Raw Thai Almond Kelp Noodle Salad

So, this is a first for my blog. A guest in my kitchen!!

Barbara, a Holistic Nutritionist

Over the years as a hairstylist, I have been very fortunate to meet some wonderful, interesting people. I have known Barbara Ollerenshaw for a few years and she has truly inspired me because she recently went back to school and became a Holistic Nutritionist. I asked her if she had a dish she would share with me on my blog and this is one of her favourite dishes. A raw Thai noodle salad. This is a healthy answer for when she gets a craving for Pad Thai.  I love Thai food! I was intrigued!

This really is a nutritious dish! I've never had kelp noodles before and I have to say they were very similar to rice noodles except they were a little on the rubbery side but not in a bad way! If I didn't know they weren't rice, I probably wouldn't have noticed. The salad itself was so refreshing and flavourful. It was amazing! The fact that it is also good for you is an added bonus. Here are just few reasons it's good for you.   

Kelp, a sea vegetable is very nutrient rich. Calcium, iron, manganese and complex B's, to name a few. It also aids in the healthy growth of nails and hair. And who doesn't want healthy hair and nails? I talk to a lot of women in my chair and hair and nail growth is one of our main concerns. The kelp noodles are found in the refrigerated section of the health food store. Garlic provides enzymes to help with digestion and alkalizes the body. Ginger is an antibiotic, anti-inflammatory and stimulates digestion and liver.

I urge to try this recipe, even if it's just to try something that you haven't had before. Trust me, you'll like it! 

Raw Thai Almond Kelp Noodle Salad

Noodles

massaging the kelp noodles

1 package of kelp noodles
Juice of 1/3 of a lemon
Himalayan salt

Dressing
1/2 cup almond butter
1/4 cup olive oil
4 tablespoons tamari
1/2 cup lime juice, about 3 limes
1 tablespoon honey
1 jalapeño, or to taste
2 garlic cloves
1 1/2 inch of ginger, peeled

Salad Vegetables
Red pepper, slivered
Carrots, slivered
Cilantro, chopped
Salad greens
Sprouts
Green onions, chopped
Sprouted mung beans(crunchy pea) to sprinkle on top, optional


For the noodles:
Put the noodle in a strainer and rinse with hot water. Drain well and place in a large bowl. Sprinkle with the lemon juice and a bit of salt. With your hands, message the kelp until soft. Cover and refridgerate.

For the dressing:
Place all the ingredients in a blender and mix until thick and fluffy. This makes more than enough dressing for this salad. Keep leftovers in refrigerator for another salad.

To assemble the salad, cut the noodles with kitchen scissors because they tend to be on the long side. Spoon a couple of tablespoons of dressing on noodles and mix together. Add the veggies and add a little more dressing and mix. The amount of dressing you use depends on the amount of vegetables you have for the salad but don't be afraid to use most of it. The vegetables and the noodles tend to soak up a lot of it. Sprinkle with cilantro and sprouted mung beans, if using. Serve right away.

m xo

Cucumber and Nectarine Salad

Sometimes all you need are a couple of ingredients to make a really good dish, especially this time of year. As you know, my garden is coming to end and I just picked the last of my cucumbers. I was really surprised how much my plant yielded this year. At one point, I had to bring a few to work to my co-workers because we couldn't keep up. We were having cucumber salads for lunch and dinner everyday, but I'm not complaining. They were delicious!

The farmers markets and the grocery stores are exploding with Ontario grown produce. I love it! I bought a huge basket of nectarines and made this dead simple cucumber and nectarine salad.

I peeled my cucumbers because the type that I grew had pinchy little things on them. I usually don't peel the English variety. I used nectarines but you can use peaches.


