Broccoli Cheddar Soup

I love soup, have you noticed yet? In cold weather, there's nothing better. And this soup is a delicious way to consume a lot of vegetables and not mind one bit. This soup will freeze well, so you can make a big batch and save some for later. And the cheddar crackers from my last post make an excellent topping instead of starchy saltines.

{pureed using an immersion blender, before adding in the cheese}

{stirring in the cheeses}

Broccoli Cheddar Soup - adapted just slightly from Cook's Illustrated

serves 6-8

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 pounds broccoli, florets roughly chopped into 1-inch pieces, stems trimmed, peeled, and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 medium onion, roughly chopped (about 1 cup)
2 (medium) cloves garlic, minced, or pressed through garlic press (about 2 tsps)

1/2 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 teaspoons brown mustard
Table salt
3 cups water
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth, (but if you're a veggie who can eat starch, vegetable broth will work just fine) - I actually used turkey broth that I made from our thanksgiving turkey carcass and it was perfect
2 ounces baby spinach (2 loosely packed cups)
3 ounces sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded (3/4 cup)
1 1/2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated fine (about 3/4 cup), plus extra for serving
Ground black pepper

optional: 1/4 cup heavy cream

 1. Heat butter in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When foaming subsides, add broccoli, onion, garlic, mustard, and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 6 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup white wine and baking soda. Bring to simmer, cover, and cook until broccoli is very soft, about 20 minutes, stirring once during cooking.

2. Add broth and 2 cups water and increase heat to medium-high. When mixture begins to simmer, stir in spinach and cook until wilted, about 1 minute. Remove pot from heat. 

3. If you have an immersion blender, blend the soup right in the pot. If not, transfer soup to a blender (do this in parts, all of the soup won't fit in the blender at once) and process until smooth. Pour the soup back into the dutch oven and add Cheddar and Parmesan, and stir with a wooden spoon until melted and smooth about 1 minute.  

4. Put dutch oven back on medium heat and bring to simmer. Adjust consistency of soup with up to 1 cup water. If you'd like it a little creamier (like me), add in heavy cream and stir to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve, passing extra Parmesan separately.

 

Starch-less Cheddar Crackers

Okay, I know what you're thinking. What the hell is this? Well, I promised you that I'd post the recipe for cheddar crackers and then promptly realized that I never got any good pictures of them before they were all gone. And I haven't had a chance to make them since. But as they go excellently with my last post (hot spinach dip), I figure I should just get to it. As well as going well with dip, they're also tasty broken up into little pieces as a topping for soup.

When you make these, err on the side of more thin. Mine were a little too thick because I didn't want to make them too thin, and of course I had the opposite problem. If they're not thin enough, they won't crisp up correctly. These would also make a good foundation for nachos. A later post!

And I promise when I get better pictures I'll redo this post.

Cheddar Crackers - adapted from Healing Foods
makes about 35
1 1/4 cups cheddar cheese, grated
1 cup almond flour
1/4 cup sour cream
course salt
optional seasonings:
1/2 teaspoon dried sage and/or thyme
1/2 teaspoon onion powder - I used this...
1/2 paprika - ...and this

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment.
2. Combine the cheddar with the almond flour, sour cream, and seasonings (except for course salt) and knead until all ingredients are combined.
3. Place the dough onto the lined baking sheet. Put another layer of parchment on top of the dough, then roll the dough between the two layers out until about 1/16 inch or 2mm thick.
4. Remove the top layer of parchment and press the course salt sparingly into the dough. Then with the edge of a knife, cut the dough into cracker-sized pieces.
5. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, or until slightly browned. Let cool and store in an air tight container.

Thanksgiving & Some Hot Spinach Dip

Hello all! If you're wondering where I've been all November, I was planning Thanksgiving. This was my first year hosting, so I planned the hell out of it, making sure I left no stone unturned. And it was a success! I wasn't even that stressed out, thanks to all the hard work I put in. Now I have some great recipes to share with you, after all that research.

And just because I'm proud of my hard work, I have to share a few photos of the hors d'oeuvres spread and the table setting. But since I don't want you to leave empty-handed, I'm also including the recipe for the {starch free} hot spinach dip that I made. It's excellent with some starch free cheddar crackers, a recipe I'll be sharing in a couple of days. So don't forget to check back later this week. This spinach dip would make an excellent appetizer for any kind of family gathering.

