Breakfast of Champions

Saturday Morning Breakfast*

Aaaahhhh, the best part of Thanksgiving: leftover pumpkin pie for breakfast.  Of course I had whipped cream on it because dairy is a very important food group.  I'm all about good nutrition.

*Note: whipped cream topping not to scale.

Lunch at Keenwah

I had heard good things about Keenwah, the newish restaurant on Broadway, but I hadn't tried it until I went there for lunch on Friday with a friend.

My Edamame Hummus Wrap was delicious.  The hummus had a garlicky, pesto-y quality that I really enjoyed.  The wrap also included grilled sweet potato and red peppers, crispy lettuce, and the surprise of crunchy edamame nuts.  It came with a small side salad that was dressed with a simple (and yummy) balsamic vinaigrette.  Delish.

The sandwich was a little pricey at $8, but everything was organic and I imagine it costs a few bucks to grow organic soybeans with TLC and then propitiate their tiny spirits before they get picked.  (Or at least, that's what organic farmers do in my mind.)  It was worth it.  I've been craving that hummus ever since.

Go-To Tofu -- with Recipe!

I make this tofu dish whenever asparagus is on sale.  It's a tasty, quick, light meal that's good for you.  Serve over rice or couscous.  If you're making a pot of rice, wait until it's about 5 minutes from being done before you start cooking the tofu and asparagus.  I tend to go easy on the heat, but feel free to add more red pepper flakes.

Go-To Tofu (serves 4)
1 1/2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 pound thin asparagus, washed, trimmed, and cut in 1/2-inch slices
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 14-oz. package tofu, well drained and cut in cubes
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes (or more to taste)
2 Tbsp. soy sauce or tamari
2 tsp. sugar

1. Heat oil in a large, deep skillet or wok over high heat.  When hot, add asparagus and garlic and stir-fry 2-3 minutes.  Add tofu and red pepper flakes, stir-fry 2 minutes more.

2. Add the soy sauce and sugar and cook, stirring often, 1-2 minutes. 

3. Serve

Mr. Onion Says...

I like Eating Well magazine because it always contains some interesting ideas and healthy recipes -- and that's a good thing, since most of the recipes I come up with contain copious amounts of cheese.

One thing I've noticed, however, is that the recipes tend to take shortcuts.  I'm sure this is to make them user-friendly for the busy home cook, but some things can't be rushed.  To wit: sauteeing onions.  When I made the Eggplant Bulgur Pilaf in the October issue, I followed the instructions.  I put the eggplant in first, never stopping to consider the natural order of saute handed down from mother to daughter since the earth cooled.

I just blithely went ahead, and ended up with chewy onions and not much aromatic flavor in the eggplant.  If only you'd spoken up a little sooner, Mr. Onion.  Lesson learned.

Kale Is Cool

Kale is having a moment.  What was once a relic of peasant cooking and Victory gardens is now the darling of foodies everywhere who are finding out what grandma knew: kale is delicious and good for you.

This month's Eating Well magazine had some wonderful green soup recipes by Anna Thomas, the author of Vegitarian Epicure.  I made the Basic Green Soup using kale instead of chard since the soup is designed to work with any combination of greens.

Another change I made was that I added the vegetable broth at the same time as the kale instead of at the end.  Winter greens make a delicious pot liquor that brings a lot of flavor to the party, and I wanted time for it to meld with the vegetable broth.  It just goes to show you: if you want to know about peasant food, ask a peasant.

Heirloom Tomatoes

Sweet Potato Oven Fries (with Recipe!)

In the summertime, I want to get through my chores as quickly as possible and get to the main attraction of the season: being outdoors. Cooking, as much as I love it, is no exception. I'm doing a lot more assembling of meals (tossing salads, spooning berries over cottage cheese) than I am actual cooking these days.


Of course, grilling is a great way to cook and be outside at the same time, which is where these oven fries come in so handy. They cook in your oven, leaving you time to toss a salad, grill up some burgers, or take a few more runs on the Slip-n-Slide. Everyone loves them -- adults and children alike -- and they are actually very good for you!

The recipe serves four, but since it's a "to taste" kind of recipe, you can easily make as much or as little as you need. This is one of the very few times I recommend using garlic powder because fresh garlic will burn.

