White Whine Quinoa

You can make this somewhat healthy, or not so healthy.  Either way, it's super quick and easy to make, and it's really tasty. 

To start, you will need the following ingredients:

1 onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
white wine (we always have a bottle around)
1 garlic clove
vegetable broth
salt
pepper
shredded / grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Start off by chopping the onions (I use the Vidalia chop, the larger of the two chop sizes.  You could pick this up at Bed, Bath and Beyond...best thing ever!)  Saute the onions with the olive oil until the onions are slightly caramelized (maybe 5 minutes on medium heat).

Add about 5 tablsespoons of your favorite white wine (you could add more to taste once the quinoa is cooked).  Go ahead and finely mince your garlic clove (or use a garlic press) and add the garlic in at this time. 

Wash the quinoia in a strainer, then add the quinoa to the mixture on the stove.  Turn the heat to low and let the quinoa simmer, almost like you would a risotto. 

Once that sits and you stir for about 2 minutes, go ahead and add about a cup, to a cup and a half of vegetable broth, salt and some pepper for taste.  If you want to go for the yummier version, add the parmesan cheese to your liking.  If you want to keep it healthier, save the parmesan for some other time.  I put the lid on the pot and let it cook on low for about 20 minutes.  Once the broth has cooked down, the quinoa should be ready.  Make sure to keep an eye on this though, because you don't want the quinoa to dry out.  You want it to stay slightly moist and fluffy. 

Enjoy!

Vegetable Stirfry

This was one of the quickest and easiest recipes I can share!  I literally looked around in my fridge to see what I had and what I could make.  I saw two nice portabello mushrooms that needed to be cooked.  I also saw some tofu, snap peas, brussel sprouts, bok choy, ginger, etc.  Now, I realize these aren't the most common ingredients to have in your fridge, but I stock up on lots of different greens for my weekly juicing.  If you're an avid juicer like me, you'll be able to decide whether to cook those ingredients should you need it, or you can just throw it in the juicer as the life of the ingredient is nearing an end. 

With all of that being said, I started off with olive oil, soy sauce, and lemon juice and coated the bottom of my pan pretty generously with those three ingredients.  I placed the portobello mushrooms in the mixture and added the snap peas and some jalapenos.  The jalapenos are optional, depending on personal preference on the spice.  

While those ingredients were starting to cook, I cut up some plain tofu for the protein (you can substitute meat, chicken or shrimp for the tofu if you wanted).  The tofu was cut in cubes and tossed in with the rest.  I find that tofu is a very interesting ingredient, as it will just soak up the flavors of everything and can become quite tasty when added to other ingredients. 

From there, I cut the brussel sprouts in half and tossed in a few, the heads of just a few asparagus spears, I had baby bok choy, so they weren't too chunky, I grated some fresh ginger, cut up about 10 mint leaves in to thin strips, added some garlic powder and ginger powder.  I placed the lid on the pot, and I just let it cook down and let the flavors merge for about 20 minutes. 

The finished product was absolutely delicious.  We thoroughly enjoyed it and had enough for lunch the next day.  I tend to make enough food where it will last us for 2 meals to make it easier for us. 

My best tip for any aspiring cooks out there is not to get so stuck on using exact ingredients.  My dish is always evolving.  I'm always sampling, making sure the flavors taste right.  Don't be afraid to add something if you feel like something is missing.  Don't worry if you don't have the same veggies used in a particular recipe.  Cooking is not like baking where precise ingredients are needed.  It's about using your senses of smell, sight and taste and really testing and shifting.  My best use for other recipes is getting an idea of different flavor combinations and expanding my own horizons! 

Citrus Salmon

Along my quest for finding other recipes for quick but healthy meal preparations, I was finding the quick but missing the healthy options.  So, I realized there are no better quick and healthy meal preparations other than my own, and I decided to share them! 

As we have all been told, there are great health benefits to eating fish, particularly salmon.  Preparing fish is one of the easiest, quickest, and healthiest meals.  For starters, I am personally not a fan of buying previously frozen fish.  I find that you get more of that "fishy" taste and smell that is unappealing to most.  Plus, you have no idea how long that piece of fish has been sitting frozen.  Mainly for those reasons, I tend to opt for fresh fish. 

I bought fresh Salmon at my local Costco on Sunday, and I immediately came home and started preparing the meal I am going to share...I also am a big fan of preparing the same day I buy to also avoid that fishy smell and taste.  Remember, the longer it sits in your fridge, the less fresh and tasty it will be when prepared. 

Costco usually sells in larger quantities, so I cut the piece we bought in half and saved the other half for the next night's meal. 

I start with a glass dish that is large enough to contain my fish and is oven safe.  Coat the bottom with a generous portion of olive oil to make sure the fish does not stick to the bottom of the glass.  Place the fish on the olive oil coated dish, and coat the fish with another layer of olive oil.  Again, be generous with the olive oil.  There are great health benefits to olive oil, and I have eliminated all other oils from my diet and strictly use olive oil. 

