Parmesan-Roasted Broccoli

Broccoli is my other favorite vegetable. When I studied abroad in France and lived with a host family, they could always tell when I was cooking because I made the whole house stink of broccoli. I practically had it almost every day, and it really does smell when cooking.

This particular recipe is actually an Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa Recipe. Ina Garten and I also share the same love for France and French Food, hence my love for her dish.

I cooked this dish for the first time for Tim's Dad's 60th Birthday Party, and it gets good reviews every time I make it!

Ingredients
4 to 5 pounds broccoli
4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
Good olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons julienned fresh basil leaves (about 12 leaves)
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Cut the broccoli florets from the thick stalks, leaving an inch or two of stalk attached to the florets, discarding the rest of the stalks. Cut the larger pieces through the base of the head with a small knife, pulling the florets apart. You should have about 8 cups of florets. Place the broccoli florets on a sheet pan large enough to hold them in a single layer. Toss the garlic on the broccoli and drizzle with 5 tablespoons olive oil. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, until crisp-tender and the tips of some of the florets are browned.

Remove the broccoli from the oven and immediately toss with 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, the lemon zest, lemon juice, pine nuts, Parmesan, and basil. Serve hot.

Note: I sometimes halve the recipe if cooking for just Tim and I, it yields a large serving.

Court's Mashed Sweet Potatoes

One of my favorite veggies is Sweet Potatoes! Not only are they delicious, but they have many vitamins and minerals that are good for you too. They contain fiber, much Vitamin A, Beta-Carotene, Lutein, Vitamin B6, and Folate among many other vitamins.

For this recipe I used my friends Sara and Kristin as taste testers. I think they were rather pleased, and I kept the recipe healthy!

How to make the sweet potatoes: (serving size: 4)

2 large sweet potatoes or 3 medium sized sweet potatoes
2 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk
2 table spoons maple syrup
2 shakes of Cinnamon

First for this recipe, I peeled the skin off the potatoes and discarded of it. I then cut the potatoes into chunks and boiled them for about 15 minutes or until soft.

Next, combined the sweet potatoes, sweetened condensed milk, maple syrup, and cinnamon into a bowl and mixed for about two minutes until smooth and creamy. Then they are ready to serve, its really that easy!

The reason I used the sweetened condensed milk was to add some creaminess and sweetness to the sweet potatoes. I used the Maple Syrup to also add sweetness and it also offers many antioxidants and is high in vitamins, Manganese and Zinc. Cinnamon has a reputation to cure colds, has been used to treat digestive issues, has antimicrobial properties, and is also high in antioxidants. What a healthy side dish!

Appetizers in a Rush

While I am not a huge fan of prepared foods, I came across this website while reading Real Simple Magazine www.theperfectbiteco.com they sell side dishes and appetizers. It is all homemade and is delivered frozen to your house, all you have to do is pop it in the oven. It seems like a good alternative when there is no time for making everything from scratch for a party.


After looking at how much appetizers cost for weddings, this also seems fairly inexpensive $9.95 for a box of 12 Smoked Salmon and Chive Pastry Kisses. Note: there is typically a 3 tray minimum per order.

Heaven in a Jar or Packet

This item is pretty much heaven in a jar. It is all natural peanut butter and chococlate mixed together. What could get any better than that? It pretty much tastes great on anything from bread, to graham crackers, to ice-cream. A bonus is that the oils also do not separate like most natural peanut butters do. I am in love with it! I usually buy it at Fairway since its sold the cheapest there, but I have seen it at Grisedes as well.

I also just found out they now sell it online in individual packages (pictured above) so you can take it anywhere! Meaning, for those real addicts, it will fit into your purse a little better than the whole jar.

I recommend this item; although, I am warning you that once you try it, you will be addicted too.

Surburban Kitchen Must Have

I got an e-mail newsletter about a week ago about this mini cupcake maker. It really seems rather cool, its almost like a waffle maker for cupcakes. It reminds me of the next step up from an easy bake oven(I used to ask for them as gifts when I was a kid, but never got one).