Hot Spinach Dip a la Martha Stewart  
Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons olive oil, plus more for baking dish
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 pounds spinach, cleaned, trimmed, and coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup milk
• 6 ounces bar cream cheese
• 3 dashes Worcestershire sauce
• 3 dashes Tabasco sauce
• 3/4 cup shredded mozzarella
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• Starch free crackers, for serving
  

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a Dutch oven or large pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook until lightly browned, 5 to 8 minutes.
2. Add spinach in two additions, letting the first batch wilt before adding the next; cook until completely wilted, 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a colander; drain, pressing to release all excess liquid.
3. In the same pot, warm milk over high heat. Whisk in cream cheese until melted, about 3 minutes. Add spinach, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, and 1/4 cup mozzarella; stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Pour into a lightly oiled 1 1/2-quart shallow baking dish; sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella.
4. Bake until bubbly and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Serve hot with accompaniments, as desired.
   

Classic Chicken Salad

With hurricane Sandy in town, I've been thinking about different meals I could make that we could have already available, no cooking necessary, in case we lose our power. And chicken salad is one of those meals I could eat all year round; it's delicious no matter the season. I know most people probably already have their own favorite version of chicken salad, but this recipe is so good, it's worth posting.

Since apples are available now, I made this version with honeycrisp apples. But if I make it in the spring, I usually use sliced green grapes and celery instead. Chopped walnuts and almonds also make nice additions to chicken salad, really you can make a million variations and they {almost}always turn out delicious. This recipe is adapted from the one in Cooks Illustrated May & June 2012 and makes the perfect classic chicken salad.

Classic Chicken Salad
serves 4-6
salt and pepper (I use seasoning salt too)
4 (6-8 ounce), skinless chicken breasts, no more than 1 inch thick
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 honeycrisp apple, chopped (depending on the season, I'll use 1 cup of green grapes, sliced in half, instead of the apples and add in 2 ribs of celery to add some crunch)
2 green onions, sliced
salad greens

1.) Dissolve 2 tablespoons salt in 6 cups cold water in a Dutch oven and submerge the chicken in water. Heat pot over medium heat until water registers 170 degrees. Turn off heat, cover pot, and let stand until chicken registers 165 degrees, 15-17 minutes.

2.) Transfer chicken to paper towel lined plate and refrigerate until cool, about 30 minutes. While chicken cools, whisk mayo, lemon juice, mustard, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper together in a large bowl.

3.) Pat chicken dry and cut into 1/2 inch pieces. Transfer chicken to bowl with mayo mixture. Add apple, green onion and anything else you like in your salad and toss to combine. Season with pepper and seasoning salt and serve on a bed of your favorite salad greens. Salad can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. 

Creamy Cauliflower and Leek Soup

This hearty soup is a starch-less variation of the popular leek and potato soup and makes an excellent winter stand-by. It stores well in the fridge and tastes great as leftovers. You can even make a double batch and freeze half of the soup to defrost for an easy meal on a cold day.

Creamy Cauliflower and Leek Soup
serves 6-8
3 tablespoons butter
1 pound leeks, cleaned and dark green sections removed (about 4-5 medium leeks)
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 3/4 quarts chicken or vegetable broth
1 pound cauliflower, roughly chopped
salt and pepper
1 cup heavy cream
2-3 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded
green onions or chives for garnish (and cooked & crumbled bacon, if you'd like!)

1.) In a pot over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the leeks and a few shakes of salt and pepper and cook for 5 minutes. Decrease the heat to medium-low and cook until the leeks are tender, about 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add in the wine and stir.

2.) Add the cauliflower and the broth, increase the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and gently simmer until the cauliflower is soft, about 30 minutes.

3.) Turn off the heat and puree the mixture with an immersion blender until smooth. (If you don't have an immersion blender, you can use a regular blender, you'll just have to ladle it in in batches.) Stir in the heavy cream and cheddar and adjust seasoning to taste. Sprinkle with chives/green onions/bacon and serve!

