Tag Archives: side-dish

Eating Beyond The Holidays (With Recipe)

Posted on December 13, 2010 | 3 Comments

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A few weeks ago I attended a Thanksgiving cooking demo at We Olive SF, a sustainable olive oil store. Teresa studied holistic nutrition, manages Oak Hill Farm’s CSA program, and has started Can Can Cleanse. Teresa showed us how easy it is to prepare seasonal food for a holiday gathering. It got me to thinking that often times, Seasonal Food is also known as Holiday Food to be only consumed on holidays. Well then, what about rest of the season? We don’t need to wait until Thanksgiving or any holiday to eat fresh, homemade dishes. Brussels sprouts, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, are available throughout Fall and Winter and there a ton of ways to enjoy these foods.

The dishes served at the holiday dinner table are richer and more decadent (more fats and sugars), which makes that meal so enticing and is nothing to feel guilty about. Though, the same ingredients can be prepared in a healthier way for daily consumption. The food that is grown locally and seasonally should be eaten everyday and not just saved for Thanksgiving or Christmas. The turkey or ham may take center stage, but the abundance of vegetables (green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, potatoes, Brussels sprouts) really make up the holiday table.

It’s always been all about the vegetables.

Butternut Squash soup is easy to make, delicious, and very healthy.

Brussels Sprouts are another typical holiday side dish that can be enjoyed any night of the week. Brussels sprouts are easy to pack also, so you don't have to resort to fast food for lunch.

Homemade Cannellini Bean and Rosemary Dip

Winter Squash Salad with Arugula, Feta & Pine Nuts

This recipe is modified from Teresa Piro’s Thankful Soups and Sides cooking demo at We Olive SF. It is a mouthwatering salad that looks really pretty and elegant. The salad is packed with antioxidants and flavor that you will want to eat it everyday. The warm squash makes the salad perfect for a cold, winter evening, also.

Ingredients
2 cups Delicata squash, seeded
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/3 cup pomegranate seeds
1/3 cup feta, crumbled
2 tbs pine nuts, toasted
1 tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 cup arugula

Preparation
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cut squash into 1 inch squares. In a large mixing bowl, toss squash, sea salt, black pepper, and olive oil to coat the squash well. Evenly lay out the squash on a baking sheet. Roast in oven for 30-35 minutes, or until soft, but not mushy. Remove from oven and let squash cool slightly.

3. In the same mixing bowl, add roasted squash, feta, toasted pine nuts, pomegranate seeds, extra virgin olive oil and gently toss. Garnish with arugula and serve.

A warm winter salad of squash, arugula, pine nuts, and pomegranate seeds is soul satisfying and super simple to make, and is a perfect everyday meal.

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Posted in Eating Tips, Farmer's Market, Holiday Meals, Meatless Mondays, Recipes

Tagged Brussels sprout, Butternut squash, Cooking, eating well, healthy eating, holiday cooking, holidays, Meatless Monday, Olive oil, recipe, recipes, salad, Seasonal Food, side-dish, thanksgiving

Farmer’s Market Find: Brussels Sprouts

Posted on November 28, 2010 | 3 Comments

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I debated going to the market today, since I have a fridge full of leftovers from Thanksgiving. Satish and I both want to keep our meals fairly light this week since we are still digesting our Thanksgiving dinner. I doubted the market would have been busy like last week, so opted on going and enjoying the quietness. There were less farmers today too; perhaps they were gone for rest of the season or just today. I bought a lot of Brussels sprouts. I never was a fan of Brussels sprouts or at least I thought I wasn’t. I actually never even encountered Brussels sprouts until my early 20′s, but I knew I didn’t like them because the kids on TV always hated them. So like broccoli, I thought it was another gross vegetable that no kid on the planet would want to eat. Then I saw just how cute they were at the farmer’s market a couple of years ago and started to cook with them. They are sooo good! I can’t understand why Brussels sprouts have such a bad rap. Anyway, they are super easy and quick to cook too. My favorite way to eat them is cutting them in half, cooking them on a skillet for 5 minutes, then tossing them with lemon juice, olive oil, pecans, salt and pepper. I like to add shaved Parmesan cheese or dried cranberries when craving a heavier meal. Cooking Brussels sprouts involve minimal patience and culinary skill. Brussels sprouts are related to the cabbage family and are best when in season. Try picking them in the same size so they cook at the same time. Smaller ones that are tightly closed are best. At the farmer’s markets and some grocery stores, you can buy them with their stalks still intact. This will keep them fresher longer, but storing loose Brussels sprouts in an air tight container will work too.

