And the weekend is over once again. The two free days of the week always seem to disappear like a puff of smoke. Saturdays starts off with the hope that I will get lots done and Sundays arrive all too soon with very little crossed off the to-do list. How can 16-17 waking hours a day seem like two? The answer is beyond me. Yesterday, I read an article by Penelope Trunk here about doing the first thing on your list first and not fluffing around with the minor items. If you don't cross off the big things, you will have no sense of satisfaction at the end of the day even if you have done several minor jobs. So I have crossed off a big one but got very little else done. I am not sure if the sense of satisfaction was greater than if I now had a shorter list. The next big thing on my list is a cookbook review I have been meaning to do for a while. Maybe this week. Just a reminder that my giveaway of a Cuisinart mini processor finishes in less than a day so if you haven't entered yet, do so … [Read more...] about Double Chocolate Brownie Cheesecake Squares – gluten-free & low FODMAP
Low Fodmap Recipes
Crispy Polenta Chicken Caesar Salad – Jamie Oliver’s 15 Minute Meals
It's been quite a while since I have made one of Jamie Oliver's 15-minute meals. This was a good one to start back on because it was suitably low FODMAP with only a few changes. Jamie's choice of ciabatta had to be a gluten-free loaf and I had to remove the garlic but added in a little garlic-infused oil for the taste. It is a simple, tasty meal which was relatively quick to make although it took much longer than 15 minutes. In fact between cooking, photographing the finished dish and eating it, one and half hours passed. If you are on the low Fodmap diet, make sure the yogurt in the recipe is lactose-free. Crispy Polenta Chicken Caesar Salad Print Serves: Serves 4 Ingredients For the chicken 2x200g skinless chicken breasts ½ tsp smoked paprika 2 tbsp polenta Salt & pepper olive oil For the salad 1 gluten-free loaf of bread 4 slices bacon Lettuce 10 cherry tomatoes 2 large jarred red peppers Alfalfa sprouts For the dressing 2 tsp garlic-infused olive oil … [Read more...] about Crispy Polenta Chicken Caesar Salad – Jamie Oliver’s 15 Minute Meals
Lemon Curd & Chocolate Tartlets – gluten free and low FODMAP
I am very pleased to say that I have added both avocado and mushrooms back into my diet without any ill effects. They are both a part of the P (polyols) of the word FODMAP so it seems I don't have an intolerance to polyols, which is great because it widens the range of foods I can eat. The other thing I am excited about is that this morning I hit 1,000 likes on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/StrandsOfMyLife To celebrate this momentous event, I am going to do my very first giveaway in my next post. I'll tell you all about it then. This recipe is a mixture of techniques. I got the recipe for the crust from My New Roots. It's based on oat flour and brown rice flour and worked reasonably well. It took a long time to press the dough into the muffin tins and they are a bit crunchy but not too bad for a gluten-free crust. UPDATE: the recipe has disappeared from My New Roots so I now have the recipe written out below because the link stopped working. The filling is my own … [Read more...] about Lemon Curd & Chocolate Tartlets – gluten free and low FODMAP
Peanut Butter Banana Muffins – gluten, grain, dairy and sugar-free
This is the simplest recipe ever. It was given to me by my niece - thank you, Kirsty. It has a minimum of ingredients and no flour or sugar at all. And yet they turned out looking and tasting just like muffins should. Who would have thought it! I love making elaborate slices and tarts but sometimes a batch of quick muffins is just what's needed. I made some marshmallow, caramel, chocolate bars for a guest post last weekend and Adriano didn't like them. He prefers the simplicity of muffins or a piece of cake. I, on the other hand, loved the bars. If you are on the low Fodmap diet, do not use the cashew butter alternative. It is high Fodmap. Peanut Butter Banana Muffins Print Prep time 10 mins Cook time 10 mins Total time 20 mins Serves: 12 muffins Ingredients 1 cup nut butter - peanut, almond or cashew 2 small bananas 2 large eggs ½ tsp baking powder 1 tsp vinegar 1 cup blueberries Method Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Place … [Read more...] about Peanut Butter Banana Muffins – gluten, grain, dairy and sugar-free
Thai Pork in Rice Papers – gluten-free and low FODMAPs
This is what we had for dinner tonight. It is the first time I have used rice papers and they worked better than I expected. At the end of the day, they are just a vessel for whatever you want. I love Thai flavours so that's what I created but I have heaps of rice papers left over and will use them quite differently next time. Thai pork in Rice papers Print Ingredients Rice Papers 400g/14oz pork mince 1 red chilli ½ red pepper 1 courgette 1 carrot A small knob of ginger 1 tbsp soya sauce 1 tsp fish sauce Salt & pepper For the dipping sauce 2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce 2 tsp fish sauce 2 tsp rice vinegar Method Chop finely the red chilli and red pepper. Grate the ginger. Peel and grate the carrot. Grate the courgette. Heat a little oil in a frying pan and add the red chilli and ginger. Cook for a few minutes. Add the red pepper and cook 1 minute. Add the mince and cook until browned. Add the soya and fish sauces and season to taste. Wet the rice papers as … [Read more...] about Thai Pork in Rice Papers – gluten-free and low FODMAPs
Ginger Crunch – low Fodmap and gluten-free
I have been very busy self-publishing one of my novels. For those who don't know, I have three novels published by two publishing houses but the income they bring in is pitiful, as it is for many authors. Only a tiny percentage of authors actually make money. The whole self publishing gig has exploded in the last year or two and another published friend has persuaded me to try this route. I have 18 unpublished manuscripts - yes 18. I think that at least 13 of them are worth being published and I am going to start with 8 of them. The first novel I have self-published on Amazon is the one I am most proud of and I would love you to check it out and, if you like the look of it, download it for only $2.99. Kindle books are ridiculously cheap these days. I will be publishing a new one every few days until the 8 are up there on Amazon. If it goes well, I will explore the arena of print on demand as well. You can find the book here. It's called Merciless Truth. Did I say I am very proud of … [Read more...] about Ginger Crunch – low Fodmap and gluten-free
