Day 359: Most Nutritious Dish Ever?

Recently, I read that kale is the most nutritious vegetable out there so I've been determined to try to prepare it.  Those stiff, tough leaves have always intimidated me at the farmer's market, but this weekend I decided to give it a go.

I found a recipe for kale and beans on Epicurious and followed it with the following exceptions, per some reviews from people who had prepared it before:  1/2 cup of chicken stock instead of a full cup, 5 cloves of garlic instead of 3, and 2 tsp of sherry vinegar instead of 1.  If you're looking for a hearty vegetarian meal, simply replace the chicken stock with veggie broth and you're sure to enjoy this dish.

I served the kale and beans over some lemony steamed quinoa - another super food that seems to have become a buzz ingredient lately.  Quinoa is a whole grain that packed a protein punch.  I've tried making quinoa lots of different ways and this is my favorite, as it's always light and fluffy.

Boil water in medium sized pot.

Rinse quinoa under cold water and place in boiling water for 10 minutes.

Drain quinoa in a metal strainer.

Bring a couple of inches of water to a boil in the pot and place the strainer over the top.

Cover strainer with a dish towel and then the pot lid.

Steam quinoa for 10 minutes.

Remove pot from the heat and remove the lid, leaving the towel in place.

Let quinoa sit for 5 minutes and then flush with a fork.

You can use quinoa as you would rice or couscous, plating saucy foods over the top.  Or, you can toss it with olive oil and the juice and zest of a lemon for a light, zesty side dish.  This is what I did tonight, scooping the kale and bean mixture over the top.  I found the freshness provided by the lemon really lifted up the overall dish.  The way I look at it, kale + quinoa = possibly the most nutritious dish ever!

The (animal) protein that I choose to serve tonight was lamb chops.  I seasoned the rack with S&P and browned it in a pan with hot olive oil.  I then transferred the rack to a baking sheet, coated it with a mixture of minced garlic, finely chopped rosemary, and olive oil, and baked it in the oven at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes.  Admittedly, I overdid it a bit.  It was still flavorful and juicy, but lamb should be served medium-rare and mine was medium-well.  This is a result of my desperate fear of poisoning my husband - I figure better overdone than underdone.

All in all - a very successful meal.  The kale was a hit, so I plan to purchase it again in the near future.  Any favorite kale preparations?  Please leave a comment with the details.

Day 348: Healthy Detox

I'm not sure what it is about having houseguests, but it invites terrible food behavior from me!  Last night we said goodbye to our last guest after a week-long full house during which time I consumed a crazy amount of ice cream, burgers, and of course, booze.  Now it's time to detox.

For dinner tonight, I purchased some quinoa salad from our local store, sauteed fresh asparagus with spring onions, and grilled a swordfish steak.

The fish was prepared simply - I seasoned it with S&P, drizzled it with olive oil, and squeezed the juice of half a lemon over the top.  Then hubby grilled it.

The asparagus was easy too.  I sliced up 2 spring onion and sauteed them in warm olive oil until they were golden.  I cut the asparagus in half and through it in the pan with S&P and a few splashes of white wine.  After 5 minutes on medium-high heat, it was ready to serve.

I feel lucky to actually enjoy healthy foods - especially fresh veggies and fish.  Here's to getting back to my normal regime!

Day 321: Leftovers Supreme

With lots of tasty things in the house, there was no need to buy anything for dinner tonight.  Instead, I made a warm quinoa salad with the following items that we had on hand:

- vinaigrette made from juice of 1.5 lemons, 2 T olive oil, and S&P

- leftover rotisserie chicken

- corn scraped off a leftover cob

- half a bag of frozen spinach, defrosted (this is easy to do by running it under lukewarm water)

- some chopped up roasted tomatoes

- a handful of sliced almonds

Lots of tasty things could have gone into this dish:  frozen peas, crumbled goat cheese, chopped avocado.  Whatever!!  It felt good to use up some stuff we had on hand and to create such a tasty and healthful dinner.  Leftovers rule!

Day 312: When The Hubby's Away...

