Seared Ahi Tuna (when you need something different) January 31, 2013

This is a very simple recipe….my husband was a little grossed out at first since her wasn’t feeling adventurous but then he really liked it

What you need:

Ahi Tuna (that has been frozen- apparently that’s all that sushi grade really means kills the buggies)

equal amounts:
coarsely cracked pepper corn
sea salt
paprika
red chili flakes (omit if you don’t like things hot)

garlic infused olive oil (if you don’t have it you can use regular and throw a few cloves in while the oil is heating up make sure to pull out before it burns)

cast iron pan (an absolute must for awesome flavor and searing)

Just sprinkle all over both sides of the tuna. Make sure to roll the side in it too. Let sit out for a minute while cast iron pan heats up with garlic infused olive oi. Once it starts to smoke put down the tuna. Don’t crowd the pan or it won’t stay hot. Count to slowly 10. turn it over slowly count to 10 again then take it off the pan. Slice thinly on the bias and enjoy!

Served with a side of Kumquaty Roasted Edamame Salad (to be posted tomorrow).

Artisanal Gluten Free Cooking- Book Review

Artisanal Gluten Free Cooking

★★
2 out of 5 stars

*I like the cover
*Recipes were pretty basic
*I didn’t like the amount of use of gluten free flour. I don’t what I was expecting it’s a gluten free book not a paleo recipe book. I’m trying to keep low carb and wheat free not just gluten free
*I like the font of the recipes
*I didn’t like that the pictures were all in the center and they weren’t high quality pictures. I can take better ones than that with my phone

I only found one recipe worth saving the red lentil dip on page 49 which is a chickpea hummus alternative because soaked chickpeas smell like poop.

If you would like a copy of the book you can get one here and I will get a small portion of the proceeds

62-Minute DVD Ballet Body Workout (starring Jennifer Galardi) -review January 30, 2013

[update: sorry the youtube video was closed down but you can still always buy it from Amazon.com sooo worth it]

This was a youtube recommendation from watching Zen Sculpt by Ellen Barret so I just watched a small clip to try to figure out if I liked it and it looked pretty interesting. So I’ve tried it 2 times now and I love it! The girl looked really familiar and I realized that I tried one of her workouts before and hated it so I’m not going to blindly buy her series or anything but this particular workout was similar to Ellen’s. I didn’t feel as stretched and relaxed afterwards but the pro’s are: not to many repeated reps, nice flowing motions (still taking me a while to get the choreography) but unlike Ellen’s workouts I feel much more sore afterwards…which is good now and then. I really like the frogs that you do and I love how it strengthens my upper back improving my posture and opening up my chest. And the whole workout is very serene. She’s not as cute or fun to watch as Ellen but I am definitely adding this to my workout regiment.

You can also buy it here. If you buy it through this link I get a small commission.

Pudding! – Almond Milk Chai Pudding (dairy free/low carb)

(somehow I managed to leave the almond milk out the picture. whoops!

My mom bought me almond milk. Which is nice, but the timing was a little bad so I decided to make pudding!

Kumquaty Almond Milk Chai Pudding (dairy free, low carb)

6 cups almond milk
3 packets of Knox gelatin
1/4 cup stevia
1/4 cup agave or honey ( you could use all stevia but it just tasted a little too artificial to me)
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp almond extract (I don’t have any so I used hazelnut)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cardamom

Add almond milk to cold pocket. Sprinkle gelatin overtop and leave until gelatin has softened (about 5 mins). Turn heat on low and add all flavorings. Stir constantly until it comes to a boil. Let cool and refrigerate. (I didn’t ready the directions thoroughly and couldn’t figure out why the stupid pudding wouldn’t thicken on the stove….duh …it’s like jello it doesn’t thicken until it’s cold…don’t be dumb like me)

Kumquaty Everything Veggie/Fruit Muffin January 29, 2013

I was going to make carrot cake muffins and then I realized I only had 2 carrots…whoops. So I just made an odds and ends muffin. It turned out very moist. I think I’m going to start juicing again I found some coptcat Blueprint Cleanse recipes and I will be using the residual “fluff” to make some new cupcakes/muffins ….red velvet beet cupcakes!

