An Extraordinary Low Carb Thanksgiving

This is my old house, my old dining room.  Man, I miss that place!  This is our very first low carb thanksgiving.  We are still eating the traditional foods and making the substitutes where needed.

Roasted Brined Turkey

What is Thanksgiving without the turkey? Well that is what I think anyway but I just learned that a large portion of Southerns actually prefer HAM for dinner instead.  OK, ok I can respect that, but we need the turkey.  I save eating turkey all year for this day.  Riverside brand (Walmart) and Butterball are the gluten free options in our neck of the woods. Riverside has gluten free printed right on the package. I always feel good when I see that. We brine our turkey.  It really does make the turkey extra moist. The brine we use is half of Alton's Brown's recipe.  We leave out the aromatics portions and will switch out the brown sugar for Coconut Nectar Crystals instead to make it Paleo.  OR maybe I will just leave the sweetener out all together!

This year we are using Against All Grain's Paleo Stuffing Recipe

as an alternate you can make: Gluten Free Copycat Stovetop Stuffing

I am not putting the Sausage, Mushrooms and Apple in my stuffing like Dinielle suggests, I will modify it to suite us, as I usually do.  Danielle says this recipe tricked regular SAD diet eaters so I have high hopes for this recipe.  I am actually not even trying this out ahead of time so all or nothing here.  LOL.

Mock Mashed Potatoes

as an alternate you can make: Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes
This year we are serving both versions so the non dieters wont throw a hissy fit! LOL.  Check out this mock version, looks good.

Cranberry Port Conserve 
is a recipe from Bon Appetite that we have been using since the very beginning! I have seen recipes posted as Paleo using Orange Juice as the sweetener, pureed apples as the sweetener.  Neither of these is Rosedale Diet approved. My new favorite sweetener to use these days is Coconut Nectar Sugar because of all the minerals in it.  I am pretty sure this would not be Rosedale diet approved either!  It does seem to be the most healthy sweetener available.  The taste is good and in moderation I am sure you will be fine.  They key is not to eat so much that you kick yourself out of fat burning.  This year tho, I will add some extra unflavored gelatin so it jells properly!

This, my friends, is Urban Poser's picture of her Green Bean Casserole recipe!
Awesome, right?

Paleo Green Bean Casserole
Dosen't this look outstanding?  The idea of making and keeping this dish on the menu started with the Urban Poser's Green Bean Casserole recipe which I found totally by mistake.  She is using Ina Graten's Crispy Shallots instead of the french fried onions that are traditionally used.  I think that is a wonderful idea.  I will use Against All Grain's Creamy Mushroom Soupas the base, tho, because her soup looks a bit more creamy and that is how I like my casserole.

Traditional Sweet Potato Casserole
This is sort of the recipe I will be using.  I like to add Cinnamon and Nutmeg to my potatoes and it gives them this slightly darker color.  I am also switching out the sugar for Coconut Nectar Sugar. My new favorite sweetener to use these days is Coconut Nectar Sugar because of all the minerals in it.  It seems to be the most healthy sweetener available.  The taste is good and in moderation I am sure you will be fine.  They key is not to eat so much that you kick yourself out of fat burning.  I just can't leave it off the menu tho, it is a tradition to serve sweet potatoes at our house.

Biscuits or Cloverleaf Rolls

 None of the Paleo Biscuits I have ever tried turned out right.  No offense to my favorite blogs.  I am trying to decide to either make my own Gluten Free sweet potato biscuits, Shirley's gluten free sweet potato biscuit that used half almond flour and half gluten free flours.
*****
I had a reader make Clover Leaf Rolls out of a Modified version of my bread recipe by adding 1/4 cup of Almond Flour to the mix and forming into 2 1/2 inch balls and placing into a muffin tin.  I will have to try this, I think. this year.

Paleo Pumpkin Pie

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Minori-Tei Japanese Restaurant (part 2)

Minori-Tei Japanese Restaurant
FPIP Sto. Tomas, Batangas
+63 (043)405-5791 / +63 (043)405-5001

...continuation of the very sumptuous lunch I had at Minori-Tei Japanese Restaraunt.


