Grain-Free Chicken Nuggets

This recipe came from Living Without. I had to change and eliminate some of the seasonings to fit Ellie's allergy list. I am sure, that they would be amazing if you can add all the spices. None the less, the girls liked these...

• 1 lb. of organic, hormone-free turkey or chicken
• for nuggets, throw the meat in the blender, using chopped up meat, easily forms into balls. *grind the coconut first, for safe handling
  
• 1 tbls annies honey-mustard (check label)
• 3 tbls allergy safe oil
• 2 cups of *shredded, unsweetened coconut, grind in blender until small crumbs
  
• 1 tsp ground paprika
• 1 tsp ground turmeric (this is a great spice, with many health benefits)
• 1/2 thyme
• salt & pepper to taste

Preheat oven to *375. Lightly grease baking sheet. Whisk mustard and oil together in a small bowl. Place ground-up coconut onto a plate, mix in all the seasonings with the coconut. Dip formed nuggets into the mustard mix, then coat with coconut mixture, place on the cookie sheet. Finish this assembly line until all nuggets are prepped and ready to cook.
Bake in oven for 10 min, turn once and cook for 10 m in more.

Vegan Tom Yum

YUM, YUM, YUMMY!!!
I came home after working 9 hours, to Christian making this for me. It is one of the most flavorful dishes I have ever had! Every bite is "mmmm..."

Serves 4
Ingredients:

• 5-6 cups vegetable stock
  
• 1-2 stalks lemongrass , minced
• 3 whole kaffir lime leaves (available fresh or frozen at Asian food stores)
• 1-2 red chilies, sliced, OR 1/2 tsp. dried crushed chili, OR 1-2 tsp. chili sauce
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 thumb-size piece ginger, sliced into thin matchstick-like pieces
• 1 cup fresh mushrooms (I used shiitake), sliced
• 2 cups baby bok choy, leaves separated or chopped if large, OR broccoli
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 tsp. organic raw brown sugar
• 3-4 Tbsp. tamari
  
• 1 Tbsp. fresh-squeezed lime juice
• 1/2 cup fresh basil + 1/3 cup fresh coriander/cilantro, roughly chopped

Preparation:

1. Pour stock into a soup pot. If making the stock from cubes or powder, be sure to make it strong (if it tastes good on its own, it will make for a better Tom yum soup!). Now add the prepared lemongrass, plus the lime leaves, chili, garlic, and ginger. Bring to a boil and continue boiling for 5 minutes, or until broth is very fragrant.
2. Add the mushrooms. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 5-8 minutes, or until mushrooms are soft.
3. Add the bok choy and cherry tomatoes. Gently simmer 1-2 more minutes (bok choy should remain on the crisp side).
4. Reduce heat to low and add the coconut milk, sugar, soy sauce, and lime juice.
5. Do a taste-test, adding more chili or chili sauce if not spicy enough. If not salty enough, add more soy sauce or a little more stock cube/powder or salt. Add 1 more tsp. sugar if too sour. If too salty or sweet, add another squeeze of lime juice.
6. To serve, ladle soup into bowls, over rice, with fresh basil and cilantro sprinkled over. Enjoy!

Quinoa Tabouli

Ingredients:
2 cooked quiona
1 cup coarsely chopped cucumber
3 green onions
2 carrots grated
1/2 cup chopped olives
1/2 cup grated radishes

Dressing:
3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 & 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 & 1/2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
Sea salt & pepper to taste

Mix all of the salad ingredients. Mix dressing separately, poor evenly on top of quinoa mixture. Mix well, serve chilled.

Coconut Squares

I think these are truly delicious! a little to sweet, so, maybe even half the sugar next time? The quinoa crust really creates a nice nutty flavor, so much that when Ellie had a bite she spit it out and gauged because she thought it was peanut butter (her reaction was a little dramatic to say the least).

Crust:
1/2 cup of coconut oil (or veg shorting)
2 Tbsp of maple sugar (or organic raw, cane)
1 & 3/4 cup + 2 Tbsp of quinoa flour
1 Tbsp oil
2 Tbsp ice water

Topping:
*1 medium size banana
1 & 1/4 cups of maple sugar (or organic raw, cane)
2 Tbsp quinoa flour
1/4 tsp sea salt
**2 tsp of homemade baking flour (cornstarch-free)
2 cups of shredded, raw, unsweetened coconut

*I used the banana as an egg-replacement, feel free to replace with 2 eggs or 2 Tbls of Ener-G with 1/4 cup of milk or milk substitute. The banana only added a hint of flavor to the recipe.
** mix 1 part baking soda, 2 parts cream of tartar, & 2 parts arrowroot (ive done it w/o arrowroot and its worked out fine too.).

