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Grain-free Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Tart {Paleo, Vegan}
Clearly, as evidence by my recent posts, we are coming up on the season of sweets and treats. With all the upcoming holidays, I think less is more when it comes to this encore course. I find most desserts to be far too heavy, too sweet and generally just too indulgent for my tastes. As with most everything in life, I truly believe that a little goes a long way.
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Turkey Club Chopped Salad with Aioli Vinaigrette {Paleo-friendly}
I have jokingly said this before, but I truly, deep down, really mean it. My husband has become somewhat of a muse for me in the kitchen. Or one of my muses I should say. First and foremost, from a heavily selfish place, my own autoimmune conditions, food intolerances and sensitivities are my biggest creative driving force when it comes to recipe development. I also, of course, find so much joy in creating for all of you and your varying dietary challenges and lifestyles. All that said, my husband happens to be one of those more and more rare specimens whom isn’t afflicted with any food allergies or issues. He’s a tank, he can eat anything and everything, he’s healthy as a horse and he generally doesn’t have to worry too much when it comes to food.
He is, as he says it “on the Beth plan”, at home, as I do all of the cooking and I generally don’t hear a complaint out of him. However, when we eat at restaurants some of his decision-making is so far askew from my own and how we eat at home, that I can (apparently) look at him like he has 3 heads, while he orders. It’s mostly a curiosity of how and why he would still want certain things after eating how we do, I am always curious how eating a bunch of starchy, grainy carbs before a meal can feel good, when he generally eats grain-free at home. I get it though, he didn’t exactly sign up to eat this way, it’s somewhat by default. But, I digress, I don’t give him
too muchshit, however I do take note. I take these opportunities to know that I can come home and recreate certain foods to be more healthful, to remove some unneeded processed foods and to hopefully win him over with an even better, cleaner version. It’s a game of sorts for me and the winner is always him. -
Spice-Infused Winter Sangria
Removing my trip to Mexico last week and that day I had too many margaritas at lunch, this lady does very little drinking these days. My body just doesn’t love it. I enjoy a glass of wine now and again, don’t get me wrong. That being said, 1) I am all about balance and enjoy the holidays and 2) it just wouldn’t be the holidays without a signature cocktail for Tasty Yummies.
One of my all-time favorite winter and holiday indulgences is a steamy hot mug of mulled wine. However, living in California, a toasty mug of booze isn’t always what the weather gods have in mind, so I decided to get crafty and combine my summertime favorite, sangria, with the wintery, holiday flavors of mulled wine.
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Grain-Free Pumpkin Chocolate Chunk Muffins
Tomorrow is the big day and if you are like me, you’ve already begun thinking about how to use up those Thanksgiving leftovers. In my humble opinion, the leftovers can be just as incredible as the main event. Less fuss, all the great food and you can get a little creative, veering away from the classic dishes, a little.
We’re headed down to Mexico to spend the holidays with our friends. We’ll be staying on the beach and making a traditional feast for 20, which means lots of leftovers. Rather than living off that same heavy meal for days, I am all about finding creative new ways to reimagine the various foods into new, healthier recipes.
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Gluten-free Thanksgiving for Two
We are a little more than a week out from Thanksgiving and I am, of course, so excited for the big day. Each year since we have moved out to California, our Thanksgiving celebration has been a bit different. We haven’t exactly created new solid traditions, yet. Often this was even the case back home in NY, too. Most of the time we are surrounded with friends and/or family, but there have been years, due to schedules, travel or other situations, where Thanksgiving dinner was just the two of us. This year we are headed just over the border to Mexico to celebrate the holiday with our friends and their families, where we’ll be together with tons of incredible people, fully submerged in the good vibes of the holiday.
As much as the holidays are about gathering with family and friends, we have all found ourselves on those less than busy holidays. Just two of us. Your spouse or your partner, a parent, your best friend, a loved one or neighbor you are caring for. I find while not as abundant in people, these more low-key holidays are really nice in their own right, quiet and simple – where brand new memories and traditions are created. I thought creating a feast of a meal, focused on this idea of less, might be useful to many of you.
Additionally, some of you may be joining a larger feast, as someone gluten-free, or serving a feast with one or two gluten-free guests. It can be scary being that person (and even the person serving them), when you aren’t sure of the food being made, if it’s safe for you, how it was prepared and so on. These smaller-serving sizes free from gluten, would be the perfect way for you to make and bring along a small dish just for you or as an option to serve to your guest.
I am so excited to share with you a simple, classic menu featuring gluten-free recipes meant for two. Smaller portions, simple preparations and less fuss!
