Mint Sumac Sorbet

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I love the zesty, lemony zing of sumac, especially when combined with mint in a refreshing chilled dessert. This simple sorbet recipe blends these bright flavors with berries for a fresh, healthy dessert my family enjoys all summer.  

This recipe yields about 6 scoops.

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 heaping cups frozen mixed berries (approximately 2 10-ounce bags)
  • 1 cup fresh mint leaves or more for taste
  • 1 tablespoon sumac
  • ½ cup honey
  • ½ lemon, squeezed
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt
  • 500 heaping grams frozen mixed berries (approximately 2 10-ounce bags)
  • 128 grams fresh mint leaves or more for taste
  • 1 tablespoon sumac
  • 64 grams honey
  • ½ lemon, squeezed
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt

Directions

  1. Put all ingredients into a food processor and blend for 15 seconds.

  2. Using a spatula, fold ingredients over into themselves.

  3. Process another 15 seconds or until it forms a dough-like consistency. 

  4. Serve and enjoy.

Tips

**Can be stored in an air-tight container and frozen.
**Use as much mint as you like for taste.

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Chocolate Almond Butter Cups

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A healthier take on the classic Reese’s candy, these are gluten free, dairy free, and refined sugar free. I use my favorite baking chocolate from Sweet Laurel, which is made with just two ingredients: cacao and maple sugar. Almond butter offers more healthy fats, fiber, iron, calcium, and vitamin E than traditional peanut butter, which we rarely buy anymore for a number of reasons. (Here’s some helpful insight, which can help you make an informed decision about peanut butter.) Overall, I think these treats are decidedly more delicious than the classic version.

This recipe yields 12

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 cup coconut sugar
  • 1 tablespoon quinoa flour
  • 1/2 cup almond butter
  • 2 cups chocolate chips
  • 2 tablespoons maple flakes
  • 128 g coconut sugar
  • 1 tablespoon quinoa flour
  • 64 g almond butter
  • 260 g chocolate chips
  • 2 tablespoons maple flakes

Directions

  1. First, make your powdered sugar substitute by mixing the coconut sugar with the quinoa flour in a blender. 

  2. Combine the almond butter with the powdered sugar substitute.

  3. Melt the chocolate chips in a saucepan or a double broiler.

  4. Pour melted chocolate into thick layers in cupcake papers and place in the refrigerator for 10 minutes or until hardened. 

  5. Add almond butter mix on top of the first layer, then top with a second layer of chocolate.

  6. Top with maple flakes and place back in the refrigerator until the cups harden. 

Recipe Tips

*Make sure the foundation of chocolate is thick so that there is a good base to hold the almond butter and top layers to create the cups.

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Chia Pudding

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Chia pudding has a silky, satisfying texture and is, of course, packed with antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids from the chia seeds. It's delicious with any nut milk you choose - brazil nut, hazelnut, cashew - or whole raw milk if you tolerate dairy. It’s a great place to sneak in adaptogenics, such as astragalus, as well. We enjoy this as a slightly sweet treat for breakfast or in the afternoon as a satiating snack.

This recipe yields 2 servings

INGREDIENTS

  • ¼ cup chia seeds
  • 1 cup Brazil nut milk
  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup
  • 32 g chia seeds
  • 240 ml Brazil nut milk
  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup

Directions

  1. Combine the chia seeds, Brazil nut milk and maple syrup in a small mixing bowl.

  2. Stir well and place in the refrigerator. 

  3. After 30 minutes stir with a knife to make sure the chia seeds don’t clump at the bottom.

  4. Leave in the refrigerator overnight. Serve chilled, with fresh berries on top, in the morning.

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California Sushi Rolls

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My daughter loves the idea of sushi and I never squander an opportunity to expand her palate, so we make these simple vegetarian rolls together. On Sunday’s, my husband and I prep our veggies for the week so that they are easily available for grab and go lunches and snacks. Also, anytime I have rice on the dinner menu, I make extra to use for sushi the next day. This takes out all of the prep work and leaves only the assembly.

