The Healthy Cooking Coach

Turkey Any Time

So many people relegate turkey to the holidays. I like to eat it throughout the year. Sometimes I cook a whole turkey a few times during the fall and winter so I can have leftovers for the freezer. At other times of the year, I like to roast a whole turkey breast and freeze whatever I don’t plan to eat within a few days. It adds variety to my diet and I like the convenience of ready to eat meat in the freezer.

What do I like to do with turkey leftovers?
    * Add to a green salad with colorful sliced, diced, or grated veggies
    * Make a turkey taco salad with guacamole and salsa, minus the tortilla
    * Add to an omelet; top with Cranberry Apricot Chutney or Better Barbecue Sauce
    * Scramble with eggs and herbs
    * Turn into Curried Turkey Salad or Turkey Waldorf
    * Make turkey-vegetable soup
    * Make Quick Smoky Turkey (below)
    * Serve with fried or poached eggs and vegetables
    * Top with homemade barbecue sauce
    * Top turkey with guacamole
    * Top turkey with Mango-Ginger Chutney (see The Garden of Eating for recipe)
    * Toss turkey with blanched vegetables and vinaigrette
    * Coat with mayo and mustard and roll in lettuce leaves; secure with a tooth pick

Beyond Thanksgiving
This year, like last year, I had a turkey-less Thanksgiving dinner (see my previous post for our menu), then cooked a turkey at home the next day. I kept a few days worth of turkey in the fridge and froze the leftovers for future meals. 

This year I brined a turkey for the first time. I’ve read it about doing it, heard people talk about it, just never did it. This year, I did it. I used one of Mary’s Air Chilled Turkeys from Whole Foods Market, a recipe from The Grain and Salt Society, a turkey baking bag (for marinating only), and a stock pot a managed to stuff into the bottom of the refrigerator. The results were good and I really liked the flavor of Mary’s Air Chilled Turkey. If you haven’t tried her chicken, turkey, or duck, check your local natural foods meat market to see if they carry it. It’s worth paying extra for this delicious, humanely raised, air-chilled meat. Next year I plan to allow enough time to brine the turkey for at least 24 hours (8 hours didn’t make the flavors pop the way I’ve heard it can).

I served the brined turkey without gravy (I didn’t feel like making it). I topped it with my reduced carb Cranberry, Apricot Chutney (you can flavor it with chipotle or ginger; I used ginger this year), and served it with a side cooked collard greens one day and a green salad the next. I like the juicy flavor of turkey backs, so I actually made a meal of them on one day and had the wings the next.

The leftover bones went into the crock pot for and all day simmer with a few special ingredients to make my money-saving, Bone Building Broth. Once that chilled, I froze what I didn’t plan to use within the next week or two.

What do you like to do with leftover turkey? I welcome your ideas.

Quick Smoky Turkey 

Prep: 5 minutes/ Cooking: 6 minutes/ Yield: 3 servings       
               
Don Matesz, my co-author for The Garden of Eating, devised this recipe about 10 years ago, to enhance Thanksgiving leftovers. It’s delicious with sautéed greens, steamed broccoli, parboiled vegetables, or a tossed green salad. For a substantial side dish, I serve Basic Baked Sweet Potatoes, Silver Dollar Sweet Potatoes, Mashed Sweet Potato with Lime, or Basic Baked Squash Consider topping the turkey withCranberry Apricot Chutney or Better Barbecue Sauce.

Note: Double recipe if you want leftovers for main dish salads, scrambles, omelets, or a bacon alternative for breakfast.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups (about 12 ounces) cooked, skinless turkey, shredded or diced
1/3 cup poultry Bone-Building Broth (see The Garden of Eating) or preservative-free chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon Wright’s Natural Liquid Hickory Smoke Seasoning
1/4 to 1/3 teaspoon ground chipotle or black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard powder

1/2 cup Better Barbecue Sauce, optional

1. Combine broth or stock, liquid smoke, pepper, and mustard in 10-inch skillet. Stir to dissolve; Add turkey. Cover and bring to low boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat and simmer 5 to 6 minutes, until warm, and juicy.
2. Remove lid and cook away excess. Pass Better Barbecue Sauce at the table or sprinkle with toasted and crumbled dulse, if desired.
3. Refrigerate leftovers and use within 2 days

4-ounces skinless breast: 198 calories, 35 g protein, 6 g fat, 23 mg calcium, 75 mg sodium
4-ounces skinless dark meat: 217 calories, 34 g protein, 9 g fat, 38 mg calcium, 94 mg sodium

Variation:

• Quick Smoky Chicken: Replace turkey with leftover poached or roasted chicken.

