Lemon Asparagus Favorite

Mom always fixed this for us and I just ate it for lunch again today and remembered how good it is!

1 lb asparagus, trimmed

1/2 TBSP butter

1/2 TBSP fresh lemon juice

salt, pepper

Boil asparagus uncovered for 5-7 minutes-ish.  Drain water.  Return to pan and toss with butter, lemon juice, salt and pepper.

I basically just boiled the asparagus, drained it, squeezed the juice of half a lemon onto it and sprinkled salt and pepper on it to taste.

Benihana's Ginger Salad Dressing (Gluten Free Style)

4 green onions

1/2 cup olive oil

1/3 cup rice vinegar

2 TBSP water

2 TBSP minced fresh ginger  (im sure you could use dry ginger...just use a little less)

3 stalks celery

2 TBSP ketchup

4 tsp Braggs Liquid Aminos (this is found at the health food store and is a gluten free soy sauce replacement)

2 tsp honey

juice of half a lemon

1/2 tsp minced garlic

1/4 tsp black pepper

Blend all ingredients in blender.

Salt to taste.

High Fructose Syrup Boycott

Its been hard at times to find things to eat that don't have high fructose corn syrup in them.  Most salad dressings do.  I have been on a quest to find a home-made salad dressing recipe that is tasty.  Most that I have tried have been just so-so.  I just made one that I actually really liked.  If you try it, let me know what you think!

Good Seasonings Italian Dressing

1 TBSP garlic powder

1 TBSP onion powder

1 TBSP honey

2 TBSP oregano

1 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp thyme

1 tsp basil

1 tsp parsley

1/4 tsp celery salt

1 TBSP salt

Mix: 

1/4 cup cider vinegar

2/3 cup oil

2 TBSP water

2 TBSP of above dry mix

Shake well and enjoy your high fructose corn syrup free/preservative free dressing!

The original recipe called for 2 TBSP salt but I thought it was too salty so I changed it to 1 TBSP.  It also called for 1 TBSP parsley, maybe if you use fresh parsley, 2 TBSP would be good but if you are using dry parsley 1 tsp is probably enough.

Fresh Mex Quinoa

1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice

3 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 Tbsp B grade maple syrup or honey

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp pepper

garlic powder to taste

1 cup quinoa

2 cups water

1 can black beans, rinsed well

1 cup grape tomatoes (more or less depending on your preference)

4 green onions

1/2-1 cup (ish) chopped fresh cilantro

avodcado

Soak quinoa for at least 15 minutes and then rinse thoroughly. Wisk together lime juice, olive oil, honey, garlic powder, salt and pepper in serving bowl. Add chopped green onions, grape tomatoes, cilantro. Simmer quinoa in water uncovered about 10 minutes. Turn off heat, cover, and let stand 10 minutes. (Strain any excess water). Add quinoa to dressing and toss well, then stir in remaining ingredients.

Fresh Vegetable Soup

This was SO easy!  I really liked it, let me know what you think!

1 tsp olive oil

1/2 sweet yellow onion

2 carrots

3 stalks of celery

1-2 zucchini

1-2 yellow squash

2 cloves garlic

1 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp dried sage

1 14 oz can of flavored diced tomatoes (with juice)

4 cups vegetable stock

2 cups carrot juice (if you don't have carrot juice, just use 6 cups total vegetable stock)

sea salt/pepper to taste

2 cups baby spinach

Directions: 

Saute onion and garlic

add:

vegetable stock

chopped carrot

chopped celery

thyme

sage

tomatoes

simmer on med low for 45 minutes

add:

spinach

zucchini

squash

taste and re-season

 cook 3-5 more minutes

Tip:  This is salt and pepper to taste!

Zucchini and Tomato Gratin

2 large zucchini, cut into 1/2" slices

1 medium yellow squash, cut into 1/2" slices

3 small tomatoes, cut into wedges

1 garlic clove, crushed

3 TBSP extra virgin olive oil

2 TBSP Tabasco green pepper sauce

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp salt

1/4-1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese

Pre heat oven to 425.  In large bowl, toss together all ingredients except the parmesan cheese.  Pour zucchini mixture into a medium sized casserole dish, top with grated parmesan cheese.  Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.

Yet another note on hummus...

Today I roasted some orange bell pepper and threw it in the blender with all the other hummus ingredients and it was really good! Just thought I'd let you all know! ;)

Note on the HUMMUS

You might want to add a little salt... that's another ingredient that you can play around with and see how much you like!

Safe/Unsafe Food Ingrediants

Here's a website with a list of ingrediants that are safe and unsafe for people with gluten intolerance. Lots of good info about all those long words that no body knows what they are ....

Safe Gluten Free Food List