Gluten Free Ramen with Creamy Avocado Sauce

Inspiration can strike when you least expect it, or in my case, a moment of starvation.

I had a moment of wanderlust in my local Costco and I stumbled upon Gluten-Free Ramen.

Now, I normally eat grain free, but on the occasion I need to have something more substantial, I tend to turn to brown rice. That's exactly what this ramen was made from, organic brown rice.

I couldn't wait to get home and try it out.

Gluten Free Ramen with Creamy Avocado Sauce


1 T Ghee
1 Avocado
1 t Curry Powder
2 t Minced Garlic
1 T Coconut Aminos
1/4 t Sesame Oil
1 Handfull of Cilantro
1 Cup Bone Broth or Vegetable Broth
1-2 t of Taste of Thai Green Curry Paste (Whole30 and Paleo compliant)
Leftover Green Vegetables (I used zucchini, broccoli, and asparagus)
Leftover Protein from Dinner or Soft Boiled Eggs - How to do Soft Boiled Eggs omit if vegetarian or vegan.

Boil the gluten-free ramen as per instruction. If making eggs start that water as well in a smaller saucepot.

While the water is heating to a boil, in a large skillet on medium high, heat the ghee.

When the ghee is warm, but not smoking, add the garlic and let it come to a warm golden color. Then add the spices, green curry paste, and coconut aminos. Whisk spices together and warm until fragrant, about 1 minute. If using leftover protein, add that to the skillet with the leftover vegetables and saute for 4-5 minutes.

At this point, the ramen and egg water should be boiling so get that started.

Add the broth to the skillet and bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer.

Cut open the avocado and mash half to a fine paste. Add to the broth and stir well. Salt and Pepper to taste broth mixture to taste. Thinly slice the rest of the avocado for topping.

When the ramen is done, drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process. Leave the noodles in the sink and work on the eggs if using them in the recipe. Once everything is ready, add your ramen to a bowl, pour the broth mixture over the ramen and top with the leftover avocado, eggs, cilantro, and sesame oil if desired.

Enjoy!

Summer Vegetables and Meatballs

Summer is officially in full swing and I can feel the heat just sitting inside my darkened house. I swear if you didn't know any better you'd think houses in Texas were inhabited by vampires since I keep the blinds shut all day long to keep the house cooler.

In the words of Xander on one of the best shows ever created, Buffy the Vampire Slayer..."You know, our friends, that sleep all day and have no tans..." Yep. Texas looks like it's full of vampires in the summertime.

However, the one great thing about Texas is the variety of veggies that come out. Particularly, zucchini and my new favorite heirloom tomato blends. Yum.

I decided to start a Whole30 in between events this summer. That's after my nephew's graduation from High School and before #leohusband's birthday, even though that means a Whole30 July 4th - American Independence Day for my non-US readers.

I feel confident that my two servings of fruit from a cold watermelon on Independence Day is just fine with me in lieu of peach pie.

Unfortunately, my back has been totally f'ed up since April and I haven't had the chance to sit down and evaluate what I need to do to actually feel better. I've been in pure survival mode hanging on by my fingernails trying to keep up my blog, keep up with my daily 'I need to do this to feel normal' activities, promote my awesome new podcast Chronic Warrior Women with Rebekah Svensson aka #awkwardyethealthy, be social with family and friends, oh, and do my daily responsibilities like laundry and ironing, etc...forget about getting a meal on the table.

By the time I'm done with all that I'm done - stick a fork in me!

Needless to say, I haven't been eating that great, not bad, but not up to my normal standards. In fact, I had to switch my morning affirmations from I love my life, to I love to cook. This is so weird to me because back when I was teaching, I did love to cook, it was my stress reliever. Now, it's my stress inducer. Crazy!

So yesterday was my first Whole30 day. Well, I felt so bad I didn't even start eating until lunchtime when #leohusband woke up and made breakfast for lunch. LOL! Then all I had to do was dinner.


Summer Vegetables and Meatballs


Zoodles:
5-6 Zucchini
2-3 t salt


First, prep the Zucchini. Wash, dry, and spiral about 5-6 large zucchini. Place the spiraled zucchini in a colander, in the sink, and generously salt the zucchini. Set a 20-minute timer and start working on the meatballs.

