Roasted Salmon on Puff Pastry

I typically target weeknight meals that can be completed in about 30 minutes but now I have a recipe for a delicious and elegant dinner that can be made in 15 minutes or less. Yeah, I said f-i-f-t-e-e-n minutes.

Roasted Salmon on Puff Pastry

4 4-oz salmon steaks

1/3 cup sliced almonds

1 sheet of puff pastry

1 large heirloom tomato, sliced

Artichoke Antipasto from Trader Joe's (can be replaced with basil pesto)

fresh lemon juice (optional)

Heat oven to 425F. 

Cut the puff pastry in 4 pieces and place on a cookie sheet. (If you use aluminum lined sheet, don't forget to spray with oil.)

Line a backing dish with aluminum foil. Place the salmon steaks in the dish, salt them if you like, and sprinkle the almond slices on top. 

Place the puff pastry and the salmon in the oven and bake both for 10 minutes.

When done, place one piece of puff pastry on a place, top with 2 tablespoons of Artichoke Antipasto (or 1 tablespoon basil pesto), then place a few slices of tomato, and finally top with the salmon steak. Squirt with a  bit of fresh lemon juice if you are into that kind of thing!

Note: I do hate the scaly, slimy fish skin. The best way to remove it is to cook the fish and when done just peal the skin off. Much easier than trying to cut it off the raw fish. Also, next time I make this, I am going to bake the puff pastry and the fish in the same cookie sheet.

Shrimp and Corn Pancakes with Tomato Salsa

I've made the shrimp and the pancakes separately two nights in a row and realized that together they would go wonderfully, almost like a different spin on the traditional Southern comfort food "Shrimp and Grits". This is also ideal for a week night dinner since the entire dinner takes about 30 minutes to make or less.

Roasted Shrimp

1 lb cleaned and deveined raw large shrimp

1 tbs fennel seed

1/2 tbs cracked black pepper

1/2 tbs smoked paprika

3/4 tsp salt

1 tsp garlic powder

1-2 tbs olive oil

Heat the oven to 450F. In a pan heated at medium-high, toast the fennel seed and cracked black pepper for about 2-3 minutes until the seeds are golden brown and release the aroma. Transfer the seeds and black pepper to a mortar and pestle and grind until the seeds are cracked and somewhat powdered. Add the salt, garlic powder and paprika and mix.

Pour the olive oil into a pyrax dish or a cookie sheet. Dump the shrimp in and sprinkle with fennel seasoning from above. Massage the shrimp around to coat evenly (oil will get mixed in too) and put in the oven for about 5-6 minutes. Do not over cook or your shrimp will be gummy.

Note: I used only 2-3 turns of a black pepper since I wanted my kid to eat this too (and he loved it!)

Corn Pancakes

3/4 cup self-rising flour

3/4 cup corn meal or polenta

1 cup milk

about 10 oz of corn

olive oil or oil spray for frying

Mix all of the ingredients above and cook up pancakes as you typically would. I used a frying pan since I don't have a griddle and did it over medium heat with canola oil spray. For me it was about 2-3 minutes per side of the pancake to get the nice golden brown color.

Note: I used a following recipe to make the self-rising flour: 1 cup flour + 1/4 tsp baking powder + 1/4 tsp salt. I am not sure it's the best one but I'll have to experiment with this a bit more. Other recipes suggest more baking powder and salt per cup of flour.

Tomato Salsa

2 large ripe tomatoes (diced)

1 small cucumber (diced)

1 half bell pepper of any color (diced)

a handful of basil leaves (diced)

2 cloves garlic (minced)

salt

~1 tbs olive oil

~1 tbs red wine vinegar

optional: 1/2 cup edamame

Combine all ingredients and put salsa in the fridge to cool until you are ready to serve dinner.

Blueberry Grunt

Got it from Huffington Post and plant to try:

• 1 quart of blueberries (4 cups), frozen or fresh
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup sugar (more or less to taste)
• 2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon butter, cold
• approximately 1 cup milk
• you will need a Dutch oven with a tight fitting lid

In a large Dutch oven, over medium heat, bring the the blueberries, water and 1/2 cup sugar to a gentle boil and continue cooking until there is plenty of juice (several minutes).
As the blueberries are cooking, sift the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar together into a medium sized bowl. Cut in 1 tablespoon butter with two knives or a pastry cutter (until it resembles peas). Then add sufficient milk to make a soft dough – I find I usually need about 1 cup of milk. The dough should hold together but still be wet looking – softer than play dough.
Once the blueberries have become nice and juicy (and cooked down slightly), drop the dough by tablespoonfuls over the berries. Cover closely and cook for 15 minutes over medium heat. Do not lift the lid during the cooking time. After 15 minutes the dumplings should be poofed up and cooked through. Remove from heat and serve hot.

