Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

Something Sweet...Every now and then, I just have to. So I tried a new product last week: 1-2-3 Gluten Free Chewy Chipless Cookie Mix. www.123glutenfree.com .


Since it's a chipless product, I threw in a bag of mint chocolate chips that had been in the pantry for months and were just begging for a purpose. The combination was DIVINE.  And by that I don't mean the cookies were OK for a gluten-free product. The 16-year-old food critic of the house who's not gluten-free declared them the best chocolate chip cookies he's ever had. Further evidence that eating gluten-free is not a punishment, but rather, a pleasure. 


And speaking of pleasure (one of my favorite topics), part of how I'm maintaining a 185-pound weight drop includes retooling my definition of pleasure.  These cookies were fairly good sized so I had one.  I was clear about the purpose of the cookie:  a little psychological pleasure. And make no mistake, it's an essential element of life. Just ask any chronic yo-yo dieter if you don't believe me. 


But the operative word here is a little pleasure.  I ate the cookie with focus and awareness, enjoying every crumb. Four years ago, my definition of pleasure was to eat as much as I wanted of a good-tasting food and it effortlessly spiraled into a way of life for me that felt normal. It was also a custom that got me into a bit of a pickle physically. 


So yesterday, instead of half a batch of these little gems, I ate one. Something I've learned in all this:  the freezer is my FRIEND!  I'm now the queen of squirreling away a surplus of Almond Meringue Cookies or slices of gluten-free chocolate cake. It's wonderful to have them lying in wait at my disposal when the mood for pleasure (not to be confused with numbing out and escaping) strikes me. 


These lengths I go to may sound time-consuming and elaborate but they're really not.  Like anything else, if I do it over and over it becomes...you guessed it...a habit!  And I do it because I want to keep my current wardrobe. And because it's so much easier to move around the world (and staircases and the back seat of a two-door Hyundai) if I eat for one and not seven. So now, smaller, more strategically applied forms of pleasure it is. Believe me, it's a very fair trade.


Bon Appetit!

Eggplant-Chego

Eggplant-Chego:  This is LIVING!

Chef Bill made me the most delightful dinner the other night - a cleaned up version of one of my favorites: Eggplant Parm. This dish may look elaborate and involved, but I assure you, it's very do-able.  The crux of it involves dredging eggplant slices in gluten-free bread crumbs and then baking them until crisp. The slices are then layered in a baking dish with layers of a Bolognese-style meat sauce and topped with slices of Manchego cheese, a sheep's milk cheese.  The result is positively delicious and no yucky, heavy feeling afterwards because my pipes aren't clogged with gluten or cow dairy.  If you desire a more specific recipe, give me a shout and I'll have Chef Bill dictate his magic formula for all you wonderful readers.  Buon Appetito!

The Simple Joys of Swai

Swai is one of my favorite types of fish:  inexpensive, and surprisingly moist and tender if cooked via Chef Bill's recipe below. Probably another reason I like it so much is that it bears a striking resemblance to catfish. I moan over this recipe, and I'm not a big fish lover.  The key is not overcooking. According to Chef Bill, it's best to be less concerned with the blackening than with the proper cooking of the fish.  It does not have to be traditionally blackened to taste good.  Chef Bill made this for dinner the other night, and true our gluten-free nature, served it with a side of homemade potato hash. It's also great with  green beans, sauteed spinach, baked zucchini, a side of basmati rice, a baked potato, gluten-free cappellini with oil and garlic - just about anything.  Summer's the perfect time to enjoy a little Swai.   Let me know how you like the recipe  -  Bon Appetit!


Sauteed Swai
Serves Two:

Two Swai filets
Olive Oil
Good Quality Cajun Spice such as Emeril's Essence or Paul Prudhomme's Fish Magic

Lightly brush or rub filets with olive oil. Fairly heavily season both sides of the filet with Cajun spice. Heat approximately 3 TBS. olive oil in a large frying pan till almost smoking. Sear fish on one side approximately two minutes. Flip fish over with spatula and sear for two minutes. Add one pat butter to pan until pan is about smoking. Sear for 40 seconds each side. Serve immediately.

