Lip-Smackingly Good Lemon Ice Cream (AIP Friendly)

Tags

AIP, Autoimmune Protocol, Dairy Free, Dairy Free Ice Cream, Gluten Free, Healthy Dessert, Paleo

Forget art. Put your trust in ice cream. (Charles Baxter, ‘The Feast of Love’)

One of the very happy discoveries I have made on my Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) endeavour is that of coconut ice cream. That is, ice cream made from coconut milk. Not the store-bought coconut-flavoured ice cream full of trans fats, soy extracts, sweeteners and preservatives!

When you are in the strictest elimination phase of the protocol, finding special sweet treats can be something of a challenge. So, there is something quite liberating about having a little ice cream every now and then.

And, of course, I’m a bit of an ice cream tragic, so I’m REALLY in love with my homemade coconut ice cream. You won’t believe how easy it is to make, either.

Homemade Lemon Ice cream
Garnished with Honey Candied Citrus Peel from The Urban Poser
(Image by LM for TSL)

When I first started making my AIP-friendly ice cream, I tended towards an old fashioned sundae. You know the kind I mean – vanilla ice cream, whipped (coconut) cream and strawberry or raspberry coulis. I’d whip these up for casual dinner parties, with MUCH success. Ice cream sundaes seem to bring out the inner child in my dinner guests.

Who knew?

Of course, it must be said that while it is possible to make ice cream without an ice cream maker, it is so much easier if you have one.

I was lucky enough to have a gorgeous tangerine-coloured * KitchenAid bought for me a few years back (LM buys the best presents!). It was not too expensive to pick up the ice cream attachment. The frequency with which I now make ice cream has made it a very cheap addition to my kitchen gadget arsenal!

Without ice cream, there would be darkness and chaos. (Don Kardong)

This particular recipe was inspired by my almost-eight year old nephew, Blue. Lemon is his favourite flavour.

During his recent visit, Blue requested a lemon ice cream.

To be honest, I was a little dubious as to how it would turn out. I was also a little afraid the citrus would curdle the coconut milk.

But, I needn’t have worried. The resulting ice cream tasted fabulous and reminded me of a frozen version of a lemon mousse my Mum used to make for special occasions when I was growing up.

It’s a winner!
(Image by LM for TSL)

So, it was not only a big hit with Blue, but my Dad loved it, too!

And here’s the recipe. Just don’t tell anyone how simple it is!

Lemon Ice Cream (AIP-Friendly)

• Servings: 3-4
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

Ingredients:

1 x 400 ml can full fat coconut milk
2 – 3 x Tablespoons Maple Syrup (according to taste)
Zest of one unwaxed, organic lemon
Juice of 1/2 a lemon

Method:

1. Freeze the insulated bowl for your ice cream maker.

2. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk all your ingredients together. Taste for sweetness.

3. Pour the mixture into your ice cream maker and follow the appropriate directions for your machine.

4. Serve immediately for a ‘soft serve’ consistency, or freeze for an hour or so for a firmer ice cream.

E N J O Y !

*colour no longer in production

This recipe features in the Phoenix Helix Recipe Roundtable

The GREAT RAW CHOCOLATE Ice Cream Experiment…

Tags

AIP, AIP Reintroduction, Autoimmune Protocol, Chocolate Ice Cream, Dairy Free Ice Cream, Ice Cream, Paleo

I’m currently on the Autoimmune Protocol, a nutrient-rich elimination diet that removes foods that irritate the gut, cause gut imbalance and activate the immune system. You can read more about the protocol and why I’m doing this here. 

Without ice cream, there would be darkness and chaos. (Don Kardong)

Today is LM’s birthday.

Happy Birthday, LM!