Potato and Cabbage

Colcannon 

• 2 pounds baking potatoes
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3/4 pound green cabbage, coared and coarsely chopped
• Peel potatoes and cut into 2-inch pieces. Simmer potatoes in salted water to cover until tender, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, bring remaining cup milk, water, butter, remaining 2 Tablespoons oil, cabbage, 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoons pepper to a simmer in a 3-quart saucepan and simmer, covered, until cabbage is tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain potatoes well, then add to cabbage mixture and mash with a potato masher. Season with salt and pepper.

(got it on huffingtonpost.com)

NO-WAY-THESE-CAN-BE-GOOD-FOR-ME CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES

INGREDIENTS
(Yeld 5 dozen truffles)

• 3 cups chickpeas, cooked and cooled
• 250g dried figs, chopped
• ½ cup extra dark cocoa powder
• ¼ cup pasteurized egg whites
• few drops pure almond extract
• ½ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• ¼ cup pistachio, chopped
• ¼ cup dried cranberries
• ¼ cup hemp hearts

Coating ideas

• Cocoa Powder
• Hemp hearts
• Unsweetened shredded coconut
• Flaxseed meal

DIRECTIONS

1. In a food processor, process the chickpeas and dried figs until they’re completely incorporated and become nice and smooth and creamy in consistency.
2. Transfer that mixture to a standing mixer with the paddle attachment.
3. Add the cocoa powder, egg whites almond extract and mix on medium speed until well incorporated. At this point, the mixture should have the consistency of a thick cookie batter. If you find the mixture to be a tad too dry, you can always add a little bit more egg whites, until you get the desired consistency.
4. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until incorporated, no more.
5. Put this in the refrigerator to chill for about 30 minutes.
6. Once the dough has chilled, shape it into ¾-inch balls – that’s about a teaspoon per ball.
7. Roll the balls into coating of your choice, place in airtight container and refrigerate.
8. This makes about 5 dozen truffles and they will keep for about a week in the refrigerator (although I really wouldn’t worry about that!).
9. You can also freeze them, to try and prevent yourself from eating them all at once, but know that after only about a minute or two at room temperature, they’re good to go and as good, if not better, as fresh!

Baked Cheesy Chicken Penne

(from realmomkitchen.com)

• 6 tablespoons butter, plus more for baking dishes
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 1 pound penne rigate (I used a 14.5 oz box of Ronzoni Smart Taste Penne Rigate)
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 8 ounces each), halved horizontally (I used some leftover cooked chicken)
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour
• 6 garlic cloves, finely minced
• 6 cups whole milk
• 10 ounces white or cremini mushrooms, trimmed and thinly sliced (I used 8 oz of button mushrooms)
• 1 cup sliced oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained
• 1 1/2 cups shredded provolone (6 ounces) (I used an italian blend that had provolone in it)
  
• 1 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan (about 6 ounces)

1. Preheat oven to 400. Butter two shallow 2-quart baking dishes. If you’re going to freeze one, use a disposable foil pan.  In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta 3 minutes short of al dente; drain pasta and set aside.
2. While pasta is boiling, heat oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Season chicken with salt and pepper; cook until opaque throughout, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Halve each piece lengthwise, then thinly slice crosswise.  While chicken pan is still hot, toss the mushrooms in and saute until golden brown (3-4 minutes).  Use a little extra olive oil if needed.(Since I used left over chicken, I just cooked the mushrooms in the olive oil)
3. In a 5-quart Dutch oven or heavy pot , melt butter over medium. Add flour and garlic; cook, whisking, 1 minute. While whisking constantly, gradually add milk; bring to a simmer.  Keep whisking frequently as sauce thickens, about 1 minute more. Add mushrooms and tomatoes; cook 1 minute. Take the pan off the heat and and gradually stir in provolone and 1/2 cup Parmesan.
4. Add chicken and pasta to pot; season with salt and pepper to taste. Divide pasta mixture between baking dishes.  If freezing, place remaining parmesan cheese in a zip-top baggie.  If cooking, sprinkle on top.
5. Bake, uncovered, until top is golden and bubbling, about 25 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Mung beans, Beets and Quinoa Salad

Got this recipe from http://thehealthyfoodie.com. Very tasty.

 

Mung beans, Beets and Quinoa Salad

Yield: Serves 2

INGREDIENTS

Salad
• ½ cup mung beans, cooked and cooled
• 1 cup quinoa, cooked and cooled
• ½ cup red onion, finely chopped
• ½ cup fresh flat parsely, chopped
• 2 small carrots, diced
• 4 small beets, cooked, cooled and diced
Dressing
• 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp old style grain mustard
• ½ tsp marinated garlic flowers
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• ½ tsp salt
• Black pepper to taste
Garnish
• 2 tbsp mint, chopped
• Whole mint leaves

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Cook quinoa and mung beans per instructions on package. Allow to cool completely in the refrigerator.
2. Mix all ingredients for the salad together in a medium size mixing bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk all the ingredients for the dressing and pour over salad.
4. Toss to combine. If you can, allow to marinate for a few hours in the refrigerator, to allow flavours to fully develop.
5. Garnish with chopped and whole mint leaves.