Sweet Potato Oven Fries

3 large sweet potatoes, peeled
olive oil
kosher salt
pepper
garlic powder

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare one large or two small rimmed baking sheets by pouring a little olive oil in the bottom and spreading to coat the pan(s).

2. Cut sweet potatoes in 1-inch steak fry sized pieces and place pieces in a large bowl. Drizzle olive oil over potatoes and toss. Make sure you use enough olive oil that all the potatoes are fully coated. Sprinkle on the salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste. (I find it's better to season these liberally.) Toss again.

3. Spread the seasoned sweet potatoes on the baking sheet(s), making sure they are in a single layer and are not too crowded. Place sheet(s) in the hot oven and bake approximately 45 minutes. (Tip: I check them after half an hour and give them a little jiggle or turn them over with a spatula.) The fries are done when they are soft when pierced with a fork and are slightly browned around the edges.

Bee Happy -- With Recipe!

I bought The Herbal Kitchen by Kami McBride a few months ago, and I've been having a great time experimenting with the recipes. I went through a pesto phase for a while but I didn't tell you about it because I'll be darned if I can figure out a way to draw pesto -- or pasta, for that matter -- without it looking like a Rorschach Test.


The whole book is great. I struck gold, though, with her recipe for Cinnamon-Ginger Honey. It's so simple to make and keeps for up to a year -- but trust me, you will go through it much more quickly. It's yummy. Try it on buttered toast, oatmeal (if you use the recipe I posted here, I recommend omitting the brown sugar), or as a sweetener for tea. Dissolve a teaspoon in hot water to make a warming, tummy-settling drink.

You will need a clean and sterilized glass jar with a lid.

Cinnamon-Ginger Honey

1 cup honey
2 tbsp. powdered cinnamon
1 tbsp powdered ginger

1. Bring water to a boil in a double boiler (if, like me, you don't have one, just put a heatproof bowl over a pot of water once it's hot), and reduce to a simmer. Pour honey into the jar and place in the top of the double boiler. Let the honey warm for 15-20 minutes or until it reaches a consistency where it can be easily stirred. You don't have to stand over it, but stay close enough to keep an eye on it.

2. Carefully remove the jar of honey from the pot and stir in the spices. Allow to cool, then cap the jar. Stick the flavored honey in the cabinet for two weeks before using. Keeps up to a year.

Good Nutrition

March is National Nutrition Month. Does this mean I have to read the nutrition facts label on everything I eat? Good heavens, I hope not.

What say I try to remember to take my vitamins every day and we leave it at that?

Feel Better Food -- With Recipe!

Perhaps, like my mother, you have been wondering how I'm feeling since I got back from my roadtrip. After a week of meals on the go and McDonalds: The Official Breakfast of Road Trips, I haven't been feeling so well.


So last weekend, I made a big pot of lentil soup and thawed out some wheat ciabatta that I had in my freezer. It was just what I needed -- delicious, healthy, and easy on my tummy.


Give this recipe a try, but feel free to make it your own. I rarely make this soup the same way twice. It comes out great with just water, but if you have chicken or vegetable stock on hand, go ahead and use it.


Lentil Soup

2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 med. onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
3 cloves garlic, finely diced
2 cups lentils, rinsed and drained (go ahead and use a whole bag if you have it, just increase the liquid slightly)
8 C. water
3 red bliss potatoes, peeled and cut in about 1/2-inch dice
1 10-oz. package frozen chopped spinach
Salt & Pepper to taste

1. Heat oil in soup pot over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and carrots and saute until onion is clear, approx. 5-7 minutes. (I always season the veggies with salt and pepper as they saute.) Add cumin and garlic, saute 1 minute.

2. Add lentils and water. Stir. Raise heat to medium-high and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook soup 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Take this opportunity to clean up the mess you just made.

3. Add potatoes, then continue cooking 20-25 minutes, or until potatoes and lentils are almost done. Add water as needed to create a good soup consistency (the potatoes will thicken the soup quite a bit).

4. Add frozen spinach, raise heat slightly, and allow spinach to thaw in the soup. When soup returns to a simmer and spinach is thawed and stirred through, check potatoes and lentils for doneness. Keep simmering until desired texture is reached. Taste, and add salt and pepper as needed.

