Tried and Tasted

Konichiwa!

This month's Tried & Tasted was honoring Fat Free Vegan. I love the food over at Fat Free Vegan. Even though I am not a vegan, I do like to include a couple of vegetarian or vegan meals into my meal plan each week. I do this for the health of myself and the Nerd, and for the health and well-being of the planet.

Animals, and by-products like dairy, contribute greatly to the greenhouse gas emissions (18% of all total G.H.G.E.) I know that it is important for us to cut down on our meat and animal product consumption. In my research on eating locally, and organically, to mitigate climate change I found an NPR podcast, Eating Right Can Save the Planet, in which Mark Bittman stated that if we "eat 10 meals a week containing meat...if you eat a couple of meals less of meat, each week, you’re doing yourself, and the planet,... you’re doing all of us a favor.” That's exactly what I believe. I already eat fewer than 10 meals each week that contain meat. I couldn't tell you how many, because that varies based on the leftovers we have.

I can't tell you how ecstatic I was to see that Fat Free Vegan was the Tried & Tasted blog of the month. I thought about trying out something new, but I thought it'd be better if I stuck with something I'd made in the past. I also had some ingredients that could use some tapping into that were suited for the recipe I chose.

My Tried & Tasted recipe for the month was Double Mushroom Miso Soup with Sesame Broccoli for Two. My version of this tasty, light, and healthy meal was actually a Triple Mushroom Miso Soup.

I used Hawaii island Hamakua Mushrooms in 3 varieties:

Alii Oyster (large)

(Alii means royal in Hawaiian)

Shimeji (small white)

Kea Hon Shimeji (small brown)

I used white miso paste, and homemade vegetable stock (I only had 3 cups, so I watered it down to 6 cups and added extra miso paste for more flavor). I didn't have any tofu, so I left it out and used all of the mushrooms. I also added extra wakame because I enjoy it.

Triple Mushroom Miso Soup

Over at Fat Free Vegan it was noted that the meal wasn't completely filling, so I cooked up some brown rice to go along with the broccoli. This was a really good idea as we were full, but not stuffed and completely satisfied. Brown rice is also a healthy whole grain, especially for gluten-free eaters. It was also a good idea as I only had one small head of broccoli left from the previous week's pizza.

Sesame Broccoli with Brown Rice

Together the miso soup, broccoli, and brown rice formed a delicious flavor balance and was texturally pleasing. I would definitely serve this meal again. The Nerd's verdict was, "Mmm miso." He also liked the broccoli. The only complaint he had was that we ran out of sake too soon.

Not Enough Sake Leftovers

I recommend that anyone who likes miso soup, mushrooms, and broccoli or all Japanese inspired food try this meal. I know I'll be making it again.

Triple Mushroom Miso Soup, Sesame Broccoli, Brown Rice

Sayonara!

Links related to Tried and Tasted:

Holy Cow! announcement of T and T

How to participate in T and T at Zlamushka's Spicy Kitchen

Tuesday Catch Up

I thought I'd just post up some pictures of the meals we've had so far this week.

Crispy Sweet & Sour Tofu

Sunday:

I wasn't amazed by the flavor of the Crispy Sweet and Sour Tofu, but the cooking technique was great for me to get the feel for. It would be great for making some mock fried "chicken".

Gim-Bahp

Monday:

The Gim-Bahp needs work in my rolling technique. Okay, I just need to not fill them too much. This was really good for lunch the next day after being refrigerated. They held together much better too.

Crockpot Honey Lentil Stew

Tuesday:

Crockpot Honey Lentil Stew is one of our new comfort foods. We're also putting it into the bulk meal list we're creating.

I've also finished my final assignment for college, and I will be graduating with a 4.0 GPA. I've held all A grades the entire time I've been in school. I've been very lucky though to not have had to work full time, and I have no children. I had a lot of great support as well (family, friends, and great teachers). I'm extremely thankful for every opportunity I've had, and for every person in my life.

Maui Community College was a blessing of an educational experience. I would recommend the school to anyone, and I wish I could continue going to school. Maybe there will be some way I can in the future. I love the learning experience.

I put my name in the hat for the honor of being valedictorian, but I never heard anything back on that. Even though that isn't something that was realized for me, I am extremely proud of the grades I earned.

I look forward to my future.

Let's Catch Up

Mothers Day Rhymes with Parfait

I think it's about time for us to catch up, considering it's been a few days since I've posted.

Thursday night we had our weekly dinner, and that went quite nicely. We had the Hawaiian Style Chili. It contained both local beef, and local portuguese sausage. We really have to be careful when buying sausages as they often contain some sort of gluten as a filler, and if dairy is an issue too then that's something else to watch out for in the ingredients list as well. If you're still unsure, try contacting the company. The brand I've been eating without any problems is Gouveas, but I've received no response to the e-mail I sent to the company in which I asked about whether or not their sausage contains gluten. This may be a company I need to call. As I said though, I've experienced no symptoms after eating the product, but this is something I need to get better about. I admit it. Sometimes I do take small risks, but I would never cheat purposely.

