lettuce eat

It's been a week and two days I've been on a strictly clean diet and I'm feeling nothing short of amazing.  To be honest I haven't really struggled at all which is definitely promising, but I am still in the early stages.  Allotting time to prepare meals is probably the trickiest part of the whole transition, but I've been making larger meals that can last me through the workweek, like the Coconut Curry Chili I wrote about in my last post.  Sadly I finished the last of it today and was completely bummed the second it was gone.  I could literally eat it every day (and have for the last 4!). 

Before I start to post some of the clean recipes I've been making I have two in my archives that were awesome (and surprisingly almost clean) that have to be posted.  This one is going all the way back to Superbowl Sunday, which happend to fall on my birthday this year. I love when that happens!

My game day snack was something both delicious and nutritious that didn't lose that interactive, party-food feel.  Lettuce wraps! My dad would beg to differ on those notions and would ask why we couldn't just have regular tacos and if there's lettuce instead of shells then we should at least be eating beef.  But alas these beauties were made with ground chicken, which really picks up all the seasonings nicely.

The only elements making this dish "unclean" are the Asian chili sauce and the hoisin, and within those it's mainly the sweeteners that are to blame.  I'd still definitely recommend making this dish regardless--it's such a crowd pleaser and I'm sure a simple Google search will yield results of how to make your own sauces, clean as can be (usually using honey in place of any other sugar additives)!

This is a super easy and satisfying recipe.  You're going to start by simply cooking your ground chicken in a skillet with just a few spritzes of nonstick spray while making sure to break up the pieces of meat as they brown so you have manageable bits to stuff inside the Bibb lettuce.  Take time to chop your veggies while it cooks.  (Note: I didn't have green onion when I was making this, so I added shredded carrots instead.  I'd add them again next time in addition to the regular ingredients--they added a nice pop of color and some natural sweetness to the dish.)

When it's almost cooked through you're going to add in all remaning ingredients with the exception of the water chestnuts, green onions, lettuce (duh) and sesame oil, which get delayed a few minutes.  Add the chestnuts and onions and stir for about 2 minutes or until the onions start to wilt.  When the chicken has browned up nicely, finish the mixture off with the sesame oil for flavoring and they're ready to serve! I do suggest doubling up on the lettuce, however.  It's much sturdier to eat with two leaves as opposed to one (plus you can stuff more taco meat in there)...and a few extra greens are never a bad thing!

Enjoy!

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squeaky clean

Tuesday marked Day One of my clean eating lifestyle change, which means tomorrow will be a week down!  This is something I'm really excited about for multiple reasons.  First, it forces me to cook more, which I've been needing.  I work a lot and it's hard to find the time, but it's there, I just need to utilize it effectively.  Secondly it allows to me to eat lots and lots of fresh fruits and veggies along with anything organic I can get my hands on, not to mention cutting out any and all processed foods as well as white sugar, dairy and flour.  I love all kinds of foods, so to have to focus solely on super healthy dishes isn't something that comes as difficult.  If anything it's liberating to try new takes on classic dishes.  Thirdly it's going to be just what I need to get me in tip-top shape for the upcoming summer.  I'm also jetting off to florida for a week at the end of the month so that's some motivation in itself.

All in all it's been a great week full of delicious and healthy foods, but starting a few of those days with a green smoothie made it sweeter.  I'll add organic frozen fruits, a huge handful of greens (kale, spinach, etc) and water with a splash of unsweetened vanilla almond milk before blending it together.  It's so great to have a nutritious breakfast that lasts me my entire 35 minute commute to work!

All that being said I have lots of new recipes to post!! I still have a few that I made before this little change that I definitely want to add as well so those will be filtered in.  But right now I have to tell you about something I found that changed my life: Powdered Peanut Butter.  No joke. Just Great Stuff is the brand on this stuff and let me tell you it's nothing short of amazing.  Not only is the nutritional difference drastic (200 vs 45 calories, 15 vs 1.5 grams of fat - per 2 tablespoons), but it's versatile! You can add it to smoothies, oatmeal, or mix it with water and eat it plain.  I've been having it with apples and adding cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice.  Heavenly.  I've also been having it (with or without spices) with banana and unsweetened shredded coconut.

Such a great snack that really sticks with you. I have unsweetened shredded coconut on hand (which is very hard to find, I might add) since I made these amazing clean coconut cookies that I'll be posting very soon. I've made them twice within the week, but in my defense I brought almost the whole first batch into work to share with coworkers.

