Strangely enough, in the past few weeks I have had several close people in my life stop eating gluten and, quite frankly, this boggled my mind. I’m a baker–one of my main materials is flour aka gluten. A strange fear started to well up inside of me, my ego seizing the moment and blaring words across my brain: What if that was youuuuu! What would you doooooo! It’s so scaryeeeeee!! Eeeek!! After about a day of some intense worry, I laughed. Well, I thought to myself, it isn’t me, this actually has nothing to do with me (silly girl), but I could find out more information about it to help out those in my life and myself understand more about what gluten intolerance is.
What I found out was that for some people, gluten activates their immune system and their bodies want to fight with it. This can cause strange things to occur like rashes that look like eczema or severe pain in the belly, ouch. The small intestine is lined with tiny, hair-like projections called villi. Resembling the deep pile of a plush carpet on a microscopic scale, villi work to absorb vitamins, minerals and other nutrients from the food you eat. The gluten harms this villi making it impossible for you to be, well, healthy! A severe form of gluten intolerance is called celiacs disease, and the only reason it is classified as “disease” is because of how the body reacts to the gluten with the immune system (classifying it officially as an autoimmune disorder).
However, there really are tons of options out there for eating gluten free–I was amazed actually. The Gluten-Free Girl, a wonderful blogger, has done an amazing job of taking her gluten intolerance by the reins and living a full and delicious life. Plus, she has tons of recipes, great photos, and is an incredible writer–it’s a site I enjoy often. There is also an entire magazine (yes, glossy, full color, and comes via snail mail) dedicated to gluten free living called, well, Gluten Free Living; a group exists for gluten intolerant people and teens as well as a gluten free restaurant awareness program, listing restaurants that offer gluten free options.
For a short list of things that gluten intolerant people can eat, it’s actually quite wide and varying in textures, flavors, and goodness. They include: amaranth, quinoa, buckwheat, popcorn, cornmeal (polenta and tortillas), millet, as well as breads, cereals, crackers, and pasta made of corn, rice, potato, soy, arrowroot, tapioca, sago, flax, and hominy. What not to eat includes wheat in all of it’s forms.
As I was flipping through this week’s Food Day, I ran across a recipe with the title: GLUTEN FREEDOM, Moroccan Lentil and Garbanzo Bean Soup (in bold). I took this as my queue to research this topic more, come to terms with it for myself, share the information with you, and make this warm, aromatic, and slightly spicy soup. Mom, Dana, this one is for you!
This soup won’t disappoint. It even made my house smell incredible!
P.S. Happy Birthday Mel!
(sauteeing the vegetables)
Moroccan Lentil and Garbanzo Bean Soup, via FOODday
Makes 6 servings
For a little extra spiciness, add about 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper along with the black pepper. Feel free to vary the vegetables as well; try cubed butternut squash, turnips or zucchini. This soup gets even better the next day, once the flavors have married.
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, diced
2 large carrots, diced
2 ribs celery, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons salt (I only needed one, but it’s up to your tastes really…)
1 cup dried brown or green lentils
1 15-ounce can crushed tomatoes
7 cups water
1 15-ounce can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
Juice of 1/2 lemon (I used a whole one, delish)
In a medium pot, heat the oil over moderate heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery and red bell pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables start to soften, about 10 minutes. Stir in the ginger, cumin, cinnamon, pepper, salt, lentils, tomatoes and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, until the lentils are tender, about 30 minutes.
Add the garbanzo beans to the soup and continue simmering about 10 minutes longer. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the cilantro and lemon juice. Taste the soup before serving and add additional salt or black pepper if needed.
Three cheers for gluten freedom!
I love that name for a business! I worked with the wonderful women at Be Nourished to do something a little different at their open house. They just moved to a new space in an actual house which is so appropriate for the work that they do. It is so wonderful to work with people who’s philosophy and ideas are in tune with yours–a treat actually. Their approach to food and healing is absolutely nourishing:
We believe that the capacity and potential to change is within every person. Our passion is helping people explore how an enjoyable relationship with food happens naturally when the focus is more on nurturing the body and mind and less on dieting. We encourage a non-diet approach to food, weight, and health. Our approach helps people heal from the side effects of chronic dieting. People who repeatedly diet often experience a “diet backlash” – increased rigidity regarding good and bad foods, restriction leading to increased binging, reduction in trust of self with food, feelings about not “deserving” food, social withdrawal and shortened duration of dieting episodes.
