Healthy Eating

Kale and Avocado Salad

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Kale and Avocado Salad

This salad may be  IS the King Kong of salads. It is quite possibly one of the healthiest and most nutritious meals you can have for lunch, snack, or dinner (kale has a ANDI score of 1,000). It meets almost all dietary restrictions (no oil, limited salt, no meat, dairy free) and gets richness from tangy avocado – a healthy fat. I became mildly addicted to a similar salad that Whole Foods makes in their prepared, raw foods section. Their version had a bit too much lemon for me and I much prefer not paying four bucks every time I crave this. The best part about making this at home is that you can add whatever you like to it. I tend to make a different version each time. Ingredients I have added include: mango; apple; chickpeas; and, zucchini ribbons. It is important not to let your significant other watch you make this as the massage the kale gets might invoke jealousy. In order to break down the fibrous raw kale, you must massage lemon juice and salt (for proper flavoring) into the kale. Really put some elbow grease during this rub down and you will not believe that the Kale, properly softened, is not actually cooked.

 Words of caution – if you do not like Kale, you may not like this salad. This is not for those who (quite inexplicably) despise kale. It tastes like kale. It is great for all the kale lovers out there. Which reminds me, D recently bought me a shirt that says KALE on it – it is amazeballs (and indicative of how much kale I eat). I am pretty sure he stole it a bite or two even though he pulls a gag face when I pull big bundles of kale out of the fridge. Time to sneak some kale into his quinoa…

Note: The pictured version includes mango, radish and apple. Feel free to use one, two or all.

Kale and Avocado Salad

Serves Four

One bunch Green Kale
One large Haas Avocado
One half red onion, very thinly sliced
One red apple, thinly sliced (sub mango or other fruit if desired)
Two teaspoons Kosher Salt
Juice of One lemon

De-stem the kale leaves and wash well. Drain leave and tear roughly. In a large bowl combine the kale, red onion, and avocado. Sprinkle mixture with salt and squeeze lemon juice directly onto the greens. Using both hands, massage the kale while simultaneously mixing the greens. Massage strongly until kale has softened and all elements are incorporated. Add apple and black pepper to taste and mix well.

Serve on its own or with your favorite chicken salad, quinoa, fish or grilled chicken.

Curried Red Lentil and Veggie Soup

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Curried Red Lentil and Veggie Soup

This soup is something along the lines of an “East Meets West Minestrone” or maybe  a worldly interpretation of “everything-but-the-kitchen sink” soup; either way, it is a darn successful example of fusion food.  The soup’s benefit list is long: comforting, healthy, nutritious, restorative, flavorful (with anti-cancer spices as well), easy, a breeze to make from your freezer and pantry, affordable…the list goes on. All with just a twist on the every day garden veggie soup. I created this (and in doing so, greatly elevated my self-esteem) to use up A LOT of leftover food including: chicken; chicken stock; cooked squash; zucchini; and, carrots. Then I just added ingredients from the pantry or freezer that are usually on hand and – VOILA! There is one stipulation: you MUST use homemade broth as it will give the soup depth and richness and also is essential for the restorative factor (your body likes what the bones of animals put into stocks). Homemade broth, inclusive of the gelatin that is formed, is incredibly restorative for a tired or aching body (and probably has something to do with the “comfort” in comfort food). Omission of homemade broth will lessen the amazeballs quality that this soup has. And, yes, amazeballs is a legitimate adjective in Andiland.

Note: I made this a while back and cannot recall the exact amount of what spice that ended up going in. The quantities listed below are more like suggestions. If you are a confident spicer, you will know what to do; however, if you follow a recipe to the “t” you may want to start with a bit less, taste along the way, and add as desired. The curry powder is a blend that is Barons Thai Curry Blend Secret #52 (available at Whole Foods). You can substitute your favorite curry powder in its stead. I think the only difference is the presence of onion and red pepper flakes. If you have a Parmesan rind you would like to throw in, go for it – I did not (though I usually do with broth-based soups) and did not miss it one bit.

