Paleo Lunch Bowl

I really like how my lunchtime meals have changed since going Paleo.  Food seems to be so much more interesting and creative.  This is what I had for lunch yesterday.

Beef bone broth and onions, left over kale and garlic mushrooms with homemade turkey meatballs!

Ingredients:

Beef broth
I make beef bone broth in large batches and freeze it in mason jars so I always have some available.  I use a fantastic recipe from Nom Nom Paleo that takes about an hour in a pressure cooker!


Meatballs
At weekends I sometimes make meatballs to freeze for snacks or to have on hand to make a quick meal.  For this lunch bowl I used some frozen Turkey Meatballs I made this weekend. The recipe came from The Spunky Coconut Cookbook. I had made them before several times, but this time I used turkey instead of chicken and made them about the size of small golf balls - 5 was the perfect amount for my lunch bowl!


Vegetables
The night before we had mushrooms and kale as our main dinner meal vegetable.  I melted some coconut oil, added some chopped garlic and chopped mushrooms and sautéed for 10 minutes.  I added half a bunch of washed and torn kale leaves and sautéed for another 5 minutes.  I then seasoned with finely ground Montreal Steak Seasoning, added a 1/4 cup of water and braised for another 5 minutes with a lid on the pan.   We had about a half cup left so I put it in the fridge not really knowing when or if I would use it. Half a cup of garlicky mushrooms and kale was just the right amount to use in the lunch bowl!


The combination of pre-made ingredients and left-overs made for a wonderful lunch!  And while I was heating up everything in the microwave I even had time to chop a spring onion for garnish...much better than the boring cheese sandwiches I used to eat!

Kale Chips - What works for me!

There are a lot of kale chip recipes out there, they're all similar and pretty simple. For some reason I can never remember exactly what to add and what temperature;

• 325, 350 or 375 degrees Fahrenheit?
• Olive oil, grape seed or what?
• Put the seasoning on before baking or after?

I have tried making oil-free chips in a dehydrator - they looked wonderful but they had a horrible taste with a thin cardboard texture.  So the dehydrator is out which is fine since I'm using it to dry celery for a low-salt celery salt today! I think you just need to experiment and see what works for you in your oven.  Below is a list of what I've learned; 

• Choose a kale variety that has smoother leaves, the more undulating the leaves are, the more difficult it is to evenly bake them.
• Plan to bake an entire bunch of kale...it is addictive and the chips will probably not survive 24 hours!  Trust me :-)
• Heat oven to 350 degrees and go from there (if they start to burn drop the temp to 325, if you end up with soggy leaves bump up the temp to 375 next time). 
• Cut out the stalks with scissors and pull leaves into palm size pieces.
• Put kale into a salad spinner, wash and thoroughly spin dry, lay leaves on a towel to dry.
• To speed things up, and to make sure the leaves are completely dry, you can put them between paper towels and roll out the moisture with a rolling pin.  Don't worry about harming the leaves!
• I have tried various oils like olive oil, grape seed and coconut, but my favorite by far is hazelnut oil.  I recently read that avocado oil works well too, so I may try that next.
• Pour some oil (~1 tbsp) into a small dish that you can dip the tips of your fingers into, and massage the oil onto both sides of the leaves. Make sure you use the oil, if you are economical with oil the leaves will not be protected and you're more likely to end up with dark singed and burned edges.  This is not a recipe where reducing oil will work - if you're worried about the calories in oil don't make these chips.  If you try and be lean with the oil you will increase the risk of uneven baking and half your chips will turn out brown and inedible!  Been there, done that!
• Spread leaves out onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, give the leaves some space and don't overlap.  Place in the oven on a middle rack and set a timer for 10 mins.
• At 10 mins keep an eye on the color of the leaves, you want them green with not even a hint of brown.  As soon as you see any slight browning, pull them out of the oven.  You can always pull out the cooked ones and put the rest back in the oven for a few more minutes; all the leaves are a little different so it makes sense that they will bake slightly differently.
• Mine generally take about 11 to 12 mins depending on how many leaves I load on the tray - I usually split a bunch of kale in to 2 or 3 batches in the oven.
• When you take them out of the oven immediately slide the parchment paper onto a cooling rack or cool granite surface to prevent them from cooking any longer, and season with salt.  I'm currently having a love-affaire with Herbamare seasoned salt, but you can also use garlic salt, paprika, ground steak seasoning, whatever makes your taste buds happy!

So to summarize;

1. Set oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
2. Cut stalks from leaves 
3. Wash leaves and dry really well
4. Massage in oil (don't skimp)
5. Place leaves on a lined baking tray (make sure leaves don't touch)
6. Place in oven for 10 mins (keep an eye on them)
7. Season after they come out of the oven!

Enjoy your crunchy, salty little leaves of green!

Gringo "Chiles" En Nogada

I love, love, love Chiles en Nogada!!!!  This recipe is inspired by Chiles en Nogada, and arose from a desire to eat walnuts and cream for dinner, use up some orange peppers and make a dairy free and gluten free meal.

This can (should) be made with Poblanos but if you can't find them or want a milder version, you can use peppers -  Peppers en Nogada? Or  fill large tomatoes and use as appetizers!

This is also a quick and dirty low sugar version, so I haven't included any dried or candied fruits in this recipe.  The cinnamon and sweetness of the cashew cream is enough for my developing paleo pallet!

This is what you need:

Filling

• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• 1lb of ground buffalo or grass-fed beef
• 1 small tin of tomato puree (I used homemade)
• 1 cup chicken or beef broth (I used homemade beef broth)
• 1/2 a large onion (finely chopped)
• 2-3 garlic cloves (finely chopped)
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 cup hot green chili or salsa - I had some very hot green chili in the freezer, so I used that
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 3-4 tbsp cashew cream

To put the filling in

• 2  poblano chiles, or peppers or tomatoes 

To garnish

• cashew cream with chopped walnuts
• cilantro
• pomegranate seeds
• guacamole

This is what you do:
Melt/heat the coconut oil in a pan, add chopped onions and saute on medium heat for 5-10 minutes...don't rush this part.  Add garlic and saute for another 30 secs before adding the ground meat.  Saute until the meat is brown and there are no red pieces left, 5-10 minutes. Add the tomato puree, cinnamon and broth, bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes.  Add green chili to taste (I added a little more than 1 cup), chopped walnuts and cashew cream and simmer for another 10 mins.  Taste to see if you need some salt (my broth had salt so it didn't need it) or more cinnamon.  If you like a more creamy mixture add a couple more tbsps of cashew cream!
[You can freeze the mixture at this point and defrost when needed.  I tend to spend my Sunday afternoons cooking and freeze partial meal items for use later in the week/month]

1. If you use poblanos, cut the top off and remove the inner seeds.  Place in a heat-proof glass dish and bake in an oven at 350 F for about 10 minutes.
2. If you use peppers, cut the top off and remove the inner seeds. Submerge in boiling water for 10 minutes.
3. If you use tomatoes, cut the top off and scoop out the insides, no further preparation is needed at this time.