Cucumber and Nectarine Salad   

2 cucumbers, peeled and chopped
2-3 nectarines, sliced
1/4 red onion, sliced
3 tablespoons  rice wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
7-8 mint leaves, chopped

Combine everything in a large bowl. Let it sit for 15 minutes before serving.

m xo

Stuffed Tomatoes

This recipe came together easily enough. I was supposed to make stuffed portobello mushrooms for dinner but after seeing an iridologist earlier in the day for some minor health issues, she told me to eliminate mushrooms. So I had to come up with plan B. Stuffed tomatoes! Why? Because they were on my counter. And actually, they were really great because I used ground chicken and the tomatoes added a lot of juice. John really enjoyed them.

I essentially used my meatball recipe but subbed the chicken for the beef and because the iridologist also told me to eliminate bread, I subbed soaked oatmeal for breadcrumbs. It worked well for this. I would definitely do this for meatballs and tomato sauce too.

I had about a dozen medium sized tomatoes and I still had a little stuffing left over, which I made into a patty and grilled. It just depends on the size of your tomatoes. I'm going to say 12 for this recipe and if you have left over stuffing, grill it for lunch the next day.

Stuffed Tomatoes

12 medium sized tomatoes
1 pound ground chicken
1/2 cup oatmeal, soaked in milk for 20 minutes
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped herbs (I used a combination of cilantro, mint and basil)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
olive oil to drizzle over tomatoes

Preheat oven to 400F.
Slice off the tops of the tomatoes and with a small spoon, scoop out the seeds and some of the membranes. Sprinkle the inside with salt and turn upside down on paper towels.
In the meantime, in a bowl combine the ground chicken, soaked oatmeal, egg, parmesan cheese, herbs, garlic, salt and pepper. Stuff the tomatoes to the top and place in a greased oven proof baking dish. Drizzle the tops of the tomatoes with more olive oil. Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 15 minutes until the tops are golden. Serve.

m xo

Minestrone Soup with Fregola

Schools out and I had my niece Ella over and she wanted to help out in the kitchen so I thought, why not make a soup? It involves a lot of chopping and slicing and a little sous chef is always welcome! I just used what I happened to have in my refrigerator which included some corn on the cob that I steamed in foil packets over the weekend. I took the kernels off the cobs and added it to the soup 10 minutes into the cooking, seeing as they were already cooked. But you can use fresh corn off the cob or frozen corn that is thawed, just add it along with the other vegetables.

Because I had the kids for lunch I added fregola (a small, Sardinian semolina pasta) to the minestrone. You can use orzo or any small pasta. Or you can make it totally pasta free, which I usually do but I have to say I totally LOVED it with the pastina! Reminds me of my childhood because my mother always added tubettini (small tubes) in the minestrone.

I also added a piece of parmesan rind to soup as it was cooking because it adds a lot of flavour and I always have some on hand in the refrigerator  I never throw them away! They are great to throw in soups. If you don't have any on hand, you can top the soup with grated parmesan when serving.

Minestrone Soup with Fregola

2 tablespoons of olive oil
1/4 cup sliced pancetta or bacon
1 leek, white and light green part only, chopped
1 red onion, chopped
5-6 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 small zucchini, chopped
1 bunch of asparagus, chopped
3 corn on the cobs, kernels removed or 2 cups frozen corn, thawed
4 cups chicken broth + 2 cups if adding pasta
1 cup of fregola, orzo or any small pasta
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 piece of parmesan rind (optional)
Grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, torn

In a Dutch oven, over medium/high heat, cook the pancetta or bacon in the olive oil until crispy. Add the leek and red onion and sauté until soft. Add the carrots, celery, zucchini, asparagus, corn and 4 cups of chicken broth if not adding pasta or 6 cups if adding pasta. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Bring up to a boil, add the fregola and the parmesan rind if using. Keep an eye on it, stirring frequently to make sure the fregola doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot. It should take about 20 minutes for the pasta to cook. If not adding the pasta, bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Take off the heat and stir in the torn basil leaves. Serve hot with grated parmesan cheese.

m xo

Quintessential Pasta Dish...Orecchiette with Sausage and Rapini

Who doesn't love pasta? I know I certainly do! For me, when I think of Sundays, I think about sitting around at the kitchen table with my family, a bowl of pasta and a glass of wine. That has always been our tradition, pasta every Sunday lunch. And now with my mom being away this winter, my sisters and I still try to uphold that tradition, the only difference being that we try out not-so traditional pasta dishes. Not that my mom wouldn't like them, but she LOVES her fettucine she makes from scratch every Sunday.