Source: The Garden of Eating: A Produce-Dominated Diet & Cookbook by Rachel Albert-Matesz & Don Matesz (Planetary Press, 2004). Click here for more info, to view more sample recipes, and to order and receive prompt delivery and a FREE shopping list to accompany the Sample Month of Menus found in the book.
 

Post Thanksgiving and Beyond

I had another unconventional Thanksgiving meal this year. I didn't stuff myself. I ate a comfortable and satisfying amount. I did a 24 hour fast preceding the meal. To learn about the benefits of IF (Intermittent Fasting), click here and here then ate a generous plate full of food followed by 2 pieces of my crust free pie with real whipped cream. I also had a snack consisting of several  handfuls grapes that day, then resumed my normal eating the following day. Here's a picture of my plate before I had a second helping of beef roast.

Photos: Rachel Albert Matesz ©Copyright 2009

The menu:
Smoked & Roasted Grassfed Beef
Spot Prawns with butter
Steamed Broccoli & Carrots with butter
Sauteed Collards w/Onion, Celery, & Walnuts
Homemade Sauerkraut
Magic Millet Skillet Bread with Whipped Honey-Butter
Squash Pudding Pie with Real Whipped Cream

I didn’t have to make every dish. My friends Kenny & Brenna (known as The Fish Huggers to people in the Phoenix, AZ, area for their wild Alaskan Salmon, pasture-raised beef, and raw honey), their three kids (Zane, Kaleb, and Murphy), and my good friend Don (an acupuncturist, herbalist, nutrition prof, and paleo-primal diet blogger based in Phoenix).

Kenny prepared a Pike's Peak (sirloin) beef roast, raised on his parent's farm in New Mexico, seasoned with FishHugger New Mexico Spice Rub, seared in and then smoked with mesquite wood at 200˚F for 4 hours. He cooked wild spot prawns he traded for in Alaska, sustainably harvested and caught in baited, stacking traps that have a door that only shrimp can get into. 

Compared to Gulf of Mexico shrimp with a by-catch of 90% unwanted fish that get thrown overboard because the shrimp fishermen don't have licenses to catch them, the by catch for these cage-caught shrimp (sold as Spot Prawns) is only 10%. You pay more for these select shrimp from Feel Good Fisheries because they're more labor intensive to catch, but the upside is that you're supporting more ecological and species sustainable operations with an extraordinarily low by-catch ratio. Brenna also prepared steamed veggies. They shared sauerkraut Kenny's mother made. Don made the collard greens dish, one of my favorite greens dishes.

I made the gluten free, dairy-free, corn-bread alternative (Don created it 20 years ago: i've been tinkering with it ever since). I whipped pastured butter with raw honey, cinnamon, and vanilla extract in my food processor. I made Squash Pudding Pie (recipe found in both of my books and below), my traditional take on pumpkin pie without wheat, gluten, dairy products, refined sugar, or crust. I whipped cream with honey and stevia, making a lower sugar, lower calorie, lower-carb topping. Photo: Rachel Albert Matesz ©Copyright 2009

The kids devoured the Millet Skillet Bread and had seconds; so if you've wondered whether you can make moist and delicious gluten free bread that kids will enjoy, the answer is YES!

For my pudding pie, I bake and use fresh winter squash (not canned.). This makes the pie naturally sweeter than if I’d used pumpkin and tastier than if I’d used puree from a can. Baking also makes the squash sweeter than steaming or microwaving. Sugar pie pumpkin isn’t even sweet (who named it that?). I use canned, unsweetened full-fat coconut milk in place of cream (regular coconut milk has half the fat and calories of cream); it adds lauric acid, one of the same fatty acids found in human mothers milk. It has anti-viral, anti-fungal, and anti-microbial properties. I sweeten the pie with a mix of honey or maple syrup and stevia, which cuts the amount of sugar calories by at least 50%.

I skip the crust for several reasons: a) it saves a lot of time; b) it cuts out common allergens, such as wheat and other gluten grains, which promote inflammation and autoimmune disorders; c) it cuts out excess starch and calories (who is starving for carbs at a thanksgiving meal?); d) no one ever complains; the pie still looks and cuts into slices as you’d expect it to; e) people love this pie! In fact, I usually make it a few times a year between Halloween and Spring time. Try it. It’s full of flavor and health-enhancing nutrients and it’s low enough in calories to fit into any diet and fitness plan. 

