Clean Eating

With school back in session for all of us, I am becoming a domestically disorganized mess. Once an expert grocery shopper and menu planner, I seem to have no time or energy to commit to a routine which makes for a lot of rotting produce, last minute burrito runs, and consequently too tight jeans. This will not do. I finally sat down and made a plan over the weekend and we now have a refrigerator full of groceries intended for meals, healthy dinner plans, and a schedule (practices, classes, late work nights). Part of my reinstated food-planning routine will involve clean eating. This sounds like a Whole Foods trend, and it kind of is, but I really love the concept which is basically eating whole, simple foods, using locally sourced produce, humanely raised lean meats, exercising a little portion control and drinking lots of water (something I am prone not to do).  A really easy way to make this eating style easy is to make a lot of whole grains, lentils and beans ahead of time. I've talked about freezing quinoa and brown rice before. They can be used as the anchor for so many meals, including breakfast, and having them ready to put into a bowl makes last minute meals really easy.  I also like to make things that involve only quick chopping and sauteing.  For a little added protein, poach an egg and add it on top of almost anything, it takes 5 minutes. All of the meals listed below really only take 20-30 minutes to prepare if you have the grains pre-made. Here's our menu plan for this week, including my recipe for a tasty macro bowl- a healthy way to start the week that I dork up by calling "Macro Mondays".

Sunday Night (1 hour) Make 10 cups of cooked quinoa, 10 cups of cooked brown rice, simmer black lentils, pack it all up for the week.

Monday: Kabocha Squash Macro Bowls
Tuesday: Avocado, Mango, Fresh Corn and Black Beans with Brown Rice and Pico De Gallo
Wednesday: Baby Bok Choy, Mushrooms, and Tofu with Brown Rice
Thursday: Quinoa Salad with Zucchini, Mint, and Pistachios
Friday: Homemade Pizza with fresh basil, tomatoes, and goat cheese.

For snacks try truffle popcorn, apples and peanut butter, hummus and carrots, and stick with water, coconut water and almond milk for drinks (except for half and half, that's got to go in the coffee).
For Lunch eat smaller bowls of leftovers with added fresh greens and eat fresh fruit. 

Here' the recipe.  I found the basis for this meal and an explanation of macrobiotic eating from one of my favorite blogs A House In The Hills. Check out her recipes, they are amazing. 

Autumn Macro Bowl 
serves 2

1 small Kabocha Squash
2 cup cooked quinoa
1 1/2 cups cooked black lentils, salted
1/2 cup sauerkraut (or other fermented veggies, raw)
8 cups baby kale 
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
spicy nori, cut into 1" pieces
1 tbsp ponzu or low sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp maple syrup
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Cut squash in half, crosswise, and scoop out seeds. Cut into 6 wedges, place in a baking dish, fill the bottom with an inch of water.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper and drizzle with maple syrup. Tent with foil and bake for 20 minutes. 

While the squash is baking, prepare the kale and onions.  Heat olive oil over medium flame in a saute pan.  Add onions, stirring until translucent, add kale in batches, drizzling water and ponzu sauce on the leaves to allow to wilt.

Assemble the bowl: 

1 cup quinoa
3/4 cup lentils
1 cup wilted kale
1/4 cup sauerkraut
1 sheet spicy nori
2 tbsp dressing

Drizzle with a simple dressing.  I used a goddess style dressing from A House In The Hills in this recipe, where she also tells you how to make delicious lentils.
 

Home Boys

I am the mother of two boys and I am hell bent on making gentlemen out of them.  I want them to be good partners one day, which means they need an education in the domestic arts, including cooking, and I'm starting them young.  At two and a half Wylie can now crack and beat eggs and he's learning how to use a knife.  He's been practicing with a peeler and pumpkin carving tools (ideas I borrowed from his preschool). I try to include them in the kitchen as much as possible so that they observe my techniques. Given the opportunity, they really love to cook and often surprise me with their ideas. I've also found that they become more adventurous with their eating when they help out. I try to be very mindful when they are in the kitchen. I always turn pan handles toward the stove, keep sharp knives out of reach, and encourage lots of hand washing (boys are icky), but I give them enough space to make a mess and have fun. Here are a few more ideas to get your kids involved:

1. Have them help you with the planning/shopping.  Get their ideas for meals before you shop to get them fired up about what they'll be cooking/eating.