Allow poblanos/peppers to cool, then stuff with the meat mix.
[You can save the stuffed peppers overnight in the fridge.]

Place stuffed peppers in a heat-proof glass dish and bake in the oven at 350 F for15 minutes until the stuffing is bubbling.

I like to server with a side of guacamole and sprinkle with chopped cilantro...yummy!  You can also drizzle with a cashew cream and walnut mixture, and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds if you have them.

For this version I drizzled with straight cashew cream, garnished with fresh cilantro leaves and served with Nom Nom Paleo's Cauliflower Rice!    

The Gluten Free World

Controlling an increase in carbohydrates....a not so healthy side effect!


Good Intentions

I got swept up in the emerging Gluten Free (GF) world, the camaraderie of all the blogs, the appreciation for alternatives....100s of recipes to make cakes, brownies and cookies without gluten! Pizza bases, pie crusts recipes and recommendations for commercially prepared bread and such!  For a while I got sucked in to this alternative universe where ground rice and xanthan gum are king!  You replace one type of flour with 10 different flours, and all GF recipes need a combination of at least 3 of them before you can create anything!

The overwhelming reason for such recipes is a good one - they are to protect our digestive tract and ensure good nutrient absorption, they help us recover, feel better and live well. But all this alternative flour testing and experimentation seems to be to the detriment of some basic nutrition.  Our quest to be free of gluten has clouded our basic nutritional values, we have GF goggles; we're willing to eat crap so long as it has no gluten.  Also, most GF foods concentrate on baked goods as if that is all we eat - we cannot possibly miss out on the fun of eating brownies, and cookies and sweets, oh my! We need our pizza, so there are 100s of recipes that provide a cardboard-like base for our toppings. And after a while we forget what the real version tasted like and settle into our new GF world. 

But wait....it's not a 1 to 1 flour exchange

GF flours generally have a high carbohydrate content (they have no gluten protein, well, duh!).  So many people, when they switch to a GF diet, inadvertently increase their carbohydrate intake (and decrease protein intake). There is also a psychological effect too, we tend to eat more baked (GF) products because we've been told the world of baked goods is now forbidden. Poor me, I can't eat bread, or pasta or cookies.....I must make or buy mass quantities of the GF version. These counterfeit baked good are generally not as  nutritional as their gluten counterparts.

Those darn hormones

An increase in carbohydrates (read - high glycemic index food) in our diet will stimulate more frequent Insulin secretions that will cause our bodies to put all excess carbs in our bloodstream into fat storage for a rainy day!  If you're not exercising or literally starving when you eat carb-laden food, Insulin will be called upon to mop up the excess and put it into fat storage. We forget Insulin is a hormone that is involved in carbohydrate and fat metabolism.  You have to think of Insulin as a bad guy, you don't want to feed him too often, because if you do, another fat fairy gets her wings!  And as far as I'm concerned I have way too many fat fairies in my thighs already...I can see them fighting under the cellulite!

Don't get caught with selective amnesia! 

We completely forget about Glycemic Index when we're eating GF food.  We tell ourselves our guts are healing, our leaky guts are now able to take up nutrients, a little weight gain is to be expected.  We feel bad for our kids who can't eat the foods we ate as a kid, we feel bad for ourselves for being inflicted and deprived. 

Don't Feel bad!  Be Healthy!

• Be aware of sugars and carbohydrates in your food. Based on daily values for a 2000 calorie diet, we're supposed to eat around 300g of carbohydrates a day.  I aim for 100-150, if I want to lose some weight all I need to do is drop below 50g a day.
• Try to minimize rice-based flours and foods.  Try almond flour or coconut flour. Try quinoa pasta instead of brown rice pasta.
• Train your pallet to prefer less sugar.  You trained yourself to like GF food, you can modify your desire for sugar; start by using a 1/4 cup (instead of 1/3) in your next recipe.
• Introduce more non-baked goods into your diet.  What would you do if there were no GF substitutes? What snack would you eat instead?  A handful of nuts, a boiled egg, a piece of fruit?  
• Modify recipes to be naturally GF. Instead of deep-fried chile rellenos, try baking them naked (I mean without breading - please wear an apron)! Try quiche without a pie crust. Once you get the hang of using lettuce wraps you won't want buns for burgers or hot dogs!  
• Compare the number of sugars in similar products. Always buy the product with less sugar; 3 or 4 grams less sugar will add up over time. Nut flours have more calories than rice and grain flours, but they also have protein and will keep you feeling full longer so ultimately you eat less!
• Try and eat minimally proceed food.  Eat products that have few ingredients, do you really need a GF bread with 6 different flours. If you don't recognize an ingredient, don't buy the product!  

Look after yourself.  Don't get lost in the GF marketing buzz!

My New Years Resolution - A Progress Report

I have not been doing a very good job of sticking to my New Years Resolution, but I am not going to beat myself up about it.  This year's resolution is probably the biggest resolution I have made, so a slow ramp up is okay.  My resolution is to follow the Paleo lifestyle.

I was happy with my resolution choice. I had been trying to find my place in the dietary world. I need to be gluten-free, but wasn't sure if my regular diet should lean towards vegan, vegetarian or low-carb.... for some reason I need to classify myself.  Ethically I wanted to follow a vegan lifestyle but since I didn't eat soy, due to the phytoestrogens, so that made a vegan diet very limiting, not impossible, but very limiting.  Another plus is now I have characterized myself, it makes it so much easier to find good recipes.  I don't need to wade through the high carbohydrate, GF rice flour-laden baking recipes, if I do a "paleo" search, simple, healthy recipes come up.

