Pancakes and Lattes

Ok so I am catching up on my blogging after some much needed time away to get married! But now I am officially a wife and have been cooking a lot since we got home from the honeymoon. I moved into Michael's house only a couple of days before the wedding and was feeling very much like a visitor until I rearranged the kitchen. I have been cooking almost every day and have even entertained a couple of times. I have been taking pictures and promise to catch up on recipes.

This post was actually from a few weeks before the wedding, but I have heard it is bad luck to use wedding gifts before you are married, so I delayed on publishing it. My secret is out, but the wedding was a success so I think its ok that we may have broken this rule.

People have been so generous with us and I am absolutely loving each and every one of our gifts, especially for the kitchen. Below I was able to use our new griddle and the NESPRESSO!

After some Saturday morning gym time, I love to start off the weekend with a simple but healthy breakfast. Blueberry pancakes (made with Fiber One pancake mix with added flax meal of course!) and side of sliced bananas. I think this brand of mix is great because its much lower in calories than most mixes you find in the grocery store and you only have to add water. The lovely added benefit of fiber also makes sure this comforting breakfast keeps you feeling full into the afternoon. And the added flax meal is not even noticeable. While I made the pancakes, my barista husband whipped up some perfect lattes.

Love,

Sam

Spinach and Rice with Spicy Peanut Sauce

My sister created this delicious easy dinner when she was living in New York and was getting serious about health and weight loss. She had been working with a trainer and had enrolled in an online nutrition tracker to monitor her calorie and vitamin intake. She said on the days when she made this for dinner, she would get all green check marks for her fiber and vitamins. Its fast, easy, low in calories, high in fiber, and full of flavor. It is a staple go-to dinner for me. I have even made it once for Michael and he has asked for a couple of times since then.


Cook a rice of your choice according to the package. I love this new brown rice I found at Mothers Market. Its more nutritionally complete than white or brown rice and contains a higher protein content.

While the rice cooks, combine about

• 1 1/2 tablespoons of peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon of soy sauce about
• 1 teaspoon of sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon of hot water (to thin the peanut butter)
• a dash (or 2 or 3) of red chili flakes. I may use a bit more than most people, but i love spicy food. If you don't, just leave it out all together.

Wilt spinach with a little water in the bottom of a large pan. Add use more spinach than you think, it wilts down to nothing. I can easily use an entire bag of spinach for myself when I make it.

When the spinach is wilted, combine with the rice, pour the peanut sauce over everything and combine! Yum!


You can also use this quick sauce on chicken or meat.

Love,


Sam

French Oven

My French Oven has arrived!!! This was an item on my registry that made me smile ear to ear even as I put my scanner over her bar code in Williams Sonoma months ago. It is so beautiful! In case you are unaware, this is only the most amazing pot EVER. It holds heat and distributes it evenly to whatever you are cooking. It is great for risotto, soup, braises.. and it boils water quickly. You can fry, poach, boil, roast, bake -- it can really do everything, and do it well. It can be used on the stove top, or in the oven.

I picked Michael up from the airport last night (he obviously survived his bachelor party this weekend), and when I dropped him off at home we saw a few wedding presents had arrived over the weekend. We opened them up and when I saw my Le Cruset, I started jumping up and down and yelling "Its here! Its here!" He was really confused and wanted to know why I was acting like a lunatic. Is this not how everyone responds to this gift? You mean its only me??

Ah, she looks so beautiful sitting there on the stove. My love, we have many happy years in front of us. I have been away on business this week but have asked Michael multiple times how she is doing in his house without me there. He for sure thinks I am crazy. But he will not care once he sees the magic we will make together.

I promised Michael my first meal in the French Oven would be a pot roast. I have actually never made a pot roast before, and as you know I do not eat red meat, however I will be a good fiance this weekend, consult my girl Ina, and give it a go. Stay tuned...

Love,

Sam

Kale Chips

Yes, that's right. Chips... made from kale. Now before you go telling me I am ridiculous, just try it. I told my friend Jill that this idea was absurd, and I did not understand how a short 15 minutes in the oven would turn these antioxidant packed green leaves into delightful chips. But it did and they were.

We actually used Swiss Chard this time around, as kale was no where to be found in this Fresno grocery store. Jill says its better with kale, but the rest of us thought the chard worked great!

Rinse your kale and dry thoroughly. Sprinkle lightly with olive oil... or I think a spray version olive oil would be even better. I just bought a can at Trader Joe's, so useful. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, garlic salt, or whatever you prefer.

