I had no energy to struggle with them so I modified the recipe and decided to bake them in the oven. I ended up with Falafel Cookies. And you know what? They were actually pretty good and very handy to kill some small hungers along the day. Next time when I am on the way, I will make sure to have the falafel cookies in a handbag.

Ingredients

• Walnuts – 1 cup
• Boiled chickpeas – 2 glass pots from AH/Jumbo/other or 1 big pot from Turkish shop
• Onion – 1 small,
• Petersly – 1 cup
• Garlic- 2 gloves
• Egg – 1
• GF flour (all purpose or chickpeas flour)- 3-4 spoons
• Baking soda – ½  teaspoon
• Cumin – 1 ½ tea spoon
• Olive oil (to spread on surface)

Preparation steps

1. Pulse walnuts in a kitchen processor (until you have small chunks) and then transfer them to a big bowl.
2. Drain chickpeas very well. You can additionally dry them on a paper kitchen towel. Then pulse them in a kitchen processor until you get very tiny chunks. After, add them to the processed walnuts.
3. Chop an onion and the petersly. Add them to the other ingredients in the bowl.
4. Press garlic and add it together with cumin, GF flour, soda and an egg to the rest of ingredients. Mix everything.
5. Spread baking paper on a baking tray and form cookies from the prepared ‘falafel’ mixture.
6. Before placing the tray into the oven, spread some olive oil on the surface of each cookie.
7. Bake in a pre-heated to 180 degrees Celsius oven for about 15-20 min. Adjust baking time accordingly when needed.

Cheers,

Kati xxx

Ingredients

• Butternut squash – 1
• Carrots – 2
• Parsnip – 1
• Onion – 1
• Bell pepper – 1/2
• Red linzen (dry) – 2/3 rd cup
• Cold water – 3-4 glasses
• Chilli spices (ready blend e.g. Beltane or self-made) – sea salt, paprika, dry onion, pepper, turmeric, coriander, dry  garlic, cumin, caraway, chili, oregano, savory, bay leaf;
• Tomato sauce (1 cup; I used AH organic natural)
• Petersley – chopped 1 cup
• Garlic – 3 gloves chopped or pressed
• White beans in tomato sauce ( I used half of the pot from Lidl)
• Small piece of ginger – chopped or pressed
• Olive oil/Butter – 1 spoon

Preparation steps

1. Cut the squash half. Then each of halfs cut half again. Repeat one more time. You should end up with long stripes by now. Cut off the squash from the outer part and cut in cubes.

2. Wash and peel vegetables, then cut them in small cubes/chunks.

3. Heat olive oil on a pan and add cut onion and garlic. When soft add other vegetables: squash, carrots, parsnip, bell pepper. Stir while frying shortly. Then add 3 glasses of cold water,        lentils and chilli spices. Let it boil until everything is soft.

4. Afterwards add white beans in red sauce, red sauce and chopped petersley.  Let it boil some more.

5. Try and eventually add more spices/salt if needed.

It can be served with rice, bread or as a sauce on potatoes :-)

Cheers,

Kati xxx

For the last couple of months, other than reading about pregnancy and newborns, I was experimenting in a kitchen with new & old recipes.

Now, as I am getting heavier and I spend more time sitting, I thought of sharing some of the recipes with you.

Below, you can find a recipe for well-known in Poland ‘RACUCHY’. It is a kind of small thick pancake resembling the American pancake, but with apple (or berries) inside.

Ingredients

• All-purpose GF flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill) – 300 g
• Baking soda – ½ teaspoon
• Brown sugar – 1 spoon
• Eggs – 2
• *Almond or soy milk – 1 glass
• *Soy yogurt – 1 spoon
• Salt –  a pinch
• Apples (rasped; big holes on grater) – 2 middle size
• Cinnamon – 1 tea spoon
• Vanilla extract – 1/3 tea spoon
• Optional: blueberries –a couple of spoons
• Fat for frying

Preparation steps

1. Peel and rasp apples. Use the big holes on a rasper.
2. Mix together in a big bowl all dry ingredients:  GF flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and vanilla extract.
3. Then add eggs, soy yogurt and – while mixing – gradually almond milk.
4. After mixing everything thoroughly – add rasped apples (and eventually berries or other fruits)
5. Fry small portions on a hot oil.
6. For an optimum polish experience – serve with a powdered sugar on top : – )

They are so delicious! You can use w/e topping you like, for instance (soy)yogurt and/or apple puree : – )

Have fun cooking,

Kati xxx

The most difficult meal of the day when following the AIP diet is breakfast. Not always one feels like cooked vegetables or meat/fish so early in the morning. Breakfast containing too much fruit (smoothie with fruits mostly) is also not such a brilliant idea: it significantly elevates blood sugar.