Anyone who has been reading this blog for awhile knows that I am a frequent fish eater.  I love it - it's tasty, it's healthy, and it's usually easy and quick to prepare. 

Unfortunately, my husband is not fond of salmon and so I've had little opportunity to cook it at home, instead taking every opportunity to order it in restaurants.  The hubby is away this week, though, so the wife will play - with salmon.

It was so easy and so delicious!  I heated up some olive oil in a nonstick pan over medium-high heat until it was good and hot.  I seasoned the salmon well with S&P and then cooked it for 3.5 minutes on each side, beginning with the skin side down.  Once it was plated, I sprinkled some freshly chopped dill and fresh squeezed lemon juice over the top.

My sides were salads that I bought at the grocery store.  One was a red quinoa salad with lima beans and carrots and the other was marinated white beans with celery and tomatoes.

In total, this meal took less than 10 minutes, from prep to eating.  Perfect for a mid-week dinner.  I'll have to remember this one the next time hubby goes away!

Day 280: Just the Facts

There is no long, drawn out story to accompany tonight's meal.  I was in the mood for chicken and we had some sugar snap peas that I had purchased at the farmer's market earlier in the week...so sauteed chicken and sugar snap peas it was.

I cut 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts into bite sized pieces, seasoned them with S&P, and browned them in a stainless steel pan pre-heated with olive oil.  I removed them from the pan (leaving the oil behind) and tossed them in a bowl with about 1.5 T of peanut oil.  I covered the bowl with foil and set it aside.

I turned the burner down to medium low and deglazed the pan with about 1/4 cup of low sodium chicken broth.  I added four cloves of minced garlic and 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes and allowed them to soften up in the broth for a couple of minutes.

After removing the tough "string" from the peas, I threw them into the pan and cranked the heat up to medium high.  Whenever the broth had nearly cooked away, I added a few more splashes to keep the garlic from burning.  Once the peas were cooked through (cook them as much or as little as you'd like), I tossed the chicken back into the pan and mixed everything together and cooked until the chicken was heated through again.

I served the mixture over steamed quinoa tossed with lemon juice, lemon zest, olive oil, toasted sliced almonds, and S&P.  Yum yum good!  

Day 263: Hi, Jeanne's Mom!!

We were very fortunate to have a wonderful house guest tonight, my college friend Jeanne.  Like me, she likes to eat healthy.  Lucky for us, we had a nice sunny day today and with the time change, we can use our grill in the daylight!  Woohoo!  And since Jeanne's mom is a loyal follower of this blog, I am dedicating tonight's entry to her!  Hi, Jeanne's mom!

I pounded three boneless chicken breasts so they would cook more quickly.  I placed them in a Ziploc bag with the following marinade:  1/4 cup orange juice, juice of 1/2 a lemon, 5 smashed cloves of garlic, 2 T olive oil, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper, 1/4 onion cut into large chunks.

The chicken marinated for about an hour - certainly, it could have stayed longer, but by then it was after 7pm and we were hungry!  As usual, my husband took care of the grilling, cooking the chicken for 18 or 20 minutes.

I made a quinoa salad as a side dish.  See entry #247 for tips on how to steam quinoa.  I mixed the quinoa into the juice and zest of a large lemon, 1 tsp sugar, and 2 T olive oil.  I also added half a bag of frozen spinach (defrosted with all liquid squeezed out), half a diced yellow bell pepper, and about 1/4  cup of toasted pine nuts.  Add salt & pepper to taste.  If it needs a little more bit or saltiness, try sprinkling in some rice vinegar.

A midweek house guest is a joy, especially one that we love so dearly.  The good food was just icing on the cake tonight!

Day 249: Dinner in (Practically) an Instant

Believe it or not, this dinner took about 15 minutes to put together.  And it was healthy.  And tasty!

I purchased some marinated pounded pork tenderloin at a fantastic store in my neighborhood and my husband grilled it up.  Because it had been pounded, it cooked up quickly and because it was already marinated, it was full of flavor.

