Like a kid in a candy store

Dear Williams-Sonoma,

I love you. Very very much. Your bright and shiny kitchen tools beckon me to enter through your hallowed doorway. You seem to have something new for me everytime. It's like you knew I'd be coming and wanted me to feel welcome.

On this Valentine's Day, I ask you just one thing in return for all the marvelous things you gave (sold) me. For the love of all things holy, please let me go. Please. I simply can't afford you. One day soon when I walk past you in the mall, just look away. Like we never meant anything to each other.

Oh, I love you. And how I'll miss you. But if you ever think of me (by slashing your prices), I'm just an email away.

Warmly (350 F),

Karen

Williams-Sonoma: Essentials of Healthful Cooking:
I can't believe I haven't mentioned this book before! It's absolutely one of my favorites. I go back to it time and time again. If you've tried "my favorite side dish of all time" - sweet potatoes and cranberry hash, then you know that this book contains some real gems.

The recipes, stunning pictures and helpful techinques within this book is just the tip of the iceberg. When I first started out cooking with health in mind, this was my playbook. The first few pages offer an ingredient list for a healthy kitchen. Then later it illustrates which kitchen equipment and tools are essential for maintaining a healthy lifestyle. I sincerely believe this is a "must-have."

One last thought, that many of you will appreciate: the pages don't stick! This is a well made book and takes a beating well. Even my puppy has chewed on the hard cover edges and it kept on ticking.

Goat Cheese and Potato Gratin
from Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Healthful Cooking

2 t extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 lb small round white potatoes
2 T finely chopped Italian parsley
1 t fresh thyme
1 T all purpose plain flour
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
3 oz crumbled very cold fresh goat cheese (about 3/4 cup)
1 1/4 cups 1 percent fat milk
1 T grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Brush an 8 in. square or other shallow 1 1/2 quart baking dish with olive oil.

Using a mandoline or a large sharp knife, slice the potatoes paper thin.

In a small bowl, stir together the parsley and 1 t thyme. In another small bowl, stir together the flour, 1/4 t s and a grind of pepper. Place the goat cheese in a third bowl.

Arrange 1/3 of the potato slices, slightly overlapping them, in the baking dish. Sprinkle evenly with half of the herb mix, half of the flour mix and one third of the goat cheese. Arrange 1/2 of the remaining potato slices on top, again overlapping them slightly. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining herb mix, flour mix, and half the remaining cheese. Arrange the remaining potato slices in a layer on top and sprinkle with the remaining goat cheese. Pour the milk evenly on top.

Cover the dish tightly with foil. Bake until the potatoes are tender with pierced with a knife. About 1 hour. Uncover, sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano, and continue to bake until golden. About 15 minutes longer. Remove from oven and let stand 15 min. before serving. This will allow it time to thicken.

Garnish with thyme leaves and serve.

• Can anything with potatoes and cheese ever be bad? Even if you're not a goat cheese fan, this dish might win you over. Thank you to my hubby for introducing me to goat cheese several years ago. I've loved it - and you- ever since.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone.

Finding new treasures in old friends

Armed with paperclips, bright yellow post it notes, and an eagle eye, I sat down with three of my cookbooks recently to make some new discoveries. As I cook and learn and gain more confidence in the kitchen, I'm going back to old cookbooks that I thought I had exhausted and finding new gems. I'm really able to chart my own growth this way. Over the last few months, my spice rack has doubled in size and I now have the "international" shelf in my pantry. Last year at this time, I craved sugar in a big way. My nutritionist suggested cooking with new flavors and seeing if I could learn to love those, too. I've taken that advice to heart and it's turned out to be true for me. A little heat from curry. The tanginess from lime juice. The rustic, earthy tones of mushrooms. The richness of gruyere. I crave them all now, and so much more. So, I don't really need to shop for any new cookbooks for all ("Amen to that!" cheers my hubby as reads this..), because there's still so much these hold in store. Currently, on my bedside table lies the following:


The Earthbound Farm Organic Cookbook's Food to Live By

by Myra Goodman with Linda Holland and Pamela McKinstry


The first twenty pages tells the very compelling story about Myra and her husband starting out their lives by growing, harvesting and selling their organically grown raspberries in 1984. Over the next twenty years, they grew tremendously and now their bagged mixed greens can be found in supermarkets around the country. She writes, "When we first moved onto the property, we knew absolutely nothing about farming. The previous owner gave us a quick course in rasberry horticulture, teaching us how to add chemical fertilizers...but when the time came for us to follow the procedures, we couldn't bring ourselves to do it. We hated the way the chemicals smelled and instinctively we knew they weren't healthy for us, our future customers, or the environment." You can tell they have a passion for what they do. And you can taste it in their recipes. She devotes one whole chapter to raspberry recipes! My favorite section of her book deals with salads and homemade vinegrettes. I've completely given up on store bought salad dressings now that I've had salads dressed with fresh ingredients. It's just no contest.


