Low-Carb Cauliflower Mashed un-Potatoes

So, I've been getting some requests to hear about how my candida cleanse is going. I've been on the diet aspect for about a month and a half now, and have tried two candida cleanse kits from the health food store so far.

The first one, Zand Candida Quick Cleanse, was something I grabbed on the fly. I mainly wanted to start with something non-invasive to see how my body would react to an herbal cleanse of this kind, and I sure got what I wanted! Non-invasive, for sure. I felt no different, really. It helped initially with the yeast infection (brought on by antibiotics earlier in the year), but it came back as soon as the cleanse was done. I did get a little light-headed a few times during the cleanse, but that was the only noticeable effect it had on my body. Oh, and they smelled and tasted like death. Thumbs down.

The next one I started taking about a week after the first product ended. Solaray Yeast Cleanse - it was a little more expensive, and a brand I've used before. Less Ingredients, which was fine because I was taking a couple other immune system and probiotic supplements along with it. I was a little happier with this one. I still didn't feel any different in terms of brain fog, fatigue, etc. but it helped a lot more with the yeast. I just finished this cleanse a couple days ago, and it hasn't come back yet.

I'm beginning to think that either candida isn't my issue (highly unlikely, given the symptoms) or I need something FAR more hardcore than over the counter supplements. I understand this will be a long process, but is it too much to ask to see SOME kind of abated symptoms? I feel like if I fudge and even have a little bit of carbs or sugar while not taking any herbal supplements that the candida will just RAGE in my system again. This makes me so unhappy, considering the time of year I'm doing this. I want to make pumpkin pie and have mashed potatoes with roasted carrots and pickled beets and SUSHI! But.. not all in one meal. That might be pushing it. ;) (I'd probably still eat it though, if given that dinner option!)

Speaking of potatoes, for Thanksgiving I wanted to make a mashed potato substitute that I could have with gravy, and I believe I may have found it in a cauliflower.

You heard me: Cauliflower Mash! With roasted garlic, I might add.

I've been using cauliflower a lot these days, and what better thing to use for a mash than cauliflower? It doesn't have the creamy, starchy consistency that potatoes have, but it's an awesome side dish - especially with gravy. ;)

Low-Carb Cauliflower Mashed un-Potatoes

1 1/2 heads of cauliflower
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil-based Earth Balance
2 Tbsp. roasted garlic (I had some on-hand)
1 Tbsp. brown rice miso paste
salt and pepper to taste
splash of Bragg's liquid aminos
saffron to garnish

Put a pot of water on the stove to boil. Once the cauliflower has been washed thoroughly, cut it into uniform florets, and add to the boiling water. When they're tender, take them out and drain.

In a large bowl or food processor, mash the cauliflower until it's a mostly-smooth consistency. Add remaining ingredients, and mash to combine. Mash, mash, mash! (Can you tell I did this by hand?)

Garnish with saffron and serve!

Do you have any favorite mashed potato alternatives? How do you like to dress up your mashed potatoes?

All 'Choked Up!

With spring heartily marching forward, it’s time to think about cooking with this season’s bounty. The Jerusalem artichoke is easy to cultivate, rich in potassium and iron, and a good source of carbohydrates. But most people aren’t all that familiar with this tasty tuber.

Technically it’s not a native crop, since it comes from the east coast originally, but that’s close enough! Ironically, it’s also not related to the artichoke in any way, and has nothing to do with Jerusalem. It’s thought that the “Jerusalem” is a corruption of Girasole, the Italian word for “Sunflower”. It’s more properly called a Sunchoke, since it is in fact the root of a native sunflower.

Unfortunately, they also contain a substance called inulin, which in some people can cause severe gastric pain and flatulence.

How do you find out if you’re one of those people? Try it and see! I created this recipe specifically for that purpose. It’s a light, simple preparation that captures the mildly sweet, crunchy, potato-like flavour of these wonderful little tubers, but doesn’t give enough to cause serious pain if you’re among the sensitives (like me).

