Early Spring Salad

From: http://ohsheglows.com/2010/12/28/back-on-track-wheat-berry-and-bean-salad/

If you're not familiar with wheat berries they are firm and hearty, one of the meatier grains. High in fibre they are a great addition to a bean salad making it something more substantial.  I really like the texture and often use it as a base for salads, adding veggies and dressing.  Substitutions for wheat berries could be kamut (kamoot), quinoa, spelt, rice, cous cous, etc.)  Wheat berries, spelt, kamut, etc. are really easy to freeze. If it a bit of a process making them make extra and freeze for another meal.

Salad Ingredients:

• 1 cup dry wheat berries, cooked and drained
• 2 cups/500 ml cooked navy beans (or black beans, chick peas, etc.)
• 1 English cucumber, diced
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 1 large tomato, diced
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup fresh parsley, diced with large stems removed
• 4 green onions, diced
• Kosher salt + pepper, to taste

Dressing Ingredients:

• 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, to taste 
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp hot mustard (or regular)
• 1 tbsp Tamari (soy sauce)
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Directions: In a medium bowl, soak the wheat berries overnight in cold water. If you have a rice cooker cook on brown rice setting (there is no need to soak).  The next day, drain the wheat berries and place in a medium sized pot, covered in 3 inches of water. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to medium and simmer for 1 hour. They should be firm but not hard. Drain and cool.

In a large bowl, mix all salad ingredients.

In a small bowl whisk together the dressing ingredients.

 Now season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Garnish with additional parsley if desired.

Yield: 7.5-8 cups.

Grilled Eggplant with Cumin Vinaigrette and Feta

http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2007/09/grilled-eggplant-recipe-with-garlic.html


Adapted from http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2007/09/grilled-eggplant-recipe-with-garlic.html

I had a crazy salad cook off on Friday night and this is one of the three salads I made. 

It was soooooo good. I love eggplant and having it grilled with that cumin garlic vinaigrette and cilantro just made me gush. I dreamed of eating it again as soon as possible and thought it would be good stuffed in a sandwich .  I ended up grilling a few red peppers too with the eggplant. I peeled off the burnt parts and sliced it adding it this symphony of goodness.

You will need:

1 large eggplant, cut in uniform slices 3/4 inch thick
olive oil, for brushing on eggplant
2 T chopped fresh cilantro (or mint or both)
1/4 cup crumbled feta

For vinaigrette:
1/2 tsp. garlic puree or finely minced garlic
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 T fresh lemon juice
1 T shallots or red onion, finely minced
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
pinch cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. Spike Seasoning
3 T extra-virgin olive oil

Preheat gas or charcoal barbecue grill to medium high.

Put all ingredients in a bowl and whisk in olive oil.

Brush eggplant with olive oil on both sides. For criss-cross grill marks, grill 4-5 minutes on first side, then rotate and cook 3-4 minutes more. Turn and cook about 7-8 minutes more on second side. I cooked my eggplant pieces just under 15 minutes total cooking time. Actual cooking time will depend on how hot your grill is and the temperature and thickness of the eggplant. Watch it carefully the last five minutes of cooking time and rotate pieces so they are evenly browned.

To serve, arrange grilled eggplant slices on serving platter, drizzle vinaigrette over, then top with crumbled feta and herbs.

Creamy Pasta with Swiss Chard and Blue Cheese

This is low-fat meal is simple and quick and something you can throw together in 15 minutes, particularly if your pasta is already cooked as mine was from last nights Carbonara ( I LOVE bacon).  The measurements are not strict in order to have success.

You will need:

1/2 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic minced

2T grapeseed oil (or ghee, or oil alternative)

1 bunch of swiss chard or spinach washed, drained and chopped

1/2 cup of blue cheese or any strong cheese such as asiago or parmesan

1/2-1 cup of sour cream (you can add some cream, milk or alternative too if you want but not necessary)

sea salt and cracked pepper

parmesan cheese for garnish

Wash and drain your greens. Chop into pieces.