Carrot Oven Roasted Meatballs

I prefer to cook the meatballs in oven instead of frying them on additional oil in a skillet. I like this recipe because it can be also made into small meatloafs (in the muffin tray) or maybe even converted to a full size meatloaf which I haven't tried yet.

Carrot Oven Roasted Meatballs

1 lb ground beef

2 carrots shredded

1 yellow onion chopped

2 cloves of garlic minced

1 cup of breadcrumbs

1/3 cup milk

1 egg

1/3 cup ground parmesan cheese

3-4 pieces of sun dried tomato in oil chopped (remove as much of the oil as possible)

1/2 cup chopped fresh herbs chopped (basil is my favorite, but parsley works as well)

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Salt and pepper

Head the oven to 400F. In a small bowl combine the breadcrumbs and milk and let stand for about 3-4 minutes. In the meantime, in a large bowl, combine the meat, carrots, onion, garlic, egg, and parmesan cheese. As you start mixing, add the soaked breadcrumbs and milk. Add the chopped sun-dried tomatoes and basil, Worcestershire sauce and salt and pepper. Mix well.

Roll the meatballs and place on a cookie sheet. Bake the meatballs for 15-20 minutes; time depends on the size of the meatballs.

The flavor of the meatballs is very much the sun-dried tomato and basil but I love to see the color of the carrots mixed in, so I call them carrot meatballs.

NOTE: I've stopped buying breadcrumbs from the store. Now, I save old bread and butts from the sliced breads in a Ziploc bag in the freezer. When I need the breadcrumbs, I toast the frozen bread and stick them into the food processor for some freshly made breadcrumbs.

KALE PESTO

We get so much kale in our produce package that I can not think of all of the ways to use it up. As I was running out of ideas and everyone was getting tired of kale chips I came across kale pesto recipe and decided to try. It turned out to be no different than basil pesto and we really enjoyed it with out spaghetti last night. (Great way for Liam to eat it too). We saved rest of the pesto for pizza. I also have a batch in freezer too. Here is the recipe:

1 bunch of kale (remove stems)
2 cloves of garlic
1 cup of nuts (pine nuts, walnuts, etc.)
3/4 olive oil
3/4 grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

Put all ingredients into blander and make a paste. Refrigerates for 5 days. Also can freeze it too.

Minestrone Soup for a Weeknight Dinner

This was my first ever attempt to making minestrone soup. I had plans to make it for such a long time but always found recipes that required 3-4 hour cooking time. Well, no more, this one is a 30 minute cooking time + about 10 minutes of veggie chopping.

I modified this Minestrone Recipe from Ellie Krieger mostly because I didn't have all of the things for the recipes. No matter, the soup came out absolutely delicious.

3 tbs EV olive oil
1 large onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 stalks celery, diced
2 carrots, diced
1/3 pound green beans, trimmed and cute to bite-sized length
1 medium-ish zucchini
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried thyme
salt and freshly ground pepper
14-oz can of tomato sauce (I used TJ's organic tomato sauce, its all I had. I am sure I could have also just used a dab of tomato paste but the sauce made the soup a little more hardy.)
1.5 cups halved cherry tomatoes
6-8 cups home made chicken stock
14 oz of kidney beans
1 cup shell pasta
grated parmesan cheese (or other harder cheese)
chopped basil

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 30 seconds. Add the celery and carrots and cook until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in the green beans, zucchini, dried oregano and thyme, ~1/2 tsp salt and freshly ground pepper. Cook for about 3 minutes.

Add the tomato sauce, the stock, and toss in the halved cherry tomatoes. Bring to boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the kidney beans and pasta and cook for another 10 minutes.

Ladle into bowls hot and top with grated hard cheese like parmesan and chopped basil.

Note: Eating Organic IS NOT Expensive

All of the things listed above were organic. Since organic beans are about $2/can (and not to mention the sodium and processing and canning), I actually go to the "bulk" section of the store and buy a pound of dry organic beans which costs about $2-3. I cook them all at one time, use what I need at that point and store the rest in 14-oz amounts per ziplock bag in the freezer. You get quite a few "cans" of beans this way.

APPLE AND KALE SPICE MUFFINS

Liam loves muffins and I love when Liam eats veggies, so here is the recipe that combines the two. And it tastes great too.

