THEMATIC Thursdays: The (Great) Pumpkin Visits Town

It's that orange-and-black time of year. And the orange in this mix comes from pumpkin (at least, on this blog it does). There's a plethora of sugarless, flourless pumpkin recipes online: Here's a pumpkin oatmeal pancake. There are a lot of ingredients, including artificial sweetener, in this pumpkin bread, but it's worth a shot. These brownies contain pumpkin puree--try them.And, this pumpkin-bean soup looks really healthy, filling...and delicious. Thanks to

TIPS Tuesday: Float It...or Coat It

Just tossing up a non-lettuce leaf salad with dressing, sometimes doesn't really work too well, I find. 

Sometimes dressing for, say, a cauliflower salad--as from last Saturday--or an asparagus or green bean salad, really needs to marinate the salad--float a little in the dressing, as it were--before you can serve it. Another possibility is to coat the salad ingredients with just some olive oil, and maybe one or two of the dry dressing ingredients (for example, parsley or paprika), let that sit for a bit, or even chill overnight, before tossing it with the dressing-proper. You can divide, or reserve, some of the dry ingredients, as well, to sprinkle over your marinated salad before serving.

SCRUMPTIOUS Saturdays: Spanish-Style Cauliflower Salad

This is really yummy--an adaptation of an adaptation. At first I couldn't see how it would work--cauliflower not being very flavorful, but with the dressing you make for this dish, it makes sense, and you can even get a hint of Spain (perhaps).

Utensils: chopping board, sharp knives, small whisk

Ingredients: salad -- 1 half head cauliflower, 1 cup finely diced parsley, 1 finely diced green onion (scallion), 1 minced hard-boiled egg; dressing -- 1/4 cup olive oil, 2 tbsp. red wine vinegar, 1 pressed garlic clove, 1 tbsp capers, 1 tbsp. paprika, dash, cayenne.

Notes: Make the dressing and set aside. Separate the cauliflower into small florets, about as big, maybe a little bigger, than your thumb. Steam in an inch of boiling water, with 2 tablespoons lemon juice, for 10-12 minutes. Let cool, pat the florets dry. Toss into the dressing, cover and refrigerate. The next day, spoon some cauliflower onto a salad plate, sprinkle some of the parsley and egg on the top. Serve.

Then toss the cauliflower in the dressing. After that, toss in the parsley and green onion. Parsley and hard-boiled egg provide color and texture, but not too much flavor--for that, you should probably dial up various elements of the dressing: garlic, capers, cayenne, paprika, etc. It's important to steam the cauliflower as directed, then allow to cool, then marinate in the dressing, refrigerated, overnight.

THEMATIC Thursdays: Nuts for Coconuts

How much can coconut add to flourless recipes? Here's a New York Times recipe (with rolled oats, not flour) for granola bars. This coconut primer basically spells out the coconut facts you need in the kitchen. BTW, stay away from canned coconut cream--like the kind you might have used in college to make pina coladas--as it contains sugar.

TIPS Tuesday: Vim and Vinegar

Don't skimp on vinegar. You don't need to buy top-of-the-line, but at least have these four on hand: balsamic, red wine, white wine and rice. Each offers different help for various dishes, and while they can sometimes be subsituted for one another, it's best to use the right kind. Vinegar provides the savory, tartness or bite for which so many recipes depend. And, hundreds of years of experimenting by cooks better than I have found they mesh well, and enhance or support a variety of flavors you'd never think about needing such help. The Vinegar Institute is a good resource, as is About's Vinegar recipes page.

SCRUMPTIOUS Saturdays: Super-Quick Olive & Garlic Dip

Wow. This is the easiest thing I've made all year. This dip, with olives, garlic and green onion takes 10 minutes to make, tops.

Equipment: blender, spatula, large glass or ceramic bowl

Ingredients: 1 cup olives (from olive bar); 5-7 garlic cloves, pressed; 2 green onion stalks, diced; 2 cups sour cream (or any combination of sour cream and yogurt you wish); 1 dollop mayonnaise.

Notes: You shouldn't need to add spices because of the amount of garlic, which you can alter up or down. Add the olives and garlic to the blender first, then blend them, then add the sour cream/yogurt and mayo, along with the green onion. The dip should turn a slightly taupe color, especially if you've mixed it up with a variety of olives, including black ones.

