Changes

Janelle Fontaine, Registered Massage Therapist, formerly practicing at Central Lonsdale Massage Therapy Clinic is now practicing at Movella Massage Therapy at 4701 Hastings Street in Burnaby. www.movellamassage.com

I apologize for any inconvenience that this change may have caused.

I look forward to seeing you at my new clinic.

Sincerely,

Janelle Fontaine
Registered Massage Therapist

The Jandorf

This salad looks a lot like a Waldorf salad however it's kinda far from it. I am not a fan of celery or mayonnaise in my salads; so as a rule, I'm not overly excited about Waldorf salads. For the purpose of this blog post I'll call this salad the Jandorf because this is truly my favorite salad.
What makes this recipe so great is the vinaigrette. The apple cider vinegar is from the Okanagan Vinegar Brewery in Summerland, BC. Vinegar was never something that got me really excited. That changed when I went to Edible BC on Granville Island where they were having a apple cider vinegar tasting. My favorite from the tasting is the iced cider apple vinegar. It's handcrafted, all natural, unfiltered and local. It's beautiful in flavor and not too sharp. What more could a girl want?!
The honey I use is the Mountain Honey from Honeyview Farm from Rosedale, BC. This honey I picked up while on a day trip to Agassiz. My cousin Joey, Christel and I toured a couple farms and came home with all sorts of goodies. My favorites from that trip were fresh local hazelnuts and the Mountain honey. When I bought the honey, I was told that the hives were placed in the wildflower fields of our BC mountains and that the honey collected from the hives were made from an assortment of BC wildflowers. Having hiked through some of BCs most beautiful valleys while they are in bloom, I was excited at the thought of happy little honey bees buzzing about in such a beautifully pristine setting to make this honey. Kind of like the Club Med of honey making if you ask me. Now yes, I am aware that I am eating all of their hard work and if they had a chance they'd probably be really upset with me for doing so. But I am ever so thankful for the honey and I don't use it too much (I've bought only one other pot of honey since that trip which was about two years ago). I try to appease my guilt by envisioning these honey bees in a beautiful environment, not over consuming their product and living as bee friendly* as possible.
Both the iced apple cider vinegar and the mountain honey can be found at Edible BC on Granville Island. I've also found that Capers carries the honey (the one on Robson did anyways).

The Jandorf

3 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp minced shallot
1 Tbsp honey
1/2 cup roughly chopped dried prunes (or dried tart cherries)
about 6 cups of baby spinach
1 medium granny smith apple, cored and cubed
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup crumbled pepper goat cheese

For dressing: Whisk first 4 ingredients in a small bowl to blend.
For salad: Layer remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Add dressing. Enjoy!

*I like bees. They're super important to every aspect of the food industry and I don't think many people realize this. I know I wasn't aware until I was reading an article about bees while commuting to work and I found myself in tears when I read how we are affecting their survival. It's not something to be proud of.

Tofu, Tomato and Green Bean Curry

This recipe is one straight from a BC Hydro Powersmart add in the Winter edition of Edible Vancouver. I have yet to figure out what is power smart about this recipe but it's darn delicious so really, it doesn't matter :) The only changes I've made (this recipe is with changes) is that I reduced the amount of oil from 1/2 cup to 1 Tbsp, reduced the salt from 1 Tbsp to 1 tsp and switched the chicken for tofu.

Tofu, Tomato and Green Bean Curry

1 tablespoon cooking oil
2 cups chopped red onion (1 large)
2 Tbsp chopped garlic (6 medium cloves)
3 cups chopped tomatoes (6 medium)
1 tsp tumeric
1 1/2 Tbsp ground cumin
1 1/2 Tbsp mild Mexican chili powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cayenne pepper (optional)
1 1/2 firm tofu packages cubed
1/2 cup water
1 lb green beans, trimmed and cut in 1/2 inch pieces

• In a large, heavy-bottomed pan, heat oil on medium heat for 1 minute.
• Add onion and sauté for about 8 minutes, or until light golden on the edges. Don't overcook the red onion, as it is meant to give a sweeter taste to this curry.
• Add garlic and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes, then add tomatoes and stir well.
• Add tumeric, cumin, chili powder, salt and cayenne and saute for 5 minutes.
• Stir in tofu, pour in water and bring to a boil.
• Reduce to medium heat, cover and cook for 10 minutes.
• Remove the lid carefully and stir in green beans.
• Cook uncovered, for 5 minutes, or until beans are just slightly crunchy.

This makes a relatively large batch but it's amazing for lunches! I serve it with a mix of brown and wild rice. I have yet to try it with quinoa but I am sure that would be delicious too.

