Refreshing Kale Peanut Salad

This weekend it was FINALLY (finally finally finally) actually, legitimately warm.

I'm talking this kind of warm:

and this kind:

and best and most fabulous of all, this kind:

In celebration, I decided it was time to start busting out the summertime salads. I found this one over at Once Upon a Chef which also was the source of the very delicious Thai Quinoa salad, which actually had a similar flavor profile. My version is below:

The Stuff:
Kale, a few large handfuls
1 cooked chicken breast (or equivalent; optional)
half a cup sliced almonds, toasted
half a red bell pepper, chopped
3/4c carrot pieces (mine were chopped baby carrots)
handful of cilantro, roughly chopped

dressing:
1.5 tablespoons peanut butter
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 garlic clove
chunk of ginger (or about 2 teaspoons minced ginger)
.5 tablespoons soy sauce
1.5 tablespoon sesame oil
juice of half a lime
red pepper flakes or chili sauce
pinch salt

What to do with it: 
The dressing is easy, basically take all of the ingredients and blend them up in whatever way you like best (mini food processor, blender cup) or just chop as finely as you can with your own two little hands, and mix very well.

For the salad itself, first prepare the kale. Remove the hard spines, and then the key is to hold a bunch of leaves together in your hand and cut them in small strips (chiffonade). If your strips are a little on the large size, as mine are you should massage it, which just means to squish it in your hands a bit so it is softer. Then, add the other ingredients, toss with dressing, and there you go!

It was very refreshing, plus, I'm a sucker for a good peanut sauce. The nice part about this one is that it's peanuty but really not to heavy. The other nice thing about kale salads is that they really hold up in the fridge, and even though this is half the original recipe, there are lots of leftovers. This is definitely going into the summer rotation!

Collard Green Wraps- Who Knew?

As most of you probably did, I spent December in an orgy of cookies and candy and delicious cocktails. I'm not going to lie, it was spectacular. BUT, now it's time to get things back in hand. I decided to do a modified version of a Whole 30 (modified to include the vegetarian options since I just can't stand eating that much meat everyday), which has been great for getting me back into cooking and I've tried a bunch of new recipes.

This one isn't really a recipe so much as a concept. Sandwiches are pretty much off the table for the time being (which is a little rough given that I'm a sucker for a good sandwich, and even have a series of past posts called "The Gallery of Sandwiches", chronicling the best sandwiches I have encountered). Honestly, though, I normally just eat leftovers for lunch so it's not actually any kind of big deal. But, if the craving strikes, this trick is worth a try. I learned it from YJP over at Broccoli is for Lovers.

I have never given collard greens a lot of thought. I've had the Southern side dish version of them and just never liked it. BUT, they are super cheap and have gigantic flat leaves that it turns out are totally perfect for a wrap. The only prep I did was to cut down the spine a little bit, because it's kind of big.

Then, just lay out your ingredients. This was tuna, but it would also be good with the avocado chickpea salad, or really anything else you'd do in a wrap.

(immediately after taking this picture I realized that everything has to be oriented in the same direction for better wrappability, but this was more photogenic)

Then, you know, wrap it!

I will say that one of the perks of these things is that the leaves are really pretty :).

I was surprised at how well this worked- the leaves themselves have a really benign flavor that doesn't have much of an impact on the flavor of the filling, but they also make it taste really light and a little crunchy. It's good I liked it, because my grocery store sold these in ENORMOUS bunches (for  only 59 cents a pound!), so I have wraps for weeks (some of these may become green smoothie fodder). Anyhow, sounds weird, but totally worth a try!

Save Yourself from Yourself Post-Holiday Kale Salad

If you're like me, the last few weeks have been chock-full of deliciously terrible things, like fudge and toffee and cookies of every shape and size. Oh, it was glorious. However, by the end, I felt something like this:

So, I made this salad immediately upon arriving home from my holiday family visit, and have made 2 more batches this week already. I actually ate it so many times I googled what happens if you eat too much kale. (answer: people say you CAN eat too much raw kale and it'll give you hypothyroidism. I didn't verify that information anywhere legit, though so don't take my word for it). So, moderation in all things, even raw kale, apparently.

At any rate, this was super easy, extremely delicious, kept well until the next day, and is good for you. What else can you ask for?