Squash or Pumpkin Pudding Pie        

Hands-on: 30 minutes  Cooking: 1 hour  Yield: 1 (10-inch) pie; 8 servings
                                                
I have been making and sharing this recipe for at least 10 years. Not just for Thanksgiving, this delicious dairy-free, low-sugar twist on the classic pumpkin pie makes an impressive dessert or snack throughout the fall and winter. It has a taste and texture like pie but contains a fraction of the carbs and fat grams. It takes less time to assemble than pie with a crust. For a fancy presentation, serve a scoop of Vanilla, Cinnamon, or Ginger Ice Dream on top or next to each serving of pie. Try Basil Ice Dream if you’re feeling adventurous (Kenny's kids loved that two years ago when my friend Heather tested the recipe from my Ice Dream Cookbook, when it was still in the works).

I recommend baking fresh winter squash—don’t steam, boil, or microwave as it won’t have much flavor. Use frozen squash as a second option or canned pumpkin as a last resort. If you use sweet winter squash rather than pumpkin, you’ll enjoy a sweeter taste with less added sweetener.

Shopping for winter squash: Look for Hokkaido pumpkin, kabocha, buttercup, honey delight, or butternut squash that feels heavy for its size. Kabocha, Hokkaido, and buttercup squash should have dark green skins, and any spots should be bright orange—not pale or yellow.  A ripe butternut squash will be orange all over with no hint of green.  Store all hard winter squashes at room temperature.

To cut and cook hard winter squash: Cut off the stem. Place a folded dish towel on a cutting board (this will keep the squash from slipping).  Lay the squash on the towel.  Cut in half from top to bottom, rocking the knife back and forth.  Scoop out and discard the seeds.  Bake squash halves cut side down on a rimmed baking sheet, uncovered, in a 400° F oven for 35 to 50 minutes until fork tender and juicy.  Scoop out the flesh and discard the skin.  Puree the flesh in a food processor, or force it through a medium-mesh sieve or the medium disk of a food mill.  Freeze what you don’t plan to use within 3 days.  

Note: If apple or pumpkin pie spice is not available, substitute ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon dried ginger (powder), ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ¼ teaspoon dried orange zest, and 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves.
           
Ingredients: 

• 3 cups baked or simmered winter squash, scooped from the skin and mashed: butternut, buttercup, sweet dumpling, delicata, kabocha, sweet mama or Hokkaido
• 3/4 cup blended, preservative-free (full fat, not lite) unsweetened, coconut milk
• 1/4 cup honey; additional 1 or 2 tablespoons as needed
• 3 whole eggs or 6 egg whites
• 1 1/2 tablespoons arrowroot powder
• 2 teaspoons apple pie spice or pumpkin pie spice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract or natural vanilla flavoring or maple extract or flavoring
• 1/4 teaspoon finely ground, unrefined sea salt
• ¼ to ½ teaspoon pure stevia extract powder or ½ to 1 teaspoon clear stevia extract liquid (start with less; add more only if needed)
• 1 recipe (1 to 1 1/2 quarts) Vanilla Ice Dream, or Cinnamon, Cocoa, Dark Chocolate, Rum Raisin, or Basil Ice Dream (see The Ice Dream Cookbook for recipes) or Real Whipped Cream, optional

1. Preheat oven to 350˚ F.
2. Purée all of the ingredients in a blender, Vita-Mix, food processor, or food mill, or in a bowl with an electric mixer. If using a blender or small processor, blend in 2 batches, then combine in a bowl. Mixture should be thick. If too stiff to blend, add 1/4 cup water and blend again. For a sweeter taste, add 1/4 teaspoon additional stevia and/or 1 tablespoon honey. Blend, taste, and repeat if needed. Note: Pie will become sweeter and more concentrated as it bakes.
3. Pour into an oiled 10-inch deep-dish pie plate. Smooth with a spatula. Bake in the center of the oven until firm, slightly golden, and dry around the edges, about 60 minutes. Allow pie to cool for ½ hour. Refrigerate until completely cool and firm, several hours or overnight, before serving
4. Cut into 8 slices and serve. Use within 4 days.

