Go Green

It feels like we'll never hear the end of all the health benefits of green tea.  Supposedly, it can ward off cancer, prevent cavities, and even burn fat.  While these claims may need more proof, green tea is certainly loaded with antioxidants which help prevent disease by fighting free radicals in the body.  I found a recipe for a green tea apple spice drink (see wholeliving.com) which dresses up the drink with some seasonal fruit and spices.

Combine and boil the following in a saucepan:
2 cups water
1 tbsp honey
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp orange zest
1/2 Granny Smith apple, sliced

Remove from heat and allow it to sit, covered, for 10-15 minutes.  Filter the liquid into a mug and add a green tea bag.  Remove the tea bag after about 1 minute.

Snack-o'-Lantern

 

Well, it's that time of year again - time for pumpkin carving.  Rather ambitiously, my roommate and I bought two each to carve (mine are the two on the left).  After we finished, we spent a considerable amount of time salvaging the seeds from the mess of pumpkin pulp for roasting (recipe for spiced pumpkin seeds from the October issue of Whole Living magazine ).    

Bake the seeds on a baking sheet at 350 for about 20 minutes.  Pour the seeds into a mixing bowl and stir in the following (this mixture will coat about 1 cup of pumpkin seeds):

1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp honey
1 pinch cinnamon
1 pinch cayenne pepper
1 pinch cumin
Salt and pepper to taste

Once all the seeds are coated, return them to the baking sheet and bake for another 15 minutes or so. 


These seeds will make a tasty, fibrous snack for the coming week before the predictable deluge of candy and sweets on Halloween.

Keen on Quinoa

I'm still not sure exactly how to pronounce "quinoa."  However, I had a small bag of the trendy, mysterious seed lurking in my cabinet and finally decided to try it out tonight.  I found this delicious recipe for quinoa-stuffed peppers at Vegetarian Times:

1 onion, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1 tbsp cumin
2 cloves of garlic, minced
10 oz. spinach, chopped
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can black beans
3/4 cup quinoa
3 carrots, grated
1 1/2 cups pepper jack cheese, grated
4 red bell peppers, cut in half lengthwise


Preheat oven to 350.

Heat olive oil in a pan.  Add in celery and onion, and cook about 5 minutes.  Stir in cumin and garlic and cook for one more minute.  Mix in spinach and drained tomatoes (save the juice), and cook for another 5 minutes.  Add black beans, quinoa, carrots, and 2 cups water.  After it boils, let simmer, covered, about 20 minutes.  Mix in 1 cup of the cheese.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Fill pepper halves with the mixture.  Pour tomato juice into a baking pan.  Place stuffed peppers in pan, cover with foil, and bake 1 hour.  Divide the rest of the the cheese among the peppers.  Return to oven and bake another 15 minutes.

I made a half recipe so I wouldn't have too much extra.  The original recipe claims that freezing works well for this dish as well.

Breakfast of Champions

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day because it revs up the metabolism for the day's activities.  A protein-packed breakfast of eggs is a good way to fuel up, but it's important to limit the grease factor.  Recently, I've also been trying to (tastefully) sneak a serving of vegetables into my breakfast. 

Enter the spinach-feta omelette:

Saute some spinach with a little olive oil and minced garlic in a pan.  Transfer to a plate and set aside.

In a bowl, whisk together two large eggs and a splash of milk.  Stir in some basil, oregano, pepper or whatever seasoning you like. 

Pour the mixture into the pre-greased, preheated spinach pan over medium heat. As the bottom cooks, pull the edges of the egg layer inward and allow the liquid portion to flow to the sides of the pan.  Once the top of the omelette is nearly set, spread the spinach over half of it.  Sprinkle some feta cheese over the spinach, and fold the other half of the omelette over it.  Allow the omelette to heat for another minute or two over low heat.

The spinach marks off your first vegetable serving for the day, and the feta adds an interesting element, with about a third less fat and significantly fewer calories than cheddar cheese.
 

Nutty for Peanut Sauce

Peanut sauce is tricky.  I've been trying to perfect my own recipe for a while now but the flavors are always a bit off.  After looking through countless recipes and recipe reviews online, I put together a rough list of ingredients:

1/4 cup natural peanut butter
1/4 cup honey
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
Juice of 1/2 of a lime
A little Tabasco sauce, to taste

The sauce is easy to make - just whisk the ingredients together in a bowl (or mix them in a pan over low heat).  You can add a couple tablespoons of water, if needed, to adjust the consistency.  I ended up adjusting almost all of the ingredients to taste. 

Peanut sauce tastes great over Thai rice noodles and veggies with some chopped cilantro.  You can add tofu or chicken for a more filling dish, but today I just mixed in some sugar snap peas (recipe inspiration from Fitness Magazine).

Just My Cup of Tea

This time of year, drinking tea can be the most appealing way to hydrate, and what better way to enjoy a cup of tea than with a tasty chocolate morsel?  Tonight, I attempted to make double dark-chocolate and ginger biscotti, a variation of the classic Italian twice-baked cookie.

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 egg, plus 1 egg yolk

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup canola oil

1/2 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

1/4 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger

See complete preparation instructions at WholeLiving.com.

 

 Don't be afraid of over-baking them.  The crunchier, the better!  

Note: Biscotti are also traditionally eaten with coffee (for dunking) and wine.

Snack Attack

I believe in snacking.  I've found that enjoying a small snack or two between meals maintains my energy, focus, and mood.  Furthermore,  it cuts down on that "desperately hungry" feeling that causes overeating and poor decision-making at lunch and dinner.  Whole Living magazine has some great ideas for snacks under 200 calories.  The list has wholesome snack recipes (with a wide range of difficulty) for any craving you might have - sweet, savory, salty, etc.  Tonight, I tried the high-fiber Coconut-Date Bars.  The bars are simple to make.  However, make sure the dates are VERY soft before you buy them, as I had some trouble getting mine to stick together.

3 tbsp shredded coconut
1 lb very soft dates, pitted
1/4 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped

Spread 2 tbsp coconut over the bottom of a small baking dish.  Press the dates into a layer over the coconut.  Next, add a layer of walnuts and the rest of the coconut over the dates.  Cut and enjoy.