Maple Flan

Flan is a dessert that I've been wanting to learn how to do right for awhile, since it's one of the standard Cuban desserts. And since we're a little unclear on whether or not caramel is starchy I decided to take a different (but equally delicious) route with our flan and use maple syrup. Roi says that this recipe is more like a "restaurant" version of flan as opposed to a "homestyle" version. I'm not really sure what that means but I'm taking it as a compliment. This recipe makes unbelievable creamy flan, and real maple syrup is the perfect compliment.

This recipe is adapted from the flan recipe in America's Test Kitchen Cooking for Two 2009 cookbook. I doubled the recipe and exchanged the caramel for maple, but other than that, the recipe was perfect.

{adding the maple to the ramekins}

{adding the custard to the ramekins}

{in the oven}

{baked custards}

Maple Flan
makes 4 servings
1/4 cup real maple syrup (not a corn syrup substitute! gross!)
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 large egg yolks, at room temperature
1 cup milk (I used whole milk, but you can use any type)
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
1/4 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1.) Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Bring a kettle of water to a boil. Place a kitchen towel at the bottom of a 9X13 inch baking pan. Grease four 6-ounce ramekins, divide maple syrup between the ramekins and place them on the towel.
2.) Whisk the egg and egg yolk together in a medium bowl. Whisk in the milk, sweetened condensed milk, and lemon zest until thoroughly combined. Divide the custard evenly between the four ramekins.
3.) Place the baking pan in the oven and carefully pour enough boiling water into the pan to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake the custards until the centers are just barely set, 25-30 minutes.
4.) Carefully remove the ramekins from the water bath and let the custards cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. Cover the ramekins tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, at least 2 hours or up to 1 day.
5.) Run a small knife around one of the ramekins to loosen the custard. Place an inverted serving plate over the top and quickly flip the custard onto the plate, drizzling any extra maple over the top. Repeat with the remaining custard and serve.

Pork Chops with Mozzarella and Homemade Tomato Sauce

It's like pizza on your pork chops! This dish makes an excellent weeknight dinner because it's simple to put together and you can leave it alone to cook. And it's pretty quick, especially if you have the tomato sauce made ahead of time. Roi said that he thought it tasted even better as leftovers, which he doesn't say about anything really, so you know that these have to be good.

This is another recipe adapted from Everyday Food and you can find the original recipe right here.  I decided to pan-cook my pork so that I could get it really tender, so my cheese didn't brown like in the original recipe that was done under the broiler. If you go with the broiler method instead, let me know how it turns out! My tomato sauce for this recipe is taken directly from my Starch Free Pizza post and is just re-posted here for your convenience. It's my go-to, on-the-fly tomato sauce.

{getting things ready}

{browning the meat and making the sauce}

Pork Chops with Mozzerella and Tomato Sauce
serves 4-6 (depending on how much you want to make)
olive oil
salt and pepper
1 lb. pork chops/pork cutlets
1/2-3/4 cup tomato sauce (see recipe below for making your own)
6-8 ounces fresh mozzarella, cut into slices

1.) Trim the pork chops and season with salt and pepper. Add a few lugs of olive oil to a large skillet and heat on the stove over medium-high heat until the olive oil is fragrant.
2.) Add the pork chops to the pan and cook on first side until browned, 2-3 minutes. Then flip them over and brown the other side.
3.) Once both sides of the pork are browned, turned the heat down to medium low, cover the skillet and let simmer for 25-30 minutes. Keep an eye on the skillet, just to make sure the pork chops don't burn. If bottom starts to caramelize, just de-glaze the pan by adding in a little white wine or sherry. And don't skimp out on this part, this is what makes the pork really tender.
4.) Still in the pan, cover the pork chops in tomato sauce then add a slice or two of mozzerella to each one. Re-cover the pan and let cook until mozzerella is melted, about 5 minutes.
5.) Serve with a lettuce salad and add extra tomato sauce on top, if you're like me and you like it extra saucy.

Simple Tomato Sauce*
makes 1/2-3/4 cup
2-3 tablespoons butter
4-6 medium tomatoes, chopped (depends on how much sauce you want!)
a small onion, diced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup dry white wine
salt & pepper
basil, oregano (to your liking)

1.) Add butter and onion to a saucepan and saute over medium heat until onion is tender and starting to turn golden in color.
2.) Add garlic and saute for about 30 seconds, being careful not to burn the garlic.
3.) Add white wine and stir to deglaze the pan. Add tomatoes and turn up the heat to medium high.
4.) Once the sauce starts boiling, I usually turn the heat back down to medium and let the sauce lightly boil for awhile, so that most of the moisture from the tomatoes can evaporate.
5.) Once the sauce begins to thicken (after 10-15 minutes), add the seasoning to taste. Turn the heat down very low and let the sauce thicken.

