Orange Pan-Glazed Tempah

Last week my friend Catie came over to help me with mundane wedding project tasks, God bless her. While cutting burlap and twisting birdseed into tulle wrappers, we started talking about food. She has been trying to avoid overly processed foods too. We started swapping what ingredients we had been experimenting with. I mentioned that the dinner I had prepared I had made a few days earlier, but with tofu and that it was surprisingly better than that night's chicken version.  I also passed on a tip I had learned from a food blog, but had yet to try- freezing tofu before preparing it as that will give it a more meaty texture. My friend stated that she hadn't cooked with tofu much but rather had some success with tempeh."Tempeh!! Oh tell me more!" 

Tempeh was an ingredient I had only heard of and didn't know anything about. My pal explained that Tempeh appealed to her because it was less processed than tofu. Holy crap. Even tofu is 'processed'. I hadn't even thought of that. I figured if it was in the hippie section of the grocery it was not processed. And really, it's not that tofu is all that processed, just more so than tempeh. If my understanding is correct (feel free to correct me in the comments section), tofu is made from soy milk, whereas tempeh skips that step of making soy milk and is pretty much straight up fermented soy beans. Once I got my mitts on some at the local natural foods grocery I discovered that indeed, it is pretty unprocessed. check it. Yes, those grey and black spots are fine and don't indicate any spoilage.  

I found a recipe online and decided I would pair it with some red peppers I had on hand and some quinoa although the inspiration recipe paired it with wheat berries- another ingredient I need to try! (Can I add that to my wedding registry?) The recipe isn't a marinade as I expected, but rather a glaze. The flavors are kind of a mild version of that Chinese dish, orange chicken, which I loooovvveee but haven't had in a long time because it's so processed and sugary. But I wanted to run with that, so I tweaked the recipe to make the flavors a bit stronger. I also sprinkled on some chopped up peanuts for texture and cilantro and red onion for color and to give a stronger flavor. 

    



ginger and mircograter



Orange Pan-Glazed Tempeh

Serve with your choice of veggies and/or whole grain. Slightly adapted from 101 cookbooks. 

1 cup OJ. If you squeeze your own takes about 3-4 large oranges.

1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger

2 teaspoons tamari or soy sauce

1 1/2 tablespoons dry white wine. The original recipe calls for mirin, but I didn't want to buy a jar of something I may never use again.

2 teaspoons molasses (or maple syrup)

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

2 small garlic cloves

some olive oil

a lime or lemon if you've got it. I cheated and used some of that stuff in the bottle- don't you judge me.

a handful of fresh cilantro (optional)

package of tempeh. The original recipe remarks you can also use extra-firm tofu, though I haven't tried it. 

Juice your oranges into a small bowl and remove any seeds. I won't tell if you use reg. OJ. 

Grate your ginger into bowl and add the soy sauce (or tamari), white wine (or mirin), and your sweetener of choice (maple syrup or molasses). Set aside. You are not marinating anything. 

Cut up your tempeh. I cut mine into small triangles. Fry it in large pan with olive oil for about 5 minutes on each side. 

Pour your OJ mix into the pan and simmer for about 10 minutes until sauce reduces to a glaze. (I added red peppers to mine at this point and threw in some red onion slivers in the last minute of cooking. You don't want to really cook red onions or they loose that beautiful color.)You can squeeze some lime on top, sprinkle on some cilantro and peanuts on top for a real ta-da and to make it a little more Thai-like. 

Serves 4, or two with one small leftover side dish for lunch if you have a boy to feed.

Whole Wheat Waffles

When the future hub's roomate recently moved out and I started moving in, there were items left behind. Some of the items were abandoned by roomates of long ago. So when a waffle iron, among other things was found, picture texts were exchanged with a "is this yours?" to the last rommie.  

Joyfully, the waffle iron was one of these items abandoned. Now that I've taken a whack at this dish, I can invite said last inhabitant and let him enjoy the fruits of the newly rediscoved waffle iron too.

