Welcome Spring! Eat your weeds!!

Dandelion greens salad with 'creamy' ginger dressing

Stop the war-fare on dandelions and pick up your trowel!  Consider a (chemical-free) yard of dandelions a free lunch instead of a pest.  Dandelions are so healthful they are used as medicine with herbalists.  Rich in vitamins A, C, B, folic acid, iron, calcium, and zinc to name a few, these greens are packed with nutrition!  They also promote digestive and liver health and are perfect for a spring-time body cleanse.  So before you reach for your Roundup, look at this and other recipes:

After I harvested 2 armfuls of dandelions I soaked them in a tub of hose water for the initial rinse.  Then I brought them inside to cut the root and separate the leaves from flowers.  I soaked the leaves again in a sink of cold water to wash off the rest of the dirt.

With any tough/bitter green it is advisable to blanch.  This eases the bitterness (however, bitter is a vital and missing component to our western diet!) and makes it easier to chew and digest.  Dump the greens in a small amount of boiling water for a minute or two then drain in colander.  I then rough chopped them and put back in the pot with a little extra virgin olive oil.

At this point, you can go in many directions: Sautee with onion, garlic, and red pepper flakes.  Sautee with ginger, garlic, honey, and tarmari.  Toss with a yummy thai peanut sauce.  Or, what I did was toss with other greens I had in the fridge (organic spinach from Morgan and baby romaines) with this delicious dressing recipe from 'Feeding the Whole Family' by Cynthia Lair:

1/2 pound tofu
1 tsp grated ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced (only if using blender, food processor will chop for you)
2 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbs lime juice
2 tsp tamari or shoyu
1/4 cup water (less or more as needed)

Blend in blender or food processor until smooth and use on greens, salads, pasta or as a dip!

We ate our dandelion green salad with leftover lentils and rice from Taco night!  But this salad is a great side dish for any meal/meat especially fish.

Saturday night TACOS with great friends

It was so nice to sit on the patio in the sun with some beautiful company, and I am so glad they stayed for dinner!  Rice and lentil tacos seemed perfect-- easy to prepare and easy for people to grab themselves.  Think of the rice and lentils as the 'meat' and then add whatever fixin's your family likes. 

I seasoned my rice/lentil mix like mujadara; with a lot of cumin and garlic powder.  You could add a taco season packet (as long as there is no msg or other nasties!), use fresh herbs, or add curry for a totally different flavor.
Making lentils with rice is as easy as adding lentils to your rice!  I used green/brown (or standard 'regular' lentils), but you can use any type.  Use equal parts rice and lentils and make as you would rice:  2 parts water to 1 grain, add seasonings, bring to a boil, reduce to simmer and cover until water soaked up and done.

While that is cooking, chop all your taco toppings.  I love avocado, salsa, lime, cheese, onion, and then any other fresh vegetable that needs eaten in your fridge!

[Remember when shopping for tortillas to buy corn, or find trans-fat free wheat tortillas.  Which means no 'hydrogenated oil' in the ingredient list.]

Chili with g-ma!

Chili and cornbread.

Didn't have any fresh vegetables.  It was cold today.  When I saw the cornmeal in the cabinet it inspired me to make cornbread.  And I remembered I had one more can of Amy's chili in the pantry.  There was going to be 3 (yey--Grandma visited!) so I knew I needed to bulk up the can with some goodies to make it spread.  Easy peasy, I have lots of quinoa, leftover lentils and carrots, and plenty of frozen vegetables.
Since the cornbread will take the longest, started on that first. Use any easy cornbread recipe.  As usual I was out of eggs so I just improvised (threw in some ground flax seed, used honey instead of sugar, and a little extra milk) and got it in the oven. {if you want to make actual egg substitute using flax, here: http://bonzaiaphrodite.com/2011/10/how-to-make-a-flax-egg-for-vegan-baking-the-right-way/  I was too lazy!  Figured maybe it would do something miraculous in the oven or something ! haha}
Quinoa is next.  Get it going in the pot you will use for chili. 2 to 1 water to quinoa, I used half cup quinoa.  Ater it was nearly done add the soup and any frozen vegetables, I chose corn.  Then added the leftover lentils.
Plenty of butter for bread, big spoons, and some beans picked out for Henry.  A good meal with good company :)


I think we did some spaghetti and homemade  garlic bread, and frozen pizza 'beefed' up with some extra veggies middle week.


Simple, elegant, delicious: Roasted beets and Brussels sprouts with quinoa/millet and fried egg

Scrub and chop beets into cubes.  Wash sprouts and trim bottom and outer leaves.  Coat with olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Throw on cookie sheet and in oven at 400-420 degrees.  It will take between 25 and 40 minutes depending on how large vegetables are.

Make some quinoa (like rice, 2 parts water to 1 grain, bring to boil, turn to low and cover until done, about 10-15 minutes).  I had leftover millet 'mush' from Henry's breakfast that we mixed in with quinoa at end. 

Fry up a couple eggs over-easy and serve on top of grains.  Delicious and so healthy!

Indian food and health mash.

Indian food, thanks Trader Joe's:

A fun and EASY meal that I also believe is healthy and super thrifty.  Trader Joe's sells these amazing foil packages of Indian food for $2!  I can usually use one box for a meal for both of us, but we were feeling zealous tonight and cracked open two :)

I made a large pot of brown rice (2 parts water to 1 part rice, bring to a boil, reduce to low and cover until done).  I didn't even heat the Indian food but let the hot rice do the work.  Couldn't be easier.  Welcome to add whatever you like to this meal or leave as is.  I think it could be fun with kids, let them choose their own 'box 'o Indian food' and share with everyone...  Enjoy!

