Hearty Winter Eats When It's Supposed To Be Spring!

Hello! Wow, what a crazy California winter we have been having- non-stop rain for most of march! I have been very chilly lately, so thought you would enjoy this amazingly warm meal as much as I did! Caution: this recipe will make you enough soup to feed a hungry couple for 3 days :) Feel free to be more liberal with certain veggies and spices. This recipe is very flexible! And delicious! I was inspired by a recent NY Times article by Mark Bittman and plan to try many of the others very soon! Enjoy!


Ingredients:
2 cartons (64 oz total) vegetable broth (low sodium)- can purchase from whole foods or trader joes or any health food store
1/2-1 cup celery chopped (tjoes has pre-chopped)
1/2-1 cup carrots chopped (tjoes has pre-chopped)
1 small yellow onion finely chopped
2-3 cloves garlic finely minced
~8-10 mini fingerling potatoes steamed & chopped
1 cup chopped tomatoes (small vine ones sliced in half taste great)
1/2-1 cup chopped green beans
1/2 cup elbow macaroni cooked and drained. Does not have to be fully cooked as you will simmer it longer in the soup later on.
2-3 tablespoons marinara or pizza sauce
2-3 tbsp Olive Oil
Salt (to taste)
Pepper( to taste)
1 tsp cayenne pepper (to taste)
1-2 tsp ground oregano
1-2 tsp ground basil


Method:

1) Saute onion, garlic, carrot, & celery in olive oil for about 5 mins.
2) Add veggie broth, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, basil, and oregano. Allow mixture to come to a simmer. For thinner soup, you can add a little water if desired.
3) Add potatoes and chopped tomatoes. Allow simmer to continue for 15 minutes
4) Add green beans, and cooked macaroni elbows and simmer for an additional 15-20 minutes
5) Add marinara sauce to give soup a more tomato/saucy texture (optional)
6) Add more salt/pepper until soup tastes to your liking
7) Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese and croutons!

Get your green on!

It is a warm, sunny February day here in California, (supposed to hit 70s today!), and I just came back from a trip to our local Farmers Market with a plethora of fresh veggies that we get year round. Since I'm so determined to cook healthy this year, and incorporate new veggies, my choice veggie of the week is brussel sprouts. Again, another high-scoring ANDI veggie. This simple recipe is delicious and very quick to prepare, and very healthy! Makes a great side dish to any (un) healthy meal:) Enjoy!

Method:
Stovetop Steamer (as shown in previous post)
10-12 brussel sprouts
1-2 large cloves garlic, finely minced
2-3 tbsp olive oil
2-3 tbsp lime or lemon juice
Finely ground pepper to taste
Sea Salt to taste



1) Set up steamer to have 2 inches of water. Get it going on the stove while you prep other ingredients.

2) Chop sprouts in quarters

3) In separate bowl, mix together Oil, Lime/Lemon Juice, Salt/Pepper & Garlic. Mix well

4) Once water is boiling, place sprouts in steamer and cover. Steam 5-7 minutes. Test for tenderness.

5) Toss sprouts with lemon/olive oil marinade you prepared in step 2- make sure each sprout is evenly coated.

6) Alternately, if you would like less of a strong garlic flavor, add garlic to sprouts during last 2 minutes of steaming.



Happy Saturday everyone!

New Year, New Eats

Hi All, Happy new year! One of my "resolutions" this year is to learn how to experiment with veggies that I do not normally eat. My mom came to visit and left me a butternut squash she had purchased at our local farmer's market. It looked rather lonely, and I did not know what to do with it, so decided to try to cook it indian style. I don't have an exact recipe either, but I will outline my method. One of the best things about indian cooking is that spices can be always adjusted to taste, so there is no right or wrong. Here are my results:) Enjoy!



Ingredients: One large butternut squash peeled and chopped into cubes (remove seeds)
2 cloves garlic minced
1-2 tsp clarified butter or "ghee"
Garam Masala
Mango Powder (amchoor)
Coriander Powder (dhaniya)
Cumin Powder (jeera)
Salt
Method: Obtain a handy stainless steel steamer like the one pictured above. You will not be disappointed! This steams the toughest of veggies in a jiffy! Fill a saucepan with water half way, place the collapsible steamer in saucepan. Make sure liquid does not rise above level of steamer. Place chopped squash pieces in steamer, cover and steam at medium high heat for about 15 minutes. Pieces should be tender but not mushy.

After squash is cooked, spread pieces out on a dinner plate. Lightly sprinkle each of the spices listed above in the ingredients such that it coats the squash, but is not powdery or chunky. A good rule of thumb is roughly 1-2 tsp of each spice distributed evenly across all pieces.

In a nonstick pan, heat clarified butter. Once heated, add the minced garlic, and sautee for a few minutes. Add spice-coated squash pieces and sautee for 5 minutes. Don't allow the squash to become too mushy. Serve as a side dish with any indian meal.

It's that time of year!

I have lots of recipes to share, and they unfortunately have not made it to this blog just yet. I also mostly post "healthy" vegetarian recipes. However, I was just at a close friend's house, and she taught me how to make this delicious and simple treat just in time for the holidays! Wanted to share. Wishing everyone a safe and happy holiday season and a new year!