I really have to make more broth so that I can have this again! Please do not be scared of the long ingredient list – this is a cinch and you just throw stuff in!

There are no pictures of this soup unfortunately. I was too busy eating it to snap a picture. Next time…

Curried Red Lentil and Veggie Soup

Serves Six (unless I am around and that number reduces to One)

Two cans Kidney Beans, rinsed and drained
About two tablespoons Ground Cumin
Two Tablespoons Thai Curry Powder (add additional to taste)
Three teaspoons Red Pepper Flakes or Cayenne (optional)
A good pinch or two of Salt (add one first and taste before adding more)
Juice of one lemon 
One and one-half yellow onions, diced
Eight to ten cloves garlic, minced  
One Box (or can) Chopped tomatoes
Six to Eight cups Homemade Stock
Five carrots, sliced and quartered
Two celery stalks, leaves attached, sliced
One Bay leaf
One tablespoon olive oil
One package Frozen 365 Organics Kale
Two Zucchini, cut into quarters  
Three Cups fresh, frozen or dehydrated Green Peas
Two cups (or more) cooked Spaghetti Squash
Two cups Red Lentils, washed well in cold water
One half cup of chicken stock gelatin
Two cups shredded chicken breasts (I had some leftover, but you can also cook the breasts in the soup if you wish)
Black pepper to taste

In large saucepan, heat a tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic, onions, celery and carrots and allow to sweat until onions are glassy. Add the stock and gelatin and bring to a simmer. Add the cumin, curry blend, cayenne, bay leaf, and salt, (which can be pre-mixed in a small bowl) and stir well. Add the lentils, kidney beans, and tomatoes and allow to simmer for about 25 minutes. Check the lentils for doneness (should have about 10 more minutes or so and check the soup for seasoning deficiency (and/or awesomeness). Try to stop testing the soup…it will be hard, but you can do it. Add the chopped zucchini, kale, spaghetti squash, chicken, and a squeeze of lemon (use more or less to taste). After about five minutes add the peas. Serve with whole grain bread or with a salad (or all by its Divine self).

Mexican Quinoa

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Mexican quinoa can be thought of as a healthy, and more flavorful, version of Mexican Rice (or Spanish Rice). I made this to go with enchiladas after having some chipotle southwest quinoa from Central Market that had inspired the idea. It was more of an after thought on Cinco de Mayo as I was afraid we might not have enough food – horrific I know. I used what I had leftover from other dishes on the menu which included my enchiladas, black-bean corn salsa, garlicky guacamole, mango-jicama slaw, and some watermelon-jalapeno margaritas. It was so delicious that I have made it twice since then. In all honesty, I plan on making it tonight as well!

Quinoa is a much healthier substitute for rice, and the blend that I used included barley further increasing the nutritious benefits of whole grains. The final version of the dish is also much less greasy than traditional Spanish rice (which I have always found to be reminiscent of Japanese fried rice without the flavor). It would be great on its own as a vegan/vegetarian treat or served with grilled fish, chicken, or other meat – thus far I have had it with enchiladas, chicken, and scallops. Best part is the time commitment; you can easily have this whole dish ready to eat in twenty minutes.

Mexican Quinoa

Serves three to four

One dry cup Central Market Red Quinoa and Barley 10-minute mix prepared in two cups chicken or veggie stock
Two tablespoons olive oil, mixed with one tablespoon ground cumin, one tablespoon adobo, half-tablespoon tumeric, pinch of salt, and paprika/cayenne to taste
One-half red (or white) onion or shallot, minced
Three cloves garlic, minced
One half jalapeno, minced
Two tomatoes, diced
One avocado, Diced
One cup cilantro
Lemon wedge or Half
A cup of Simple Black Bean-Corn Salsa

In a small saucepan, bring two cups of preferred stock (lightly salted) to a boil. Add in one cup of Quinoa of choice, reduce heat and simmer until cooked. Meanwhile, combine olive oil and spices in a bowl and mix well. In a large saute pan, heat the oil over medium heat and add the chopped onion, jalapeno, and garlic. Once glassy, turn heat to low and add the tomatoes, avocado, salsa, and cilantro. Give a quick stir, then add cooked quinoa to the pan; mix well. Squeeze the lemon wedge/half and adjust seasoning to taste. Mix well and serve.

