slurp soup.

well, i had a somewhat overwhelming experience today when shopping for groceries (on top of the fact that it was a zoo there because tomorrow is easter and i forgot this fact)...how does one make the transition to a basic vegan except for pork allowance, without the soy option & a gluten-free starting point?? in all honesty, i know that i can have my low-reactive foods on a rotating schedule, but i have to eliminate and then reintroduce them first - which is a real pain. so i became inspired by leeks and baby vidalia onions in the produce aisle and warmed up on this windy day by making a soup that was YUM to the last drop. (perhaps it would have been extra delicious with a cup and a half of heavy cream mixed in, but i'll try NOT to think about it!)

DISCLAIMER: i am NOT a chef, i do NOT measure and my palette is NOT trained, i'm just regular & love food...proceed with caution & enjoy! (also, i decided to document this after i started cooking - apologies for the cell phone pics, i'll try harder next time to be prepared)...

slurp soup
3 medium leeks, halved & thinly sliced (rinse thoroughly!)
3 baby vidalia onions, halved & thinly sliced (i had never seen these before at my market - think large scallion looking small onions at base and long green shoots, if not available use any sweet onion or shallots)
bell peppers, chopped small to match size of above items (mixed colors: red, orange, yellow, i had mini-sized peppers, but any work that you like)
6 large to medium garlic cloves, minced...YES that many!

add ingredients to a large skillet along with 3 tbl. butter, 2 tbl. olive oil, & salt & pepper. saute ingredients until they soften and let off their own juices, add 1 cup of chicken stock and continue to cook until veggies cook up soft as you like.

spice up this mixture (to taste) with: tarragon, curry powder, ginger, celery seed (just a pinch), cumin now

pour skillet-full-o-yum into a large soup pot (i guess you could also just start this in a large pot...i apparently enjoy extra dishes!) and add more chicken stock & about a cup of rice milk (or substitute whatever you like), chicken stock amount is to your liking (less if you like a stew, more if you like it brothy!) then for fun, i added about a cup to a cup and a half of quinoa (keen-waH!) for texture & protein. at this point let the contents get back to a rolling simmer and allow quinoa to cook up.

THEN, taste...assess...add more spices because the veggies are spiced up so yummy, but the broth waters down the taste, so add more as needed (& remember a little dried spice goes a long way BUT if you have fresh, for pete's sake use that instead!). i poured my finished hot soup over some cooked shrimp from the market and think it would have been extra yummy with an avocado garnish atop the wonder-ness (along with some cilantro infused creme fraiche, if you are so inclined/allowed...RAR!) it has a lil kick and made my evening comforting.

(the mini peppers, SO cute!)

post.script. - the quinoa can be a bit of a stock sponge, so feel free to ad stock the next day if your soup has turned into quinoa pilaf overnight!

drum roll.

this is ABSOLUTELY ridiculous, but i am very reactive and should therefore stay far away from...peas & trout!

HA. this is pretty funny (and sad because i love peas, unlike sera who says, "i never choose peas"), but how random? i even have a card in my wallet to carry around that says no peas, no trout. besides those two high-level reactives, i am very low reactive to the following long list of items:

ALL dairy (aka - casein)
all poultry/meats EXCEPT for lamb & pork
all fish shellfish EXCEPT crab, shrimp, lobster, oysters & some white fish
kidney beans
oat
peanut
soy
yeast

so what does this mean?? it means that all things that are low level reactives i can eat in moderation and on a rotation schedule...basically i shouldn't eat red meat with eggs & cheese & kidney beans with a peanut soy dip all at once! (or every day in similar combinations). so i have to spread out these things i heart or cut them out - like i have already cut out gluten, citric acid(which is in EVERYTHING btw), artificial sweeteners(aspartame & splenda) AND preservatives...luckily all fruits & veggies are in, as well as rice & honey & lentils & chocolate - THANK GAWD!

the reason i did this test was to find out if i was reactive to gluten and perhaps had celiacs disease & while i thankfully do not react to wheat or gluten, the oats & yeast combo probably lead to a great deal of my issues with the gluten category. i have also decided that since i feel so good being gluten-free and people dislike the cranky mess i am when i'm on the glute - i will stay gluten free (but have the freedom of having tiramisu on occasion without turning on my auto-immune system!). so i am armed and dangerous with my new test results and ready to cut out some more things that have apparently been giving me trouble to see if i can feel even better than i do.

thanks to everyone who has been supportive/interested/pretended to be interested while i go on & on with all of this silliness. i am already "that girl" who has to make special requests at restaurants and brings a cooler full of food with her everywhere she goes, so now i'll just be more selective when i pack up for a night out! break out the rice dream, i'm ready to eat up!!

food for sight.

i totally forgot to share! on sunday i went snowtubing with my niece & nephew at this very cool place. on the way home, i was talking to danica (while brody was asleep & snoring on my shoulder!) and she looked intently at me for a second and then declared that my eyes looked like chocolate covered cucumbers...i find her very cool & creative for this because upon inspection it's true! i have hazel eyes (a phenomenon that happened in my twenties, i had brown eyes for the first part of my life) and they are mostly green with more of a brown-ish border & brown flecks.

