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When it’s warm outside, I love making myself a juicy smoothie for breakfast. I just figured out that you can add raw greens into the mix for an added boost of nutrients — but without affecting the taste. Genius!
My current favorite combination:
1 1/2 c almond milk (you can also use soy, hemp, rice, etc milk)
4 tbsp hemp protein powder
1/2 banana
1/4 – 1/2 c frozen berries
handful of raw spinach OR 2 lacinto kale leaves
Put in blender and mix for 30 seconds.
Last week, Mark Bittman posted a recipe for Lamb Stew with Dill. This looked so good that I knew I’d have to make it ASAP before it gets warm — who wants to eat stew when it’s 80 degrees outside??!
I adapted the recipe a bit (partly by design and partly through forgetfulness on my part) and it was AMAZING. I served it over brown rice with a glass of Napa Valley cabernet sauvignon. A perfect meal for an end-of-winter evening.
LAMB AND VEGETABLE STEW
adapted from Mark Bittman’s recipe
1 lb boneless lamb (I got “lamb stew meat” from Whole Foods), cut into 1 in cubes
4 shallots, peeled
2 turnips, peeled and cut into 1 in chunks
3 carrots, unpeeled and diced into small cubes
1 c lacinto kale, roughly chopped
red wine
1 tbsp arrowroot powder or kuzu (natural thickeners)
1/4 c warm water
1/2 c fresh dill, chopped
Add lamb to a large skillet or pot and sear over high heat for 2 minutes, undisturbed. Stir, add whole shallots and turnips. Cook for 3 minutes and add salt, pepper, and 1 cup of water. Scrape bottom of pot, then reduce flame to low and simmer for 45 minutes, covered, stirring occaisonally.
Uncover, and add carrots, kale, 1 cup water, and a glug of red wine (more or less, to taste). Cover and simmer for another 15 minutes, until lamb and turnips tender.
In a small bowl combine 1/4 c warm water and arrowroot powder until disolved. Uncover post and add mixture, stirring until slightly thickened. Serve immediately or, if you prefer less liquid, turn up the heat until the soup has the desired consistency. Serve with dill sprinkled on top.
(In Bittman’s original recipe it calls for 1 c green peas, which I bought (frozen) but forgot about. I have about a cup of stew left — this weekend, I will add the peas, plus some more water, and make a second batch from the first!)
My mission this weekend was to try cooking two vegetables that I eat frequently but have never made myself: parsnips and beets. Parsnips are sweet root vegetables, similar to a very large, pale carrot. I debated between making roasted or mashed parsnips, and settled on the former because roasting generally brings out the sweetness in root vegetables. This is great for people who have sweet cravings — often, I recommend to clients who have crazy cravings that they introduce sweet vegetables into their diet routinely. Magically, their sugar cravings disappear!
ROASTED PARSNIPS
serves 2-3
2 parsnips, washed well
1/4 c olive oil
salt and pepper
cayenne pepper
garlic powder
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Chop parsnips into bite sized chunks. Toss with olive oil, salt, pepper, and spices in a shallow baking pan. Cook for 15 minutes and shake pan vigourously (one side of each chunk should be golden brown). Cook another 15 minutes, then remove.
My lunch routine has gotten old, so I decided to spice it up! Beans are the perfect lunchtime fare, as they’re loaded with soluble fiber, which regulates blood sugar levels and can help lower cholesterol. Best of all, beans are an incredibly satisfying mix of protein and slow-burning carbohydrate — they definitely keep me full and on my game all afternoon!
I threw this chickpea salad together on the fly — and it’s delish. Takes under five minutes and you can make a big batch of it and snack on it all week. Today, I’m having mine over mixed greens with a lemon and olive oil dressing. I may add a few slices of grilled chicken for extra oomph.
EASY CHICKPEA SALAD
1 can chickpeas (also called garbanzo beans)
2 stalks celery, sliced finely
1/2 clove garlic, mined finely
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
juice of 1 lemon
pinch of smoked paprika
french feta cheese
salt and pepper to taste
Mix all of the above and sprinkle feta on top. For extra flavor, prepare the night before and let sit in the refrigerator overnight to soak up the flavors.
Can be stored for up to 4 days.
