Memories of My Childhood: High Heels and Pizza

MerriamWebster.com defines compassion as a sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it. Empathy is defined as the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, thoughts, and experience of another. I showed neither compassion nor empathy when my mother fell in the shopping store parking lot. 
As I turn for my mother’s response to a casual conversation, I find her on the cement floor. My mother, in her stylish clothes and makeup, could not get up. Certain situations trigger a kind of primal throw back into a world of harsh Brooklyn accents, Jewish guilt and a lot of screaming. 

Instead of asking if my mother was okay, I yell, in a shrill shriek that only comes when I am truly agitated, “Oh my God!!! Memories of my childhood” a few times so that everyone could turn and stare at us at least once to which my mother responds “Oh, please!!! I only fell once when you were little. Once!!” to which I counter argue “It was not once mom! It was several times right there in the middle of 86th street!” 

It continued like this for a while with my mother insisting that she only fell once and that she could not be the source of any traumatic, emotional scarring. Mind you, my mother is still on the floor gripping the shopping cart like a life line. I eventually help her up, but instead of mustering enough empathy to ask “mom, are you okay?” I aggressively ask why she would choose to wear high heeled shoes on a shopping day. 

Acting upon my own internal fear, my response was not reflective of the deep love and concern that I have for my mom. It was not compassionate or empathetic or even pleasant.
Mary C Lamia writes that “there are times when a past fear might re-emerge, even though the present situation does not truly warrant the need to be afraid. Although you may intellectually know that you are safe, your brain automatically prepares you for the worst…”1

So, I guess compassion was replaced, at least temporarily, by fear. Empathy replaced by mental preparation for the worst. It makes sense because in the world of Jewish culture as I know it, we are always preparing for the worst. From an extra jacket to a few granola bars thrown into a purse, fear can be a strong motivator of feelings, words and action. If we are lucky enough, fear forms but a small part of our childhood memories. Hopefully, we remember laughter, kindness, warmth, love and fun. Of these I am grateful to say that I have many. One of the best memories I have from childhood is the simplest. It was the day my dad taught me how to make pizza out of English muffins. I thought my dad was some kind of culinary genius. My mom would cook almost every night making beautiful, well balanced meals, but the English muffin pizzas stand out as a winner. I still make English muffin pizzas and find them to be a quick dinner for many clients and an easy snack for kids to make on their own. With a few simple substitutions, the English muffins of my childhood have become a healthy mealtime staple.

Quick Dinner English Muffin Pizzas

Ingredients:

Ezekiel sprouted English muffins

Organic tomato sauce

Organic shredded mozzarella 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Slice muffins in half and lightly toast 

Line a baking tray with foil and place toasted muffins on top

Spoon sauce and sprinkle cheese on top 

Bake until cheese melts to your desired consistency 

Add any fresh vegetable like spinach, onions or mushrooms 

You can also add antibiotic free sliced beef, turkey or soy “pepperoni”

   
   To happy childhood memories, easy dinners and acting with compassion,

Adina Kelman, C.H.C., A.A.D.P
1The Complexity of Fear

Are you experiencing anxiety, or is it fear? Post published by Mary C Lamia Ph.D. on Dec 15, 2011 in Intense Emotions and Strong Feelings

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/intense-emotions-and-strong-feelings/201112/the-complexity-fear

 

Things not to Try

If anyone does not remember reading my March 31st Even Superheroes Have Limits post, I will refresh your memory as I re-post my thoughts on tofu and chia seeds in order to highlight another popular food currently on the superfood scene. 

When tofu first came on the scene as a popular health food, I was amazed by its versatility. You could put it into soups, stir fries and burgers. You were able to bread it, bake it, steam and sauté it. Tofu could be made into cake, pie, chocolate, pudding and dressing. There was nothing that tofu could not do. I remember my husband’s initial distrust of a food that could be turned into so many different edible items. Despite his wariness, we bought it, cooked with it and embraced it. 

Chia seeds may not be the new tofu, but that little seed is just as versatile. You can add it to your morning cereal, yogurt or smoothie, make it part of any grain or salad and can include it in any baked recipe from meatloaf to muffins. Rich in omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants, chia seeds are a high fiber, nutrient dense food. When soaked in water, chia seeds dissolve into a gel. Research suggests that this reaction also takes place in the stomach, keeping you feeling full for a longer period of time. They are an anti inflammatory superfood. The new superhero of the food world. 

