Category Archives: Saving Money

Seaweed Salad

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Seaweed Salad is easy to make and is great as a topping or in hot and cold salads. Homemade Seaweed Salad will not have the bright green color of commercial products due to not having artificial coloring.

This recipe is NOT safe for someone on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet or GAPS.

Seaweed Salad
1c dried wakame seaweed, sliced or chopped
1c filtered water
2T Homemade Sambal Oelek in Sesame Seed Oil
1T organic barley miso
1T local honey
1T organic traditionally fermented tamari
2T organic cider vinegar
1T organic toasted sesame seed oil
1T toasted sesame seeds or Homemade Furikake

In a bowl, soak the wakame seaweed in filtered water for 2-5 minutes. Less soaking time will leave the seaweed with more texture. In another bowl, mix the Homemade Sambal Oelek Sesame Seed Oil with the miso and honey until smooth. Then add the tamari, cider vinegar and toasted sesame seed oil. Remove the soaking water from the seaweed and add the seaweed to the sauce and mix well again. Top with the sesame seeds from the Homemade Furikake. Reserve the seaweed soaking water for making broth or sprinkle on house plants or in the indoor growing unit.

All seaweeds are high in polysaccharides which are not well tolerated by people on the SCD or GAPS. Miso and tamari are also restricted on the diet because both are made from soy or grains. If you have been on the SCD or GAPS for some time and all your symptoms have resolved you might like to experiment with different seaweeds, miso and tamari and see if you can tolerate them. Try each food one at a time for tolerance, not together in one recipe like this. Also, avoid all commercially prepared Seaweed Salads which have a bright green color from artificial coloring and additives. Homemade Seaweed Salad will have a dark green color but none of these dangerous additives.

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In the winter, Seaweed Salad is a good way to spice up cabbage cooked in butter. Add some Sambal to the cabbage for extra zing.

Hot Alternations: In the winter, Seaweed Salad can be eaten hot with cooked cabbage or other vegetables or used as a topping for meat or fish.
Cold Alternations: Seaweed Salad can be eaten by itself or with finely chopped lettuce or microgreens.

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Seaweed Salad is great on stir-fried vegetables or as a topping for chicken. Try some Homemade Sambal in your next stir-fry.

Here is a local source for seaweed and bonito flakes:
Cheng Kwong Grocery
Jenny Lu
864B 8th Street, Kamloops, BC V2B 2X3
250.554.2272

Homemade Furikake

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“Furikake [is] the salt and pepper of Japan. This crunchy, salty, nutty, earthy, briny topping that tastes slightly of seafood is a great all-purpose seasoning for rice, seafood, snacks, and more.”
www.foodiewithfamily.com

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Furikake is a traditional Japanese, multi-purpose seasoning that is easy to make and a great addition to meat, fish, seafood, rice, snacks, and assorted vegetables.


This recipe is NOT safe for someone on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet or GAPS.

Homemade Furikake

1c organic sesame seeds
1T sea salt
3T bonito flakes
1 sheet nori seaweed, cut into small pieces (optional)
In a cast iron frying pan, dry roast the sesame seeds over high or medium heat, stirring all the time. The sesame seeds will be ready when the seeds start to pop and brown slightly. Do not overcook. Remove the seeds from the fry pan immediately and pour into a bowl. Add the sea salt, bonito flakes and the optional nori. All seaweeds are high in polysaccharides which are not well tolerated by people on the SCD or GAPS. Remove the nori to make this recipe safe.

The trick to cutting the sheet of nori is to first fold the sheet of nori in half and then again into quarters, before cutting. Cut the sheet into stripes along the folds. Then cut each stripe into 1/4-1/8 inch pieces.

Here is a local source for seaweed and bonito flakes:
Cheng Kwong Grocery
Jenny Lu
864B 8th Street, Kamloops, BC V2B 2X3
250.554.2272

furikake-cabbage

Furikake is a nice topping for dressing up winter cooked cabbage.

Homemade Sambal Oelek

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homemade-sambal-oelek

Sambal Oelek is a very hot sauce great for spicing up winter meals.

The recipe is safe for someone on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet or GAPS.

Sambal is a sauce that originated in Indonesian or Malaysian and can be made from many different types of chilies. Sambal Oelek means “ground chilies”. Making this sauce at home from fresh ingredients is called “Sambal Dadak”.

This recipe is made with both dried and fresh ingredients but for best results use fresh ingredients whenever possible. Be very careful when working with hot chilies as they can burn skin, eyes and lungs.

Sambal Oelek

1c organic dried red chilies
1/4c organic lemongrass
1c boiling filtered water
2/3c organic garlic, peeled
2/3c organic ginger, chopped
2/3c organic cider vinegar
1/2c local honey
1T sea salt
1 organic lime peel
Put the chilies and lemongrass into a bowl. Bring the filtered water to a boil and pour over the chilies and lemongrass. Cover and let sit for 20 minutes. In a food processor or Vita-mix machine, puree the garlic and ginger. Add the vinegar, honey, sea salt and lime peel and blend until smooth. Add the soaked chilies and lemongrass and puree. Reserve the soaking water. Add some of the soaking water if the sauce is too thick. Store in a glass jar in the fridge. The sauce will last for a year or longer if refrigerated.

