Gluten Free Paleo Thanksgiving App - Carrot Sunflower Seed Dip

Are you prepared with a recipe arsenal for last-minute family and unannounced guests showing up this Holiday season ready to eat? Oh and don’t forget Auntie Pattie who is Paleo now, and Jimmy who has a peanut allergy, oh right and your gluten allergy. 

Are you sweating already? 

Its ok, I am here to help. 

Let me introduce you to a healthy, quick, and easy dip that is usable for an appetizer dip with crackers or veggies, or to pull together a meal by using it as a spread for roasted meats, or even thinned out with some olive oil for a salad dressing. 

Oh and did I mention its Gluten, Dairy, Grain, and Peanut Free?

Boom! 

A bonus aspect to this recipe is that you can exchange the sunflower seeds for any nut or seed you have on hand. I usually make my own crackers but let’s be honest, during the holidays sometimes we need to take short cuts, so here are some links to gluten-free crackers that I have pictured with the dip.

Obviously fresh veggies would be optimal but we need to please a crowd so lets not be too pushy on family and friends during Thanksgiving about gluten-free this and vegan that. Just put the food down and make no health announcements (unless you need to) and see what the reaction is. Plus a dip made of carrots that is completely vegan is way better than the usual cream cheese stuffed fried food that is usually around, but they don’t need to know that right? 

Carrot Sunflower Orange Date Spread

Yields 2

Vegan - Gluten Free - Grain Free - Paleo - Sugar Free - Make Ahead

Ingredients

1. 1 Lb Carrots Peeled and Cut into 1/2'' Pieces
2. 1 Cup Roasted Sunflower Seeds or Nut/Seed of Choice
3. 1/2 Cup Pitted Dates (soaked in warm water for 10 minutes)
4. 1/2 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
5. Zest and Juice of 1 Orange
6. 1/2 Tsp Fine Sea Salt
7. Pinch of Cayenne Pepper (optional)

Instructions

1. Steam the carrots for 5-7 minutes or until the carrots are easily pierced with a knife.
2. Drain the dates and add all of the ingredients to a blender.
3. Blend the mixture until smooth.
4. Taste for seasoning and transfer to a bowl and serve with crackers, crudite, or use as a dip for meat or veggies.

Notes

           The sunflower seeds can be replaced with cashews, almonds, walnuts, or hazelnuts.

Raw Vegan Pub Cheese!!!

When I was growing up Friday nights in my house were great. My mom would let us put our feet up on the table and recline back like old men, we would eat pub cheese, and my mom would crack a rolling rock while we listened to tunes on the radio. Life was simple. Good cheese, family, and music was all we needed. 

Unfortunately dairy is no longer a friend of some members of my family (nor is the gluten in beer anymore) so we have had to make some changes. 

I have made a raw vegan version of the famous pub cheese to fill the void and luckily there are some great Gluten Free beers hitting the market to recreate the magic. 

Here is a list of the top 10 Gluten Free Beers from Gourmet Magazine

I made this with soaked raw almonds and macadamia nuts. The great thing about soaking your nuts before eating them is that it removes a lot of the lectins (protein binding carbohydrates that are found in plants and animals). Lectins can be harmful for digestion because of their binding qualities that can attach to the intestinal lining and cause a lot of problems such as reduced nutrient, mineral, and protein absorption, as well as leptin resistance (a pre diabetic condition linked to obesity). This is important information for people with gluten allergies who are probably dealing with or have dealt with some kind of intestinal damage like leaky gut :/

Read more about lectins and how to reduce them in your diet here

Not to fear because soaking nuts greatly diminishes the lectins levels so this recipe is free from gluten, grains, and dairy as well as gut friendly :) 

First off rinse and then soak your nuts overnight in filtered water.

Drain the nuts and rinse off any additional residue and place in a blender along with the remaining ingredients. 

Blend until smooth. Taste for seasoning. 

Transfer to a fine sieve lined with cheese cloth and place over a bowl to drain overnight. ( I know there is a lot of waiting here but the prep is stupid easy so it all works out in the end)

Turn out the cheese and eat up! 