What I realized is Paleo is not all steak and bacon!  Half the diet is vegetables!  If I follow a Paleo diet I will eat more fresh vegetables than I ever did before.  When I am being good and eating Paleo I eat a little more meat, but the carbohydrate part (bread, pasta, potatoes, rice) is mostly replaced with vegetables.  Instead of a chicken breast with broccoli and a baked potato, when Paleo it becomes a chicken breast with more broccoli! Meatballs are crammed with vegetables and stews are full of vegetables and comprised of only 1/3 meat protein.  Though I'm sure 2/3 of my calories come from proteins and fats. I've also noticed that because the Paleo diet is made up of compact nutritious food, I am eating less; less in terms of volume.  I think I'm eating about the same calories, I just eat less because Paleo food takes longer to digest and also stops me from getting hungry sooner...I don't snack so much!

My progress after month one;

• I still have difficulty staying away from potatoes and rice, but I'm eating less.  I don't miss pasta, so that is an easy one.
• I still could eat more vegetables - the main issue here is I don't buy enough.  I start the week with a lot more vegetables in the house than I used to have, but I still come up short by Thursday or Friday. I may try freezing some prepared vegetables since the veg draw in the fridge is now always full at the start of the week.
• I need to be more organized and plan my week. When I plan ahead it is so easy to stick to Paleo, when I don't plan well enough I end up eating whatever I can find in the house.

The still feel the time is right for a Paleo me, and there is a lot of help out there...I just need to stick to it!

Trust!

I'm always happy when I find out a restaurant has a gluten free menu.  I am very appreciative and feel I am with people I can trust (read - a kitchen that will be careful with my food).  Why else would they have a GF menu?  They must care, right?

Last summer we were in the mountains for a weekend and went into a Mexican restaurant I used to go to with work friends years ago. I was overjoyed when the waitress said they had a GF menu.  We had a wonderful meal, I felt safe and I knew I would come back to the restaurant next time I was passing through.  

Fast forward to this past weekend. We decided to go there for lunch. We got there before the skiers came down off the mountain for lunch and found seats at the bar.  The barman asked if we wanted to start with chips and salsa - I said they needed to be gluten-free.  He immediately jumped into action and said they had some GF chips that were made in a GF kitchen, he lined the chip basket and came back with pristine chips and 2 wonderful salsas!   Oh life is so good now that GF is moving more towards an acceptable mainstream request, I thought.  

I ordered, spinach enchiladas with black beans and rice, off the GF menu and the man ordered a humongous bean burrito (no cheese) from the regular menu.  In no time at all, a server arrived with two huge (for lunch) plates, checked with the barman who told him who was eating what, and we made space on the bar for our feast.  My plate looked fantastic and the man's did not have a hint of cheese - quite often they remember and don't put cheese in the burritos and then completely forget and sprinkle cheese on the top....it was perfect!

I took a couple of large mouthfuls of my wonderful spinach burrito and then took a second look at the tortillas....they looked a little puffy and white. I panicked!  I asked the man if he thought they were flour tortillas? He compared them to his burrito and said he didn't think they were as it was breaking like a corn tortilla.  I took a piece and rubbed it between my fingers...it was gummy.  The light in the bar was not good, but the more I looked the more I knew I must have been glutined, that or someone had worked out how to make killer GF flour tortillas.

The barman came over to find out if we were doing okay, I apologized for my paranoia and asked if he could confirm these were corn tortillas.  His face went serious and he squinted at them in the dim bar light.  He picked my place up and hurried away.  He came back empty handed and apologetic, are you going to be okay, I'm so sorry, the kitchen made a mistake.  Crap!   Literary crap (for the next 2 weeks, I thought)!

He asked if I would be okay, I said I would notice it.  I really didn't want to get into details about my digestive tract during lunch hour with people around eating.  Though I really wanted to mention the shits for 2 weeks, aches and pains, brain fog and the general malaise I would experience for most of the month of February. The man felt some sympathy for the barman and said I was not epi-pen allergic!  He looked relieved and said he would bring out a real GF meal.  The man then dug a deeper hole and said the effect was like a bad hangover.  I was a little miffed and thought about it for awhile - I needed a line to describe what happens without overly grossing people out.  I said it's a bad case of food poisoning. The barman apologized again.

When I got home I ate some fiber gummies to hopefully move things along a little faster, I took an All Flora probiotic pill and drank a 750 ml bottle of Pelegrino.  I felt sorry for myself and ate some probiotic chocolate...that did make me feel better :-)  As the twinges in my upper colon started, I sorted out my vitamins - I try to take them every day, but during recovery time I need to take them daily.

I understand accidents happen, I need to look after myself and not assign blame. I will put this down to experience.  I'm not a prima-donna, I don't like too much attention and I hate being the fussy woman at a table, but I learned/reinforced a few things this weekend;

• I need to look after myself
• Don't blindly trust something is gluten free
• Question the GF menu
• Always look carefully at the food you are given
• Don't feel bad about confirming your order
• Let people know it IS a big deal

A case of the Mondays!

Negative

A couple of years ago my blood test for Celiac disease came back negative, but from what I have read since, a negative result doesn't mean much.   http://www.celiaccentral.org/research-news/does-a-negative-celiac-test-mean-you-are-safe-to-consume-gluten/

I thought it didn't matter whether I persevered with further testing since I feel so much better without gluten. I know I shouldn't ingest gluten, what does it matter if I am Celiac, allergic or intolerant? Just don't eat gluten!

Frustration

Unfortunately I have been going through a cycle of being clean and feeling great, followed by mistakenly ingesting gluten and feeling crap. I don't seem to be able to go more than 3 months without an incident and I am starting to wonder how bad these gluten poisoning cycles are for my body!

Eating Gluten by mistake :-(

When I am mistakenly "glutened" I sometimes sneeze within the first hour (my initial clue), then I feel a pain on the right side of my stomach (I think that's where food enters the intestines from the stomach). I feel a mild tightness in my chest that makes me feel I need to take deep breaths to stretch my lungs out to get enough oxygen (asthma runs in my family, but I have never been diagnosed); I can breathe well when my body is gluten free.

The gluten also affects by brain; my handwriting is scratchy and difficult to read, my typing is almost dyslexic and my short-term memory recall is ridiculous!  At one time I may have put the memory issue down to natural aging or tiredness, but I know that when I am gluten-free my mind is sharp, I have good recall, my vocabulary comes back, I am witty and funny...I like being alert and alive!  I hate being glutened and stuck in a cotton wool cloud where communication is difficult, frustrating and I get more headaches. The worst is, it can take me a full 3 weeks to recover and feel "normal" again.

