the Wholesome Kitchen

Nov 08

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites

One of my favorite parts of baking is trying some of the batter.  I know that it’s not good for me, with the raw egg and all, but I can’t help having a little taste.  I know that some people love the dough more than the baked cookies themselves, and this is for you.  This has all the yummy taste of cookie dough without the raw egg, and also can be easily made without any dairy at all.  Because this is meant to be eaten as dough, I’m not quite sure what will happen if you do try to bake it, so I can’t recommend it.  The original recipe I used to make this uses milk and butter, which I changed out for almond milk and Coconut Milk Yogurt [which is dairy free, gluten free, and soy free].  You also don’t need a full kitchen to make this, just the ingredients, a bowl, spoon, and a fridge.

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE DOUGH BITES

• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup Coconut Milk Yogurt / Greek Yogurt
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup almond milk / soy milk / etc.
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• a pinch sea salt
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

[to make gluten free: use a gluten free flour in place of all-purpose flour; use pure vanilla extract as others may contain gluten]

1. In a medium bowl, mix together brown sugar and yogurt until smooth.
2. Stir in vanilla and milk, then mix in the flour, salt, and chocolate chips.
3. Refrigerate until chilled, then shape into balls and store in the freezer or just eat with a spoon.

Enjoy!

Oct 30

Green Veggie Scramble

When it comes to breakfast, I’m more of a salty foods person than sweet.  This usually means some kind of eggs, so I decided to throw together a scramble instead of heading for the more usual eggs and toast.  This green scramble is packed with protein and vitamins, not to mention delicious.  This is very easy to make, and only takes 5 minutes to cook from prep to plate.  Besides breakfast, this can also make a good lunch or dinner.  This recipe is naturally gluten free.

GREEN VEGGIE SCRAMBLE

• 2 eggs [can substitute a similar amount of egg whites or egg beaters]
• splash of non fat milk [optional]
• a handful spinach, rinsed & roughly cut or torn
• 1 green onion, minced
• half an avocado, sliced
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Crack eggs into a bowl, add milk and whisk together.
2. Place small pan on the stove at medium-low heat. 
3. Scramble eggs together; when the eggs are almost done cooking, mix in spinach and green onion.
4. When eggs are cooked, put on a plate and top with avocado, salt, and pepper.  [feel free to add in cheese or other vegetables, such as zucchini or leeks]

Enjoy!

Oct 24

kattsto asked: This is fantastic, it IS so frustrating figuring out foods I can eat and while trying to eat healthy, keep this up it's amazing!

Thank you so much!!

Oct 23

Chicken and Spinach Stuffed Avocado

The other day I wanted to make a lunch that was simple but filling.  I had a few ripe avocados sitting around, so I knew I had to do something with them.  There are many stuffed avocado recipes floating around blogs and cooking websites, with plenty of variety.  Since it seems the only ingredients these recipes have in common is the avocado itself, I decided to wing it.  I had the chicken, spinach, and bread crumbs in my kitchen already, so I decided to use them, but I think that any of your favorite vegetables will work.  Also, it’s very simple to trade tofu for the chicken or add in rice to fit what works best for you.  This recipe is very easy to make gluten free or vegan, depending on what you add of take out of the recipe.

CHICKEN AND SPINACH STUFFED AVOCADO

• 1 medium avocado, halved
• 1/3 cup shredded chicken
• 2/3 cup spinach, packed
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 1/2 tablespoons bread crumbs
• sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

[to make gluten free: substitute gluten free bread crumbs, rice, etc. for regular bread crumbs]

[to make vegan: substitute tofu or other vegetables for the chicken; rice, quinoa, etc. for bread crumbs]

1. I started with a cooked chicken breast from the day before and shredded it.  It’s easy to buy a roast chicken from the store or cook some quickly.  [To cook chicken in a skillet - place pan on medium-high heat, pour 1-2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil into pan, season chicken with salt & pepper and place in pan, cook 10 - 15 minutes on each side or until chicken is no longer pink in the middle]
2. Pour olive oil, rinsed spinach, garlic, salt, and pepper into skillet on low heat.  Mix spinach until it starts to wilt, then add in shredded chicken pieces. 
3. Once spinach is cooked, turn off the heat, add in 1 1/2 tablespoons bread crumbs and mix in.
4. Halve avocado and take pit out.  [The easiest way to take out the pit is to tap it with a knife so the blade wedges into the pit and twist.]  Sprinkle insides of avocado with remaining bread crumbs, then pour in chicken and spinach.  Top with additional seasonings if you wish.

