If you love the sweet, juicy, cinnamony taste of apple crumble then you will love this! This is a raw and vegan version – but do not let that put you off! It is surprisingly sweet and the crumble has a lovely texture that goes so well with the crunchy apples, and it tastes even better when you leave the crumble for a while so the cinnamony juices can soak into the apples…mmmm.

I used the recipe on the Love Veggies and Yoga blog.

To make the crust:

• 1/2 cup oats
• 1/3 cup almond meal
• 2 medjool dates (I had to use a few more because mine were a bit dry)

Mix everything together in a food processor, then squish it into the bottom of a container and sprinkle with (lots) of ground cinnamon.

To make the filling:

• 2 apples, cored and diced
• 1/4 cup agave
• 1/4 cup brown sugar (I just used more agave instead)
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• dash of vanilla

Mix all of the ingredients into a bowl so that the apple is well coated then pour it all over the crust.

To make the topping:

• 1/3 cup oats
• 1/3 cup almond meal
• 1/4 cup agave
• 1/4 cup brown sugar (again I just used agave)

Whiz it all up in a blender/food processor the chuck on top of the apples.

All done! Your apple crumble is ready to eat or you could let it sit in the fridge for a while to soak the apples. Delicious!

Enjoy!

This is a raw cookie that was only just created by Love Veggies and Yoga and I just had to try it, especially since I had all of the ingredients ready to go in my pantry! Let me tell you, these cookies are beauuuutiful! I found it very hard to not eat all if the cookie dough in one go…

For my version,

You will need:

• 1/2 cup LSA (linseed, sunflower seed, almond) meal
• 2/3 cup almond meal
• 3 tbsp maple syrup
• 3 tbsp agave nectar
• 2 tbsp almond butter
• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• dash of vanilla extract

Mix all of the ingredients together than form into balls, cookies, whatever! I added a dried cherry to each of my cookies just cause I am addicted to them at the moment and everything is better with a cherry on top!

How easy is that?! Not much effort but the result is DELICIOUS!

Enjoy!

Pistachio Ice Cream Recipe

Ingredients:

1 15 oz can light coconut milk, divided

2 15 oz cans regular coconut milk

2/3 cup light agave nectar

1/4 tsp salt

2 tbsp vanilla bean paste (or pure vanilla extract)

2 tbsp almond extract

2 cups shelled raw unsalted pistachios

Instructions:

In a food processor, grind pistachios to a fine powder. Skim top layer of coconut milk batter with a large spoon and discard. Whisk pistachios into batter and freeze according to your ice cream maker manufacturer instructions. Transfer ice cream to an airtight container and freeze for at least 2 hours before serving.

La historia se cuenta desde los
hoteles de Mérida

OH MY!

Storm number 5 for the week rolled in this evening, and made itself known. Not only was there thunder and lightning, but our backyard looked like this.

Although I wished it was snow, it was only hail. Large, pelting hail. So much that we had accumulation, on the street even.

But before all this weather drama, I had made myself a matcha green tea latte while enjoying some figure skating in HD.

Not as pretty as Starbucks, but tasted just as good.

After all the poetry on ice was done, I made my way to the gym to get my sweat on via the stairclimber and stationary bike. I made it home just as the storm was starting – perfect timing!

Alas, we ended up sending my dad back out in the mess to get dinner. It’s Friday, take out is to be expected.

Can you guess what we had?

Hello delicious Pizza Hut pizza. My choice was the Veggie Mediterranean – roasted red pepper, babay spinach, feta cheese, red onions, tomatoes, black olives, and mozzarella. But I nixed the olives, and had them replaced with mushrooms. Much better!

And since I obviously hadn’t consumed enough refined white flour today, I grabbed a couple of those damn tasty cheesy bread sticks.

Go big or go home, right?

As much as Pizza Hut wouldn’t be my pizza joint of choice, they do make a pretty decent veggie pizza. Not too skimpy on the toppings (although, if I made it myself, I’d totally add more).

Sienna was all attitude when she found out pizza was for dinner – not really a food that shares well with kitties.