I modified this king arthur recipe a good bit as the batter was intially too wet and the waffles too thin. I added wheat germ to the mix which gives it the added benefit of a kick-butt protein. Unfortunately, wheat germ is removed during the refining of whole wheat grains to white flour because otherwise the flour would go rancid quickly. But you can keep wheat germ in your fridge and add it to things like your yogurt, cereal, and waffles. However, I must warn you, perhaps I should have called these "Fart Waffles." Wheat germ definitely gives you gas.

I also substituted molassas for the refined sugar. The fresh orange juice was part of the original recipe and really played off the other ingredients nicely.

Whole Wheat Waffles

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour *

1/2 cup wheat germ

2 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons molasses **

1/3 cup unsalted butter, gently melted

(That's nearly 5 tablespoons if you're like me and just use the little tablespoon ruler on the butter wrapper)

1 1/2 cups lukewarm milk

1 large egg

2 tablespoons orange juice

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

notes:

*I used whole wheat pastry flour, but I'm sure you could get away with regular, and certainly white whole wheat flour as that's what the original recipe called for.

** or honey, or maple syrup, but molasses gives the most complex flavor.

1. all the dry ingredients in a bowl.
2. melt yo butter. Add in milk and continue to cook for another minute.  (here's a little tip: when you microwave butter, put another cup of water in the microwave with it and it will allow you butter to melt more slowly and avoid splattering.)
3. Whisk in egg, orange juice, and vanilla extract until combined.
4. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Don't get too over zealous. Some lumps are okay, don't over mix.
5. Heat up yo waffle iron. Preheat da oven to 200 degrees.
6. Let your batter sit for at least 5 minutes to firm up a bit.
7. Add batter to heated waffle iron. (give your iron time to heat up inbetween rounds.) Remove cooked waffle and place on a baking sheet in the oven. I read that stacking causes waffles to become limp due to the steam so I'll do that next time.)
8. Top with berries if you've got it and 100% pure maple syrup. (Or whatever you damn well feel like.)
9. Save leftovers in the fridge and reheat in the toaster.

Leftover Lentil Meatballs

npr

I have a ton of leftover lentils. Last night I made lentils with roasted sweet potatoes and onions, and because the future hubs was one of the dinner guests, I made extra. I have learned over the past couple of months that "serves 4-6" really means "serves 2 plus the future hubs," especially if he just got back from playing basketball.  Lentils take some time and I wanted leftovers, so I doubled the recipe. The problem is that I didn't love the outcome. It wasn't awful, but it wasn't one I want to rave over and beg you to try. It’s one of those meals where you realize you’re eating healthy.  I prefer to be a little more sneaky.

So knowing that my lentil burgers were a big hit, I decided to try and morph part of the leftovers into lentil meatballs. I have been itching to try the Cookie and Kate version but given my surplus of Maple Baked Lentils with Sweet Potatoes and hating food waste like a depression era housewife, I decided to take a wack at a recipe re-haul.

They turned out pretty darn good! Even my pup was convinced that they trumped a milk-bone when one dropped to the floor. Last night (and today for lunch) I enjoyed them al la' hoagie. Whole wheat bread with ricotta, spaghetti sauce, lots of meatballs, mozzarella, and parmesan, under the broiler. Pretty darn good. So good I forgot to take a picture before I dug in. Sorry!

I gotta think these would be great in Italian wedding soup, as a pizza topper, with curly pasta and pesto, and of course, on top of good ol' fashioned spaghetti. (All of these suggestions are whole wheat of course!)

And so, if you have some lowly lentils leftover, might I suggest a way to make them more lovely...

Leftover Lentil Meatballs 

adapted from Cookie + Kate, serves 4 as a topping, 2 as the whole meal.

Ingredients

Extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper

2 1/2 cups of leftover lentils
You can add in some mushrooms if you have some leftovers (probably no more than 3/4 cup)
1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme and 1/2 teaspoon dried terragon if you've got it. I made mine without, but they'd probably be better with.
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
1 tablespoon soy sauce (you can exclude this if you are on a cleanse

1 medium white onion or a bunch of green onions chopped.
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
1 or 2 eggs (you can exclude this if you want it to be vegan, but if your lentils are kind of dry (mine were not) they may not bind together very well. I suggest making the meatballs small so they have less chance to break apart)

Instructions

1. In a vita-mix or food processor combine the lentils, (mushrooms), spices, parsley until well combined. If you can prevent them from getting too mashed up, you'll have better texture, but don't stress. It won't affect the taste.