I’m sure I don’t need to tell you just how difficult it is to find just the right birthday present for that special man in your life. Well, any male over the age of 15, really. And LM is considerably older than 15. So, because I was having zero joy finding just the right gift for my beloved, I bought myself an ice cream maker for his birthday. More specifically, I bought myself the ice cream maker attachment to my gorgeous tangerine Kitchen Aid mixer, which I had been eye-ing off for a g e s , and needed a good excuse to acquire…

Photographic evidence…
(Image by TSL)

Here’s my self-talk logic behind that decision: “I can’t find ANYTHING for LM’s birthday… I can’t even take him out to dinner because of this $?@# restrictive AIP caper that I’m on…  Bugger… I know! I’ll make him an extra special meal… He’d really love a special treat and he hasn’t been able to enjoy ice cream since we discovered his allergy to dairy… What if I made him some dairy-free ice cream..? I guess I’ll need to buy that Kitchen Aid ice cream maker attachment-thingy, then. It’s for LM, after all… “

See, it was LM’s birthday present – sort of!

So, I bought the ice cream maker on Tuesday. And then, just like magic, I seemed to come across all these helpful instructions for how to make dairy free ice cream. First, there was the fabulous Beth from Tasty Yummies with her tutorial on ‘How to Make Dairy-Free Ice Cream‘. She was the first one to suggest the addition of gelatin as a binder. Inspired. But, her bestest-looking vanilla ice cream contains nut milks. A no go for me at this stage.

(Image from Beth at Tasty Yummies)

…and then, the über talented Jen’ from Predominantly Paleo posted about her latest collaboration with Vivian from The Real Food Guide. An e-book on ice cream for followers of the Autoimmune Protocol. That is – free of all the potentially inflammatory ingredients that traditionally make up ice cream that we ‘AIP-ers’ have to steer clear of – think eggs and cream! Of course I had to get me a copy of that book!

Ice Cream for AIP Peeps!

Armed with my trusty tutorial from Beth AND helpful e-book care of Jen’ and Vivian, of course it would only be sensible to make a practice ice cream before we actually get to the special birthday dinner, yes?

Also, if I’m being honest, I couldn’t decide which ice cream to make. Mint Choc-Chip sounds like heaven to me, but I know it’s not really LM’s bag. Neapolitan Stacks sound a m a z i n g, but perhaps a tad fiddly for a practice round. I was leaning towards a tried-and-true chocolate ice cream…

…and, since I’ve now been on the second round of the AIP for over a month and am free of my symptoms AND I seem to have a reaction to carob (which means no Carob Ice Cream) AND chocolate is one of LM’s favourite flavours (also mine!), I decided to amalgamate the tutorial base recipe for vanilla ice cream and the carob ice cream recipe from the e-book to make my own version of raw chocolate ice cream.

If it worked, LM would be happy AND I could count cacao as my first reintroduction test*…

And, you know what?

It only 1/2 worked…

I subbed in raw cacao for carob and it tasted pretty good in its pre-churned state. Once the ice cream machine had worked its magic, I was excited. The taste was good – perhaps not Italian chocolate gelato amazing – but a solid ‘good’. The texture was impressive, too.

And, I think, if we had eaten it right then and there, I would have been happy. Instead – since it was 3 o’clock in the afternoon – I popped it into the freezer so we could have it as dessert.

After dinner, I removed it from the freezer and it was OBSIDIAN rock hard! No leaving it on the bench for 15 minutes to come to temperature for this baby. It took a solid 45 minutes AND even then we were chipping away at it. So – not entirely successful.

BUT! I am not giving up! Tonight I will follow an actual recipe to the letter and make trusty vanilla ice cream. I think we’ll make dairy-free ice cream sundaes – with whipped coconut cream and raspberry sauce. Watch this space for an update!

…stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles. Instead, climb more mountains, eat more ice cream, go barefoot oftener, swim more rivers, watch more sunsets, laugh more and cry less. Life must be lived as we go along. (Robert J. Hastings, Tinyburg Tales)

*On the upside – no reaction to last night’s chocolate indulgence (yet). YAHOOO!

The Easiest (Healthy) Ice Cream Recipe in the World!

Tags

AIP, Autoimmune Protocol, Dairy Free, dessert, Frozen Banana Ice Cream, Gluten Free, Healthy Dessert, Ice Cream, Paleo, Sweets

(Image by TSL)

I’m currently on the Autoimmune Protocol, a nutrient-rich elimination diet that removes foods that irritate the gut, cause gut imbalance and activate the immune system. You can read more about the protocol and why I’m doing this here.