I read over at Gluten Free in Georgia and Florida that in her book "The G-Free Diet" Elisabeth Hasselback takes cheating very lightly, and in no way do I want to be associated with that kind of thinking.

Channa Masala

Friday night the Nerd and I dined at home on some delicious chickpea curry. It's based on a recipe for Channa Masala on Seriouseats.com. I couldn't find Garam Masala at Foodland or Pukalani Superette, but I do know that it is available in the bulk spices at Mana Foods. However, I think this dish is quite delicious with Madras Curry powder. This dish has a very spicy, comfort food quality that I can't get enough of. Because there is a little lemon juice, the dish also has just a hint of sourness that enhances all of the spices coating every inch of the chickpeas and that have soaked into the rice. Served alongside a nice salad, or some steamed vegetables, this is a delicious and healthy well balanced meal. I do suggest bringing a large pitcher of water to the table, you might need it.

A Delicious Hot Breakfast for Mother's Day

Sunday was Mother's Day. My moms aren't here with me, but I was able to honor the Nerd's mother by getting up early to make a big, beautiful, and scrumptious brunch. I really only needed 2 hours to prepare everything for this breakfast. The Nerd's brother, the Hunter, and his wife CJ came over for brunch as well. CJ brought me a beautiful jade plant, and they presented his mother with a lovely bouquet.

The Hunter said that he normally needs to put ketchup on his scrambled eggs, partly because of how bland and dry they are, but he felt no need to do that with the eggs I whipped up. I made scrambled eggs that I found the recipe for through Food.com and the recipe is from Foodandwine.com. I had never made scrambled eggs over a double boiler, but I think it is now the only way I will do it. I left out the truffle oil and brioche rolls(of course).

Whisk your eggs up in a bowl with some water while bringing a pot of water up to a simmer. Once the water reachers a good simmer, place a metal bowl on top of the pot and add in a little butter or margarine. Let the butter melt and then add the whisked eggs. Drop the temperature just a bit, and use a heat resistant rubber spatula to scrape the bottom of the bowl as the eggs cook. Just before they are completely set up, add some more butter. Keep scraping and stirring. The eggs should come together in a curd like consistency. Cook the eggs to the firmness you like, and then remove the bowl from the pot and turn off the heat. Add in your seasonings at this point.

Roasted zucchini, onions, and garlic were also a delicious hit. With a little salt and pepper, they were a nice addition to a savory hot breakfast.

I followed a recipe for buttermilk biscuits from Bobsredmill.com, but they didn't turn out as they should have. I may have rolled the dough too thin, but if I hadn't then I don't believe the recipe would have yielded as many biscuits as it says it will. Despite being thin, I think they worked well with the amount of food served. We topped these biscuits with Poha jam. Pohas are berries that are also known as Cape Gooseberries, Goldenberries, and some other names. I found out from CJ that she's been eating some berries called Incan Goldenberries, and they are highly nutritious and full of antioxidants. She was excited to learn that they are also Poha berries and grow wild here on the island. The jam slightly reminds me of very sweet gold cherry tomatoes with sugar. I will happily eat some more.

It was worth a second shot!

Finally, we had a breakfast "dessert" of strawberry, blueberry, and banana yogurt parfaits. These caused some "Oo's" and "Ah's" from the family. Deliciousness was inspired by the local fruits available at the farm stand. The strawberries, bananas, and blueberries were all local. The yogurt was organic. Mary, at Kula Country Farms, let me run in and buy 2 boxes of berries on Saturday while they were closing up. Thank you for the berries Mary!

To make these tasty treats:

Hooray for Parfait!

AmandaonMaui

• 3-4 small bananas, sliced
• 1lb of strawberries, rinsed and diced
• 1 pint of blueberries, rinsed
• Nonfat vanilla yogurt

Layer 4 slices of banana on the bottom of the glass, top with a few tablespoons of yogurt, add in a couple tablespoons of strawberries, add more yogurt, add blueberries, add more yogurt, top with more strawberries and banana slices.

In fact, here's a list of the food in this breakfast that was local:

Eggs

Zucchini

Onions

Strawberries

Blueberries

Bananas

Poha Jam

Here's what was organic:

Butter

Soy Milk

Yogurt

Sugar

If not for the biscuits, then everything would have been local or organic. That's amazing, and inspiring!

Go out to your farmers market or farm stand and get inspired too!

