What's for breakfast?

Quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) is in my opinion a great gluten free option for breakfast. Men's Health Magazine calls it "The Top-Secret Superfood". Packed with protein, loaded with fiber quinoa is one the most nutritious foods on the planet.

It wasn't too long ago that I didn't know what Quinoa was, where it came from and how versatile it is to cook with. About 3 years ago (right before going gluten free) I was sitting in the lunch room where I used to work with two fellow co-workers eating lunch. Coworker #1, he was already gluten free and  had chicken for lunch. Coworker #2 is a pescatarian on a gluten reduced diet, meaning he wasn't allergic but chose not to eat an abundant amount of gluten. CW #2 was eating a spinach salad with Quinoa in it. CW #1 looked over and asked "What was that brown stuff in his salad?" CW #2 replied it's "Quinoa". CW#1 "What's Quinoa". I should probably tell you now that we worked at a Health Care Facility that specialized in gluten intolerance amongst other health concerns. CW #2 explained to both of us that Quinoa is an ancient South American grain that is naturally gluten free. I was very intrigued about this new food (to me).  A few weeks later I was shopping at Trader Joe's and saw a box of Quinoa, I grabbed it and thought that I can find some use for it. Coincidentally I picked up a Men's Health magazine and it had this article. After reading it I was determined to use it in my new diet.

I learned later on about the nutritional facts of Quinoa. I was shocked to learn that a bowl of oatmeal boiled in water was 20g higher in carbohydrates than quinoa which has only 39g per cup.  When the article said it was "loaded with fiber" they weren't kidding 5g per cup. The best part about being gluten free is that when you have to find an alternative to certain foods you often find something that is healthier than what you were eating, in some cases a sugar free or lite version is not necessarily healthier.  Well look no further for your "lite" breakfast meal. It is a cup of Quinoa which has 85 calories less than a cup of plain oatmeal. I could not find nutrition facts for a gluten free oatmeal but I am sure it is close to the same. I obtained the nutritional information at http://nutritiondata.self.com/. Here is an exerpt from that article:

"Quinoa is a true wonder food," says Daniel Fairbanks, Ph.D., a professor of plant and animal science at Brigham Young University. "It has about twice the protein of regular cereal grains, fewer carbohydrates, and even a dose of healthy fats." Plus, it's considered a "complete" protein, which means that, like meat, eggs, and dairy, it packs all of the essential amino acids your body needs to build muscle.

Last week on my facebook page I posted "Quinoa the best alternative breakfast you can have". I figured a lot of the gluten free community was already aware of Quinoa but are they aware of how healthy it is for you? I put a few messages out there to see if any of the gluten free bloggers (the one's with cookbooks) used it as a breakfast meal. I didn't receive anything back other than the option to use quinoa flakes (like cold cereal).

Quinoa is simple to make especially for those rushing around in the morning. You can boil it in juice, water or milk. Add some fruit, cinnamon or if you would like some brown sugar. Depending on how many people you are making this for you only need about a 1/2 cup per person. At first you might look at it and say "this is going to fill me up?". Yes, this will fill you up. I boiled some organic apple juice (no sugar added) tossed in the quinoa and as I brought it down to a simmer for 20 minutes I tossed some fresh cranberries so they would burst open allowing the juices to flow throughout the Quinoa. After about 20 minutes with some light stirring I let cool, poured into a bowl and sprinkled some cinnamon on top. For added extra flavor you can  peel and dice some gala apples or bananas. I am a berry fan, so naturally I took some fresh organic blackberries and put them on top.

 

A Little Taste of the South...mmm Ya'll want some?

When ever you think of southern food what comes to mind? Barbecue, greens, deep fried, spicy food, sweet potato and cornbread. There are so many more dishes that can be associated with the south I took some of the more popular ones combined them, made a gluten free version and then added a little twist.

Here it is middle of October, leaves are falling, it's getting dark earlier, the weather is changing....WAIT! What?! Well in California we are still getting weather temperatures from the high 80's to low 90's  So it still feels like summer. Of course this time of year I am wanting some warm comfy food. The type of meal that will just take that cold weather edge off. Yea well that's not happening today but even if it's warm I am still going to make some "comfy" food.

It's 4pm and I am siting in front of my laptop, in a warm house trying to figure out what I am going make for dinner. I know I want chicken so I take 3 small breasts out of the freezer to defrost. I look around for something to make with it, I see a bag of Kettle Sea Salt chips.  I start thinking barbecue immediately. So now I look to see if I have the ingredients for my barbecue sauce, I have garlic powder, brown sugar, paprika and of course agave sweetened Organicville Ketchup.

Looking at the chicken, the chips and the ingredients for the bbq sauce I felt something was missing. Ahh a vegetable, looking in the fridge I see some tomatoes, onions, lettuce, poblano peppers nothing that is really speaking to me yet. Again I glance over at what I have out so far, I notice there is nothing green. Start heading over to the pantry but for some reason I still don't feel excited about making this meal. I grab a can of organic green beans and stand there pondering, wondering if I can create something new and different.

I have to pause here, I never envisioned myself as a writer not even a blogger. It's just not me to make a meal or cook something for the first time and have the blog on my mind. Now as I am posting to facebook, twitter and the blog it makes me a little more conscience of what I am making and if it would something other people would One, want to eat and Two, if they would want to read about it.  So now I am thinking of all of you before every meal. Back to the meal.

