O Sole Mio! And it's gluten-free!

I’ve never been a big fan of fish. I know the benefits of eating fish over red meat and I know the benefits of keeping the greatest possible variety in one’s diet. So, though not a fish eater by nature, I have been making a real effort to learn to like various fish dishes.

Now, while I don’t really love fish, I do love potato chips. Yes, I already know the potential problems of this particular passion but I maintain that you can eat all things in moderation. Some just need to be a lot more moderate than others and potato chips would fall into that category. Since I do love the salty crunch of chips and I know it can be used as a coating for baked meats, I figured it was a great way to make fish more appealing to me. Let me tell you, it really worked! Even my son liked it (he’s not a big fish eater, either) and ate it cheerfully. Additionally, using potato chips as a coating kept the fish moist, added a lot of flavor, was insanely simple and was entirely gluten-free.

Here’s what you need to do this:

Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees F
Filets of flounder – at least one per person
Vinegar and Salt potato chips
1 qt. zip closure baggie
Baking dish or cookie sheet – if it is not non-stick, you can line it with foil or parchment paper or coat very lightly with oil

Fill the zip closure bag with potato chips, close and crush. This is good fun and an excellent way to relieve stress. This is also a job the kids can do. Give them a large wooden spoon and a flat work space and let them go nuts.

Empty the chip crumbs onto a dinner plate. Rinse the fillets and gently coat them with the chips. The chips won’t stick really tightly and you are unlikely to get a thick coating but this is fine. Pat the chips onto the fish and you can add the leftover crumbs once the fillets are in the pan.

Once the fish is coated and you’ve patted any extra crumbs onto the fish in the pan, bake for about 12 minutes or until the fish flakes easily with a fork. This was really good served with a green salad and steamed edamame but it would be very nice with some baked squash, I think. Whatever sides excite you should work very well.

Now for the variations. I chose vinegar and salt chips for a taste reminiscent of fish and chips with malt vinegar. However, you can choose any flavor you like. If you are concerned about sodium, choose low salt chips. If potatoes are a problem for you, try one of the varieties and flavors of corn chips.

This is a terrific meal for a busy weekday evening. It’s quick, simple, flavorful and an enormous improvement over fast food. The flavor of the chips will make it appealing even to the kids. It’s a win all around.

So, let’s go eat that!

Soy-free, Wheat-Free, Dairy-Free Veggie Burgers

Hey there! I’ve been on a nice little vacation to visit family, complete with a family reunion picnic. You know what that meant, right? Barbeque! And lots of it. It smelled fabulous! Sadly, I can’t do barbeque and while I hardly starved, I still wished I had some sort of alternative.

If you are interested in reducing the amount of meat, particularly red meat, in your diet, you’ve probably tried some or all of the vegetable-based meat substitutes available. Many are pretty darned nice, in my humble opinion. However, they are often off-limits for me since I was diagnosed with allergies to so many vegetables. The substitutes often contain vegetables I need to avoid as well as yeast. They can also be quite expensive. Still, I like the idea of a meatless burger so I set out to make my own. What resulted was a legume-based burger with plenty of seasonings, no gluten, low sodium (with the option of making it sodium free) and simple preparation.

Want to try it? Here’s what you’ll need:

· 2 15 oz cans of beans packed in water – I used Pinto and Great White Northern beans but you can choose what you like
· 2 T minced onion – I use dried minced onion to avoid adding extra moisture
· 1 T celery seed
· 1 T garlic powder
· 2 T spicy brown mustard
· 2 T lime juice
· 2 T minced fresh parsley
· Rice flour as needed to thicken

Drain your beans and using a food processor, blender, stick blender or mixer, make a smooth paste. Add all the ingredients EXCEPT the rice flour and stir until mixed. Add rice flour a little at a time (about a tablespoon) until the mixture is about the consistency of a stiff drop cookie dough. You don’t want it too stiff because it will get very dry as it cooks.

In a skillet over medium heat, heat a tablespoon or so of olive oil and drop spoonfuls of your bean mixture in. Flatten slightly with the spoon to make a patty shape. Don’t make these too large or thick since it will make them very hard to flip. Brown them well on each side (2 – 5 minutes depending on how soft your mixture is) and be sure they are heated through. You may need to add a bit more oil to the pan from time to time as you cook the patties. You should be aware that the patties will not be as firm as a meat burger. Just use a good spatula and you should have no problem. This recipe makes about 10 patties (roughly three inches across).

Serve this up as is or on a bun with any condiments you like. I like mine with mustard but mayo and ketchup or even salsa will be good, too. As you can see, this whips up in minutes but if you know you will be pressed for time, you can prepare the mixture in advance and keep it in the refrigerator until you are ready to cook.

As always, there are plenty of alternatives possible. If you need to go easy on your sodium intake, steer clear of the canned beans and cook dried beans yourself. This does add an additional step but removes a lot of the sodium. You can certainly use regular wheat flour or some other flour in place of the rice flour to tighten up the mixture, if you’d prefer. As I mentioned in the ingredients list, you can use whichever beans or combination of beans you prefer. I suppose you could use peas or lima beans if they tickle your fancy but they will give your patties a greenish color which, personally, I wouldn’t find all that appealing. Still, if you really like the flavor, go for it. If you don’t care for mustard or would like to try a different flavor profile, trade out the mustard for soy sauce, a spoonful or two of tahini and some ginger. If you’d like a bit more kick, add some diced chilies and switch out the parsley for cilantro. For an Italian taste, use oregano, more garlic and sun-dried tomatoes.

