I love soup, Sean not so much. Sadly most commercially available soups are full of wheat and barley as a thickener and colorant. Even soups that are GF tend to be heavy on white rice and while I enjoy rice I try to avoid it (especially white rice) because it doesn’t have a ton of nutritional value, it’s chock full of carbs, leaves you hungry five minutes later and don’t even get me started on the yicky bleach process used to make rice, bread, etc white! So I’ve decided to try to make a few simple soups on my own and carrot, being good hot or cold, was at the top of my list. Give it a try and let me know how you make it your own.

SIMPLE CARROT SOUP
makes 3 servings
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32 ounces carrots (cleaned and all the same size) = 350
1 1/2 cup chicken broth = 30 (or vegetable broth)
1/4 cup sour cream = 80 (or plain soymilk yogurt)
3/4 cup Mozzarella Cheese = 240 (or soy cheese)
Cumin to taste (I used about half a tsp)
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700 total or 233 per bowl (1 1/2 cups soup)

Put 32 ounces of whole baby carrots into a large pot and cover with enough water to just come over the tops of the carrots. Bring water to a boil and then turn down to medium high and cook until carrots are soft. Remove leftover water and put carrots in a large mixing bowl. Using a hand emulsifier blend until smooth. Stir in chicken broth (or vegetable broth) and sour cream (you could also use unsweetened soy, rice or nut milk) and blend thoroughly. Add cumin (or ginger if you’d prefer a sweet soup). Serve hot topped with 1/4 cup cheese. This makes a thick soup. It’s also great as a homemade baby food if you leave out the spices and cheese.

Suggestions: Try using Italian spices instead of cumin. Adding a small amount of caramelized onions or oven roasted garlic would be yummy too. For a sweet soup try adding a bit of nutmeg and cinnamon and replacing the chicken broth with 2/3 water to 1/3 apple juice. Want a creamier soup? Replace some of the chicken broth with skim milk or soy milk. Looking for something a little more exotic? How about using coconut milk and a bit of shredded coconut? Want a hardier soup? Thin the soup out by adding a cup of broth and a couple cups of steamed veggies like celery, potatoes, peppers, mushrooms etc. Just remember when making alterations to adjust the calories. I use CalorieCount.com.

We’ve been experimenting with a bunch of recipes lately and as everyone on a GF diet knows it’s doubly hard because not only do you have to adjust it to be gluten free you also have to adjust the calories. Why oh why don’t chefs/cooks list basic nutritional information with their recipes?

This weeks recipe is for GF Granola Bars or Oatmeal bars if you prefer. Granola is just rolled oats, nuts, honey and sometimes rice (and of course you can add all sorts of goodies to it). Unfortunately, most commercial granola bars are chock full of wheat and barley. Plus their spendy at around $5 for a box of 6. This is a recipe we heavily adapted from a protein bar to reduce the calories and make it GF. Some folks with Celiac disease are sensitive to oats. Make sure you are using GF oats as most oats are grown and processed alongside wheat. If you’d rather not use oats you can try other grains like crisped rice or quinoa etc but I can’t promise it will come out well since I haven’t tried it myself. The bars come out soft, more like a cookie that a hard crunchy bar and hold up well in lunch boxes.

Gluten Free Oatmeal Bars

You Will Need
1/2 cup corn flour – 220
2 teaspoon cinnamon – 0 (Omit for chocolate chip bars)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda – 0
1/8 teaspoon salt – 0
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar – 180
5 tbsp honey – 240
1 1/2 bananas – 180 or 1 1/2 cups apple sauce – 150
1 large egg – 90
6 tbsp egg whites – 50
2 tbsp flax seed – 110
1 tbsp vanilla extract – 0
2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats – 600
1/2 cup dried cranberries – 195
or
90 semi-sweet chocolate chips – 200
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts – 360
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2200 calories total/12 Squares = 183 each

What to Do
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Coat a 9 x 13-inch (23 x 33-centimeter) baking pan with nonstick spray.

2. Whisk the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Beat the sugar, banana or apple sauce and honey in a large mixing bowl until blended. Blend egg and egg whites with a fork in a small bowl. Add to the sugar mixture, along with the vanilla. Beat until smooth. Add reserved flour mixture and mix with a whisk. Fold in oats, flax seeds, dried cranberries (or chocolate chips) and walnuts with a silicone or rubber spatula. Scrape batter into the prepared baking dish and spread until flat and smooth. Spray the top lightly with cooking spray.