3 Days Later

Zucchini-Broccoli Pizza

I'm sorry I haven't posted for 3 days. This is my final week of school, and then I will have my Associate's Degree in Liberal Arts. Everyone keeps asking what I'll do once I am done, but I don't know. There aren't many Bachelor's Degree offerings that appeal to me at the college here. Many people have told me to go to the college's culinary school. It is something I have considered. I've even spoken with the counselor for the program. However, I need to make some money and pay back the money I used for my A.A.. I also wonder how I would work going to culinary school with my issue with gluten. I certainly couldn't taste anything containing gluten, and I worry about being around too much flour floating around in the air. I don't have any skin issues with gluten, and I don't believe I have trouble with breathing it in, but it seems like I shouldn't chance it. I'd hate to spend the money to go to school, only to be made sick by it. I believe I've discussed this in a prior post.

It came to my mind this morning because of this being my last week of school, and because of a dream I had. If you can't eat certain foods you have probably had a dream in which all of the food available is food you can't eat. That was my dream last night.

In my dream I was in an airport with my mom, and we stopped to get some food at the food court. She quickly grabbed something to eat, and I told her that I'd go see if there appeared to be anything I could eat. Well, I wasn't having much luck until I spotted a sign at an Italian place. It looked like the sign said they offered brown rice pasta, but the letters were so small I couldn't tell. I actually climbed up onto the counter to read the words, and found disappointment. The letters spelled out something different entirely. So, I went and sat back down with my mom. I watched everyone around me eating. I was so hungry, but because of an awful idea that people thneed gluten on everything to be made happy, I was made angry and depressed.

Dining out is so difficult for people with food allergies, intolerances, and Celiac Disease(which is not an allergy, it is an autoimmune disorder). I can't even call up the pizza place and order a couple of pizzas. I have to make them myself. Which isn't all that bad you know. Homemade pizza has all of the things I like on it, it's delicious, and still hot. It doesn't take long if the sauce is pre-made, or if you have a quick sauce recipe. This was our dinner last night. We ate the pizza and watched Dune.

Now, I know I promised a post on eggs, but I swear that will be here soon enough. I just felt that I had to post this particular entry this morning. All in due time my dear readers.

Unbaked Pizza

Zucchini-Broccoli Pizza

• 1 small gluten-free pizza crust [from scratch and pre-baked(recipe follows), or frozen]
• 1/4 cup pre-made pizza sauce
• 1 cup Tillamook Vintage White Cheddar, shredded*
• 1/2 a large onion, julienned**
• 2 medium zucchini, yellow and green***, sliced into rounds
• 1 small head of broccoli, cut into florets
• Crushed Red Pepper Flakes (optional)

Preheat the oven to 400F.

Using a medium sized spoon, smooth out the sauce over the crust.

Top the sauced crust with the zucchini, starting on the outside, forming a ring, and working in. It's like laying pepperoni.

Place the broccoli as evenly as possible over the pizza.

Sprinkle the cheese on top of the veggies.

Bake in the preheated oven, on a baking sheet or pizza pan, until the cheese has melted and the onions are browning on the ends.

Serve with the crushed red pepper for a little spiciness.

*Note: I think goat cheese would taste delicious on this pizza.

**Note: Use less onion if you're not a big onion fan.

***Note: Feel free to use one large green zucchini. You're going to have more than enough for the pizza. Leftover zucchini is great in other dishes as well.

For the pizza I used the recipe for gluten-free pizza crust in The Gluten-Free Vegan, as well as the sauce recipe. I made up the sauce a few months ago and froze half of it.

I'm still trying to understand the copyright laws for posting recipes. I've posted a few without any problems, and I contacted the author of The Gluten-Free Vegan but received no response. Since many of you are probably looking for a good gluten-free pizza crust recipe I'll go ahead and post it in my own words, since it seems that the directions are the most protected part, and if I get a take down notice I'll remove the recipe.

Pizza Crust

adapted from The Gluten-Free Vegan by Susan O'Brien

• 1 cup Bob's Red Mill All Purpose Gluten-Free Flour
• 1/4 cup potato flour*
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
• Egg replace for 1 egg**
• 1 tablespoon agave nectar
• 1/2 cup milk replacer (soy works well, but so would hemp or perhaps another)
• 1/8 cup grapeseed oil or canola oil

Preheat the oven to 400F.

Grease a pizza pan or baking sheet with a little vegetable oil.

Combine the dry ingredients, but not the egg replacer or the ingredients listed below. Whisk it together.

Mix the egg replacer together, and add to it the agave, the milk, and the oil. Whisk this well.

Add the liquid ingredients to the dry and stir it together with a rice paddle, a flat wood spatula, or a spoon.

Form into a ball. It may look crumbly, but once it is brought into a ball form it will hold. If not, add a little more milk or oil.

Set the dough ball onto the baking sheet and flatten it down by hand.

Place a piece of wax paper, or parchment, or saran wrap over the dough. Roll the dough into the desired shape(circle or rectangle). Remove the paper/parchment/wrap.

Using your fingers, push down at the edges and push against the side of the dough and form a raised crust.

Bake for 12-15 minutes, depending on the thickness of the crust.

Top with your favorite toppings!

