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The sea food counter man said he'd give Molly and I a low price on the cod if we bought 3 pounds of it. So we did :) (only 2 lbs are shown in the photo!) And we thought we'd have more leftovers than we did.. but it was a feast, after all.
Mexican spiced cod: Oven! 350.
cod
cilantro
cumin, ground
smoked paprika
lemon juice
olive oil
Place cod in a baking dish with lemon juice and olive oil. Make sure the dish is an appropriate size for the amount of fish you have, this way you can use less olive oil and lemon juice, and the fish will still be surrounded by plenty of liquid.
Sprinkle fish with spices and bake for 20-30 minutes depending on the amount of fish you have. It should flake apart with a fork easily.
Our feast was accompanied with a yellow squash and a green onion, chopped and sautéed with herbs of all kinds and more random spices from my spice collection.
I'm almost finished with the posts from my trip. Here is the breakfast I ate while in Chicago.
Lydia's Organics Apricot Sun cereal, made of: sprouted buckwheat, apples, sprouted sunflower seeds, coconut, apricots, and agave nectar. All Lydia's Organics products are gluten free, raw, organic, and vegan. She has some great products on her website.. which also means - some good inspiration if you own a dehydrator :)
The fancy granola was initially a little expensive, but because it nourished me at least 6 times while I was traveling, it was well worth the cost. I pared it with some vanilla Tempt hemp milk. When I'm at home I make my own - but I don't bring my immersion blender with me on the road. Hmm.. that's actually not a bad idea.
It just so happens that in Minneapolis lives one of the allergic hedonist's biggest fans! Since I was randomly in her town, my friends and I decided to surprise her and her family with a dinner party! (We set it all up before hand with her husband of course) My friends in the 1st photo (Jenn, Erin, myself, and Parker - the photographer) showed up with bags of groceries and an ice cream maker and introduced ourselves at the front door.
Once all the introductions were made, and the hand painted aprons bestowed, 14 hands got to work in the kitchen making swordfish kabobs, wild rice with almonds and currants (I started soaking the rice that morning), and a Minneapolis inspired dessert, Mini-Raw-Ha's.
We made the same kabobs that I made on my camping trip (but oh so comfortable this time!) Swordfish marinated in wine and honey, with mushrooms, tomatoes, peppers, and red onion.
For the wild rice:
2 cups rice
4 cups water
4 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp salt
3 tbsp olive oil
a bunch of herbs, fresh or dried.
1 cup slivered almonds
1 cup currants
Soak the rice in 4 cups of warm water plus the lemon juice for 7 hours in a pot. Then bring to a boil, skim the top, reduce heat and stir in the salt, oil, and some of the herbs. Without removing lid, cook over lowest possible heat for about 45 minutes. Once the rice is done, add some more fresh herbs, and toss in the almonds and the currents. Done :)
A few days before the big surprise, Parker took Jenn and I to see the Minnehaha Falls. That is pretty much the only connection between the Mini-Raw-Ha's and Minneapolis, other than the fact that we created it there :)
A Mini-Raw-Ha is a single serving dessert. (I guess a Raw-Ha would be the same thing but in a pie dish, that people would share) So, begin with little bowls, or coffee cups, or ramekins. Then add the crust (coarsely processed dates, walnuts, and coconut flakes) to the bottom of the dish. The next layer is thinly sliced apples (as many as you want) sprinkled with ground nutmeg.
Ice cream is next: We had two frozen ice cream maker bowls (thanks to Parker's mom!) and made two different flavors.
1. cinnamon honey ice cream: 1 can whole coconut milk, 1 banana, 1/4 cup honey, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp vanilla.
2. chocolate mint ice cream: 1 can whole coconut milk, 1 banana, 1/4-1/2 cup cocoa powder, 1/4 tsp vanilla, handful of fresh mint leaves finely chopped.
Place ingredients in a blender or food processor then follow your ice cream maker's instructions.
Lastly, we topped the Mini-Raw-Ha's with blueberries. Have fun making this recipe your own raw dessert by adding, subtracting, multiplying, or completely changing the layers. Desserts prepared in personal sized dishes are great, because then you don't have to worry about someone else (I'll use myself as an example) taking more than their fair share :)
Enjoy! And thank you to Cathy and her family for letting us into their home and sharing this amazing meal with us, and to Parker for the b-e-a-utiful photos!
My friend from elementary school, Jenn, and I picked a place we had never been before and decided to meet there. This is how the Minneapolis trip was started. I have to say, that Minneapolis is the cat's meow. With an awesome art museum, food co-ops, lakes, nice summer weather, and a live tango band to dance to every week!! If it just didn't get so cold there.. hmm. (I learned that Minneapolis has two seasons: winter and road construction. There's your joke for the day.. but.. it's not really a joke.)