Everything I eat also runs though me faster after I have been glutened, and it takes a week or two for it to return to normal.  Mornings are not good after being glutened, my joints are stiff when I get out of bed, and my muscles are weak. Instead of bouncing downstairs for morning coffee I hold the handrail very tightly and carefully step downstairs hoping my muscles will hold me and I do not fall and break my neck. I feel like a 90 year old lady! When gluten is in my system I can wake up with numb arms and hands, my back aches, my jaw aches (I must clench or grind my teeth when I sleep), and waking up is generally a chore; I don't wake up in a good mood.

It happened this weekend!

I was glutened this past weekend and I am not happy about it at all.  I have come to the realization I really should not eat out at all; no exceptions!  The only way I seem to be able to maintain a completely gluten free body is to eat at home.

The rollercoaster from a euphoric feeling of well body and mind to being plunged into 3 weeks of imprisonment in a lethargic body with a brain at half capacity is beginning to drain me. It is so depressing, I lose confidence in myself and have panic attacks about everything. I lie in bed at night and worry about life, will I have enough money to pay bills or enough for retirement, how is my health, do I have cancer? The  paranoia is the worst, it can keep me up all night.  Some concern is natural, but these strong thoughts are extreme and I don't get them when I am free of gluten.

Not happy!

I'm so annoyed that I allowed myself to eat something tainted...I should have known better.  My mantra should be, if in doubt - go without!  I should never ever eat anything that I don't trust!

Do I personally need a diagnosis (of "something")

Am I unconsciously not taking my gluten intolerance seriously enough?

What are these gluten poisonings doing to my body and brain? The gluten must be tearing up my gut each time, subjecting my body to reduced nutrition and clouding my brain - am I risking long term damage to my digestive system and promoting brain damage?  I think my concern stands (viable or not) whether I had been diagnosed with Celiac or not. But would I be more careful about gluten if I had a legitimate diagnosis?  I should be conscientious either way, I suffer the effects regardless of what medical issue I have.

My version of a Bircher-Benner muesli

A few months ago I ordered a hotel muesli breakfast while traveling for work and received one of the best breakfasts I'd ever had in my life! After some research I found out it was a version of a Bircher-Benner muesli. Obviously it was not a non-dairy version but I has happy to make an exception to experience such a wonderful dish!

Mix the following in the final serving bowl;

• 2 tbsp Coaches Oats (or quick rolled oats) 
• 1 tbsp pistachios
• 1 tbsp raisins
• 1/4 cup almond milk

Soak for 30 minutes to 1 hour at room temperature (soak overnight in the fridge if using regular rolled oats).

Stir in the following;

• 2 tbsp cashew cream I make up batches and freeze 1 tbsp lots in ice cube trays. Yogurt would also work pretty well...I may try that next!
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp cardamom

Let sit for 10 minutes to let the spices soak in.

Just before serving mix in;

• 1/2 grated apple (I used an unpeeled gala apple)

Add more milk if a runnier consistency is desired.

++++++++

The original version has lemon juice and suggest using a sour apple. I decided to use a sweeter apple so I didn't have to add a sweetener. If you use a tart apple you may need to drizzle some honey or agave over the top.

What I want to see on the bar menu - Cookies

We go to a lot of bars that have a smaller snack-size menu at the bar.  We like the bar menu because the items are small, you can mix and match, change your mind and order more, chat for an hour and order even more; it's a very civilized way of grazing.

Unfortunately I have never seen a dessert item on a bar menu - why?  Why not have a mini dessert item listed.  Whenever I ask they give me the main menu....right, I'm sitting at the bar and I've just had a single slider a single order of sweet potato fries, I do not want 3 scoops of ice cream.  I don't need death by chocolate either or a loaf of bread pudding.  

It really isn't a money thing, it's a calorie thing.  I'm not trying to be cheap, I'm fighting the scales while my aging metabolism slows down each year.  If it was a money thing I wouldn't be ordering your wine by the glass?

After my 2 bar menu items and 2 glasses of house Merlot I want a cookie!!!!

Let me be specific again, I want a bar menu cookie, I don't want a 6 inch diameter Frisbee.  I want a 2-3 bite size oatmeal and raisin or chocolate chip cookie!

• If a cookie isn't available I'll take a single golf ball scoop of ice cream.
• I'll take a 1 inch square brownie.
• How about a mini fruit salad? Give me a ramekin with some grapes and mandarins.
• What about a shot of chocolate pudding?

I can't believe I am not alone in wanting a taster-size dessert.  Sometimes I'm full, but I want something sweet to finish off the evening, I need a different taste to mask the garlic, I just need a bookend to my evening meal!!!

Don't tell me to share, I've shared desserts that would have fed me for 3 meals, the amount of sugar would have made insulin drip out of my ears, taken a marathon to burn off the calories and made my teeth fall out and walk away in disgust.

What I want to see on the menu - Chia Seed Quesadillas

I need to find a restaurant for people who care about what they eat and have some dietary restrictions that generally make dinning out a challenge.  Today I had a small quesadilla and salsa for lunch...and it was just perfect. In a restaurant it would have been;

• at least twice the size
• made with flour tortillas
• made with cows milk cheese
• come with much more than salsa
• have a ridiculous amount of calories

What I want is options on all of the above;

• made with one or 2 small tortillas
• made with corn or gluten free
• made with sheep, goat or dairy-free cheese
• not come with additional food I don't need (beans, rice, sour cream, etc)...unless I ask
• be around 300 calories so I can have it for lunch and not blow my daily calorie limit

For now if I want anything that would fit into those requirements I need to make it myself.  So here's a hint all you restauranteurs who surf the internet looking for ideas, this is what I had for lunch today;

One single chia seed tortilla folded with Manchego (sheep) cheese and fresh cilantro leaves.  Lightly toasted on an iron skillet on each side until the cheese melts.  Cut into 3 pieces and served with a generous spoon of organic fire roasted corn and black bean salsa.  Yummy!

• I made the chia seed tortillas using this recipe from The Spunky Coconut, but they are commercially available, a simple Google search will prove that.
• I got the Manchego from Costco, 'cause we eat a lot of it!
• I bought the salsa from Whole Foods

 This is what I want to see on the menu!

