After a traditional Thanksgiving weekend, I decided to make some aromatic, and spicy ethnic food. I pulled out a “somewhat Paleo” recipe book, written by Dr. Mark Hyman called “The 10-Day Detox Diet Cookbook“, based on his book “The Blood Sugar Solution“. It’s basically a healthy cookbook with a lot of Paleo recipes. This dish called out to me with all of the aromatic spices, like turmeric, cumin, and coriander. I made some slight modifications and spiced it up a bit. Warning: It did take a while to prep, approximately 40 minutes as I like to chop the ingredient a bit smaller than Dr. Hyman recommended, but was well worth it. I did not include the recommended eggplant, as my husband “claims” that he is allergic to it. (What REALLY happened: when he was in college, after a dinner of eggplant parmesan, and bit too much to drink, he threw up, and now claims it was the eggplant he was allergic to). Ha! Anyway, you can always add one chopped eggplant to this dish. Oh, and this dish is also called “Tagine”. Also, if you want to go vegan, substitute the chicken for firm tofu and reduce cooking time by 15 minutes.
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs cut into 1″ pieces and trimmed of fat (if going vegan use firm Tofu)
1/2 head of cauliflower, cut into 1-inch florets
10 crimini mushrooms, trimmed and quartered
1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 large zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch half circles
2 cups of chicken broth (or vegetable broth is going vegan)
10 grape tomatoes, cut in half
1/4 cup sliced green olives
chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish
Directions:
In a dutch oven or heavy stock pot (I used a cast iron dutch oven), heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the onions, garlic, and ginger and saute gently until the onions begin to caramelize, 10-15 minutes. Turn the heat to low, and add 3/4 teaspoon of the salt and all of the dried spices. Saute the spices and onions about 2 minutes. Salt the chicken (or tofu) with the remaining salt, and add to the pot. Turn heat up to medium, and saute for 3 minutes, until all of the chicken (or tofu) is well coated with spices. Add the cauliflower and mushrooms and saute about 5 minutes. Then Add the bell peppers and zucchini, and saute until they soften about 5 minutes. Add the chicken (or vegetable) stock and bring to a simmer. Simmer the stew gently, stirring occasionally, until all of the vegetables are tender and the liquid is thickened and reduce approximately 15-20 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and cook for 1 more minute. Stir in olives. Plate and serve with cilantro garnish. Serves 4
Brussel sprouts are such a great winter treat, as long as they have a little sweetness, and are super easy to prepare. I love them a little crunchy which a touch of garlic. And as we all know, EVERYTHING is better with Bacon!!!
5 cloves of garlic, chopped
6 slices bacon, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. I like to cook the chopped bacon in a small saucepan until crispy, drain them on a paper towel, then reserve the bacon grease. Toss the Brussel sprouts with the bacon grease, olive oil, maple syrup, salt, and garlic. Put the mixture onto the baking dish and spread out evenly. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes. Add the bacon, toss, and bake for another 2 minutes. Your Brussel sprouts should be tender and should have some crispy leaves.
Kale Salad with Togarashi, Apples, Pecorino, Sweet Almonds and Dried Cranberries
This is one of my favorite salads. With Kale being one of the highest nutrient rich foods (and ANDI score of 1000), I try to squeeze this in my dinners as often as possible. The most important thing with kale is that you can’t have it dry, it really needs a lot of love, which translates to oil! First you needs to make sure your kale is washed, which sometimes, takes wiping down the front and back of every leaf. You then need to completely dry it, because as well all know, oil and water don’t mix. Next you have the remove larger ribs that run down the center. Then you cut all of the leafs off. Try to keep them in large pieces. You then stack a series of leaves and roll them, like rolling a cigar. You will have a tightly wound up spiral of leaves. You then cut ⅛” thick (or thin) so you have small strands of leaves, like in photo above. Once all of the leaves have been nicely cut into thin and long pieces, place them into a bowl. Now you give it some love, pour in the EVO Oil into a bowl and toss around so that all of the pieces get a nice coating of oil, this is what softens it up. Next add apples, dried cranberries, chopped sweet almonds, pecorino and toss well to cover all ingredients in oil. Your last step is to add the Japanese red pepper (Togarashi). I would add this slowly, then toss around and see how much is enough for your individual taste. Some people love the red pepper spice, others have less tolerance for hot foods (like my husband). It does contain a bit of salt, so just keep tasting to see if you need additional salt in your salad.
