A New Soup Recipe - I Could Not Stop Eating It!!!

About a month ago, I made up this soup and invited my friend, Claire to come eat it with me. She loved it (as did I). She told me to write it down while it was fresh in my mind but I kept forgetting to and, like all memories, it faded away.

Tonight, I decided to revive it and it was SO much better than the original that I simply could not stop eating it. Luckily it was nutricious so I did not feel super guilty about it. I was truly thrilled with it. Here is what I did.

Curried Yam with Chicken Soup

1 Rotisserie Chicken (from the market or home made)

1 box chicken broth (or juices from home made chicken plus water to top off)

3 cloves garlic chopped

1/2 yellow onion

1 1/2 cups minced carrots

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons butter or non-hydrogenated substitute

1/2 teaspoon mustard seed

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 1/2 teaspoon curry powder

1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon cumin

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or to taste)

3 large chopped yams

Chop up yams, onions, garlic, mince carrots in a food processor if you have one otherwise, chop them. Heat soup pot on medium high until hot. Add olive oil and butter. Add garlic and sautee. Add onion, sautee. Add carrots, sautee. Add mustard seed and salt and stir. Add other spices mixed. Sautee until aromatic. Add yams and sautee for about 1o minutes. Add boxed chicken broth or pan drippings from home made chicken plus water to covering. Bring to a boil and simmer for 20-30 minutes or until tender.

Scoop out most of the soup into a blender or vitamix and blend well. Return creamy soup back in with chunks and broth to create a creamy and chunky effect together. Chop up cooked chicken and add as much or as little as you like and stir. Simmer a few minutes more and serve.

I seriously could not stop eating this. My eyes rolled back in my head upon first taste so I knew it was perfect. I hope this comes out as great for you as it did for me.

For more information on living a gluten free, dairy free, delicious and healthy life, go to http://www.deliciousandhealthy.com/

Thank you!!!!

Be Delicious!

Dr. Meg

Gluten Free Breakfast Recipe

Gluten free folks are always looking for simple, delicious recipes for breakfast. Afterall, most breakfasts consist of toast, pancakes, bagels, pasteries, coffee cakes, and the list goes on. ALL of those are packed with gluten. Here's a simple, delicious breakfast you can make.

• Make two eggs over easy or poached (to poach, simply drop raw eggs in boiling water for a couple of minutes, then remove with a slotted spoon).
  


• Fill a bowl with salad greens on the bottom (about 1/3 of bowl).



• Place cooked rice, quinoa, or millet on top of that (I like them cold from the fridge).



• Place your eggs on top of that.



• Add hot sauce (I LOVE Cholula) and/or Bragg's Liquid Aminos.
  

Eat up and enjoy all those great flavors. If your quinoa, rice or millet has veggies or meats in it, all the better for adding more protein, flavor and nutrition.

For more information on gluten and dairy free living, go to http://www.deliciousandhealthy.com/

Brussels Sprouts; From Yuck to Yum

As a child, brussels sprouts seriously made me gag. I remember being forced to eat "at least two bites" and hearing how "good they are for you". Y-u-c-k! I did not care if they were the antedote to snake venom. They were gross.

Turns out that I was fed frozen Brussels sprouts. They are nasty bitter and they got soggy too. There was no amount of sauce or spice that could mask that fact. Mom couldn't possibly hide them in a casserole without my gag reflex finding out. Blech!

So, fast forward to 2009 and a cooking class I took in South Carolina. The chef sauteed fresh Brussels sprouts in butter, salt and pepper. That was it. Simple. When I bit into it, I was so pleasantly surprised by the flavor and even more so by the fact that I couldn't stop eating them! No gagging. No joke.

Tonight, I sauteed up some of those little cruciferous cabbages in olive oil, salt and pepper. I like to let the pan get nice and hot while I cut the sprouts in half. I then add the olive oil (about 2 tablespoons).

I drop them sizzling loudly as they hit the skillet. What a great sound. Music, really. I then add salt and pepper using my eyes and my intuition to determine the amount. I stay with them, stirring them, watching their color change to a bright, hot green. They get a little brown. A sign of flavor on the plate.

Ultimately, I like them salty and crunchy. I don't cook them long. I add a little water if the pan gets overheated to prevent burn. Too much water makes them soggy. Too little and it splatters. Just right and it will cook down and steam the outer leaves.

Pretty green half cabbages on a plate and I can't stop eating them. Yum. We have arrived.

A bag, already washed is only $1.99 at Trader Joe's - just so you know . . .

Single Man's Soup - A Stupid Simple Recipe

On yet another cold and rainy night in what is supposed to be sunny Los Angeles, I received a call from my BFF, celebrity hair stylist, Billy Lowe with a simple request. "Meg! I want soup tonight! Can you come over and make it here?"

Knowing my dear bachelor friend, I began to ask questions pertaining to cookware and basic food supplies to see just what I had to work with. There were no knives, no chopping board, no salt, no pepper, and no olive oil BUT, he did have a stock pot, an a couple of wooden spoons.

My love for a challenge in the kitchen was ignighted by this request. My passion for teaching the kitchen clueless also perked right up. I then set off to a nearby Trader Joes to pick up the ingredients.

Here's the recipe:

Single Man's Soup

1 bag chopped vegetables (we used Asian Stir Fry Vegetables)
1 bag chopped onion
1 box Just Chicken (cooked and ready to eat)
1 box Chicken Broth (organic, free range)
2 tablespoons Earth Balance Buttery Spread (or Olive Oil)
Salt and Pepper to taste

First we sauteed the onion in Earth Balance butter substitute. Next we added the whole bag of veggies followed by the entire box of broth. We then added salt and pepper until it tasted great. We brought that to a boil then turned it down to low to simmer for a few minutes. We both like our veggies to be a little bit crunchy so we didn't cook them for long. For the last few minutes, we added the entire box of Just Chicken. You want to add the chicken last so that it just gets heated and not over cooked as it will become tough. Next thing we knew, it was ready to eat.

With no soup ladle, Billy improvised, using a mug to scoop his soup out. He had one bowl that he insisted I use while he used a glass, two cup, measuring cup. We then sat down at his table (yes, he does have a table) and began to devour this hot, delicious, simple treat. And it was tasty. Billy gushed about it's goodness - from it's health value to it's flavor - all throughout the meal. He loved it so much, he had a second helping - also known as four cups of soup!

When asked if he would make this soup again on his own, Billy offerd an emphatic "Yes!" But, we both agreed it's a lot more fun to make it together.

You can find all of these ingredients in most super markets. At Trader Joes, the soup cost about $15.00 (including salt and pepper grinders).

For a Trader Joe's near you, click here.