Wednesday 20 February 2013

Tomato Free Lasagna ... A Spin on Dad's Favorite

So I have gotten a lot of questions about this one and I haven't even posted about it yet.  Its fun what a little teaser on Facebook can do. 

I don't have a bunch of time today so i'm just jumping right into it. 

Grain Free, Dairy Free, TOMATO FREE Lasagna

Why tomato free?  

DooDoo has been having reactions (bright red cheeks, red swollen bumps where the tomato touches his skin and irritability) the last few times we have given it to him.  So naturally we are holding off for a while on tomatoes.  But, hubby LOVES lasagna; could eat it every day kinda love for it so I've been on a mission to find a way to make this sans tomatoes so DooDoo can love it too!

As I got searching I found a few things: 

#1- you can buy Nomateo sauce here, Who knew? 
and...
#2- You can make your own and there are a few different options to do so. 
Here is one from Gluten Free, Dairy Free NJ which looks good. 

This is the one I made tonight from Against All Grains.  

I love the site Against All Grains and knew it would taste good... It has to, there is BACON in it! 
This did take a little bit to make, but well worth the effort.  It made quite a bit so next time I make it I might double and freeze enough in portions for quick meals. 

Only changes/options I did were:
-Used bacon fat
-No salt since the bacon was salty
-used beef for the meat sauce

No-Mateo sauce

Beets, Carrots, Onion, ect cooking down
Sauce after the blender, added back to pot to simmer


'Cheese' 

What is a lasagna without cheese?? Again something we are not eating so we improvise.  I have used Daiya cheese and other 'dairy free' cheeses but wanted to try a nut cheese.  

I found this Cashew 'Cheese' while looking for a Grain Free/Dairy Free lasagna from Gluten Free Real Food and gave it a try.  It was really good in the lasagna and makes a whole lot! Here I pasted the recipe quick for you as its from a 9-Layer lasagna.  

Cashew Cream Layer (aka Ricotta Cheese Layer)
2 cups raw unsalted cashews – soak for approximately 6 hours or overnight
juice of half a lemon
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup water
4 eggs
In a large bowl add cashews and cover with water. Soak for 6-8 hours. Drain and rinse. Add cashews, lemon juice, salt and water to blender. If you have a Vitamix this will go really quickly. If you don’t have one a blender works just fine. Blend until smooth. This takes several minutes. Be patient. It really does get as smooth as sour cream. Add the eggs and blend to combine. Pour into a bowl, cover and refrigerate until you are ready to assemble.

Assembling the Lasagna

I used the 9-Layer lasagna from Gluten Free Real Food as a guide and just layered as I went. 

Zucchini: sliced 3 on the mandolin or veggie slicer.  Tried to 'grill' on the oven under broil but they got really thin under the broiler.  I only did a few like that, and left the rest just raw. 
Eggplant: sliced about 1/4" thick and put under broiler with a little olive oil. 
Mushroom: cooked in a fry pan with olive oil until soft

Layer 1: 

Covered bottom of dish with raw sliced zucchini and the put some of the grilled ones on top just to use them. 



Layer 2: 
Covered with sauce.

No filter, the sauce is really that pink!

Layer 3:
Added spinach (few handfuls) and topped with grilled egg plant.
So many great colours.
 Layer 4: Mixed equal parts sauce and cheese to make a 'ricotta cheese' type layer
Cheese layer.  Wish I had added a second one.
Layer 5/6/7: Covered the 'cheese' layer with mushrooms.  Then topped with raw zucchini and then a final later of sauce.  
Spread out the sauce and ready for baking! 
Bake covered at 350 for about 1.5 hours or until it heated through.  Remove from oven and let sit for 10-15 minutes if you can.  This allows it to cool and stay together as one piece when you take it out to plate.
Right out of the oven.
 Check out all those layers!
DooDoo's chunk. 


I hate that this is blurry but notice the sauce on his forehead??  Yeah thats from him putting his head on his tray to eat with no hands.  Such a character!