Guest Blogger: Katie

The cutest lunch EVER!

My beautiful, smart, talented, and super-creative niece Katie has been making bentos lately for her daughter Elizabeth (age 7). What is a bento? I didn't know either, but apparently it is a Japanese word meaning "lunch on the go." It's like takeout here in the US, except healthier and WAY cuter. Katie says it's a good way to get a variety of foods into a meal, and to control portions. Her daughter loves them.


Katie's description of the bento above:

*cherries
*green grapes
*mandarin orange slices
*white sticky rice
*chinese fried chicken style 2... (dipped chicken chunks in General Tso's bottled sauce then dipped in flour and deep fried) I will shallow fry them next time!

Another cute bento by Katie:

*cheddar cheese flowers
*cucumber wheels
*cherries
*apple clouds
*star fruit
*chinese fried chicken (dipped chicken chunks in flour, then General Tso's bottled sauce, then panko, then deep fried)
Boo was too hungry for me to make rice, I rushed this one!

Katie's inspiration has been Susan Yuen's blog Hawaii's Bento Box Cookbook -- which is worth a look for the gorgeous pictures of Hawaiian scenery in addition to the seriously cute food. I guess her bentos are supposed to be for kids, but I want to learn how to make some for myself. Because cute is always better.

Makes Me Want To Primal Scream

Gentle readers, this has been bugging me ever since I came across The Primal Blueprint one afternoon at Barnes & Noble, so you are going to have to humor me while I rant.

The premise of the book is that for optimal health, we should go back to eating the way our hunter-gatherer ancestors did. The author talks about how Paleolithic people ate a wider variety of foods than we do now, and so lived longer, healthier lives.

Now I am no expert in Paleolithic history, but even I know that while our ancestors would have foraged a wide variety of plants and fruits in the warm months, they would have subsisted on very little over the winter and gone hungry during times of drought. They ate a great deal of something like large game when it was available, and a lot of something else like berries when they were available. They did not necessarily have much day-to-day variety. And they certainly did not buy expensive dietary supplements over the internet.

Here's another thing I know: I've lived quite a bit longer than the average person in the Paleolithic, and I've subsisted mostly on chocolate.

Salad Days

After the lasagne and pumpkin pie of the past couple of days, I need to be a very, very good girl this week. Cookie prep starts next weekend, when I will begin making and freezing dough to be ready for cookie day with my nieces and nephew. It's very important to sample the cookie dough when I make it, or how will I know if it's turning out right?

Suit Yourself

One of the benefits of being an old maid with a cat is that I don't have to take anyone else's food preferences into account every day when I cook. Tonight's dinner is a good example of that. I think most everyone I know dislikes at least one element of this dinner; I like it all and that's what matters.


The Japanese-Style Curry is a recipe from 3 Bowls: Vegetarian Recipes from an American Zen Buddhist Monastery, but I leave out the potatoes and serve it over rice. It's how I like it.

Just Another Manic Wednesday

Contrary to what you probably think given all the treats I've been posting lately, this is the type of thing I tend to eat during the work week. Alas, a woman cannot live on chocolate alone - or at least not unless she wants to get as big as a hippo or work out two hours every day.

Here's the thing about a stir fry. If you decide you are going to make it into an art assembly project by using fancy knife cuts and insisting on eleventy kinds of vegetables, you will be prepping it until doomsday. If, like me, you limit the vegetables to between one and three kinds (depending on how much you have on hand of each), and you chop them like a normal person instead of a Martha Stewart wannabe, you can be eating in half an hour. And that includes making rice.

This particular recipe is healthy and really good, especially in the spring when pencil-thin asparagus is in the stores. It could be done with chicken, I suppose, but the great thing about tofu is that you can prep it without having to declare the cutting board and counter a hazmat area and dealing with it accordingly. That's why it's smiling.

Also note that the asparagus spears are not only smiling, but are also sporting some pretty fancy bouffant hairdos. That's a lot of fabulous for one meal.

Sushi

Seriously. Our ancestors were onto something when they invented fire.

Healthy Choice

Just call me Cleopatra.