Brussels Sprouts on their stalk

Weekly Dinner Menu
Sunday: Stuffed Peppers (turkey and gravy), Arugula Salad (pomegranates, goat cheese, pine nuts)
Monday: Squash and Pistachio Quinoa, Kale Salad
Tuesday: Mixed Lentil Pilaf, Brussels Sprouts Salad, Roasted Beets and Persimmons
Wednesday: Turkey Tartine with C ranberry Sauce
Thursday: Sip, Snack and Shop on Chestnut Street
Friday: Leftovers
Saturday: Dinner at a friend’s place

How was your Thanksgiving?

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Posted in Deconstructing Food, Farmer's Market, Holiday Meals, Meatless Mondays, Recipes

Tagged Brussels sprout, Cooking, farmer's market, gluten-free, Meatless Monday, side-dish, Thanksgiving dinner, vegan, vegetarian

Earl Grey Cranberry Sauce with Dates

Posted on November 19, 2010 | 10 Comments

While thinking about how original I can get with the millions of cranberry recipes out there, it struck me like a bolt of lightning. Okay, I am being dramatic, but it was that exciting. A few months ago, I made an incredible (narcissistic self appraisal) Earl Grey Date Sauce as an ice-cream topping for a DIY Dessert Party at 18 Reasons. I don’t believe I have much dessert talent, except for eating incredible amounts of it at once, but the sauce was really well received. Someone even called it “Top Chef” caliber. So, I just added cranberries to the sauce and viola, I had an original homemade cranberry sauce. This sauce is not as simple or fast as most other cranberry sauces, but it’s worth it. It really only take five minutes longer. This sauce actually gets better with a night in the refrigerator and it will keep your guests guessing on the mysterious Earl Grey flavor. It’s subtle and seductive. Use it as a side dish, dessert topping, or any other way you prefer.

Earl Grey Cranberry Sauce with Dates

Ingredients Serves 6-10
1-2 tsp Earl Grey tea leaves
1/3 cup boiling hot water (for tea leaves)
3/4 cup cranberries (1 bag)
3/4 cup whole dates
1 tsp ground cardamom
2/3 cup water
sugar (optional)

Method
1. Add tea leaves in the boiling hot water in a mug. Cover and steep for 15-20 minutes, depending on how much intensity you want. I like it intense.

2. Meanwhile, seed and chop the dates into quarters (tinier chunks if you don’t like the texture of dates). Wash cranberries under cool, running water. Add dates, cardamom, water, and only 1/2 cup of the cranberries to the saucepan.

3. Stir mixture together and turn heat on high until it reaches a rolling boil. Turn heat to medium-low and let simmer for 10-12 minutes. Keep an eye on the sauce. If too much water has evaporated, add a couple of tablespoons of water, and cover. The sauce should be thick and about half of the water evaporated. Simmer for a few more minutes if it’s too liquidy. Stir occasionally.

4. After the tea is done steeping, strain it and pour the tea water into the sauce pan. Add in the remaining cranberries. Stir well and bring to a rolling boil again. Then reduce heat to low and let simmer for 5 minutes. Taste for sweetness and add desired amount of sugar if needed. Stir and let sugar dissolve about 1-2 minutes.

5. Transfer the sauce to a glass container or jar and refrigerate for at least a hour. The sauce will thicken and flavors will develop over time.