These burgers are full of flavor and packed with protein, fiber and nutrients and are very low in fat. Leftovers reheat very nicely in the microwave, too. You really can’t lose.

So, let’s go eat that!

Oh-So-Adaptable Pasta

If you have any sort of restricted diet, you have to love pasta. It’s enormous adaptability is a relief, isn’t it? There are so many combinations of ingredients that can be mixed with pasta. Additionally, you can serve it hot or cold. All-weather food!

There are plenty of options just in the pasta, too. You can find whole grain pasta, pasta with vegetables in it, pasta with supplements such as fiber and calcium, low carbohydrate pasta and even gluten free pasta. With so many options, it is much easier to add variety to your diet with this very simple food.

Now, I have a significant tomato allergy and I need to avoid dairy so the traditional tomato and cream sauces aren’t on my menu. But that doesn’t mean I need to skip pasta altogether. The picture above was dinner last night. Now, my son and husband are very fond of marinara sauce so their pasta was served that way. Mine was tossed with diced red onion, diced celery, fresh parsley and roasted almonds with just a drizzle of olive oil. Flavor, texture and color all together and it was great! I could toss it with vegetables and a prepared salad dressing, chill it and have a great pasta salad to serve as a side dish. In fact, I will probably do that for our Indoor Birthday Picnic on Sunday. I’m thinking my favorite Greek dressing will make a great pasta salad.

This is why pasta is such a great meal for families with dietary considerations. Each serving can be personalized to suit the needs of the person eating. Any vegetable combination, any sauce, cheese, no cheese and any other ingredient you can imagine can be served up and the entire family can sit down together. Kids can help prepare and choose their own pasta toppings and tossings. I think we all know why this is a great thing, right? Kids need to learn to cook and learn about the food they eat so as to learn to make wise food choices throughout their lives. Plus, the time spent preparing and eating the meal together is good for everyone.

So, let’s hear it for Super Adaptable Pasta! It’s a great lunch, dinner or side. Let’s go eat that!

Avocado and Salmon Salad

Ever have one of those weeks? A stretch of days where everything you have to do snowballs and knocks you flat so that, by the weekend, the last thing in the world you want is to work hard for your dinner? I’m betting you have. Probably more than one week like that. Well, I just had one of those weeks and I found myself too tired to even bother with any sort of take away. I wanted something simple, flavorful and healthy but I didn’t want to expend a lot of effort. This avocado and salmon salad was the very thing. Non-dairy, no sugar added, egg-free, gluten-free, low sodium and easily adaptable, this salad is a wonderful and healthy dish that can be whipped up in literally minutes. Here’s how it goes.

You’ll need:

· 1 ripe avocado (it should be give a bit in your fingers but the skin should be undamaged)
· ¼ tsp ginger (I used ground ginger but fresh ginger is great if you have it on hand)
· 1 tsp celery seed
· ½ tsp salt (can be omitted)
· 2 T lime juice
· 2 tsp low sodium soy sauce
· 1 – 2 tsp minced fresh parsley
· ¼ cup minced onion (I used a sweet onion but you can use any onion, including scallions if you’d like)
· 6 oz canned salmon, drained (this can be rinsed and drained if it is more sodium than you want to have)

Mix together the avocado, ginger, celery seed, salt, lime juice, soy sauce and parsley until fairly smooth. It will have a consistency similar to mayonnaise. Add the onion and salmon and mix well.

That’s it! This is excellent on crackers, wrapped in lettuce leaves, on toast points, wrapped in a tortilla or on a simple sandwich. Want to hear about alternatives? No problem. Switch out the salmon for tuna, if you’d like. Add additional diced vegetables such as sweet peppers or celery. You can add diced apple and toasted sunflower seeds, as well, if you’d like a bit more crunch. Very adaptable.

I don’t suppose I need to remind you of the benefits of using avocado in place of mayonnaise, do I? In case you haven’t already heard, avocado, while reasonably high in fat, is loaded with monounsaturated fats which are quite healthy when eaten in moderation. Monounsaturated fats can even help reduce blood cholesterol. Additionally, avocados are high in B vitamins which are so good for many body functions as well as overall energy levels.

So, if you’re in a bit of a hurry for a healthy, flavorful meal that is a bit of something different, give this salad a try. Let’s go eat that!

Tomato-Free Baked Beans

Mmmm… baked beans. I love them. Unfortunately, most canned baked beans include tomato sauce and tomatoes are a no-go for me. There are a few tomato-free brands but that doesn’t give a person much variety. So, since my son loves legumes of nearly all types (he’s not so into garbanzo beans but what the heck) and I like them too, I thought it might be fun to try something a little different and go for a flavor that might even entice my husband who really isn’t such a bean fan.

Here’s what I did. You’ll need:

· 6 C dry Great Northern beans
· 1 quart chicken stock
· 1 clove of garlic, minced
· 2 T lime juice
· 8 oz can of pineapple chunks in juice (NOT syrup)
· 4 T maple syrup (I used sugar-free maple syrup)
· 1 T rice vinegar
· 2 T lite soy sauce
· 1 tsp celery salt
· ¼ sweet onion (medium to large)
· Salt and pepper to taste

This is not a quick recipe but it is fairly low effort. First of all, you’ll need to soak the beans in water overnight. After that, drain away the water and put the beans in a large stock pot with the chicken stock, garlic, lime juice and a dash of salt and pepper. Bring to a low boil for about an hour.

