Broken yolks…

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In an effort to practice cooking differently, this morning I made sausage, eggs and coconut flour pancakes in a large nonstick non toxic skillet. I had previously posted this pancake recipe, but here it is again:

Low-Carb, Gluten-Free Coconut Flour Pancakes

Entire recipe: 1700 calories, 35 grams carbs, 20 grams fiber,

These pancakes are surprisingly pancake-like and delicious when one considers how little carbohydrate is in them. And, of course, they’re gluten-free.

Jess’s Gluten Free Coconut Flour Pancakes

(Better than regular pancakes. Low carb. Doesn’t spike insulin). Use sugar free syrup and real butter if following a low carb diet. 35 carb grams for entire recipe that serves 4-6)

8 eggs
½ cup coconut oil or melted butter
½ cup unsweetened coconut milk (may need more for consistency)
4 tsp sweetener
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup coconut flour (No need to sift. Stir well)
1 tsp baking powder (I use GF, aluminum free)

Blend together eggs, oil, coconut milk, sugar, and salt. Combine coconut flour and baking powder and thoroughly mix into batter. Heat 1 tablespoon of coconut oil in a skillet. Spoon batter onto hot skillet, making pancakes about 2.5 to 3 inches in diameter. Batter will be thick but will flatten out when cooking. Makes about 8 pancakes.

Usually, I make this yummy breakfast on our Viking single surface 24″ wide griddle with an electronic 1500 CFM downdraft. Cooking everything at once at the perfect temperature, medium-high, results in fluffy pancakes, golden brown sausage links and “over easy” eggs, seldom breaking a yoke.

As the time to leave nears, today was the day to test making breakfast sans use of the griddle, instead using a large skillet.

The owner of the house in Belize suggested we bring our own skillet. Apparently, there isn’t a pan to be had in the house or at a nearby store in the remote area of Placencia, where one might find a safe non-stick pan. Odd? Perhaps. But, we’ll bring an eco friendly pan. With little space in our luggage for a large pan, I must learn to cook breakfast in a small pan.

Considering myself an experienced and reasonably good cook, I expected this process to be a breeze. With the 12″ skillet in hand, a touch of coconut oil melting on the bottom, I started with the sausages which take the longest to cook. There was no room in the pan for the pancakes at the same time. If I removed the sausages, poured the pancake batter, I could reheat the sausages returning them to the pan, when I finished making the eggs.

In concept, this was a great plan. The sausages nicely browned, I removed them from the pan to awaiting paper towels on a plate and proceeded to make the pancakes. This pancake recipe is a little delicate but cooking on the griddle has been no problem since we started our low carb, gluten free, sugar free, grain free and starch free diet almost a year ago.

In an enthusiastic attempt to see how the pancakes were doing, I tried flipping them too soon. They all fell apart, resulting in a huge pile of tasty clumps. The eggs, not so good either. I broke the yolks, again flipping too soon.

Watching Tom attempt to butter the one inch pieces of pancakes made me laugh. In a sincere voice, I apologized to him for screwing up his one breakfast at home this week. He mumbled something sweet, as he often does.

Observing him maneuver the overcooked, rubbery broken egg yolks on his plate, all stuck to the pieces of overly browned sausage pieces, I chuckled to myself once more.

I’ll get this right. All I need is a little practice. After all, I do have three months and two days to practice. Breakfast anyone?

No taco salad in the world?…Recipe for low carb gluten free taco salad bowl…

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Low Carb (2 grams) Gluten Free Cheese Taco Bowl.  See recipe below.

Every meal I make, I wonder if we’ll be able to enjoy a similar meal when we are abroad.  Will they have the low carb, gluten free, starch free, wheat free, grain free, sugar free items we use on a daily basis?

Last night’s dinner was a perfect example.  We had taco salad that met all of the above criteria.  On yet another hot day, taco salad has a particularly delightful appeal;  warmed seasoned grass fed ground beef, crispy shredded organic romaine lettuce, plump, ripe diced tomatoes, sliced salty stuffed green olives and chopped Vidalia onions.  

For my salad, it was topped it with homemade salsa and sour cream I usually add avocado slices, but none for Tom. Mainly, he likes the meat, onions and lots of shredded sharp cheddar cheese. The added touch of the “bowl” housing all of these goodies, usually made with corn or wheat tortillas (deep fried) is often a very special part of the pleasure. The crunchy, slightly greasy shell allows the diner to scoop and dip the tasty contents while looking forward to the soggy shell at the bottom of the bowl. Alas, a gluten-free, grain free, corn-free, low carb taco salad bowl does not exist in this world as we know it.

Don’t think for a minute that I haven’t looked for one!  If I were to say I have looked online for such an item for as many as eight hours is no exaggeration. The alternative is to go for a pre-made gluten free, corn free, high carb tortilla which throws our low carb, no processed food commitment into a tailspin for a few days.  

Not that I am an expert on gluten-free foods, but I have engaged in some research on the pitfalls of processed gluten free foods to discover that literally all of them are high in carbs and/or sugar. That doesn’t work for either of us. 

After all, we are on a serious mission to be healthy, slim and fit for our upcoming lifestyle. The Internet has a variety of low carb, gluten free recipes, many of which we’ve tried and enjoyed. But, the taco shell bowls left us sorely disappointed.

While chopping the veggies for the salad, I had an idea about the bowls!  Mulling around my head was the little Parmesan cheese bowls I have made on occasion, to be stuffed with some delectable morsels.  They were quite a hit. Also, I contemplated the recipe for the pizza crust I had posted here (please scroll the archives on the right for the June 8, 2012 post for the recipe and photo). 

