Fun Find

Lily's Chocolate

Today's post isn't a recipe, but it was such a great find for me that I had to share.  I found these chocolate bars at Whole Foods, they also come in milk chocolate with salted almonds and several varieties of dark chocolate (I didn't buy any of those though, I'm not really a dark chocolate fan).  These are NOT sweetened with the typical malitol you find in other no sugar added chocolates.  Malitol has issues with causing gas and diarrhea if you eat too much, or even if you don't eat too much sometimes.  This is sweetened with Stevia and Erythritol so no worries about later paying for that candy bar you ate.

Berry Smoothie - Grain Free/Sugar Free/Dairy Free

Berry Smoothie

 Tired of eggs for breakfast?  Here's something different.  

1 cup coconut milk - the carton kind not the one from a can.  You can also use almond milk or regular whole milk.  
1/2 C frozen strawberries
1/4 C frozen blueberries

Pour all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  You can add sugar substitute to taste if this is too tart.

Calories:  89, 13 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams fiber.  If you need to cut the carbs down a bit, you can use 3/4 C strawberries and skip the blueberries, this will drop the carbs by 3 and the fiber stays about the same.

Swedish Meatballs - Wheat Free/Grain Free/Sugar Free - can be made dairy free

Swedish Meatballs

Many people are in a dilemma about starting a grain free, sugar free diet because their families aren't quite ready to join them.  Here's one of my recipes that can be adapted for people who aren't following a grain free or low carb diet. 

This has been my kids' favorite recipes and originally I assumed it was off my list of dinners because it has wheat in the meatballs and used canned mushroom soup.  But I have recreated it without those ingredients.

1 portion meatballs - around 25 meatballs or around 1/3 of the entire recipe from here:

1/2 onion, cut into slices/strips

2 t butter or olive oil

1 C chicken broth - either homemade or in a carton or can or reconstituted bouillon

1/2 t xanthan gum

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 C sour cream - if dairy free, use dairy free sour cream substitute - it works well in this recipe.

1-2 zucchini per person who is not grain free (if making this grain free for the entire recipe, use 5-6 zucchini)

1/2 C dried egg noodles per person who is not grain free

Make meatballs from the recipe here:

Instead of boiling the meatballs, once they are formed, bake them in the oven at 350, turning occasionally until cooked through.  This will make a large enough batch for 3-4 family sized dinners, so freeze the leftovers.  If you are making dairy free, skip the Parmesan cheese.

If you are making this for people who are not grain free also, use egg noodles and as they boil, just stick your zucchini noodles in a steamer on top of the boiling noodles - yours can cook right along with theirs and will actually finish first.

To make the egg noodle substitute, peel 1-2 zucchini, then using the peeler, keep peeling off egg noodle sized strips.  Place them in a steamer basket or a metal colander over the top of the regular egg noodles as they boil.

Meanwhile, saute onion in olive oil or butter.  As soon as it browns, add chicken broth and xanthan gum.  Stir until the xanthan gum is completely incorporated.  Add meatballs and salt and pepper the broth to taste.  Bring to a boil, covered.  Once boiling, uncover and continue cooking until gravy thickens.  Add sour cream and serve.  Pictured below is just before adding sour cream.

 Calories (using zucchini) - around 150, 3 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram fiber.

For those of you who are curious, adding 1 C cooked regular egg noodles, adds around 200 calories.  That may convince a few family members to eat the wheat free version instead :)

Baba Gannouj - Wheat Free/Grain Free/Dairy Free/Sugar Free

Baba Gannouj

This has a very similar taste to Hummus, so if you can't have hummus, this is the perfect substitute.  This can be used as a dip for veggies or a sauce for meats and if you've ever had Schwarma, this is the typical sauce used on that.

1 eggplant
1/4 C Tahini sauce
1 t cumin
1 T lemon juice
1 T olive oil

This can also be easily doubled for a larger group.  Spear the eggplant with a knife about every 2-3 inches all around.  Wrap in tin foil and grill on a barbecue or under a broiler until the insides are completely gooey.  Scoop them out, trying to leave behind as much of the peel as possible, but don't worry if you get some in the sauce - too much will make it bitter though.
Put it in a blender or food processor with the other ingredients and blend until smooth.  This will thicken up once refrigerated and is served either hot or cold.


