Buy your chicken. It should have bones and skin. These things add flavor. I like the dark meat, so I buy thighs, but I’m sure this will work with breasts or a whole chicken cut up into pieces.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

Place your chicken in a casserole or cookie sheet with sides. I used my stoneware bar tray from The Pampered Chef, which is marvelous for just about everything. Whatever you use, it’s got to have sides. This is going to be really juicy.

Drizzle some olive oil over the chicken. You really don’t need to use much, just enough to moisten it.

Season the chicken with whatever you want to use. I used Mrs. Dash Lemon Pepper mix because it has no sugar in it, unlike all the other lemon peppers out there. I also used a little bit of salt.

Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake the chicken for 2 to 3 hours covered. If it happens to bake a bit longer, do not worry. Long is the key to the deliciousness factor.

Remove the foil and bake for another 10 to 20 minutes or so to crisp the skin.

Take it out, let it cool enough so that you won’t burn your mouth, and enjoy!

When you try this, be aware that you may have to send your family out to a movie because they are going to want to eat the chicken before the cooking is complete. It smells that good.  And it will taste even better than it smells.

Marinade:

1/2 cup dry red wine
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Steak:

4 rib-eye steaks, 10 to 12 ounces each and about 1 inch thick
1 teaspoon garlic salt

In a large plastic resealable plastic bag set inside a large bowl, combine the marinade ingredients. Add the steaks to the bag. Press the air out of the bag and seal tightly. Turn the bag several times to distribute the marinade, place the bag back in the bowl, and marinate for 30 to 60 minutes.

Remove the steaks from the bag and let the excess liquid drip off. Discard the marinade. Let the steaks stand at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes before grilling.

Just before grilling, season both sides of each steak with the garlic salt.

With the lid closed, grill the steaks over direct high heat (500 to 550 degrees Fahrenheit) until cooked to desired doneness, 6 to 8 minutes for medium-rare, turning once. (If flare-ups occur, move the steaks temporarily over indirect high heat.)

Remove from the grill and let rest for 2 to 3 minutes. Serve warm.

Makes 4 servings.

My Notes:

• I forgot to get a lemon at the store, so instead of fresh lemon juice, I used lime juice from a bottle. Still delicious.
• I had plenty of marinade for 8 steaks. I didn’t put them in a bowl. Just flat on the refrigerator shelf in the ziplock.
• I am afraid of my grill, so I did broiled mine in the oven at 450 degrees F for 8 minutes on each side. Still delicious.
• Be aware that some sugar is used to start the fermentation process of the wine. I got the cheapest, driest red wine I could get my hands on and didn’t have any reaction. To be absolutely sure, however, you could substitute grape juice, cherry juice, apple cider, or even balsamic vinegar for the wine.

I used rice milk rather than coconut milk and it turned out fine. I also left it chunkier than she did. I blended only about half of the recipe, because soup is more satisfying to me if it’s chunky enough to chew.

But it’s the 4th of July, and what is the 4th without throwing something on the grill. So, I have adapted this from a recipe I saw in a Good Housekeeping while having a pedicure. My toes are pretty and I have a new recipe for yummy food. Perfect!

Mustard Chicken

1/2 c. whole grain mustard

1/2 c. dijon mustard

1/2 c. apple juice

1/4 c. white vinegar

2 T. olive oil

10 pounds bone in chicken (I used thighs)

2 med yellow onions cut in 1/2″ wedges

2 med red onions cut in 1/2″ wedges

Directions

Mix the mustard and liquid ingredients in a plastic bowl.

Put your chicken and onion wedges in two large ziplock bags. Pour the marinade over them and close the bags. Make sure the marinade covers the chicken thoroughly. Place in refrigerator and marinate for 3 to 8 hours.

Grill chicken pieces, turning regularly for 30 to 40 minutes until the juices run clear. Add the onions to the grill for the last 15 minutes of grilling.

I also did some in the oven. 50 minutes at 350 degrees followed by 5-10 minutes on broil to crisp the skin.

Makes enough to feed 12 people. Enjoy!

I’ve been reading old cookbooks on my Amazon Kindle, and here is something I learned about cooking fish:

Court-Bouillon

This preparation gives boiled fish a better flavor than cooking in clear water does. Many cooks use wine in it, but there is no necessity for it. Four quarts of water, one onion, one slice of carrot, two cloves, two table-spoonfuls of salt, one teaspoonful of pepper, one table-spoonful of vinegar, the juice of half a lemon and a bouquet of sweet herbs are used. Tie the onion, carrot, cloves and herbs in a piece of muslin, and put in the water with the other ingredients. Cover, and boil slowly for one hour. Then put in the fish and cook as directed for plain boiling.