Enjoy!

Oct 17

herbalistextraordinaire asked: Hi, I really enjoyed looking at the recipe list you have and am hoping to make some of them in the kitchen reaal soon! :) I have UC and I am still experimenting with what I can and cannot have. Can you recommend to me more good Crohn's/IBD recipe blogs? Thank you and cannot wait to see new recipes! <3

Hi!  I haven’t been able to find too many Crohn’s/UC specific booking blogs, but there are many books available.  A fair amount of the time, I just look for recipes that I like and then tailor them to my dietary needs.

Sprouted Kitchen is a healthy/whole food blog.  Most of her recipes don’t have any meat, so it’s a good place to get vegetarian inspiration.

A Life of Sugar and Spice is a blog run by a girl with Crohn’s.  She posts recipes, food ideas and has a list of product reviews as well.

I was able to order How to Cook for Crohn’s and Colitis for free from my GI office, I would check to see if your office is also offering it.  It has some good recipes, but not all great for when you’re in a flare up, depending on how well you can tolerate diary or meat.

What to Eat with IBD is a book that explains food through a nutritionist and patient point of view and also has a bunch of recipes.

I hope this helps!

Oct 14

emmettbennett asked: I have IBS, which is definitely not as serious as Crohn's (although for awhile they thought it was Crohn's, not relevant but just a tidbit) and I too love to cook and it seems like the "right" foods change every week, in terms of what triggers my symptoms. Temperamental stomachs are the worst! This blog is perfect. So, so appreciated!

Thank you so much!  I understand the tummy troubles and hope that you find some recipes that work well for you :)

kimrrn asked: Hi. Thank you for liking my post as it has lead me to your awesome page. I haven't taken the time to dig in and see if you have any bread recipes yet. Do you have any wheat recipes?thank you!

Hi!  I do have some bread recipes: Caramelized Onion & Spinach Bread, Irish Soda Bread, Peanut Butter Bread, Zucchini Bread, and Pumpkin Cheesecake Bread.  I think the next bread I’m going to try out will be more of a standard bread, so you can use it for sandwiches, etc. 

I also have a recipe index page over to the left, so it’s easier to look through all the recipes and find something you like!

Oct 11

Pumpkin Cheesecake Bread

It finally feels like fall around here, with our first big thunderstorm of the season.  Rainy days are always the best days to bake.  Even when it’s dreary outside, you have a wonderful smell to fill the house and the oven doubles as a space heater.  Pumpkin is a staple of the fall baking season.  As I’ve made regular pumpkin bread before, I wanted to make something a little different.  This bread is sweet, but not overly sweet, so you can have it for breakfast or a snack as well as dessert.  I came across this recipe through pinterest and changed a couple things around as I went along.  This recipe is can be made gluten free - details below.

PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE BREAD

makes 2 loaves

batter ingredients

• 1 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1 whole egg
• 3 egg whites [if using prepackaged egg whites, use about 1/3 cup]
• 1 3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

cheesecake filling ingredients

• 8 oz reduced / non fat cream cheese
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 egg whites [if using prepackaged egg whites, use about 1/4 cup]
• 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

[to make gluten free: use a gluten free flour instead of unbleached all-purpose flour, use pure vanilla extract as others may contain gluten]

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Mix together pumpkin, applesauce, egg, and egg whites in large bowl until completely blended.
3. Mix together flour, 1/2 cup sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg in medium bowl.  Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture.
4. In another bowl, blend together cream cheese, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 t. flour, egg whites, and vanilla extract.
5. Coat 2 loaf pans [8x4x2] in olive oil cooking spray.  Pour 1/4 of pumpkin batter into each loaf pan.  Split cheesecake filling between the two pans.  Top each loaf pan with the remaining pumpkin mixture.
6. Bake for 40 - 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. 