Peppermint Bark:

Things you need (shown in photo)
1 bag of dark chocolate chips of your selection (i used ghirardelli 60% cacao)
1 bag of white chocolate chips of your selection (ghirardelli)
Bunch of peppermint flavoured candy canes for sprinkling
Meat Tenderizer (for smashing candy canes/bark)
Rubber/plastic spatula
Parchment Paper
Pan of any type (lasagna pan, or any square pan will do)

Method (for my microwave, yours might be slightly different):

1) Place Dark Chocolate in microwaveable ceramic bowl. Microwave on high power (100%) for ~1 minute. Take out, stir carefully. Make sure chocolate sauce is smooth, and chips have all melted. You can heat for longer (my microwave took another 45 seconds at 50% power), but make sure chocolate does not burn. It should be a smooth, saucy texture.

2) Drizzle Dark Chocolate over parchment paper, making a chocolate rectangle. Place in Fridge to chill.

3) Place candy canes in plastic bag, on top of paper towel on counter. Smash to bits with the tenderizer or hammer tool.

4) Follow step one in a separate bowl with white chocolate. The white chocolate may take longer to heat, so be patient. You might have to experiment. Mine took 70 seconds at 100% power. Mix well until saucy.

5) Drizzle white chocolate over slightly hardened dark chocolate that has been chilling in fridge. Coat it evenly over the dark chocolate layer. It is okay if a little bit of swirl occurs. Once layer has been achieved, sprinkle generously with candy cane bits. Chill in refrigerator for ~1 hour.

6) Break the bark- you can "Drop" the pan several times, or be more civilized and try to cut it with a knife. Does not have to look perfect :) There is an art to this, which i'm still figuring out.

7) Enjoy with friends!

Spinach is Amazing!!!

I apologize for not updating this blog in a while. I have been making new things, but haven't had time to update! I wanted to post a yummy recipe- This can be made with or without paneer cheese, or substituted with Tofu. Spinach is awesome, and has an extremely high ANDI score :) Very healthy and very tasty, must try! This photo is spinach alone.

1 lb Spinach (Frozen chopped works well, or Fresh if you prefer)

½ tsp turmeric

1 Medium yellow Onion chopped

½ tsp salt

1 tsp Cumin seeds

2 black cardamoms

Chop together - 1 inch cube ginger, 2 medium cloves of garlic and one or two green chilies depending on taste.

2 Roma Tomatoes pureed in hand blender (can add 1/4 cup whipped yogurt to puree if creamier texture is desired).

½ tsp garam masala

1 Tbsp Mango powder.

1-2 tsp pomegranate powder (for extra kick)

½ lb paneer cut in ½ inch cubes and soaked in warm water for 15 minutes or more.

1. Boil spinach in water along with turmeric. Drain and blend to a coarse puree in hand blender.

2. Heat some oil in a skillet and when medium hot, put cumin seeds and Black cardamom until cumin spatters. Put Onions and ½ tsp salt. (Salt helps even browning of onion). When starting to turn brown, add ginger, green chili and garlic. Stir until onions are golden brown.

3. Add Coriander powder. Stir 30 seconds. Remove cardamoms because they can be a choking hazard :)

4. Add Tomato puree and stir until oil separates.

5. Add Spinach and cook (check salt and add more as per taste). The mixture should be well cooked so that spinach tastes cooked. Add water in tablespoon quantity if required.

6. Add Paneer/Tofu cubes and cook another 5 minutes.

7. Add Garam Masala and Mango powder, and Pomegranate Powder

The Heirloom Obsession

It continues... As I keep discovering the unique flavors of the heirloom tomato, I'm enjoying not using canned versions of tomatoes more and more! Last night I made this pizza using the dough recipe from my recipe post from June 2010. This sauce is a slight variation of the previous post, only this time I blended the tomato to a pulp using a hand blender/mixer.
Proportions perfect for one pizza:

1) One large red heirloom
2) 2-3 mini green heirlooms (to add more tartness, optional of course)
3) 2 large cloves garlic finely chopped
4) 5-10 medium sized basil leaves chopped
5) 1/4 of a large red onion finely chopped
6)2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
7) 1 tsp dried oregano
8) sea salt to taste.
9) black pepper (optional)

Method:
1) Chop tomatoes into cubes. Combine in mixing bowl, use hand blender to blend tomatoes to a pulp. Add oregano and black pepper if desired.
2) Heat olive oil in saucepan. Add Garlic, Sautee for 3-4 minutes on medium heat. Add onion. Further sautee until nice aroma appears (4 minutes)
3) Add basil, allow to wilt.
4) Add tomato pulp mixture to saucepan. Allow to simmer several minutes (~10 min) until sauce is at desired consistency. Allow some of the natural water to evaporate for a thicker sauce.
5) Add sea salt to taste
6) Drizzle over fresh homemade pizza dough and add toppings as desired :)

Seasonal summer healthy eats

On the run? No time? Try this very simple low-sodium pita pizza. Prep time? 10 mins. Bake Time? 5 min. Satisfaction? enormous! You'll love how this brings out the flavor of the fresh heirloom (only available in the summer, so take advantage NOW!) combined with the mild creamy jack cheese!






Ingredients:
-1 medium size purple-red heirloom tomato
-1 mini green heirloom to use as topping
-1 large clove garlic finely chopped
-1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
-handful of fresh basil leaves
-handful of Tillamook Monterey Jack cheese
-sea salt & italian seasoning if desired


Method: Chop heirloom tomato into small cubes. In frying pan, heat olive oil. Add chopped garlic, sautee for a few minutes. Add chopped tomato- continue to stir mixture until mixture becomes saucy to desired consistency, and finally add the fresh basil and allow it to wilt. Add italian seasoning and a pinch of sea salt if desired. Top on whole wheat pita, sprinkle jack cheese and a few small chopped green baby heirlooms for texture. Bake at 425 degrees for 5-7 minutes. This recipe is good for 2 pita pieces.