Marinated Flank Steak

If you've been eating grass fed beef, you've probably noticed that it has a different texture from grain finished, store beef.  Marinating is one way to tenderize it - this recipe works great to get a steak ready for the grill or you can broil it in the oven.

Marinated Flank Steak

1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup coconut aminos
2T lemon juice
2T olive oil
1T honey
3 cloves garlic
1 large shallot
1 tsp. mustard powder
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. white pepper

Put everything in the blender and liquify.  Put flank steak in a Ziploc bag, pour marinade over, and put in the refrigerator for 4 to 6 hours.  Grill outside or broil in the oven to medium rare and cut into thin strips on the bias.  We serve it on rice, salad greens, or cooked greens.

Barbecued Lamb Liver Kebabs

Okay - no eww's until you've tried this!  Next to pate and dirty rice, this is the most delicious way to eat liver ever!

Barbecued Lamb Liver Kebabs
serves 4

1 pound lamb liver, from grass fed and finished, pastured animals
flour tortillas, naan, chapatis, or a similar type bread

Marinade:
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup white wine
1T dried thyme
1T dried oregano
1T dried basil
1 clove garlic, peeled and grated
salt and pepper

Toppings:
2 cups sliced red peppers
2 large shallots, peeled and sliced thinly
2 cloves garlic, peeled and grated
olive oil
salt and pepper

Rinse and dry liver and slice into thin strips.  Mix marinade and pour over liver.  Let marinate in the refrigerator for at least an hour.  Thread liver strips onto skewers and barbecue over hot coals for a few minutes on each side.  Lamb liver cooks very quickly and will be tough and bitter if overcooked - you want it pink inside.

For toppings, heat olive oil and saute shallots and garlic until lightly browned.  Add pepper strips and continue cooking until softened.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Pasta Your Way

Jim always says we never have the same pasta dish twice!  That may be true - I don't follow a recipe, but just add what we have on hand.  There is a pattern to what I do, though:

Pasta Your Way - for each 3-4 servings
1.  1/2 package Trader Joe's penne, cooked al dente and drained
1 large shallot - sliced
2 cloves garlic, grated (optional)
Olive oil
About 1 pound of meat - add more or less depending on how much meat you like.  You can even leave it out.  I usually use one large chicken breast or a turkey tender.
Saute the shallot and garlic in olive oil until golden.  Salt and pepper.  Add the meat and cook until done.  Salt and pepper again.

2.  1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup broth
juice of 1/2 lemon
herbs - a handful of fresh or about a Tablespoon of dried (I didn't use any on the greens dish since the arugula and mustard add a lot of bite)
vegetables - here are some ideas:
- paper thin fennel and green beans
- greens - the photo is 2 baby bok choy, a handful of arugula, a handful of mustard greens, and some fresh basil
- sliced red peppers and sliced cauliflower
Deglaze the pan with the wine.  Add broth, lemon juice and herbs and cook down about 5 minutes.  Add vegetables and cover.  Cook until vegetables are as soft as you want them to be - a minute for the greens or already cooked veggies, longer if you use raw vegetables.

3.  Add the cooked, drained pasta and dish up.  You can top each serving with grated cheese (I did in the greens dish above) or chopped, toasted almonds.  Or both!

Stuffed Bell Peppers

This meat mixture could also be used to stuff other vegetables - like hollowed out zucchini (thanks Patty!) if you don't do bell peppers.

Stuffed Bell Peppers - makes 4

1 pound ground meat (I use chicken or turkey)
1 cup cooked quinoa (I cook it in broth)
1/2 cup shredded cheese (optional)
about a 1/2 cup cut up fresh basil
about a tablespoon dried oregano
1 large shallot - thinly sliced or chopped
2 cloves garlic, grated
4 bell peppers
salt
pepper
olive oil

1.  Cut tops off of peppers and clean out.  Dice up the tops, minus the stems.

2.  Heat olive oil and saute shallots, garlic, and diced peppers until the shallots and garlic are golden.

3.  Mix together all ingredients, season with salt and pepper, and stuff the peppers.

4.  Bake in a baking dish at 375 degrees for 50 minutes, or until meat is well cooked.

Coq Au Vin Blanc

This is not as much work as I always thought Coq Au Vin would be - mostly prep and then you sit back while it cooks!  In the photo, I'm serving it with broccoli and lemon roasted golden beets.