To go with the pork, I sauteed some zucchini, yellow bell pepper, and mushrooms and mixed them with some leftover quinoa from the other day.  To flavor and season the dish, I ran about 1/4 cup of leftover chimichurri sauce through a fine strainer and mixed the resulting liquid into the quinoa and veggies.  I also added two chopped vine ripened tomatoes for some freshness and additional color.

Before we knew it, dinner was ready!  You've gotta love that on a work night - especially if you work late or want to get to the gym after leaving the office.  The key is having some good staples and leftovers in the house to make things quick and easy so always make extra and be creative about how you use what's left.

Day 247: These Are a Few of My Favorite Things

Tonight's dinner comprised of two of my new favorite things:  quinoa and a Moroccan chicken recipe from Epicurious.com.

For the chicken, I followed the Epi.com recipe with the following exceptions:  I made my own harissa, I used only chicken thighs and legs, and I used chicken broth instead of water.  This healthy, easy to make dish is full of flavor.  I guarantee you'll love it.  Click this link for the chicken recipe and see entry #227 "Yay!  I Remember How to Cook!" for the harissa recipe.

I strongly recommend you make some rice, couscous, or something else to soak up all the great sauce the chicken cooks in.  I, of course, went with quinoa - my new favorite grain.

I steamed a cup of quinoa (click here for the best method I've found) and then mixed it into a vinaigrette of 2 T olive oil, the zest and juice of 1 lemon, a 1 tsp of sugar.  Into that, I mixed a bag of defrosted frozen spinach, from which I squeezed all of the liquid.  I also added 3 T of toasted sliced almonds.  Served as a bed underneath the chicken, this little salad did a great job of soaking up all of the delicious sauce and adding some additional nutrition of our meal.

This dinner was so good, I may need to make it again next weekend!  Try it out for yourself and let me know what you think.

Day 240: Don't Always Do As You Are Told

If you follow the cooking instructions on the quinoa box, you are going to be disappointed.  At least the Trader Joe's quinoa.  Follow this steaming method, from Epicurious.com, and you'll have light, fluffy quinoa that's similar in consistency to couscous and you will be happy!

Place 1 cup of quinoa in a metal strainer in very small holes and rinse thoroughly under cold water.  Boil a medium sized pot of water, add quinoa, and cook uncovered for 10 minutes.  Strain the quinoa.  Place some water back in the pot, bring to a simmer, and lay the metal strainer with the quinoa over the top.  Cover with a clean, dry kitchen towel and then cover that with the pot lid.  Steam the quinoa like that for another 10 minutes.  Remove the pot from the heat, remove the lid, and leave the quinoa covered with the towel for 5 minutes.  Comb with a fork and you'll have light and fluffy quinoa!

Meanwhile...place the zest and juice of one lemon, 1 tsp of sugar, and 2 T of olive oil in a bowl.  Whisk together and when quinoa is done, mix it in.  Season to taste with S&P.

We had sauteed shrimp and sugar snap peas over our quinoa.  This is also very easy:

Coat a large pan with olive oil and heat over medium-high heat.  Lay down 24 large shelled shrimp in a single layer (do this in shifts if they don't all fit).  The first ones you put down will be ready to turn by the time you lay down the last one, so flip them all over.  Remove shrimp from the pan and set aside, covered with foil.

If you're lucky, you'll have some shrimp fat stuck to the bottom off the pan.  Deglaze that with white wine, reduce the heat to medium low, and add 3 cloves of minced garlic.  Cook the garlic for 2-3 minutes until soft - stir frequently to ensure it doesn't burn.  Add 1/2 pound of sugar snap peas and crank the heat up to medium high.  Cook the peas and garlic for about 10 minutes until they start to blister.  Watch the pan carefully.  If it seems to be too dry, putting the garlic at risk for burning, add another splash or two of white wine.  I added a splash about three times tonight, which tells you how important it is to watch it.

Once the peas are cooked to the desired doneness, add the shrimp and any juiced that collected and mix.  Cook for just another minute or two until the shrimp is heated through.  Spoon shrimp and peas over quinoa.