Simple Black Bean-Corn Salsa

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Simple Black Bean-Corn Salsa

It’s easy. It’s healthy. It’s Tasty. It’s versatile. I always serve some variation of this with enchiladas (as we know from my previous post that includes garlic, avocado and tomato). Lately, my favorite application for this summertime delight is to throw it into Mexican Quinoa (recipe coming soon). It would also be a great topping for a mexicanesque or southwest style soup.

Black Bean-Corn Salsa

Black Beans, one can drained and rinsed
Sweet Corn (feel free to use canned, frozen, or fresh charred corn)
Half-Red onion – small dice
One Half Red Bell Pepper – small dice
Sweet Corn
Lime Juice
One tablespoon Red wine vinegar
Spices (just a pinch each): Ground cumin, cayenne, adobo, salt
Two Cilantro to taste

Combine the red onion, bell pepper, corn, cilantro and black beans in a large bowl. Mix gently and well. In a small bowl combine the red wine vinegar, spices, and lime juice and mix well. Add the liquid mixture to the onion mixture and toss gently until incorporated. Adjust seasoning according to taste and if it is too bitter add a pinch of sugar.

Yep that is pretty much it, you are done. Enjoy!

Spaghetti Squash with Spinach, Pesto, and Roasted Tomato

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Spaghetti squash has become one of my favorite foods (my mother will tell you that she can now see pigs flying across a sky that has fallen to the earth). I was a girl who used to refuse to eat squash of any sort to begin eating spaghetti squash on a bi-weekly basis, but loving something new is one of the beauties of expanding your horizons. Nowadays, I eat butternut squash without regard to the season (sacrilege I know), I add zucchini to ninety percent of my dishes (possibly more), I even eat yellow squash – though I reluctantly admit I am still coming around to it.

I am a textural eater and my aversion to squash has been its texture. Many times in my life I have had squash that was mushy, flavorless, and soggy. The latter two are quite fitting with squash as many kinds have very little natural flavoring and lend themselves well to versatility. Summer squash (i.e. zucchini and yellow squash) boast a high water content which can make them….soggy. Who knew, water makes things soggy? Summer squash are less nutrient dense than winter squash due to their higher water content. Winter squash, including my favorites butternut and spaghetti, is nutrient rich and serves as a great source of carotenes, B1, vitamin C, and fiber.

I digress; spaghetti squash is a little magical thing that can be prepared in a seemingly infinite number of preparations. I love experimenting with different applications and cuisine. My favorite so far is with pesto – shocker – and a sautéed medley of zucchini, spinach and tomato with a tad bit of lemon zest, shallot and garlic. This meal is a powerhouse for the busy week-day health, healthy eater. It is easy, cheap, waist-whittling, and NOM NOM NOM delicious. One cup of Spaghetti Squash amounts to a whopping 42 calories so go ahead and gorge. You can do anything you like to spaghetti squash. ANYTHING. You can hit it up with some meat sauce, though go light on the saucing as it is obviously not as sturdy as pasta. you can make any worldly variation you would like with different spices; you can keep it simple with lemon and pesto, you can add it to soups for a bit of low calorie, carb-like substance; you can even make it into dessert. I tend to have tomatoes that need to be used so I have gotten in the habit of having a roasted tomato with my spinach and squash. Sometimes I will throw in chicken if it needs to be used, but I never miss it if I do not (giving the meal yet another perk…it is vegan).

