Easy Gluten Free/ Dairy Free Eggplant Parm

 Last week we got the most delicious looking eggplant in our farm share.  For me to say "delicious" and "eggplant" in the same sentence is really saying something.   Until I experienced my first fresh, local, organic bought-at-the-farmer's-market eggplant a couple of years ago I thought eggplant was the most foul mushy grey veggie known to man.  But on a whim I bought one, made ratatouille, and realized I hadn't given it a fair chance.

I looked at my luscious, shiny, purple eggplant and decided it wanted to be Eggplant Parm.  It was so yummy, I had seconds.

with a side of quinoa pasta

While I love making food totally from scratch, there wasn't time for that today with errands and taking the munckin to his swimming lesson... so I relied on some of my favorite gluten free and dairy free brands for this dinner.

Ingredients:

Gillians Gluten Free Bread Crumbs
Dayia Mozzarella
Gluten Free Bisquick
Bove's Marinara Sauce ( I really enjoy making marinara, but when I don't make my own this is my go to, it is really delicious!)
2 large eggplants,
Enough egg to help the breadcrumbs stick (While I'm eating mostly vegan, I happened to have pasture raised eggs from a nearby farm on-hand, to make this vegan omit the egg and use whatever breading method works best for you)
oregano, thyme, basil, salt, pepper, nutritional yeast- personal preference, I tend to have a heavy hand with herbs.
A neutral flavored oil that can hold up to higher heat- I used canola, enough to thoroughly cover the bottom of the pan.

1. Preheat the oven to 400.

2. Cut your eggplant into thin slices (about a 1//4 inch)

 

3. Salt the eggplant and let it sit for 10-15 minutes.  Seriously! This is the best trick I've learned for drawing out the excess moisture in the eggplant and avoiding that soggy mushiness that I don't like about eggplant.

 

4. Combine your herbs into the breadcrumbs (or use Italian style breadcrumbs) Bread the eggplant slices- I do a layer of gf bisquick, then dredge in egg, then coat in breadcrumbs.  

 

5. Heat your oil to medium high. Pan fry your eggplant slices- it takes about a minute each side

 

I suggest wearing an apron- this can be messy. I particularly enjoy my "baking is science for hungry people" apron.

 

6. Layer your eggplant, daiya, and sauce.  I also sprinkled some more of the herbs on top with a nice pinch of nutritional yeast for more of a "cheesy" flavor.

 

7. Bake for 30 minutes.

 

Munchkin approved!

Maple Coconut Kale Chips

 

I love kale. When I was pregnant I actually craved it. I especially love kale chips.  One day Michy brought home Maple Coconut Kale chips from the coop.  I thought "maple coconut kale.... i don't know... that sounds really weird." But wow they were good. Sweet and crunchy! yum.  Those kale chips were made by Jungle Treats.  Jungle Treats makes really delicious dehydrated kale chips, so they are raw too.

I had a bunch of kale leftover from the farmer's market tueday and I had been thinking about those kale chips... so I thought I'd give it a try.  They came out delicious!

So here is my recipe:

One Bunch of Kale
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/4 of Grade B Maple Syrup
1/2 cup of Shredded Coconut

1. Preheat the Oven to 400, place the rack in the middle of the oven.

 

2. Tear up the kale into bite-sized pieces

 

3. Put all the ingredients together in a large bowl

 

4. Mix it up- I use my hands to make sure all the kale is nicely coated

5.  Spread the mixture out on a baking tray and bake for 15 minutes.  Then check them... if they aren't crispy yet keep checking every 3-4 minutes.  Be careful and keep a close eye on them, kale chips go from not done to burnt really fast! You could also do them in a dehydrator, but I didn't have the patience to wait all night :)

 

6. Try not to eat them all in one sitting!

Making some diet changes

Nothing too exciting going on the last couple of days.  Preparing for court, writing, visiting clients.

I'm trying very hard to make some dietary changes to help alleviate some symptoms of a condition I have called Interstitial Cystitis. IC is basically a painful bladder disorder.  Its like having a UTI that never goes away. Doctors aren't really sure what causes it (though it is likely an autoimmune disorder), and although there are medicines they aren't compatible with breastfeeding and they don't always work.  Food can be a big trigger- with certain foods causing "flares" that can last hours or days.  Things like caffeine, acidic foods, spicy foods, and lots of preservatives  are the things that can set me off... but this seems to vary from person to person.  It is also possible to go through periods of remission... which I did while I was pregnant.  My symptoms stayed pretty low for most of the last year of so with breastfeeding.  But they seem to be ramping back up, and I'd been really lax about the diet because I had been feeling so good.  Coffee, acidic fruit, wine, spicy burritos- all no nos! *sigh* Why are all my loves bad for me?

