Spring ahead

Spring rolls tend to be a go-to snack in our house. They also help celebrate our pending spring, eating lighter and satisfying snacking cravings in a healthy way. Rice paper rounds are available in the international section of the grocery store. They're easy to use; I just wet each one with warm water as I'm getting ready to use it, fill it, and roll it.  A quick internet search can show you how to roll them if you're not sure. The finished rolls can get sticky if they're left out too long...but this usually isn't a problem for us :)

Our typical filling includes avocado and shredded carrot. Sometimes I add cabbage or kale, asparagus, herbs, or other veggies. Many people add noodles to theirs, and some add meat or shrimp. It depends on what you like and what you have on hand. With just cold veggies, it's a quick and nutritious snack...and gluten-free, too.

You can make your own dipping sauce or use a store-bought Asian salad dressing (like I often do). They're so fun to dip and surprisingly filling. Happy Spring!

Squashed mac & cheese

I was looking for recipes on Spark People and was inspired by this one for butternut squash macaroni and cheese. It seemed like a great way to get an extra veggie into a dish and also lighten up a traditionally high-fat - but very comforting - meal. I decided to make the recipe for Mother's Day dinner with the family but couldn't find butternut squash anywhere. Not even frozen. But I did find a spaghetti squash so I bought that and figured I'd try adapting the recipe to suit. The end result turned out better than I expected and everyone loved the dish. Here's what I did:

First to cook the squash, I cut it in a half, pierced the skin and baked it in a shallow amount of water in the oven until it is soft and browned. You can find lots of ways to cook a squash online including video tutorials.

Then I scooped out the flesh of the squash with a spoon. It does look a bit like spaghetti but more like thin rice noodles. I put the squash in a strainer to drain the liquid off while I prepared the rest of the dish.

I cooked macaroni (gluten-free for my mom & sister) and some frozen peas for colour and put that aside, too. Then in a big pot, I combined some milk, nutmeg, cayenne pepper, crushed garlic and some shredded cheddar cheese. You could use more or less of any ingredient as you wish. More cheese is always yummy but also not as healthy so I tried to strike a balance and used about a cup. I wish I had used sharp or old cheddar cheese because I think the flavour would have been better. So I'll make sure to do that next time!

The macaroni and squash was stirred around with the mixture in the pot until it was all combined and gooey. I put the mixture into a casserole dish and topped with some shredded parmesan cheese. You could top with breadcrumbs, too, if you'd like that crunch.

Then I baked the whole thing for about 30 mins until it was bubbly and browned. When served, you couldn't tell the melted cheese from the squash strands and the squash's taste wasn't detectable. Next time, maybe I will try to up the healthy (and protein) factor by combining some soft tofu in with the cheese mixture. This would also be a great dish for a pot luck & would freeze well. There will definitely be a next time for this dish!

FEASt Fest 2012

The big event is happening tomorrow: Saturday, April 14 2012. Come on down to City Hall to the Foran Room (10 New Gower St., St. John's NL) starting at 11am for some great local and fresh food, a seed swap, kids' activities and lots of information on local food and growing.

I've participated in FEASt Fest for a few years now and know it's well worth having a look-see. I'm making a few gluten-free yummies for tomorrow's event and, though I haven't been hands on with the planning, I know all the FEASt volunteers will do a great job again this year!

I'm going to help out as much as I can but this year I'm also a patron as I look for info on starting a food garden for our family. I can't wait for our little girl to start eating solid food and hope that some of that food can come straight from our own labour in the back yard. 

To find out more visit FEASt's website.

Raw

I'm a member and volunteer of FEASt (Food Education Action St. John's) and we're gearing up for a big event/fundraiser next month. There will be local food, gardening and kids activities, and lots of like-minded people. We'll be cooking up lunch for the masses in a church kitchen with industrial ovens and dishwashers. It'll be tons of fun! Last year, I helped prepare more roasted carrots, potatoes and parsnips than I had ever seen before! And I learned a great quinoa beet salad recipe.

In preparation of the event and all that cooking and food, I've been thinking about simple food and recipes which incorporate lots of veggies and/or raw ingredients. I'll post about the event for sure. In the meantime, here are some resources:

Gone Raw has lots of delicious food pictures with recipes to boot.

Kristen's Raw site is a personal blog of foodie and cookbook author Kristen Suzanne. It contains a huge supply of recipes, tips and tricks for cooking organic, vegan, and raw.

My Real Food Life is a blog from a fellow Canadian who aims to cook gluten free, soy free, corn free and egg free.Plus the food pictures are stunning.