Sunchoke Bake

5 jerusalem artichokes, washed and sliced
3 leaves of kale, roughly chopped
4 large cloves garlic, sliced
a few chives, chopped, some reserved for garnish
salt & pepper to taste
1 tsp. Olive oil

Preheat oven to 400. Toss all ingredients together in a small baking dish, and bake for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Herbacious Fried Potatoes

Not THAT kind of herb, you sillies! This is a family blog. :P

The other night, Jeremy and I had baked potatoes. I made up a few extra for leftovers, knowing I would grab them at random for a quick meal. Oh, how right I was!

Let me just say, I never get tired of fried potatoes. I love super-garlicky, herbified morsels of soft yet crispy potato deliciousness. I used to go crazy as a kid for a huge mound of fried potatoes, with a couple hot fried eggs on top. Being a vegan now, I don't do the eggs, but who says I can't enjoy a big, greasy pile of carbohydrates once in awhile? ;)

I love this recipe because it's so versatile. I used the leftover baked potatoes here, but I also do the same thing with simple par-boiled potatoes (which have a softer, more delicate texture - the baked Russets are more robust).

I call this recipe "herbacious" because I cover (as you can see) the potatoes with fresh herbs from the garden. I'm using parsley, rosemary, and chives for this dish, but you can use whatever herbs you have available to you. I'd love a good mix of thyme, oregano, and marjoram also. They're all good in my book!

I also want to touch on the garlic I used. It's a younger, fresher garlic than you find in the stores, and also has more depth of flavour without the intense bite. I can eat these raw (but then, I'm quite the garlic lover!) These little beauties generally have 4-6 cloves per bulb of garlic, without the tiny little cloves you have to smear across the cutting board to get the paper off of. They actually have hardly any inner-layers of paper. So, if it sounds to you like I'm adding a lot of garlic (which I am) just use a couple cloves less.

Herbacious Fried Potatoes

3-4 large baked Russet potatoes, cut into medium-sized chunks
8 cloves of garlic, crushed
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 Tbsp. chopped chives
2 tsp. minced rosemary
oil for frying (I use coconut oil. Mmm...)
salt and pepper to taste

In a non-stick skillet, heat oil on high. Add potatoes, season with salt (don't be shy now), and stir constantly until lightly browned. Turn heat down to medium, and add in the garlic. Continue to move the potatoes around to prevent the garlic from burning.

Once the garlic has cooked a bit (about 4-5 min, depending on your stove) turn heat back up to high until the potatoes are hot and sizzling again. Add the herbs and grind on pepper to taste.

Toss to coat, until the herbs have just wilted. Serve with a nice chopped salad or tofu scramble!

Chow!

Coconut-Spice Roasted Walnuts

Today was a walnut day.

Now, just so we're clear: I ALWAYS soak my walnuts. Always. They have a bitter quality that is very off-putting for me unless I soak them. Soaking nuts in water removes enzyme inhibitors - which are aptly named - and also wakes up the nuts, allowing them to germinate. This leads to better digestibility and higher nutrient content. Walnuts, because they break in the shelling process, can't fully germinate. However, all the bitterness does leach out, leaving a soft, mild, almost sweet nut. Next time I soak my nuts, I'll take a picture to show you the dark, ruddy-brown colored water that's left.

I had a great big bowl left over from a prior experiment, and it was about time for them to be eaten. I didn't want to do a raw dish necessarily (read: "yeah, you really should COOK those... starting to look a bit dodgy") and I hadn't roasted nuts in ages! These walnuts were begging for a spice rub.

Coconut-Spice Roasted Walnuts

3 cups freshly soaked walnuts
3 Tb. dry shredded coconut
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 Tb. sunflower oil

Preheat oven to 275 degrees.

In a small bowl, mix all dry ingredients together, then add lemon and oil. This should make a thick liquid. In a larger bowl, pour the wet spices over the walnuts, and toss to coat. Turn out onto a cookie sheet, and place in the oven.

You'll want to stir up the walnuts every 15 minutes or so, making sure to mix in the smaller bits from the corners. It'll take around 1 1/2 to 2 hours or so, until the pan dries out and the walnuts aren't steaming anymore.

When they're thoroughly dry they make a different sound when they're mixed, almost like they're hollow. You'll hear it when they get there. ;)

Paté Stuffed Mushrooms with Butternut "Cheese" (Raw) - Butternut Showcase #2

My second butternut showcase is a bit less in-your-face.