**I never really measure anything when I make this sauce, I kind of just throw in what I have available, go on what feels right, and keep tasting it as I go along. It always turns out delicious; this sauce is almost impossible to mess up.

Cold Cucumber Soup

I know that this recipe is kind of late because summer is gone, and I actually meant to post on this almost 2 months ago, but I forgot so I'm posting it now. You'll just have to deal with it. Wink. Wink. I'll be posting much more Fall-friendly recipes from now on, so you can breathe easy.

And I think I've told you this before, but this year our cucumber plant has done really well, giving us a steady stream of giant cucumbers. So I was left trying to find different cucumber recipes to make so that Roi didn't get sick of eating the same cucumber salad every week.

I adapted this recipe from the Cold Cucumber and Yogurt Soup in Judith Jones' cookbook, that I inherited from my grandma. This soup is really light and refreshing and makes a good substitute for a salad with your lunch or dinner.

Cold Cucumber Soup
serves 2
2 medium cucumbers
2 scallions
1 1/3 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup sour cream
salt and pepper
fresh chives or dill

Peel the cucumber and roughly chop. Trim the scallions of the course outer layers and chop into rough pieces. Put the cucumber and scallions with the broth and sour cream into a food processor/blender and blend until well mixed. Season with salt and pepper to tasted. Pour into a chilled soup bowl and sprinkle with herbs.

Simple Flourless Chocolate Mousse Cake with Honey Cream Cheese Frosting

This is a variation on the Chocolate Mousse Cake I posted earlier this year, and you'll be happy to know that this is the quicker and easier version to make! I decided that I wanted to post about a simple cake that you can make even if there's no special occasion, or if the occasion is just that you feel like eating cake. This recipe makes one 8x8 or 9x9 single layer square cake and is only 4-5 servings.

The cake recipe is the same that I used in my earlier post, and you can go check it out if you're wanting more pictures about the cake process; I just halved the recipe for this version. The Honey Cream Cheese Frosting is from The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook. It's this recipe, without the butter. But if you'd like a fluffier frosting, add in the butter and tell me what you think!

I added a thin layer of high quality strawberry preserves under the layer of frosting, to add a little depth of flavor. And since I had strawberries on hand, I added those on top of the cake. It would be just as good without the fruit though, I'm just partial to fruit flavors in my cakes. Or you could substitute other flavors as well. Raspberries would be delicious with this cake.

{Cake batter and softening cream cheese. Isn't our cafetera family cute?}

Chocolate Mousse Cake
serves 4-5
5 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
4 eggs, separated --  (make sure the whites are completely free of yolks or oil, or they won't fluff up correctly -- also make sure that the whites are at room temperature before you mix them, they'll form stiffer peaks that way)
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Honey Cream Cheese Frosting
makes 1 1/4 cups - enough to cover one single layer cake
1 8-ounce package of cream cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup honey

 For the cake:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter 1 8x8 or 9x9 inch glass or metal baking pan and line the bases with buttered parchment paper.
2.  In a saucepan, melt the chocolate and butter (I put the butter in the pan first to protect the chocolate from direct heat) over low heat until smooth, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and whisk in the egg yolks until completely blended. Beat in the vanilla extract and pour into a large bowl. Set aside, stirring occasionally.
3. In a clean, grease-free bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites slowly until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and increase the speed and continue beating until they form soft peaks, then stiffer peaks that just flop over a little at the top. Have patience, this will take 5-10 minutes.
4. Stir a large spoonful of white into the chocolate mixture to lighten it, then fold in the remaining white until they're just combined. Don't overmix, or the whites will fall. It's okay if there's still some streaks in the batter.
5. Pour batter between cake pans, smoothing the top evenly and tapping the sides gently to remove any air bubbles. Bake for 30-35 minutes until puffed. The cake will fall slightly when you take it out of the oven. Cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then use a knife to loosen the sides and invert the cake onto the rack and remove the paper.