1 serving (with eggs): 154 calories, 3 grams protein, 21 grams carbohydrate (3 grams fiber), 6 grams fat, 23 milligrams calcium, 30 milligrams sodium

1 serving (egg whites only): 139 calories, 4 grams protein, 20 grams carbohydrate (3 grams fiber), 5 grams fat, 15 milligrams calcium, 48 milligrams sodium

Variations:

• Replace 1/4 cup honey  with 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup. For a sweeter taste, add an additional 1/4 teaspoon stevia and/or 1 tablespoon maple syrup. Blend, taste, and repeat if needed. Add another 2 teaspoons arrowroot in step #2.
• For a gingery flavor, replace pie spice with 1 1/2 tablespoons peeled and finely grated fresh gingerroot plus 1/2 teaspoon dried ground ginger (powder). If desired, add the finely grated zest of 1 fresh orange or tangerine. 

Source: The Ice Dream Cookbook: Dairy-Free Ice Dream Alternatives with Gluten-Free Cookies, Compotes and Sauces (Planetary Press, October, 2008). Recipe also found in The Garden of Eating: A Produce-Dominated Diet & Cookbook (Planetary Press, 2004). To learn more or to order the books and receive a FREE shopping list with the Garden of Eating, click here:

Btw: These books makes excellent holiday gifts for the food, fitness and health lovers on your list.

 

Bacon-Wrapped Dates

Looking for a wow-your-friends holiday (or anytime) appetizer? I think I found it! Bacon-Wrapped Dates! I found the recipe on the Cheeseslave blog (April 6, 2009). It’s a super easy recipe to make and so far the people I’ve shared it with absolutely loved it. I made a half recipe twice. I like serving the dates warm or at room temperature for dessert or the finale to a breakfast of eggs and vegetables.

The recipe, once prepared, will keep for days in the fridge,. It reheats easily in the toaster oven (although some of the people I shared it with admitted to eating and enjoying the bacon-wrapped dates straight from the refrigerator). They also freeze well.

This appetizer is easy to assemble. It’s also great for breakfast. It takes about 10 minutes to prep — plus 20 to 25 minutes to bake. You can have them on the table in half an hour.

Is nitrate free bacon better?
Ann Marie, the author of the Cheesesalve blog recommends nitrate-free bacon, ideally from a farm or producer you trust. She likes bacon from Rocky Canyon Farm in Los Angeles because they don’t feed their pigs soy, it’s not genetically modified, and they don’t use hormones or antibiotics. She says their bacon and sausage is nitrate free, but I think she means “cured with vegetable-based nitrates” based on what I’ve read about this issue. She also recommends Nieman Ranch bacon and bacon from US Wellness Meats. I’m sure these brands of bacon are tasty and I think she has, like most of us, been misled about the nitrate content of bacon from the natural foods store. Bacon sporting the no-nitrate label actually does contain nitrates, they’re just derived from vegetable and mineral sources: usually beet juice, celery, and sea salt.

She mentions research linking cured meats to cancer and that  purposed that“Processed meat consumption results in 67% increase in pancreatic cancer risk.” I’ve also heard people cite a 59% increased risk of developing cancer from eating processed meat. However, these figures are flawed in two ways. However there are serious flaws in these frequently cited stats.

Flawed data leads to unreliable reports
These stats are based on correlation not causation; they’re not based on actual studies  showing that rats developed more cancers on bacon rich diets. They’re just surveys of food consumption data in which researchers tried to figure out which foods were correlated with the highest risk of cancer (or some other disease).

“Correlation doesn’t mean causation, “ says Don Matesz, an adjunct nutrition professor at Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine and Southwest Institute of Healing Arts in Tempe, AZ, and co-author of The Garden of Eating: A Produce Dominated Diet & Cookbook. “It could be that the people who eat cured meat eat or do something else that’s the actual cause.”

“Many people, including virtually all of the medical and nutrition science professions, are confused about the difference between absolute and relative risk,” says Don Matesz. “Correlational studies almost always report relative risk.”

Relative vs. absolute risk & statistical manipulation
“Relative risk refers to the percent increase of incidence of the disease in question in the high consumption vs. low consumption group. So if in the  low consumption group two out of every hundred get the disease and in the high consumption group, 3 out of every 100 people get the disease, the relative risk of the high group is 50% greater than in the low group because 3 is 50% greater than 2. But the absolute risk in the low group is only 2% while the absolute risk in the high group is only 3%. So the absolute difference in risk is only 1%. Meaning in the low group 98% of the people didn’t get the disease and in the high group, 97% of the people didn’t get the disease.

