Everything listed under: Everything-Natural

I will apologize upfront for the typos, mispellings, random thoughts, etc. in this blog. You see, I am in the middle of taking a self administered medical test this morning and have been up for two hours, with barely any water, much less caffeine. Yesterday, I had to reduce my diet to anything 'white', which, if you are not new to my blog, you would know is my own personal hell. I crave vegetables. My favorite 'white' foods are coconut Jelly Bellys and that addictive cookie dough Coconut Milk ice cream mentioned in my previous blog. My directions specifically stated "Plain white bread, plain white rice, plain white potatoes, baked or broiled chicken or fish, water, non-flavored black coffee or tea. Salt may be used to flavor your food." Well, thank God. At least I could have salt. Everything else on this list was my nightmare. Seriously? WHITE RICE? I haven't had that since the early 80s when no one knew any better! (But back in the day I did love me some Rice a Roni, the "San Francisco Treat". And I'm here to tell you, I cheated yesterday. I made my usual latte with my fave unsweetened Almond Milk. I had half a Larabar in one of my favorite flavors, Cinnamon Roll. And then I picked at whatever I could find that would be as gastronomically harmless as white rice. As well as nutritionally void. Saltines with a tad of Polaner All Fruit, Blueberry. Gluten free crackers. Water. Ugh .  .  . the blueberries and hemp seed protein were calling my name. But I was to avoid, specifically : "Beans, pasta, meats (steaks), fiber or bran cereals, soda (pop) cola drinks, butter or margarine and high fiber foods (whole grains)." Like I said, it was hell. 
But it didn't say anything about juices (?!?) so I 'indulged' in glass of carrot, greens and ginger deliciousness. And then for dinner? Well, it said simple broiled fish, and I got very excited. It's the little things you know? I've always wanted to try cooking fish in parchment paper so I seized the opportunity. What could be 'simpler' than the "en Papillote"? I picked out a beautiful piece of Wild Salmon and recycled parchment paper at my favorite health food store here in Tampa, FL, Village Health Market on South Mac Dill (much like Everything Natural in Clarks Summit, it is my saving grace here), and was ready to rock! Well, let me be the first to tell you, it turned out BEAUTIFULLY! I am so excited and proud of myself, as, while I am constantly whipping up grain and vegetable dishes, being single for so long, I rarely took the time to make myself a fish meal. This was SO easy. All I did was place the fish on the parchment paper, cut two slits in the fish and stick garlic slivers in them (that may have been against my 'rules' but whatever. I already broke a bunch of them!) drizzled with lemon and olive oil, added two lemon slices on top of the fish and VOILA! Wrap that fish up on a baking sheet and stick it in the oven at 400* for 15-20 minutes (The time will depends on how well done you like your fish. I was using salmon and I like mine still slightly pink!)

I couldn't believe how gorgeous this turned out! And no mess to boot. You just toss the parchment paper when through, which by the way is 100% recyclable! I so thoroughly enjoyed this and can't believe it took me this long to experiment with parchment paper. The next move? A whole meal with parchment paper. You can add veggies and some grains with the fish and all the flavors will bake beautifully together. Stay tuned for more experiments with this! For now, my buzzer just went off for the final stage of my 'test' and I'm a turning on the stove to make my coffee. The latte calls. If you are interested in how to make the best at home latte, email me here!

So here I am, at the local Starbuck's in Clarks Summit, PA enjoying a cappuccino less because I was really craving one and more because I was freezing my butt off (I think it's about 35* out right now, which is crazy considering it's only the beginning of November. It better warm up a little bit for tomorrow. I'll be sitting outside watching the Penn State/Ohio State game!) and because I needed a place to work where I could have an internet connection. My father isn't exactly up on the latest technology and wireless internet really hasn't entered his vocabulary. I think he just got off dial up about two months ago in his office. I'm hoping the minimal amount of soy milk in a cappuccino as opposed to a latte won't wreak havoc on my gut. I try to stay far away from processed soy products, especially the milk Starbuck's uses because it's usually the sweetened Vanilla variety filled with extra sugar. Eh, one won't kill me. Plus I'm on my way to work out so I'll burn that sugar.
Coming home to the small town where I grew up is always interesting. Things I love? The peace and quiet at night. The beautiful fall colors of orange and red leaves. Hanging out with some of the best friends I've ever had and ever will have. The slower pace of life. It reminds me of the important stuff.
Things that are not so great? Eating within my normal regime can be extremely challenging. Lucky for me, there is a saving grace. A store called EVERYTHING NATURAL (thank you Barry!) I make sure my dad goes in there prior to my arrival to get a few of the staple items I'll need (Almond milk, Kombucha) and then I usually do a follow up visit myself to see what's new and get the particulars I feel like that day. Knowing this store is there amongst a sea of processed foods stuffed in my cabinets at the house where I grew up is huge consolation. It's kind of a scary place in the overstocked kitchen. I never know who my stepmother thinks she is going to feed (a small army may stop by just for a snack?) but I swear, there are things that have been in those cabinets since I left for college. And trust me, that was a long time ago. Nothing that has a shelf life over 10 months, much less 10 years, should be eaten. Trust me, it ain't pretty.
So I come as prepared as I can to fend off the cries of "eat me" from the box of Wheat Thins (one of my processed food weaknesses). I brought my no wheat Olive chips from Food Should Taste Good. They have the least amount of ingredients that I can find in a chip/cracker (about 5) and are so delish. And I packed up some of my favorite, home made hummus. It's always a good idea when traveling to know a little about the place your going, where your roadblocks may be and prepare yourself as best possible. And then let it go. 
I wasn't sure what the heck I was going to do for lunch today. Maybe just get some natural soup and heat it up at home and try to avoid the Wheat Thins. Luckily, my good friend Beth, who just happens to be a great and healthy cook, invited me over. We had a lovely salad and some broiled salmon. Perfect. She also had a huge bunch of spinach and asked if I wanted to saute it. I took advantage of the opportunity to test out a recipe I've been wanting to try:  DAIRY FREE 'CREAMED' SPINACH. Oh my goodness! SO easy and SO good. Here it is:

3 cloves garlic cut or chopped into smaller pieces
2 bags pre-washed spinach
(fresh from a farmer's market is always better, but the organic packaged variety is most convenient)
olive oil
salt and pepper

Cover base of skillet with olive oil and heat. Place garlic and saute for about 2-3 minutes or until brown. Add spinach and cook until wilted. (Note: we had a full large bag of spinach which ended up being NOTHING. For full servings of this recipe, definitely use at least two bags). Transfer garlic and spinach to food processor and add salt and pepper to taste. Pulse until desired consistency is reached and add 2 tbsp. water if needed. We also added about another tbsp. of olive oil. POUR IT ON, don't be shy. Olive oil is a great source of healthy fats. Better than the butter and cream in traditional creamed spinach! Continue to pulse until consistency mimics traditional 'creamed spinach'. It will look like it too.

This was one of the best side dishes I've made in a while and OH SO EASY. It's a great idea to serve as baby food as well (without the garlic maybe) and a great way to ensure the spinach is digested properly. Many people don't chew their salads well enough to be properly digested. Beth and I decided it would be great as a base under white fish with some chopped black olives and maybe sauteed tomatoes. Yummmmmm.
So going home definitely has it's advantages. I don't have a Whole Foods or Gourmet Garage to just go and 'pick something up'. It forces me to get creative and cook. I may be coming home more often.