Fennel Stir-Fry

This blog just stopped.  As much as I enjoyed posting successful recipes to share with those in similar situations, things at home became too overwhelming to keep it up.  But today, on a peaceful snowy day with the husband home from work, I can post today's success.  Fennel stir-fry!

Before the recipe, here's the update.  My 30 day AIP diet went really well, however, I wasn't seeing the improvements that I'd hoped.  My nutritionist realized that I was having a reaction to histamines in my foods.  That meant that the high-histamine, gut-healing foods were actually making my inflammation worse.  Now I've mixed AIP with a low-histamine diet and things are improving.  I haven't entirely decided where to go from here, but things are going ok for now.  It is hard to take out another category of foods so I'm being a little more lenient on some foods that are not ok on AIP, but I don't have a strong reaction to.

With the new challenges I am trying to maintain good variety in my diet which isn't easy.  I was so bored with my typical lunch today that I decided to try something new.  I am not really familiar with fennel so I tossed a bunch of things together and hoped it would go well - it did.

Fennel (to me) looks like a human heart with celery sticking out of it!  More importantly to cooking, it has a licorice taste which, originally, turned me off as I've never been a fan of that flavor.  My mom's fennel experiments encouraged me to try again and it was really worth it!

Here's what I did:

Fennel Stir-Fry

1/3    fennel - bulb, stalk, and fronds
2 T   chopped onion (you are welcome to add more, I use very little because it is a FODMAPS)
3       basil leaves, chopped
1/4    cup cauliflower heads
2 T   lard
1 T   butter

I threw everything in together except the basil.  You are welcome to use more or less lard and butter, choose one instead of both fats, or use another fat altogether.  I like the taste that mixing fats gives.  I sauteed the food with leftover turkey breast until almost cooked, threw the basil in, and continued to cook until the veggies and turkey were browned.  I loved the result, let me know if you do, too!

Spiced Banana "Ice Cream"

Things have gone pretty well this week (except for a mishap with non-pastured bacon).  But, by Saturday night I was pretty ready for a treat.  I was really tempted to break out the AIP-friendly coconut, but knew my gut wouldn't be happy tomorrow morning (it doesn't know that coconut is supposed to be ok for me).  So I added tigernut and waterchestnut flours to my Amazon bag to be purchased tbd and decided to try banana ice cream.  I started simple:

2 bananas
1 tsp cinnamon

When blended it tasted delicious.  I wanted to be a little more adventurous and, since I probably wouldn't have time for treats for awhile, I tried the following:

3 Bananas (brown)
1 T Cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1.5 tsp orange infused raw honey

1. Blend ingredients until smooth (unless you like banana chunks in your ice cream!).
2. Place in ice cream maker for 10 minutes.

***This is REALLY spiced.***

I had some techinical issues with the ice cream maker because the batch wasn't big enough to freeze well and it was really thick.  So, I added the juice from half an orange and tried again.  But, some of the "ice cream" had already frozen to the bottom and sides and prevented the interior arm from moving freely.  So, until I can find a version that isn't so thick I will just stick it right in the freezer after blending.  A machine-worthy version will have to be my next test.

Happy (almost) Sunday!

D-day

Today is day one of my official AIP journey. Over the last couple months I listened to my body and eliminated foods I struggled with. My problem foods I discovered that are allowed on AIP included coconut and a couple later stage foods like dried fruit (😞 dates) and tapioca flour. So, I've given up the baking for now, but keep hope alive. It won't be forever. 

So, the plan is to live the next twenty one days on strict AIP (and mostly low FODMAP) and then listen to what my body needs. I hope it will be ready for me to reintroduce some foods, but I'll just have to wait and see. I was telling my nutritionist last night that I can feel my body reacting to just the idea of certain foods which has been a great guide and the impetus for this push. And I know most (probably all) of my binge eating is stress-related. So I am also working on de-stressing my life and teaching myself to react well to stressful situations. In the past I did not struggle with stress the way I do now, but I think I used up my quota of even keeled me during my son's hospital stays and weaning from his feeding tube. It was the winter we got him off the tube that my body first turned on me. After stressful situations (like getting the whining children out the door to James's school) I am just exhausted which is a key indicator of adrenal fatigue so, that's still there. So...here goes!

So what did I eat for breakfast today?

How does that look?  😄 It tasted fantastic and I was proud of the amount of veggies, fat, and salt I was able to get into it. The base is stripped pumpkin (stringy, although ours didn't look as much like spaghetti this time, more like rice) that I tossed with boiled kale, grilled broccoli, and pork fat. This was a "leftover" breakfast so the veggies were previously cooked and really easy to throw together and pair with our simple sausage. I love playing around with these stir-fry-type dishes. 