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Gluten-Free Whole-Grain Dinner Rolls
Do you miss those fluffy dinner rolls from your previous (gluten-eating) life? Truthfully, I kinda do sometimes. Mostly I have learned to stay busy when the bread basket gets delivered to the table. I engage myself in an interesting conversation, I sip my water or tea and most of the time, I could really care less that I am unable to fill up on all those starchy carbs. 10+ years of not having something, you tend to not be too bothered after a while. I’ve created new habits and I enjoy my meals so much more without having a tummy full of carbs before I have even started the main event.
But, at holiday meals, a time of traditions and coming together over food, you let go a little, you eat a bit more than you usually would, you indulge in your favorite, classic dishes (gluten-free versions, of course). The holidays, for me, can at times bring up feelings of food FOMO (fear of missing out). I want to eat like everyone else, I would love a delicious, homemade, warm (gluten-free) dinner roll to sop up my gravy at my thanksgiving feast. Please and thank you!
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Garam Masala Roasted Acorn Squash Wedges
Do you keep with your standard, classic, traditional Thanksgiving dishes or do you like mix it up a little every year? I generally stick with the classics – turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing and of course, pumpkin pie – these are non-negotiable for me. From there, I like to have a little fun with the other sides. I mix it up with the salad and the green beans and I always try to do something a little unexpected with the squash.
This year, I am not hosting Thanksgiving, we are mixing it up a bit and headed to Mexico, to celebrate with our very good friends, Dan and Debbie, and their family. I am definitely planning to bring a few classic gluten-free dishes to share, but I eagerly await to see what else they may need and I will offer from there.
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Massaged Kale Salad with Sweet Potato Noodles, Persimmon and a Smoky Orange Vinaigrette
It’s that time of year again, the web is a buzz with turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, pie and all the sides, so here we go!! This salad celebrates the best of the season and not only is it beautiful, but it packs a punch in the flavor department. It is sure to impress anyone you serve it to and I can promise this salad will be the Knight in
shininggreen armor at any carb-heavy holiday meal.
Amongst this crazy busy time of year, I would bet we could all use a massage or two, so let’s treat our kale, too. Seriously though, all joking aside, if you haven’t yet experienced the magic of massaged kale, you need to get on this train. I find many people think that they don’t love raw kale, I agree, it’s not super palatable in it’s raw form. It’s rough, fibrous, strong and often times bitter, but you would be shocked what a 5 minute rub down can do for this popular superfood. The flavor mellows, the texture becomes more silky and it’s infused with the soft flavors of the olive oil and citrus.
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Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Spicy Orange-Parsley Chimichurri
Ya wanna know what I think? I think roasted Brussels sprouts are just about the most brilliant creation ever. I know for many people Brussels sprouts are a you either love ’em or you hate ’em kinda thing, but I would bet even the biggest of haters could get down with these Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Spicy Orange-Parsley Chimichurri. It’s THAT good, people! We got some Brussels sprouts in our CSA box from Beachgreens this past week and I have more oranges growing than I know what to do with and some extra fresh parsley, so this dish was born out of what I had on hand. As most of my favorite dishes are.
In my opinion, this delicious and flavorful spicy orange-parsley chimichurri is the perfect addition to an already delicious food. It compliments the roasted and toasty flavor of the Brussels in the most perfect of ways. A little pop of bright sweet, tartness from the orange juice and zest, the wee bit of spicy and a load of flavors from the parsley, oregano and garlic. Oh and be sure to bookmark this recipe, this chimichurri is so amazing on other foods like any of your other grilled 0r roasted veggies, try it with baked sweet potato fries, steak, pork chops, fish and more. Use it as a marinade or a dipping sauce, too.
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Roasted Butternut Squash, Apple and Leek Bread Stuffing with Collard Greens (Grain-free Option)
I am totally aware that I am coming in down to the wire with this recipe. Thanksgiving is just a few short days away and maybe some of you have had your menu’s planned for days or even weeks, but I am not quite that put together. I am serving dinner to somewhere between 7 and 10 people on Thursday and I am still working on what I plan to serve.
With my weekends being consumed by yoga teacher training and trying to maintain a social life amidst a busy work schedule plus making time for my own yoga practice and personal training sessions, life has been feeling a tad hectic, as of late. My saving grace has been our CSA boxes that get delivered every Wednesday. Most weeks I plan our meals based on what shows up in that box, so I always know that we will be eating healthy and well, no matter how busy life gets.