“Bursar?”
“Yes, Archchancellor?”
“You ain’t a member of some secret society or somethin’, are you?”
“Me? No, Archchancellor.”
“Then it’d be a damn good idea to take your underpants off your head.”
(Terry Pratchett, Lords and Ladies)

There is a secret society. Only, it’s not that secret. It’s a society of people who know a wee something about a magical transformation that occurs when you freeze a banana and then whiz it up in your blender or food processor. These people know as long as they have a peeled & chopped banana or two in their freezer, they have the makings of amazingly delicious AND healthy desserts at any time. Which is a good thing if you live with LM – he likes dessert for breakfast!

I’m not kidding – it’s THAT good and THAT easy. Your kids won’t even know it’s not ice cream.

Cherry Cinnamon Ice Cream
(Image by TSL)

My kids are normal. If they could eat burgers and fries and ice cream every day, they would. And so would I. But that doesn’t sustain us. (Michelle Obama)

Michelle Obama doesn’t know about the secret society.

There are limits to what a girl (or boy) can do for dessert on the autoimmune protocol (AIP). Oh, there are complicated, labour-intensive numbers that you can make for a special occasion. But, for everyday, not much beats this wee ‘I can’t believe it’s not ice cream’ number.

And, while on the AIP, I’m limited with what I can add to my base mix. But, now that I’ve discovered the marvels of banana ice cream, I’m looking forward to what I can do post-reintroduction of nuts, dried fruit, alcohol, spices and chocolate…

The Easiest Ice Cream Recipe in the World

• Servings: 1 per banana
• Time: 5 minutes
• Difficulty: easy-peasey
• Print

(Image by TSL)

Ingredients

Base Recipe

1 frozen banana p/person (I freeze mine individually, peeled and broken into 4 chunks)
1 Tablespoon coconut cream (optional, but adds to ‘creamy’ mouth feel. And, if you happen to have some left over whipped coconut cream, all the better)

Cherry Cinnamon Flavour

5 – 6 frozen cherries p/person
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon p/person

Method

1) Throw all your ingredients into your blender or food processor. Blitz until blades stop chopping through the fruit. Stop the machine, take a spatula and push the mixture down the sides. Repeat until mixture resembles ice cream with a soft serve texture.

2) There is no second step. It’s ready!

E N J O Y !

Pat and Stick’s most excellent ice cream adventure…

Tags

Auckland, Australia, Brisbane, Canberra, Farmers Markets, food, Gourmet, Home Made, Ice Cream, Ice cream sandwich, Melbourne, Pat and Stick's, Photos, Small Business, Sydney, Travel

One of the wonderful things about going to the Farmers Markets every week is that you meet some fascinating people in the business of a-makin’ and a-growin’ great food.  LM laughs at me, but I love the opportunity to chat to the people directly responsible for the produce I am buying (and then eating).  I have been known to share a recipe (strange but true, Shira!) and I know I go back to the stalls and spend more where I have established a level of rapport with the providore.

Last week was no exception – the boys from Pat and Stick’s were dispensing their wares at Eveleigh. I had absolutely zero intention of picking up any form of ice cream on Saturday but then we bumped into Stick (who is a very tall and extremely happy and chatty chappy) who was doing the selling when we strolled by…  (we bought four sandwiches AND were on the receiving end of a great dry ice story)

Here's Stick himself at Eveleigh (pic' taken by the lovely ChocolateSuze)

The Pat and Stick story is a goody.  The boys are mates and got to chatting over a few beers.  They share a love of food and, after agreeing that the ice cream offerings in Australia (at the time) were pretty ordinary, started mucking about in their home kitchens with a Breville ice cream maker.  Out of this, the idea of their ice cream sandwich business was born. They chucked in their jobs and started up, initially just selling at markets.

They are committed to using only the finest ingredients like Belgian chocolate, real vanilla beans, espresso coffee, real butter, and fresh Australian milk and cream. In their words, “you won’t find any preservatives, artificial whatevers or fake fillery. It’s real food, made by real people, right here in Australia.”

