Farm Fresh Frittata

  

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1. 6 eggs (my eggs came from my friend Alicia's chickens....yumo)
2. 1/4 cup milk
3. 1 small zucchini
4. Half a bunch of asparagus
5. 2 green onions
6. 2 medium red potatoes
7. 2-3 kale leaves
8. Shredded cheddar cheese
9. 2 Tbs olive oil
10. Salt & Pepper
11. Italian seasonings

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400.
• Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium/high heat (I highly recommend a cast iron skillet because it can go directly from the stove into the oven).  Chop the potato and add into the skillet.  Cook for about 5-7 minutes until the potato starts to slightly brown.  Add Italian seasonings and salt & pepper.  
• While the potatoes are cooking, chop the asparagus, zucchini, green onions and kale.  Add all veggies except the kale to the skillet.  Cook for 3 minutes and then add kale.  Cook for another couple of minutes, just until the kale wilts.
• In a mixing bowl crack 6 eggs and add the milk.  Using a whisk, mix this together like you would when making scrabbled eggs.
• Pour over the veggies in the skillet and top with shredded cheddar cheese.
• Place the skillet into the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes.  Now, turn your oven to broil and cook for another 5 minutes.  I like my frittata nicely browned with the cheese crusted.  Once the top has browned and the cheese is bubbling the frittata is finished.
• Remove from oven and serve.

Jamie Oliver's TED Award Speech

This is a great speech about the state of America's health and the health of our children.  Jamie Oliver is the Naked Chef from the Food Network (run time is about 21 minutes).

Quinoa Stuffed Acorn Squash

 

Serves 4
Ingredients:

1. 2 acorn squash
2. 1 cup red quinoa
3. 1 apple
4. 2 celery stalks
5. 2 green onions
6. 1/4 cup dried cranberries
7. 2 Tbs maple syrup
8. 3 Tbs walnuts, raw unsalted
9. 2-3 kale leaves
10. 2 cups vegetable broth
11. Salt & pepper
12. Cinnamon (to taste)
13. Allspice (to taste)
14. 1-2 Tbs olive oil
15. 1 teaspoon Earth Balance

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350. Wash and cut squash into halves.  Scoop out seeds and place in a strainer.
• Place squash face down on a baking sheet or roasting pan.  Bake for 30 minutes.
• Rinse squash seeds and place onto a baking sheet.  Coat with 1 teaspoon Earth Balance and salt and pepper. Place seeds on the top rack of the oven and take out after 15-20 minutes, or once toasted. Set aside.
• Rinse quinoa and place into a large sauce pan.  Roast quinoa until dry and slightly toasted.  Add two cups of broth and 1 Tbs maple syrup to the quinoa and bring to a boil, then cover.  Reduce heat to low and cook for 15-20 minutes.
• While quinoa and squash cook, chop vegetables and toast walnuts.  In a large skillet pan, add olive oil and toast walnuts over medium-high until brown.  Place on a plate and set aside.  Add chopped celery, green onions, apple, and kale to the skillet.  Saute for about 5 minutes.  Add salt and pepper, allspice and cinnamon to taste.  Mix in dried cranberries and walnuts to the skillet.  Turn off burner and let sit.
• After 30 minutes turn the squash right side up and drizzle with maple syrup and salt & pepper.  Continue cooking for another 15 minutes right side up.
• Once quinoa is finished add to the skillet of vegetables and gently mix.  Once squash is finished scoop quinoa mixture into the acorn squash.  Top with toasted squash seeds and serve.

~Makes a great meal or side dish~

Meet Michael Pollan

Here is a great interview with Michael Pollan (one of the best food advocates out there).  He is promoting his new book Food Rules.  This clip is about 50 minutes, but it's well worth it.

Polenta and Vegetable "Lasagna"

Serves 4-6
Ingredients:

1. 1 tube organic polenta (aka corn grits)
2. 3 small,  2 medium, or 1 large zucchini
   
3. 1 jar marinara sauce ( I used a basil version)
4. Sun dried tomatoes (optional, about 3-4 Tbsp chopped in oil)
5. 1 small can black olives
6. Italian cheese and/or Parmesan cheese
7. 3-4 leaves of kale, de-stemmed and torn
   
8. Cracked Black pepper
9. Italian seasonings
10. Olive Oil

Directions: 

•  Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Chop zucchini and polenta into 1/2 inch rounds.  De-stem kale leaves and rip into small pieces. Chop sun dried tomatoes.
• In a lasagna pan, layer the ingredients like you would lasagna.  
• Start with sauce, a layer of zucchini, polenta, kale, olives, black pepper and Italian seasonings. 
• Drizzle with olive oil, a sprinkle of sun dried tomatoes and a little cheese.  Then add another layer of zucchini, polenta and olives.  
• Top with the remaining sauce and cover with a good layer of cheese.  Add more black pepper and Italian seasonings.
•  Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 1 hour.

 

I served this "lasagna" with a simple side salad.  The purple vegetable is actually a carrot!  Carrots come in a rainbow of colors and all of the colors taste really amazing.

Here is a version where I didn't use olives, steamed the kale on the side and added sliced sweet potato.  Both versions are good!

