Lemon Drop Smoothie

If I don't make a definite effort to keep getting greens into my body every day, it is easy to forget. There are lots of good foods which are fine to eat, but they don't have as many important nutrients as greens. I can really feel it in my body when I eat more greens. And if I start forgetting, I start to suffer. Before I started eating them all the time, I really didn't know how much they could help a person. But now I know they are the most important thing a person could eat.

So, to help us all start eating greens more, I'm going to post a favorite green recipe. It may look green, but it is a fresh vibrant green. And it doesn't taste green at all. My husband has named it "Lemon Drop Smoothie". Because that is what it tastes like.

Lemon Drop Smoothie

2 - 3 large Fuji apples or other sweet apples, washed, cored, cut in large chunks
1 - 2 cups of cold water
1 large handful of washed fresh parsley
3 - 8 leaves of romaine or kale or other dark greens
1/4 of a washed lemon, flesh and skin, minus the seeds (The skin is important. It is what makes it taste like a lemon drop. It is full of nutrients.)

Place it all in your blender jar and whiz it until it is smooth. A Vita Mix can get away with less water. A regular blender will need more water, and it will help if the apples and lemon is cut in smaller pieces. Pour into elegant glasses and enjoy the best breakfast/lunch/dinner/snack you could ever drink. Serves 4

Gluten Free Focaccia - Recipe Review

I am excited to tell about a recipe I tried last night, Gluten Free Focaccia Bread with Tomatoes and Garlic. I found the gluten free blog called Karina's Kitchen. It is so good that we have another loaf in the oven right now. This yummy bread is gluten free, dairy free, egg free, and soy free. It also contains whole grain flours. That is a pretty steep challenge for bread, but with this excellent recipe it is a success.

I did a few things differently, and learned a lesson when making the bread which I will tell you about, and hopefully save you a little frustration.

First of all, don't add extra water to the recipe, even if you think it needs it. It make the bread take longer to bake. After the bread had bake an extra 10 minutes and still wasn't done, I took the bread out and cut it into wedges and then put them on a cookie sheet, and then back to the oven. They were nicely done in another 10 - 15 minutes. And the results were very delicious.

Second, the tomatoes that were thinly sliced were better then the ones slice thick.

Third, I didn't have any millet flour or potato starch. So I subbed in some potato flour, some corn flour a little garfava flour, and some more sorghum flour, and the flour combination worked just fine. It seems that brown rice flour or teff would work just fine too, if that is what you have on hand.

Also, I used an Italian herb mix instead of the basil and thyme in the recipe. And I sprinkled the Italian seasoning on top of the bread too before putting it in the oven.

If you are wishing for special gluten free breads, this one is likely to satisfy.

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Follow up note - 4/28/09

I have made the bread several times since then, and have discovered that it works best when you follow the recipe as close as possible. The potato starch and millet flour are very important.
Substitute only if you have to and you will have better results.

Also, the tomatoes taste yummy baked on the bread, but make the bread soggy. You may wish to add them at the end, or not at all.

Whole Life Nutrition

I am excited to let my readers know that I have found an excellent gluten free blog that features whole foods called Whole Life Nutrition. The dad of the family is a nutritionalist who discovered that he is gluten intolerant during a cleanse. They have many recipes that I am eager to try. The newest one is for Banana Teff Pancakes. Go to www.glutenfreewholefoods.blogspot.com and I also put it over on the side.