Note: The author tops the pizza crust with the toppings before baking it, but I've never found the inside of the dough to be completely cooked when I follow her directions as was the case last night. I've made the recipe in 2 ovens, and haven't had success in getting the dough to be fully baked through. That is why I suggest pre-baking the crust. If you worry about the edges getting too brown, treat it like a pie and cover the edges with aluminum foil.

*If you don't have potato flour, buy some instant mashed potatoes and processes 1/3 cup of them in a blender or food processor until they reach a more flour like consistency. This is my own suggestion, not the suggestion of Susan O'Brien.

**O'Brien uses Ener-G, but I use 1 tablespoon of flaxseed meal mixed 3 tablespoons of warm water.

Oh, and we used our zucchini leftovers for breakfast. Pan roasted and topped with poached eggs. Fresh made orange juice too!

Sunday Cooking Projects

Kula Country Farms Strawberries

I feel like I do a lot more cooking on the weekends than during the week. Basically I just cook one more meal, but I do tend to plan the more complicated cooking for the weekend.

This morning I made Strawberry Buckwheat Pancakes. I used the Blueberry Buckwheat Pancakes from The Gluten-Free Vegan as a guide, but I made my own changes to the recipe.The strawberry flavor isn't extremely strong, so if you'd like more strawberry flavor, try pureeing some strawberries and replace the apple sauce with the puree. The strawberries were locally grown. Here's the recipe, they're definitely worth making.

Strawberry Pancake Breakfast

Strawberry Buckwheat Pancakes

adapted from The Gluten-Free Vegan

• 1 cup buckwheat flour
• 1/4 cup brown rice flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tbsp grapeseed oil
• 1/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce
• 3 tbsp strawberry guava syrup
• 1 egg or substitute for 1 egg
• 1 1/2 cup milk or non-dairy milk alternative
• 7 medium strawberries, hulled and chopped into 1/8 inch pieces

Combine the dry ingredients in a small bowl.

Combine the rest of the ingredients, including the strawberries, in large bowl.

Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until it is thoroughly combined and smooth.

Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add oil or butter to prevent sticking, if necessary. Ladle 1/4 cup of batter into the pan and heat until bubbles form and pop. Flip the pancake over, and cook until the pancake is cooked through. The pancakes should be a nice brown color.

Serve with more strawberry guava syrup, and if you love peanut butter and jellies use peanut butter instead of butter on the pancakes.

For dinner we had Grilled Chicken Tostadas. These were pretty healthy, and very delicious. We like our Mexican food spicy, so if you don't like too much spice you should use half of the jalapeno and less of the cayenne pepper if you use either at all. The tomatoes and lettuce were locally grown. We didn't have sour cream or yogurt, so we left that out. You could replace that with avocado if you have them readily available.

Grilled Chicken Tostadas

Grilled Chicken Tostadas

AmandaonMaui

• 1 1/2 tsp goya adobo seasoning
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 can refried beans
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1 jalapeno pepper, deseeded and minced
• 2 cups tomatoes, deseeded and chopped
• 4 cups crisp lettuce, chopped
• 9 corn tortillas
• 1/2 cup of vegetable oil
• 2 grilled chicken breasts
• Cilantro, minced
• Green onions, sliced
• Salsa
• Sour cream, dairy or non, or plain yogurt (optional)

Grill 2 chicken breasts either on an indoor or outdoor grill. Chop into small pieces.

Empty the refried beans into a pan and add the adobo seasoning, red pepper, cayenne pepper, chili powder, and jalapeno pepper. Stir well, and keep over low heat until the rest of the food is prepared.

Heat the oil over medium low heat and add one or two tortillas at a time (depending on the size of the pan) and heat until they are crispy and partially browned.

Remove the tortillas and place onto a platter with paper towels to help absorb some of the oil from the tostadas.

When everything is ready, top the tostadas with beans, lettuce, tomatoes, chicken, cilantro, green onions, salsa and sour cream/yogurt.

Coming Soon: The beauty of pasture raised, not uniform, local eggs.

Touched by the Noodley Summer Rolls

Summer Rolls

For making the above summer rolls I basically followed a recipe on Vegweb.com, but I added in things that I liked and worked with what I had available. I was out of bean sprouts like I used the previous week, so I used mung bean noodles. These worked out very well. They're the clear noodles, not the thin white rice noodles. Mung bean noodles are typically called cellophane noodles.

I have quite a lot of mung bean noodles. They're very popular here on Maui. These noodles are used in many local dishes including chicken hekka and chicken long rice. I'm not a fan of either dish, and the noodles are definitely a texture that has to be gotten used to. Hiding them in summer rolls seems to be a great way to use them. They're so cheap, and I have a lot of them, so I'm glad to have found a way to use them up. The other wonderful thing about mung bean noodles is that they're gluten-free.