This was a light, fresh, healthy, easy dinner.  And, my husband asked me right away to make it again soon!  Let me know what you think when you try it!

Day 227: Yay! I Remember How to Cook!!

It's been over two weeks since I put on an apron, turned on the stove, or washed a pot or pan.  Fortunately (for me AND my husband), I remembered how to do all of those things and I made a really good dinner tonight!

The inspiration for our meal were the baby carrots we purchased at the farmer's market this weekend.  I knew I wanted to prepare them in a way that would bring out their sweetness - so what to pair that side dish with?  I went with something on the spicy side, knowing that the sweetness and spiciness would enhance and balance each other out.

The carrot side dish I went with was based on a recipe from Epicurious.com but I scaled it back significantly:

 

Ingredients:

1 lb of fresh baby carrots from the farmer's market, whole and unpeeled

2 T olive oil

1/2 T unsalted butter

1/2 T honey

1/4 tsp balsamic vinegar

I followed the recipe's instructions otherwise.

I chose another recipe from Epicurious.com for our entree:  Moroccan Chicken.  I followed the recipe other than these tweaks:

- I purchased a cut up whole chicken, disposing of the neck and the organs

- Instead of 4 cups of water, I used one 14 oz can of chicken broth

- I substituted parsley for the cilantro (read my entrees from Costa Rica for my thoughts on cilantro!)

- I made my own harissa, as I couldn't find it pre-made at the grocery store

I went to two grocery stores, in fact, looking for a jar of harissa.  I panicked at first when I couldn't find it, but then I remembered that several years ago, I took a Moroccan cooking class at NYC's Institute of Culinary Education and we were taught how to make harissa.  The instructor of that class was Myra Kornfeld and this is her recipe:

Harissa:

3/4 ounce dried hot red chili peppers

1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes

1 tsp caraway seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp coriander seeds

1 garlic clove, peeled

1/4 tsp salt

1 T water

4 T olive oil

Remove the stems and seeds from the peppers.  Place the peppers and tomatoes in a small pot covered with water.  Bring to a boil, turn off the heat and let the chiles and tomatoes soften for about 20 minutes (I covered the pot).

Meanwhile, grind the seeds in a spice mill.  Drain peppers/tomatoes and placed all ingredients into a food processor.  Blend until you have a thick paste.  This paste may be refrigerated for months.

All of this came together wonderfully and deliciously.  It was one of the best dinners I've made in awhile.  I made some quinoa to soak up all of the yummy sauce and it was perfect - but you could make couscous or rice instead if you prefer.

Happy cooking!!

Day 184: It's Pronounced KEEN-wah

Quinoa has been all the rage for the past year or two.  This protein packed whole grain is totally up my nutritional alley but oddly enough, I had never given it a taste until tonight.

I get the feeling that quinoa doesn't offer up much flavor of its own but that its tastiness depends on how and with what it is prepared.  Luckily, I found a really good recipe on Epicurious.com and my quinoa dish was infused with lots of yummy fresh lime juice and tossed with black beans and tiny, sweet pear tomatoes.  If you try the recipe yourself, note that I replaced the butter with olive oil and skipped the vegetable oil.  This increased the healthfulness of the dish while not decreasing the delish factor.

Our other side dish was fresh spinach, sauteed in butter with freshly minced oregano and half a sliced shallot.

I mention our main course last because frankly, it wasn't all that.  We had purchased a whole whack of limes recently and I was looking for a way to use them and so I prepared tequila lime chicken.  What saved this recipe was that I soaked the chicken in only half of the marinade and reduced the other half into a sauce that added a ton of extra flavor when drizzled over the dish.

So that was our dinner - the highs and the lows.  And while this is not 365 Days of LUNCH, I do want to mention Michael Chiarello's new restaurant "Bottega" in Yountville.  We had an absolutely lovely and memorable lunch there today.  If you find yourself in wine country, I highly recommend you give it a try for lunch or dinner.

Well, I'm halfway through this blog project now and am looking forward to another 181 days of good food ahead!!