Now that I know my secretor status, according to Eat Right 4 Your Type, I have started eating avocados again. A lot. Before I knew my secretor status, I followed the program as if I were a secretor, which meant not eating any avocados. I missed them for the nine months or so that I abstained. I even stopped looking at them at the grocery store. It is amazing to me what we can adapt to if only we give ourselves the opportunity to try. There are a lot of unusual rules in the ER4YT plan that don’t seem logical; like I can eat avocado but NOT avocado oil. I find it all very interesting especially because it seems to be so effective for me. I did the secretor salivary test a few months ago: I am a Non-Secretor. The good news is that I can eat avocados again, the bad news is that Non-Secretors have, potentially, a health disadvantage; which gives me even more reason to stay on top of what I eat. Click here to read Lesson Ten: Secretor Status.
My Homemade Guacamole Recipe
1 – 2 TBSP. diced Spanish Onion
1 – 2 TBSP. seeded and diced Tomatoes
2 TBSP. finely chopped Cilantro leaves
less than 1/4 tsp. Cayenne Pepper
2 Very Ripe Hass Avocado (pictured above) mashed and leave some in chunks.
Juice from half of a fresh lime (it should be very juicy, producing at least 2 TBSP.)
2 twists of the Sea Salt Mill
NOTE: I’m sure any variety of avocado will do, but I prefer the taste and texture of the Hass Avocado.
Directions:
Not sure there is an easier recipe? Just prepare all the ingredients in the order I’ve listed and combine together. Voila!
Below are some photos to guide anyone new to the kitchen. Remember to use only the leaves from the Cilantro, no stems.
Today I made another batch and added some finely diced garlic.
To my surprise, I prefer it without the garlic. The garlic seemed to hide the cayenne pepper. Interesting.
ENJOY!
By the way, the following Blood Types should avoid avocado.
AB (secretor & non-secretor),
B (secretor & non-secretor) and
O (secretor)
Avocado is:
Beneficial for Blood Type O (non-secretor)
Neutral for Blood Type A (secretor & non-secretor)
In this version I use Jewel and/or Garnet Yams and/or Sweet Potatoes and mix in Butternut Squash and/or Acorn Squash (whatever is available). Although, did you know, that the “Yams” we consume in North America are actually Sweet Potatoes? To get true Yams, apparently requires some effort, one must source them from a market that specializes in Tropical produce. This link: Sweet Potatoes & Yams gives the breakdown for anyone interested in clarifying the confusion.
For me it was particularly interesting because I am exploring Eat Right 4 Your Type. For me as a type O, Sweet Potatoes are beneficial and Yams are Neutral. Turns out, the Yams I thought I was eating are actually ALL sweet potatoes (Yay!), but are labeled as Yams at the grocery store. It all kind of makes my head swim though.
UPDATE: Recently, I got the results from the Secretor Test. Turns out I am a Non-Secretor, which means that both Yams and Sweet Potatoes are neutralfor me. I’ll still keep eating them, but maybe not quite as often!
Anyhow, this recipe has become quite a staple. I love it! And now that I’ve made it so often, I can whip off a batch in no time. Sadly, it disappears just as quickly. The kids will sample it from time to time when they are feeling adventurous, but mostly it’s a dish that my husband and I eat. Lucky for my husband, who is an AB – Secretor, both Yams and Sweet Potatoes are beneficial.
It’s good cold, but outstanding when served warmed up – which brings out all the flavours.
Kitchen Supplies:
Cutting board
Knife
Vegetable peeler
Bowl for mixing
2 Cookie Sheets
Parchment paper (optional)
Grater
Ingredients:
3-4 Sweet Potato Tubers (mix of varieties) peeled & cut into chunks
Butternut Squash or Acorn Squash (optional) peeled & cut into slices
1 tsp. Fresh Ginger peeled and grated Or 1 Tsp. ground ginger root (more or less depending on how spicy you like it)
1 tsp. or less of Dried Red Chili Pepper Flakes
1 – 2 TBSP. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Juice from 1/2 to 1 Fresh Lime
1 Cup Fresh Cilantro, leaves plucked from stems & finely chopped
3 Scallions (green onions), chopped
Instructions:
Preheat Oven to 350 degrees F.
Wash, peel and cut sweet potatoes and squash into desired shapes and sizes. Enough for two cookie sheets or more for batches.
Place in large mixing bowl. Add approximately 2 TBSP. Extra Virgin Olive Oil (I usually just make a splash with it into the bowl).
Peel & grate, 1-2 inches of fresh ginger.
I use a spoon to peel the ginger. It works much better than a vegetable peeler.
1 tsp. grated – depending how spicy you like it 🙂
Add approximately 1 TBSP. of Dried Red Chili Pepper Flakes to the mixing bowl.