 Note: The recipe given below incorporates only Spinach, which I always have on hand. It is just as easy to add zucchini when you are preparing the spinach, if you have some on hand. Feel free =) Also, the photo was taken before I added pesto (I only wanted a touch of it being on a diet an all). I have stopped photographing my food for thirty minutes before eating given my time crunch the past four months and this was the only photo I had; normally, the squash is a bit more green. Final Note: ADD ROASTED GARLIC TO MAKE THIS MIND-BLOWING. I roast the garlic with the squash and add it in – you don’t have to, though I have no idea why you would not want to.

It has been a long journey from the PB and No J sandwich girl who turned her nose up at the wonderful squash family, but I am happy to announce my arrival.

Pesto Spaghetti Squash with Spinach and Tomato

Serves Four

One large spaghetti squash, halved and seeded
One recipe sautéed spinach
One baked tomato
Basil Pesto in an amount desired (I like about a quarter cup)
Salt and Pepper
Seasoning as desired (I used cayenne, thyme, pepper, salt, and Italian herbs)
One lemon, zested (I actually used two, but I really like lemon zest)

Preheat oven to 375. Prepare the squash (cut in half, scrape threads in center and rub inside flesh with olive oil). Sprinkle the amount of seasoning desired on the two halves and place meat-side down on a baking sheet. Bake for fifty-five minutes and remove.

Meanwhile, one stove prepare the sautéed spinach and reserve. If using previously baked tomatoes, skip making them and simply reheat when ready. If the tomato has not been previously baked, lightly drizzle with olive oil, top with salt, pepper and fresh herbs and bake for twenty to thirty minutes until tender.

Using oven mitts to hold the squash by its skin, scrape the squash into a bowl with a fork (it should break apart and look like angel hair pasta). Once this is done, strain excess water (some squash are worse than others so you may be able to skip this step).

Combine the squash with the pesto and zest, adding salt and pepper as desired. Mix well. Finally add the spinach and top with the baked tomato. Top with fresh grated pecorino (if you desire) and serve immediately.

Green Chile Chicken Stew

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Green Chile Chicken Stew

D and I recently upgraded to a two bedroom – meaning my office and one bedroom – house with a yard for Foster Brown. This is an astronomical improvement over apartment living (no offense to apartment lovers – I have only lived in three apartments for a total of three years and there is a reason for that). However, the upgrade was to a house with a small, older fridge and freezer than I have had since….2001? Why did anyone every design a fridge with a freezer on top? Freezer on bottom people! Anyway,  I basically have to cook with a lot of frozen food at the moment and am slowly emptying the freezer to make room for ice trays (yes it is that old and yes I am a bonafide appliance spoiled brat). My mom gave me a bag of homemade (though what home it came from I cannot tell you) green chili sauce and it fell victim to the teeny tiny freezer. The nice thing about freezer cooking is that I basically had everything I need for what I envisioned as “Green Chili Chicken Stew” (which I have been craving since my Mom made Green Chile and Turkey White Bean Chili a few weeks ago). So Monday night after I made my actual dinner, I threw thawed chicken breasts and green chili sauce with other pantry items and let it cook on low heat overnight. Woke up the next day and the house smelled amazing and I had lunch and dinner just waiting to get in my belly!

Note: I did not do this because I honestly did not have time to get to the store, but I planned on adding cilantro and avocado as garnish. I did miss it a little bit – but I am overly enamored with both of those ingredients so you may not.  Also, feel free to use chicken thighs – you will get more flavor out of them. Breasts are a) healthier and b) were in my freezer; but, thighs are tastier and cheaper – your call.