I wanted to make raw stuffed mushrooms, inspired by Leslie Bega's recipe at GLiving. By raw, I don't mean completely unprocessed, as I used my dehydrator to soften the mushrooms, and make them juicier. The result is warm and soft in the mouth, with flavor bursting in every bite. The paté is creamy, tangy, and spicy. I'm hooked!

I'd made a big bowl of julienned squash with my mandolin for a salad earlier that day, so I decided to marinate some extras to put over the mushrooms. They end up being tender and chewy. Mmmm...

Paté Stuffed Mushrooms with Butternut "Cheese"

4 Tb. Braggs or Nama Shoyu
2 tsp. lemon
1/4 tsp. aji panca hot sauce
12 cremini mushrooms, stems reserved
1/2 cup loosely packed butternut squash, julienned

In a large bowl, whisk liquid ingredients together. Wet the mushrooms one by one, making sure to thoroughly coat the insides. Then toss them around in the bowl, and let them sit while you make the paté.

1 cup walnuts
Stems from the mushrooms
1 inch fresh ginger, sliced
1/4 cup bell pepper (I used orange)
2 small green onions, chopped
small handful parsley
2 Tb. marinade
1 small garlic clove
cracked pepper to taste (about 1/4 tsp.)
enough water to paste

In the food processor, pulverize the walnuts and mushrooms until you get a coarse meal. Add the rest of the ingredients (except water) and grind down until you have a thick paste. It may ball up on you. Splash the water in small amounts until you get a nice, smooth paté.

Take the mushrooms out of the marinade, shaking off the excess as you go. Add your julienned butternut squash to the marinade, and toss. Carefully press the stuffing into the mushrooms, making good-sized mounds. Then, take the squash and squeeze the liquid out, and lay the bits across the tops of the mushrooms.

Dehydrate at 110 degrees for about 2 hours, or until the mushrooms have softened a bit, and the paté has got a nice crust on the outside. Enjoy!

Onigiri with Mushroom and Red Pepper

So, by now I'm sure you've figured out that when it comes to food, I tend to not play by the rules. This time is really no exception. :)



Traditionally, Onigiri is filled with salmon, or pickled vegetables. I had a hankering for mushrooms and red pepper though, so I filled my fun rice triangles with them instead! I made a pretty large batch for a potluck (cooking 6 cups of sushi rice for about 24 of these puppies) so I'll round down a bit.

First, you'll need to start your sushi rice. I used the About.com recipe, found here. Those amounts should make about 12 onigiri, depending on size.

While the rice is cooking, you'll need to marinate your mushrooms. I used dried shiitakes. You can use fresh, or other mushrooms if you like, but I really enjoy the extra earthiness dried shiitake mushrooms have. I just tossed this all together without measuring, so it's really all about your particular tastes.

2 cups of dried shiitake mushrooms, broken up, in a large bowl
2-3 Tb wheat-free Tamari
1 Tb fresh ground garlic
1 Tb fresh ground ginger
2 Tb sweet red pepper sauce (can be found in any asian market)
Two generous splashes white wine
A splash of red cooking wine (asian market as well, with salt added)
A drizzle of rice vinegar
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1/4-1/2 cup of water

Mix everything together except the water, making sure to coat the mushrooms as much as possible. Taste the marinade, and if it tastes good to you, add the water. Just enough water to make it a functional marinade. You don't need to cover the mushrooms with water; you'll lose flavour if there's too much water, and they'll float anyway. ;) Once the marinade has set in (about 10-15min), squeeze most of the marinade out of the mushrooms, reserving the liquid, and chop the mushrooms into small pieces. (I just did this while the pepper was frying.)

Next, prepare the red pepper.

1 red pepper, diced small
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tsp coconut oil (optional, but I really love the slightly sweet creamy flavour)
1 Tb black sesame seeds

Heat a small pot to medium high, and melt your coconut oil with the sesame oil. Throw in the pepper, stirring occasionally. After the pepper has softened a bit, add your mushrooms and black sesame seeds. Once it's back up to the proper heat, add the marinade in splashes to keep everything moist. If the liquid evaporates too quickly, turn the heat down a bit. Once most of the liquid is cooked out, turn off the heat and set aside to cool.