For the frosting:
If your cream cheese isn't room temperature, just zap it in the microwave for 15-20 seconds so that it softens a little, but not so much that it's melty. In a medium sized mixing bowl, beat cream cheese with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in the honey and beat until smooth, about 1 minute. Use immediately or cover and refrigerate until needed. 

To assemble:
Stir about 1/4 cup strawberry or other preserves in a small bowl so that it's easy to spread. Spread a thin layer over the cake and add the cream cheese frosting on top. Spread over the cake until you have a even and smooth layer. If you'd like, add sliced strawberries or raspberries on top. Buen provecho!

Honeycrisp Apple and Romaine Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing

Fall is officially here, and to me that means apples! Along with the cooler weather, September brings the best tasting apples of the year. Honeycrisp apples are our favorite variety of starch free apples (that we've found, that is-there may be others that we haven't tried yet-let me know if we're missing out!) and they're usually available throughout the fall and winter, here in the United States.

This salad is a good base for a simple Autumn salad, and the great thing about having a good salad base is that you can switch out elements depending on what you have on hand at home. I try to make sure that we always have a least a few hearts of romaine in the fridge, because salads are always an easy and tasty way to get in vegetables when you're starch free. Walnuts and almonds would also be really good in this salad, as would fennel or other types of cheese. If you make the salad with other combinations, let me know how they turn out!

Honeycrisp Apple and Romaine Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing
serves 3-4
for the salad:
1 large romaine heart
1 small honeycrisp apple
2 scallions (green onions)
1/4 cup shredded Swiss cheese - but don't use pre-shredded cheese because it will have starch added to keep it from sticking, use a block of cheese and shred it yourself
for the dressing:
1 tablespoon honey
1-2 tablespoons spicy brown or Dijon mustard (I like my dressing really mustardy-you should try it with one tbsp first and add more if you think it needs it)
1 tablespoon champagne or apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper

1. Cut off the end of the romaine heart. Then keep making cuts, about 1 inch apart (parallel to cutting off the end) until you've cut you're whole romaine heart. (I think this makes the best sized lettuce pieces for salads.) Add your lettuce to a large bowl.
2. Core your apple and cut it into halves or quarters. Then, cut slices as thing as you can make them and add it to your salad bowl. Trim the scallions and slice into 1/4 inch sized pieces. Add to the salad. Shred your Swiss cheese directly over the bowl until it looks like you have the right amount. (This is how I always do it-I don't think I've ever measured anything directly when I make a salad, it's always based on feel, and taste of course.)
3. Combine the honey, mustard and vinegar in a jam jar/glass vessel. I heat up this mixture in the microwave for about 15 seconds so that the honey mixes with the other ingredients and doesn't just stick to the bottom of the jar. Shake up the jar to mix everything, then add in the olive oil and salt and pepper. Shake to mix again.
4. Toss your salad with the dressing and enjoy!

Picadillo Pie: My Quest to Invent a Starch Free Casserole

 
I consider this the first recipe that I ever invented, so I'm kind of (really) proud of it.  Casseroles are classic comfort foods and they're always good as leftovers, when you don't have time to cook dinner every day. But looking through the recipes for casseroles I know and love, all of them had one thing in common: multiple starchy ingredients. So I set out to create one that would work with the diet, and this layered casserole is what I came up with. It's based on Cuban flavors, with an American-style casserole twist.

Picadillo is a pretty generic name for a beef hash containing tomatoes, and many Latin cultures have their own version of the dish. The picadillo recipe I use is adapted from the recipe from Memories of a Cuban Kitchen.

Picadillo Pie
makes one 9x13 casserole

for the Picadillo:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 medium onions, chopped (sometimes I add in green onions too, it depends on what I have around)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound lean ground beef, turkey or bison (the example pictures are made with bison-it's local and free range!)
1/4 cup dry sherry or dry white wine
1.5-2 pounds fresh tomatoes (about 4-5 medium sized tomatoes), chopped
salt and pepper (~1 tablespoon salt and pepper to taste)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground oregano
1/2 cup pimento stuffed green olives, roughly chopped

