Recipes

Spice Cake Faux-Meal

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This recipe was inspired by a carrot cake oatmeal posted by Sukkari Life, the sudden bloom of PSLs (yes, we get Pumpkin Spice Lattes here in Doha), and the wishful thinking October brings for lower temperatures (it was only 97F today).

And … it has a vegetable + a fruit, so it’s a healthy breakfast!

Gluten-free, low carb, paleo, Whole30 (with substitutions), vegetarian, vegan (with substations)

Spice Cake Faux-Meal

2 Tbsp. chia seeds
2 Tbsp. unsweetened coconut flakes
2 Tbsp. flaxseed meal
3 Tbsp. grated carrot
3 Tbsp. unsweetened apple sauce
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1.5 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground ginger
2 tsp. butter (sub if vegan)
1 c. your favorite milk (I used hazelnut)
Pinch salt
Pecan halves
Pepitas
1 Tbsp. tahini
1 tsp. date molasses (sub if Keto or Whole30)

Sautée the carrot in the butter over medium heat until soft or just browning.

Add a generous pinch salt and stir.

Add the applesauce, chia, coconut, flaxseed meal and milk. Stir to combine.

Bring up to a bubble and add the spices. Stir.

When the mixture has been cooking a minute or two and has thickened, cut the heat. Let sit a minute or two.

Scoop into a bowl and top with the nuts, tahini and date molasses (if using).

Serves 1 for breakfast

East of the Border Bowl

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This meal is straight out of that twilight time between sleeping and awake – at 3 am – and I’m glad it turned out so well! Korean food and Mexican totally don’t sound like complementary flavors, but this dish works. And it’s delicious.

gluten-free, paleo, keto

East of the Border Bowl

1 spaghetti squash
1 Tbsp. garlic ginger paste
Big handful parsley, chopped
2 Tbsp. coconut aminos or soy sauce
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. ground chicken
1 packet (4 Tbsp.) your favorite taco seasoning blend (check your labels!)
1/2 onion, chopped
1 Tbsp. neutral oil
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
2 scallions, sliced
2-4 Tbsp. gochujiang tahini sauce 

Cook your spaghetti squash until soft, using your favorite method. Shred and reserve half.

Dump half into a large pan over medium-high heat with the sesame oil. Fry until just beginning to brown. Add the soy sauce and stir. Add the parsley and half the garlic and cook, stirring 1-2 minutes or until fully incorporated. Add the rest of the garlic, toss, pull from the heat and set aside.

Put your pan back on the heat and add the Tablespoon neutral oil. Add the chicken and onion and break up with a spoon. Add half the seasoning and work to brown, breaking the chicken up as you go. Add the rest of the seasoning in thirds and cook until browned.

To assemble the bowls, split the squash between two, top with chicken, and arrange the peppers and scallions. Each bowl gets 1-2 Tbsp. sauce.

Serves 2 (bowl) with 2 servings leftover chicken 

Roasted Tropical Salad

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This recipe came about because I was craving pineapple that had been on fire, but can’t be trusted to not try and eat my bodyweight at a churrascaria. Enter the oven – the broiler would have been even better, but come to find out, that’s not something my (European) oven cannot actually accomplish. Boo. The funny things you find you miss when living abroad.

This salad is pretty great, can be dressed up a million different ways, and would make a good addition to any potluck or Summer (even if only in spirit) gathering.

gluten-free, paleo, Whole30 (check your labels), vegetarian and vegan (with omissions)

Roasted Tropical Salad

1 bell pepper (green was less pretty than anticipated; opt for another color if making for a group)
2 medium carrots
1 shallot
1 can pineapple chunks in juice

Chop the above ingredients, sprinkle with a little oil + salt, pepper and chili garlic seasoning and roast in a 200C oven for 20 – 25 minutes, or until the pineapple gets to your desired brownness.

Toss with the following (chopped):

8 ounces shredded red cabbage
Big handful cilantro
1 jalapeno
Thumb ginger
2 cloves garlic

Add the roasted veggies and toss again.

Whisk together the dressing: 

Juice of 1 lemon or lime
2 Tbsp. pineapple juice
1 Tbsp. coconut aminos or soy sauce
2 Tbsp. sesame oil
1 Tbsp. fish sauce (check your labels for Whole30; omit for veg)
1 Tbsp. rice vinegar

Toss bowl of veggies with dressing.

Top with the following optional ingredients:

1 big handful pepitas
2 tsp. sesame seeds
Roast chicken

Serves a crowd at a party, or 4-5 for a meal depending on what you add. 

