From Grainlady in 2016 "I teach cooking/nutrition classes at the Food Bank (and other venues), and one tip I give people of limited means, and the elderly on fixed incomes, is to purchase the largest bag of frozen mixed vegetables they can afford. Leave a portion mixed (for adding to soup, shepherd's pie, casseroles...) and then separate the rest so they will now have separate containers of corn, green beans, peas, broccoli, etc., depending on what combination they purchased. This will give them the biggest variety and is a huge money saver. The biggest problem with frozen vegetables, whether they are commercially prepared or from your garden, there are no enzymes left due to processing. We still need foods in our diet that provide enzymes (http://www.getting-started-with-healthy-eating.com/enzymes-in-food.html). Another favorite frozen vegetable I keep in the freezer are petit whole green beans (Aldi); and I like to keep some frozen chopped onion or onion/pepper combination on hand (a quick pizza topping). I typically use more fresh chives in cooking than I do onions, so freezing onion keep them readily available. When fresh from the garden aren't available, I prefer freeze-dried to frozen, since they are as close to fresh-picked as a commercial product can get, plus they maintain their enzymes through processing. For the "fresh only" crowd. Unless you grow and harvest it yourself, there's no such thing as "fresh" produce in the store. This is why I grow sprouts, micro-greens, and grow and juice wheatgrass, along with growing fresh herbs in a sunny south window. Even in the middle of winter I have REAL fresh vegetables. There is also a favorite vegetable we typically eat raw that is actually more nutritious once cooked - CARROTS. Skip the "baby" carrots, bagged carrots, and get some with the greens still attached since they are fresher, and the greens are also edible. "Cooked whole carrots served with olive oil have up to eight times more beta-carotene than raw baby carrots." Cooking carrots make some of the nutrients more bioavailable, and choose sautéed or steamed methods to help retain more of the food value. If you cook carrots whole, and THEN slice/chop them after being cooked, you'll get more nutrients than if you cut them before you cook them. They are best eaten with some type of oil or fat since beta-carotene is a fat-soluble nutrient that needs to be coated in fat for greatest absorption. The highest concentration of nutrients is just below the skin, so scrub carrots, rather than peel them. If you can find purple carrots, you'll hit the nutrition jack-pot! Sweet potatoes - Steaming, roasting, or baking can double their antioxidant value, but boiling reduces it. The skin is more nutritious than the flesh, so scrub, rather than peel, sweet potatoes. -Grainlady" https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/4028525/supermarket-frozen-vegetables#n=41 6 Likes Save July 17, 2016 at 6 ETA: Several posts were deleted after posting, so are no longer there. They seemed to be the ones poking the most fun at the comment.

I used this recipe from Smitten Kitchen for inspiration, making do with what I had on hand, and using up and abundance of cherry tomatoes. I used regular feta, roughly chunked and just combined everything in the ingredient list and baked at 400 for about 25 minutes. Served with crostini, although I have made the crackers she mentions and they are great - but I was too lazy tonight. DH asked "why haven't you ever made this before?" so I think he liked it. Baked Feta with Tomatoes and Olives Adapted, barely, from The Sprouted Kitchen Cookbook I don't think anyone would mind if you use more than the suggested amount of tomatoes. Feta is so salty and tomatoes are so delicious and sweet right now, the more the merrier. Now, I don't have a grill but I am sharing the grilling instructions here because most of you do, but with the caveat that I haven't tested this on a grill. My only concern would be leakage. I don't think any harm would come from doubling up on the foil. If you'd like to make this with haloumi (you can buy it here or here or here, btw, and probably a cheese or good grocery store closer to you), I like to cut my block of haloumi into about 1/3- to 1/2-inch slices. I brush the grill with oil and place it gently, directly on the grates, cooking it until it's blistered on one side, then flipping it and doing the other. Lay the grilled slices out on a plate and toss it with a chopped salad made from the non-feta ingredients below, plus a splash of red wine vinegar. I usually skip the garlic (just personal taste) and would only use a tablespoon or so of minced red onion, since the salad will be raw, but otherwise think you'll love it as much as we do. 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved 1/3 cup chopped, pitted Kalmata olives 1 clove garlic, minced 1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion (oops, I forgot this) 2 tablespoons finely-chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, divided 1 teaspoon dried oregano 1 teaspoon olive oil Freshly ground black pepper 1 8- to 10-ounce block feta Crackers, flatbread*, pita chips, or crostini, for dipping In a bowl, mix the tomatoes, olives, onion, garlic, 1 tablespoon of the parsley, oregano, olive oil and a few grinds of pepper. On a grill: Heat your grill to medium-high. Set the feta block in the middle of a piece of foil. Pile the tomato mixture on top of the feta. Fold up the edges of the foil so that it will hold in any liquid as it cooks. Place the packet straight on a grill for 15 minutes to warm it through. Remove from grill and transfer to plate or serving dish. In the oven: Heat oven to 400�F. Check to see that your dish is oven-proof. (I didn�t!) Place the block of feta in the middle of your dish. Pile the tomato mixture on top of the feta. Bake for 15 minutes. Both methods: The feta will not melt, just warm and soften. Serve with crackers; eat immediately. As it cools, the feta will firm up again. We found that the dish could be returned to the oven to soften it again. We did this with leftovers, too.