1.) In a heavy skillet, heat the oil over low heat until fragrant, then add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring, for 8-10 minutes. Add the ground meat and cook, stirring, until browned, 10-15 minutes. I usually also add some of the salt, pepper, cumin and oregano at this point as well.  Use a wooden spoon to break up any large chunks of meat.
2.) Add the sherry, tomatoes and salt, and stir, and cook, uncovered, over medium heat for 15-20 minutes. Add the olives to the mix, adjust the seasonings to taste and continue cooking until most of the liquid is absorbed, 10-15 minutes.

to make the Casserole:
1 small head of cauliflower (or 2/3 of a large head)
5 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups grated Muenster cheese

1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Steam/boil cauliflower in a covered pot with 2 cups of water until soft, about 6 minutes. Drain and let cool for a few minutes. Then use a blender or food processor to process the cauliflower until it resembles mushy grains of rice.
2.) Put the cauliflower in a medium sized bowl. Mix in the eggs and 1/2 cup of the cheese with the cauliflower.
3.) Spread about 3/4 cup of the picadillo over the bottom of the pan in a thin layer, just to cover it. Spread half of the egg/cheese/cauliflower mixture over that, then top that layer with half of the rest of the picadillo. Add the rest of the egg and cauliflower mixture on that layer, then add the rest of the picadillo on top of that. Cover the top of the casserole with an even layer of the remaining 1 cup of cheese.
4.) Bake in the oven, uncovered, until the casserole is bubbling and the cheese is starting to brown, 40-45 minutes.

{onions and garlic + green onions + ground bison}

{after adding in the tomatoes}

{I know this looks weird-it's because the farmers market cauliflower was green!}

{before the oven}

{after the oven}

Enjoy!

{No Starch in My} Pizza

I happened to try out this recipe at the exact point in time when I needed something like this: it's simple to make, relatively quick, infinitely customizable, all of the ingredients can be kept on hand and I was starting a new job and was definitely at a loss for time when it came to cooking. And it's pizza. I mean for realz, who doesn't like pizza?

If you can't eat grains, you have to try this recipe, or even if you're just gluten intolerant or are trying to cut back on complex carbs, you should keep this recipe in your back pocket.

The most time consuming part for me is making the sauce. If you can eat store-bought sauce, that's even more of a time-saver. But we've found that pretty much all store bought tomato based sauces tend to be starchy, so I always make tomato sauce at home from fresh tomatoes. I adapted this pizza recipe from one that I found on this blog. And in this post, I'm including a recipe for basic tomato sauce and a recipe for white sauce, for those times when you don't have any tomatoes on hand, but still want pizza. (That's actually why I developed the white sauce recipe in the first place. Except I realized I didn't have any tomatoes after I had already made the crust.)

{No Starch in My} Pizza
serves 4-6
ingredients for the crust:
8 ounce package of full fat cream cheese (at room temp.)
2 egg whites and 1 whole egg
salt & pepper
garlic powder, dried basil leaves, dried oregano leaves
1/4 shredded Parmesan cheese
ingredients for the pizza:
1/2-3/4 cup tomato sauce*
4 ounces mozzerella cheese, sliced thinly
fresh or dried basil and oregano
your choice of toppings (we love black olives, spinach, tomatoes, etc.)

1.) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and spray a 9x13 baking dish.
2.) Blend the cream cheese with the eggs until smooth, then mix in dried seasonings to taste.
3.) Add Parmesan cheese and stir until combined, then pour mixture into the baking dish.
4.) Bake for 20-22 minutes or until golden brown. Let crust cool for 10 minutes before adding sauce, cheese and toppings.
5.) After the crust is done and cooling, raise the oven temperature to 400 degrees F.
6.) Top the crust with sauce, mozzarella cheese and add whichever toppings are your fave. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly and starting to brown.

Simple Tomato Sauce*
makes 1/2-3/4 cup
2-3 tablespoons butter
4-6 medium tomatoes, chopped (depends on how much sauce you want!)
a small onion, diced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup dry white wine
salt & pepper
basil, oregano (to your liking)

1.) Add butter and onion to a saucepan and saute over medium heat until onion is tender and starting to turn golden in color.
2.) Add garlic and saute for about 30 seconds, being careful not to burn the garlic.
3.) Add white wine and stir to deglaze the pan. Add tomatoes and turn up the heat to medium high.
4.) Once the sauce starts boiling, I usually turn the heat back down to medium and let the sauce lightly boil for awhile, so that most of the moisture from the tomatoes can evaporate.
5.) Once the sauce begins to thicken (after 10-15 minutes), add the seasoning to taste. Turn the heat down very low and let the sauce thicken.

