Eating 5 Days a Week!

Lately I've been posting a lot of things for those of you who are just becoming gluten free. As much as I love sharing my recipes I also know that for the other 5 days a week you just want to stay full, fed and healthy. So today's entry is an example of food planning for the week.

These are just some basic suggestions, I'm vegetarian so I've also made recommendations for proteins to accompany the dishes for those of who are not. Also I don't address desserts or sweets really here but its always good to have some chocolate, sorbet, gluten free cookies on hand during the week for when a craving hits.

MONDAY

BREAKFAST: Warm gluten free oatmeal with butter and brown sugar. 

LUNCH: Egg salad or tuna salad scoop on top of leafy green salad with vegetables of your selection.

SNACK:  cheese cubes, apple slices, almonds

DINNER: Steamed rice with stir fry of mixed vegetables seasoned with garlic, olive oil and italian spices, or go asian with it and add sesame oil, sriracha sauce, garlic and tamari sauce. Add tofu, chicken or other protein of your choice.

TUESDAY

BREAKFAST: scrambled eggs with salsa on a warmed corn tortilla with cheese and avocado. 

LUNCH: left over stir fry from prior night's dinner.

SNACK: hummus with vegetables and corn chips 

DINNER: Sauteed pre-cooked polenta topped with marina sauce and parmesan cheese. Add vegetables to your sauce or meat to make it just a bit heartier. Side salad.

WEDNESDAY

BREAKFAST: fresh fruit, berries, sliced bananas, or other seasonal fruit on top of greek yogurt with honey drizzled on top. 

LUNCH: Crustless quiche, side salad with vinaigrette.

SNACK: Olive topenade and feta mixed with olive oil, chopped garlic and paprika or pepper flakes, spread onto corn chips. Slices of cucumbers. 

DINNER: Smashed Potatoes, stuffed zucchini. Can be served with a protein for those of you who are meat eaters, like a piece of steak or something like that. Side of veggies, think green beans, corn, whatever is seasonal. 

THURSDAY

BREAKFAST: Scrambled eggs, with spinach and onions and a sprinkle of garlic salt. Side of sliced tomatoes. 

LUNCH: Shepherd pie, use the left over potatoes and meat from the night's prior meal. Place diced meat and veggies in bottum of tupperware and top with potatoes. Can be reheated at work in microwave. 

SNACK: fresh fruit, celery sticks with peanut butter or cream cheese. 

DINNER: Enchilada casserole with beans and rice on the side. Enchilada casserole is essential corn tortillas layered with cheese, onions and beans. Pour premade enchilada sauce, store bought or made ahead and frozen. Cook plain rice seasoned with salsa and heat up a can of beans. Serve with sour cream and avocado slices. 

FRIDAY

BREAKFAST: Fried eggs, pre-made hash browns, topped with katsup and side of fresh sliced avocado. 

LUNCH: Left over enchiladas. Top with fried egg or boiled egg sliced up. 

SNACK: Mixed nuts, dried fruit, fresh juices like carrot or a green mix.

DINNER: Cauliflower Mac and cheese with side salad. Also for the meat eaters add baked chicken.

Hope these suggestions help, of course there is always a can of soup and a salad if you are in a bind... healthy, happy eating to all!

xoxo- Iris

Cauliflower pizza crust

Yes, this is all the rage and everyone is doing it. But it's really fairly tasty and worth a shot.

Finished pizza.

Boil one average size of cauliflower. Drain and then squeeze out excess moisture. You can use cheese clothe or a colander for this part. Use your food processor to process the cauliflower. You don't want it to be a paste just broken up fairly well. Add 1 large egg, 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese, 1 tsp garlic salt and 1/4 cup brown rice flour. Pulse mixture till a dough forms.

Preheat oven to 350. Oil pizza baking pan and spread the cauliflower dough thinly across the surface. Bake in oven till edges are crispy and golden.

Top with sauce, cheese and toppings on your choice. Bake till cheese is melted and started to show golden spots.

Once you remove the pizza from the oven you need to let it sit and cool for a minute. If you try to just eat the pizza right away the crust may be too soft. I also found this reheats the next day very well.

Pizza crust with garlic slivers on top.

Cauliflower Mac and Cheese

I recently uncovered a hidden love of cauliflower while preparing a carb free menu for a friend. Whipped cauliflower became a staple of my diet and shortly after I began reading about other uses of cauliflower in low carb and gluten free diets, for example cauliflower pizza crust. I have yet to try this but I have put it on my list of holiday recipes to try.

Last night I was making a very classic american style dinner for a friend and I made meatloaf and a green salad and in lieu of the mac and cheese I made cauliflower mac and cheese.

• 1 average size head of cauliflower
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup half and half
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 cup grated sharp cheddar
• pepper
• salt
• 1/2 cup parmesan 
• gluten free bread crumbs (I use Udi's gf bread ground in the food processor)

1. Preheat oven to 350. Boil cauliflower that has been separated into pieces in well salted water till tender. Drain and place into baking pan.

2.  Melt butter and half and half, set aside a tiny portion of the not hot half and half to mix the corn starch. 

3. Mix in the cheddar and 1/4 cup of the parmesan cheese and stir, after cheese had melted add corn starch that has been liquified by the half and half and stir. 

4. Season with pepper and salt. 

5. Toss cauliflower in cheesey sauce till coated.Sprinkle with gf bread crumbs and remaining parmesan.

6. Place pan in oven and bake till top bread crumbs are golden and crispy, about 10 minutes. 

Enjoy! xoxo - Iris