This might even be an excuse to move to the suburbs, just to own a mini cupcake maker. New York City apartment kitchens cannot accomodate anything extra besides the necessary basics. Although, this may be considered a kitchen basic when you find out what it does... It bakes mini-cupcakes in under 8 minutes! How cute is that? I am sure you can also bake bite-sized muffins in it as well.

The one question I want to know is, has anybody ever used this? All of the websites that sell this item, do not have more than 2 customer reviews for it.

Chinese Chicken and Broccoli

When Tim and I go out to eat at Chinese restaurants, our favorite item off the menu is chicken and broccoli; however, while it sounds healthy, it can be rather unhealthy due to the amount of oil and sodium it has at the restaurant. My goal was to make a healthier recipe, and while being quite skeptical about it, it actually tasted better than the dish at the Chinese restaurant. I found this recipe on foodnetwork.com.


Ingredients
Game Plan:
Marinate the chicken while you prepare the rest of the ingredients
1 pound chicken breast (about 2 breasts), cubed
3 scallions, whites only, thinly sliced on an angle
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-inch piece peeled fresh ginger, minced
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon, plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon dry sherry
1 tablespoon dark sesame oil
About 1/3 cup water
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
5 to 6 cups broccoli, trimmed sliced stalks and medium florets (keep the 2 cuts separate)
3/4 to 1 teaspoon red chili flakes, optional
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
Garnish: toasted sesame seeds, optional
Serving suggestion: Jasmine rice
Directions
In a medium bowl, toss the chicken with the scallion whites, about half the garlic and ginger, the soy sauce, sugar, 1 teaspoon of the cornstarch, 1 teaspoon of the salt, the sherry, and the sesame oil. Marinate at room temperature for 15 minutes. Mix the remaining cornstarch with 1/3 cup water.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the oil and heat. Add the broccoli stems, and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add the florets and the remaining garlic, ginger, 2 tablespoons of water, and season with 1/4 teaspoon salt, and pepper. Stir-fry until the broccoli is bright green but still crisp, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Get the skillet good and hot again, and then heat 2 more tablespoons oil. Add the chicken and chili flakes if using. Stir-fry until the chicken loses its raw color and gets a little brown, about 3 minutes. Add the hoisin sauce, return the broccoli to the pan and toss to heat through. Stir in the reserved cornstarch mixture and bring to a boil to thicken. Add more water if need to thin the sauce, if necessary. Taste and season with salt and pepper, if you like. Mound the stir-fry on a serving platter or divide among 4 plates and garnish with sesame seeds; serve with rice.

Website Notes: The garlic and ginger can be chopped together in a minichopper to save time.

Scallion greens can also be used to garnish, if you like that extra onion-y flavor and you want to use up the scallions.

The broccoli stems are used (love all that fiber) to add textural contrast and also to help bulk up the dish, and why waste them?

My Notes: To make the dish healthier, I steamed the broccoli first, why add extra oil when you don't have to. I then just sauted the garlic and ginger in a tiny bit of oil and mixed that in the broccoli. I then used half the amout of oil when making the chicken and instead of vegatable oil I used Canola Oil since it is lower in saturated fat and calories.

For rice I used Brown rice instead of the suggested Jasmine Rice, it has more whole grains and is healthier.

This recipe got two thumbs up from both Tim and I. I definitely will cook it again, its a balanced meal with grains, protein, and vegetables!

The Brits are Obsessed with Cadbury

Easter is right around the corner, and one well known Easter candy is the Cadbury Creme Filled Egg. In the US we only know Cadbury well for this product; however, Cadbury is quite popular for a wide range of products in the UK, where it is based.

Every holiday my grandparents give all of the grandchildren a huge bar of Cadbury Chocolate (a little bigger even than the one pictured above). My grandparents have cases of this chocolate in their basement. Every time friends of theirs from England come to visit, they bring a case or two.