Ingredients:
Large bunch of Curly Kale
2 tbsp EVOO (olive oil)
1 Gala Apple (thinly sliced)
⅓ cup Dried Cranberries
⅓ cup Sweet almonds (chopped)
½ cup of shredded pecorino cheese
½-1 tsp Togarashi (Japanese Spice)
¼ tsp salt (optional)
Curly Kale
Kale with ribs removed
Rolled Kale leaves rolled
I also found some interesting information about Kale from Dr. Perlmutter (author of Grain Brain). I have included it here, but you can also visit this link to read the rest.
Kale, a member of the cabbage family, is power packed with vitamins A, K, C, with meaningful amounts of B vitamins as well as trace minerals. It’s low in carbs and calories. Kale is rich in a chemical called sulforaphane, and this may be one of kale’s most important health attributes.
Sulforaphane is a sulfur-rich chemical that activates a gene pathway in animals as well as humans called Nrf2, and when Nrf2 is turned on by consuming sulforaphane rich foods, several important health-promoting mechanisms are accentuated. These include a reduction in inflammation, enhanced antioxidant protection, and powerful amplification of our ability to detoxify potential damaging chemicals.
This recipe is just as simple, and slightly more elegant, than your typical “baked potato with sour cream” and chives. I used small red potatoes, cutting them into ½” pieces. The cream topper makes a perfect side along side any meat-based dish. Round reds are often referred to as “new potatoes,” but the term “new” technically refers to any type of potato that is harvested before reaching maturity. I roasted these till the outside was crispy and the inside perfect soft texture.
Ingredients:
20 red potatoes (sliced into ½” pieces)
¼ cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste for potatoes
½ cup Crème Fraîshe
¼ cup sour cream
¼ cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp chopped fresh chives
1 tbsp fresh chopped dill
salt and pepper to taste (for sauce)
Toss the potatoes with olive oil and add salt and pepper. Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Bake until tender inside and crispy exterior. Combine the Crème Fraîshe, sour cream, mayo, chives, dill, salt and pepper. Serve potatoes and add on 2 dollops of cream sauce on top. Pairs nicely with grilled meat.
Cod is another one of my favorite types of fish, flaky and dense, with a mild flavor. If cod is not available, (as some stocks are severely overfished), you could swap out with some more sustainable fish: i.e. cobia, pollack, hake or whiting. I like a crunchy texture to my fish, so I used some Panko breadcrumbs to create a nice crust. I paired this fish with some crispy mushroom, pea/parsley puree and some crispy shoestring sweet potatoes. Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
FOR THE MUSHROOMS
3tbsp oil
10-12ounces mushrooms (cremini, shiitake), cleaned and coarsely chopped
Salt and pepper
2garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp butter
FOR THE FISH
1 ½pounds of cod, cobia or pollack (4 pieces)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 cup of panko crust, enough to cover each piece
3tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Lemon juice, to taste
FOR THE PEA PUREE
¼ cup chopped parsley
1 cup of cooked frozen peas
⅓ cup chopped shallots
⅛ cup EVOO (olive oil)
1 tsp salt
2 oz. Crème Fraîshe
PREPARATION
Make the pea puree. Bring a small pot of water to a boil, salt generously and add parsley leaves. Blanch for 20 seconds only and transfer to a bowl of cold water. Drain and press leaves against strainer to squeeze out water. Using a food processor, add the cooked peas, shallots, parsley and salt. Slowly add in the oil so that all ingredients become a smooth puree. Place the puree into a bowl, and slowly stir in the Crème Fraîshe. Be sure to stir gently with a spoon so it does not separate or turn to butter. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and set aside.