This recipe yields 2 hand rolls or 12 sliced rounds

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 cup white rice
  • 1/2 avocado, cut into small chunks
  • 1/2 cucumber, cut into small sticks
  • 1/4 carrot, grated
  • 2 large seaweed sheets (nori)
  • Tamari or coconut aminos to taste
  • 128 g white rice
  • 1/2 avocado, cut into small chunks
  • 1/2 cucumber, cut into small sticks
  • 1/4 carrot, grated
  • 2 large seaweed sheets (nori)
  • Tamari or coconut aminos to taste

Directions

  1. Make the rice in a rice cooker. 

  2. Place cooked rice, avocado chunks, cucumber sticks, and grated carrot in a seaweed sheet and roll. Can be cut into rounds maki-style or eaten like a hand roll. 

  3. Add tamari or coconut aminos to a small dipping bowl. Can also be packed to go in leakproof pods like these, as well.  

Tips

**I use large pre-packaged squares of seaweed (nori) to make these sushi rolls 
**Sushi sticks together better if the rice is slightly warm or if you lightly dab the seaweed sheets with water.
**Feel free to add cooked shrimp, spicy tuna or any of your favorite proteins or other vegetables.

 
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Ethiopian Stew

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Brazil Nut Milk

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I love homemade nut milk. It makes coffee, smoothies and even SIBO-approved pancakes better. My SIBO diet allows for all nuts except cashews and pistachios. Further, I am always mindful of rotating what goes into (and on) my body. This is so I don’t end up creating new food sensitivities and also to spread out and maximize the nutrients my body is getting. In my search for alternatives to almonds, which are all too easy to eat in excess if you’re gluten or especially grain-free, I discovered brazil nuts.

Turns out, brazil nut milk is creamier and more satisfying than regular almond milk. My secret is doubling the amount of nuts, adding a pinch of Himalayan pink salt and vanilla bean.

This recipe will yield about 40 ounces (over a liter) of milk, equaling eight 5-ounce servings.

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 cups raw organic brazil nuts
  • 5 cups water
  • ¼ teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
  • 1-2 vanilla beans
  • 475 g raw organic brazil nuts
  • 1 liter water
  • ¼ teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
  • 1-2 vanilla beans

Directions

  1. Soak Brazil nuts in water for 8 hours, at room temperature, covered with a flour sack towel or cheese cloth. (3-4 hours is fine - add a pinch of sea salt and a splash of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar to help activate faster). I use this glass pitcher because my nut bag fits over the sides and it’s easy to pour into the blender.

  2. Drain and rinse the nuts and add them to a 64 oz Vitamix or other blender, along with 5 cups / 1 liter of water.

  3. Arrange your nut milk bag in the glass pitcher you used to soak your nuts, trying to get the edges of the bag over the rim. I stick to organic cloth nut bags like this one.

  4. Blend nuts on medium working up to high until smooth and creamy, about 45-60 seconds.

  5. Pour liquid through nut bag back into glass pitcher and strain out the pulp. The pulp can be saved, even frozen, for baking and other uses that call for almond or other nut meal.

  6. Pour nut milk back into Vitamix and add salt and vanilla. Blend until smooth and well-mixed, about 10-15 seconds.

TIPS

**For a sweet nut milk, add maple syrup or chopped dates.
**Save in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
**A note about water quality. I have a whole house water filter, so even my soaking water is filtered. I also have an alkaline water maker built in under my sink and I use that one for the nut milk. Whatever your setup is, use as clean a water source as you can. If you live in the mountains and have delicious unpolluted alpine water, even better!
**Benefits of brazil nuts include this, as well as the trace mineral selenium, which also counteracts mercury toxicity.
**If your vanilla bean pods are grade B or dried out, soak them along with the nuts to soften them to more easily scrape out the paste.
**Vanilla beans can be replaced with vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract.
**If you don’t want to blend twice, you can skip the extra step and add your flavor ingredients before blending the nuts. It just seems wasteful to me to lose any of the precious vanilla beans to the filtering process so this is how I always do it.

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