Dr. G's Tricolore Crab Salad with Avocado

Try this Dr. G recipe for a quick and easy weeknight meal.  It's perfect for this Summer-in-Fall weather.  I added avocado to his recipe for a little vegetarian protein and because it's such a lovely complement to the crab. Here's Dr. G's recipe from pages 209 and 207 (slightly modified).

CRAB
1.5 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
1/2 pound can crab meat
Juice 1/4 lemon

DRESSING
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1.5 teaspoons dijon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

SALAD
1 head radicchio
2 Belgian endive
1 head romaine
1/2 avocado, cubed

Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add seasonings and garlic and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.  Add the crab and cook until heated.  Squeeze the lemon juice over the crab mixture and stir to incorporate.  Set aside to cool slightly while you prepare the rest of the meal.  Then,  whisk the dressing ingredients together in a small bowl.  Wash and dry the lettuces.  Halve the radicchio, endive and romaine and slice thinly.  Put the lettuces in a mixing bowl and toss with the dressing.  Add the cooled crab and cubes of avocado and gently incorporate.  Serves 2.  Radicchio and endive are both fairly bitter greens.  They are good for you, but you may want to adjust the ratio of bitter greens to romaine, depending on your taste.

Ma! The Meatloaf!

Will Ferrell's small but hilarious part in the movie Wedding Crasher's as a one-time lady's man living in his mom's basement made an impression on my fiance.  From time to time, when he's hungry and wondering when dinner will be ready, Max will scream, "Ma! The Meatloaf!".  While sort of obnoxious, I think it's quite funny and I thought it would be even funnier to actually make meatloaf.  This American classic gets a bad rap, but c'mon, it's basically seasoned beef - how bad could it be?  So, I found a recipe on epicurious that I thought sounded good and modified it according to our Gundry rules.

INGREDIENTS
2 strips lean bacon*, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 small zucchini, finely chopped
1 pound very lean ground beef (preferably grass-fed)
1 large egg
1/4 cup unsweetened soy or almond milk
1/2 cup almond flour
2 tablespoons Dijon
2 tablespoons tomato sauce (no sugar added)
1.5 teaspoons bottled horseradish, well drained
1 teaspoon Worchestershire sauce
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh, flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon sea salt
1/2 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon finely minced fresh thyme (or 1/8 teaspoon dried thyme)
5 whole, un-peeled, garlic cloves
2 bay leaves
*Dr. Gundry suggests turkey "bacon"

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Saute bacon over medium-low heat until it begins to crisp and most of the fat has rendered out, approximately 5 minutes.  Add the garlic, onion and zucchini and continue cooking for 4 minutes, or until the vegetables are soft and the onions are translucent.  Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Place the ground beef in a large mixing bowl.  Use your hands to work the rest of the ingredients into the beef.  First, add the egg and milk.  Next, add the almond flour.  Last add the cooled vegetables, mustard, tomato sauce, horseradish, Worchestershire sauce, parsley, salt, pepper and thyme.  Coat a loaf pan with cooking spray and dust the bottom with almond flour.  Scoop the beef mixture into the loaf pan and spread evenly.  Gently press the un-peeled garlic cloves and bay leaves into the top of the meatloaf.

Put the loaf pan in the oven until browned and cooked through (internal temperature should be 165 degrees), approximately 40 minutes.  Let rest for approximately 5 minutes and then slice and serve.  This recipe will make approximately four servings in Phase 1 and later eight servings.

I served the meatloaf with mashed cauliflower and sauteed greens.  I found a gorgeous head of golden cauliflower that is responsible for the rich, buttery color you see in the picture at the top.  I must say, it was a tasty, satisfying meal.  The leftovers keep well and can be used the next day in a breakfast scramble, lunch salad or as a topping for a Dr. Gundry "pizza".

Grilled Swordfish, Fennel & Red Onion

Perusing the produce section of Whole Foods the other day, I stopped by the fennel.  Fennel is a unique vegetable with a light licorice flavor that is wonderfully summery and Mediterranean.  Looking at the bulb with its whispy fronds, I remembered a dinner I'd once prepared for myself from a Giada de Laurentiis recipe: Tuna Spiedini - kebabs with tuna, fennel, green onions, red onions & tomatoes.  They were delicious, but I was looking for something a little simpler for my weeknight meal.  I grabbed a swordfish steak, two small fennel bulbs and a red onion and made a delicious salad of grilled fish and vegetables.