And so when I came across an article a few weeks ago about Italian pasta dishes that they thought were the most quintessential and iconic we all need to master, I thought I'd start a series and share with you some of my recipes of these classic pasta dishes I grew up making and eating.

Some of the dishes they mentioned were, Spaghetti alla Carbonara, Pasta e Fagioli, Penne alla Vodka, Fettucine Alfredo, Marcella's tomato sauce with onions and butter (recipe here), Ricotta Gnocchi (recipe here) and many more (22 in all) I'm hoping to share with you the next few months (or longer).

The first one is, Orecchiette with Sausage and Rapini.

This is one of my favourite pasta dishes because you have everything in one dish. Pasta, vegetables and meat. So comforting! And it's very versatile because you can use broccoli instead of rapini, turkey or chicken sausage instead of pork or you can make it totally vegetarian, and eliminate the sausage completely and I promise you, it is still amazing!

When I usually make this dish, I cook the pasta and the rapini together. I first throw in the pasta and 2-3 minutes before the pasta is al dente, I throw in the rapini. Not sure if that makes anyone nervous, not knowing when the pasta is almost ready, because the last thing you want is pasta that is over cooked. That is the worst. If you're not sure, I say take it out sooner than later. And that goes for any dried pasta. So this way, you cook your rapini first then your pasta. Can't go wrong.

 Orecchiette Pasta with Sausage and Rapini

1 bunch of rapini

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 lb. sweet or spicy pork sausage
3 cloves garlic, chopped
Red chili peppers, to taste
500 grams orecchiette pasta
Salt
Parmesan cheese, grated
Olive oil

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
In the meantime, cut off and throw away the bottom of the rapini that is a little woody. Cut into 1 inch pieces and wash thoroughly. Cook in boiling water until tender. Scoop out with a strainer spoon or spider, drain and set aside. Do not turn off the heat. Bring the water to a boil again and throw in the orecchiettte pasta and cook until al dente. Drain well. Save some of the cooking water.
Meanwhile, remove the sausage from the casing and crumble it. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook until is lightly browned. Add the chopped garlic and the chili peppers and continue cooking until the garlic is soft and fragrant. Add the cooked rapini and pasta and cooking water and toss until it's all combined. Take off the heat. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Drizzle with olive oil and serve.

m xo

Stuffed Zucchini

During the week, I'm always looking for ways to cut down on simple carbs (but not flavour) when I can.This is just a simple recipe for stuffed zucchini that I came up with for last nights dinner. It was very satisfying with a salad.

Stuffed Zucchini 

4 small zucchini

2 tablespoons grape seed oil
1 lb. ground beef
1 shallot, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 small red chili (optional)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons tamari
3-4 handfuls of baby spinach
salt and pepper, to taste
feta cheese

Preheat oven to 350F.
Slice the zucchini lengthwise. With a small spoon, scoop out the flesh but taking care not to pierce the skin. Continue with the rest of the zucchini and place in a baking dish big enough to fit all the zucchini halves in a single layer. Season the inside flesh with salt and pepper. In the meantime, make the stuffing.