Kumquaty Everything Veggie/ Fruit Muffin
makes 12

wet ingredients:
2 carrots grated
1 small zuchini grated
1 sweet apple grated
1 banana
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 avocado

dry ingredients:
1 1/2 cup almond flour
pinch salt
1 tbs chia seeds
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
1 tbs cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350. Stir together all wet ingredients until combined and then add in all the dry ingredients and combine. Bake for 30 mins in lined cupcake tin. Enjoy!

These were very moist. hurray! and I get some veggies in this body.

Allergic reaction to butter + sugar? January 28, 2013

The combination of butter and sugar very often makes me get water blisters/sores in my mouth. My allergist thought that was crazy, but crazy or not it’s true :). He said it is impossible to be allergic to sugar.

I don’t know why.

Recently I made grain free snickerdoodles with organic butter, maple syrup and coconut palm sugar. It didn’t turn out the tastiest….almost snickerdoodley but not quite…and there they are again mouth sores. So apparently it’s not just refined sugars that do it to me.

Any one else react to butter + sugar?

Napa Cabbage Pad Thai (Grain free side dish)

2 tbs fish sauce
2 tbs of coconut palm sugar
1 tbs rice wine Vinegar
1 tbs tamarind puree
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp ginger powder

1 head of napa cabbage

Mix together sauce ingredients in saute pan with heat on medium until palm sugar dissolves. Cut Napa Cabbage into thin ribbons. Once palm sugar dissolves and sauce reduces a little add napa cabbage and toss around until it i all covered in sauce. Cook 5 minutes until the thicker ribs are soft.

You could of course add a protein but I just made this a side dish to my sticky sesame drumsticks.

Homemade Baking powder (aluminum free/ corn free)

So easy

1 tsp baking soda + 2 tsp cream of tartar = 1 tbs baking powder

Stir. Use immediately.

aluminum free, corn free, modified from about.com

Sticky Sesame Chicken Drumsticks January 27, 2013

1/2 cup agave nectar
1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
1/4 cup mirin
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tbs chili garlic paste
1 tbs sesame seed oil

Combine above into gallon ziptop plastic bag.

12 chicken drumsticks

Place drummies in bag and seal. Roll around to make sure marinade gets on all of them. Put onto a sheet tray or some other container and place fridge for minimum 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place chicken on sheet tray lined with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Bake for 30-35 mins or until the “girls” pull up their pant legs (like in the picture above)

Put remaining marinade into small sauce pan and bring to a boil and reduce to 1/2. Take chicken out of oven. Baste with reduced marinade and sprinkle with sesame seeds. (or if you manage to burn the marinade that you are reducing 🙂 mix together a little agave and sesame seed oil to paint onto the chicken leggies)

Ellen Barrett- Zen Sculpt available free!

I absolutely LOVE Ellen Barrett’s workouts. I never feel exhausted afterwards. Always rejuvenated. I feel like I have better posture and like I stand taller and more like a ballerina 🙂 Here is a free workout anyone can try. I really love it. The commercial breaks are a little weird but, eh, it’s Freeeeee!I like the full range of motion and extension with the weights like when you do a\the figure-8, and just how you are constantly moving your feet even when you’re focusing on your arms. The full squat circle you do with the weights is great for your core and your obliques. The directional double down is also great for the core. And then in the floor work is a good amount of stomach crunches without being too hard on the back. Usually I can’t do crunches at all because it’s ends up pinching my sciatic nerve but these are just fine. Boat pose is a fun alternative to a crunch I think it’s my favorite.

I’ve tried some other workouts for free on Netflix (which is where I learned about Ellen Barrett) and even though some of the moves may be the same I like her level of cheerfulness. How cute she is. She isn’t obnoxiously excited but is easy on the eyes and ears. Also her motions flow unlike the other videos I watched where they seemed to be jerky.

I should be getting her newest video Sleek Sculpt Express in the mail soon which will be followed by a full review….I love her! can you tell? More reviews of her exercise DVD’s are found under my Product I Recommend page.