All posts by Emily Stokes

About Emily Stokes

I'm a lady who loves cheese, sour cream, & ice cream, but I recently became lactose intolerant. My key focus in recreating dairy recipes is taste, but I try to be as health conscious as possible. Some of my recipes are low lactose rather than dairy free. I'm also a writer, teacher, nanny, dog mom, housewife, native Yinzer, current Californian, and social organizer extraordinaire.

Three Potato Barbecue Chips

Snacks & Dips, , , , ,
Three potato bbq chips.

Try these out for a perfect game day snack! This is the tastiest BBQ seasoning I’ve ever had, and the different types of potatoes make it uniquely yours. Make sure to slice them very thin, and use the leftover seasoning on your barbecue chicken dinner!

Ingredients:

10-15 small purple, red, and gold potatoes, very thinly sliced*
1/2 cup canola oil

Seasoning:

2 tablespoons white sugar
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon fine ground sea salt
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1 pinch of red pepper

*Makes 2 1/2 to 3 cups of potato chips.

Directions:

1. Fill a large bowl with ice water about halfway full. Rinse potatoes under warm water, and then slice them very thin. Place slices in a small colander and let soak in ice water as you are slicing.

2. Heat the canola oil in a large saucepan over medium heat until hot. You should use just enough oil to cover the potatoes–anymore is just too much.

3. Take about 20 slices of potatoes out of the ice water and pat dry on paper towels, then add them to the hot oil. Cook for about three minutes on each side or until browned and crispy. Remove chips from oil with a slotted utensil and place on plate of paper towels to absorb excess oil.

4. While chips are still drying, sprinkle seasoning on one side, then flip layer of chips over and sprinkle on the other side. After a few minutes they are ready to go into a serving bowl.

5. Start your second batch and continue frying until finished. Seal in an airtight container or Ziploc bag to keep fresh–if you have any leftovers!

Dairy Free Turkey Broccoli Quiche

Breakfast, , , , , , ,


We had a ton of leftovers from our 23 lb. turkey this Thanksgiving, so I was coming up with ways to eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. A quiche is a great breakfast opportunity to use up leftover turkey, but lactose intolerant and quiche usually don’t go together that well. I replaced the heavy cream and cheese with shredded soy mozzarella, a sprinkle of Parmesan, and, of all things, Silk Nog.

Now, before you go wondering how any of these ingredients can possibly go together, you should know that the result was absolutely divine. My husband and I devoured this entire 9inch quiche in less than two days. You don’t have to use the Nog, which is an eggnog alternative, you can use Lactaid Milk or Lactaid Half and Half (if you can find it), or Almond Milk or Soymilk instead. But if you do see the Silk Nog, give it a try. It has a beautiful blend of spices in it already that tastes great with an egg dish! A perfect Thanksgiving leftovers treat for the person in your family that can’t digest dairy.

Ingredients:

1 refrigerated pie crust
1 1/2 cups fresh broccoli
1 tsp onion powder
Dash of black pepper
1 tablespoon Earth Balance or Smart Balance Light Buttery Spread
1 cup cooked turkey, chopped
3/4 cup shredded soy mozzarella cheese (I use Trader Joe’s)
1 tablespoon of Parmesan Cheese Alternative
4 eggs
1 cup Silk Nog (I also recommend Very Vanilla Soymilk)
1 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon of sea salt

Directions:

1. Let the pie crust sit out to adjust to room temperature for at least 15 minutes. Mold it into a 9inch pie dish.

2. Melt 1 tablespoon of buttery spread in a large pan and add the broccoli, onion powder, and a dash of black pepper, cooking over medium heat until just tender and it becomes a bright green color.

brocolli

3. Beat the eggs in a medium bowl, then add 1 cup of Silk Nog, salt, pepper, and curry powder and whisk together until blended.

4. Add the ingredients to the pie in this order: cooked broccoli, chopped turkey, shredded soy mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese. Then, pour the egg mixture evenly over these ingredients. Spread the mixture so that all the ingredients are evenly covered.

Broccoli and turkey in pie shell.

Shredded Soy Mozzarella

uncooked turkey quiche

Uncooked turkey broccoli quiche with egg mixture

5. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 minutes, until the center of the quiche is completely cooked through. Goes well with a steaming cup of pumpkin spice coffee. Happy Black Friday!

Missing Fall-Not Fat Pumpkin Bread

Bread, Desserts, More, , , , ,

Here is a deliciously healthy pumpkin bread recipe that is more like a true bread rather than the super sweet cake-like version that is served in coffee shops. The 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour gives it some substance, while the 1/2 cup of Splenda (you can use any other sugar substitute) replaces half of the sugar, and the extra pumpkin eliminates the need for a cup of oil. By the way, you may gasp when you see that I’ve used olive oil in this recipe, but it really tastes great! If you are a skeptic, use vegetable oil or coconut oil instead.

Though I don’t recommend using all whole wheat flour because of the taste, go all out and use all whole wheat flour, no sugar, more pumpkin, and all egg whites if you want! However, my combination is a good one. It remains moist and flavorful–try for yourself! There’s that awesome secret ingredient of apple cider in there. Why add water when you can add apple cider? After many attempts at creating the perfect healthy pumpkin bread, I have come up with a recipe I will use year after year. The best part about this recipe? No butter or milk!

Ingredients:

1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup Splenda or other healthier sugar substitute
1 tsp baking soda
1 can of pumpkin puree (15 oz)
1/8 cup olive oil
1 egg, 2 egg whites, beaten
1/4 cup apple cider
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup chopped pecans

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a medium bowl mix together flour, salt, sugar, Splenda, baking soda, and spices until well blended.

spice and sugar mixture in bowl.

2. In a large bowl, combine pumpkin, oil, eggs, and apple cider. Add dry ingredients into this mixture, and stir until combined and completely moistened but do not over mix. It needs to stay spongy.

pumpkin, egg, and apple cider mixture.Wet ingredients mixed.

3. Carefully fold in raisins and nuts.

4. Pour into greased loaf pan–even if it is non-stick you need to oil it. Bake 50-60 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Once finished, let cool for up to an hour before removing from pan. Enjoy at your holiday event!

This bread is best stored in the refrigerator.

Finished pumpkin bread