White bean and Artichoke heart pasta with homemade Cashew Cheese( vegan, GF, DF)

Holy moly this one is a keeper!!! ;-)  So we were running a little low on stuff in the cupboards the other night.  I had a can of white beans and of course a can of artichoke hearts.  I was CRAVING pasta.  I just bought a can of this amazing tomato basil sauce from new season.  It is all natural with only a few ingredients which always makes me happy.  No crap in this sauce ;-)  Any ways, I couldn't wrap my brain around that all these flavors would taste good together lol....  Sooo i googled, white bean and artichoke pasta.  Tons of links pop up, that was enough for me.  Went back to the kitchen and this is what I came up with.  You have to try it, it really is tasty. :-)



Ingredients:

:  One box of Gluten free elbow pasta
:  1/2 of a lemon
:  Palm of parsley
:  Palm of oregano
:  Can of artichoke hearts in water ( not the seasoned kind)
:  one can of white beans
:  pinch of salt
:  one big jar of tomato basil sauce





Cook pasta per box instructions.

While pasta is cooking in a large pan combine sauce, parsley, oregano, juice from 1/2 a lemon, chopped artichoke hearts, rinsed white beans, and salt. Mix all together and cook on med/low heat for about 15 minutes.




Once pasta in cooked add noodles to sauce and mix together.  Turn heat to simmer and cover pan. Let it simmer for about 10 minutes stirring every few minutes or so.  This helps sauce bind to the noodles better.



Now for the Cashew Cheese.  I have seen this done a few times and really wanted to try it myself. So here is my recipe for cashew cheese.  I only had 1 cup of raw cashews left, I would have made a lot more if we had more nuts ;-)  The hubby LOVED it, and it is soooo easy.  Gotta love a Raw vegan cheese.

:  1 Cup raw cashews
:  1/2 cup Hot water
:  garlic
:  salt
:  evoo

In a food processor or good blender, grind up cashews till it looks like powder.  Add Hot water and blend together. I didnt measure the next ones ( sorry Kathy, lol) add a pinch of salt, maybe 1 T Evoo, and garlic to taste.  Blend together until a smooth texture is created.

This taste a lot like alfredo sauce.  Crazy right?!?!



Next time, I am going to try to make more of this and do a Vegan Mac & Cheese.
Oh how we miss Mac & Cheese on a cold day ;-)



ENJOY!!!

Stuffed Portobello Mushroom. ( vegan, GF, DF)

So I had some cooked Quinoa and Two big Portobello mushrooms, and left over sun dried tomatoes in the fridge that needed to get used up asap. This is what I came up with ;-)



Ingredients:

:  2 Portobello mushrooms
:  Extra Virgin Olive Oil
:  1 clove garlic
:  A palm full of fresh chopped parsley
:  1/3 Cup pine nuts
:  1/3 Cup chopped sun dried tomatoes
:  1 1/2 Cups Veg broth
:  1/3 Cup water chestnuts ( chop into little bits)
:  3 cups cooked Quinoa


First you will need to scrap all the black stuff out of the mushrooms with a spoon.  This will give  more room for the stuffing.  Drizzle mushrooms with EVOO and bake on cooking sheet at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.



If you don't have left over Quinoa like I did, then you may need to take an extra step and cook that first
;-) You could also cook the Quinoa in the broth with all the goodies.  Just bring to a low boil turn heat down and simmer until Quinoa is cooked.

In a large frying pan drizzle bottom of pan with the EVOO, saute pine nuts and chopped garlic.  Cook until a nice light golden brown.



Once it looks like above add vegetable broth, parsley, chopped sun dried tomatoes, chopped water chestnuts, and Quinoa.



Add mix to mushrooms. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.



Yummo!!! Enjoy...

Lemon Basil Chicken (Gluten & Dairy Free)

Yummy!!! Love the flavors in this one ;-)  I had some basil and wine left over from super-bowl that needed to get used up, so this is what I created.  For all you vegans our there, just minus the chicken and use the Quinoa with everything else as a side dish. The citrus flavor is soooo good, didn't want you to miss it.