2. Swap out cooking shows for cartoons, they love them. Read recipes and look at cooking magazines together.  Real Simple, Martha Stewart, Cooking Light and Saveur are all good visual options. 

3. Grow your own food together.  Plant a seed, watch it grow, eat it.  Wylie refuses to try prepared green beans, but he freely eats them in the backyard, and he loves to pick and wash them in the sink. Next step, on a plate...

4. When you're at a restaurant try out something new together and then try to recreate it at home.  This get's them thinking about ingredients and flavors. 

5. Give them specific jobs that they can own. Let them measure and mix.  Let them flip the pancakes, stir the soup, frost a cake. Talk to them about how to do things safely. They love kitchen equipment. Let them grind the coffee or man the Kitchen Aid. Their abilities in the kitchen might surprise you.
   

Wylie's Vegetable Stew (it was pretty tasty)

Taco Tuesday

When I was a senior at Davis, my gaggle of girls (and one boy) embarked on a poorly planned Spring break trip to Baja, Mexico.  I'm pretty sure our goal was to get tan and drink cheap margaritas.  We decided to camp on the beach (smart) and eat from roadside taco trucks.  It was at one such taco truck that I watched a lady prepare fish tacos from scratch.  When we got home, sunburned and broke, the recipe became one of my staples.  I made a spiffed up version this weekend with a mango relish, but the basic technique remains the same...

Baja Style Fish Tacos

1 1/2 lbs of fish (I used halibut, but often use snapper or tilapia)
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tbsp sea salt (plus a little more for finishing)
2 cups canola or rice bran oil for frying.

Cut fish into 2 inch pieces
Mix flour and salt in a wide, flat bowl
Heat oil over medium-high heat in a 3" deep wide skillet, keep a splatter guard handy

Sprinkle a pinch of flour into the oil to make sure it is hot. Dredge the fish through the flour, shaking off excess and place in skillet with about 1" of space between each piece.  You'll have to do a couple of batches.  Fry on one side for approximately 2 minutes, using tongs, flip the fish and cook for about 1 minute.  Transfer to a paper towel covered plate and sprinkle with sea salt.  

I always use corn tortillas, prepping them in a tortilla warmer. 
I prefer my tacos with a green avocado salsa, cabbage, cilantro and lime.  To make the mango relish, simply mince fresh mango, radish, cilantro, and a small pepper. I prefer serrano or jalapeno, but to make it more mild I used a pasilla for this particular version.  Mix with fresh lime juice and sea salt to taste.  

Stocking Up

I recently started making my own chicken stock.  I realized that I was going through at least 2 cardboard containers of stock a week, much more than that during the holidays. I don't love stock in a box, but it's convenient. Here's a simple, organic, inexpensive way to make and freeze your own so that you always have it on hand.

Homemade Chicken Stock

1 1/2 - 2lbs of organic chicken legs 
4 carrots, diced
2 stalks of celery, diced
1 large yellow onion, diced
3-4 sprigs of fresh thyme
2 tablespoons of sea salt
5 quarts of water

Remove skin from chicken legs
Place all ingredients in a large dutch oven or pot
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer
Cook for 5 minutes, skim the foam from the top and cover
Simmer for 2 hours
Remove from heat and allow to cool for 20-30 minutes
Pour contents through a colander into a deep bowl.
Cover and refrigerate the broth until cool, discard the colander contents*
Divide into freezer bags, marking amount, date on the outside.
Store up to 6 months.

*Don't waste! pick the boiled chicken from the bones to use in soup.

** Trader Joes shortcut: buy their mirepoix in the prepared vegetable section to save time.  They also sell organic free range chicken legs for under $3. 

