Do you think of Memorial Day Weekend as the unofficial start of summer? If so, dust off the grill and get out those beach towels because summer is right in front of you! In this week’s dinner planner, I’ve included some of my favorite early summer recipes. I am also thinking about switching the Saturday dinner for a lunch idea since I actually don’t cook on Saturday nights unless we have people over. It’s my one meal off! But I do make lunch on Saturday and Sunday so I thought I could make a suggestion every week for a lunch idea. Let me know what you think!
Happy Friday, friends! If you have kids in school, I hope you are surviving these last weeks before summer. My May cooking classes have been so fun and delicious! You know how much I love chatting with my students and hearing about what they’re cooking (and not cooking.) Friday Favorites came about because someone would ask me in class about where I bought something or which product I preferred. And many people suggested I start a blogpost about all those “favorites.” Here it is! These are the things we’ve been talking about in my classes the last two weeks.
Chalkboard Jar Labels
I saw these fantastic labels in my friend Nancy’s kitchen. She’s the one who always introduces me to the greatest gadgets and products that all of a sudden I can’t live without. LA people, I’ll let you know when she launches her organizing business. She’s going to be HUGE! Anyway, I saw these chalkboard labels on all of her jars in her perfectly organized and magazine-worthy pantry and fridge and I was instantly smitten. They are stickers that you write on like a chalkboard! Is that not the cutest thing ever?! They labels come with a pen that wipes off easily with a little water. That means that these are reusable and so are the containers on which you stick them. I am a big fan of transferring certain pantry items to glass containers for several reasons. The main one being that I don’t like certain foods stored in plastic for a long period of time, so I transfer a lot into glass as soon as I can. Glass jars with lids keep things fresher for longer than bags with rubber bands. Also, having my pantry items in jars makes for easy visibility and are great for setting up a quick “toppings bar” for smoothie bowls or oatmeal. I wouldn’t necessarily call my family super food experts, so it’s nice to have the not-so-obvious toppings labeled such as white chia seeds, mulberries, or brazil nuts. Plus, they look adorable! These labels are available on Amazon with free prime shipping!
Environmental Working Group (EWG) App
The Environmental Working Group is one of the few research companies which I actually trust. In a Friday Favorites post from awhile back, I highlighted the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep website, which is a site where you can find the rating of beauty products according to the toxicity (or lack thereof) of their ingredients and packaging. This is a website that I have used for years as well as the regular EWG website to make better decisions about choosing more healthful and sustainable products. The company has now released an app that I am really excited about. It includes a scanning device that allows you to scan whatever product you want to learn more about and it will automatically give you the rating. I think it’s so much more useful to be able to quickly research products while you are in a store, ready to purchase. It is really easy to use and it’s FREE!
OXO Cherry Pitter
Did you do a happy dance at the sight of the first cherries? I did! In Southern California, cherries have been available at every market for the last couple of weeks. I love cherries in desserts, salads, or just as a snack out of the fridge. I am teaching a quinoa salad this month that has cherries, arugula, celery and almonds and it has been a huge hit. One of the tools that has saved me a lot of time when I am prepping for the class is this cherry pitter. While you can get pitted frozen or dried cherries, when it comes to fresh there is no way to avoid the inevitable pit. I can quickly get through pitting loads of cherries with this tool, and it also works with olives as well. (Although, pitted olives are much more widely available, so I try and get those when I can). I have a cherry pitter from 10 years ago and although it’s very good quality and still going strong, it sprays cherry juice every time I pit a cherry.
OXO makes a great one that I used in one of my student’s houses this month. I like how it has a “splatter shield” that keeps the juice from spraying and staining! It is available on Amazon as well as Williams Sonoma, Target, and Bed Bath and Beyond.
Lola Sabbia “Cody” Wedges
I am on my feet most of the day every day either teaching cooking classes, cooking for my family and/or testing recipes. This activity requires proper footwear to support my back and my feet. Have you ever worn the wrong shoes while cooking all day for a dinner party or Thanksgiving? Ugh. Not such a great feeling in your legs and back, right? Even before I started cooking full-time, I always wore good, supportive shoes in the kitchen. They weren’t always chic, but function reigns over fashion when it comes to my lower back!
