Mar 31 2014

Bee Pollen Tea

Posted on March 31, 2014 by aHeapingCup

Some of you may have read my post on bee pollen and allergies. If not, go on and click here, hunni.

Bee pollen has cured my allergies. I mean two days ago I was dying and yesterday after taking one dose of bee pollen I was able to breathe and didn’t sneeze once or blow my nose for hours! Do you know what a miracle that is when you’ve been having severe allergies?

Anyway, this is what you need:

Local bee pollen, a handful of mint leaves and local or wildflower honey to taste.

Place the mint leaves into a teapot.

Pour freshly boiled water on top.

Place a 1/4 teaspoon of bee pollen into a cup.

*For dosage information, click on the link in the beginning of the post.*

Add local or wildflower honey to taste. Or to smell.

Pour the mint tea into the cup.

Stir. Sip. Breathe. Enjoy.

[subscribe2]

[yumprint-recipe id=’42’]

Mar 31 2014

Bee Pollen & Allergies

Posted on March 31, 2014 by aHeapingCup

So, I have been having horrific, horrible, horrendous, whore-ish. Ok, not whore-ish. Basically, I’ve been having really bad allergies. I could barely breathe and it felt like tiny people were inside my nostrils with feathers, tickling me. My eyes were watery and itchy, my nose was stuffy and runny and my emotions? Hysterical. I thought I was dying at one point. No joke.

It got to the point where I was taking Claritin or Allegra everyday and that can’t be good. I was desperate for a natural remedy. So, of course, I didn’t do anything about it. Then came Saturday, which was yesterday, which is also Farmer’s Market Day for me.

So, there I am, at the farmer’s market. I’m walking past the stands with my reusable tote feeling like I’m single-handedly saving the environment and channeling my inner-hippie when I walk by a honey stand. I love honey so I stopped by and noticed this jar of yellowish brown granules and asked, “What’s that?”

My life changed. I discovered bee pollen and how local pollen and honey are thought to immunize you to the pollen that cause allergies for many people, myself included. I bought some. It totally helped with my allergies! They are not nearly as intense. Can’t wait to see how I feel in a week!

The lady told me to start out taking 1/4 teaspoon everyday in the morning for a week. Then increase to 1/2 teaspoon for the next week. And so, on in 1/4 teaspoon increments until by the end of the month, you have taken 1 teaspoon for a week.

Not sure what to do after that. Am I cured? Or do I keep taking a teaspoon daily? I’ll ask her when I see her.

Don’t take it straight up like me. It tastes like shit. Not that I know what shit tastes like. Take it with water or in tea.

I will be posting a Bee Pollen Tea recipe soon.

Mar 28 2014

Taco Seasoning Mix

Posted on March 28, 2014 by aHeapingCup

Yes, the spoon is upside down. No, I didn’t know that when I took the photograph.

Also, I love tacos. The seasoning packets at the store, which I admit I have used in the past, are apparently filled with sodium and a bunch of other artificial stuff that you probably shouldn’t be eating.

Which leads me to this recipe. Taco seasoning. You will need these items:

Spices from top left: Turmeric (optional but I add it to everything for the health benefits), onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, coriander, oregano, chili powder and cumin.

I feel very strongly about using freshly ground coriander in my recipes because preground coriander is just not the same, man. It’s just not.

I wish there was smell on the camera. So does this lady. The smell of freshly ground coriander is amazing, lemony and refreshing.

Add all the spices to a bowl (the proportions are in the printable recipe card at the end of the post).

Stir.

Use on chicken, beef, pork, fish, shrimp, or tofu. Ew. Sorry. Blech. Tofu and I haven’t gone “there” yet. I just look at him from afar wondering what it would be like. And then I come to my senses and remind my self that I go home to a freezer full of meat and that keeps me warm at night.

[subscribe2]

[yumprint-recipe id=’41’]

Mar 27 2014

Mystery Ingredient: Week 3

Posted on March 27, 2014 by aHeapingCup

This week’s mystery ingredient was a tough one for me as not only have I never cooked with this ingredient, I’ve never eaten it as well. At least I don’t remember eating it before. I feel like it has become a pretty common ingredient so I may have eaten at some point in my life.

So, are you ready to find out what this week’s ingredient is???

It is………..

Bok Choy!

Bok choy is Chinese Cabbage, but it’s not at all like the cabbage that looks like iceberg lettuce. Taste-wise it doesn’t have a very pronounced flavor, I decided to make a sweet/salty glaze to go with it. This recipe is fully vegan, paleo, gluten free, and whatever else diet is in right now.

