The last couple of weeks have been great. I feel like the universe is sending a lot of positive energy our way and I am happily soaking it all in. I’m not sure if you had an opportunity to see the Today Show’s segment on food allergy awareness last week. Two of my sons and I were on it and we were thrilled to support End Allergies Together in the piece and help spread the word on their #DoYour17 campaign to raise money for a cure.
Last Thursday, I wrote an article about celiac awareness and not only was it picked up by The Huffington Post, I was invited to join their blogger community and will be contributing to their pages regularly. Additionally, yesterday I was featured on the SnackSafely website as an inspiring food allergy resource.
It’s always my goal to help support food allergy and celiac awareness. I spend a good amount of time creating recipes and resources to help those of us in either or both communities. I sometimes struggle with reaching many people in an organic way. The last couple of weeks were a win for me because I feel I was able to do so a bit more than usual.
In the meantime, I am still teaching cooking classes from time to time and this recipe was developed for one. The group was looking for quick, family-friendly recipes. We decided to make Asian ground beef for rice bowls or lettuce wraps. They are flavorful, easy to make and a nice alternative to tacos which is something my kids eat pretty regularly. Water chestnuts add great texture to the dish but are sometimes tough to find. We used them for the cooking class but I did not include them in the version I made for this photograph. Therefore, I added them in as an option. It tastes great either way!
- 2 tbsp canola oil, divided
- 1 shallot, diced small
- ½ large bell pepper, diced small
- 2 scallions, thinly sliced, whites and greens divided
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½” piece ginger, minced
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- ½ cup water chestnuts, optional
- 2 tbsp chopped cilantro
- 1.5 tbsp tamari or gluten-free soy sauce
- 1 tbsp gluten-free teriyaki
- ½ lime, juiced
- 1 tsp rice vinegar
- ½ tsp sambal oelek
- 2 cups cooked rice or 2 heads boston lettuce, for serving
- Heat 1 tbsp canola oil in a cast iron skillet or sauté pan over medium heat. Add shallot, pepper and scallion whites and cook, tossing occasionally, until beginning to brown at edges, about 5-6 minutes. Add garlic and ginger and continue cooking until fragrant, about 30 seconds, before removing vegetables from the pan.
- Add remaining oil, raise heat to medium-high and spread ground beef in one layer on the pan. Allow to brown on bottom, about 4-5 minutes, before breaking up the meat and turning the pieces over. Once no longer pink, add cooked vegetables back into pan along with remaining ingredients and stir to distribute flavors. Lower heat and simmer for an additional 3-5 minutes.
- Serve beef over rice or in lettuce wraps and top with scallion greens.