**I never really measure anything when I make this sauce, I kind of just throw in what I have available, go on what feels right, and keep tasting it as I go along. It always turns out delicious; this sauce is almost impossible to mess up.

Simple White Sauce for Pizza
makes about 1/2 cup
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh thyme (or 1/4 tsp dried thyme)
salt and pepper

1.) In a saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute for 5-6 minutes, or until translucent. Add garlic and stir for 1 minute longer.
2.) Add cream, lower heat to medium-low and cook for about 5 minutes, or until cream thickens and reduces slightly.
3.) Remove from heat and stir in any seasoning. Let sauce cool before spreading on your pizza.

Mojo Pork Kebabs

 In our apartment complex, you're not allowed to grill anything within 20 feet of the building. But I'm not really a fan of grilling in the middle of a parking lot, so it's lucky that my husband had the foresight to own a George Foreman, as tiny as it is. Actually, I think that must have been all he cooked on before we moved in together, because I know he didn't own any pots or pans.

Anyway, I picked up this summer issue of Everyday Food at CVS when we were waiting for Roi's Rx's one day, and it gave me the urge to grill. Cuban-inspired flavors are always perfect summer recipes. These kebabs are adapted from this recipe.



MOJO PORK KEBABS
serves 2-3 

Ingredients:

1/4-1/3 cup olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

juice from 2 limes (~3 tablespoons)

1/4 cup orange juice

1 orange, cut into 16 pieces

1 lb. pork tenderloin, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces

1 zucchini, cut into 1-inch rounds

cumin

salt and pepper

 Directions:

 1. In a small pot, combine oil and garlic and heat over medium-low. Cook until garlic is soft, 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. (Make sure your garlic doesn't burn, or your mojo just won't taste the same!) Remove from heat, stir in lime and orange juices and let cool for 15 minutes. Stir in some cumin (about 1/4 tsp), salt and pepper.

2. In a ziplock bag, toss the pork with half of the marinade and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes (or up to 12 hours) and refrigerate the remaining marinade.

3. Heat a grill, grill pan, or George Foreman to medium-high, making sure that the grill is clean before you start. Thread pork, orange and zucchini onto skewers. Season with a couple of shakes of cumin, salt and pepper. Grill kebabs 4-5 minutes per side for medium-well, and at least until they have the tell-tale grill marks. Brush with your reserved marinade and serve.

These tasted really excellent with a light summer salad. I tossed romaine lettuce with sliced fresh cucumber (peeled) and a chopped fresh peach. I paired the salad with a honey balsamic dressing and it was perfect: sweet and refreshing. For the dressing, combine 1 part honey, 1 part balsamic vinegar, and 3 parts olive oil. I usually heat the honey with the balsamic in the microwave for about 15 seconds so that all the ingredients mix together in the dressing. Toss and serve!

Life Lately.

Hello. All I can really say about my absence from this blog is that a set of circumstances has made it difficult for me to successfully juggle everyday life and have time to post on this blog. 

So, here's to making sense of things! (Now you have to imagine me toasting you with my imaginary champagne flute.)  I promise things will become more normal soon! I've still been starch-free fooding, I just haven't been documenting it as much. Here's a few instagrams of my summer food scene, in case you're you know, curious or something.

 

1.} Starch free pizza: it was really good. With homemade tomato sauce and everything. 

2.} July watermelon: the best ever. 3.} Strawberry milkshakes.

4.} Fancy salads for dinner.

Cranberry Raspberry Pops

These are undeniably the most amazing homemade popsicles I've ever made. And I think that even if you're not as into cranberries as I am, you'll love them too. If you're partial to other kinds of berries, you can pick and choose which juices and fruits you use for your pops. But if you ask me, these could not have been better. Just don't wear a white shirt when you're eating one.