Green Chile Chicken Stew

Serves Four

One whole chicken breast, cut into halves and seasoned with favorite season combo
Two and a half cups favorite homemade Green Chili Sauce
One White Onion, diced
Seven Cloves Garlic, minced
Half-Tablespoon Crushed Red Pepper
Two Tablespoons Ground Cumin
Half Tablespoon Ground Coriander
Salt
Pepper
One half can black beans, drained and rinsed
One can Cannellini Beans (or other white bean)
Two to three cups Chicken Stock (preferably homemade)
One can Whole Kernel Corn

Sear the seasoned chicken breasts in a glug of olive oil. Remove from pan and add onion and garlic and a pinch of salt. Saute until glassy, add beans, corn, chicken breasts, green chili sauce, chicken broth, and spices to the pan. Let simmer for about twenty minutes, then check and adjust seasoning as desired. Let cook up to 10 hours.

Serve with lime wedges, cilantro, sour cream, green onions and/or avocado as garnish.

Zucchini Ribbon Salad with Seared Scallop

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Zucchini Ribbon Salad with Seared Scallop

This is a warm, satisfying salad. It’s a dish that tastes as wonderful as it makes you feel healthy. The entire dish may be 300 calories total – and most of that is olive oil. I added very thinly shaved apple to brighten the dish and help bring out the scallop’s sweetness. I was out of fresh lemons that day, but feel free to use a (very little) bit of zest to really brighten the flavor of the veggies.

The scallops I bought for this dish were HUGE!! I have never seen U-10s this big. They were more like U-6 scallops. And they also happened to be some of the driest scallops that I have been able to buy away from the coast. Ergo, the size made one per person a perfect portion. Lucky for me D doesn’t eat fish so I ate both….they were glorious.

Zucchini Ribbon Salad with Seared Scallop

Serves two (or one in Andiland)

 

One Zucchini, sliced lengthwise into thin ribbons
Three cups Baby Spinach
One large shallot, thinly sliced
Two Garlic cloves, finely minced
Two Large U-10 scallops
About a cap full of white wine (optional)
One-Half Pink Lady Apple, very thinly sliced with a peeler
Fresh Squeezed lemon to taste

Wrap the scallop in a paper towel and let drain for at least a half hour. Prepare veg whilst the scallop dries out. In a large skillet (or cast iron), sauté the garlic and shallots with a bit of olive oil. After about seven minutes, hit the pan with a (very) small amount of white wine and add spinach. Allow spinach to wilt just slightly and then add zucchini ribbons., add a pinch of salt, a good amount of fresh ground pepper, . Meanwhile, heat about a tablespoon of olive oil over a medium high heat and add scallop that has been dusted with salt and pepper. Cook for two minutes per side (the scallop should have a nice brown caramelization on it).  Spoon the greens onto a plate, top with scallop and shaved apple.

Roast Chicken

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Roast Chicken

The number of recipes that call roast chicken ‘perfect’ is astounding. Not without reason, well-executed roast chicken is the definition of perfection (the quality or state of being perfect: as. a : freedom from fault or defect : flawlessness). The simplicity of a handful of quality ingredients make roast chicken sing with exceptional flavor, tenderness and juiciness. If you want to hear it hit the Christina Aguilera notes (it is possible that I am watching The Voice in a post chicken coma – I am not actually her PR person), then take the time to brine it, air dry it, stuff it and rest it before devouring it. There were several mishaps along the way to this roast chicken. First, I have never made a whole roast chicken. I think I may have tried once years ago – with decent results – but it was when I was first embarking on my cooking journey and really just don’t remember; ergo, I consider myself a roast chicken virgin and was frantically pulling cookbooks from their current state of disarray after the move to work up a plan when I threw my hands in the air and just made my own – par for the course. Second, I was simultaneously roasting garlic to sweet, gooey perfection for a roasted brussel sprout and asparagus dish and the oil managed to seep out causing the oven to smoke profusely. Third, the oven has not been used, but once since we moved in last week and it was on a cool 500 degrees, so the gas fumes of a rusty oven were considerable. The fire alarms were going off, the dog was freaking out, there are now bugs everywhere, and – in the end – all this means that I opened the oven door more times than ideal (ideal being NONE) when roasting a chicken. You will want to cook yours less (by about five minutes) to make up for the normal Andi shenanigans.