~ Paleo & AIP Breakfast Pap ~

What you need

Ingredients: small apple, big carrot, 2 dry figs, hand of coconut chips, 1 teaspoon coconut fat, big pinch of cinnamon; optional: coconut milk with cinnamon as a ‘sauce’

Utensils: a frying pan and a spatula, a grater/rasper and a knife

How-to

• Rasp a carrot & peel and slice an apple
• Melt coconut fat on a pan
• Place sliced apple in the hot pan and let it soften
• Add cinnamon to apples and mix well
• In the end, add rasped carrot to apples and let it ‘warm up’ shortly
• Move everything on a plate, sprinkle with pieces of dry figs (not too many; lots of sugar!) and coconut chips
• As you can see I used a little of coconut chips but if it is something that works well for you, you can easily add much more. Bon appetit!

Kati xxx

Do you know the cookbook ‘Plenty’ of Yotam Ottolenghi ?

All recipes in this book are vegetarian (some contain eggs and dairy products). I was inspired by the ‘Royal Potato Salad’ which originally is made with potatoes, green peas and quail eggs and I created something similar – Potato Salad with Pesto and Fava Beans.

What do you need

Ingredients

• Boiled potatoes – as many as you want
• Basilica leaves – 1 cup
• Pine nuts – 1/3 of a cup
• Olive oil – 1/3 of a cup
• Salt – a pinch
• Parsley – fresh chopped; as much as you like
• Fava beens – 1 cup (I bought frozen)

Appliances

• Water boiler
• A bowl
• Kitchen processor

And how to make it..

1. Boil water and pour it over the frozen fava beans. Let it rest for 10-15 minutes
2. Cut boiled potatoes (still warm) in chunks
3. Process pine nuts with basilica leaves in a kitchen processor. Pulse until a pesto is formed.
4. Peel fava beans with your fingers. You can watch a video that shows how to do it :-) (Just squeeze it).
5. Mix all ingredients together and sprinkle it with salt and olive oil. Be generous with the olive. If you use a good quality olive it is very healthy! Did you know that 30 % of our energy should come from fats? Now, add some more of that healthy liquid, don’t you ? ;-)

Tip

The Glycemic index (GI) of boiled white potatoes is about 82. Eating cooled or reheated potatoes reduces their GI by 30–40%. The GI and glycemic load offer information about how foods affect blood sugar and insulin. The lower food’s glycemic index or glycemic load, the less it affects blood sugar and insulin levels.

Ok, if you followed the recipe you probably ended up with something like this

Enjoy your meal :-) So easy, right?

Cheers,

Kati <3

I am a big fan of beets. My favorite way of eating this vegetable is warm pure. Recently, I came across of tapenade made of black olives and beets. It is so delicious. Even my partner, who never eats beets, enjoyed it. According to ‘Healing with Whole Foods; Asian traditions and Modern nutrition’ eating beets has following benefits:

• Strengthen the heart
• Improve circulation
• Purify blood
• Benefit liver
• Moisten the intestines
• Treats constipation
• Promote menstruation
• Together with carrots – regulate hormones during menopause
• Treats nervousness

There is a number of nutrients in beets, like folates, niacin (B-3), pantothenic acid (B-5), pyridoxine (B-6) and minerals such as iron, manganese, copper, and magnesium. What is more beets are a unique source of phytonutrients called betalains. Betanin and vulgaxanthin are the two best-studied betalains from beets, and both have been shown to provide antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and detoxification support. In recent lab studies on human tumor cells, betanin pigments from beets have been shown to lessen tumor cell growth through a number of mechanisms, including inhibition of pro-inflammatory enzymes (specifically, cyclooxygenase enzymes). The tumor cell types tested in these studies include tumor cells from colon, stomach, nerve, lung, breast, prostate and testicular tissue.