This stuffing was born on a day that a new CSA box showed up and I still had a couple things from the previous week’s box. So, it’s partially a recipe created with Thanksgiving in mind and partially and more simply, a fridge/pantry cleaning recipe. After getting some beautiful butternut squash, leeks and apples, plus some gorgeous collard greens, I was finding myself inspired to create a dish that used all of them.
This fun version of a classic bread stuffing is so easy to throw together and it is just full of so many incredible comforting flavors. The best part of this recipe is how versatile it is. You can use whatever your favorite bread is, try kale instead of collard greens and you could even add meat, if that’s your preference.
I created a super quick and easy to make grain-free bread to make this stuffing with, I kinda impressed myself with how simple it is to make and how perfectly it works in this recipe! What more could you ask for on a busy holiday?
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Roasted Beet and Persimmon Salad with Goat Cheese and Toasted Walnut Vinaigrette
First of all, I have to be honest and tell you that I really wanted to call this post “Ode to Persimmon”. If you can believe it, just a couple weeks ago, I finally tried a persimmon for the first time ever. Yup, to my knowledge, I had never had one until very recently. I haven’t been actively avoiding them, by any means, it just hadn’t happened. I mostly attribute it to growing up in Western New York, where they don’t seem to grow and aren’t as common. On the contrary they seem to be everywhere out here in California.
For me, it was love at first bite. A persimmon is unlike anything I have ever tasted before. I honestly can’t compare their flavor or even their texture to anything else, they are a completely unique and beautiful creation. Their size and look seems more like something of the tomato family than any other fruit. The flesh is soft and creamy, similar to a peach or nectarine, but not as juicy. Something about the sweetness reminds me of dates, but I can’t put my finger on it. The skin of persimmons is edible.
So far, I have enjoyed the persimmons I have been getting in my CSA boxes, raw, sliced or eaten like an apple, in smoothies and in salads. This particular salad has quickly become a favorite of mine. It has the earthy rustic flavor of the beets, with soft sweetness from the persimmons, the creamy, richness of the goat cheese in contrast plus the fresh and bright flavor of the micro-greens (ir a baby green if you so choose instead) and finished with the toasted nuttiness of the tart vinaigrette.
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99 More Gluten-free Thanksgiving Recipes
After the popularity of last year’s 99 Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Recipes post and hearing from so many of you how much it helped to have a long list of recipes to choose from for your holiday feasts, I knew I had to follow it up with another post this year. So without further ado, here are 99 MORE gluten-free thanksgiving recipes!
99 MORE Gluten-free Thanksgiving Recipes
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Spiced Apple Cranberry Kombucha Sangria
Though I tend to do very little imbibing these days, I do enjoy it now and again for special occasions. With the official start of the holidays upon us, I was on a mission to come up with a drink that could become the cocktail of the season. I have been working feverishly on the plans and the menu for our Thanksgiving feast this year and this seasonal appropriate libation will be perfect for our Friendsgiving get-together.
Sangria is the perfect cocktail for entertaining, so really it’d be great for any celebration. You can make a large batch a day ahead of time, let all of the flavors infuse with one another and as guests arrive, serve chilled with some fresh bubbles on top.
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Sautéed Green Beans with Mushrooms and Caramelized Leeks
It’s hard to think about much else these days, while visions of a Thanksgiving menu swirl around in my head. This year we have a pretty big “Friendsgiving” planned, could be as many as 10 people for dinner. All of our other California transplant friends are coming to our place and I am making a huge feast. Oh and before you ask, I am working on a follow-up to last year’s 99 Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Recipes, so stay tuned for that and in the meantime, check out last year’s post and keep an eye out for other fun recipes!
Anyhow, back my Thanksgiving menu obsession. I woke up the other morning, bright and early before the sun, as usual, and I sat up in bed thinking about food (a fairly usual occurrence for me), but not just any food, I was thinking about the Thanksgiving side dishes that I would be serving our guests.
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Autumn Harvest Salad with Maple Dijon Vinaigrette
This healthy, fall-inspired Autumn Harvest Salad with Maple Dijon Vinaigrette, is the perfect way to enjoy all of the many amazing flavors of the season in one flavor-packed healthy salad. It is light enough to not leave you heavy and weighed down, but also hearty enough to be a meal on it’s own. This makes 2 large meal sized servings or 4 side salad-sized servings. I like to make this salad and dress the servings individually so I can enjoy the leftovers later. This was the perfect lunch during a long day of yoga teacher training, a few weeks back.