THEMATIC Thursdays: Cleaning Out Your Digestive Closet

Cleansing Foods. I don't write at all about 'purges,' 'cleanses,' and 'de-toxification,' for the simple reason that I don't know a lot about these topics, although they are hugely popular points of discussion in Los Angeles, where a lot of food-fads and health-fads hang-out. Nevertheless, the lists of foods that are considered 'cleansing' always interest me.

Jordan Rubin, the author of The Maker's Diet, who runs a large nutrition-supplements company, offered this list in a recent issue of "Healthy Living," a free shopper mag in L.A.:

*Avocados
*Raw coconut cream
*Flaxseeds and Chia Seeds
*Raw cultured veggies (like sauerkraut)
*Fresh vegetable juices
*Blueberries
*Cucumbers
*Tomatoes
*Raw milk kefir and yogurt

You can use this list as a launching pad for your own examination of 'cleansing' foods--needless to say, there are no refined carbs on this list.

TIPS Tuesday: Tasty Tempeh Tips--Do More Than Just Crumble It

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I've written about using tempeh to make vegan hash--a kind of breadless stuffing I created to solve the problem of making a stuffing, or dressing, without refined carbs. But, creative cooks are also using tempeh in really interesting ways--one is to make 'mock bacon.' Some cook to do this, others just use in raw form, with spices or marinades.

Matthew Kenney's book, Everyday Raw, offers great ideas for tempeh--a few are here at Raw Simple. More tips can be found at The Kitchn blog. Finally, vegan chefs offer this list of quick takes on tempeh at Carpe Vegan.

SCRUMPTIOUS Saturdays - cauliflower salad or kale or warm spinach salad

Although this is a repeat, to make this queso, I used a combination of Pace Picante Sauce, and Von's Organic Chipotle Sauce, which--it's horrible to think about--contains some organic cane sugar juice. Why, I couldn't tell you--as chipotle sauce isn't meant to be even a tiny bit sweet. The good news is that cane juice is ingredient number "10" on a 14-ingredient list. Anyways, the chipotle salsa gives the queso extra kick.

Equipment: small ceramic ramekin, microwave, fork

Ingredients: 1/2 cup salsa, 2/3 cup refried beans, 1/2 diced cheese, such as Monterey Jack. Veggies or tortilla chips for dipping in the queso.

Notes: combine ingredients in ramekin, cover with a plate or other ceramic item. Heat on medium (I choose "4") for 4-5 minutes. Remove, stir, continue heating until cheese is melted and all ingredients can be combined. A great addition can be adding diced green onion to the already-heated mixture.

PRODUCT Of the Week: Trader Joe's Plain Organic Yogurt

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Versatile, healthy and delicious, and under $4 bucks, TJ's European Style Organic Plain Yogurt, 32 oz. (just a tad creamier than the regular plain yogurt), is great in smoothies, muesli, dips, dressing, sauces--you name it. Perfect for breakfast: small ice-cubes, 1/3 cup plain yogurt, 1 cup fresh raspberries, 1 ripe banana sliced. Blend. Pour into glass. Really good.

TIPS Tuesday: Butter, Margarine or Oil?

I tend to use these interchangeably because I'm Not Eating Refined Carbs--so I worry less about the fats side. Still, you want to know what's best--really everything has drawbacks. Moderation is key. For a handy guide to fats, click this American Heart Association primer. The U.S. National Institutes of Health basically chooses limited oils intake over butter or margarine, and tallies up saturated fats in this PDF. And, the feds offer this helpful research-based summary.

SCRUMPTIOUS Saturdays: Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers

A great little meal in a pocket, so to speak:

You will need: sharp knife, cutting board, large glass or plastic bowl, skillets.

Ingredients: 5 green peppers, hollowed out; 1 can black beans; 1 large onion, diced and sauteed; 1 package of mushrooms, diced and sauteed; fresh rosemary, to taste; salt and pepper, to taste; 2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar; 1/2 lemon, juiced.

Notes: chop and saute the veggies; mix the other ingredients in a bowl, then add the veggies. Mix, stuff the peppers, and bake the peppers on a cookie sheet at 325 degrees for 35 to 45 minutes.

THEMATIC Thursdays: Pick Your Own...