Who am I kidding – she’s all attitude all the time

There was hockey to be watched this evening (Canucks win, 5- 2), and hot chocolate to be consumed, with marshmallows again

One would think that, at 12:10 am, it would be bed time. But no…there is more figure skating on TV. Seriously CBC Sports, why do you do this to me? I *could* PVR it and watch it tomorrow, but I want to see it now! Looks like I’ll be camping out on the couch for the next hour or so. Night!

Things can get a little hairy around the holidays for those of us on a paleo/primal diet.  Stuffing and casseroles as far as the eyes can see, its no wonder I’m already getting mentally prepped to try and maintain my Paleo innocence.   I’m trying to get ahead of the curve this year by thinking of ways to make it through T-Day without totally falling off the Paleo wagon.

Here’s what I’ve come up with so far.

I don’t know about your family but mine focuses on two things - meat and dessert.  Meat I can handle, no veggies and tons of sugary delectables are almost too much for me.  In such a case, I offer to bring sides, and of course I pick sides that I know will probably not be the hottest item on the menu but at least it’s healthy.  In fact, this tactic of bringing a side can work with any dinner invite.  If you’re like me and you grew up with southern hospitality, or were raised with servitude-type manners, I always feel the need to bring something to contribute to a dinner.  If you ask the host/hostess ahead of time what will be on the menu you can then offer to bring a Paleo friendly dish.  This year for Thanksgiving I’m bringing some paleo veggies, sweet potato casserole, and a paleo sweet potato/pumpkin pie.

Here are my recipes:

• 1. Roasted veggies:

This I can’t take any credit for, Father Andrew from our gym has become a master at roasting veggies so I steal this from him.  The veggies will consist of : baby bell peppers, zucchini, carrots, onion, and cherry tomatoes.  Coat in olive oil, sprinkle with seasoning of choice, and roast at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes.

• 2. Paleo Sweet Potato Casserole:

3 cups sweet potatoes, mashed

2 tbsp Agave, or sweeten to taste

4 eggs, beaten

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp lemon juice

½ tsp nutmeg

1 tsp cinnamon

Pinch of salt

1.5 cups coconut milk

1 cup chopped pecans

1 stick butter

1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

Peel SP and boil, then mash the SP while they are still hot.  Add agave, vanilla, lemon, and seasonings.  Beat eggs and add to coconut milk then slowly add to the SP mixture.  For topping, mix pecans and shredded coconut with a little honey or agave.

Bake at 400 degrees until firm.

• 3. Pumpkin and/or Sweet Potato Pie:

I’m using a pie recipe from MDA for the pumpkin and a sweet potato recipe from Catalyst.  For the sweet potato I’ll use the crust recipe from MDA.

Hopes this helps. Remember tons of meat, non-casseroled veggies, and light on the dessert and you should be fine.  Happy Holidays!

Tres países se disputan la denominación de Origen del Nopal y el maguey, plantas originarias de México. China, Japón y México luchan por obtener la denominación de origen, la cual es una manera de proteger legalmente  el modo de producir, y la calidad de un producto alimenticio, según la zona geográfica, esto se hace con la finalidad de  que los demás productores no se aprovechen del buen nombre  y reputación que se ha logrado a lo largo de muchos años, por los productores originales.

Ayer 18 de noviembre 2009, encontramos en la edición en línea de El Universal: ”… 

En noviembre de 2007, la Cámara de Diputados de México pidió a la Secretaría de Economía defender los derechos de origen y producción del nopal y el maguey (agave) ante la posible amenaza de que China y Japón patenten estos vegetales.

Los diputados aprobaron por unanimidad un “punto de acuerdo” en el que solicitan al Gobierno federal que proteja el derecho que tiene el Estado mexicano sobre estas variedades vegetales y sus denominaciones de origen.

