Roasted Cabbage

Roasted Cabbage

Just in time for a fall…another recipe from pinterest….I wasn’t kidding when I said it was addicting. This is a super easy side to make for two reasons 1) you probably have all ingredient for the marinade already 2) it takes minutes to throw together. As we’ve have an abundance of cabbage in our CSA lately, we’ve had this several times. It’s a great way to use the “other half” of a cabbage. I find that when using cabbage I rarely use the whole thing and then I need to find something to do with the rest. This has become a “go to” for using up cabbage. For the two of us we’ll have a wedge a piece but for a larger family you could cut the wedges in half and serve another veggie with it. I didn’t change anything from the original recipe I saw online. However, I’ve made it using soy sauce instead of Worcestershire and I’ve left the lemon out when we didn’t have any on hand and it was still tasty! I also think you could play around and add different spices to change it up a bit. The original blogger talks about making it on the grill but I’ve never tried it that way.

Let me know if you come up with another variation!

Roasted Cabbage

Ingredients for marinade

 

1 tsp olive oil

2 tbsp real bacon bits (I used 2 strips of crispy bacon for half a cabbage)

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Cabbage Quartered

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp ground black pepper (more or less to taste)

1 Medium Head of Cabbage quartered

 

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Mix the olive oil, bacon bits, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper to make the marinade.

Marinade with Bacon

Prepare the cabbage. Rinse it under water and remove any yucky loose leaves. Cut into quarters.

Lay each wedge on a sheet of aluminum foil large enough to wrap it up in. Spoon about 2 tbsp of the marinade on top making sure to get it in all the nooks and crannies.

Spoon marinade on top and wrap up.

Wrap each wedge and bake for 20-30 minutes for crunchy cabbage and 30-45 for a softer cabbage. (We’ve done it both ways!)

 

Note: To make a whole head of cabbage I would double the recipe above. The amount above is what I’ve used for a half a cabbage.

The Science of Getting Drunk

Most of us have enjoyed an adult beverage from time to time.  When used in moderation there are actually documented health benefits to alcohol. While I don’t recommend people consume alcohol to better their health, the research is quite clear that it can help your heart and your brain. But that is a slippery slope. If some is good, more is better right!?

Absolutely not! Alcohol is excess causes MAJOR health problems.  It causes havoc in every body system you can think of. It is not part of a healthy lifestyle when consumed in excess.

Below is an interesting graphic I came across this morning from www.bitrebels.com. It’s a fun way to understand what happens to our bodies when we consume too much alcohol.  Remember, alcohol in moderation is ok, but always enjoy it responsibly.

 

Cheesy Garlic Cauliflower Bread

Cheesy Garlic Cauliflower Bread

You probably remember my post from a few weeks back with the Cauliflower Pizza Crust. It was a raging success! Thank you for all the feedback! And, thank goodness for Pinterest!

I f you were like us, you might have had some cauliflower leftover. I had also pinned a  recipe for this cheesy garlic bread.  I have to say, I don’t know which one we liked more…the pizza or the garlic bread! They were both amazing but I’m leaning toward the bread. I just felt sooo bad, but I wasn’t being. I really felt like I was eating cheesy bread sticks when I dipped them in the leftover pizza sauce.  They were also really good cold and leftover! (I know, it’s crazy and I’d say it’s just because I’m pregnant but Dr. Court thought so too!) The recipe is almost identical to the pizza crust. I didn’t change a thing from the recipe I from Mom, What’s for Dinner?

Give it a try and let us know which one YOU like better!

 

Cheesy Garlic Cauliflower Bread

1 cup cooked, riced cauliflower

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp crushed garlic

1/2 tsp garlic salt

olive oil

 

For Topping:

2 tablespoons softened salted butter

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese

*Optional Marinara sauce for dipping  (I highly recommend this…we used leftover pizza sauce.)

 

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Chop the cauliflower florets into chunks and steam them in a steamer or on the stove until slightly soft for 15 minutes. Place in a ricer or grate.

One large head should produce approximately 3 cups of riced cauliflower. The remainder can be used to make additional pizza crusts immediately, or can be stored in the refrigerator for up to one week.