 
 

Late Night Food

Because of work, dinner has come late a few times this week and we haven't eaten together. It happens. Last night I fed the kids their favorite meal of canned split pea soup and buttered tortillas (yes, weird, but they love it) and we finally got cooking around 8:30pm.  This meal is so satisfying and easy to make, and again super nutritious.  It happens to be vegan, but just think of it as burgers and fries. 

Portabella Burgers with Sweet Potato Fries

2 large Portabella mushrooms, remove stem

2 slices of Heirloom tomatoes, butter lettuce

2 whole wheat buns

2 medium sweet potatoes,cut into 1" wedges 

3 tablespoons of olive or grapeseed oil

1 teaspoon smokey paprika

For glaze/dressing:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon white wine or champagne vinegar

1 tablespoon spicy Dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon salt, pepper

Preheat oven to 400

Turn on panini grill, grill plate, bbq
Coat the sweet potatoes with the oil, salt, pepper and paprika.  Put on a sheet pan and bake for 25 minutes, shake them up half way through so they crisp evenly.

Whisk the glaze together and baste both sides of the mushrooms.  Grill each side on medium-high heat for 5 minutes each side until the mushroom starts to open and becomes soft. 
Assemble burgers, with condiments of your choice, plate your fries
We used the leftover glaze to dress a simple spinach salad with apple, blackberries and avocado. Tip: if you pre-cut the sweet potatoes ahead of time, this could take only 25 minutes to make at cook time. Not bad!

Me in my Autumn Sweater

It's my favorite time of the year, when summer starts fading in and out, and you can smell the distinct arrival of Autumn with the first rain and the crunch of fallen leaves.  We experience an Indian Summer here in the Bay Area which is always a little confusing. Despite a lingering tomato crop and layered, but flip-flopped wardrobe, Autumn is here.  We made a menu of healthy comfort food and I'll be sharing a recipe each day this week after I make it.  Here's what to expect...

Anniversary Party

This past weekend we surprised my in-laws with a belated Anniversary Party to celebrate their forty years of marriage.  We wanted to recreate a version of their original reception.  

With a little sleuthing we found out their backyard wedding menu featured appetizers, their colors were apple green,pink and white, invitation font was French Script and wedding song was "Unchained Melody". 

Armed with these details, we scouted a location in a park near their home, and set the park picnic table in a green linen table cloth with pink roses and carnations - a nod to the 1970's.  The menu was a play on their original appetizers. We featured Crab Cakes with an herb salad, Lamb and Tri Tip Kabobs with a pilaf with almonds and golden raisins and a Vanilla Chiffon Wedding Cake, complete with miniature bride and groom cake topper.  Here's to 40 more.

The Plan

When I considered the name of this blog* I thought about the fact that it meant a few things. To "make do" is to find a way to get by with what you have and to do that you sometimes need to be creative and sometimes you have to plan ahead.  It also sets the two categories of post "make" and "do". 

Cooking and Eating

Every week I sit down and plan out what we're going to eat. I should mention, this is coming from someone who has owned several unused day planners. It takes about 20 minutes. I focus on meals Monday-Friday and leave the weekend open for eating out or getting fancy steaks.  I use those 1950's style shopping lists and menu planners you find at stores like Paper Source; Target also has a line from Real Simple. I like them because they have categories for shopping that makes remembering peanut butter a whole lot easier, plus they have magnet backs and come in a variety of colors. The iphone has shopping apps, but I'm a pen and paper sentimentalist. We've been doing this for a few years and as a result we have very little waste, we rarely eat take out, our grocery bill is pretty consistent and we keep to a healthy plan. It could help someone who has a lot of late nights at work or kids practice schedules to juggle keep to the concept of eating a home cooked meal, maybe even at a table, maybe even together. It certainly saved us when I was working a lot and helped me lose weight after I had a baby. Anyway, I thought it might be a fun experiment to share my week's plan as a sort of "make" and "do" combo. In future posts I will include recipes, shopping lists and cooking tips.


*Make Do became Poppy Haus in January 2012