Para la promoción del producto, la Sederec dirige el Programa Integral del Nopal, que incluye asesoramiento en la aplicación de tecnología, la investigación, la búsqueda de canales de comercialización, el manejo adecuado de parcelas con prácticas culturales mínimas, entre otras acciones.(…)”

Para mayor información pued consultar los siguientes enlaces:

http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/640706.html

http://www.sederec.df.gob.mx/intro.html

http://www.sederec.df.gob.mx/boletin24.html

Just got into the Mile High City tonight and headed straight to the grub spot aka. The Hornet. Convienently located around the corner from my friend J.R.’s place this was exactly what was needed after a travel day(even if it only was from LA). The menu is really on point and the pricing ain’t all bad for portion size. They have happy hour specials that kick ass and even offer them on the weekend which is pretty cool. You can find more info here http://www.hornetrestaurant.com/#/home

Buffalo BBQ Bacon Burger...LEGIT

Breckenridge Agave Wheat goes down eeaaaasssy and for $3 ain't bad!

Living in Seattle, coffee is about as ubiquitous as the rain. Everyone drinks coffee (well, ok, I know of a few exceptions, and more power to them). Now, I’m not a coffee addict. I could just as easily drink decaf as the regular stuff. But I do have a major fondness for the latte. It is my coffeehouse drink of choice, and I always feel it’s a luxury to have one (it doesn’t even need to be a flavored one). That rich foam, the intensity of the espresso….

But! A daily latte fix can be expensive, to say the least. While M and I don’t own an espresso machine (…yet…) we do have a regular coffee maker, and we’ve developed a method for making faux lattes for a morning treat every once in a while. And here I’ll share the process!

First we brew a strong pot of coffee (not too much, since there’s only two of us).

brew that coffee

Next, into two mugs, we add about 1/4 cup of milk, half & half, or soy milk (depending on what we have around). This time, we used vanilla soy milk, yummmm.

soy milk in mugs

Then, (because in a real latte, the milk is steamed), we pop the mugs in the microwave for about 35-40 seconds. You can also do this in a pan on the stove if you’re adverse to the microwave.

Once the milk is nice and warm, I like to add a little agave nectar to sweeten it up a bit. Agave is an excellent sweetener and so good in coffee!

adding agave is optional

Now comes the most crucial element of making this pretend latte. A key tool you need, is a milk frother. I bought ours ages ago at IKEA – it’s called PRODUKT, and it only cost $1.99 (and we’ve gotten so much use out of it!).

produkt

Now the fun starts…you just put the end of the frother in the milk, and turn it on! The milk starts to foam up from the vibration of the wand.

frothing the milk

Once your milk is nice and foamy, pour in your coffee. It will cut straight through the foam.

adding coffee

Now all you have to do is sit back and enjoy your rich, foamy, coffee-loving beverage. And the best thing is, it costs just pennies to make. While I still love the luxury of getting a barista-made latte, our improvised homemade version ain’t half bad

faux latte with cinnamon

]]> http://heatherfeatherworld.wordpress.com/2009/11/18/raspberry-ganache-fudge-cake/ Wed, 18 Nov 2009 04:05:35 +0000 heatherfeatherworld http://heatherfeatherworld.wordpress.com/2009/11/18/raspberry-ganache-fudge-cake/

So, I got a new food processor for my birthday – yay!! I just had to make something extra-special to use it for the first time, so I decided on Ani Phyo’s Raspberry Ganache Fudge Cake! It is one of her recipes that I have been craving to make for a long time – I just didn’t have a food processor! My friend who also appreciates healthy and wacky foods was coming over that arvo so I thought it would be the perfect time to make something so decadent and interesting. This is how my cake turned out:

Doesn’t it look beautiful?! (If I do say so myself). AND can you believe it is raw and vegan?! It looks just like any other chocolate ganache cake.

I got the recipe from my Ani Phyo’s Raw Food Desserts book – probably my favourite recipe book. Some of you may be quite shocked at the ingredients used to make this cake, but trust me, it works!!