* 1-1/2 C organic whole wheat flour
* 1 tsp. each baking soda and baking powder
* ½ teaspoon salt
* ½ tsp. cinnamon
* ¼ tsp. nutmeg
* ⅓ C honey
* 1 egg
* ½ C sour milk or plain unflavored yogurt (I used the yogurt)
* ⅓ C canola oil
* ½ tsp. vanilla (see above)
* 1-½ C grated apples or carrots (used cored, unpeeled apples chopped in my food processor)
* 1 C finely chopped kale or raw leafy green vegetable (I took off the stems and then chopped the leaves fine in my food processor)
* ½ C each any dried fruit and chopped nuts (optional, but adds a crunch and is also nutritious and yummy enough for a dessert muffin, too!)

Preheat oven to 400.

In a mixing bowl, mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices.

In another bowl, mix honey, egg, yogurt, oil, vanilla, apples, kale, dried fruit and nuts.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients, stirring just till moistened. Fill 12 typical size greased muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.

Made 12 very full muffins.

Found at www.365daysofkale.com.

Saffron Purple Carrot Risotto

Up until a few months ago I didn't dare buy purple carrots because I didn't know what to do with them. Now that they come in the produce box, I have finally experienced a purple carrot. It's... a... carrot.

I modified two different risotto recipes to get this one. Because of the purple carrot, the color of this dish may appear 'dirty' (as you can see in the picture) but don't let that full you. The taste is awesome!

Saffron Purple Carrot Risotto

6 cups home-made chicken stock
4 tbs butter (half a stick)
3 oz diced pancetta
1 medium onion,diced
1 1/2 cup purple carrots, diced
1/2 cup regular carrots, diced
1 1/2 cup arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine (optional)
1/2 tsp saffron threads
1 tsp salt
freshly ground pepper
1 cup freshly grated parmesan

Heat the chicken stop on the stove and leave at low heat.

In a heavy bottom pan, melt the butter and saute the pancetta, diced onion, and diced carrots on medium-low heat for 10 minutes. Add the rice and stir to coat the grain with butter, for about 1 minute. Add the wine, if you want, and cook for 2 minutes. Add 2 full ladles of heated chicken stock, the saffron, the salt, and the pepper - stir and simmer until the liquid is absorbed. (This is where I turn the heat up just a touch closer to medium, somewhere between medium and medium-low.) Keep adding 2 ladles of stock at time until absorbed, frequently stirring. Continue this process until the rice is cooked.

Note: I always thought that the risotto was this blob of rice until I realized that it's actually supposed to be runny. So, you may need a  bit more liquid than the 6 cups of stock. I usually end up adding a touch of water to the stock pan to warm up for my last addition. So... make sure your risotto is a bit runny, not a dry blob of rice before you add cheese.

Finally, when rice is cooked, take risotto of the heat and stir in the parmesan cheese. Then, enjoy!

Pasta Primavera

I modify the following recipe a lot when I do not have all of the green ingredients... sometimes I only use sugar snap peas and english peas, other times I only use asparagus. Most of the time I overload on the veggies. Primavera is traditionally made with spaghetti but I mostly make it with pasta of different shapes. I prefer twisty pasta the size of asparagus spears/snap peas.

Pasta Primavera

olive oil
1 pound pasta of your preference
1 medium onion
2 cloves garlic
1.5 cup snap peas (cleaned, strings removed)
1.5 cup asparagus, cleaned and cut to match snap peas length
3/4 cup english peas
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup finally grated parmasan
Salt + pepper to taste

Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water. (Tip: Always add salt when your water starts boiling. Adding salt to cold water wears out the bottom of your pot faster. - This tip brought to you by Chemistry 101.)

In a large pan, sautee the onions in olive oil on medium heat until translucent, about 5-6 minutes. Add snap peas, asparagus, and peas. Saute for 3-4 minutes. In the last minute, add finally chopped garlic. Pour the cream over the veggies. When the cream starts simmering, reduce the heat to medium-low. Add the parmasan and stir until it melts. Add salt and pepper to taste. (remember to make the sauce a little on the salty side since pasta is not) Finally, add the pasta to the pen, mix it all up and serve with some extra grated parmasan on top.

Note: I once made it with fava beans and left-over soy beans in the mix and was super yummy.

Veggie Chowder

We all have dishes that we fall back on because we love them, because they are healthy, because we are so familiar with them, and in my case because it allows me to use up a lot of produce at once. My sister has just posted a recipe that has become a weekly recipe in her household and well I am doing the same coincidentally. I make this soup almost weekly and it helps that the weather has been on the cooler side in the Bay Area.

The Veggie Chowder is not a truly vegetarian dish although you can make it so. I've done it and it was very good good... but not as good with a small amount of beef bacon. A while back I found this Salmon-Vegetable Chowder recipe and followed exactly with exception of using kale instead of brussel sprouts. It was absolutely delicious!!! However, since my husband hates "fishy" taste, I've since modified the recipe and found that I love the salmon-free version too.