Enjoy!

Sep 28

Lentil Meatballs with Lemon Pesto

Sorry to have left for so long.  I was on a trip for a week or so and then I wasn’t feeling all to great, so I took a little break from cooking.  But I’m happy to be back!  This recipe originated from the Sprouted Kitchen cookbook [which is truly fabulous and recommended].  The great thing about their recipes is that they are simple, with natural ingredients, for a clean dish.  As I was looking through the book, this recipe caught my eye, mainly because I almost never cook with lentils.  I was excited to learn how to use them, because I really had no clue.  Thankfully, it turned out to be much easier than I had anticipated, and delicious too!  I decided to pair these with gnocchi [which I found pre-made in the fresh pasta aisle at the store], but would also be good with pasta, rice, etc.  This recipe is easily made gluten free and is vegetarian.

LENTIL MEATBALLS WITH LEMON PESTO

meatballs

• 1 cup lentils
• 2 cups water
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 3/4 cup ricotta
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
• a few pinches thyme
• sea salt and ground pepper to taste
• 2/3 cup bread crumbs

lemon pesto

• 2 cloves garlic
• zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 1 cup fresh basil / spinach leaves
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
• sea salt and ground pepper to taste

[to make gluten free: use gluten free bread crumbs instead of standard bread crumbs]

1. Put lentils and water into a pot on medium-high heat and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered until lentils are tender, about 15 - 20 minutes.  Add water if liquid has evaporated and the lentils haven’t finished cooking yet.  Drain and let cool.
2. Put lentils into a food processor or blender and pulse until they turn into a chunky puree.  Pour into a mixing bowl and add eggs, olive oil, ricotta, Parmesan, garlic, parsley, thyme, salt and pepper.  Mix until completely combined, then add bread crumbs.
3. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
4. Roll the lentil mixture into balls and place on foil-covered baking sheet.  Bake until the outside turns golden brown, or 15-20 minutes, turning them over half way through. 
5. For the pesto, add garlic, lemon zest and juice, salt, pepper, basil, 1/4 cup of olive oil, and Parmesan and blend together.  Add more olive oil as needed to smooth the sauce.  You can also add water to make it more of a sauce-like consistency.

Enjoy!

Sep 05

Tofu and Kale Stir Fry

Stir fry is a staple of my diet, mainly because it’s so versatile.  I tend to make it with tofu, but chicken would work just as well.  Also, almost all of the vegetables that I usually have on hand in my kitchen work well in a stir fry - mushrooms, onion, carrots, spinach, asparagus, etc.  I’ve heard many good things about kale, but was a little wary of making it myself because I wasn’t quite sure how to use it.  I figured that a stir fry would be a good place to start because you can’t really go wrong.  I found this stir fry recipe in the New York Times food section and changed a couple things around, to use what I had available in my kitchen already.  Not to mention, kale is an excellent vegetable, full of calcium, vitamin 1, B6, C and K.  This recipe is naturally gluten free and vegan.

TOFU AND KALE STIR FRY

• 1 bunch or bag of curly kale, chopped
• 14 ounce package of firm tofu
• 1 tablespoon gluten free soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon rice wine or dry sherry
• 1/4 cup vegetable or chicken stock
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons canola oil or peanut oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

[for those gluten free: some soy sauce may contain gluten]

1. Pour water and a couple pinches of salt into a medium sauce pan and bring to a boil.  Add chopped kale and cook for one minute.  Place kale into a bowl of cold water and then drain it out. 
2. Cut tofu into rectangles, place between two paper towels and push down to squeeze excess water out.
3. In a small bowl mix together soy sauce, rice wine or sherry, stock, and cornstarch.  
4. Heat a large skillet over high heat and add canola of peanut oil.  Add tofu and cook for 2 minutes, then flip to the other side and cook another 2 minutes. 
5. Add garlic, bell pepper, and onion and cook for 2-3 minutes or until pepper and onion soften.  Add kale, salt, pepper, and sugar and mix.
6. Pour in soy sauce mixture and cook for 1-3 minutes or until the tofu soaks up some of the sauce.
7. I served this stir fry with rice noodles, but rice is another good option.

Enjoy!