Pumpkin Pancakes

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Posted in Eating Tips, Holiday Meals, Recipes

Tagged breakfast, brunch, cardamon, Cranberries, Cranberry sauce, dates, dessert, earl grey, holiday cooking, Meatless Monday, recipes, sauce, side-dish, tea, Thanksgiving dinner, topping, vegetarian

Taking the Can Out Of Cranberries

Posted on November 19, 2010 | 3 Comments

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Canned cranberries. I thought that was the only way it goes, never even having seeing cranberries in their fruit form. Then sometime 5-6 years ago, I saw Ocean Spray whole cranberries being sold at a supermarket. I popped one in my mouth and was really sorry. I always thought cranberries were really sweet, but was I wrong! I would have never guessed that cranberries were so bitter because they are super, duper sweet when coming out of the can. I examined the ingredients and nutritional information on the can and compared it to the whole, fresh cranberries. Here is what I found:

Canned Cranberry Sauce
Cranberries, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Water, Corn Syrup and Citric Acid

Whole Cranberries
Cranberries

Simple, Homemade Cranberry Sauce
Cranberries, water, sugar

Notice the significant difference between the ingredients used to make homemade cranberry sauce and the canned stuff. Sugar is not exactly the same as high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and corn syrup. HFCS are created in a lab and does not come from the earth. If you wish to believe the advertisements and propaganda put on by the industry, who have a lot of money to spare, I will not debate here. By the way, the industry is calling HFCS and corn syrup “corn sugar“ nowadays to make it harmless and simple. You can decide for yourself. It’s just bad for you and it’s in virtually every packaged, processed, pre-made product. The important message here is that you can control the amount of sugar you eat if you make the food at home. You can also choose sugar alternatives (Muscovado sugar, coconut palm nectar, dates, raisins, Agave nectar, raw honey, Stevia). Also, another thing that everyone should be concerned with is Bisphenol A. BPA needs its own post(s) altogether, but everyone should be cautious of it as it has been linked to breast cancer, prostate cancer, obesity, just to name a few. BPA is used to line canned and pre-packaged food, which leaches into the food.

Cranberry sauce has to be the easiest Thanksgiving dish, ever. Of course, you can tap into you creative side and jazz it up by adding one or many spices, orange juice, or anything else you seem fit. I started taking pride in making my cranberry sauce when I read the recipe on the back of Trader Joe’s cranberries and the sight of canned cranberries just make me a little uneasy. Also, cranberry sauce can be made well in advance and actually thickens in the fridge. It’s also super easy (and cheap) to take to potlucks. Check out the recipes below on how to make your own cranberry sauce. Also, if you want to really surprise your guests, try my Earl Grey Cranberry Sauce with Dates.

Simple
Homemade Cranberry Sauce- by Pioneer Woman (who won the Thanksgiving Throwdown against Bobby Flay)
Gingered Cranberry by Sauce by Closet Cooking
Jellied Cranberry Sauce by The Bitten Word

Creative
Earl Grey Cranberry Sauce with Dates by Club Dine In!
Bourbon Cranberry Sauce by The Craving Chronicles.

via 5 Second Rule

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Posted in Deconstructing Food, Eating Tips, Holiday Meals, Recipes

Tagged breafast, breakfast, brunch, cardamon, Cranberries, Cranberry saucem, dates, dessert, earl grey tea, holiday cooking, holidays, recipes, side-dish, topping, toppings, vegetarian

Thanksgiving Side Dish: Potatoes Mashed or Not

Posted on November 15, 2010 | 7 Comments

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Mashed potatoes are delicious, but they do take some (messy) prep work and time which may make you resort the the instant stuff for your side-dish. Instant potatoes have been an American staple for decades. They are cheap, have a long shelf-life, and come in many flavors. The sad thing about these convenient potatoes is that they are not real food. Instant potatoes are something created in a lab, with lots of chemicals and “foodlike substitutes”. These potatoes (along with all other convenience food) were invented for making lots of money for the industry and not to nourish your body. The strange thing is that potatoes are grown and available year-round in the United States and in abundant quantities, so we are not in need of potato substitutes.

