Campechana (Mexican Shrimp Cocktail)

After eating a week full of vegetables, which are so very delicious and good for you, Ben and I were craving something Mexican. We had a favorite local Mexican restaurant that we use to frequent specifically to eat this because they made it so well. When they closed shop, we found that no one else makes it as good so I was thrilled when I saw this on allrecipes.com It's just as good and you can save money by making it at home.

Wanting to save money by eat in, we decided to make this last night.  The shrimp all together cost about $10 and by the time you add the rest of the items, you'll be pushing $20 (unless you already have some of the items already in the fridge).  So for $20, Ben and I had large bowls of this, which is beyond filling, and we will also have the remainder today for lunch.  That's $5 a serving.

It's also low in fat and high in flavor.  Believe me when I say you will crave this once you have had it.

**Various pictures (including this one), nutrition information and the recipe can be found HERE.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds cooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 tablespoon crushed garlic
• 1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups tomato and clam juice cocktail
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
• 1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce, or to taste
• 1/4 cup prepared horseradish
• salt to taste
• 1 ripe avocado - peeled, pitted and chopped

Directions

1. Place the shrimp in a large bowl. Stir garlic, red onion, and cilantro. Mix in tomato and clam juice cocktail, ketchup, lime juice, hot pepper sauce, and horseradish. Season with salt. Gently stir in avocado. Cover, and refrigerate 2 to 3 hours. Serve in one large bowl or ladle into individual bowls.

Zucchini

For those who grow gardens, it's that time of year when you start seeing a lot of zucchini.  We have learned the biggest thing you can do to prevent zucchini overload is to keep ahead of it.  The best way to do that? 

DON'T LET THEM GET BIG!  

Check your plants daily and pick them while they are small, about an 1 1/2" - 2"  in diameter.  I have never seen anything grow as fast as a zucchini and if you miss a day, WATCH OUT!  I have gone to bed with small zucchinis on the vine only to find big boats by lunch the next day.  Don't believe me?  Grow some zucchini and you'll see for yourself.

Another thing we are doing this year is to get creative with it.  Often we get sick of them, quickly.  This is easy to do if you only make one thing with them.  So if you only have that favorite zucchini dish you make over and over again in vain efforts to get through your surplus, you need to get out there and research new recipes. A new recipe I'm going to try is: Zookies  (Highly recommended by a fellow zucchini growing gal: Michal)

A wonderful thing about this vegetable is that it's versatile.  Just the other day I had them for breakfast, lunch, dinner & dessert and I'm not even sick of them.  Why?  Because we got creative in our cooking this year. They can be a main part of the meal as in Zucchini Scramble (recipe below) or as a filler in pretty much everything else.  The other night, my hubby chopped them up super fine and snuck them into our Sloppy Joes.  He felt so sneaky and he reveled in the deception.  The kids didn't notice until almost the end of the meal when they saw yellow chunks.  Had he stuck with the green zucchinis, no one may have guessed.

The last and marvelous thing about zucchini is that they are filling.  You can stretch any recipe with zucchini.  Adding greens and fiber will help you feel full after eating.  This means, less calories while feeling full.  Can't argue with that when you are trying to shed some pounds.

Zucchini Scramble

(This is a recipe I have been enjoying a lot lately)

3,4,5 Zucchinis, shredded (use as many as you want to eat at the meal)

3-4 Eggs
 Montery Jack cheese, shredded

Olive Oil

Season to taste (I use salt,pepper, coriander and pepper flakes)

I don't have any measurements because this is the type of recipe where you literally just throw it into the pan and "eye ball" it.

• Warm up olive oil in fry pan.  
• Shred the zucchini using a cheese grater and cook until done.  (As the water cooks out of the zucchini, the amount will shrink.  Use more zucchini then you think you'll eat.)
• Add the eggs and scramble together until eggs are done. 
• Season the scramble
• Top with grated cheese and turn off heat.  When cheese is melted it's time to dish up.

In case you are still wondering about my zucchini filled day, here's the daily menu:

Breakfast: Zucchini Cake (Yes, it's technically a cake, but I made it with whole grain flour and organic eggs.  The only questionable ingredient is sugar.  I know, it's a far stretch, but it's a dense cake)

Lunch: Zucchini Scramble

Dinner: The deceptive Sloppy Joe's 

Dessert: Zucchini Cake with Butter-Lime frosting

Real Food XI: Sourdough Buckwheat Crepes

Buckwheat was domesticated in Southeast Asia roughly 6,000 years ago. Due to its unusual tolerance of cool growing conditions, poor soils and high altitudes, it spread throughout the Northern latitudes of Eurasia, becoming the staple crop in many regions. It's used to a lesser extent in countries closer to the equator. It was also a staple in the Northeastern US until it was supplanted by wheat and corn.

Buckwheat isn't a grain: it's a 'pseudograin' that comes from a broad-leaved plant. As such, it's not related to wheat and contains no allergenic gluten. Like quinoa, it has some unusual properties that make it a particularly nutritious food. It's about 16 percent protein by calories, ranking it among the highest protein grains. However, it has an advantage over grains: it contains complete protein, meaning it has a balance of essential amino acids similar to animal foods. Buckwheat is also an exceptional source of magnesium and copper, two important nutrients that may influence the risk of insulin resistance and cardiovascular disease (1, 2).

However, like all seeds (including grains and nuts), buckwheat is rich in phytic acid. Phyic acid complexes with certain minerals, preventing their absorption by the human digestive tract. This is one of the reasons why traditional cultures prepare their grains carefully (3). During soaking, and particularly fermentation of raw batters, an enzyme called phytase goes to work breaking down the phytic acid. Not all seeds are endowed with enough phytase to break down phytic acid in a short period of time. Buckwheat contains a lot of phytase, and consequently fermented buckwheat batters contain very little phytic acid (4, 5). It's also high in astringent tannins, but thorough soaking in a large volume of water removes them.

