Tag Archives: low carb recipes

Curry Spiced Crab Cakes with Raita

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Curry Crab Cakes

Curry Crab Cakes

We have been chugging along here, still trying to help Page adjust to being in school and away from me. Friday was hard, as soon as we pulled up to her school she began to cry. It was so hard to leave her, she was crying and begging me not to–this parenting gig is hard! Despite the hard drop off, she did much better through out the day, than she had the day before…baby steps.  In other more happy news, we got a new refrigerator! We settled on a Kenmore Elite LG Grab-N-Go and we could not be more happy. Our old refrigerator was 20 years old, so we could have gotten away with getting something much less expensive and it still would have been an upgrade for us.  The Grab-n-go feature is great, but what really sold me on this refrigerator was the airtight compartment it has. I’ve had a bundle of kale in the airtight compartment for 2 weeks, it is still as fresh, and crisp as the day I bought it.  It would have been trashed in my old refrigerator.   Now on to the crab cakes. I love crab cakes, and I love crab curry.  so why not combine the two? I topped these with raita,  but these are equally as delicious all on their own alone.

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Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

8 ounces lump crab meat

1 egg

2-3 tablespoons coconut flour

1/4 teaspoon lime powder (or zest)

3 tablespoons of finely chopped cilantro

2 teaspoons of curry powder

1/4 cup of onion, finely chopped

1 large garlic clove minced

1 tablespoon of lime juice

2 tablespoons of oil, I used olive

2-3 Tablespoons of butter or ghee for frying crab cakes

Sea salt to taste

Recipe for Raita

1/2 cup of full fat organic yogurt

1/4 cup of chopped tomatoes

1/4 cup of chopped cucumber

3 tablespoons of finely chopped red onion

3 tablespoons of cilantro, finely chopped

sea salt to taste

Directions for raita :  Combine all ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate until ready to use.

Directions for crab cakes: Heat oil in a saute pan, add in onion garlic and curry seasoning, cook for 2-5 minutes or onions turn translucent.

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Transfer onion curry mixture to a bowl to cool ( 5 minutes).

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Add in crab meat, cilantro, egg, lime zest and coconut flour and combine well.

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Once crab mixture has come together form patties for frying.  Heat the butter or ghee in a skillet, add crab patties and fry until golden brown on both sides, about 4 minutes on each side.

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Remove from heat and enjoy!

imageIf you like this recipe you may like my other crab recipes:  crab cakes, crab fried rice,  steamed crab recipe or crab taco’s.

Preserved Lemon Salt–How to make Sour Salts

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Preserved Lemon Sour Salt

Preserved Lemon Sour Salt

This blog has been a year in the making. Sour salts and the use of sour salts first caught my attention after reading an article in Bon Appetite Magazine about  how the chef at State Bird Provisions was using sour salts to brighten up dishes, and make use of an ingredients that would otherwise not get used.  His approach was simple, dehydrate something as simple as a preserved lemon, grind it into a powder, and boom you’ve created a flavorful salt without even trying.  After reading that article, I knew that I wanted to try making a preserved lemon salt.  I put it on my list of things to blog about, but never got around to it–it has been almost a year since I read that article! Of all the sour salts I have on my list to make, the preserved lemon sour salt has always intrigued me the most–that and a lime pickle salt–I love a good lime pickle! My first thought was to make my own preserved lemons and lime pickle.  But rather than make you all–and myself wait for me to make a preserved lemon, which would further prolong me making this sour salt, I thought  I’d just skip ahead a few steps and buy some preserved lemon’s from my local Whole Foods. Christmas is just a few weeks away, and since I’m giving these salts away as gifts I cant wait to make preserved lemons from scratch.

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Makes about 4 ounces of sour salt.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Drying time: 2hrs

Ingredients:

4 preserved lemons (sliced thinly)

Directions: Pre-heat oven to 150F if using an oven.  If using a dehydrator set it to 135F. Place preserved lemon slices evenly onto your dehydrator sheets, if using a stove,  spread over a wire rack set inside of a bake sheet.

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Bake or dehydrate  until hard and brittle, it took about 1.5 hours in my dehydrator. Once slices are hard and crisp, transfer to a spice mill/ blender and grind until powdery,

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Transfer the powder to an air tight container.

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You’ve just created a gourmet salt.  You can sprinkle this on chicken, and fish.  Add it to my North African Lamb Stew, or to some grilled lamb chops, the possibilities are endless.

