A Scrumptious, Satisfying Lunch

It's January and for me that means wearing sweaters and fleeces, dreaming of roaring fireplaces (ours doesn't work!) and making soup. My husband refers to this as phase as "Winter Karen"

I wanted to share with you a meal that will make you want to stay inside all day with your main squeeze and a good book - by the way, I'm reading Barbara Kingsolver's "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" - and can't put it down.

Speaking of superfoods, this meal has it all. It's a warm, crusty, flavorful tart with cooked swiss chards (a hearty green leafy vegetable) and onions with a soup made of roasted vegetables.

Let's start with the tart. Recipe courtesy Mario Batali

2 pounds Swiss chard, washed and spun dry
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 Spanish onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/4 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped to yield 1/8 cup
3 large eggs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1 cup bread crumbs
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Bring 8 quarts water to a rolling boil and add 2 tablespoons salt. Roughly chop the Swiss chard, discarding the rough stems. Add the Swiss chard to the boiling water and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain thoroughly and set aside.

In a 12-inch saucepan, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over a medium flame until hot but not smoking. Add the onion and garlic, and cook until soft and golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the Swiss chard and the parsley. Let cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and let cool.

Meanwhile, break the eggs into a small bowl. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Add 3 tablespoons of Parmigiano and, using a whisk, mix until the ingredients are well-blended. Add the egg mixture to the cooled Swiss chard and toss to combine.

Using the remaining olive oil to lightly grease a shallow 9-inch round or oval baking dish. Dust the bottom of the baking dish with 1/2 cup bread crumbs. Carefully place the Swiss chard and egg mixture into the pan. Dust with the remaining Parmigiano and then the remaining bread crumbs.

Bake until the top is golden brown, about 1 hour. Serve hot or room temperature.

• This dish is not perfect, but it has great potential. I found myself wondering if egg whites would provide the same binding element that a tart needs to stay together while making this dish a bit healthier. Next time I make it I'm going to use one yolk and two egg whites. The sauteed chard and onion was so delicious that I can't imagine that three whole eggs provide any additional flavor.
• Rainbow swiss chard is so gorgeous. It's probably a weird way to describe a vegetable, but when you see it next to everything else in the produce section, you'll know what I mean. Swiss chard is a very hearty vegetable and definitely needs to be boiled first to make it more manageable in the skillet.
• You definitely don't need 1/2 cup of bread crumbs on the top of this tart. It was just too much bread and actually muted the taste of the tart for me. Try a sprinkle for a slight crust or nothing at all but some Parmesan.
• Keep a close eye on this in the oven. It only took a half hour for mine to cook through. I shudder at what it would have looked like if I left it in for an hour!

Roasted Root Vegetable Soup - courtesy of the Barefoot Contessa (Ina Garten)

1 lb of carrots, peeled

1 lb of parsnips, peeled

1 large sweet potato, peeled

1 butternut squash (2 lb), peeled, cubed and seeded

3 tablespoons of good olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoons of kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon of ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cut the vegetables into 1 1/4 inch cubes. Place the cut vegetables in a single layer on two sheet pans. Drizzle them with olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss well. Bake 25-35 minutes, until all the vegetables are tender, turning once.

In a large saucepan, heat 6 cups of chicken stock.

In two batches, coarsely puree the roasted vegetables and the chicken stock in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pour the soup back into the pot and season to taste. Thin with more chicken stock and reheat. The soup should be thick but not like a vegetable puree, so add more chicken stock and/or water until it's the consistency you like.

• This is a tried and true recipe. I don't have much to add other than it will be gone before you know it.

Weekend vs. Weeknight Meals. The Long and the Short of It.

