Holistic Instincts

Menudo , or tripe soup, is a traditional soup commonly served on a Sunday morning.  It is considered labor-intensive since it requires a very long cooking time, so it started the night before any plans to eat it, or made for special occasions. Due to its nourishing collagen-packed broth and mineral-rich protein, it has a cult following for those wishing to get rid of the Saturday night hangover! I remember my dad being the one prepping the tripe at night and I remember someone getting up during the night at various times to check on the pot of soup bubbling on the stove.  I also remember becoming a teenager and deciding I no longer would eat organ meats!  So I even gave up on all the other delicious ones, like tender beef tongue and beef cheeks.  I also happily gave up the ones I never liked - like liver and mushy brains.  Yes, brains...... As an adult, I decided being an adventurous eater was much more fun and I incorporated liver back in my diet. ...

Growing up, one of my favorite party desserts was a strawberry Jello that was made with evaporated milk, rather than water.  I recently remembered and just knew I had to recreate it! I am always looking for ways to incorporate more gelatin-rich foods in our diets due to its many health properties but there are just as many reasons to avoid standard store-bought gelatin.  Below are the ingredients for Jell-O brand of Strawberry Gelatin Dessert: Ingredients:  Sugar, gelatin, adipic acid (for tartness), contains less than 2% of artificial flavor, disodium phosphate and sodium citrate (control acidity), fumaric acid (for tartness) and red #40 Besides including gelatin from poorly treated animals, this product contains zero natural flavorings or colorings.  Red #40 is synthetically produced and linked to ADHD and a host of other health issues and is banned in the majority of other countries.  And sugar is an all-around no-no when it comes to living a healthi...

Boy, oh boy...this is a good one!  Lasagna was certainly one of my favorite dishes to make and eat because for a little work, it made plenty and was great to count on leftovers or share with friends. Once we went gluten and dairy-free, I assumed I would never be able to make this beloved dish again. You see, while commercial gluten-free noodles are now readily available in most grocery stores (and always online), I was never happy with store-bought dairy-free cheeses.  Not that I tried many, because they are just plain weird.  The texture is never right and forget about the taste!  And I know, I KNOW - dairy-free substitutions for cheese are just that: substitutions.  Close enough to the real thing, but no thanks. There are plenty of dairy-free cheese recipes available on the internets, but again, I tried a few then gave up because though some recipes were decent enough for me but my family just shook their heads.  And lasagna became a distant dream...

It is no secret that I think a pressure cooker is an important part of our busy lives.  It has definitely saved us from eating out more than once when dinner prep got away from me and I needed to put something on the table fast. With a pressure cooker, food that normally cooker for hours in a slow-cooker or braised in an oven is ready in a fraction of the time.  I had a standard stove-top one for years and once I got over my fear of using one, I used it at least twice a month and only for a few dishes:  my risotto (ready seven minutes), spaghetti sauce (ready in 30 minutes) and Lemon Chicken with Turmeric (ready 15 minutes) and home-cooked beans (ready in 45 minutes!).  And when the weather turned cool, arroz con leche (Mexican rice pudding) was made in the pot, too. I made the switch to an electric pressure cooker last year thinking that I would return after test-driving it, since I didn't see the benefits of an electric pot.  The brand I purchased had...

Now that the weather has been warming up here in the desert, all I can think about is making fun drinks so that all of us stay well hydrated.  And this drink does the trick, besides making me want to be back at the lake - like yesterday! As is, this is great for the family, providing they can stand a little heat - however, I suggest starting off with 1/2 a jalapeno pepper when serving to sensitive palates and then maybe adding more sliced peppers another time, if needed. This recipe calls for honey but a different sweetener may be used, with some change in flavor and tartness.  I tend to like my beverages on the tart side, so taste the mixture before refrigerating to make sure the lemonade is as sweet (or tart) as you like it - adding extra sweetener if needed. And I think it goes without saying that this drink would be absolutely delicious with the addition of a little bourbon or vodka, if you are so inclined! Fresh and Spicy Lemonade 6 1/2 cups water, divided ...

Everyone should have at least one salad dressing recipe up their sleeve.  Salads are great because they can be satisfying and delicious and just the perfect thing to have on a hot summer day.  But when you add bottled dressing to a beautiful salad where care was taken with each yummy ingredient?  Might as well not bother, in my opinion! I had played around with the idea of a creamy dressing that did not use mayo, eggs or dairy for a while now.  Many creamy vegan recipes use blended presoaked cashews when a cream-type sauce is needed.  Soaking cashews ensures a dreamy blended final product that is also much more easily digested than when using unsoaked cashews  And though you can count on cashew-cream recipes having a nearly perfect velvety texture, there were times I thought the flavor of the cashew came through a little strongly in the dish, even when using presoaked nuts. The day I finally got around to putting my idea to the test, of course all o...

Recently, my daughter's school participated in her school's Take Our Daughter and Son to Work program.  According to the Daughters and Sons to Work website : 'Designed to be more than a career day, the Take Our Daughters And Sons To Work program goes beyond the average practice of “shadowing” an adult. Exposing girls and boys to what a parent or mentor in their lives does during the work day is important, but showing them the value of their education, helping them discover the power and possibilities associated with a balanced work and family life, providing them an opportunity to share how they envision the future, and allowing them to begin steps toward their end goals in a hands-on and interactive environment is key to their achieving success.' MX asked if she could stay home from school and experience my work day.  I work from home so I knew this would be a great opportunity to show her what goes on during the day while she is at school and I knew it would p...