Fresh Tart

It's been quite a run of parties, entertaining, and dining out lately, whew.  Loads of fun, no doubt, but I'm itching to get back to my "normal" routine of eating lighter, simpler foods.  Especially after last night's hurrah of a dinner/feast, sending off my brother David, whose 4th of July visit has officially come to an end.  David, Stacey, John, Cooper, and I put away a seriously fabulous dinner at Cafe Maude last night, my first time eating there (and definitely not my last, we all loved it).  We shared an assortment of fresh and creative small plates - salad with duck confit, croquettes, crab cakes, scallops, lamb skewers.  We went a bit wild for the desserts as well - particularly strawberry-rhubarb tartlets, chocolate cake with intensely pistachio ice cream, and warm chocolate cookies-n-milk, with a little scoop of ice cream floating in the milk!  I had to leave early to pick up Nathan, but I smiled as I left when I caught sight of Cooper's chocolate-smeared "wips."  If you go, definitely check out the interesting wine list and creative cocktails (both buzzy and non-alcoholic).

So, anyhow, back to reality!  Despite including vegetables and salads in my entertaining menus, I'm still not hitting my usual quota of greens, so I made myself a quick veggie sandwich for lunch.  I love a sandwich for working vegetables into my lunch, especially if I'm a bit tired of salads.  Sometimes I go Greek in flavoring (tomatoes, spinach, feta, onions, cucumber yogurt), sometimes Italian (tomato sauce, zucchini, broccoli, onions, beans, mozzarella cheese), but today Indian sounded good.  This is not authentic cuisine I'm talking about here, just borrowing some tasty seasonings.  I warmed half of a loaf (piece) of naan, spread it with a bit of chutney and Greek yogurt, and topped it with vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, jalapeno) stir-fried in a teaspoon of olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon of curry powder (I added some chopped seitan for protein).  Warm and spicy, sweet and tangy, it hit all the right notes.

Tonight, I'm thinking grilled salmon.  We've really enjoyed the king salmon fillets I got from Vital Choice Wild Seafood - in fact, it's time to order more.  Perhaps a miso glaze, perhaps some dill and shallots.  With some grilled vegetables alongside, we'll be back on track.

Yikes, look at that, it's 2009.  Oops, there goes half of my life, wait, come back...

No?  Well then, Happy New Year (sigh).  We rang in the New Year in relatively quiet fashion - just what the doctor ordered after Christmas festivities followed by feverish flu.  Despite feeling a bit wobbly, John and I enjoyed a sparkly, pretty dinner at Bar Lurcat.  Live jazz, beautiful decorations, very romantic (pics are from our lovely evening).  We sampled several of our Lurcat faves - roasted cauliflower, apple salad, frites.  I had a glorious piece of miso-glazed sea bass.  John ate my yummy profiteroles filled with salty caramel ice cream and topped with warm chocolate sauce (so good).  We managed to stay awake until midnight, mumble Happy New Year, and fall gratefully asleep.

In the kitchen, I've continued the low-key vibe (as you can tell, since I've been more than a bit sparse in my postings here!).  A combination, I think, of not having my appetite back, plus just feeling tired of heavy, celebratory foods.  In the new year, fresh, healthy, light foods are tasting mighty fine.  I've made a lot of brothy soups, simple things along the lines of the soup below - chicken or vegetable broth, perhaps a bit of tomato, sprinkle of herbs, a few handfuls of greens (spinach or kale), perhaps leftover pasta or rice or a few frozen tortellinis, a grating of Parmesan cheese.  My family is growing a bit weary of soups, but hey, you cook, you choose.  At least that's my rule.

I've also been inspired by a neat article in Prevention Magazine (good pub, recommend it highly), which discusses the benefits of eating monounsaturated fats or MUFAs (namely healthy body, heart, skin, and weight).  I do find that if I include MUFAs in each meal my appetite is satisfied for a longer period of time.  Food sources include olive and flax seed oils, avocados, nuts, dark chocolate, olives, fish.  Tasty stuff.  Combined with fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein, really tasty stuff.  And as easy as tossing a handful of chopped almonds into oatmeal, layering sliced avocado on a turkey sandwich, drizzling a little flaxseed oil in a smoothie, enjoying a small piece of dark chocolate after dinner.  Check out the comprehensive web page (it's a whole site, actually, that they call the Flat Belly Diet) and experiment. Iif you notice a difference in your appetite, waistline, and/or energy level, let us know.