Add the pineapple chunks with juice, maple syrup, vinegar, soy sauce, celery salt and onion. At this point, you can continue cooking the beans on the stove top or transfer them to the slow cooker. If you choose the slow cooker, be aware that you will need to allow the beans to cook for 7 – 8 hours. Certainly, the quickest method is on the stove top (about another hour) but the slow cooker does allow you to leave them while you go about your business. In the end, you need to cook the beans until they are tender.

Near the end of the cooking process, taste and add more salt and pepper as desired.

This is a great side dish for a pot luck since it makes a LOT of beans. If you are using it as a side dish for a smaller group, cut the recipe in half. My son will happily eat these as a main dish with a green salad and I like them as a quick, satisfying lunch. As you might imagine, these beans are great as leftovers though I have never tried freezing them. You can certainly give that a try but don’t be too disappointed if the beans are made mushy by the freezing and thawing. Of course, you may not mind that so more power to you.

Alterantives and additions? You bet. You can switch out beef or turkey stock for the chicken stock. You can add other vegetables to make it more of a stew. Carrots and celery would be great in this. If you prefer more of a soup instead of a thicker stew or baked bean casserole texture, add more stock.

Legumes are fantastic, healthy protein and fiber sources so, let’s go eat that!

Almost Asian Stew

Okay, this isn’t precisely Asian and it isn’t exactly stew, but once you actually sit down with a bowl of it, I think you’ll see my reasoning behind the name. I'd have a picture for you but the last time I made this for the family, we dug right in and ate it before we remembered anything about taking a picture. I'll have to remember next time around.

This is another dish that is very flexible and simple to adapt to a variety of tastes and specific diets. You’ll be steaming vegetables for this and if you don’t have a steamer or one for your microwave, don’t fret. A regular microwavable cereal bowl and some plastic wrap to cover it will work just fine.

So, here’s what you’ll need for dinner for about four people:

· 1 – 1 ½ lbs. stew meat (I like beef but pork could be used) or boneless, skinless chicken breast cut in 1” cubes
· 8 oz beef or chicken broth (or stock or bouillon equivalent)
· 3 T low-sodium soy sauce
· 1 clove garlic, minced
· ¼ - ½ C each – broccoli flowerets, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, carrots, celery, green onion, snow pea pods
· 1 package chow mein noodles
· Toasted sesame seeds to garnish

In a skillet (at least 12” with a lid), brown the meat. If your skillet is not non-stick, you may need just a little oil but don’t use much. You’ll keep cooking in that same skillet so a bit of sticking is fine but a lot of oil is not and won’t make for a nice broth later.

Once the meat is lightly browned, add the broth and one cup of water. Drop the cooking temperature to low. Add the soy sauce and garlic. Cover and let the meat simmer for an hour. Check every 15 – 20 minutes and add water if your liquid seems to be cooking away. Add the green onions in the last 20 minutes or so.

Prepare your vegetables by cutting them into roughly ¾” – 1” pieces. I like to cut the carrots and celery on the bias because it looks nice. Carrot slices should be no more than ½” thick or they will take too long to cook.

If all the diners are able to eat all the vegetables, steam them in one bowl in your microwave. If you’re using a bowl and plastic wrap instead of a steamer, leave the plastic open along one side an inch or so to vent. This should take 3 -4 minutes on high power. You want the vegetables soft-ish but they should still have just a bit of snap. I guess you’d call it al dente. If not everyone can eat all the vegetables, steam them in separate bowls and everyone can add just the vegetables they want to their own bowl of stew when the time comes.

Cook the noodles according to package directions.

Dish up a serving of noodles into a soup bowl and ladle some meat and broth over them. Add some of the vegetables and toss lightly. You can sprinkle toasted sesame seeds over the top before serving.

Ready for the variations?

You can use any fresh vegetable you like in this. A handful of shredded cabbage (uncooked), added in just before serving, gives some nice texture. Cauliflower would be a good addition, too. If you like ginger, you could add ½ - 1 tsp when you add the broth to the meat. It isn’t required and goes with personal taste.

This could be made with seafood though you wouldn’t want to simmer it so long, of course. If you try fish or seafood, go with a vegetable broth.

If you are fresh out of chow mein noodles, go ahead and use spaghetti. I’ll never tell. If noodles don’t really get you excited, you can serve this over cooked brown rice, instead.

If you’d like a gravy rather than a broth, you can add a tablespoon of flour, cornstarch or tapioca to the cooking liquid in the last 15 minutes of cooking, stirring constantly to avoid lumps.

To help streamline this dish and avoid a lot of messing about in the kitchen after a long day, the vegetables can be cut and made ready for cooking in advance. The cooking isn’t really labor intensive, though you will still need to allow enough time for the meat to simmer and become tender.

Now I’m hungry. So, let’s go eat that!

Not-Just-Camp-Cooking Pouch Dinners

If you’ve ever done any camping, you almost certainly wrapped some meat and a few vegetables in foil and cooked them in the coals of your fire. It’s a common and simple campfire cookout. But it’s much more than that, really. It is an enormously adaptable dinner that can be easily assembled for a variety of dietary considerations. With a bit of creativity, you can really elevate this meal from its humble campout status to something pretty special.