FULL DISCLOSURE: i should state that my mom always tells danica that she has warm chocolate chip eyes & tells brody that he has fresh blueberry eyes - so comparing eyes to food is a running theme, BUT still i was amazed by her thinking of something that doesn't exist in a processed and primary colors, mcdonalds and M & M's world. as a matter of fact, i was so interested that i googled it (did i mention that google is my middle name?) and i could find no such thing! so being in awe of an 8 year olds imagination (and wanting to taste test a chococumber someday!), i am hoping to be wowed by any & all information that you may have about unknown chocolate covered items/delicacies, so please post all ideas(known or imagined) here for all to enjoy! thanks;)

farewell, hello

ok, so those of you who know me, know that i went gluten-free around the holidays…then, after a chance meeting with a dietitian, i was told that it would be “irresponsible” to go gluten-free without being tested for celiacs – SO! as advised i went back on the glute. i have been glutenized and therefore a little foggy & a lot cranky for about 6 weeks now. originally, it was suppose to be two weeks, but because of what i fear may be a sign of incompetence to come at my doctor’s office i have been 6 weeks delayed from how great i had been feeling.

i started this two-week endeavor, after a crying jag or two, and tried to spin it as “the farewell to food tour.” i was certain that with the physical sickness aside, this would be a glorious time of french bread & chocolate cake (i kinda have a thing for chocolate cake!). i also thought that i would get in all the things that were touchstones of my previous existence, that i sort of missed – olive garden tiramisu, filet o’fish from mcd’s, ranch dressing, pancakes, etc. i quickly learned that trying to swallow something that you know will wreck you tomorrow is harder than meets the eye – if only i had realized this about tequila shots in college!

anyway, as i sit here and hope for the end to this exercise in gluttony i have to say that i have been saving up gluten-free food over these past weeks and i know exactly what i’ll be eating when i get done with my testing. the one ingredient that i have been saving for my post-tox menu is quinoa (it’s a lot of fun to say: keeeeen-waaaa!). i am going to pair mine with swiss chard & baked chicken (picture & recipe to follow, once i get to make/eat it), but below is a recipe for quinoa salad w. salmon posted on gluten-free girl that i think everyone will enjoy (regardless of your gluten persuasion!).

i am always inspired by shauna james ahern of the blog gluten-free girl. i read her book during the holidays and found it SO helpful & SO inspiring in ways that go beyond food. she is funny, smart & gosh-darn wonderful, i hope i can get out to seattle one day and enjoy her husband's ("the chef" daniel ahern) creations at impromptu wine bar (gluten-free as well!). eat this, read this, BIG hearts.

buy this;)

Quinoa Salad with Smoked Salmon and Capers, from Stephan Pyles’ Southwestern Vegetarian

1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 tablespoon of unsalted butter
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup of quinoa
2 teaspoons of salt
2 1/2 cups of vegetable or chicken stock
6 ounces of sliced smoked salmon
1/2 cup capers, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons of prepared horseradish
2 tablespoons of sliced fresh chives

In a saucepan, over medium-high heat, heat the oil and butter until the butter melts and begins to foam. Add the garlic and quinoa to the pan and toast until the quinoa begins to pop, about two to three minutes. Add the salt and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover the pan, and cook for fifteen minutes, or until the liquid is absorbed. Remove from the heat, pour the mixture evenly onto a cookie sheet, and refrigerate for up to one day.

Once the quinoa has cooled, add the salmon, capers, horseradish, and chives, and toss to combine well. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

i love a parade.

"winter is on my head, but eternal spring is in my heart."
~ Victor Hugo

so, it's a messy wednesday in maine & as i sit here surrounded by my least favorite thing (snow!) - i am trying to get to my happy place with things that are cheery & filled with hints of spring. today i wanted to parade some new spring-ish items that have caught my eye lately (think: nautical novelties, nesting birds & short sleeves with an attitude!) but i am proving to be slow on the uptake of placing photos, credits & links - SO, i will wait to do it right! for now, the parade will have to wait, check in tomorrow for a semi-flashy blog full of technology...maybe ;)

in the meantime, my day was brightened by a call from a long lost friend who has opened a great cafe in my area. if you live in maine or more specifically in or around the lewiston/auburn area willy beans is the new place to be. it's coffee (with an education if you're less than versed on the bean lingo like i am) and heart healthy food that is big on flavor. i had the italian grilled cheese sandwich (also known to my stomach as YUM), which i could eat everyday for the rest of my life, but instead i think i'll just try and get through everything on their menu at least once because it is all under $7 an item - when was the last time that happened? plus they have free wi-fi, local artists on display & sweet treats - what could be better than supporting a local business and enjoying it at the same time?

willy beans
70 LINCOLN STREET – LEWISTON, MAINE – 207.777.1111
Open M-Th 7am-7pm | Friday 7am-9pm
Saturday 9am-9pm | Closed Sundays