People are always asking me what shoes I recommend or, more commonly, what are on my feet that moment. My favorite shoes for cooking, especially in the warmer months, are these Lola Sabbia shoes made by Eric Michael which I have in several colors. One of my cooking class assistants bought a pair and never works without them and several of my students have bought them as well. I need shoes with a little lift in the heel to support my back and they need to be comfortable overall. I also would prefer if they weren’t ugly, which these are not. 😉
The style I have shown here, the Cody, is my favorite. It has two wide adjustable velcro straps. If your feet are very narrow like mine, these are not going to be great walking shoes for you because they may be wide and the velcro strap can only go so far. I walk to the stove and back and that’s the extent of it and when I take my dog for a walk in these, they feel just a little too big. But again, I have very narrow feet. Otherwise, I find these shoes to be very breathable, with no “break in” period and very lightweight. I have only worn them for cooking which is an all-day affair most of the time, but again, I cannot vouch for these shoes as a “walking” shoe. There is a version with a lower heel, as well. I bought mine at Euro Comfort Footwear in Beverly Hills and at Gigi Shoes in the Manhattan Village Mall, for my local readers. Otherwise, you can find them on Amazon and Zappos. They’re definitely not cheap, at about $89 a pair, but I have had mine for years and years and they are still just as comfortable, although a little stained from cooking. 🙂
Mica Organics Turmeric Extract
Whatever you decide to eat, an anti-inflammatory diet is the way to go. You can take it across the spectrum from Vegan to Paleo and back again, but at the end of the day what you should really be focusing on are foods that discourage inflammation in the body. Whenever I tell people that, they immediately want to know what foods are the most anti-inflammatory to the body, and I usually start the list with “turmeric and ginger”. Both of these roots have really been in the spotlight lately, but I have been incorporating both of these (in fresh or dried form) into my cooking for years. You can find recipes for turmeric rice, turmeric latte, a paella made with turmeric and a few delicious stews.
Whereas fresh turmeric is best, I don’t always have fresh turmeric on hand. I recently discovered this turmeric extract from Omica Organics and have been loving it in my tea, warm almond milk or just plain warm water. Curcumin, one of the active constituents of turmeric, has been shown to have strong anti-inflammatory effects. Omica uses a water-soluble, real extract — not reconstituted from synthesized powder. This is a great substitute if you struggle with getting regular turmeric into your diet. It is a around $30 for 52 servings so it is comparable to other daily supplements. This tonic is available on the Omica website, as well as Amazon with free shipping!
Where was quinoa 10 years ago? Not on most people’s radar, that’s for sure. I taught a recipe with quinoa in a cooking class 8 years ago and everyone was skeptical. They were sold on it’s health benefits (high in protein, low in fat, full of antioxidants), but not the flavor. Nutty? Soapy?
“I can’t get into quinoa. I’ve tried. We even cooked it with chicken stock. Not into it,” I remember someone saying. We’ve come a long way with quinoa. When you see it sold in Costco and Target, you know it has gone mainstream. I hope many of you have embraced quinoa and figured out ways to enjoy it. I always used to tell people who are new to quinoa to take their favorite orzo or couscous recipes and swap quinoa. This would be a major nutritional upgrade and I think a more interesting flavor.
But I’m the first to admit I don’t love plain quinoa eaten out of a bowl with no seasonings, no add-ins. Rice, yes. But quinoa has a unique flavor that needs a little support. The texture is so fantastic though. Bouncy, springy, light! I love it. I make a big batch every other week and stir-fry it a la Italian Fried Rice, or stir in some almond milk and fruit for a sweet breakfast, sprinkle it into pancake batter and add it to salads for a bouncy boost of protein.
I try to teach a great quinoa recipe at least two or three times each year. This is one I shared in my classes many years ago and it’s one of the simpler quinoa recipes I’ve taught. It’s always nice to have those back-pocket recipes that are healthy, tasty and don’t use too many ingredients or that you can adapt easily.
I could eat this quinoa with toasted coconut and grilled scallions on its own for lunch or with a piece of roasted salmon or chicken on top. It is perfection with the Thai Steak Salad, which I have also adapted with salmon and chicken. Mr. Picky, who definitely prefers pasta over quinoa, will eat this with extra toasted coconut and a couple of crushed tortilla chips. Whatever it takes is my motto! For those of you with more sophisticated palates, check out the notes at the bottom of the recipe for some additional suggestions. I highly recommend something spicy!
3 Tablespoons unrefined, cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil + more for drizzling onions
½ cup unsweetened coconut flakes
3 Tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (if you love lime, add some zest, too!)
3 Tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro
optional: half a jalapeño, seeded and grilled with the green onions, finely chopped
Instructions
Preheat a grill over medium heat.
Bring quinoa, water and a pinch of salt to a boil in a medium saucepan. Cover, lower to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes or until all the water has been absorbed. Turn heat off and allow to sit, covered for 5-10 minutes. Transfer to a serving bowl.
