It’s been a tough few
days for all of us. One more reason to be grateful for the love we have in our
lives. It’s really all that matters so give your love freely.
For those of you with
children, the upcoming winter break will be a wonderful time to have some food
fun with your kids. I encourage you to let your children help with both the
meal planning and the preparation. This week’s newsletter will focus on that. Most
kids really enjoy cooking and letting them share in the joy of cooking for
those they love is a wonderful gift for all of you. Being present to the
children that we love is especially important now.
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Carrots
We all know how
healthy carrots are. Most of us have heard the old adage that eating carrots
ensures good eyesight. Duke
ophthalmologist Dr.
Jill Koury states, “Vitamin
A in normal, recommended quantities is essential for the maintenance of good
vision”.
Carrots are very low
in Saturated Fat and Cholesterol. They are also a good source of Thiamin,
Niacin, Vitamin B6, Folate and Manganese, and a very good source of Dietary
Fiber, Vitamin A (yay!), Vitamin C, Vitamin K and Potassium.
Storing carrots is an
easy task. First remove the greens as they draw away moisture
from the root. Tightly seal unwashed carrots in a plastic bag in the coolest part refrigerator. Wash just before using, since the added moisture in the
bag could cause spoilage. Carrots begin to go limp once exposed to air. Or of
course you
can go ahead and store them in your underground root cellar. Make sure you pack
them upright and surrounded by straw. :-)
Roasted root
vegetables are a super easy way for kids to help create a wonderful side dish
that will compliment almost any meal. Start with carrots, beets and turnips.
The kids can wash them. It may be best for you or an older child to do the
chopping. You want to end up with chunks of the same size so they finish
cooking at the same time. If you have baby vegetables you can leave them whole.
Pour a little olive oil into your child’s hands and let her give the veggies
each a little massage. Arrange veggies in a single layer on a baking sheet. Sprinkle
with salt and pepper and pop them into a 350 degree oven. Roast the vegetables
until they are tender when pierced with a fork, turning several times while
cooking. Depending on the size of your vegetables, cooking time will vary from
20-40 minutes. Let us know how it goes!
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Kale
Although it’s too
late for Christmas delivery, it’s always a find time to gift someone
(yourself?) with the now famous “Eat More Kale” shirt. You can find it here: http://eatmorekale.com/
FYI- I wear a medium
and I’d prefer the organic cotton of course.
Try this recipe for a
great bowl of comfort any night of the week:
Kale Potato Soup
This
recipe is adapted from Simply in
Season Expanded Edition (World Community Cookbook)
Ingredients
1 large bunch kale
1 T butter
1 large onion,
chopped
1 clove garlic,
minced
2 large potatoes,
diced
2 cups hot water or
broth
3 cups milk, water or
broth
Salt and pepper to
taste
Preparation
Chop kale, steam, and
set aside. I steamed it in the microwave by putting a little water on the
bottom of a casserole dish and microwaving on high for two minutes. Trying to
save time by cooking the kale with the potatoes results in the flavor being too
strong.
Melt butter in a soup
pot, add one large chopped onion, and sauté until the onion is tender. Add a
clove of garlic and sauté a minute more.
Dice two large
potatoes and add to the soup along with 2 cups of hot water or broth. Bring to
a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the potatoes are soft. Then, remove
half of the cooked potatoes, add the kale that you have previously steamed, and
puree everything else in the pot if you want a chunky soup. Otherwise just
puree it all together.
Add 3 more cups of
liquid (milk, water, or broth) until you have the desired consistency. Add salt
and pepper to taste. Get out the bowls!
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Salad Mix
I am known as the
salad queen in my family. I take pride in creating salads that are not only
healthy but also beautiful. I consider making a salad like painting. I start
with a wide shallow bowl. I cut all of my ingredients into interesting shapes.
I’m not talking rosettes, just matchsticks or chiffonade http://localfoods.about.com/od/basics/ss/Chiffonade.htm or coins or whatever
strikes my fancy. Texture is an important component to a beautiful salad. I
make piles of the different ingredients and then the painting begins. I love a
base of salad greens with purple cabbage and red peppers. I love radish, red
onions; arugula is wonderful for a nutty, peppery bite. Add what you have on
hand.
I have also made a
“green salad” made of all green (and white) ingredients. I use greens, green
onion, shavings of fennel, avocado, celery, herbs, and cucumber and top it with
my favorite avocado-cucumber dressing. http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/creamy-cucumber-avocado-salad-dressing-10000001981643/ Take a picture of your creation and send it
to us. We’d love to see your salad art!
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Spinach or Arugula
Either of these nutritional
powerhouse greens can be added to your salad. They’re tasty as well!
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Green Onions
Green
onions are very low in Saturated Fat, Cholesterol and Sodium. It is also a good
source of Thiamin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Zinc and Copper,
and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin K,
Riboflavin, Calcium, Iron, Potassium and Manganese.
I have a fiend that swears by this
storage method. I’m going to try it today.
Stand the onions up in a glass of
water just to cover the white root; then put a plastic bag around the entirety
of the glass and onions and tie it closed.
In the summer I love to throw
these onions on the grill for a few minutes and sprinkle them with a bit of
grassy olive oil and salt. Yum-my! When roasting vegetables, add them for the
last few minutes to get a lovely mild onion flavor. You can, of course, use
them in your salad.
Winter Squash – Likely Delicata
I have wanted to
share this recipe with you. I knew I had it somewhere. I finally found it
yesterday in my December issue of Vegetarian Times and then traced it to its
original publication. Here it is!
