Living in this rural area of Alabama and getting to know the local sustainable, natural farmers and the people in my community has been such an invaluable experience. Eating healthy is now so much a part of who I am. I go over more of my journey HERE.

When it comes to living a Gluten-free lifestyle myself, it's only been the past few years that I've worked through my own journey. I've found peace with it!

​Before finding out that gluten was not my friend I was eating pretty much everything I wanted. I had in fact put on more weight than ever (32 lbs heavier than I am now), I was dealing with chronic fatigue, chronic pain with a diagnosis of Fibromyalgia from 2004, I was tired all of the time, never feeling rested no matter how long I slept. My whole body ached most of the time. I had inflammation. I had to tell myself to not think on it or I would never get out of bed. Had I not done that every.single.day. I would never have been able to fully function.

I had people tell me to get on disability, so I wouldn't have to work. They were well-meaning folks and saw that the struggle was real. And I get it, some people have to do this. Who am I to judge them? But I persevered and did what I had to do. I have always been one to be very driven in work and life. Never letting anything keep me down or from doing the things that I wanted to do or that needed to be done. But after awhile you're body will just start telling you "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH". The key here is are we going to listen?

That's kind of what happened. I needed to make a change and immediately. I knew, deep down, it was going to require a complete overhaul of my diet. Was I willing to change? Was I willing to make the investment? What's the old saying, "If you want something you've never had, you have to do something you've never done!" We hate when someone tells us this ESPECIALLY when it comes to changing our diet. NOOOOO! Anything but that!

I'm happy to tell you I did just that. And it worked. And I lived. We learn to adjust, adapt and we're all the better for it!

I'm going to be speaking locally this Saturday, September 30th, 2017 at 11:00 am at Dothan Nurseries, sponsored by MarketAtDothan on "Transitioning to a Gluten-Free Lifestyle, As Painlessly as Possible." In the talk I will share my story and how I was able to transition as well as:

• What is Gluten?
• What are the symptoms of Gluten Intolerance?
• What types of conditions require a Gluten-free lifestyle change?
• GMO'S - Genetically Modified Organisms
• A Diagnosis; Now What?
• Making the Transition

This is a lot of information, I know. I've tried condensing it as much as I can. But I want to give the most well-rounded info I can. I'll try and have a handout to take with you just in case. If you, someone you know, or someone you just met is dealing with what you think may be associated to gluten intolerance or you have been newly diagnosed with a gluten sensitivity, gluten allergy, or celiacs disease THIS TALK IS FOR YOU!

Also, you'll want to come to the 9:30 class which is a VERY IMPORTANT talk from our friends at MAYIM FARM. Greg and Carole Lolley of Mayim Farm are both Master Gardeners who utilize organic growing methods and concentrate on nutrient dense foods. Talk about amazing food. The food they produce from their farm is so fresh, so delicious, so healthy. It takes your dish to a whole.new.level. Greg will be talking about "The Health Difference between Organically Grown and Traditionally Grown Foods." I cannot emphasize enough how important this talk is. I look forward to hearing Greg, gaining insight into his expertise and finally meeting Greg and Carole in person, as we have become acquainted online and I've partaken of their fabulous home grown foods. They are DELICIOUSLY HEALTHY!

And hey, I'm giving away this GIFT CERTIFICATE so you don't want to miss it! (see below)

I look forward to seeing you this Saturday at the Fall Market. There will be some amazing fall produce to pick up and you'll get to meet new friends and meet our local sustainable and natural farmers. Let's support them. #supportlocal

One of the first things that threw me for a loop when being diagnosed GLUTEN INTOLERANT was the fact that my best friend BREAD was out, as I knew it! When I say I love bread, that's an understatement. I love making my own bread and smelling that beautiful aroma as it bakes in my kitchen. Knowing that when it comes out of the oven I am going to slather it with butter and jam it in my mouth! 

When I realized I could no longer eat regular bread or bake my own bread, the thought of never having another piece to dip into homemade sauce with pasta that you can't eat either? Well, you think "I might as well die!" But you don't and you learn to adjust. You find ways to adapt.


​Thanks to Al Gore and the internet there are so many (a holy crap load, really) people out there willing to share their journey and their amazing recipes especially as it relates to dietary restrictions, and that includes gluten-free. And now, we can find a zillion ways to make gluten-free bread. Heck, we can even make CLOUD bread, straight from heaven. 