Ingredients

Fudge Cake:

• 3 cups dry walnuts (I used a mix of walnuts, pecans and cashews)
• 2/3 cup unsweetened cacao powder (you can use cocoa powder but it won’t be raw or super-healthy)
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1 cup pittede Medjool dates

Frosting:

• 1/3 cup pitted Medjool dates
• 1/4 cup agave nectar
• 1/2 cup ripe avocado flesh (about 1 medium avocado)
• 1/3 cup cacao powder

Filling:

• 1/2 cup raspberries (or any berry and however much you like)

Method

To make the cake:

• Combine nuts, cacao powder, and salt in a food processor and pulse until coarsely mixed.
• Add the dates and pulse until mixed well.
• Shape dough into 2 stackable cakes of desired shape and set aside.

To make the frosting:

• Combine the dates and agave nectar in the food processor and process until smooth.
• Add the avocado and process until smooth.
• Add the cacao powder and process until smooth.

To serve:

• Frost the top of one of the cakes with half the frosting and top with raspberries.
• Stack the second cake on top and frost the top and side.
• You can eat the cake now, or you could put it in the fridge for a few hours to firm up like I did.

The assembled cake will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.

I can tell you, this cake is absolutely delicious! In fact, I was surprised at how yummy it is! The cake dough is really chocolatey and has a nice dense texture, and the frosting is really shiney and thick and luscious and tastes divine  This is something that I will definitely be making again, and again, and again! It would also taste nice with glace cherries…yes I am a little addicted to these.

Enjoy this beautiful cake!

This slice is deeeeelicious! I used the Never Fail Chocolate Slice recipe from the Flannerys Natural Grocers website and made it as healthy as I could, except for the flour After I cooked it I decided that it needed some extra moisture so I made up a Cinnamon Sauce and drizzled it over the top, which you can see in this picture:

To make the Chocolate and Coconut Slice you will need:

• 1 cup plain flour (doesn’t matter if it’s wholemeal or even self-raising flour)
• 1/2 cup sugar ( I used agave)
• 1 cup of desiccated coconut
• 1 tablespoon cacao powder
• 185gm butter(or 3/4 cup of oil – I used coconut oil)
• 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla

Here is how you make it:

• Put the dry ingredients into a bowl and add coconut oil (or melted butter) and vanilla and mix well.
• Put in a lamington tin and press down.
• Depending upon your oven, bake in a 180C degree oven for approx 30 – 45 mins, or which a knife inserted comes out clean.
• Turn onto a tray to cool before cutting into squares and digging in!

I found that the slice was quite crumbly when it is hot so you really have to let it cool before cutting it up into squares and eating it. The slice has a different texture – it is crumbly, soft, dense and moist at the same time. I thought that it might need something to make it a little more moist and sweet (and decadent) so I made a Cinnamon Sauce from my Ani Phyo raw desserts book to drizzle over the top.

Cinnamon Sauce

• 1/2 c agave nectar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

Simply add all the ingredients to a jar. Pop the lid on and shake it up! Too easy! I poured the entire jar over the slice and it soaked into it…yummmm.

I shared this slice with about 8 people as well as myself and it was a hit with everyone! Well, except for my littlest sister who said it tasted like off milk…but I am choosing to disregard that comment in light of the many compliments I received from everyone else!

Enjoy!

2 medium avocados (depends on how much you want to make)

1/2 cup water (this is to get the avocado creamy and moving in the blender – continue to add water as necessary)

1/2 cup agave

2 pinches of salt

1/4 cup raw cacao powder

put all ingredients into a blender, blend until smooth and serve.

makes about 2 cups

I think next time, I’m going to spruce it up with some vanilla, cinnamon and substitute coconut water for the water…get back to you on that one.

Lagunatic went to the grocery store today. We were out of milk. And coffee filters. $96 later I realized why husbands hate their wives sometimes. Anyway, I love perusing the health food aisle where I can always find something good to tide the kids over until Jimmy gets home from his week long business trip and cooks us something edible.

I stumbled upon the rice cake section. Instantly, I was transported back to the health food craze of the early ’80s. My mom, hair all permed, started bringing home rice cakes and banana chips. I, hair all permed, dug in thinking I was doing my body good.

