All posts filed under: healthy cooking

healthy recipe: fig, ricotta and hazelnut hors d’oeuvres

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There are evenings, when I come home from work, I don’t necessarily want to have dinner or even bother with making one, so I open a bottle of red wine and put together something quick to pair it up with and voila it’s dinner. (I don’t recommend this if you have small children in the house 🙂 ) Anyway, here is an easy recipe I found here and I must say it is heavenly and a wonderful pairing with a bottle of red wine on those evenings when you need to have an out of the norm experience. Grilled Fig, Hazelnut and Ricotta Crostinis Ingredients: 1 cup part skim ricotta 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon hazelnuts, lightly toasted 1/2 cup honey, divided 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil 10-12 fresh figs (mission or kadota or whatever is local), cut in half lengthwise 1/2 French or sourdough baguette, sliced into ½ inch slices and lightly toasted 1. Place ricotta, hazelnuts, 1/4 cup honey, and ground cinnamon in a food processor and process …

healthy recipe: thanksgiving menu countdown with williams-sonoma in mind

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One of my favorite stores happens to be, Williams Sonoma. I can walk through the store once a week and feel completely inspired to cook a meal just by all the wonderful gadgets and fancy boxed goods they have so perfectly displayed along the selves. My most favorite time to visit the store however, is the holiday season, which is  from late October through early January, and explore what they suggest to include as part of your holiday menu. The most amazing of course is the smell of cinnamon, warmed apples and various other spices emanating throughout the store, enticing you to follow your nose straight to the cash register with something to take home for the holidays. Anyway, in addition to the store’s charm and decor, they have an entire section on their website with recipes for the holidays. Since I am on a healthy eating kick, I couldn’t help but hone in on the Herbed Quinoa and Red Rice Stuffing with Kale and Pine Nuts. Check out the recipe here or below: Looking for …

healthy eats: butternut squash, black beans and goat cheese tostada

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I love the fact, most of us Californians have adapted to healthy eating habits and for that, we are constantly looking for ways to boost the traditional cultural meals introduced  to us, throughout our state. Mexican food is one type of cuisine guaranteed to be a favorite around this part of the country, so when I discover a creative healthy recipe to replace the more  traditional one, I share it. Roasted Chipotle Butternut Squash, Black Beans, and Goat Cheese Tostadas Ingredients 2 cups ¼” cubed butternut squash 1 medium red onion 1 tablespoon olive oil 1-2 teaspoon crushed dried chipotle peppers ¼ teaspoon salt ———————— ½ cup black beans, rinsed and drained if using canned Juice from half a lime 1 tablespoon honey 1 tablespoon olive oil ———————— 4 corn tortillas 2-3 ounces goat cheese Directions 1. Preheat oven to 425˚. 2. Roughly dice onion and toss with cubed butternut squash. Combine olive oil, 1 teaspoon crushed chipotle peppers, and salt. Add to butternut squash and toss again to coat. Roast for 20-25 minutes or …

healthy eating: substitute the good for the bad ingredients

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This is the time of the year, most of us, choose to eat comfort food and because of that fact, we seldom pay attention to quantity, ingredients and weight management. We can blame it on the colder weather or simply blame ourselves for not making a lasting change. So, while i search for ways to eat healthy, control portions and substitute the good for the bad, I came across the following information here and decided to share it with those amazing people who visit my blog.  

healthy recipe: white bean and shitake mushroom soup

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Every year I collect  a dozen or more soups to try during the winter months and this year is no exception.  I found this recipe here mostly because I love anything made with white beans and what better way then to incorporate them in a light soup. White Bean + Shitake Soup with Herb Oil Extra Virgin Olive Oil 1 small white onion diced 2 large cloves of garlic finely chopped 1 box of organic chicken stock. Equal parts water 1 parmesan rind 2 cans of white beans drained and rinsed 5 to 7 Shiitake mushrooms sliced very thinly Salt + pepper to taste mint parsley basil meyer lemon Sauté the garlic + onion in a stock pot with olive oil over a medium heat until the onion is translucent and fragrant. and the beans and sauté for a few minutes adding salt + pepper to taste. Add the broth, water + rind and raise heat slightly, allowing the soup to simmer for 20 minutes. For the last five minutes add the sliced shiitakes. Once …

