Quick & Delish! Spread with Yams and Chives on Sun-dried Tomato Bread

When you have to stay away from lunch meats and cheese, it's easy to get tired of your vegan sandwich spreads. This is a pretty quick option - boiling the yams takes some time, but if you cut them into smaller pieces you can minimize the cooking time to 15 or 20 minutes. Store this spread in a tupperware container in the fridge and it'll last a week. This recipe is for 1-2 people. Here's all you need:

• 2 yams (the ones with red skins and an orange flesh inside.) Peel them and chop them into smaller slices to speed up the cook-time.
• 4 tablespoons of fresh chives (or as much as you like.)
• A few drops of tamari sauce (or a pinch or two of salt)
• Ground black pepper (the coarsely ground pepper looks and tastes great)
• A teaspoon or two of olive oil.
• Optional for more flavor and oomph - a tablespoon of fresh grated ginger. And/or a garlic clove.

Throw the boiled yams into a bowl, mash them up with a fork and add the rest of the ingredients. Have a taste and add more oil/chives/ginger/spices if needed.

For this recipe I used two toasted slices of Whole Foods gluten-free bread with sun-dried tomatoes and roasted garlic (note: this bread contains eggs.) You can also roll this goodness up in a little corn tortilla. 

If you think the sandwich is too dry, stick a tomato or cucumber slice between the bread and spread. 

Or do as the Italians: spread a teaspoon of olive oil on the toast and rub a clove of garlic against it before adding the spread. 


Let me know what you think.

Surviving the Alpine Village Octoberfest - a report

So here I am - a non-drinker, gluten-intolerant and pretty close to vegan - finding myself at the Alpine Village Octoberfest in Torrance, CA. My husband had been wanting to go for weeks. He eats and drinks anything he wants, and to him, a tent the size of an airplane hangar filled with beer and sausage sounds like paradise. 


I tried to postpone this until it was the end of October. Now was his only chance. I knew what I was getting myself into. He asked if I had eaten a salad or something as a preventive measure. I had been working, so I didn't have time to make dinner. I'm sure I can eat sauerkraut, I said. Off we went. 


There were oceans of beer! An oompa boompa band doing polkas and the chicken dance! Thousands of drinkers singing along! A gigantic tapestry of a Bavarian castle in the hilltops! Girls looking like Sunset Strip blondes trying to look German! 


The food selections were just what I expected: German bratwurst, Polish sausage, chilidogs, mega-pretzels and apple cake. The drinks: beer, soda, coffee or bottled water. I didn't feel like being singled out as The Water Drinker at the party. Plus, the port-a-potties looked pretty scary.


But I had a great time pretending I was in Munich for a night, listening to yodeling contests and munching on sauerkraut and potatoes off of my husband's plate. Would I go back next year? Probably not. But I survived!

What's in my pantry? When I feel extra crappy

• Pure aloe vera juice. It’s a great support for your digestive system and helps maintain stomach PH balance. The taste is hard to get over, but it does great things for your stomach and skin. I drank a quarter of a cup every morning for a month before my wedding, and it contributed to the best complexion I’ve ever had. Lily of the Desert is a good brand – get the juice, not the gel. I find it’s also helpful in soothing minor eye and gum inflammations. I use it as a mouthwash sometimes – better than the standard over-sweetened, chemical concoctions out there.

• Detox tea by the Yogi Tea company. It’s not too pricey – about $3,50-4,50 for a box of 16 teabags. It contains burdock root and a multitude of other ingredients that promote liver and kidney function - imperative for a healthy skin. They also sell berry and peach detox teas if you get tired of the original flavor. Yogi Tea is sold in major city supermarkets, but you can also buy it online through yogitea.com or get larger quantities through amazon.com.

What's in my pantry? Fruits, produce & herbs

• Fresh fruits that are kind to a sensitive stomach. Sweet Gala apples, Bartlett pears, honeydew melon, watermelon, peaches, mango. Sometimes a banana for a more filling breakfast. Berries when they’re in season and cheaper – a box of fresh raspberries are a wonderful treat that’s way better for me than pastries and chocolate!
  
• Produce that's kind to a sensitive stomach. Broccoli, carrots, yams, sweet potatoes, buttery yukon-gold potatoes, fennel for Italian dishes and a cool touch to salads, collard greens, kale, romaine lettuce or beautiful red-leaf lettuce, sprouts, cucumber. Sometimes you can get tired of eating greens, so add some tomatoes, scallions and red bell peppers for some balance in flavor and color contrast! Get your produce at the local farmer's market if you can - especially the organic produce tastes superior to the supermarket stuff. Compare the scent, feel and taste of tomatoes and you'll see what I mean... Tip: buy seasonal produce to keep costs down.

• Fresh herbs. If you're on a very tight budget, fresh herbs are the #1 way to upgrade your dishes. Try basil in tomato dishes and thyme or dill with root veggies like potatoes and yams. Chives and cilantro are great with lots of vegetarian and fish dishes. If you can stick a pot of herbs on your window sill or plant them in front of your doorstep (like I did!), you'll save $$$.