Last weekend we had a huge craving for fried chicken and it dawns on me to make chicken fried steak with green beans. But what to do with the bbq sauce? You are probably thinking he went from bbq chicken to fried chicken and he is worried about the bbq sauce he hasn't made yet? Well yea, I decided to use the potato chips as the "breading" for the chicken and to make it unique I was going to brush on the bbq sauce. So we add the greens and one more side. I think salad but again we are going for NEW and UNIQUE.  Grilled tomato salad is what I come up with.

To make the fried chicken, I needed 2 eggs, 1/4 cup almond milk, 3 cups of crushed potato chips and 1 cup of Bob's red mill gluten free all purpose flour. Taking a large pan turn stove to med heat, coat the bottom with sunflower oil and let the pan heat up. Take the chicken put it in the flour bowl followed by the egg bowl let sit for about 30 seconds each side, then transfer over to the crushed potato chip bowl which I seasoned with paprika, oregano and cumin. Be sure that the whole chicken is covered before setting it in the pan. Cover pan and cook each side for about 8-10 minutes depending on thickness of the chicken. While the chicken was cooking I took a medium pan drizzled some EVOO and tossed about 1/4 of a roughly chopped medium yellow onion and let it sit to caramelize. After about 3 minutes I took about 7 thickly sliced tomatoes seasoned with salt and garlic powder put them in with the onions and turned heat down to simmer. After about 18 minutes of cook time I had a southern meal.

Dine in Gourmet $20 or less.

Living here in the Bay Area your options for eating out is overwhelming with a wide variety of ethnicity. You have your choice of American, Chinese,Thai, Vietnamese, Indian, South American, French, Mexican/Spanish and much more. Some gluten free friendly restaurants like In & Out, PF Changs, Maggiono's, Claim Jumpers and Grill on the Alley provide the variety we look for. Whatever your price range is there is a gluten free friendly restaurant you can eat at. Of course there are the major chain restaurants that provide a gluten free menu as well, On the Border, Outback, Elephant Bar and Olive Garden. Any of those can be appealing but sometimes you want something over and above what the "normal" eating out experience brings you. You start looking for those "gourmet" restaurants that you know average $50 a plate NOT including alcohol or appetizers. That's when you start looking in your wallet......

With everyone on a penny pinch especially when it comes to the extra expenditures it just seems hard to find the need to go out. Then to top it off you are on a specialty diet so that starts limiting your options.

It's Saturday night, you and your significant other want to go out and have a nice meal together. You find yourself making decisions based on the price rather than the atmosphere, meal and over all quality of service. I always say that the whole enjoyment of going out is the atmosphere and being waited on. If you can find a way to put that aside I can show you how you can make a $80 dinner for less than $20 for two.

Typically when I go out I like to order a nice steak. Fillet Mignon is one of my favorite cuts of meat (Psoas major or tenderloin). At a french restaurant this can run anywhere between $36 - $52 per person with ONE side. I made 2 4oz fillets with TWO sides for less than $10 per person.

Fillet Mignon with caramelized mushrooms topped with Balsamic Syrup, 

Herb Seasoned Mashed Potatoes and Sprouts.

  Ingredients:
2- 4oz Fillet Mignon steaks ($11)
2- russet potatoes ($1.80)
12- green sprouts ($1.75)
1- cup of Balsamic Vinegar ($1.25)
3- tbsp organic Agave ($0.75)
2- tbsp EVOO ($0.20)
1- tsp tarragon dried ($0.15)
2- tbsp garlic powder ($0.60)
1- dash of salt ( to small to count)
1- tbsp fine herbs dried ($0.15
4oz sliced mushrooms ($1)
1- cup of Original Unsweetened Almond Milk ($0.30)

Meal Total: $18.95 (estimated and not exact)

Fine Herb Mashed Potatoes:
peel and cut potatoes. Fill a pot with water toss potatoes into pot turn stove on med/hi and bring to boil. Cook until potatoes become soft. Drain potatoes and put back in pot add milk, 1-tbsp garlic powder and fine herbs. Mash until desired texture.

Sprouts:
Wash and cut sprout in half place in a medium sauce pan filled 1/3 with water place sprouts in pan cut side down. Bring to boil and cover. Cook until desired softness. Take out of pan season with salt

Balsamic Syrup:
in a small heavy sauce pan pour balsamic vinegar and agave into pan. Turn stove to med/hi and cook for 10-15 minutes until sauce reduces to about 1/3 cup. Stir occasionally. Poor over fillets

Fillet Mignon:
Take fillets and rub the EVOO on them. Season with tarragon garlic and salt. Place in pan on med heat cook each side evenly for 7 min. After the first 7 min add sliced mushrooms. Cook until meat is pink in middle and mushrooms have softened and turned a brownish color.

Megan and I truly enjoyed this meal. I know that going out would have been fun but I was able to create a more enjoyable time at home. Sometimes thought and effort means more than how much you are pulling out of your wallet. We did go out to ice cream and a movie (Wall Street 2).


Please leave a comment if you tried any of my recipes. I would like to know how they turned out for you.