Tasty Little Devils

I had deviled eggs so much growing up, I thought that every one liked them. I learned that is not exactly the case the first time I ever brought a tray of them to a party... I went home with a tray of them. Apparently it's old people food. Whatever, I still love them just the same, and I don't even have to modify them for the SCD. Here's my recipe!

Deviled Eggs
(makes 1 doz)

6 Jumbo Eggs, Hard Boiled and Peeled
2 TBS Mayo (I made my own)
1/2 Tsp Salt
1/2 Tsp Garlic Powder
2 Twists of the Pepper Grinder
1/4 Tsp Onion Powder
1/2 Tsp Yellow Mustard
Juice from 1 Lemon Wedge
Paprika for Garnish

Slice eggs in half long ways. Gently pop the yolks into a small bowl. Using a fork, mash the yolks well. Add all remaining ingredients except paprika, and mash until very smooth and creamy. Place about one spoonful of the yolk mixture back into the egg whites, spreading evenly. Garnish with paprika.

Deviled Eggs are something that you can play with, feel free to add more/less seasoning, substitute Dijon mustard, or use cayenne instead of paprika if you really want some zing. There is no wrong way to prepare them, just your way.

French Onion Soup

Last night I made French 3 Onion Soup with Gruyere from the book Eat Well Feel Well by Kendal Conrad. I would highly recommend this book for anyone who like Asian inspired recipes as well, it's got a ton. I'm going to try my hand at Tom Ka Soup next week if I can find kaffir limes and lemon grass.

I'm not going to post this recipe because I'm not that impressed with it. Although the soup was very good, it could have been amazing if not for the following:

It called for chicken stock instead of beef. They say to cook the onions for 20 minutes. This isn't incorrect, but after 20 minutes my onions were not caramelized, and properly caramelized onions are key. I went ahead and followed the recipe against my better judgment (a mistake I will not make again with soup). They also instruct you to cook the leeks, shallots, and garlic for only 1 minute before adding the broth. No bueno, they could have used a good browning. I added a little Swiss to my Gruyere to mix it up a little, I was not disappointed. I'll post the recipe once I perfect it for myself. It did look beautiful though!

Lemon Meringue Pie

I got the following recipe out of The Grain Free Gourmet. Tastes good, but a little runny. This could be partially my fault for not cooking the lemon curd long enough, but I think it has a little to do with folding in a couple egg whites before baking. Next time I'll just double the curd and omit the egg whites. Also had some trouble making peaks and mounds out of the meringue. Maybe I didn't whip it long enough before adding the honey. I think the moral of the story is: I am too impatient to be dealing with things like lemon meringue pie.

Message me if you're interested in the recipe, it's far too long to type (that's me being impatient again). Or, if you're interested in having an entire book of delicious grain-free, sugar free, low lactose recipes, simply go out and get Grain Free Gourmet.

Oops!

I'm usually pretty good at muti-tasking, but I took on a few too many simultaneous cooking projects and burnt the crap out of my baby back ribs. See, you're supposed to cook them on high for about 20-30 minutes, then slow roast them for about 3 hours at about 200 degrees. Silly me forgot to turn the oven down to 200 and ended up cooking them for 4 hours on high. All that removing membrane business for nothing! Oh well. Here's my disaster...

While my ribs were busy burning, I was busy grilling my steak. It was delicious!

Doesn't get much better than that.

Many Meats

I bought a bunch of meat yesterday, but found my self with absolutely no time to cook it. So this evening, I decided to cook as much of it as possible to avoid spoiling, and then marinate the rest for tomorrow. First up... Purple Pork Chops! This one is kinda different, but very tasty. I prefer mine with salt, but it's your call.

Purple Pork Chops:

4 Center Cut Pork Loin Chops
1/4 Cup Olive Oil
1 TBS Chopped Garlic
1/3 Cup Red Wine (I used Merlot)
Dash of Cumin
TBS Cooking Oil (I used Coconut)

Combine all ingredients except cooking oil in small bowl, marinate in the fridge for 1 hour. Drain liquid from bowl and discard. Fry chops and garlic over medium-high heat until inside is no longer pink.

The picture doesn't really do it justice, but these were bright purple when they were done!


I roasted a chicken in herb butter, and while that was in the oven I prepped 2 steaks by pounding them and sprinkling with Sauce Goddess Original Chunk rub. I can not wait to grill these tomorrow.


I also came up with my own delicious SCD rub for a small rack of baby back ribs. I'll report back once they're cooked, but they need to marinate at least overnight. Mmmmmm.

1/4 Cup Honey
1 1/2 Tsp Black Pepper
2 Tsp Kosher Salt
1 1/2 Tsp Paprika
1/4 Tsp Cayenne Pepper
1 Tsp Fresh Chopped Garlic

The worst part about the ribs was removing the membrane. I had never done this before and it was thoroughly disgusting, but supposedly well worth it because it helps the marinade soak in. Thank god for vinyl gloves. Now that I'm exhausted and covered in 3 types of animal blood I think it's time for bed (after a quick rinse that is).

Kabobs, Quiche & Pancakes! Oh my?

I know it's been WAY too long since my last post. Since I work for a publication with monthly deadlines, it gets super busy the second week of the month and I have no time for cooking or blogging. It's one of the reasons this diet is so difficult. I've been living on mangos and lara bars for quite a while. Anywho... I have a few new offerings for my SCD friends today, and anyone else who is interested in yummy healthy food.

First up we have a low carb grain free pancake. Now, you're going to think I'm crazy but trust me on this one, it tastes amazing:

Peanut butter banana pancake

1 Jumbo Egg
1 Very Ripe Banana w spots
2 TBS Butter
Honey and Peanut butter to taste

Mash banana into liquid, beat in egg until smooth. Fry in a non-stick pan on medium heat with butter. Top with melted peanut butter and honey, serve with almond milk.

