Simple Italian Greens and Grains
Having food sensitivities has made cooking so simple. It’s still delicious and I love it! I’m not sure I’ll ever go back to my old ways once I’m able to add more foods.
This is a super healthy dish that gives me the taste of Italian. I’ve listed the “Base Ingredients” that I can tolerate and then have listed additions if you are able to tolerate those foods.
Base Ingredients:
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 bunch rainbow chard, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 – 2 cups cooked long grain brown rice or millet
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh basil or 1 – 2 tsp. dried
1 cup (or more) tomato sauce or canned chopped tomatoes
2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
Chopped fresh spinach
Sauté onion in sauce pan over medium high heat for 3 minutes until it starts to brown. Add garlic and cook an additional minute. Add 1/2 cup water and chard. Cover then lower heat and cook until chard is tender, only about 3 – 5 minutes. Stir in desired amount of grain. Add 1 cup or desired amount of tomato sauce or chopped tomatoes. Stir in vinegar. Salt to taste. Serve mixed with a small amount of chopped raw spinach.
If it’s summer time and you have tomatoes galore, instead of tomato sauce or canned tomatoes, add 2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes. (Don’t add 1/2 cup water) Cook 5 minutes then add chard. Add a little water if needed to keep from sticking. Cook until greens are tender then add grain.
Additions if tolerated:
4 sliced mushrooms added with greens
Fresh or dried oregano
Figgy Oat Bars
After being on an elimination diet for a year I learned to be totally satisfied with fruit for dessert. However, when my fig tree produced an over abundance I wanted to try making some kind of dessert. I took a Banana Oat Bar recipe that I have and used figs instead of bananas, left out the nuts and dates and it worked great!
25 figs, trimmed (leave on skin)
1/4 cup of red flame grapes (For extra moisture and sweet. I had an abundance of them as well.)
2 cups rolled oats
1 t baking soda
1 t cinnamon
1 T apple cider vinegar
Blend figs, grapes, and vinegar in a high-powered blender until smooth. The seeds in the figs make this very thick. Place oats, baking soda and cinnamon in a large bowl and mix well. Pour pureed fruit over oats and mix so that all the oats are moistened. Transfer batter to an 8 X 8 cake pan and bake at 350 for 15 – 17 minutes. Cool before cutting.
Spicy Cabbage with Rice
Another “elimination diet” favorite that I’m so grateful for! I love the texture of the shredded cabbage but feel free to do a rough chop. This is so tasty and satisfying on it’s own but it would be very tasty rolled up in a corn tortilla if you can eat corn. Cooked green lentils mixed in would be great too!
Cooked short grain brown rice
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 t turmeric
1 1/2 t chili powder
1/2 head cabbage, thinly sliced
1 small bunch cilantro, chopped
1/4 t black pepper
Salt to taste
Saute onion in dry pan over medium high heat until it starts to brown. Add garlic and cook 1 minutes stirring constantly. Add tomatoes and cook until juicy. Add spices and cabbage and 1/2 cup water. Cover, lower heat to medium and cook until cabbage is tender. Add rice, cilantro and pepper. Heat through if needed. Salt to taste.
When I was able to add them, I love mixing in chopped sprouted almonds or pumpkin seeds.
Creamy Cauliflower Kale
This has been one of my favorite dishes while on an elimination diet. It will continue to be one of my go-to meals after I’ve incorporated more foods. I love this dish and it’s so easy! I often add steamed green beans.
1 medium head cauliflower
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 bunch kale, finely chopped
1 t turmeric
1/4 t black pepper
Cooked short-grain brown rice
Salt to taste
Break off florets from cauliflower and wash good. Place in a steamer basket or sauce pan with 1 cup water and steam until tender.
While cauliflower is cooking, saute’ onion in a dry sauce pan until it starts to brown. Add garlic and stir 1 minute.
Add 3/4 cup water and chopped kale and cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer 5 – 10 minutes until kale is tender.
Stir in turmeric and pepper and cook additional minute or two. Stir in desired amount of cooked rice. (Since on an elimination diet I always have cooked rice on hand.)
When cauliflower is tender, blend until smooth. This makes a wonderful gravy to put over any veggies, grains, or potatoes. It’s a great soup base as well or substitute for mashed potatoes.
Pour desired amount of Cauliflower Cream over kale and rice and mix well. Salt to taste.
Add other seasonings as you wish. There are only certain seasonings I can tolerate and because turmeric and pepper are so anti-inflammatory, I’ve made them a daily part of my diet.
Cauliflower Soup w/ Rice
This is creamy, comforting, and so satisfying! This recipe has saved me on my year-long elimination diet.
1 yellow sweet potato yielding 1 cup cooked
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 medium carrots, chopped
Florets from one medium head cauliflower
1 1/2 t marjoram
Salt to taste
Fresh ground pepper
Cooked brown rice or other grain*
Bake sweet potato in 350-degree oven until soft, about 2 hours. Higher temp is shorter time is needed.
Sauté onion in dry soup pot over medium-high heat until it starts to brown. Add garlic and sauté one more minute.
Add about 4 cups water and loosen browning off bottom of pan. Add celery, carrots, then lay cauliflower florets over the top so they can easily be scooped out. Bring to a boil then lower heat to medium, cover, and cook until cauliflower is tender.
Scoop out cooked cauliflower and place in a blender jar and blend until smooth. Add cooked sweet potato and blend. Stir in blender contents into soup pot along with marjoram and mix well. Heat for 5 minutes. Mix in cooked brown rice or other grain. Salt and pepper to taste.
*I love a combination of cooked quinoa and cook buckwheat. Boil 2 cups water, add 1 cup quinoa and ½ cup buckwheat. Lower heat to low, cover, and cook until tender, about 10 – 15 minutes.
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