I use a lot of lemon with many of my fish recipes.  It adds a nice flavor but also cuts that fishy smell and taste.  I start with zesting the lemon on the fish, which adds a really nice citrus flavor and aroma. 

I then cut the lemon that I zested, along with another lemon, and I pressed the juice of two lemons over the fish.  Add a generous amount of salt to make sure the fish is completely seasoned.  Add another generous amount of ginger powder, other herbs of choice (I used dried Basil, dried Oregano and dried Rosemary).  Garlic is also key.  I sliced 3 garlic cloves and placed the garlic on top of the fish and in the olive oil / lemon juice mixture on the side of the fish.  I find that spices like garlic and the ginger powder also take that fishy smell / taste and make the fish really pleasant and tasty.  For this recipe, I cut up a half of a jalapeno and added to the dish, but some may not like spicy foods.  In this case, just use a pinch of black pepper and drizzle over the fish. 

The next part is what makes the dish presentable.  Depending on the size of your fish, you may need 1-2 more lemons.  Cut them in thin slices, and place the lemons over the fish to completely cover the fish.  I find this process helps add moisture from the top of the fish, locks in all that flavor, and adds a beauty element to the dish. 

When you are done, place a piece of aluminum foil over the fish and pop everything in the oven.  Turn the oven on at 350 degrees, and cook the fish for 30-35 minutes.  You should have a perfectly cooked, moist, delicious and pretty piece of fish at the end.  Dressing the fish takes me about 10 minutes at most, so from the time I start to the time I serve, it takes anywhere from 40-45 minutes.  The oven does most of the work for me on this one. 

Ingredients:
Salmon
4-5 lemons
dried herbs (oregano, basil, rosemary, or anything else)
ginger powder
garlic
olive oil
salt
jalapeno (optional)

Delicious Fruit Smoothie

I have been wanting to incorporate ways to include more fruit in my diet without having to just sit and eat fruit.  One way has been really helpful, in that it also helps eliminate waste.  I normally go grocery shopping every week and stock up on all my fruits and veggies.  By the end of the week, my bananas are browning, my fruit is softening, and it's that time when I have to eat all of it, toss it...or perhaps save it! 

So, as my fruit seems like it has just about a day or two left in it, I will cut it up in some pieces, place it is individual baggies, and pop it in the freezer.  I put them aside to create new combinations of smoothies.  I've come up with some crafty ways to get some tricky fruits in to add them to my mixtures.  Here is my trick and recipe for one of my favorites:

1.  I normally take my bananas and cut them in half before I freeze them.  I use a half a banana for the recipe, and drop it in the blender.

2.  I usually buy the big bag of cuties from my local store.  Well, the skin on the cuties is not that appetizing, even when blended.  So, I came up with juicing the cuties when they were on their last few days.  I put the juice in an ice tray, froze it, and there you have your own frozen orange / cutie juice rather than buying concentrate from the grocery store!!!  So, I use 3-4 "cutie cubes."

3.  I LOVE papayas.  I know it's not a fruit that most people love, or like for that matter, but it adds for a nice taste in this smoothie.  I normally cut up a papaya and freeze about 1/2 of the papaya.  Of that 1/2 a papaya, I use 1/2 of that (so it's really 1/4 of a frozen papaya).

4.  I add about 1/6 of a cup of Kefir milk.

5.  I add about 1/6 of a cup of Soy milk.

6.  I add a splash of water to add some liquid and help the blending process.  (Note, you can add more of the soy milk, but I add water to keep the caloric intake lower)

I start blending, and if it seems a bit dry, add equal parts of the Kefir milk, soy milk and water.  Note, you can add lowfat yogurt instead of the Kefir milk. 

Introductions

So, it's definitely a struggle trying to balance work, health, and a life, right?  I know I have to make a concerted effort in order to keep up with everything.  I would say though, that within the last few months, the most rewarding thing for many reasons has been that I have been attempting to make many of my meals and eat at home or take meals from home.

The results?  Well, eating foods that I actually have made has resulted in weight loss, feeling better, more energetic, and I make a conscientious choice of the ingredients I use.  It has been great in terms of how I feel, but it has not been so wonderful in terms of the time I spend.  My mission has been to continue to make delicious foods, but to come up with recipes and foods that do not take too much time to make from start to finish (including prep time and cleaning!).  So, I'm happy to share that with anyone who is interested. 
Many know me professionally.  But who am I personally?  I am someone who enjoys all things food.  I am consistent in watching the Food Network, shows like Top Chef, Iron Chef, and cooking challenges.  I enjoy taking that to the kitchen and testing and honing my own skills.  Cooking is such a joy and a creative outlet, but making the time to actually cook regularly is the challenge. 

My most recent enjoyable culinary experience was taking the Top Chef Cruise April 11-15.  There were great cooking demos, top chefs and judges on the cruise, amazing food to taste, etc.  It was truly a culinary experience that I will never forget. 

So, my point in getting started here was to try new things, share my recipes with everyone, and hopefully encourage myself, as well as others who read, to eat and live healthier. 

I'll leave the intros with some pictures from the Top Chef Cruise...=)