"B" is for Brussel sprouts!



 

"B" is for Brussel sprouts!

 

ok my new favorite way to make them is extra crispy!

I cut the bottoms off and take all the loose leaves I can off and toss in a bowl, and then I slice some more off of the bottom and take more loose leaves off, keep doing this until it gets to the size of a marble, and then toss it in the bowl with the leaves. It's alot of work, but well worth it if you like the crispy bits :)

 

I tossed in EVOO, sea salt, lots of black pepper, and garlic powder.
Baked for over an hour+ @350+, just keep checking and tossing them around every 15 minutes to try and get them to cook kinda evenly.

 Easy-peasy!

Happy Crisping!

Roasted Laver Popcorn

Roasted Laver Popcorn

We used organic(non-gmo) jeweled popping corn and a Whirley Pop popcorn maker, it is a stove top pan with a crank that turns the seeds inside so they do not burn, this is a great popcorn pan if you have a glass top stove, no shaking of the pan needed. So I have found a Stainless Steel version that will be our next purchase as our original one has been falling apart for awhile now, what a great reason to upgrade!

All-righty-o, now this was pretty yummy, a bit different but a nice change. I roasted some unsalted, no oil Laver in my oven. It comes in brick-like shapes in your Asian supermarkets. I take a bit and crumble it up on a baking sheet, add some oil, sea salt, toss and broil. Be careful it burns fast!  The idea is just to crisp it up.
I sprinkled the crispy Laver onto my popcorn used a product(see pic) that is dehydrated Shiso leaves-green packet and the purple packet is Umeboshi flavor. These are salty sprinkles, I used the Shiso flavored one, I then hit it with some Shichimi Togarashi. YUM!!! And of course you can add oil or any other flavorings to your taste!

freshy spring rolls

simple fresh and fast goodness!

This meal was probably about 80% organic, slowly but surely we are trying to steer far and clear away from GMO  (genetically modified) foods, for REAL!

rice wrappers & noodles

firm tofu
lettuce
cilantro
basil
shiso
carrot
jalapeno
mung bean sprouts
(next time Ill use red onion too)

peanut butter
garlic black bean chili sauce (from T&T seafood restaraunt )
shoyu
lime
water
drizzle sesame oil
drizzle honey
(no fish sauce this round)

Yummus Hummus!

Yummus Hummus

Hi I am TakaSissie #4 of 4. First I must confess I am not a chefanista, nor will I ever pretend to be. I would classify myself as more of an experimenter as I was never taught how so I will usually try things because I do not know any better. And most often it sucks kinda bad like my most recent Death Metal juice, but sometimes I can get lucky.  I will share with you the ones that are truly funny and successful to me. Now my sissies may have a whole other opinion about my blendings, ha ha ha, hopefully they will be gentle on me in public!

Ingredients:

Sprouted Garbanzo beans (2.5 sprouted cups)

Avocado (1)

Cilantro (1 bunch)

Lemon (2 small)

Scape (1 peeled small elephant garlic flower stem)

4 Garlic cloves

Tahini (2-3 T.)

EVOO (2-4 T.)

Water (1-2 c.)

Dry ingredients-to taste:

Paprika

Cayenne

Cumin

Sea Salt

Pepper

I started with the ingredient list from this link, in this recipe they blanched the Garbanzos, which makes good sense to me as otherwise the texture would be very grain-esquey. I think blanching helped the overall texture to make it soft and silkier? But I wouldn't actually know this as a fact as I haven't made it "raw-unblanched" yet.

*Next time I will try adding 1/2 jalapeno for the green kick, more lemon, zuchinni, and maybe another clove of G. (If it is still scape season I will try more scape's and less garlic just because I could!) Also I will be learning how to make bread soon from Sissie #3, then I will be making a Kalamata Olive bread hopefully for this Yummus, oh my!

So here is my latest experiment, if you try it I hope you like it! And if you have fun mods I'd love to hear them too, yum!

I usually double or triple this recipe!

Homemade Taquitos
Prep time: 1 hour     Cook time: 20 minutes, at 425F        Servings: 12
Filling:
1 Tbsp high heat oil or clarified butter
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped and seeds removed (optional)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium onion finely diced
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
½ cup cilantro, chopped
2 Tbsp lime juice (optional)
1 cup grated cheese of choice (optional)
1 can canned black beans, rinsed and well-drained OR 4 cooked and diced med white or other boiling potato (I sometimes used canned with great results) OR approx. 12 oz of cooked chicken
12 tortillas
Extra high heat oil, (coconut, clarified butter or grapeseed are good choices) for brushing on the taquitos.
In a medium skillet over medium heat, heat the oil, add the cumin seed and fry for about 30 seconds. Add chopped jalapeno and garlic, stir then immediately add onion oregano, chili powder and salt.
Saute for 5 minutes. Add drained beans (or other option) and sauté until heated through. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. If using beans or potato, mash lightly. Add cilantro and lime if you're using and mix thoroughly.
Soften tortillas (steam for 10 to 15 seconds).
Place 2 tbsp of filling on each tortilla, leaving a ½ inch edge free. Add cheese (if using). Roll tightly. Brush with oil.
Bake on parchment lined sheet (trust me, this makes for easy removal and clean up-yay!) at 425F for about 20 minutes until crisp.
These freeze and reheat well.