Pop it in an oven at 350 for 15 minutes and I promise this will be a great alternative snack when you want something crunchy!

Love,

Sam

Healthy Guacamole

Summer is around the corner, and this weekend I learned a great new recipe for a healthy guacamole dip from my friend Christy. We made it twice during our girls weekend and felt pretty guiltless eating it and laying around the pool. Although avocados are a healthy form of fat, they are still high in fat and calories, and lets be serious - its pretty easy to mow through a bowl of guacamole without even noticing.

Replace some of the avocado with a white bean (we used butter beans but I think the original recipe called for cannelloni beans) and you have added protein and a fraction of the calories. It was delicious!

Rinse the beans under water. Using a pastry cutter (or food processor) combine 1-2 avocados with 2 cans of the beans.

Add your own choice of spices to make the guacamole how you prefer. We added the juice of 2 limes, garlic salt, cumin, chilli powder, and salsa. Serve with whole grain tortilla chips or vegetables. So easy and healthy!

We may have also enjoyed with "skinny girl" margaritas. Ingredients below and find the recipe here: http://www.bethenny.com/skinny_margarita.htm

Love,

Sam

FIBER!!

I took a life-changing nutrition class in college and learned about the multiple benefits of fiber. Ok, maybe non life changing, but life-style changing. I learned about all the crazy scary things that can happen later in life if you neglect this very important part of your diet. Do you know we should be eating around 25-35 grams of fiber per day??!! Even this self-proclaimed fiber enthusiast finds this a challenge.



I am always looking for new and delicious ways to add more fiber to my diet. My sister recently told me about flax seed meal. Flax seed, in all forms, is an excellent source of omega oils and fiber, both soluable and insoluable. There’s some evidence it can help reduce your risk of heart disease, cancer, stroke, and diabetes. It contains omega-3 essential fatty acids, the "good" fats that have been shown to have heart-healthy effects. It also has lignans, which have both plant estrogen and antioxidant qualities.

You can buy it in oil capsules, by the bottle as an oil for salad dressings or cooking, as a seed, or in this finely ground form. I find the flax seed meal to be a really easy addition to many recipes. You can add it to any baking recipe... and I also find its really easy to add into most breakfast menus. My sister adds it to a tablespoon of peanut butter on her toast.

Recently, I have been adding my flax meal to my oatmeal or cream of wheat in the morning. Its very finely ground and does not change the taste or texture. I cooked my Cream of Wheat according to directions on the box, then mixed in a couple of tablespoons of the flax seed meal. Top it with a bit of fruit and milk, and you have a fantastic high-fiber start to your day! Even my fiance, a cream of wheat puritan, has become a convert!

Love,
Sam

Chicken With Goat Cheese and Balsamic Reduction

Ok, so this dinner sounds reeeeeeeeeeeeal fancy, but again, so easy. And please don't think that I all cook is chicken and sweet potatoes. I promise to post more variety. And besides, I had been living on that vegetable soup for a week - it was time for another comforting meal!

This dinner was a combination of 2 recipes I saw on the food network this week. The first was the goat cheese stuffed chicken, and the second included a recipe for the balsamic vinegar glaze. The salty creamy goat cheese was great with the sweetness of the vinegar.

First I made the balsamic vinegar marinade by combining about 1 cup of good balsamic vinegar, 4 cloves of crushed garlic, a bit of orange juice, and 1/2 cup of brown sugar. I used bone-in and skin-on chicken breast. I generally prefer baking/roasting chicken breast like this because it keeps it moist and adds more flavor. I marinated the chicken breast a little over an hour and then placed them on a baking sheet. I separated the skin from the meat, and stuffed the sliced herb goat cheese and whole leaves of basil under the skin. Then I sprinkled them with salt and pepper. I baked the chicken at 375 for about and hour. The goat cheese stays under the skin while it bakes, it wont ooze out like a softer cheese. Meanwhile, I took the marinade and transferred to a pot on the stove top and cooked on low while the chicken was in the oven. It reduced down and was thick and sweet! I used it as a sauce after the chicken came out of the over.

I served the chicken with sweet potato fries (slice, sprinkle with olive oil and kosker salt and bake at 375 for about 30 minutes) and a green salad with and orange vinaigrette and toasted walnuts (from the other half of the orange from the marinade).

You can see I love using the same ingredients, oven temperature, and flavors in each dish for the same meal. This makes things easier and everything blends well together. I hope you try this one!

Love,

Sam