Food In Many Forms

This recipe calls for a "fiery" tomato sauce, but I left out the green chiles for a more mild (but still flavorful) version. Shakshuka Ingredients: 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 1 small onion, diced 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 large bell pepper, diced 1 tsp ground cumin 1 tsp sweet paprika 1/2 tsp mild red pepper flakes, or more to taste 2 Tbsp tomato paste 28 oz canned chopped tomatoes, with their juice 1/2 tsp kosher salt Fresh black pepper, to taste 6 large eggs 2-4 Tbsp roughly chopped fresh parsley Directions: Heat the oil in a large nonstick frying pan over low-medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the onion, and saute for 2-3 minutes, until soft. Add the garlic and red bell pepper, and continue to cook, stirring frequently, for 4-5 minutes, until the onion is translucent. Stir in the cumin, paprika, and red pepper flakes. Mix well, and let the spices cook for 30 seconds. Next, add the tomato paste, and stir that into the mixture. Finally, add th...

Last week, a good friend of mine texted me, "I just made a very involved pasta salad". At the time, I thought, "hmm, okay cool... random, send me the recipe." But now after having made said pasta salad, I realize how much that is the understatement of the year. "Very involved" is exactly how I would describe it. Don't believe the New York Times' estimated prep time of forty-five minutes - it took me closer to an hour and a half or two hours to make. But it is pretty delicious. And a ton of food.  Ingredients: 2 lb ripe campari tomatoes, cut in wedges 5 Tbsp Olive oil Salt and pepper 2 or 3 garlic cloves, pressed 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (optional) 2 Tbsp capers, rinsed and chopped (optional) 2 medium eggplants, about 1 pound 12 oz whole wheat ziti or other short pasta 6 oz mild feta 1 small bunch of basil, for garnish Directions: 1. Heat broiler. Put tomato wedges in a shallow baking dish in one layer. Drizz...

Some of my best memories involve sharing a meal, a drink or a sweet. But it is funny how foods that are not memorable at the time become a source of nostalgia later on. For example, when I was studying at the school of public health, the daily grind had curry chicken salad sandwiches for sale. I ate them, just like I ate many things on-the-go, in between classes or to get me through a study session. At the time, it was just a sandwich, but now I have fond memories of eating them. So today, I embraced that nostalgia, and made me some chicken salad... a heavily adapted version of the Pioneer Woman's recipe. Ingredients: 1 1/4 pounds Chicken, cooked and diced 4 whole ribs of celery, chopped 1/4 cup sliced almonds 3 Tbsp light mayonnaise 3 Tbsp light sour cream 1/3 cup So Delicious almond milk creamer 1 Tbsp curry powder Salt & pepper, to taste Directions: Mix together mayonnaise, sour cream, almond milk creamer, and curry powder until well combined....

We are all busy, and forget to shop on occasion. We run out of fresh meat and vegetables, and are tempted to eat out, eat a tub of ice cream, or skip dinner altogether. This meal is full of pantry staples that you can always have on hand and does not fail to satisfy! If you are feeling extravagant, add an extra 1/2 cup of shredded cheese to the tuna mixture, in addition to the cheese on top.  Recipe Makes 4 servings Cook the egg noodles, and combine the following ingredients in the saucepan: 6 oz yolk-free egg noodles 2 5 oz cans chunk light tuna 2 8.5 oz cans mixed vegetables, ex. Essential Everyday No Salt Added Mixed Vegetables with Carrots, Potatoes, Celery, Peas, Green Beans, Lima Beans 2 Tbsp Gulden's Spicy Mustard 2 Tbsp Nasaya Vegan Mayonnaise Ground pepper, to taste Spread the tuna mixture in an 8 x 8 pyrex pan, and cover in: 1/2 cup shredded 3-cheese blend, ex. Fontina, Asiago, Parmesan Bake in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes. ...

Preface: Found in the archives of drafts long gone unpublished, this was originally written in 2012. When the weather gets warmer, there is nothing more refreshing than a cool summer smoothie. But not all smoothies are created equal. Store-bought smoothies: Are often full of added sugars - look for turbinado, sweetened juice or honey in the ingredients list Can contain unnecessary additives to add protein, caffeine or electrolytes that are better sourced from whole foods Can have distorted portion sizes - do you need really need 20 oz of smoothie? Often contain everything but whole fruit, including sorbet, and juices There are some good smoothie choices out there though! Jamba Juice's Probiotic Fruit & Yogurt Blends are made with nonfat yogurt, soymilk and whole fruit, along with their probiotic blend. A small size smoothie ranges from 230-250 calories and provides 15% of your daily value of calcium.  At Smoothie King, you can ask to "Make it Ski...

Happy Valentine's Day from your favorite blogging RD! I melted chocolate in a double boiler and molded them in cupcake liners for the holiday. It was a ton of fun mixing and matching cranberries, walnuts, sprinkles, and white and milk chocolate! For more inspiration, check out these Youtube videos: How to Temper Chocolate How to Pick a Chocolate Mold How to Add Filling to a Chocolate Mold

On a chilly day like today, when the temperature never reaches above freezing, and the wind chill is in the negative digits, it is only natural to crave soups and stews. I had fish de-thawed in my fridge, so I initially thought I would make fish stew. Unfortunately, I didn't have all the ingredients, and I wasn't highly motivated to leave my house to go shopping. Luckily, Ellie Krieger saved the day with a simple, healthy and easy recipe, that I adapted below, using the fish I already had in my fridge! Great RD's must think alike! Ingredients 2 6 oz fish filets of your choice (Salmon, Tilapia, Cod, etc) Marinate overnight in a ziploc bag with : 2 Tbsp Wildtree Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil 1 Tbsp Wildtree Hot & Spicy Fra Diavolo Blend ¼ tsp salt OR 1 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes 3 tablespoons olive oil 3 garlic cloves, crushed 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano leaves ¼ tsp salt 2 teaspoons garlic grapeseed oil, divided 1 small onion, di...

