Grilled Leg of Lamb

  I love that we now have access to Australian lamb through Costco. Like I have mentioned before, Australian lamb is basically grass fed. Though lately I hear 15% of their lamb is being finished off with grain and this is not good, it is still so much better for you than our feed-lot beef.

My oven broke this past week, and so I was on the lookout for ways to cook my boneless leg of lamb. Hunting about on the internet, I came across this recipe. I didn't marinate it overnight, but I did marinate it all day. Plus, I don't really like mustard in my marinades, so I left this out. I also used a legal SCD wine. When grilling the lamb, I turned on 2 of the burners and left the third one off. I cooked the lamb on the off burner side. It turned out beautifully; and so juicy! This was a keeper.Oh! Grill up some asparagus when in season and your meal is complete. I just sprinkle my asparagus with olive oil, salt and pepper them, and add a bit of garlic granules...grill to desired doneness. Easy!

  Ingredients

• 1 well-trimmed 6-pound boneless leg of lamb, butterflied to even 2-inch thickness
• 8 garlic cloves, peeled, divided
• 1/2 cup whole grain Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• Nonstick vegetable oil spray
• Fresh rosemary sprigs and fresh Italian parsley sprigs 

1. Open lamb like book on work surface. Using tip of small knife, make 1/2-inch-deep slits all over lamb. Thinly slice 4 garlic cloves. Insert garlic slices into slits in lamb. Combine remaining 4 garlic cloves, mustard, olive oil, white wine, rosemary, and lemon juice in processor. Blend until coarse puree forms. Spread underside of lamb with half of puree. Place lamb, seasoned side down, in 15 x 10 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Spread remaining puree over top of lamb. Cover lamb with plastic wrap and chill overnight.
2. Let lamb stand at room temperature 2 hours. Coat grill rack with nonstick spray and prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Sprinkle lamb generously with salt and pepper on both sides. Grill lamb to desired doneness, about 17 minutes per side for medium-rare. Transfer lamb to cutting board; let rest 10 to 20 minutes.
3. Thinly slice lamb against grain. Overlap slices on platter. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Garnish with fresh herb sprigs.

Juice Glorious Juice

Spent the day deep in fruit and vegetables. My kitchen looked so neat in the morning and it was quickly chaos with all the chopping but I love the benefits juicing can provide. It is best, I suppose, to juice each day, all nice and fresh, I just don't have the time. So when I have gathered the ingredients, and they are so abundant at this time of year, I juice away making all kinds of varieties. They are then poured into glass jars and labeled and placed in the freezer for daily use. I particularly love the tall pint 1/2 jars and I top them with the reusable white plastic canning lid. The jars and lids can often be found at Walmart or online at Amazon. White lids here.
These jars fit perfectly in the door of my freezer, the labels can be seen clearly, and they can be grabbed quickly. You can either place in the fridge for the next day, or these jars can be taken with you and drunk slowly as it melts throughout the day. 

A wonderful book I use for recipe ideas:  piece

Classic Green Lemonade
2 stalks celery
1 small cucumber
1 apple, cored and seeded
1-inch piece ginger, peeled
3 leaves Swiss chard or kale
1/2 lemon

1. Wash and prep all ingredients.
2. Juice all ingredients.
3. I actually strain through my nut bag to get out all chunks which might get through the juicer. I love just juice. 

Soothing Green
4 leaves Swiss chard
1 cucumber
3 to 4 tablespoons mint leaves, tightly packed
3 cups honeydew melon cubes

1. Wash and prep all ingredients.
2. Juice all ingredients.



Green Me Up
2 small stalks of celery
1 cup pineapple cubes
1 Bosc pear, cored and seeded
2 leaves Swiss chard
2 leaves kale
1/4 cup parsley, leaves and stems, tightly packed
1 cucumber

Sweet & Sour Green
1 small cucumber
3 stalks celery
1 cup spinach, tightly packed
1 cup pineapple cubes
1 naval orange, peeled

Sweet Greens
2 1/2 cups watermelon cubes
2 cups spinach, packed
1 cucumber
1/4 lime