We’ll start with the way I made it for dinner last night and talk about the many variations from there. To do it the way I did, you’ll need:

· ½ lb lean beef, cubed - I like to use stir fry or chop suey beef since it is already trimmed and cut quite small for quick cooking.
· Red-skinned potatoes – approximately one per person
· Carrots, bell peppers, green beans, celery, onion, broccoli flowerets
· Greek salad dressing

First, I sliced the potatoes (though I did not peel them) fairly thin. You want to keep vegetable pieces reasonably small and thin to reduce cooking time. I also cut the other vegetables into roughly 1” pieces.

Once my vegetables were ready, I laid out pieces of foil. The pieces should be about 18” long so you’ll have room to fold it tightly over the food. Once the foil was ready, I began assembling. I like to lay out the potato slices first. This gives the packet a firm base and puts the potatoes in closer contact with the heat for faster cooking. Once I had a good layer of potato slices in the center of the foil (laid out in a rectangle allowing plenty of room on all sides for folding up later), I added my carrot slices, beef pieces, onion pieces, green beans, bell pepper pieces and broccoli flowerets. You’ll notice I put the vegetables I don’t want to overcook on top.

Over all this, I poured 2 – 3 T Greek salad dressing (this was a bottled dressing from the grocery but you can make your own) and carefully folded the foil. I like to ‘lock’ the foil together by folding two sides together and rolling it down to the food and then closing either end.

Since I was making three pouches and each needed different ingredients, I marked the pouches with toothpicks poked through the foil. My son’s pouch had no meat but more green beans, as is his preference. My husband’s had some of everything but only a few potato slices since starchy foods are not so good for diabetics. Mine had meat and only those vegetables to which I was not allergic.

Once the pouches were ready, I placed them on the grill which I had at about medium to medium high heat. Every grill adjusts differently so get yours going accordingly. Do close the grill’s lid to keep your heat in. These pouches cooked for about an hour. You can carefully undo the foil to check for doneness and rewrap them to continue cooking. Just work carefully and use your tongs. We like our vegetables to be a bit ‘al dente’ so an hour was fine. If you like yours softer, you’ll want to leave them on the grill longer. The cooking time can be reduced if you steam your vegetables in the microwave for two or three minutes before adding them to the pouches. However, this will change the flavor slightly. Not a bad thing but it will be different.

Now for the variations. You can add any vegetables you like to these pouches. You can even add some of your favorite fruits. Instead of beef, you can substitute chicken, pork or turkey. Ground meat can be used to make a patty instead of cubed meat. Just make sure you check the temperature of your meat to insure doneness. The salad dressing is not required and you can just salt and pepper the food and allow it to cook in its own juices. You can also use a different dressing (though creamy dressings aren’t really the thing for this meal) or add some other liquid. Wine, vinegar or fruit juice would work well.

At this time of year, I like to cook these on the grill to avoid all the extra heat in the house. However, these can certainly be cooked indoors in your regular oven (at about 375 degrees F) or in a toaster oven.

The really lovely part is that everyone can have just what they like and it doesn’t require a lot of additional preparation. Kids love to put their own pouches together with the vegetables they like best. If you are concerned about the amount of foil you’re using and would like to conserve a bit, you can make this meal in a covered pan. However, this really works best when everyone eating can share the same ingredients. Otherwise, plan to use separate small pans.

With as many variations as you can dream up, this simple form of campout cooking can become a staple meal in your household. It can be dinner for one or for a crowd with minor adjustments and leftovers reheat well the next day.

So, let’s go eat that!

Citrus Roasted Chicken

Now that we’ve talked about all the amazing things about olive oil, I’m going to give you a recipe that doesn’t use any! Ironic, no? Okay, you will use a bit if you are using a regular oven rather than a slow cooker.

Today, I’m going to give you a recipe for really, really tender, juicy roasted chicken that will be full of flavor without requiring a trip to a gourmet shop and hours and hours of prep time. Here’s what you’ll need:

· 1 whole chicken – I usually go for the biggest available because I like the leftovers.
· 1 onion – Sweet onion, if you can get it. If not, white or yellow will do just fine.
· 1 large navel orange (you can choose another citrus and we'll talk about that in a moment)
· Several stems of fresh sage and rosemary if you can get them. This is optional so don’t make yourself nuts trying to find it. Some grocery stores have fresh herbs and some don’t.
· ¼ - ½ cup apple cider vinegar (if you don’t have any, regular cider vinegar or rice vinegar will do but I think the flavor of the apple cider vinegar is worth having)
· ¼ cup olive oil (if you are cooking in a regular oven)
· 2 or 3 garlic cloves, minced (if you like it more garlicky, go for four or five cloves and stay with two or three for a milder flavor)
· 1 – 1 ½ tsp celery seed
· Salt and pepper to taste

If you’re using a regular oven, pre-heat to 350 degrees. I have a slow cooker with a programmable meat thermometer built in. It’s very handy and allows me to start dinner and go away to do other things. If that is an option for you, I strongly recommend it. However, it is not necessary. We’ll carry on as if we’re all cooking in a standard oven.