Gluten Free Browned Butter Brownies

Since Gourmet magazine went the way of the dinosaur, I've been receiving Bon Apetit monthly. The articles are almost as good as those in Gourmet and the recipes are equally as inspiring. This month when I opened my little mail cubby, I pulled out a crisp February issue with a simple image of 4 brownie pieces stacked one on top of each other. The cover warned: inside a brownie recipe that will make you want to eat the entire pan. This was not a promise that I was open to considering since I was off dairy, wheat and chocolate. What was gluten free, chocolate free and dairy free were the pictures and recipes. I devoured them with my eyes and let myself be transported to a place where the rich, chewy flavors of a perfect chocolate brownie danced on my tongue.
The magazine had been sitting on my side table for two weeks when I finally told Sean that I had to make these browned butter brownies. Detox was over. Now time to retox! I bought the ingredients and was set to go... but I hesitated... Gluten seemed to be the root of my health issues. And of course, this recipe contained gluten. I quickly looked for a gluten free recipe and was not overly impressed with the results. The last thing I wanted was a healthy version of a delectable treat. So, armed with two recipes, I set off to create a fusion of the two recipes.
By the time I was blending the browned butter and chocolate mixture with the pecan flour I was giddy with excitement. The chocolate hadn't burned in the browned butter mixture. The eggs didn't scramble in the hotness of the chocolate and butter. The pecan mix smelled so good that I could have eaten that all by itself.
I put it all in the oven and hoped for the best. By this point, I figured that what ever cam out of the own I'd eat it. How could butter, sugar, chocolate and pecans go wrong?! The apartment slowly filled with the beautiful smell of cooking chocolate and sugar. What came out of the oven after 30 minutes... well you're just going to have to try this recipe for yourself. Gluten free diet or not this recipe is here to stay. It's blown every other brownie recipe I've ever made out of the water. And for the record, yes, I did eat the whole pan, but over the course of two days.

Gluten Free Browned Butter Brownies

5oz Belgian dark chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp ground pecan meal*
1/4 slightly rounded cup sorghum flour
1 tablespoon tapioca starch (or flour, same thing different label)
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
3 tsp vanilla extract

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Line a 9x11-inch baking pan with parchment or foil and lightly oil the bottom and 1/2 way up the sides.
• Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Continue cooking until butter stops foaming and browned bits form at the bottom of the pan, stirring often, about 5 minutes.
• While butter is browning, in a medium bowl combine pecan meal, sorghum flour, tapioca starch and baking soda. Set aside.
• Remove browned butter from heat; immediately add sugar. Stir until blended (sugar crystals should mostly be dissolved, some may remain).
• Next, add finely chopped chocolate and stir constantly until chocolate had melted and is incorporated in the browned butter and sugar mixture. Add vanilla and salt. Stir to blend.
• Let sit for 5 minutes as mixture will still be hot.
• Add eggs to hot mixture 1 at a time, beating vigorously to blend after each addition. When mixture looks thick and shiny, add flour and stir until blended. Beat vigorously 37 strokes**. Transfer batter to prepared pan.
• Bake brownies until toothpick inserted into center comes out almost clean (a few moist crumbs will still be attached, that's ok), about 25 to 35 minutes.
• Cool in pan on rack. Using parchment/foil overhang, lift brownies from pan. Cut and enjoy. :)

*I am sure stores sell this, however, I just made my own using pecans and putting them in the coffee grinder (which is specifically for grinding nuts, seeds and spices).
**37 is totally a random number :) Just stir enough so that it's well blended but no need to over do it.

Goat Cheese and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

Have you ever chopped the top off a yellow pepper and looked into it? It's like a work of art created by mother nature and hidden, like a treasure, for you to discover.
Chopping the top off peppers to stuff them was something I had never done. Sure, I've sliced, diced and halved peppers but never cut the top off it. When I make stuffed peppers, I usually halve them and that's good enough. A little boat, filled with deliciousness. Having seen how pretty a stuffed roasted pepper was when served whole, I thought I would give it a try.
This recipe is simple and through the simplicity, a beautiful dinner is created. Though one pepper seems like quite a bit for a serving, it was just right. Then again that may have been due to the 2 hours of intense cardio I did prior to making these peppers.

Goat Cheese and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

Serves 1
(Tonight, I made 3. The recipe is easy to double or triple. Just adjust cooking times accordingly.)