Flavour combos are delish’:

Pat and Stick's ice cream sandwich combo's (they have since added a Peppermint Choc-chip number to the range)

There is something extra appealing about two good mates who are clearly so enthusiastic about their product.  They have a great wee vid’ about their history:

Now, if you live in Sydney and have yet to try a Pat and Stick’s ice cream sandwich, get thee to a stockist at your earliest convenience…  If you live in Melbourne, Brisbane or Canberra, there’s a list of where you can buy these gourmet ‘Eskimo Sammies’ (aka ice cream sandwiches) on the Pat and Stick’s website (here).  AND, if you happen to live in Auckland, you can get a Pat and Stick’s at Sarge’s, a well cool-looking Airstream at Britomart. Everyone else, Pat and Stick have yet to achieve world domination, but it does give you another reason to come and visit sunny Sydney!

Holy Alter-Ego, Batman! – The BEST Homemade Dairy-Free Creamer EVER!

Tags

AIP, Almond Milk, Autoimmune Protocol Reintroduction, Coffee, Coffee Creamer, Cup coffee, Dairy allergy, Dairy Alternative, Dairy Free Creamer, Paleo

(Image by TSL)

“Wait!”
“What?” I lowered my cup hastily, wondering if maybe there was a stray hair, or worse, a newly boiled bug inside my cup.
You got to smell it first. It’s the proper way to cup coffee.”
“Cup coffee?”
“Taste it.”
“What? Are you the coffee police or something?”
(Justina Chen, North of Beautiful)

I’m currently on the Autoimmune Protocol, a nutrient-rich elimination diet that removes foods that irritate the gut, cause gut imbalance and activate the immune system. You can read more about the protocol and why I’m doing this here.

The reintroduction stage of my autoimmune protocol adventure has finally arrived. That means I have started reintroducing foods that have previously been excluded. This is managed in a very systematic way – one food at a time, starting with things that are least likely to cause a problem (or that I miss the most!). I’m keeping a food journal and recording any unusual symptoms or changes in mood. Honestly? – it’s actually proving to be more work that strict AIP!

By far the BEST thing I have been able to reintroduce into my diet is coffee! I have missed my coffee like you wouldn’t believe. More than red wine, even. Truly.

And, when I say coffee, I mean the real deal. No Starbucks for this girl, thank you very much! We are serious about our coffee down here in this corner of the world. And, Casa TSL is no exception to this regional ‘passionate about our coffee’ rule.

Wanna’ know just how serious we are?

Here’s a pic’ of our particular brand of coffee machine here at Casa TSL…

The Bezerra Galatea Domus
We are THIS serious about coffee around here!
(Image from here)

My beloved Bezerra machine has been pretty neglected since February. Nine entire months! She has only seen action when LM fires her up over the weekend for his espresso(s).

…and, I sit on the couch, with my nose in the air, to get my caffeine fix vicariously.

To me, the smell of fresh-made coffee is one of the greatest inventions. (Hugh Jackman)

The thing is, despite the fact that I adore my coffee, I can’t drink it black. Just can’t. And, before you say anything, I know this makes me a pseudo-coffee aficionado. I know purists drink their coffee black. Just not me.

So, what’s a flat white drinker to do?

flat white
noun
a type of coffee made with espresso and hot steamed milk, but without the froth characteristic of a cappuccino.

For a while there, before I started my autoimmune protocol adventure, I was drinking a long black with a healthy dollop of organic cream (raw if I could get it). YUM! And, occasionally, I had the odd bulletproof coffee.

But, any dairy is still off the menu here at my place. And, it may remain that way for a wee while. I’ve got a bad feeling about dairy. So…

…I tried coffee with almond milk. Meh. Too watery. And, there was the curdle factor.

…I tried coffee with coconut milk. Ughh. Too coconutt-y.

And then, lying in bed one night, wondering just how I was going to manage being a coffee-free ‘Chief Barista’ during my parents’ recent visit to Sydney, I had a small epiphany. As you do.

What if I combined the almond milk and the coconut milk to make a dairy-free coffee creamer?