How to boil fish

Slow Cooker Chili Soup

1 TBSP oil
1-1/2 lb. boneless beef round steak cut into 1/2″ cubes (I bought stew meat.)
1 cup chopped onions
(5 cloves crushed garlic)
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 cup chopped carrots
3 to 6 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (I used more because I like it hot!)
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 cup water
2-14.5 oz cans diced, peeled tomatoes, undrained (I got the Mexican style that already has some seasoning added.)
1-15 oz can tomato sauce
1-15.5 oz cans dark red kidney beans, drained

Heat oil in large skillet over medium high heat until hot. Add beef and onion (I also added 5 cloves of crushed garlic.) Saute until beef is browned. Transfer to crockpot.

Add all remaining ingredients except beans to crockpot. Cook on high for 1 hour.

Reduce heat to low, and cook for 4-5 hours, until vegetables and beef are tender.

Stir in beans and cook 30 to 45 minutes or until beans are thoroughly heated.

Can your brain become inflamed? Can you have a sore or swollen brain—like a sore throat—that causes everything from brain fog to dementia to depression to autism?

You brain can become inflamed just as your body does. And in the 21st century, our bodies and brains are on fire.

Today, the fires of inflammation are raging all over the body. That’s why we are seeing an epidemic of diseases including autoimmunity (24 million people), allergy (50 million), and asthma (30 million), as well as cardiovascular disease (60 million), cancer (10 million), and diabetes (14 million). These, it has been recently discovered, are primarily inflammatory conditions.

Now, new research proves that almost all brain problems are connected to or caused by inflammation as well.

In this blog I will review just a few examples of the research that points to the link between inflammation and our epidemic of broken brains and tell you what you can do to reduce the sources of inflammation in your life.

Read the entire fascinating article at the UltraMind blog, http://www.ultrawellness.com/blog/ultramind-solution-cool-inflammation

Fancy Pancakes

1/2 c of your favorite gluten-free flour mix
1 tsp. baking powder
2 Tbsp. Smucker’s Spiced Apple Butter
1/2 c. Welch’s White Grape / Peach Juice blend

Mix dry ingredients. Add the apple butter and juice. Add more juice if necessary to reach the proper consistency of batter that you like.

Serves 2.

Mustard-Roasted Potatoes
Adapted from Gourmet, December 2007 by Smitten Kitchen

Makes 10 servings

Nonstick vegetable oil spray
1/2 cup whole grain Dijon mustard (or something wheat-free)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick or 1/2 ounce) butter, melted (substitute olive oil)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
3 pounds 1- to 1 1/2-inch-diameter mixed unpeeled red-skinned and white-skinned potatoes, cut into 3/4-inch-wide wedges

Position 1 rack in top third of oven and 1 rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 425°F. Spray 2 large rimmed baking sheets with nonstick spray. Whisk mustard, olive oil, butter, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, lemon peel, and salt in large bowl to blend. Add potatoes; sprinkle generously with freshly ground black pepper and toss to coat. Divide potatoes between prepared baking sheets, leaving any excess mustard mixture behind in bowl. Spread potatoes in single layer. Roast potatoes 20 minutes. Reverse baking sheets and roast until potatoes are crusty outside and tender inside, turning occasionally, about 25 minutes longer.

Transfer potatoes to serving bowl.

Do ahead: Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand on baking sheets at room temperature. Rewarm potatoes in 425°F oven 10 minutes

source: http://www.a-crock-cook.com/v0811-amys-crock-pot-italian-chicken.html

5 Chicken Leg Quarters
5 Carrots
3lg Onions
3lg celery stalks
3lg potatoes
pinch of salt
pepper
1 cup italian dressing
1 tsp garlic powder

Layer the Chicken on bottom of crock pot.

Chop up the carrots, onions, celery, and potatoes.

Add in the salt, pepper and garlic powder and the cup of italian dressing.

If you need more italian dressing, you may add more.

Cook on high for 1 hr and then lower the heat to low and cook until done.

Enjoy.

Amy’s Notes
You may notice that you may need to add less meat or less veggies to accomadate the size of the crock pot.

My Notes

It’s difficult to find Italian dressing that isn’t awash with either sugar or high fructose corn syrup, but I did it! Newman’s Own Olive Oil and Vinegar Dressing has no sweeteners added at all. I don’t care for it much on salads (it separates too much), but it was fabulous in this recipe. Here is a list of the ingredients in the dressing:   Olive Oil Blend (Olive Oil, Extra Virgin Olive Oil), Vegetable Oil (Soybean Oil and/or Canola Oil), Water, Red Wine Vinegar, Onion, Spices, Salt, Garlic, Lemon Juice and Distilled Vinegar.