I served the summer rolls with Thai Kitchen Sweet Chili Sauce. The sauce is kind of expensive at $5 per bottle. As you know, whole meals can be made for $5 as is done over at $5 Dinners. But, it's worth it for the flavor. I know that it is something that I can't easily make myself, and that I'd have great difficulty in finding the ingredients here. I also know that I promote a mainly local foods diet, but sometimes you just have to have a treat.

Strawberry Chocolate Smoothie

Speaking of treats, right now I'm slurping down another strawberry chocolate smoothie. I added extra cocoa powder this time (about 1/2 tablespoon extra). I like how chocolate-y it tastes, and I enjoy the creaminess. I don't think I added the protein powder last time like the recipe suggests, but I did this time. The box of strawberries in the picture came from the farm stand. They had the strawberries on sale for 2 for $5. I know that I can get them for 2 for $4 at Pukalani Superette, but I decided to just grab them at the farm stand and let the money go directly to the ladies and gentlemen who farm them right there next to the stand. Lucky me, strawberry season is year round on Maui. Promise me you'll get some strawberries the next time you're on Maui, or if you live on Maui and you're not buying local berries it had better be because you're allergic or have an extreme dislike of them. There is no reason anyone should ever buy non-local strawberries on Maui.

Antioxidant Chili

Oh, and for dinner tonight we ate leftover chili. We had friends over past dinner time, and we didn't get to eat dinner until 8pm. So, to make things easier I just pulled some chili out of the freezer and fed the Nerd, myself, and our friend J who wasn't feeling well. Since the chili was vegan it worked out perfectly as J is a vegetarian. The chili was from The Gluten-Free Vegan and was the Antioxidant Chili. It contained carrots, onions, bell peppers, zucchini (my addition), black beans, kidney beans, and diced tomatoes. I did use canned beans and tomatoes, but it is my intention to use dried black beans for the big pot of salsa chicken and black bean soup later this week.

Well, it's getting late here in Hawaii and I've got some project to work on tomorrow. I need to finish my powerpoint for my class presentation, I need to do a little clean up, and I need to do some more work on my desk project (which I have touched in about a month the poor desk). There might also be a run over to St. Joseph's church in Makawao tomorrow. They're having their annual festival with lots of yummy food and a good thrift store. Although I can't eat most of the food, I can at least eat vicariously through the Nerd. That reminds me, I need to find a gluten-free Malasada recipe. Does anyone have one yet? How about a gluten-free Chow Fun recipe?

Orange Desserts

Orange Cupcakes

Tuesday night was a crazy night. Somehow I missed 2 ingredients I needed for the beef curry, so I had to pull some food out of the freezer. Luckily I had cooked up some brown rice to go with the curry. Dinner turned out tasty, and very healthy, but not what was planned. We ate homemade chicken soup with brown rice and a delicious salad with homemade dressing (a basic vinaigrette).

I don't like having to pull food from the freezer because it means there is less in there for times when we really are having a food emergency, and it pulls from the lunch supply. It also means that I have to somehow make more food for the freezer out of the recipes for the week without going over budget.

Last night we finally had the curry, but I used green bell peppers in place of the red bell peppers. Since it was a Thai red curry the red bell peppers would have been tastier. Silly me also went to the grocery store yesterday and forgot the fresh basil for the dish because I didn't write it on the board. I ended up using dried. The meal still tasted delicious, but it certainly wasn't pretty enough for me to think of taking pictures of it.

I used the green bell peppers because red ones aren't in season here yet, and the ones the grocery store had are from Mexico and didn't look ripe enough. I know that green bell peppers are simply unripe red peppers, but I had just been listening to "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" and so I also would have felt rather guilty buying peppers from Mexico when there were perfectly good looking green peppers from Hawaii sitting right next to them.

As you can see from the picture at the top of the post I am not a food photographer, but there was something worth taking a picture of. In fact, there will be two pictures in this post. The picture at the top is from Tuesday night. I whipped up some orange cake cupcakes from Karina's Kitchen. Silly me didn't want to wait for the cupcakes to cool, nor did I chill the frosting, so it just slid right off. It didn't even completely act like a glaze. However, the icing was so good that it didn't end up in the garbage. In fact, I ate 3 the night I baked them, bargained for half of one from the Nerd after lunch yesterday, and had one last night. When there are gluten-free baked goodies around I can't help myself. It's probably a good thing that I don't bake that often or else I might turn into a giant cupcake.

The recipe can be found here, along with a much prettier picture.

Karina's Kitchen- Recipes from a Gluten-Free Goddess: Orange Creme Cupcakes - Vegan and Gluten-Free

Last night's dessert was beautiful, delicious, and healthy. The Nerd's sister brought over 2 medium size pumpkins which I should have taken a picture of. They were allowed to sit for nearly 10 months after being picked, so the flavors really had time to develop and the pumpkin sweetened nicely. The pumpkins were supposed to become a side dish for the curry, but I decided to make a second dessert out of them. This was probably a good idea because the cupcakes were very sweet, so it was a good step up from spicy curry to super sweet cupcakes.