Tapenade

• Gluten free
• Dairy free
• Egg free
• Nuts free
• Sugar free
• Vegetarian
• Vegan
• Paleo

Needed appliances

• Kitchen processor
• Pan to boil beets (unless you buy already boiled beets)

Ingredients

• Boiled beets (2 big or 3 small)
• Black olives (4-5 spoons)
• Basilicum leaves (half a cup)
• Olive oil (a couple of spoons; to your preference)
• Lemon juice (from half a lemon)
• Salt

Preparation steps

• Boil beets and peel them
• Place boiled cooled beets, black olives and basilicum leaves together in a kitchen processor. Pulse till desired consistency
• Add olive oil, lemon juice and salt and mix together

This tapenade is excellent on bread/cracker but also with fish and meat at dinner.

Enjoy,

Kati xxx

If we went for a party to my aunt or we celebrated Christmas at my grandparents’ house – the vegetable salad with mayonnaise was always there. No matter what occasion to celebrate was it. It is our traditional food :D

I made this vegetable salad last Easter. It is delicious and filling. You can eat it at breakfast, for lunch and even with a dinner. It is gluten and dairy free. Remember that not all mayonnaise is gluten free, check the label (I used Delaan Belgian mayonnaise which is free from preservatives and color agents). Yumm!

Ingredients

• Carrots – 3
• Potatoes – 4
• Eggs – 5
• Green Peas – one  tin/jar (about 250 ml)
• Corn – one tin/jar (about 250 ml)
• Leek – 1 big or 2 small
• Salt
• Pepper
• Mayonnaise – 1 big spoon
• Optional: Fermented/Pickled cucumbers – 4
• Optional: ham

Preparation steps

• Boil carrots and potatoes together (don’t let them become too soft; they need to keep their shape when you cut them in small blocks);
• Boil eggs and let them cool;
• Cut leek in small rings; wash and blanch it with boiled water; let it stay in hot water till it is cold-ish;
• Open jars/tins with corn and peas and drain well;
• Optional: cut cucumber and ham in small blocks;
• Add spices and a big spoon of mayonnaise and mix everything;
• Serve cooled.

Try it out, it is really nice.

Cheers from Arnhem!

Kati xxx

Why do I make my own pesto?

• I use organic basil
• I use the best quality, organic olive oil (raw, organic, cold pressed, not filtered, in a dark bottle)
• Homemade pesto is pure and tastes better (no unnecessary additives)

Needed kitchen appliances

• A food processor
• A kitchen bowl
• A knife

Ingredients for one pot (250 ml) of pesto

• Basil – one basil plant (about 2 cups of fresh leaves)
• Olive oil – half cup (choose oil with the best quality: raw, organic, cold pressed, not filtered, in a dark bottle)
• Pine seeds – 1/4^th cup
• Garlic – 2 big cloves
• Sea salt- a big pinch
• Optional:(not Paleo) cheese, olives, nuts, pepper, cayenne pepper

Preparation steps

Place all ingredients in the kitchen processor and pulse-grind until desired consistency.

If you decide to give it a try – I am sure you will love it!

Cheers,

Highlights

• Gluten/wheat  free and dairy free
• Protein rich
• Vegetarian
• Satiating
• Lunch/Dinner

Ingredients

• Boiled Chickpeas  – 2 x 350g
• Chickpeas flour –  4 or 5 teaspoons
• Onion – 1 big or 2 small
• Garlic – 1-2 gloves
• Fresh parsley
• Salt – big pinch
• Cumin – 2 teaspoons
• Corn grids or amaranth flakes – for ‘breading’
• Fat – to fry
• Optional: one raw egg

Needed appliances

• A bowl (mixing)
• Two plates (breading, de- fatting)
• A spatula (mixing, frying)
• A kitchen processor (grinding chickpeas)
• A (frying) pan
• A kitchen paper towel (de-fatting)

Preparation steps

1. Peel onion and garlic
2. Dry boiled chickpeas on a paper kitchen towel
3. Blend dried  chickpeas, onion, garlic, parsley in a kitchen processor (see picture)
4. Add chickpeas flour, salt and cumin (optional: raw egg) and mix all together
5. Form small balls and ‘bread’ them in amaranth flakes
6. Fry falafels until golden brown
7. Serve warm or cold

Enjoy your meal,

Two days ago, we made very popular, so called ‘law-salted’ pickled cucumbers.