~Fantastico~

Veggie Sushi, Miso and Cucumber Salad

My First Attempt at Sushi!

 

It might not be the prettiest, but it was tasty!

Sushi, serves 2:

Ingredients:

1. 2/3 cups short grain brown rice
2. 1 cup water
3. 2 Tbsp rice vinegar
4. 2 tsp sugar or rice syrup
5. 2 tsp soy sauce or tamari (use tamari if making gluten free)
6. Nori sheets
7. 1 cucumber
8. Spinach
   
9. 1 medium carrot
10. Gomasio (sesame seeds with salt or seaweed)
11. Wasabi and pickled ginger (if desired) 
12. Small bowl of water

Directions:

•  Rinse rice and bring to a boil with 1 cup water and 1 tsp soy sauce.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 40 minutes.  Move to a cool burner and let stand for 10 minutes.
• While rice cools mix together rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon soy sauce and 2 teaspoons sugar.
• Transfer rice to a glass or plastic bowl and add rice vinegar mixture.  Mix gently.  Place in fridge until cool, about 15 minutes.
• Peel cucumber and carrot.  Slice both very thinly, length wise.  Making sure the pieces are uniform.  You can place a piece of nori next to your veggies to compare length.  Cut off the edges to match the length of the nori sheet.
• Fold the nori sheet in half (hamburger, not hot dog) and break into two pieces.
• Wrap your bamboo mat with plastic wrap.  This helps your roll not stick to the bamboo mat and also makes cleaning very easy.
• Place nori sheet at the bottom of your bamboo mat.  Add rice and smash down along the nori, leaving 1/3 inch at the top of the nori sheet.
• Add veggies along the middle of the rice.  Grab the end of the sushi mat and roll over the veggies.  Pull back tightly on the mat.  Dip you fingers in the water and moisten the nori.  Lift the mat slighly and continue to roll along the remaining nori.  
• Place roll on a cutting board and cut into 3-4 pieces.
• Repeat until all the rice is gone.

Here is a good You Tube clip on how to roll your sushi:



Cucumber Salad:

Ingredients:

1. 2 medium cucumbers
2. 1 Tbsp sugar or rice syrup
3. 1/2 cup rice vinegar
4. 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
   

Directions:

• You should prepare this before you start the rice.  This way it will be cool and marinated by the time the sushi is ready.
• Peel cucumber.  Cut length wise and de-seed.  You can do this by using a spoon to scape the seeds out.
• Chop into thin slices. 
• In a bowl, mix together the sugar, rice vinegar and toasted sesame oil.  Add the cucumbers and mix gently.
• Place in the refrigerator to cool.  Top with Gomasio.

Serve with instant miso soup (or the paste version). Garnish with wasabi, pickled ginger and Gomasio.

~Yum~

~Hearty Veggie Stew with Dumplings~

Serves 4
Ingredients:

1.  4-5 Tbs olive oil
2. 1 rutabaga
   
3. 4 shallots
4. 2 garlic cloves
5. 1 large carrot 
6. 1 large celery stick
7. 1 lb colored potatoes (red, yellow, blue, etc.)
8. 1 tsp caraway seeds
9. 1 1/2 tsp paprika
10. 1 tsp cumin
11. 1 tsp Italian seasonings
12. 1 tsp bay leave pieces or 1 whole bay leaf
13. Salt & Pepper
    
14. 1 can diced tomatoes
15. 3-4  cups vegetable broth

 Dumplings:

1. 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2. 2 tsp baking powder
3. 1/2 tsp salt
   
4. 1 Tbs dried or fresh chives, chopped
5. 1/2 cup Earth Balance
6. 5 Tbs vegetable broth
   
7. Pepper to taste

 Directions:

• Finely mince the garlic.  Chop celery, carrot, rutabaga, and potatoes into 1/4-1/2 inch pieces.
• Heat oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat.
• Add all chopped vegetables and whole shallots to the heated oil.  Add seasonings. Cook for about 12-15 minutes. 
  
• Add canned tomatoes with liquid and vegetable broth.
• Bring to a boil and cover.  Let simmer for 25-30 minutes.  Add more salt, pepper or any additional seasonings if needed. Vegetables should be turning soft at this point.
• Prepare the dumplings by mixing the dry ingredients in a bowl with softened Earth Balance and vegetable broth.
• Roll into 8-10 dumplings and place onto a cutting board or plate.
• Once the vegetables are semi-soft, add the dumplings to the soup.  Make sure there is plenty of space for the dumplings to expand.  They should not be touching.
• Cover and let simmer for an additional 15-20 minutes.

Serve with a fresh green salad or a kale salad.  I paired mine with a raw purple kale salad.  Check out this clip for the recipe:



Here is a run down of the ingredients:

1. Kale (I used purple curly kale) de-stemmed and finely chopped
2. Olive oil
3. Fresh squeezed lemon juice
4. Pine nuts 
5. Golden raisins
6. Hemp seeds (optional, I added them to my salad)
   
7. Salt & Pepper
   

You will want to make this salad a few hours before hand so that the kale can tenderize in the fridge.  The dressing of salt, oil and lemon juice help break down the tough fibers of the kale leaves.

~This is a meal that will really stick to your bones~