Checkout this ingredient list from an instant mash potato box.

Potatoes (a blend of russet and red varieties), maltodextrin, parmesan cheese blend [(partially skimmed milk, cheese culture, salt, enzymes), sodium phosphate, salt, lactic acid], coconut oil, salt, corn syrup solids, partially hydrogenated oil (contains one or more of the following: soybean, cottonseed, sunflower), sugar, nonfat dry milk, mono and diglycerides, sodium caseinate, modified food starch, hydrolyzed soy protein, calcium stearoyl lactylate, natural and artificial flavor (including natural smoke and garlic flavor), parsley, garlic powder, spice, artificial color, sodium acid pyrophosphate, dipotassium phosphate, tricalcium phosphate, sodium bisulfite, disodium inosinate, disodium guanylate, citric acid, mixed tocopherols (vitamin e) and not more than 2.0% silicon dioxide added as an anti-caking agent.

Not much of that is real food, but created to act like food. Most of these ingredients could only be made in a laboratory; you just would not find the bolded ingredients growing from soil. Would you keep any of these ingredients in your kitchen? Food is meant to rot, but these ingredients prevent the real food ingredients (potatoes) from going bad. Industrial processing causes us to rely on labels and trick our senses. Since our organs and cells cannot recognize the processed food, our body is left confused and no longer can sense hunger and satisfaction, in which we end up eating a lot more. Thus, buying a lot more. Over a period of time, our body becomes weaker from continues processed food consumption and the lack of real food nutrients, causing us to be sick (mentally and physically).

I have vivid memories of making instant mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving and eating it up with canned gravy and canned cranberry sauce. My uncle would add real spices and herbs to the instant mashed potatoes and called it his creation. Everyone acknowledged that he made the best mashed potatoes. Good memories. We were innocent, believed the products we bought at the supermarket were real food, and heating is like cooking. But, now we can read labels and understand that most real food doesn’t need labels. We also now make the real stuff or versions of potato side dishes.

By skipping these fake potatoes, you may not need to worry about eating real food carbs. You can enjoy real potatoes, take in all of the health benefits, and not worry about chemicals and weird ingredients. Real potatoes provide essential building blocks for your body, which the instant stuff really can’t do (despite of the nutrition label). Potatoes grown from the earth contain vitamins A and B₆, and phytochemicals. Potato skins contain fiber that is equivalent to that of many whole grains.

No peeling, no mashing, no mixing- just an easy, beautiful, delicious (not to mention healthy) side dish. I have given specific measurements for each spice, but it really is about how much flavor you want! Adjust accordingly to your preference. This is a perfect alternative to mashed potatoes.

Roasted Herb Potatoes

Ingredients
Serves 4
2 tbs. fresh rosemary or 1 tbs dried rosemary
2 tbs. dried oregano
or
2 tbs Herbs de Provence (instead of rosemary and oregano)
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. freshly ground pepper
2 tbs. olive oil
3 large Yukon gold or Russet potatoes
3 tbs. Parmesan cheese, finely grated (optional)

Herbs and spices bring a lot of depth and flavor to any dish. They also contain tons of antioxidents and nutrients to keep you functioning optimally. So you can just skip the artificial flavors.

Method
1. Heat oven to 350F and prepare large baking sheet(s) with parchment paper
2. In a large bowl, mix oil, herbs, salt, and pepper.
3. Wash the potatoes well and slice 1/2 inch thickness
4. Throw the sliced potatoes into the bowl and mix well, using your hands.
6. Lay out the potatoes on the baking sheet, making sure to not overlap. Bake for 15 minutes and flip the slices over. Bake for another 15 minutes.
7. For extra texture and flavor, quickly sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the slices while they are still hot.