Use a baking dish or roasting pan deep enough to really hold your chicken and as much as three cups of liquid without being in danger of spilling over. You’ll have to handle the pan a bit and you don’t want to risk injuries. You can use the roasting bags to eliminate the need for basting and to make clean up easier. Of course, this does increase plastic waste, so you’ll want to bear that in mind. I admit, I do use them for roasting the turkey at Thanksgiving, but the rest of the time, I go ahead and baste.
Remove the neck and any organs from the cavity of the chicken. If you are so inclined, the neck and the rack (the bones) of the chicken can be used later for making soup stock. My husband likes me to save the liver because he does love chicken liver fried in butter. That one liver is enough for him to enjoy the flavor without eating all the fat and calories usually involved in eating organ meat. It works out fine because, goodness knows, he never gets any competition from me or our son when it comes time to eat it.

Er, anyway…

Rinsing the chicken is optional, in my opinion. Mostly, I find it makes more mess in the kitchen than anything else and results in a large-scale disinfecting project once I get the bird in the oven. Unless the bird seems really messy, I’d just go ahead and prepare it for cooking. Once it’s in the pan, fold the wings back so the tips will stay under the bird.

Peel, wash and quarter the onion and the orange. Juice the orange into a measuring cup and set the juice aside. DON’T throw out the orange quarters. Rinse the sage and rosemary stems. You need 3 or 4 of each.

Add the reserved orange juice to the apple cider vinegar, garlic, celery seed and half the olive oil (if you’re using the oven – omit the oil if you are using a slow cooker). Separate the skin from the breast of the chicken. To do this, start at the cavity. Make a small slit in the skin if you need to, then push your hand in between the skin and the flesh. It should separate all the way along the breast on each side of the breastbone. You also need to make a couple TINY slits in the skin of the drumsticks and thighs so you can separate the skin from the flesh as well as you can. This won’t work as well but it will be enough.

Stuff the cavity of the chicken with the onion (you may not get it all in there but you need at least half), at least two orange quarters and the sage and rosemary.

Rub the remaining olive oil (again, only if you are using a regular oven) all over the skin of the chicken.

Pour some of the juice mixture under the skin in all the places where you separated it from the flesh. Use it all.

Lightly shake salt and pepper over all and put your chicken in the oven.

This should cook until the internal temperature at the breast is 185 – 187 degrees. It will carry over cook to 190 after it is removed from the oven. If you are not using a roasting bag, you should baste with the pan juices about every 20 minutes. Depending on the size of the chicken, this could take about an hour and a half.

As always, you can change out ingredients. Lemon is a wonderful substitute for the orange. If onion is not in your game plan, try some celery, carrots and extra rosemary. Lime is a great citrus for this, but skip the sage and rosemary and go for cilantro and some mild peppers. I haven't tried grapefruit, but it might be very nice in this if you add some crushed mint leaves to the juice and vinegar mixture and put a few sprigs of mint in the cavity with the rosemary. I think I'd skip the sage on that one. If anyone tries that combination, let us know how it turned out!

This is terrific as leftovers. Sandwiches and chicken salads are great made from this. You can also use it as a pizza topping or in the alternative egg rolls we talked about before.

The biggest time investment here is the cooking. Preparation is simple. If you can get a good slow cooker, preferably with some sort of meat thermometer, this can be put together before you head out for the day and you’ll be greeted with a GREAT smelling meal when you get home.

I think that about covers it. So, until next time, let’s go eat that!

Alternative Egg Rolls

Welcome back! Since I didn’t give you a recipe at all last time and instead, made you go grocery shopping, I’ll make it up to you today. I’ll give you one of my favorite recipes along with some suggestions for mixing it up a bit.

Do you like egg rolls? I really do. However, unless the chef is willing to share his secrets with me, I really shouldn’t eat them at a restaurant. Instead, I’ve figured out a quick and simple way of making up an alternative that is full of great flavor. Here’s what you’ll need:

· Skillet – 12” or larger
· One cooked, boneless, skinless chicken breast
· One cup cooked brown rice (cook according to package directions)
· One cup shredded cabbage – red or green or a combination (which is pretty)
· 3 or 4 T rice vinegar (I like garlic infused)
· One package of egg roll wrappers
· Extra virgin olive oil (enough to fill your skillet about ½ - ¾ “ deep
· Optional ingredients: cooked seafood or firm fish of your choice, shredded carrot (about ¼ cup), minced celery, 2 or 3 green onions sliced fine

Dice the chicken breast (or seafood or fish of your choice) into ½ “ pieces. In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine chicken, brown rice, cabbage (and carrot, celery and onion, if you choose) and toss all with rice vinegar.

NOTE: You can stop right here. Dinner’s ready if you’d like a chicken salad with a twist. This is a REALLY BIG meal for one or a great main dish for two with some nice fresh fruit on the side. Or, you can carry on and have the mocked-up egg rolls. Want to go on? Okay, let’s!

Heat the skillet with the olive oil while you prepare the egg rolls. I suggest heating on medium since olive oil will smoke if too hot. Smells weird, tastes a little off and your rolls will get too brown too quickly. All around, not a good thing.

Lay an egg roll wrapper flat and place roughly 2 T of the chicken and cabbage mixture in the center. Arrange it in sort of a rectangle. Fold the wrapper like a burrito. That is, fold the ends in and then roll it up. You can lightly seal it with a bit of water but don’t expect it to hold together really well. This will take some careful handling. Go ahead and prepare several of these rolls. You can use all of your chicken mixture or you can make half into rolls and put the other half away for a nice chicken salad lunch tomorrow.