Melding those two ideas together, I came up with this gluten free, low carb (2 grams), sugar free, wheat free, grain free, starch free taco shell bowl which took seven minutes to prepare.  

Low Carb, Sugar Free, Gluten Free Taco Salad Bowl

1 cup shredded hard cheese (I used 3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar, plus 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese. You may use only one type cheese if you’d prefer)
1 large non-stick skillet

1 large piece parchment paper (larger than the inside bottom of the pan) 1 large bowl (smaller than the resulting circle of cheese)

Place the large piece of parchment paper inside the pan, pressing flat to the bottom and against the inside edges. Don’t allow excess paper to be outside of the top edge of the pan or it may burn. Keep the paper inside the pan.

Sprinkle the shredded cheese into a circle atop the center of the parchment paper, taking care to create a large circle. (If there are lots of holes, fill them in with a little more Parmesan cheese).

Turn on the heat to medium high, watching while the cheese melts.

When melted, set a timer for 3 minutes. When timer goes off, remove the pan from the burner. Set the timer for 1 more minute to cool.

Gently lift the parchment paper with cheese round out of the pan, carefully flipping over the paper, centering the cheese round on the bottom of the overturned bowl.

Carefully, peel the parchment paper off of the cheese, while the cheese stays on the bowl. This occurs easily without sticking.

Gently press the cheese down to form a “bowl” with the cheese round. Let it cool for one hour. Remove from the bowl, placing it on a large plate for serving later. (The oil from the cheese will prevent the cheese from sticking to the bowl).

The cheese taco bowl may be made and left out a few hours prior to serving. Once filled, eat immediately or refrigerate for a short time.

Oh well.  Here I am finishing this post, reporting that Tom didn’t like the bowl!   He liked the similar recipe for pizza crust, but not the bowl.  Picky! I ate all of mine, loved it and then found myself eyeballing the uneaten bowl on his plate. Shall I eat it, being a piglet or toss it? Tom noticed me looking at his plate, observing my empty plate and said “Go ahead, and eat it, Sweetie.” 

Healthy, slim and fit echoed in my mind along with all the new well-fitting clothes for our upcoming adventure. With a lifetime of weight struggles, a single such overeating event could start me on a path I would later regret.  
I stuffed Tom’s taco bowl down the garbage disposal, listening sadly as it pulverized away.  Back to the LCGF taco bowl drawing board.  Guess we won’t be eating taco salad in Africa!

Hot today! Ouch! Recipe for gluten free fried walleye!

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Yesterday morning around 9 am our power went out.  Of course, it was one of the year’s hottest days, hovering in the 90’s.  Mostly, we stayed indoors moving our big fan from room to room in a futile attempt to stay cool.  We didn’t complain.  No AC.  Humid.  Sticky.


Our house, uncharacteristically untidy with bits of fresh cut grass everywhere after a house full of adult kids and grandchildren last week and all day Saturday, well into the evening. 

My plan for Sunday was to vacuum, sweep and clean in the comfort of air conditioning.  I work quickly.  I could be done in two hours including a few loads of my favorite task, laundry.  

Cleaning up after an early breakfast of sausage, eggs and delicious gluten free coconut flour pancakes, I started the dishwasher, the washer and the dryer. While watching the taped version of Sunday Morning, (check out the link if you missed it), we settled into our comfy chairs while we contemplated what items to post for sale on eBay.  Poof!  The power went out.

Jess’s Gluten Free Coconut Flour Pancakes
(Better than regular pancakes. Low carb. Doesn’t spike insulin). Use sugar free syrup and real butter if following a low carb diet. 35 carb grams for entire recipe that serves 4-6)8 eggs
½ cup coconut oil or melted butter
½ cup unsweetened coconut milk (may need more for consistency)
4 tsp. sweetener or four packets of sugar free
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup coconut flour (No need to sift. Stir well)
1 tsp baking powder (I use GF, aluminum free)

Blend together eggs, oil, coconut milk, sugar, and salt. Combine coconut flour and baking powder and thoroughly mix into batter. Heat 1 tablespoon of coconut oil in a skillet. Spoon batter onto hot skillet making pancakes about 2.5 to 3 inches in diameter. Batter will be thick but will flatten out when cooking. Makes about 8 pancakes.

We each held our breath while we waited for it to come back on, looking back and forth at one another, afraid to speak. After a long silence, we popped out of our comfy chairs running around the house to notice the state of our affairs.

The washer, dryer and dishwasher stopped mid-cycle.  (BTW, an ant just ran up my leg.  I am hot and sticky a half hour after a cool shower and now ants are crawling on me as they would on a dropped cherry Popsicle in the dewy grass on a steamy day)! Do we open the windows or try to retain the cool air? We kept them closed.

Within an hour, a long enough wait, Tom left to load up four of the five gallon gas cans to fill the wired-to-the-house generator we had purchased years ago. Minutes later he returned to fire it up, much to our mutual relief.  The house powered up, the dishwasher resumed its cycle while the washer and dryer awaited my commands but…not AC.  

NO AC!  We were having company for dinner at 5 PM.  Gluten free almond flour battered fresh caught walleye cooked in coconut oil on the hot stove (BTW, the stove started working again yesterday morning!  Go figure). The hot stove and no AC!  Twenty-four dollars worth of fresh walleye in the refrigerator and no AC!  

Determined to continue as planned, we went about our day.  Tom read the newspaper, moved his multiple lake-water pumped sprinklers around the yard every few hours, paying special attention to my flowers that were not looking well on this hot day.

I scurried around the house doing my tasks, occasionally stopping to stand in front of the oversized oscillating fan which we hauled from room to room as we worked.