In a pan over medium heat, sauté shallot, garlic and chili in oil until soft. Add ground beef and cook until the pink is gone. Add tomato paste and tamari and cook for a few minutes. Add the spinach and combine until wilted. Season with salt and pepper.
Stuff the zucchini halves with the mixture. Don't be afraid to pile it on. It cooks down a little in the oven. Sprinkle with feta cheese.
Pour 1/4 cup of water in the bottom of the dish to create some steam. Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. The last 10 minutes uncovered. It is done when you pierce the zucchini with the tip of a knife and it is tender.

m xo

Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad

I didn't grow up with brussels sprouts but now I love them raw in salads and making different variations of them. I alter them a bit each time by adding a different vegetable and/or changing the cheese and oil. I like the vegetables sliced really thin and have tried to do this with a knife but I can never slice them thin enough. So I use a mandolin.  Just be really careful when using one and don't get distracted as I have been known to do and sliced my finger tips many times.

I find the longer this salad sits, the better it is.

Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad

1 lb. brussels sprouts
2-3 celery stalks
1/2 cup marcona almonds, chopped
Shaved parmesan cheese
Juice of 1 lemon
4 tablespoons walnut oil
Salt and pepper, to taste

Remove the outer leaves of the brussels sprouts and slice thinly along with the celery using a mandolin or a knife. Toss with the other ingredients and let sit for at least an hour before serving.

m xo

Just Imagine...Roasted Cauliflower and Quinoa Salad

Ok, so here's the thing. I really, really wanted to share this salad that I made with the leftover roasted cauliflower because it was that good! There is only one problem. I forgot to take a photo of it. Haha! I'm still getting used to this whole blogging thing. So sorry.

I love these kinds of salads and I rarely recreate the same one again because it depends entirely on what is in my pantry.

I like to include a grain of some sort, in this case quinoa, a vegetable, nuts or seeds for crunch, cheese for some saltiness, chopped herd or two and a little sweetness from dried fruit. Everything is to taste. You can sub the quinoa with any grain you have on hand really. If you don't like cilantro, sub in parsley or dill. Not a fan of almonds? Use pistachios or walnuts instead. Whatever floats your boat. Quantities are not even that important here.

I don't even make a dressing. A squeeze of lemon and oil of your choice.

I really hope you make this salad. It was yummy!

Quinoa with Roasted Cauliflower Salad

1/2 head of roasted cauliflower
2 cups cooked quinoa
1/3 cup marcona or toasted almonds, chopped
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
4-5 pitted chopped dates
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 teaspoon sumac
juice and zest of 1 lemon
3 tablespoons walnut oil
salt and pepper, to taste

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and serve.

m xo

Roasted Cauliflower and Zucchini

Tonight was one of those nights where we really didn't want a big meal for dinner so I decided to make it a "veggie only" meal.

I simply roasted cauliflower and zucchini(separately) and made a couple of sauces for them based on what I had in the refrigerator. Dill and mint.

These would make wonderful side dishes to serve with anything really.

Roasted Cauliflower with Yogurt Dill Sauce

1 head of cauliflower, cut into florets
Olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 450F. Place cauliflower on a roasting pan, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook 30-35 minutes or until lightly browned.
In the meantime make the yogurt sauce.

Yogurt Dill Sauce

1/2 cup greek yogurt
2 tablespoons chopped dill
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon salt

Stir all the ingredients until combined. Serve with the roasted cauliflower.

Roasted Zucchini with Mint Pesto

4-5 medium zucchini, cut lengthwise
olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 450F. Place zucchini on a roasting pan, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook for 25 minutes or until lightly browned.
In the meantime make the mint pesto.

Mint Pesto

1 cup mint leaves
1/4 cup marcona almonds, (you can sub regular almonds)
1 clove garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon salt

Place all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until combined. Drizzle over the roasted zucchini.

  

m xo

Marcella's Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter

As you may or may not have heard, Marcella Hazan, who first properly introduced Italian cooking to Americans, died last year. She was for Italian cooking what Julia Child was for French cooking. They both inspired many professional and amateur cooks, me being one of them.

I kind of came late to the party when it comes to this recipe. People have been praising it for years! One my clients used to and still does rave about a tomato sauce but I didn't know it was THIS tomato sauce. It's from "The Essentials Of Italian Cooking" by Marcella Hazan. So this past weekend I had the opportunity to make it.