CAREFULLY place the rolls, seam down, in the skillet. Be sure to leave plenty or room between the rolls. You might have to do them a few at a time. Flip the rolls when the wrapper has cooked to a golden color. Watch carefully because this doesn’t take long! Remove the rolls from the oil to a rack or plate covered with paper towel to absorb extra oil.

This will make 8 – 12 rolls, depending on how much you fill the wrappers. You can make only as many as you want right now and save the rest of the mixture for tomorrow, either to make more rolls or to eat as salad.

Personally, I like this mixture so much as a salad, I rarely get as far as making the rolls. But when I do, I’m always glad I was patient enough to do it. They are very satisfyingly crunchy as well as VERY filling! You won’t fool anyone into thinking you’ve hidden Chef Morimoto in your kitchen, but these rolls are simple and tasty and can be thrown together very easily some evening after work since the meat and rice can be cooked ahead. Most often, I pick up one of those rotisserie chickens from my local grocery store deli. As always, be sure to know what ingredients are in the deli’s seasoning mixture, just to be on the safe side. When in doubt, cook it yourself. In a pinch, you can use the canned chicken breast.

You’ll notice I had you use brown rice for this. As we talked about last time, using the whole grain option adds another layer of flavor and even texture to your dishes. Brown rice is as readily available as white and takes no more effort to cook. It’s a simple adjustment and you’ll be very glad you tried it.

Hope you enjoy this and until next time, let’s go eat that!

Oven-Baked Wheat Germ Chicken

Hi there! I hope you enjoyed your cobbler. I’ve always found it to be a real crowd pleaser. Well, I hope you’re ready for something else to try. How about some baked chicken?

*listens to the crickets chirp*

Alright, yes. It’s a recipe for baked chicken. I know. But hear me, er, read me out before you give up and go take a nap.

On top of my many other allergies, yeast – both baker’s and brewer’s – is on my list of things to avoid. This means I need an alternative to bread crumbs. Depending on what sort of dish I’m fixing, I have a few choices. I can use crushed cereal flakes (wheat for me but if corn is okay for you, good ol’ corn flakes are handy), crushed crackers or wheat germ.

For this recipe, we’ll be using wheat germ. Obviously, if wheat doesn’t work for you, try corn flakes or even low-/no- sodium potato chips (I wouldn’t recommend regular chips as they would be much too salty). Let’s have a look at what you’ll need.

· 9” x 12” baking pan (non-stick is nice but not required)
· 1 – 1 ½ lbs. fresh, boneless, skinless chicken tenders or breasts cut into roughly 1 – 1 ½ ” wide strips
· ¾ - 1 cup wheat germ
· 1 tsp each – celery seed, onion powder, garlic powder (or garlic salt), crushed dried parsley or 2 tsp minced fresh parsley
· Salt and pepper to taste
· 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil if you are not using a non-stick pan

Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees.

If your baking pan is not non-stick, coat it lightly with the olive oil. Use a paper towel to spread the oil evenly and absorb any extra.
Combine wheat germ and seasonings in a wide, shallow dish or a large plastic bag (preferably one with a zip seal to reduce mess).
Rinse chicken tenders and shake off extra water but do not dry.
Place damp tenders, a few at a time, in the wheat germ mixture. Turn or shake to coat completely.
Place coated chicken in one layer in your pan. It’s okay if the pieces touch.
Bake in a 375 degree oven for 35 -45 minutes or until the internal temperature of the chicken is 185 – 187 degrees. It will “carry-over” cook to 190.

You can certainly change up the seasonings you use to get different flavors and accommodate different needs. You can also choose a ready-made seasoning blend for chicken but be sure to read the ingredients label to assure you aren’t going end up eating something you’d rather not.

You’ll want to make plenty of this chicken as it makes great leftovers. Reheat for another meal, use in a sandwich or dice and serve cold on a bed of salad greens.

This is a simple recipe that even the kids can help make. Shaking a bag full of chicken is really pretty fun. I think you’ll enjoy the nutty flavor of the wheat germ, too.

Until next time, let’s go eat that!

Being Food Brave

Welcome back to “Hey, I Can Eat That.” I hope you had fun making pizzas. I’m sure you came up with some great new combinations. ‘Fess up, now. How many of you stayed with the tried and true pizza toppings? You know, peppers, cheese (or cheese substitute), sausage. That sort of thing. How many of you bravely reached for some new flavors? Anyone try apples and onions? How about pears with ham instead of pineapple? Leave us some comments and tell us what you tried and how you liked it!

Since we talked about substitutions last time, I thought we might take some time today to talk about being ‘Food Brave’.

So, what do I mean by that? Well, as I said last time, one of my two big rules for cooking with substitutions is to be willing to try new and different combinations. In fact, to really foster the right frame of mind about this, we probably ought to change our vocabulary. Instead of saying we are substituting ingredients, let’s say we are trying alternative flavors. Sounds a lot more palatable, doesn’t it? Right. So, that’s what I mean about being Food Brave. Food Brave cooks are actively looking for new flavor combinations. But not just any old combinations. We’re taking on the challenge of creating new tastes that will also meet some important dietary considerations.