Basically, it’s guilt free. And the glaze is great to put on many other things. Other things like meat, seafood and veggies

So this is what I used for my glaze:

That there on the left over there yonder is honey with saffron. Uh huh. Get into it.

Plus you need 3 cloves of garlic and two little pieces of ginger:

Slice the garlic into slices.

Slice the ginger into discs. No need to peel the ginger for this.

Pour 1/4 cup of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of mirin, 2 tablespoons of honey, the garlic, ginger and a sprinkle of sesame seeds into a small saucepan.

Stir and bring to boil then reduce to simmer. You want it to reduce down to glaze. Thin enough to drizzle and thick enough so that it’s not watery like broth.

While that happens, heat up some oil in a large pan and then cut your bok choy in half, lengthwise.

Sprinkle on a little S&P.

Once the pan is hot, lay the bok choy in, cut side down and cook for a few minutes on high heat until golden brown and then flip over.

By now, your glaze should have thickened. Taste and adjust seasonings to your liking. I tasted it and felt it was a bit too potent to I added a squeeze of lemon juice to brighten everything up and it was perfect.

If it’s too intense for you add some lemon juice or a touch of water. If it’s too salty add a bit of honey. If it’s too sweet add a dash of soy sauce. You get the idea.

Once the flavors are to your liking, strain out the garlic and ginger and sesame seeds. They have done all they could for you and now it’s time to set them free, into your trash can.

Place your bok choy on a plate and drizzle on the glaze and another sprinkling of sesame seeds. Enjoy alone or as a side dish with any protein.

I had it with a fillet of white fish. It was great. I gotta say though, the glaze made it. I’m not a huge fan of bok choy. I wanna try using this glaze on other things and seeing how that turns out.

[subscribe2]

[yumprint-recipe id=’40’]

Mar 26 2014

Honey Roasted Pistachios

Posted on March 26, 2014 by aHeapingCup

Sorry for not posting yesterday 🙁 I had a major errand day that was long overdue and was out of the house (and therefore kitchen) as a result. I had nothing to post and I felt horrible and I cried all day. Ok, no I didn’t. But I still felt bad.

Moving on.

So, my friends Joseph and Lara came to visit the other day. (Yay Joseph and Lara!) During our little adventure, Joseph (who has recently gone paleo) gave me (who has recently gone gluten-free) the idea to make the cauliflower recipe I made for my last post. It turned out great! Thanks for the idea Joseph!

So after they left, I began thinking about this whole paleo thing. Now, for those of you who don’t know I suffer from PCOS (google it). Isn’t it funny when people say suffer from? No? Because they really are suffering and that’s not funny? Ok.

Well apparently, according to the internet, an effective natural remedy for PCOS (and the nasty cystic acne that comes along with it) is going paleo. So, this recipe is an ode to me going paleo and my friends for supporting and inspiring me. Awww. I know.

Let’s. Get. Into. It.

Preheat your oven to 3-fitty

The ingredients are super simple. Pistachios and honey. I used manuka honey because I’m trying to better myself and my community.

I have a weird OCD thing about food sticking, so I lined a baking sheet with parchment paper and sprayed it with some nonstick spray. This part is optional.

Next, spread the pistachios on the baking sheet and coat with honey.

Bake for about 5 minutes or until you can just start to smell the honey and nuts. Don’t let it burn!

The picture above on the right is the color you want.

As soon as it comes out of the oven sprinkle a little kosher salt on top, if you like that salty/sweet thing.

Mmmmmm.

Serve in a bowl and enjoy as a snack alone or with drinks!

[subscribe2]

[yumprint-recipe id=’39’]

Mar 24 2014

Cauliflower “Rice”

Posted on March 24, 2014 by aHeapingCup

The cauliflower looks yellow because it’s that yellow kind of cauliflower. If you use the traditional white cauliflower it will look more like white rice. The taste however is just as good no matter what color you use.

This is perfect with protein when you want to feel like you’re having rice but you know you shouldn’t. It’s just as easy to make as rice and much more flavorful and healthy.

So let’s get to it! This is what you need:

Super simple. Then you want to undress the cauliflower while telling it that you love it so it doesn’t feel used.

Now you have naked cauliflower. Don’t make it feel awkward by staring. Just get to it!

Chop off the thick stem.

Then you want to cut off the little stems as well. Basically, cut off as much stem as you can.

Now, if you have a food processor throw the cauliflower tops in and pulse until they look like little granules.

I don’t have a food processor so I just used a knife like our ancestors did.

Once the cauliflower looks like the pictures above place on a lined baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and season with S&P to taste.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until it looks like this. You can click on the pic to enlarge it.