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Sauteed Zucchini and Mushrooms

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Sauteed Zucchini and Mushrooms

Sauteed Zucchini and Mushrooms

 

My garden is overflowing with zucchini right now, zucchini and tomatoes!  The great thing about planting zucchini is that it yields a large bounty.  The not so great thing about planting zucchini is that it yields a large bounty.  This is particularly troublesome when you’re neighbors also plant zucchini in their own gardens, then giving the zucchini away becomes burdensome. The only solutions in such cases is to come up with new zucchini recipes nightly, or to freeze them.  At the moment, I’m trying to use my zucchini in any way that I can that doesn’t include freezing them–at least not yet.  This dish is so delicious and simple to make, it  makes a great addition as a side to any meal. If you’re Vegan Paleo, or on the Whole 30 diet, you can do this without the butter, it’s stilla delicious side.

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Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time:20 minutes

Total time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

10 ounces of Crimini mushrooms sliced

2.5 cups of zucchini cubed

2 cloves of garlic

2 tablespoons of butter

1 tablespoon of olive oil

sea salt to taste

 

Directions: Heat the oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in a saute pan.  Add in the mushrooms and garlic. Season the mushrooms with sea salt, they will begin to release water.

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Season the mushrooms with sea salt, they will begin to release water. Cook the mushrooms until the water completely evaporates (about 10 minutes) add in the rest of the butter, and cook the mushrooms until they begin to brown (about 5 minutes).

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Once the mushrooms begin to brown, add in the zucchini and saute until the zucchini becomes fork tender (about 5 minutes)

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Remove from heat, serve and enjoy!

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Indian and Herb Spiced Grilled Lamb Chops

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Indian and Herb Spiced Grilled Lamb Chops

Indian and Herb Spiced Grilled Lamb Chops

 

Lamb is one of my favorite meats.  Personally I like it more than beef, if given the choice between lamb and steak, I’d choose the lamb every time.  My husband on the other hand prefers steak.  He is 100% a meat and potato’s kind of guy.  After having these lamb chops he said that he’s a convert..Lol..I doubt it!   However, I’m glad that he thought that these lamb chops were delicious. I came up with the idea of marinating these with the fillings that I use for my Lamb Patties.  I added a little bit of curry powder and cumin to give the chops a little punch of flavor.  I’m so glad I did these are super flavorful, and grilling them made them more amazing than they already were.  If you only try one of my lamb recipes try this one! You will not be disappointed!!!

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Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 15-20 minutes

Total time: 25 minutes

 

Ingredients:

1 pound of lamb chops

1/4 cup  fresh cilantro

1/4 cup fresh flat leaf parsley

1/4 cup fresh mint

1 large shallot (can sub with onion, use half of a small onion)

1/4 teaspoon curry powder

1 teaspoon of cumin powder

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

3 tablespoons of olive oil

Sea salt to taste

 

Directions: To a blender add cilantro, parsley, mint, curry powder, cumin powder, shallot and olive oil, blend into a paste.  Season the lamb chops with sea salt, then rub with the marinade.

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Once your grill is nice and hot, place the lamb chops on the grill and cook for 7-8 minutes on each side or until the chops reach you’re desired level of doneness.  Remove from heat, serve, and enjoy!

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Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Parmesan, Lemon and Red Pepper Flakes

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Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Parmesan, Lemon, and Red Pepper Flakes

Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Parmesan, Lemon, and Red Pepper Flakes

 

 

I was at the farmers market this past Sunday, doing my usual weekly shopping.  One of my favorite vendor’s had these beautiful stalks of brussels sprouts.  I got so excited about them that a woman, who was also shopping, pulled me aside and whispered : “How do you cook those?” This isn’t the first time this has happened to me,  believe it or not, people stop me all the time, either at the farmers market, or at Whole Foods, to ask how to cook a variety of vegetables. The funny thing about people asking me cooking questions is that they almost always whisper the question?  I don’t understand why they whisper the question! I want to tell them, “you know you’re not the only person on the planet who has no idea what to do with ((insert name of vegetable here)).”   I shared this recipe for roasted brussels sprouts with the  the lady at the farmer’s market. It’s simple, easy and so delicious.  It’s one of my absolute favorite ways to cook and eat brussels sprouts.

 

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Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10-15 minutes

Total time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

1 pound of brussels sprouts halved

2 Tablespoons of lemon juice

3 tablespoons of olive oil ( or ghee or coconut oil)

Sea salt to taste

1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes

2 tablespoons of freshly grated parmesan cheese

 

Directions: Pre-heat the oven to 425F. Add the lemon juice and red pepper flakes to a medium sized bowl and set aside.  In a medium bowl add the brussels sprouts, oil and sea salt, toss well making sure that all the brussels sprouts are evenly covered with oil.

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Place on a foil lined baking sheet and put in the oven.