The Healthy Hedonist by Myra Kornfeld

I would definitely classify myself as a "flexitarian." I prefer meals made of vegetables, fruit, grains and beans. I always make them my main focus when cooking, but I really enjoy a nice piece of fish on a regular basis. This is a wonderful cookbook for the family with a wide range of eating habits. I have to admit when I first looked through the book, I hardly recognized any of the ingredients. I would suggest this book for the more adventurous and experienced cook. If you've been there and done that, this book will take you to new sights! Yesterday, I bought hazelnut oil in order to try this vinaigrette in her section on salads:



3/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/2 cup toasted hazelnut oil

Salt

Candied Hazelnuts (1 cup of nuts toasted at 350 F with 2 T maple syrup and 2 T of natural sugar -ouch my teeth hurt already!)



Pour vinegar into a small saucepan & bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer rapidly, uncovered, until the liquid is reduced to 1/4 cup, about 10 min. Pour the reduced vinegar into a small bowl and stir in the mustard. Slowly drizzle the hazelnut oil into the bowl, whisking constantly until the oil and vinegar are emulsified.





I think this will be great over a bowl of mixed greens. Delish, no? One more comment about this book, there are no pictures. None at all. This is the one drawback.


A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen by Jack Bishop


This one may already be sitting on your cookbook shelf. It's mentioned often on the Cooking Light Community Boards. I love his philosphy of eating seasonally for so many reasons. Primarily because the food just tastes better. It's as simple as that. The chapters of this book are Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. His family belongs to a co-op and they pick their own produce directly from the farm from May-October! I would love that. When you have that kind of connection to your food, you just want to highlight it's natural flavors. His recipes do just that and are mostly very simple and can be prepared rather quickly. On almost every page, there's a sidebar which explains how best to prepare an ingredient, how to pick it out, or just a general cooking or storing tip. It makes you feel like you're sitting in the kitchen with him getting the inside scoop. One final thought - I love that the majority of the recipes call for ingredients that are already present in my pantry and fridge. I can open this book up in a pinch and make something fabulous with what I have on hand.

It's not easy being green....

Last year I hired a holistic nutritionist to review what I was eating and offer some insight to help me regain my energy and skip in my step. For six months, she introduced me to a whole new world of nutrient dense food whose purpose was to "nourish" good health. All of my current cooking adventures are a result from this very transformative experience. But I have to tell you, I was kind of skeptical at first. Especially the morning I received a gift from her the first week I signed on.

It was this book:

I was pretty shocked when I looked through it. To me, even the cover picture looked foreign! Each chapter described one new dark leafy green. Swiss chard (was it a cheese?!) Kale- curly and dino! Bok choy. Dandelion greens - um, is that what's growing on my lawn? I thought, what have I gotten myself into?


Truth is, I really trusted my nutritionist. Also, I've never been afraid of trying something new. I started out slowly with something sweet like sauteed kale with pinenuts and raisins. It turned out to be darn tasty. Soon I was learning which dark leafy greens I needed to boil or steam first to make more tender and which benefited from Asian flavorings like dark sesame oil. And just like my foodie mentor promised, I actually started to crave them! To this day, though, I still haven't tried those dandelion greens.

Are you still with me, or do you already miss the post about chocolate and pumpkin?

My favorite leafy green by far is rainbow swiss chard. I'm still trying to get my hubby to like them as much as I do. Yesterday I finally won him over with a bit of a twist on an Ellie Krieger recipe. I replaced the cabbage with chard.