Coq Au Vin Blanc
4 servings

1 chicken, about 4 pounds
1 tsp. salt - use about 1/2 this if using an Empire chicken (they're cleaned in salt water)
1/2 tsp. ground white pepper
2 T olive oil
2 shallots, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, grated
1/2 oz. dried morels, soaked in hot water for 30 minutes and then thinly sliced
1T arrowroot starch
1T red pepper sauce
1 1/2 cups white wine
1 cup chicken broth
4 sprigs fresh thyme or 2 tsp. dried
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup coconut milk
Cooked rice

Quarter the chicken, wash and dry it and season with the salt and pepper.  In a large Dutch oven type pan (I use an enameled cast iron one), heat the olive oil and brown the chicken pieces on all sides - remove from the pan to a plate.  In the same pan, saute shallots and garlic - you may need a little more oil - until golden.  Add the mushroom slices and cook for 5 minutes.  Add the arrowroot and red pepper paste and cook, stirring, for a minute.  Add in the wine and broth.  Add the thyme, bay leaves, and chicken.  Bring to a boil, cover the pot, and cook in a 350F degree oven for about 1 1/2 hours or until the chicken is very tender.  Remove pot from oven and remove the chicken to a covered dish that will keep it warm.

With the pot on medium-high, add the coconut milk and cook until the sauce has thickened - about 10 to 15 minutes.  Return chicken to the pot and heat through.  Remove thyme stalks and bay leaves.

Put a chicken serving on top of a serving of rice and spoon sauce over the top.

This freezes real well - freeze the chicken separately from leftover sauce and make fresh rice when you're ready to eat it.

Empire Half Turkey Breast

This is our favorite way to roast turkey breasts!  The Empire one is great because, unless you don't do well with corn fed meat, it works for many corn allergic people (washed in water and salt only and the soaker pad does not use citric acid according to one of their customer service reps), it's brined and is very moist and tender.  And it turns out beautifully - I forgot to take a picture of it before the skin came off, so imagine it all golden brown!

Empire half turkey breast
about 1/2 cup of chopped fresh herbs - I use sage and thyme
2 Tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper

1.  Mix herbs, olive oil, salt and pepper in a small bowl.  Gently cut the membrane that holds the skin on - just along the front so that you make a pocket.

2.  Stuff in the herb mixture.  Smooth the skin back down and rub the turkey with the olive from your hands.  Salt and pepper the outside.

3.  Roast in a 425 degree oven until the thickest part gets to 165 degrees - a little over an hour.  Remove from oven and tent with foil for 5 minutes.  Take the meat off and slice - save the skin and bone for stock.

Sweet Pepper Spaghetti Sauce

I've been working on several recipes using sweet red peppers as a tomato replacement.  Here's the first one!

Sweet Pepper Spaghetti Sauce

6 large red bell peppers, roasted and pureed (see recipe below) to make about 2 cups
2T olive oil
1 large shallot, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped or grated
1 pound ground meat
1 cup lower histamine white wine (see "What I Eat")
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped
1T dried oregano
1t dried thyme
salt and pepper to taste
Add 2 T sugar if you like the sweeter taste of tomato sauce

1.  Saute shallots and garlic in the olive oil until lightly browned.  Add ground meat and cook thoroughly.

2.  Add pepper puree and the rest of the ingredients and simmer on low heat until thickened, stirring often, about 15 minutes.

Roasted Red Bell Pepper Puree

1.  Cut tops off peppers, wash and clean out insides.  Place upside down on lightly greased cookie sheet.

2.  Cook in a 350 degree oven for 50 - 60 minutes, until skins begin to char and look wrinkly.

3.  Remove from oven.  Using two forks, peel off skin.

4.  Place in blender or food processor and puree.

This freezes well.

