Avocado, coconut and lime smoothie

Time for a break from all the assisted reproduction/medicated cycles/baby making talk. My head is spinning with thoughts of what the future holds and so for now, I'm going to do what I often do best with overwhelming situations: hide my head in the sand for a bit longer let things take their course until Wednesday when I go in for my progesterone levels. Let's talk about more mundane and pleasurable things for a moment.

I'm now in week four of my new gluten free diet and I have to say that there hasn't been much of an adjustment. I'm not a big bread/cake/muffin person, and I've found awesome ways to incorporate starches and flours typically found in Asian and African cooking, so my experimentation with international cooking has become more and more the norm. Fun! I've lost weight, (which wasn't my goal but it certainly doesn't hurt), and am feeling generally a bit lighter and more energetic - yay!-  so I think there's something to this, whether or not it will aid in the improved functioning of my lady parts.

My only real challenge has been breakfasts. I'm not really a breakfast person, per se, so I have a usual rut of going for a slice of wholegrain toast and peanut butter, or oatmeal, both of which are now off the proverbial table. I have a stomach that is extremely vocal and vociferous in its demands for regular nourishment - I'm talking disruptively so.* So skipping breakfast is not an option whether I'm hungry or not. Since going gluten free though, I've had to rely on lots of smoothies to keep me going and my fruit choices are growing rather monotonous.

I need to be more adventurous: enter the avocado. I loooove avocado, and at my favourite Vietnamese restaurant in Toronto I always used to order their avocado shake, so I thought I'd attempt something along those lines. I also had a half used can of coconut milk in the fridge, so I chucked that in, and a star was born. Oh my lord, you guys how has it never occurred to me to pair avocado and coconut before now? I want to eat this for breakfast, lunch and dinner, in a variety of combinations. Breakfast this morning was this smoothie using half an avocado and whatever else I had in the fridge/fruit basket. It has the added benefit of being vegan (which I am not, but cutting animal fats down to such brilliant effect is never a bad thing).

Avocado, coconut and lime smoothie

•  1/2 a ripe avocado
• one kiwi fruit, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 cup of coconut water (or milk, if you want it thicker)
• juice of 1/2 a lime
• a handful of mint leaves
• shaved coconut if you want some texture

Throw all this stuff in a blender and tell me it's not amazing.

*  In university I had one morning lecture that I couldn't reschedule to a more civilized hour, and once, in a hurry, showed up without having eaten. My stomach was typically clamorous that day, to the extent that the lecturer stopped talking at one point, glared at me three rows back, and asked if I'd like to step out for a snack. At which point I wanted to hide under the paltry little writing board attached to the arm of my seat, and made a mental note NEVER to attend an event of any kind without first feeding the beast. I really am ruled by the whims of my stomach.  H finds something oddly adorable in my (foodsexnow!) complete deference to my lizard brain, but I'm not sure others see the charms.

Salad rolls and Star Trek

I have another new weapon in my deluded experimental artillery of infertility busting lifestyle habits. Recently my acupuncturist did some food sensitivity testing on me and suggested that I give a gluten-free diet a try. (He's not the first to suggest a link between gluten intolerance and infertility/loss, but I don't want to overthink that one, mostly because we all know we lead healthy lives, do everything we can for those babies-to-be, and shouldn't beat ourselves or our bodies up over not controlling managing carefully enough. I for one am down to only grass-fed grass and decaf, dairy free morning coffee; while the cigarettes and daily McDonald's intake of many a passing parent I encounter in the street has clearly not made a difference, so go figure.)

OK, so on the one hand this gluten-free stuff sounds like one of those obnoxious trends of the kind which could actually be the cause of nausea and fatigue for those not affluent enough to enjoy $1000 a day yoga retreats and all organic, all the time, locally produced, bicycle delivered kale chips picked by specially trained, ethically kept, artisan, free range guinea fowl exposed to it.*

 But I love to experiment with cooking; my kitchen is my laboratory, and so I found the prospect of rethinking my cooking and eating habits rather exciting. And we are fortunate enough to have a virtual Aladdin's Cave of a supermarket around the corner from our place, run by a lovely Indian-Ghanaian couple and their children, and where I can find everything from tamarind paste to pickled green mango to fresh taro root. When we moved here I made a promise to myself to cook with a new ingredient every month, so we've had banana blossom salad and jackfruit seed curry, and now I have the perfect opportunity to experiment with stuff like sweet potato noodles and teff flour. So with the beginning of April and an end to the over-indulgence of my extended birthday celebrating (parts one and two), I decided to go cold turkey for a while.

