Browsing Tag

dairy-free

My Daily Kitchen

Jazz up Quinoa!

May 18, 2015
  1. I love, love, love white rice, but bleached, white rice is not the healthiest way to go, especially for those with nsulin resistance, or worse, diabetes.

Quinoa to the rescue!  (pronounced Keen-wah.) Oh, Quinoa … let me count the ways and the whys that I love thee!

Being technically a seed, Quinoa  is free of gluten. Not only that, it’s packed with 5 grams of fiber, which makes it a healthier carbohydrate choice for low-carb. eaters.  It also has a good amount of protein and it’s full of nutrients like manganese, magnesium, phosphorus, B-vitamins, and more. Quinoa is simply a super easy, super-food!

Preparing Basic Quinoa is as easy as… rice!

  1. Fill a pot with 2 parts water to 1 part quinoa (for example, 2 cups of water to 1 cup of rinsed Quinoa.  Most purchased quinoa s already rinsed for you, but if it does not specify rinsed on the packaging, then rinse).
  2. Bring water and quinoa to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer.
  3. Cover with a good lid, and walk away for 15-20 minutes.  When the seeds “pop,” your quinoa is cooked!
  4. You may leave the lid on. You do not need to refrigerate right away.

Here are a few tricks I like to use for jazzing up my Quinoa side dishes.

  1. Adding a small portion of rice makes a big difference in the “fluff” factor and also make this more expensive food item last a bit longer.  This little tip is also  great for kid,s like mine, who have grown up where rice is a staple at most meals.  They can be used to the texture and resistant to eating the healthier seed.Here is what I do: I sneak in 1 part rice to 3 parts Quinoa. You can use more or less according to your liking & also your pocketbook, but I use about 1/4 cup white rice to 3/4 cup Quinoa. Because the two ingredients are cooked in the same manner, you don’t need to do anything special. Your Quinoa will come out fluffier, and you and your eaters will enjoy all the health benefits of a healthy carb. without the guilt!
    image

    3 parts quinoa to 1 part white rice.

    Note:  If you prefer to mix your Quinoa with whole-grain, brown rice, simply add the Quinoa to your pot 15 minutes before the brown rice is cooked to completion. Par boiled brown rice cooks up in about the same time as white rice, but whole grain, uncooked brown rice can take as long as 40 minutes! Quinoa never takes that long, so be aware of the timing.

  2. For Super Healthy Quinoa, chop a small head, or half of a large head, of cauliflower in a food processor until the cauliflower bits are the size of large bread crumbs.When your Quinoa/Rice is 3 – 5 minutes from completion, just add a cup or a cup and a half of chopped cauliflower right on top, replace the lid, and let the cauliflower steam up with the rice/quinoa mixure!  Once your stove is off, and your quinoa/rice has sat a few minutes, you can mix gently with a spoon to fully incorporate all the ingredients.
    Note: Your children will not notice the cauliflower, as you can see in the photo!

    image

    Quinoa w/1/4 rice & lots of cauliflower!

  3. Jazz up the flavor by cooking  your quinoa or quinoa/rice in stock. Use chicken for meat-
    eaters, or vegetable for the non-meat eaters!
  4. Add 1 or 2 whole teeth of garlic to your liquid, and remove when the dish is cooked.
  5. Go ahead and experiment, adding other, colorful chopped vegetables to your dish. When  using carrots or longer-cooking veggies, just add them 1o minutes into the cooking so they have enough time to steam up to a softer texture.
  6. Store your cooked Quinoa or Rice/Quinoa in the fridge. Then heat up when you need it. I like to warm it for breakfast and serve with a poached egg on top.
  7. Treat it as if it were rice. Below, Quinoa with 1/4 white rice & Cauliflower, Prawns in Ghee with garlic & lemon, on salad.

    image

    Quinoa w/1/4 rice, 1/3 cauliflower; Prawns sauteed in ghee w/garlic & lemon, atop a salad.

 

 

My Daily Kitchen

Zingy, Savory Zucchini Pancakes

May 2, 2015

imageThis recipe is not like my prior, Vegan Zucchini Cakes. This one is really a pancake.
These pancakes are without dairy, gluten and low in fat. They are also vegetarian and what I call “almost Vegan.” They have eggs and a little milk. I personally no qualms about eggs,  but only because I have access to really good backyard eggs where the hens roam and peck happily for hours.  Also, I know some of the dairy farms that supply the milk I purchase. 

For this recipe, I used a handy,Gluten-Free mix and a touch of Butter Substitute, pictured below.
Feel free to use your favorite products.

imageimage

Recipe

1 Cup Grated Zucchini (I shredded one large zucchini with a hand grater.)
1 Onion, finely diced
4 Eggs
1 Cup Gluten-Free Pancake Mix (you can add a little more later if the batter is too loose).
Salt & Pepper to taste
6 Small drops of Sriracha Sauce (hardly noticeable, even to kids, but adds a bit of zing).
1 Tsp.  lemon juice (no more ) .

Mix above ingredients together until well blended.
Now, slowly add some milk starting with a half cup. Go Slowly! Use only enough until you achieve the desired consistency of your batter for pouring or spooning a regular batter into a hot pan.
TIP: If you added too much, don’t worry — just sprinkle in a bit more flour mix!

  • Pour or ladle into a hot pan or griddle prepared with either a Butter Substitute or Olive Oil.
  • Immediately reduce heat to medium-low.
  • Cook several minutes on the first side, until the uncooked side is bubbling and you can flip the cake without the uncooked portion sliding or spilling.Top with a dab of Butter Substitute and devour!