My crock pot is apparently nowhere near as large as Amy’s I had to go with 2 chicken leg quarters and cut everything else in half as well.

Enjoy!

While shopping for this recipe I learned is that Gray Poupon mustard has sugar in it! The generic on the shelf next to it did not. I passed on the Gray Poupon and grabbed the generic.

Next, since the recipe states that you are quartering the potatoes, I decided they probably mean for you to get the new red potatoes, rather than Idaho bakers.

Finally,  it was home to make this easy recipe. Here it is as it appears at sprewdfree.com:

Spicy Potato Salad

Ingredients:
2 1/2 pounds potatoes, quartered
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon spicy grill seasoning
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 onion chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped

Instructions:
Place potatoes in pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and then salt. Cook 12-15 minutes or until tender. While potatoes cook, combine other ingredients in a large bowl. Drain potatoes and mix with dressing while the potatoes are still warm. Serve warm or chilled.

My notes:

If it’s not spicy enough for you, add in some cayenne pepper flakes.

Get the new red potatoes. I’m sure it’s just an oversight that they didn’t specify that in the original recipe.

This is yummy. It sits proudly next to a steak or a burger. Good eating cold late at night, too!

Cauliflower Rice

Can Eczema Start in the Gut?

Allison, one of my patients who suffered from eczema — a weepy, red, oozing, scaly, itchy rash — all over her body is perfect example of what can happen when your gut is out of balance and the extraordinary level of healing that can occur when you fix your digestion.

This woman, who saw doctor after doctor, put salves, lotions, and potions on her skin and gave her steroids and antibiotics. But none of them ever addressed the underlying cause of her problem.

Allison was 57 years old and had been suffering from severe, unrelenting eczema for eight years. She ate a high-sugar diet and had a history of frequent vaginal yeast infections.

When I saw her, I checked her gut and found she had a leaky gut — that one-cell thick lining in her intestines was breached and wasn’t working properly. She had developed 24 IgG food allergies, and her stool had no healthy bacteria and an overgrowth of yeast from years of taking antibiotics. She also had very high blood levels of antibodies against yeast.

So I helped her heal her gut. I asked her to stop eating the foods she reacted to, told her to stop feeding the yeast in her gastrointestinal tract by cutting out sugar and refined carbohydrates (which they thrive on), and killed the yeast in her gut with antifungal medications and herbs. Then I helped her rebuild her ecosystem of healthy bacteria with probiotics and provided here with healing gut nutrients that allowed her intestinal lining to resume its normal function.

The result?

Her eczema disappeared for the first time in eight years — and it stayed away!

Read the entire article at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mark-hyman/is-your-digestive-system_b_313247.html

Eliminating the foods that I have IgG-based allergies to has cleared my eczema as well as eliminating migraines and decreasing joint/muscle pain. If you are having health problems that doctors can’t help, get checked out!

Artichoke Heart Soup

2 TBSP olive oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
4-5 tsp minced garlic
3 celery stalks, thinly sliced
14 oz. can artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
14 oz can diced tomatoes (I used some that already were flavored with garlic and basil)
2 c. frozen peas
6 c. vegetable or chicken stock
2 TBSP lemon juice
2 TBSP fresh basil, chopped
Mrs. Dash Lemon Pepper seasoning to taste (all other lemon pepper blends contain sugar!)

In a large soup pot, saute the onions and garlic in the olive oil until they are turning golden brown.

Add artichoke hearts and celery and cook another 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Stir in tomatoes and cook another 3 minutes.

Add remaining ingredients and cook for about 10 minutes.

Pasta with Garlic Sauce

Ingredients:

1 lb. Rice Pasta
1 14 oz. can of Artichoke Hearts, drained and rinsed
1/4 c. green garlic-stuffed olives
4 sun-dried tomatoes (in oil)
1/3 cup of Italian dressing or vinaigrette
Mrs. Dash Lemon Pepper blend, to taste
1 Tbsp. lemon juice

Directions:

Cook rice pasta according to directions.

Place the remaining ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Add more Mrs. Dash Lemon Pepper blend and/or lemon juice to taste.

Add sauce to pasta and mix well.

Ingredients

4 thick pork chops (3/4″ to 1″ thick)
1 tsp each cumin seed, coriander, and ginger
1 TBSP olive oil
2 large shallots minced
3/4 c. dried apricots, slivered
3/4 c. dry white wine (can substitute apple cider or vegetable stock)

Directions

Simmer the apricot slivers in the wine for 5 minutes. Then turn off the heat and leave them to soak in the hot wine while you work on the pork chops.