Yesterday we made Vietnamese salad rolls. I initially thought I'd share the whole recipe here since I altered some of the ingredients from that link, but then I realised as someone who doesn't really follow recipes I'm actually too lazy to write the whole thing. (I don't own measuring cups and usually just throw stuff in a bowl, adjusting the quantities until I like the taste; for me it's always like 'a handful' of this, or 'until it feels like' that, so it's kinda tedious to write exact measurements).  I can say that this recipe is a pretty decent one and we were really happy with the results and the authenticity of the taste. I recommend you use not only both the mint and cilantro, but also a healthy quantity of basil (the Thai variety, if you can get it), because the fresh herbs really make this dish. Also, we added both daikon radish and red bell pepper to the vegetable fillings. Finally, in my opinion there's no replacement for good sriracha sauce to provide the heat in the peanut dipping sauce.

Although working with the rice paper takes some getting used to, they were incredibly fun to make because it's very hands on. See? 

H making a mess in the kitchen, just the way we like it.

The rolling technique takes a little practice, (the trick being to top your veg and herb combination with another thin layer of rice vermicelli before folding), but after the first four or five you get the hang of it. The rice wrappers are so thin that the colours and textures of the filling create a beautiful lacy effect on the completed rolls. I was lucky I managed to get any pictures, because they smelled amazing and it was hard not to nibble compulsively.

Finished product.

We ate our salad rolls while sitting on the sofa watching old episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and maybe it was the magic of those aromatherapeutic herbs, but all suddenly seemed right with the world. 

You see?, I tell myself. All it takes to make you step back into joy is a few Vietnamese salad rolls, an old episode of Star Trek, and the arms of your beloved around you. So whatever is in store for us in the near or distant future, life rightthisveryminute is not so bad, after all.


*Seriously Gwyneth, I understand why you're having panick attacks, I really do. I can relate to the stress of trying to manage day in and out.... Oh, wait.

Pomegranates and Tandoor Naan

Because there's nothing like a cervical exam, or report thereof, to work up an appetite. And because, to paraphrase the charming Sarah at Fallopian Groove, it's my blog and I'll cook if I want to. Beside, Blogger Stats have spoken and (gasp!) it seems you are all more interested in my fish tacos than my cervix anyway can never go wrong with a recipe. Even on a blog about the awfulness that is infertility and miscarriage. I'm nothing if not well-rounded.

So, last night I attended a work function where people brought an over-abundance of food, and I ended up leaving with an armload of freshly baked but untouched Lebanese bread like these ones:

Amazing when fresh from the oven like these were

If you're lucky enough to have an awesome Middle Eastern grocery of delights nearby as we do, then you may even be able to find something similar. Pita bread or ready-made Indian naan bread to serve with this salad would also work nicely though. I'm hesitant to even call this a recipe, because really you just chuck everything into a bowl and stir. But if it inspires a little weekend creativity, then so much the better.

Pomegranates are at the very last of their growing season now, and I plan to make the most of what's left. I'm addicted to pomegranates. I guess most people in the west think of them as a beautiful if slightly odd super fruit, but when I lived in the Middle East I was introduced to them in a whole plethora of previously unexpected places; rice pilau, chicken stew, salsa for BBQ'd meat, sauce for stuffed vine leaves. The mouthwatering list goes on... One of my loveliest memories is of warm nights in the bazaar - that uniquely  smokey quality to the air from all the open grills, the brightly lit stalls - when, after long days hiding from the blazing sun people would spill out onto the streets. Especially during Ramadan, these late evenings always had a festive air about them, and the refreshment of choice was often freshly squeezed pomegranate juice (which is consumed there with a healthy sprinkling of salt to counter the sweet/sour). So these weighty, voluptuous, fairytale fruits hold equally weighty and wonderful connotations for me.