So, I did. And I played around with the formula a little – tweaking it by adding a little maple syrup and vanilla for sweetness and balance. And the results were AMAZING! So amazing that I can honestly say that if I end up being off dairy forever, I can happily drink coffee with my special TSL Coffee Creamer. It’s THAT good!

I can’t express how happy that makes me. It’s quite difficult to limit myself to one cup a day!

And, here’s the recipe. Just for you.

The BEST Homemade Dairy-Free Creamer EVER

• Servings: depends on how you like your coffee (makes about 2 1/2 cups)
• Time: Less than 10 minutes
• Difficulty: ridiculously easy
• Print

Ingredients:

1 x cup Almond Milk (here’s my recipe for awesome almond milk)
1 x cup coconut milk
1 x teaspoon vanilla essence
1 x Tablespoon maple syrup

Method:

1. Combine all ingredients into a large jar. Secure the lid and shake vigorously.

2. Pop in the fridge just like normal milk. It will last about 5 days. If your creamer separates, just give it a shake before pouring.

That’s it. Simples!

E N J O Y !

If I asked for a cup of coffee, someone would search for the double meaning. (Mae West)

The Other Side of Family Time at Casa TSL…

Tags

Autoimmune Protocol, Coeliac Disease, Gluten Free, Gluten Free Pancakes, Health, Sydney, Sydney for Kids

iPhone Pics at the Sydney Aquarium!
(Image by TSL)

Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do. Grandparents sort of sprinkle star-dust over the lives of little children. (Alex Haley)

My Mum and Dad have a tradition.

tradition
noun tra·di·tion \trə-ˈdi-shən\
a way of thinking, behaving, or doing something that has been used by the people in a particular group, family, society, etc., for a long time

It’s a new-ish tradition in that it was born when my oldest nephew turned seven. His grandparents – my parents! – brought him across the ditch to Sydney for a visit with his aunts. And, the deal is that his siblings get to do the same thing when they are seven, too.

That was three years ago now.

This past week, it was my second nephew’s turn. It’s been a pretty action packed few days of doing things around Sydney that an almost-eight year old likes to do.

We’ve been to the Australian Museum where we made snakes, the Taronga Zoo where we patted a sea-lion and fed wallabies, the Sydney Aquarium where we saw sharks and dugongs, and – our mutual favourite – to the most fabulous performance about dinosaurs at the Dinosaur Zoo at the Sydney Opera House.

And, in addition to all of that there’s been swimming and baking and dog walking and lots of socialising.

So much fun!

Blue, my almost-eight nephew, has recently been diagnosed with Coeliac disease. Not much fun for anybody, let alone a little person. And, he’s been such a trooper about it.

But, at times it must feel like he’s permanently stuck looking at the world from the inside of a deep sea diver’s outfit…

Blue, the Deep Sea Diver
(Image by TSL)

It’s one thing for me, a fully formed adult, to suspect a gluten sensitivity and voluntarily give it up to see how I feel*. It’s quite another to be forced to adopt a weird diet at the age of seven, and have to audit every item of food that might pass your wee lips.

I had not appreciated quite how much of a challenge that could be for a little person.

It was easy at Casa TSL. We’ve been a gluten-free household – and more – for well over two years, now. It’s no big deal for me to make gluten-free everything.

Dining out ‘on the hop’ was entirely another matter…

And, little bodies need recharging. Often. And, sometimes the snacks that aunties (and Omis) provide just don’t quite cut it. There’s a desire for french fries (nope – oftener rolled in flour and cooked in the same oil as glutened snacks) or ice cream (nope – packaged ice creams usually have gluten) or sushi (nope – there’s gluten in the vinegar used to bind the rice)… I have a new-found respect for all those parents dealing with multiple food allergies.

But, we managed.

Blue and I made cherry choc-chip cookies free of eggs, gluten, grains and dairy. Want that recipe?

My coconut ice cream was a huge hit. And, when Blue requested a lemon flavoured version, a new recipe was born. Watch this space!

Raw cacao hot chocolate became a morning treat after breakfast. And, it transpires that gluten-free pancakes (I subbed out the agave for maple syrup) served with whipped coconut cream and strawberry coulis are a hit with young players!