After having made this beautiful roasted beet hummus earlier this week I was really having a craving for some Naan - which is basically Middle Eastern Flatbread, kind of like Pita Bread -  that if lucky enough, can have beautiful flavors of garlic and onion incorporated into it. I wanted to make a dish with the hummus and flatbread and somehow make something I haven't had in while. Not to mention I cannot find a gluten-free version anywhere. And for those of you who asked me to help you find it in your supermarkets, I was unable to. Google did not come through for me. And what's better than making it yourself anywho? 

I came across this recipe online and gave it a go, but I really had to make some adjustments - so I didn't want to link to it because it's totally changed now. Often, I find myself having to do this when using other recipes and that's okay. You take something and make it your own. You may have to do this here, and hey - whatever works!

Typically, naan is cooked in a tandoor or clay pot and cooked in the oven. But this recipe is cooked on the stove.

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​This Recipe is Gluten-free, Dairy Free and Soy Free

GLUTEN-FREE NAAN (FLATBREAD)

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup warm water 
• 3/4 - 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk (you will have to just keep adding till you get right consistency)
• 2 teaspoons yeast
• 1 Tablespoons sugar
• 2 Cups King Arthur GLUTEN FREE Flour
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/8 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 egg, lightly beaten, room temperature (For egg-free version, use flax, chia or egg alternatives)
• Coconut oil

Instructions
Combine warm water, warm milk, yeast and sugar in a small bowl; set aside. While yeast is sitting and doing its thing, in a mixing bowl, combine flour, salt, seasonings (if using); whisk to blend.
Add liquid yeast mixture and egg to dry ingredients; stir by hand until mixture forms a rather thin batter. Try not to over-stir. This is not going to be a thick dough that you can make with your hands. It is more like a pancake batter.

Cover bowl of batter with a damp, clean kitchen towel and let sit for 25 minutes. In the meantime, grab your cast iron skillet that you will heat over medium-high heat on the stove top and have your coconut oil on standby, a spatula for turning, and if you have an ice cream scoop, use this to spoon the batter into the middle of the pan when your batter is ready. 
​
When 25 minutes is up, heat the skillet to med (or according to your stove top, mine runs hot) be careful not to burn them, add a small portion of coconut oil (about 1/2 teaspoon for each naan as you cook it) and when it is sizzling hot, add about 3 T. (one ice cream scoop) of the batter in the center of the skillet. Because the batter is on the thin side but still a little thick, the ice cream scoop makes this easy and less messy. You may have to use the back of the scoop to flatten out the batter just a bit. Cook 2 or 3 minutes per side until the naan is cooked through and pliable. You will have to flip a couple of times and press down to flatten.  Drain on a paper towel. Eat as you go (just kidding).

Above: You have your dry ingredients, your yeast mixture, and your batter (which looks a little like a pancake batter). 

This week marks one year since my return to the Wiregrass area and I've been asking myself "Where has the time gone?" It seems like just yesterday I was pulling in from Illinois and unloading all my things. I spent seven long years in the Midwest and though I loved the summers the winters were horrendous. Snow is fun for about a week. ​I'm a native Floridian, though we moved to the Dothan area when I was in grammar school, so I do claim this as my hometown, and I do NOT like cold weather.

It's been such a joy to be home, to run off to the beach on the fly, to be close to family and to start a new season in my life. There are great things back in the Midwest that I truly miss such as really great food, so many things to do (GO BEARS) and an array of specialty markets, etc. (and the friends I made), but there are so many amazing things here that I am truly enjoying. Things that I once took for granted. 

Upon my return and having made my decision to enter into the world of Personal Chef, I knew I really wanted to focus on clean eating, whole foods, nutrition and utilizing sustainable ingredients. To me this was going to be a HUGE piece of the puzzle. I quickly began researching the local farmers, farmers markets and of course found out about MARKETATDOTHAN and got so excited (like a little kid at Christmas) being able to order LOCAL organic, sustainable and natural foods especially as it relates to natural produce, meat and dairy.

​This was and is extremely important to me. It's part of my journey to get and stay healthy and aligns with the goal of helping others in their journey.  I so am grateful for the amazing farming and agriculture community we have in our area. ​

Having the ability to actually bring FARM to TABLE means so much. It means knowing where your food comes from, where it's sourced, how it's grown, and creating relationships with the growers and producers is critical. I've been so fortunate to have been able to get out and meet so many great farmers and growers who are open to sharing about their farms and how they operate and that means I know what's on my plate. I know I can trust the folks I'm buying from and the products they sell me, and that my clients are going to be getting the best ingredients around. Which in the end means the best FOR you and the best tasting of the end product!