This weekend, no entertaining, no heading out, just a long walk in the not-too-cold and quiet time here at the hacienda.  Nice!  (I've been hitting - literally - a couple of kickboxing classes each week, as well as a couple of pilates lessons which I sadly need to heal from the kickboxing.  As fun as those classes are, I still have to get outside for walks - as I've said before, if I don't get fresh air, my mood and energy level plummet.)  I'm thinking a veggie burger (I like the Morningstar Farms version; not organic, but very tasty) with avocado and roasted red pepper for lunch, topped with the rouille I'm still working from the fish soup I made a couple of weeks ago - it keeps beautifully and is a perfect condiment for otherwise plain sandwiches and soups.

Enjoy your weekend!

Do you plan your meals for the week? I sort of do - all things in moderation, you know, including being organized - but am always quite glad when I consistently pull it off. I have a couple of basic, pre-typed grocery lists on Word, organized by food category and store lay-out (I shop primarily at two different stores depending on what I need). They make getting organized much faster, definitely. I just highlight the items I need, scribble in the extras, and go. I'm definitely more purposeful in the fall and winter - no CSA veggie share to innovate around, for one. And less go-with-the-flow time as well - the busier and more scheduled things get, the more organized one needs to be, we all know that. And if you want to eat relatively quick, tasty meals...

...and healthy meals as well, then planning ahead is the way to go. Let's face it, we've all bought random fruits and vegetables only to have them shrivel and weep (literally!) from neglect. I eat my daily 5-9 (servings of fruits and veggies) most consistently when I plan to eat them. Sure I keep lettuce and spinach on hand for quick salads. Always have onions, carrots, and potatoes in the pantry. But perishables like broccoli, pea pods, mushrooms, artichokes et al come with a plan, man, so they get eaten by me (and not the bacteria in the trash).

I love the concept of cooking on Sunday to carry me through part of the week, although I don't really pull it off - do you? While I obviously love to dig in and do some serious cooking, most days our meals are pretty simple, kid-friendly fare - lean protein, fruit/vegetables, grain (preferably whole grain; I love whole grain anything - the rest of the fam, not so much). Shrimp sauteed with garlic and broccoli, rice. Grilled steak, egg noodles, pea pods. Grilled chicken, peppers, onions, tortillas. Even last night, when it was just John and me, it was just sauteed vegetables, simmered with some clam juice and wine, with a piece of fish thrown on top to steam, over whole-wheat couscous (which takes 5 minutes - literally 5 minutes - to prepare). Thirty minutes in all from chopping block to stomach, done. Make some extra, eat the leftovers for lunch the next day, and there, you ate your veggies.

Good job!

Moderate it: I don't know about you, but I eat better - in every way - when I plan meals and shop ahead. We eat out less, I eat more fresh foods, I cook healthier fare, I even eat healthier snacks when I know what I'm doing ahead of time. Basically, no down-side, because even while it takes a bit of effort up front to figure out what to make and put a list together, you save lots of time and energy come meal-time, totally worth it.

Bonus! Not only is new potato-green bean salad tasty when you first serve it (which I just did for the 4th), but it makes a killer salad Nicoise the next day - toss fresh greens with a bit of vinaigrette, top with potatoes and green beans, add hard-cooked egg, olive-oil packed canned tuna, black olives (like Nicoise!), et voila. Good stuff.

And oh, speaking of delicious leftovers, I treated myself to chilaquiles for breakfast yesterday morning, made from the chips and creamy-spicy salsaStacebrought from Taco Morelos. I dipped about five chips in salsa so they were completely coated, laid them side-by-side to cover a small plate, then microwaved them until they were warmed through and softened. Topped with an over-easy egg to finish - oh Lord, deadly good stuff. (I get on these Mexican food kicks and have to wean myself, otherwise all I want to eat is guacamole and chilaquiles - this latest craving started with dinner at La Cucaracha with Chris Follett this past Thursday night...; pic is from Too Many Chefs.)