Two years ago the only homemade meal I had really "mastered" was making fresh pizza dough. Among our wedding gifts was an air bake pizza pan. I learned how to properly knead dough, what active yeast was, how warm the water should be, how to keep the dough warm to allow it to rise and how to roll out dough in a semi-perfect circle. This was my gift to my newlywed husband. Now that I've been tinkering with other recipes, that pizza pan hasn't seen the light of day since we've been in our new house. I've put it off for too long...so I dusted off the pan and decided to do it all. Dough, sauce, toppings. All homemade (except the cheese, of course.)

Yes, I'm crazy. Here we go with the "Long of it":

Pizza dough:

2 teaspoons honey
1 package active dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)
3/4 cup warm water (100° to 110°)
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (about 10 ounces), divided
1/2 teaspoon salt

Dissolve the honey and yeast in 3/4 cup warm water in a large bowl. Let stand 5 minutes or until bubbly. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Add 2 cups flour and salt to yeast mixture; stir until a soft dough forms. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 6 minutes); add enough of the remaining flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands (dough will feel slightly sticky).
Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 30 minutes or until doubled in size. (Gently press two fingers into dough. If the indentation remains, the dough has risen enough.)

Roll dough into a 12-inch circle (about 1/4 inch thick) on a lightly floured surface. Place dough on a rimless baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal. Crimp edges of dough with fingers to form a rim. Cover with plastic wrap. Place the dough in refrigerator for up to 30 minutes. Bake according to recipe directions.

• It's important to get the water temp just right so the yeast can do it's job. Basically I ran hot water from tap and then turned the faucet a bit to the warmer and less scorching side. That seemed to the trick.
• Here's "how to knead": make sure the dough has enough flour on it so it doesn't stick to your hands. Then, fold it with your hands and press it with your palms. Turn it one quarter of the way clockwise toward you and press again. Keep turning and pressing until the dough is slightly sticky. I did this for two whole rotations.
• Now you've got to keep this dough ball warm so it will double in size. I put it in a glass bowl, away from the fridge, on a counter near a window. I put three kitchen towels over the bowl to try to create an environment that would make the dough aspire to new heights. Let it sit while you start to make the sauce. The sauce takes about 25 minutes to make around the same time it takes the dough to rise.
• By the way, I didn't add the cornmeal to the pain. The airholes on the bottom of the pan wasn't condusive to this step.

The sauce:

Cooking spray

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

1 garlic clove, minced

1/4 cup white wine

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 (14.5-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, undrained

1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil

1/2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

Preparation
Heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until tender. Add garlic to pan; sauté 30 seconds. Stir in wine; cook 30 seconds. Add tomato paste, oregano, pepper, and tomatoes. Reduce heat, and simmer for 20 minutes or until thick. Remove from heat; stir in basil and vinegar. Cool.

The sauce was pretty straightforward. No problems. I let it simmer and went on to pulling together the toppings. I cut one sweet onion into long slivers and put them in a small skillet with 1 T of extra virgin olive oil. It took about 10 minutes for them to get nice and brown and soft. Then, I took out a bottle of sundried tomatoes and drained the oil from it. I chopped up about 1/4 cup of them into small pieces.

Meanwhile, the dough had doubled in size. It took no time at all to roll it and put it into the pizza pan. Then I brushed on 1 T of extra virgin olive oil all over the dough. The oven was already preheated at 500 F and I placed the pan on the lowest rack. It took 8 minutes to brown and get crispy. I took it out and lowered to temp. to 450 F.

Now the fun part, I ladeled the sauce onto the pizza - adjust to your liking. My husband likes a lot of sauce. Then I sprinkled only a 1/4 cup of skim shredded mozzerella. I don't like a lot of cheese, and I was adding goat cheese crumbles as a topping anyway. Then for half the pizza, I added carmelized onions and the other half was the sundried tomatoes. Finally, I sprinkled goat cheese crumbles over the whole pie. I put the whole thing back in the oven and I watched carefully. You don't want the crust to burn, but everything needs to heat up, get soft and become a pizza. It took about 10 minutes. Maybe less depending on your oven.