A few weeks ago, I had a cup of delicious rice pudding at Sarabeth’s restaurant. It was just sweet enough and very creamy. Since then, I’ve had rice pudding on my mind. Traditionally, rice pudding is made with white rice, milk, and lots of sugar. I set about to create a healthier version with brown rice and natural sweetners. It takes a while to bake — 1 hour — but only takes about 5 minutes to make. Perfect or a dinner party, as it can cook while you eat! (and it’s good — oh, is it good!)
BAKED COCONUT BROWN RICE PUDDING
2 c cooked short grain brown rice
1 can coconut milk
1/2 c maple syrup
1/4 c raw sugar (you can reduce or omit if you prefer things on a less sweet side)
zest of 1 lemom
juice of 1/2 lemon
3/4 tsp cardamon powder
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Mix all of the ingredients into a large bowl; transfer to a casserole dish. Cover and bake for an hour; stir halfway through. Remove from oven and let sit for 15 minutes. Enjoy!
Red cabbage is a powerhouse vegetable, chock full of Vitamin C (among others!). It’s also delicious and versatile. When wandering through the grocery store recently, I noticed that the red cabagges look particularly good that day, so I decided to buy some and create a recipe around it. The result, a melange of chicken, cabbage, and apples, is hearty and filling–perfect for the winter. I love its salty, sour, but yet sweet flavor.
Red Cabbage, Apple, and Chicken Saute
serves two
1 large chicken breast
1 apple, sliced into 1/4 in pieces and then chopped into large chunks
2 1/2 c chopped red cabbage*
1/2 c vegetable broth
1-2 tsp rice vinegar
extra virgin olive oil
Heat a medium frying pan; add 1 tbsp olive oil and heat until hot but not smoking. Salt and pepper each side of the chicken breast; add to hot pan and cook on both sides until nearly done (You want the outside to be nicely browned, but the inside to still be a bit raw). Remove from heat and set aside on cutting board.
Add 1 tbsp olive oil to pan; once heated, add the chopped apples and cabbage. Saute for 3-4 minutes, or until they begin to get brown and soften a bit. Add vegetable broth and vinegar** and allow to cook for another 5-6 minutes. In the meantime, slice chicken breast into strips.
Remove cabbage, apples, and broth from pan. Add chicken and cook 1-2 minutes, or until no longer raw in the middle. Add back in the cabbage, apples, and broth; cook 1 minute, stirring.
Serve on top of or alongside of brown rice.
* It doesn’t matter how you chop it; I tried this recipe twice and chopped it differently each time.
** If you love vinegar, try adding 2 tsp; otherwise, stick with one. It’s always easier to add more than take away.
I’ve been wanting to make tempeh, as I haven’t cooked it for quite some time. Tempeh is fermented soybeans–a great source of soy and omega-3 fatty acids. It’s also high in fiber. You can buy it from any health food store, in the refrigerated section. It’s used as a meat substitute and is actually the healthiest and most digestible form of soy other than soybeans themselves.
I found this recipe on Heidi Swanson’s website. I passed it on to a friend, who made it with tofu and loved it. I think it would also be good with chicken or shrimp–it’s quite versatile!
ORANGE PAN-GLAZED TEMPEH
1 c freshly squeeze orange juice (3-4 large juicy oranges
1 tbsp freshly grated ginger
2 tsp tamari (or soy sauce)
1 1/2 tbsp mirin
2 tsp maple syrup (I used maybe 1/3 tsp)
1/2 tsp ground coriander
2 small garlic cloves, crushed
roughly 10 oz tempeh
1/2 lime
handful of cilantro
Pur orange juice in a small bowl. Squeeze the grated ginger over the bowl to extract the juices, then discard the pulp. Add the tamari, mirin, maple syrup, coriander, and garlic. Mix together and set aside.
Cut the tempeh into thin-ish, bite-sized pieces.
Put the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot but not smoking, add the tempeh and fry for 5 minutes, or until golden underneath. Turn and cook the other side for another 5 minutes, or until golden. Pour the orange juice mixture into the pan and simmer for 10 minutes, or until the sauce has reduced to a lovely thick glaze. Turn the tempeh once more during this time.