So, we had a fab’ week of family time here at Casa TSL. Normal transmission will now resume…

* SO much better!

Make Cooking Your (Next) Hobby

Tags

Cooking, food, Healthy Cooking, Hobbies, Hobby, Learn to cook, Sugar

If you want to get healthy, make cooking your(next) hobby!

I’m going to get mildly provocative for a moment and just put it out there that I believe you need to cook if you want to get really healthy. And, the corollary of that is, of course, that this will involve spending time in your kitchen. Unless you have as much money as Oprah, and have your own personal chef.

I have discussed this belief of mine on more than one occasion with The Paleo PI, most recently at our last Autoimmune Protocol Picnic. I quite like talking with PI. He’s male, and I’m not. He lives in a different city to me. And, there’s almost 20 years between us. He almost always gives me a different perspective. And he happens to be a great guy…

PI reckons he’s not much of a cook. I think he’s a little on the modest side. He’s successfully cooked for me, after all.

And – like anything – cooking takes practise. The more you do it, the better you get. And, given I happen to have a few years on PI, I’ve had a little more time to practise!

I didn’t start really cooking until I turned 30. Until then, I just ate!

I’ve mentioned before that my Mum is a great cook. We ate very well as a family growing up. My Mum’s chicken liver pâté remains a firm favourite for all of us. My annual birthday meal request was always filet of beef with Mum’s béarnaise sauce, usually served with duck-fat roast potatoes and green beans. And, I am still mourning the fact that I will never experience one of her 100% homemade Christmas mince tarts again (made with the shortest of gluten-filled pastry). They are so, so, SO good!*

But me, I didn’t really start to cook until I turned about 30. Don’t get me wrong, I loved to eat. Still do! But, cooking wasn’t really my thing during my traveling 20’s. I was too busy to do much more than reheat.

And, reheating is not cooking.

Now, I can’t help but wonder if I had cooked more and eaten out less; if I had taken more notice of what I was choosing to put into my mouth; if I had been more mindful about my food choices, would I still have had the same autoimmune issues…?

I suspect the answer is: probably. It’s never that simple. But, it has definitely contributed.

(Image from here)

I happen to quite like the actual craft of cooking. I definitely love eating good food. But, for me the real enjoyment is about the whole process – selecting the freshest seasonal and local produce at the markets, talking with the farmers (and sometimes the butchers) to understand where my meat comes from, learning about the nutrient density of the food I am ingesting, and the knowledge that the food I am preparing for those I love is doing them good.

And, occasionally, I like satisfying LM’s sweet tooth with a healthier version of traditional deserts and ice creams. And, in his case, this always means dairy free.

But, you don’t have to love cooking to make it your hobby.

You just need to want to make healthy choices. And, you can’t make healthy choices if you are always dining out or eating out of packets.

I dragged LM off to see That Sugar Film earlier in the week (I recommend the film!). Did you know that there is sugar added to approximately 80% of all products sold in an Australian supermarket? And that’s before we even start talking added preservatives, GMO foods, trans fats and other nasties.

‘That Sugar Film’ Q & A at the Orpheum cinema
(Image by TSL)

Do yourself a favour and spend some (more) time in your kitchen this week.

Commit to it. If you’re not a cook, start slow. Start easy. Make some bone broth. Make a frittata. Make a Jamie Oliver Inspired Four Hour Lamb (If you leave off making the gravy, it only has 3 ingredients!)

Do you cook? Have you made cooking your hobby? I’d love to hear what your thoughts are on this topic!

*Maybe I’ll start working on a gluten-free version…?

ROCKING Raw Chocolate Banana Smoothie

Tags

AIP, Autoimmune Protocol, Chocolate, Dairy Free, Healthy Drink, Paleo, Primal, Shake, Smoothie, Summer Drink

(Image by TSL)

It’s a wee bit sticky in Sydney at the moment. The sort of heat that has edged just past fabulous and moved towards slightly uncomfortable. At least, that’s how it feels to this little Kiwi.

And, while we’re in the middle of summer down here, many of my fellow AIP bloggers are writing about winter warmers.