I could eat a hundred roasted chickens, this coming from a girl who really does not care much for chicken. Every recipe is different and every recipe is amazing and I feel like posting roast chicken is somewhat offensive to other chicken roasters. But then, no cookbook is complete without it. The art of chicken roasting depends much less on adherence to recipes and much more on feeling the food, adapting as necessary. Your cooking time will be different with different sizes, as will your seasoning amounts. Brining is an essential part of the roasting process. The longer the better. Overnight is ideal, up to two days just makes it better. After brining, you want to let the chicken air dry in the fridge overnight, up to a day and a half. Both of these steps will help you yield a perfect crispy skin. About an hour to an hour and a half (two depending of chicken size), pull the chicken from the fridge and let sit at room temperature to allow chicken to cook properly. After cooking, you must let the bird rest for at least twenty minutes so that the juice redistributes and you don’t lose all that drippy magic that is soon to be running down your chin.

Use the juice in the pan to make a gravy or just drizzle over the chicken as is. I roast my birds over parsnips (sometimes with the addition of beets and carrots), garlic and onions. Parsnips are better much the best root vegetable in the world and when they cook in chicken fat, they will blow your mind with just how luscious and dang tasty they can be. If I can save any whole ones from my mouth whilst the chicken is cooling, I like to make a parsnip puree to place the chicken atop of – perhaps with some roasted garlic and fried sage and caramelized onion. Drool. Feel free to add carrots, parsnips, Brussels sprouts, or potatoes to your “chicken bed;” alternately, use a roasting pan and rack and avoid the veggies, reserving the jus for gravy.

Note: I used a four pound, organic whole chicken. I also kept the onions and garlic from the roasting pan and made then into a sandwich accoutrement the next day. Toasted whole grain, arugula roast chicken, roasted garlic and onion marmalade sandwiches don’t suck. At all. And now I am drooling again. 

 Roast Chicken

Serves Four, plus some leftovers

Brine

One quart (four cups) hot water

Three Quarts cold water

One scant cup Kosher Salt

One fourth cup Sugar

Boil one quart water, add salt and sugar and allow to dissolve, add cold water and the chicken. Squeeze a tad bit of fresh lemon if desired.

Chicken

Inside

One onion, sliced 

Three celery stalks, sliced

One whole head of garlic, cut in half

Half bundle of Thyme

Three sprigs Rosemary

Kosher Salt (about five tablespoons)

Black or white pepper (around four tablespoons – to taste) 

Two Lemon Halves

Mix all in a bowl well and stuff inside the chicken. Use a toothpick or kitchen twine to close the opening with a small braid or by tying the legs together.

Outside and under skin

Five Sprigs thyme and some chopped rosemary (to taste)

Half stick butter, room temp

Kosher Salt (about four tablespoons)

Black or white pepper (around four tablespoons – to taste) 

Juice of one lemon

Roast garlic-rosemary compound butter would be wonderful if you have some

Combine the butter, herbs, three tablespoons salt and three pepper and mix well. Lift chicken skin and rub the butter mixture all over chicken. Apply rest of salt and pepper to top of skin and spritz with lemon.

Chicken Bed

One white Onion, thick slices

One head garlic, in skins

Four celery leaves, rough chop

Three to Four Large Parsnips, sliced into quarter inch pieces (half the larger pieces near top)

Tablespoon butter

Three tablespoons (heavy) olive oil

Heat roasting pan in the oven at 500 degrees. Add the oil, butter, and veggies (salt slightly). This will sizzle, stir, then top veggies bed with chicken and return to oven. Add broth (or butter) as necessary to avoid burning the veggies (though some caramelization is ideal).

Remove pan from oven after about 45 minutes (a thermostat should read around 160 when inserted into the thickest part of the chicken). Allow to rest for twenty minutes at a minimum to allow juices to redistribute. Carve and serve drizzled with the pan jus (and the onions) as desired.