Grilled Thai Chicken

t's all about outdoor grilling during the summer months for my family and I. Grilled Thai Chicken is a favorite. Use your favorite brand of Thai paste and be aware that they vary greatly especially in heat factor. Do you have a summer favorite?

4 boneless chicken thighs 

3 tablespoons Thai red curry paste 

1 large lime, juice only 

1/2 cup coconut cream 

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 

Sea salt and black pepper

Combine all the wet ingredients. Season with sea salt and black pepper. Marinade chicken in room temperature for up to 30 minutes.

Preheat outdoor grill to medium high

Arrange chicken in a single layer and brush with extra marinade. Grill for 8 to 10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked. Serve immediately with fresh herbs and extra olive oil over the top.

Coconut Oil: Your New Best Friend

www.huffingtonpost.com - April 9th, 2013

Although coconut oil has gained controversy over the years, it is actually one of the healthiest fats in the world for you. Coconut oil is made from pressing the mature fruits of coconut palm trees. It's very popular in tropical parts of the world, like the Philippines, where there is incidentally less cases of heart disease and cancers than compared to the western world.

Coconut oil provides a great source of fuel, energy, and the highly-beneficial fatty acid, lauric acid. Coconut oil proves that not all saturated fats are "bad for you." Coconut oil is primarily made up of medium chain fatty acids (MCTs), which make it easy for your body to digest. Coconut oil is metabolized efficiently and converted into energy immediately, rather than getting stored as fat (the way butter or unhealthy oils can). Medium-chain fatty acids do not have a negative effect on blood cholesterol and help protect against heart disease. A new BFF (best friend forever) for sure.

Whether you are an athlete, dieter, or have trouble digesting dairy or fats, coconut oil might just become your new best friend -- it can be readily digested more than other oils.

Coconut oil is a significant plant source of lauric acid, a fatty acid recognized for its anti-bacterial, anti-viral, and anti-microbial properties. It has been known to help speed up metabolism, clear acne, and is great for hair and nails. Doctors, like the esteemed fat and lipid scientist Dr. Mary Enig state that coconut oil improves the immune system's anti-inflammatory response, which helps us fight off disease.

Although a saturated fat, coconut oil contains no trans-fatty acids. Because it is naturally saturated, it can handle the heat of higher temperature cooking -- such as frying -- and won't burn or go rancid as easily. In effect, because coconut oil is saturated, it makes it very shelf-stable, which makes it a very healthy oil. Who knew saturated could mean good?

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Gluten Free Coconut Orange Bundt Cake

Bundt Cake:

4 cups gluten free all purpose almond flour blend 

4 teaspoons gluten free baking powder 

2 teaspoons guar gum 

2 cups dry coconut flakes

2 oranges (zest only) 

1 cup plain Greek yogurt 

1 cup raw honey 

3 large room temperature eggs 

1 cup melted butter 

1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 F

Butter a large bundt cake pan and sprinkle a little flour over the top. Combine all the dry ingredients including orange zest. Whisk all the wet ingredients and add to the dry. Mix until smooth. Pour into the bundt pan. Bake for 60 minutes or until a stick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove f rom the oven to cool completely in the pan before turning out.

Frosting:

1/2 plain yogurt 

2 cups powdered sugar 

1 large orange, juice only

Combine yogurt and orange juice. Beat until smooth. Pour on top of the cake followed by orange zest (refer to the picture).

Gluten Free Spiced Chocolate Apple Muffins

Yields: 15

2 cups Mia's gluten free cake flour blend

1 teaspoon guar gum

2 teaspoons gluten free baking powder

4 green apples, remove skin and core, chop into very small pieces

2 large room temperature eggs

1/2 cup melted dark chocolate

1 cup vanilla Greek yogurt

1 cup milk

1 cup pure vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla paste

1 cup coconut sugar

3 teaspoons apple or pumpkin spice blend

Preheat oven to 350 F

Combine apples, sugar, and apple spice.  Set aside for 30 minutes. In a another bowl, whisk all the wet ingredients until combined and fold into the dry. Add apple mixture to the mix. Scoop into a lined muffin pan. Drop a teaspoon of melted chocolate over the top of each muffin. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until a sticked inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Beware of Organic Junk Food

www.chicagotribune.com - September 26th, 2012

Walk down the aisles of a natural food store and you'll find a variety of organic foods, many of which are healthy whole foods, such as organic fruits, vegetables, grains, beans, dairy products, nuts, and seeds.