And like all superheroes, chia seeds have a weakness. Chia seeds, when dropped, scatter across the floor like cockroaches when the lights turn on. They are almost impossible to vacuum at one time. Much like glitter and sand, you will find them everywhere, days after the original spill. The other side to chia seeds that no one mentions is that the same gelatinous consistency that keeps you feeling full longer, does NOT translate into pudding. For all you chia seed loving pudding makers, please give me a good recipe to follow.
I just made this chocolate chia pudding following a recipe which calls for 2 tablespoons chia seeds, 1/2 cup coconut milk, 1 tablespoon cocoa, a pinch of salt and cinnamon and 1 1/2 tablespoons maple syrup.

I combined all the ingredients in a mason jar, shook to mix and refrigerated waiting to taste the dark, rich, creamy pudding pictured in the photos. The reviews of the recipe described it as “delicious and yummy”. I took it out of the refrigerator and its dull, sponge like appearance did not call to me as did the images in the photos. I tasted it. 

I need you to understand that I am the benchmark for all things tasteless, too healthy and, according to my family, just plain disgusting. I am a health food hedonist. Nothing is too plain or bland sounding, but there are no expectations low enough to make chia seed pudding good unless you enjoy the feeling of a cold cacao covered loogie slowly and suffocatingly oozing its way down your throat. In the lexicon of slang, a loogie is defined as a large slimy glob of spit, mixed with nose snot, that is formed by coughing up and hocking what’s in your throat (Urban Dictionary). And that is a pretty accurate description of my experience. After I finished gagging, I ate a piece of dark chocolate to get rid of the taste in my mouth.
Now matcha tea has come into fashion and I, like every other self respecting health food loyalist, view this green powdery substance as a gift from the superfood gods above. When I found this recipe for matcha coconut pancakes, I could not wait to try them. The recipe called for ⅓ cup coconut flour, 1 tbsp Matcha Green Tea Powder, ¼ tsp baking powder, 6 egg whites (¾ cup), ½ cup buttermilk and 1 tbsp honey or maple syrup.

I combined all the ingredients in a bowl and blended until well combined. Onto the griddle they went forming a beautiful, green circle. I ignored the protests of my children who complained that green pancakes were not their idea of a delicious breakfast. I touted the positive, tried and true advice of “not judging a book by its cover” and “not knocking it ’til you try it.” 

And then I tried it. 

And then I tried hard not to spit it out, but to swallow the earthy, grainy green, grain free pancake. It was hard. 

So now that matcha coconut pancake recipe sits next to that chia seed pudding recipe under the label of “things not to try again” along with the overnight buckwheat-sorghum-applesauce recipe that I tried a few months ago. Not everything great translate into everything great. Even super heroes have their limits. 

Adina Kelman, C.H.C., A.A.D.P.

   
  

 

Hallmark Holiday

I’m not one of those people who thrive on gushy sentiment. And I also despise clutter. For these two reasons alone, I hate Hallmark holidays and the space consuming cards that go along with them. And yet, when Mother’s Day rolls along, I’m pressured by expectations of what the day should be and feel like. I vowed this year would be different. I wouldn’t wait around for phone calls or gestures that wouldn’t come. I was going to go out, make plans, get my mind off of what should be. Thunderstorms were predicted, my high school sophomore was in the frantic throes of final exams and papers, my husband had to run into the office and dinner out for 8 people was downright expensive. So I found myself, at home, again, taking into consideration the demands of everyone else. I made a conscious effort to let go of the resentment and focus, instead, on gratitude. 

Recognizing what we are grateful for can have a great impact on how we are able to handle difficult and uncomfortable situations. One study found that those who pay attention to experiences of gratitude are 25% happier than those who pay attention to daily annoyances. Being grateful or practicing gratitude is a mindfulness technique that allows us to let go of preconceived ideas of how things should be and enables us to look at the situation with, what is called in Buddhist philosophy, a “Beginner’s Mind.” Beginner’s mind calls upon us to undergo a situation without any preconceived ideas, as though it was the first time we were experiencing it. 

I always appreciate my family’s collective being, but looking at Mother’s Day with beginner’s mind let me appreciate the subtle details that I might have otherwise ignored. The hot cup of coffee that I enjoyed at breakfast. The absence of stomach viruses and colds and flu and germs in general among 4 children. The game of Banana grams played around the table in a house that safely sat within a town I loved. My 10 year old daughter’s card showing a child full of carefree happiness and health. The laughter and simple conversation that flowed among children not fighting. A phone call from my daughter at college. (I guess Jewish guilt does eventually pay off). I tried to focus on what was instead of what wasn’t. I tried to let the day unfold. Appreciation of what is can co-exist with disappointment for what didn’t happen, but not allowing the disappointment to ruin the present moment is a conscious choice. 