Gochujiang Tahini Bowl

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This recipe is very loosely based on something I ran across in a PureWow email newsletter: creamy gochujiang sauce. I didn’t have time to click on the link when I saw it, so of course my brain turned it over all afternoon – wondering what that could possibly taste like, and what one would use for cream in a non-dairy way.

The original recipe looks fantastic – and if I’d gotten around to making this recipe in a week DH was home and I hauled myself to the grocery (instead of playing my favorite game: home Chopped), I would have loved to have added zoodles and maybe even coconut milk in place of the dairy.

As it stands, I used what I had on hand – and it was still fabulous. I can think of a ton of ways to use this sauce – in a poke bowl, with spare ribs and broccoli, slicked over mango and scallion, or fried up like bibimbap.

Gluten-free, vegetarian, vegan, paleo if you choose a non-soy variety

Gochujiang Tahini Bowl

Sauce

2 Tbsp. ajvar (or other red pepper) paste
1/4 c. tahini
2 Tbsp. gochujiang (check your labels for gluten free or paleo)
2 tsp. ginger/garlic paste
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/4 – 1/2 c. water

Bowl

Sugar snap peas
Broccoli
4 ounces protein (tofu or tempeh if vegan; rotisserie chicken if not)

Toppers

2 tsp. sesame seeds
1-2 scallions, sliced

Blend the sauce ingredients together, starting with 1/4 cup water. If needed, add an additional 1/2 cup – I wanted my sauce velvety but able to ribbon from my spoon, so I went for the full 1/2 cup. Taste – my ajvar was a bit spicy and my particular gochujiang was whatever the manufacturer deems as level 3. On first taste (after 1/4 cup water), the sauce was a touch spicy – diluting with more water took some of that spice out – so keep that in mind when choosing your thickness level.

Drizzle over your chosen bowl ingredients – I used a combination of quick stir-fried sugar snap peas and broccoli – and top with sesame seeds and thinly sliced scallions.

Makes enough sauce for 4 bowls 

Not Quite Barbacoa

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This is another of those ‘I went to the store wanting to make 1 thing, but they didn’t have half the ingredients so I adapted’ recipes. What I *wanted* was a nice barbacoa. Preferably nicely spiced and not bland (which is what usually happens when I try to make it).

Buuuuutt … the canned chipotles I saw a few weeks ago in one of the markets seem to have evaporated. Dried chilis are not happening. Should have learned my lesson from the enchiladas Turkiladas I made a few months ago and grabbed chipotles when I saw them.

Such is life. Teachable expat moments – even if I learn my lessons slowly.

This beef turned out pretty darn good, though – despite having to go back to olden times and use the oven (gasp!) instead of my electric pressure cooker that decided to up and die on me in the middle of cooking DH’s rice. The day before I was set to make this dish. I’m still not thrilled, and finding a replacement has proven itself a challenge – good thing people have been cooking meat in a liquid low and slow for thousands of years. (still whining though).

Gluten-free, paleo, keto

Processed with MOLDIV

Not Quite Barbacoa

4 or so lb. beef roast
2 Tbsp. dried oregano
2 Tbsp. salt
1 Tbsp. black pepper
3 Tbsp. Thai roast chili paste (see pic)
3 Tbsp. harissa paste (see pic)
1 – 2 onions
4 – 6 bay leaves
2 Tbsp. neutral oil
1 c. beef broth
Extra water on hand

First, preheat your oven to 300F.

Then, make a spice rub out of the oregano, salt and pepper. Rub the beef on all sides with the mixture. Heat the oil in a large pan over high and sear the beef on all sides.

While the beef is working, thinly slice the onions and place in a single layer over the bottom of a casserole dish or dutch oven. Add bay leaves down the center of the pan.

In a small bowl, combine the chili and harissa pastes.

When the beef is done, frost like a cake with the seasoning paste, taking care to flip and get the bottom of the beef as well. Sprinkle any remaining spice rub over top.

Add 1 cup beef broth to the pan around the sides of the beef.

Cover and braise 4 hours. Check to see if the meat will shred and add half a cup or so of water if the mixture is looking a little dry. Chuck back into the oven until the meat will shred, checking every hour – mine took 6 hours to just shred, but honestly I could have left it in a little longer.

Shred the beef, adding more water to the onion mixture if it looks too thick – you don’t want the beef swimming in liquid, but you want enough that it stays juicy.

Makes a big meat you can nibble at all week – I served mine in lettuce wraps, over zoodles, over cauliflower mash, over roasted butternut squash, and DH had his with rice.

Low Carb Paleo Falafel

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Mmmmm … falafel. Theoretically. I’ve been eating paleo or some variation for so long, I barely remember what falafel tastes like – and feel like most of them that I’ve had (except for the very few I’ve taken bites of over here) are kind of dry and tasteless. Joyless.