Unfortunately, the organic inventory doesn't stop there. Increasingly, stores are widening their organic food choices to include more processed foods, such as organic jelly beans, potato chips, cookies, and even vodka. What's wrong with all of these organic food choices? It's a matter of perception: Surveys consistently show that people perceive organic foods--no matter what they are--to be healthier than their conventional counterparts.

"Organic is on so many food packages of highly processed foods," says Andrea Giancoli, M.P.H., R.D., dietitian and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Washington, D.C. "I find that people see 'organic' on a food label and it doesn't seem to matter what the actual food is; they think it is healthful.

"Organic means that the food is farmed in a different way, which is great for the planet, but that doesn't mean it's always better for you," says Giancoli. If you see "organic" on the food label for chocolate chip cookies, all it means is that the ingredients, such as wheat, sugar, chocolate, and butter, are cultivated organically. It doesn't mean that the nutrition profile of calories, fat, sugar, and sodium in those cookies is any better than the regular chocolate chip cookies across the aisle.

Giancoli explains that many organic junk foods are made of highly processed ingredients such as refined white flour, sugars, salt, and oils, offering you a great deal of calories and sodium with little nutrient payback.

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Pineapple Watermelon Coconut Smoothie

2 cups fresh pineapple

2 cups seedless watermelon

1 cup plain Greek yogurt

1 cup coconut milk

2 tablespoons maple syrup, raw honey, or sugar

1 cup ice

Blend all the ingredients until smooth. Serve icy cold in tall glasses garnished with fresh fruit.

Gluten Free Almond Chocolate Cookies

1 3/4 cup almond flour/meal

8 tablespoons grass fed  unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup coconut sugar

2 teaspoons pure almond extract 

1 large orange, zest

2 teaspoons gluten free baking powder

1 teaspoon sea salt

2 cups dark chocolate chips

1 small bowl coconut sugar (to dip dough in)

Preheat oven to 350 F

Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add almond extract and orange zest, followed by the dry ingredients.

Drop tablespoons of the cookie dough into a small bowl of sugar and toss to fully coat and add to a cookie sheet.

Bake for 20 to 30 minutes or until cookies are golden brown.

Remove from the oven to cool completely before frosting

Frosting:

1 1/2 cups powdered/icing sugar

1 large orange, juice and zest

Whisk ingredients until creamy and smooth. Drizzle a generous amount over the cookies.

Gluten-Free Raspberry Granola Bars

4 cups oats

2 cups chopped raw almonds

1/4 cup flax seeds

2 cups shredded coconut
2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries

1 cup dark chocolate chips

1 cup honey

3 eggs, white only

2 tablespoons good quality vanilla

Preheat oven to 400 F

Line a Pyrex 4.8 quart oblong baking dish with parchment paper. Combine all the ingredients and pour into the baking dish making sure to spread it over evenly.

Bake for 40 minutes or until set and golden brown.

Tropical Sunrise

Primary Benefits*:

This island concoction packs lots of easily absorbed energy and a mighty punch of valuable vitamins and minerals, especially vitamins A/B/C, Folate, Copper, Calcium, Magnesium, Manganese, Potassium, Phosphorus, Iron, and Niacin. The combo could help with proper bodily function, healthy weight gain or weight loss (depending on goal), digestion issues, blood sugar stability, increased immunity, and several other features. It is worth learning more about Coconut itself by clicking here. 

*based on information gathered at OrganicFacts.net

Juice Recipe:
1 coconut (flesh and juice)

1/2 pineapple

1 mango

3 kiwi

1 banana

There are several youtube videos on how best to open and utilize the flesh and fluid of a coconut if you do not have prior experience.

I happen to use the Breville Juicer listed in my "Great Gadgets" section above to produce this juice.   

Serve immediately for greatest nutritional benefit.

Makes approx. 40 oz.

(3 to 4 servings)