Pickling is the process of preserving food by anaerobic fermentation in brine (or vinegar). This procedure gives the food a salty (or sour) taste. The most commonly consumed pickles are sauerkraut, pickled cucumbers and peppers.

Brine is a solution of salt (sodium chloride) in water.

Although the pickling process was initially invented to preserve foods, nowadays pickles are made as a delicacy. Pickling improves the nutritional value of food by B vitamins produced by bacteria. The flavor of the pickled vegetables is determined by the type of the dominating microorganisms developed. The latter depends on the acidity or salinity of the brine, the temperature of fermentation (pickling), and the lack of oxygen.

Highlights

• To preserve/prepare vegetables
• Nutritious (rich in vitamins B)
• Contain good microflora
• It’s very easy

Ingredients

• Young cucumbers – about 10-15 small ones – the amount depends on the size of your glass pot
• Salt (without iodine)– one spoon
• Water – 1 liter
• Garlic – 5-7 gloves
• Dill – whole stems including roots and flower buds
• Horseradish – one root or a couple of leaves (horseradish greens)

Tips

• In the Netherlands, small cucumbers can be found in Eastern shops e.g. Turkish supermarkets
• It is better to mix dry and green stems of dill for the ultimate taste
• It is possible to replace the horseradish root with horseradish greens or add both
• Cold water can be used for brine instead of boiled water
• Instead of a glass pot you can use a stone pot

Needed appliances

• Big glass pot (with a cup) to pickle cucumbers in it
• A kitchen pot to boil water
• A knife

Preparation steps

1. Boil one liter of water and dissolve one spoon of salt in it
2. Wash cucumbers and cut off the ends
3. Wash the horseradish and dill
4. Peel garlic gloves
5. Place greens and spices (horseradish, dill, garlic) on the bottom of the pot
6. Place the cleaned cucumbers vertically in the glass pot

To make so called low-salt pickled cucumbers

7. Pour the brine solution to the pot until all cucumbers are covered by the brine and let it stand overnight partly covered by the cap (but do not turn it). Make sure you have about one tea cup of the brine left.
8. The next morning, pour the rest of the brine to the pot with cucumbers until all the cucumbers are covered and let it ferment for about 15-24 hours before consuming. It is important that all cucumbers are covered by the brine.

OR

To make strongly fermented pickled cucumbers

7. Pour the hot brine until all cucumbers are covered. Close the pot, turn the cap until sealed. Place the pot upside down and let it rest for 24 hours. Afterwards turn the pot upside up and let it rest for a couple of days longer (2-3). They can be stored even for a couple of months. The longer time of fermentation, the richer taste of your pickles.

Have fun making your own pickles :-)

Highlights

• Preparation within 30 min
• Very easy preparation
• Gluten-free & dairy-free
• Egg-free, soy-free, corn-free
• Delicious and nutritious

Ingredients (for 3 normal portions / two normal and two small portions)

• Chickpeas – about 150-200 g
• Zucchini – 1
• Leek – 1
• Carrots – 4
• Rice – 2 cups
• Coconut milk – a tin
• Curry spices* – 1 tea spoon
• Salt – a pinch
• Fat to fry – one tea spoon
• Optional: fresh ginger, parsley

*Coriander, Fenugreek, Turmeric, Cumin, Black Pepper, Bay Leaves, Celery Seed, Nutmeg, Cloves, Onion, Red Pepper, And Ginger. (Or you can buy ready mix like I did ;)

Tips

• To save time I used pre-soaked chickpeas in a glass pot
• By using organic vegetables  you can decrease amount of consumed pesticides
• I used ghee for extra flavor

Needed appliances

• Cutting board
• Knife
• Bowl
• Frying pan
• A pot/steamer (to cook rice)

Preparation steps

1. Start boiling water and cut vegetables

1. Place rice in a pot and cover it with boiled water. Boil rice till ready (the cooking time depends on rice, I always try it from time to time until I like its texture)and drain it.
2. Warm up the pan with a little bit of fat and fry first: leek and carrots. When they become soft, add zucchini and chickpeas.
3. When all vegetables are soft-ish, add coconut milk and (curry) spices. Let it simmer for 5 minutes.