Root Power
1 small beet
2 Granny Smith apples, cored and seeded
4 medium carrots
1/2 daikon radish
1 cucumber
1-inch piece ginger, peeled

Immune Boost
4 large carrots
2 navel oranges, peeled
1/2-inch piece turmeric root
pinch of cayenne pepper

Blueberry lemon-aid
2 small cucumbers
1 cup blueberries
2 Granny Smith apples
1/4 lemon, peeled
3 tablespoons mint leaves, tightly packed

So, that is just an example of a few recipes. This book is packed with hundreds more recipes, lots of information on various products, lots of information on buying a juicer...great book all around to have on the cooking-juicing shelf.

Grilled Flank Steak Kabobs

Warmer weather has set in here in the Deep South. That means the meats can get on the grill and taste so much better than oven cooking.

Flank steak is one of those meats that you look at in the grocery store and wonder what you can do with it. Well here is one recipe that is rather easy (grilling meats usually is) and juicy and tasty. Sometimes this cut of meat can be tough, even when you marinade it, but along with the marinade this recipe has you slicing the meat thin, which I believe helped. So now, when Whole Food has some grass-fed flank steak for sale, I will buy up a few slabs to keep on hand for this recipe. It doesn't hurt that this cut is usually at a lesser cost than the london broils, or rib-eyes!

1 1/2 pounds beef flank steaks
1 cup dry red wine
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cups minced shallots (I used onions because I never seem to have shallots on hand)
6 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tablespoons of snipped fresh rosemary (grow those herbs people!)

1. Slice the flank steak against the grain into 1/4-inch slices. Place meat in a 1-gallon resealable plastic bag set in a shallow dish.
2. For marinade, in a small bowl combine red wine, olive oil, shallots, garlic and rosemary. Pour marinade over the meat in the bag. Seal the bag and turn to coat meat. Marinate in the refrigerator for 2-4 hours, turning occasionally.
3. On metal skewers, or soaked (30 minutes) wooden ones, thread the meat accordion style. Place the steak kabobs on a grill rack directly over medium heat. Cover and grill for 8-9 minutes, turning kabobs halfway through grilling. 

Serve with your choice of vegetables. I served mine over some spaghetti squash. But some grilled carrots or grilled asparagus would be nice too.

Apple Cake

This is another sweet dessert that can be eaten any time of day. Made with healthy nut flour and loaded with apples and a bit of citrus and dried fruit. After it cools, I like to slice it and freeze for later eating.

2 lb apples (about 5 medium-sized)
2 cups almond flour
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp of allspice
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
4 large eggs
3/4 cup honey
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

Optional: I like to add about 3/4 cups of nuts and 1/2 cup of raisins when folding in the apples.

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F and grease a 10-inch springform pan.
2. Peel and grate the apples, and then add the lemon juice.
3. Combine the almond flour, cinnamon, allspice, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl.
4. In a small bowl, lightly beat the eggs; then mix in the honey and vanilla.
5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix thoroughly. Quickly fold in the apples. You should try and move through this step quickly to take advantage of this chemical reaction, which will help to create a really high and light cake.
6. Bake for 30 minutes.
7. After 30 minutes, cover with aluminum foil which has been sprayed with oil. Bake until the cake is firm on the sides but softer in the middle, about 45 more minutes.
8. Remove from the oven and let the cake cool before releasing it from the springform pan.

Beef Roast With Dried Fruit

 Roast, there is nothing so simple when one is prepared in a slow-cooker and nothing so delicious!

1 onion
2-4 pound pot roast, preferably grass fed
11 ounces dried fruit (apricots, prunes, apples), sulfur free
3/4 cup of Cabernet Sauvignon
1 cup water
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup honey
1 teaspoon parsley flakes
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon thyme

In a small bowl mix together the salt, pepper and thyme and sprinkle onto the roast all over. Heat a pan with 2 tablespoons of coconut oil with medium heat. Brown the roast on all sides. Slice the onion and place in a Crock-Pot with dried fruit, Cabernet, water, garlic, honey, cinnamon, and any leftover salt, pepper and thyme. Mix well. Place roast on top and cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours.