Drizzle some oil on the green onions coating them lightly. Sprinkle lightly with salt. Grill for a minute on each side or until lightly charred and tender. Coarsely chop and set aside.
In a medium skillet over medium heat, toast the coconut flakes, stirring constantly, until golden. They will crisp up off the heat. Set aside.
In a small bowl, whisk together oil, lime juice, cilantro and salt. Add to cooked quinoa with green onions and toasted coconut. Toss to combine and taste for seasoning. Feel free to add an extra squeeze of lime, if desired.
Notes
This can also be made with rice, but cooking times and water ratios must be adjusted. This is a basic recipe to which I sometimes add avocado or grilled chopped jalapeño or mango. Sometimes I add mint along with the cilantro if I have it.
Holy moly, the end of the school year is upon us and doesn’t it feel like there are so many events being crammed in at the last minute? It’s such a busy time of year and it’s flying by. Speaking of flying by, my younger daughter had her prom this weekend and I. JUST. CAN’T. BELIEVE. IT. Fun, exciting, wonderful, but life goes by really quickly. My older daughter is home from college for the summer and we have been super busy in the kitchen. She wants to learn how to cook practical things, so I showed her how to make cauli-rice, roast sweet potatoes, grill salmon, make salad dressing, wash produce, hold a knife, and more. And that was all in three days! She’s going to be a pro by the time she goes back to school. 🙂
News flash for everyone who doesn’t live in Southern California: locally grown stone fruits have made it into our farmers markets and grocery stores! I bought peaches, apricots, and nectarines this week and although they’re small, it means summer is coming and that’s a reason for me to do a happy dance! I’m sure they’ll be coming to you very soon.
This is not so much a recipe as an idea which I LOVE! My kids make a lot of smoothies for both breakfast and after school snacks. And even though they can all blend up a tasty and nutritious smoothie on their own, Mr. Picky is the master. My older daughter has offered him cash on multiple occasions to make her an acai bowl or his famous Pina Colada smoothie. Sometimes his eyes are bigger than his stomach, he makes a bit too much and we end up with some leftovers. Usually the leftovers aren’t enough to make a whole portion for the next day, so one day I started pouring the leftover smoothies into popsicle molds and freezing them. I think you know where this story is headed.
Snacks are tough. My kids come home from school very hungry and they can eat a lot. I want to offer them something nutritious obviously, but I don’t have a ton of time to make homemade snacks every day. Some of my default snacks are hummus with veggies or whole grain crackers, rice cakes with nut butter, quesadillas, yogurt with granola, almond flour muffins, apples and bananas with nut butter, and smoothies. Stovetop popcorn and granola bars are common, too. If I left my son to his own devices, I’m sure he would polish off a pint of ice cream or a bag of tortilla chips, but he has homework to focus on and soccer practice or religious school, so he needs better fuel than that.
I’ve been intrigued by the appearance of “chickpea croutons” on dozens of salads I have seen all over Pinterest. The cooked chickpeas are roasted until crunchy, sometimes seasoned with spices, and are a more nutritious alternative to croutons, which are basically small greasy bites of white toast. I must have a little crunch in my salad, but I prefer the idea of chickpeas over croutons. However, with all due respect to those who posted those crunchy chickpea recipes, most of them don’t work. Either the chickpeas do not ever become crunchy or they only stay crunchy for a few hours and then they become soft, like real chickpeas. My son actually likes chickpeas and he likes trailmix, so I had an idea to make crunchy chickpeas and mix them with nuts + dried fruit + dark chocolate = crunchy chickpea trailmix, a perfect snack. Except I tried at least a dozen recipes and the chickpeas always eventually became soggy, until one time I roasted them in the oven for a little while and then turned the oven off but left the chickpeas in there. In this way, they wouldn’t burn, but they would continue to dry out. Ta da! Winner! This is the whole key to truly crisp-like-a-cracker chickpeas.
We are not nut-free in our house, nor do my kids go to nut-free schools, but I know there are a lot of families out there who contend with this challenge. This trail mix is easy to make nut-free since the chickpeas make a great sub for nuts, and they are both high in protein which is something I always look for in a good snack. And believe me, I am not trying to replace nuts. Nuts are super good for you with exceptionally healthful fats, protein and fiber, BUT they are also high in calories and I have been known to overeat nuts without realizing it and it is possible to eat too much of a nutritious food if you are trying to maintain a healthy weight. Like I said in my last post, I would be really skinny if nut butter didn’t exist! The nice thing about trail mix is that you can make it with whatever you have and to your liking. I love a good balance of sweet and salty, soft and crunchy, with a touch of dark chocolate for fun. Trail mix is my go-to snack for traveling since it keeps really well, although in the summer I usually omit the chocolate so there’s no risk of melting.