Raw Vegan Pub Cheese

Raw - Vegan - Paleo - Gluten Free - Grain Free - Soy Free - Sugar Free

Ingredients

• 1 cup raw cashews 
• 1/2 cup raw macadamia nuts 
• 3 Tbl Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 3/4 cup Water
• 1/4 cup Fresh Lemon Juice
• 1/4 tsp Fine Sea Salt
• 1 Garlic Clove minced
• 3 Tbl chopped Parsley (measure after chopping)
• 2 tsp Dried Thyme
• 1/8 tsp Black Pepper
• 2 Tbl Chopped Chives (measure after chopping)

Instructions

1. Rinse off the nuts and place in a bowl.
2. Cover with water and place in the fridge to soak overnight.
3. Drain and rinse the nuts and place in a blender along with all of the remaining ingredients minus the chives.
4. Blend until smooth.
5. Fold in the chives and transfer the cheese to a sieve lined with cheesecloth placed over a bowl to drain.
6. Fold the cheesecloth over the top and place in the fridge to drain overnight.
7. Turn out the cheese and serve!

Notes

1. The flavors need time to mellow in this recipe so if you taste it right out of the blender don't be surprised if the garlic and lemon come on strong. Feel free to play around with the amount of garlic to suite your preference. If you don't like a raw onion favor feel free to leave the chives out but they really lend a good bite to the cheese.

Chic and Simple Middle Eastern Inspired Appetizer

Hopefully you had a beautiful, long, holiday weekend. My pool is open, I can smell the grill, and the weather is finally warming up :)

I find during the warmer months I am drawn to lighter fare with fresh ingredients, big punches of flavor and acidity.

Enter last nights appetizer that turned into dinner: 

Middle Eastern Sumac Roasted Eggplant with Basil Serrano Salsa Verde

With the addition of an egg this can totally function as a light dinner. The components can also be served chopped up and tossed into mesculin greens using the salsa verde as a salad dressing. If you aren’t into eggs might I suggest you replace the egg with some soft goat cheese and feel free to sub the sunflower seeds with your favorite nut or seed (Marcona almonds, or pistachios would work beautifully). 

Middle Eastern Sumac Roasted Eggplant with Basil Serrano Salse Verde

Serves 2

Gluten Free - Grain Free - Paleo - Vegetarian - Dairy Free

Ingredients

• 10 Baby Eggplants
• 1 tablespoon Olive Oil (for eggplants)
• 2 teaspoons Sumac
• 2 teaspoons Smoked Paprika
• 1 cup Flat Leaf Parsley
• 4 cups Basil Leaves
• 1/3 cup Olive Oil (for Salsa Verde)
• 1/4 cup Nutritional Yeast
• 1 Serrano Pepper (Diced with seeds removed)
• 2 teaspoons Lemon Zest (About 1 lemon)
• 2 teaspoons Lemon Juice
• 1/2 teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
• 1/4 teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• 2 Eggs
• 2 heaped tablespoons Roasted Sunflower Seeds

Instructions

1. Roasted Eggplant
2. Step 1
3. Pre heat the oven to 475F
4. Split the eggplants in half lengthwise and liberally cover them in olive oil.
5. In a small bowl combine the Sumac, Smoked Paprika, and two big pinches of fine sea salt.
6. Liberally sprinkle the eggplant with the spice mixture reserving a small pinch for the eggs.
7. Place the eggplants on a sheet pan and roast for 25-30 minutes or until charred and softened. (A knife should pierce very easily when pressed against the flesh)

Basil Serrano Salsa Verde

1. In the work bowl of a food processor add 1/3 cup olive oil, diced and seeded Serrano pepper, lemon zest, lemon juice, 1/2 tsp salt, basil and parsley.
2. Pulse for about 1 minute until the herbs are broken down.
3. Add the nutritional yeast and pulse to incorporate.
4. Taste for seasoning.
5. If the mixture is too thick stream in more olive oil until the desired consistency is reached.

Medium Boiled Eggs

1. Place the eggs in a small sauce pan and cover with water to just cover the eggs.
2. Heat over medium high heat, uncovered, until the water just comes to a boil.
3. Turn off the heat, leaving the pot in place, and set a timer for 8 minutes.
4. When the timer goes off wait 30 seconds and then drain and cover the eggs in ice water.
5. Allow the eggs to rest for 5-10 minutes.
6. With the back of a spoon gently tap all around the surface of the egg to create as many little cracks as possible.
7. Roll the egg around in your hands over the sink.
8. WIth the faucet running gently peel the eggs under the running water.
9. Split the eggs in half and dust with the remaining sumac, salt, smoked paprika spice mixture.

Assembly

1. Place 5 eggplant halves in a plate along with two halves of an egg.
2. Generously spoon the salsa verde over the eggs and eggplant.
3. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of roasted sunflower seeds over each plate.