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Cook Up an Organized Kitchen at One Kings Lane — Sale Ends 3/04
Every iconic French kitchen is organized yet chic, and equipped with the furniture and lighting to turn a workspace into an artist's studio. These pieces might not make you Jacques Pépin, but they'll certainly go a long way towards helping you make a better brioche.
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Turning cravings into opportunities

So I did it. I fell off my new eating plan. I don't like to call it a diet because I am not doing it to lose weight as much as to regain health. 

I had to travel for work and I discovered something. Choosing gluten-free food does not mean it is also dairy and sugar free. Should be obvious, right? But I wasn't thinking. And then I tried to not eat anything I knew to be bad and ended up starving. And then I ate bread. 

I was trying to stick to the plan. I ordered soup and sparking water from room service. I made sure the soup didn't have any cream in it. That it was purely vegetables and protein. The tray arrived and there was the bread. Hot, fresh, crusty french bread. 

I didn't just fall off my plan, I dove off head first. I even ate butter on it. 

Then the next day, I was really tired so I had coffee (also not on plan) and because I don't like bitter and I was riding my wheat/gluten high, I had cream and honey in it. The rest of the day didn't get much better. 

So now I am working to regain composure and am running to catch that health wagon I dove off a few days ago. 

But the cravings are back. I want something baked. And warm, and sweet. 

I looked back at the Breakfast Cookie recipe and realized I could make a slightly sweeter version to get me over these cravings. 

These are the new, sweeter, cookies.

Craving-Killer Cookies

All ingredients should be organic. I have included links to items so you can see what they look like before you go searching for them. Or if you are like me and work all week, order them using Amazon Prime and have them delivered to your door. 
 
1 1/2 cup freshly ground almond butter (my local organic grocery sells fresh ground)
1 large egg
3/4 cup almond, hemp or coconut milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
heaping 1/4 cup shelled hemp seeds
heaping 1/4 cup chia seeds
heaping 1/4 cup hulled buckwheat groats
 
2-3 teaspoons Stevia
1/2 teaspoon baking soda (aluminum free)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

In a large food processor bowl, add almond butter and egg. Blend to combine. Add milk and vanilla and almond. Blend until thoroughly mixed. The mixture should start to look like a batter. 

Add hemp, chia, and buckwheat and mix to combine. If the dough is looking dry, add more milk. The chia seeds will absorb quite a bit of liquid and you don't want the batter to be dry. Add all remaining ingredients and blend until mixed. I taste it and see if I like the taste. If it needs more sweet, I add more Stevia. If it needs more spice, I add more cinnamon and nutmeg.

Preheat over to 350'. Cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper and scoop out a heaping tablespoon of dough. Place about 2" apart on the cookie sheet. 

Bake for 10 minutes or until set. You can leave the glaze off if you prefer.

(Optional) While cookies are baking:
1 teaspoon stevia
1.5 teaspoons cinnamon
1 Tablespoon coconut oil

Mix the cinnamon and stevia in a bowl and set aside. 

Put a tablespoon of coconut oil into another bowl. 
 
Immediately when cookies come out of the oven, dunk the top of the cookie into the coconut oil and then into the cinnamon and stevia. Repeat until all cookies have been dipped. 


These are working to kill my sweet cravings and to keep me on plan. I hope you like them
Enjoy!

Avocado Dip - Super fast and easy!

Avocados. MMMMMmmmmm. I can't believe they're healthy. They taste so darn good. 

I had 3 avocados sitting on my counter and all became ripe at the same time. I have searched Pinterest enough to know I can mash them and freeze them. But I was hungry too, so....

Recipe time!

Avocado Dip

1 Avocado
1/8 cup Tomato
1/8 cup onion
1 Tablespoon cilantro
1 Tablespoon lime juice
Onion powder
Garlic powder
Salt
Pepper

Peel and cube the avocado and toss into a bowl. Mash up the avocado with a fork a bit. Leave some chunks. Dice tomatoes and onion and toss into the avocado mash. Chop cilantro and add into the bowl. Pour in lime juice and add spices to taste. If you aren't sure where to start, start with 1/8 teaspoon of each and then add more if you want.  Mix all together and enjoy! I eat mine with Gluten-free crackers.