For this morning’s breakfast, I tried a recipe that I would have otherwise ignored because it involved more than one bowl, a hand mixer and the separation of egg yolks from egg whites. The results were edible, but disappointing – not the light and fluffy, crispy waffle I had hoped for, but a mildly sweet, grain and gluten free waffle that paired well with fruit. Still, I had tried something new. And then, in the middle of breakfast, my 13 year old generously offered to make our favorite waffles. I focused not on the extra dirty bowls that would result, but the love that came from that gesture. Gratitude for what unfolded, and not for what didn’t, didn’t make me giddy with happiness, but it offered a calm that made me feel content. It wasn’t the perfection that I constructed in my mind, but, as my mother says, it was good enough. 

Paleo Sweet Potato Waffle Recipe from paleonewbie.com 
Ingredients:

1 cup of cooked and mashed sweet potato (about 2 potatoes)

1/2 cup almond butter

1 tbs coconut flour

3 eggs, separated into yolks and whites

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 tsp pumpkin spice

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 tbs maple syrup (optional)

Instructions:

Preheat your waffle maker

Separate egg yolks and whites. Place egg whites in a small bowl and set aside. Add the yolks to your main mixing bowl (see next step)

In a mixing bowl, combine the yolk and all of the above ingredients (except the egg whites) and blend well with an electric mixer – about 3 minutes. 

In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites with electric mixer until peaks form – about 3-4 minutes

Now fold the egg whites into the sweet potato mixture until blended into the batter

Make on waffle maker.

Whole Wheat Waffles from 100daysofrealfood.com
Ingredients:

2 large eggs

1 ¾ cups milk (I use almond milk)

¼ cup oil (I used melted butter)

1 tablespoon honey (I use raw honey or Grade B maple syrup)

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon 

¼ teaspoon baking soda

1 ½ cups whole-wheat flour 

2 teaspoons baking powder

⅛ teaspoon salt

Instructions:

Preheat your waffle maker

In a large mixing bowl whisk together the eggs, milk, oil, honey, cinnamon, and baking soda until well combined.

Add in the flour, baking powder, and salt and whisk together just until the large lumps disappear.

Make on waffle maker.

“In the beginner’s mind, there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s mind there are few.” – Shunryu Suzuki

Happy Belated Mother’s Day to all. 

Gratefully,

Adina Kelman, C.H.C., A.A.D.P.

  

When my husband is sometimes right

It’s not often that I admit when my husband is right. There was that time back in 2002 when our third daughter was born and he kept reminding me to stop leaving items that need to be brought downstairs on the actual stairs. I don’t know why I continued after his countless warnings because I was the only one transferring said items. Everyone else simply glanced at them and passed right on by. So the intense pain and blood that followed from me stepping on a Pretty Pretty Princess crown did not compare with the damaged pride I felt knowing that my husband “had told me so.” What was worse was his examination of my foot later that evening. A man of few words, his surprised and unbelieving “Oh” when assessing the damage caused from a very well made plastic crown said a lot. So I limped around for a week, soaking my foot in hydrogen peroxide twice a day which reminded me that, yes, sometimes my husband makes a valid point.

There were other, more trivial times too when I’m sure my husband was right about some things. Like how to match a pot with the right size burner or where the hazard lights are in my car or the knowledge that a stubborn refusal to follow GPS when you have no sense of direction will most definitely get you lost and stuck in New York pumping your own gas. But those instances eluded me when Father’s Day rolled around and my husband suggested that we purchase a waffle maker. Despite my objections of not needing a waffle maker and not wanting yet another item to store and clean, we purchased a beautiful double-sided, stainless steel model from Chef’s Central. That purchase makes at least the second, major time my husband has been right over the course of our marriage. Our waffle maker, which has survived one move and many breakfasts, desserts, birthday parties and late night desserts, sits atop our kitchen counter as one of our most used possessions. I recently found a very simple, gluten-free recipe (http://comfybelly.com/2009/01/waffles/Recipe) from Comfy Belly (www.comfybelly.com) which has proved quick, easy and delicious.