Pumpkin Puddin'

Pumpkin Puddin'

by AmandaonMaui

Dairy-free, Gluten-free

• 2 medium sized pumpkins, smaller than basketballs
• 1/2 cup of soy milk
• 1/4 cup agave nectar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• a pinch of nutmeg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Unsweetened Coconut Flakes (optional)

Cut around the stem on the pumpkins and remove the top.

Cut the pumpkin into smaller, easier to handle chunks.

Scrape the seeds and stringy parts off of the pumpkin flesh. Discard, or save the seeds for roasting later.

Chop the large chunks into 1-2 inch pieces, leaving the skin on.

Put the pieces into a large stockpot and cover with water, at least one inch over the pieces.

Place the pot on the stove and bring the water to a boil over high heat.

Once the water reaches a full boil, lower the temperature to medium and let simmer until the pumpkin flesh is tender.

Drain the water off of the pieces by using a large colander.

Let the pumpkin pieces cool for a few minutes until they're still warm, but cool enough to handle.

Take each piece by the skin, and scrape off, or squeeze the flesh off of the skin into a blender or food processor.

Continue this process with the rest of the pumpkin. This should equal about 4 cups unpacked cooked pumpkin.

Blend the pumpkin until it starts to become a smooth consistency, and add in a little of the milk at a time, continuing to blend after each addition, until the pudding is at a consistency you like.

Add in the rest of the ingredients, and blend until all of the ingredients are well incorporated.

Pour into a large bowl and chill until dessert time.

Serve in dessert cups or wine glasses, or whatever you have available.

Top with unsweetened flaked coconut, crushed pecans, or whatever toppings you like on pumpkin-y treats.

Easy Gluten-Free Ameri-Mexican

Grilled Chicken Quesadillas

with

Black Bean, Corn, and Tomato Salad

Last night I served up grilled chicken quesadillas with Tillamook vintage sharp white cheddar on corn tortillas, with a side of black bean, corn, and tomato salad. This was a quick, easy, delicious, and light dinner. The Black Bean Salad made more than enough for 2, and we'll be eating it for days, but it's good enough that I won't mind a bit!

Perhaps you've noticed my love affair with the Tillamook vintage sharp white cheddar in previous posts. I seem to use it exclusively. Well, it's aged for 2 years which means that the lactose levels are very low in comparison to other cheese (Yes, Kraft shredded "cheeses" often say they contain 0g lactose per serving, but that's not cheese to me), and the flavor is sharp just how I like it. I did consider picking up another package of the Tillamook mild cheddar cheese at Costco, but the budget didn't permit it, and I think the vintage white is able to be used on just about anything that requires cheese. I'd even put it on apple pie if I had an apple pie. That gives me an idea for another post sometime soon. Looks like a bag of apples goes on this week's shopping list.

Going without dairy for nearly 10 years, and now being able to have it again is a wonderful thing to me. I've worked so hard this past year to keep myself healing. I've stayed away from so many delicious gluten containing foods in hopes of healing up and feeling well; and then I learned that some people with a gluten intolerance, or Celiac disease, who have lactose intolerance can eat dairy again after a long enough healing period. Well, I'm one of those people.

So, why on earth after all of that hard work would I eat cheap dairy products? I only eat the good stuff now. Why buy cheap champagne to celebrate something wonderful when you know it's a special treat you won't be having all of the time? It's the same thing for me. Getting to have dairy again is so special to me, that I'm going to buy the best. And, I do treat it like a special occasion when I pull out the Tillamook.

If you have a love affair with Tillamook cheese like I do, check out the Tillamook Fan Club.

Grilled Chicken Quesadillas

with Tillamook Vintage Sharp White Cheddar

8 corn tortillas

2 cups of shredded Tillamook Vintage Sharp White Cheddar

1/2 pound of boneless skinless chicken breasts

Crisco for the pan, or other high heat cooking fat

Grill the chicken breasts either on an indoor grill or on an outdoor grill. Slice into pinky finger sized pieces.

Heat the Crisco, or other fat, in a large skillet (I used cast iron) over medium heat until the fat has melted and coated the bottom of the pan.

Place one tortilla into the pan and put about a golf ball sized amount of cheese in the center.

Put as much chicken as you'd like in the quesadilla on top of the cheese, fanning it out toward the edges of the tortilla. Top with about half the amount of cheese put onto the bottom tortilla to make the chicken and top tortilla stick together.

Cook until the bottom tortilla gets crispy, but not burnt, and flip the quesadilla over carefully.

Cook until the other side is crispy. Remove from the pan and repeat the process with the rest of the tortillas, chicken, and cheese until you run out of one of the ingredients (in Chemistry this would be your limiting reagent; I told you all I'd been studying too much...).

If you like your tortillas not crispy, then just cook until the cheese has melted, then flip and repeat. I like mine more like tostadas than soft quesadillas.

