The Smiling Onion

Vegetarian and Gluten-free Cooking

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Archives for January 2017

Cornmeal-Crusted Parsnips with Jalapeño-Feta Dip

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Uh-oh: it’s eating season again. We had January to recover from the Thanksgiving and winter-holiday pile of sweets and treats that followed us everywhere, but tomorrow is February 1st and detox time (if you managed to squeeze any in) is over already. The Super Bowl is this weekend, then Valentine’s Day, and then we’ve got St. Patty’s pretty soon after that.

Not that eating season is anything to complain about. We are lucky enough to live in a society where significant events (even those involving sports) are marked by food, which sure makes the Super Bowl more palatable for those of us who still haven’t managed to grasp the rules of football (1st down, 2nd down is referring to the number of chips I’m eating, right?) Just kidding …

In all seriousness, I wanted to share this Super Bowl recipe with you because it manages to feel like junk food while actually being pretty good for you. (Provided you don’t binge on the spicy jalapeño-feta dip, which could be a tall order, actually :p) But let’s focus on the parsnips, which feature a range of vitamins and minerals like folate, potassium, and vitamin C. They also have about 3 grams of dietary fiber (mostly soluble) per 1/2 cup cooked serving. Best part: when they are baked, they become wonderfully sweet and starchy, which makes covering them in a crunchy, savory cornmeal crust and dunking them in a spicy jalapeño-feta dip all the more satisfying. And there’s no deep-frying required to get that lovely golden color.

So are you ready? Let’s do this!

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Lemongrass Baked Tofu

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I used to always eat tofu one way: stir-fried with sesame oil and tamari. And it was always delicious, which is perhaps why I never considered getting out of the Asian flavor profile realm until the past couple of years or so. When it’s not broke, don’t fix it — right?

Well, sesame oil and tamari are still my go-to seasonings when making a quick tofu stir-fry, but lately I’ve also gotten really into other flavor profiles. After all, tofu is one of the most versatile ingredients out there – it will soak up whatever flavors you create! It also lends itself to a variety of cooking techniques beyond the classic stir-fry: from boiling, to baking, to deep-frying. (If you’ve never tried boiled tofu, be sure to check out my Asian Tofu Salad!) Anyway, I started experimenting with other flavor profiles for my tofu when I got into morning tofu scrambles like this spicy one, which kicks it up a notch with some Indian spices. Then came baked tofu of all different types – with one of my favorites being this super savory lemongrass variety. Baked tofu takes a little bit more time than a stir-fry, because it does require pressing to get that optimal baked tofu texture that lends itself to topping sandwiches and salads. (See why you don’t have to press your tofu for stir-fries.) But it’s still pretty darn easy to make and awesome to have on hand in the fridge for when you want a quick salad topper, sandwich-filler, or just a satisfying, protein-packed snack.

This recipe is also a great jumping off point for you to do some experimentation with different spice combos and create your own signature tofu. Because once you make baked tofu once, you’ll definitely want to make it again.

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Kale Mac and Cheese (Plus a brief note about FODMAPs)

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Happy New Year everyone! I’m excited to be back from my blogging hiatus and absolutely ecstatic about this Kale Mac and Cheese. With all the craziness of the past few months (yes, I’m talking about the election and beyond) I, for one, have been craving comfort food: hearty, flavorful, cheesy goodness  to get us through the cold until the sun comes out again.

You may notice that, unlike 99.9 percent of my savory recipes, this one contains no onion or garlic (gasp!) You might also notice that that this recipe is tagged “Low FODMAP,” and if you were to check out the “By Diet” section of my blog, you’ll see that in addition to filtering recipes by vegan, dairy-free, grain-free, egg-free, etc., you can now search for recipes with this tag. So what does this all mean? And what the hell are FODMAPs?

I’ve waffled back and forth as to whether I wanted to share the reason for my blogging hiatus (Hint: it has to do with FODMAPs) and decided that I owe it to anyone who might be in a similar situation. So if you are struggling with SIBO or the Low FODMAP diet, or you just want to hear my musings on the topic, click here. I’ll explain what those terms mean, and talk a bit about my personal journey with them. For the rest of you, don’t worry: I triple promise that this Kale Mac and Cheese – and all of the recipes I share here – are NOT just intended for those on a special diet. They are packed with flavor and designed to appeal to anyone who enjoys deliciousness. In fact, many of the recipes I’ve shared here are already low FODMAP; I just hadn’t previously identified them as such.

Now let’s get to this Mac and Cheese.

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