Strangely, I didn’t think much about leaving in three months. I didn’t attend to the little piles of papers, bins of clothes and stacks of myriad accouterments that I usually mull over on the weekends. My only thoughts were the two new items I posted on eBay; a variable speed band saw and a pontoon boat cover; and the preparation of the walleye for the company for dinner in the hot kitchen.

The GF fried walleye, the salad with homemade ranch dressing, the fresh green beans, the raw sugar snap peas with dip and the sauteed GF bread cheese was the perfect dinner, enjoyed by all while the fan whirred back and forth between us.

Jess’s Gluten Free Fried Walleye

2 lbs prepared firm fish filets (walleye, tilapia, cod)

2 cups almond flour, breaking up lumps by hand in large bowl

3e eggs beaten½

cup unsweetened coconut milk, mixed with beaten eggs½

tsp salt½

tsp pepper½

tsp garlic powder½

tsp onion powder

1 cup coconut oil
1 cup olive oil
Begin to heat both types of oil in large non-stick pan
on medium high heat.  Beat eggs, salt and coconut milk in large bowl suitable for dipping filets. Mix remaining  seasoning with almond flour. Set bowl of eggs and milk next to the bowl of almond flour with seasonings.
Dip filets, one at a time in flour mixture, then eggs mixture, then back into flour mixture, patting gently with fingers to ensure fish is covered in flour. 
Place the filets in preheated oil and fry for about 3 minutes, making sure bottom isn’t sticking lifting with a metal spatula.  Do not overload the pan with filets.  Cook in a few batches.
Turn carefully when brown on one side using spatula, not tongs (tongs will tear off coating).  Cook another 3 minutes or longer to brown and cook fully.
Place cooked filets on parchment paper to drain.  Continue process until all filets are cooked.  Since batter flakes into oil while cooking, which slows the cooking process, occasionally spoon off bits and pieces with a slotted spoon or small strainer, keeping  oil as clean as possible.
Serve with favorite sugar free low carb tartar sauce or other sugar free low carb dipping sauce.

Bed was another story. A hot, fitful night of tossing covers, turning over and over, awakening us both many times throughout the night. 

This morning the repair person from our gas company’s appliance warranty plan is coming to fix the stove. Ha! The stove now works but I didn’t cancel yesterday after the stove started working when the power went out and the AC quit.

Our AC is under warranty. Sure, the stove repair person may not know how to fix the air conditioner. We could get lucky. However, with a captive audience, I will try to convince him to get someone here that can fix it TODAY!!!

I can’t tell if this is resourceful or conniving. Whichever it is, it’s going to be over 100 today. Too hot to handle!

Aaahhhh!!! The stove repair guy just called to let me know he’s on his way. I tentatively asked him if he also works on AC. He said, “YES!” Yeah!

One hour later:  It’s back on!  We have AC.  He said all of the components that start up the unit were destroyed when the power went out.  He had the parts on hand and.. it’s already cooling down in here.  

As for the stove, I confessed. I told him that we got the stove to work as long as we unplug the battery charger and room freshener from one of the GFI outlets in the kitchen.  (There obviously is an electrical issue which we will address later.  For now, we unplugged the two items).  

He was thrilled the stove worked. He said he had to go help other customer’s who’s AC is out, in this 100 degree weather.  As he walked out the door he turned, smiled and said, “No worry about the stove, I have other “fish to fry.” 

Hahaha.

Tested for resourcefulness?…Recipe for easy to make coconut shrimp plus gluten free version…

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Yesterday morning our eight year old Viking range quit working. It blew the circuit breaker when I turned on the downdraft. Most likely, it’s an electrical issue.  

With an appliance repair plan in place with Centerpoint Energy, I couldn’t call quickly enough.  With the outrageous heat these past few weeks, they were swamped with air conditioning repairs.  The next available time slot was Monday, July 16.  Oh no!  

“What do you mean I won’t have a *&*$%*#@ stove!  How will I cook?  Eight more days?

Friday evening, we heard from two separate couples, dear old friends, we hadn’t seen in a while. Ironically, both of these couples had stumbled across our blog and were inspired to touch base. 

When the first couple called, we invited them for dinner last night, subsequently turning down the second couple who had invited us for dinner only minutes after we invited the first couple.  We love visiting with friends.  We’ve been busy. They’ve been busy.  Life happens.

Smiling, in anticipation of a fun evening, I wandered off to the kitchen to make Tom and I our usual low carb, sugar free, gluten free, grain free and starch free breakfast: eggs, sausage and coconut flour pancakes with Walden Farms sugar free syrup.  

I turned on the Viking stove top with the 24 inch griddle on which I usually make this entire breakfast and on which I would be cooking the dinner for old friends later in the evening.  I turned on the griddle I got power, then a switch short circuited and there was no power.  

Calling out to Tom while he was enjoying time in his comfy chair, reading the Saturday paper, he jumped up to help (Oh, good grief! How stereotypical we are)!  He never uses the stove, knows nothing about the stove, but I always call out to him when something doesn’t work. He came running to no avail.  “Call and get an appointment.” he says and,  “we’ll need to cancel dinner.”

Cancel dinner?  Huh?  Call our dear old friends and “un-invite them?”  No way! I told Tom I’d cook the breakfast in the oven. If it turns out, I will figure out how I will make a lovely dinner without a stove.  

You may think, why not use the Weber grill?  Simple answer. We live on a peninsula. When the winds blows our Weber grill often ends up in the lake, the big black lid bobbing along the shoreline. It always seems to float back home.As a result of “its” life experiences, I have little interest in cooking with its banged up body and lid.  We replaced it several times over the years and finally gave up especially now that “THEY” say grilling may not be so healthful.