Today, the goal is moderating back to moderation. Yeah. Good thing my fridge is bustin' with tasty LaFinca veggies to make the transition pretty sweet - salad greens, bok choy, icicle radishes, scallions. With herbs from my pots outside, I'd say a big salad is in order for lunch. (Although I admit, I'm still thinking about those damn chilaquiles...)

Moderate it: hey, the party's over, but that's OK. Keep the good stuff (like new potato-green bean salad), toss the less good stuff (those tortilla chips are now GONE), and make something healthy AND delicious to get back on track.

And now it's Monday. The parties are over, Mother's Day has come and gone, and it's high time to depuff. Bites of pastry, pizza, and lemon tart are lovely, all things in moderation after all... But fresh fruit and vegetables are lovely too, and given the havoc that too many refined carbs, drinks, meat, and dairy wreak on my face and waistline since achieving 40-something, I get downright excited to get back to "normal". Green tea and grapefruit? Woo hoo! The fact is, I have become supremely sensitive to over-indulging (I blow up like a balloon, to put it mildly - see Cancun '08) which is either a sad reminder that I'm aging (I get it already!), or a lucky reminder to, you know, embrace moderation. I'll consider it the latter (snarl).

I actually enjoyed a lovely transition meal last night, at lovely Lucia's, with my lovely mom and sister. I know I say this over and over (and over), but Lucia's does amazingvegetables. I had a cup of pureed tomato soup - no cream, but creamy; perfectly seasoned to taste like soup, not spaghetti sauce (always a risk with tomato soup). All three of us ordered the roasted French-cut chicken breast (boneless, with skin, and the first joint of the wing attached; do any of you ever request this cut from your butcher? I haven't, but I'm going to soon, I'll let you know if they oblige) served alongside a small dollop of mashed potatoes, a tangle of al dente green beans (seasoned with what I'm guessing was butter with a bit of horseradish whisked in - delicious), and wilted greens topped with crunchy walnuts and kalamata olives. Too comforting to be light, but not ridiculously heavy either. Pretty damn perfect.

Tonight? Well, we are not going out for dinner! I'm thinking miso soup and a simple saute of whatever veggies I can scare up from the cooler. More tea, grapes, and a few almonds to finish. Simple and light and clean tasting. My palate (grocery bill, butt, John, dishwasher, eye bags) will thank me.

Moderate it: back-on-track, depuff favorites are green tea, grapefruit, raw almonds, fish, arugula, and kale.

A better name for Wild Wednesdays is actually Make-Your-Own Wednesdays. I've pretty much mastered the art of deconstructing dishes to accommodate everyone's individual preferences. (Don't ask how I got to the place of being this, um, accommodating, 'cuz believe me, it reflects neither my nature nor my values - I'm more of an old-school "if I did the work to make it, you pay me the courtesy of eating it" sort of grrrl. Except for Cooper - he can eat anything he wants, awww.) Anyhow, last night's version was make-your-own pasta: a pan of spicy tomato sauce (tomato sauce simmered with lots of garlic, olive oil, and red pepper flakes), a pulled-apart rotisserie chicken, a pan of sauteed vegetables (this time cauliflower, onions, red bell pepper, more red pepper flakes, and currants), freshly grated Parm, and a big ol' pot of pasta. Build away! Good stuff.

Oh man, I'm feeling SO much better now that I'm back to my usual routine. Funny, it took blowing up like a water balloon on vacation to slap me out of my winter rut - I've definitely re-upped my fresh vegetable and fruit intake (roasted, sauteed, grilled, salads, smoothies - any way I can think to include them), and reduced my refined carbohydrate consumption, and voila (shocker), I look less puffy and feel more energetic for it. I'm not where I want to be, but at least I feel "on track" and healthier, you know?