Lemon Basil Chicken


: Extra virgin olive oil
: 2 chicken breast
: Gluten free flour ( Quinoa flour is what I used)
: 1 T Earth Balance
: 4 T Chopped Basil
: 1/3 Cup fresh Lemon Juice
: 1 1/2 Cups Chx or Veg Broth
: 4 T White wine
: 1 Cup Quinoa
: Salt to taste

Cut chicken into little pieces and lightly coat with flour.  Saute Chicken in olive oil on medium heat. Lightly brown both sides of chicken.  Once lightly browned add to pan Earth Balance, broth, chopped basil, lemon juice, and wine. Stir until everything is mixed together.




Turn heat to low, add Quinoa. Make sure Quinoa is nicely settled into the liquid ;-)
Cover and cook until quinoa and chicken are cooked and liquid is absorbed. about 15-20 minutes.



All Done ;-)



Simple and Easy, but lots of flavor!!!

Quick note- The broccoli...  We love to bake it.  I use the baby broccoli, they have really long stems and not so full tops.  place on cooking sheet, drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. I bake them at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes.  They get a little crunchy. Try them you might be surprised that you actually like Broccoli.  

ENJOY!!!

Signs!!!

Of course as I am just starting to type I look at my clock and it says 12:11.....  That is what I was coming on here to blog about.  Signs!!! They are everywhere... Most of the time people aren't being conscious enough to notice them. Mine is the number 11. I see it everywhere right now. The last time I had this happen was right before my divorce when I was 25.  I kept praying for something better, for a day I could get back to myself. A day that wasn't filled with anger, confusion, and hurt. I started seeing the number 11 A LOT. So I started praying every time I saw it.  Lets just say, my prayers worked. I really haven't noticed seeing this very much since that year, until now...  It's been a few weeks now and it's very apparent that this sign is back in my life for a reason.  I looked up "what does number 11 mean" this is what the first page said. "The appearance of 11 is a powerful confirmation that we are on the right track, aligned with our highest Truth, a message from God" How AMAZING is that.  It made me smile from ear to ear.  Then today my mother in law sent me an email telling me how proud she is of me.  :-)  She gave me a scripture to read, Jeremiah 29:11  Yes 11 ;-)  it says,   "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the lord, Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future".  WOW!!!  I don't think I could find a better way to explain it then that.  "Not Harm You".  All of this is a plan.  How do I learn from it, grow from it, Inspire people from it!?!  Seeing the number 11 is a confirmation that God is here with me, and I AM on the right path.  Everything is balanced the way it should be.  Its my sign of hope.  I am so  blessed to be aware of this sign, and it makes me happy to notice it.  I believe that God is giving me this sign for a reason,  Even more AMAZING things are just around the corner.  

      

                                             
Signs are there for you, to give you that little boost of confidence.  It may not be a number or a thing. Maybe its someone coming into your life planting a seed. Giving you information that you have always wanted but just might not have the courage to take that step forward.  When ever things like this happen we usually say, "That was weird" or "That's just a coincidence".  I don't think that is it at all. For me now, I say Thank you and smile.  I guess for now it is my daily reminder that everything is OK.   I can keep moving forward with what I am doing.  Truly believing with all of my heart that I am not being punished for anything.  I have been giving a gift with my diagnoses.  For you.... Try to be open to what ever, if you don't, you might be missing the biggest sign in your life. You might miss something really great. :-)

Different "potato" ideas

I LOVE french fries and mashed potatoes!!! But we all know they aren't the greatest for us.  Soooo for french fries I do sweet potatoes. :-) Sweet potatoes are very rich in beta carotene, which is a great anti-oxidant.  They also have anti inflammatory properties, vitamin C and magnesium.  So these little guys are great to snack on for us that have hashimotos and pcos.  Helps keep inflammation down and glucose levels stable.