3. Bake the bars until lightly browned and firm to the touch, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool completely (or they will fall apart) in the pan on a rack before cutting into 12 bars. Remove carefully with a spatula.

This recipe would be fairly easy to make vegan, just make sure you adjust the calories. If you add a glass of soy milk it makes a nice light breakfast too. Feel free to change up the add-ins. We like cranberry walnut, chocolate chip macadamia nut, raspberry with lemon zest and 1 tsp of lemon extract, coconut with orange zest and 1 tsp of orange extract, cinnamon apples with almonds, dried apricots with cashews, banana and walnut (add banana extract), blueberry, etc. We’re even going to try a savory one with sundried tomatoes and pine nuts. Experiment and let us know how yours turns out!

In our final (I think) post about adding flavor to a bland diet I’d like to share a few ideas for drinks and desserts. I was never a hardcore soda drinker but I admit sometimes an ice cold Pepsi on a hot day sounds awfully tasty. The recommended daily allotment for sugar is about ten teaspoons. The average soda has 10 to 15 teaspoons of sugar! And the calories aren’t any better. A soda a day for 365 days equals about 25 pounds right on your back-side! Studies have shown that sugary drinks, even diet soda, trigger you to eat more than you would have had you not had that drink so it’s a double whammy. Don’t drink your calories folks. It’s not filling and you’ll just end up eating twice as much.

We know we should be drinking at least eight cups of water a day but water can get boring and feel like a lead weight in your stomach. So what are our options? I drink a lot of tea (white and green are especially good for you) and occasionally a cup of decaf coffee but there are more creative alternatives.

1. Add crushed fresh mint leaves, orange slices, lemon wedges, lime or cucumber slices to cold water for a refreshing summer drink.

2. Blend a teaspoon of extract (vanilla, orange, lemon, almond, etc), 1 cup of ice and 1 packet of Splenda in the blender for a no calorie sweet drink or add 1/2 cup of soy milk to make it creamier for only 62 calories. Substitute 1/2 a cup of orange juice (50 calories) for a fruitier drink.

3. Spice up hot tea by adding lemon or orange slices. Or for an herbal tea put a quarter teaspoon of pumpkin pie spices (or your own mix of cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg) in a tea ball or cloth filter.

4. Cold tea can benefit from a small splash of berry juice and a few frozen berries.

5. Add 1 tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder to 1 cup soy milk and a packet of Splenda for 75 calories. Want a more exotic hot chocolate drink? Add a quarter teaspoon of mint extract, a quarter teaspoon of cinnamon or a pinch of cayenne pepper powder.

Now onto desserts! Most nights we have fat free pudding cups or low fat frozen yogurt (half a cup is about 100-150 calories) but that gets old fast.

Ice Cream
Cinnamon and a few chopped pecans over vanilla frozen yogurt helps to satisfy my Starbucks frappacino cravings. Fruit compote makes plain yogurt or frozen yogurt a summer treat. Mix a quarter teaspoon of orange extract and 1/4 a cup of shredded coconut into frozen yogurt for a tropical dessert.

Pie
When I gotta have pie, half a cup of frozen berries (cherries = 45 calories) warmed up in the microwave poured over a cup of crushed cereal (1 cup of rice Chex = 100 calories) and a scoop of vanilla frozen yogurt (50 calories) hits the spot. Want apple pie? Steam a chopped apple with a half teaspoon of pumpkin pie spices and top with 4 tbsp of light whipped cream for just 120 calories. Add a quarter cup of granola for some crunch at an extra 100 calories. Need your pumpkin pie fix? Steam a sweet potato (cubed pieces), add a teaspoon of pumpkin pie spices and top with two tbsp of light whipped cream for 195 calories.

Cake
Cake is more difficult because most gluten free cakes and cookies have even more carbs and calories than traditional wheat based items. Recently I found a pack of Gefen Double Chocolate Chip Coconut Macaroons in my local Safeway that taste an awful lot like cake and are only 100 calories for two. We’ve also been making our own oatmeal and corn flour granola bars that taste a lot like cake and are only 180 calories. Recipe will be posted soon!

Pudding
You can make your own pudding by melting a square of unsweetened baking chocolate (140 calories) with a tablespoon of soy milk and then slowly adding soy milk (half a cup is 65 calories) to thin it out. Just add Splenda until it’s as sweet as you like. Add different extracts, spices, nuts or fruit for variety.

Next Week: Yummy GF recipes that will keep you slim!