As for breakfast, I preheated the oven to 400 degrees, baked the sausage and the coconut flour pancakes (used the muffin top pan for perfectly round pancakes) for about 15 minutes, baking the eggs during the last five minutes using the dull side of the Reynold’s nonstick foil (coupon here). Much to our surprise breakfast was perfect! Timing was everything!

Now what’s will we make for dinner for company?  After two days in the kitchen this holiday making food for July 4th, I had little interest in coming up with a complex menu and spending hours preparing a meal. Now that I had no stove, I went rummaging through the freezer to come up with ideas.

Here’s what we decided on preparing without a stove, considering all the ingredients we had on hand:

  • Cauliflower, green onions, bacon and almond salad with homemade sweet and sour ranch dressing (I cooked the bacon in microwave)
  • Marinated pork tenderloins (oven prepared)
  • Grass fed burger patties (oven prepared)
  • Gluten Free Coconut Shrimp with spicy blackberry yogurt dip (deep fryer)

Here’s a photo of the shrimp and the recipe:

Jess’s Coconut Shrimp
Jess’s Coconut Shrimp with Gluten Free Option24 large fresh or frozen shrimp (if frozen, thaw quickly in a bowl of tepid water)
1 cup regular white flour (or for gluten-free diets: 1/2 cup rice flour + 1/2 cup cornstarch)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp. Cayenne pepper
2 eggs
2/3 cup ice water, or cold water
1 cup dry shredded unsweetened coconut (baking-type)

2 cups coconut oil or other high-temperature oil for deep-frying

1. Remove shells from shrimp, but leave tails on for easier cooking and eating. Set aside.

2. Make the batter by first mixing the dry ingredients together: flour, baking powder, salt, and cayenne pepper.

3. Crack the egg into the flour mixture, then add the water, stirring to break the yolk and form a fairly smooth batter (don’t worry if there are a few small lumps).

4. Spread coconut over a plate or other dry surface, and set beside the bowl of batter.

5. Holding the shrimp by the tail, dip into the batter, then into the coconut. Place on a dry plate or a clean space of your counter near the stove. If you have a helper, you can batter and fry the shrimp in one step, which is much quicker.

6. Pour oil into a frying pan, ensuring it’s at least 1 inch deep. Set over medium-high to high heat. When you see lines of heat snaking across the bottom of the pan, test the temperature by dropping a tiny bit of batter into the oil. If it sizzles and cooks, the oil is ready.

7. Drop as many battered shrimp into the frying pan as possible at one time. Reduce heat to medium. Tip: You’ll want to cook the shrimp quickly, in just 1 or two batches (before any of the loosened shredded coconut has time to burn in the oil).

8. Cook about 20 seconds per side then turn with tongs. Remove from the oil when the shrimp turn a light to medium golden brown. Drain on a clean piece of parchment paper (I find parchment paper works the best, as it doesn’t stick to or tear the batter).

9. Serve hot straight from the pan, or accompany a sugar free sweet and sour dipping sauce.

The deep fryer was an issue. Since we don’t normally deep fry, we only had enough coconut oil on hand to fill it to about 1″ deep. The bottom of the fry baskets were raised 1″ from the bottom resulting in the baskets never touching the oil. The only solution I could see was to cook the shrimp around the edges of the heating element which could result in sticking and uneven cooking. Much to my amazement, they didn’t stick and cooked to a golden brown.

Our guests thoroughly enjoyed the dinner (so they said) and we were thrilled with our resourcefulness; cooking with no stove.

Lesson learned: Wherever we may travel, however basic the appliances or cooking utensils, we will find a way to prevent ourselves from starving and perhaps enjoy some innovation in the process.We are having more company for dinner tonight, our dear friend Sue; salmon, leftover coconut shrimp, steak, salad and veggies. Easy peasy.

After another “oven baked” breakfast this morning, I started gathering items for Tom’s lunch tomorrow. By rote, I poured water in a pan, gently placed six eggs in the pan and turned on the stove. Poof! It started! Go figure.

Last 4th of July!

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Flag cake is easy to make: white or chocolate cake mix,  Cool Whip or whipped cream, sliced strawberries and blueberries.  My small hand skills are limited, but the grand kids don’t notice the imperfections.

How odd it is. Our last 4th of July. It dawned on me today that many holidays we celebrate here in the US, won’t be celebrated abroad. Duh! No 4th of July. No Labor Day. No Thanksgiving. No President’s Day. No Memorial Day. 

With our intent of blending in while learning the culture, we’ll make every effort to embrace those national holidays that are befitting our personal beliefs and respecting those that are not.  

Thanksgiving cooking was tough last year. I prepared an entirely gluten free meal including GF Coconut Flour Biscuits, GF Homemade Croutons to make GF Turkey Dressing, GF Almond Flour Gravy and GF Nut Crust for the sugar free GF pumpkin pies. (We had to ditch the traditional green bean casserole.  There’s no good substitute for those canned onion rings!)  

Before Thanksgiving, I’ll post some of these recipes for anyone who may be interested.  Tom didn’t love everything.  He has picky taste buds..  I can eat my shoe, enjoy the taste and digest it with nary a belch. Not picky. I ate all the leftover GF items for days while Tom nibbled on the turkey and the GF broccoli salad.  After the fourth pumpkin pie, I was done. We won’t miss the Thanksgiving meal so much.