Serve with salsa and non-fat plain yogurt, or sour cream.

Note: I used Crisco because a friend of mine said that when she cooks Mexican food she always uses Crisco because it can stand the heat and makes the tortillas nice and crispy. She's been cooking a while longer, than me, and I respect her cooking knowledge. She was definitely right on this one. Normally I wouldn't recommend Crisco as it is a hydrogenated fat (it stays solid at room temperature) which isn't healthy for your body, but if used sparingly it can be included in your cooking.

Black Bean, Corn, and Tomato Salad

adapted from vegweb.com

2 cans of black beans (organic preferably) drained and rinsed

2 large ears of corn (organic preferably, I used local), shucked

1 can of diced tomatoes, drained

2 cloves of garlic, minced

3 green onions, green parts only, sliced

2 tablespoons dried parsley (or 4 tablespoons fresh, chopped)

1 tsp cumin powder

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Fresh cracked pepper

Break the ears of corn in half and boil for 8-10 minutes until the corn is bright yellow and the kernels are tender. Remove any bad kernels carefully using a paring knife.

Cut the kernels off of the corn cobs using a sharp knife. Place the cob on one end, holding it in place with your fingers at the top of the cob, and the ball of your hand on the side opposite from your cutting point. Slice down the cob, starting at the top, or near the top, and cut all the way down. Turn the cob and continue this procedure. Repeat with the 3 other corn cobs.

In a large bowl combine the minced garlic, green onions, parsley, cumin, vinegar, oil, and pepper. Whisk together well.

Dump the beans, corn, and tomatoes into the bowl, and toss with 2 spoons until the beans, corn, and tomatoes are coated with the spices.

Chill in the fridge while you're making the rest of your meal.

Note: For an extra refreshing kick, add some fresh cilantro and use lime juice instead of the vinegar.

Gluten-Free Lahaina

3 Penne Pastas at Penne Pasta Cafe

Last night I had an event to attend in Lahaina with some friends, so the Nerd, his sister, and I had dinner there on the west side of the island. I had been wanting to try the pasta at a restaurant I read about. Penne Pasta Cafe offers gluten-free brown rice pasta, penne shape only, for $2 extra. They also have dairy-free mozzarella cheese available for another $2 extra.

We all decided to get the brown rice pasta, but the Nerd was confused as to what chicken parmesan actually was (he was thinking chicken primavera). I asked him to ask the cashier if there was any breading on the chicken, but he got distracted and forgot. So, of course he ended up getting the brown rice pasta, but he also had breaded chicken sitting on top of it. That was a bummer, especially since he paid the extra for the brown rice pasta. He had no complaints about the food, and dug in happily. The Nerd said that everything was cooked very well, and that it was definitely worth the $11 (including pasta substitution cost). He wouldn't pay $20 for it, but he was pleased with his meal. Oh, and he said that if he hadn't known it was brown rice pasta, he would have thought the penne was high quality "regular" pasta.

He did find it funny too that they'd sell him brown rice pasta and not mention the breading on the chicken, but perhaps they thought he knew what he was doing. To avoid this, I think they should provide descriptions of their various entrees. A trip back to the restaurant is in order the next time we're over in the area, according to the Nerd.

Chicken Parmesan

(not gluten-free)

His sister ordered baby calamari in pomodoro (tomato and basil) sauce over brown rice penne. She too was happy with her meal, though she said she could have eaten a lot more. We both agreed we could have split another plate of pasta, but we're both rather gluttonous right now.

I was able to taste her dish, and the calamari wasn't tough and it had a nice smokey flavor to it. I do think it was a little too salty, but the flavors all worked well enough together. They also could have gone a little heavier on the calamari as I am a huge fan of little squid rings. The price of this dish was $12 with the substitution of the pasta.

Baby Calamari in Pomodoro Sauce

I chose to go with clams in the pomodoro sauce over brown rice pasta. The sauce was a little thinner than I would have liked it to be. The sauce on the calamari pasta seemed slightly thicker somehow. I was quite happy with the amount of chopped up clams in my sauce, but I could most certainly tell they weren't fresh. They were clumped together in places as though they were scraped out of a can (think canned tuna). I only had a tiny bit of grit from the clams, and my pasta was not over cooked or undercooked. My pasta was also $12 with the substitution.

Clams in Pomodoro Sauce

We drank water, although they do have soda, iced tea, Republic of Tea drinks, wine, beer, and some other spirits for sale.

We didn't have dessert, but they were offering bananas foster with vanilla ice cream as the special dessert while we were there.

Place Your Order Here

On one wall was a large flat panel TV showing TV Land (classic television channel). The space wasn't brightly lit, however I didn't find it uncomfortably dark either. I think the owner has the lighting just about right. My personal opinion is that some music would be better than the television.

The Dining Area

I can't speak about what they do to prevent cross contamination as I didn't get to speak to the owner, but I am feeling perfectly fine and I'm still wanting more pasta. The owner also owns Maui Tacos.

