Paleo Summer: Gazpacho recipe

If I had to choose my favorite Spanish dish it would be hands down: Gazpacho. I drink it all year-long even though it is a Spring/Summer recipe. There are tons of different ways to prepare this; some add bread, some use other colorful ingredients.

I have to say that with one arm (and one hand) it was quite challenging to pull the pictures off but I made my best effort. 🙂

Ingredients (serves 1): 

• 3 cups chopped tomatoes (scoop all the seeds out)
• 1 cup chopped cucumber (peel and scoop the seeds out)
• 1/2 cup chopped onions
• 3/4 cup bell peppers (yup, once again all seeds out)
• 1 garlic head
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions: 

Blend all the ingredients until smooth. Depending on the consistency you desire you can either add water or keep it creamy. I personally prefer it half and half. Since I have a big problem with textures in creams, I strain it in a big hole strain to keep it extra smooth.

Normally you can garnish it with some diced peppers, tomatoes, onions and cucumbers but since I am not at the top of my chopping game right now, I kept it simple.

Let cool in the fridge for at least one hour before serving.

Enjoy! 🙂

The last 20’s: Happy Birthday to me

Tarata-tan… My birthday was this past Sunday! You guys know my excitement when it comes to my b-day (I don’t know if the excitement is going to last till I am 50) but meanwhile, I still get all bubbly and happy on June 5th.

My sister is staying with us so she and Jimmy made sure I had a wonderful time. We had pre-party drinks at home with friends (with two cakes y’all) and then went dancing.

This year is going to be my last 20’s year so……… I am going to make the best of it!

My petit pois is in Madrid!

Our usual pose: me smooching Jimmy

Gifts from Jimmy, Stefi, Ivan, Maria Teresa and Juan

My cute succulent from Laura and Alejandro 🙂

My gree tea, gluten-free, lactose-free cake brought by my lovely friends Maria Teresa and Juan 🙂 Isn’t this the prettiest cake you have ever seen?

 

Paleo cinnamon-carrot muffins

Since last week was Valentine’s Day, I needed (read carefully I said «needed») to make some muffins to celebrate. I tried several paleo recipes but they didn’t work out for me. I still have to master the recipes that require almond flour.

These are the ingredients that I used for mine: 

– 2 cups almond flour

– 4 tbsp. coconut flour

– 3 egg whites and 1 yolk

– 4 tbsp. melted coconut oil

– 3 tbsp. homemade applesauce

– 4 tbsp. raw stevia powder

– 1/3 cup grated carrots

– 1/4 cup almond milk

– 1 tsp. vanilla

– 1 tbsp. ground cinnamon

– 1 tsp. baking soda

– 1/3 cup walnuts (add more if you wish)

Instructions:

– Pre-heat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

– Beat the egg whites to a meringue-style mix.

– In another bowl mix all the ingredients except the carrots and walnuts.

– Add the egg white mix to your bowl with the carrots and walnuts.

– Add the mix to 6 separate muffin linens (I bought mine at Tiger)

– Cook for 20 min (or until you insert a toothpick and it comes out dry).

– Let cool and enjoy 🙂

 

 

 

Cinnamon Paleo Cookies

I know it’s been long since my last recipe post, but going from a very-comfortable-big-lovely kitchen to a mini-countertop-micro kitchen is no walk in the park. I am starting to feel the Christmas vibes all around me and I thought it would be a lovely idea to bake some cookies.

I am a huge fan of cinnamon and this cookies will definitely kick my sweet holiday craving this month. I searched for some base recipes for the Paleo cinnamon cookies but found myself adding and replacing some ingredients from the original recipe. That’s just me…you guys can go ahead and follow the original one.

I added two tablespoons of grated orange zest and doubled the cinnamon. I also substituted the maple sugar and the molasses with stevia unrefined powder (I found this amazing ingredient in the herbal shop). They came out pretty yummy.