2. If you want to add to the flavor take a few minutes to put your mixture into a skillet on some olive oil. Add in the soy sauce and keep cooking until all your liquid has been absorbed. If you are adding in the eggs for binder, then you'll definitely want to do this and get rid of some excess moisture. 

3. season with salt and pepper and once cool enough to touch, thoroughly mix in whisked eggs. 

4. Refrigerate for 15 minutes. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat oven to 400. 

5. I find a cookie scoop works the best to have uniform (even cooking) meatballs, but if you don't have one, use your hands to make little balls, leaving some space around each one. Bake until golden brown. Mine were a little smaller than a golf ball and 30 minutes was perfect for some crunch on the outside and to make sure they weren't mushy on the inside. I knew I was using sauce, so I wasn't worried about them drying out. Bake them for less time, or make bigger meatballs if you want them to retain some moisture. 

natural cookies

I'm getting hitched here in a few weeks and one of the things I'm looking forward to is a homemade cookie bar... that and marrying someone awesome is good too, but you know, cookies.

My future mother-in-law has a gluten intolerance, I have a pal who's paleo, a few vegetarians, and a lactose intolerant. I want everyone to have a little something sweet at the reception but without forcing them to lie crumpled in bed beyond a legitimate hangover. Enter the search for the do-all cookie.

And I've found it. It's refined sugar free, processed oil free, gluten free, and lactose intolerant friendly. It comes by way of the Cookie + Kate blogs and I nearly pee'd my pants when Kate answered my comment. She used my name!  

However, consider yourself warned, it does not stand up well to substitutions.

Do not bother making them if you don't have honest-to-God coconut flour. Do not bother making them if you found coconut flour but ran out of baking soda and seek to substitute the appropriate amount of sub'd leavener by way of baking powder. Maple Syrup seems to do better than honey and if you use coconut oil like me, you'll need to refrigerate the dough for 20 minutes before baking.

Vegan, Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

Slightly adapted from Cookie + Kate, makes about 40 small cookies.

These naturally sweetened, vegan, gluten-free cookies taste like a cross between the traditional toll-house chocolate chip cookie and girl scout samoas.  While they are not low-cal, they are healthy in that they contain no isolates. Which I think is a better deal. However, they are seriously delicious and you may need to temper yourself! 

I also like that they come together so quickly and that they don't contain any butter or egg to go bad. In Claire-world, that means you can leave the bowl in the fridge for a couple of days and make yourself a fresh cookie or two as you are baking your dinner... and of course there's no need to worry about salmonella, so lick that beater! 

Ingredients

• 1  1/2 cup almond flour (aka almond meal) firmly packed
• 1/2 cup coconut flour, firmly packed
• 1/4 cup finely shredded unsweetened coconut flakes (optional) 
• 2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt (Kate suggests fine grain sea)
• dash cinnamon (optional)
• 1 cup coconut oil, melted (you can use the same amount of butter if you don't need these to be vegan)
• 1 cup real maple syrup (or honey)
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups vegan chocolate chips* 

*This is a huge amount of chocolate for the cookies. You can dial this back if you want and they would still be delicious. I used enjoy life brand and was very satisfied. I don't have any other experience with other brands. The small chips did a great job though. I think if they were more like regular size chocolate chips it would be a good idea to run em through a quick chop- otherwise they are going to be too melty and messy. 

Instructions

1. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. Mix the flours, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Mix in the melted coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla extract. Stir in the chocolate.
3. Let the dough rest for at least 15 minutes in the fridge so the coconut flour can absorb some of the excess moisture and firm up so they won't spread too much in the oven. While resting, preheat oven to 350.
4. Scoop dough, one tablespoon at a time, in mounds onto the baking sheet, leaving a couple inches around each cookie.
5. Bake for about 9 minutes, until golden brown. Allow to cool on the sheet for a bit so they don't fall apart.

how to start a sorta-detox

My friend and her hubs are going to kick the sugar/carb addiction and I'm pretty stoked that she asked me for advice. What a compliment! She has yet to decide whether her two teens will be doing the cleanse too. I don't have kids so I can't really weigh in there. But I can say that the cleanse didn't feel like a diet, so they might not even realize it's going on! So here's my breakdown of how to kick-off a sorta-detox.