As you can see, this was a 'serve yourself' kind of meal!



Rice, lentil, vegetable mash:

Had leftover rice from Indian food.  Carrots and celery were my only fresh vegetables.  I thought of making up the rice with vegetables as I would with buttered noodles.  So that is where my seasoning inspiration came. 
For protein I used lentils and quinoa.  First saute up carrots, celery, and onion in oil.  Then add lentils and 2 parts water, bring to a boil with salt and pepper, garlic powder, and anything else you like, cover and turn to low.  After 10 minutes or so, when you think there is about 10 minutes left, add the quinoa and its 2 parts of water.  When its almost done and water almost soaked up add any frozen vegetables you wanted to use, I added peas. 
When done add butter and any seasonings you like.  When I make buttered and veggie noodles I like to use dill, garlic powder, and/or Mrs. Dash.   Surprisingly tasty and extremely healthy!

Easy Risotto for 2 Days

Easy Risotto Two Ways

Mushroom and Pea Risotto in Spaghetti Squash Bowls:

Had a small spaghetti squash and only about 1 cup of risotto left.  Thought about making the rest of the risotto ahead of time so I picked up some mushrooms last time I was at the store (love mushroom risotto). 

Cut the squash in half lengthwise.  The only hard thing about cooking with winter squash is cutting it!  Be careful.  Scoop out inside, oil the bottom and top and place 'meat' side down on cookie sheet.  Bake at 400 or so degrees for about 30 minutes or until soft.

Saute onion and mushrooms (and/or anything you want in your risotto) in oil until getting translucent, add some salt, pepper, and other spices you like, then toast the dry risotto for a couple minutes.  At this point there are some good brown nibblets stuck to bottom of pan and you can 'deglaze' this with any liquid.  Wine, vermouth, or vinegar are good options.  Then add some water or broth, just enough to cover the bottom and get it going.  You will need roughly 3x as much liquid as risotto. 

Let this simmer and soak up the liquid, stir frequently and keep adding broth/water as necessary.  I added tarragon because I think it tastes good with mushrooms, but also could use sage or any other herb.  Towards the end add the frozen peas (or any other frozen vegetable you want) and let them simmer for the last several minutes.  Taste the risotto to see if it is cooked through.  Just keep cooking and adding liquid as needed until done.
Usually risotto is finished with grated Parmesan.  I had my very favorite cheese, raw sharp cheddar so I grated some of that.

Risotto a la tomato soup:

Couldn't believe 1 cup of risotto lasted until day 2 but there was a good portion size leftover.  I refrained from eating this for lunch and instead made it into another dinner.

Enter: Amy's tomato soup.  Open soup can, pour into pan.  Then dump leftovers into pan.  Heat over medium low until hot.  Serve with bread (I toasted Ezekial with butter).  Done and done!

And for tonight's trick, Cody cooks!

Yes!  Thank you.  Just wasn't in the mood to cook tonight. 

He wanted to make oven fries with the rest of our potatoes.  We have lettuce that needs eaten stat!  So fries (cut and coat potatoes with oil and seasonings, bake at 425 degrees)and a salad...we need protein source:  Amy's chili was on sale last time I was at store, perfect. 

Soup, salad, and fries.  Sounds good to me!

lentils, rice, and avocado

The simplest, healthiest, most delicious meal!

Hadn't thought about dinner all day.  Cody mentioned beans and rice. Didn't have time to make beans so lentils and rice it is!  Our staple meal around here. 

I decided to go 'mujadara' style.  After I measured 1 cup each of  lentils and brown rice and dumped them in the pot with 4 cups water, I added lots of cumin and garlic powder (not garlic salt), salt and a lot of fresh cracked black pepper.  I also added some smoked pepper and cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer on low until done. 

We had 2 ripe avocados.  I diced one on top of our bowls, it was creamy and flavorful and made the dish complete!  With urgings from Henry's highchair, we cracked open the 2nd...just as delicious!   Add some cholula or salsa if you prefer.  I thought it would be good with a wedge of lime squeezed on top.  The vitamin C in the lime would also help our bodies absorb more of the iron from the lentils.  Next time!

chicken noodle soup week (yes I said 'chicken.')

After much urging from acupuncturist and craving it since pregnancy, I decided it was worth a try for my health to make chicken noodle soup ("not the chicken that is killed after 45 days, the chicken at Whole Foods" he says).  Cody said he would support me as he likes the idea of a 'cohesive' kitchen.  No 2 different meals going on here.

I have literally never cooked meat in all my life.  No joke.  I stopped eating it shortly after moving out of my parents.  So, here is probably the easiest chicken noodle soup recipe, although it may not be 'right' it was tasty!

I didn't even know where the meat section was at Whole Foods, and after seeing how lost I was, the butcher offered to chop the thigh meat up for me so I didn't have to do anything with it at home, yes!

I filled a large pot halfway with water and turned it on to get to a boil.  Meanwhile I chopped up a couple carrots and kale.  Did not have onion or celery.  I also chopped up about an inch of fresh ginger.  Then I added the vegetables, ginger, and chicken to the pot with the water.  salt and pepper to taste.  When it came to a boil I added some whole wheat pasta and cooked until done.  The chicken pieces were big so this was good amount of cook time.  If smaller, add pasta with everything else.  It was very good!  A little weird to eat for us, but good.