FSN is the site for the Food Security Network of Newfoundland and Labrador.

If you live on the Northeast Avalon of Newfoundland and Labrador (like I do), the Northeast Avalon Regional Economic Development Board will be soon launching a guide to local food producers complete with a Buy Local! Buy Fresh! map.

Stir fry: kinda like a warm salad

 I'm not a huge fan of stir fry, to tell the truth, but it's a good option when you need something quick and healthy for dinner. All you need is a big fry pan (or wok), some garlic, ginger, salt and pepper -- and whatever veggies and base you'd like. The main thing to remember is to cook everything in order. Start with your aromatics (eg. onion or garlic) and saute them for a little bit until they sweat. Then add meat and/or veggies starting with whatever will take the longest to cook first.

For this particular stir fry, for example, I added broccoli first and cooked that for a little bit. When it started to get darker green and softer, I added mushrooms and stirred everything around. Then I added green beans because they take the least amount of time to cook (especially if you like them a little crunchy like I do!).

 Then you add a dash of salt and pepper and serve on top of your base. You can use noodles, rice, add some beans or chickpeas, or have just the mixture on its own. I added some nuts on top and threw in some pre-cooked chicken and served the whole thing on top of rice.

 

So try this quick and easy dish next time you're in a rush. It's also way to make use of leftovers or odds and ends in your fridge you need to use up soon. Try experimenting with sauces, herbs and other flavouring...just be careful of sugar-heavy pre-made sauces out there. Add raisins, nuts, or sprouts. And if you keep your ingredients to real food you can adapt this recipe for many diets like low carb, diabetic, gluten free, vegan, etc. Essentially it's a warm salad that you can adapt however you'd like.

Throw it all together (in order of course!) and enjoy!

So so so sweet potato crisp

It's holiday pot luck season and I've found a new go-to dish to cart along to parties. It's a crowd pleaser, gluten free, vegetarian (though not vegan) and easy to whip together. It's part dessert and part side-dish so it's perfect for any type of get-together. And there's seasonal ingredients so it'll put you and the guests in the right mood for some holiday cheer.

What you'll need:
8 oz cream cheese
1 can sweet potato (or about 2 medium cooked sweet potatoes)
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 apple (I used Granny Smith), cut into small cubes
2/3 cups cranberries
1/2 cup flour (I used rice flour to make this gluten free)
1/2 cup oats (old fashioned, not cooked)
1/3 cup butter/margarine (softened)
1/4 cup pecans (optional)

What to do:
1) Heat oven to 350 F

2) Beat cream cheese, potato, 1/4 cup brown sugar and the cinnamon in a blender or food processor until combined and smooth. Pout into a casserole dish (1 1/2 qt) and top with cranberries and apple pieces.


3) Mix together the flour, oats and remaining sugar with the butter. Use your fingers to mix it all up until the mixture is crumbly. Stir in nuts and sprinkle the crumbs over the dish.

4) Bake, covered, for 30-35 mins until heated through and golden brown.

I would suggest experimenting with this too because pears or pomegranate seeds sound awfully good too! And I didn't have pecans so I used peanuts and it worked out well.

If you're making this ahead of time for a party, you can bake it and cool it down before refrigerating. When you're at the party, put the dish in the oven again to re-heat and away you go!

Awesome chocolate cake

It's flourless and has an unexpected ingredient...chickpeas. But try it before you scoff 'cause it's awesome! Part cake, part brownie and 100% gluten free (for my sister's birthday). If you cut the cake into 10 slices, each serving is 3 Weight Watchers points and South Beach Diet friendly. It could even be 100% vegan and diabetic friendly if substitutions were made. And if you made two it would be a great layer cake.

Perhaps the BEST part is that this cake is so easy to make.

1C semi sweet chocolate chips
2C chickpeas
4 eggs (or 1C egg substitute)
2 tsp vanilla
1 C brown sugar (or splenda granular for baking)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
cooking spray
coco powder

Melt chocolate chips in the microwave in 30 second increments until melted. In a blender or food processor, combine chickpeas and eggs until smooth. Add chocolate, vanilla, salt, baking powder, and sugar. I added about 2Tbs coco powder for some extra omph. Spray a 9" cake pan (spring-form works really well) with cooking spray and add the batter. For extra non-stick protection, dust the greased pan with coco powder or line with parchment paper. Bake the cake at 350F for 45 minutes. The top will crack a little but it won't sink like most flourless cakes. The texture will be brownie-like and still slightly gooey in the middle.

You can serve it with whipped cream, ice cream, berries, chocolate sauce...the possibilities are endless. One blog