When my husband bakes the pumpkin last night I jumped at the chance to purée it. I'm sad that I can't enjoy all the yummy pumpkin baked goods this fall, but I whipped up a pumpkin dessert last night that was mighty tasty. I don't have a picture but here is the recipe:

Pumpkin Custard

1 cup baked pumpkin

2 tsp grade b maple syrup

1/4 each salt, cinnamon, and vanilla 

1. Place baked pumpkin in food processor and process until well-pureed. 

2. Add the rest of the ingredients and process for another couple minutes to get a more fluffy consistency.

3. Enjoy!

We split this into two small servings so there wasn't sugar-overload. Next time I'll try adding some gelatin and will let you know how it goes. 

Kale Soup and AIP "Fig Newtons"

I am struggling here with the morning routine.  As much as I like James's school, it is really stressful to get everyone dressed, fed, and ready to go to get him to school on time.  Each time I try to break our morning record of three hours to get out the door I fail.  The main problem is the length of breakfast.  Since James only eats purees I have to blend his food and spoon feed him which takes awhile.  I've tried to eat before the kids get up or after they eat so that I can have the time to sit quietly and digest well, but that takes A LONG TIME!!!  I was telling my husband that life would be so much easier if I didn't need to eat breakfast.  I think we'll start making big batches of the plantain pancakes so there is something to grab if I am running late.

In the past I've done well with making big batches of soup that are easy to reheat and quick to consume.    So, I finally kicked myself in the butt and made a batch of my favorite: butternut squash and kale soup. I avoided making this because I love frying butternut squash with my breakfast and didn't want to use up all my squash.  But it is such a nice, easy soup and gives me lots of kale to eat.  I don't eat a lot of greens because I don't really like them cooked and I don't eat them raw (at least not right now).  But, I really like the kale in this soup.  So, here's what you do:

1/2 butternut squash 

5 small stalks kale

4 cups chicken broth or stock

1 tsp salt

Onion (optional)

 2 cloves garlic (optional)

Coconut oil (optional)
Ground or pulled meat (optional) - I like chicken

1. If FODMAPs are not an issue, chop and brown cloves garlic in pot with coconut oil.  Add onion and continue to brown.

2. Add broth to pot, heat on low.

3. Cut butternut squash into small pieces (I use about 1/4 inch) and add to pot, bringing to a boil.

4. Rip pieces of kale off the stalk and add to boiling stock.

5. Cook until squash and kale are tender to your liking (about 10 minutes).

6. Add tsp salt.

7. Serve and enjoy!

Remember those baked goods I whipped up Sunday?  Here is the first (and most successful) of the recipes, my AIP "Fig Newtons"!  These got my husband's overwhelming approval and are super easy to make.  AND they don't have any added sugar!

1/3 cup figs (about 5 figs), cut off stem if you like

1/3 cup green apple, chopped in small squares (about 1/2 apple)

1/8 tsp salt

1/4 tsp cinnamon

2 coconut wraps

Coconut oil

1. Cook apples in teaspoon of coconut oil until apples are soft.

2. Place figs and apples in food processor and process until they form a sticky puree.

3. Cut coconut wraps into 4 squares.

4. Once puree is ready, place small amount of fig mixture in center of each coconut wrap square and fold into a diamond shape.  Use a small amount of fix mixture to "glue" the folds together.

5. Place on oiled cookie sheet and bake at 300 degrees for 10 minutes.

6. Let cool to retain shape of coconut wrap.

7. Enjoy!!!

I hope these will lead to easier meal times!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Check out more real food recipes at Kelly the Kitchen Kop's Real Food Wednesdays!

Best Breakfast (for dinner) EVER! Bacon-Wrapped Dates and Green Plantain Pancakes

I really wanted a good brunch yesterday but, since I knew I had baking plans for later in the day, I didn't want to make something with coconut.  I can only handle so much coconut and my body gets really unhappy when I over eat.  So, we did something simple: yummy sausage, baked (delicious) sweet potatoes, and cauliflower.  Really good, but not quite the indulgent breakfast I wanted.  I wanted something truly worthy of maple syrup.  Tonight my husband and I were both pretty pooped and couldn't bring ourselves to make dinner.  So, we waited until 6:30 and went to the store to grab plantains, dates, grade b maple syrup, and uncured bacon.  We came home, got the kids to bed, and had a feast!

After my baking shenanegans yesterday I was more than happy to just follow a recipe (I hope to have my recipes ready for you soon!).  We made bacon-wapped dates (based on this recipe, but we just pitted the dates, wrapped in bacon and baked as recommended) and plantain pancakes.  They were beyond phenomenal.  Seriously, just try it.

Mouthwatering, huh? I went back for seconds and thirds on the pancakes. Luckily, the bacon-wrapped dates are more of a delicacy which meant I only needed a few to be satisfied. Now I can look forward to eating them as a grab and go snack. I hope the leftover pancakes will fall in that category, too.

