Peppery Tofu

(Adapted from Archana Pidathala's recipe)

Ingredients:
5-6 Oz of Tofu - Pressed, drained and cut into thin pieces
1 tsp of Olive Oil
Salt to taste

Spices for Seasoning
1/4 tsp of Whole Black Peppercorns
1/2 tsp of Cumin Seeds
1/2 tsp of Fennel Seeds
1/2 tsp of Coriander Seeds

Method:
1. Dry roast all the spices for seasoning until they turn slightly brown. Be careful not to burn them.
2. Let the roasted spices cool and then grind them into a coarse powder.
3. Heat the oil in a pan and add the cut tofu pieces and saute them on a medium heat until they are nicely browned on both sides. You can cook them a bit longer if you like crispy tofu.
4. Put the spices - you do not have to add all of it, you can add as much as you like. Add salt. Mix it well.
6. Cook the tofu with spices for a few more minutes and then serve it hot with a side of vegetables. In this case I served it with some sauteed cabbage and cucumbers.

Notes:
1. You can make this spice mixture ahead of time and store it in an airtight container.
2. You can modify the spices by adding paprika instead of peppercorns or red chilies etc.
3. The spice measurements were a bit extra for my 6 oz of tofu, so I ended up using only 3/4 of the mixture, but you can adjust it according to your taste.

Dry Okra Curry

(From Banu's Cookbook)



Ingredients:
4 cups of Chopped Okra
2 tsp of Olive Oil
Cumin seeds for Seasoning
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
2 - 3 tsp Cumin Powder
1-2 tsp Red Chilli Powder
Lemon Juice - about 2-3 Tbsp

Method:
1. Heat a heavy bottomed wide wok. Add the olive oil and cumin seeds.
2. Once the cumin seeds turn brownish, add the chopped okra and immediately add the lemon juice.
3. Mix well once. Reduce the flame to medium low.
4. Cook the okra until it starts to brown. Do not cover the pan. Cook it open.
5. Do not stir too many times otherwise the okra will get gooey. Just stir it one or two times.
6. Once the okra has started to turn brown, add the salt, turmeric, cumin and red chill powder.
7. Mix well and continue to cook on medium heat until it is well done. If you do not like it well done, you can switch off the heat earlier.

Notes:
1. You do not need too much oil for this curry as you are adding lemon juice. You can add bit more lemon juice than I mention if you like your curry tangy.
2. I just wipe the Okra and then chop it. I do not really wash it in a lot of water etc. This also helps in not making the curry very gooey.
3. You can add other powders per your taste like Garam masala etc. I like this combination and keeps it tasty and simple. 

My Version of Good Girl Moonshine

(From Banu's Cookbook)

I have always been a fan of Apple Cider Vinegar. I have used it in Salad Dressings or even just tossed with cucumbers and black pepper. I had heard of this Good Girl Moon Shine drink from several friends of mine but had never tried it. I read a lot of blogs and came up with my own version.

You can drink Natural Organic ACV with the Mother plain with some water or with some cinnamon or add it to any herbal tea. I use Bragg Organic Version. "Mother" is the most important part of the ACV that has all the good healing properties etc. But ACV is highly acidic so I would not recommend drinking it straight as it will damage tooth enamel and also your throat. You always mix it with water and drink it or do these different version of GGMS (Good Girl Moon Shine) recipes.

At the bottom of the post, I have given links to the Original GGMS and other blogs that I found helpful. You can use any tea that you like, my recipe uses the Mango tea bags as I like that flavor a lot, but as you can see from the different blog links, most any tea works good.

You might be wondering why even drink this - the benefits of ACV are numerous and ginger is just an amazing produce for your health. So combining these two and plus getting all your water intake for the day!! Win Win.

Ingredients:
4 bags of Mango Flavored Tea (I use Trader Joes brand)
3 bags pf Pukka Three Ginger Tea (Here is a link for it)
4 Tbsp of Organic Apple Cider Vinegar with the Mother
3-4 Tbsp of Splenda depending on how sweet you like it.
1-2 tsp of Mango Flavor Fountain (I use Olive Nation Brand)
1/4-1/2 Tsp of Orange Extract (Olive Nation Brand Here)

Method:
1. Immerse the tea bags in 2 qt of cold water and leave it in the fridge overnight. This is what I call cold pressing or cold brewing of tea. Overnight works the best. Although I have soaked them for couple of hours in a pinch too.
2. Remove the tea bags, add the rest of the ingredients and Sweetener to taste and your GGMS is ready. I drink my 2 quarts throughout the day.

Notes:
1. You can use Ginger powder instead of the ginger tea bags, but I personally did not like floating powder in my drink, so I use the tea bags. Some of my friends even use Ginger Essential Oil. You can even skip Ginger.
2. I use Splenda as my choice of sweetener, but you can use any and you might have to experiment a bit to see how much sweetness you need.
3. I would also recommend that you start slow, maybe 2 tbsp per quart for the first week and then increase. Since I have been consuming ACV for a long while now, I had no problem with going with my 4 tblspn.
4. The extracts I have used are all optional. I just like how they make my drink taste.
5. I have bought my Pukka Three Ginger tea from Amazon.com, but I have seen them in Whole Foods and sometimes in Sprouts too.
6. ACV with Mother is available in all major grocery stores.
7. You can add some cinnamon too if you like.

Blog List:
1. Original THM (Trim Healthy Mama) GGMS (Good Girl Moon Shine) Recipe


2.  Hawaiian Punch GGMS


3. Another Version with Honey

Lemon Madeline

(Adapted from Internet Recipe)

Disclaimer: Not my Original Recipe. Adapted from a Recipe someone posted in Ideal Protein support forum on Facebook.

Ingredients:
1 IP Pancake Mix packet
1 IP Vanilla Drink Mix packet
1 Tsp Baking Powder
1/4 Tsp Lemon Peel (Optional)
Zest of 1 Lemon
2 Tsp Milk
2 Tsp Olive Oil
1/3 C Egg White
2 Tbsp of Lemon Juice (or more - as needed to make the batter moist)

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 Deg F.
2. In a bowl mix the the two IP packets and baking powder well. This step is quite critical. Take some time to mix all of them well. I mix for about 40-50 secs with a whisk.
3. Add the Lemon Zest, peel and all the wet ingredients.
4. Mix well gently. Do not over mix it or beat it. More like fold it all in together until the batter is moist.
5. Spray a Madeline pan with Olive oil spray.
6. My Pan had 12 slots and I spread the batter evenly between all the 12 slots.
7. Bake for about 8-10 Minutes. Mine felt done around 8 minutes. So I removed it, took them out of pan and let it cool.

Dipping Sauce:
2 Tbsp Walden Farms Marshmallow Dip
2 Tbsp of Lemon Juice
A bit of lemon zest

Mix all the ingredients together well with a whisk. I added a bit of water as well as the WF marshmallow dip was bit clumpy.

Notes:
1. I did not need additional lemon juice than 2 tbsp. The batter was quite moist.
2. Fresh Lemon juice makes a big difference in this recipe.
3. I used this Madeline pan - from Amazon.com
4. I arranged the Madeline's in such a way that you could see how much dark the backside had become.
5. I used the Lemon Peel from Penzey Spices.