My Favorite Gluten Free Products

There's a ridiculously large variety of GF products out there, some are good and some are not so good.  With all the products on the market I think we are going to see a a Darwinian reduction in the next few years as the best products succeed, but for now we're stuck being beta-testers.  I decided to list some items that have made me happy.

COOKIES
As I age, my metabolism dips and my muscle mass reduces, so has by reduction in sweet snacks. I never totally deny myself, so when I just need something sweet, this is what I like to eat.

Kinnikinnick Foods, S'moreables, Graham Style Crackers
I give these an OMG rating! These are better than the originals.
The first time I bought S'moreables was to make a GF graham cracker base for a pumpkin pie last Thanksgiving.  I don't think anyone paid attention to the pumpkin part, but the base was to die for!
Bonus - They are dairy-free, nut.free and contain no preservatives!
Honorable Mention
Newsman's Own Gluten free and Dairy Free Oreo Cookies
Some people say they are not as good as the originals...I say, they're in my pantry, they're gluten free and I can eat them!

BREAD
Bread is the most difficult area to find something French-bread-crunchy, chewy-fresh and satisfying.  I don't think I have found anything GF that is better than the real thing, but I have found some good substitutes.

Udi's Bagels
I know there are purists out there who will disagree, but I'm not comparing to fresh bagel shop versions. I'm comparing GF Udi's to wheat off the shelf prepackaged bagels.  I think Udi's had done a fantastic job...they are not so dense, they're lightly chewy (unheard of in GF land), they freeze well and they make me forget I can't have warm bagel shop versions.

Honorable Mention
Julian Bakery Smart Carb GF #3
This is nothing like wheat gluten bread. It's a small brick; exactly what you would expect for a GF bread product.  But this loaf has a wonderful bready smell, and when toasted and spread with butter (or Natural Balance) it is crunchy and wholesome.  I toast slices and use it like a cracker for lunch!  When toasted and eaten with soup, it is comfort food. This is one of those products that I would eat whether I needed gluten-free or not....I just like it and it makes me happy!
Bonus - It is the lowest carbohydrate bread out there, it's also yeast free and organic!

Udi's GF Bread
This is not bad, it can be used for sandwiches and works okay for grilled cheese.
Disappointing
I haven't found any burger buns that I really like (not even Udi's), most are dry and fall apart. The best I have found is an Udi's bagel without a hole!  You have to rummage through the display to find what some people call rejects :-)
I've started making my own with coconut flour and almond flour and will continue to do so until I find a commercial product that that doesn't crumble the second you bite into it. C'mon guys, get with the program!

PASTA
Nothing compares to fresh pasta, but given the choice of brown rice or Quinoa (keen-wa), I'll choose Quinoa every time! 

Ancient Harvest Quinoa Pasta
It lakes a little longer to cook and looks a little darker than regular pasta...but when it's coated in pesto or smothered in marinara it's pretty darn close to the real thing.
Bonus - It has more protein and fiber than regular pasta. 
Disappointing
I haven't been able to find a Quinoa Ravioli, or lasagna sheets.

MEAL SUBSTITUTE BARS
By bars I mean power bars, fruit bars, those items you pick up when you're on the run, traveling and don't have time to stop and eat or don't know when you'll have the chance to eat (not candy bars). I rely on nuts and bars a lot when I'm traveling.  I'm not a fruit bar (fruit roll-po) kind of girl so I'm not sure I really have a favorite bar. I've listed a selection of the ones I like and can tolerate;

Enjoy Life - Chewy on-the-go Bars
They are very allergy friendly and have saved my life in Airports where burgers and pizza are the only choices available.
Odwalla Nourishing Food Bar (not GF)
These are not gluten free, due to the fact they are made on equipment that is used for products that contain wheat, milk, eggs and tree nuts.  However, many of their bars do not contain any wheat products so I can tolerate them.  If you can tolerate oats these may be okay for you too.  Their Choco-walla is a favorite of mine...I have frantically searched though my luggage after many a post midnight hotel check-in to find this life-saving midnight dinner treat.

Dairy Alternatives

I stopped drinking cow's milk because my husband didn't snore so much when he avoided dairy and it was so much easier if we drank the same milk and creamers.  When I made that decision I had no idea that I was embarking on an alternative milk  fiesta….

As with non-meat substitutes and non-wheat/gluten substitutes, there is not just one replacement.  There is a myriad of choices and an explosion of nut milks that come in a variety of calories and flavors; unsweetened, regular (sweetened) and vanilla.  There are also shelf stable and refrigerated versions of both.  Generally the refrigerated versions taste better than the shelf stable one, but having a few shelf stable ones handy is really nice...I hate running out of milk!

So far I have not found a single milk replacement that I would use for everything, some are better than others for different uses...and to be honest I'm relishing the variety!

Soy Milk 

This has a high protein content. The unsweetened version was my husband’s milk of choice when he was on a low carbohydrate diet.  This also seems to be the non-dairy standard in coffee shops and restaurants. Personally I hate soy milk, I can’t get used to the taste and it gives me gas.

Rice Milk

This milk has been a secondary choice to soy for quite a while, however it is a very watery milk and does not cream coffee very well.  It is also naturally sweet and not appropriate for cooking savory sauces.  It works fantastic in hot cocoa and oatmeal…and you don’t need to add any additional sweeteners. Rice milk sugars do not contain fructose, so this is a good milk to use when you want to use a natural sweetener.

Almond Milk

Now we’re talking!  In the last year or so I have seen more and more almond milk varieties on the shelves; it's not just in health food stores. I just love this in coffee or to make a vegan eggnog!  There is an unsweetened Vanilla version that has less than half the calories of skim milk..it is great with your morning granola or cereal.

Hemp Milk

Good for sauces and batters.
A friend used Hemp milk to make Yorkshire pudding and we couldn't tell the difference.

Coconut Milk

I'm not talking about canned coconut milk, I mean the refrigerated version in cartons. It tasted greate in breakfast granola.  I'm starting to use this more in vegan cheese sauces or as a replacement for cow's milk in baking.The So Delicious unsweetened version has 1 carbohydrate!!!!  I haven't used it to make ice cream (yet!), but there are some fantastic coconut ice creams that taste so good I cannot tell they are non-dairy! 