Dana came to the luncheon I did this summer for one of her clients who is also my friend, Lacy. It was a serendipitous meeting and the pieces kept falling into the right places and I am now working with Be Nourished more frequently. For the open house they wanted a new twist on hour d’oeuvres and a way to incorporate all the senses to demonstrate mindfulness with food through an experience–as opposed to only setting out nice little canapes. So I re-created a taste-station based on the 6 Ayurvedic tastes (salty, sweet, sour, pungent, bitter, astringent) and had samples of all those foods for people to taste what they were. Then, I collaborated with my friend Nicole to come up with a variety of small canapes and snacks that would incorporate these tastes together. It was a big hit and the food was all fantastic.
I baked bread, whole wheat pitas, and made a wonderful Indian Vegetable dish (see recipe below). We used the bread I made for the canapes which included: goat cheese, salmon, and dill; goat cheese and pickled raisins; blue cheese, marionberry jam, assorted crackers, and a piece of rosemary; gluten free brown rice bread, salmon, a slice of meyer lemon, microgreens. I’d have to say the crackers with blue cheese, jam, and rosemary were my favorite–a fantastic melody in my mouth! But it was all truly good.
(goat cheese, capers, salmon–mmm)
(picked raisins, goat cheese, scrumptious)
(These sweet/savory crackers were aromatic and my favorite)
The Indian Vegetable dish actually incorporates all of the tastes in it making it extremely satisfying. This recipe is fairly simple and really hits on all the flavor notes in your mouth. Serve it with some coconut rice, spicy brown rice, or a whole wheat pita (or naan) and you will be good to go!
(Sushi rice–or sticky rice–balled up and rolled in toasted coconut! Can be served sweet or savory, so good!)
Indian Vegetables via The Modern Ayurvedic Cookbook by Amrita Sondhi
*This is actually a recipe for Samosa filling, so feel free to use it in that capacity as well! But I found I loved it over rice or with a pita too–a great addition to your vegetable recipe collection!
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons black mustard seeds
1 cup onions, chopped
1/2 teaspoon tumeric
8 curry leaves (optional–you can find them at most international or indian grocery’s)
3 cups potatoes, parboiled and cubed
1 1/2 cups peas, parboiled
1 1/2 cups carrots, parboiled
juice of 1/2 a lemon (I used a whole one, it was good)
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
2 teaspoons salt
1 small bunch cilantro, finely chopped
1/2 fresh green chili, minced
In a large saucepan on high, heat oil, then add black mustard seeds and cover with a lid until they all pop, about 30 seconds. Stir in chopped onions, then reduce the heat to medium high and sautee for about 4 minutes, until the onions start to brown. Add turmeric and curry leaves and continue to sautee for 1 minute. Stir in potatoes, peas, carrots, lemon juice, cayenne, garam masala, and salt. Mix well and cook for about 3 minutes. Turn off heat, add cilantro and green chilies and mix well. Remove curry leaves and enjoy!
You know when you find a small source of inspiration, like a sparkle that keeps you focused and moving towards your goals? Sometimes, those goals can seem so far away–like they will never happen. Those are the best times to lift the ol’ head up and focus on something else, something small–kind of like an anti-overwhelm. Books tend to do this for me. I can really loose myself in a great book–it becomes almost meditative where I am not thinking, but just doing and reading. I just finished David Lebovitz‘s The Sweet Life in Paris. It is a great read and absolutely hilarious. (I even found myself laughing out loud which is something I don’t usually do). His love for food (especially desserts), his humility, and his honest attitude towards life, change, and growth were absolutely refreshing. He is also a wonderful observer of people and their quirks, including his own–which I totally appreciate 
.
Sometimes, it is necessary to stop and sit quietly. This is something I’ve been thinking a lot about lately–as I am always facing my active disposition to go, go go! But constantly being in motion can actually hinder me in that I miss what is truly important. I know exactly where I get this from too–the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree shall we say 
–and a “strong work ethic” was always a big deal growing up. But sometimes the idea of the strong work ethic can overtake the actual work ethic–in which I tend to spin my wheels more instead of going anywhere.