Anyway, one place I visited 3 times was a building called the Ecopolitan. It's full of natural doctors and massage therapists, and on the main level is a raw food restaurant. The first time I went there with a large group of friends, Jenn and I split a freaking amazing salad made with kale, kiwi, red cabbage, tomato, fresh basil, sprouted quinoa, raisins, and a tahini-garlic dressing.
We also got the flaxeed tostadas made with: flaxseed-sunflower shells with lentil “taco meat”, greens, marinated mushrooms, onion, olives, cilantro, cashew “sour cream,” & hot sauce. And it was served with salsa & guacamole. I couldn't help myself from getting a dessert to go as well.. I got a slice of coconut creme pie. It's just too exciting when I can actually eat dessert at a restaurant and feel good afterwards. I recommend checking out their website and visiting their restaurant if you're in the area, or at least downloading their menu and trying to make some of their dishes at home :)
My photos from the first meal didn't turn out so well, but the 2nd time I went there, I visited their juice bar and my friends and I got the "orange dream" (orange, carrot, and ginger) and "sweet beet" (beet, carrot, apple, kale, and ginger). mmm
The THIRD time I went back was by myself to get breakfast.. I got the "rawnola" made of crunchy cinnamon spouted and dehydrated buckwheat groats, with strawberries, pineapple, apple, cherries, dates, raisins, all topped with a date syrup and served with freshly made coconut milk. It was delicious, organic, $6. How? I don't know.
My boyfriend took me out to a fancy restaurant before I left for my trip.. and instead of being sad when it came time for dessert, because I can't enjoy anything on the menu, we just left and strolled down to the root cellar (our local store where you can buy local produce when you don't wake up in time for the farmer's market).
We enjoyed blueberries, apples, little plums, and strawberries.. outside on a bench. :) Life is good.
Hey everyone! Sorry for the big break in posts.. I was on vacation again. Poor me, I know. But before I write about what I ate on my trip - I have to play a little catch up. Here was a meal a friend and I made before I left. I was trying to use up the produce I still had, and in this case - it was a zucchini somewhere between the size of my calf and my thigh. I remember making this recipe once last summer, pre-blog-life.. so I knew I had to make it again to share with you.
The recipe is from one of Williams-Sonoma cookbooks (but I left out the cheese...) The process on this one is slightly tedious.. but worth it! And if you make extra, it keeps in the fridge :) I ate raw zucchini linguini with 4 different toppings over the four days it took me to finish it all. Note: The process goes faster with a friend you need to catch up with.. so.. invite one? When I tasted the finished product, I was immediately brought back to Italy. I lived there for four months, and it was before I knew about all my allergies (thank God).. But since I haven't been able to have dairy, wheat, or even wine, it's been hard to recreate the Italy taste. Garlic, basil, olive oil, and a good tomato will do the trick.
Ingredients:
zucchini, 2 lbs
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
ripe tomatoes, 2 lbs total weight, diced (there's a photo coming up of what a tomato should look like on the inside)
garlic, 2 cloves (because I was making a huge amount.. I probably added more than what the recipe suggested)
fresh basil, cut into thin ribbons (I just used a handful from my herb garden.. the recipe says "leaves from 1/2 a bunch" What? Oh yeah.. basil comes from the grocery store.. I forgot.)
olive oil, 3 tbsp (I hate saying extra virgin.. you know what I mean)
parmesan cheese, small chunk (get permission from your body first, mine says "no.")
Ready?
Using a vegetable peeler, cut zucchini lengthwise into slices about 1/8th inch thick. Carefully place slices in a large bowl and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon salt, and toss gently to coat. Line your workspace with cloth towels and transfer the salted zucchini slices, arranging them in a single layer, and let them stand for 20 minutes.
Turn the slices over and let stand for another 10 minutes. Then gently rinse under cold running water. Using clean towels pat the slices dry, then arrange them in a loose mound on a serving platter. The zucchini should have gone through a transformation - from slimy to crisp.
In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes with their juices, garlic, and basil, and toss gently to mix. Stir in 2 tbsp olive oil, and a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Drizzle the remaining 1 tbsp olive oil over the zucchini and top with a few grinds of pepper. Spoon the tomato mixture evenly over the zucchini, and serve right away.
The sea food counter man said he'd give Molly and I a low price on the cod if we bought 3 pounds of it. So we did :) (only 2 lbs are shown in the photo!) And we thought we'd have more leftovers than we did.. but it was a feast, after all. 
