B'tay Avon!

One of my favorite parts of living in Israel was the food - fresh hot pita from the bakery, savory juicy shwarma carved right in front of you, creamy hummus at every meal and crispy falafel covered in tahini sauce and salads/veggies. I've tried to recreate as many of those foods as I can on my own, and when I can't, I simply head over to any local Middle Eastern restaurant and indulge my craving. 

Since I've been on this Standard Elimination Diet (SED); however, it's not that simple. I can't eat anything from a restaurant, on the off-chance that it's been contaminated by something that will cause me to flare. Usually, I've found that nightshades are the culprit, as paprika, red pepper flakes, and cayenne are used very often as a spice...especially in falafel. Who knew!? 

I did find a recipe, though, that allowed me to adapt falafel to my SED, and when I paired it with some homemade hummus (coming in another post) and tahini sauce, it really hit the spot. Now, it's definitely nowhere near as good as my favorite falafel stand in the middle of Mahane Yehuda market in Jerusalem (chetzi eish t'nor em chips, hummus, tahini, v'kol h'salateem, b'vakasha!) but it was pretty dang good. Even the threenager liked it - never mind the fact that we had to agree that it was a Spongebob crabby patty. He ate it, and that's what counts! 

 

Falafel Burger 

adapted from Healthy Girl's Kitchen 

Ingredients: 

2-3 large garlic cloves
Packed ½ cup fresh parsley
Packed ½ cup fresh cilantro
½ cup scallions, rough chopped
2 14.5 ounce cans chickpeas  rinsed and drained-reserving at least 2 TBS of the liquid
1 cup rolled oats (I used flaxseed meal for allergies, which worked nicely!)
2 ½ TBS fresh lemon juice
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 ½ tsp ground coriander
1 tsp salt (I would leave this out, as it made it too salty)
¼ tsp pepper

Optional: red pepper flakes for heat 

Instructions: 

Using your food processor, chop garlic, parsley, cilantro and scallions until fine.

Add in everything else, and process, but be careful not to over process into a paste. It's good for their to be texture differences, but yet you want it to be able to hold patty forms. If it's too dry, add in a little bit of the reserved chickpea liquid.

Transfer the mixture into a bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Heat a nonstick skillet on medium-high until hot, and form patties while you wait. You can either dry fry them until crispy, or use a little bit of EVOO. Place patties into the pan and cook for about 5 minutes per side, until browned.

Notes: Veggie burgers can be served immediately or refrigerated for up to a week. Simply reheat them in a pan, a toaster or a microwave before serving.

Alex and I thought these tasted best when you added a little more crunch/texture to them. Serve with cucumbers, lettuce, Israeli salad, or any other toppings that you enjoy!

Tahini Sauce 

Ingredients:

¼ cup tahini
2 Tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, pressed
2 Tbsp water
Dash of salt (optional)

Instructions: 

Combine everything in a bowl and mix well. Store in the fridge until ready to serve. 

Taste the rainbow

 

 

I love this dish, not only because it's easy and delicious, but it's also so dang pretty. I love all the bright colors from the carrots, kale, curry, and turmeric. The flavors are a bit sweet, a bit sour and a little bit spicy, and it's a great side dish for chicken or fish.

 

This one is SED friendly, and now it's also Kosher for Passover friendly! Alex and I love it, and I've made this about 6 times in the past few months. As long as you have the quinoa pre-cooked and ready to go, it will take about 15 minutes to throw it all together. Normally, it calls for almonds, but I was all out, so I used cashews. They got a little too soft and lost their crunch, so stick with almonds when you make this. And you should make this! Look how pretty it is!

 

Moroccan Quinoa Pilaf

adapted from Nourishing Meals

Ingredients:

2 to 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
4 carrots, sliced into rounds
1 cup raw almonds, chopped
½ cup currants or raisins
1 ½ to 2 teaspoons mild curry powder
½ teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon ground cardamom (I never have this, so I just leave it out)
4 cups chopped kale
4 to 5 cups cooked and cooled quinoa
1 small lemon, juiced

Instructions:

Heat a large over medium heat. Add olive oil, then add the chopped onions. Sauté onions for 4 to 5 minutes. Then add the sliced carrots and sauté for about 10 minutes more. Keep the heat at a medium temp to allow the onions to cook but not brown.