So I’ve been simmering a lot of thoughts lately–about where I want to go with my business and what my true intentions are. I want to start from a solid foundation, one that completely resonates with my values, philosophies, and heart. This is actually a lot harder than it sounds! I want to do something that can and will grow with me through the years. I believe that these preliminary steps I am taking now will make the world of difference for me down the road. So, the big pot is on the back burner, simmering all it’s flavors together into a wonderful soup. It’ll be done soon, I can feel it–but a watched pot never boils! And this couldn’t be more true when it comes to thinking too much, or paying too much attention to certain thoughts or ideas that just need time and space to breath a little and simmer down into a beautiful sauce.
Speaking of soup, I made a certain birthday man a lovely White Bean, Kale, and Roasted Vegetable Soup . The roasted vegetables were insanely good, although I think I overdid it with the kale in this one. You know, all that kale we have sitting around here, I couldn’t be bothered to only use the allotted 4 cups, but had to throw the whole head in! Not highly recommended, albeit good for you . You could even totally eliminate the kale and it would still be great. This was a hearty and vegetable heavy wonder that will delight your winter table for sure.
I also made a Blueberry Clafoutis for dessert. What a spectacular and amazingly easy dessert to make! If you like custard and simple ingredients, this one is for you. Andrew is a lover of all things blue, especially blueberries–this was a great recipe. The nice thing about a good Clafoutis (pronounced claugh-fooo-teee) is that lots of other fruits can be substituted. The original recipe from The Sweet Life in Paris called for Plums and Raspberries–amazing! But plums are already out of season–le sigh–so I went with the bounty of summer berries we have in our freezer and made him one with his favorite fruit instead. That plum and raspberry recipe WILL be used later–it just sounds too delicious to ignore!
White Bean, Kale, and Roasted Vegetable Soup
via Epicurious
3 medium carrots, peeled, quartered lengthwise
2 large tomatoes, quartered
1 large onion, cut into 8 wedges
1/2 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, cut lengthwise into 1/2-inch-thick wedges
6 garlic cloves, unpeeled
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 cups (or more) canned vegetable broth
4 cups finely chopped kale
3 large fresh thyme sprigs
1 bay leaf 1 15-ounce can Great Northern beans, drained
Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray rimmed baking sheet with oil spray. Arrange carrots, tomatoes, onion, squash and garlic on sheet. Drizzle with oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Bake until vegetables are brown and tender, stirring occasionally, about 45 minutes.
Transfer carrots and squash to work surface. Cut into 1/2-inch pieces; set aside. Peel garlic cloves; place in processor. Add tomatoes and onion; puree until almost smooth. Pour 1/2 cup broth onto baking sheet; scrape up any browned bits. Transfer broth and vegetable puree to large pot. Add 5 1/2 cups broth, kale, thyme and bay leaf to pot; bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered until kale is tender, about 30 minutes.
Add beans and reserved carrots and squash to soup. Simmer 8 minutes to blend flavors, adding more broth to thin soup if necessary. Season with salt and pepper. Discard thyme sprigs and bay leaf. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. Bring to simmer before serving.)
Blueberry Clafoutis
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for preparing the dish
1 1/2 – 2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
3 large eggs
1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/3 cups whole milk
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Liberally butter the bottom and sides of a 2 quart shallow baking dish. Place the berries into the bottom of the dish, set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs until smooth. Whisk the butter and flour into the eggs until completely smooth, then add the vanilla. Whisk in 1/2 cup of the sugar, then the milk. Pour over the berries and bake for 30 minutes. After the 30 minutes is up, open the oven and pull out the entire shelf the clafoutis is sitting on so you have access to it, then sprinkle on the extra 2 tablespoons of sugar, and continue baking for 30 more minutes to give it a nice crusty and golden brown top. Serve warm.
Enjoy!
Yes, I do believe kale to be a magical plant here on earth. It comes in so many forms from leafy and light to dense and quite heavy–I love them all. I felt that kale deserved its own post. This past week, I have been helping Andrew’s parents move into their new home in Colorado. After long days of moving and unpacking boxes, I would fall into bed fast asleep–and dream about kale! As a Jungian enthusiast, I don’t dismiss my dreams lightheartedly. I try to take a moment to think back to what happened in the dream and take a look at the dominant colors, people, actions, and places. I’ve learned a lot about myself this way–it’s good to know what your subconscious mind is working on while you yourself are hard at work doing everything else. It helps me better connect my emotions and my actions, which is always helpful .