The stuff:
-1 bunch curly kale
-1 lemon
-olive oil
-salt
-pepper
-craisins
-walnuts
-parmesan (optional)

What to do with it:
Take the kale and cut out the really thick bottom portion of the stems. Stack the leaves on top of each other, and cut it into thin ribbons (you might need to cut it once lengthwise down the middle if they are too long)*. Put them in a bowl and squeeze all of the juice from the lemon onto the kale. Use your (clean) hand to squeeze or massage the kale for a few minutes- it makes it just a bit softer and also gets the lemon well mixed in. If you can, let it sit there for a bit, if you can't just proceed onwards. Pour about a tablespoon of olive oil over the leaves, add salt and pepper to taste, and toss with a fork. The, coarsely chop the craisins and walnuts and throw those in- these are the main source of calories so you can judge for yourself how much you want. I put in a lot of nuts because the dinner I was having was light and I wanted protein. If you'd like, you can grate in some good quality hard cheese (I used parmesan the first time and skipped it the other times). It does add a little something, but it is optional.

I ate mine with just a roasted sweet potato and it was delicious. The salad comes together extremely quickly, and if you microwave the sweet potato (roasted is better but microwaved actually is fine) you can have a very healthy dinner ready to eat in about 10 minutes. This may become a weeknight staple!



*note: for Christmas I got a very nice (VERY SHARP) chefs knife. I was really excited to use it, until about 30 seconds into my salad making experience I sustained an injury in the line of duty. Not to be thwarted, after taking important steps (like using half a box of bandaids and calling my Mom to tell her I got hurt) I took this picture with my left hand raised in the air above my head. I think it came out pretty well, all things considering. Lesson learned, when they say to curl your hands under while chopping, they're not kidding!

Beet Bonanza

In a recent CSA box, I got a really nice bunch of beets, greens and all. Now, I come from a Scandinavian, beet eating family, but I myself have never been a beet lover. I've never really been sure if that was because I'm just not into pickled beets, or canned beets (I never remember seeing an actual raw beet). So, I figured that this was the time to find out.

My plan was to use both the beets themselves and the beet greens in separate dishes. I found a good looking basic recipe to start from, got a few additional ideas, and went from there.

The beets themselves:
-beets, peeled and sliced (I had 4 beets total)
-olive oil
-fresh chopped rosemary
-salt/pepper
-crumbled feta

Preheat the oven to 350. Toss the beet slices (being careful not to turn yourself and everything around you purple) in the olive oil and chopped rosemary, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven until a knife goes easily through, and the edges are nicely caramelized, about 25 minutes. Before serving, sprinkle with feta.

The greens:
-olive oil (1 tbsp)
-chopped beet greens from your beets
-1/4 chopped small onion
-2 cloves garlic, chopped
-small amount balsamic vinegar

When the beets are nearly done, heat the olive oil in a pan, brown the onion and garlic, and then put in the greens, stirring until wilted. Turn off the heat, and sprinkle with a few drops of balsamic vinegar.

The chicken:
The chicken isn't really the focus of this post, but in case you're curious, I put 2 thawed chicken breasts into a ziplock bag with some chopped rosemary, 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper, and marinated for about 2 hours. Then, I put it on the grill while the beets were roasting.

I have mixed reviews on this- the recipes themselves were good- I liked the greens a lot, and the rosemary and feta really complimented the sweetness of the beets. Unfortunately, I still think I don't like beets- they're just too sweet for me. But, if you do like them, I think this is a unique take and a nice flavor combination.

Garbanzo Beans and Kale Bake

Now, we enter the phase in which I start to tell you the thrilling tale of how I used up CSA Box #1. I'm just warning you, there were a whole lotta greens in there, so get yourself ready.

This recipe was really good, and suuuuuuuuper easy. You really can't go wrong when there are so few ingredients!

The stuff:
1 onion, quartered and sliced
1 can garbanzo beans (or, white beans) drained and rinsed
4 cloves garlic
a big bunch of kale, rinsed, big stems removed, and chopped
Parmesan cheese- better quality is better, but all I had was the finely grated kind.
(also olive oil, salt, pepper)

What to do with it:
Take a 9x13 pan, dump the beans, onions, and garlic inside. Sprinkle salt and pepper according to taste (although, watch it with the salt, this starts tasting salty fast), and toss with about a tablespoon of olive oil. It might sound like a lot, but all the other ingredients are low calorie, and using olive oil as opposed to something like cooking spray makes a big difference with such a simple dish. Bake the mixture at 400, stirring occasionally, until the beans and onions are lightly browned. With the garlic and onions, it should smell delicious.