Veggie Chowder

4-5 slices of beef bacon, chopped
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried dill
3 medium Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced
6 medium carrots, diced
1 tsp salt
4 cups water
10 oz white mushrooms, sliced
Half a bunch of kale, stems and ribs removed and sliced
1 cup half-and-half
2 egg yolks
juice of one lemon
freshly ground pepper

Cook the bacon in a large saucepan over medium heat and cook until someone crispy. (I add about half a tablespoon of olive oil and half a tablespoon of butter just to grease up the bottom of the pan for the beef bacon.) Add the chopped onion and cook for 5 minutes. (At the end of the 5 minutes if the beef and onion start to stick to the pan, deglaze with just a tiny bit of red wine.)

Add the thyme, dill, potatoes and carrots and cook for just about 1 minute to release the aroma of the herbs. Pour in water and add the salt. Bring to boil and then simmer for about 4-5 minutes. Then add the mushrooms and kale and cook for 6 minutes.

In the meantime, whisk together the half-and-half, egg yolks (save those egg whites for breakfast!), and lemon juice. Turn the heat to low. Temper the egg mixture with the hot liquid from the soup, then slowly pour in your tempered egg mixture. Add some freshly ground pepper and leave the soup at low heat for just 1-2 minutes.

Note: I constantly modify the veggies that go into this chowder to fit what's in my produce box. Sometimes I use leeks instead of onion; last night I used some red chard and two small fennel bulbs but reduced mushrooms, etc. The combinations are endless! Also, I chopped up almost all of the ingeredients the night before so that it took me truly ~15 minutes to make this dish.

Spinach Chicken Stew

This winter our little one had a lot of cold and feeding was a challenge, but the recipe that served us better then the chicken soup was the recipe below. It is an Indian  recipe. So easy to make and so loaded with vitamins, iron, and proteins. It is so good that it became our weekly meal. Here is the recipe:

1/2 cup red lentils
2 Tb of curry powder (non spicy, or mild)
1 Tb of  ground coriander
1 tsp of cumin seeds
10 oz of fresh spinach
4-5 chicken peaces(we prefer bone in thighs, or drumsticks, and sometimes even just put 3-4 peaces as we try to eat less meat)
2 cups of water
salt and ground pepper to taste (we put salt at the end and go light on it because the little one)

In pot place washed lentils, coriander, curry powder, cumin seeds, and 2 cups of water. Bring it to boil, mix, reduce heat and simmer covered for 15 min. Make sure you do not burn the lentils and keep adding water if necessary. Place chicken into the lentils, put spinach on the top add a little bit more water if necessary, cover, reduce heat and cook for another 40 min, or until chicken is done. We serve it with naan or basmati rice. So easy and yummy. Try it.

Healthy Sides for Easter Dinner

Easter celebration is not a huge one at our house - it can be described as a more 'elaborate' dinner. Since this year we only had grandma and a friend over, we decided to forgo a large ham and bought a few ham stakes to mark the occasion. For an appetizer I made a batch of fresh hummus and to go with ham a side dish with quinoa along with the mandatory roasted potatoes and yams.

Hummus

1 can (15-oz) garbanzo beans drained and rinsed
2 cloves garlic
2 tbs tahini
2 scallions chopped
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
juice of half a lemon
1 tsp honey
1/3 cup olive oil
salt and pepper

Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste and mix it in by pulsing. Serve with fresh veggies such as carrots, sliced peppers, snap peas, etc. and/or toasted pita bread.

Apple, Cinnamon, and Cranberry Quinoa

1 cup dry red/white quinoa
1 Granny Smith apple
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup water
3/4 chicken stock
juice of half a lemon
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
salt and pepper to taste

Rinse the quinoa in water to reduce it's bitterness. Add the quinoa, water, stock, lemon juice, and a cinnamon stick in a pan over medium/high heat. Once the mix starts to boil, reduce to medium and cover. Cook for 15 minutes. Dice the apple (leave skin on) and add to the quinoa mix. Cover and cook another 5 minutes. In the last few minutes of the cooking uncover the pan to evaporate the moisture so that the quinoa is not sticky.

Once cooked, remove the cinnamon stick. Mix in the cranberries and pepitas. Salt to taste and add just a touch of fresh pepper.

Note: I got this recipe (and somewhat modified it) from Daily Garnish site/blog whose author is a vegeterian chef. It has many great healthy vegetarian/vegan dishes.