Nostalgia is an incredible marketing ploy and I went home with a beautiful cellophane wrapped package of honey nut rice cakes. After a wonderful Jimmy-cooked dinner of steak, roasted potatoes, sauteed mushrooms and steamed broccolini I took a break and surfed the web a bit. When my delectable dinner had settled I started to crave something crunchy and remembered the brand spanking new package of CRUNCHY rice cakes beckoning me from the pantry. Over I went, tearing open the package and gently freeing a brittle sweet cake. I took a bite and instantly had a question:

Was this package from the original shipment back in 1982???

Damn, those things are stale!!!!! Yuck! I think I’d rather lick agave syrup off of some drywall. Thank destiny I married a Korean guy – my kids’ll eat ANY fucking thing with rice in it.

*note to self; hand Julian the dust buster as soon as I hit the publish button on this post*

Signed,

I wonder if I could scrub the bathtub with them.

So, I know it doesn’t take much to make a vegan cocktail.  But the fancy libation has become a rediscovered art, and to make a good one can make your name in New York in this inebriated renaissance.  So, while not a vegan myself, I put some research into making the perfect gimlet (sans high fructose corn syrup, so no Rose’s lime juice), with myself as test subject.  It takes a well crafted beverage to get Emily drinking, and this met her approval, so for your vegan happy hour, get out these ingredients:

1 shot (+ or -, if it’s Friday, +) Stolichnaya original vodka.  Or another brand if you prefer.  Emily likes it because it’s Russian, like  her.

1 1/2 ounces lime juice.  We have the all natural 365 brand stuff.

1/2 ounce or so agave nectar.

Lots of ice.

Pour the vodka and lime juice in a martini shaker full of ice.  Pour all of the nectar over juice, vodka, and ice.  Give it a really good shake, preferably while shaking your butt around a  little as a crowd-pleaser.  You have to shake it really really well to get the nectar to assimilate into the vodka and juice, so don’t be afraid to really get down with it.  Strain over new ice into your glass of choice.  I think it looks particularly nice in a martini glass, especially the ones we have that are deeper and have a smaller diameter than traditional martini glasses.  It should come out a nice, healthy but somewhat neon green with a fine, almost fizzy froth on top.  Drink, and thank the original navy doctors who invented this classic for preventing the scurvy you would’ve surely gotten otherwise.

yesterday was a great day!  11/11/2009   all of those elevens swirling around just injected some pep in my step, some luck on my side too!  i scored a spirooli spiralizer for $6.99 at value village!  you’d better believe i was snatching that up, i needed an upgrade (see below, my new baby is the white one)

anyhow, so what to do with a spiralizer but, get to making some zuuddles!  last night i enjoyed the zuuddles with two different sauces (not at once!)  the late lunch meal was a sweet soy dressing and late dinner meal was a savoury pesto.  i ate off the first meal without a chance to take a picture of it, but i did take a picture of the pesto dish.

pesto sauce

raw pistachios, olive oil, cilantro, salt, collard greens (note:  i wouldn’t suggest doing collard green leaves in pesto if you can’t take the bitterness – stick to basil or cilantro), tomatoes, garlic

add ingredients (all except tomatoes and extra olive oil) to food processor until smooth, then add tomatoes and extra oil

after tossing the pesto into the zuuddles, garnish with:  hemp seeds, olives, cherry tomatoes, parsley and sun dried tomatoes

or

the sweet soy sauce

nama shoyu, lemon, olive oil, garlic & ginger grated, agave, hot chili peppers

after tossing your zuuddles, garnish with:  hemp seeds and sprouted black sesame seeds

***

now last night my nightmare inspired my dinner.  i dreamt that i was eating mcdonald’s french fries and hashbrowns (i haven’t eaten anything – not even a salad – from mcdonald’s for almost 10 years)  in anycase, i decided to make some jicama frys with fresh ketchup.

jicama frys

cutting through this is a little difficult, but i’d suggest peeling it first (which can be difficult as well)

so cut the jicama into frys (however you want, chunky or lean) toss with a little olive oil, sea salt & ground pepper

ketchup

1 tomato, handful of sundried tomatoes, basil, splash of apple cider vinegar, small handful of raisins, a spoon of tamarind paste – blend (in the blender) and enjoy!

k…i need to sleep…workout in the morning!