Shabu-Shabu. It was comforting, the noodles had a very great texture... but I didn't know what was those jelly like ingredients near the beef slices... beef skin, perhaps?


Sukiyaki. Compared to the Shabu-Shabu, this one's a little sweeter. I liked this more compared to the other one because of the different mushrooms and the tofu.


Chicken Skin Skewers. Something we all wanted to pass up, but we did taste it - just a pinch of skin from one skewer just to know how it tasted. It's like Chicken Teriyaki, honestly.


Ebi Tempura. It was just soooo good! Even without the Tempura Sauce, it was good.. but of course it tasted better when dipped with the sauce.


Tori Karaage. The chicken are moist and tender, the breading wasn't overpowering, and it did have a light crunch.


Tonkatsu. My 2nd favorite dish of the day. It was crunchy, but it still had the right tenderness of the meat. We were told this is one of the restaurant's bestsellers, and eating it, I already know why. Oishi!


Chicken Teriyaki. I am not a big fan of Teriyaki, so I am not in the position to comment about the dish. :)


Gindara-yaki. Basically, teriyaki flavored gindara. I don't know if the fish was poached or steamed, but I liked it, especially the skin side of the fish. :)


Mix Aburi Sushi. Another round of sushi, but I only tasted the one with salmon (because I love salmon). I sure wanted to taste the other, but I was already feeling full.


Sake. For drinks, we were all served a glass of iced tea (which isn't the typical store-bought iced tea), and they also placed this container of chilled sake. I tasted a shot of sake, and I found it so good! It's not so strong, but it did have a kick...and it makes the throat and tummy a little warm.


Mix Fruits with Ice Cream and Mochi. For desserts, we had this. Slices of Melon, Kiwi, Watermelon, Banana, and Pineapple. At first, we thought those were pieces of lychee in the ice cream bowl, but when we fished it out and ate it, it was mochi. Oh gosh, mochi + ice cream + fruit = heavenly dessert! :)

It was indeed a great lunch. It was a great thing that I got to taste certain Japanese dishes that I haven't tried yet. I still have to really teach myself to eat sashimi, but in time I will get there.

Minori-Tei Japanese Restaurant serves authentic Japanese dishes, but their prices are nearly similar in most Japanese Restaurants around. They do cater for big groups, and as Chef Honda told us, if a group is on a strict budget, they can work around that budget and serve the group awesome Japanese food. I do want to take my family there if only it's not way too far (my mom isn't really into long trips), but I am now planning of a way to make that happen.

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Minori-Tei Japanese Restaurant (part 1)

Minori-Tei Japanese Restaurant
FPIP Sto. Tomas, Batangas
+63 (043)405-5791 / +63 (043)405-5001

I am by no means that much knowledgeable about Japanese Food. I do love to eat Takoyaki and Tempura... and it's just recently that I started appreciating the goodness of Sushi. That being said, I would like to discover Japanese Food more, so the minute I received an invitation for a Japanese lunch, I quickly said yes.


Minori-Tei Japanese Restaurant is located at the First Philippine Industrial Park (FPIP) in Sto. Tomas, Batangas. It might be quite far from the Metro, but it's very accessible - as one would just take the bus going to Batangas and asked to be dropped off at the gate of FPIP. From there, it's just a few meters away.



Minori-Tei opened a few months ago to cater to Japanese nationals working at FPIP and nearby Industrial Parks, as well as offer authentic Japanese cuisine to the Filipino in the south. Meaning "Golden Harvest," it also mirrors the other businesses of the How family (the owner of the restaurant), who are also into agriculture business.

I love how spacious the restaurant is! Though big, some parts have division to give groups a little sense of privacy. They also have Videoke Rooms, by the way.


One thing I learned, there's Japanese Restaurant, and there's authentic Japanese Restaurant. Biggest indication to know if it's authentic is through its head chef. Minori-Tei's head chef is Toshiya Honda, who now has 25 years of experience in Japanese kitchens around the world. He personally selects and buys the ingredients to be used in the dishes served at the restaurant, making sure the ingredients are super fresh.