Red Curry Delicata
Squash text, photograph and recipe below from a wonderful vegetarian food blog:
You might not immediately think of putting winter squash in a Southeast Asian-style curry. I learned about it from a terrific pumpkin curry at my favorite local Thai place.
Making curry paste is addictive; the volatile aroma and flavor is miles beyond the pre-packaged stuff, though in a pinch you can use that with the squash part of the recipe below. (Just make sure that if you buy a packaged curry it is vegetarian, if that is important to you).
My red curry is very lightly changed from Ivy's recipe, adapted to what I had in the house and my own peculiar way of doing things. The great thing is, this recipe makes more paste than you will probably use in a single meal. Freeze the excess and you will have the beginning of two or three great dishes waiting for you at a moment's notice. Curry fried rice. In a soup like laksa or kao soi. Look out world.
This is a relatively dry curry; no coconut milk is added to produce a bowl of sauce, though it will have a small amount of liquid. You'll want to serve this with jasmine rice, and maybe an herb-filled salad.
Red Curry Delicata Squash and Tofu Vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free
Serves 4
For the red curry paste:
6 dried
New Mexico chili pods, stems removed
1/2 cup
boiling water
1 teaspoon
coriander seeds
1/2
teaspoon cumin powder
several
grinds black pepper
1 teaspoon
turmeric powder
1/2
teaspoon salt
2"
piece of fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
1/4 cup
roughly chopped red onion
6 cloves
garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
zest and
juice of 1 lime
1 stalk
lemongrass, tender white parts only, pounded and roughly chopped
1 big
handful of cilantro, leaves and
stems (rinsed)
Tear the
chili pods into small pieces. If you like your curries hot, keep the seeds and
ribs. If not, throw them out.
Set up
your blender and put the chili pieces in the jar. Pour the boiling water over
them, cover, and let sit 20 minutes or so. In the meantime, you can gather the
rest of your ingredients.
Toast the
coriander seeds for 2 minutes in a dry skillet over medium heat.
Add the
seeds and all of the remaining ingredients to the blender. Puree for several
minutes, stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides and top. If needed, add
a little more water to get the paste to come together.
Put aside
5 tablespoons to use for the delicata squash red curry recipe below and freeze
the rest (unless you will use it in the next few days). You might like to
freeze it in individual-use portions so you don't have to thaw the whole thing.
4
tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
1 pound
firm or extra-firm tofu, cut into 2x2x1/2" squares and patted dry
1
tablespoon brown sugar
5
tablespoons of the red curry paste
2 good-sized
delicata squash, peeled, halved, seeded, and cut into 1/4" (or so) thick
half moons
1/2
teaspoon salt
1 cup
broccoli florets, cut very small
Black
pepper
Cilantro
for garnish
Heat a
big, heavy skillet or a wok over very high heat. You'll need some sort of
cover, but it doesn't have to be tight fitting. When it is hot, add two
tablespoons of the oil and 5 seconds later, the tofu in a single layer. Fry on
both sides until nicely browned. Remove with a slotted spoon or spatula to
paper towels and season with a bit of salt. Add the remaining two tablespoons
of oil, the sugar, and the curry paste. Fry, stirring constantly for one
minute.
Add the
squash and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Stir and fry for one minute, then add 1/4 cup
of water and cover. Cook until the squash is tender, occasionally lifting the
lid to stir, check doneness, and add a little water if needed. When it is
nearly done, add the broccoli. Cook until the squash is done. This will
probably take about 10 minutes total.
Remove the
cover and add the tofu. Stir to mix. If needed, add just a little more water to
get a little bit of glossy sauce.
Serve with
rice, garnishing with a grind of black pepper and the cilantro.
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Garlic
The garlic is for use
in the kale, squash and fennel recipes duh. You will have no more left after
that so there is nothing more to say.
:-)
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Fennel
I
was a bit uncertain about fennel because I thought it would be a strong
licorice-y taste and I am not a fan of that particular flavor. I was so
pleasantly surprised that it became a winter treat!
Fennel
is very low in Cholesterol. It is also a good source of Niacin, Calcium, Iron,
Magnesium, Phosphorus and Copper, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber,
Vitamin C, Folate, Potassium and Manganese.
Store fennel in a
plastic bag in the fridge and don’t wash it until ready to use.
Here’s a great way to
use fennel and kale and garlic.
Sautéed Fennel and Kale
Recipe and photograph
from http://centerstagewellness.com
While this would make a nice side dish, I just ate a heap as a warm salad for lunch. Kale naturally contains sodium, so I don’t add salt. The garlic adds plenty of flavor and some cracked pepper is enough in my opinion.
Simple
Sautéed Kale with Fennel and Garlic
Ingredients
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 medium fennel bulb, trimmed and cored
1 bunch lacinato kale, tough stems removed
1-2 cloves garlic
1-2 tablespoons white wine (lemon juice might work here, too)
Preparation
Dice the fennel bulb. Heat a skillet over medium-low heat until water droplet sizzle in the pan. When pan is hot, add oil, swirl quickly then add fennel. Stir until coated then let cook for 2-3 minutes. Meanwhile, stack the kale leaves and slice into wide ribbons.
When the fennel has
started to turn golden brown, clear the center of the pan and add all the kale.
Stir to coat with oil. Meanwhile, mince the garlic. Let kale cook, stirring
occasionally, about 3 minutes.
When the kale has
wilted and looks glossy, clear a space in the center of the pan and add the
garlic. Stir and cook 30-60 seconds. Add a tablespoon or two of water if
anything is sticking to the pan. Add the wine and stir as it evaporates. Remove
from heat. Serve immediately or at room temperature with fresh cracked pepper
on top.
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