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.