Heat oven to 425 degrees. Place oil into sauté pan and heat on medium-high heat. Salt the fish. Press the panko bread crumbs onto all sides of each piece of fish. Cook the fish on each side (2-3 minutes per side), or until outside crust is golden brown. Place fish into baking dish. Drizzle lemon over the fish and bake 5 to 8 minutes (depending on the thickness of the fillets), until fish is opaque and pulls apart when a fork is inserted.
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high until just beginning to smoke. Arrange mushrooms in skillet in a single layer and cook, undisturbed, until bottom side is golden brown, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, toss mushrooms, and continue to cook, tossing often and reducing heat as needed to avoid scorching, until golden brown all over, about 5 minutes more.
Reduce heat to medium and add butter and garlic to skillet. Tip skillet toward you so butter pools at bottom edge. Spoon butter over mushrooms until butter smells nutty, about 4 minutes. Remove mushrooms from skillet with a slotted spoon.
Place a piece of fish on each of 4 plates. Spoon pea sauce onto plate, next to fish. Place mushrooms on pea sauce and serve.
Wow, how time flies! Sorry for not posting any new recipes these past several months. I have been busy with kid activities and overall… just trying to be a “good parent” to my two teenagers! The ups and downs of being a full-time mom can definitely take it’s toll on a person. But all in all, I am grateful for this new chapter in my life. I am still cooking a ton, but haven’t posted anything, so I thought I would spend some of my summer sharing some of my favorites.
I have tried this recipe several times, and both my husband and son agree this is one of their “top 5” faves! This is a recipe I found on the NY Times website, but made some minor modifications to it. I hope you enjoy! Serves 8-10
FOR THE POLENTA
3cups milk
3 cups water
1teaspoon salt
2cups polenta (I love Bob’s Organic Red Mill Polenta)
4tablespoons butter
⅓ cup grated Parmesan
FOR THE MUSHROOMS
1ounce dried porcini mushrooms
1 cup of home-made chicken broth (or store bought)
6tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pats, divided
3clove garlic, peeled and minced
8ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced thin
1teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1tablespoon soy sauce
2tablespoon heavy cream
1tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
In a large deep pan over high heat, bring the milk and water to a boil; add salt, and gradually stir in polenta. Reduce heat and summer gently, stirring frequently to prevent clumping and sticking, until mixture is very thick (approximately 30-45 minutes). If the polenta becomes quite thick, thin it with 1/2 cup water, stir well and continue cooking. Add up to 1 cup more water as necessary, to keep the polenta soft enough to stir. Stir in butter and the parmesan cheese.
Meanwhile, boil the chicken broth; add in the dried porcini mushroom. Allow to simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the mushrooms, and pat dry, then chop roughly. Reserve the mushroom/chicken stock.
Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a sauté pan set over high heat until it has melted. Add the garlic and cook until it starts to sizzle, about 30 seconds. Do not let the garlic brown.
Add the fresh and reconstituted porcini mushrooms and thyme to the pan, and sauté 8 minutes, turning until browned. Add about 1/4 cup of the mushroom stock to deglaze the surface, using a wooden spoon to scrape at the browned bits. Allow the stock to reduce by half, then turn the heat to medium-low and add the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter, whisking to combine, followed by the soy sauce, cream and olive oil. Allow mixture to cook until it thickens a little, then remove from heat. Taste for seasoning, adding black pepper, salt or more parmesan cheese, if desired.
Place the polenta into warmed bowls, then top with mushrooms and the sauce. Serve immediately.
I have always been a creative person and passionate about learning new trades. I went to an arts focused school where I studied painting, drawing, sculpting, printmaking and graphic design, and ended up as an entrepreneur in a corporate world running operations for several companies. I traveled the world for 15 years, setting up factories, developing, creating and manufacturing new products. I would oversee all parts of the company from the sales and marketing, to the manufacturing and compliance. It was a fun and crazy ride... and, over time; I had also lost sight of what was most important to me... my family!