Mix the dry spices and rub onto both sides of the pork chops.

Pan fry the pork chops slowly with the olive oil, at least 7 minutes on each side.

During that last three minutes, add the shallots to the pan.

Once the chops are done, remove them from the pan and keep warm. Add the wine/apricot mixture to the pan and deglaze. Pour mixture over chops and serve.

This is delicious and easy!

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. cider vinegar
1/3 c. olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
2 small or one extra large tart apple(s)
1 small bulb fennel 
1/2 head romaine or red leaf lettuce
1 Tbsp. chopped fennel leaves

Directions:
Place vinegar, oil, salt and pepper in a small jar. Cover and shake to blend. Pour into a large salad bowl.

Core the apples, but don’t peel. Slice them directly intothe dressing and stir.

Slice the fennel into wedges and add to bowl, stirring again so that everything is well-coated.

Tear the lettuce into bite-size pieces. Add to the bowl along with the fennel leaves.  Stir and serve immediately.

If you want to wait to serve, keep lettuce and fennel leaves separate until ready to serve.

Serves 4.

I served this with smoked pork tenderloin and it was a great match.

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. olive oil
4 chicken legs and thighs, skinned
2 large shallots, chopped
1 c. radicchio, shredded
2 c. fresh apple cider (not apple juice! don’t substitute)
1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves
salt and pepper to taste
4 tart red apples (Winesap or Cortland – don’t use McIntosh)
1 tbsp. cornstarch

Directions:

Heat oil in a 12″ skillet and brown the chicken pieces over medium-high heat. Turn frequently to avoid burning.

Add shallots and radicchio between the chicken pieces. Saute for 1 minute.

Add 1 cup of the cider along with the thyme, salt, and pepper. 

Simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes. Turn and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 10 more minutes. If the skillet becomes too dry, add more of the cider.

Cut the unpeeled apples crosswise into 4 thick rounds each and lay them over the chicken.  Cover and simmer for 3-5 minutes, until the apples are just tender. Don’t overcook or they will become mushy.

Arrange chicken and apples on a platter and keep warm.

Stir the cornstarch into the remaining cider and dissolve until there are no lumps. Pour into the pan juices and cook over high, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens and bubbles. Lower heat and simmer for 3 minutes. Pour the sauce over the chicken and apples.

Serves 4.

Note: If you are allergic to corn, 2 teaspoons arrowroot starch can be substituted for 1 tablespoon cornstarch.

I first want to say that I grew up eating the curries from the Punjab, as my father was born and raised there. One of the reasons I’m excited about this book is that I will finally get to sample the entire country’s cuisine. 

The book is lovely. At the front, there is a photographic essay and some information on the different areas of the country and their foods. Following this, there is a section on making your own spice blends for Indian cooking. This is worth the cost of the book.

One disappointment I have with this cookbook is that there are no pictures of the completed dishes. I always find those helpful in terms of providing inspiration for garnishing and presenting the dish in an authentic manner. On the other hand, if there were pictures this already hefty book would be so heavy, you couldn’t lift it. Maybe the lack of pictures is for the best.

To offset that disappointment, there are plenty of cooking tips in this book that will help you out even if you aren’t cooking curry. In addition, most dishes are refreshingly allergen-free, meaning that you won’t have to do much, if any, futzing around with substitutions.

For my first recipe, I made a lovely chicken dish that hails from the south of India, which used vinegar and coconut milk as the flavor base. It was very different from the curries I grew up with, easy to make and absolutely delicious. For my second curry, I made a goan-style spicy sausage dish that I whipped up in less than 45 minutes from start to finish. It was fabulous.

If you enjoy ethnic foods, this book deserves a prominent place in your kitchen.

15 oz can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp Mrs. Dash Table Blend (or salt)
1/4 c. extra virgin olive oil
1/4 c. cold water
1/2 c. peanut butter
1/3 c. sun dried tomatoes in olive oil, diced

Put all ingredients in food processor and blend thoroughly.

Optional: Spoon this out on your plate and create a crater in the middle of it. Fill with extra virgin olive oil or garlic-infused olive oil.  Garnish with parsley, chopped.

I use the rice crackers from Trader Joe’s to dip into the hummus as they are free of wheat, milk, sugar, and eggs. 

This recipe is based on the recipe for traditional, red pepper and cilantro hummus found at Weird and  Surprisingly Good.

3 carrots, chopped roughly
3 c. unsweetened pineapple juice
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 c. crushed ice

Instructions

Place the first three ingredients into blender and blend until liquified.

Add crushed ice and blend again. Stir well and serve immediately.

Makes 6 servings.

Source: Arizona Republic