Dinosaur Kale
Kale was a predominant thing throughout my dreams because, well, I missed it! Lately, I’ve been sauteing a head of kale with a couple of cloves of garlic and a tablespoon of olive oil as the main part of my dinner–saving the leftover, if there is any–for lunch the next day. And because the nature of the trip–we were all moving and very busy– I went for days without anything green to eat. (However, I did get 6 full days of sun! Ah the glorious trade-offs . I even tried to talk a little kale with one of Andrew’s brothers, but he did not know what it was. Le sigh–me, my kale dreams, and my kale obsession would have to wait for a better outlet–so here it is!
Red Kale
I went to my favorite Portland grocery store today and bought three heads of kale in anticipation for eating it all week. Who knows, I might have to get some more later on in the week . I bought two kinds: dinosaur kale and red leaf kale. There are a lot of others, but these are the most commonly found in American groceries.
I made a Kale Salad with Apple, Radish, Avocado, and Roasted Sunflower seeds from the Complete Tassajara Cookbook. It was divine, super simple, and better for you than any jam packed multi-vitamin. This salad doesn’t have any oils involved either because the flavor of the kale, lemon, honey, and salt are simply magnificent on their own.
Kale is a super-food. It helps protect against cancer, cataracts, is a major source of vitamin A and beta-carrotine (both very anti-cancerous) as well as vitamin C, it promotes lung health and prevents rheumatoid arthritis. Oh, and not mention it’s an aphrodisiac, a great source of fiber and calcium, promotes mental function (yes please!), and lowers cholesterol. Yeah, I’d say that’s pretty super.
Kale Salad with Apple, Avocado, Radish, and Roasted Sunflower Seeds
The Complete Tassajara Cookbook
12-15 leaves dinosaur kale
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons lemon (about 1 lemon)
4 tablespoons honey or agave nectar
1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
black pepper
1 apple
6 radishes
1 avocado
1/2 cup roasted sunflower seeds (preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and roast on a cookie sheet for about 10 minutes)
Wash and cut the kale into 1/4 inch wide strips, leaving the stem on if using dinosaur kale. Place in bowl with the salt and start massaging to release the moisture from the leaves. The salt helps this process and adds a nice flavor. You’ll notice it will start to wither down a bit, becoming a deep, dark green. Add the lemon and honey and continue to massage into the kale until it is all mixed in and the kale has become smaller. Throw in the sliced radishes, cut up pieces of avocado, apple, and roasted sunflower seeds, toss and enjoy!
The other night, I had a few girlfriends over to see the new house, hang out, and catch up. It was so nice to be able to bring my kitchen table outside to the backyard, use candles when it got dark, drink wine, and talk! I love how people can really take you out of your head space–in a refreshing way. What I mean by this is sometimes I find myself so wrapped up in what I am doing, a project, or task, that I forget about everything else. I can get serious tunnel vision when it comes to zeroing in on completing something! But even so, that tunnel vision can creep up on me when it’s not totally necessary–and I find myself using it as a fallback during daily routine stuff which I am not so into. This is when getting together with a bunch of close friends can be really great–they get you out of your head and thinking about completely different things! After this dinner, I felt as if I had exhaled–and definitely laughed a lot.
It’s been a bit hot here in Portland this past week and the tomatoes here are STUNNING. Absolutely gorgeous and in their prime. My favorite are the little green baskets of the heirloom cherry tomatoes you can get at farmer’s markets and the grocery store–little yellow, orange, and red ones. The colors are bright and beautiful and the flavors are even better! So I thought I would showcase these flavors in a simple tomato salad. It was a good idea . I then served a dish of fresh creamy feta and kalamata olives on the side in case anyone wanted to turn it into a Greek salad. I also made hummus and some pitas. I love to make hummus, it is super easy and I know exactly what’s in it–plus it is fresher and more flavorful. I like to use a lot of lemon in mine . For dessert, I made brownies. I had been seeing brownies around lately–in reading (novels, blogs, and magazines–I guess that says a lot about what I read!) and generally just around. It’s kind of like when you start to notice, say, the color red. You just see it everywhere all of a sudden! That’s how it felt like with brownies. So I had to make them. These brownies were delicious and chewy. The cinnamon and coffee give them a Mexcali kick and next time I might nix the cinnamon to have an even deeper chocolate experience. These were especially good with red wine–I highly recommend having a glass with one of these brownies if you make them!