1.) may I suggest that you don't look at the scales and that you don't count calories during your time on the sorta-detox? It's hard enough to plan to eat clean. Focus on eating things that are good for you, not worrying about calories. It's a short period of time and you are retraining yourself- don't let yourself get overwhelmed.  If you are hungry, eat. Also, only plan to do it for 10 days. That way you aren't thinking, I can never have a diet coke again and then give up.

2.)  watch one of the documentaries to pump you up before you start planning. If you have netflix search for food documentaries or one of the following:

Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead is a good one if you want to see dramatic change. This one follows a guy that had a litany of health problems (from obesity to a skin disorder) and he went on a juice fast and eventually became so healthy he didn't need his medicine anymore. amazing.
Hungry for Change is the one I watched right before the cleanse and convinced Jeff to get on board too. Although it's production could have been better, (it was a little cheesy) it was very, very interesting. It explains how processed food are addicting.
Forks over Knives is inspiring me to add more meatless meals into my diet. I was already doing that but this doc. really upped the ante focusing on studies which show that plant-based diet can reduce the risks of cancer. (The "knives" in the title is referring to surgery scalpels.)

3.) Pick your "rules." You can pick anything from just kicking out artificial sweeteners to a full scale detox where you go completely vegan and/or wheat free. It just depends on what you want. For me, somewhere in the middle was good.

My rules were nothing refined (foods that have been so broken down that they only have one nutrient: white sugar, high fructose corn syrup, artificial sugar, bleached flour, etc.); no artificial preservatives (sodium nitrates, etc. That means no deli meats, and most salad dressings are off limits.), no hormones (in my meat or dairy); organic for the dirty dozen; and no preventative antibiotics. So my rules allowed natural sugar. I ate honey, maple sugar, and fruit. I was really addicted to sugar and the second day I came home and just ate a spoonful of honey straight. I had to have something! But the honey isn't as addicting because it's whole. I don't think I would have been able to go off natural sugars too although some people do and swear by it. God bless em'.

Hint, if you are trying to save $, skip the organic fruits and veggies- In my opinion the pesticides hurt us less than the hormones and antibiotics, but the good thing about organics (fruit, veggies, dairy) is that they last longer. I don't know why, but they do. I guess when you poison something a little it dies faster. If your goal is just to kick the sugar/carb addiction, obviously you can skip the organics all together.

4.) Plan your 10 days. (or 14, or 30!)  It'll be difficult to stick to the game plan if you don't know exactly what to cook when you get home from work. As you know, cooking from scratch takes longer, so you don't want to be hungry and trying to think of what to have for dinner. (Hint: plan for snacks too.)  Here's what I planned.  (The red bean curry was amazing! The pumpkin spiced oatmeal was not. Surprising, no?)  You don't have to stay on your menu if you feel like free-styling. I mixed my breakfasts around. It's just good to have a game plan mostly for grocery shopping so that you won't have to make a mid-week run.    

5.) Go grocery shopping. Plan that it will take longer than your typical run and expect it to cost a little more. Produce is more expensive than processed carbs. And that's because the way our governmental subsidy system is set up.... but that's a long (and controversial) story. But I can say, it's not going to be as much as you think because you aren't going to have waste and you hopefully won't have to be making little trips to the grocery store on the way home.

6.) Have your last supper! Go out to eat and let someone else cook for you. Enjoy it, realize you aren't giving it up forever, and then pack your lunch for tomorrow!

"He that takes medicine and ignores his diet, wastes his doctor's time"- Chinese Proverb

Headaches

So I sort of fell off the bandwagon over the past 2-3 days. I was eating valentines candy and some chocolate leftover from Christmas. Last night I had a huge headache. The first substantial headache I've had since the cleanse. This one was keeping me awake last night. Further, I can rule out hormonal imbalance because I've been tracking that too. Guys, I'm more convinced than ever that refined sugar gives me headaches.

Perhaps something like this? http://www.livestrong.com/article/116901-sugar-causing-headaches/

What do you think? Does anybody else have reactions to sugar? I'd love to hear about it.