SUPER Easy Avocado Dip

You can totally cheat here. Most if the ingredients you add to the avocados also make up salsa. Buy a good fresh salsa, mix into the mashed avocado, add some onion powder and salt. And Viola! Done! 

Seeds for Breakfast

I am eating a new way and finding new things that taste good. I know my new way of eating is working for me because my body is already starting to feel better. 

One of the nice things about the way I am eating is that amounts don't really matter. My hunger registers seem to be resetting themselves and I now eat to my hunger level. My old eating habits seemed to make me feel hungry almost all the time.

I have found a mix of seeds and groats that I really enjoy for breakfast. This mixture is filling and tastes really good. It's crunchy and chewy and just overall yummy. 

Seed Cereal

1/2 Cup Hemp seeds
1/2 Cup Chia seeds
1/2 Cup Buckwheat groats 

Mix these 3 ingredients together and store in an air-tight container. This will make enough for 3-5 days depending on how hungry you get in the mornings. 

The night before you want your breakfast (or at least an hour before):

~3/4 Cup of Almond, Hemp, or Coconut Milk
1 Packet Stevia
1/8-1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Scoop out as much as you want for breakfast the next morning. A quarter cup is a nice amount to start with.

Cover with almond, hemp, or coconut milk. Make sure all grains are covered and there is extra milk on top. The seeds and grains will soak up the milk and thicken. Add the packet of Stevia and stir. If you don't want this really sweet, you might use a half to 3/4 of the packet of Stevia. I find using the whole packet makes it a bit sweet for me. 

Cover and put in refrigerator for at least an hour. It really is best if you let it soak up the milk overnight. 

When ready to eat, add the cinnamon and stir. The chia seeds will have absorbed a lot of the milk and some will be clumped together. Mix until the cereal is a consistent texture. 

Enjoy! 
Laureen

Roasted Cauliflower Red Pepper Dip

The Olympics are on. I love watching sports, as does my husband. And of course you have to snack while you watch. I mean, the Olympics are on almost 24/7!

This year we have had a crimp put into our snacking because we have both been directed to cut out wheat and sugars from our diets. Somehow veggie sticks don't cut it night after night. I mean, I can snack on a celery or carrot stick, but man does not live by plain veggies alone.

I made crackers a week or so ago (see Base Cracker Recipe and Alternatives) so I had them available, but they needed a little something. Beans have been removed from my diet so hummus and other dips like it were out. It was time for me to get creative. 

Bring in the roasted veggie dips. For some reason I thought of combining cauliflower and red pepper. Not sure why, it just sounded good. And turns out, it really is! 

Roasted Cauliflower Red Pepper Dip

1 large red pepper
1 small head cauliflower
2-3 Tablespoons olive oil

1 whole head of garlic
1 teaspoon hot pepper flakes

1/3 cup(s) walnuts, toasted
1/2 teaspoons paprika
1/8 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoons Cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Clean a large red pepper, removing the seeds and inner membrane. Cut the red pepper into large chunks, about 1 1/2 - 2" squares. Remove the core from the cauliflower and cut the florets in half or thirds depending on how big they are. You want the size of the cauliflower to be about the same as the pepper so it will roast evenly. 

Crush and press a head of garlic (you can use more or less depending on how garlicky you want the dip). 

 

Put cauliflower, red pepper, and garlic into a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and red pepper flakes and toss to completely coat. If all chunks of cauliflower and red pepper are not coated with olive oil, add a bit more. The veggies don't need to be drenched but will roast better if they have a thin coating of oil. 

Put veggie mixture onto a baking pan (I put tinfoil on mine to make it easier to clean after). Roast in 350' oven for approximately 20 minutes, or until fork tender. To tell if it is fork tender, poke the pepper and cauliflower pieces with a fork to see if they are soft. You don't want them mushy, but the fork should pierce the veggie pretty easily. The cauliflower will begin to brown on the edges.