Enjoy!

We love it: Cauliflower Pizza Crust

I crave pizza all the time. I have it from time to time but not as often as I would love to. I found many recipes to substitute normal crust with cauliflower crust and I told you guys I would try some of them in this post.

One small warning: your kitchen is going to smell nasty when you are boiling and draining the cauliflower…but it will be all worth it at the end!

Here is the recipe I followed from «Eat.Drink.Smile».

I changed a little the toppings. I drained the cauliflower «rice» and put it in a clean cloth. You have to squeeze all the liquid out. I also didn’t use the microwave I just boiled my rice with enough water and a bit of salt. After many crusts gone wrong, I learned that it comes out pretty crunchy when you drain all the water from the cauliflower.

So let’s begin!

Dinner party menu: Gluten-free version

I enjoy cooking for others. There is something unique and special about making food that other people enjoy. The expression on someone’s face when they like the meal I am serving is priceless. (They also have a specific expression when they don’t like the food, but we are not going there.)

So today I gathered some recipes and came together with a nice gluten-free menu for a dinner party. I am definitely going to try this and I will let you know how it turned out.

 Menu

– Coconut curry

– Grilled rosemary and garlic salmon served with roasted polenta with avocado and radishes

– Sugar-free lemon curd mousse

Coconut curry recipe and photo thanks to Minimalist Baker:

Grilled rosemary and garlic salmon recipe and photo thanks to Fake Food Free:

Roasted polenta with avocado and radishes recipe and photo thanks to Dishing Up The Dirt:

Sugar-free lemon curd mousse recipe and photo thanks to the blog Nemacreditoqueesaudavel (the english version of the recipe is at the bottom of the post.)

Enjoy!

Baked zucchini and mint frittatas

This is one of my to-go recipes: easy and quick. All you need is four ingredients plus salt and pepper to taste: zucchini, mint, onion and eggs. Yes, that simple. Sometimes I have them for breakfast and other times for dinner with a salad. It’s versatile and delicious. No oil, dairy-free and gluten-free.

Ingredients (serves 6 mini frittatas) :

– 1 medium zucchini (I used a yellow zucchini)

– 1/2 onion

– 6-8 fresh mint leaves

– 6 eggs (if you prefer you can use 3 whole eggs and 3 whites)

– Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

– Grate the zucchini and sprinkle some salt. Leave in a strainer for about 20 minutes. This will drain the water from the zucchini so your «fritatta» doesn’t become watery.

– Whisk the eggs, chop the onion and the mint leaves and add to the egg mixture. Sprinkle some salt and pepper. Whisk until all ingredients are mixed together. Pour into small muffin tins and bake at 350 degrees F. for 20 minutes. (You’ll know that they are ready when the edges get golden.)

 

Buon appetito!

Let us have dessert: gluten-free version

Dear migraines: 

Thank you for limiting my diet to practically twenty foods. I am working on it and feeling better but seriously, you already make my life miserable so why upgrade yourself like this?

Got it off my chest.

Since going gluten-free and limiting my diet to less chocolate, coffee, processed foods, junk food, wheat and dairy, I have been experiencing 70% less pain.

Sounds wonderful right? Well, it is but it comes with it`s price. This is NOT a trend. Please do not do it if your doctor hasn`t told you so but if you suffer from migraines like me, you should definitely ask.

I want to share some gluten-free dessert recipes that I really want to try. Why give up yummy food when you can switch some ingredients and have them?

1) Chocolate chip bread. This recipe contains yogurt, so I will use chia pudding instead. It has worked wonders in my other recipes. 

2) Lemon squares. You have no idea how much I love lemon based desserts. So this alternative is fantastic.

3) Cinnamon roll cupcakes. I can`t wait to try this recipe. It looks delicious!

4) Banana bread. This is actually my recipe. I did a post on it in January. I hope you try it because it is easy and yummy.

5) Angel food cake. This is heaven.