Almond Flour Waffles
Ingredients:
1 cup of almond flour (or other nut flour)
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/4 teaspoon of baking soda
4 eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla
2 tablespoons of honey (or other sweetener)
1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon (optional)

I used almond flour, 2 tablespoons grade B maple syrup and about a 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. Instead of placing the dry ingredients in a bowl to blend separately, I added all the ingredients, both wet and dry, together and blended with a fork. I added chocolate chips and poured half of the batter onto one side of my waffle maker using the remaining half of the batter for the other side. This recipe made 8 triangular waffles on my waffle maker.

To delicious waffles and spouses that are sometimes not entirely wrong,
Adina Kelman

Halloween Again?

There are cobwebs scattered throughout my house, not placed strategically because of Halloween, but because I don’t dust and the ceilings are really too high to reach. There’s a Trader Joe’s pumpkin by the fireplace that has yet to be carved and another pumpkin (this one from a real farm) still sitting downstairs, pumpkin carving tools clean and untouched in the kitchen drawer. I would say that the outside at least looks authentic, fake webs and spiders strung across trees and stairway railings, but that’s only because my kids reminded me that the house was still not decorated the day before Halloween. I bought the webs the day before almost, but not yet, on sale. There are no nutritious treats or homemade costumes and the only other possible indication that it’s Halloween is the butternut squash sitting in the fruit bowl. I always thought that I would be one of those moms who dressed up full gear, happily trick or treating along side my kids; but I have come to realize, and perhaps not yet fully accept, that I’m more the “Is it Halloween again?!” type of mom. It’s so hard when reality clashes with fantastical expectations. Despite my lack of holiday commitment, my kids seemed to have a good time and have come off of their sugar stupor. After examining, trading, regrouping and counting their candy as if it were currency, Halloween has once again come to an end. With both a tiny bit of sadness and a huge amount of relief, I am left with a lot of candy, all filled with high fructose corn syrup and a ton of trans fat – two red flag ingredients that I advise every client to avoid.

So, what to do after a glutinous day of splurging? I have managed to successfully buy some of the candy from my kids where it will go into the trash, but the rest…well…let me know if you have found something that works. Meanwhile, limiting the number of “treats” that your child can have and baking nutritious alternatives somewhat eases the power struggle between the healthy treat and the Baby Ruth. Here is an amazing recipe created by owner Diane Hoch of the Food Evolution (www.thefoodevolution.com), sure to please die hard peppermint patty fans. So try to ditch the junk by enticing your kids, and the adults in your life, with this nutritious substitute.

Chocolate Peppermint Cups (Makes 24 mini cups)
Ingredients:
Chocolate Layer
1/4 Cup Cacao Powder
1/4 Cup Coconut Oil
3 Tablespoons Maple Syrup
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla
Seeds from 4 inch piece of Vanilla Bean
1 Tablespoon Cacao Butter, melted
1/4 teaspoon Peppermint Extract
Pinch of Sea Salt
Mint Cream Layer
3/4 Cup Ripe Avocado
1/2 teaspoon Lemon Juice
1/4 Cup Coconut Oil
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla
1/2 teaspoon Peppermint Extract
2 Tablespoons of Raw Honey


Directions:
Chocolate Layer: Melt everything together in a sauce pan on medium heat, stirring well. Pour into a lined mini cupcake tray.
Mint Cream Layer: Mash avocado with lemon juice to retain color. Add the mashed avocado and remaining ingredients to a food processor and blend until smooth and creamy.
Remove the chocolate layer from the freezer. Pour on the mint cream layer by teaspoon full. Drizzle with melted dark chocolate and chill for at least 1 hour in freezer before serving. Yum!

My youngest daughter has already picked her costume for Halloween 2015. Perhaps some of her enthusiasm will rub off on me by then and I will be trick or treating in full gear holding a tray lined with Chocolate Peppermint Cups…or not.
Happy Belated Halloween,
Adina Kelman

More Apples?!

On Saturday, my husband and I took out two younger daughters to visit Fishkill Farms, a semi organic, Eco Apple Farm in New York. With 20 plus pounds of apples to use and a refrigerator that is on the blitz, I was under some pressure to decrease the family’s apple load. Instead of making the traditional pie or sauce, I sautéed the apples in coconut oil and served them with these gluten free, grain free, almost paleo sweet potato pancakes. I have posted this recipe before, but here it is again.

The basics:
1/2 cup mashed sweet potato
2 eggs
1 tablespoon coconut flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

To that I add my favorite extras:
1 tablespoon chia seeds
A handful or two of gogi berries
Another handful or two of cacao nibs
And of course, for the kids, chocolate chips

Mix the ingredients together and bake on the griddle. I usually triple this recipe to serve four people.