::good food and butterfly markers along the way::

yesterday my husband and i had a beautiful dinner at rawlicious [www.rawlicious.ca]. i had a vegetable ’stirfry’ on a bed of parsnips and pinenuts, a side salad with an agave sweetened poppy seed dressing and then strawberry cheesecake for dessert. he had spring rolls, zuchetti (zuchinni spiraled into spaghetti) with a pesto sauce, lemonade and mint cocao chip ice cream.

while he’s not a raw foodist, and every question about the food was, ‘is it cooked?’ or the statement, ‘this isn’t real…pizza, spaghetti, etc;’ — he was still there, present and trying it. the hit with him was the ice cream and the strawberry sauce on my cheesecake. admittedly, the ice cream was pretty damn good, i would say it could fool anyone!

i love, love, love good food. it makes me happy, makes me dance in my seat (for real!). i’m now officially raw for 27 days and it feels great! i celebrate each day with a smile, in fact, today after my workout (great one, i might add), i passed by that smiling butterfly, reminding me of an email that i got today from laura hollick [www.soulartstudio.com] called butterfly birthing. see, the past couple days, my dude and i have been talking about my music and how i can really shape the sound. so when i got the email, then saw the smiling butterfly, it just affirmed to me that i’m on the right track, my track. and i look forward to seeing what my wings will look like.

::carrot eddo ‘fried’ rice::

equipment:food processor

ingredients:

eddos

carrots

celery

peppers (red, yellow or orange)

for garnish:

sprouted black sesame seeds

cold hulled hemp seeds

sauce:

nama shoyu or bragg’s

cold pressed olive oil

raw agave nectar

green onions

cayenne pepper

chop all ingredients in the food processor. add sauce and top with garnish, and eat.

::Terryaki unStirfry on SweetPotato ‘rice’::

peeled sweet potato, chopped in food processor into ‘rice’

cucumber,carrots, orange peppers, snow peas, celery (whatever else you want to add), julienned
mushrooms (any variety) marinated in teryaki sauce (see below)
sprouted black sesame seeds, avocado, sunflower sprouts, tomatoes (for garnish)
lettuce (for presentation)

terryaki sauce:

nama shoyu or wheat-free tamari sauce
maple syrup
olive oil
green onion (finely chopped)
cayenne pepper
note: make this saucy so that you have a little excess to coat your ‘rice.’

slice mushrooms first and let marinate while preparing/arranging the rest of the vegetables. layer vegetables: lettuce, sweetpotato rice, julienned veggies, avocado, tomato, sprouts, mushrooms & sesame seeds.

enjoy!

::sbt raw creation: a sweetbitter life salad::

1/2 bunch wild dandelion greens (out of my backyard!)
1/3 bunch organic spinach
1 organic tomato
1/2 organic mango
1/2 organic avocado

lemon sweet basil dressing:
olive oil
lemon or apple cider vinegar
raw agave or raw honey
celtic salt
3-4 basil leaves
blend all ingredients

::another sbt creation: The dressing that rhymes with FUN! (conceived in Regina, SK)::

olive oil
bragg’s
ginger
garlic
honey and/or agave
hot chili pepper flakes
coconut oil

we had this dressing on top of sprialed zucchini, juliened cucumber & carrots with hemp seeds as garnish. then for a little dessert, we ate a small handful of cashews & pecans with a small drizzle of the dressing.

**there’s miku, sad that the food is done
***and what was left of the dressing

breakfast, yesterday and today

raw cornmeal
fresh corn (cut off the cob)
flax oil
~blend ingredients, add spice after~
sea salt, agave, fresh ground pepper (to taste)

***
raw oatmeal
sprouted oat groats (soaked overnight, blended until smooth)
agave, sea salt (to taste)
cinnamon
flax oil

This chocolate coconut icecream is to die for! When I first made it I wasn’t too sure about how it would turn out, and the mixture before I froze it didn’t taste particularly special. However, when I pulled it out the freezer today to have some for the first time I was very pleasantly surprised! It has the right amount of chocolatey goodness and has an amazing texture that is unlike store-bought icecream. And what’s more, this icecream is completely vegan and can be made completely raw! Basically this icecream is ridiculously good for you! The ultimate guilt-free dessert for summer!