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Cook  for 10-15 minute, or until the brussels sprouts take on a significant amount of color and they become crisp and tender. Sprinkle the sprouts with  half the cheese and cook for another minute or two, just until cheese melts and becomes crisp, remove the sprouts from the oven, transfer them to the bowl with the lemon juice and the red pepper flakes, toss well to coat the brussels sprouts with the lemon juice, sprinkle with the remaining cheese, serve immediately and enjoy! These are crispy, tangy with a little kick! They are the perfect side dish for almost any meal!

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Roasted Garlic-How to Roast Garlic

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How to Roast Garlic

How to Roast Garlic

Can you image cooking without garlic? I can’t! I love it! Garlic lends so much flavor to a savory dish, it’s hard to imagine not having it to use. I love garlic in every state, raw, blanched, powdered, and roasted.  Each has it’s own unique flavor. Roasted garlic is so delicious, and there are so many uses for it. I add roasted garlic to a plain tomato sauce to instantly take it from bland to fantastic! I add roasted garlic to one of my favorite roasted eggplant dishes. I spread roasted garlic on a good piece of crusty bread and dip it into a balsamic, red pepper, and olive oil vinaigrette, and of course, I add roasted garlic to mashed potatoes, or my cauliflower potato mash! There are a plethora of uses for roasted garlic, (like using it for my Roasted Garlic and Lemon Chicken recipe), once you learn how to roast garlic, you will wonder why you’ve been cooking without it!

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Prep time: 2 minutes

Cook time:30-45 minutes

Ingredients:

1 large bulb of garlic

1 teaspoon of olive oil

sea salt and black pepper to taste (optional)

1 sheet of foil–must be big enough to fully enclose the garlic

Directions: Pre heat the oven to 400F. With a knife slice the top off of the garlic. Place the garlic inside of the foil, pour the oil over the top of the garlic, making sure to cover all exposed garlic. add sea salt and black pepper if using:

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Fold all sides of the foil, making sure that the garlic is fully enclosed. Place the garlic bulb in your oven:

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Cook  for 45 minutes, or until garlic is beautifully golden brown:

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Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes, then remove by squeezing, or by removing each individual clove of garlic with a pairing knife, and enjoy!

Ground Chicken and Cabbage Curry

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Ground Chicken and Cabbage Curry

Ground Chicken and Cabbage Curry

Do you ever pull out something for dinner and then have no clue what you’re going to make with it? I do…all the time! Most of the time it works out, but working out on some days can be relative. Success for me is getting a nutritious meal on the table on most days. This Chicken and Cabbage curry recipe  almost didn’t come together. I pulled out the ground chicken, but all I had to go with it was the cabbage. I didn’t have any fresh onion, no fresh garlic, none of the ingredients one needs to make something taste good. My fridge was empty because I had put off grocery shopping, and now I had to pay the price. I turned to my cupboards for help. I had a bevy of ground dried spices, curry, onion powder, ground ginger and garlic.  From those dried spices, this meal was born, and let me tell you what a delicious meal it was! It is one of my husbands favorite meals. I’ve made this with fresh onion and garlic, but the dried spices give this much better flavor.

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Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

total time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

1 lb of ground chicken

1 tablespoon of onion powder

1 teaspoon of garlic powder

2 tablespoons of curry powder

1 teaspoon of ground ginger powder

2-3 tablespoons of  olive oil, or ghee

1 small head of cabbage, chopped roughly

4 tablespoons of freshly chopped cilantro

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a pan add dried spices and  heat for 20 seconds or just until spices become fragrant. Add in ground meat and brown. Once meat has cooked, add in the cabbage, and cook for about 5-7 minutes or until cabbage wilts a bit.

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Remove from heat, top with cilantro and serve as is, or over a bowl of brown basmati rice and enjoy!

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Grilled Pork Chops with Spicy Mustard Salsa

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Grilled Pork Chops With Spicy Brown Mustard Salsa

Grilled Pork Chops With Spicy Brown Mustard Salsa

One of my favorite restaurants to eat at, when we are in Los Angeles, is Cafe Brazil. It’s a small restaurant, with seating for less than 50 people but the food is fantastic. If you’ve ever watched any dating show, then you’ve probably seen this restaurant several times, dating show’s love to film dates there. It holds a special place in my heart because it was one of the first restaurant’s  that my husband I would frequent when we were dating.  His mom lived in LA so we’d go up for a visit, and then grab lunch or dinner before heading back, sometimes with mom in tow.  The food there is pretty straightforward as far as food goes, meat, beans and rice, fresh tropical juices.  Simple as can be, but the food doesn’t have to be fancy to taste good.  One of my favorite entree’s there is grilled pork chops with beans and rice, and a simple tomato and onion salsa, to which they add fresh parsley and a spicy brown mustard vinaigrette! So what’s a girl to do when a craving for Cafe Brazil strikes? Get in the car and drive there, or make it herself! I obviously chose the latter!

