10 August 2010

Eat More Basil! 5 Must-Make Recipes for Fresh Basil

Have you planted a patio herb garden yet? If not, what are you waiting for?! It’s easy, cheap, and will provide you with more fresh herbs than you know what to do with… literally! My basil is growing faster than I can make pesto. So I thought I’d do a little research on what’s so great about the herb (besides the fact that my childhood cat was named after it — RIP, Basil!).

According to WHFoods, basil has 60% recommended daily value of vitamin K, along with between 5-10% recommended value of calcium, iron, vitamin A, and fiber. It’s a good source of magnesium as well as potassium and vitamin C.

Basil’s flavonoids and volatile oils are supposed to have health-protecting properties. (Read more here!)

Okay, but I don’t have to convince you to eat more basil, right? I mean, the stuff makes ANYTHING taste gourmet! And fresh basil is so much more tasty than the dried stuff. Store your fresh basil in the refrigerator wrapped in a slightly damp towel, or freeze extra herb in an airtight container (I’m definitely going to have to do this at the end of the summer!).

Now onto the good stuff. How can you use all that basil? I have a few ideas:

• Chop it up and add it to fruit salad for a unique, summery flavor! I just tasted a fruit salad with added basil last night, and it really made for a special dish. The savory, almost spicy flavor of the basil just enhanced the sweetness and tartness of the fruit!
• Make easy creamy pesto cream sauce. Combine garlic, olive oil, pine nuts, parmesan cheese, and salt/pepper in your food processor. Then, heat cream over very low heat until it summers. Add it slowly to the food processor for a pasta topping TO DIE FOR.
• Go classic with tomato and mozzarella. You really can’t go wrong when you combine tomato, basil, and mozzarella. I made a really easy caprese salad using those three ingredients, and it was lovely. Mary also has a great recipe for caprese bombs. Oh, and this caprese burger always looks mouth-watering.
• Infuse olive oil with it. For every cup of oil, use two cups of tightly packed basil (you can also do this with any other herb). Blanch the basil in boiling water for five seconds and then throw it in an ice bath. After you squeeze out the liquid, puree the basil with the olive oil in a blender or food processor. Strain it if you want (I think the green bits would be pretty!), and then store refrigerated in a glass bottle. Use the oil any time you’d use regular olive oil for a wonderful added flavor!
• Make basil-infused tea. Just let your basil sit in boiling water for about eight minutes to create a unique, savory tea.

And of course, I didn’t include pesto (presto!) in this list because it’s so obvious. But you can CERTAINLY make pesto — and you should!

6 July 2010

caryrandolph:

DAILY DOSE OF SUMMER (SNACKS).

Where should I put my berries?

• in your cereal or oatmeal
• in your smoothie
• in your yogurt
• in your salad
• in your rice (yes, this is good!)
• in a bowl with cream
• in a hot pan with butter or coconut oil, then saute til they turn into pie filling
• in a bowl with nuts or nut butter
• in the oven to dry
• in a baggie or small tupperware to eat in an hour or two
• directly into your mouth!

10 June 2010

You’re Probably Not Eating Enough: Turnips

I got a few red turnips in my Door to Door box last week, and I admit, I had no idea what to do with them. When I was googling around to find out, I discovered this hilarious description:

Many people think of turnips as woody, leaden spheres, the color of baseballs and with about as much culinary appeal.

I can’t stop laughing at “leaden spheres.” But anyway, turnips are actually a good source of vitamin C, potassium, and iron. For like no calories, of course (36 per cup). But what do with them?

First of all, store them unwashed in plastic bag in the fridge for up to a week.

The best turnip flavor enhancers are lemon juice, vinegar, curry powder, chives, oregano, marjoram, thyme.

When I read about the first two, I immediately thought, “Why not put them in a salad?” Raw turnips are actually quite good. Mild, slightly spicy, a little bit crunchy.

Other good things to do with turnips:

• Boil in salted water for 10 minutes, or steam for 12.
• Make garlic-mashed turnips and potatoes by boiling the turnips, potatoes, and garlic in hot water, mashing, and then adding butter and seasoning.
• Saute the turnips with spinach or other greens. Then add texture with dried fruit and/or nuts.
• Puree them in a soup. They combine well with apples and onions.
• Roast them with your chicken, turkey, or duck.
• Make them in place of potatoes. They have a similar texture, but aren’t as starchy.