I adapted this icecream recipe from the recipe on  Love Veggies and Yoga’s blog.

You will need:

• 1.5 cups dried coconut
• 3/4 c maple syrup or agave to be raw (I used a mixture of both).
• 3/4 c raw cacao powder
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 c coconut oil
• 1/4 c chia seeds

Mix all of the ingredients together with a spoon/spatula then put into a container and then into the freezer. Wait a few hours or so then ta da! You have luscious, rich, chocolatey-coconut icecream! I found the glace cherries matched the flavour of the icecream well and I might add them in next time for a cherry ripe icecream!

Coconut oil is ridiculously good for you, as it helps to speed up your metabolism and is also antiviral. Chia seeds are a great source of protein, and raw cacao is a fantastic source of iron and antioxidants! Guilt-free! Let me know if you have any questions about any of the ingredients.

Enjoy!

For dinner I was trying a new recipe from Real Simple magazine – Creamy Rice With Roasted Shrimp.

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400º F. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onion until soft, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the rice and wine and cook, stirring, until the wine is absorbed.
2. Add 2 cups water and 1⁄4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Simmer, covered, over low heat until the water is absorbed and the rice is tender, 18 to 20 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, on a rimmed baking sheet, toss the shrimp, tomatoes, thyme, garlic, the remaining tablespoon of oil, and 1⁄2 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Roast until the shrimp are cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve over the rice.

Prepping dinner with the recipe pulled up online.

Shrimp and tomatoes before they went in the oven

 

The little fortune on the end of my tea bag made me smile

My new in-laws came to dinner this week for the first time since our wedding.  My day was super busy, so I made one of my fave no-fail salads to accompany the main dish. It’s simple, elegant and the low-cal dressing is packed with delicious tomato flavor. The original Tyler Florence recipe is a great starting point, but you’ll see I tweaked it a bit.

The dressing is AWESOME at the height of summer when tomatoes are peaking, but you can find decent grape and cherry tomatoes year-round in most stores, just make sure they have good flavor. I always double the dressing recipe since my husband likes it as dip and sandwich spread. If I don’t, its usually half gone by the time we get to the table.

Greens with Roasted Tomato Dressing and Goat Cheese Croutons

Serves: 4

Meaty Monitor: Full of flavor,  but not quite big enough for the main event.

Ingredients

• One pint of cherry tomatoes (I threw in a few chopped Early Girl tomatoes I picked up at the farmer’s market too)
• 1 large clove of garlic, smashed
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil,  plus 2 tablespoons for the dressing (Tyler uses ¼ cup, but you can get by with less)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• ½ teaspoon of agave nectar** (or 1 teaspoon of sugar)
• Handful fresh parsley leaves
• ½ sourdough or french baguette, sliced into toasties or croutons
• 8 ounces (1/2 log) creamy goat cheese, room temp. for spreading. A little melted parmesan on the croutons is also delish and lower in calories
• Your favorite greens. I used baby romaine leaves and butter lettuce leaves.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the tomatoes in a roasting disch with the garlic. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes until the tomatoes have burst and juices are slightly caramelized.

Remove from the oven and place in a blender with all the pan juices. Add the red wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons olive oil, sugar, parsley, and a little salt and pepper. Pulse until well combined, but I like to leave it a little chunky. Set aside to cool in the refrigerator while you prepare the croutons.

Toast the sliced baguette. I spray one side with a little canola or olive oil (Trader Joes sells great oil sprays). Remove from oven and while they’re warm, smear each piece with some goat cheese. Set aside.

Plating is easy. Lettuce leaves topeed with cheesy croutons, and I let everyone dress their own plates at the table. As always, it was a hit!

- Hill

** Agave nectar is a healthy alternative to white sugar that I sub in whenever possible – a trick I learned at Rancho La Puerta. Trader Joes, Whole Foods and other gourmet markets sell Agave nectar usually near the honey or syrup.