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Posted in Deconstructing Food, Eating Tips, Holiday Meals, Meatless Mondays, Recipes

Tagged baking, gluten-free, holiday cooking, Mashed potato, Meatless Monday, recipe, side dishes, side-dish, thanksgiving, vegan, vegetarian

Meatless Monday: Pistachio Quinoa and Butternut Squash

Posted on November 1, 2010 | 2 Comments

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Since Autumn has really hit San Francisco, I have fully embraced the seasonal vegetables. Pumpkin, squash, persimmons, carrots, potatoes, heirloom beans, grapes, pistachios, and pomegranates. Mondays are my favorite days to cook, because my fridge is full from my Farmers Market finds, and I can use all of the vegetables in any way I want. I am always asked how do I get my protein from following a plant-based diet, especially on my vegetarian days. I always answer saying that 1) We do not need as much protein as suggested by USDA 2) Naturally, there are plenty of options out there that do not consist of protein shakes and fake meats.

One of my staples is quinoa, because I can mix in the kitchen sink and it will still taste great. Quinoa is light, airy, slightly nutty, and just easy to digest. Not only is it gluten-free, it’s high in nutrients, making it a superfood. It’s a complete protein, meaning it has all of the building blocks of protein (amino acids) needed for healthy development. It’s grown in South America. Even though, I am an advocate of local food (mainly produce), I like to be open to food that cannot be grown locally. Though, I have recently discovered that quinoa can be bought Fair-Trade, so it’s better for the environment and fair for the people who produce it. Other than quinoa’s nutrient factors, it’s super easy and fast to make. While the quinoa is cooking (no-stirring involved), I prepare the rest of the dish.

Quinoa can be found boxed or in bulk in most grocery stores, especially Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s. I think Safeway shelves the quinoa in the specialty health food isle.

Pistachio Quinoa and Butternut Squash

Ingredients
1 cup quinoa (any variety)
2 cups water
1 small butternut squash (1 cup), cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 cup chopped shallots
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ginger, minced
1 teaspoon dried thyme or 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme
1.5 teaspoon lemon zest (grated lemon peel)
1 tablespoons lemon juice
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons lightly toasted pistachios (optional)

Method
1. Rinse the quinoa in cold water and drain. Bring the water to a boil in a saucepan, add rinsed quinoa, and reduce heat to simmer. Cover and cook for 10-15 minutes, until water is absorbed. Or you can cook in a rice cooker, treating it like rice.

2. In a large skillet, heat the 1 tablespoon oil/butter on medium-high heat and add the squash. Stir the squash pieces so they are all well coated with the oil/butter. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Spread the squash pieces out in an even layer and let cook, without stirring, so that they brown a bit on one side (several minutes). Stir and spread the pieces out again and let cook without stirring so more sides get browned. Transfer to a plate.Alternatively, you can roast the squash in the oven for 40 minutes on 350F.

3. In the same skillet, add 1 teaspoon oil/butter, shallots, ginger and garlic and cook, stirring, until shallots soften slightly. Remove from heat. Mix in the cooked squash, salt, pepper, and thyme. Add in the cooked quinoa, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Mix well and adjust seasoning if needed. Add pistachios on top and serve warm.

Cook the butternut squash on medium heat until they soften and become browned.

I like to the flavor of roasted squash better, so I just put the halved squash in the oven for 40 minutes on 350F. Once the squash has cooled, I peel and cut it up into 1/2 inch cubes.

When using lemon zest, opt for organic lemons and wash the the lemon thoroughly. It's best if you can get the lemon unwaxed.

I use a mallet make pistachio pieces.

Serve warm as a main or side dish.

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Posted in Deconstructing Food, Meatless Mondays, Recipes

Tagged autumn, baking, Butternut squash, gluten-free, lemon zest, Meatless Mondays, pistachio, Quinoa, side-dish, vegetarian

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Tag Archives: side-dish

Eating Beyond The Holidays (With Recipe)

Winter Squash Salad with Arugula, Feta & Pine Nuts

Farmer’s Market Find: Brussels Sprouts