What To Do With Ground Beef Pt. 2 (AIP, Paleo, Gluten-free, Dairy-free)

We buy a lot of meat in our house and it is always a challenge keeping the cost at a reasonable price. We like to get as much meat as possible from our farmer, but we do buy a substantial portion of meat from the store. We are lucky enough to live two miles from Wegmans where they have a pretty descent organic section. Their ground beef is organic and grass-fed and only costs about $16 for three pounds. That's probably the best you are going to find for beef of that quality. So we buy a lot of it. When I was just avoiding grains it was really easy to grill up some patties, throw on the typical burger toppings and wrap it in lettuce for easy eating. Now that I can't have burger toppings or raw vegetables I I have to be more creative about my ground beef dishes.  My first success was my leek burgers. Recently, I've been craving citrus which has led to kitchen experimentation (stay tuned for my orange muffin recipe). My creativity brought me to a new staple: citrus "noodles" with ground beef and broccoli.

What I like most about this recipe is that it is so easy to throw together. I also love that it is yummy, satisfies my craving for noodles with textured foods, and is super filling. We like to cook veggies and meats in bulk to use throughout the week. So, the ingredients I used are almost all pre-cooked:

1. Pumpkin: cut in half, place open side down on oiled cookie sheet. Cook at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes (for a small pumpkin) or until fork can easily go through skin into flesh. Use for purée or "spaghetti". To get noodle texture, scrape flesh with fork around the diameter of the pumpkin. 

2. Ground beef: make into patties or cook as is. We rarely add spice or zest, other than salt, because it is easy to add later and doesn't limit what we can do with the flavor. 

3. Broccoli: my new favorite is Wegmans' pre-cut bags of fresh organic broccoli. Just open and throw in the pan to sauté or in a pot of water to boil. Super easy I don't even need to cook in bulk.

I throw all these ingredients in a pan with coconut oil to reheat and toss zest of half a lime (or other citrus, I really liked orange, too) on top. Once warm, transfer to plate or bowl and add salt and citrus juice to taste (I used 1/3 of a lime). Yum!  If you aren't worried about FODMAPs this would be delicious with onions and garlic. You can also use a spaghetti squash instead of pumpkin but cook for at least 40 minutes. Strip flesh the same way you would the pumpkin except this squash should be stripped from top to bottom. 

Here's the recipe:

1 pumpkin

1 pound ground beef

1 head broccoli or 1 bag broccoli florets

1 citrus fruit

Coconut oil

1. Cut pumpkin in half, place open side down on oiled cookie sheet. Cook at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes (for a small pumpkin) or until fork can easily go through skin into flesh.

2. Sautee ground beef in pan until cooked.

3. When pumpkin is done, scrape "noodles" by running a fork along the diameter of the pumpkin flesh so it comes out in long strips.

4. Melt T+ of coconut oil in a large pan.  Add broccoli and sautee (or, alternately, you can boil the broccoli).  

5. Zest 1/2 of a citrus fruit (I used lime).

6. Add the pumpkin and zest to the pan with the sauteed broccoli, then add ground beef.  Combine, reheating if necessary.

7. Place in bowl or on plate, juice 1/3 of a small citrus fruit over the dish.

8. Enjoy!

What do you think? Do you have a favorite AIP-friendly ground beef recipe?

This recipe was posted at "Real Food Wednesdays."  Check it out for other great ideas. 

"Latte"

I spent some time yesterday with a wonderful group of women who also strive to live a healthy lifestyle.  It was much needed because I've been struggling with the limitations of my diet.  It is really encouraging to be with people who are so supportive and understanding and so fun to try all the scrumptious goodies people bring to share!  I made a mashed sweet potato dish that I need to tweak a little more before posting - coming soon!

I think this is turning into "squash" week.  One of my favorite treats yesterday was a totally coffee, milk-free latte.  It was a brilliant idea: apple cider, pumpkin puree, and coconut milk.  Super yummy!  They were served in adorable espresso cups and made me feel like a super-normal coffee drinker!  :D  Sometimes I think the presentation is just as important as the way something tastes.  It really "enhances" an enjoyable food experience.  I made my own variation this morning with what I had on hand:

1/3 cup apple cider
1/3 cup butternut squash puree
1/3 cup leftover coconut "milk" (mostly water)
cinnamon to taste

I heated all three on the stove at a low temperature until well combined, poured into a mud, and sprinkled the top with cinnamon.  This made enough to almost fill a regular-size mug.  Next time I'll use an espresso cup to limit my fructose consumption.  I should just need a little bit to make me happy in the morning!

The latte yesterday with pumpkin puree and true coconut milk was much better.  Hopefully I'll be able to make a "real" one soon!