Cinnamon Carrot Soup (Paleo + AIP + Low-FODMAP + Whole30)

I eat a lot of carrots. It helps that I can get a 5lb organic bag at the store for 6 bucks. Plus, now that I am trying out being strict low-FODMAP AND low carb, my list of veggies has shrunk significantly. Carrots are a good compromise. They feel like a starchy vegetable, and are very versatile, as you may have noticed if you came to me from Instagram or TwoGrand and see carrots on my plate in some fashion many days. So, it makes sense that it was the ingredient I turned to when I was craving comfort food that met my current restrictions.

Don't forget your floor cleaner!

Browsing through some of my cookbooks, which I often do when needing inspiration (or gratuitous food porn), I saw a lot of soups made from starchy orange veggies. See where I'm going with this? 

Tada, carrot soup! I threw this together on a whim one night, knowing that cinnamon and carrots were a winning flavor combination.  Fortunately, with just a few, simple ingredients, it was easy to reproduce.  Cinnamon makes this soup extra warming and comforting, but so many flavors work with the sweetness of carrot. Try it with ginger or curry for something a little different. 

Cinnamon Carrot Soup (Paleo + AIP + Low-FODMAP + Whole30)

4 cups chopped carrots (or about 10 small-medium carrots... remember guys, I never deal in absolutes, so don't worry about this too much)
4 cups bone broth (I used beef, so if that works, anything will!)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil or ghee
1tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp sea salt

Chop your carrots, don't worry about peeling them, especially if they are organic, and cover with the broth in a pot on the stove.

Bring to a boil, then walk away to watch tv and forget what you're doing until the carrots are almost mush (or, well, not really, just boil them until soft).

Using either an immersion blender if your carrots are really soft or a food processor, puree the carrots and broth until smooth.

Add olive oil, cinnamon and salt and blend well.

Adjust thickness by adding more broth if you wish a thinner soup and adjust seasonings to taste.  The cinnamon flavor will be light, but I like to leave it so and then garnish with extra cinnamon, so you still get the full flavor, without losing the vibrant orange color!

Serve hot or cold, with lots of cinnamon!

Happy eats!

Rutabaga hash browns

Today was a rough day. I didn't sleep well last night and was headachy, grumpy and super distracted all day. With 5 days left to go, visions of chocolate and cookies have been dancing in my head. My brain is realizing that, pretty soon, I can let loose and eat "fun" things. I've thought through a list of junk and treats that I might POSSIBLY be interested in... and there's a surprising number I DON'T want. What I do very much, emphatically want, is something creamy and/or chewy and sweet and definitely chocolate. So I spent much of today thinking up exactly what treat I will be making for myself this time next week (I'm done in time for Saturday, but I already have plans involving alcohol, so I'll save the sugar for a few more days). In order to satisfy my creamy and chewy (the sweet and chocolate part is a given), I'm thinking a simple, quick paleo mug cake topped with cashew butter as frosting... Yeah, that's the ticket. I'm pumped. 

I've been eating lots of cashew butter alluvasudden. One to two spoonfuls a night, to be precise. I'm annoying myself with it, but I can't get the need for a "treat" food out of my head. I'm just ready for this to be over, particularly since I'm not currently feeling any of the benefits, only the downsides. 

On another note though I'm kinda obsessed with rutabaga latkes right now. They nicely fill that niche of crispy, tasty hash browns and are pretty simple to through together in the morning. And when cooking for one, a single rutabaga lasts a damn long time. 

Easy Rutabaga Latkes/Hash Browns

2 cups rutabaga, peeled and grated

1/2 small onion, grated

2 eggs

2 tsp coconut flour

Salt and pepper

2 tbsp coconut oil

First, peel and grate your rutabaga, either using a grater or the grate attachment on your food processor (my mini food processor has no grating attachment, so I did this by hand... It wasn't too bad). Approximately half of a large rutabaga makes the 2 cups. 

Grate or finely chop onion. 

In a bowl, mix the rutabaga shreds, onion, eggs, flour and salt and pepper to taste thoroughly. 

Heat a skillet to medium heat and melt your coconut oil. 

Scoop a large spoonful of the rutabaga mixture into your hand and shape it into a thick disc before adding it to your hot pan. You should see the edges sizzling in the oil. Add more rutabaga discs and cook approximately 4-5 minutes before flipping and cooking another 4-5 until crispy (mine were kinda blackened, and I was totally ok with that). 

Should make about 6 latkes. Serve with whatever tasties you can think of.  Mine were great with guacamole, cranberry sauce and eggs (not all at the same time... But that's not a bad idea). 

Picture to follow, once I remember to take one after breakfast. Doh. 

Dairy and Grain Free Green Bean Casserole

Happy post thanksgiving, friends! I hope you had much delicious food. I certainly did, and all of it Whole30 friendly. I mean, I definitely over-ate, which is not really in the spirit of the program, and was uncomfortable after, but after I'd digested everything, I felt just as good as I always do lately. No bloating, cravings or food coma the next morning. Not to mention, TONS OF DELICIOUS LEFTOVERS 

(yes, the caps were necessary there, don't judge me). Seriously, I love leftovers. I love them almost more than the original meal. What's most exciting about thanksgiving leftovers, is that you don't have to just eat the same meal again, you can recreate them into a new delicious combination. 