 

To Make the “Bread”:

Prepare your baking stone or sheet by spreading a small amount of olive oil on it and top with parchment paper. (I also, highly recommend using the parchment paper. It made it so much easier as it didn’t stick or burn.)

In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup cauliflower, egg, Parmesan and Mozzarella. Add oregano, crushed garlic and garlic salt, stir.

Transfer to the baking stone or sheet, and using your hands, pat out into a large rectangle.

Bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes.

Remove from oven.

Mix 2 TBSP butter and garlic in a small bowl and.spread the butter and garlic mixture over baked cauliflower bread and top with Parmesan and Mozzarella cheeses.

Place back in the 450 degree oven until all cheese is melted.

Slice and Serve!

We had this with the Garlic Dill Chicken recipe from last week and it was fabulous!

Garlic Dill Chicken

My sister-in-law reminded me of this recipe. It was given to her by my mother and at this point I don’t think she remembers where it came from originally. It’s super easy and full of flavor. My sister-in-law made a few adjustments to the original recipe and those are the ones I’ll share with you.

She substituted the sour cream in this recipe for Greek yogurt. I have to admit that I rarely use sour cream for anything anymore. I almost always use Greek yogurt as we always have it on hand, it has more protein and it tastes great on anything that you would use sour cream. For example, we use it on sweet potatoes, taco salads sans shell, as a topping for chili, you name it. If you would use sour cream, we use Greek yogurt in its place. Anyway, it’s great in this recipe. While I used chicken for this recipe you could also use fish and it would be just as excellent.

Garlic Dill Chicken

Ingredients for Garlic Dill Chicken

4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup Greek yogurt

½ tsp Garlic powder

1 Tbsp Dill weed (I used fresh dill from our CSA that I had dried)

¼ tsp Black pepper

Salt to taste

Grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a bowl mix together mayonnaise, Greek yogurt, garlic powder, dill weed, black pepper and salt.

Coat the chicken breasts with the mixture and place in a 9×13 pan.

Coat with mixture and place in pan.

Bake covered for 25-30 minutes. Remove the foil and sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the top of the chicken. Place back in the oven until cheese is melted and slightly browned and chicken breasts are cooked through.

Sprinkle the chicken with Parmesan cheese.

ENJOY!

Big Bad Wheat

 

 

Gluten, one of the main proteins found in wheat, is a troublesome little guy. The human gastrointestinal tract has a very hard time completely digesting it AND our immune systems don’t like it.

 

In addition to being found in wheat, gluten can also be found in rye, oats and barley. These are best avoided if you have celiac disease.

 

Celiac disease, present in as many as 2% of us, is a disorder in which gluten causes an autoimmune reaction and atrophy of the GI system is the result.  As the condition continues, more and more cells inside our GI tract are killed with resulting malabsorption of vitamins and nutrients. In serious cases it can be deadly. For many, however, the symptoms include weight loss, diarrhea, gas, bloating and pain.

 

Celiac disease is not to be confused with gluten sensitivity. For many years doctors believed that a patient had celiac disease or nothing. They fervently denied the possibility that someone could simply be sensitive to gluten.  This has changed.

 

According to Dr. Peter Green, director of the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University:

 

“Recent studies are showing the gluten sensitivity may be much more common than previously thought. It may, in fact, be a separate disease entity that involves different organs and different mechanisms than celiac disease. While there is no doubt that the condition exists, the lack of definite criteria for a diagnosis has resulted in a skeptical attitude on the part of many doctors.”

 

Further, according to a study in the Lancet Neurology in 2010:

 

“Gluten sensitivity is a systemic autoimmune disease with diverse manifestations. This disorder is characterised by abnormal immunological responsiveness to ingested gluten in genetically susceptible individuals. Coeliac disease, or gluten-sensitive enteropathy, is only one aspect of a range of possible manifestations of gluten sensitivity.”