Frying/flipping this can be a bit tricky. I had to reshape it into a pancake after I screwed it up, but it doesn't affect the flavor. You can also add some vanilla and a bit of almond flour for a more pancake-like consistency, but I like this one just the way it is. Good late night treat too.

Next up: Kabobs! Why is it that they seem so simple and yet they never turn out quite right? I.e., one veggie cooks more than the other, they fall apart, etc. I did manage to make some wonderful kabobs anyway, and even grilled some tofu ones for my sweetie. No recipe, but here's the basics:

Eggplant
Zucchini
Bell Peppers
Onion
Mushroom
Scallops
Tofu

I marinated the scallops in garlic and Marsala wine for 5 hours first, and bathed the veggies in olive oil, garlic, and sea salt. I also dipped the tofu in balsamic and pan fried them before skewering, but I couldn't taste them as I'm not allowed soy or balsamic. I've been told it was the best tofu ever though :)

I grilled them over charcoal until slightly burnt, keeping the scallops on separate sticks since meat and veggies cook differently. Here is the result:

Also, the tofu ones:


Finally, last night I had a bit of time to cook. Problem was, I hadn't had time to go to the store and had no meat. What's a girl to do without meat??? (Keep the comments to a minimum gentlemen.)

I noticed some broccoli and a few sad pieces of cheese when it hit me... Quiche! It turned out great, and I ate half of it in one sitting.

Broccoli Cheese Quiche with Almond Flour Crust

Crust:
1 1/2 cups Almond Flour or Meal
3 TBS Cold Butter
1 TBS Honey
1/8 Tsp Baking Soda
1/4 Tsp Salt
1 Large Egg

Put almond flour, salt, and baking soda in a medium bowl with butter. Use a pastry cutter or a large fork to mix. Make a well in the center, add egg and honey. Mix well. Using gloves or buttered hand, press into a 9" pie plate. It's more like smearing than pressing with the dough, since it is very wet. Par bake at 325 for 15 min.

Filling:
4 Eggs
1/2 Cup Grated Cheddar
1 Cup Grated Swiss
2 Mashed Garlic Cloves
2 TBS Home Made Yogurt
1TBS Olive Oil
1 Small Broccoli Crown, chopped very small
1/2 Onion chopped

Toss broccoli in olive oil, spread on a cookie sheet and brown it at 400 for about 15 min until tender. Reduce oven to 325. In a skillet brown onions and garlic in olive oil until translucent and slightly brown. Remove broccoli from oven and mix all ingredients in large bowl. Pour into par baked crust. Cover the edges with foil and continue to bake for 30-40min at 325 until eggs are set.


Also tastes great cold. Ate a slice for breakfast in the car this morning! More yummy stuff to come... I'm working on desserts this week. After a moment of weakness Sunday (involved pizza and wings) and severe punishment from my body on Monday, I've decided that I absolutely must NOT run out of yummy prepared food again. Lesson learned, moving ahead!

The Other White Meat

Yesterday I decided to make a more sophisticated version of pork chops and applesauce. I marinated the pork in fresh rosemary, garlic, salt and olive oil for about 6 hours, cooked them on the charcoal grill, and served them alongside some leftover baked apples. Delicious!!


The salad I made was simple but surprisingly tasty. Boyfriend gobbled it all up, and he "hates" salad (which I find hysterical because he's a vegetarian). FYI, this recipe is MUCH better if you use all organic veggies and good quality vinegar.

Avocado Tomato Salad
(serves 2)

2 semi hard avocados
2 small or 1 large ripe tomato
1/2 medium red onion, sliced in rings
3 TBS White Wine Vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

Chop avocado and tomato into 1 inch chunks, add remaining ingredients and lightly toss in large bowl. Serve on a bed of your favorite leafy lettuce (I used a mix of butter leaf and iceberg)


It's been almost 1 week on the intro diet, and I'm feeling pretty damn good. Don't know if I'm lighter but my pants fit better I feel less bloated. I'm down to 20mg of Prednisone (I was on 40 just a month ago), and haven't had any serious symptoms in about 3 days, which is kind of a big deal for me. Today was the first time I've eaten any cheese, which is also a huge milestone because I usually eat it like it's going out of style and I've been trying to cut back.

Today I slept through my alarm and didn't have much time to prepare food so I ended up just eating a bunch of fruit, yogurt, leftover chicken, and such scraps I could grab out of the fridge before work. However, when I got home I ate round 2 of pork chops and apples, only this time I roasted broccoli, eggplant and onions on the grill. I've discovered that the trick to good eggplant is slicing it into thin spears, sweating it, and grilling till it's almost burnt. Just a little fresh garlic and olive oil and topping to finish. You know, I think I may be getting the hang of this vegetable thing...

Over the weekend I made several things that were either unsuccessful (ketchup) or boring to take pictures of (almond milk). I did, however, take a pic of my second roast chicken before I snatched off all the skin (so good!). For your viewing pleasure:

Don't be fooled by my amazing photography, these are tiny birds. But is it weird that I eat about 2 chickens a week? In terms of consumption, it's not that much in weight, but when I think of a whole live chicken runnin' around and cluckin' it sounds kind of weird. I'm just sayin.

I do believe that if I'm feeling up to it I will start on some almond flour baked goods this week and drop my steroids to 15mg this weekend. Next week I'm starting a series of body wraps to suck some of this nasty water weight out of me. I've done it before and it totally works. I can't wait to be rid of some of these pounds! I'm excited and still motivated, and not missing pizza (that much), so yay me! Also getting my hairs and nails did this weekend, so at this rate my hotness is going to be out of control in month or two (I kid, I kid!).