Yesterday, our marketing counterpart in London, Patrick came to visit us in the New York office, and he too gifted us with this exact chocolate as well. The Brits do make it known that they love their Cadbury, but I didn't realize it was such a common gift for them to give to Americans.

By the way, it does taste better than American chocolate (ie. Hersheys), it melts in your mouth!

New Lunch Sandwich

I got this recipe from FitnessMagazine.com via EatingWell.Com

This streamlined version of a northern Italian idea is perfect for a summer evening: no-fuss, no-cook and big taste. You can even make it ahead and store it, covered, in the refrigerator for several days. If you do, use it as a wrap filling for the next day's lunch.

Servings: 4 servings, 1 cup each
Prep: 10 mins
Total: 10 mins
Rated : Not yet rated
Rate and Comment
Ingredients
2 6-ounce cans chunk light tuna, drained
1 15-ounce can small white beans, such as cannellini or great northern, rinsed (see Ingredient note)
10 cherry tomatoes, quartered
4 scallions, trimmed and sliced
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
Directions
1. Combine tuna, beans, tomatoes, scallions, oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Stir gently. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Tips:
Ingredient Note: When you use canned beans in a recipe, be sure to rinse them first in a colander under cold running water, as their canning liquid often contains a fair amount of sodium.
MAKE AHEAD TIP: Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Nutrition Facts
Calories 253, Total Fat 8 g, Saturated Fat 1 g, Monounsaturated Fat 5 g, Cholesterol 53 mg, Sodium 453 mg, Carbohydrate 20 g, Fiber 6 g, Protein 31 g, Potassium 451 mg. Daily Values: Vitamin C 20%. Exchanges: Starch 1,Vegetable 1,Lean Meat 3.5,Fat 1.
Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet


This recipe is yummy, healthy, and cheap! I put spinach in mine instead of lettuce. Spinach is such a powerhouse for extra good vitamins such as Iron, Vitamin A, Beta-Carotine, Lutein, Folate, and Vitamin C among many others! This recipe is a good alternative to the regular boring sandwich.

For the Love of Water

It was finally time to say "good-bye" to the my Brita filter I have had since college. It was getting gross even after bleaching it numerous times. So when it came time to make a trip to Target, a new pitcher was the first thing on our list. I will drink tap water, but its not my favorite thing and I am not high maintenance enough to only drink bottled water. So a water filter pitcher is the perfect option.

While browsing Target I saw this Pur Filter pitcher that came with flavor cartridges. Living with a fiancee that is addicted to fruit juice (and sometimes soda), this seemed like a good option. The flavor cartridges are sugar free, no calories, and have no artificial coloring, I didn't knows what was actually in it, but it seemed appealing on the label.

The minute we got home we washed and used it, the flavoring does taste good, and it flavors the water without flavoring the whole pitcher. This seemed like a good money saving option to all the fruit juice we buy.

So what is the catch then? After doing some research, it contains sucralose(Splenda), which I am not a fan of. When googled sucralose is a chemical substance used as a sugar subsitute; however, the body does not know how to metabolize it. Also one of the main components of sucralose is chlorine. Why would I consume the same toxic substance that is used in pools to kill bacteria? Yes, I know it is small doses but still....

At least having a new pitcher is nice!

About Me:

My Fiancee, pictured here loves junk food and I love healthy whole foods. So I am blogging about my adventures to get this man to eat a balanced diet, and compromising at meal time.

I almost feel like Jessica Sienfield with her book "Deceptively Delicious." I actually think she was rather ingenious in writing this book. For those who are not familiar with this book, Jessica Sienfield writes recipes about how to sneak fruits and vegetables into food kids love. For example, she might add cauliflower or butternut squash into Mac n' Cheese, and you cannot even tell the difference.

My mission is to make healthy foods that my pizza and chicken finger loving fiancee will eat. Its much like cooking for a kid; although, its time to graduate from eating chicken fingers every night for dinner. Don't get me wrong, I love a good chicken finger occasionally, but not every day.