This is really a very easy to make traditional Fall breakfast or brunch, especially when the sweet potatoes are made ahead of time, and a super quick way to use some of those freshly picked (or not so freshly picked) apples.
Adina Kelman

Making peace with the enemy

I realized that I will never be done talking about pancakes. They are one of my favorite comfort foods. Combine my love of pancakes with my daily goal of getting more veggies into every meal, and you will soon realize that on Sunday morning, I fell in love.

I have been wanting to try sweet potato pancakes for a while now. I was hesitant because I thought that the yield would be a pancake resembling an oily, coarse Hanukkah latke. However, the result was a light, fluffy, breakfast-like pancake. I followed this basic, paleo-friendly recipe from paleogrubs.com with great success. Not only was it simple, but all my kids loved it. The best part was that I finally integrated my arch nemesis, coconut flour, successfully into a recipe.

Sweet Potato Pancakes
1/2 c mashed sweet potato (measure after mashing)
2 eggs
1 tbsp coconut flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp vanilla

I strayed from the original recipe in that I did not whisk the eggs separately nor did I use any oil on my griddle to bake these. I simply mixed the above ingredients together and baked them on my panini maker, tripling the recipe. I had about 10 medium to large pancakes which was just enough for five of us. If my husband was home, I would have needed an extra serving. My other deviation from the original recipe was, of course, the addition of chocolate chips. I needed a selling point other than the sweet potato’s apparent health benefits and chocolate, in my family, is a sure winner every time.

An excellent source of beta-carotene, vitamin C and B, manganese, copper, potassium and phosphorus, the sweet potato is an antioxidant, anti-inflammatory super food. There is no reason to shy away from starchy vegetables, as they provide enormous health benefits. Here are three interesting facts about the sweet potato that you may not have previously known.

1. Despite its glycemic index, the sweet potato has actually been shown to improve blood sugar regulation. A high fiber food, sweet
potatoes serve as an important modifier of insulin metabolism. Research shows that extracts from the sweet potato can significantly
increase blood levels of adiponectin, a protein hormone produced by our fat cells, that often run low in type 2 diabetics.

2. Sweet potatoes contain resin glycosides which have been studied for their antibacterial and anti-fungal properties.

3. The sweet potato contains sporamins, unique storage proteins, that are produced by the plant whenever it is subjected to stress.
While speculative, this healing ability will hopefully be passed onto those who consume it.

By baking the sweet potatoes ahead of time, this grain free recipe becomes even more time efficient. And really, what could be better than getting your children to eat vegetables for breakfast?
Adina Kelman, C.H.C., A.A.D.P.

Worth Mentioning

It’s worth mentioning…
that I did try a different “veggie bake”. It didn’t hold together as well and I didn’t like it as much as last week’s (probably due to the absence of tomato sauce and cheese), but it’s worth mentioning because it does make a nice side dish. It’s also a good place to get a little creative and use the veggies in your fridge that may not be moving as well as some others.

Veggie Bake (from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition)
Prep Time: 10 minutes Cooking Time: 40 minutes Yields: 4-8 servings

Ingredients:
any veggies that need to be used
1 large can chopped tomatoes
1 can chickpeas
3 or 4 large yams, thinly sliced
extra virgin olive oil

Directions:
1. Chop veggies (except yams) and stir-fry in a bit of oil until soft.
2. Add can of tomatoes and drained can of chickpeas.
3. In a casserole or lasagna dish, layer yams then veggie mix (same as if you were making lasagna but use potatoes as lasagna sheets and veggie mix instead of meat).
4. Finish with a layer of yams and lightly drizzle olive oil on top.
5. Bake for 1/2 hour at 300 degrees. Then take off cover, turn up temperature to 400 degrees for 10 minutes to crisp up the top layer.

Variations:
Add your favorite herbs or spices like basil, oregano, fennel, cumin, chili pepper, sea salt, etc., for an extra kick. For a bit of added texture, add roasted sunflower seeds. Veggie Bake keeps great in the refrigerator for a few days.

Even Superheroes Have Their Limits

When tofu first came on the scene as a popular health food, I was amazed by its versatility. You could put it into soups, stir fries and burgers. You were able to bread it, bake it, steam and sauté it. Tofu could be made into cake, pie, chocolate, pudding and dressing. There was nothing that tofu could not do. I remember my husband’s initial distrust of a food that could be turned into so many different edible items. Despite his wariness, we bought it, cooked with it and embraced it.