I smiled when I took it out. It smelled awesome. It looked like a thing of beauty. It took me an hour and a half from start to finish. Was it worth it? IT WAS. The crust was thin and crispy thanks to the pan. The sauce was popping with flavor. And those toppings were out of this world.

My husband? Very, very happy. The pizza? Gone.

Okay, now to the "Short of It". Last night, I made a very quick and healthy meal. The menu? Roasted Cauliflower with Lemon, Sauteed Sweet Pototoes and Apple w/cinnamon and Baked Turbot.

What the heck is a turbot (pronounced tur-bough) do you ask?? Until two days ago, I didn't know either. The fishmonger at Whole Foods saw me eyeing the Chilean Sea Bass. At $23 a pound, it was more than I wanted to spend and I whined about it a bit. So the fishmonger quietly told me that a turbot fillet (at $9 a pound) was what restaurants sometimes trade for sea bass. Unfortunately without the customers knowing. He told me they tasted exactly the same. Did I want to know this jaded piece of information? No, I prefer a state of ignorant bliss. But I thought as long as I was upfront with the hubby, then no harm no foul.

If you haven't seen my recipe for Roasted Cauliflower, you can find it under the December 2007 recipes under the post title, "Something old and something new." It's quick, easy and it's becoming a fast favorite in this household. Between the two of us, we gobble up a head of cauliflower and never have leftovers.

Just for your time management benefit, I preheated the oven at 375 F while I let the cauliflower sit in cold water (it gives it the extra moisture it needs before roasting it) for 25 minutes.

While the cauliflower sat, I sliced one sweet potato very thinly. I used a sharp knife but you could also use a mandolin if you have one. I didn't peel the skin off, because it's good for you, too. I used a fuji apple, which I think is tastiest. I kept the skin on it, as well. I coated a large skillet with cooking spray and added both the potatoes and the apple slices and sprinkled generously with cinnamon. It took about 15 minutes for the mixture to get soft and cook throughout. In hindsight, I would put the sweet potatoes in first for an extra 7 minutes.

When I finished following my cauliflower recipe (see other post for this), I prepared the turbot fillet. I lined a 9 X 12 pan with foil and placed in the 1 1/2 pound turbots fillets (after washing them). I used kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to season both sides of the fillets. Then, I added 2 T of extra virgin olive oil on the fillets and massaged it in. Yes, I massage fish. I'm not proud of it. Back in the oven at 375 F, it took 12 minutes total to turn an opaque white and become flakey (test with a fork. Flakey = good. Slimey = bad).

I cut up a lemon for the table and squeezed it over the cauliflower and the cooked fish. The only thing I wish I did was whip up couscous or quinoa to fill the empty space on my plate where the grains would sit. Oh well.

Everything turned out really well. A nice light dinner for two. The burning question is, did the turbot taste the same as the sea bass. No. It didn't. But it was good and I would buy it again for dinner for us. I'll save the sea bass for a small dinner party.

Now you have it. The long and the short of it. I've got to go. I've got a pile of dishes to do!!

"Superfoods" for Breakfast and Dessert

I love the term superfood. It brings up images of blueberries wearing red tights and a cape, doesn't it? C'mon that's funny.

But seriously, this "super" title is given to a handful of foods that we all should try to include in our daily meals. Considering the nutritional powerhouses that they are, they might as well leap tall buildings in a single bound. Chocolate, a superfood? You betcha. Hopefully that thought will entice you to check out this link: http://www.superfoodsrx.com/superfoods/

In the meantime, I made a recipe from the website above today that doubled as breakfast and dessert. Pretty cool. I managed to squeeze in five superfoods: blueberries, oats, yogurt, oranges and honey.