Do I have anything on my face?

Hope you enjoy trying this one out too. If the beets scare you in the sauce try anyway, I'm not a fan of beets and I loved it!  Plus beets are FANTASTIC for you and especially good for little bodies according to our ND! 


Let me know what you think and please head over to the sites these are from and share your thoughts there too! 





Thursday 14 February 2013

Happy Valentine's Day!

c/o indulgy.com

A day full of love!  Valentine's Day is one of my favourite days of the year.  I know we really should show our loved ones how much we appreciate and love them EVERYDAY but I still love to make this day extra special.  It is true there is a little boy who stole my heart ... but before he came along and long after he has stolen another woman's heart there was a man who stole my heart ... and he calls me Wifey!

So todays post is all about my super quick LOVE themed breakfast I did for my boys!  After playing on Pinterest, I have found many neat Valentine's themed food ideas so I thought I'd put some together today for breakfast. 

Please excuse the photos, my phone is not taking great one's right now and my big camera was out of batteries.  

Heart shaped bacon on the grill!
 Heart shaped eggs
Hubby's heart shaped eggs, Udi's gluten-free toast and heart shaped bacon.
 DooDoo's 'heart shaped' egg yolk which well apart :( and a piece of heart shaped bacon.  
 DooDoo also had 1/3 of an avocado and some almond yogurt with probiotics and fish oil (Wow that sounds yummy...haha!)


Happy Valentine's Day!




Wednesday 13 February 2013

Last Minute Chicken Dinner


Dinner a few nights ago was almost a disaster ... saved by the chicken!

I try to menu plan and only buy the things we need for that weeks meals.  I had apple butter pork chops with roasted carrots and zucchini on the menu for that night but when I went to get the pork ready and opened the pack I almost puked from the smell of the meat.  I had just purchased the pork the day before and the BB date was Feb. 17, but something must have had the wrong dates.

I had to find something else to make in less than an hour and all that was in the fridge was a whole chicken and ground chicken.  As my brother always says, "Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!" So by time default ground chicken was the winner ... but what to do with it?

Chicken pot pie ... no pastry ready
Chicken tacos ... DooDoo can't do peppers or tomato right now
Chicken Shepherds pie ... done! DooDoo can eat everything in it and should only take about 45mins.

Here's my version of a quick Dairy Free, Gluten Free Chicken Shepherds Pie


Potatoes in boiling water
Boil a pot of water and add chopped yellow potatoes.  The smaller you chop the potato the quicker they will cook in the boiling water.

While the potatoes are cooking brown the chicken, add 1/2 chopped onion and cook until brown.
Love the colours

Add frozen veggies, as many as you like.  I used a package of mixed peas, carrots, corn and green beans.

Add about 1 cup of gluten-free chicken or veggie stock and which ever spices you would like.  I used my new favourite Marjoram leaves.
Great on so many dishes!
I didn't have any gluten-free worcestershire sauce and I think thats what was missing but if you have some add it in here too.  

Mashed potato topping
Once the potatoes are done (done = when you can prick with a fork and the potato feels like butter) add  about 1/2 to 1 cup of chicken/veggie broth, 1 tbsp coconut oil, 1 tsp garlic powder and mash.
Ready for the topping


In a casserole dish fill with the meat and veggies mixture.  Add the mashed potatoes and use a fork to whip up the potatoes.  


Ready for the oven
Brush some melted coconut oil or EVOO on top of potatoes and put in 400 degree pre heated oven for about 20 minutes.  After cooked, put under the broiler for a few minutes until the top is nice and crispy.
Crispy top and ready to eat!
Serve it up and enjoy!

DooDoo loved his.  I did chop up the chicken pieces and green beans a little smaller but he did good eating it with his hands.  Lots ended up in his hair but thats what bath time is for right?!?!


DooDoo's is ready to go
What spices and flavours do you love on your Shepherds Pie??

If you serve this one up for your little monkeys let me know how it goes!  I love photos of kiddo's covered in dinner!