Cranberry Raspberry Pops
Adapted from this book.
2 1/2 cups cranberry juice
1/2 cup frozen raspberries
1/2 fresh raspberries
1 cup light brown sugar, or to taste

1. In a saucepan, combine all of the ingredients (except the fresh raspberries) and 1 1/2 cups water. Cook over low heat for about 7 minutes, stirring, until the mixture has thickened. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.
2. Divide your fresh raspberries between the molds. Fill the pop molds with the juice mixture, insert the sticks, and freeze for at least 12 hours.
3. Remove from the freezer; let stand at room temperature for 5 minutes before removing the pops from the molds.

~~~~~

I also used this popsicle mixture to try out a birthday present I got from my awesome friend Ashlee. (This is in no way a sponsored post, just an honest product review!) She gave me the Zoku popsicle maker that claims to make popsicles in 5-8 minutes. And you know what? It does!

You have to freeze the mold for at least 24 hours in your freezer before it will work, and you can't touch the silver part with bare hands or it can burn you with its coldness. But I actually sat there and watched it freeze, which isn't something you see every day. This one took closer to 10 minutes to completely freeze, so it wouldn't be very practical for serving more than 1-2 people. But if you want a delicous home made popsicle and you don't want to have to wait overnight, then here is your solution. And I like how the popsicle looked when it came out of the mold.



{freezing my popsicle on the counter}



{Zoku popsicle: it freezes in a marbled pattern}



Panzanella (Italian Bread Salad)

Panzanella is a classic Italian tomato-bread salad, and I gave a starch-free twist. I'm sure the Italian bread elitists out there won't like my spin on this salad, but for people who can only eat starch-less bread, it's not too bad. Actually, I'm really happy with out this salad turned out; I wasn't completely sure how the thick almond meal bread would work in this recipe. The original recipe had cucumbers, but I left them out, not really feeling the crunchiness that cucumber would add to this salad. This is adapted from a recipe I found in the July/August 2011 edition of Cook's Illustrated.

{toasting the bread}



{a dinner of salads}

Panzanella (Italian Bread Salad)

serves 4

6 cups "pumpernickel" almond meal bread, cut into 1-inch pieces

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper

1 1/2 lbs. tomatoes, cored, seeded, and cut into 1-inch pieces

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 shallot, sliced thin

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Toss the bread pieces with 2 tablespoons oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Arrange bread in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Toast bread pieces until just starting to brown, 8-10 minutes, stirring halfway through. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

2. Gently toss tomatoes and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large bowl. Transfer to colander and set over bowl, then set aside to drain for 15 minutes, tossing occasionally. Whisk remaining 6 tablespoons oil, vinegar, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper into reserved tomato juices. Add bread pieces, toss to coat, and let stand for 10 minutes, tossing occasionally. Add tomatoes, shallot, and basil to bowl with bread pieces and toss to coat. Season to salt and pepper to taste, and serve immediately.



Flourless Brownie Cake



This is seriously the simplest chocolate cake ever. It's definitely a household staple around here because it doesn't take any time to make and it's amazing when you eat it warm, paired with vanilla ice cream. As far as ice cream goes, Breyer's Natural Vanilla Ice Cream is a good starch free choice, because it only has a few ingredients and they're the right ones. (Or with some fresh strawberries and whipped cream. Have you noticed a trend here?) We call it brownie cake because it falls right between a thick, fudgey brownie and a rich chocolate cake.

Flourless Brownie Cake

makes 1 8x8 or 9x9 round/square cake

4 ounces semisweet chocolate

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup white sugar

1/2 cup cocoa powder

3 eggs, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Put the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and cover it with the butter. Heat it up in small increments (15-20 seconds at a time), stirring in between each time, until the chocolate is melted. Stir until smooth. Allow to cool slightly, then mix in the vanilla extract.

{weighing the chocolate}

2. Sift the dry ingredients together, then mix in everything else. Pour the mixture into a greased baking pan and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the cake is cooked through and the top starts cracking. Serve warm!



{getting ready to mix everything together}



{finished baking}



Flourless Brownie Cake

makes 1 8x8 or 9x9 round/square cake

4 ounces semisweet chocolate

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup white sugar

1/2 cup cocoa powder

3 eggs, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Put the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and cover it with the butter. Heat it up in small increments (15-20 seconds at a time), stirring in between each time, until the chocolate is melted. Stir until smooth.

2. Sift the dry ingredients together, then mix in everything else. Pour the mixture into a greased baking pan and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the cake is cooked through and the top starts cracking.