A Glorious and Gluten-Free Meal, compliments of Chef Bill...

Morning Glory: Baked Cherries

Have I mentioned that I'm in love with this little clay baking pot I found at Good Will last year?  It's amazing. After having so many good things come out of it after 30 minutes in the oven, I'm convinced it's an alchemist.  I've baked everything from mini-casseroles and leftover soup to duck eggs over potatoes and coconut milk rice pudding in this adorable little cassoulet. There must be something about the covered-clay-baking-process that turns the ordinary into the sublime. Eggs are more evenly cooked, desserts are more soft and creamy, and soups are imbued with new flavor and life. This morning I decided to give baked cherries a whirl.

My Ayurvedic constitution is Kapha (http://doshaquiz.chopra.com)  so maybe that's why I prefer warm foods vs. ice-cold.  Warm fruit out of the oven is simply more enjoyable to me, whether it's apples, peaches, or berries.  The heat, when applied gently and for the right amount of time, beautifully brings out the flavor, as well as a river of juices you just wouldn't get from fruit out of the fridge, or even at room temperature.  One of my most adored fruits are now in season so what better time to do the baking experiment:  a crock full of washed bing cherries baked covered at 335 for 30 minutes. This morning the cherries were straight out of the fridge; if you're using room temperature cherries, the time or temperature might vary.  I always turn the oven off at the end and let them marinate a little more, say 10 minutes or so.  The result is pure Nirvana: The beauty and fragrance of a cherry pie minus the white stuff to wreak havoc with the blood sugar.

The photos might not do their splendor justice, so you'll just have to try it out to see what  I mean.  Any covered casserole dish will do if you don't have a crock.  Let the cherry-baking begin!  Bon Appetit...

Almond Joy - My A.M. Ritual Improved

Espresso in the a.m. has been a ritual since the 80's.  Once I discovered its hedonistic depth and flavor, there was no going back to coffee.  The thing is, I've never been a black coffee kind of drinker, so the octane of my espresso was always tempered with a generous splash of cream. It was my own version of a strong, full-bodied latte.

Three years ago, when I found DDPYOGA and the guidance of Diamond Dallas Page and Terri Lange, they strongly urged me to give up cow dairy.  It was sound advice, but I also knew I was in no way, shape or form ready or willing to give up cream from my beloved a.m. ritual.  When I undertook a vow to change my life, health, and food choices, I knew that to make it work long-term, I had to be realistic.  For me, this meant keeping pleasure in the equation to a certain extent...it would be crucial to the longevity of my changes.  The deal I made with myself was as follows:  cow cheese takes a hike; cream in the espresso stays in the picture.  This decision was due in large part to never finding a suitable cream substitute.  I didn't like the fake creamers or the substitutes made of soy or coconut.  Then oneday, an unexpected revelation:  Almond Milk makes FABULOUS latte's.

It all came about quite by accident while vacationing at my friend Rene's house.  Rene is also a recent 'no cow dairy' convert and drinks only Almond Milk.  My first morning there I was horrified to discover she hadn't had time to shop for cream, and I was too groggy for a supermarket run, so I bit the bullet and heated Almond Milk on the stove in a saucepan in tandem with the percolating Bialetti.

"It's gonna be horrible," I thought to myself as I mixed the two together in a mug.  Then I took a sip.  Then I smiled in delight.  That was a year ago.  Suffice it to say, I don't buy cream anymore. I'm not saying Almond Milk tastes the same. How could it?  It's an entirely different substance with significantly less fat, but somehow, it still works.  And it has loads more nutrition (Calcium, Vitamin E, Vitamin D, Phosphorus, Manganese) than cream.  Now that my palate is acclimated to it, cream tastes a little heavy and odd when I'm dining out and it's the only option.

The key to a good espresso latte is adding enough Almond Milk to make it milky and lush without overpowering the coffee. I use about a half cup of espresso to 1 cup of Almond Milk.  Another way of gauging it is color:  I prefer my Almond Latte's to be a deep beige.  If you're not into espresso, use whatever coffee you're accustomed to.  So if you're a regular coffee drinker, I hope you'll give the Almond option a try, and let me know how you like it.  Oh, and it's also FANTASTIC chilled...just in time for heatwave season.