Fish to Eat and Fish to Avoid

Fish is very important part of our diet, and thus the choices of fish to cook and serve to the little one are even more significant. So here is the simple list of the fish to eat and fish to avoid:

Fish to Eat:

1. Albacore Tuna
2. Salmon (Wiled caught, Alaskan)
3. Sardines (high in Vitamin D)
4. Oysters (high in Iron)
5. Rainbow Trout (farmed)
6. Freshwater Coho Salmon (farm raised USA no antibiotics)

Fish to Avoid:

1. Bluefin Tuna (endangered spices, hi in mercury)
2. Chilean Seabass (hi in mercury, no more than 2 times per month, and children no more than 1 month)
3. Grouper (endangered and high in mercury)
4. Monkfish (endangered)
5. Orange Roughy (lives over 100 yrs, so high in deposits of mercury)
6. Farmed, Atlantic Salmon (high in antibiotics). 

Beauty Natural Recipes

Merima, I have to share these beauty natural recipes with you. And I am not talking about Sprouts, Whole Foods, Origins or any other "natural" beauty product one may buy for hefty price, but a beauty care from the refrigerator and kitchen cabinet. As I am making my house cleaning solution strictly from natural ingredients, I wanted to do the same with my beauty products too. I am tired paying hundreds of dollars for facial creams, cleansers, and other products that do not hydrate and provide nutrients as was advertized. So here are few recipes I came across on internet and plan to incorporate in my normal routine. (Already tried coconut oil moisturizer and baking soda teeth whitening and it does wonders).

Facial Cleanser (from Carine Fabius blog)
1st Option:
1 tomato
2 tbsp milk (regular, coconut)
1 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 tbsp fresh squeezed orange juice
Combine all ingredients in a blender. Keep in refrigerator for approximately eight days.

2nd Option:
1-2 tbsp plain, organic yogurt , combine with 1 ½ tsp fresh squeezed lemon juice, OR 1 tbsp baking soda or sugar for a scrub


3rd Option:
Squeeze a ¼ lemon into your palm, add some salt, mix together and rub gently over your face. Tons of minerals!

Facial Moisturizer:
Organic coconut oil -- "It is a known wrinkle fighter and smells great." I apply it at night and in the morning my skin feels great. You must try. This is an inexpensive great way to get skin hydrated with all mineral in an extremely inexpensive solution (A mayonnaise-size jar is $6.99 at Whole Foods).

Teeth Whitening:
I noticed that my teeth are no longer white (too much wine and coffee). However, I did not want to apply the expensive kits that damage my teeth. So I poured some baking soda in the little dish, dipped the wet toothbrush tips into the soda, then covered baking soda with toothpaste and brushed the teeth as usual. My teeth were whiter instantly.

Root Veggies Soup

Once again my kitchen activities are driven by the contents of my Albert and Eve produce box. To boot, the weather in the Bay Area has been cold and rainy which is perfect for soup.

Turnip Soup

1 medium onion
1 large sweet potato
3 large carrots
3 medium-large turnips
2 tbs olive oil
2 tbs butter
6 cups water
~2 tbs ginger root
1/2 tsp dry dill (better if you have fresh dill)
1/2 tsp freshly cracked pepper
1 tsp salt (or more to taste)
1/2 cup heavy cream
juice from half a lime

Peel and roughtly chop up the onion, sweet potato, carrots and turnips. Set a large pot to a low temperature and heat the oil and melt the butter. Throw the vegetables into the pot, cover, and "sweat" at low temperature for 15 minutes. Add the water, bring to a boil, and simmer for 20 minutes.

Once the veggies have cooked, separate them from the liquid but reserve the liquid. Add the veggies to the food processor, or a blender, along with roughly chopped ginger root. (Adjust the amount of ginger root to your liking, I used about 2 tbs for a noticable but not overpowering ginger flavor.)

Return the pured veggies to the reserved liquid and reheat the soup on medium heat. Add the dill, pepper, and salt. Slowly stir in the heavy cream. Make sure that your soup is not too hot (near boiling point) or you could curdle the cream.

Lastly, squeeze half a lime (or more if you like) into the soup and mix.

And then... eat!

Notes: Instead of regular carrots, I used rainbow carrots which taste pretty much the same. I've also made this soup with a mix of parsnip/turnip/rutabaga and it was just as delicious. You could use 1 tsp powdered ginger but the fresh ginger root is where the real flavor is!

Beets, Beets, Beets! How many different beets you eat!

The produce box that I receive includes at least one root vegetable item per delivery and they do not skimp out. A few weeks ago, I got beets twice in a row and ended up with more beets than I knew what to do with. After doing some homework and modified a bunch of recipes, here is what I came up with. If your toddler does not like beets, try the Beet Breakfast Bread. My husband, whose attitude towards beets is equivalent to a typical 2-year-old, loves it.

Did you know that the original velvet cake was made with beets before food coloring was introduced? So, if you like to eat natural foods, do away with the food coloring and bake cakes with beets!