For breakfast, I made my usual Bob Red Mill's 5 Grain Oatmeal and added the following recipe:

2 pints strawberries, oganic
3 medium bananas, ripe
1 pint of blueberries, organic
2 medium oranges, zest and juice
2 tablespoons honey

Quarter the strawberries, slice the bananas, andadd the blueberries. Gently toss with fresh orange juice, zest, and honey. Put the mixture in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

• You can also toast some crushed walnuts and add to this mixture. I burnt mine accidentally while toasting them this morning, so I didn't use them. 1/4 cup of this mixture was a tasty and filling addition to my 1/2 cup of cooked oatmeal this morning. I enjoyed this meal at 8:30am this morning and didn't feel a hunger pang until 12:30pm. And I worked out in between - that really blows my mind. I used to graze between meals because I was so hungry. But not anymore. This meal will fill you up and give you tremendous energy.
• Almost 12 hours later, this mixture was even better. The longer it sat in the fridge, the more the flavor deepened. I topped a 3/4 cup of fat free French Vanilla yogurt with another 1/4 cup of the fruit. It was so good, that I started to imagine this as a parfait for my next dinner party.
• By the way, I found a "microplane" buried deep in a kitchen drawer today. Basically it's a zester with an attitude. Sadly, I've been using a grater to get some zest off my oranges, but man that microplane zests like it was its job and it wanted a promotion.

A Rustic Wrap for Dinner

I'm feeling more and more comfortable just "winging it" in the kitchen. My husband said he would make his own dinner tonight after I told him about what was in my arms that I gathered from the pantry and fridge. He despises most of these ingredients, so I figured he would cook himself eggs tonight. But being the great adventurer that he is, he tried my completed dinner before I sat down. I gave him a bite and he wouldn't give back the plate. He loved it. No worries, I had plenty more to make another wrap for me. Here's what I'm calling tonight's experiment:



A Rustic Wrap



1 tablespoon of canola oil



One diced yellow pepper



One diced sweet onion



1/2 cup of sliced mushrooms (I used "mini-bellas")



2 cups of baby spinach



6 oz. of firm tofu



3 tablespoons (0r more depending on your taste) of Eat Smart's brand: "Garden Style Sweet Salsa"



goat cheese crumbles



sun dried tomato torillas



Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. First add onions for about 3 minutes until soft. Then add peppers and mushrooms. Salt and pepper to taste. After they get soft (another 3-4 minutes), add the spinach. It will reduce very quickly to a manageable size. Add tofu and salsa. Continue cooking until vegetables are soft and tofu and salsa are heated to your liking. For me, that was another 3 minutes.



You can toast your torillas, but I didn't. I added 1/3 of the vegetable mix to one tortilla and sprinkled it with goat cheese crumbles. Enjoy!!


Here's a picture of the delicious salsa I found. It is not at all hot. Completely mild and much sweeter than typical salsa:

My unnatural love for the Whole Foods store

I spent my early twenties living in downtown DC, buying food from grocery stores that had more lottery ticket options than fresh fruit. I seriously got used to picking out the "not so terrible looking" apple from the sad little bins. The Safeway grocery stores had nicknames even.( I apologize in advance for their very un "p.c" monikors). One near me was called the "Soviet Safeway" because the aisles of food were known to be very sparse and sometimes bare. Another one a few blocks away was called the "Un-Safeway" because of some petty crime in that area. As you can imagine, neither of these images elicit happy feelings toward grocery shopping.

Here I am ten years later, in the suburbs, missing the hubbub of the city, but certainly not my neighborhood grocers. I literally heard the angels sing when I walked in Whole Foods for the first time. My husband lovingly refers to the store as Whole Paycheck, but I'm trying to prove him wrong. It's only when I go down the speciality aisles that I get into trouble. Which is exactly what I did today. Yes, I promised you a website that encouraged healthy, but affordable dishes. Sometimes when you're building a pantry of flavors, you need to spend a little more. I promise it will be worth it...and it won't be a weekly expense. All of the Asian flavors that I bought for the next recipe will last me six months - at least. So go ahead and divide your receipt by six and breath a sigh of relief.