Chia seeds may not be the new tofu, but that little seed is just as versatile. You can add it to your morning cereal, yogurt or smoothie, make it part of any grain or salad and can include it in any baked recipe from meatloaf to muffins. Rich in omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants, chia seeds are a high fiber, nutrient dense food. When soaked in water, chia seeds dissolve into a gel. Research suggests that this reaction also takes place in the stomach, keeping you feeling full for a longer period of time. They are an anti inflammatory superfood. The new superhero of the food world.

And like all superheroes, chia seeds have a weakness. Chia seeds, when dropped, scatter across the floor like cockroaches when the lights turn on. They are almost impossible to vacuum at one time. Much like glitter and sand, you will find them everywhere, days after the original spill. The other side to chia seeds that no one mentions is that the same gelatinous consistency that keeps you feeling full longer, does NOT translate into pudding. For all you chia seed loving pudding makers, please give me a good recipe to follow.

I just made this chocolate chia pudding following a recipe which calls for
2 tablespoons chia seeds
1/2 cup coconut milk
1 tablespoon cocoa
a pinch of salt
pinch of cinnamon
1 1/2 tablespoons maple syrup

I combined all the ingredients in a mason jar, shook to mix and refrigerated, waiting to taste the dark, rich, creamy pudding pictured in the photos. The reviews of the recipe described it as “delicious and yummy”. I took it out of the refrigerator and its dull, sponge like appearance did not call to me as did the images in the photos. I tasted it.

I need you to understand that I am the benchmark for all things tasteless, too healthy and, according to my family, just plain disgusting. I am a health food hedonist. Nothing is too plain or bland sounding, but there are no expectations low enough to make chia seed pudding good unless you enjoy the feeling of a cold cacao covered loogie slowly and suffocatingly oozing its way down your throat. In the lexicon of slang, a loogie is defined as a large slimy glob of spit, mixed with nose snot, that is formed by coughing up and hocking what’s in your throat (Urban Dictionary). And that is a pretty accurate description of my experience. After I finished gagging, I ate a piece of dark chocolate to get rid of the taste in my mouth.

So…even superheroes have their limitations. And while I won’t make chia pudding any longer, I still enjoy those little powerhouse seeds in my yogurt, pancakes and hot cereal. My favorite grain free meatloaf recipe includes chia seeds. Make it and let me know what you think.

Adina’s Grain Free Turkey Meatloaf
Ingredients:
Approximately 2 pounds of (antibiotic hormone free) ground turkey breast
1 cup almond meal
1/2 cup flaxseed meal
2 eggs (preferably organic)
Approximately 1/4 cup organic ketchup
Seasoning to taste (I’m partial to Paul Prudhomme’s poultry magic)
2 tablespoons chia seeds

Directions:
Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl using your hands and spread evenly in a non stick loaf pan. Bake for about an hour at 375 degrees.
Comfortably serves 6

Healthy eating,
Adina Kelman
Certified Holistic Nutrtionist

One More Word

…on pancakes. I wouldn’t if I wasn’t in love with this new recipe. Although it is not grain free, it is healthy and delicious and my children are in love.

Chia Seed Pancakes

Ingredients:
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup chia seeds
1/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
2 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1 pinch of sea salt
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 1/4 cup almond milk
2 dashes cinnamon
1 tablespoon raw cacao
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 bananas

Directions
Put all the ingredients into a blender, except for the bananas, and blend until smooth. Add the bananas and blend again. Transfer the contents to a bowl if you want to add chocolate chips, fresh fruit or Gogi berries, as I did in mine. Then cook on your surface of preference. I use my panini maker because the pancakes don’t stick to it (it is NOT a non stick surface) and I can make about 10 pancakes at one time. This recipe made about 16 pancakes (probably due to all the extras that I add in).

You can find the original recipe on Dr. Oz’s website

I raved about this recipe to my parents who made it and didn’t like it. They used steel cut oats instead of rolled oats and my mother swears that it affected the consistency of the pancake. I attribute it to the chia seeds which produce a moist, gel like consistency which for me, my husband and 4 children, was barely noticeable. If you want a purely grain free recipe, I have experimented with the one below.

Almond Pancakes
Ingredients:
1.5 cups Blanched Almond Flour
3 eggs
1 cup of water or milk (or slightly less to desired thickness)
Optional: spices like cinnamon and nutmeg, vanilla, blueberries or other fruit

This one was good, but not my favorite. Try the Chia Seed Pancakes and tell me what you think.
Happy Baking,
Adina Kelman
Certified Holistic Nutritionist
a life in balance with adina