Chicken Pot Pie

This doesn't have the traditional pot pie crust (still working on a pie crust that is worth it), but it's really good!  And a good way to use leftover chicken and vegetables. 

Chicken Pot Pie - Makes 2 6-inch square individual serving pans (from Ikea)
2 cups of vegetables - if they're not already cooked, cook until just starting to become soft
  I used kohlrabi and green beans for this batch
1 cup homemade chicken broth
1/2 cup diced chicken (or any meat)
1/2 cup chopped fennel (stems work fine)
1/2 cup safe white wine
1 shallot, diced
3 T olive oil + about 1 T more
1 - 2 T arrowroot starch
1 T fresh thyme leaves
1 bay leaf

Topping:
1 cup rice flour
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 cup Spectrum palm shortening
1T lemon juice + water to equal 1/2 cup

1.  Saute fennel and shallots in the 3T olive oil until browned.  Add broth, wine, thyme, and bay leaf.  Simmer for 5 minutes.  Remove bay leaf.
2.  Whisk in the arrowroot starch - 1T if you like a slightly thickened gravy, 2T if you like a thicker gravy - and remove from heat.
3.  Divide vegetables and chicken between two individual serving pans.  Pour half of gravy mixture over each pan.
4.  Mix up topping (work in shortening with fingers or a pastry blender) and divide between pans.  I like to put it on as little lumps (more like a cobbler), but if you want a more traditional crust look, smooth it out until it covers the whole top.  Sprinkle top with olive oil.
5.  Bake at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes, or until tops are golden.

Faux Pho

I  love pho - the vietnamese noodle soups.  Chicken is my favorite - comforting like chicken soup, but so much more interesting!  Pho's out these days for lots of allergy reasons, but I came up with a "pho-like" soup that we like just as well.

Allergy Friendly Pho - serves 2

1 large chicken breast or equivalent in turkey breast
2 Tablespoons plus 1 Tablespoon olive oil
2" x 1" piece of peeled ginger
2 shallots, peeled and diced
sea salt
white pepper
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
2 cups homemade chicken broth, hot
4 oz. rice pad thai noodles, cooked, drained, and rinsed
2 heads baby bok choy, chopped, boiled for 2 minutes, and drained
1/4 cup chopped basil
2 T chopped mint leaves

Heat broth while making the rest of the soup.

Cut chicken breast in thin slices.  Heat olive oil in a medium sized pan.  Add chicken and cook until done.  Salt and pepper to taste. Remove chicken from pan and keep warm.

Add additional tablespoon of oil to the pan.  Cook shallots until translucent.  Grate ginger into pan and cook for a minute.  Add lemon juice, hot broth, and bok choy.

To assemble soup, put 1/2 the noodles in each bowl.  Add the chicken.  Divide the broth mixture between the bowls.  Top each bowl with half the basil and mint.

"Satay" Chicken

Not really satay chicken since peanut butter, soy sauce, and chilies are out, but it's along those lines and very good!

"Satay" Chicken

5 or 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Marinade:
1/2 cup white wine (see what I eat for lower histamine choices)
1/4 cup lemon juice
2T sunflower seed butter
1 T olive oil
1 T brown sugar
1 tsp. ground tumeric
1/2 tsp. white pepper
1/2 tsp. sea salt
3 cloves garlic, grated
1 shallot, grated
1 piece of ginger (about 2" by 1"), grated

Mix marinade.  Wash and dry chicken, add to marinade, and put in the refrigerator for 2 to 4 hours.  Grill on the barbecue or broil in the oven.

To make kebobs, use chicken breasts cut into cubes.

Note about sunflower seed butter:  I use Sunbutter Organic - the organic appears to be as corn safe as possible and works for me.  It's also made in a peanut and nut free facility.  If you're allergic to soy, it is made on equipment that processes soy.