Now, as the 4th of July approaches, the plans and menu are in place.  Here’s the menu.  Recipes follow for the starred items. 
Fresh Summer Fruit Salad
Homemade  Salsa* & Corn Chips
Crunchy Broccoli Salad with Raisins & Toasted Almonds
Barbeque Baby Back Ribs
Oven Fried (GF) Chicken
Roasted Root Vegetables on the Grill
Mom’s Secret Cornbread Recipe* (No secret now! See below.)
Flag Cake 


Luckily for both Tom and I, most of these recipes are gluten free, except for the cake and cornbread.  Also, we gave up corn and all its products last August after reading the book, Wheat Belly by Dr, William Davis to discover the way corn has been genetically manipulated to increase production, stripped of nutrients and loaded with chemicals.  That was a tough one to leave behind.  

Our friends and family still eat corn, except for daughter Tammy and her family. (The rest of them have grown bored with my endless food warnings soapbox so I finally stepped down, preaching only to dear Tom who acts like he’s listening).The salsa recipe is easy to make and often a crowd favorite.  Here it is:

Jess’s Salsa
2 – 28 oz. cans of  Italian style whole tomatoes, save juice, chop tomatoes (I used to use fresh tomatoes, but unless they are home grown, generally those at the grocery store are relatively tasteless) 

1 large bunch cilantro, cleaned, chopped 

1 large onion (Vidalia is available now)

2 jalapeño peppers or a small can of diced hot jalapenos

3 cloves fresh garlic 

4 T red wine vinegarAdd juice from cans
Add salt and pepper
Add juice from one large lime or two small. Refrigerate overnight for best flavor. Keep chilled in jars for one week in the refrigerator.
My mother, Sylvia (may she rest in peace) was a quirky woman but, a fabulous cook.  Much to the surprise of other good cooks, she didn’t like to share certain recipes.  This cornbread was always a huge hit among those fortunate enough to try it; moist, sweet and flavorful.  

She didn’t give me the recipe until I was 30 years old, old enough to keep the “family secret recipe.”  She made me promise not to give anyone the recipe in “her lifetime.”  
When she passed away in 2003, my friends were chomping at the bit for the recipe which I gladly shared.  Here it is! If you take the five minutes it takes to dump these ingredients into a bowl, stir well and keep an eye out with a toothpick while it bakes, you and your guests will experience the best tasting cornbread on the planet! 
Jess’s Mother Sylvia’s Secret
Cornbread Recipe
2 cups Bisquick½ cup yellow cornmeal

1 cup sugar

Mix well

Add:

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1 stick melted butter (1/2 cup)

Pour into a 9” baking pan
Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until done when a toothpick is inserted.

Enjoy!

 
Tom and I don’t eat this due to the cornmeal, sugar and Bisquick.  The smell while baking in itself is quite intoxicating, reminiscent of another time.
Tomorrow, Tom will place our traditional 200 small flags along both sides of the peninsula.  

We’ll take out our red, white and blue hats, leis, tee shirts and serving pieces. We’ll celebrate the 4th of July with the same fervor we have each year, watching the boat parade at 7 PM, tossing water balloons, making giant bubbles and sitting at the end of our dock at dark to watch the head turning five fireworks displays all at once.   Bittersweet!  
Next summer on June 2nd, while living in Tuscany, we’ll celebrate the Anniversary of the Republic or on August 15th, Ferragosto.Bye, bye, 4th of July!

Wheat, grain, starch, sugar free low carb pizza crust?…Yep!…

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Each night, as I make dinner either for myself when Tom works late, or for both of us, I wonder how we will eat in a foreign land.  As I lay out our organic produce, grass fed beef, wild caught fish or free range organic chicken, I anticipate these items won’t be readily available where we are going.

As I have mentioned in prior posts, as of last August, we became gluten free, sugar free, starch free, grain and wheat free and low carb. Whew! Yes, it’s a challenge, but worth it! 

For me, this way of eating has been a huge improvement in blood lipids, including glucose, triglycerides, HDL and cholesterol.  With a family history of diabetes, heart disease, hypertension and obesity, years ago I became mindful of a healthy lifestyle.  

Over the years I have been able to combat the obesity factor with a careful “low fat” diet and regular exercise while painstakingly sacrificing the pleasure of enjoying my most favorite foods: desserts, with a proverbial sweet tooth.

Alas, all this effort was to no avail. I found myself with heart problems for which I had surgery two years ago, hypertension for which I still take medication and borderline diabetes with spiking blood sugars an hour after eating a carbohydrate rich meal.  How could this be?  I followed the USDA guidelines, MY PLATE and yet, my health continued to decline.

After hundreds of hours of reading the various Harvard, Mayo Clinic, UCLA Medical, Cleveland Clinic, etc., medical studies I, ultimately, ending up reading a book that changed my life forever, “Wheat Belly” by Dr. William Davis about the destruction of the wheat that our ancestors knew, formerly 14 chromosomes, now 44 chromosomes, genetically changed with the intent to increase the world’s wheat production; a faster growing, shorter crop that can withstand the use of Monsanto’s ROUNDUP!  Oh, good grief!

Last August, Tom (who went kicking and screaming) and I both gave up wheat, rice (both white and brown), grains, bread, doughnuts, cake, cookies, pies, grain fed meat, farmed fish, corn, sugar, soda pop, MSG, potatoes, starchy vegetables, and on and on.  Tom has now lost 30 pounds.  I didn’t need to lose any weight, but desperately needed to change my health.  This way of eating did exactly that!  

A few weeks ago, a full round of blood tests confirmed that finally eating healthy fat and eliminating wheat, grains, sugar, starches and reducing carb consumption did indeed change my health for the better.  Tom, now a believer, will enjoy a favorite item from time to time. But I adhere to this way of eating strictly, realizing the risk is too high if I don’t.