Beet Breakfast Bread

3/4 cup wheat flower
1/2 cup white all purpose flower
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt (I used 3/4 tsp since I reduced honey amount)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup pecans, toasted and chopped
1 cup unsweetened coconut flower
2 large eggs
3/4 cup honey (I used 1/2 cup honey to reduce sweetness)
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup apple sauce
1/2 cup grated beets (1 medium sized beet, the deeper the color the better)
1/2 cup grated carrots

Heat the oven to 350F. Spray a spring form ring or bread pan with cooking oil.
Combine all of the dry ingredients, including pecans, and mix well, In a separate bowl combine all of the wet ingredients and mix well. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix only to combine until the flower is moist. Do not over-mix.
Bake for about 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the bread come out clean.

Note: Since I use organic brown eggs, they are usually much smaller than the typical eggs you'll see. I picked our the two larges eggs from the dozen for this recipe.

Roasted Beet Salad

9 small-to-medium sugar beets
2 tbs orange muscat vinegar (or any other light color vinegar)
2 tbs lemon juice (~ 1 lemon)
2 tbs olive oil + more for roasting
salt and pepper

Heat the oven to 400F. Clean the beets and place them in a roasting pan lined with aluminum foil. Drizzle with olive oil and roast for 30 minutes.

Once roasted and slightly cooled, peal the skin and slice the beets in 1/3 inch moons. Separately mix the dressing ingredients and drizzle over beets. Store in the refrigerator over night for best flavor.

Beet Leaves and Cheese Quiche
When you are preparing beets, there is no need to throw away the greens that usually come with them. The healthier the greens, the fresher your beets are. Use the greens to make a quiche or throw them into a stew.

greens from 5 beets (young leaves are better)
6 eggs
2 cups cottage cheese
2 tbs sour cream or yogurt
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup wheat flour
1 cup grated Cheddar
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 325 F. Spray 8x8 inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Wash and remove the stalk from  the beet greens. If the leaves are young, you do not have to remove the stalk veins from the leaves. They will add a beautiful pink hue to the quiche. Blanch the greens and squeeze as much liquid out as possible.Slice thinly.

While your greens are blanching, mix the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl. Add the sliced greens and mix once again. Transfer into the baking dish and bake for 50 minutes.

Note: The major component of this quiche is cottage cheese, which I love. If you are not a huge fan of cottage cheese curds in your quiche, substitute one cup of the cottage cheese with 3/4 cup half and half. Using half and half in your quiche makes it fluffy and custardy but, in my opinion, custard-like texture does not go well with all quiche fillers like the greens.

Liam Ate Beets

I am always searching for new ways to introduce or reintroduce veggies to Liam. He did not like the texture of cooked beets but he was having it in home made juices. However, I don't want  to always hide vegetables but have Liam enjoy eating them all. The other day I came across the recipe for beet chips and Liam loved it. He ate 3 small beets this way. Brian and I liked it too. Here is the recipe:
Wash and peel 3-4 small beets.
Cut beets in 1/8" slices
Coat slices with olive oil and salt
Place on cookie sheet and bake it at preheated oven at 400 deg F.
Be careful not to burn since slices are thin.

Now, I am ready to make him kale chips. Will let you know how it went.

Sweet Potatoes and Cabbage Mini-Burritos

For those of you who enjoy an occasional bulgogi taco from the local food truck, here is an easy week-night dinner that wraps a simple Chinese dish with a warming tortilla blanket.  The dish was inspired by a similar stir-fry from Epicurious and the fact that most of the ingredients came in my Albert and Eve Organic produce box.

As a new mother who has recently gone back to work, I look for ‘short-cuts’  and ‘do-aheads’ wherever I can find them. So keep in mind that most root veggies can be peeled and chopped ahead of time and stored in water in the refrigerator overnight. In fact, doing this will break down their starch molecules a little and make the veggies taste silky, especially if mashed. Cabbage and cabbage-like veggies can be chopped up ahead of time and stored dry in sealed contains in the refrigerator.

Sweet Potatoes and Cabbage Mini-Burritos

2 tbs sesame seed oil

2 medium Sweet Potatoes - peeled, cut into 1/3 inch rounds then cut into ¼ inch strips

1 medium yellow or red onion – cut into ¼ inch moons

1 large chicken breast – cut into ¼ inch strips crosswise

1 tbs fresh ginger

3 garlic cloves

1 small cabbage (about 4 cups thinly sliced cabbage)

2 tbs hoisin sauce

¾ cup chopped cilantro

Warm whole-wheat tortillas

Boil the sweet potatoes in salted water for 5-7 minutes and strain. Over medium-heat add  1 tbs of sesame seed oil in a pan and toss in strained sweet potato. Add the onion to the pan and stir-fry for about 5-7 minutes just until the sweet potatoes are tender.