Calories for the whole recipe:  423, 31.5 grams carbohydrates, 19 grams fiber.  For 1-2 T serving size:  42 calories, 3 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber.

Hummus - Wheat Free/Grain Free/Dairy Free/Sugar Free

Hummus

Hummus is a traditional Middle Eastern dish, made in pretty much every country from Egypt to Turkey.  Many people in that area have it as a side dish at least every day, sometimes several times a day.  It's a staple in many countries.  It's often served with flat bread (pitas) but for those of us who are skipping wheat, can also be used as a dip with veggies or as a condiment with meats.

The main ingredient is chick peas, also called garbanzo beans, and if these aren't allowed on your diet, or are too high in carbs, look for a similar recipe tomorrow, that can be used the same way, but uses eggplant as it's basis instead of the chick peas.

1 C - about half the recipe from yesterday - of Tahini sauce

2 - 16 oz cans chick peas

1 T cumin

juice of 1 lemon (around 1/4 C)

Around 4 oz olive oil

Put the chick peas and Tahini sauce in a blender or food processor.  Add lemon juice and cumin and blend until smooth.  Slowly drizzle the olive oil as you blend until the hummus becomes smooth and almost fluffy.  This is similar to making home made mayo if you've ever done that before, the olive oil gives it a mayo like consistency as it's drizzled in and blended.

Serve with veggies or as a condiment.

For a 1-2 T serving - 256 calories, 13.5 grams carbohydrates, 4 grams fiber

Tahini Sauce - Wheat Free/Grain Free/Dairy Free

Tahini Sauce

Despite what you may read elsewhere on the internet, Tahini paste and Tahini sauce (which are also called Tahina paste and sauce) are actually two different things.  Tahini paste is 100% sesame seeds, just ground up like peanut butter and it usually has that same consistency - look for the kind that has a layer of oil on top and a thick paste at the bottom.  That means it probably doesn't have any added water or other stuff.

Tahini sauce on the other hand, it made from Tahini paste and is used an ingredient in a number of Middle Eastern recipes such as Hummus and Baba Gannouj - recipes for both of these to come.  But my favorite way to use it is just plain as a salad dressing.  Really, try it, it's yummy.

Recipe:
16 oz tahini paste
1/2 C lemon juice
2 t salt
1 t oregano
1 T garlic powder (powder actually is best here, actual minced garlic clove can make this grainy)
1 t tabasco sauce - but you can also use any kind of pepper juice and adjust it to your taste or just leave it out if you're not find of spicy stuff
3/4 C water - adjust until this is the right consistency

Put all ingredients in a blender or food processor and process until smooth.

For a 2-3 T size serving - 200 calories, 3.6 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber

Sugar Free Whipped Cream - Wheat Free/Grain Free/Sugar Free

Sugar Free Whipped Cream

If you've never made your own whipped cream before, you are in for a treat, it's so much better than the stuff in the freezer section of your grocery store!  And it's simple to make if you have a stand mixer.

1/2 C heavy cream - also labeled as whipping cream
1/2 t vanilla
2 t swerve or a few drops of liquid stevia

This recipe can be increased for a large group.  This also whips up quickest if you have the cream, the bowl and the beater attachment(s) all cold when you start.  Put the cream in the mixing bowl of a stand mixer and using the whisk attachment (if you don't have a stand mixer, or a wire attachment, don't worry, you can do this with a hand mixer and regular beaters, it's just quicker if you do have these items).  Beat on medium until the cream just starts to thicken and then turn it to the highest setting.  Whip just until you see patterns forming in the cream and check.  Keep whipping until stiff peaks form in the cream.  If you continue beating much past this point you'll have butter.  Turn the mixer off and add vanilla and sweetener.  Mix again just until the sweetener and vanilla are combined and serve.

If you are making some for people who do not want sugar free, you can increase the cream, whip until stiff, then remove part of the recipe, add the sweetener, put in a separate bowl and return the unsweetened portion and add 2 t sugar and 1/2 t vanilla to every 1/2 C cream you used, and follow the final instructions, mixing until just combined - that way you will have some regular and some sugar free from the same batch of cream.

Makes enough for several dollops of topping or enough to cover the top of a regular sized pie.  Entire recipe - 200 calories, 2 grams carbohydrates (no fiber).