For example, breakfast this morning was a sorta thanksgiving eggs Benedict. 

This triumph was achieved by mixing an egg into some leftover cinnamon butternut squash mash and frying it like a burger, then topping the thing with cranberry sauce and a fried egg. Magic! 

Dinner tonight is a turkey shepherd's pie... Or pot pie... Or just casserole, I'm not too sure what to call it. It's leftover green bean casserole mixed with turkey and gravy, then topped with a layer of the same squash mash (I had a LOT leftover) and baked till delicious. 

I was always a huge fan of the next day (or next three days) turkey sandwich, and don't get me wrong... I still think those are delicious... But who needs the bread? Lunch today was turkey and raw kale topped with homemade mayo. I am thankful. Thankful for leftovers. 

I contributed five items to my family's thanksgiving. Partly as an effort to minimize their work, and partly to ensure there'd be plenty I could eat. I shouldn't have worried, my mom cooked too much as usual (and I convinced her to try roasting her Brussels sprouts instead of boiling, success!), but I am glad for all the extra food. Most contributions were basic: cinnamon mash butternut, gravy, garlic mashed cauliflower and Melissa Joulwan's fantastic Whole30 friendly cranberry sauce, but I also wanted to recreate a favorite of mine from years past: green bean casserole. 

Green bean casserole is usually my contribution to thanksgiving, and I've always made it the "traditional" way, with cream of mushroom soup and French's fried onions. This year, that was off the menu, and I replaced it with this:

Dairy and Grain-Free Green Bean Casserole

2 lbs fresh green beans

1/2 medium cauliflower 

2 cups chicken bone broth

1 medium sweet onion

1/2 cup olive oil

2 cloves garlic

Oregano

Salt and pepper

Optional: milk alternative to taste

Also optional: mushrooms

First, chop your green beans into 1-2 inch pieces and boil with one cup of chicken broth for 10 minutes or until tender. Drain and set aside. 

Preheat oven to 350. 

Cream of cauliflower:

While beans are boiling, chop cauliflower into small florets, smash garlic cloves and boil both with second cup of broth until cauliflower is fork tender. 

Add cauliflower to food processor or blender with a 1/4 cup of the broth from the pot and oregano, salt and pepper to taste. Blend until smooth, add milk to increase creaminess if desired.  

If using mushrooms (I skipped them because my sister dislikes them), roughly chop and sauté in a tbsp of oil over medium heat and add to cream sauce. 

Crispy onions:

Chop onion into long thin strips. I cut rings and then sliced them in half. Heat oil in a pot over medium low heat. Add a layer of onions to the oil and let sit for 4-5 minutes until crisp, stirring once. 

Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel covered plate to drain and add another layer. Repeat until all onions are cooked. 

Assemble!

In a casserole dish, mix green beans, cream sauce and half the cooked onions. Top with remaining onions. 

Baked in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes. 

Envision it with MORE onions on top, I definitely did not use enough with only 1/2 an onion. Also, envision a better picture, I'm a terrible photographer. 

Anyway, I was pretty proud of this, the flavor is light and oniony and the texture creamy. Not to mention totally dairy and grain free and optionally vegan. I can certainly see myself making this again... This time properly with mushrooms and not inviting my picky sister to try it... Yeah. 

Whole30 update and roasted sweet potatoes

Today was a rough day. A culmination of an long emotional week, car trouble and cravings (not helped by my office's weekly "share" day involving cookies, cheesecake, and a giant peanut butter ball) led to some serious depression that I desperately kept trying to turn into anger. Anger is preferable to sadness. 

It was fortunate for me that all those treats were loaded with dairy or I might have given in and gorged my feelings. I made it through the day without breaking down into tears or exploding at anyone (though I spent a lot of time fantasizing about how I'd respond the first person who said something I didn't like), made a quick stop at the grocery store and headed home to discover that my roommate had made tacos and left the meat completely plain so I could partake. Yay, instant food! I threw together a simple taco salad with beef, guac, compliant store bought salsa and greens. Still a bit hungry, I threw some sweet potato cubes in the oven for something sweet and creamy. Mmm. I may not have mentioned before, but I'm taking my Whole30 a step further and eliminating fruits for at least the first 21 days. I'm kinda combining the Whole30 and the 21 Day Sugar Detox together. Why? Because I'm crazy, probably. But really,  it's tough for me to beat sugar cravings, I feel like I'm likely to use fruit as a crutch to get through the process and then I'll just plain still have sugar cravings in the end. So, the few indulgences the 21DSD allows are sweet potatoes and green apples... In moderation. *deep breath* I can do this. In fact, less than half a sweet potato was enough to satisfy. Huzzah! Amazing what just a little cinnamon and salt can do, eh?

They're super easy to make!

