Tomato and Cucumber Salad with Chickpeas and Fresh Herbs

Luscious red roma tomatoes, crisp green cucumber and the bright flavor or fresh herbs explode in this healthy, summer salad.  Simple and delicious, this salad is perfect for carry-ins, bbqs and picnics.

1 greenhouse style cucumber, sliced into bite-sized pieces
4 ripe roma tomatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 can of chickpeas, rinsed well and drained
Fresh Herbs (I used dill and italian parsley), chopped fine
Pinch pink himalayan salt
Drizzle extra virgin olive oil

Toss all ingredients together.  Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes to a day.  Holds up well for make-ahead side dish.  This dish has everything you need for a quick and easy lunch also.  Hope you enjoy!!

A Note About Turkey! BEWARE!

While I normally post recipes, I wanted to put up a little warning about Turkey....

Did you know many store bought turkey contain gluten??  Please be aware and read the labels!  Of course I always recommend you find a local farmer and support natural farming, but if you can't please please please be careful.

I was unable to eat turkey at Thanksgiving this year because it was contaminated by some crap to make it juicier!

Just a word for the wise....also watch other meats, like lunch meat, ham and chicken.

Cranberry, Apple, Sausage Stuffing (Gluten Free of Course)

Stuffing, dressing, whatever you call it...I thought I would never again eat something so wonderful as a plate full of really tasty stuffing.  How wrong I was!  This stuff is "the bomb"!

 

 

1 loaf Rudi's Gluten Free Multi-Grain Bread
1 box gluten free chicken broth, I always use organic, but use your favorite (could use veggie also)
1 cup chopped celery
1 bag fresh cranberry
2 large red apples, chopped
1 large red onion, chopped
1 tbs coconut oil
1 pound gluten free turkey sausage (I use breakfast sausage) Browned and the grease drained.
fresh sage to taste (I use about 2 tbs) chopped

Preheat over to 350. Slice bread into smaller, bite sized pieces.  Bake in over, stirring around regularly until the bread has dried out, about 20-30 minutes, being careful not to burn it.  This step can be done days in advance, just store in air-tighter container.

Brown the turkey sausage and drain well.  Meanwhile, in a separate pan, add coconut oil.  Cook until melted and pan is hot.  Add onion and celery.  Cook about 5 minutes.

In a separate dish (large) mix the bread, apple, cranberry and sage, add the cooked onion, celery and sausage.  Toss well.  Slowly pour the chicken broth over the mixture.  Toss if you would like, I do not.  Bake at 325-350 for about an hour, or until it is done to your liking.  Making sure not to burn the top of course.

  

Use less broth for dryer stuffing, more if you like wet stuffing.  ENJOY.  This is a dish that can replace your standard stuffing and the whole family will be none-the-wiser.

Pear Apple Quinoa Salad

A perfect combination of fall flavor and the newest permanent addition to my holiday menus.

1 cup quinoa
 2 cups water

Add to pot, cover and simmer about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until moisture is absorbed.  Chill.  This can be done a day or two in advance even.

2 handfuls fresh baby spinach, washed and left to drain on a paper towel
1 large red apple, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 ripe pear, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 cup copped pecans

Toss all ingredients gently in a large bowl.

6 tbs extra virgin olive oil
4 tbs GOOD balsamic vinegar (I used a 10-year aged)
2-3 tbs REAL Maple Syrup (I am sure you could probably use the fake stuff, but I would NEVER, lol)

In a shaker, mix oil, vinegar and maple syrup.  Pour over salad and mix gently.  Return and chill for a few minutes to hours.  HOLDS UP WELL as long as you use nice spinach that is not close to wilt.

That's it and the flavor combination will literally explode in your mouth and make you VERY happy!