Sesame Stir-Fried Chinese Greens by Ellie Krieger

1 T sesame seeds
2 t canola oil
2 pounds of bok choy or napa cabbage, cut across into 1 inch wide strips
2 T low sodium soy sauce
1 T rice wine vinegar
2 t toasted sesame oil

Toast the sesame seeds in a small dry skillet over medium-high heat until golden, about two minutes, stirring frequently; set aside.

In a large skillet, heat the oil over high heat until very hot but not smoking. Add the bok choy or cabbage and stir fry until it begins to soften slightly, 1-2 minutes. Add the soy sauce, vinegar, and sesame oil and cook until just done, 1-2 minutes longer. Sprinkle with the sesame seeds and serve immediately.

• First, I cut the chard leaves off their colorful stems and threw the stems away. I know I could of cooked them too, but I just decided to make this a leafy side dish.
• I think that chard can be rather tough if I don't boil them for a few minutes before the stir fry. Just 5 minutes will do it. Drain them well then add them to the skillet.
• I served this with baked turbot (white fish fillet similar to sea bass.) The whole meal, greens and all, took less than 20 minutes from prep to table!
• If you're interested in buying "Greens, Glorious, Greens, check out this website http://www.simpleliving.net/main/item.asp?itemid=1046
• If you're at all curious about what guidance a holistic nutritionist provides, check out her website at http://www.heidirothbard.com/. I didn't meet in person with Heidi, but rather we held our sessions over the phone and by email. It was an extremely effective program which I recommend highly.

Ellie Krieger's new cookbook

There's a wonderful show on the Food Network called, "Healthy Appetite with Ellie Krieger." Next time you're watching Ina or Rachel or Paula, stay tuned for Ellie, because she breathe of fresh air. She educates without sounding condesending and lets everyone know that cooking healthy doesn't mean tasteless and unappealing food. I think her recipes allow the natural flavors of whole foods to jump out while they do their job and nourish our bodies with much needed nutrients. I'm a big fan of her philosphy and show. Can you tell? So, when I heard she had a new book out, I actually pre-paid to get it as soon as it came out (I've only done this once before and that was Harry Potter!)

Imagine how giddy I was when the postman dropped this on my doorstep yesterday. I've already taken out some chicken breasts from the freezer this morning and I'm planning on trying her Lemon Chicken Soup with Orzo this evening. Dear hubby, if you're reading, I promise I'll get some nice chunky whole grain bread to serve with this soup.

Here's the recipe for now and add my comments later this evening:


Lemon Chicken Soup with Orzo by Ellie Krieger

4 t olive oil
8 oz skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into small chunks
pinch of salt, plus more to taste
1 medium onion, diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
2 stalks of celery, diced (about 1/2 cup)
1 medium carrot, diced (about 1/2 cup)
2 t chopped fresh thyme or 1/2 t dried
6 cups of low sodium chicken broth
1 cup orzo, preferably whole wheat
2 large eggs
3 T fresh lemon juice
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Heat 2 t of the oil in a soup put over med- high heat. Season the chicken with salt, add to the pot and cook, stirring a few times until just cooked through. About 5 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a side dish and set aside.

Add the remaining 2 t oil to the pot. Add the onion, celery, carrot, and thyme and cook, stirring over med-high heat until the vegetables are tender. About 5 minutes. Add 5 cups of the broth and bring to a boil. Add the orzo and let simmer until tender. About 8 minutes. Turn the heat down to low to keep the soup hot but not boiling.

Warm the remaining 1 cup broth in a small saucepan until it is hot but not boiling. In a medium bowl, beat the eggs. Gradually whisk the lemon juice into the eggs. Then gradually add the hot broth to the egg-lemon mixture, whisking all the while. Add the mixture to the soup, stirring well until the soup is thickened. Do not let the soup come to a boil. Add the cooked chicken to the soup. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Before I tie the apron on and start this seemingly easy and tasty recipe, I just wanted to thank all of my new friends who have visited my blog recently. It was an amazing day yesterday when I saw my number of visitors increase every minute. I love to cook and I adore talking about it. Thank you so much for giving me a forum to do so. If you have the time, please leave a comment and let me know a little about yourself and be sure to share your recent kitchen adventures.

