. 1 package fresh cranberries
2. 1 pasilla pepper seeded and chopped roughly
3. 1 green bell pepper seeded and chopped roughly
4. 1 cup chopped cilantro
5. salt and pepper to taste
6. Optional: onion, hotter peppers

Directions:

1. Put all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until ingredients are finely chopped.

Low-carb turkey with vegetable soup

I love soup all year round but especially during the colder months. The problem is I can never find any at a restaurant or at the market that is suitable for someone, like myself, who needs to follow a low-carb diet and has multiple food allergies (dairy, gluten, corn, eggs).

That's where the old soup pot comes in handy. I can cook up my own "safe-for-me" soup and enjoy it to my heart's content. Recently, I made use of the leftover turkey carcass from Thanksgiving to make a low-carb turkey-vegetable soup. I confess I had never used the carcass before but decided to give it a go after one of my Thanksgiving dinner guests suggested it. There is a considerable amount of time involved with this recipe if you use a turkey carcass but it also can be made with leftover chicken and purchased chicken broth.

Low-Carb Turkey with Vegetable Soup

Step 1: Make the broth

1. Put the leftover bones and skin from either a turkey or chicken into a large stock pot. Cover with cold water by an inch. Add a quartered onion, chopped celery and tops, chopped carrot, parsley, thyme, a bay leaf and a few peppercorns.
2. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to bring the stock to a simmer. Add salt and pepper.
3. Cook for about four hours, uncovered so the stock reduces. Remove the bones and skin. Strain the broth if desired.

Step 2: Make the soup

1. Add chopped veggies of your choice. I added the sturdier veggies (celery, onions, rutabagas and carrots) first. Skip adding grains or noodles if you want this to be low carb.
2. Cook and simmer until the veggies are tender (approximately 30-45 minutes).
3. In the final 10-15 minutes of cooking, add green beans. I also could have added greens, such as spinach, chard or kale, at this time.
4. Serve with a salad.

Sunbutter dressing

Snow has wrapped my world in a beautiful white blanket. It's amazing how fluffy snow can transform an ordinary landscape and make it something extraordinary.

Sunbutter has a similar power when it comes to food. It can change a recipe into something delicious. One of my favorite uses for sunbutter is in my Sunbutter dressing. I eat a lot of salads and the dressing makes them most enjoyable.

Sunbutter dressing

Ingredients:

1. 1/4 cup unsweetened, natural sunbutter
2. 1/4 cup lime juice
3. 1/8-1/4 cup water
4. salt and pepper to taste
5. 1-2 drops of liquid stevia
6. 1/8 cup flaxseed oil
7. 1 tsp. each chili powder and cumin
8. 2 cloves garlic
9. 1/4 cup fresh cilantro chopped

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Reserve 1/8 cup of water to add if the mixture is too thick.
2. Blend until smooth and creamy. Add additional water if you want it thinner.
3. Serve over salads, slaws, etc.
4. Dressing keeps well in refrigerator for a week.

Sesame chicken tenders

My husband has been "forcing" himself to eat pie leftovers since Thanksgiving. I made pumpkin pie and company brought apple pie. What torture for my spouse to eat all that pie since I cannot eat any of it. I think he will soon go through pie withdrawal after the supply ends.

Most traditional Thanksgiving foods are not candida-diet friendly for those of us eating low-glycemic diets. I love turkey but what happens when the supply dwindles. I turn to low-carb sesame chicken tenders. We gobbled them up greedily. Fortunately, I snatched a couple aside to snap a photo.

Low-Carb Sesame Chicken Tenders

Ingredients

1. 1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders
2. 4 T. sesame seeds
3. 1 -2 tsp. Chinese Five-Spice
4. 1 T. olive oil
5. Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray and oil baking sheet or pan and preheat in oven to distribute the oil.
2. In a shallow bowl or dish, combine sesame seeds and five spice.
3. Rinse chicken tenders in water.
4. Roll chicken tenders in seed/spice blend to coat.
5. Make additional seed/spice coating if needed.
6. Place coated tenders in preheated, oiled cooking pan.
7. Bake in oven for approximately 15 minutes. Then turn tenders and bake another 15 minutes until crispy.

Serve with a hot, spicy dipping sauce. Saute 2 T. chopped onion in 1 tsp. oil in a small skillet. Add can of tomato sauce (purchase the kind with no additives); 1 tsp. each Bragg's Amino Acids and hot sauce of your choice. Continue cooking until heated through.

Spaghetti squash stew

I keep looking for ways to use up my store of spaghetti squash from last summer's garden. Spaghetti squash chicken stew tops my list as my favorite spaghetti squash recipe. My son, who is not a squash lover, even enjoys it.

Spaghetti Squash Chicken Stew
(serves 6)

Ingredients:

1. 1 T. grapeseed oil or other oil of your choice
2. 6 boned, skinless chicken thighs
3. 1 medium onion, chopped
4. 1 red pepper, cut into one-inch pieces
5. 2 garlic cloves, minced
6. 8 ounces chicken broth, gluten-free, sugar-free
7. 6 chopped roma tomatoes or 14 1/2-ounce can of diced tomatoes
8. 1 T. paprika
9. 1/2 tsp. sea salt
10. 1 baked spaghetti squash
11. 8-12 ounces of frozen or fresh green beans
12. 1/4 cup unsweetened sunbutter

Directions:

1. Bake the spaghetti squash until fork tender; allow to cool and scoop out the squash and cut into bite-sized pieces; set aside
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and saute until browned; remove to a plate.
3. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the garlic, onions, pepper and saute until softened.
4. Add the chicken broth, tomatoes, paprika and salt. Bring to a boil and add the chicken and green beans. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer until the chicken and veggies are tender.
5. Add the sunbutter and stir until well-blended.
6. Add the squash and cook until mixture is hot and thickened.
7. Serve in bowls or as an option, ladle over additional spaghetti squash as pictured above.