Every time I teach any recipe, someone asks me, “Does Mr. Picky like this?” 90% of the recipes I teach, he does like/tolerate. He ate almost an entire pan of crunchy chickpeas in one sitting. We all loved these and I haven’t even begun to experiment with savory seasonings. As long as you have the method down pat, you should definitely play around with different spices, like garlic powder + smoked paprika, cumin + cinnamon + cayenne, just to name a couple. I think these would be amazing on salads, or on soups or on top of creamy dips like hummus, or as a “bar snack,” to serve with cocktails. These would even make a great hostess gift, especially if you’ve already given everyone you know homemade granola too many times. 😉 I can’t wait to hear if you try this recipe. Or just let me know about your experience roasting chickpeas until now!
1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas, or 1 15-ounce can, drained and rinsed
1 Tablespoon unrefined, virgin coconut oil
1 Tablespoon pure maple syrup, Grade A or Grade B
pinch of sea salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch of cayenne pepper
¼ cup goji berries or other dried fruit of choice, such as dried blueberries or cherries
¼ cup dark chocolate pieces
¼ cup pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds, raw or toasted
¼ cup toasted, unsweetened coconut flakes (I do this in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring until golden brown)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with unbleached parchment paper.
Pat chickpeas dry as best you can. Remove whatever skins are loose. Place chickpeas on the baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes.
Remove from the oven and add coconut oil, maple syrup and salt and toss to coat. Put back in the oven and roast for another 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. If a few pop, that’s ok.
Turn the oven off. Toss the chickpeas with spices. Return pan to the oven and with the oven door closed and the heat off, allow the chickpeas to sit in the warm oven for another hour or until perfectly crunchy. You’ll have to test one to be sure. It should be dry and airy. If they’re still not crunchy, leave in the oven with the door closed and the heat off until they are crunchy through and through. Set aside to cool at room temperature.
Combine cooled chickpeas with dried fruit, dark chocolate, pumpkin seeds and toasted coconut. The crunchy chickpeas combine well with many different ingredients for a trail mix, so feel free to make swaps according to what you have on hand or what you like.
I am posting this week’s dinner planner a little early since I think most of you will not be shopping and organizing tomorrow, Mother’s Day! At least I hope you get the day off. My daughter is coming home from college this week and I could not be more excited! She will be getting her hands dirty with me in the kitchen this summer since next year she will be off meal plan and will need to cook for herself. You would think that all of my kids would be very competent in the kitchen, but think again! 😉
If you saw my last Friday Favorites post, you’re probably not surprised I am posting something from the Gjelina cookbook. I expressed my love for the book a few weeks ago and have delved into it headfirst. ALthough I have only made a few recipes, I have dogearred practically the whole book. One of the ingredients that infiltrates many recipes is “garlic confit,” slow cooked, soft-as-butter, garlic that infuses a sweet and subtle garlic flavor to anything and everything. This recipe is one of several confits in the book, located in a section labeled “Condiments and Pickles” and which happens to be my favorite section in the book. In this section, the Gjelina chef offers up recipes such as mint-pomegranate pesto, horseradish gremolata, parsley salsa verde, and this lovely garlic confit that I am sharing with you today. These staples are then used throughout the rest of the book as pizza sauces, toppings for fish, salad dressings, etc. I love these types of condiments which are so versatile and can jazz up any number of basic recipes.
This garlic confit is made by taking whole cloves of peeled garlic, placing them in a baking dish with olive oil, bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Aside from peeling 8 heads of garlic (so worth it!), this is super simple and pretty much hands off. Once the garlic and herbs have been roasted in the oil for an hour, you can transfer this mixture to a glass jar and store in the fridge for a couple of months. Genius. I added the garlic confit to grilled broccolini and to rice. The garlic-infused oil I used on crostini, to saute vegetables, drizzled on tomatoes for slow roasting, on roasted fish and other items. I have provided the recipe for you below, but if this intrigues you, believe me when I say there is a lot more where that came from. You can get the full Gjelina cookbook on Amazon! Recipe for garlic confit is below!
Store-Bought Almond Milk: New Barn and Malk
If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me if there were any good, clean, commercially prepared almond milks on the market…. you get the idea. The truth is, I don’t buy almond because I don’t mind making it from scratch and I have never found one without additives or at least one sketchy ingredient. Plus, I personally think the taste of homemade almond milk is so much better than store bought. I have 2 recipes on my site for homemade almond milk, and I have been using this method a couple of times a week for years.