It only took about 3 tries, but I finally perfected this recipe. The proportions of tuna to breadcrumbs to egg is pretty crucial, so I included 2 different scaled versions of the recipe. The great thing about these tuna cakes is that they go great on a bun, roll or pita, but they are also good alone with tartar sauce, just like crab cakes. Deck them out with plenty of lettuce, tomato or cheese, and enjoy!  This recipe has the added bonus of including a lot of pantry staples, being relatively affordable when you're eating on a budget, and super quick to make! Ingredients : Makes 2 burgers:                                     Makes 7 burgers: 1 3 oz can tuna                                         2 1/2 5 oz cans tuna 1/8 cup of finely chopped onion          ...

This recipe totally made me rethink enchiladas - the nontraditional ingredients really worked well together! I felt like the original recipe could use even more vegetables, so I changed the recipe to double up the veg for next time. Ingredients : 8 (5 inch) corn tortillas 1 unpeeled butternut squash, seeded 1/2 cup water 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 cloves garlic, minced 1/2 onion, chopped 4 cups fresh spinach, chopped 8 sun-dried tomatoes, chopped 1 cup enchilada sauce 1/4 cup goat cheese,  crumbled 1/4 cup cotija cheese,  crumbled 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves, for garnish (optional) 1/4 cup sour cream, for topping (optional) Directions : 1. Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). 2. Lay the tortillas flat onto a baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven until crispy, about 10 minutes. Remove and allow to cool. Meanwhile, place the butternut squash half into a microwave-safe dish cut-side-down, and pour in the water. Cook in the mic...

I found about 10 bananas on the back shelf of my freezer, so naturally, I made lots and lots of banana bread. Do you sense a theme this week?! I'll give you a hint - it's food found in the depths of my freezer. I thought I should be healthy or something, and I bought sprouted wheat flour to use in this recipe. It was VERY WHEATY , and not really an improvement in my opinion, so the recipe and nutrition analysis below uses all-purpose flour. Oddly, when I changed the flour in the recipe from whole wheat to all-purpose, it added vitamins because the white flour is enriched - funny how that works out sometimes. Additionally, the fancy flour cost more than a dollar more in this recipe . Definitely going to stick with all-purpose flour on this one. But I toasted up the bread with a little butter and it was pretty darn good with a cup of coffee on this cold, snowy morning ! Ingredients : 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour ¾ teaspoon fine grain salt ½ teaspoon baking so...

I truly believe in food destiny . These shrimp, marinated in Chesapeake Lemon dressing , and tucked away in the freezer, were meant to meet yellow grits . Today, that destiny became a reality . I had the hardest time finding a recipe that even resembled my mental image of Shrimp & Grits. I imagined creamy, salty, bright yellow grits, with colorful veggies and perfectly seasoned shrimp . I wanted peppers, and onions, softened and perfectly blended with the shrimp.  But so many recipes saturated the grits with cheese, packed in the bacon, and ignored the vegetables altogether. I think all the cheese, bacon grease and mounds of butter take away from the simple, delicious taste of this meal . My mother's side of the family is from the south, and we eat our grits with a little bit of milk and salt and it is perfection . When costing out this recipe, I was caught unaware by the price of the shrimp (especially since I bought and froze this particular shrimp back in ...

Some dishes, you just don't forget the first time you had them. In particular, the egg chilaquiles I had at Lauriol Plaza have been stuck in my mind: Three scrambled eggs with tortilla chips, and green tomatillo sauce. Topped with Monterey Jack cheese and sour cream. Served with seasonal fruit. Recommended for a hang over. - Lauriol Plaza Menu It came to my table still piping hot and comforting after a late night on the town. So, now that I have the time, I had to try my own version of it, perfectly portioned for 1. Ingredients : 1/2 cup salsa  3 oz chicken or vegetable broth 1 large egg 3 corn tortillas, in pieces, baked til crisp at 375 degrees OR 2 oz tortilla chips .75 oz queso fresco Nonstick cooking spray  Directions : 1. Heat salsa and broth in large saucepan to medium-high. Stir in the chips, coating all of them well with the mixture. As soon as the salsa mixture is at a boil, cover the pan and turn off the heat. Let stand for 5 minutes...

It's a New Year , so I thought I would point out some new things about my blog (and myself) in celebration! First, I have added meal pricing , in addition to the food allergies and nutrition facts that I was already posting. After doing cooking demonstrations with low-income patients and struggling to provide meals that are reasonably priced, I feel it is important to be aware of the cost of our favorite foods. It makes us aware of how fortunate we are to be able to afford healthy food, and encourages us to consider low-cost alternatives along the way. The Food Stamp challenge is one way to increase your awareness of this issue. Check out the Food Research and Action Center  for more information. Second, I have a renewed commitment to home cooking . After gaining weight since starting graduate school, cooking at home has allowed me to enjoy new foods , while still being able to control my portions . So, hopefully you will be seeing more posts real soon! Check out th...