Tonight, we’re having homemade pizza made without wheat or any form of flour or starch.  Here is our homemade crust with the recipe which is easy to make.

Homemade Grain Free Pizza Crust
Recipe for Jessica’s Homemade Grain Free Pizza Crust
Ingredients:
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 beaten egg
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Line a pizza pan with the dull side of Reynolds Non Stick Tin Foil

Mix cheeses and beaten egg in a bowl. Spread mixture evenly over  parchment paper placed into the pan.  If necessary to fill holes, sprinkle a little more cheese. This doesn’t have to be exact.

Bake in preheated oven for about 14 minutes, keeping a close eye to ensure it doesn’t get too brown.  Let cool before adding toppings.
The challenge had been to find a pizza sauce without  sugar.  The best sauce I have found thus far is Rao’s Marinara Sauce, easily found at most grocery stores.  Although pricey at $8.95 a jar, it does make four pizzas, which is less than a standard jar of sugary pizza sauce.
For the balance of the pizza, we like to add one pound of pre-cooked and drained hot Italian sausage, 3/4 cup sliced green olives, one cup, sliced mushrooms and 1/2 cup diced onions, all topped off with about 12 oz. mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese.  Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for about 25 minutes, again checking frequently for a perfect bubbly golden top.  We love this pizza!
The question becomes, will we be able to make our pizzas in in Belize, Madeira, Tuscany, Mombasa or Mallorca?  Will we have access to Rao’s or a good substitute, a pizza pan and parchment paper?  How readily available are grass fed beef, free range chicken and organic vegetables?
Will we be able to find sugar free maple syrup for our low carb coconut flour pancakes? Will we be able to buy coconut and almond flour or coconut oil, staples in our diet? What about our Crystal Lite Iced Tea? Liquid Stevia?  Alpha lipoic acid supplements?
If anyone knows the answers to these questions, please comment at the bottom of the post.  Love to hear from you.  Love to stop wondering what we’ll make for dinner!  With our way of eating, it’s been challenging enough!

Worrying about ice cubes…

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As I hauled out one box after another to our overflowing garbage and recycling bins today, a powerful sense of determination drove me to keep up the pace I had started on Monday.  

Yesterday, I had two more vaccinations; the first in a series of three rabies shot and a single Meningococcal vaccine.  The risks of serious side effects from either of these vaccines are fairly low, although approximately 50% of the population experience mild side effects, including flu like symptoms with a fever and/or redness and itching at the site of injection.

After Tom had these same vaccinations last Friday, he felt lethargic, achy and “out of sorts” (his words) over the weekend.  I guess I feel somewhat the same today.

In any case, I kept myself busy all day, making a trip to the auto repair shop to have a valve stem replaced on a tire, followed by a quick trip to Kohl’s to return an item I’d purchased online. While browsing the store, which I seldom do, I happened across a nifty item for our travels, buying two in the process.  Here it is:

Nifty 32 oz. BPH free drink holder
In looking on the inside of the bottle, there is a  1½” cylinder that holds a gel-like non-toxic item, that can be frozen to keep drinks cold.  While worrying about “safe” ice last weekend, I ordered four ice cube trays with lids to ensure we’d be able to make ice from purified water.  
In discussing our endless list of “habits” we’ll need to break living outside the US, we had struggled with the reality that clean, “safe” ice may be a commodity that we will be forced to include on the “goodbye” list.  

By bringing our own ice cube trays and getting settled at a vacation rental, we will fill them with bottled/purified water to make our own ice.  Every property has a freezer and bottled water for our use.

Also, the ice cube trays with lids will function as jewelry boxes for my earrings, bracelets and necklaces, preventing them from tangling. Since customs in some countries require prescriptions to be in the original bottles, we can each use a tray while situated to contain our weekly medications and supplements, thus preventing the necessity of bringing those bulky 28-day pill cases. 
When I had ordered the ice cube trays online last weekend, I had no idea I’d find these sports bottles that will serve us well for our daily doses of iced tea and water. The iced cube trays will be perfect for Tom’s cocktails.  I couldn’t get home from Kohl’s quickly enough to put the cylinders in the freezer so we could test them tonight with our iced tea.  It took about three hours for them to fully freeze.
Here we sit this evening, enjoying our new bottles of iced tea, knowing that we’ll need two more of these bottles allowing another to freeze while we are using one.  Back to Kohl’s in a few days.

The bottles originally cost $12.99 each.  They were on sale today for $5.99 each.  Today, Wednesday, is Senior Discount Day at 15% off, resulting in paying $10.18 + tax for two, as opposed to what would have been $25.95 + tax.  

While at Kohl’s today I also bought a pair of white KEDs and brown slide sandals.  The KEDs worked out great. But, when I walked around the house in the sandals, they hurt my feet and I will return them. 

The total bill for the bottles and the two pairs of shoes was $51.  Kohl’s was offering their “Kohl’s Cash” today, giving me back a $10 gift certificate that may be used for any purchase within a certain date range that happens to fall into next Wednesday.  

I will return to the store next Wednesday to return the sandals and, while there, use the $10 “Kohl’s Cash,” to purchase the two additional bottles for $5.99 each at a total of $10.18 + tax (once again using the Wednesday Senior Discount), use the “Kohl’s Cash,” pay the remaining $.18 + tax and bring home the additional two bottles.  That’s my kind of deal!

Whining about wine…

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Built in Sub-Zero wine cooler.

Wine, the magical elixir, its delicate aroma, whether white or red, wafts through our nostrils to luxuriate our senses, our lips gently pursed to accept the first sip, creating the familiar warmth as it slithers down our throats.  