 

Basically this is saying that people may have gluten sensitivity and over time this may manifest as celiac disease. However, there are many other ways that gluten sensitivity may present. Other symptoms might include:

 

• Fatigue
• Eczema
• Anemia
• Hypothyroidism
• Osteoporosis
• Epilepsy
• Neuropathy
• Cerebellar ataxia
• Infertility
• Fatty liver

 

This list is by no means all-inclusive either. When a patient presents with a list of symptoms that don’t seem to fit together, have not responded to traditional types of treatments and have been long standing, one of the first things I do is check for gluten sensitivity. If it’s not there we move on to the next treatment strategy. However, for many in my practice, eliminating gluten has proven to be a very effective treatment.

 

If you’ve had a chronic health condition that has not responded to various treatment types, consider being checked for gluten sensitivity through a specialist with knowledge of the most recent research in this fascinating field.  It just might be the cure you’re looking for.

 

Yummy Cooked Apples

Spartan Apples from Poverty Lane Orchard

Fall is here! The temperature is dropping, the leaves are turning and pumpkins and apples are ready for picking. Recently I picked up a bag of Spartan apples at our local Poverty Lane Orchard. When I was shopping for them I had a recipe in mind that my mom used to make when we were kids. I’m not sure it’s a recipe in so much as it’s one of those things that you just throw together. Come to find out my mom’s used to make it and her mom’s mom also made these yummy cooked apples. So who knows how long it’s been in the family or how many times it’s changed. I, of course, had to put my own spin on it and try to make it fit our eating plan a little better. The original called for sugar which I knew I would omit as I figured it wouldn’t really need it. I was right! With the addition of some raisins it’s perfectly sweet on its own.

Now, I tried to dress the apples up a little more by making some candied toasted walnuts to top it. If I hadn’t burnt them they would have been a great addition. However, they ended up tasting a little like burnt popcorn which took away from the amazing apples we opted not to use them.

Additionally, pouring a little organic heavy cream over the apples is another great option.

These cooked apples taste like fall, plus they make the house smell amazing as they cook! I hope you enjoy them as much as we do! I know I’ll be making another batch very soon!

Cooked Apples

8 small apples, peeled and sliced (you could use more small apples as they cook down considerably)

Peeled Sliced Apples

¼ c. raisins

2 Tbsp butter

1 Tbsp cinnamon

Other Ingredients

Melt the 2 Tbsp of butter in a large saucepan over medium heat.

Melted Butter

Add the peeled, sliced apples, raisins and cinnamon to the pan. Stir to coat them with the butter cinnamon.

Stir to coat apples with butter, cinnamon and raisins.

Let them cook on medium heat for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 30-40 minutes or until the apples are soft and just starting to fall apart. You don’t want them to get too mushy and turn to applesauce.

Cooked Apples

Remove from heat and serve warm either by themselves or with a little heavy cream. (You could top them with a small scoop of organic vanilla bean ice cream if you were so inclined….hey even we have a little ice cream as a treat once in a while….just not every day or week for that matter!!!!)

Cooked Apples with Heavy Cream

Cooked Apples

8 small apples, peeled and sliced (you could use more small apples as they cook down considerably)

¼ c. raisins

2 Tbsp butter

1 Tbsp cinnamon

Melt the 2 Tbsp of butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the peeled, sliced apples, raisins and cinnamon to the pan. Stir to coat them with the butter cinnamon. Let them cook on medium heat for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 30-40 minutes or until the apples are soft and just starting to fall apart. You don’t want them to get too mushy and turn to applesauce. Remove from heat and serve warm either by themselves or with a little heavy cream. (You could top them with a small scoop of organic vanilla bean ice cream if you were so inclined….hey even we have a little ice cream as a treat once in a while….just not every day or week for that matter!!!!)

Candied Toasted Walnuts

1 cup of coarsely chopped halved walnuts

1 Tbsp melted butter

½ tsp cinnamon

1 Tbsp of maple syrup

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine melted butter, maple syrup and cinnamon in a bowl. Add walnuts and toss until coated.

Place walnuts on a baking sheet and place in oven for about 5-8 minutes. Make sure you watch them closely and turn them a time or two. They will go from perfectly toasted to burnt in no time! Top the apples with some walnuts. (Again, these are a treat for us. I don’t make them every time I make the apples.)