Saute onion and garlic in 2 T of grapeseed oil.  Cook till onions soften slightly.

Add swiss chard and continue to saute until they soften.  

Add hot or cold pasta to the mix and stir around flipping hot ingredients on top of pasta. Warm about 5 minutes. Stir in sour cream (and milk if using 1/4 c) then add blue cheese chunks and stir another few minutes.

Plate immediately and garnish with parmesan and salt and pepper.

Tahini Protein Power Bowl

Angela over at Oh She Glows (http://ohsheglows.com/)  is an amazing inspiration to me and I often cruise her site to get new ideas for meals to make. I often tend to us a recipe as a base and then throw in whatever ingredients I have on hand. My fridge is usually stocked with a number of things and I don't like going out often to get one or two things that are missing so I just substitute if I can and turn it into something like the recipe. Of course there are some ingredients, such as the tahini in this recipe, that you would not want to substitute.  Please note if you haven't already that I am not aiming to take glorious photos like Angela or most other bloggers for that matter. I take the photos as I go very quickly and I am happy if I have the time to post at all. Maybe some day I will have the time to take better photos :)

The spring mix from Whole Foods on Cambie, in Vancouver is totally worth it. It stays fresh for a while unlike the spring mix from Costco which goes bad in a matter of days.

  

I have an INCREDIBLE rice cooker and if you cook a lot of grains I would highly encourage you to look into the Japanese rice cookers with the fuzzy logic technology. Sounds strange but it has to do with having an intuitive nature to it that cooks whatever you throw into it with perfection. I throw in red rice, lentils, brown rice all together sometimes as I did with this recipe (on the brown rice setting) or I add quinoa and it ALWAYS cooks it to perfection. Measure, add water to the line, press button- cue starting song. Stays warm for over 12 hours! I have a Zojurushi and it is the most used appliance in my kitchen, hands down.

  

I wish I'd had the red pepper but I used swiss chard, snap peas and cherry tomatoes instead.

   Ta da!!!

Reposted from: http://ohsheglows.com/2011/05/12/lightened-up-protein-power-goddess-bowl/

Lightened Up Protein Power Goddess Bowl

Angela adapted this recipe from Protein Power Goddess Bowl, which was adapted from The Coup Cookbook.

Yield: 6 cups
Ingredients:

• 1 cup uncooked green lentils (yield 2 & 3/4 cups cooked)
• 1 cup uncooked speltberries (yield 2 cups cooked) OR grain of choice, like brown rice
• 1/2 tbsp olive oil, for sautéing
• 1/2 red onion (~1 & 1/3 cups), chopped
• 3-4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 large tomato, chopped
• 3 cups spinach or kale, roughly chopped (I used Lacinato kale)
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, minced
• 1 batch of Lightened Up Tahini-Lemon Dressing (recipe below)
• Kosher salt & black pepper, to taste
• Lemon Wedges & lemon zest, to garnish

Directions:

1. Cook lentils and speltberries (or grain of choice) according to package directions. I did this the night before to save time. Drain and set aside.

2. Prepare the Lightened Up tahini-Lemon dressing in food processor (see below for recipe).

3. In a large skillet over low-medium heat, add your olive oil and sauté the chopped onion and minced garlic for a few minutes, being careful not to burn. Now add in the chopped red pepper and tomato and sauté for another 7-8 minutes.

4. Stir in the chopped kale or spinach and sauté for another few minutes, just until tender. Stir in the full batch of tahini-Lemon dressing, the cooked & drained grains and lentils, and simmer on low for another few minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the minced parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste and garnish with lemon wedges and zest. Makes 6 cups.

Once you cook your desired grains and make the dressing, you simply sauté some vegetables of your choice until tender.

Lightened Up Tahini-Lemon Dressing

Adapted from Tahini-Lemon Dressing.