Let me insert a side note here. As you’ve probably already noticed, I’m very big on having a positive attitude toward living with food allergies, sensitivities and special dietary needs. I don’t like to consider them as restrictions. Goodness knows, there are times when I would dearly love to pour myself a tall, cold glass of milk. But I can’t sit around whining about what I shouldn’t have. Neither can you. Nor do you need to be an object of pity. Raise your hand if you’ve spent entire meals with friends having to outline specifics of what you can and should not eat. Not a great deal of fun, is it? Instead, I’d much rather spend my time talking about all the great recipes I do cook and enjoy. I’m not really trying to be extra perky and sparkly about it. I’m just trying to keep things in a more positive perspective. I hope you’ll do the same.

Okay. So here we are, ready to be very brave in the kitchen, right? Right. Where do we start? The easiest way to begin is to start with recipes we already know and enjoy. How about soup? Pick your favorite. For the sake of discussion, I’ll talk about beef and vegetable. I have quite a few vegetable allergies. I need to stay away from tomatoes so I would choose a beef stock or I’d make a vegetable stock of my own (probably celery and onion). Carrots, corn and green beans are also things for me to avoid so I need to find things to take their place. Broccoli adds some great texture and color. Potatoes add some starch in place of the corn and cauliflower adds some good crunch, too. Additionally, I’ll load up on big flavor producers like celery, onion and minced garlic (you might want to go easy on the onion if you’re serving this to someone who tends to have GERD as too much onion can exacerbate the problem). Adding some whole grain pasta or brown rice gives it a nice nutty flavor. By now, I’ve added in so many other flavors and textures, I won’t really miss the things I didn’t add.

You’ll notice that my ingredients were pretty straightforward and that’s fine. But you can certainly go further. There are many varieties of beans you can add, for example. How about dicing up some zucchini or butternut squash? How would it be if we added some asparagus tops right near the finish (careful not to overcook those since they get mushy)? Hearts of palm? Diced jicama? Rutebegas? Or maybe turnips?

Not everything is going to taste good, unfortunately. Once in awhile, you will bravely go where probably no cook should ever have gone. Sometimes, experiments go awry. If this happens to you, don’t let it stop you from experimenting. Just see yourself as being in company with the likes of Thomas Edison who proudly claimed to have found some 10,000 ways not to make a light bulb. Right?

How do you choose which ingredients to use in an experiment such as our alternative beef and vegetable soup? Well, obviously, you’ll need to work with ingredients that are in keeping with the dietary needs of those eating. Make sure you’ve talked to your doctor or nutritionist about which foods are on your list and which are not and FOLLOW THEIR INSTRUCTIONS. I don’t want to hear about conversations like, “I know I shouldn’t eat turnips and now I’ll need to be on a steroid pack for the next month to control these hives, Doctor, but it isn’t my fault. Sandy said I had to be Food Brave so I put the turnips in the soup anyway.”

Also worth considering when you cook with alternative ingredients are your other senses. Food should look appetizing, smell wonderful and feel good in your mouth. Selecting a variety of colors in your ingredients will almost always result in a variety of smells and textures as well. Something to think about.

This also applies to selecting herbs and spices to supplement your recipes. Herbs and spices are generally what have me hanging over the stovetop, face as close to the pot as safety allows, clutching a handful of celery seed, minced garlic, crushed rosemary leaves or whatever else has come to hand. Smelling any of these ingredients separately can help you decide if it even appeals to you. But smelling them in combination can really give you a good idea of how the flavors will marry. Take the time to sniff!

So, after all that, who else is getting hungry for beef and vegetable soup? I’ll just be off to get the pot on the stove.

Until next time, let’s go eat that!

Substitution Basics

Welcome, welcome! Here we are again at ‘Hey, I Can Eat That’ and I’ve got some good stuff for you. Let’s talk about substitutions.

Depending on how long you’ve been living with your dietary needs, you may already know LOTS about substituting ingredients. If so, you might find some of this old hat. If you are still pretty new to this, I hope you’ll find it helpful.

My first rule of creating a meal that is in keeping with a person’s diet is this: Be willing to experiment. I tend to do a lot of cooking with my nose, sniffing different combinations of ingredients before tossing things in the pot. I’ve even been known to hang over a pan with a handful of some new ingredient trying to smell both the ingredient and the contents of the pan, simultaneously. Looks silly, but it can be very effective. Don’t be afraid to make something that tastes absolutely dreadful. Granted, food isn’t cheap and special ingredients can be costly and less convenient. Still, try to look at it as an investment. Finding new ways to use different foods will expand your culinary repertoire and this is a good thing, no?

My second rule is: Don’t expect the taste to be 100% the same. It won’t be. Sorry to be so blunt, but it’s the honest truth. A substitution is just that. Something else in place of what you might normally do. So, it will taste like something else. Just remember that this needn’t be a bad thing. The point of this is to find combinations and substitutions that will allow you to eat food you can love and have it not be entirely one-sided and unrequited.

Okay. So let’s get down to it.