 

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Prep time: 5-7 minutes

Cook time: 10-15 minutes

Total time: 25-30 minutes

Ingredients:

Ingredients:

Salsa:

1/2 cup tomatoes chopped

2 tablespoons of finely chopped onion

2 tablespoons of parsley

sea salt to taste
Vinaigrette
1 teaspoon spicy mustard
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
3teaspoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Sea salt to taste

Pork chops
2 thick pork chops

1 teaspoon garlic powder,

1 teaspoon onion powder,

1 teaspoon paprika,

1 teaspoon cumin powder

1/8 teaspoon chili powder

sea salt to taste

Directions: Combine the ingredients for the mustard vinaigrette and set aside.

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Combine the ingredients for the salsa, top with the vinaigrette and set aside.

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Combine the seasoning for the pork chops, then rub generously into pork chops

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Grill chops for 5-7 minutes on each side, or until cooked through–do not over cook, pork chops dry out quickly.  Once chops are done, top with spicy salsa and enjoy!

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Coconut Cream Banana Pudding

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Coconut Cream Banana Pudding

Coconut Cream Banana Pudding

 

I love dessert, but I’m one of those rare people who can consume just a few bites and be completely satisfied with a dessert.  I don’t like to make whole cakes, pies, or a complete pan of any type of dessert unless I’m taking it to a party.  At home it will just get thrown in the trash.  I’m a single serving dessert kind of gal.  One serving desserts make me happy, their super delicious, quick and easy to make, and always satisfying without the guilt and temptation to eat more. This Banana Coconut Cream dessert is exactly that.  It’s light, takes minutes to make, and is gone just as quickly.  The key to this dessert is refrigeration. Unlike whole milk cream, you don’t need to whip coconut cream for it to set into pillow like mountains, just put it into the refrigerator and  The coconut cream will set up nicely. If you want to make this for an after dinner snack, put the cream into the refrigerator at least an hour before you want to make this.  The best part of this dessert–besides the fact that it’s out of this world delicious–is that it only requires four ingredients, and you don’t have to cook any of them!

 

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Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: none

Makes 2 servings

Ingredients:

1 cup of coconut cream

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

2 tablespoons of maple syrup–can sub agave

2 bananas( one smashed with a fork, the other sliced)

5  ginger snaps roughly crumbled (can sub with graham crackers, or granola, or vanilla wafers, or nuts)

 

Directions: Smash banana, with a fork and set aside.  To a small bowl add the coconut cream, vanilla extract, and maple syrup, mix well, cover and refrigerate  until coconut cream has set–meaning it’s firm like a custard.  Once set, remove from the refrigerator, and fold in the mashed banana. If you’re short on time, you can fold the mashed banana into the cream when you add the vanilla and the sweetener.  Check out the video below  to see exactly how I put it together.  If you like this dessert then you’ll love my Banana Marshmallow Split, it’s also a single serving dessert, super easy and delicious!

Click on the link to see how I put this dessert together: https://www.youtube.com/edit?video_id=6LHcyfEoQg8

While you’re at it  click here to subscribe to my channel.

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Eggplant Fries

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Eggplant Fries

Eggplant Fries

One of my husbands absolute favorite vegetables is eggplant. If I made it every night for dinner for three years straight that would not be enough for him. He loves it! The problem with his love for eggplant is not that I don’t love it, because I do. It’s that it’s hard for me to find organic eggplants.  Short of me growing our own private stag of organic eggplants, which I have tried, and failed at, I just have not been able to appease his love for this vegetable. Whenever, our Whole Foods has organic eggplants a buy them, no matter what they cost. Fortunately for me, my husband will eat eggplant anyway I prepare it.  Page on the other hand is just getting acquainted with eggplant, so preparation for her is a much less forgiving thing.  She loved these eggplant fries which made my heart happy. The key to cooking eggplant in any kind of oil, is to bring your oil up to temperature before adding the eggplant. If you add the eggplant to the oil before the oil is hot enough, you will get an oil logged disgusting piece of eggplant. Eggplant is like a sponge in that way, it soaks up the oil, so make sure your oil is nice and hot before you add the eggplant.

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Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 10 minutes

Ingredients: 1 medium sized eggplant, julienned but keep them thick

1/2 teaspoon of turmeric

sea salt to taste

4-5 tablespoons of safflower oil ( can substitute with grape seed, or another high heat oil)

Directions: Add the eggplant, turmeric and sea salt to a bowl and toss well, and set aside. image Heat the oil in a cast iron pan, once the oil is hot, add in the eggplant, make sure not to over crowd the pan. image Brown the eggplant on all sides, then transfer to a paper towel lined plate. image Season with more sea salt if necessary, then Serve and enjoy!