Preheat oven to 350*. Cream coconut oil and sugar together. Add flour, combine until it resembles coarse granola. Add oil. Mix. Add ice water. Press into the bottom of a lightly greased 8x8 glass baking dish. Bake 20 min. until golden brown.

Meanwhile, cream banana (eggs), with sugar. When smooth, add in flour, salt, & **baking powder. Combine thoroughly. Then add coconut. Spread coconut mixture directly over cooked crust, pressing gently with fingers. Bake for about 25 min. more, until nice and golden. Let cool slightly before serving. Mmmmmmmm.....

A Perfect Fit.

I met with Dr. Iris Orbuch yesterday. She is wonderful! She completely supports the Endo-Diet, she is against hormone replacements like birth-control and especially Lupron in regards to endo. She is 100% focused on Endometriosis and Laporoscopy procedure to treat it. She is rather advanced on the techniques used as far as getting to and cutting out the root of the enodmetriosis, supposed to just cutting, cauterizing or lasering the exposed. Meanwhile, I will getting a sonograms of the whole pelvic floor area. Also I will be seeing Dr. Greg Haber, who is a gastroenterologist at Lenox hospital, and specialized in ultrasounds in the pelvic, rectum area. He will be able to help identify where the endometriosis (scar tissue) is on my rectum and bladder area and give Dr. Orbuch a better idea of where and what is going on inside me so there are "no surprises" when she cuts me open. She wants to "go in once, do it right and get it all". I will also start pelvis floor physical therapy. I guess this area, after chronic pain, the nerves and muscles all become out of whack. This will help relax the irritated muscles, restore the nerve endings and help my body return to a happy state. SO, all in all, the surgery will only relieve 40-60% of the pain, physical therapy and diet should cover the other 60-40%!

Ellies Pancakes That Everyone Loved!

Thanks Makie for this recipe... I did have to make some small changes to make it Ellie approved. They didn't just pass the test, she actually LOVED them, and Madeline too! We had them for dinner, breakfast and at this very moment... after school snack too!

Allergy Free Buckwheat Pancakes

• 1/2 cup of rice flour
• 1/2 cup of buckwheat flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tablespoon tapioca starch
• 2 tablespoon of organic raw cane sugar
• 2 tsp milled flaxseed
  
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 cup of homemade brown rice milk
• 2 tsp coconut oil
  
• 1 small banana mashed

Mix and pour batter on a heated greased skillet cooking both sides... like a pancake!
*serve with fresh fruit and agave nectar or maple syrup. Yum! and filling!

GF Chicken Tenders

• Organic hormone-free chicken cutlets cut up in 1'' x 2'' squares
  
• Canola oil (since this is the only one that the little one, is not allergic too)
• 1 tsp celery salt and paprika (safe seasonings for Ellie - but I am sure there are better tasting ones!)
• GF bread crumbs (basically just roughly milled brown rice)

In a large sauce pan completely heat oil, about 1/4 inch high, on high heat. In two seperate plates, or bowls, add oil and seasonings into one and the "bread crumbs" in the other. Cover chicken pieces first into oil and then cover with "bread crumbs". Place into pan and cook for about 1-2 min. per side. Place onto plate with paper towel til cool.
I think next time I might try Rice Chex chopped in the blender instead of the GF bread crumbs and maybe even baked in oven instead?

Rice Milk

So I haven't found a milk substitute that Ellie can eat. Since all of the "milks" have safflower and or sunflower oil, and some have xanthium gum, and some vanilla... so, I decided to make my own. SO much cheaper with none of that added oil etc...

• 1/2 cup of cooked brown rice
• 4 cups of water
• 1/2 tsp sea salt

*optional, 2 tsp of raw organic cane sugar or agave nectar

In a large sauce pan place cooked rice with 4 cups of brown rice, bring to a boil, simmer and cover for 20 min. Poor into blender and mix on high for about 60 sec. Let sit for 20 min. You can play with the consistency, more or less rice, depending on your preference. You can add a tsp of vanilla (but Ellie is allergic, so its eliminated). Store in a glass jar. Should be good for about 10 days.
You can easily double the recipe according to your needs.
Before pouring into glass jar, you may want to pour through a small sieve or folded cheese cloth.

Ellies Food Allergies.

My new life style (diet) was taking all my focus and that is where 80% of my energy was going. Life threw me a curve ball the other day when I found out that my youngest has an astronomical amount of food allergies! After the 2 weeks of "detoxing" all of the foods that were positive, we will go through months of testing each of the foods, and spices out to see what ones are effecting her way of life. The foods that are being eliminated from her diet are; Corn (syrup, starch, popcorn... you get the idea), soy (in ALL its many forms), wheat, yeast (no beer for her!), casein (dairy), Eggs, safflower (this is in everything! including rice milk!), sunflower, huge list of fruit - so here are her yeses on fruit; apples, bananas and strawberries. ALL nuts, peanuts, "gums" (agin-everything!), pepper -cayenne and black, cumin, dill, ginger, nutmeg, mustard, parsley, sesame, vanilla, chocolate, beans - string, kidney, lima, navy, pinto, peas, carrots, mushrooms, olives and olive oil, onion, green peppers, potato, sweet potato, tomato, cucumbers, avocado, lentils, bay leaf, sage, thyme, and basil.... blah, blah, blah!