The ever so talented Samantha over at Sweet Potatoes and Social Change has just posted about a lip-smackingly gorgeous-looking AIP-friendly Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate recently. And, yes – I did say AIP-friendly.

If there’s no chocolate in Heaven, I’m not going.(Jane Seabrook, Furry Logic Laugh at Life)

And, while I love a hot chocolate just as much as the next girl, the current temperatures in this neck of the woods definitely lend themselves to something a little more cooling…

(Images by TSL)

This is a special treat kind of smoothie. Really, it probably falls more into the ‘shake’ kind of territory. But, on a scale of naughtiness where a big fat portion of chocolate mud cake with whipped cream, ice cream and chocolate sauce is the king, this baby barely even rates a blip on the monitor. And, it tastes REALLY good!

Before I go any further, I should mention that I make this number with raw cacao. Cacao is off the table on the elimination stage of AIP. In the early stages of my AIP caper I discovered that carob is not my friend. For the longest time, I was off all things chocolate. It was a dark period, indeed.

Fortunately, cacao is now back on the menu. Carob and cacao are interchangeable in this recipe.

ROCKING Raw Chocolate Babana Smoothie

• Servings: 2
• Time: 5 minutes
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

Ingredients:

2 x frozen bananas
4 x medjool dates, pitted
3 x Tablespoons raw cacao powder or carob powder
2/3 cup coconut milk
1 x cup water
4 x brazil nuts (optional, and only after reintroduction)
2 x large handfuls of ice

Method:

1. Throw your frozen bananas, dates, cacao/carob, coconut milk, water, optional brazil nuts and ice into your blender. Blend until smooth.

E N J O Y !

ROCKING Rhubarb and Strawberry Compote

Tags

AIP, Autoimmune Protocol, Breakfast, dessert, Healthy Dessert, Paleo, Rhubarb, Rhubarb and Strawberry, Stewed Rhubarb, Summer Dessert

(Image by TSL)

Well, Art is Art, isn’t it? Still, on the other hand, water is water. And east is east and west is west and if you take cranberries and stew them like applesauce they taste much more like prunes than rhubarb does. Now you tell me what you know. (Groucho Marx)

LM loves rhubarb. And, I mean really loves it. 

Rhubarb is fairly ubiquitous at our farmers market on Saturday mornings. But, for some reason, it has been a while since I bought some. Not sure why – it is so easy to cook.

…I guess the big thing about rhubarb is that it usually requires quite a bit of sugar to make it really sing. And, it is fair to say that this recipe is no exception. Just because I have used coconut syrup and strawberries doesn’t mean it isn’t still a pretty sugar-heavy choice. But, as with most things in life, it’s all relative!

We are pretty careful about our sugar intake here at Casa TSL.

Having said that, LM still has a seriously sweet tooth (I may have mentioned that once or twice before!) and I guess there are far worse options in the sugar stakes than my take on rhubarb and strawberry compote.

Take a few strawb’s…

Add some chopped rhubarb…

And together you have a magical combination!
(Images by TSL)

Compote is really just a fancy way of saying ‘stewed fruit’. And, when I say stewed fruit, I always think of custard (another of LM’s favourites!). Guess I better hurry up and reintroduce eggs – successfully! – so that I can whip up a dairy-free custard to go with LM’s rhubarb and strawberries…

As with almost all of my recipes, this one is a doddle to make, but big on flavour. We’re heading into summer down here, but I bet it would taste fabulous in the winter-time made with frozen strawberries and served over a grain free porridge option for breakfast…

• Servings: 6-ish
• Time: 30 minutes tops
• Difficulty: could not be more simple
• Print

Ingredients:

1 x bunch organic rhubarb (approx. 450g when washed, trimmed and chopped)
1 x pun net organic strawberries (approx. 250g when washed, topped and chopped)
2 – 3 x Tablespoons coconut syrup (or maple syrup or honey)*
1/2 x teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 x Tablespoons filtered water
Fresh mint for garnish (optional)

Method

1. Wash your rhubarb and then trim and chop into 3cm pieces. Wash your strawberries, and then top and quarter them. Throw into a sized medium pot. Add water, coconut syrup and cinnamon.