1/4 cup dry quinoa
1 large bell pepper
1 tablespoon EVOO*
1/4 cup minced red onion
1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 cup shredded carrots
1/4 cup baby spinach
1/4 cup sliced white button mushrooms
1/2 teaspoon salt-free Italian herb seasoning
1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese

• Preheat oven to 350F. Rinse quinoa and place with 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until all water is absorbed, about 5 minutes. Set aside and keep covered.
• While quinoa cooks, use a sharp knife to cut the top off the peppers and remove the seeds and membranes; keep the pepper whole. Set aside.
• Heat a medium skillet on medium high; add olive oil. Add onion and saute until translucent, about 2 minutes. Add garlic, carrots, spinach, mushrooms and seasoning and saute until vegetables are slightly tender, about 4 minutes.
• Transfer sauteed vegetables to a bowl. Mix in cooked quinoa, and gently fold in goat cheese.
• Fill pepper with the mixture. Place in a baking dish and bake uncovered for 15 minutes or until pepper is slightly charred. Serve warm or at room temperature.

*Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Sea Monster Nori Wrap

I love wraps. They're the ideal 'to go' food. They're compact enough that you can eat and run while still having your hands relatively free to do other things. Now I am in no way a fan of eating on the go but lets be realistic here. Eating on the run is better than not eating at all. While tortilla type wraps are delicious, they can get boring pretty quickly. Here's a recipe I've come up with that blows the traditional wrap out of the water.

Sea Monster Nori Wrap

3 sheets of Nori
1 can tuna in water, drained
1 tbsp mayonnaise
black pepper to taste
1/2 green onion finely chopped
sprouts
1 avocado sliced

• In a bowl, mix tuna, mayonnaise, pepper and green onion.
• Place nori sheets on a clean, dry surface, shiny side on the counter (matte side up).
• Spread 1/3 of the tuna mix over the 1/3 of the nori closest to you (do not spread in the middle, this makes wrapping difficult) leave some nori uncovered on either side of the tuna.
• Top tuna with 3 slices of avocado and some sprouts.
• Roll as you would a burrito.
• Enjoy! These can easily be packed for lunch just make sure to place them in a container and not wrapped in saran wrap (otherwise it'll stick and be messy).

A Beautiful Disaster

Dinner had the potential to either be a train wreck or a phenomenal experiment. It fell somewhere in between. This sprouted from a craving for pasta I had while I was doing my hour of cardio today. I'm pretty sure I've been lacking carbohydrates because my mind goes at the speed of a turtle and my attention span is that of a gnat (yes, I've upped my fish oils. But that hasn't helped).

Now how to have pasta when you can't have wheat? Well there's rice pasta which I usually eat anyways but brown rice pasta? Isn't that a whole grain? I can't have whole grains. Does it count as a whole grain if it's ground up into a flour and made into pasta? Yeah. Complicated. So I compromised. White rice pasta. But white rice pasta is pretty boring and it sure as heck wouldn't satisfy a monstrous carbohydrate craving. So what else to put in there. Enter crimini mushrooms, kale, red snapper and coconut milk. Now my dinner has potential. The potential to either be a train wreck or a phenomenal experiment.

The result? A beautiful disaster! My pasta clumped together. So what? The rest. Phenomenal!

Pasta with crimini mushroom,
kale and red snapper coconut sauce

1/3 package of white rice pasta (or if you're not on this darn cleanse, use what ever you please)
2 tbsp coconut oil
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped, divided
1 piece of red snapper, bones removed
1 can coconut milk
1 container of crimini mushrooms
a pinch of provencal herbs
5 kale leaves, washed, center removed and roughly chopped

• Cook pasta (I won't tell you how I did it because clearly that's the wrong way haha)
• While pasta cooks, saute mushrooms in 1 tbsp coconut oil. When the mushrooms are half sauted, add the pinch of provencal herbs.
• While mushrooms saute, add 1/2 tbsp coconut oil to a small pan, fry half the garlic and add fish (medium low heat) to the pan. Cover. Forget about it. Don't uncover it for at least 5 minutes.
• Once mushrooms are cooked, set aside in a bowl. Take mushroom pan and add the remaining 1/2 tsbp coconut oil and the remainder of the garlic. Lightly cook garlic.
• Once garlic is sauted, add can of coconut milk. Let simmer until fish and pasta has finished cooking.
• Roughly chop cooked fish (remove the skin before chopping).
• Place drained pasta back into pasta pot, add coconut garlic sauce, kale, sauted mushrooms and fish. Warm throughout and serve immediately.

Cleanse or no cleanse. Enjoy :) This is pretty darn delicious! I'm already looking forward to leftovers for lunch tomorrow.