Month: February 2017

Taking it easy – February 20, 2017

I love escaping the pace of NYC every now and then. The non-stop nature of the city keeps the cycle of have more, do more, be more constantly flowing. Southern California allows a step away from that pace. A calm retreat into beautiful things – including the nicest mall I’ve ever visited. There was even a Snoopy with a gold crown on his head!


Another great perk of our visits is getting to see my sister’s band perform. We haven’t seen them since July, and they’ve gone into high gear since then and are absolutely killing it! Check out Cillian’s Bridge website.

 

 

 

 

Matt joining the band 🙂

 

 

As it relates to food, trying new things is a way of taking it easy for me.  Especially when I have access to a kitchen double the size of mine 🙂

Blistered Shishito Peppers

Serves 2 as appetizer

Ingredients

1/2 lb. of shishito peppers – about 15 – 20 peppers

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. coarse ground sea salt

Juice of half a lemon

Directions

Heat olive oil in a wok or deep frying pan (the oil may splash as the peppers are cooking)

Add peppers and cook for 3 – 5 minutes per side or until the peppers have softened and started to blister

Remove from heat and toss with lemon juice and salt

Serve while hot

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California Surprise – February 18, 2017

We traveled to Southern California on our break from school and work to relax in the warm, sunny weather with my sister. Instead we joined her for the worst storm in at least 6 years, but possibly going back to 2004! We are certainly making the most of it – cooking, shopping, creating art projects.  Matt and my sister created a planet of vegetable “good guys” and “bad guys” followed by a planet of dairy characters while we lunched at the most amazing gluten-free meal I’ve had in ages at True Food Kitchen.

Gluten-free Hummus, Gluten-free PitaAs we didn’t want to leave the house in the storm again, we made boiled lobster tail and kale and quinoa on the side for dinner.  I’ll share both recipes below. The lobster tail was a new one for us, so we had to experiment a bit; it turned out great!

Boiled lobster tail

Boiled Lobster Tail

Serves 2

Ingredients

2 lobster tails, frozen

6 cups of water

1 tsp. salt

1/4 cup butter

Juice of 1 lemon

Directions

Bring the water to a boil, adding salt at the start

Add butter and lemon to the water as it starts to boil

Place frozen lobster tails in the water and cook for 10 – 12 minutes, until the lobster meat is whitening

Place lobster tails on a cutting board and cut down the center to peel off the shell

Serve with extra butter for dipping on the side if desired

Low-FODMAP Kale and Quinoa Side Dish

Serves 2 – 4

Ingredients

1 bunch of kale, chopped

1 cup quinoa

1 1/2 cups chicken broth (always confirm this does not contain onion and garlic)

~10 cherry tomatoes, sliced in half

1 egg

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1 tsp. butter

1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

2 tsp. salt

Directions

Rinse quinoa and place in rice cooker with chicken stock and 1 tsp. of salt

Once the quinoa has been cooking for 10 minutes or so, add the butter and olive oil to a frying pan heating on medium heat

Add cherry tomatoes and 1 tsp. of salt to the frying pan

Add the kale to the frying pan and cook until the kale is softened and has halved in size in the pan

Crack an egg in the frying pan and stir until cooked into the mix

Stir in the quinoa and parmesan cheese

  kale, quinoa and egg

Serve as a side dish or on its own for a nice weekday lunch!

    

Healthy Appetite – February 6, 2017

I have a healthy appetite.  I always have, but the downside of that is that I can get really grumpy when not eating enough!  I remember the first time my family started to understand it – I was about 5 or 6 and the flower girl at my aunt’s wedding.  I remember starting to cry, and my mom ran around looking for something I could eat while we waited for photos to finish.  Carrots saved the day then, and they’ll save the day today as well!

The last thing I want at work is to snap at someone because I’m “hangry”, so I try to make healthy snacks to bring for the day.  Check out the FODMAP-friendly Carrot and Ginger Muffin recipe below! This recipe calls for greek yogurt, if some dairy isn’t part of your low-FODMAP diet, you can substitute coconut milk or cream.

Also – don’t forget to follow me on Instagram if you’re not already (@FODMom).  You can find great low-FODMAP and gluten-free eats in NYC as well as great recipes 🙂

Low-FODMAP Carrot and Ginger Muffins Recipe

Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups gluten-free flour (I used King Arthur for the first time and liked it)

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

2 cups peeled and grated carrots (about 3 – 4 medium size carrots)

1 in finely chopped ginger root

1/4 cup roughly chopped walnuts

1/3 cup melted coconut oil

1/2 maple syrup

2 eggs

1 cup plain greek yogurt

1 tsp vanilla

1 tbsp white sugar for sprinkling on top of the muffins before baking

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Grease muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray or coconut oil.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, ginger and nutmeg.  Mix well, ensuring no lumps remain in the flour mix.

Add the grated carrots and chopped walnuts to the flour mix and stir to combine.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the coconut oil and maple syrup; beat together with electric beaters.  Add the eggs and beat well until the consistency is smooth and thick.  Add the yogurt and vanilla, mixing well to combine.

Slowly pour the wet ingredients into the dry, combining until smooth (aside from walnut and carrot pieces).

Divide the batter between the 12 muffin cups.  Sprinkle the white sugar on top.  Bake for 10 – 12 minutes, or until the muffins are golden on top and cooked through the center.

Allow muffins to cool before serving.

Enjoy 🙂