I had them with teriyaki chicken as a substitute for white rice. For the teriyaki chicken recipe click here. It tasted really good. Dare I say, better. Much more depth of flavor and totally guilt free. Please try making this!

Enjoy!

Also, to subscribe to my blog and receive about 17 points of good karma, enter your e-mail in the box below.

No spam. I pwomise. (Spelling is intentional. The OCD in me made me have to clarify that.)

[subscribe2]

[yumprint-recipe id=’38’]

Mar 23 2014

Honey Baked Brie w/ Pistachio & Figs

Posted on March 23, 2014 by aHeapingCup

Mmmmmm. Goooey, stringy cheese.

Baked brie. Ooey gooey baked brie. The first time I had it it was “en croute,” (which is basically baked in a puff pastry with a jam or chutney lining the inside of the dough) and it was orgasmic. Sadly, I’m now going gluten free and I’m also trying to cut out dairy. Ha. That’s going really well as you can tell from this recipe.

No, but seriously. As a goodbye to cheese (for now, I’m taking this day by day lol) I decided to make a baked brie and just go hardcore and have a cheese-gasm. But I didn’t use crackers, I had it with sliced apples which are actually better because they provide a nice tart crisp-ness that goes so well with the salty, gooey cheese.

I used a small wheel of brie, 4 dried figs, a small handful of pistachios and Manuka honey active 20+. I dunno what the hell that means but it’s supposed to be healthier and this was the highest active number I found. So, I mean, technically this is a super healthy baked brie. Ahem.

Preheat your oven to 350F and place the wheel o’ brie on a lined baking sheet.

Cut the dried figs into slices exposing their pretty little seeds.

I laid them around the edge of the top of the wheel thusly:

After adding the pistachios in the center, drizzle on as much honey as your inner child tells you to. My inner child was on her best behavior today, so I didn’t go too crazy. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Below is a ‘before and after baking’ picture-situation.

I love how the drops of honey caramelized and got dark. Myyy prettyyyyyyy (in you-know-what voice)

Immediately after taking the brie out of the oven, slice a green apple or two into thin wedges.

Side note: Below are pics of a quick apple-coring method I use. Who needs a corer? Not moi.

Arrange the apple slices around the baked brie and slice it open and let the cheesy goodness ooze out.

*shuddering in ecstasy*

Dip the apple into the cheese first. Then have it with a fig, or honey roasted pistachio. Or both. Enjoy this with drinks this weekend or everyday. Same thing. Whatever.

Or subscribe to my blog. You know, same thing. Whatever.

[subscribe2]

[yumprint-recipe id=’37’]

Mar 22 2014

Sautéed Mushrooms

Posted on March 22, 2014 by aHeapingCup

‘Shrooms. You either love them or you hate them. If you hate mushrooms I feel bad for you, son.

My personal favorite are porcini mushrooms, which are in this recipe. You can change the other mushrooms in this recipe if you prefer certain kinds, but I really recommend sticking with the dry porcini mushrooms. They are essential to the depth of flavor of this dish.

Anway, this is what I used:

Those are stalks of green garlic not leeks or green onions, although you could use those if you like. I got these green garlics at the farmer’s market. They have the texture and consistency of leeks but the flavor and smell of garlic.

The first thing you want to do is reconstitute the dried porcini mushrooms. ‘Reconstitute’ is just an obnoxious way of saying ‘rehydrate’, which is just the scientific way of saying ‘make them soft’. To do this, soak the dried mushrooms in hot water.

While they soften, chop up the green garlic and the mushrooms if they are large.

Add them to a hot pan with a drizzle of olive oil and don’t toss out the porcini soaking water! This is liquid mushroom gold and you will need it to create this deep rich mushroom side dish that is meaty enough to eat as a main dish.

Add a few dashes of Worcestershire Sauce, a pinch of garlic powder and onion powder and 1/2 a teaspoon of paprika and most (not all) of a small amount of chopped cilantro. About a small handful.

Cook until the mushrooms have browned and reduced like the picture on the bottom right (or second picture if you are reading this on your phone):

Make a mushroom-well and add half of the porcini soaking liquid.

Let the liquid bubble-up and get absorbed by the mushrooms. Add the rest of the porcini juice and let is absorb as well. Mmmm. Porciniiii juuuuice.

Garnish w/ rest of cilantro. I had it with a salt and heavily peppered chicken breast sautéed in olive oil. Very rich and satisfying meal and it’s totally gluten free, paleo, low carb (or no carb) and vegan! Ok so it’s not vegan. But if you are vegan the mushrooms are a very hearty and meaty option on their own.

To subscribe to my blog type your e-mail in the box below and click subscribe.

