Tonight I was looking for a toping for strawberries that was gluten free, dairy free and additive free. Cook Whip just won't work for me anymore. So I pulled out a cookbook and this is what I found. It called for macadamia nuts, but $12 a pound is out of my budget. Cashews are much cheaper, so I substituted them. The resulting recipe is not fluffy and thick, standing on its own, but was still delicious, and made a wonderful topping for our spring treat.

Here is the recipe. The original recipe came from The Complete Book of Raw Food Lori Baird, Editor.

Vanilla Creme

2 oranges, juiced

1 cup raw cashews

2 inch piece of fresh vanilla pod or 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

squeeze of lemon or lime

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a vita-mix or blender and blend until smooth. Chill, if you can wait that long. Vanilla Creme will keep for a couple of days in the refrigerator if you don't eat it all right away.

Serve on a bowl of fresh strawberries.

Do your kids like to eat salad? I think that most kids can think of many more things they like better then salad. My kids were that way. They would eat a tiny bit if they had to. Well, things have changed at our house, and I'll tell you how it happened.

I certainly didn't set out to convince my kids that they should eat more salad, though I knew they should. Instead, I decided I needed more salad, and since, as I wrote before on April 11, I was avoiding sugars in almost all forms, salad was a natural choice for this vegan vegetarian mama.

Now, I'm not talking about iceberg lettuce with a bit of carrot for color and a token tomato on top. Ice burg lettuce has very little nutrition. When I make a salad, I make something worth eating, afterall, that was pretty much all I was going to eat. It had better be good. Instead, I chose crispy, crunchy romaine, sliced thinly and placed in a large salad bowl. Then there has to be lots of grated carrots, a sliced cucumber, a diced red pepper, a diced avacado, maybe a little purple cabbage or napa cabbage sliced thinly, some sweet onions or green onions. I put in any other veggie that crosses my mind, or happens to be available in the refrigerator. Sometimes I add some garbonzos or other beans. Sometimes I sprinkle in some nuts. Then I make some flavorful salad dressing. I love homemade fresh tomato salsa. Hummus is delicious! Then if I can get my hands on good avacados they become some homemade guacamole. I have tried dressings from olive oil and lemon juice with lots of flavorful additions. For lunch today I did just that. I added some fresh ginger, garlic, onion, fresh parsley, salt, seasame seeds and flax seeds. The amount isn't too important. Just put it in the blender and press the button and before your eyes appears a lovely fresh green salad dressing.

Well, I started making these great salads and devouring plates and plates of it in front of my kids while they ate whatever else I thought of to serve them. They eat pretty healthfully, but have never been drawn to raw and crunchy. Too much chewing, I suppose. But have you ever noticed how lovely a salad really is, especially if you put it in a pretty bowl or on a lovely platter. When I gave my kids their token serving, I would ask them which dressing they wanted, the salsa, the guacamole or the hummus, or whatever I had. They would choose and I would give them a very generous dollop so the little salad they had did taste good. But I didn't made a big deal about it, and I didn't force them to eat every bite. I really didn't say much at all. I just set it in front of them.

In the beginning I remember my son telling my he didn't like salad as I put some on his plate. I'd said something like "Oh, ok. Now which salad dressing did you want?" He would sit there and pick at his favorite parts, but at least some of it would be eaten. My daughter would tell me not to give her very much lettuce, so I would try to give her a part that had more of the veggies in it. And she would pick out her favorite parts, leaving the lettuce behind.

But then something strange started happening. One day I served baked potatoes for those who were eating something other then salad. My husband ate a pretty big plate of salad, and then enjoyed his baked potato. My daughter had seconds on salad along with her baked potato. And my son sat there and played with his baked potato, but never ate a bite. Instead he ate a large amount of salad and loved it. There was no way I would tell him he should eat his potato too.

Ever since that day the kids have been eating more and more salad, until now they are happy with only salad for lunch! I would have not believed you if you had told me my kids would happily be eating their salad for lunch in May 2006 and be asking for more.