 

Add the almonds, raisins, spices, and salt and sauté 5 minutes more. Add the kale. Sauté about 5 minutes, or until kale is tender. Then add cooked quinoa and stir together over low heat. Add a few tablespoons of water if the pilaf seems dry. An extra tablespoon of oil will also help prevent the quinoa from sticking to the pan.

Remove from heat and add the juice of the lemon. Stir together, taste, and adjust salt and seasonings if needed.

 

Mean Mommy?

This dairy free business is HARD. But, to make it even harder, I have now reduced my gluten intake, too...moving from gluten-lite to gluten-free over the next week. So far, no difference in my skin, but I'm ever hopeful. Sigh.

 

Curing a sweet tooth when you're off dairy and gluten is an exercise in frustration. "Oooooh...cookies! Oh, right..." (incidentally, Oreos do not contain any actual dairy. Gross or awesome? You decide). "Score! Froyo!....DAMMIT."

 

So where else do I turn, but Pinterest. This banana "ice cream" has been out there for a while, but I haven't ever been able to make it because we go through bananas at an alarming rate in this house. The kiddo would happily eat a banana for every meal if we let him, and for this dessert concoction, the bananas have to be just past edible-ripe. But our bananas never make it that far. So...mommy had to be sneaky and hide bananas. Mean? Maybe...but I got some dessert out of it at least. 

 

It's really really good! You can dress it up however you prefer, but I like it with just a bit of peanut butter and a few chocolate chips (non-dairy, of course).

 

 

 

Banana Ice Cream

Ingredients:

1-2 ripe bananas

Optional additions: peanut butter, nuts, chocolate chips

 

Instructions:

Slice bananas and lay them flat on a tray/plate to freeze slightly - just about an hour. Any longer, and they won't blend smoothly.

 

Put sliced frozen bananas into your food processer and blend until smooth. Blend in your optional additions and top with chocolate chips.

 

Keep it all to yourself and enjoy!





Who moved my cheese?

Dear Readers, I ask for your strength during this trying time. I've decided to give up dairy for a little while, in order to see if it has any effect on my skin. This decision was not made lightly, as I love ADORE all things dairy, especially cheese, but I need to figure this out. I've suffered from eczema since I was a baby, but in the past 2 years, it's gotten progressively worse. No skin ointment, pill, or moisturizer seems to make any difference, so I decided to look inwards, instead of piling things on outward. Apparently, dairy can be the biggest trigger of eczema outbreaks! You should have seen my face when I read that. Sad Beth. But, if it works, I'm willing to try almost anything. Therefore, the next series of recipes will be mainly dairy-free.

I ventured into the online blogosphere of veganism and some parts of it are scary. "Cheese" sauce made from cashews and yeast? "Milk" from soaked almonds? It was too much. So I started with baby steps, and will taste-test my way through this. I think you'll enjoy my first attempt!

What better place to start with than chocolate? I knew this recipe would be good, as I'd attempted something similar a few years ago as part of the Daring Bakers (I really miss having time for that group!). This was whizzed together quickly with some leftover silken tofu and a stash of incredibly indulgent dark chocolate morsels imported from San Francisco, via mother-in-law. The end result was amazingly rich, incredibly decadent and very very satisfying.

Silken Chocolate Tofu Mousse
Adapted from Food.com

Ingredients:
6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips (Generic brands are typically dairy-free, but Nestles and Hersheys are not, so read the labels!)

1 (10 ounce) package firm silken tofu                                                          

1 -2 tablespoon brown sugar or 1 -2 tablespoon honey or 1 -2 tablespoon brown rice syrup, to taste   (I used a splash of vanilla instead)

1 dash nutmeg (I omitted)

1 banana, thinly sliced (optional)

Instructions:
Melt the chocolate chips in a small saucepan or double boiler with a tablespoon of water over medium heat. Or, if you're lazy like me, melt them in a heatproof bowl in the microwave, in 45-second spurts, stirring after each round.

Transfer the melted chocolate to the container of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the tofu and process until smooth. Add the brown sugar, honey, or rice syrup to taste, and sprinkle in the nutmeg. Process again until velvety smooth. Stir in the sliced banana, if desired.

Divide the pudding among 6 dessert cups and chill until needed