It's getting to be that time of year...time to 'pick your own.' Nothing beats fresh fruits and veggies out of the garden, or off the farm. You can do this in many places--heck, even in Arizona. Here's a great guide. So, whether you live in Brooklyn, NY, or Bellingham, WA, you can still pick something to grace your table and nourish yourself. Speaking of Washington state, many farms suffered a cold, wet spring, damaging crops--call before you go.

TIPS Tuesday: It's Cauliflower Time

I've been seeing cauliflower in markets. Turns out California grows more than 90% of all U.S. cauliflower. It's versatile, pairs well with melted cheeses, can form a kind of no-flour crust with slightly browned, melted cheddar, and is healthful, reportedly containing anti-cancer agents. Loads of recipes are online, like this roasted one and this gratin, which you could adapt to eliminate the flour and bread-crumbs. Here's an interesting Indian non-vegetarian curry. I plan on making this Spanish-style cauliflower salad.

SCRUMPTIOUS Saturdays: spicy stir-fried tofu for Sept. 17

I'm traveling, so here's a great New York Times recipe to try: Spicy Stir-Fried Tofu with Corn, Green Beans and Cilantro.

THEMATIC Thursdays: Blood-Sugar in Focus...Do You Know Your A1C #s?

Recently a friend mentioned the importance of following a particular measure of blood-sugar health--one I hadn't heard of...

Although this isn't a nutrition blog, per se, the reality of focusing on avoiding sugar--and finding substitutes--leads us into the thicket blood-sugar research. One blood-sugar health metric is called A1C--it's a measure of glycated hemoglobin. When sugar builds up in your bloodstream, it combines with the hemoglobin, which becomes 'glycated.' You may also want to know about your Estimated Average Glucose level. Gary Taubes, the author of "Why We Get Fat" has written about this and related issues.

Bottom line: blood-sugar health is not just for people with diabetes--we all need to know what's happening in our bloodstreams and how to utilize diet to maintain optimum health in this regard.

TIPS Tuesday: Vive Los Chiles Rellenos

There is very little chance I'd give up Mexican food. But, much of it does come in flour-based wrappers. What to do? Well, besides using zucchini slices to scoop up salsa, there is one dish that avoids this problem entirely (I do permit the occasional tortilla chip, though): chiles rellenos. Usually stuffed--with cheeses, and sometimes other veggies--poblano chiles, you can order it with beans, and ask to hold the rice. That's how I rolled at Marix the other day--the first time I'd been in there since beginning my NERC diet. Esta bien.

PRODUCT of the Week: Whole Foods Dry-Roasted Peanuts**

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After a few days of picking through the meager no-refined-carbs offerings of chain eateries, I located a Whole Foods, went there, and purchased some yogurt, fruit, buckwheat...and peanuts! Yes, dry-roasted peanuts were on sale for $2.29 for a jar of Whole Foods 365 house brand (Las Vegas Blvd. store, LAS, NV). And, while I normally don't buy salted nuts, these weren't over-salted. **Here's their helpful guide to nuts and seeds.

SCRUMPTIOUS Saturdays (Um...Mondays): Moroccan Chicken

I'm doing a lot of travel through the end of September, so I'm not around to cook a lot: here's a pretty neat recipe for Moroccan Chicken from Slow Carb Foodie, adapted from Mark's Daily Apple. It's a lot of ingredients and steps, and normally I wouldn't go for that. But I would simplify this by grating the cauliflower, combining all the dry spice ingredients together, browning the chicken, and then 'breading' the chicken with the spice mixture before putting it in a baking pan with the other wet/fresh ingredients to cook. Just a thought.

Another possibility is to create a Middle Eastern marinade out of all of the ingredients, save the cauliflower, and after marinating overnight in the fridge, 'bread' the chicken with the grated cauliflower, then bake...just a thought.

THEMATIC Thursdays: Strategies for Eating at Casual Dining Chains

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What to do about eating at casual dining chains for breakfast--Denny's, Coco's, Bakers Square and the like--when it's a refined-carbs festival of flour and sugar?

You can ask for any entree without the potatoes, toast, hash-browns, pancakes and muffins. Coco's has a "turkey sausage and eggs" entree, which you can order with fresh fruit--in this case, it was a melon selection, in a Nevada location. Boston Market offers three-side dishes as an entree-order--all of which can be vegetables.

If you don't ask, you don't get--the more people that ask, the more likely these choices are going to made available with greater selection on casual dining menus.