This grain and gluten free fried green tomato recipe isn’t really a recipe. It’s more of a fried green tomato experiment that happened to work out.

I always refer to these posts as How to I Make ____ because really how many ways can you make a fried green tomato? Tomatoes, breading, salt, pepper, egg, and oil.

Ever since we spent time in South Carolina I’ve been having cravings for fried green tomatoes. So when I saw green tomatoes at the farmers market last weekend I snatched them up. If we ever settle back down I’m going to grow tomatoes just so I can have green ones.

Since I try to limit grains, I decided to bread them with the Trader Joe’s Almond Meal I had on hand.

Grain and Gluten Free Fried Green Tomatoes

2 Green Tomatoes
2 Eggs
About 1/2 cup of Almond Meal or Flour
Salt
Pepper
About 1/2 Cup of Coconut Oil

1. I sliced the tomatoes. Brilliant, I know.

2. I dipped the tomato slices in the egg.

3. Then I covered them in almond meal. I had mixed in lots of salt and ground pepper in the almond meal beforehand.

4. The flour started getting icky so it was easier to just sprinkle it on instead of dredging the tomatoes in the almond flour.

5. I pan fried them in, my favorite cooking oil, coconut oil over high heat until almond meal was crispy.

6. Put them on a paper towel to soak up some of the extra oil.

They went well with Brent’s Santa Maria BBQ Style Chicken and baked sweet potatoes. So good.

And they were even better the next morning when I toasted the leftovers and topped them with eggs, hot sauce, and sharp cheddar. My idea of a perfect breakfast.

As far as I can tell, I’m not gluten intolerant but whenever there is an option to make something without grains I usually decide to go that route. It doesn’t always work out but in this case it did.

Do you like friend green tomatoes? Would you have made grain and gluten free fried green tomatoes or would you have gone with the traditional flour?

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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I have three thoughts this Thursday.

Life is Like Berries.

A Healthy Dessert.

30 Days of Paleo 

Thought One – Life is Like Berries.

Two weeks ago after a busy week in NYC followed by a fulltime family RV rally, we decided we needed a few days up in the mountains to unwind. Nearby there was a local farm with pick your own raspberries. Thing Two and I spent an afternoon picking and chatting. If you know me well you know I think in metaphors. It may be strange to some but I find symbolism in everything and have since I was a child. Finding connections in the world is how I cope with life. Not to go all spiritual on you but it is one of the ways God speaks His peace into my crazy mind.

Anyway as we were picking berries I kept thinking about how much life is like picking berries. At first glance the bushes are large and overwhelming. You look down at your empty basket and at the rows of bushes and wonder, “It’s going to take forever to fill this thing.”

Looking at the bushes as a whole, it’s hard to see the berries but once you squat down and start looking you’ll find berries. A few are stand up on the bushes proudly displaying their perfect ripeness. However, most of the berries are in a various other states. Some are half eaten. Some are still green. Some are dead on the ground. Some lovely ones have fallen and are waiting to be picked up. It seems the majority are beautiful plump berries hiding behind leaves. These berries take a little more time and a little more effort to find but they are so worth it.

As Thing One delighted in doing something “old fashioned”—He once said he’s “just an old fashioned boy in a futuristic family.”—I carried on, one berry at a time, reminding myself it’s not honest to eat your weight in berries before you pay for them. It wasn’t too long before I looked down and saw that our baskets were nearly full.

They didn’t get full by magic. They were filled one berry at a time.

Just like life.

Thought Two – A Healthy Dessert

We came home with three two pounds (Ahem) of fresh raspberries. My favorite way to eat them was in a half of cup of whole milk (cream would have been ideal) with a tsp of maple syrup.

Divine.

Whole milk (I never buy that low fat white water called “milk”.) with a bit of maple syrup has been on of my favorite treats for years. I often get surprised looks when I tell people as if maple syrup isn’t good for anything but pancakes. A cup of milk (I prefer raw) with a small spoon of maple has been one of my favorite treats for years.

Thought Three – 30 Days of Paleo

Milk and maple syrup are not paleo.

So what about this 30 days of paleo?

First of all I have no intentions of ever becoming Wilma Flintsone. I believe paleo is a healthy way to eat but I doubt I will give up cheese or maple syrup despite what some say it may be doing to my body.

My favorite food philosophy comes is the traditional food way of eating made popular by Weston A. Price.