Once the beans are brown, put the kale in the pan, and stir it around. It'll shrink a bit, so don't worry if it looks like a lot. Be sure it is mixes well so the onions, beans, garlic, and oil get their flavor on the kale.  Once it's mixed liberally sprinkle the top with Parmesan cheese (if you want it to be vegan, it'd probably taste fine without it). Continue to bake at 400 until the kale is getting a little bit brown, and it seems softened.

This could make a great side dish, although I ate it as a light dinner just as is! It heated up really well for lunch the next day, too. This is definitely going to be a go-to way to cook greens in the future- it comes together quickly, and the ingredients are things that a well-stocked pantry should have on hand. Give it a try!

CSA Box... woo!

I've posted before about how much I love my CSA box. Now, I got a little worn out of squash and ended up taking a break for a while. But, I'm back, baby! This week was my first box of the summer... check out the deliciousness:

- 4 Detroit Red Beets
-1 bunch  Blue Kale
-1 bunch Siberian Kale
-2 Artichokes 
-4  Carrots
- 1 bunch Red Chard
-1 bunch Green Chard
-4 Spring Onions
-4 Zucchini
-4 Peaches

I'm going to be busy! Let me tell you some of the things I have planned...

1. grilled artichokes with grilled chicken

2. Roasted white beans, onions, garlic and braised kale

3. Swiss chard and red pepper stir fry with quinoa

4. roasted beets and greens with roasted chicken breast

5. Kale with chicken andouille sausage

Now, I'm not promising that I'm going to post on all of them, because most of these are new endeavors, and I only want to share the things that actually get my stamp of approval. But, keep your eyes out!

Spicy Polenta Casserole

My life right now goes something like this... wake up, drink copious amounts of coffee, go to work, run around all day, come home and watch something really educational like one of the many Real Housewives shows or ANTM (and the girl I liked tooooootally won on ANTM last week- woot!), then I hole up in my room and write grants until midnight while Charlotte stares at me balefully, collapse in bed. Rinse. Repeat.

You will notice that description does not include things "make delicious, creative, healthy meals every night, take pictures of them, and write clever posts about them". My actual dinners are focused more on what I can make that I can then microwave servings of for days on end. Fortunately for you, one of these actually turned out to be super delicious and now you get to read all about it.

What you need:
For the polenta:
1c cornmeal
2c milk (I used almond milk)
1.5c water
1/8c grated Parmesan
1/2c shredded cheese (I used the Trader Joes Quattro Fromagio, which is a staple around here)

For the filling:
a whole lotta chopped cleaned stemmed Kale (or, green of your choice)- probably 6 cups
1/4 onion, chopped
a little oil for browning the onion
1 package "Soyrizo" from Trader Joes*
1/3c water
1 tbsp butter (or, butter-like substance- I used Earth Balance)
pinch of salt (don't need much, what with the cheese and chorizo and all)

*now, you could use regular chorizo, but seriously, have you ever read the ingredients in that stuff? I mean, I'm not a vegetarian, but, man, that stuff is terrifying. The soyrizo is actually awesome, spicy, and unless you are a chorizo aficionado I doubt you can even tell the difference (but, your arteries can!). just try it.

Preheat the oven to 400. Grease an 8x8 baking pan with cooking spray.

First, you're going to make the filling.  Heat the oil, and cook the onion until translucent and soft. Then, toss in the soyrizo (don't put in the casing! it's plastic!) and stir it around. Put the kale in, put in the water (so it can steam a little) lower the heat, and cover the pan. When it is still pretty bright green, but is soft, uncover it and let it sit.

Now, you need to make the polenta (my instructions, and general inspiration, came from the Food Network). Boil the water/milk/salt. Turn down the heat, and slowly pour in the cornmeal, stirring as you go. Keep on stirring it, and it will thicken- you want to keep stirring because if it's lumpy, it'll be gross. It'll become kind of like the texture of boxed cafeteria style mashed potatoes (sticks together, but still stirrable), and then you're done. Stir in the cheese and the butter, and really mix it up.

Next, pour half the polenta in the pan, put in the entire kale/chorizo/onion mixture, and spoon on the rest of the polenta, you'll probably need to spread it around with a spoon. Then, bake it in the oven for 20-25min, it should be nice and golden brown. Wait a minute, then serve!

It was sooo good! Something about the cheeziness and the cornmeal and the spicy chorizo.. mmm. It also microwaved really well (which was important because I ate it for quite a few dinners/lunches that week). This could actually work as a breakfast casserole, it might go well with scrambled eggs. Also, if you want to use it as a side dish you could leave out the chorizo (the original recipe didn't have it). But, honestly, it was delicious, and I wouldn't if I were you. Anyways... try it!