Tomato Salad
Put into a huge bowl: half a pint of colorful cherry tomatoes, cut up one or two more large heirlooms too, a thinly sliced cucumber with most of the skin removed, cut up one or two Italian peppers or “Jimmy Nardello’s” as they are also known, finely chop about 1/4 red onion. Then pour a generous helping of nice olive oil on top (about 4-5 tablespoons), sprinkle some nice coarse sea salt on top, some oregano, and some pepper. Cut a lemon in half and squeeze the whole thing on top. Toss and serve.
Hummus
Put into a food processor:
1-2 large garlic cloves
a good handful of Italian parsley–pulse together
Then add:
2 cans garbanzo beans
about a tablespoon of tahini sauce (you may want more or less depending on how you like it to taste, more if you want a more bitter flavor, less if not)
a good run of olive oil–about a 1/2 cup (I usually just turn the bottle over and count to 
cut a lemon in half and squeeze that whole thing in there–sometimes I even add a little zest too
and some salt.
Pulse it all together until creamy adding a little of this or that until the flavor is right for you. (Usually I need more lemon or olive oil.)
Brownies, recipe via Culinate
6 oz bittersweet chocolate (around 60% cacao)
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon coco powder (any kind)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1-2 tablespoons ground instant coffee
3/4 kosher salt (don’t use regular table salt!)
1 cup all purpose flour
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8-by-8-inch baking dish, or line it with a piece of aluminum foil. (The foil is wasteful, but it allows you to remove all the brownies easily from the pan.) In a medium saucepan, combine the chocolate and butter and cook, stirring frequently, over medium-low heat. When the chocolate and butter are evenly melted, remove from the heat and let cool while you mix the rest of the ingredients. In a medium bowl, combine the eggs, sugar, cocoa powder, cinnamon, vanilla extract, coffee, and salt. Stir in the butter-chocolate mixture, then stir in the flour. Scrape the batter into the prepared baking dish and bake until a tester inserted in the center of the brownies comes out mostly clean with only a few crumbs attached, about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool at least half an hour before cutting. Cut the brownies in the pan or, if you used aluminum foil, use the edges of the foil to lift the sheet of uncut brownies out of the pan before cutting into squares or rectangles.
Bon Apetit!
The other day, we went to check out the newest addition to the Portland Farmers Market community in NE. It is August–they’ve been there since May–it was time! While there, we gave ourselves a mission: find two vegetables and two fruits each. Then, using whatever we find, we will incorporate it into a meal this week. We ended up with five vegetables and four fruits–everything was at its peak and looking exceptional. I felt like a kid in a candy store, really. (Oh, and the best crepes I’ve ever had are made by a vendor there–fantastic!).
Using our wears last night, I made a simple carrot salad with lemon, olive oil, salt, and pepper, grilled up some apricots and nectarines (which we splashed with cold heavy cream–delish!), ate some nice goat cheese that was rolled in herbs, and also made olive oil and sea salt dark chocolate baguettes.
The meal was eaten in complete silence, I think I traveled to a different dimension and back. When my plate was clean, I (woke up and) looked up surprised that it was over. I don’t know why I revel every time I make or eat something so simple but tasted fantastic–but it was so simple! Yes, exactly, which is the point I guess I must make over and over to myself. Don’t over complicate, use fresh things, and your food will give you a spiritual experience–at least it does for me .
This meal is going down in my personal food history book–it, and variations of it, will be made again. Oh yes!
Bistro Carrot Salad
A bunch of fresh carrots, either regular orange or heirloom variety (no mini or bite sized ones from the bag, it won’t taste as good, I promise)
5-6 fresh radishes (also a fresh bunch)
one large lemon
2-4 tablespoons olive oil
salt
pepper
Some fresh parsley
Wash and dry your carrots and radishes. Julienne your carrots, slicing them lengthwise. Cut up your radishes into thin slices. Chop about an 1/8 cup parsley into small pieces. Toss carrots, radishes, and parsley into a bowl. Cut your lemon in half, and squeeze over the vegetables–if you want to catch the seeds, hold your hand under the stream of lemon juice and loosely cup your hand, letting the juice run through your fingers, but catching the seeds. Add the olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss and serve!