Cashew Milk

I've never seen commercial cashew milk, but it's the type I make when we run out of something to pour over cereals or add to morning coffee. You can easily make cashew milk if you have a blender; 1 cup cashews plus 4 cups of water, dash of salt, dribble of honey or stevia,  turn on the blender for a minute or two and voila la!  No need to sieve it, you can drink it right out of the blender...though I would recommend chilling it first and using a glass :-)

I get annoyed when people say that I could be calcium deficient if I don't drink cow's milk.  That is totally untrue!  In terms of equivalent serving sizes, there is more calcium in kale than cow's milk! A handful of almonds contains more calcium....and all the commercial non-dairy milks I have seen have been fortified with calcium.  What you should be comparing if the protein and sugar content - many non-dairy milks have less sugar, less fat and more protein!

Since becoming dairy-free I have seen a lot of articles about the bad effects of cow's milk, the most recent is this one http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Milk-Controversy---Is-Cows-Milk-Good-For-Us?&id=6179781  It wasn't the reason I changed, but I do think it is interesting to see the emerging research.

Quick Gluten/Wheat Free Burger Bun

I don't mind lettuce wrap burgers, but sometimes I just want to blend in and look like I'm eating the same as everyone else; I really don't want to be the picky little princess.

Over the last few years I have tried a few GF burger buns and they're usually very dry and flaky and get drier as they sit in my fridge. They also tend to be made with little fiber and have a lot of carbohydrates - not good for my middle-aged metabolism!  Gluten free bread is also pretty heavy, so normal size buns are dense wee guys that could damage a toe if you dropped one. 

My requirements for a bun are;

• Low carb (low glycemic)
• Some fiber and protein would be nice
• Not so dense
• Not so flaky

I pondered flours and raising agents to try and find a way to add some air into a mixture without gluten.  Then I made a horrendous mistake while trying to make muffins and as I was cleaning up the mess it came to me - use a modified muffin recipe and why not make the 2 bun halves separately?

Ingredients for one single bun 
1 egg
1 Tbsp coconut flour
1 Tbsp blanched almond flour
1 Tbsp coconut oil (olive oil or melted butter)
Pinch of salt
1/4 tsp baking powder

Optional
1 tsp nutritional yeast (for a more bready taste)
1/4 tsp poppy seeds, chia seeds, sesame seeds

Method
Add all ingredients together and blend in a small food processor or hand blender.

If the batter is runny, leave it a few minutes to thicken.  It should be like a thick pancake batter, if it is runny add another half tablespoon of almond flour. It is is too thick, add a teaspoon of water.

Divide the batter into two and drop onto oiled parchment paper and bake at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes until they are lightly browned.

Note, for the top of the bun, I added chia seeds to one side.

I generally throw the burger on the grill while the bun sides are baking, the buns will be ready by the time it is cooked.

The batter likes to spread to about 3 inches in diameter so this does not work for slider buns.  I thought I could just divide into 4, but the batter spreads and makes 4 thin 3 inch halves that are no good for sliders.  I plan to play around with this recipe and will post my slider bun recipe when I figure it out.  For now, enjoy fitting in with the rest of the crowd :-)

Coconut Deodorant!

A few months ago I read that due to it's antibacterial nature coconut oil could be used as an underarm deodorant.  Yes, seriously, I kid-you-not coconut oil slathered under your pits will protect you from dreaded BO!  The scientist part of me was intrigued. The earth-friendly, chemical hating side of me was excited....and the guinea pig inside me was ready to try it out :-)

I had just got a freakishly large tub of Tropical Traditions Gold Label unrefined, super duper coconut oil so I took a small amount and placed it in a jar in the bathroom in preparation for my grand experiment.
My negative control was to go au naturale for a day.  Since I have a desk job, work from home and it's still Spring I felt it wouldn't be too traumatic.  By the afternoon I was a little ripe but not bad...I am a girl after all!
My crude calibration was basically to see how close I had to get my nose to my pits.
- lunch time no smell
-3pm I had to poke my nose under my t-shirt before I got the slightest of smells
- 9pm I still had to remove clothing before I could smell anything, but it was stronger than 3pm

The next day I stood in my underwear and giggled as I put about half a teaspoon of 100% unrefined coconut oil under each pit.  Coconut oil is not a thick oil, so it felt a little watery and not sticky at all.  I had some concern about marking my clothes and how would I explain big oil patches under my arms, but that turned out not to be a problem.  Within minutes the oil had soaked in under my arms and my skin felt dry and baby soft!
- lunch time no bad smell, just a slight sweet smell, more vanilla than coconut
-3pm I poked my nose under my t-shirt - nada!
- 9pm I removed clothing and did a weird yoga-like pose to get my nose as close as I could to the potentially offending area.  I really couldn't smell anything.  Holy crapolli, it worked!

I have continued to use coconut oil to make sure my experiment wasn't a fluke!
When I exercise and lift weights it doesn't work as well, but still I have to lift my arm before other humans (husband) could smell anything bad.  One weekend when I used wax that wasn't warm enough and irritated my skin, I was a little worried about using a deodorant, so I used coconut oil.  No sting, no problem...and my irritated skin was fine in 2 days!

It's not an antiperspirant, so when the Summer heat arrives I may switch to something less clammy, but for now it's nice to use something natural.  I also found out it's pretty good on preventing smelly feet too!
No negative control required for that one :-)

Agave verses HFCS

Why is Agave perceived to be good for you and HFCS is not?
This seemed like a fun research project at the time, but with a myriad of articles out there I got caught in a bit of a sugar hairball about the Good the Bad and the Ugly!

• Both are low glycemic = Good, 
• HFCS has got a lot of bad press recently = Bad 
• Agave = Ugly (or complicated and confusing because it has a high fructose content just like HFCS, but it's low glycemic)

To help me form an opinion on whether Agave is a good guy or a villain, I went back to undergrad books to familiarize myself with sugar metabolism.  My thought was that once I refreshed my understand of the basics I would be able to form an educated opinion regarding the two sweeteners.

This is what I have heard regarding HFCS and Agave;

1. High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) is "bad", it's highly processed and made by big businesses, it's making our kids fat and will increase health costs because so many people will be suffering from obesity.
2. Agave is "good", it's made from a natural ingredients, it's low glycemic, it's sold in health food stores, it must be good for you.

My confusion and reason for this blog post....