Let the pepper/caulifower/garlic mixture cool almost completely. 

In a food processor, add the walnuts and roasted veggies. Pulse until combined then process until almost smooth. Add spices, olive oil, and lemon juice and process until smooth. 

 

Taste and adjust spices to your liking. 

Enjoy!

Laureen

Breakfast Cookies; Gluten Free and Packed with Nutrition

My husband recently had an appointment with a naturopath. One of the outcomes of his appointment was a change in diet. We had started on the road to eating healthy years ago, cutting out all non-organic foods and removing white sugar and flour even if it is organic. 

So now we need to remove all gluten, all dairy, and have certain foods only once a week. All chips and snacks need to be homemade because store bought gluten free products still contain a lot of sugars or cost an arm and a leg. 

We have found things to eat but many of them are time consuming. In an effort to make more "grab and go" foods, I created a "breakfast cookie" recipe. 

My grandmother used to make us breakfast cookies when I was a kid. Hers were primarily a chocolate chip cookie base with some healthier cereals tossed in instead of chocolate chips. They were sweet and yummy. 

Laureen's Breakfast Cookies

All ingredients should be organic. I have included links to items so you can see what they look like before you go searching for them. Or if you are like me and work all week, order them using Amazon Prime and have them delivered to your door.

1 cup freshly ground almond butter (my local organic grocery sells fresh ground)
1 large egg
1/8 cup almond, hemp or coconut milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

heaping 1/8 cup shelled hemp seeds
heaping 1/8 cup chia seeds
heaping 1/8 cup hulled buckwheat groats
 
3 packets Stevia
1/2 tsp baking soda (aluminum free)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp sea salt

In a large food processor bowl, add almond butter and egg. Blend to combine. Add milk and vanilla and blend until thoroughly mixed. The mixture should start to look like a batter. 

Add hemp, chia, and buckwheat and blend to combine. Add all remaining ingredients and blend until mixed well. 

Preheat over to 350'. Cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper and scoop out a heaping tablespoon of dough. Roll into a ball and place about 2" apart on the cookie sheet. 

Press down on each ball with a fork to flatten a little. Cook for 10 minutes or until cookie is set. 

Let cool and enjoy!
Laureen

Breakfast of Champions

The Olympics are in progress. I am a huge fan of the athletes and what the Olympics have meant to the world. They are a way for countries to come together in peace. Wars used to stop during the Olympics. Victories were decided through sport. 

My life revolves around the Olympics when they are on. We upgraded our backup systems so we could record all coverage on all 4 channels. Crazy, I know, but we love it. 

Today, we started our day with a red, white, and blue breakfast. Gluten free and super yummy. 

It starts with quinoa flakes, which turn into a hearty hot cereal. Then we added chia seeds, buckwheat groats, hemp seeds, slivered almonds, blueberries, and strawberries. Super healthy, packed with nutrition, and red, white, and blue. If you want it sweeter, sprinkle some Stevia on top.

You can make healthy food fun and the flavor of this combination is incredible. 

Hope you are enjoying the Olympics too!

Laureen

 

What I wanted to see at the Opening Ceremonies

I love the Olympics. I watch as much coverage as I can. We upgrade our electronics so that we can record and watch more. We take it very seriously. We stop watching news so we don't see results before we can watch. This year, we have enough storage to record literally all coverage that will be aired on all 4 channels. 

Image credit:
http://blogs.wsj.com/dailyfix/2014/02/07/live-blog-2014-sochi-winter-olympics-opening-ceremony/

The opening ceremonies are always very special as well. I love learning about the countries that are hosting and I love seeing the culture. Which brings me to my topic for today: I was disappointed in the Sochi Opening Ceremonies. 



I loved the torch. What a beautiful design. I loved the dancing. I loved the small amount of music we heard and the ballet dancers. I loved the gears and that portion that showed the advancement of Russia. But the rest was lacking. 

I am not going to go into the politics. There is enough online about that. 