I had a pomegranate lying around last night, so dinner became the tandoor-baked bread, some hummous, and this pomegranate salad.


Pomegranate Salad

• Seeds of one large pomegranate
• 1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
• Large handful of parsley, chopped
• Large handful of mint, chopped
• 1/4 cup toasted walnuts, chopped
• Three green onions, thinly sliced (finely chopped red onion would work equally well)
• 1 chilli, finely chopped (seeds removed if you don't like too spicy)
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp pomegranate molasses
• Juice of half a lemon
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Sumac or dried lime powder also make wonderful seasonings in this dish, if you can get your hands on them

Like I said, just toss it all into a bowl and stir. We had ours with the bread and hummous, but this goes equally well as a salsa with roast or grilled meats, and is awesome with dry fried halloumi or feta.

Now I'm off to drink my vile-tasting-but-hopefully-helpful Chinese medicinal tea. Well, I guess you have to have some bitter along with the sweet, don't you? Have a lovely weekend people!

The finished product

Spicy blackened fish tacos

No, I wasn't just teasing when I said I'd post that recipe.

 

Diet has been a big part of my renewed baby making efforts. In addition to the fact that with cooking I'm doing something I love and find relaxing, it makes me feel like my body is getting the goddess temple treatment it deserves, and as though I'm actually taking some steps, however minuscule, to control this whole process. At the very least, I'm getting the healthiest I possibly can! For me healing has always been about mind, body and spirit, and food is an important part of that.

 

Yesterday's warm temperatures, sunny skies, and sea salty air put me in the mood for these fish tacos for dinner. I've always loved seafood, but while we were living in Portugal last year we really had the chance to incorporate beautiful and fresh fish into much of our diet, and it's a habit I've tried to continue in these less southerly climes. We're fortunate to have a great fish monger nearby, who stocks freshly caught, locally sourced and sustainably fished seafood.

 

This recipe, in addition to being pretty addictive, contains a whole bunch of fertility and general health boosting foods, like avocado, oily fish (if you use the salmon), full fat dairy and tons of veg. No, it's not like we haven't already tried pretty much everything to help us get pregnant, so that a few helpings of salmon and avocado will make any difference. But it certainly can't hurt, and believe me, it sure as hell is more pleasant than progesterone shots! 

 

So as promised, one of my all time favorites.... Enjoy.

 

Spicy Blackened Fish Tacos (adapted from Foodess.com)

 

• 2 portions of salmon (firm white fish also works)
• 1 tbsp cajun seasoning (or a combination of smoked paprika, fennel seed, onion powder, cumin, and cayenne pepper) 
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 large whole wheat flour tortillas
• avocado, cilantro, green onions, and radishes for topping
• lemon or lime wedges, optional
• Charred Corn Salsa (recipe below)
• Cilantro Aioli (recipe below)

1. Heat oil in heavy-bottomed skillet (cast iron works best) over medium high heat until smoking.
2. Meanwhile, mix cajun seasoning, garlic powder, salt and pepper with the flour in a shallow bowl. Dredge salmon in flour mixture and transfer to hot skillet. Cook until very brown, then flip. Continue cooking till flesh is just opaque. Set aside.
3. Wipe oil from skillet, and throw in tortillas to warm. Arrange the fish, flaked into chunks, Charred Corn Salsa, and desired toppings on one half of a warmed tortilla and drizzle with aioli. Fold in half to serve.

Charred Corn Salsa

• 1 cup corn kernels
• 2 roma tomatoes, diced
• 1/4 cup red onion, diced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, minced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• salt, to taste
• 1. Preheat broiler and put oven rack in highest position. Toss corn, tomatoes, onion and jalapeno with olive oil. Salt to taste.
  2. Transfer corn mixture to a shallow baking pan. Broil until tomatoes are soft and corn is charred, 5-8 minutes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cilantro Aioli

• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp plain yogurt
• 1 tbsp lime juice (I've also used orange juice with nice results)
• 2 tbsp cilantro, minced

1. Stir together all ingredients in a small bowl. Adjust lemon juice and add salt to taste.

The end result. Totally yum!