I believe the brand of pasta they're using is Tinkyada. It reminded me a lot of the penne Tinkyada pasta I make at home, but not overcooked and not wet(I need to drain my pasta better).

If you're on Maui and want gluten-free pasta you should definitely go to Penne Pasta Cafe. I think it was so worth the drive to get to dine on Italian style food at a restaurant again. I'm salivating just thinking about getting some more soon.

Penne Pasta Cafe

180 Dickenson St.

Lahaina, HI 96761

808-661-6633

Venison

Venison, Potatoes, and Salad

The Nerd's brother, the Hunter, brought us some fresh venison a few days ago. He hunts it and butchers it himself. Deer hunting season is year round on Maui as there are too many deer destroying the mountain side.

I ended up freezing the piece because I wasn't quite sure when I would use it. But, I was able to include it in this week's meal plan . In fact, I made it tonight, and invited their Mother to join the Nerd and I.

I've learned to pan roast, and tonight I did that with the venison.

I cut the piece into 3 parts, and I seasoned it with alae salt, fresh cracked pepper, rosemary, and butter.

For sides I served up some delicious garlic mashed potatoes and a salad of romaine, bibb lettuce, cherry tomatoes, onions, and cucumber. Everything in the salad, other than the dressing, was local.

This turned out to be very delicious, and I would serve it again.

Wednesday and Thursday Breakfasts

No Rice Fried Rice

As I posted a while ago, breakfast is a great meal and shouldn't be overlooked if it can be helped. I especially enjoy a hot breakfast, and a healthy breakfast is very important too. I've often wondered how to get more vegetables into the morning breakfast, and I've been able to do that this week. With the leftover zucchini I simply reheated it and topped it with an egg. The same type of breakfast occurred yesterday with an egg on top of kale sauteed with spinach. And, this morning it was a no rice fried rice. I wanted to make fried rice to use up more of the vegetables before I go to the farm stand today, so I thought that this was a great idea. Unfortunately I didn't have any leftover rice in the refrigerator. That's sacrilege living here in Hawaii and dining on a great deal of Asian style foods. I also think that having pre-made rice around is a good idea for those on a gluten-free diet. Some people stop getting enough grains, especially whole grains, in their diet when they go gluten free; but, if they kept a container of brown rice in the refrigerator they could warm some up in the microwave to have as a side dish or part of a main dish anytime.

So, no rice fried rice was born. Instead of using rice or noodles I used washed and drained mung beans as the base.

Thursday's Breakfast:

No Rice Fried Rice

(see above picture)

• 2 cups of rinsed mung beans
• 1 cup of of sugar snap peas, ends cut off and then cut in half
• 1 large carrot, diced
• 1 green onion, white part sliced and dark green part sliced
• 3 eggs, beaten
• Braggs, or gluten-free soy sauce to taste
• Crushed Red Pepper to taste
• Medium-heat Oil (optional)

1. Heat a large skillet to medium heat. Add a little bit of oil if needed to keep the vegetables from sticking.
2. Add in the diced carrots and cook for 2-3 minutes.
3. Then add in the whites of the onions and cook for another 1 minute.
4. Toss in the snap peas and cook until they start to get slightly blackened on the edges.
5. Incorporate the mung beans and cook for 5 minutes or until tender.
6. Push the vegetables to one side of the skillet and add in the eggs. Start scrambling them, and mixing them with the vegetables. Cook until the eggs are cooked through, and the eggs sticking to the vegetables are cooked completely.
7. Spritz in some Braggs, or pour on a little gluten-free soy sauce and sprinkle in the red pepper.
8. Stir well, and serve hot.

Wednesday's Breakfast:

Sauteed Kale and Spinach with Toasted Pine Nuts

Topped with a Fried Egg

Sauteed Kale and Spinach with Toasted Pine Nuts

adapted from vegweb.com

• Greens and nuts:
• 1 bunch of kale, leafy part only, torn into bite size pieces
• 1 bunch of spinach (about 2 cups of leaves, compacted)
• 1/4 cup of pine nuts
• 1/2 a medium onion, julienned and diced
• 1Tbsp Grapeseed of other medium to high heat oil

• Dressing:
• Olive Oil
• Lemon Juice
• Salt
• Pepper

1. Heat a small skillet over medium-low heat and add in the pine nuts. Let them cook, but watch them carefully. Do not let them burn. They should be a golden color when they are done.
2. In, or over, another medium pot steam the kale and spinach for 3-5 minutes (depending on level of squishiness desired). Remove from the heat.
3. When the pine nuts are done place the kale, spinach, and pine nuts in a medium bowl. Top with olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper to your desired level of coating. This is where you really get to experiment and learn your palate.
4. Top with a fried, or poached egg, or serve as a side for any other dish like fish, chicken, tofu, etc. It's very versatile.