Coconut Curry Cream of Cauliflower

This soup is SOOOOOOO delicious and extremely easy to make. However, with the price of cauliflower, I would suggest making it when it's onsale :)

This recipe is from our local grocery store (IGA). Their website has tons of delicious recipes. I highly suggest checking them out!

Ingredients: 

30 ml (2 tbsp.) vegetable oil
1 chopped medium onion
2 chopped garlic cloves
30 ml (2 tbsp.) grated fresh ginger
10 ml (2 tsp.) curry powder (I like curry so I added another teaspoon)
To taste, salt and pepper
1 head cauliflower, cut into large pieces
500 ml (2 cups) chicken broth (I use a low sodium broth)
500 ml (2 cups) coconut milk (I used a light coconut mil)
250 ml (1 cup) peeled potatoes, cut into pieces
1 lime's zest and juice

As a garnish, I used Terra Brand Mediterranean Exotic Vegetable Chips.

In a large saucepan, heat vegetable oil. Sauté onion and garlic on medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes.
Add ginger and curry and mix well. Salt and pepper to taste.
Add remaining ingredients to saucepan and bring to boil. Cover and simmer on low heat for 15 minutes or until cauliflower is well cooked.
Purée in blender until smooth.

A challenge to a healthier life

I keep promising myself that I will post to this blog at least once a week, and have been extremely unsuccessful. That said, I'm not making any promises, but I wanted to post about a new challenge that I am setting for myself, and I'm going to try to share every recipe along the way.

This blog is to share recipes and tricks for people with food intolerances, like I have. It's been maybe 10 years now that I have been struggling with digestive issues. It was eventually determined that I had severe IBS and would have to make huge cuts in my diet. No more red meats or dairy. Being careful about foods packed with insoluble fibres. Watching my portions. Avoiding fatty foods (although I do cheat on occasion, but pay the price). 

All of this has done me well, until maybe a year ago. A year ago, I was going through a stressful time. I was tired all the time, no matter how much I slept. My stomach was always upset. I would get dizzy spells and started developing psoriasis.

This has been going on for a year, and has only gotten worse. During that time, I started gaining a lot of weight, and it seems I have new symptoms that are beginning to concern me.

With the weight gain, this summer, I tried a 2 week green smoothie diet. It essentially was 3 green smoothies a day, nuts, hard boiled eggs and raw fruits and veggies. I did it as a detox for my system (but the weight loss was very welcome and I kept it off for at least 6 months). At the end of the 2 weeks, I felt amazing. My stomach wasn't upset and I wasn't drained. I weened myself back onto regular food, and it wasn't long that I started to feel ill again (maybe 2 months after).

It hasn't been until now, today even, that I even realized it. I am stuck at home with a wicked stomach flu, which has given me time to look at my health and read up on some things. After a few articles, I believe I may have an intolerance to gluten.

I should note that this has been thought at the beginning stages of my diagnosis of IBS, but I don't think we were extremely careful in making sure I had NOTHING that contained gluten. Just avoided pastas and bread. 

So I have decided to challenge myself into eating gluten-free for one month and try to see if anything gets better. I will be starting this as soon as my stomach bug is over (I am currently living off of saltines and broth). I will try to share my progress and recipes during this process, but again, no promises.

Hopefully, if it is an intolerance, I can learn how to live a healthier happier life, and all my ailments dissipate. I guess time will truly tell!