Enjoy your meal,

A delicious, multi-coloured salad is my favourite lunch. Especially, when it contains avocado. Below, a couple of salads I managed to photograph before enjoying them!

Why it is healthy to eat salad every day

• Vegetables are a great source of dietary fibers
• Vegetables contain powerful antioxidants like vitamin C and E, folic acid, lycopene, and alpha- and beta-carotene. Antioxidants protect your body from damage caused by free radicals
• Addition of avocado, olive oil, seeds & nuts increases a ratio of healthy fats in a diet! They also help your body in absorption of the protective phytochemicals
• Easy and tasty way to consume the big part of the daily vegetable intake. A delicious (homemade!) dressing will guarantee that you enjoy your salad!
• It will boost your energy
• Italian research showed that eating raw vegetables and olive oil reduced mortality among people above 60!

TIPS

• Use as many colors in your salad as you can
• Add small amounts of seeds and nuts (one small handful is enough!)
• Don’t be afraid to splash some good quality olive oil there
• I use lemon juice in each and every salad
• If you add avocado – you don’t even need to make a dressing
• I add legumes (beans, lentils) for additional proteins
• Both: raw and boiled vegetables should have a place in your daily menu – it’s tasty to add boiled vegetables to your salad too
• Boiling vegetables containing beta-carotene will increase its absorption from 2-5% to 70%!
• My regular dressing: juice from half lemon, few spoons of olive oil, sea salt. Simple and healthy.

How to make a perfect salad dressing (source: unknown; found somewhere on net)

Recently, I added a pineapple to my salad (featured picture) and it turned out a great additional flavor!

• Suitable as lunch/dinner
• Tasty and filling

Ingredients

• Fresh pumpkin
• Three potatoes
• One root parsley
• An onion
• A cup of boiled chickpeas (or ready to use from shop)
• A piece of fresh ginger root
• A pinch of salt
• Optional: bullion block(s)

Needed appliances

• A cutting board
• A knife
• A pot
• An immersion blender

Tips

• It is possible to add other vegetables like carrots, celery;
• If you don’t have chickpeas – you can skip them (they add some proteins to your meal though)
• You can add a spoon of soft goat cheese to your plate with soup for extra flavor
• Additional bread or crackers can complement the meal

[See image gallery at glutenfreelady.nl]

Preparation steps

• Peel and clean pumpkin and cut it in small blocks
• Peel other vegetable (root parsley, onion, potatoes) and cut them is small blocks
• Place washed vegetables in a pot and cover with cold water (I add as much water as it is needed to cover all the small vegetable blocks)
• Put the soup on fire
• After 10 min add salt (optional: bullion block) and keep boiling
• When the vegetables are getting soft, add the boiled chickpeas and squeezed piece of fresh ginger root
• Boil everything for 5-8 more minutes
• Switch off the fire and blend the vegetables in a pot with the immersion blender

Enjoy your meal,

Ingredients

• Not roasted almonds – pasta (EkoPlaza)
• Water

[See image gallery at glutenfreelady.nl]

Accessories

• Shaker or blender
• Tea spoon

* If you have no shaker nor blender – just give it a good stir with a spoon. The pasta is easily soluble in water!

How to

• Fill the shaker or blender with a glass of water
• Take a spoon of almond pasta and add it to the water
• Give it a good shake/blend
• Optional: add some fresh or frozen fruits
• And enjoy!

Version with fruits requires a blender (see pictures).

[See image gallery at glutenfreelady.nl]

The almond pasta is pricey, I know. But it will last for many glasses of almond milk.  What’s even more important contains NOTHING else but almonds. Another option is to buy almonds (if you leave them in water for a while, they will be extremely easy to pill) and make the pasta yourself. But if you buy biological almonds the end price will be identical (it just gives you an additional work!).

Enjoy,