Chef Honda prepared the lunch for us (with the help of some cooks, of course), but because they served a lot, I'm going to break this post in two. For today, let me share what we had as appetizers. :)


Edamame. It was like eating boiled peanuts, and I loved it!


Kani Salad. There were more lettuce than Kani, but what made it really good was the dressing.


Tofu Salad. Again, the dressing was exceptional. I loved the harmony between the "tasteless" tofu and the saltiness of the bonito shavings.


Hokkaido Sashimi. This was a very special part of the lunch because the seafood in this plate just came in from Japan that morning. Too bad I don't really eat sashimi, but the companions I had that day said it was very tasty.


I wasn't able to get the actual name of this one, so I will just call it Chicken Nibbles, because that was how it looked and tasted like. It was like eating cornicks. :)


California Roll. I personally eat my sushi as is - no dipping sauce. From what I learned from a foodie friend who loves to eat Japanese food, a good indication of sushi (aside from its flavor) is its size. One has to put one piece in the mouth and be able to chew it good. This sushi had the right amount of rice and stuffing, and the fish roe just pops in the mouth.


Spice Roll. This, I loved more than the California Roll because it was spicy.


Tempura Roll. It was good, but among the three kinds of sushi, this was my least favorite.


Another dish I forgot to ask, but it was Breaded Octopus or something similar. It reminded me of Calamares, and maybe the next time I see some octopus in the market, I might try to cook something like this.


Mix Sashimi. Oh my goodness, this has got to be biggest spread of sashimi I have ever seen! It had - salmon, sea urchin, squid, tuna, yellow tail fish, shrimps, and white fish. Like I said, I don't eat sashimi, but I did try to eat a little of that sea urchin. Well, of course I will say I didn't like it because I never really liked eating raw meat, but if my siblings were in my place, for sure they'd say it was so good, just like what my companions said about this spread.

The appetizers were already enough to make one full, but after they cleared out the table, chef Honda said there's still another batch of food for us, which I will share tomorrow.

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Gluten Free Copycat Stovetop Stuffing

In a hurry to meet up with my daughter for Thanksgiving Dinner at school, I created this Gluten Free version of an old favorite.  Triple or Quadruple he batch and make this dish ahead up until the last two ingredients (water and butter). Store it in your pantry to make a great quickie side dish anytime.  My daughter loved this!  I found it to be a dead ringer for the boxed stuff.

1 1/2 teaspoons Parsley
1 Chicken Flavored Bouillon powder (or Cube that has been fully crushed)
2 Tablespoons Onion Flakes
1 Tablespoon Celery Flakes
1/2 teaspoon Pepper
1/4 teaspoon Sage
1/4 teaspoon Poultry Seasoning
6 Slices of Udi's Bread of my Udi's Copycat Bread (diced small)

1/2 cup Water
2 Tablespoons Butter

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

• Place bread cubes on cookie sheet and spray with Olive Oil.
• Bake cubes for 10 minutes until just hard on outside, and slightly soft on the inside.
• Crumble bread crumbs a bit with your hands.
• At this point you can add spices and bread crumbs to a ziplock baggie to store or 
• Comine in a small Bowl for immediate cooking.
• Boil water and butter over medium heat.
• Add bread/spice mixture and stir well.
• Allow to sit covered in pan for a few minutes.

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Paleo Vanilla Cupcakes

I really enjoyed eating these cupcakes.  You know, I really do not like coconut four but I did like these.  They stayed moist until the very last cupcake a week later. I love how you use such a tiny bit of ingredients to achieve so much yield.  They kept nicely both on the counter overnight (I accidentally left them out) as well as a week uncovered in the refrigerator.  In fact, I wish I had one right now!  Aren't these cupcakes cute?  They were made to look like a spider with a dark chocolate truffle on top. My son seen it somewhere on facebook and insisted I copy it for Halloween! LOL.