Tonight I did some more grocery shopping to prepare for my week ahead and whipped together a Coconut Curry Chili with Sweet Potatoes, Bulgar Wheat and Green Bell Peppers in honor of Meatless Monday.  Take a look at this recipe because, my god, it was delicious.  Super filling, too! Unfortunately my camera has been on the fritz so I wasn't able to take photos of it but trust me on this one.  I'm still full and already can't wait to eat it again tomorrow for lunch.  I didn't alter much in the recipe but I did add about a tablespoon of corn starch at the end to aid in the thickening process, and I used hot curry paste.  Love me some spice.

I'm going to do my best to get all of these great recipes up in the next few days.  And I'd love to hear about any clean recipes you've made...I'm always interested in trying new things!

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breakfast food bliss

Easter Sunday is easily one of my favorite holidays to cook for.  We always have a huge brunch for my whole family with an obscene amount of food, but the dishes don't usually vary.  This is where my love of the day comes in.  I try and make something different each year (in addition to deviled eggs, of course) that I know everyone will enjoy.  Last year I made these outrageous banana bread cupcakes so I knew I had my work cut out for me.  After a tough debate of savory vs. sweet I ultimately decided on a strata...aka everything you love about breakfast baked together. Sold.

This is such a simple recipe and it's fully customizable to suit your tastes.  Don't like bacon? Bring on the sausage.  Mushrooms gross you out? Peppers, please.  I'd love to hear about your changes and how they tasted!

Things you'll need:

2 T olive oil

2 small onions, diced 

3 c (10 oz) sliced mushrooms

8 slices bacon, cooked & chopped

1 tsp dried thyme

1 1/2 c (6 oz) shredded Swiss cheese

3/4 c (3 oz) shredded fontina cheese

6 c bread cubes (about 1 inch)

2 c baby spinach

8 eggs, beaten

2 1/2 cups milk

1 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

Start with your olive oil in a nonstick skillet (I used a cast iron pan) over medium high heat before adding the onions.  You want to cook them at this temperature just until they've softened, about 2 minutes, then turn it down to medium and cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they're a nice golden brown. 

I used this down time to cut up my bread, shred my cheese and cook my bacon.  I have this great contraption called Makin' Bacon that cooks it in the microwave on these t-shaped hangers that lets all the fat drip down and get caught in the bottom.  Now I don't make bacon very often at all but it's nice that there's an option to cook it without it sitting in its own grease.  Brilliant.

For the bread I got a nice french baguette which was perfect in the strata.  The crust stayed hard while the soft insides soaked up all the egg for a perfect blend of texture.  I definitely recommend going with a crusty loaf for this recipe.

Alright, back to the onions. Remove them when they're done and add your mushrooms.  These don't take nearly as long to cook and will be done in about 4 minutes, so keep and eye on them and keep stirring! Once your veggies are all set you're going to add them along with the bacon, thyme, cheese, spinach and bread cubes in a large bowl.  Next comes the addition of the eggs, milk, salt and pepper that you pour over the other ingredients.  Give it all a stir to combine.

Throw it all into a casserole dish, press down with a spatula so it's even, and bake at 350º for about 50 minutes, or until it's nice and browned. You can serve this dish right out of the oven or at room temp. 

Simple.  Delicious.  Crowd pleasing.  What more could you ask for?

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out of this swirled

These tasty treats are the perfect blend of chocolate and citrus...and they're so pretty to look at!  Although these aren't the quickest cookies I've ever made don't let that deter you from trying them out.  You can also change the orange flavor to just about anything you'd like to pair with chocolate...cherry, mint, peanut butter...the options are endless.

I chose to stick with the orange since I have a soft spot for those chocolate oranges that you whack on the table and break into delicious little slices.  The flavor was comprable, which I was pleasantly surprised about.

First, you're going to beat 1 cup of butter in an electric mixer until it's nice and creamy.  Gradually add in 1 cup of sugar followed by 1 large egg and 1tsp of vanilla extract. In a separate bowl you're going to combine 3 cups of flour, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder and 1/4 tsp salt and slowly add it to the butter mixture (make sure it's on a low speed or you and everything around you will be covered in white powder. No need for Scarface reenactments around the dough).

After you've put together the base of these cookies you're going to want to separate the dough into two equal portions, taking one out and adding 2 1/2 teaspoons of orange extract and 1/2 tsp of fresh orange zest to the remaining dough.  Give that a mix and set aside, preparing for the second half to take over the KitchenAid.

This half uses 2 ounces of melted semisweet chocolate to flavor the dough which makes it super delicious.  Beat well before taking it out of the mixer, wrapping both halves (separately), and refrigerate for an hour.