Lately, this is one of my most favorite ways to enjoy raw kale and I find even those not super crazy about the superfood green, absolutely love it in salad like this. The key is to massage the kale to get rid of the toughness and the bitterness. Yup, I said “massage”! No, you don’t have to whisper sweet nothings to it or buy it dinner first, just a good ‘ol fashioned no-strings-attached massage.
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Harissa Roasted Carrots with Preserved Lemons and Feta (Gluten-free w/ Vegan-Option)
African food isn’t something I have a lot of experience with, but after making a batch of preserved lemons recently, I have been dreaming up some tasty and creative ways to use them. Being a traditional Moroccan staple food, it felt right to pair them with the harissa.
Harissa is a bit spicy and it has such a robust and full flavor. So much more than your run-of-the-mill pepper blend. Harissa comes in paste form or as a dried blend, for this recipe I used a dry blend, but you could certainly use a paste, you may want a tad bit more, but use your judgement. Read the rest of this entry »
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Grain-free Cranberry-Orange Spice Mini Tarts {Gluten-free and Vegan}
Since I pulled together the massive recipe round-up list for Thanksgiving this year, I haven’t been super focus on creating recipes for the holiday, since I knew you guys were more than set, but I have just been so inspired by the season and I have been having a lot of fun with the flavors.
I love coming up with creative and healthy ways to enjoy the flavors of the season. I prefer to make recipes that everyone will enjoy, no matter if they have allergies or intolerances or not, while still accommodating my own personal dietary restrictions. These tarts do just that. They would be a lovely dessert at Thanksgiving or any other holiday gathering. The tart shells have the perfect texture to them, the creamy rich cashew layer is reminiscent of cream cheese and the spiced cranberry orange topping is what holiday dreams are made of. The smell of it simmering is almost as good as how it actually tastes. Read the rest of this entry »
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Cranberry Kale Smoothie {Gluten-free, Vegan and Sugar-free}
Most of the time, as of late, I am struggling to believe it’s mid-November. Sure the calendar says so, there are lots of holiday decorations at the stores, I even saw the pictures from the first snow my family and friends got earlier in the week in NY. But, being my first year here in Southern California – the excessive sunshine and warmer temperatures are making it really hard for me to believe we are just a few weeks out from Thanksgiving. I have been a tad concerned that it would be hard to get into the holidays this year, with this new drastic change in lifestyle and scenery.
On my run to the beach yesterday morning, I passed by a home with a huge tree with beautifully vibrant leaves, falling so haphazardly all over their yard. The tree was more bare than not. I was mid-run and had a really great stride going, but I had to stop and take it all in. Snap a photo or two. It’s the little things in life, this like, that I may have once took for granted, that can now literally stop me dead in my tracks, leaving me with an immense amount of gratitude. I wonder how many people pass that very tree in a day, not realizing just how special it is. It is maybe one of just a few trees like it in our entire neighborhood. Only the second that has caught my attention.
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99 Gluten-free Thanksgiving Recipes
For even MORE gluten-free Thanksgiving recipes, be sure to check out the follow-up post to this
99 MORE Gluten-free Thanksgiving Recipes.Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on our gratitude. To take time to appreciate all that we have. This month I have been participating in a 21-Day Gratitude Meditation Series. Each morning I wake up and I dedicate a set amount of time before I start my day, to reflect on the gratitude I have for my life and those that are a part of it. It has been a wonderful journey and I don’t let a day pass by that I don’t recognize what a gift each and every moment truly is.
OK but let’s be really real and totally honest, Thanksgiving is also ALL about FOOD! Delicious, yummy, satisfying, comforting food! Rather than share a bunch of new recipes throughout this month, I thought I would take some time to pull together some of my all-time favorite Thanksgiving recipes, from here on TY and from some of my favorite bloggers. Some I have made before, some are on my menu for this year and some on my fantasy menu (if only I could have a skilled team of chefs to help me prepare an 11-course meal)!
Here is a list of some great gluten-free Thanksgiving recipes, sure to please everyone at your celebration. There is a little bit on something for all. Some of the traditional classics you’ve come to know at your holiday feasts, some lightened up and extra healthy dishes. Some covered in cheese, some are literally just vegetables. Whatever your preferences are, I do hope that this list of Gluten-free recipes will help you plan your best Thanksgiving, yet!
Whether you are gluten-free yourself, or hosting a guest who is gluten-free this Thanksgiving, check out my tips on entertaining – How to be an Accommodating Host and a Gracious Guest. And please, if this is your first holiday season gluten-free, be sure to check out my Quick Guide to Gluten-Free, so you can be mindful and aware of all the unsuspecting places gluten could be hiding.