And last but not least:  my favorite brand is Blue Diamond's Almond Breeze, Unsweetened.  It's only 40 calories a cup, loaded with nutrients, and unloaded with sugar. Sweetened varieties can range from 60 to 90 calories a cup and I'd rather spend the calories elsewhere. 

Bon Appetit!

The Sweet Sound of Guided Meditation

Last night I needed some comfort. Rather urgently.  It was the end of a rather drawn-out and trying day, and I felt my irateness rising, slumped at the computer answering e-mails and taking care of back-logged business, noting that the day's "To Accomplish" list looked woefully unchecked. 


I'm in the midst of maintaining a 185 weight loss.  The process began in January of 2009. On the surface, it seemed like everything fell seamlessly into place:   I found DDPYOGA and began doing it; I listened to the advice of Dallas Page and Terri Lange and stopped eating gluten and cow dairy, and among other milestones that year, I was spurred by my steady weight change and decided to train for and complete Avon's walking marathon for breast cancer research.  


The steady shrinking of my hipline garnered a lot of oooh and aahhs from those around me and I'm not going to pretend I wasn't ecstatic because of it. But there were emotional demons to conquor before the poundage faded away. All along, even when I was 300 pounds + for so many years, I've made sure to pay careful attention to the part of me that is incorporeal.  Sure it's a fact that the body needs care, but I've come to realize that the outer is only a reflection of the inner afterall, so what good does it do to focus solely on calories-in and sit-ups?  I've been down that road before, twice to the tune of two 100-pound weight losses and subsequent regains. Not interested.


So last night, as I felt the breezey undercurrents of emotional turmoil gaining velocity, I knew the breeze could easily churn into funnel clouds if I didn't acknowledge them with a time out.  Four years ago, the time-out would have consisted of me beelining into the kitchen for the most easily accessible fistfull of simple carbs.  I no longer attempt to solve problems this way.  


Instead, I decided that some soothing of my Spirit was in order.  I employ a variety of remedies for this ranging from getting down on the floor and stretching to candlelight and incense, flipping on some relaxation music, or one of my favorites:  reaching for the headphones and turning on a guided meditation.  There's nothing like a gentle, calming voice to guide me back into the gale-free zone of serenity again.  Shelley Cummins is one of my favorite purveyors of the guided meditation.  She's a spiritual teacher and yogini I've studied with for years, and Shelley conducts workshops around the world. Since I can't always get to where she is, I thank God for her MP3 downloads. Last night I took refuge in her Tonglen Breathing Meditation, a transformational breathing practice meaning "to send and to receive."


Shelley's meditation downloads, books, and yoga DVD's are available on Amazon ( www.amazon.com/Divine-Breath/dp/B001BLKNVI/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1338931403&sr=8-3 )


As I drifted off to sleep last night to the strains of the meditation, with seagulls and ocean waves interspersed with Shelley's gentle directives, I was truly at peace. How good it felt to listen to what my body and soul really wanted and give it to them.  To me, that's the essence of real nourishment.




For more information on Shelley Cummins, visit  www.jaisriyogis.com  

A Recent Gluten and Dairy-Free* Lunch

OK everyone,  I have just one question to ask:  Do I look like I'm suffering?

Chef Bill recently surprised me with this creation:  a pan-seared burger with Montreal spice and melted goat gouda, served on sauted spinach and onions, and topped with an over-easy fried egg sprinkled with Paprika.  Every millimeter of it was mouthwatering.  The point I hope you've already connected with is, clean eating can be FABULOUS!  It's all in how you play it.

Many of you know about my yolk fetish (Bill definitely does), so it was with great pleasure that I dove into this succulent concoction. When possible I food combine (eat protein and carbs at separate times). In general when it comes to burgers, I can do without a bun, it's the cheese that's non-negotiable. Besides this was so off the carts in flavor and texture, I was too busy to notice.  One look a the photos and I hope it's clear that it's totally possible to clean and decadent!

Bon Appetit!

* By Dairy-Free, I'm referring to cow dairy