Once they've firmed up you're going to roll out both into approximately 15x8 inch rectangles on floured wax paper. Don't skimp on the flour, you definitely don't want these to stick.  Of course you don't need exact measurements for this--just eyeball it so they have a similar size and thickness before placing the rolled out orange dough on top of the chocolate.  From here the obvious next step is to roll them together, starting from the short end.

You might have to coax the dough from the wax paper (hence the abundance of flour).  Once it's all rolled up you're going to wrap it and send it back for the fridge for another hour.

The next part is the most gratifying.  You get to see your hard work swirled perfectly around each other--something that totally seems doable in theory but let's face it, it's still surprising when it comes out as perfectly as you'd hoped.

Cut these puppies into 1/4 inch slices, place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 350º for 10-12 minutes.

Picture perfect!

And there you have it! An impressive little cookie that is full of chocolatey, orangey goodness.  Enjoy!

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veggie nice

With the holiday season now safely behind us, we find ourselves reflecting on 2012 and eager to forge through to twenty-thirteen.  I know I've personally made resolutions, both public and private, that I'm hoping to accomplish during these next twelve months.  Most of them are completely feasible if I can manage to reach an agreement with my frenemy, willpower. We've had our ups and downs over the years, resulting in this love/hate relationship, but I'm feeling pretty confident that we'll be able to set our differences aside and achieve some great things.

A goal that always weasels its way into most resolutions is the ever-present quest to "eat healthy and work out".  This is magnified during the first month and a half of the new year when people young and old flood to any and all workout facilities and take up your favorite machines. We all know it's going to happen, but it's still a genuine shock when it does.  Just the other day I walked into my gym and couldn't help but laugh at the obscene amount of attendees, bouncing around on cardio machines and lifting too-heavy-for-you weights in an effort to feverishly work off every unwanted calorie from Halloween onward.  Now I'm not saying that striving for a healthy lifestyle is an unwise decision, because it's quite the opposite, but I just don't see the need to come out guns blazing.  Looking around at a room full of hares, I acknowledged the few tortoises who would undoubtedly still be there once the glow of their new neon apparel started to fade.

In an effort to maintain a healthy lifestyle and continue to grow my recipe collection I found myself on pinterest, scrolling through boards upon boards of fresh ideas and recipes to try.  Now pinterest, albeit a fantastic outlet for creativity to flourish, is a procrastinators promise land.  Filled with tips and ideas that never even came close to crossing your mind, it's hard to look away.  That being said I went on with a mission to find a tasty, filling dinner that wouldn't be laden with cheese or cream or any other kind of figure un-friendly food, and low and behold I came across these cannellini bean meatballs that looked too good to pass up.  They were super easy to make and definitely well received, even by my Dad, who's my harshest critic when I make him eat anything healthy.

This recipe doesn't call for any oil or butter, just a little non-stick cooking spray that I was even able to avoid with the help of parchment paper.  The list of ingredients isn't terribly long, either, and with a cook time of 30 minutes it's sure to become an easy weeknight alternative to classic spaghetti and meatballs.  

You're going to start by preheating the oven to 350°, followed by draining and rinsing 1 1/2 (15oz.) cans of cannellini beans.  This is going to be your "meat" (I used a little more of everything since I wanted to stretch out the recipe. Don't be afraid to tweak it while you're working, cooking doesn't require the precision that baking does for you to get amazing results). To the beans you're going to add 1 roasted red pepper, roughly chopped. 

Add these two ingredients into a food processor and pulse until chopped.  You don't want to puree them or they won't retain enough body to hold together (without adding a ton of breadcrumb).

My food processor is pretty small so I had to do this in two batches, which worked perfectly.  Transfer the "meat" into a medium sized bowl and get ready to add in all remaining ingredients.

Italian parsley, grated yellow onion, oregano, minced garlic, one egg, breadcrumb and salt & pepper are all these veggie meatballs need before they're mixed up and ready for rolling.  Feel free to add more breadcrumb if you're feeling like the consistency isn't quite thick enough for you, although remember that they obviously won't be as firm as regular meatballs.

They go into the oven for 15-20 minutes (I went for a bit over 20) or until they're firm to the touch and golden brown.  In the meantime you're going to heat up your sauce--mine was a mixture of Tomato Basil and Spicy Red Pepper--and boil your pasta water.  Not being a huge pasta fan I don't usually choose to eat it, but something about angel hair never disappoints.

I also took this time to chiffonade some fresh basil for garnish
because, well, who doesn't love fresh basil?

When the meatballs are done, add them to the sauce for about 10 minutes and let it thicken up.  Be very careful with this step as they are prone to squishing.  I personally don't think you even need to do this if you just let them cook for a bit longer in the oven.