Although that is my favorite way of eating, it doesn’t been I follow it all the time. The first four months of living in an RV were crazy. I started eating refined sugar for the first time in almost four years and I ate more Taco Bell than I’d like to admit. I have 10 extra pounds to prove it. But that’s okay because learning how to live in a 320 square foot space was all I could handle at the time.

A few months ago we finally settled into our new nomadic life and I starting making the effort to find farmers markets and good food again. Taco Bell lost it’s appeal. Mostly.

But I still struggled with sugar.

One of the things that always helps me is reading about nutrition. A few months ago I read Wheat Belly: Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight, and Find Your Path Back to Healthbut since I already don’t eat a lot of grains, (I started experimenting with grain elimination three years ago.) It didn’t really hold my interest.

Two weeks ago I ordered It Starts with Food: Discover the Whole30 and Change Your Life in Unexpected Ways by Dallas and Melissa Hartwig. (Both are RKCs which I find cool.) I skipped right to the 30 day plan and started it with Brent. I’ve been making my way through the rest of the book. So far I’m enjoying it and will give a full review when I finish the 30 days.

For 30 days I’m not eating dairy, grains, legumes, some oils, and SUGAR. Aside from a few sips of of an experimental pumpkin maple smoothie I was making my kids I haven’t had a bite of sugar natural or refined for 13 days.

I feel amazing. My energy is level is back to consistent and my mood is up.

Now I just need to start sleeping 8 hours a night.

It feels good to be finding my old new self even if it means I’m going to skip out on the ice cream at the Ben and Jerry’s factory in Vermont.

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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I like versatility.  Reversible jackets.  Kettlebells as doorstops or for workouts.  Minivans for  children or 4×8 sheets of plywood.  It’s one of the reasons I love my Perfect Pesto.  I can use it to spread on bread, make the most killer egg sandwiches ever, toss with pasta, in place of pizza sauce, toss with veggies, and or by the spoonful.

The other day, I came up with another versatile spread.  We’ve been getting quite a few Japanese eggplants in our CSA as of late.  They are long and skinny so they don’t work as well for my Eggplant Mozzarella recipe.  Like the pesto, it’s so simple to make and I think I love simplicity just as much as versatility.

Roasted Eggplant Spread

4 Japense Eggplant (or about 3 cups of  regular eggplant)
2 Garlic Cloves
1 tbs Capers
1 tbs of Sun Dried Tomatoes
1/4 Cup of Olive Oil (A tad less if you are using sun dried tomatoes in oil.)
Sea Salt to Taste

Slice the eggplant in half and brush (or spray) with a bit of olive oil and sprikle with sea salt.  Bake at 350° for 20 – 3o minutes until eggplant is soft and starts to brown slighly on the edges.

Put the eggplant, garlic, capers, sun dried tomatoes, and olive oil into your food processor (or blender) and blend until smooth.  Add more oil if necessary.  I find 1/4 cup to be plenty.

This spread is good on french bread, as a veggie dip, or in a wrap.

Sprouted tortilla, roasted eggplant spread, grilled chicken, romain, tomatoes, and feta.

And since I’m decided to take Mark Sisson’s The Primal Blueprint 30 Challenge, on chicken!

Roasted Eggplant Spread on Grilled Chicken, Grilled Asparagus and Caprese Salad.

I’ve been reading Mark’s Daily Apple off and on for about two years.  Although, I’ve decided he is total GUY HERO, I don’t think I’ll ever go 100% primal (I’m keeping an open mind) for life.  I’m simply feeling like I’m up for a new challenge.  They keep things interesting. So the next 30 days I’m want to do a little experiment and pretend I’m a cavewoman with luxuries.  Mrs. Flintstone with a stove, a dishwasher, a refrigerator, and a Trader Joe’s. Regarding workouts, from what I understand his workout philosophy is similar to my own.  He recommends sprinting once a week.  I’ve let my sprinting slack the last few months so I’m looking forward to getting back to that so I’ll go to the beach for some sprint workouts.  I plan to keep up with my kettlebell training and my walking as well.  The biggest change is going to be not eating grains.  It’s going to a fun 30 days and I’m hoping this will get my creative juices flowing in the kitchen.  Last year, I attempted a grain free month and felt pretty fantastic.  I’ll let you know how it goes.

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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