Grilled Apricots/Peaches/Nectarines Glaze
1-2 tablespoons brown rice syrup
3-4 tablespoons pure maple syrup
a pinch of cardamom, to taste
Whisk together with a spoon, and gently spoon onto each of the pitted stone fruits, letting the glaze pool in their centers. Let sit for at least 10-20 minutes before you put on the grill. Grill on a medium to low heat for a while until the fruit is thoroughly soft and there are grill marks on the bottoms. Splash a little cold heavy cream on top and serve immediately.
Olive Oil, Sea Salt, and Chocolate Baguette
Get a fresh baguette and slice into eighths–slice the eights in half length wise so you have sandwich halves. Drizzle olive oil on the bottom half, about a 1 teaspoon, then sprinkle a little sea salt on the olive oil. Place a good piece of dark chocolate (I use Dagoba either the 59% or the 74%) on top and make a sandwich with your other piece of bread. Enjoy!
This weekend we made a trip up to explore Seattle and it’s surroundings. One of the first things we did was take the ferry out to Vashon Island. This one-stoplight wonder of a place charmed the socks off of me. Our first stop was the Vashon Island Growers Market (held every Saturday). There we found delicious treats like this fresh frittata with chard and lotus blossoms. We found it at the Sun Island Farm booth, run by a lovely family with the dad making frittatas and the mom and kids running the “front”.
Another booth I stopped at was Barbara’s Chocolates. I was lured over because, well, there were baked goods there. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find these delectable little chocolates that were divine. Barbara told me she makes them fresh in her production kitchen and decorates them right on Vashon!
We then wandered over to the islands Tea House. The owner told me that when she serves people tea in a proper teacup, they act differently, as opposed to a mug or a little Japanese cup. She said they become a bit calmer and definitely quieter as they sip their tea out of a dainty teacup. How interesting! I’ve wondered about that myself…
Vashon surprised me! I honestly didn’t know what to expect when we went there (initially to check out some of Andrew’s old haunts and the abandoned K2 complex) but am so happy we did. I love impromptu connections, stories, and exchanges that happen; the warm and grounded people on Vashon were truly fantastic.
(From the Vashon Growers Market, we wandered into town where the islands one stoplight resides. I noticed some great signage that happened to belong to one of the islands art galleries, Valise. I chatted with one of the owners who was extremely warm and helpful and gave us tips about some other great places to see.)
(A great malt shop I was told! but this is the sign is the only thing left of it!)
I have some exciting news. I’ve become a contributing writer for Chef’s Blade, a social network for culinary professionals! My first piece was posted last night, you can see it here.
Below is a blurb about Chef’s Blade from their site:
Chef’s Blade is the career and social network of choice for the creative, passionate, and innovative people who work in the cutthroat culinary industry. Whether you are a seasoned executive chef, an aspiring pastry chef, a caterer, a sommelier, a restaurant manager or owner, Chef’s Blade culls together the career resources and networking tools you need to advance your career. We feature a robust social networking platform for those in the industry to discuss career advancement and everything that’s behind the ultimate culinary experience. Check out our behind-the-scenes employer and food reviews, news and columns on the latest and greatest in food culture and trends, job listings, career tips, how-to guides, and more. No matter where you are in your culinary career, Chef’s Blade promises to sharpen your skills.
They will be using one of my posts every other week from Eating is Art, and posting it on their forum. Thank you Jacky!