And now the good stuff – I’ve got 99 Recipes and Gluten Ain’t One. (sorry had to)
99 Gluten-free Thanksgiving Recipes
Dietary Legend
ALL of the below recipes are gluten-free! Some are vegan, some paleo, some dairy-free, etc.
Use this key to easily select the recipes that will work for you:V – Vegan
Veg – Vegetarian
P – Paleo
DF – Dairy-free
NF – Nut-free
SF – Sugar-free*
RSF – Refined Sugar-free*
* So it wasn’t repetitive and redundant, I only used these on the recipes where you could expect to find sugar or sweeteners. Read the rest of this entry »
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Vegan Pumpkin Pie Martini – Gluten-free and Refined Sugar-free
I will keep this one short, yesterday’s post was enough words to read for the next week. Phew! What can I say, sometimes I just have stuff I wanna chat about. Thanks so much for being here to read it and all the rest of my ramblings!
I originally was only going to be sharing this recipe with my email list. An exclusive content kinda thing. But, I just can’t keep this from you guys and I am a little bit of a sucker. Many of you asked if you could still get the recipe even if you aren’t on my mailing list so I decided rules are meant to be broken, even if they are your own.
Too many people hate emails lists and I kinda don’t blame you. My inbox is a hot mess most days. If you are a busy person and you have a lot of stuff coming and going from your email everyday, adding one more could just be the tipping point. I don’t ever want to annoy you, my friends. So, for those of you that don’t want to mess with emails, I didn’t want you guys to feel left out. I don’t like holding out on you guys and this one is way too yummy to not be shared with the masses. So here ya go – enjoy this, share it and make it part of your holidays this year.
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Photo Fun Day Friday (Yes, I Know it’s Monday)
So it may be a few days late, but here it is. I decided after a busy few weeks of travel, house selling, getting ready for Thanksgiving and organizing the Thanksgiving series here on the blog, by the time the holiday had come and gone, I was just plain exhausted!! I needed a few days to relax, regroup and enjoy life with the family!
Last weekend we wrapped up our east coast tour in Brooklyn and then made the drive home. We got back late Monday and took a Tuesday and Wednesday to catch up with everything from being away 10 days and to get out all of the web orders that came in while we were out. Thanksgiving this year was the best one I can ever recall. Instead of it being the large extended family affair that is usually is, which is definitely nice, this year we decided to just do a small dinner with my immediate family. My parents, my sisters, my niece and nephew and Mark and I. It was so quiet, fun and it was really nice to spend time together cooking, eating, visiting and enjoying each other. With our pending move across the country, I am taking in all of these moments and cherishing them to the fullest.
On Saturday, we made the drive out to West Valley, NY to visit McHugh’s to cut down our Christmas tree. My parents, my sister Vicky and my niece Teagan joined us and we all went into Ellicottville afterward to walk around and grab some dinner. It was the perfect day, there was even snow!!!
Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday (if you celebrate) and an enjoyable weekend. We have another road trip coming up this week, so I am going to do my best to get a few recipes up in spite of that.
Lemmy, our good friends Karen and Mike’s adorable Olde English Bulldog.
Our booth last weekend at the Renegade Craft Fair in Brooklyn.
The amazing view of Manhattan from the park where we were set up.
A little skyline selfie action.
So happy to get home on Monday night and to be back in the kitchen, I made a quick pot of vegan hot and sour soup.
Took a little break on Tuesday for a quick walk in the park alone to clear my head and soak up the sunshine while we have it.
Took Seri to the park for some Thanksgiving ball time!
My Dad, aka “the world’s greatest Pappou” carving the pasture-raised turkey we got from our farm, Sojourner.
Best Thanksgiving EVER!
I made many dishes for the meal, but these might back been my favorite. Grain-free vegan chocolate cream pie mini-tarts with whipped coconut cream. I used my mini-tart shell recipe and the chocolate cream filling recipe here from Girl Makes Food as part of our Very Tasty Thanksgiving series.
Teagan. Looking how we all felt after the big meal!
My handsome boy, Jpeg.
I made potato pancakes from some of my mom’s leftover red smashed potatoes from Thanksgiving.
The family at the Christmas tree farm.
Me and Mark!
My girls!!!
Uncle Mark and Teagan. She was LOVING all of the snow!
We found our tree!
So perfect!
Couldn’t have had a better day to go Christmas tree shopping.
Got our first snow here in the city yesterday! Guest it’s time to switch from the fall decorations to the Christmas stuff.
