so what am I eating these days?

Remember this? And this? Well the good news is that I've been able to reintroduce goat's milk and eggs (hooray!). The bad news is that I don't think goat's butter is readily available. The neutral news is that the jury's still out on wheat/gluten.

So what am I eating? Oats! And interestingly, a lot of curry recently. Here are some of my stand-bys in recent days:



This is one of my very favourite quick and easy, slap it together in moments, breakfasts. Years ago, when I was working up at summer camp, a co-worker introduced me to fried granola. Simply put, it's a way of cooking oats quickly and easily in a frying pan that gives you a dish that is not soft like a porridge but is chewier or even crunchier, akin to granola baked in an oven. Here's how I prepare the oats:

Into a hot frying pan, add a tbsp or two of fat. I use coconut oil or a light olive oil, but butter works beautifully. When the oil is hot pour in 1/4 cup of maple syrup and then quickly add at least 1/2 cup of quick oats (I use 3/4 cup of Only Oats certified GF Quick Oats - in Canada you can find them at Loblaws, YIG or RCSuperstore) and toss well. Keep stirring and tossing the oats in the pan on medium-high heat. Sprinkle in some cinnamon and/or nutmeg and toss. Add enough water to loosen and soften the oats, about 1/2 cup. Add at least a 1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries and incorporate well. When the blueberries appear cooked (it takes about 2 minutes) it's ready to eat.

I've often made it with apples, too. When using apples, I peel, core and slice one apple and then saute the apple pieces in the oil until they begin to soften, then add the cinnamon, maple syrup, oats and water in that order.

I'm also eating a lot of curry. We thought for a while that Bubby was reacting to curry spices in my milk because she seemed to get rather pukey after I'd eat curry. After eliminating soy, I noticed that the curry paste I was buying contained soy oil. I switched curry pastes, discovered that I actually prefer the new red curry paste to the old yellow paste, and she isn't bothered by the spices at all. Everyone wins. Plus, the red paste makes a better Gaeng Garee Gai.

What's Gaeng Garee Gai, you ask? Why, it's only the bestest Thai food in the whole universe! It's my comfort food from the Asia Pacific Rim (actually, that's not entirely true: pa jhon or bibimbap would probably be my faves, but with soy out of the picture...). Best of all, GGG is dead simple to make and the ingredients are inexpensive and easy to come by.

Gaeng Garee Gai


1-2 medium onions, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2-3 chicken breasts, cubed (or 4-6 chicken thighs, though white meat cooks up a little nicer in this one)
2tbsp rice flour
4-5 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 cans pure coconut milk (beware if you're avoiding corn additives: some contain glucose syrup)
1tbsp Thai red curry paste
3tbsp Thai fish sauce
sea salt to taste

In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat and saute onions and garlic until softened. Add chicken to pot and saute for 2-5 minutes until the outside of the the cubes is largely cooked, even slightly browned. Sprinkle rice flour over the contents of the pot and toss well. Add coconut milk and stir well. Add potatoes. Add curry paste and incorporate well. Add fish sauce and salt and stir.
Reduce heat to medium and continue cooking until the chicken is fully cooked and the potatoes are tender. Serve over jasmine rice, or brown rice if you're feeling healthy and less indulgent. Makes enough for 2-4 people, depending on how able you are to withstand just how amazing this stuff is. It also reheats superbly: just toss it in a small pot on the stove and about five minutes later it's ready to eat. Yum!