What's in my pantry? Condiments, Spices & Flavor Boosters

• Olive oil. If you happen to live in LA, Guidi Marcello's in Santa Monica is the best Italian specialty store and has some great olive oil (and Star tomato sauce!) that doesn't cost a fortune. 
• Double concentrated tomato paste. Amazing flavor-enhancer for soups, stews and marinades. You can buy it in a tube and keep it in the fridge. 
• Organic vegetable bouillon. Perfect for a quick soup base, but I also add a teaspoon to the water when I cook pasta, brown rice, quinoa and other grains, and potatoes - it's such a flavor booster. My newly discovered favorite is the "Better Than Bouillon" organic vegetable base. It comes in a little glass jar. You use one teaspoon for one cup ( 8 oz) of water.  
• Unsweetened coconut flakes. Great to sprinkle over cereal, and a subtle sweetener.
• Cinnamon. Another great subtle sweetener to put on cereal, rice-milk or rice-yoghurt.
• Honey or agave nectar. I’m not big on the taste of agave nectar in my morning tea, but it’s good for diabetics and it’s more subtle when used in cooking. Honey happens to give me heartburn, but small doses are ok if you really miss sugar. It’s also great to use a drop of honey when you’re sautéing green vegetables like kale and collard greens, to break off some of the bitter taste.
• Tamari sauce. Tamari does contain soy, but it's wheat-free and is a great alternative to salt. It has a much smoother taste than regular soy sauce and is awesome to use in stir-fries, marinades, sauces, soups, stews and even in mashed potatoes. Sold in many major supermarkets. Get the low-sodium version if you can.

What's in my pantry? The fillers (grains, breads, spreads, select canned foods)

• Gluten-free cereals. Any brand of unsweetened corn flakes is fine. I also love Nature's Path's gluten-free Whole O's, Erewhon's box of unsweetened corn flakes or crispy brown rice, and Bakery On Main's granolas.
  
• Gluten-free bread or corn tortillas for sandwiches and wraps. Wholefoods makes a bread with sundried tomatoes and roasted garlic that I really like. Only thing is it does contain milk and eggs. The Sensitive Baker in Culver City sell bread that's gluten and milk-free. If you have time, you can bake your own bread using Bob's Red Mill bread mixes. All three options still contain eggs. I just discovered a great, hearty German bread called "Genuine Bavarian" and it's wheat/dairy/egg-free - and reasonably priced. Corn tortillas are also an option for wraps. They're much cheaper than most gluten-free breads, so you can alternate between the two. Just make sure you eat the tortillas, as they're fresh foods and go bad pretty fast! 
  
  
  Whole Foods Gluten-Free Products
  
  The Sensitive Baker
  
  Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Products
  
  
  
• Spreads. Non-dairy and non-soy options include hummus, guacamole and things like mashed potatoes or yams with chives, scallions and green herbs. According to my Israeli friends, the only processed hummous brand worth eating is Sabra (find it at CostCo and other stores.) I prefer the fresh-made hummous at Wholefoods, and add my own flavors to it like chives, herbs, garlic, pepper or sundried tomatoes. You can also whip up your own spreads - see my blog for quick recipes!
• Gluten-free grains like jasmine rice and quinoa. Brown rice is tough on my stomach, and jasmine rice has a much nicer scent and flavor... Quinoa has lots of protein and is a good substitute for cous-cous in Middle Eastern dishes. Make sure you rinse the quinoa grains before cooking them, and add a little olive oil, tamari or herbs to make things less dry or bland.
• Gluten-free pasta by Ancient Quinoa Harvest. All other brands look and taste like the equivalent of a wet floor mop in my opinion. Use a teaspoon of olive oil as the water boils and stir continually to avoid sticky spaghetti...
• Canned tomatoes, red kidney beans and corn. I try my best to avoid processed foods, but when you're overworked or in a time crunch, you can make a great batch of veg chili for work lunches with this. If you have more time you can soak your own beans overnight. 
• Wholefoods 365 brand of vegetable broth or Better Than Bouillon vegetable base. Yes, these are processed foods, but acceptable for soup stock when you're in a hurry. Also nice as a light lunch or dinner paired with a sandwich. 

What's in my pantry? Drinks

• A glass of water with a little fresh lemon. A great start of the day, especially if you have acid reflux and had a late dinner the night before that’s making your morning miserable. Lemon in moderate doses seems to alkalize and balance out stomach acid. I have the hardest time drinking water because of the bland taste, so the lemon helps a lot to give it some flavor. You can experiment with your water flavors by adding lemon, cucumber or orange slices.
• Wholefoods 365 brand of unsweetened rice-milk. You can instead buy Rice Dream at most regular super markets, but I just found it a little too sweet after a while.
• Roibos tea. An herbal tea from a South-African bush that resembles regular tea the most in color and flavor. I was addicted to strong black Irish breakfast tea, but it gave me heartburn, so roibos is my best alternative. It's pretty common now in major supermarkets and coffee shop chains. It's sold either plain or flavored with fruits or spices, like apricot, vanilla, earl grey or chai.