Serve the tempeh drizzled with any remaining sauce and a squeeze of lime, with the coriander scattered on top [Note, I didn't add the lime or the coriander. I served the tempeh over bhutanese red rice and lightly steamed broccoli].
I’ve been wanting to make gluten-free cookies for a while, but uncertain of how to really go about it. Most gluten-free recipes involve multiple flours–chickpea, garbanzo bean, brown rice, white rice, tapioca starch… the list goes on. But, if I’m going to succeed living a gluten-free lifestyle, at some point I have to brave this new world of baking.
I browsed through the blog gluten-free girl blog, which is a storehouse of great recipes and know-how about cooking. She has to many great recipes for cookies and cupcakes and brownies… but in the end, I decided I would pick one with only two flours: lemon olive oil cookies. It looked easy enough, so I was ready to try it. The recipe calls for white rice flour; however, I couldn’t find that, so I used brown rice flour instead. They tasted fine, but I imagine the brown rice flour made it abit more grainy. I loved the lemon-y goodness of these cookies! They’re very refreshing and light.
LEMON OLIVE OIL COOKIES
Gluten-Free Girl
1/4 c plain, nonfat yogurt
1/4 lemon olive oil (I used extra virgin olive oil)
1 egg
zest and juice of one lemon
1/2 white rice flour (I used brown rice flour)
1/4 c tapioca flour
1/2 almond meal*
1/2 c sugar
1 tsp baking powder
Preheat the oven to 350°.
First, combine the yogurt and olive oil well. Stir in the egg, then the lemon juice and zest, to make a coherent mixture.
Next, combine all the dry ingredients together. Slowly, fold the wet ingredients into the dry. The dough will be sticky. In fact, you might have dough all over your fingers by the time this process is done. Oh darn.
Form small balls with the sticky dough and roll each ball into sugar. This will make the finished cookies crunchy and shimmery. Place on a baking sheet covered with a silpat, or a layer of parchment paper.
Cook for twelve minutes, approximately. The cookies will be soft at this point, but they will feel fully formed. Let them sit on the baking sheet, on the top of the oven, for about five minutes.
Carefully, move the cookies to a cooling rack. Let them sit there for another five minutes, during which time they will harden in the air.
*Almond meal is simply almonds ground very finely. You can buy it (I like Trader Joe’s brand) or you can make your own by putting almonds into a food processor and blending until very fine (but stop before it becomes almond butter).
I’ve always been intrigued by the raw cheeses (read: vegan and nothing cooked over 115 degrees) I’ve had a various raw restaurants. They look like cheese… and taste like cheese… but they’re made from nuts. Curious. I saw a recipe for a raw cheese spread and couldn’t resist trying.
It was surprisingly simple to make. Yes, it does take foresight, as you have to soak the cashews for 2 hours; however, it takes about 10 minutes once that process is complete. I liked the results. At first, I thought it was too sweet and buttery and garlicky… but after it had sat for 24 hours per the instructions, I liked it a lot more. It’s a great dish to take to a party with some delicious crackers. I tried it with some za’tar sprinkled on top and it was fab.
Raw Cashew Cheese
Chocolate&Zucchini
- 1 1/2 cups plain cashew nuts (not roasted or salted)
- 1/4 to 1/3 cup water
- 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice or good vinegar
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- freshly ground pepper
Makes about 1 1/2 cups.
Place the nuts in a salad bowl, cover with fresh water, and let stand for 2 hours.
Drain the nuts and place them in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Add 1/4 cup water and the rest of the ingredients, and mix until thoroughly puréed, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl every once in a while. Add a little more water and blend again to adjust the consistency, if necessary; the cheese will get a little more solid as it sets.
Transfer to a bowl, cover, and let stand somewhere cool for 24 hours before placing in the fridge, where it will keep for another 5 days.
This is a quick recipe that can be eaten as leftovers for days. It’s light and tangy and the toasted almonds add a nice twist to the familiar.
Napa Cabbage Carrot Slaw
6 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp agave nectar
1 tsp dijon mustard
1/2 c grated carrots
1 head napa cabbage, shredded
3/4 sliced almonds, toasted
In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, agave, mustard, and a pinch of salt. In a larger bowl, add the cabbage, carrots, and almonds. Combine with wet ingredients and mix well. Serve immediately.