Here's what to do: Cut a swordfish steak (about 1/3 lb. per person) into approximately 1-inch cubes. Place in a bowl and toss in olive oil, salt, pepper and herbes de Provence.  Thread the pieces of fish on skewers.  Cut the fronds and the end off of the fennel bulbs, remove the outer layers and cut the bulb into wedges.  Do the same with the red onion.  Skewer the fennel and onion wedges, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper and herbes de Provence.  Place the skewers on a heated grill and cook until the fish is cooked through and the vegetables are tender - about 8 - 10 minutes for the fish and 12 - 15 minutes for the vegetables.  Serve atop arugula.  Drizzle with more extra-virgin olive oil.  Squeeze lemon over the top and spinkle with sea salt.

This combination of flavors is refreshing and delicious.

Jicama "Tacos" with Grilled Shrimp and Avocado

Several weeks back, during a lovely "girls' weekend" the conversation at one point turned, of course, to food (well, yes, we also discussed sex, sig others and body parts we hate, but this is a food blog people!).  My girlfriend was describing a recent food festival she'd attended and said that the most surprisingly delectable item she consumed was a shrimp taco with a jicama "taco shell".  I immediately thought, "What a wonderfully creative, Gundry-friendly dish!  I can make those."  I didn't get a lot of details from my girlfriend, but I thought avocado and a simple cilantro salsa would go perfectly with shrimp and jicama.   Here's what to do:

First, make the salsa:
1 jalapeno, seeded
1/2 onion, coarsely chopped
Small handful of cilantro
Juice of 1/2 lime
Sea salt
Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and pulse until well mixed, but still lightly chunky.  Set aside.

Heat grill to high heat.  Next, toss shrimp, (preferrably wild caught) in extra-virgin olive oil, sea salt and chili powder.  Let marinate for a few minutes while you cut the jicama and avocado.  Slice the jicama thinly enough that it bends without snapping.  I found it was easiest to use a mandoline.  Also cut thin slices of avocado.

Thread shrimp on skewers leaving a little space in between each shrimp for even cooking.  Place directly over heat and grill, turning once, until just opaque, 3 or 4 minutes total.  Sprinkle with cilantro if desired.

To assemble the tacos, place jicama slices on a plate, top with shrimp, a slice of avocado and a spoonful of salsa.  Drizzle with a good-quality extra-virgin olive oil.

I served with a simple salad of romaine, radishes and a homemade caesar dressing (recipe below).

Caesar Dressing
1 hard-boiled egg
1 Tablespoon dijon
1 clove garlic
1 small cube parmesan cheese
Place all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until combined.  Drizzle in extra-virgin olive oil until desired consistency is achieved.  Season with sea salt to taste.  Thin with water if desired.

Arugula Salad with Sprouts, Avocado and Tuna

This salad is simple and delicious!  The interesting combination of arugula, tuna and sprouts was introduced to me by our lovely friend Sam who lived with us for a while.  Most of the meals we shared involved too much wine and cheese, but every once in a while we were well behaved.  The crazy Brit is now back across the Pond and we miss her dearly. I think of her often however, and the other day, I remembered this simple, yummy salad.

I put a slight variation on the original, adding avocado to supplement the tuna with a non-meat protein.  I combined all the the ingredients in a mixing bowl, drizzled them with a good-quality olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt. A mustard or lemon vinaigrette would also be delicious on this salad.  For my single serving I used:

3 oz baby arugula (about 1/2 a bag or box)
1.5 oz alfalfa sprouts
1/2 6-oz. can of tuna
1 Tablespoon avocado*
1.5 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

* When I'm using just a bit of avocado on a salad, I usually cut the avo in half and then use the tip of a spoon to scoop out little bits.  This technique helps to spread the avocado throughout the salad instead of having one big clump.  Store the rest of the avocado in tupperware and keep it in the refrigerator. In Phase 2 and 3 you can eliminate the tuna and add more avocado.