Mango Sorbet

We're moving soon back to the states so it's time to clean out the fridge!  I've had a bag of frozen mango chunks for a while now and decided to make a mango sorbet.  It was as simple as blending the frozen mango with the juice on 1/2 a lemon, pinch of sea salt and enough water to make it the consistency of sorbet.  I have trouble finding frozen mango that is as sweet as fresh mango so you may have to add a little sweetener to taste.

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Roasted Vegetables and Sweet Potato Chips

This weekend I lightly roasted eggplant, asparagus, yellow and red bell peppers, red onion, and zucchini for vegetable additions to my daily bone broths.  I put them into my roaster for an hour at 300 degs.  I'll cook down each portion daily for 20-30 minutes in bone broth. 

Lately (and maybe always) I've noticed a strange reaction to eggplant and sometimes nightshades in general.  When they are too sweet, they cause me to crave more sweetness.  My skin may itch after eating them and I have this weird feeling in my mouth.  I've read that the solanine in nightshades is to blame since it's a toxic poision, but it's also antifungal.  These sypmtoms may be healing reactions so I'm not taking them out for now.  If symptoms persist then I'll reevaluate.

I also made sweet potato chips (fried in goose fat) for the hubby.  These are simple to make, but the carrot chips in goose fat are the best by far.  Sweet potatoes are not SCD/GAPS legal, but since giving up grains, starches, and sugars this week, the hubby seems to be losing too much weight.  I made him these and steamed sweet potato puree loaded with butter to eat daily so he can put some weight back on. 

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Getting Out and Enjoying Nature (or a Well Manacured Garden in the Middle of the City)

The spring, summer, and early fall seasons in Korea are often plagued with heat, monsoon rains, pollution, pollen, and yellow dust from China's Gobi Desert. It's easy to lose a whole weekend locked away in the apartment, avoiding the world outside. This weekend was overcast, but the heat wasn't stifling and we ventured out to take some pictures. Enjoy these random shots from the garden outside our apartment.

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Grilled Beef, Korean Style

Korean food is super delicious, but can cause digestive problems for some.  Most Korean dishes come with abundant vegetables on the side, but you'll also find an abundance of irratants like soy, legumes, vegetable and nut oils, starch and grain thickeners, and sugars.  To be safe, I stick with unmarinated meats that can be grilled right in front of me or sushi/ sashimi and raw veggies.

It's hard trying to tell this to a waitress who hardly knows english so thankfully we had our friends Calvin and Ariel there to help.

Thinly sliced grilled beef. 

Wrapping the beef around some grilled onions.  So good!

Grilled steak.

Tofu with spicy topping.

Veggies in hot sauce.

Salad in hot dressing.

Kimchi.

Fermented bean paste.

Raw garlic.

Shredded cabbage with sweet dressing.

Sesame oil with pepar and salt dip for meat.

Watermelon for dessert.

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When Life Gives You Lemons...

Make a lemon and ginger electrolyte drink!!!

Every morning upon waking to help cleanse my liver, I drink a glass of warm water with the juice from half a lemon and 1/4 tsp Himalayan Sea Salt.  Over the course of the day I drink about 4 cups of water with 3/4 tsp sea salt, juice from the other 1/2 lemon, and about 1 inch ginger (grated).  This combo works well to energize me, kill any cravings that I may have, and settle my stomach.

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Coconut Cupcakes (with Coconut Flour)

Elana's Pantry is featuring cupcakes all this month (grain-free of course) and I decided to make her coconut cupcakes in an effort to make a dent in all the coconut flour in the freezer.  The only substitution I made was using honey in place of agave nectar.  The hubby whipped together a creamy topping of clotted cream, honey, and strawberries to sweeten them up even further. 

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Sauerkraut..Es gefällt mir!

A few weeks ago I started a batch of green/purple sauerkraut.  Last year I was addicted to cultured foods and tried to ferment anything and everything.  The last batch I made went earlier this year went bad within a few days and it's taken me a few months to get up the courage to try again.  Pounds of carrots into the garbage.  I was heartbroken.

I decided on a simple sauerkraut this time- cabbage, salt, and water.  The bottles sat out on the counter for about 5 days before I moved them to the fridge.  I'm setting these aside for the intro phase of the GAPS diet that I am planning to start next week. 

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Roasted Duck Plus Innards with Tomato Sauce

Cut the duck into 8 pieces and seared in butter.

Cook over low heat for about 10 minutes until browned.

After pieces are browned, cover pan and roast in oven at 350 degs for about 45 mins.

Can't waste all the innards so those were fried up in butter.

Added homemade tomato sauce (with oregano, fennel, and red pepper flakes) and had this over "faux"tatoes (whipped cauliflower).

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