• Both contain a higher percentage of fructose than sucrose (regular granulated sugar)
• Both are low glycemic
• Agave contains only a slightly higher percentage of fructose than HFCS (they sound pretty similar to me)

I reviewed some simple carbohydrate chemistry...

• Some simple sugars are glucose, fructose, mannose and galactose, there are also called monosaccharides.
• Molecules made of 2 simple sugars are called disaccharides, here are some examples of disaccharides;
• Sucrose = Glucose + Fructose (regular table sugar)
• Maltose = Glucose + Glucose
• Lactose = Glucose + Galactose

• When more sugars are linked together they are called polyscahrarrides, examples are amylose and celulose.
• All of the above are carbohydrates. 

General note: Throughout this blog I have tried not to use the generic term "sugar" and use sucrose, glucose, fructose, etc.  Not all sugars are the same, they have different levels of sweetness, they are metabolized differently and have different affects on your body. The terms "sugar rush", or "low blood sugar" are confusing, we should really be saying "glucose rush" and "low blood glucose" level.

Sucrose (table sugar), Agave and HFCS are comprised of glucose and fructose, in different amounts, so I decided to look at those monosaccahrides in more detail. 

Glucose - It's Brain Food

• Glucose is the only sugar used by the brain (not fructose)
• Because neurons cannot store glucose, they depend on the bloodstream to deliver a constant supply of this precious fuel.
• Digestion in the body revolves heavily around supplying the brain with glucose - food is broken down so glucose is readily available to the brain 
• Alcohol is metabolized by an enzyme "alcohol dehydrogenase" that also inhibits the digestion of sugars...so essentially excess alcohol can reduce glucose levels to a point were the body gets a little concerned about feeding the brain and so induces hunger.  That's why it always seems like a good idea to go for a curry or bean burrito at 1am in the morning after a night of heavy partying :-)  Next time you can truthfully say "I need a cheese burger, stat!  It's for my brain!"

An Enzyme called Insulin

So glucose being the brain fuel, you'd think that more glucose would make you a super brainy person, right?  Actually too much glucose causes sugar glucose highs followed by glucose lows, shaky hands and brain fog....how charming!

When there is too much glucose in your bloodstream your body reacts
...it must lower levels, it must store excess for low glucose situations
So when you eat something very high in glucose you become hyperglycemic (higher glucose).  This sugar can make you feel happy (higher glucose = sugar high).  However, a quick jump in blood glucose levels will alert islet cells in your pancreas to secrete insulin. The insulin flows through your bloodstream and triggers cells throughout your body to pull the excess glucose out of your bloodstream and store it for later use.   http://www.fi.edu/learn/brain/carbs.html The cells are very efficient and can very quickly reduce blood glucose levels to the point where neurons in your brain detect the rapid decrease of glucose and it's availability to your brain. 

When there is too little glucose in your bloodstream your body reacts
...it must get glucose to feed the brain
Neurons that are unable to store glucose, experience an energy crisis. You feel spaced-out, weak, confused, and/or nervous. Your ability to focus and think suffers. The name for this glucose deficiency is hypoglycemia (low sugar glucose), and it can even lead to unconsciousness if you are diabetic.  Your brain needs glucose from something you eat or from stores within the body and this is controlled by Insulin.

Insulin is a hardworking enzyme, it has an important job working to keep optimum sugar levels.  Too much sugar in the bloodstream is not good for you.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperglycemia  The excess glucose molecules floating around will attach to proteins and fats in a process called glycosylation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glycosylation).  When glucose bonds with blood vessels and your internal organs it can reduce blood flow to extremities and even blindness. This is what could happen if you have diabetes and don't regulate your insulin and glucose levels.

This is the simplified "Clifs notes" version and we could go much deeper into the metabolic science, but for the purpose of this post we just need to understand these point;

• Glucose is the only fuel used by your brain
• Too much glucose at one time is bad as it causes insulin to be released into the bloodstream, insulin collects the excess sugars and stores them for future use (in fast releasing glycogen and long term storage fat cells)
• Too little insulin allows high blood sugar levels,  the excess sugars stick to internal organs and cause blockages
• The speed at which glucose is released into the bloodstream is important as that will determine whether Insulin is needed or not
• Different foods release glucose at different speeds; Glycemic index (GI)
• There is a specific glycemic index number that initiates an insulin response - you should know what this is and roughly what foods are above and blow that number 

Glycemic Index and Magic Numbers

If glucose affects insulin levels, fat storage, sugar glucose rush and brain fog it almost sounds like we should try a different type of sugar that doesn't cause all these problems.  Say, fructose?  The GI table below would certainly suggest that. 

The Glycemic Index (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glycemic_index)  is a ranking of foods based on their overall effects on blood sugar glucose levels.  The higher the GI the faster the sugar is metabolized and the faster glucose is release into the bloodstream.  This is good for energy recovery after endurance exercise or for a person with hypoglycemia (low glucose levels).  In general a glycemic index of over 70 will initiate an insulin response to go an sequester excess glucose in the bloodstream. 

The following list gives ranges for low, medium and high glycemic load for foods.

• Low GI = 55 or less
• Medium GI = 56 - 69s
• High GI = 70 or more

Sucrose (regular table sugar)  has a GI of approximately 60  and is comprised of glucose and fructose in equal quantities, 50:50.  Natural cane sugars have a GI in the 68 to 80 range.
Glucose the monosaccharide has a GI of 96 
http://www.fitsugar.com/Glycemic-Index-Where-Do-Sweeteners-Fall-3031565 
Fructose the monosaccharide has a GI of 22  
Honey (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honey) has the same sweetness as sucrose and has a glycemic index range from 31 to 78, depending on the variety; generally a GI of 55 is used as an average  Honey is comprised of mainly glucose and fructose in these approximate quantities 31% glucose to 38% fructose. 
Agave sweeteners are sweeter than sucrose and have a low GI of approximately 30.(http://www.cooking-questions.com/what-is-agave-nectar/) . Depending on the source the levels of glucose to fructose are in the following ranges; 8% glucose to 92% fructose, and 20% glucose to 56% fructose  (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agave_nectar). 
HFCS  is also sweeter than sucrose and has a low GI of approximately 62.  HFCS is comprised of 45 glucose to 55% fructose, though there is also HFCS 65 that has 65% fructose. 
Coconut Sap  http://www.bigtreefarms.com/coconutsugar/ has a GI of 35 and is comprised of the disaccharide sucrose (70-79%) plus glucose and fructose (3-9%) each.