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For a milder Sambal Oelek add some of the sauce to raw or toasted sesame seed oil. This is raw sesame seed oil but using toasted sesame oil is very good too.

Sambal Oelek in Sesame Seed Oil

1 part Homemade Sambal Oelek
4 parts organic raw or toasted sesame oil
Sambal Oelek is a very hot sauce. One way to tame the hot flavor is to add some sauce to an oil base. Any oil can be used but raw or toasted sesame oil would be a traditional choice. If possible, allow a week for the sauce to infuse into the oil before using but the oil can be used right away. For a mild spicy flavor skim the oil from the top of the jar. For a hotter dish use a mixture of the oil and Sambal solids.

Coco-Chia Pudding

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“The reason Chia seeds are so beneficial is due to them being rich in fiber, omega-3 fats, protein, vitamins and minerals? Chia also contains essential fatty acids alpha-linolenic and linoleic acid, mucin, strontium, Vitamins A, B, E, and D, and minerals including sulphur, iron, iodine, magnesium, manganese, niacin, thiamine, and they are a rich source of anti-oxidants.”
9 Chia Seeds Benefits and Side Effects by Dr Josh Axe

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A small amount of chia seeds go a long way. One tablespoon of chia seeds will make about one half cup of thick pudding, more if you like a thinner pudding.

This recipe is NOT safe for someone on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet.

Chia seeds (Salvia hispanica) are a traditional food in Central and South America but is considered a novelty food in North America. Recently, chia seeds have made a big splash in the alternative health community. Chia seeds are full of mucilage and polysaccharides which are not well tolerated by people on the SCD. If you have been on the SCD for some time and all your symptoms have resolved you might like to experiment with chia seeds and see if you can tolerate them.

This dessert is very easy to make and has the consistency of crunchy tapioca. One member of the family said the dessert tasted good but looked like frog spawn, so it might make a fun Halloween dessert for young children!

Chia seeds are a dense food which doesn’t take up much space, making chia seeds a very good candidate for camping or emergency rations.

Coco-Chia Pudding

1/2c organic chia seeds, soaked
3c filtered water
1/4-1/3c organic creamed coconut
1c boiling water
3-4T local honey
1T homemade vanilla extract
1/2tsp sea salt
Soak the chia seeds overnight in the water. Stir the soaking seeds a few times during the process. This avoids the chia seeds clumping together. In a sauce pan, boil one cup of water. Remove from the heat. In a blender, add the creamed coconut, honey, vanilla extract and sea salt and mix until smooth. Add the mixture to the soaked chia seeds and mix well. Store the pudding in the fridge. The pudding will continue to thicken every day. If you prefer a thinner pudding add another cup of water or boiling water with more creamed coconut.

Paleo Paella

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This Paleo Paella is grain-free. The rice portion of this dish is replaced with cauliflower. This version is nice for people looking to avoid grains or wanting to get more vegetables into their diet.

This recipe is safe for someone on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, GAPS or the modified paleo diet.

Oven Baked Chicken

1 pastured whole chicken, cut into small pieces
1/4c organic olive oil
1tsp sea salt
1tsp organic black peppercorns, freshly ground
2tsp organic smoked paprika
Cut up the whole chicken into small pieces. (Reserve the breast meat for other meals, if desired.) Use a clever and mallet to cut through the bones. If you don’t know how to cut up a chicken please refer to The Joy of Cooking or watch a video on the internet. Coat the chicken pieces with the olive oil. While stirring the chicken pieces sprinkle with the spice mixture. Let the chicken pieces marinate in the spice mixture for one hour. Spread the chickens pieces on a glass baking tray and bake at 300F for 45 minutes. Turn the pieces and remove the chicken juices and reserve for the paella. Cook the chicken pieces for another 30 minutes or until done.

Cauliflower Paella

1/3c organic olive oil
2 medium organic onions, chopped
1tsp sea salt
1 organic cauliflower head, finely minced
1tsp fresh rosemary, finely minced
3-4 organic whole Roma tomatoes, frozen
1T turmeric root, freshly ground
1T palm oil
1tsp organic black peppercorns, freshly ground
2-4 organic garlic cloves, finely sliced
chicken juices
1c organic peas, frozen
1c fresh clams, mussels or shrimp (optional)
Finely mince the cauliflower in a food processor. In a deep, large fry pan, saut? the onions in sea salt and olive oil until lightly browned. Add the cauliflower, rosemary, tomatoes, turmeric and palm oil and cook until the tomatoes unfreeze. Remove the tomato skins, if desired. Stir in the ground peppercorns, garlic and chicken juices. Remove from the heat until the chicken is ready. Add the peas and optional seafood and reheat the paella just before serving with the chicken pieces.