Buckwheat is fermented in a number of traditional cultures. In Bhutan, it's fermented to make flatbreads and alcoholic drinks (6). In Brittany (Bretagne; Northwestern France), sourdough buckwheat flour pancakes are traditional. Originally a poverty food, it is now considered a delicacy.

The following simple recipe is based on my own experimentation with buckwheat. It isn't traditional as far as I know, however it is based on traditional methods used to produce sourdough flatbreads in a number of cultures. I used the word 'crepe' to describe it, but I typically make something more akin to a savory pancake or uttapam. You can use it to make crepes if you wish, but this recipe is not for traditional French buckwheat crepes.

It's important that the buckwheat be raw and whole for this recipe. Raw buckwheat is light green to light brown (as in the photo above). Kasha is toasted buckwheat, and will not substitute properly. It's also important that the water be dechlorinated and the salt non-iodized, as both will interfere with fermentation.

For a fermentation starter, you can use leftover batter from a previous batch (although it doesn't keep very long), or rice soaking water from this method (7).

Ingredients and Materials

• 2-3 cups raw buckwheat groats
• Dechlorinated water (filtered, boiled, or rested uncovered overnight)
• Non-iodized salt (sea salt, pickling salt or kosher salt), 2/3 tsp per cup of buckwheat
  
• Fermentation starter (optional), 2 tablespoons
  
• Food processor or blender

Recipe

1. Cover buckwheat with a large amount of dechlorinated water and soak for 9-24 hours. Raw buckwheat is astringent due to water-soluble tannins. Soaking in a large volume of water and giving it a stir from time to time will minimize this. The soaking water will also get slimy. This is normal.
   
2. Pour off the soaking water and rinse the buckwheat thoroughly to get rid of the slime and residual tannins.
3. Blend the buckwheat, salt, dechlorinated water and fermentation starter in a food processor or blender. Add enough water so that it reaches the consistency of pancake batter. The smoother you get the batter, the better the final product will be.
4. Ferment for about 12 hours, a bit longer or shorter depending on the temperature and whether or not you used a starter. The batter may rise a little bit as the microorganisms get to work. The smell will mellow out. Refrigerate it after fermentation.
   
5. In a greased or non-stick skillet, cook the batter at whatever thickness and temperature you prefer. I like to cook a thick 'pancake' with the lid on, at very low heat, so that it steams gently.
   

Dig in! Its mild flavor goes with almost anything. Batter will keep for about four days in the fridge.

Thanks to Christaface for the CC licensed photo (Flickr).

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5 Day Pouch Test: A Thoughtful Review

Hello Neighbors - It's Monday! A new week, a new day. Many of you may be starting the 5 Day Pouch Test today as a way to get back to basics with your weight loss surgery tool. We know from our years of dieting that we can be powerfully inspired by others who share our struggles. Last week I was motivated and inspired by one of our new Neighbors, Tiff. She shared daily reports of her 5 Day Pouch

Garden Dinner

This is what was picked from the garden today.  All we needed for tonight's dinner was some chicken. 

Chicken: Ben cooked it in a fry pan with a tad of oil until brown.  Then topped it with fresh pesto he made from the basil we grow.

Beets: I boiled them until they were tender.  Since there is always a lot of oil in pesto when cooked, we decided to use what came off the pesto and chicken and I used it to make an Italian vinaigrette to marinate them in.

Beet greens:  I cooked them with olive oil and garlic.  When it was wilted and finished cooking, I seasoned it with salt, pepper and some coriander. (Our favorite spice-we use it on everything)

Eggplant: I sliced, sauteed in olive oil and seasoned with salt & pepper. (My son and I love it best prepared this way)

Tomatoes: They are so yummy from the garden, we just sliced and ate them with a dash of salt & pepper.

Watermelon: Weren't sure if they were ripe yet or not.  By looking at the anemic piece on the plate, you can tell they need a few more days out in the sun on the vine.

Minger Responds to Campbell

Hot off the presses: Dr. Colin Campbell's response to Denise Minger's China Study posts, and Minger's retort:

A Challenge and Response to the China Study

The China Study: My Response to Campbell

This is required reading for anyone who wants to evaluate Dr. Campbell's claims about the China Study data. Denise points out that Dr. Campbell's claims rest mostly on uncorrected associations, which is exactly what he was accusing Minger, Chris Masterjohn and Anthony Colpo of doing. He also appears to have selectively reported data that support his philosophy, and ignored data that didn't, even when the latter were stronger. This is true both in Dr. Campbell's book, and in his peer-reviewed papers. This type of thing is actually pretty common in the diet-health literature.

I respect everyone's food choices, whether they're omnivores, carnivores, or raw vegans, as long as they're doing it in a way that's thoughtful toward other people, animals and the environment. I'm sure there are plenty of vegans out there who are doing it gracefully, not spamming non-vegan blogs with arrogant comments.

As human beings, we're blessed and cursed with an ego, which is basically a self-esteem and self-image reinforcement machine. Since being wrong hurts our self-esteem and self-image, the ego makes us think we're right about more than we actually are. That can take the form of elaborate justifications, and the more intelligent the person, the more elaborate the justifications. An economic policy that makes you richer becomes the best way to improve everyone's bottom line. A dietary philosophy that was embraced for humane reasons becomes the path to optimum health... such is the human mind. Science is basically an attempt to remove as much of this psychic distortion as possible from an investigation. Ultimately, the scientific method requires rigorous and vigilant stewardship to achieve what it was designed to do.