In the mean-time, wrap the tortillas in foil (no more than 8 tortillas per foil wrap) and place them in the oven at 350F.

Add the other 1 tbs sesame seed oil, the minced garlic cloves and chicken to the pan. Grate the ginger into the pan with a fine cheese grater. Let stir-fry for about 1 minute and then add the cabbage. Let stir-fry for another 3-4 minutes, occasionally stirring.  Add the hoisin sauce and salt and pepper to taste. Take off heat and stir in the chopped cilantro.

The sweet-savory flavor of these mini burritos makes them pair well with a side of fruit salad or fruit salsa.

Note: Use what you have!  You can also make tacos with small corn tortillas, wraps /pocket if you have pita bread or serve the dish with some rice. I made a side of steamed rice/barley so that I can take the left overs to work for lunch and not worry about eating a messy burrito over my keyboard.

Green Smoothie, Broccoli Snack, and Soljanka

My First Recipes Post - Green Smoothie, Broccoli Snack, and Soljanka

This past week involved a lot of cooking and trying the new recipes. Liam has been fighting yet another cold and had hard time eating solids so I tried green smoothie I found on happyhealthymama.com. It was delicious (see recipe below). Liam did not like the pulp but I strained it and he drank the juice. Brian and I ate the rest, it was yummy. I will be making this one again. It is loaded with vitamin E, C and iron.

Another toddler recipe I made over the weekend was a broccoli snack. For some reason, Liam rejects to eat steamed broccoli, so I searched online for a recipe that may appeal to the little guy. It is made of broccoli, cheese, egg, and bread crumbs (see below for details). Very simple to prepare, and tastes great. I served it with tzatziki dip and he loved it. Brian and I did too.

My little guy loves meat, and we love to prepare meats for him as it is great source of protein and iron. We buy only organic meat. Some feel that they can not afford the organic meats as they are more expensive food choice, but our approach is to rather eat smaller amount of organic meat than lots, lots of “bad” one. We try to cook meat based meals (chicken, beef, lamb, or pork) only twice a week (no more than 2 lbs per week for 3-4 people) and at least once a week have a fish. The rest of the meals are vegetarian based. This way we have balanced healthy diet that is easy on the budget too. This weekend I prepared Russian Soljanka, a beef stew loaded with veggies (see recipe below). We served it to Liam with bowtie pasta. This dish reminds me of Bosanski Lonac (eng., Bosnian Pot) mom use to make back home.

RECIPES:

Green Smoothie:

1/2 cup plain yogurt

1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk

2 small oranges, peeled and pulled apart into wedges

1/2 green apple, sliced

1 cup raw spinach, packed

2 tablespoons raw honey

a few ice cubes

Place all ingredients, in the order listed, into a blender. Blend until smooth and enjoy.

Broccoli Snack:

6 oz of frozen broccoli, defrosted and drained

1 egg

8 oz of shredded cheese (cheddar, or mozzarella, etc.)

½ cup of bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 425 deg F. Mix broccoli and egg in the blender until smooth, add cheese, spread half of the bread crumbs on the cutting board. Place broccoli mixture over the crumbs and flatten ½ in thick. Cover with rest of the bread crumbs Cut into diamond shape and bake 8-10 min.

Soljanka:

1 yellow and green bell pepper, chopped into ½ in squares

1 lb of cabbage, cur into 3/8 in shreds

1 onion, chopped

1 lb of beef, cut in cubes

4 tbs of peper or tomato paste

4 ½ cups of water

3 oz of gherkins (chopped) with ½ cup of its juice

4 tbs olive oil

Salt and peper

Cilantro or parsley

Heat 2 tbs of oil and fry beef until golden brown. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and remove from the pot. Add remaining 2 tbs of oil to the same pot and heat up. Add onion, peppers, and cabbage. Sauté for 5 minutes. Add water, pepper sauce, salt and pepper to taste. Bring to boil, reduce heat, cover and cook for 15 min. Add gherkins and cook for 5 more min. Add meat and cook for another 2 min. Sprinkle with fresh cilantro or parsley.

Intro

My name is Nela and I am one of the co-authors of the "Yummies Made by Mommies" blog. My sister Merima and I started this blog to share with each other, our friends, and on-line community the healthy recipes we create or come across. The recipes include not only the meals we cook, but healthy ideas for baby and toddler's foods, natural cleaning recipes, useful tips, as well as ideas on how to organize drawers, kitchen, ...life in general. We plan to try these recipes first and provide feedback in this blog. Any comments are more than welcome.

Both Merima and I are new moms with full time jobs, who are trying to juggle the daily responsibilities while managing to lead healthy and happy lives. Our goal is to eat as healthy as possible and teach our children to connect, respect, and love the nature as much as we do.