I was surprised one day to discover my husband had been taking the leftover salad for his lunch at work. He came to me in the morning very sad, because there was no salad left in the refrigerator. No problem. I quickly made him a lovely salad to take to work. And have been keeping a supply available for him every day since.

Well, last night it all became clear, my whole family is addicted to salad. I had bought a nice sweet pineapple for my family, and didn't want to eat it since I am still avoiding sugars. But I thought if I ate first, I could bear cutting it open for them and not give into tempatation. Pineapple is really a nutritious food, but not for me, right now. So I ate the left over salad, and the left over cauliflower curry in the fridge, then set out to make the family some supper that featured fruit, which they love. And you should have heard the complaints! "What? No salad! There is no salad left. Aren't you making us any salad? We can't eat supper without salad!"

"You can't?" I asked. "I thought you didn't like salad."

And I was right, they didn't, but they do now. They love salad. And my daughter can't wait to invent another lovely salad and a delicious, nutritious dressing to go on top.

I really like the results of my diet. I am getting improved health, and without meaning to, my family is too.

And by the way, my candida problem is getting better too.

I've discovered that I have systemic candida, and a sluggish liver. I discovered it when I started itching like crazy. I haven't had the typical yeast infections, but I have had antibiotics before in my life, especially as a child. Taking antibiotics even once can cause it. I have avoided them for years now and will continue to do so. Seems candida was lying slightly dormant and then took off when a couple of stressors hit my system. I am now taking supplements to kill the candida and feed the good bacteria. And I am doing an herbal liver cleanse. The itching is starting to ease a bit after about 1 1/2 weeks of treatment. I have been feeling the die off and detoxification in various ways, including fatigue, night sweats, sugar swings, moodiness, etc. but I think they are starting to ease too. One of the things that has really helped ease the itchiness has been charcoal baths in the evening. 1/2 to 1 cup of charcoal, fill the tub with nice warm water. Have a good soak, splashing water on the parts you can't quite submerge. To clean the tub, stay in while it drains and wipe the tub out with a little baking soda on an old wash rag. When the water is gone, turn it on again, do a final rinse on you and the tub, then step out on an old towel and dry off with an old towel. It might stain an old cracked or scuffed up tub, but it worked fine on ours and there is no black left on me or the tub. It gives such nice relief from the scratching and it also pulls toxins out of the system through the skin.

I've had a hard time knowing what to do with my diet. I already don't eat refined foods, and my sugar intake is really low compared with the average American diet. I have a hard time cutting fruit out of my diet, like some of the experts recommend. But I have finally settled on a diet plan, and I think it is helping. I eat really healthfully, but probably not as much raw things and leafy greens as I should. So for breakfast I am juicing vegetables and adding powdered wheat grass. For lunch I am eating a HUGE salad with romaine lettuce, and sprouts and as many vegetables as I can put in. My favorite dressing right now is hummus, but I might look for some more with high nutrients. Along with the salad I eat around one cup of legumes fixed in some way. Yesterday it was garbonzo beans added to the salad. Today it was split pea soup on the side. For supper I have another HUGE salad with similar ingredients and this time some form of cooked vegetables. Last night it was cauliflower curry. Tonight it was leftover split pea soup. But I ended up skipping it and just eating more salad. I plan on fixing the vegetables Indian or Thai style so that they have good flavor and are more interesting then just steamed veggies. I will likely fix some of that too, but my family is happier if there is more flavor and variety. My dessert is fruit of some kind, if I desire it.

I have been eating this way for a little under a week, and I have to say that I am loving it. I don't always love fixing salad with all the washing and cutting, but there is energy in live veggies, and I can tell it in how I am feeling after I eat. No heavy feeling, tired head, or sleepiness like comes after a heavy meal.

I am hoping for a good side benefit of this diet plan, loosing weight. It isn't my main goal, excellent health is, but I have decided I would like it if I could loose 10 to 15 pounds. And I think that would be good for my long term health too.

Now if I could just get myself to exercise, it would be perfect. I have a hard time exercising without a friend, and the women I used to exercise with are no longer available for various reasons. It looks like it is going to have to be me and the kids and God.