I made this surprisingly quick and uncomplicated chicken and peanut stir fry for lunch today:


Sichuan-Style Stir-Fried Chicken With Peanuts - courtesy of Cooking Light magazine

Ingredients
Marinade:


2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce


2 tablespoons rice wine or sake


1 teaspoon cornstarch


1 teaspoon dark sesame oil


1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces





Stir-Frying Oil:


2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided





Sauce:


1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth


2 tablespoons sugar


2 1/2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce


2 tablespoons rice wine or sake


1 tablespoon Chinese black vinegar or Worcestershire sauce


1 1/4 teaspoons cornstarch


1 teaspoon dark sesame oil


2 tablespoons minced green onions


1 1/2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger


1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic (about 7 cloves)


1 teaspoon chile paste with garlic





Remaining Ingredients:


1 1/2 cups drained, sliced water chestnuts


1 cup (1/2-inch) sliced green onion tops


3/4 cup unsalted, dry-roasted peanuts


6 cups hot cooked long-grain rice



Preparation: To prepare marinade, combine first 5 ingredients in a medium bowl; cover and chill 20 minutes.



Heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil in a wok or large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken mixture; stir-fry 4 minutes or until chicken is done. Remove from pan; set aside.



To prepare sauce, combine broth and next 6 ingredients (broth through 1 teaspoon sesame oil); stir well with a whisk. Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in pan. Add 2 tablespoons green onions, ginger, garlic, and chile paste, and stir-fry for 15 seconds. Add broth mixture, and cook 1 minute or until thick, stirring constantly.



Stir in cooked chicken, water chestnuts, sliced onion tops, and peanuts; cook for 1 minute or until thoroughly heated. Serve over rice.



Yield
6 servings (serving size: 3/4 cup stir-fry and 1 cup rice)

Since the sauce was going to be super flavorful, I decided to go the quickie route and make a "Boil in a Bag" 10 minute brown rice. No need to waste perfectly good chicken stock when the rice isn't the center of the meal.

The marinade took about 2 minutes to make, I purchased organic chicken from Whole Foods already cut into stir fry pieces, so this part of the recipe took no time at all. I put the marinating chicken in the fridge for 20 minutes while the water boiled for the rice.

The next steps of prep, the sauce took literally five minutes because of my vegetable chopper (I use it, like, twice a day. Get one. You will not regret it!) Also, I've started to use bottled minced ginger. It tastes very good and it cuts out the five minutes of peeling and grating of the fresh root.

After failing to "waft" the chili paste properly and getting more than I bargained for when smelling this foreign ingredient I decided to add only 1/4 teaspoon to the sauce. It provided just enough heat to make my lips tingle and not burn.

This is truly a wonderful meal that both my husband and I enjoyed. I would rate this very high and I'm adding to my list of meals I will make when guests are over for dinner. When you've lined up your ingredients before you start cooking, this dish moves from the stovetop to your table fast!

The "I'm Too Tired to Cook" Pasta

Last night I called my husband on his way home from work and practically begged him to take me out to dinner. He was happy to oblige, but honestly, I couldn't let myself do it. It's a funny thing, but once you start preparing all of your meals from scratch, it's kind of addictive! The really weird thing is I usually feel crappy after eating out, too. So I decided to just look in pantry and the fridge and see what I could put together. Creating a recipe on the fly is like figuring out a puzzle. What flavors will go well together? What textures am I in the mood for? And of course, what will be incredibly easy and not leave me too tired to enjoy it?

So, I grabbed this from the fridge:

• Two heads of broccoli
• a fresh lemon
• three garlic cloves
• a chunk of Parmesan cheese

And this from the pantry:

• Extra virgin olive oil
• pine nuts
• Kosher salt & ground pepper
• Whole wheat fusilli pasta

After the water started to boil, I just put the whole box of fusilli in. I like it el dente (slightly hard), so it takes about 10 minutes after a full boil. Then, I cut the broccoli into florets and found a dish for them to steam in (4 min. in the microwave, covered). I planned on stir frying them, but it helps to soften them first. I heated the olive oil (about 1 1/2 tablespoons) in a skillet and let the garlic cook for about 3 minutes until toasty brown. Then, in a smaller skillet (dry) I put about 1/4 cup of pine nuts and lightly toasted them (about 5 min.) Meanwhile, I added the steamed broccoli to the garlic and kept tossing everything until the florets became softer and slightly brown (approx. 10 min.) A little Kosher salt and pepper to taste.