Getting back to the comparison of Agave with HFCS...

Fructose tastes sweeter than glucose, so you need less to achieve the same sweetness plus you get fewer calories.  Fructose is also the main sugar that makes fruit taste sweet. What's not to love about fructose?

• Both Agave and HFCS have more fructose than glucose 
• Lower glucose percentage means they have a lower glycemic index
• Lower glycemic index means a lower insulin response so no brain fog or massive glucose sequestering and filling of fat cells

To summarize...

We have talked about high and low blood sugar glucose in the bloodstream; when glucose levels are high, the blood glucose police call out the insulin bouncers to round up all the excess glucose molecules loitering around.  They take those rowdy glucose dudes and lock them up in cells, yes, you guessed it...."Fat Cells!".

Just like you don't want to annoy regular law enforcement, you don't want to agitate the blood sugar police either!  And you do not want any bouncers filling up your fat cells!

We've learned some of the difference between glucose and fructose but there is more.... 

Fructose - The Sweet One 
A lot about fructose has already been discussed in comparisons with glucose, but we need to know how it is metabolized, does it have a comparable regulator like insulin, what does the body do with fructose? Or should I ask, what does fructose do to the body?

Fructose (http://www.asn-online.org/press/files/johnsonreview.pdf) is absorbed into the intestine were there are various transporter enzymes.  About 60% of the fructose attaches to transporter enzymes that bus them to the liver, the remaining 40% catch transporters en route to the kidneys, adipose tissue and other organs.

Fructose is ultimately metabolized to uric acid, in this pathway the enzyme fructokinase adds a phosphate to Fructose. This causes the depletion of ATP and so this process is regulated by ATP availability...blah, blah, blah..  I'll try and keep it simple...

• High uric acid levels are related to hypertension (elevated blood pressure)
• Comparative experiments with equal amounts of fructose and glucose show that fructose, not glucose, increased blood pressure in young healthy adults
• Individuals given fructose exhibit features of metabolic syndrome - Metabolic syndrome is a name for a group of risk factors that occur together and increase the risk for coronary artery disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0004546
• Excessive amounts of fructose have been shown to increase blood triglyceride levels and reduce HDL (good) cholesterol levels
• Fructose is also known to induce insulin resistance, this will reduces blood flow and the delivery of glucose to the brain, peripheral tissues and muscles
• The hypertensive affects of fructose is also thought to have a role in chronic kidney disease

In Conclusion...  
At the beginning I asked the question - Why is Agave perceived to be good for you and HFCS is not? The only answer I can give regarding why agave is better is agave is not genetically modified, whereas the corn used in HFCS probably is.  But neither of them are "good" for you due mainly in part to their high fructose levels.

What I now think about HFCS and Agave;

1. High Fructose Corn Syrup is a processed syrup made from corn, it's low glycemic and if eaten in excessive quantities it can make you fat and put serious stress on your liver and kidneys
2. Agave is a processed syrup made from the agave root, it's low glycemic and if eaten in excessive quantities it can make you fat and put serious stress on your liver and kidneys 

After my mini research project it's evident that Agave and HFCS in large quantities are not good for you...this is the same for many things; a glass or two of red wine is good, a bottle a night is not!

My personal opinion is high fructose sugars should not be your sweetener of choice. They are good because they have a lower GI than sucrose and don't invoke a massive insulin response, but the risks outweigh the benefits for me. I will not completely omit them from my diet but I will severely reduce them.

...And if you're interested....

What will be my sweetener of choice?

I will continue to use stevia and fruit juices, but when I need a granular sugar I will use coconut palm sugar. Palm sugar has a lower GI than sucrose and it has less fructose than sucrose.  I am however, concerned about the sustainability of palm sugar, so I will need to research that while I continue to explore other natural sweeteners.

Please don't hate the messenger, I know how people love agave...just be responsible with it, please! 

Other links collected during my research

The Truth about Agave Syrup: Not as Healthy as You May Think

http://www.living-foods.com/articles/agave.html

Agave Nectar, the High Fructose Health Food FraudLearn more:  http://www.naturalnews.com/024892_fructose_food_health.html

Is Agave Nectar More Hype Than Healthy?

http://preventdisease.com/news/09/062309_agave.shtml 

Agave Nectar: Low Glycemic Diet Blessing or Nightmare? http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/6094960/agave_nectar_low_glycemic_diet_blessing.htm

It is low glycemic so it won't cause a spike insulin levels

http://www.madhavahoney.com/AgaveNectar.aspx

Agave Nectar and the Glycemic Index

http://www.allaboutagave.com/agave-nectar-and-the-glycemic-index.php
http://www.suite101.com/content/nutrients-in-natural-sweeteners-a53312

Vegetables - Cooked My Way!

I love roasted vegetables, I could eat roasted veggies every night and just change the sauce...cheese, balsamic, guacamole, tomato...

You can use whatever you have available and make a few adjustments for different textures and types.

What I use;

• Parboiled fingerling potatoes - you can use any type of potatoes, just make sure they are chopped into half inch cubes and either parboiled or microwaved so when you squeeze the whole potato it gives a little and not rock-hard
• Parsnips (no precooking required if cut into half inch cubes)
• Small onions or shallots, peeled - large onions can be quartered
• Broccoli florets
• Cauliflower florets
• Sliced peppers (larger 1 inch chunks work best)
• Zucchini.Courgettes (cut into 1 inch slices)
• Diced beets

Heat the oven to 350 F.  I have seen some recipes that suggest 400 F - I have found this is too hot and tends to blacken the vegetables before they are fully roasted and cooked through.

Spread vegetables on a large baking sheet and drizzle with grape seed oil.  I use grape seed oil (instead of olive oil) because it is more stable at higher temperatures and doesn't provide any taste.  After I have added oil I massage the vegetables to make sure they are fully coated.  Make sure the broccoli and cauliflower are well oiled as they may become too crispy or burn.

Before adding to the oven I sprinkle with freshly ground sea salt (I generally use Celtic salt).
Place in the middle of the oven and check after 20 minutes - at this time I shake the tray and turn the vegetables, if needed.  Leave for another 20 minutes (for a total of 40 minutes in the oven).

Remove from the oven and server as a side or as a Meatless Monday treat with yummy dipping sauces!