gluten-free

Breakfast Tongue Tacos

November 13, 2023 By Janine Farzin Leave a Comment

Breakfast tongue taco on a plate with a blueberry smoothie to the side

Tongue tacos are definitely a thing. Because tongue is a super fatty, meltingly tender meat. And it’s mild in flavor. And it could easily win over even with the skeptical consumer. But why be limited to the second half of the day? If Americans are enjoying cold cereals morning, noon and night – then I advocate we flip that and bring our favorite dinners to the breakfast table. Breakfast Tongue Tacos are a great way to start your day. Plus, it better aligns with the ‘savory, sour, fermented and tepid’ elements we see in breakfasts around the world. …

Fall Minestrone with Sweetbreads

October 25, 2021 By Janine Farzin 2 Comments

Fall Minestrone with Sweetbreads

Fall Minestrone with Sweetbreads feels right on time. Leaves are changing, the days are getting shorter and a chill in the air means staying home is starting to feel so cozy again.

This recipe is one of my favorites and precedes this blog by a few years. It made an appearance on early lists… Me wondering if I could or would start this site. This week offallygoodcooking celebrates it’s fourth birthday. Hooray!

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Kidney kebab, delicious insurance against migraines

April 30, 2018 By Janine Farzin Leave a Comment

Sumac, thyme and grated lim zest base for marinade

After three snowfalls in April, it looks like grilling season has finally arrived here in Chicago. This recipe for kidney kebabs can be made with other organs as well. The marinade/sauce is delightful if you like sour – sumac and lime!

Kidneys get a bad rap, but they really shouldn’t. Well, it does have an offal flavor to it. And I once heard Brad Farmerie mention that no one wants to order it in his restaurant.

And yes, it can have a strong odor when cooking. Alas, a perfect candidate for the grill! …

Sweetbread fritters with pesto, a lovely appetizer

April 22, 2018 By Janine Farzin Leave a Comment

My husband warned me when I started this blog project that having something to say would be the hardest part. And he’s right.

Meanwhile, the recipe drafts stack up week after week. Even when I don’t get to my computer or, despite all my talking, have nothing to say, I still cook for my family. And week in and week out, offal is on the menu.

I want to keep sharing those recipes, my own sort of record of our meals. Ideas I’ve searched for far and wide, all in one place, as a resource. And so all I can offer is where I am at today: recently my friend’s beloved mom died unexpectedly and it’s been weighing on my mind.

Sweetbreads fritters

And so this past week was a bit like iron chef in our home. Me in a daze, going through the motions. I defrosted sweetbreads with no intention of what I’d do with them. Yet, after a day or two, I was on the hook to figure it out….

Kidney tacos to satiate all kinds of hunger

April 9, 2018 By Janine Farzin 3 Comments

Kidney tacos put a new spin on one of our favorite foods. It’s a nourishing meal to satiate the smallest and largest appetites in your family.

This recipe is inspired by ‘Uncle’ Travis and his taco obsession in grad school. When his baggie of HEB taco seasoning spices (lovingly imported from Austin to Cambridge) ran out, he had to make do on his own. And there we were, guessing the proportions of spices to make it right….

Portuguese-Style Tongue in Paprika Sauce and cleaning your plate

March 27, 2018 By Janine Farzin 1 Comment

This dish is nourishing and warm in a way that encourages you to stay at the table a little longer. Beyond the Portuguese spices though, I confess that what really settles me is the way my plate looks after I have finished my meal. Sounds crazy, but completely true. Anyway, my grandmother would insist that you clean your plate.

Traditional spices and fats after you clean your plate

Notice those little golden red-stained blemishes of goodness (ie. grease!) around the edges of the dish. Left behind, this is evidence of a hearty meal with enough fat to satiate, doused in paprika. And this reminds me of many meals at my grandparents home while I was growing up….

A Healthy Thyroid with Liver and Vegetable Stir-Fry over Rice

March 12, 2018 By Janine Farzin 2 Comments

The more I learn about the human body, the more awe and wonder I have. And we depend on a healthy relationship with the natural world around us. The minerals are right there, on the periodic table of elements, and they are essential for life!

I recently watched a series of lectures by Rhonda Nelson, PhD about thyroid health and I learned so much. The lectures are summarized in this article, but one of the main take-aways was ensuring that you have enough iodine in your diet for healthy thyroid function.

Of course, it’s not just iodine, we also need selenium, iron, zinc, B6, B2, vitamin A… but iodine is the big one. While seafoods are your best bet, this is an organ meat blog (and I don’t have any fresh fish livers on hand), so stick with me here. We’ll adapt Liver and Vegetable Stir-Fry over Rice to give us a rich serving of the minerals we need for a healthy thyroid. …

Benefits of Allicin in Indian-style Liver with Onions and Garlic

March 6, 2018 By Janine Farzin 6 Comments

We recently had a skin infection on two of my munchkins that responded well to a compound within garlic called allicin. Since then, I confess that I’ve been on a bit of a garlic craze! Allicin is responsible for the antimicrobial benefits of garlic. We’ll choose, store and prepare garlic to maximize allicin production and it’s myriad benefits.

I love this recipe for Indian-style liver and onions and indeed it does benefit from the addition of just a bit more garlic. I’ve adapted it from a recipe I found years ago in At Home with Madhur Jaffrey.

Beneficial properties of garlic

The compound allicin is responsible for a wide range of anti-microbial benefits in garlic. It has been shown to be antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic, antiviral and even anticancer….

Weeknight Carpaccio and love for my grassfed farmers

February 26, 2018 By Janine Farzin Leave a Comment

After last’s weeks post about loving yourself, this week I’ve been thinking about loving the environment, and by extension, my grass-fed farmers. Grass-fed farmers are today’s environmentalists, providing healthful and sustainable meats while restoring the soil and the ecosystem. If you want to eat your meat raw, as you occasionally should, grassfed is really the only feasible way. And Weeknight Carpaccio is the easiest way.

Factory farming

In 2001, Fast Food Nation was published and it came into my hands. I devoured this book, and it shook me.

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Grilled Chicken Hearts and Artichoke Hearts with Homemade Mayonnaise

February 13, 2018 By Janine Farzin 5 Comments

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, show some love for yourself and your besties with hearts and hearts! Grilled chicken hearts and artichoke hearts are a perfect appetizer or main course. Of course, we can’t give what we don’t have. So first, take a moment to feel the love. An easy way to start is to acknowledge and appreciate your own magnificence – all 37 trillion cells, in perfect concert….