“So the researchers get to report it as a 50% greater risk in the high group which sounds impressive and they get grant money to study the question further. But from a consumer’s point of view there’s essentially no difference between the two groups. Relative risk is used to inflate the perceived risk so ask to make it look worthy of increased study. From a consumer’s point of view, very few people would be willing to completely remove a food from their diet to reduce the risk of getting a disease by an absolute risk of 1 percent,” says Mr. Matesz.

Logic man to the rescue
Don Matesz is a former professor of philosophy with expertise in logic. That paired with his extensive study of the science of western and eastern nutrition and medicine makes him my favorite go-to person for nutrition questions. He’s great at simplifying complex nutrition data and theories and explaining them in such as way that people without backgrounds in science or medicine can understand. If you want to learn more check out nutrition and health, visit his blog: Primal Wisdom where he explores food, fitness, pharmacy, freedom, and philosophy using an evolutionary paradigm. Primal Wisdom refers to the accumulated wisdom of our pre-agricultural ancestors as well as the innate wisdom built into the modern human organism through millions of years of evolution.

And now for those delicious dates you’ve been waiting for. If you live in Phoenix, AZ, look for Arizona or California grown dates. Check your local farmers' market or natural foods store. My favorite place to buy dates in the valley is Arnie's Health Foods at 52nd St & Thomas. Dates should not look dry or brittle. Slightly soft is best.

This is just one in a series of posts I'll be making In Defense of Bacon. You can subscribe to receive updates when I make new posts.

FYI: I am not getting kickbacks from the Pork Producers of America, nor the Bacon Board (if there is one) or any other organizations or association affiliated with the production, sale, or promotion of bacon. I am writing about this for my own enjoyment (and yours) and to shatter some of the myths make people afraid of eating perfectly nutritious foods and that encourage people to eat junky foods. So, go ahead, have some bacon....just eat it with a generous amount of vegetables and/or fruits.

Bacon-Wrapped Dates

Prep: 10 minutes    Cooking: 30 minutes        Yield: varies with thickness of bacon

My notes: All I can say is YUM! Oh, if you find these too sweet (the dates), try eating bites of the bacon wrapped dates with toasted walnut or pecan halves. The bitterness of the nuts balances the extreme sweetness of the dates. Alternatively, you could try wrapping each date with a whole slice of bacon rather than just half a slice. Don't try to pour off some of the bacon fat during cooking or the dates won't cook in the requisite time and they won't become as soft or juicy. Wait to pour the fat off until after cooking.

Ingredients:
1 package (8 oz) nitrate-free bacon
1 pound dates (organic if possible); I like Medjools or Black Sphinx dates best

1. Preheat the oven to 350˚F.
2. Cut the bacon slices in half. (I used kitchen shears.)
3.  Pit the dates with your fingers or with a paring knife.
4. Wrap each date with a half a slice of bacon. Use toothpicks if necessary. (If you wrap bacon tightly the dates you won’t need toothpicks.)
5. Set on a baking dish, ideally one with high sides, so the bacon grease doesn’t spill all over your oven when it melts. Try a 12x9x2 pan or 10x12x1-inch toaster oven tray. You want at least a 1-inch deep pan.
6. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the bacon gets crispy. I found it took 25 to 30 minutes for the bacon to crisp in my oven and my toaster oven. I tried it both ways.
7. Remove pan rom oven and transfer the bacon-wrapped dates to a serving platter.
8. Make sure you save that perfectly good bacon grease. I pour it into a custard cup or small widemouth canning jar, then cover and refrigerate it. I use it to cook eggs, burgers, or to roast potatoes to make oven fries or hash browns.
9. Refrigerate leftover bacon wrapped dates. Reheat briefly in a heatproof custard cup or on a baking tray in a 250 to 300˚F toaster oven.

Source for recipe: The Cheese Slave blog

Healthy Edible Gifts for the Holidays

Love holidays but not the gluttony of over shopping, over spending, overeating, and waste? You can avoid the malls by making mouth-watering consumable gifts from simple, wholesome ingredients.

Tradeoffs that pay off
Why not tade traffic,long lines, big bills, and headaches for quiet, creative time in your kitchen. Make a healthy recipes your family and friends will cherish, They won't ask how to return or exchange these gifts. Instead, they'll appreciate the healthfulness, uniqueness, and thoughtfulness that went into your gift.

 Packing tips for edible gifts
You can pack my treasures in half-pint, pint, and quart canning jars, re-decorated salad dressing bottles, plant-based cellulose bags with twist ties, and gift boxes lined with foil and parchment paper. Use plastic bags for bread and items that must be kept airtight that won’t easily fit into jars. 