Mariah, when you do go to the library, I would suggest searching for books and cookbooks under the category, "Whole Foods." This is often substituted for the intimidating word "macrobiotic." Many cancer patients utilize some or all macrobiotic principles in a healing diet, and it sounds like your husband has been recommended to do the same. Sounds like emphasis on foods with good fiber, and lots of anti-oxidants, which helps keep toxins out of the body. The problems with macrobiotic is that a lot of the foods in that diet are hard to find or not palatable to westerners, so there are a lot of adaptations out there. You may run into the writers David and Nikki Goldbeck, they were writing about this subject early on, in the 1980s. Since then, a lot of other books have come out on the subject. I'm not familiar with any of the newer resoures, but I do like the Goldbeck's approach. They do use a lot of honey though, but some of their other recipes might be helpful to you. I like the FoodNetwork web site, they have a huge section on Healthy Eating which has just about every kind of recipe imaginable. I have read that the American Diabetic Association has a lot of good recipes on their site. A lot of diabetics use Splenda and other artificial sweeteners. They just don't taste right to me, and I think I am mildly allergic to them, so I wouldn't recommend them either. That does make it tough, but NOT impossible. Still, when it comes to low sugar baking, that's pretty much an oxymoron, I have found. The best low sugar baked goods are made with whole grains and yeast. To satisfy your sweet tooth on a low sugar diet, there's only one way to go--fresh fruit. A lot of the prepackaged "low carb" bread and pastas are crap, best to go with the real thing--whole grains themselves. Here is a link that might be useful: Recipes from the American Diabetes Association

Wow, you folks are awesome, thanks so much for taking the time to post ideas and recipes, I really appreciate it. I'm going to ask tonight if eggs/egg whites are on the OK list because those macaroons are a great idea (and are a favorite of DH as well). Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley and rye. It's also found in spelt, I've just learned. So all of those products are out, along with a laundry list of other foods that seem to cause her stomach to cramp up. I love to bake - bread a couple of times/week, cakes, cookies, pies, etc. I feel badly for my neighbor as she's basically given up on all baked goods, which is why I thought I'd see if there were any possibilities for her that she might have overlooked. publickman I've brought quinoa salad a couple of times and am not a huge fan, but it's a good fallback. bons thanks so much for the recipes. The brownies and macaroons look great (assuming eggs are ok, I'd have to leave out the nuts) but the 3rd recipe won't work as was pointed out (milk). mom4j47 yes, this is pretty drastic and not by choice but for health reasons. My neighbor gets very very sick when she eats something not on her OK list. All veggies and some fruits are always welcome so I often bring those. Annie I'll check out the cornbread recipes (and ask her if cornmeal is ok). The meringue cookies look good although no nuts. dcarch thanks for the hint about Asian groceries, I've got one nearby. I have no idea how to use these flours though - anything you can share about them? Wild rice is a grass and as such it's on her OK list. I haven't seen wild rice flour (if it even exists) but I've got a really good recipe for a wild rice salad (includes dried cranberries and almonds) that I could bring sometime, with the almonds on the side. cloud_swift the cholo tiki recipe looks delicious - I know DH would love to try that. Teresa yes, rice just an additional food she is sensitive to, which makes things difficult since it's often an ingredient in gluten-free flours and foods. tami_ohio thanks for pointing out www.diningdownloads. I have a Kindle and will check it out. chi83 I'll have to check with her on coconut milk. I'm assuming almond milk is not going to work. I didn't know that coconut cream whips. compumom thanks, I'll see if meringues will work for her. Becky thanks for the recipe! Jessica thanks as well, I'll ask about corn meal because your recipe looks great. cynic I'm going to see her tonight and so will ask about all the ingredients I'm not sure of. I didn't realize flour residue hangs around. She loves the gewurztraminer that DH brings on occasion, so arriving with baked goods is not really all that critical. Her basic approach is to make a soup that she knows she can eat and assume that any other contributions from guests are not going to be something she'll be able to have. If the contributions fit her diet, it's a bonus. This has been a real education for me, both in getting to know this neighbor and in all the posts here. Thanks again to all who commented.