Washington DC Metro Autoimmune Walk

Hi All!

My husband & I are going to be participating in the Autoimmune Walk for the DC area on June 22, in order to raise money for research into prevention and cures for autoimmune disorders. I know that many of you who read and use this blog suffer from autoimmune disorders, so I felt I should share this information here. 

The main page for the Autoimmune Walk can be found here. There are walks planned in Michigan, Kentucky, Georgia, New York and in the DC metro area.

We're walking to raise money for the Autoimmune Diseases Association, the only non-profit dedicated to research for autoimmune disorders. They support special diets (like the starch free diet!) as an option for treatment of these disorders, instead of only pushing pharmaceutical treatment options.

If you'd like to donate and support our team (we're called Team Peppy), you can visit our team page right here. And if you live in the DC area, you should come out and walk with us!

If you'd like more information about the AARDA, check out their website.

Thanks everyone! 
Kara

Savory Leek and Arugla Tart

Let's put your almond flour crust making skills to good use, now in a savory dish! This recipe has recently become one of my favorite go-to recipes for dinner when I'm running out of food in the fridge and needing to go the grocery store.  Although I use leeks and arugula for the tart here, this recipe works well for a number of different fillings. If you only have onions and spinach on hand, that would be just as delicious. You can also change the herbs and spices depending on your taste and what you have on hand at home. This tart would also be perfect for serving at a brunch. It's loosely adapted from this recipe.

 
Crust:

2 1/2 cups almond flour/almond meal

1/4 parmesan, finely shredded (not pre-grated, they put corn starch in that stuff!)

1/2 teaspoon salt 
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

3 ounces (3/4 stick) unsalted butter

1/8 cup ice water 

Filling:  
2 tablespoons of unsalted butter

4 leeks (white part), thoroughly cleaned and coarsely chopped

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon coriander 

5 large eggs 

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup milk

1/3 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated 

a handful of cilantro, chopped 

2 1/2 oz arugula  

To make crust:  

1.) Heat oven to 300 degrees F. Combine cold butter, almond flour, parmesan, salt, pepper and water, and knead into a firm dough. The dough should be crumbly. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. 

2.) Roll out dough between 2 sheets of parchment, then invert into your greased tart pan. Press the dough into the bottom and sides of your pan. (If you have a 10-inch springform tart pan, that would work best. Since I don't, I use a regular ceramic tart pan. I just end up with a little extra filling that I bake in a small dish.) 

3.) Bake at 300 for about 30 minutes or until golden. Remove from oven and let cool while you prepare the filling.

To make filling:  

1.) Melt butter in a large skillet over medium low heat. Add in leeks and spices and then cover and cook until leeks are tender, stirring every so often. Remove from heat and transfer leeks to a bowl to cool. 

2.) In a separate bowl combine eggs, cream, milk, both cheeses and whisk to combine. Mix in cooled leeks, cilantro, and arugula into mixture.

3.) Pour filling into crust and bake at 375 degrees. Bake for about 35-40 minutes or until filling starts to puff, gold spots appear and center is set. Remove from oven and transfer to rack and cool slightly. Serve warm.