The secret to this sauce is very simple: 1 onion and butter. That's it! No fancy ingredients. And you most likely have these in your pantry already.

Just put everything in a pot and simmer. The only word I can think of to describe this sauce is, lush. It tastes lush. It just melts in your mouth. Please give this tomato sauce a try.

Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter
(from Marcella Hazan's "The Essentials of Italian Cooking")



28 oz can of whole peeled tomatoes
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium onion, halved
salt to taste


Put the tomatoes, onion and butter in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Lower heat and keep simmering for 45 minutes. Stirring occasionally. I simmered mine for an hour and a half because I had the time. Season with salt. Serve with your choice of pasta

m xo



Roasted Carrot Soup

Wow! My cold is still hanging around. Feel much better but there are still lingering symptoms. Anyway, a girl still has to eat and I've been really wanting to make a carrot soup especially with this polar vortex (huh!!)  that we have been experiencing.
I decided to roast the carrots because it gives the soup more depth and flavour. Plus the cumin adds a nice smokiness to the soup. This is pretty easy to put together and delicious! The addition of the pistachios and greek yogurt adds a little bit of protein…and it looks so pretty. That's totally up to you, it's just as good without it.
I made this with chicken stock but you could totally make it with vegetable stock to make it vegetarian.

 Roasted Carrot Soup 

2 lbs carrots, peeled, roughly chopped
1 red onion, quartered
1/2 tsp whole cumin
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbl olive oil

Olive oil
1 leek, white and light green part only, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground ginger
5 cups chicken stock
salt and pepper to taste
Juice of 1 orange
Greek yogurt, optional
Chopped pistachios, optional

Preheat oven to 450F. On a sheet tray combine the carrots, onion, cumin, salt and olive oil. Lay the carrots in a single layer and roast for 35 minutes.
In a pot sauté leeks in olive oil for 15 minutes then add the garlic. The leeks take a little longer to cook and if you add the garlic too soon, it could burn it. Add the coriander and ginger and cook 1 minute. Add the roasted carrots, stock and salt and pepper to taste. Cover with a lid and simmer on low heat for 30 minutes. Blitz the soup with an immersion blender until smooth. Stir in orange juice. Serve in soup bowls and dollop with Greek yogurt and a few pistachios.

 

Stay healthy!

m xo

Chickpea Bread with Fennel, Cabbage, Celery Salad

If you have never tried chickpea bread before, you must try it. I feel in love with this street food when we went to Florence a few years ago. It's not your typical bread as it has no leavening agent. It's gluten-free, protein and fiber filled AND so easy to make. When it comes out of the oven it should be crispy on the outside. Tonight we had it with a salad but I also like to serve it with aperitifs alongside some chunks of parmesan cheese drizzled with honey. 

I didn't give you quantities for the salad. That all depends on you. Whatever you like. Or don't like. 

 I'm not a huge fan of raw onions or raw garlic for that matter, so that's why I like to soak the onion slices in water for about 15 minutes. I find it mellows it out a bit. 

Chickpea Bread

1 1/2 cups chickpea flour
1 1/2 cups water
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 400F.
In a bowl whisk together chickpea flour, salt and water. Add olive oil and let it sit for 30 minutes.
Coat a 10 inch pan or cast iron skillet with olive oil and pour in batter. Bake for 35-40 minutes until golden.

In the meantime, make the salad.

Salad

Chinese napa cabbage. shredded
Fennel bulb, thinly sliced
Celery, thinly sliced
Parsley, leaves picked off the stems
Grapes, halved
Slivered almonds, toasted
Shallot, thinly sliced, soaked in cold water
Shaved parmesan cheese

Dressing

1/4 cup olive oil
4 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
juice of 1/2 lemon
salt and pepper to taste

Combine ingredients for the salad and drizzle on the dressing. Top with shaved parmesan cheese.

m xo