How to bag it 
When you pack cookies or breads in zippered bags, separate each layer with unbleached parchment paper. Place a piece of unbleached paper towel inside the top and bottom of each bag to absorb moisture.

Insert a straw 2 to 3 inches into the bag. Zip the bag closed to meet the straw; exhale the air from your lungs, then inhale through the straw to pull the air out of the bag. Pinch the straw shut. Pull out the straw and zip the bag closed to prevent freezer burn. Refrigerate or freeze.

No bag deal: just jar it!
Stash perishable liquid items in wide-mouth canning jars. Use a wide-mouth funnel to fill the jars. Do not fill beyond the lip of the jar. Leave 1 1/2-inchs of headroom for expansion during freezing. Allow warm items to cool slightly, uncovered, at room temperature, then refrigerate. When food reaches refrigerator temperature, cover tightly (vacuum seal if desired), and freeze.

A Tilia Food Saver® with accessory attachments will allow you to seal food in canning jars. It removes air from containers and seals in freshness, flavor, fragrances, and nutrients. It also prevents freezer burn and keeps food fresh up to five times longer than conventional containers or plastic wrap. Look for it on line or in large supermarkets. Note: Vacuum sealing does not replace refrigeration, freezing, or canning. Food can still spoil. Let your gift recipients know which gifts need to be stored in the refrigerator or freezer.

 How to decorate your gifts
You can decorate jars with ribbons and decorative fabric cut into circles with pinking shears (make the fabric cut outs 2-inches wider than the jar tops). Place pieces of fabric on top of vacuum sealed jars before screwing on the metal bands.

Keeping your edible gifts in ship shape
Tightly seal jars and containers. Vacuum seal if possible. Slip jars into zip-locking bags, leaving air in the bag for cushioning. Surround jars with bubble wrap and cushion with wadded up newspaper, cornstarch packing peanuts, popcorn, or more bubble wrap in a sturdy box.

When shipping multiple items, place heavy stuff in the bottom of the box and allow plenty of space and cushioning between the objects. To prevent shifting, shake the box down, then add more stuffing as needed. To reduce shipping costs, ship refrigerated or frozen items in separate boxes from non-perishables.

How to ship perishables
Buy dry ice in supermarkets in 5-pound plastic bags. One bag will keep the contents of an 18-cube box (18x18x18) cold for 24 hours. Take it to your local UPS store with refrigerated or frozen food gifts and have them pack it properly and ship it next day air. Better yet, ship less perishable items such as beef and turkey jerky, fruit roll-ups, dried fruits, nut pralines, macaroons, and cookies that don't require ice.

Labeling tips
Use waterproof markers and large, bold print for ship to and return address labels on the outside of your boxes. Secure labels with clear shipping tape. Label “PERISHABLE” and ship the fastest method possible.

What kinds of recipes make great holiday gifts?
These are some of my favorites gluten-free, dairy-free recipes from my previous book, The Garden of Eating: A Produce-Dominated Diet & Cookbook:

* Moroccan Barbecue Spice Mix 
* Moroccan Barbecue Sauce
* My Favorite Coconut Macaroons        
* Dark-Chocolate-Dipped Date Nut Truffles
* Homemade Beef Jerky & Homemade Turkey Jerky       
* Homemade Apple Sauce
* Cranberry-Apple Compote           
* Dried Apple Chips                
* Fruit Rollups/Fruit Leather           
* Vanilla or Chocolate Protein Nut Spread (made very thick)
* Spicy Peanut Sauce with Chipotlé
* Cashew-Macadamia-Dill Dip & Dressing
* Poppy Seed Pineapple Drizzle (dressing)       

These are some of my favorite gluten-free, dairy-free, naturally sweetened recipes from my newest release, The Ice Dream Cookbook: Dairy-Free Ice Cream Alternatives with Gluten-Free Cookies Compotes & Sauces:

* Hot Fudge Sauce
* Hot Chocolate Sauce
* Carob Sauce
* Raspberry Sauce
* Cherry Sauce
* Chocolate Dipped Coconut Macaroons
* Dark Chocolate-Dipped Date Nut Truffles
* Almond, Sesame, or Pumpkinseed Pralines
* Chocolate Chip Blondies
* Chocolate Cookies
* Chocolate Chip Cookies
* Pumpkin & Gingerbread Spice Cookies
* Banana Oatmeal-Raisin Cookies
* Graham Crackers

You can order these cookbooks in time for holiday gift giving by visiting The Garden of Eating web site or by calling Planetary Press at (602) 840-4556.