When everything is cooked, I drained the pasta and took out a great big glass bowl and combined all the cooked ingredients. Then I mixed in about 1/2 cup of really great extra virgin olive oil (Goya has an excellent bottle.) Then, I liberally grated fresh parmesan cheese over everything and mixed that in, as well.

Finally, I squeezed half the juice from the lemon all over it. If my lemon was a little fresher, I would have zested the peel and added it, too.

Oh boy, this was good. I served it warm last night, but this would also be a great cold salad. If you can believe, this was even tastier for lunch today. I think the longer it sits in the fridge, the deeper the flavors get! However, this will not sit in the fridge very long. I hope you enjoy it and definitely let me know what you think.

I just thought of something else. If you wanted to add a little protein, I bet grilled chicken, firm tofu or cannelini beans would be delicious.

A Whole Pot of Yummy

Happy New Year! My personal new year's resolution is to continue trying new flavors in the kitchen and to maintain my family's committment to healthy eating. I'm lucky to have a husband who will try anything and everything I put in front of him! I made this dish last night for a potluck and a few folks kindly asked for the recipe. It's a heavier dish and could be altered slightly to be a bit healthier. However, if you haven't tried butternut squash before, this recipe will win you over. I would suggest eating this dish as a side (1/2 cup serving). It's a little too rich to eat as a main entree. I did calculate the calories in this recipe. One cup of this dish is 640 calories.

Saffron Risotto with Butternut Squash


Recipe from Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa
Serves 4 to 6 (as a main entree)



1 butternut squash (2 pounds) (buy it peeled, seeded and cubed if you can)



2 tablespoons olive oil



Kosher salt



Freshly ground black pepper



6 cups chicken stock (buy low sodium)



6 tablespoons unsalted butter



2 ounces pancetta, diced (I prefer this as a vegetarian dish, so I leave this out)



1/2 cup minced shallots



1 1/2 cups Arborio rice



1/2 cup dry white wine



1 teaspoon saffron threads



1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese



Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
If you couldn't find a squash already peeled and cut, then peel the butternut squash, remove the seeds, and cut into 3/4-inch cubes. You should have about 6 cups. Place the squash on a sheet pan and toss it with the olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, tossing once, until very tender. Set aside.



Meanwhile, heat the chicken stock in a small covered saucepan. Leave it on low to simmer.In a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and saute the pancetta and shallots on medium-low heat for 10 minutes, until the shallots are translucent but not browned. Add the rice and stir to coat the grains with butter. Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add 2 full ladles of stock to the rice plus the saffron, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Stir, and simmer until the stock is absorbed, 5 to 10 minutes.



Continue to add the stock, 2 ladles at a time, stirring every few minutes. Each time, cook until the mixture seems a little dry, then add more stock. Continue until the rice is cooked through, but still al dente, about 30 minutes total. Off the heat, add the roasted squash cubes and Parmesan cheese. Mix well and serve.

• I've made this recipe many times, and it's still challenging to find the right amount of heat to cook the risotto. Ultimately, I've found that the mixture should bubble slightly, so it's more on the high side of medium-high heat. At this heat, you will need to constantly stir so you don't burn the rice, but the broth will be absorbed in less than 10 minutes (per two ladles).
• Don't be scared when you see how expensive saffron is. A little bit goes a long way. It's the most expensive spice because it's the most difficult to harvest. It's so worth it. Believe me. It adds the beautiful orange color to this dish.