Gluten and Dairy Free "Cream of Mushroom Soup"

Prior to my days of gluten and dairy free living, cream of mushroom soup was a staple in my cupboard.  For a year now I have been wondering and working on this recipe to perfect the tasty, multi-use goodness of this household staple....well I DID IT!  This soup had so much flavor that I ate a whole bowl straight from the pot.  Used it in my Green Bean Casserole for Thanksgiving and it was PERFECT.  Flavors were on point, texture was creamy and it held up well to baking...and freezing (I totally froze the extra for later).

1 box of your favorite stock (I used organic beef broth)
3 pints of fresh mushrooms, sliced, I used Button and Portabella, but whatever would work
1 medium red onion, chopped
4 stalks of celery, chopped
1 large garlic 
1 tbs coconut oil
salt
pepper
1 Cup Unsweetened Plain Almond Milk
3-5 TBS Potato Starch

2 additional cups Unsweetened Plain Almond Milk (Coconut Would work)

In a large stockpot, melt coconut oil.  Add onion, garlic and celery.  Sweat for a minute.  Add mushrooms, cook down for about 15 minutes on medium heat.  Add stock and salt and pepper to taste.  Cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until stock has taken on the flavor of the mushrooms.

In a blender bottle, add 1 cup Almond Milk and 3-5 TBS potato starch (the more you add the thicker it will be).  Shake the crap outta it, then slowly pour it into the stock mixture, stirring constantly.  It will almost instantly thicken.  If you would like it thicker, like a condensed soup, use more of the starch, you can thin it to be a soup by adding additional almond milk.

I used this very recipe, slightly thinned with about an extra 1/2 cup of almond milk to make green bean casserole.  The flavor was the BEST I HAVE EVER HAD!  No joke!  This soup is AMAZING.

I froze some of the extra in pint containers for later use...in a condensed form so that I would have options to use in things like Tuna Noodle Casserole.

Curried Vegetables with Quinoa

This recipe is a perfect blend of aromatic spices and sweetness.  Its also VERY easy for the beginner in curry cooking.  My 10 year old could totally make this!

1 can coconut milk, full fat works better for curries in my opinion and I <3 coconut oil
1/2 zucchini, cut in bite sized piece
1/2 yellow pepper, cut in bite sized piece
1/2 sweet red pepper, cut in bite sized piece
1 can chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
1 medium sweet potato, skin removed and cut in bite sized piece (canned is fine for this but I always recommend organic, and make sure to rinse before adding to the pot)
1/2 cup pineapple, fresh or canned, cut in bite sized piece
1/4 cup golden raisins
2 hand fulls fresh baby spinach
1 cup fresh broccoli
3/4 cup quinoa, rinsed well before adding
 1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp fresh ginger grated, or you can use the ginger from the refrigerator section.
2-3 tsp red curry paste (more if you like it spicy)


Add coconut milk to pan, stir gently until the fat is mixed in.  Stir in curry paste, ginger and cinnamon.  Add sweet potato, yellow and red pepper and zucchini.  Bring to a bubble, but not a full boil.  Cook for about 3 minutes.  Then add quinoa.  Cover and cook about 10 minutes.  Add the rest of the ingredients except spinach.  Cook another 8-10 minutes or until everything is cooked to desired doneness, stirring occasionally.  Throw in spinach for the last two minutes.

This will be a bit soupy, but it will thicken as it sits.  You can put it over rice if you wish, however it is not needed.

Enjoy this VERY filling and super healthy dish!

~Mahma

Turkey Noodle Soup

Gluten Free, Turkey Noodle Soup

While my normal practice is "home cooking" some times you just need a dump soup.  So here it goes...

2 boxes organic veggie broth
left over turkey, cut in bite sized chunks (I always save some after a turkey dinner and freeze for day like this, a can of turkey could be subbed)
1 large head of kale, chopped
1 bag brown rice pasta

bring broth to boil, add kale and turkey.  Cook for 5 minutes then add noodles.  Salt and pepper to taste.  I also like to add a pinch of cayenne pepper for a little extra heat and a lot of extra health kick!

DONE!  Dinner in 15 minutes max.