We just finished our dinner of this marvelous spin on chicken soup. Here are my thoughts:

• You are going to love how easy this is to make. Everything on this list is present in my freezer, fridge and pantry at all times - so yay, no trip to the grocery store tonight. I'm the girl who decorates her house with vases full of lemons or limes when I run out of recipes for their zest and juice.
• The lemon juice and egg mix Ellie suggests in this recipe is a Greek way to thicken soups. It's called avgolemono. I love that name, don't you? Avgolemono. It's important to heed the recipe's instructions for this part. The reason you add the lemon juice and eggs to a separate dish of chicken broth is so the mixture can adjust to the heat before going in the soup on the stove. This is to prevent the eggs from scrambling.
• My husband and I thought this soup with very tasty. But like most soups, we expect it to be even better tomorrow. We finished off the dinner with a dessert of clementines.
• More thoughts on Ellie's new book tomorrow. I'm taking it to bed to read before going to sleep. Does anyone else do this? Read cookbooks outside the kitchen?

Cookbooks I Recommend: For that Borders gift card burning in your wallet

Did some wonderful relative or friend give you a $50 gift card to Borders over the holidays? My sister gave me one recently and I found myself staring at the gigantic Food & Cooking section at my local store. I'm just a tad over 5 feet tall with crappy vision so there were books there out of my range of height and sight! So, if you have only 10 minutes to spare with a spouse or kids pulling at you, I thought I would tell you which books I've tried and loved. First, I have to make a recommendation for a book with more prose than recipes, but it's so worth it.

I just finished reading Barbara Kingsolver's non fiction narrative about her family's adventure eating only local food and the food they grew. It's called "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle." It's fabulous. I literally laughed out loud at her stories of motivating her turkeys to breed and the plentiful zucchini which was grown by her & her neighbors ( everyone tried to lighten their own load leaving bags of it on each other's doorsteps in the middle of the night.) I will admit that some of her passionate views bordered on preachy, but it was such a delight to read that I immediately jumped on the idea of joining a CSA (community supported agriculture). My hubby and I are now proud shareholders of a local farm and in May will be receiving our weekly bounty. Kingsolver's book provides many recipes for their harvest that you will definitely use. Also, it introduced me to canning, which I will definitely need to do since it's just the two of us in our household.

Now on to the cookbooks. I just bought this great resource guide that I lovingly refer to as my "20 lb brick." It's called, "Vegetables from Amaranth to Zucchini: The Essential Reference." After reading this, you will never go to Whole Foods again and tilt your head to the side with eyebrows crinkled thinking, "What the heck is that??!" If you read my recipe about chicken pot pie, you would see that I never heard of celeriac (celery root), I'm now proud to say I've held one in my hand. What's cool about this book is that it describes each vegetable, it's history (who harvested it and how it was used), and what region of the world it's grown. Then the author actually tries several ways to cook it and offers her recommendation on the tastiest techniques. Then, she adds comments from chefs around the world and their favorite recipes. For one entry, she even wrote, "Eat on a dare and then never try it again!" See if you can guess what she's talking about.

Have you traded your white rice for brown rice, whole grain cous-cous and even quinoa and are now ready to see what else is out there? Then take a peek inside Lorna Sass' book "Whole Grains: Every Day, Every Way." Like Scheider, she tries out basically every grain that exists and offers her tried and true ways of making it. I've definitely learned to soak almost all of my grains. I've made the mistake of skipping that step and spending some quality time in the bathroom because of it.

I have to say that I love the brand, Bob's Red Mill. So between these two resources I've ventured into the land of bulgur, wheatberries and millet. With all the fiber that these grains pack, I will tell you that I feel very full and satisfied - especially when I have them for breakfast. Eating these grains have actually helped me to stop snacking during the day, too.

I just ordered a textbook from The Culinary Institute of America called, "The Techniques of Healthy Cooking." I'm only half way through it, but I'm very impressed with their section on nutrition. The authors offer a very clear and concise ten page chapter on the basics of vitamins, minerals, calories, carbs, fats (good and bad) and so on. Most importantly the book is a guide on how to include these foods with as much flavor as possible. Since this is a textbook for professional chefs there is a great chapter on building a recipe and analyzing the nutritional benefits of it. This is a goal of mine, so I ate it up (yes, I'm punny.)

I will admit, I have a little addiction to buying cookbooks. I have about 30 on this subject now. Presently, I'm taking cookbooks to bed to read before shutting off the light. What's a girl to do when Harry Potter is over? I will include more reviews later, plus a list of websites that I frequent for recipe ideas.