Anyway... so back on track. I haven't had any caffeine in a week.  I'm slowly weaning myself away from the decaf as well, one cup in the morning.  I just love coffee so much.  I love the way it tastes, and smells but the acid is terrible for me. I'm looking for a good coffee substitute.  I enjoy herbal teas but they don't hit that same craving.

I've been trying to be smarter about my fruit choices... which is so hard with all the delicious ripe stuff at the farmer's market.  But I picked up a pint of blueberries yesterday and steered clear of the tantalizing plate of cut-up pineapple while socializing last night.  I also declined a home-brewed beer.. which leads me to the next big change I'm trying.

I've been seeing a lot of research on how gluten affects autoimmune disorders like IC.  I picked up a book the other day called the Better Bladder Book, written by an RN with IC who has been in remission due to her diet charges, exercise and stress reduction regime.  One of the big things she talks about is going gluten free... and its not the first time I've seen that suggestion. We already have a lot of gluten free foods in the house since Michy is gluten intolerant, so making the leap shouldn't be too difficult.

So I've been making good use of our bread machine to make fresh gluten-free, vegan bread.

 

I'm glad it is summer because there are lots of tasty veggies to eat, which makes the restrictions a little easier.  The munchkin and I walked over to the farmer's market yesterday and picked up our farmshare.

 

yum!

Then we had a delicious lunch of gluten free bread, hummus, and sliced heirloom tomato that I got at the market. 

 

I want to set a good example for the munchkin and focus on yummy healthy food that helps us feel good!

Off to make a cup of herbal tea...

Farmer's Market

After the munchkin woke up from his super long nap yesterday, I strapped him into the Ergo and we headed across the street to the Forest Park Farmer's Market.  We are CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) members with a local farm, Red Fire Farm and every week we get our share of fresh veggies.  Our pickup location is the tuesday farmer's market.

I had always wanted to get a farmshare, but when it was just me and Mich it seemed like way more food than we would ever be able to go through.  But now that we are a whole house-full of people it makes so much sense.  Having the farmshare has been awesome.  It encourages us to cook at home- which is healthier and cheaper.  It gets us to try new vegetables and new recipes.  I had never had kohlrabi before our farmshare. It helps support local famers and people in our community. A cool benefit to our share is that we can actually go to the farm and pick our own veggies.  How much and what we are allowed to take varies from week to week... but we are almost always able to get as much fresh herbs as we want.  I made so much pesto last summer! yum.

So the muchkin and I got to the market and headed straight to the Red Fire stand where we got our haul for the week.  Cucumbers, Zucchini, Kale, Kohlrabi, Lettuce, Carrots, Basil.  We had a really full bag of produce by the time we left the stand, so there wasn't much else to go buy.  We picked up a little gluten free/ vegan chocolate peanut butter cake, some kettlecorn, some sweet cherries, and a fruit cup to snack on on the walk home.

The munchkin had his swim lesson last night, he was not so thrilled this week, but he loved the slide at the end and kept signing more to go back on.  The slide was the only time during the class that I think he smiled.   The water was a little cool, so that may have has something to do with his reluctance.  After class Michelle and I took him to a local mall where we ran a couple errands and them let him run amok in the indoor playground.  He loves slides, but so far is only brave enough to go down feet first on his belly unless one of us is holding him.

He fell asleep on the car ride home, and although I was able to get him ready for bed still asleep once he actually hit the bed his eyes popped open and he wanted to play.  I don't think he actually settled back down until almost midnight.  He just wanted to nurse and fidget. *sigh*

He is still asleep as I type this at quarter to 10am, but it meant a productive morning for me.  I made some pesto and got a little knitting done.  Plus I get to enjoy coffee without grabby little hands.  Hooray for little luxuries.

 

One of the best parts of the market- Fresh Kettle Corn!

 

I am trying to get in the habit of processing all the greens right away, so that we have easy to grab salad mix.  I want salads to be easy, and if I have to wash and chop lettuce when I want a salad, I'm going to grab convenient junk food instead.  So now we have a big container of washed and chopped salad greens just waiting in the fridge.

 

garlic scapes.  I wasn't sure what to do with them and we've gotten a ton the last couple weeks so I put them in my pesto instead of garlic cloves. I think it came out really nice.

 

mmm... pesto.  I make my pesto with walnuts instead of pine nuts because I'm not a huge fan of pine nuts. I also used nutritional yeast instead of cheese.  yum.  

 

Vegan, gluten free pesto pasta salad... perfect for the 4th of July.