healthy recipe: artichoke soup with salami, quinoa, lemon and parsley

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Usually during the colder months I tend to eat heartier, but this year, I have decided  to try and stick to a leaner meal plan (well at least as much as possible). I figured soup is a good way to start and I have found a recipe here,  which I couldn’t wait to try and one that I highly recommend. Artichoke Soup with Crispy Salami and Lemon-Parsley Quinoa Serves 4 For the soup: 2 (14-oz.) cans artichoke hearts, drained 2 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped 1 cup chicken stock 1 cup heavy cream 2 tsp fennel seeds Salt and pepper For the quinoa: 1/2 cup dried quinoa 1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves 1 tsp. lemon zest (from about 1 lemon), plus 1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice Extra-virgin olive oil 4 large thin slices genoa salami Preheat the oven to 350º. In a medium saucepan, add the artichoke hearts, the garlic, half of the chicken stock and half of the cream; cook over medium heat until warmed through. Add the fennel seeds and season …

healthy recipe – fig chutney

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I have to admit, I love figs, fresh ones or otherwise. When they are in season, I gorge on them until I am sick to my stomach and just when I swear I wouldn’t eat  anymore, I find myself always in the gourmet section of a grocery store searching for anything made with figs. So, of course, it’s not a surprise that after finishing a jar of fig jam and eating a dozen or so fresh ones out of a basket, like an addict, I began a desperate search for fig chutney to make during the impending holiday season. A good excuse to eat figs again 🙂 Although I search the internet extensively for most any recipe to compare the ingredients so that I can create my own version, for the fig chutney, since it’s my first time making it,  I have decided to go with my favorite chef/author/connoisseur/online mentor if you will and follow the recipe he suggests to the exact just to make sure it’s the right balance in flavor. Fig Chutney Two …

healthy eating: israeli or mediterranean salad – a twist to salsa and chips

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I took a couple of days off to run inland just to see sun and visit with a  very special person in my life. The only trouble going from 50degree foggy weather to a 102degree muggy hot dry weather is that I, not only don’t want to do anything, but I also don’t want to eat. So to solve the eating dilemma, the first thing we do was go to the market and buy fruits and vegetables to make salads , which would last us throughout my visit plus a couple of days more.  Before the market and while I waited for her to wake up in the morning,  I scrolled through my favorite recipes to see what I want to try next. I came across this recipe and decided to try it. It reminds me of fresh salsa, which I love to eat with tortilla chips. So what I plan to do is, instead of tortilla chips,  eat them with toasted pita chips to stay in tune with the mediterranean theme. Israeli Salad  Try to …

healthy eating: roasted eggplant sandwich

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Eggplant is definitely one of my favorite vegetables but I am particular on how they are prepared.  Although most restaurants and delis pride themselves in offering eggplant sandwich on their menus, often times I find how they have prepared them isn’t  pleasing to my seasoned pallete.   I think the key to serving a successful eggplant dish or sandwich is  slicing them thin enough to cook or roast properly and so they absorb the  flavor they are often times soaked in. Of course, my eastern european culture offers many vartiations of preparing eggplants, but I think I am going to only share a favorite sandwich of mine from here: Roasted Eggplant Sandwich Eggplants and onions are caramelized in the oven then refreshed with a sprinkling of lemon juice and chives. For a gourmet spin on this roasted veggie sandwich, slather the bread with pesto* on one side and rosemary cannellini bean spread* on the other INGREDIENTS •2 medium eggplant, quartered & cut into 1/4 inch slices •2 red onions, quartered & cut into 1/4 inch slices •1/4 …

healthy recipe: grilled kale ricotta and plum salad

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I love fruit, especially summer fruit, so when I stumbled upon this recipe, I grabbed the listed ingredients from one of the many San Francisco farmer’s markets and now am anxiously waiting for the weekend to try the recipe out with a bottle of Beringer chardonnay and a slice of old world Italian bread toasted of course. Ingredients 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme 1 teaspoon honey Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper 4 medium plums, halved, pitted, thinly sliced 12 large or 16 small curly kale leaves 3/4 cup fresh ricotta Preparation Whisk 3 Tbsp. oil, vinegar, thyme, and honey in a medium bowl. Season vinaigrette to taste with salt and pepper. Add plums and toss to coat; transfer plums to a plate. Build a medium-hot fire in a charcoal grill, or heat a gas grill to high. Brush kale leaves with remaining 1 Tbsp. oil; season with salt. Grill kale, turning once, until crispy and charred at edges, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a work surface; let stand until cool enough to handle. Remove large center stems …