Here is a picture showing 1 tsp. dried ginger, less than 1 TBSP. chili flakes and a 1/2 tsp. ground Himalayan Salt.
However, of late I’ve not been adding any salt.
Stir to combine and coat the vegetables.
Transfer to parchment lined cookie sheets.
Place into pre-heated oven for 30 minutes (depending on oven). Check periodically. I find that the sweet potatoes need 10 additional minutes for a nice roasted appearance. For the squash, I usually roast them 20 additional minutes (but turn them over when I take the sweet potatoes out of the oven), to achieve the same roasted appearance on both sides.
Once the vegetables have been removed from the oven I allow them to cool slightly before returning them to the mixing bowl.
While the vegetables were roasting I would have added to the mixing bowl:
1. Separated 1 Cups worth of cilantro leaves from their stems and chopped them.
2. Cut up the scallions
3. Squeezed the juice from 1 fresh lime
Note: I usually only add the juice from one lime and see how it tastes. It’s easy enough to add more the next day. I’ve made the mistake of adding too much lime juice and regretting it, but easy enough to remedy by adding more roasted vegetables.
Also, I’ve noticed that not all limes are juicy, so I always buy 4 or 5 limes at a time. A few times I’ve cut open limes and though they ‘feel’ perfectly juicy from the outside, they are completely dry; it’s disappointing when you need them right then and there.
Finishing Up:
Depending on how things look I may add a splash of Extra Virgin Olive Oil to the bowl and mix it with the lime juice, cilantro and scallions. Then I toss in the Roasted Vegetables and gently combine to coat the vegetables well. I then cover the bowl or transfer to a food storage container and refrigerate overnight or for a few hours.
Reheat before serving.
Dedicated to my friend V, whose husband isn’t fond of cilantro, but he gave the dish a try when they visited us last month – and he said he liked it. So maybe for all those averse to cilantro, give this recipe a try…(?).
Our kids have been eating steamed Kale, Collard Greens, Swiss Chard, Broccoli and Broccolini, basically from since they started eating solid food. We joke that they’ve already eaten a lifetimes supply in their short lives.
My son recently said that he’s just Kale-ed out, but would love to eat it: Kale Chip style. I had only ever made Kelp chips for my son, which he loves; He craves them from time to time – likely his body telling him he’s getting low on Iodine!
For some reason, however, I never made Kale Chips. I guess because there was never a need – everyone was getting their daily requirement the old fashioned way. About a year ago, my friend brought over some dehydrated Kale Chips and he still remembers liking them to this day.
Since I don’t have a dehydrator (yet!) I decided to make a batch of Kale Chips to see what might happen. I made two batches, because the first batch got over cooked slightly…they’re not great overcooked even by a margin. I tried to push them on my son – “just try one, tell me what you think?”, but he called me on it right away. “Mom, these are burnt”. So with the second batch, I kept watch like a hawk. Some were perfect while others could have used a few more minutes. So I removed the chips that were just right and kept the others on the tray and slid them back into the oven. Watching all the time.
They should look a vibrant green when cooked just right and be crispy to the touch. They still taste great if undercooked – they just lack the crispy chip crunch, fall-apart texture, which are better for storing in an airtight container…if there’s any left for storing that is! Try as I may, the batch gets eaten up before I can ever get them to the container. Not such a bad problem to have. Except, for the fact that it’s me and my husband who devour the batch. My son still prefers the dehydrated Kale Chips…Can anyone recommend a great food dehydrator?
INSTRUCTIONS:
Pre-heat oven to 350 F
Bunch Organic Kale (Purple Kale, Lacinato Kale [also known as Black Kale or Dinosaur Kale] and Curly Green Kale…are there more varieties?)
Remove Kale from stem – discard stem
Tear Kale into preferred size for chips
Wash Kale
Spin dry with salad spinner or towel dry
In a big bowl drizzle a small amount of Olive Oil – careful not to use too much – 1tsp.(?)
Add a light sprinkling of Sea Salt
Use hands to massage oil evenly over Kale
Lay Kale on a baking sheet (I use parchment on my cookie sheets)
Place in oven
Set timer for 10 minutes
Do Not walk away or get distracted…this is a quick operation
Enough time for clean up or a 4 Minute Tabata…am I being pushy?
By 6 minutes it becomes obvious that Kale is cooking
By 8 minutes most pieces will be ready – at which point I take out the sheet and start checking for done-ness.
And return to oven the ones that need a bit more time.
Watching all the time.
(above) one bunch Organic Curly Green Kale
(above) Remove Kale from stem
-Discard stem-
Washed then dried with Salad Spinner (above)
My son’s favorite Olive Oil, because it doesn’t taste too Olive-e.