1/2 Coconut Flour
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda
5 Eggs
1/2 cup Coconut Oil (or Butter)
1/2 cup Honey (or Agave Nectar)
1 Tablespoon Vanilla

Add the first three ingredients into a food processor and pulse until fully combined.
Add the next four ingredients and mix until fully combined.
Full muffin tins 3/4' of the way up.  This batter makes about a dozen cupcakes.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.


Other GREAT Paleo vanilla cupcake recipes on the web:

The Wannabe Chef makes a Vanilla Cupcake
The Silver Spatula has a nice collection of Vanilla Cupcake recipes too
Check out Comfy Belly's Very Vanilla Cupcake

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California Wine Club Review and Giveaway

Are you a Wine enthusiast like my husband and I?  When we first started dating, having a glass of wine during a business dinner was a must.  Why was it a must?  I suppose a glass of soda would have been good enough.  Why not?  I was just the kind to order a soda at first too.  I never drank a day in my life before my hubby and I met.  My step father knew I was just the kind to order a soda at these "fancy" dinners he took me to. When I was leaving out for one of my fancy business dinners he commented, "You should drink the wine along with everyone else.  It will be okay to have one glass. Just order what somebody else is getting"  That night I took his advice and drank a glass along with everyone else.  It was a bold cabernet sauvignon. I think the best first impression was interesting and different.  I came to learn after that night that the bitter taste of the red wine such as Cabernet was called "tanins".  Each red wine had different levels of them.  It was not long before I had experimented with all the common types of wines and developed a preference.  I found the new experience exciting.  As we continued to date, my hubby and I learned of our love of cooking.  We wanted to have fancy dinners at our own at home.   Of course there had to be wine offered at dinner because that is what you do at fancy dinners right?.  So we would go to the Wine and Spirit shop and stroll down the wine isles.  Oh me oh my, was there ever a selection.  We really had no idea what we were doing! LOL.  Then is when we decided to allow somebody to do it for us.  We joined the once a month wine club.  I think we received 3-4 bottles a month?  Wines that were selected by folks who knew MUCH more about wine then we did.  It enabled us to try new and exciting flavors and brands.  Wines we probably would have never chosen just strolling through the isles the way we were.  It was an exciting and rewarding experience that my husband and I always enjoyed.

Some states require you have somebody home to sign for a package with wine in it.  Occasionally when we were not home I would have my friend sign for the package for me.  When she realized what was in the package she commented at what a great idea it was.  That it would make a good gift.  It was this memory that was triggered when I was presented the opportunity to review the Wine of the Month Club for the California Wine Club.  All over again I was reminded of how nice it was to have somebody select a wine for you to try.  The first bottle my husband and I opened, we immediately smelled the cork (pretending to be professionals ~ LOL).  But in our defense you just had to.  You could immediately smell the wonderful fruity aroma of the wine. It was really good.  So good you want to go look it up and figure out how to purchase more! :-).  This wine of the month club would definitely make a great Christmas gift.  www.CAWineClub.com is where I suggest you go to give it a try.  Why?  A few reasons really.

• The most important part....Membership Costs Nothing
• Wines that are selected are handcrafted by REAL mom and pop wineries (you guys know me well enough to know I love this part right?)
• You get to try award winning limited production wines
• Holiday gift prices are low, starting at $49.95

I want you to know a few things about the owners of the www.CAWineClub.com:

Since 1990, club owners Bruce and Pam Boring have traveled California's wine country searching for limited-production wines from small, family-owned wineries dedicated to the art of making fine wine. Whether for yourself or a gift, CWC membership is an adventure in wine tasting that will not be experienced anywhere else. More than three-quarters of California's 3,500+ wineries are small, boutique, mom-and-pop operations whose wines never travel beyond their local markets and private customer lists. Come discover them with us!

I have one more package of wine to arrive and next month be on the look out for part two of this review where I will be offering you a gift pack of your own.  Here is a few more places you can find the on the web:

• Twitter: http://twitter.com/cawineclub
• Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cawineclub

This review was made possible by Mom Spark Media. Thoughts are my own. I received a 2 month Membership to the California Wine Club for the purpose of this review.

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