27 May 2010

You’re Probably Not Eating Enough: Macadamia Nuts

Oh, the macadamia nut. One of the highest fat nuts out there. But that’s a good thing! Macadamia nuts have quickly become one of my favorite snacks because of their high fat content. They’re so filling, just four or five of them satisfies me and tides me over until my next meal. They’re perfectly crunchy, creamy, and delicious.

Other great things about mac nuts: they’re a good source of thiamine and contain small amounts of phosphorous, selenium, calcium, and potassium.  Oh, and like other foods I’ve covered in this feature, they also have their own website: macnuts.org!

Like most other nuts, you can also find the macadamia nut in butter or oil form. I buy whole, raw, unsalted mac nuts in bulk from my grocery store. So now it’s time to TRULY go nuts!

• Add crushed mac nuts to oatmeal for added texture and fat.
• Throw some in your smoothie.
• Make your own mac nut butter by food processing the raw nuts.
• Sprinkle crushed mac nuts on your salad (or fruit salad!).
• Mix them into the batter of almost any baked good!
• Use them as a savory crust for fish or chicken.
• Coat them in melted dark chocolate and shredded coconut and refrigerate for some delicious mac nut candy!
• Make savory macadamia nut cream.
• Add salt and roast ‘em for around 10-15 minutes at 250 degrees for a quick party app.

Macadamia nuts are pretty versatile, but what’s your favorite kind of nut?

20 May 2010

You’re Probably Not Eating Enough: Roasted Veggies

Raw veggies get a really good reputation (deservedly), but there’s something that roasted veggies can do that the raw ones just can’t: keep longer in the fridge!

Whenever I have a bunch of veggies that are on the verge of going bad (you know what I mean — veggies that are going limp, turning brown, just looking deflated), I roast them as quickly as possible. This buys me at least a few more days to eat them if I keep them in an air-tight container.

I just put this strategy to use with some broccoli and carrots that were one day away from completely deflation/veggie heaven. It was 8:30pm and I had already eaten dinner, but I took 5 minutes to prep the veggies and then stuck ‘em in the oven for 30 minutes to eat over the next few days. Which leads me to a hot tip: You can cook at times you don’t plan to actually eat!

Whenever I have a spare 20-30 minutes, I whip up something to bring for lunch the next day, or have for dinner 4 hours later. If you don’t have a ton of time during eating hours, use the time you do have!

But back to the roasted veggies. You can roast almost ANY vegetable, including leafy greens like kale.

The basic recipe is: cut veggies into chunks, coat in olive oil or butter, add salt and pepper, and cook for about 30-45 minutes (depending on the type of veggie) at 375-400 degrees. However you roast your veggies, you’re probably always going to need a fat and some seasonings. But here are some variations on the basic recipe to kick your veggies up a notch:

• Use coconut oil, cinnamon, and nutmeg for a sweeter touch. This works well with root veggies like carrots, sweet potatoes, and winter squash.
• Add cilantro, lime, and chili for a spicy kick. Depending on which other spices you add, this can make your veggies taste Mexican or Thai!
• Sprinkle basil, oregano, thyme, and rosemary on your veggies for a classic taste. You really can’t go wrong with these spices.
• Coat the veggies in BBQ sauce. What doesn’t taste better with a little BBQ sauce?! Just watch which kind you use — many brands have tons of HFCS.
• Smother everything in parmesan and garlic. I don’t know what it is about it, but that combo is always a win!
• Try dusting on some nutritional yeast. It has a cheesy flavor that works well with all types of foods.
• Squeeze lemon juice over the veggies for a tart note. You could also try squeezing other citrus juice on to your veggies — Think orange or lime.
  
• Throw some nuts in the mix. You can use walnuts, almond, pecans… whatever you have. I love the texture this adds to veggies!
• Use cumin, turmeric, and ginger for an Indian-flavored roast. These aromatic spices will give your veggies a very special flavor!

Do you have a great roasted veggie recipe? Let me know!