So what in the heck do you feed this poor child?

Not sure where my blog is going to go? Since Ellie's diet is a lot more restricting than mine, and because it is so limiting, I may find myself cooking things such as meat, and even using some sugars to keep a little one happy. So please dont find me hypocritical. Just trying to survive. Now my energy is 100% refocused.

Thai Tofu Coconut Curry

Ingredients:

1/4 cup dry shredded baking-type coconut, unsweetened
*1 package firm tofu, drained and cut into cubes (omit if tofu is too much for your diet)
1+ 3/4 cups vegetable stock
1/2 to 2/3 can coconut milk
6 lime leaves (purchase frozen at Asian/Chinese food stores)
1/2 cooking onion, diced or roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic,minced
2 thumb-size pieces ginger, thinly sliced into matchstick-like pieces
1-3 tsp. [vegetarian] Thai chili sauce OR 1/2 to 1 tsp. dried crushed chili or cayenne pepper, to taste
3 Tbsp. vegetarian fish sauce (or regular fish sauce if non-vegetarian) - OR substitute **gluten-free tamari sauce
juice of 1/2 lime
1 small sweet potato or yam, peeled and cubed
1 cup cauliflower, cut into florets
generous handful fresh shiitake mushrooms, sliced or left whole if small
1 red bell pepper, de-seeded and chopped into bite-size pieces
approx. 1 cup snow peas, left whole or cut in half
handful cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
optional: approx. 1 cup eggplant chopped into bite-size pieces or slices
2 Tbsp. olive oil for stir-frying
Preparation:

Place shredded coconut in a dry wok or large frying pan over medium heat. Stir continuously until the coconut is nicely toasted. Place toasted coconut into a bowl to cool.
Replace wok or frying pan on the stove. Add 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil plus the onion, garlic, and ginger. Stir-fry 1-2 minutes, or until onion begins to soften and the garlic is fragrant.
Turn heat up to high. Add Tofu, cook for 5 min. Add stock plus lime leaves, chili sauce, and most of the toasted coconut (reserve 1 to 1+1/2 Tbsp. for garnish). Stir everything together.
Add the sweet potato (or yam) and cauliflower. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium. Simmer 2-3 minutes.
Add the mushrooms, eggplant (if using), and tofu, stirring to incorporate. Cover and simmer 2 more minutes.
Add the bell pepper, snow peas, and tomaotes, and simmer 2-3 minutes, or until snow peas have softened but are still bright green.
Turn heat down to low and add the coconut milk plus the [veg] fish sauce or soy sauce, stirring to dissolve. Add up to 2/3 of the can of coconut milk or more, depending on how creamy or how much sauce you want with your curry.
Remove from heat and do a taste-test for salt and spice, adding more [veg.] fish sauce, Tamari or salt. Add more chili if you prefer it spicer.
To serve, scoop the curry onto individual plates or into serving bowls. Top with fresh coriander and a sprinkling of the reserved toasted coconut. Accompany with plenty of Thai jasmine rice.
ENJOY!
*Tofu is soy, in this form it is OK, once in a while. Just watch how you feel afterwords.
**Tamari sauce is a purer form of say sauce, this too should be ok in small, once in awhile doses.

Wheat & Endometriosis

Why no wheat? I gave up certain foods in stages, 1st was meat, then sugars, dairy then wheat. Several days after I gave up wheat, I noticed the biggest improvement in my pain and bowel habits. I even can say that I was almost symptom free! (80% of woman who give up wheat have been able to alleviate a lot of their symptoms ) I caved the other day while making mac-n-cheese for the kids, I had a bite leaving me with several days of sever cramping and very painful #2's! Enough so, that I will be sure not to make that same mistake. A large group of woman with endometriosis ARE wheat intolerant. Also many of "us" suffer from candida growth - as wheat feeds the growth of yeast. So, I highly recommend - if you pick and choose your endo-diet, wheat alone can make a significant difference.

Side Note: I was talking to a girlfriend of mine, a fellow endometriosis sufferer and she was telling me about her experience with the hormone shot. "I have had 2 series of Lupron Depot and I was SO miserable with the side effects, like hot-flashes and moodiness that I didn't even notice if it helped my endometriosis!"
Hormone shots may be the answer for some, so please make sure you know all there is to know before you make that decision.