Of course more daylight truly deserves the credit for my new-found motivation - the sun packs some punch these days, bam-bam, yes! It's so damn irritating that my body longs for stillness and comforty, carby foods (preferably accompanied by Hope Creamery butter and a nice Pinot Noir, sigh) in the depths of deep, dark winter. It's so...cliche. It's so...beyond my discipline. Disappointing. Anyhow, I'm glad to be past the worst of it and moving on into spring. Welcome sunlight! (Bouncing off April snow? We'll take it!) Welcome vegetables! Let the depuffing continue!

I'm steering myself toward spring-y, lighter fare these days. The two trips in a row - despite lots of walking and beautifully fresh fruits and veggies - definitely have me feeling weighed down. Blech. My butt declares it's high time to cash in on the mood boost of these longer days of sunlight (cuz I'm sure not relying on balmy temps) and ease up on the output of my kitchen. The nesting has been great fun (wine in front of the fireplace? Popovers with Hope Creamery butter? Wine and popovers with Hope Creamery butter in front of the fireplace?) but it feels great to be getting outdoors more, too.

In that vein, salads are tasting particularly good to me. Yeah, we eat them all winter of course, but my latest love is lighter on the green, heavier on the other colors. A chopped salad of sorts, although a shaved salad is probably a better description. Paper thin slices of a variety of veggies allows a burst of flavor in each bite - more exposed surface area, seriously - and a nice texture, crisp but not outright crunchy. With a generous squeeze of fresh lemon, a drizzle of best olive oil, coarse salt, and lots of freshly ground pepper, it just tastes like spring. Spring! And it's a great way to rummage through the crisper and make something pretty and tasty with what's on hand - tonight's version included equal amounts of shaved mushrooms, radishes, scallions, celery, carrots, romaine hearts, and red pepper. If the slices are thin enough (use a sharp chef's knife or mandoline), you can use any raw vegetable - broccoli stalks, asparagus spears, kohlrabi. Light & lovely, your butt and taste buds will thank you.

Beauty is in the contrast, as we all well know. But sometimes, we need a little reminder, especially at this rather dullest time of year. Sensory under-load is the name of the game in February-March in Minnesota. How to add a little zip? Beef up the contrast, baby! Steal some time to work out hard, outside, and make yourself good and tired and cold. Then come inside, take a warm, fragrant shower, bundle up in soft clothes and settle down to read a book (to yourself or to your kids) in front of the fireplace while sipping a glass of red wine or cup of hot tea. Ahhh...

I trick myself like that all the time. It's one thing to sneak in an unexpectedly lovely Saturday lunch (perhaps an over-easy egg alongside arugula salad?). But it's even better after cleaning up the kitchen, or a good (cold) workout, or running your kids all over town, or paying bills, or catching up on work, or some other productive-sacrifice that earns an appetite. Hey, if hunger is the best sauce (Miguel de Cervantes), winter is the best spice (the moderate epicurean)?

Heck, it's worth a try!

Alrighty then. (Deep sigh.) Another night for soup, my friends, it's that special-kind-of-hell cold again. I'm doing my best to plumb the depths of warm, cozy, rib-stickin' recipes, what with the recent heat of chicken gumbo and shrimp curry (both quick, weeknight, healthy dishes), and the long-baked (kitchen warming!) Gallic drama of cheese souffle and pissaladiere (savory French tart) to lift my spirits.

But tonight, I'm going back to the basics, my friends, plain ol' (steaming hot!) soup. Simple, comforting avgolemono (Greek egg-lemon soup), in fact, on the table in thirty and just so unbelievably yummy. Warming and filling, yet light. Delicious with grilled pita, perhaps a Greek salad. Basically, that perfect winter food that takes your mind away to a warmer spot while warming one's oh-so-stuck-here body. I don't know about you, but that's exactly what I need. Practical Fantasizing. Soooo Minnesotan, yah. And, as such, rather moderate to boot! You betcha, baby!

(And before you leave, pause to bask in the sunshine Maud drew in Facebook and kindly shone around a few days ago - thanks Maud! It's so cheerful it almost makes me forgive her for kicking my butt up, down, and all around in Facebook Scrabulous!)