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Recipe adapted from Birgitte Antonsen, TTP, All rights reserved
Professional Whole Food Chef, Culinary Educator and Nutritional Therapist, Nature's Way Food



 

No muss, no fuss cooking

Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup
Prep time: 30 minutes        Cook time: 8 hours low, 3-4hrs high        Servings: 8 servings


A quick and easy chicken tortilla soup. Put everything in the slow cooker ( or sauté the first 5 ingredients if you have time) , and just turn it on. Come back later, to delicious soup!
1 large onion chopped
8 cloves garlic minced
1 TBSP salt
½ black pepper
1 tsp ground cumin
1.5lbs of shredded cooked chicken
8 cups chicken broth
1 lime (about 2Tbsp)
2 (10oz) cans gluten free red enchilada sauce  OR you may substitute pureed tomatoes plus 1tsp chili powder per can
1 (10 oz package frozen corn)
Cilantro
Tortilla chips


Top hot bowls of soups with finely chopped cilantro and tortilla chips.





 

Oh so Frenchy, French Chocolate Granola (aka High-antioxidants-are-good-for-your-health-granola)

This is an absolutely delicious, not too sweet (really) chocolately goodness breakfast indulgence! The picture does not do it justice.

3 cups rolled oats

½ cup raw almonds, chopped

½ cup shredded coconut

1Tbsp brown sugar

Pinch of salt

6 Tbsp mild honey or 5 Tbsp agave

Sometimes I add a teeny bit of vanilla extract (1/2 tsp)

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

½ cup or more, finely chopped bittersweet chocolate (I buy bulk chips at Costco and prefer the  “Ambrosia” brand for its darker, less sweet flavor)  DO NOT ADD to dry ingredients.  This is added to the baked and cooled mixture.

In a large bowl, combine the oats, almonds, coconut, sugar and salt.  Stir well to blend.

In a small saucepan, warm the honey and oil over low heat, whisking occasionally – until blended and loose. 

Pour over dry ingredients and stir to combine well.

Spread the mixture evenly on a rimmed baking sheet.  Bake for 20 minutes or until golden.  (I bake and stir every 10minutes which helps it to bake evenly)  Cool completely. 

When cool, transfer to a bowl, or ziplocs or storage jar and add chocolate, and mix well.

Store in an airtight container.  Serve with plain milk or yogurt of choice. 

Note:  This makes about  4+ cups, which goes alarmingly fast in my house, so I always quadruple the recipe, put some in the frig and freeze the remainder in ziplocs.

Wheat and Dairy-free Sweet Potato Muffins with Cinnamon Sugar Coating

Adapted from Noble Pig Cooking Blog
For the Muffins:
2-1/2 cups Spelt Flour
1-1/2teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/3 cup "fake buttermilk" - plain soymilk tainted with 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
1/3 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup sweet potato puree (canned or fresh baked)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 stick margarine, room temperature
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs

For the
topping:
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 stick margarine, melted

In a medium bowl, combine spelt flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ground nutmeg. Set aside.

In a large pouring vessel combine the coconut milk, "fake buttermilk", sweet potato puree, and vanilla. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream margarine and brown sugar with an electric mixer, until fluffly. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix, alternating wet and dry ingredients into the butter mixture, starting and ending with the dry; mix only until each addition is incorporated, DO NOT OVER MIX, BUT ON THE OTHER HAND, DON'T UNDER MIX EITHER.

Grease your muffin tin or line them. Fill muffin cups 1/2 full. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean.

While the muffins are baking, In a shallow bowl, combine sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg. Put the melted butter in a separate bowl.
When the muffins are cool enough to handle, yet still warm, remove the muffins from the tins, brush them completely with the melted butter, and roll in the cinnamon sugar mixture to coat.

wheat free, dairy free, but not taste free, sweet potato muffins

To my delight, I found a great deal in the overstock bin at Fred Meyer of canned organic sweet potato and pumpkin. I put the sweet potato to work yesterday, and the results were delish. I will post recipe if anyone is interested. I discovered when the recipe says, "don't overmix", they need to add for people like me, "but don't undermix, either" because some of them oozed.

I used soymilk with apple vinegar as a substitute for buttermilk and coconut milk for the whole milk with great results. I used spelt flour so it is wheat-free and ever so tender, but not gluten free. Only a few looked like a volcanic eruption, the rest looked lovely, like this: