Here is a chart that lets you know what produce is in season in New York. If you live in another state, go to Field to Plate to get your local information. For my fellow New Yorkers, you can go to Pick Your Own to get more info on local and seasonal produce.
If you need inspiration for what to do with winter produce go to Real Simple for inspiration. Enjoy!
This is part of what Maybelle made for dinner last night. I bet those vegetables tasted great and could have been a meal on their own.
I have incorporated vegetables into my meals by chopping up carrots and scallions into my tuna fish. I also have been eating lima beans with red peppers in a tangy vinegrette and I made chicken with fennel, onion and red peppers in a smoked paprika sauce on Monday.
Have you been eating your vegetables? If so which ones and in what ways?
Hey all! We made it through the week. How awesome is that? How awesome are we?
It was a big week for firsts. First week of the year. First full week of work. First time for many things I'm sure; like getting back on the work out wagon and the eating healthy wagon or whatever wagon you have resolved to sit tight on.
For any takers out there I'd like to offer some advice for staying healthy and enjoying the year ahead. The first thing I would say is don't be a slave to recipes. They are just guidelines. Follow your gut. If you're trying to shed a few pounds and like to eat rich food, don't deprive yourself! Make a big salad and eat a smaller portion of the richer food. I made risotto this week and only used two tablespoons of butter instead of the four the recipe called for and you know what? It was delicious.
I would also say, eat your vegetables when you can. Don't be afraid to serve some left over vegetables at breakfast, especially for brunch. My favorite thing is eggs over easy on top of an arugala salad. You can even throw vegtables into a scramble. Also, like I mentioned in my last few posts, you can add vegetables to pancakes and you can steam them up and eat them like hot cereal.
Lunch is a good time to get to the veggies too. Don't forget that beans are a great substitute for meat in sandwiches. Make a home made spread like hummus or a black bean one with a good kick of flavor. If you'r buying lunch skip the chips and get a side salad instead. You can also incorporate vegetables into your tuna or chicken salad.
Lastly, I would like you to remember that cookbooks are in your home to be used, not admired. Get in there and try something challenging. It's ok if you get a page or two a little dirty. And it's true you might not always succeed at what you're making, but I bet even then, you'll have a good story to tell. My point is have fun, get your hands dirty and don't be afraid to get out of your comfort zone.
So that's it for my two cents. Enjoy the weekend. I leave you with the ever-wonderful David Bazan.
Sometimes something sounds like a weird combination and you try it and it tastes awful. Every time that has happened to me is far out weighed by the times the combination has been surprising, addictive and just plain delicious. Here are some odd combinations for you to try out. I dare you.
1. Add a dollop of Greek yogurt to pasta and marinara sauce, sprinkle heavily with crushed red pepper flakes. Mix it all up and enjoy.
2. Steam chopped butternut squash with brown sugar and cinnamon. When tender, pour warm honey-infused milk over it and eat if for breakfast.
3. Coat sliced Spanish onions with olive oil and smoked paprika. Grill them, and then chop. Place onion on top of sprouts. Zest a lemon over it. Finish by drizzling olive oil and a little lemon juice over it. Season with salt.
4. Squeeze lime juice into rice at end of cooking and stir in a large mound of chopped cilantro.
5. I got this idea from my friend abby: spread roasted yams on pizza dough. Sprinkle with blue cheese. Toss arugula on top of pizza when it comes out of the oven.
Last night I made a dinner that used fennel in two dishes, Iron Chef style. There were fennel seeds in the sweet Italian sausage and I used a small fennel bulb two play two parts in the meal. Half the bulb went into a Cannellini bean and sausage dish from Mark Bittman's Food Matter's Cook Book and the rest went into a salad conjured from my imagination.
The flavors of the main dish were hearty and simple. The sausage was broken up and browned; to this, I added, per the recipe, garlic and red crushed peppers. Then I added the greens with the zest, and lastly the beans. I loved how everything played together. The beans were silky and mild against the liquorish crunch of the fennel. The dish was rounded out with the less assertive, Brussels sprouts,which were tender, but still firm, creating a nice foil to the beans. The sausage speckled the dish with a little decadence. It was all very nice. I was proud that the addition of the fennel and lemon zest really worked with the recipe.
To complement the main course, I threw a salad together.
What I used:
half of a small bulb of fennel, slivered a sliced apple olive oil lemon juice black pepper (I would have preferred white pepper) sea salt Parmesan cheese, shaved dry dill, a dash
Put fennel and apple slices in bowl. Squeeze a little lemon juice, dust with seasoning, including dill. add a judicious amount of olive oil, only to barely coat. Mix with hands gently. Serve on plate and dot with olive oil and shave the cheese over the salad. Yum!!!!!
Do you ever feel like you don't eat enough vegetables? I feel like that all the time. I love vegetables, so this weekend I decided to squeeze them into my breakfast. I made pancakes and left out the sugar and instead added, a littl garlic salt, oregano, cheese and some cooked peas I had in the fridge. It was yummy! Go to gourmet.com to get inspired to make your own version of savory pancakes.