Some substitutions are obvious, yeah? If you are lactose intolerant or allergic to dairy, you use some dairy alternative. But have you thought about using different substitutes for different situations? Personally, I’m very fond of a good cup of cocoa but once I was off dairy, I thought I was pretty well out of luck. I did try using soy milk but, to me, it just tasted like hot green beans with chocolate sauce. Not my thing, really. Also, I’m not overly fond of rice milk. Now, many are less picky than I and have no problems. However, let me suggest checking out the different varieties of nut milks. If you are okay with almonds or hazelnuts, milk made from these nuts are a wonderful alternative for cocoa. Yes, there will be the undeniable taste of the nut but that is a pleasing combination with chocolate. More pleasing, anyway, than the rather bean-y taste of soy. This is where the experimentation comes in. Try different dairy-free ‘milks’ in your recipies and see if you don’t find some really wonderful combinations. Remember also that these milks are often available in low-fat, unsweetened and flavored (vanilla and chocolate) options. I can tell you from experience, vanilla soy or nut milk makes a very sweet biscuit that might not be to everyone’s taste.

If citrus is an issue for you, you can still get the tangy flavor in recipes by trying different types of vinegar. I like apple cider vinegar for roasted chicken (which I promise I’ll tell you all about someday soon) but I prefer garlic-infused rice vinegar for a chicken salad made with cabbage and brown rice. Again, that will be a dish we’ll discuss in detail before long. If you want to balance out the acidic vinegar so it is more like citrus juice, try various combinations and quantities of brown sugar, honey, white sugar and even maple syrup. You’d be surprised at the wonderful flavor profiles you can create.

If wheat is your downfall, turn to other grains. Corn meal, potato flour, rice flour, corn starch and so on are all readily available and ready to be tried in your favorite dishes. Remember that the texture of your foods might be a bit different . For example, gravy made with corn starch does have a different mouth-feel than gravy made with wheat flour. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing but it is something to remember.

Don’t overlook tofu as a way to get texture and a bit of binding into foods. We’ll do some cooking with tofu over time. Some of you are, even now, wrinkling your noses and thinking, “Gross. Is she seriously going to tell me to eat that squidgy tofu stuff?” Yes, I am. But once we’ve worked it over, it won’t be squidgy. It’ll be great eating. I promise.

There are dozens and dozens of other substitutions we’ll be making in recipes but these were some prime examples. Mostly, I wanted to get my two rules across. Don’t be afraid to experiment and don’t expect it to taste exactly the same. Just be open to trying all sorts of combinations, even when they sound wacky and see if you don’t end up eating something that tastes even better than the original!

I wouldn’t want to leave you without some food to try. The ultimate substitution food has to be pizza. While you don’t really need a formal recipe for this, below are some instructions and suggestions for making pizzas that everyone can have.


Substitution Pizza:

Pizza is a great meal when you are cooking for people with different dietary needs. Nearly anything can go on a pizza crust if you are willing to branch out from the traditional pizza idea. Best of all, individual pizzas are easy to make so no one has to spend half the meal picking off ingredients they don’t want or shouldn’t have. Let the kids help and it’s a great family evening!

Many recipes suggest you partially bake your dough before topping it. I recommend this myself as it gives a bit of foundation to your work and you won’t have to overcook your toppings trying to get the crust done properly. If you have a problem with yeast (as I do), but you are okay with soy, you can use the pizza dough in a can, available in the dairy and egg section of your grocery. Find it among all the biscuits in a can. Just remember to ALWAYS READ THE INGREDIENTS LIST! Personally, I love the convenience and speed of using these pre-made doughs. However, you can do quite well mixing up something on your own. Here’s a link to the recipe at Epicurious.com (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/PIZZA-DOUGH-237338). You can make a crust with prepared baking mix (such as Bisquick) as well. If you do and you are avoiding dairy, consider which milk substitute you will be using. This is one of those times when you will want to avoid vanilla flavoring and you might be happier without the strong nut flavor. But you never know and if you’re feeling very brave, pizza crust with a hint of hazelnut might really turn you on. If you need to avoid both dairy and soy, try making a savory soda bread dough. It’s a pretty standard, simple recipe that you can find in nearly every cookbook and on every cooking site. We’ll be talking about soda bread more in the future.

One more word about the crust. If you are trying to cut back your carbohydrates to help manage weight or diabetes or just because it seems prudent, consider using flour tortillas as crusts. Simple and ready to use, the tortillas get nicely crisp in the oven or you can heat them up in the microwave for a soft crust that can even roll into a pizza burrito. Best of all, the meal can be ready in minutes which is handy when you have a family to feed and a schedule to stick to.

We’re all accustomed to putting different toppings on pizza. If you are steering clear of tomato but are okay with dairy, a white sauce is a good alternative. Add some Romano or Parmesan and a healthy dose of garlic to a standard white sauce. White sauce can be made with dairy substitutes so you might even consider that though melting the cheese substitute into it might prove more difficult. If white sauce doesn’t float your boat, try something simpler. How about olive oil and minced garlic? Lightly drizzle the oil on the crust and spread a bit minced garlic around. I like to top that with lighter things. Roasted chicken, onion and fresh baby spinach are my favorites. However, you can try peppers, olives, fish and even some roasted fruits if you’d like. Pears and apples are nice in combination with other savory ingredients like fish, poultry and onions.

Obviously, if you have issues with dairy, you’ll be looking for cheese substitutes. There are many good ones on the market, readily available in mainstream grocery stores. Do beware and read all labels carefully because some so-called veggie based cheese alternatives still contain dairy. They won’t melt they way cheese does but they can still be tasty and do the job of sticking all the other ingredients to the crust.


Enjoy, and until next time, let's go eat that!