Yield: Just under 1 cup of dressing

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup Tahini
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
• 1/4 cup Nutritional yeast or a bit more, to taste
• 2-4 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil, to taste
• 1 tsp kosher salt + freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
• 3 tbsp water, or as needed

Directions:

1. In a food processor, add all ingredients and process until smooth. Makes just under 1 cup.

I only had a half a lemon so I squeezed in a few tablespoons of lemon juice concentrate and water because I thought the lemon amount was too much any way for me and because I didn't have the lemons :). I happened to have the nutritional yeast and I think it gives it a nice nutty flavor. If you don't have it you could through in some chickpeas maybe to round out the flavour.  You can find the yeast in the bulk section. Good to give added nutritional value to meals.

Angela's lovely photos.

Yesterday, I added Lacinato Kale instead of spinach and I loved it! It’s less bitter than regular kale.

 

Mix in your grains and dressing.

 

When it’s all cooked, remove from heat and stir in the minced Parsley for another kick of fresh flavour.

Taste test… Uncontrollably!

Serve with a lemon wedge and zest and you have yourself a protein and fibre packed dinner! It’s creamy & comforting, with a tangy kick that is just irresistible.

This will definitely be my go-to version of this salad from now on. We didn’t miss the 6 tablespoons of oil at all.

Rustic White bean and Swiss Chard Medley

I looked in my food closet today to get some inspiration and googled a few recipes with white bean and swiss chard to get some ideas and then went ahead to create my own.  I found a few things in my fridge and used up some things I needed to get rid of. Feel free to change up any ingredients and use more or less of what you want. This is a simple dish with the natural flavors coming out and just a little tomato paste to bring it all together.

1 T coconut oil (or whatever oil you want)

2 cloves minced garlic

2 small leeks sliced-(can use onions)

1 red pepper chopped

1/2 soy chorizo from Trader Joes (or real meat chorizo/ textured vegetable protein w/ cajun seasoning)

1 bunch of organic rainbow swiss chard

2 cans of white beans (Also called cannellini)

2 T tomato paste -give or take (or tomato sauce)

1 bunch of organic rainbow swiss chard

15 cherry tomatoes I just happened to have

1/2 c water

salt and pepper to taste

Sauteed the leeks and garlic till soft on medium.

Add peppers stir for 1 minute.

Add chorizo or substitute or not.

Add chopped swiss chard and stir.

Add a 1/4 c of water to pan and put lid on to steam chard so it softens-1-2 mins.

Add white beans and stir.

I just happened to have some cherry tomatoes that were kinda old and getting shriveled so I halved them and threw them in.

 

I never seem to use up a whole can of tomato paste so i usually wrap up 1 T portions up in some parchement or wax paper and get it when I need it and defrost it right in the pan. You can also put it into an ice cube tray and pop them out and then freeze into nicer looking cubes.

Mmmmm. Stir up this delish dish and add some salt and pepper to taste.  I didn't need any salt but that was likely because the chorizo had enough in it.  Serve over brown rice. 

Grilled Vegetables a la BBQ

This is what I love to make especially in the summer and who's to stop you from doing it in the winter.  Grilled veggies are just about the easiest thing to make because you can transform them into so many different meals such as sandwiches, lasagna, pasta salad, wheat berry salad, marinade them in olive oil and balsamic and add them to any meal.  I could go on. There are several other recipes posted where I use these veggies with other meals.

Its easy peasy-

Slice long vegetables horizontally
red peppers into big long chunks that won't fall through your BBQ
Eggplant
Zucchini
Asparagus
Mushrooms
Add whatever veggies you like

Drizzle a bit of olive oil, minced garlic if you like,

Throw them on the grill till they are a nice color.  The peppers will burn a little but don't let them get too black- carcinagens are not good.

You can plate them with chunks of roasted garlic, black olives and drizzle more olive oil and balsamic too.  SOOOOOO GOOOD and so easy.