I love wine. Wine doesn’t like me.
As we contemplate our travels, many of which are havens of the finest of wine making; the perfect soil, the perfect weather, the perfect grape and the vast commitment and knowledge of its makers, I am saddened by the fact that wine doesn’t like me. 
Oddly, Tom doesn’t care for wine, preferring Courvoisier, in itself a form of wine, and oddly again, mixed with diet Sprite. What a concoction!  

Wine has represented a certain sense of comfort to me over the years, often saying, “Hey, let’s go grab a glass of wine.” or “Would you like wine with your dinner,” words I have often expressed to create a sense of comfort for the potential consumer of this centuries old tradition.

When we remodeled our kitchen eight years ago, we added a Sub-zero wine cooler, integrating our cabinet design in its installation. At that point, drinking wine had started not liking me. But somehow, I thought, “it” may “change its mind” if I honored “it” with this fine temperature controlled refrigeration system.  
Alas, to no avail.  Wine continued disliking me.
The drawer opened to some of the red wine in our wine cooler

Sadly, wine doesn’t agree with me, a quasi wine aficionado such as myself. I read the reviews, the books, attending classes and numerous wine tastings over the years.  I subscribed to Wine Spectator Magazine and shopped at liquor stores that posted the ratings.  

Over the years, I drank my fair share of wine, mostly red, mostly domestic, with many a homemade meal, never before 5 PM, seldom alone. I cooked with wine; fine sauces, soups and endless pots of roasted meats and vegetables, the aroma filling the air with delicious swirls of scent.
In 1996, I had surgery staying in the hospital for only 48 hours.  Upon returning home, feeling quite well, I looked forward to stopping the pain medication within a few days, thus allowing me to return to my enjoyment of red wine.  
A prized bottle of Layer Cake, a fine Shiraz, hard to find at the time.
A few days later, while preparing a pot of chicken, lentil and roasted root vegetable soup, I opened a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon and poured it half full into my preferred prefect wine glass; delicate crystal, slender stem, sparkling clean.  

Bringing it to my lips, I drew a breath in anticipation of the familiar liquid.  It didn’t taste right!  Trying again a few minutes later, it still didn’t taste right.  I attributed the peculiar flavor sensation to the fact that only days ago, I had anesthesia for surgery.  Perhaps those drugs were still in my system affecting my taste buds. 

Tossing the glass of wine, I waited to try again several days later, again to be disappointed and confused.  Over the next 16 years, I continued to have a sad relationship with wine. Oddly, that surgery had caused me to lose interest in wine.
Eventually, my taste buds recovered. But I did not. Drinking only one or two glasses of wine, whether white or red, resulted in horrible discomfort during the night with an awful hangover continuing well into the next day. The less often I drank, the worse the scenario.  ine or any other form of alcohol appears to poison me, leaving me weak and shaky for no less than 24 hours.
Last night friends joined us for dinner (Yeah, I know we said no more entertaining guests!) and once again I tried drinking wine, hoping for a different outcome, finishing off a bottle of Pinot Grigio with my guests. It had been a year since my last glass of wine.
After a fitful night of tossing and turning, feeling shaky and queasy, I made a commitment to say “goodbye” to wine as one more item on my list of letting go of favorite things as we begin our journey, as mentioned in this past Sunday’s post.  

It will be difficult to avoid tasting the fine wines of Italy, France, Spain, Portugal and South Africa.  The food, the wine, the ambiance, and the companionship all blend into the utmost of dining pleasure.  The exclusion of the wine, however difficult, will ultimately serve me well.  

Now tell me, how will we gluten free folks resist the bread and pasta in Italy, the croissants in France and the handmade flat breads in Africa.
P.S.  We will be getting a new camera before departure and hopefully learn how to use it. My Android phone doesn’t take good photos and sadly, we are both awful photographers. We will learn!  ny suggestions on a camera?

No more entertaining guests…Our typical menu when entertaining guests…

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Our made-from-scratch banana cream pie with meringue topping.
(Note the watermelon in the background for size reference)

We haven’t had many guests visiting lately.  Our house is upside down in varying stages of packing, organizing and rearranging in almost every room.   

Living on a lake all these years, we have frequently entertained friends either for a party of a few or of many, or for a couple or small group.

Our 6″ tall fresh strawberry creme, puff pastry Napoleon

As a passionate and enthusiastic cook/baker, coupled with Tom’s expertise as a sous chef, bottle washer and host, it was always pure pleasure to prepare the menu, shop for the ingredients and setting a well coordinated table with fresh flowers, linen napkins, matching place mats, and fine dinnerware.  

Prior to the arrival of our guests, we’d print a colored copy of the menu, each placed neatly at the individual place settings in an effort to enhance the experience for our guests.

Here is one of the many menus we saved, on this occasion presented on pretty holiday stationery:

Menu Holiday Gathering 
of Favorite Clients & Friends

December 16, 2006

First Course – Appetizer
Brie
Cheese with Apricot in Puff Pastry
Homemade
Pickled Herring Salad 
with Sesame Honey Crisps
Second Course
Shrimp
Cocktail with Tangy Cocktail Sauce 
& Lemon Wedge
Third Course
Two
Soups Served, Swirled in a Single Bowl Topped 
with Buttery 
Sautéed Morel
Mushrooms
  • Creamy
    Lobster Bisque
Vichyssoise,
served warm
Fourth Course
Salad with Belgian Endive,
Radicchio &  Hearts of Palm 
with Gorgonzola, Walnuts

& Lightly Sprinkled with a Delicate

Raspberry Vinaigrette

Fifth Course
Fillet
Mignon with Portobello Burgundy Sauce
Steamed Kings Crab Legs with Clarified Butter
Garlic Mashed Potatoes
French Green Beans, Drizzled 
with Lemon Tarragon Butter
Sixth Course – Dessert
Classic
Homemade Vanilla Crème Brule
Goldschlager,
Cinnamon Flavored Liqueur 
with Flecks of Gold
Cappuccino
with Chocolate Curls

By 2:00 am, guests will have departed with full bellies, slightly tipsy from copious glasses of well chosen red or white wine while Tom and I, smiling from ear to ear, rush about the kitchen putting everything back in order to nary a dirty dish or glass in the sink or a crumb on the floor. 
Our guests appeared to have had a great time and we were content to have shared our home, our food and our wine along with a certain sense of ease we somehow acquired over the years as host and hostess.  Expensive? Yes!  Worth it? Yes!  

