The Paleo Princess

Raise your hand if your favorite part of elementary school was recess! This girl has two hands up in the air! I loved going to school in general (nerd alert!) but I REALLy loved recess. I would even leave my house early so I could have recess-time before school started in the morning. Of course, I haven’t gotten to have recess since 5th grade.  A couple weeks ago, though, I made my triumphant return to the playground…dressed up as a cauliflower, that is. As a volunteer for CAFF’s (Community Alliance with Family Farmers) new Farm to School program, I helped educate the kids about various fruits and vegetables and got them excited to eat them. This time they learned about cauliflower. We played games and learned some cool facts [about cauliflower]. Let’s see if you can answer some cauliflower trivia questions:

Questions:

1) Is white the only color that Cauliflower comes in?

2) What are the main vitamins in cauliflower?

3) What is cauliflower in Latin?

Answers:

1) While white is the most common type of cauliflower, cauliflower comes in 3 other colors: orange (Cheddar), purple and green (Romanesco).

2) Vitamin C and K.

3) Cauliflower literally means “Cabbage Flower”, which makes sense because cauliflower and cabbage are both part of the same family (Brassicaceae) along with broccoli and kale.

Click through to learn even more facts about cauliflower!

Last week, I was pleased to find an orange cauliflower in my CSA box! After thinking about this for a few days, I settled on a simple but delicious way to eat it. I roasted it and it was fun to see that the cauliflower was orange without my adding any turmeric to it. All you need is your head of cauliflower, some olive oil and salt.

Here’s how:
1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Cut cauliflower into florets. Place cauliflower in a roasting dish and drizzle with olive oil.  Toss the florets in the olive oil. Before placing in the oven, sprinkle some salt on there. Remember, you can always add more salt later when you serve it. I also like to do a dusting of curry powder on top.

3. Roast in the oven for about 25-30 minutes or until brown. I love that little bit of crunch when it turns brown.

Bon appetit! See if you can find some orange or purple cauliflower at the farmer’s market or local grocery store.

This month, I finally became a CSA member! I am a proud new member of Serendipity Farms’ CSA program. Wohoo! As silly as it might sound, I counted down the days until my first pickup and probably also drove Robby a little bit crazy in the process. My bad…
In addition to being able to directly support local farms and growers, my favorite thing about getting a CSA box is the surprise factor.  It’s so much fun to open the box and see what Jamie has picked and packed for us. And then, when I get home, it’s like Iron Chef in my kitchen! In the last few weeks, I have already been introduced to some veggies that I have never seen or cooked.  Take Pea Tendrils, for example; I had no idea you could eat those. So, I would like to share some of my creations that come out of the [CSA] box over the season. I will be highlighting a box item and sharing what I made with it. I hope you join me in cooking up these surprise veggies!

Are you a CSA member? What’s your favorite item that you’ve gotten this month?

Looking back through all of my posts, I realized that many of my dishes are meat-based. Sure, this is helpful for when you have a limited amount of time and you want to just do a one-pot/pan meal. But what about those times when you have a juicy steak to grill or some chicken that you want to bake and all you want are some ideas for a side of vegetables? I will try to make more of an effort to play around with veggie sides. Here’s one to start with: a veggie sauté! All you need is olive oil, an onion, spinach and mushrooms. Maybe even some balsamic vinegar if you feel like it.

Here’s what you need: 

1 sweet onion

4 handfuls of spinach (my hands are pretty small, though, so you’ll have to eyeball this one)

5-6 white mushrooms

2 tablespoons-ish of Olive Oil

2 teaspoons of Balsamic Vinegar (optional)

salt and pepper (optional)

*I have some rough estimates of how much of each component to use but really, it is not a big deal if, say, you use 7 mushrooms and 2 handfuls of spinach instead. It may depend on what you like or what you have available in the fridge.

Here’s how: 

1. Slice the onion into thin slices.

2. Wash and also slice the mushrooms into thin slices. I think it helps to put the round side/top of the mushroom down  on the cutting board and slice that way.