[subscribe2]

No spam. As in canned meat as well as unwanted e-mails.

[yumprint-recipe id=’36’]

Mar 22 2014

Avocado Sauce

Posted on March 22, 2014 by aHeapingCup

So. I have a confession to make. I hate avocados. If you live in California like I do then you know that saying you hate avocados gets the same reaction from Californians as saying you straight up hate Cali.

I mean, if you read my blog you know I hate bland food. Avocados are bland. Most guacamoles I’ve tried are bland. I find that the chunkier a guac is, the more bland. So I knew the only way I could eat avocado without gagging is with lots of flavor.

So I decided to make something flavorful with avocado. I wrangled these items (I don’t know why I used the word ‘wrangled’. I didn’t wrangle anything to be honest.):

I used 3 avocados, a poblano pepper, 3 green onions, a bunch of cilantro, grated parmesan cheese, the juice of a lime and a little bit of olive oil. Plus good ol’ S&P.

So first thing you wanna do is chop up the pepper and onions. Just rough chop them, but be gentle as well. 😉

Throw them into a blender or food processor. You don’t have to throw them. You can just place them in the blender. I’m having a hard time accurately describing how to handle food today.

Avocado time. Cut them in half and remove the seed in the middle.

Then scoop out the flesh and throw that into the blender also. I’m sticking with throw.

Add the juice of a lime.

Add the parmesan and oil. I eyeballed the amount but if I had to guess I would say about 1/4 cup of the parmesan and two drizzles of olive oil. Drizzle is a technical term btw. I swear. Ahem.

Add water about halfway up the ingredients in the blender and blend it, blend it, blend it.

The picture below shows the consistency you want. Smoooooooth.

You can enjoy this on tacos or nachos. Or like guacamole with tortilla chips. Or maybe with some pasta with a bit more parmesan on top. Or drink it straight up. Ok no. Don’t do that. Ever. That shit is nasty.

Enjoy!

[subscribe2]

[yumprint-recipe id=’35’]

Mar 21 2014

Spring Sangria

Posted on March 21, 2014 by aHeapingCup

Spring has sprung! So, naturally, it’s time to drink! Well, for those of you who have been following my journey on this-here blog, I made a batch of rose vodka and I’ve been testing recipes with it (read: drinking it) and I’m loving this Spring Sangria. It’s fresh and perfect over a glass filled with fruits and ice. I’m. So. Thirsty. Right. Now.

If you don’t have rose vodka you can a.) make it using my recipe which is heeeeeere. Otherwise you can use plain vodka or any other vodka you like. As always, make it work for you.

The basic ratio I use for Sangria is a cup of hard liquor, 1 bottle of wine, 2 cups of a juice or a cup or so of simple syrup (an equal mix of water and sugar heated until sugar dissolves), depending on how sweet you like your sangrias) and lots and lots of sliced fruit for garnish. Nothing worse than a sangria with a few lonely-ass fruits with no other fruits to mingle in your drink with.

Ok so this is the combo I went for. I wanted something light and citrusy.

I used a crisp white wine, Pinot Grigio and used tangerine juice which is sweeter than regular OJ. I didn’t make a simple syrup because I didn’t want it too sweet. Plus I’m trying to go sugar-free. Booooo.

So first thing you want to do is grab a pitcher. Or gently pick it up. Your choice. I’m a grabber.

Then pour the cup of vodka, 2 cups of juice and bottle of wine into the pitcher and stir.

Not sure how necessary the above pictures were. In case there is someone out there who is having difficulty pouring liquids into pitchers, I’m here to save the day! You’re welcome. 🙂

Slice your fruits for garnish. This is your chance to go crazy and add whatever fruits you like, or are about to spoil in your fridge and throw them in the mix baby! I just called you baby. Sorry. I don’t know you like that.

The final step is to try to resist the chihuahua sitting down so obediently, begging. Try to resist throwing him a piece of fruit. I dare you.

Oh ya, and let the drink marinate in the fridge for a few hours if you can control yourself, because it will taste better that way. I don’t know why. Ask science.

Cheers!

For more cocktail and food recipes, subscribe to my blog by typing your email in the box below.

[subscribe2]

[yumprint-recipe id=’34’]

A Heaping Spoonful…

…abundance in all the right places.

Monthly Archives: March 2014

Bee Pollen Tea

Bee Pollen & Allergies

Taco Seasoning Mix

Mystery Ingredient: Week 3

Honey Roasted Pistachios

Cauliflower “Rice”

Honey Baked Brie w/ Pistachio & Figs

Sautéed Mushrooms

Avocado Sauce

Spring Sangria