Here is what I would have wanted to see in the Opening Ceremonies for an Olympic Games held in Russia:

• Multitude of Russian Cultures: There are 27 languages that are considered official languages in Russia. Who do these languages represent? I would have loved to see each culture represented. 

 

• Vodka: I am sure some will disagree with this thought but Vodka is a huge export of Russia. I would have liked to have seen this industry represented during the industrial part of the ceremonies. Russia has perfected the making of vodka. 

Image Credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matryoshka_doll

• Nesting Dolls are a great tradition in Russia. I didn't see them represented at all in the opening ceremonies. 

 

• Russian Composers - I would have loved to have seen an orchestra come out and play music from some of the great Russian composers. There are so so many! Heck, even Willie Wonka uses Rachmaninoff. 

 

Credit: http://lcrsperspectives.wordpress.com/2012/05/01/architecture-in-russia/

• Real interpretation of the onion-shaped domes. To me, this is some of the most beautiful architecture in the world. The balloons looked like something out of a children's game. Why not give us the real colors and designs? They are gorgeous! And not a drop of neon in sight.

 

• Medical Advances: Russia has made some huge advances in photodynamic therapy and laser medicine. They are treating cancers with it. This means no chemicals in the body, just light used by the cells to heal. I need to do more research into this and some other things they are doing. This is incredible! 

While I love the Olympics and fully support our athletes fully (those sweaters they made the US athletes wear are a whole other post), I would have loved to have learned more about the real culture and history of Russia. It seems that there is so much more to the people there that we didn't see, or more importantly feel, about Russia. Parts of the opening ceremonies were beautiful and entertaining, but overall it was a bit of a disappointment because I didn't learn enough about the true history of Russia.

Laureen

Gluten Free Crackers - Base recipe and alternatives

My husband was recently told to not eat gluten or any sugar. No honey, no sucanat, no coconut sugar, no wheat or oats at all. I immediately started my quest to continue eating foods we love without the ingredients that harm us.

I found some cracker recipes on Pinterest and they looked good but I wanted more flavor. I took a little from one recipe, a little from another and came up with this. 

These really are as good as they look. My first attempt at making crackers, first time using parchment paper (I know, I know), and look how yummy they look! This picture wasn't even enhanced.

Gluten Free Crackers (Base recipe) 

2 cups almond flour or meal
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoon white sesame seeds (or 1 T black seeds and 1 T white)
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
 
1 egg
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 Tablespoon water (if needed)

Makes 18-20 crackers

Alternatives:

Herbed - I added Italian herbs to mine. Add:

• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil 
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder (in addition to the half called for in the base recipe
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder (in addition to the half called for in the base recipe 

Instructions: 

Mix all dry ingredients. You can mix this together in a tightly sealed container and store it as a dry cracker mix. 

Add in wet ingredients and mix until ingredients come together to form a dough. 

Preheat oven to 350'. 

Put a sheet of parchment paper on a counter so you can roll out your dough on it. Dump the dough out onto the parchment paper and using your hands kneed it into a ball. Smash down the ball into a disk. 

Put another piece of parchment paper on top of the disk of dough and roll out until the dough is about 1/4" thick. The dough rolled really easily for me and it was easy to make it too thin on the edges. 

When the dough is rolled to the right thickness, peel off the top layer of parchment paper. Use a pizza cutter to cut the crackers into approximately 1" squares. Move the entire sheet of parchment paper, with cut crackers onto the baking sheet. Sprinkle with sea salt.

Bake at 350' for 10 minutes. Check the crackers. The edge crackers should have started to brown and the center should be set but not quite crispy. Remove any edge crackers that look done. They are ready for eating. The center crackers will need to still be cooked more to crisp up. Use a small spatula to break the crackers apart and put space in between them so the edges can brown. 

Pop the pan back into the oven and cook for another 5-10 minutes until crackers are browned and more crisped. 

We ate almost all of these crackers in one sitting because they tasted so good. They would also be good with toppings. 

Enjoy! 
Laureen