Plate up the pasta followed by the meatballs and (as you can see) generously spoon on the sauce.  And there you have it! Meatless meatballs that will give your regular ones a run for their money.  Feel free to add some fresh Parmesan cheese for garnish, or if you like some heat like me you can toss in some red pepper flakes.

Enjoy!

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the eggplant experiment

With a perfectly picked eggplant and a few hours to kill before work I decided to throw together something I've been wanting to make for a while now--eggplant burgers! Since these little gems contain no cheese, minimal amounts of oil, and plenty of everything else I love they turned out to be a delicious and nutritious meal that will be sure to last me a few days.

Besides the fact that they look absolutely fabulous they are also super easy to make, which is always a plus.  Prep and cook times total up at a little over an hour, but 45 minutes of that is spent patiently waiting for them to bake to perfection--I took this time to shower and do some laundry so the timing worked out quite nicely.

You're going to start by preheating your oven to 450° and lining a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Slice the eggplant into quarter-inch rounds and brush each side with olive oil before sending them off to roast for 15 minutes- but be sure to flip them after 10.

While they're in the oven, dice one red onion and sauté over medium heat until soft.  

Add the onions into a large bowl with 1/4c chopped fresh parsley, 1/4c bell pepper (I used yellow since I love the sweetness), 1 T pine nuts,  1 clove of garlic (crushed), a 14 oz can of cannellini beans, 1 tsp ground cumin, sea salt, and your perfectly roasted eggplant rounds.

Give the mixture a stir to break up the eggplant before adding in 1/2c of hummus (I used garden veggie...the more, the merrier, right?) and transferring your burger base to a food processor. It should only take about 15 seconds for your veggies to smooth out--when this happens, transfer back to the bowl and work in 1c panko breadcrumbs to give it some body.  

With a fresh nonstick-spray-coated piece of foil on your cookie sheet, form 6 patties and throw them in a 400° oven for 45 minutes, flipping halfway through.  If you like them crispier don't be afraid to up the time a bit--they're still very moist and it seems as though it would take a lot to dry these bad boys out. 

While they were cooking I whipped together some tahini to top them off with.

1/3c sesame tahini, 1/3 c water, 1/4c lemon juice, salt, and 2 cloves of chopped garlic
go into a food processor until fully combined

Drizzle a bit over the top & enjoy!

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...& everything nice

Snickerdoodles are simple, familiar and an all around crowd-pleaser of a cookie.  The cinnamon sugar coating is something everyone can appreciate and the soft, chewy nature of it is enough to please even the toughest critic.

Start by creaming the butter and sugar together.  Beat in eggs and vanilla followed by a gradual addition of the combined dry ingredients.  Voila! Snickerdoodle dough!

I chose to chill mine in the fridge for about 15 minutes so it would firm up a bit. Afterwards I formed the dough into balls and rolled them into a cinnamon sugar mixture before using the heel of my hand to flatten them a bit. Bake between 375°- 400° (depending on your oven...be very careful not to overcook!) for 7-8 minutes.

The cookies will be just barely set, but don't worry, they'll harden slightly as they cool.

Eat up!

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cocoa loco

Let me preface this post by saying this is a cookie for everyone.  Not only because it's ridiculously good, laden with chocolate, and easy to make...but because it has Oreo's and Mounds in it...how could anyone in their right mind turn down a combination like that? Searching for a good recipe for anything usually leads me to google search "best (insert item here) recipe" and seeing what results peak my interest.  These gems were hiding amongst the crowd and boy am I glad I took the time to poke around.

Beat 3/4 c unsalted butter and 1/3 c butter-flavored shortening until creamy.  Gradually add 1 c granulated sugar  and 3/4 c dark brown sugar and mix until it's light and fluffy.  Beat in 2 eggs and 2 tsp vanilla.  After all those ingredients are well blended slowly add 2 c flour, 2/3 c unsweetened cocoa, 1 tsp baking soda and a pinch of salt until combined.

Stir in your coarsely chopped Oreo's and Mounds.  The Mounds cut much easier if they're chilled for a bit first, which I recommend doing.  Wrap the dough in wax paper and refrigerate for at least a half hour. After they've firmed up make approximately 1/4 c sized balls and place them about 2" apart. 

Bake at 350° on parchment paper for 10-12 minutes-the cookies will barely be set at this point.  Let them cool before transferring to a wire rack

The recipe calls for an additional cup of chocolate chips- I chose to leave these out since I wasn't looking to get punched in the face with chocolate...moreso a sweet caress.  Mission accomplished.  I think chopped walnuts (or any other nut) would be a nice addition to this sweet treat.  This recipe yields about 30 cookies.