These could use a touch of work on the wetness side – I suspect an extra egg in the batter would do it – but they’re good. Flavorful, they hold together pretty well, and with the sauce drizzles: yuuuuummmmmmm.

gluten-free, paleo, low-carb, vegetarian, vegan

081418-3

Low Carb Paleo Falafel 

Based on Perfect Whole30 Blender Cauliflower Falafel Tahini Bowl by Paleo Gluten Free Eats

Falafel

2 cups cauliflower rice
1 cup onion
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1/2 cup fresh flat leaf parsley
1 large egg
1 Tbsp. arrowroot powder
1/2 cup coconut flour
1 tsp. mango powder (or sumac or lemon powder)
2 tsp. cayenne
1 Tbsp. turmeric
1 Tbsp. cumin
1 Tbsp. zaatar
1 tsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. black pepper
4 – 5 cloves garlic

Tahini Sauce

1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup neutral oil (like avocado oil)
1/4 cup water
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 date (or 1 tsp. date molasses)
2 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp. sea salt

Extras

Neutral oil for baking
Pomegranate molasses (check your labels for sugar!)
Zaatar

Preheat your oven to 200C (about 400F). Line a baking tray with foil.

Pulse all falafel items except cauliflower rice in a large food processor until a paste forms. Dump into a large bowl. Add the cauliflower and stir with your hands to combine thoroughly.

Form into golf ball sized balls and place onto the baking tray. Drizzle with a little neutral oil and bake 20 mins. Flip and bake an additional 15 – 20 minutes, or until browned nicely.

Drizzle with the tahini sauce and pomegranate molasses. Dust liberally with zaatar and serve.

Serves 4 for dinner or makes a nice party platter

Low Carb Broccoli Chicken Salad

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This salad is great as a side for a potluck, is even better when it sits for awhile, and can be easily made vegetarian/vegan/Keto/allergen-friendly.

Gluten-free, paleo, Whole30, Keto, vegetarian, vegan

Low Carb Broccoli Chicken Salad

2-3 cups broccoli, chopped
1/4 head (about 1 cup) red cabbage, chopped
1 shallot, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 scallion, sliced
Almonds – mix of slivered raw and smoked, chopped

Dressing

1/4 cup orange juice
2 teaspoons almond butter
2 teaspoons white miso (can sub if strict paleo)
2 Tablespoons neutral oil

Optional Toppers

Shredded rotisserie chicken
Your favorite raisins

Chop and steam your broccoli until crisp-tender. Drain and set aside to cool.

While the broccoli is cooling, prep all ingredients, adding all but the dressing and toppers to a large bowl. Add the broccoli.

Whisk the dressing and pour over the bowl.

Toss (I massage in with my hands). Hit with salt & pepper.

To serve, top with your desired extras.

As written, serves 2-4 for dinner

Pineapple Mint Smoothie

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This is a bright and fresh smoothie. If you can find it, fresh turmeric would be great here.

Gluten-free, paleo, vegetarian, vegan, Whole30

Pineapple Mint Smoothie

1/2 c. frozen spinach
2 rings pineapple (packed in juice)
1/2 avocado
2 Tbsp. fresh mint
1/2 in. fresh ginger
2 tsp. dried turmeric
1/4 c. pineapple juice
3/4 c. water

Whiz all ingredients together to make one smoothie.

Japanese CYOA Bowls

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This is another in my series of Asian-inspired ‘choose your own adventure’ dinners – these seem to be working best for DH’s and my separate nutrition needs and the type of light summer foods we’ve both been craving.

Gluten-free, paleo, Whole30, Keto, vegetarian, vegan

Japanese CYOA Bowls

In the bottom of your bowl, add:

1/2 tsp. ginger garlic paste
1 tsp. coconut aminos
2 tsp. sesame oil
1/2 tsp. rice vinegar
Squirt sriracha (optional)

Add your base – like zoodles or rice – and toss.

Top with:

Sliced radish
Sliced nori
Sliced scallions
Shredded rotisserie chicken
Soft boiled egg
Shrimp

Sprinkle on a little furikake or some sesame seeds, serve and enjoy.

Apple Ginger Smoothie

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This is a spin on my old favorite green smoothie recipe for days I can’t find a ripe avocado to save my life – and to include romaine lettuce instead of kale for giggles.

Gluten-free, paleo, vegetarian, vegan, Whole30

Apple Ginger Smoothie

1/2 c. frozen spinach
1/2 Granny Smith apple
1/4 c. orange juice
1/2 in. fresh ginger
1/2 c. romaine lettuce
2 Tbsp. chia seeds
3/4 c. water

Whiz all ingredients together to make one smoothie.