Nourishing Spoon

Do you struggle with preparing a meal at home on Friday evenings? My legs could barely carry me home tonight - I had done a lot of running around this week and running up and down the long subway escalators. I was kaput! Did I forget my vitamins?? I ran out of my go-to-comfort food.  Brown rice tortillas and Daiya cheese are my butter and toast. Trader Joe's hasn't had any brown rice tortillas recently - all the snow storms we have been having - people have been grabbing them before I reach there! After eating a few corn tortilla chips, dried coconut chips, I knew I had to make something substantial 'cause I wasn't going to survive on that or rice crackers and kimchi sauce! Enter the can can dance! I kept eyeing the can of kidney beans while my mouth salivated. "Yes, I want that!" "Nah! Who's going to chop garlic, tomatoes, etc.?" I debated with myself - I'm too tired. I gave in - made the kidney beans and have enough energy to...

On a rainy Sunday afternoon, there's nothing like comfort food - being gluten free and vegan due to allergies, the "Chickpea Omelet" or "B é sarn Omelette" hits the spot, especially being full of good vegan protein. Did you know that chickpeas are a great source of protein? It’s always exciting when you are in the mood for something and you actually have all the ingredients!   Fresh curry leaves, fresh packet of chickpea (garbanzo) flour, fragrant coriander (cilantro) leaves, green chilies, olives... I have quickly written down this recipe with the ingredients I used as I have been asked for it by my fellow gluten-free friends. The curry leaves are not necessary, it’s the first time I used them along with the roasted cumin seeds and the flavor was amazing! Don’t wait to get the curry leaves to make this. You basically need the onions and tomatoes and the baking soda and can take it from there.  1 cup – Chickpea Flour (Indian grocery store or Bob...

Happy Spring!  (It feels more like summer today!) Since the clock has leaped forward one hour, it feels like your heart leaps with energy and joy now that the sun rises earlier and the wonderful, warm weather is here.  Time to bask in the glorious sun, scroll in the park.....time to go to the Farmers Market at Union Square.  The atmosphere at the market is so invigorating - fragrant lavender, herbs, flowers, fresh honey, leafy green vegetables......and ....GLUTEN-FREE, VEGAN BREAD!  OMG!  If you are not vegan, there are freshly baked scones (g-f and reg).  My head started to spin. I was salivating when I saw, "Gluten-free Cranberry Scone (with orange)."  STOP!  I can't take it any more. I had to have this. Oh no! It had egg in it, too late.  Unable to control myself, I turned a blind eye to the word "egg." Totally lost it!  Took a small bite, it was gooood; it tasted like a baked treat, not card...

Two weeks ago, Organic Avenue opened a new store on Lexington Avenue (and 55th).  I have been so excited ever since I heard it was coming and couldn't wait for opening day!  It's a vegan diva's delight!  Raw, healthy deserts (is there such a thing, really?), freshly pressed juices, nut mlyks along with wholesome, tempting treats!  Their menu is called "the LOVE* menu" --  Live. Organic. Vegan. Experience.  As soon as I entered, I was greeted with a green juice sample - fresh with a nice hint of ginger.  Although the place is pricey, it's a welcoming healthy option and offers a different variety of fresh food than the regular eyesores in midtown, i.e., pizza, burgers, and deli's. I browsed through the store, checking out all future snack options, until I heard the Chia Seed Tapioca calling me. Hmm!  Couldn't decide between the Blueberry Chia Seed Tapioca and the Vanilla Chia Seed Tapioca.  Decisions...

What does a gluten-free, vegan do when she doesn't have enough time to prepare her lunch in the a.m.? Two options: a. Go hungry; or b. Contribute to the abundance of the national economy by eating out!  There's hope - being Cinco de Mayo, I was craving for something Mexican, but that was short-lived when my friends were too busy.  So I opted for the next best - something spicy, something close by and with PROTEIN and not saturated with FAT.  I went to Chickpea.  I like that name, sounds like a cute baby store or something of that sort.  Their falafels are BAKED - not fried! Yum!  Love those little spinach-broccoli ones. They are full of flavor and texture and go so well with the basil hummus or tahini.  I got the falafel nuggets sans pita.  The tahini and hummus are vegan and dairy-free. The basil hummus simply melts in your mouth! If you are ever looking for a quick snack, a side order of five falafel bites is onl...

Happy New Year Dear Readers!  I extend to you my warmest greetings on this fr-e-e-zing cold day!  It was 4F when I left for work this morning but it felt like spring when I returned home as the temperature had climbed up to 19F! Thank God!   I have been blogging in my mind everyday, but was determined today to post something. My delicious dinner gave me the push to post about it.  My son had mentioned that he had made some spaghetti earlier and that had brought on a desire for some pasta - yes, my body was asking for some comfort food. So I quickly boiled 2 cups of gluten-free pasta.  I discovered that I still had some dairy-free cheese in the refrigerator; however, I couldn't remember when I had opened the packet. I sniffed to see if there was any odor and crossed my fingers while I made sure there was nothing blue (mold)!!!  The angels were looking after me today! I was in luck! I was going to have Penne with Cheese! Yeah! Why the exclamation and exci...