On Sunday, my dear Elizabeth Joy was following her mother's example and sitting in the family room reading cook books. I know that many of you other moms have the same hobby, but I find it amazing that my daughter already likes to do this. Her cooking style is so crazy, but she is coming up with good ideas that are working. She pretty much looks at something and says, "Oh, that is how they do it. I wonder what I can do." Well, her new idea is really good. I think her idea came from a conglomeration of several different recipes and the ideas she got after looking at them.

Applesauce Mini Pies By Emily Rose Robinson

1. Make your favorite pie crust recipe. Break off bits of the dough and press it into the bottom and edges of a muffin pan. (We eat gluten free. If you would like our gluten free pie dough recipe, go ahead and make a comment. It uses brown rice flour and almond butter.) 2. Open a jar of applesauce. Pour it into the mini crusts in the muffin pan. Sprinkle the top of the applesauce with a bit of cinnamon. 3. Bake at 350 F for 20 - 30 minutes or until you think it is done enough.

Being a gluten-free, diary-free, vegetarian home can be a challenge, but the longer we do it, the easier it gets. I try to fix meals that don't even remind a person of bread, and naturally don't need wheat, gluten or flour. Very few people grow up this way. I didn't. I have had to learn how to cook in a whole new way from how I grew up. But it is working, and over all, I think our food is much more nutrious then it ever has been. We base our meals on fruits and vegetables. And I lived in Thailand for two years after college, and learned to love Thai and Indian food. And these foods are almost always gluten free and dairy free and easily vegtarian. I'll start sharing recipes as I can. Tonight we had a delicous supper of Pad Thai. It is a common favorite at Thai resturants. And every person who makes it makes it a little different. Traditionally it has shrimp in it. I can live without eating those little guys, so I leave them in the sea. Eggs are common in it too. I eat them occasionally, but they are not a personal flavor favorite. But I do love tofu. Tofu is really common in Thai food, and takes on whatever wonderful flavor you put it with. It is a protein my family deals well with, so into the Pad Thai it goes. You can substitute another form of protien, or leave it out completely and add more veggies. Veggies aren't common in Pad Thai, but I like one pot meals, so in the veggies go. The rice stick noodles used in the recipe are low in nutrition, so in my opinion the veggies are really important. I try to always cook nutrient dense food. Pad Thai isn't very high on that list, but it does pass our other diet restrictions, so it is on the menu, and is one of the kids favorites. I haven't made it for several weeks, and they have been begging for it, so we had it for our delicious supper this evening. The recipe requires a little prep. work, but once you have everything ready, the actual cooking time is just a very few minutes.

PAD THAI

Submerse the noodles in a bowl of very hot tap water and let stand for 10 or more minutes. Just before you need them, Carefully drain, and then take a pair of clean scissors and cut them up into shorter lengths.

In a small bowl place:

3/4 cup water

1 - 2 Tbsp. sized hunk of tamarind concentrate (get this at an Asian food store).

Microwave them for 1 minute. Mash the tamarind into the liquid, and strain out the pulp. Save the liquid and throw away the pulp.

To the tamarind liquid add the following and then set aside:

4 Tbsp. soy sauce or Bragg's liquid aminos (which is wheat free)

3 Tbsp. turbinado sugar, palm sugar or brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp of Sri Racha sauce or sambal ulek or other chili/garlic sauce

4 Tbsp. ketchup (yep! It's the secret ingredient that even Thai's use nowdays)

Cut and set aside:

4 tsp. mince garlic

2 carrots cut into match stick sized pieces

2 stalks of celery, sliced

3 green onions to add at the end, or 1/2 onion diced to saute

1 tub of extra firm water pack tofu, drained and cubed

1/2 cup roasted unsalted peanuts, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup fresh cilantro chopped

1 1/4 cup mung bean spouts (optional)
Heat oil in a wok or fry pan over medium high heat. Add celery, carrots, garlic, and diced onion (if using) and saute stirring often until softened. Add the tamarind sauce mixture. Add the drained and cut noodles and stir and cook over until the noodles get soft enough to eat. Stir in the tofu, peanuts, ciltantro, bean sprouts and green onions. Cook about 45 seconds. Remove from heat and serve.