Serve with white rice (if not on an SCD diet) and vegetables.

Trail Mix Granola Bars

I just bought the new cookbook: Against All Grain by Danielle Walker at Costco the other day. This cookbook did not disappoint. Though I haven't tried many of the recipes, her other book: Against the Grain, had many tasty grain-free recipes and ideas how to keep one's appetite satisfied.

A caution for those still suffering from symptoms, try to keep away from as much honey as possible. So, eat this bar with caution. Eat only one at a time and see how your body responds.

They are delicious and can give you much energy, but know your body and how it responds to foods. Some people are sensitive to honey, some to nuts and some to dried fruit, and if you are fortunate your body can handle all three. But I say again, know your own body.


Trail Mix Granola Bars

1/2 cup of honey
1/2 cup of almond butter, or nut butter of choice (not peanut butter)
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
3/4 cup pecan halves
3/4 cup of cashews
1/2 cup of almonds
5 large pitted dates, soaked in warm water for 15 minutes
1/4 cup of shredded unsweetened coconut
1/4 cup of raisins
2 tablespoons of unsweetened dried cranberries
1/2 cup of dark chocolate pieces (optional, not allowed for SCD diets)

1.  Line a 9 x 13 inch baking dish with parchment paper.
2. Place the honey, almond butter, oil and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly to avoid burning, then lower heat to simmer for 10 minutes continuing to stir.
3. Meanwhile, place the pecans, cashews, almonds, and dates in a food processor and process until the mixture resembles course sand. Add the coconut, raisins, cranberries and chocolate if desired. Pulse a few times to combine and chop up ingredients.
4. Remove the honey mixture from the stove and stir in the nut mixture.
5. Spoon the mixture  into the baking dish, spreading it out with the back of the spoon.
6. Place a piece of parchment paper on top and use your palms to press the mixture evenly into the pan. Pack it down as tightly as possible to allow the mixture to cohere.
7. Remove the top piece of parchment and place the dish in the freezer for 2 hours.
8. Remove from the freezer and lift the mixture out of the pan using edges of the parchment paper. Cut into even rectangle-shaped bars with a knife. Store in the refrigerator.

Turkey Butternut Hash

Several weeks ago, a young mother shared a similar recipe for a quick-one skillet meal. I thought it a wonderful and quick idea, but needed to tweak the recipe a little to make it SCD complaint.

First, the bacon needs to be nitrate, preservative, and sugar free. The one company I found that makes a wonderful bacon is Pederson's Natural Farm. I found this bacon at Whole Foods. If you cannot find this bacon or one like it, just leave it out. Yes, everything tastes better with bacon, but your health will thank you if you keep away from the chemical ridden and sugar filled version we have our grocery shelves.  Instead of using the sweet potatoes I substituted butternut squash, and to compliment this sweet vegetable, I added one teaspoon of Garam Masala; this is an interesting Indian spice blend.

So here is a quick and easy meal and oh, so good for you! And yes, it freezes really well. So make a large batch and freeze in glass, single, serving dishes.

Turkey Butternut Hash

1/2 pound of bacon, diced
3 garlic cloves, minces
1 onion, diced
1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed
2 pounds of ground turkey
4 handfuls of spinach, stems removed

1. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook the bacon until soft, not crisp.  Add the onion and cook 2-3 minutes and then add the ground turkey and garlic.  Cook the meat fully, stirring and breaking it up. Right before meat is done, add the cubed butternut, garam masala and stir and cover. Turn heat down too medium-low and cook until squash is barely tender. You don't want to cook the squash so long that it becomes mushy.
2.  Add the spinach and cover again, cooking for 2 minutes more, just until wilted. Then salt and pepper to taste.

Experiment with this recipe. It is forgiving and flexible. Change up the spices and add the ones that are your favorites. Serve with some SCD legal crackers for a one bowl-wonder meal.