2. Bring to a simmer, stir, and then cook until the rhubarb softens (between 5 and 10 minutes).

3. That’s it! All done.

4. Serve your compote either warm or cold as a breakfast accompaniment to nutola and coconut yoghurt, or for dessert over vanilla ice cream (dairy free, of course!)

*I used 2 Tablespoons but you may prefer your compote sweeter

E N J O Y !

AWESOME Nut-Free Granola Crunch

Tags

AIP, AIP Reintroduction, Breakfast, Healthy Breakfast, Healthy Granola, Nut Free, Paleo, Scroggin, Trail Mix

(Image by TSL)

I tell you, I’m really not what you’d call into your basic kink, even though we do live in Hollywood, which is a little bit like living in a box of granola. (McLean Stevenson)

Small brag – not sure if you know this but I’m sort of world-famous for my Christmas granola. And, by world-famous, I mean I have two friends who have come to expect a H U G E jar come the silly season every single year. These two generally start dropping hints about their granola expectations in November. And, while the super-secret base recipe remains the same, each year I change it up. One year it might be cranberry and white chocolate. Another, it may be dark chocolate and macadamia. I haven’t decided on this year’s flavour combo’…

But, here’s the thing. It’s fortunate that I’m really fond of these two because my home-made granola is a bit of a labour of love. Wanna’ know why?

Because I can’t eat it!

It has oats in it. And oats do not agree with me. All part of that autoimmune thing. Bah humbug.

So instead, pre-autoimmune protocol, I had been known to indulge in the very yummy ‘Nutola’ – a grain-free granola recipe. Expensive, but v e r y good. And, it’s become a staple for my health conscious brother-in-law. I’m looking forward to indulging in my Nutola – activated nuts and all – in the not too distant future.

But now that I’ve been on this restricted way of eating for so long, I started thinking about all those peeps who can’t eat granola because of the nut-factor. And, even worse if they have complications with oats and nuts.

And then, because I have one of my favourite people visiting me from New Zealand later in the week, and she doesn’t have any of my dietary challenges, I started thinking about what I was going to feed her for breakfast in my house that has no eggs and no toast and no cereal and very little fruit…

I’ve been making LM raw milk yoghurt and I reckon the granola crunch will work beautifully with that!
(Image by TSL)

And I came up with the idea of a nut free granola crunch… 

You know me. I like recipes that work and that are not too complicated. And, that taste good! This one is so easy, I reckon’ I could almost do it in my sleep.

It’s also a goodie for those who are starting to reintroduce foods on the autoimmune protocol. Seeds are usually near the top of the list for being least likely to cause an inflammatory response. Especially if they are activated!

• Servings: depends on your appetite!
• Time: 30 minutes + activating
• Difficulty: ridiculously easy
• Print

Ingredients:

200g sunflower seeds preferably activated/soaked
200g sesame seeds
250g Pumpkin seeds (pepitas) preferably activated/soaked
50g organic coconut oil, melted
3 Tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Method

1. Heat your oven to 180°C/3600°F.  Line a rimmed baking tray with baking paper (makes cleaning up a lot easier!)

2. Mix all your ingredients thoroughly together in a large bowl. Spread evenly over the baking paper lined tray.

3. Bake until golden – about 25-30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes and keeping an eye on the mixture so it doesn’t burn (nuts and seeds can burn easily and will turn bitter)

4. Remove from oven and allow to cool before storing in an airtight container. I keep mine in the fridge.

Serving suggestions: – serve over fresh or stewed fruit, yoghurt or ice cream, mix into homemade ice cream for ‘crunch factor’, would also make a great topping for cheesecake and can be eaten as trail mix (better still with some dark chocolate added!)

E N J O Y !

I’m at the reintroduction stage of my autoimmune protocol adventure. That means I can start reintroducing foods that have previously been excluded. This is managed in a very systematic way – one food at a time, starting with things that are least likely to cause a problem (or that I miss the most!). I’m keeping a food journal and recording any unusual symptoms or changes in mood. It’s actually proving to be more work that strict AIP!