primitivemama goes hypoallergenic!

stay tuned for what i've been up to while on a hypoallergenic / elimination diet!

scrambled eggs with left-overs

i got this idea from the garden of eating, and expanded it for my use. i was having trouble getting other family members to eat some things left over, and this has been a delicious solution! i try to use it as a way to get more greens during the day (i love extra asian slaw, left-over bok choy and snow peas, and left-over collards and bacon, cooked in last night's bacon grease!), but it works great for left-over fish. and left-over chili is outstanding!

(the picture about is eggs with red chard.)

olive oil
2 eggs
equal amount (give or take) left-over greens, fish, etc.

beat eggs in a small bowl; add left-overs. scramble until warm and eggs are fluffy.

compromising health for sanity (how i can do better with this one):
- none!

french toast

this is a primitivemama original. my kids eat this every morning. if kids aren't taught that this kind of dish requires syrup, they don't miss it a bit.

for the sake of simplicity, i will use two servings here; adjust for your needs. (ours change every once in a while, when one kid or the other wants more or less.)

olive oil
2 slices sprouted-grain bread
2 eggs
about 2 drops of vanilla (i use alcohol-free on the advice of the garden of eating, but i'm not married to the idea.)
several shakes of cinnamon
some ground flax seed
some raisins

heat oil in skillet. beat eggs, add vanilla, cinnamon, and flax [i grind my own and keep it in the freezer]. drench bread slices in egg mixture and let soak a bit. place bread in skillet (mine can fit 2 at a time) and arrange raisins on top (one kid likes a lot, one likes them more sparsely scattered). when liquid bubbles on top of bread, flip. After a couple more minutes, the second side should be done.

you can use other things besides raisins for sweetness. we used goji berries for one of my kids for a while, but they burn way to easily, and while my kid didn't mind the taste, i've read in a few places that burnt food is carcinogenic. [i will look for the sources and post here....]

compromising health for sanity (how i can do better with this one):
- even the ezekiel 4:9 bread i use has gluten (mark's daily apple tells about anti-nutrients and more)
- see mark's ideas on flax ("I’ve been a flax supporter. Lately, I’ve been mulling that. ")

banana nut cookies

We gave quart jars of these cookies (about half a batch) as part of our Christmas gifts this past Christmas. Delicious, and, with the right substitution, no comprompising ingredients at all! [I don't believe in using soy for more than a condiment, so I would have used homemade almond milk -- I needed the pulp for something else anyway -- or canned coconut milk, but we had heavy cream on hand for a dish my husband was making for a few holiday gatherings, so I used that instead. I do generally try to limit dairy consumption.]
From Disease-Proof your Child: Feeding Kids Right, by Joel Fuhrman

1/4 c. pitted dates
1/4 c. soy milk
1 c. walnuts
1 c. pecans
1 c. grated coconut
4 ripe bananas
2 tsp. cinnamon

Cover dates in [your choice of] milk and soak overnight. Place the nuts and coconut in a food processor with the metal S blade and grind to a coarse meal. Add the bananas, dates (with the soaking [soy] milk), and cinnamon and mix to form the dough. Take the thick mixture out of the food processor and spoon onto a nonstick cookie sheet. [i use parchment paper on the tray.] Bake in the oven at a low heat (250 degrees) for 30 minutes. Yields 25 cookies.

compromising health for sanity (how i can do better with this one):
- besides using almond milk or coconut milk (which i haven't tried yet), none!

moo shu beef / pork

one of my facebook friends posted this recipe. it's not my favorite health-wise, but i keep the ingedients on hand for the nights i need a super-quick meal. we all love the taste as well as the opportunity to use chopsticks!

1 lb. ground pork, beef, or turkey
1 package sliced mushrooms, optional
1 bag asian slaw mix
1/2 bag broccoli slaw mix
2-3 Tbsp. Bragg's liquid aminos

saute meat and optional mushrooms. when browned, add slaw. cook 2 minutes and add hoisin sauce; stir to coat.

compromising health for sanity (how i can do better with this one):
- again, ground meat
- non-organic, packaged veggies



original recipe:
1 lb. ground pork, beef, turkey, or tofu
1 package sliced mushrooms, optional
1 bag asian slaw mix
1/2 bag broccoli slaw mix
4 Tbsp. hoisin sauce
saute meat and optional mushrooms. when browned, add slaw. cook 2 minutes and add hoisin sauce; stir to coat. serve in tortilla or over rice with extra hoisin sauce for dipping/drizzling. [i serve it alone.] ta da! 7 minutes or 15 if you make rice.

collard greens and bacon

I came across this on a local Weston A. Price list, just when I was at the end of my rope trying to think of easy ways to get dark green leafy vegetables into my family's diet. It calls for Swiss chard, but I use collards; I think Swiss chard is plenty palatable without all the fuss! I love it, because it tastes like corned beef and cabbage, which I try to avoid. All the taste, without the nitrites! (I just read somewhere that nitrates/nitrites are not to be feared; I will keep my ear to the track on that one.... Though Mark's Daily Apple seems to cover it -- still fear them.)

Cooked 4 slices nitrate/nitrite free bacon.
Add a clove of crushed garlic for a minute.
In a separate pan, heat 1-2 Tbsp. butter [I used olive oil] and add in a bunch of chopped up swiss chard / collard greens (minus the thick stems).
When that starts to wilt, add the bacon mix, fat and all, in with the chard. Put a lid on it for a few minutes.

compromising health for sanity (how i can do better with this one):
- none

thanksgiving stuffing make-over!

my family's thanksgiving stuffing is the best ever, except that, of course, it is mostly bread, half of it white-flour. i made this variation this year: exactly the same ingredients, except substituting (soaked and) prepared quinoa for the bread and making only a quarter of the original recipe. (it was always way too much!) not sure how it would fare inside the bird, but it was great on the side. below is what i made this year; i think next time i will keep the quinoa at 4 cups and only halve the other ingredients (so twice what they are listed here).

3/8 c. butter
1/4 c. onion, chopped
~1/4 c. celery, diced
4 c. prepared quinoa
1 tsp. salt
1/16 tsp. pepper
3/8 tsp. poultry seasoning
1/2 lb. sausage, cooked

Melt butter in skillet; add onion and celery and cook until translucent. Mix remaining ingredients together in large bowl; add onions and celery and mix well.

compromising health for sanity (how i can do better with this one):
none, except i wish i could find sausage i'm confident doesn't contain chemicals, etc. what i buy at wegman's doesn't have nitrites, but the wording on the label leads me to believe there could be msg.