This spring I was able to take Mom out to Gaucho
Farms and pick blueberries, something we haven't
done together since I was a child. We had so much fun.
I connected with Suzanne, the owner of the farm, and she
gladly took me on a tour and told me more about the 
place. We took home some amazing goodies to put in the 
freezer and I immediately made GF Blueberry Muffins 
with my loot! They were delicious and so fresh. 

You've got to love the words "ALL NATURAL & LOCALLY
GROWN". Come on, really! 

They do have amazing fresh pastured eggs and lamb, I highly recommend. And next spring, make sure to go out with the youngins and pick blueberries.

So, when I'm not out at a farm touring or meeting with the local growers, seeking and finding sustainable yums to bring home to see what I can come up with in a new recipe, I'm also a Personal Chef in clients homes cooking their meals for the week, or Private Dinner parties. I also provide Private Cooking Classes for one to six people, and have been know to bake specialty items such as I did for my YOGA STUDIO for their One Year Birthday Celebration (cause I love my peeps), or like today - I'm creating Meal Plans for TWO clients who are a Diabetic and on a Gout Diet helping them along their journey to health.

Oh, and I have a couple of upcoming speaking engagements coming up, in case you'd like to come out and take part. The first will be on Saturday, September 30th on "Transitioning to Gluten-Free" and the second will be Saturday, November 11th on "Healing through Healthy Eating". And while you're there, you can mix and mingle with the growers in the area (SEE INFO BELOW). For more information on the Food Festival go to Marketatdothan. I do look forward to meeting you at the Food Festival and cooking with or for you soon.

So, what's it like to be a Personal Chef in Dothan Alabama? It's pretty freaking awesome!

This post was written by Susan Avello, Personal Chef at Lean Bean Chef Personal Chef Services in Dothan Alabama - offering Healthy Meal Prep, Meal Planning, Private Cooking Classes, Private Dinner Parties and Education on Healthy Eating. ​

First off, let me say that though these brownies are DAIRY FREE, VEGETARIAN,  GLUTEN-FREE they are to DIE FOR! 

I know, you're thinking "EW! Brownies with BLACK BEANS?" I felt the same. But after creating a dinner just this past week and having leftover black beans, I thought I would FINALLY give it a try! MAN, was I glad I did. And most of Ya'll know, I really dig sweets! 

When having to switch my lifestyle to Gluten-free it was quite the challenge, especially with baked goods because when baking with Gluten-free flours it is not the same. Am I right? It truly takes practice and a very long learning curve to perfect what used to come easy - and make even BROWNIES eddible.

Well, this recipe is SUPER EASY and is FLOUR FREE using only a few ingredients. Trust me, you're going to love these. You'll see a few black beans in the mix unless you spend a few minutes more at the processor mixing these up. But I didn't have to fool any small children (or husbands) into thinking these didn't have beans in them so I didn't worry too much with that! 

They are super moist, very chocolaty, so scrumptious and packed FULL of Fiber! In addition to these being gluten-free, it uses a cup of black beans. And a cup of black beans has about half the calories that a cup of all-purpose flour has, has 20% of your daily iron, AND it has a slightly higher protein content (15g).

You’ll need to rinse, drain, and puree a can of black beans
(or use cooked, dried beans) to make a good pastey base,
then mix in the rest of your wet ingredients (3 eggs,
3 Tbsp oil, 1 tsp vanilla extract).

In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients
(¼ cup unsweetened cocoa, ⅔ cup sugar, ½ tsp baking
powder, ¼ tsp salt, ½ tsp coffee). The coffee can be
omitted if you don’t want to incorporate it and you can use
​decaf if you're worried about caffeine.  But I STRONGLY urge you (see what I did there?) to leave it in. It just seems to
add a depth of flavor. Coffee always seems to work so well with chocolate. Don't you think?

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BAKING TIP:
I'm sure most of you know this, but when you're baking,
you'll want most always to mix your wet ingredients with 
your wets and your dry ingredients with your dry. Keep
them in separate bowls then slowly incorporate them 
together after you have first mixed them with LIKE
ingredients.  This helps ensure they get evenly mixed.