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powerless over flourless

These flourless peanut butter chocolate chip cookies were probably one of the easiest baked goods I've ever made.  With 6 simple ingredients you have a rich, peanut-buttery cookie loaded with melty chocolate chips.  What's not to love?  I've made them twice already...they don't last long, believe me.

Combine peanut butter, sugar, egg, baking soda and salt.  Stir in chocolate chips.  Bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes on parchment paper.

& that's it.

Seriously.

You should get about 2 dozen out of one batch- they're relatively small cookies but once you taste how rich there are you'll understand why they don't need to be any bigger.  Make sure you let them cool for at least 15 minutes on the cookie sheet before transferring to a wire rack- some of mine crumbled (which of course I ate) when I tried to be ambitious and move them earlier. 

Enjoy!

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sugar & spice

Friday started a four day weekend for myself and what better way to kick it off then to do a little baking.  I was looking for something tasty that would withstand my train ride to Boston that afternoon so the obvious choice for me was cookies.  But what kind of cookies? Deciding on just one type is always the hardest part.  After perusing some of my cookbooks I came across a recipe for Ginger Molasses Cookies via Flour in Boston that my sister had given me for a gift.  If you haven't heard of this bakery, or the cookbook either for that matter, I highly recommend it.  Delicious recipes and informative instructions make for a fool proof dish.

This recipe calls for dark molasses and light brown sugar...I had regular molasses and dark brown sugar.  I considered this to be an even trade and the cookies still came out fabulous!

Combine 1 c light brown sugar, 1 egg, 1/4 c dark molasses and 11/2 sticks (cooled) melted unsalted butter in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix until combined, about 20 seconds.

In a separate bowl add 2 c flour, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp ground ginger, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp kosher salt,  and 1/4 tsp ground cloves.  Mix well. 

Add the dry ingredients to the butter-sugar mixture and combine only until fully incorporated.  It should be a wet, sticky dough.  Make sure you don't over mix! 

NOTE: It is best to let this dough refrigerate overnight, or at least 3-4 hours, in an airtight container before baking.  I only had a few hours so mine sat just over 2 and they still came out soft and chewy!

After your dough has set, take 1/4 c size balls and roll them in granulated sugar before placing them on an ungreased cookie sheet. This gives the cookies a wonderful sweet layer on top of all that that gingery goodness.

Bake the cookies for about 16-18 minutes at 350 degrees on the center rack of your oven.  They are done when they start to crackle on top and look as though they would be firm to the touch. Let them cool on the cookie sheet set on wire cooling racks for 15 minutes before transferring the cookies to the racks. The recipe yields 16 cookies so they will be good size.  If you'd like smaller ones just be sure you adjust the cooking time accordingly (aka watch them like a hawk in the oven and wait for the crackling!)

These were so simple yet so flavorful.  The granulated sugar made for a great presentation and added hint of sweetness to these moist, chewy cookies.  I'll definitely be making these again!

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barley & me

My aunt made this great salad a few months ago for my birthday and it was absolutely delicious.  The simple, fresh ingredients paired with hearty barley keep you full if you're having it for lunch but can also be great as a side dish (hot or cold) with a nice lean protein for dinner.  If barley or arugula aren't your favorite ingredients feel free to use quinoa, wheat berries, or spinach to suit your tastes. 

Bring 1 1/4 cups of water seasoned with salt to a boil.  Add 1/2 cup uncooked pearled barley and turn heat down to low.  Let it cook for  20-30 minutes or until all the water has been absorbed.  The barley will be soft but still have a nice bite to it. Set aside. 

Heat 1 tsp of EVOO in a skillet and add 1 1/2 cups grape tomatoes with 1 1/2 tsp minced garlic.  As you can see I was a little too ambitious and decided to leave my tomatoes whole.  They didn't give out as much juice as I would have liked but squishing them with the back of my wooden spoon helped a bit.  (I recommend cutting them first so your garlic has some extra liquid to simmer in) 

After some juices are released (2-3 minutes) add in the cooked barley along with salt and pepper to taste.  If there's a decent amount of tomato juice make sure to simmer the mixture on low until all of the liquid is absorbed. 

Add 3 cups of baby arugula and combine.  I find using tongs makes incorporating leafy greens a little easier and moves the wilting process along.  

Remove from heat and drizzle with 1 tsp olive oil.  Add lemon zest to taste and give it all a good stir. 

There you have it! I decided to drizzle on some balsamic vinegar to finish it off which gave it an extra little zing.  I prefer this dish cold and am looking forward to taking some for lunch tomorrow after the flavors have had a chance to meld.  Enjoy the salad and don't forget to halve your tomatoes!

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