But, I know there are a lot of people that just can’t deal with making it from scratch and I totally get that. Fortunately, there are finally some cleaner, tastier options for store-bought almond milk. Two brands have hit the scene lately — New Barn and Malk. Both companies use organic ingredients without any additives and the milk is actually really delicious and comparable to homemade. New Barn is more widely available at the moment and they just starting carrying it at my local Whole Foods. Check out the rating from EWG. Malk is only available right now in the south- Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana, so if you are near there you are in luck! They will hopefully be expanding soon as the demand for their product is increasing! You can check out their store locations, learn about their ingredients, and see what flavors are offered on their websites: New Barn and Malk.
Tyler Florence Salad Board
For the last couple of years, I have been presenting most of my salads on platters rather than bowls. Most salads are already beautiful, but can be made even more aesthetically pleasing when presented in different ways. I think salads often look more visually appealing laid out in one layer rather than a heap of everything piled on top of each other where you can’t see all the components. Plus, have you noticed that salads tossed in a bowl result in the heavier ingredients getting lost on the bottom?
My method for assembling a salad is tossing my greens with dressing, then transferring that to a beautiful platter, and then I add the remaining veggies, nuts, cheese, etc., and drizzle with more dressing. Tyler Florence must be on my same wavelength because he recently released a “Salad Board” through Williams Sonoma, which is a beautiful walnut wooden board that is a cutting board on one side, and when you flip is over it is a very shallow board with narrow sides that is perfect for salad presentation. So gorgeous and I cannot wait to use it. It is available only through Williams Sonoma in 3 different styles. I bought the oval, but they are all very chic. I have included a few salads from my blog that I think would be great served on this board!
I have been following Beauty Counter from its inception. This LA-based company is 100% committed to using completely safe and all natural ingredients in their beauty care products. They carry everything from makeup to shampoo to baby care to this sunscreen that I am highlighting today. All of their products rank on the EWG Skin Deep site as a 1, which is the best score that can be given for the safest, cleanest products.I am very, very particular about what products I use on my body, especially my face and I am a sunscreen connoisseur, i.e. I use it A LOT.
This sunscreen is super lightweight and the formula they use doesn’t cause any white streaking. It also contains green tea and blood orange extracts that help fight free radicals, which not only offer protection from the sun but antioxidants as well to fight any damage being done at the same time. It also smells very nice and light. But most importantly, the active ingredient in this sunscreen is non-nano zinc oxide, which is a much safer alternative to other blockers such as oxybenzone that other companies are using. This sunscreen is available online through the Beauty Counter website.
It’s All Easy Cookbook by Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Paltrow has really outdone herself with her third cookbook, “It’s All Easy.” This book is a compilation of recipes that are designed to be made as weekday meals for the “super-busy” home cook, as Paltrow coins it on the book’s cover. The book is drop-dead gorgeous; every last page from the food styling to the ingredient shots to all of the lovely photos of Gwyneth and her two kids. I could just get lost in the book for hours looking at the photos alone and coveting both her insane sweater collection as well as all her amazing tableware pieces.. However, beyond the beautiful aesthetic this is a really great, thoughtful compilation of recipes that are accessible to most people. There aren’t too many obscure ingredients or fancy tools that are used (except for maybe a Vitamix or a spiralizer, which I actually don’t think most people have.) And I think the recipes look easy and family-friendly.
So far I have tried my hand at the turkey meatloaf, the coconut almond overnight oats and the chocolate cinnamon overnight oats, all of which have turned out delicious. I don’t love the organization of the book with sections such as “Summer Nights” and “Cozy Evenings.” Personally I prefer to search for recipes by category, eg soups, salads, desserts. But that’s my only criticism. All recipes are pretty clean and use very little dairy, gluten or sugar. It is co-written by Thea Baumann who is the food editor for GOOP and cooks privately for Gwyneth and her family. “It’s All Easy” is available on Amazon where you can look inside the book to check it out and at most local bookstores!
2 cups unrefined, cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil
8 heads garlic, cloves separated and peeled
12 sprigs fresh thyme
3 bay leaves, bruised
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium baking dish (I used an 8 x 8-inch Pyrex), combine the olive oil, garlic, thyme, and bay leaves. The garlic should be completely covered by about 1 inch of oil.
Bake until the garlic cloves are soft, fragrant, and lightly browned but still hold their shape, 45 minutes to 1 hour.
Remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 months, completely covered with olive oil to prevent air from reaching them.