We’ve always justified the expense of entertaining due to the fact that we seldom spent money on vacations, dining out or purchasing carry out dinners (once or twice a year at the most) preferring fresh, homemade meals.

Last August, we both became ardent advocates of the low inflammation diet, which includes committing to become wheat free, grain free, starch free, sugar free, totally gluten free and low carb.  

In the past, I frequently baked desserts just for the two of us finding as much enjoyment in the preparation as in the process of eating the delectable result.

So here we are, five months and six days away from our departure to a new and adventuresome life.  No longer will we entertain guests as we continue to pack, examining the threads of our lives and of our memories, leaving so much behind, taking so much with us.  

No longer will we sit in these oversized comfy chairs with a generous portion of homemade pie on a pretty plate, languishing in the simplicity of our homemade lives, requiring so little, gaining so much. 

We’ll make new friends along the way.  We’ll prepare homemade dinners with the simple foods of the area to share with the new friends minus the perfectly pressed and folded linen napkins, placemats and pretty plates.  

Family and old friends will visit from time to time.  We’ll make their favorite dinners, reminiscent of a time past, scouring the local farms and markets for the appropriate ingredients in an effort to recreate the familiarity.  

We’ll smile as we tidy up someone else’s kitchen, wash someone else’s plate, wipe up the crumbs from someone else’s floor, all the while hoping that our guests have had a great time.  

We’ll be content to have shared someone else’s home with the food and the wine typical for the location with that same certain sense of ease we somehow acquired over the years as host and hostess.

Medicine from afar? Refill our prescriptions? Annual checkup?

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As a health and fitness buff most of my adult life, I have made every effort to stay healthy by eating good homemade food, exercising regularly and avoiding toxins in every way possible.  

Many of my efforts have failed me and I have been forced to succumb to traditional medicine and take a few prescriptions each day, as does Tom for a variety of conditions.  

Yes, I have tried over these past years to gradually reduce these few medications with the hope of stopping them entirely. For example; days later, my blood pressure sneaks up to a dangerous level, prompting me to begin the tiny dose once again, fearful of the consequences. 

For me, it appears my genetics is the culprit. Otherwise, there is nothing in my lifestyle, that I could discover from my years of research as to why I would be plagued with these few ailments. Its frustrating. 

Don’t drink, don’t smoke, don’t drink soda. I consume only organic produce and grass fed beef, avoiding all grains, wheat (inspired by Dr. William Davis’ book, Wheat Belly) starches and sugary food.  I haven’t had a sweet treat of any type in almost a year.  
Each day and night I wear a BodyMedia armband to ensure I get in 10,000 steps a day.  It tracks thousands of measurements including how much time I spend sleeping each night which s usualiy about 7.5 hours.  
I have exercised most of my life, regularly, faithfully and with vigor while currently obsessed with HIIT training as recommended by Jonathan Bailor, backed by 1100 medical studies, 10,000 pages of scientific research, endorsed by some of the top medical professionals in the world, many from Harvard Medical School and the Mayo Clinic.  A great read!

We miss doughnuts.  Years ago, on occasion,Tom and I experienced what we called “MD days,” meaning “multiple doughnut days” whereby we’d eat many doughnuts, watch movies and lounge all day. No more.  We haven’t done this in fifteen years.  I can no more imagine, lying in bed all day and eating doughnuts than going to the moon. (Actually, space travel is on my wish list).

A fast food item hasn’t crossed my lips in 25 years!  And what has it got me:
hypertension, thyroid disease, joint and bone problems and borderline diabetes, the bane of my ancestors, most of them inflicted with these conditions, many of whom suffered and died from these conditions!  
Am I sick? No!  But…I am a slave to these few prescriptions.  Am I slim, physically fit, strong and without any memory issues at my age?  Yes. So, I faithfully take those few little pills each morning, hoping for the best, hoping in time that I will discover a way to toss them all away.

Today, I called our prescription medication plan explaining that when we’ll be traveling for no less than 949 days (so far) asking if they can provide us with at least one year’s worth of the prescriptions to take with us when we leave in 5 months and 19 days.  (We’ll figure out something for the remaining period).  The answer was “no.”They will only do what they’ve always done: if the doctor writes a three month prescription, we only get three months of pills at a time!  I asked, “Are you willing to mail our prescriptions to: Kenya, Africa or maybe Marloth Park, Kruger National Park, South Africa?” There again, the answer was “no.” No mailing outside the US.
Will our prescriptions be mailed to Africa? No.

Tomorrow, I have an appointment with the family doctor, a great guy, who will most likely try to help us figure out a solution.  Yes, we will have a mailing a mailing service with our own address where any important mail will arrive and can be scanned and sent to us by email.  

The service will forward packages to us wherever we may be. However, some countries do not welcome prescription drugs entering the country.  We shall see what transpires and post the solution to yet another dilemma.