Meatballs:
1 lb of grass fed ground beef
1 egg
1 T almond flour (as long as it's not the main ingredient this is OK on the Whole30)
1/2 T Italian blend herbs, divided.
1 t salt
1/2 t pepper


Mix all ingredients in a medium-large bowl with your hands. Wet your hands and then roll the mixture into 1.5-2" balls. Bake on a baking sheet lined with parchment at 375 for 20-30 minutes. Around this time the zucchini should be finished.

Sauce:
1 T olive or avocado oil
1 t of minced garlic
1/2 small onion, diced
1 lb of mixed cherry tomatoes
1/2 T Italian blend herbs, divided.
1 t salt
1 lemon zested


In a large skillet, heat the oil. Add the garlic and onions and saute until fragrant and the onions are slightly translucent.

While the onions and garlic are sauteing, slice the cherry tomatoes in half lengthwise. Add the tomatoes to the pan and salt and pepper the vegetables.

Head to the sink and grab the zucchini and a bar or tea towel. Dump the spiraled zucchini in the middle of the towel. Pick up all four corners of the towel and now you are going to twist the towel to "ring out" the excess water from the zucchini.

Add the drained zucchini to the tomato mixture. Saute for 5-7 minutes.
Around this time the meatballs should be finishing. Check to make sure that they are done in the middle. Temp should be around 165 degrees in the center and juices should run clear. If the meatballs are done add them to the skillet.

Toss everything and top with lemon zest. Serve.

Essential Oil No More Scars Blend

I have so many scars on my body.

So many.

I always like to think of that line in the movie The Replacements with Keanu Reeves...Chicks Dig Scars...Glory is Forever..etc.

Well, I don't think men dig scars on women as much as we dig scars on them. #leohusband has this awesome scar on his back and he likes to tell people, in jest, that it's from a bar fight. He is 180° different in appearance than someone who would have a bar fight scar.

I have 23 surgery scars on my body. You can't really see them because I have a magic trick.

Abracadabra...

Essential Oil 'No More Scars' Blend

For the carrier oil, you are going to use vitamin E oil.


In your rollerball vial:

Frankincense 15 drops
Helichrysum 10 drops
Sandalwood 7 drops
Top off with Vitamin E Oil - I prefer Jason 5000iu Skin Oil

Use twice a day after moisturizing so it stays in place. If on your face avoid makeup in that area, if possible. Let's put it this way, there's a reason I styled my hair differently for 6 months.



Thrive Market


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Disability can Affect Anyone at Any Time

My mother always told me, "Don’t judge a book by its cover." Later in life, she also told me you don't know what is going on in someone's life, what they are dealing with. This was a lesson on giving grace, being less judgemental, and being patient.

Ninety percent of the time I do a really good job of empathy. When I'm having what #breadwinnerbff lovingly calls my devil hell bitch days not so much...but that's usually three days before Satan's Waterfall hits me so the other 20-24 days of the month I'm usually happy, usually.

So I guess I'm saying that I get it, we all have bad days, ladies we are all underappreciated, fellas we are all stressed. However, never in my adult life, keyword being adult because I did some stupid vindictive passive aggressive bs when I was growing up, have I gone out of my way to purposely hurt someone or their property. Sure, everyone wants to key their exboyfriend's car Carrie Underwood style, but only crazy bitches do that.

If you are reading this and have just realized you are a crazy bitch, it's not too late to seek the help you need.

via GIPHY


Let’s just talk about how disability does not know age, race, color, or class.

Not all disabilities are visible. Last week someone saw me park in one of the handicap spaces to go to the grocery store and they gave me a funny look.

I initially didn’t think anything of it, until I had a flat tire with multiple punctures in the side wall in which the tire guy told me it definitely looked like a pocket knife had done it. #leohusband and I definitely didn't need a $300 tire bill this month on top of all of my other medical expenses...

You can’t see my nerve pain. You can’t see my permanent and progressive spinal cord disease from the outside. What you see is someone young and pretty but you can’t see the horror that lives inside my body every day. To the man that slashed my tire, I now have a sticker on my back windshield that explains that not all disabilities can be seen on the outside.

My mother's 83-year-old neighbor had his car keyed because apparently if you are driving a sports car you can't be disabled.

Disability can Affect Anyone at Any Time.

Have you been judged by your appearance or age? Are you disabled and you can't tell from just looking at you? Please share your own story in the comments. This is the kind of topic that needs to be discussed out in the open so more people are aware.

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