These are a great mid-day snack or a side for dinner.  All you have to do is peel your potatoes. Cut into french fry strips. Not to thick or they will take a long time to cook.  An easy way to season and coat with olive oil is to put them into a big Ziploc, sprinkle whatever seasoning you want and a little olive oil in the bag. I used salt and paprika for these ones in the picture. That's why they look a little red after cooked.  Mix all up so they are evenly coated.  Lay fries out onto a cookie sheet. I usually cook them at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes.  I just check on them every five minutes or so and make sure they aren't burning. 











My second "potato" idea is cauliflower mashed potatoes.  I know it may seem weird but they truly do taste like mashed potatoes.  And its simple. Here is what you will need

Ingredients:

- 1 cauliflower head
- 1/4 cup rice milk
- salt
- garlic powder

Take a head of cauliflower, break it up and steam them for about 8 minutes. I use one of the double decker steamers.



Ones soft, place into food processor. I am pretty sure you can also use a blender.  Add rice milk, earth balance. blend all together until it looks and feels like mashed potatoes. Add salt and garlic to taste. You can  add any type of seasonings, this is just what I did the other night ;-)





What a great healthier option for mashed potatoes!   Dont ya think!?!?  ;-) Hope you enjoy...

Sweet & Spicy Chicken Strips ( Gluten, Egg and Dairy Free)

Dan LOVES these. When he smells these cooking he gets pretty excited.  This is my way of doing chicken fingers. It has a little kick, so if you don't like spicy just reduce the amount of cayenne to your liking.  This is a good way to have chicken strips but a much healthier version.

Ingredients:

- 2 chx breast
- Olive oil
- Quinoa flower ( find this at whole foods or new seasons, Bobs Red mill brand)
- 5 T organic light brown sugar
- 3 T Sweet Paprika
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp onion powder

- 1-2 tsp salt

- 1 tsp pepper

Mix all dry ingredients together
cut chicken into strips.
Place about a quarter of the spice on a small plate and some flour onto another plate.



Roll chicken in spice...



 then roll in flour.
 Quick tip:  use left hand for rolling in spice and right hand for flour. if the chicken gets flour on it first the spices wont stick.  So the hand thing helps ;-)



Place in frying pan with heated oil on low-medium heat.



Because of the brown sugar these can burn easy if you have the heat to high. I like cooking them a little slower on lower heat, then close to the end turn up the heat to crisp up the outside.



YUM-O!!!  ;-)

We enjoyed a little salad with an amazing Gluten free, Vegan dressing. The brand is Organic Ville, Miso Ginger.  Found it at Whole Foods.  I added a little bit of toasted sesame seeds.

Hope you enjoy.

Sweet Potato Hash (Gluten, Egg, and Dairy Free)

Breakfast was pretty hard for me to figure out at first. I felt like everything had Gluten, dairy and eggs in a breakfast dish.  I LOVE hashbrowns. So I had to think of something like it. I didnt just want to eat potatoes for a meal though.  You of course can use regular potatoes for the Hash Brown part, But beacuse I need to keep my Glucose levels down I decided to use Sweet Potatoes. These are a Low GI food.  This is a very simple recipe but I had to share it with you. We make this at least once a week.  :-)

Ingredients:

- 1 big or 2 Medium Sweet Potatoes

- Turkey Bacon ( I use 6 slices for Dan and I)

- 1 Yellow or Red pepper

- Paprika

- Garlic Powder

- Salt

First step is to prepare The potatoes.  Peel and shred them.  

Because sweet potatoes have so much liquid in them you must squeeze this out.  Here is the way I do it. I am sure you don't need to do use paper towels, its just works better for me ;-)


Coat Bottom of a big frying pan with EVOO.  Fry Potatoes on medium heat.  Cook like normal hashbrowns.

Add Paprika, garlic powder, and salt. There is no measurements for this. Just add to taste.



While Potatoes are cooking chop Turkey Bacon and peppers.



Cook Turkey Bacon in a separate pan. Once Hashbrowns are golden brown on one side flip and add chopped peppers to the top of potatoes.



Once bacon is cooked add to hashbrowns. Mix all together.



All Done ;-)

A good topping for this is cubed avocado. We didnt have any this time. Try it if you have some. Hope you Enjoy...