Last night I made a really fresh salad with Russian kale, mustard greens, red cabbage, avocado, and roasted shallots and garlics. Sometimes I like to go to my local fruit and vegetable market, pick out what looks really fresh, and then come home and experiment with those flavors, textures, and colors. I also bought some of my favorite feta cheese, a small hunk of Dutch blue cheese, and some good Italian table wine. It was a nice little feast, very flavorful, crunchy, and colorful. Here’s what I did:
Place chopped shallots and whole garlic cloves on a baking sheet, drizzle a little olive oil over them and put them into a preheated oven of about 400 degrees F. Bake until they smell amazing, about 15 mins (I like to let mine stay in a little longer, the edges get a nice crispyness to them). Chop up the kale, greens, and cabbage, toss. In a single serving bowl, place the salad, some roasted shallots and garlics on top, slice half an avacado on the side, drizzle some olive oil (about a tablespoon) over it, sprinkle a little salt, and squeeze some lemon juice from a fresh lemon on top. You can put the feta or blue cheese right on top, or you can savor little hunks of it on the side to eat with a nice loaf of bread. Sit down with a glass of wine and enjoy!
I always feel better when I cook something good for myself. It is like I am reminding myself “you are worth it,” which is so empowering and lovely to do for/say to oneself. I have similar feelings when I do yoga or read a novel, being nice to yourself is…well nice! And essential.
After eating way too many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (not that there is anything wrong with pb & j, but it has gotten a little out of hand lately!) I decided I needed to make myself a really nice lunch. There is something wonderful about lunch, it does not hold a lot of the pretension that dinner does, it is not the end of the day so I am not too tired, and as I cook I simultaneously think about projects or things happening that day spurring me on to get them done. It is definitely one of my favorite meals.
I first ate this at my friends Chelsea and Matt’s. Matt had made Mediterranean Eggplant over Israeli Couscous the night before. Me being me, I was scoping out their fridge the next afternoon looking for a small snack. It was incredible and I have not stopped thinking about it since, and this was at least three months back!
I have also been fascinated with the vanilla bean and all its versatile uses both savory and sweet. (A friend told me of a soup he made with cherry tomatoes and vanilla bean which I have been dying to make.) So I also made a Vanilla Spelt Bread. It is not sweet, but extremely aromatic, the vanilla permeating the house as it bakes along with that great smell of fresh baked bread. It was really one of the best olfactory experiences I’ve had in a while! It can be paired with a good curry or this Mediterranean eggplant dish because it is not sweet and the vanilla is a great compliment to the spices used in either of these (and many others!) dishes. However, it can be made sweet by spreading a little butter and honey on top while still warm; that is what I did and it was incredible!
Bon Appetit!
Mediterranean Eggplant
2 medium eggplants, approx. 4 cups cut into quarters
1 28 oz can of diced tomatoes, or 4 cups fresh tomatoes seeded and peeled
6-7 garlic cloves
3 tblspns olive oil
1 teaspoon rosemary
1 teaspoon oregano
1 lemon squeezed
1/2 – 1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 bunch Italian parsley
Saute the garlic and olive oil. Add the eggplant and tomatoes. Stir until combined. Add the spices, lemon, and parsley, simmer for about 30-40 mins until eggplant is tender and juicy. Serve on top of Israeli couscous (something about the Israeli couscous makes it even better! I love the shape of it).
(if you look closely, you can see the tiny flecks of vanilla bean in the bread, yum!)
Vanilla Spelt bread
makes 1 loaf
2 teaspoons fresh yeast
1 teaspoon honey
1.5 cups lukewarm water
4 cups white spelt flour
1 heaped teaspoon salt
1 vanilla bean
Dissolve the yeast and honey in half a cup of water and leave until it begins to froth. Add 3 and a half cups of flour, the rest of the water, the salt, split open the vanilla bean and extract the tiny black specs from its inside with your thumb and knead to a dough. Leave to rest for 10 minutes then continue kneading, adding more flour or water as required to make a soft silky dough. Cover with a damp tea towel and leave to double in size, approximately 1 hour. Punch down, form into a loaf and cover again with a damp tea towel and leave for half an hour. Preheat the oven with a baking stone to 445°F.
Bake for 20 to 30 minutes or until the loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Leave to cool for at least 20 minutes.
This was a really good lunch. Cabbage salad? I thought. I gave it a try and will definitely do it again. Yes… indeed.
Cabbage Salad (from here)
1 1/2 pound purple cabbage
1 lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large garlic clove, pressed or cut into tiny bits
salt and pepper to taste
shaved parmagiano reggiano cheese
Slice up the cabbage, throw ingredients together in a bowl, serve with a fresh baguette.
We ate the bread with goat cheese and for dessert with little hunks of dark chocolate. I was feeling quite Parisian it seems! Bon Appetit!
