Kale: My favorite superfood!

The Amazingly Delicious Kale Pesto

My latest obsession is kale and I just can't seem to get enough of it. Here is a single recipe that can be used in many ways. My favorite is as a spread on a grilled cheese sandwich...it sounds much simpler that it tastes. This was our dinner on a Tuesday night...and for the following 4 nights! I LOVE IT!!!!!

Ingredients 

Just as beautiful as it is tasty!

6 cups kale-roughly chopped

1 lemon-juiced

1t salt

2 cloves garlic

½ cup walnuts

½ - ¾ cup olive oil

Directions:

1. In a food processor, pulse the garlic until chopped. 
2. Add the kale, (If your kale seems like it won’t fit, add it in batches until it reduces a bit.) lemon juice, salt and walnuts and process until combined.  
3. With the food processor running, slowly add the olive oil until you reach a thick, spreadable pesto...done!

Alternatives, ideas & suggestions:

• If you'd like to use the pesto on pasta, add reserved, hot pasta water to the pesto until the desired consistency is reached. Don’t forget to add the parmesan cheese!!
• Mix it up a little and add some other flavors like arugula, spinach, basil, parsley, cilantro etc. (substitute the other greens for the kale)
• Kale pesto makes a great spread on chicken & fish.
• Drop a dollop in your soup. Yum, what a great idea!
• Mix into plain Greek yogurt and use as a dip or a spread for your quesadillas.
• This would be a fresh-tasting sauce on a pizza...

 

Get out there and play with some Kale

Hot & Sour Soup

This soup is perfectly balanced and makes a great meal on a cold winter's night! 

Ingredients

6 cups beef stock

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp. diced fresh or pickled ginger

1 Tbsp. soy sauce

2 Tbsp. fish sauce

1/2 - 1 tsp. dried chili flakes

1 Tbsp. rice vinegar

1 Tbsp. brown sugar

2 kaffir lime leaves, OR 1 Tbsp. lime juice

3 scallions sliced

2 eggs

12 ounces tofu, cubed

½ cup fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Heat the stock in a large sauce pot over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, ginger, soy sauce, fish sauce, chili flakes, rice vinegar, brown sugar and lime leaves to the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and add the scallions.

2. In a small bowl, lightly whisk the eggs. While stirring the soup, stream in the eggs. (The slower you stir the eggs into the soup, the larger the pieces will be.) 

3. Next add the tofu. 

4. Serve with a garnish of fresh cilantro.

  

A few ideas, alternatives and suggestions...

Beef stock was used in this recipe simply because it was what I had on hand. You can use any stock you'd like and I’m sure it’ll be just as wonderful.

 I generally use pickled ginger over fresh because it is much easier to deal with. It can be found in any Asian market (maybe the American too…I’ve never checked there). It is already peeled and in matchsticks and just needs a rough chop.

 Kaffir lime leaves are so tasty and I suggest you use them if you can. They can be found in Asian markets as well, and they are usually dried. I am fortunate enough to have some wonderful friends who have given me a Kaffir lime tree. If you live nearby, I can bring you some!!

Rice or noodles make a nice addition to your soup. I recommend cooking the rice/noodles first, adding a serving to each bowl and pouring the soup over the rice/noodles. This way the they won’t absorb all of the soup leaving you with a soggy mess.

Don't forget, any protein can be substituted for the tofu.

Go play with your soup!!

Gluten-Free Brownie Attempt...Take 2

OK, so as I continue my quest for gluten free brownies, I kept coming across this whole black bean brownie thing. I know, right? How gross and desperate can we be getting? Should I waste my time with this? After thinking long and hard (and spontaneously purchasing black beans at Trader Joe’s today) I have decided to go for it. Today is black bean and agave nectar brownie day.

It only took me 12 minutes to mix the batter (which tasted pretty good) and get it in the oven...hmmm. Hopefully this isn’t one of those instances where “if it seems too good to be true, it probably is,” that would stink!

With the first experiment finished, I must say that they weren’t too bad. I don't know if I'd make them for a crowd, but they didn't go to waste. The texture was "off," it was more of a brownie-like fudge than a fudgy brownie, if that makes any sense. For as simple as it was, the recipe was OK, but for now I think I will continue my research before attempting to make this one better.

If you have any tips or suggestions on this experiment, please get in touch! I am new to this gluten free thing and could use all the help I can get.

On to the next experiment!!

I love playing with my food. Now get out there and play with yours!!