Once your filling has cooled enough to touch, you can stuff your onigiri! I used a triangle mold, which my room mate was awesome enough to have in-stock. They're very inexpensive, and can be found here.
I also found a great tutorial on how to make onigiri without a mold!

Instead of covering these beauties in nori sheets, I decided to sprinkle the top with my Hemp Seed Furikake. Also, no Japanese rice dish is complete (IMO) without wasabi and pickled ginger! :)

I love the way they compliment sushi rice.

Needless to say, they were a hit! I love how they have a bit of mystery as to what's inside. Also, the slight sweetness of the marinade blends well with the softness of the rice. It was a very nice blend.


Enjoy!

Amy's gluten-free Pizza!

I don't usually buy pre-packaged food products, but holy crap did I need some pizza! What I was thinking to do was buy some complete protein bread, vegan cheeze, and fry up some mushrooms. All the complete protein breads had gluten *sigh* so Jeremy and I looked at Amy's pizzas, some of which have corn crusts. Problem was, they're mm mm cheesy. But wait: rice crust, dairy-free pizza with spinach? Sold! We bought some extra mozzarella cheeze*, and skipped our way home.

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Here are some extras I added once we got home:
5 large shiitake mushrooms, cleaned and destemmed, chopped
4 cloves garlic, diced
2T Grapeseed oil
salt to taste
1 smallish tomato, thinly sliced
about 8 thin slices of mozzarella cheeze

In a pan, heat grapeseed oil on medium high heat. Toss in mushrooms, salt. Sautee until wilted, then add garlic and continue the sautee until garlic is soft.

Arrange all toppings onto pizza, and bake as directed.
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Now, after I was done with all of this, the pizza itself had thawed a little bit, so I put it on a cookie sheet so it wouldn't sag. Because of this small thaw, I think, the crust nearly burned. I didn't get enough broil time to melt the cheezes, but even so, they were both fairly soft. So I took it out, and pizza was had.

I've got to say, that I was disappointed in the nearly burning crust. The crust was pretty browned pre-freezing, but I abided by the cooking time. Aside from that, the pizza was pretty good. The cheezes were nice, I liked the spinach, and it wasn't slathered in tomato sauce. It really needed the mushrooms, but I think everything needs mushrooms. ;)


*Follow Your Heart vegan cheeze is one of the only palatable cheezes I've found so far. When I used to eat dairy, I was a big melty cheese person. I loved mozzarella cheeses, and was always very picky about the true cheese, not the lame, not stringy, shredded cheese. I really like Follow Your Heart, and they're local! Score!


Time for bed now. Goodnight!

Ginger Beet Juice

I love beets.

When I say I love beets, I mean I really love beets. I'm one of those people who loves to take them straight from the garden, rub the dirt off, and bite into 'em. I never understood why people peeled them, either, as I've come to understand that much of the nutrients in vegetables come from the skins. So, why, in our modern age, do we always peel our veggies and then cook the crap out of them? The world may never know. ;)

I, on the other hand, like peels. And raw veggies. This morning, I knew I would be making soup later, but needed a quick something to drink that would give me some energy and fight off the cold that I feel coming on, so I pulled out the ol’ juicer and made some beet juice.

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Ginger Beet Juice

3 large beets, quartered, tops removed (or can be added, but I ate ‘em earlier)

3 decent sized garlic cloves*

2 inch chunk of ginger, with skin

2 good splashes of lemon juice (or juice from 2 lemons)

Juice beets, ginger, and garlic. (I put the ginger and garlic in between the chunks of beets, to avoid clogs) Add lemon juice to juicer, to rinse it out a bit. Optional: grab a hunk of the pulp^ and throw it in, for texture. :)

Enjoy!

Makes about 3 cups, but will vary by the size of the beets.

*Jeremy, my fiance, said it had too much garlic, so feel free to lessen the amount, or leave them out completely. I love garlic, and they’re fantastic raw if you’re not feeling well.

^If you want to use the pulp for something, it can be put straight into soups, salads, or dehydrated for crackers. Ooh! I wonder if it’d make good mashed “potatoes”! I’ll try that tonight.

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Have a wonderful afternoon!

~Lyra