Cinnamon roasted sweet potatoes

1 medium sweet potato

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Cinnamon

Sea salt

Preheat your oven to 375 and chop sweet potato into approximately 1" cubes. 

Toss with oil, cinnamon and salt.

Roast for 20-30 minutes until tender. 

Gobble them up like the delicious things they are. 

Plus side this week, I'm pretty food crazy. Like, excited about cooking ALL the things using whatever I've bought ahead of time. Including some "weirder" ingredients that I've never played with before. This week being beets and leeks. Beets aren't weird, I know, but I've never cooked with them before and I'm getting really into using EVERYTHING and reducing food waste (cus I'm poor, duh, and this crap's expensive). So I'm playing with beet greens and stems too. More on that later. :)

I've got some exciting food plans this weekend. I've got NO plans outside my house, so hopefully I'll have more tasty food things to share soon. 

I'm also keeping a detailed log of what I eat and how I feel on a day to day basis, as well as a list of my symptoms. I'm pumped to see how they change over the next few weeks. 

Acorn Squash Bowls

I warned you that I was butternut squash obsessed, right? Well, that maaaaay have expanded. I also have a Hubbard squash and a couple sugar pumpkins to play with... Yay! 

When I bought my enormous load of butternuts, I also grabbed an acorn squash, which, believe it or not... I've never eaten. My mom cooks it all the time, but I was just completely turned off by its appearance. If anyone is gathering by this point that my mom is a terrible cook, you'd actually be incorrect, I ate lots of tasty things growing up, but we just did not and do not see eye to eye on certain methods of food prep. For example, she prepared acorn squash by cutting it in half and baking it with brown sugar and walnuts in the hollow center, which I thought to be just... weird. I hate nuts cooked into food. Doesn't everyone? No? Well, ok... Moving on. 

Well, I didn't like butternut squash growing up either, but it turns out that I just don't like all the sugar and gunk that Americans think is necessary to add. So, considering my newfound appreciation for certain foods, namely butternut and sweet potato... I thought it was time to give acorn a try too. Today, I was trying to figure out what to do with it, as I was QUITE sure, I did not want the traditional brown sugar filling. 

Then I found something on PaleOMG.com (one of my favorite sites by the way). Baked Acorn Squash CANDY.  What? Candy? 

But, holy crap, it IS candy. I thought I was eating dessert for dinner. I think acorn squash may be my new favorite food. Yeah, I said it. Favorite. I look forward to playing with it more. In the meantime, here's what I did based on Juli's recipe:

Baked Acorn Squash Bowls

1 acorn squash

2 slices of bacon

Cinnamon

Sea salt

Preheat oven to 415.

Cut the squish in half from top to bottom and scoop out seeds (reserve your seeds for roasting!). 

Place halves cut side down on a baking sheet or dish and bake for about 25 minutes, till soft (squishy!)

While squash is baking, cook bacon in a pan on the stove till crispy. Place on a papertowel covered plate to drain excess fat, but reserve the fat in the pan. 

Once you remove the squash from the oven, flip over so the cut side is up. 

Using a couple forks (don't burn yourself!), scrape and mash the squash inside the skin. Add a small spoonful of the bacon grease from the pan to each squash half, then crumble in a slice of bacon to each. Add salt and cinnamon to taste and mix well. 

Mmm, this made it super easy. Lookit that!

Serve in the skin "bowl" with whatever your heart desires. Enjoy!

Im intrigued to see if this would work as well with another source of fat, such as coconut oil or ghee. Care to give it a try and let me know?

Potatoes!

Wow, it's been a while. Time flies when you're running around like a crazy person. But hey, there's always food! I have been making some pretty tasty and, even better, simple things. Wanna hear about them? No? Too bad. I feel a food babble coming on. Let's talk potatoes. Potatoes were pretty tough to give up. Mashed, fries, chips even. Mmm, au gratin... I miss au gratin. I haven't quite worked that one out yet. 

But mashed, fries, chips and even home fries, I've totally got covered. In some cases, the alternatives are better. Just the other night, I NEEDED some French fries. Not so much the taste, but the crunchy finger foodiness was very necessary. So I chopped up a couple bags of carrots. Now, hold on, before you decide I'm crazy, hear me out. You can make fries out of pretty much any root vegetable. Carrots are a surprisingly mega-success. The centers get nice and soft and the outsides crisp up nicely with a layer of olive oil. My next attempt will likely involve parsnips. Mmm, French fries.

Don't those look good? And they're a super simple way to satisfy a craving without compromising on health one bit. 

Here's the deal:

Baked Carrot Fries

Ingredients:

Carrots

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400. Wash carrots and cut into matchsticks. Thinner fries will work better. 

Lay onto a baking tray and lightly toss with oil, salt and pepper. Don't go too heavy with the oil. Don't want soggy fries!

Spread on the tray, avoiding overlapping. Bake for 30-45 minutes, watching after 25 to avoid burning. 

Serve immediately. They go great dipped in Paleo mayo (I make mine chipotle style).