3. Wash and dry the spinach.

4. Heat a pan to medium-high heat. First place the olive oil in the pan. Then place the onions in the pan. Sauté the onions until pretty soft. You want them pretty cooked to the point where they’re just barely crunchy.

5. At about 10 minutes (you can gauge this yourself, though, because there’s no right or wrong way to do it), add in the mushrooms. Stir this around for about 5 minutes.

6. Then, add in the spinach. Stir it around a bit so it gets mixed in with the onions and mushrooms. You can just put the lid on there to let the spinach wilt or you can keep mixing it around until the spinach wilts this way.  Drizzle the Balsamic Vinegar on there at this point if you are choosing to go this route.

Buon appetito! Salt and pepper if you’d like. I go without but Robby likes to add it on.

On a recent trip to Whole Foods, I did my usual walk-by of the fish department. My trips to the fish department usually end up being a walk-by because I like to see what fish they have in store and all, but I rarely buy any [fish].  I value my concerns about depleting fish stocks more than my desire to eat fish. But on this particular day, the salmon just had the perfect shade of irresistible orange.  So, before I asked the lady behind the counter for my fish, I dutifully took out my phone and checked out my Seafood Watch app to make sure that they had listed wild caught Coho Salmon on the green list.  Thank goodness they had!

You can download the Seafood Watch app on your smartphone or visit their website to see how your fish purchases stack up in the sustainability department.  They list fish in three categories: Green (Best), Yellow (Good) and Red (Avoid).  Why is it important to think about sustainability? Here’s what they say:

“Nearly 85% of the world’s fisheries are fished to capacity, or overfished. Our seafood choices have the power to make this situation worse, or improve it. Seafood Watch recommendations don’t hinge on any single issue. Instead, they consider the fishery, habitat, species, management, and a host of other factors that affect each species. In this way, Seafood Watch offers a complete vision of sustainability.”

So next time you are out shopping for fish in the store or ordering it off the menu at lunch, check with Seafood Watch to see if you are making a good choice!

Here’s what you need: 

1 orange

3 tablespoons fresh ginger (coarsely chopped)

1/2 cup Coconut Aminos

*This should make enough for about 2-4 filets or steaks of salmon.

Here’s how:  

1. Cut the orange in half.  While you’ve got your knife out, coarsely mince some fresh ginger so that you have approximately 3 tablespoons worth. Don’t worry about being over that amount at all–it really doesn’t matter.

2. Squeeze the juice of half the orange into a bowl.  Next, add the ginger and 1/2 cup of Coconut Aminos.  Let this sit for 30 minutes or 3 hours so that you can let the ginger soak into the liquids.  If you want, you can even let it soak the whole day while you’re out and about.

3. When it’s close to mealtime, pull out the salmon and place it in a baking dish or anything that will keep the liquid in.  Pour the marinade over the fish and let it sit for about 15 minutes.  At 15 minutes, flip the fish over so that the other side can get some flavors soaked in.

4. Heat a pan to medium-high heat.  You’ll want to get a lid out too.  Once heated, place the salmon in the pan and pour the marinade from the dish over the fish.  Put the lid on and let it cook for about 7 minutes.  After 7 minutes, flip the fish and let it cook for another 6-7 minutes with the lid on.

5. Garnish with some orange slices as pictured and serve with some greens. If there is some extra liquid in the pan, pour it over the salmon. Yum!

Buon appetito!

Monterey Machaca: Tacos style

Just a couple of months ago, Robby and I ventured down south to Sayulita, Mexico for a short vacation to join in the festivities of our friends’ wedding.  We enjoyed a few days of no homework or class–we went stand-up paddle boarding (SUP) for the first time, boogie-boarded, surfed (not me) and laid out by the pool.  The wedding was absolutely beautiful, surely making future brides nervous about being able to match it or even come close.  I mean…sunset over the ocean, live Mariachi performance, fireworks at night (while Katy Perry’s “Fireworks” plays), secluded venue at the top of a hill…come on!

While in Sayulita, we also got to see and spend some time with our friends from Monterey: Jeanne, Rollie, and their cutie pup, Lucy!  Jeanne and Rollie, originally from the Monterey area, opened up a restaurant called Rollie’s in Sayulita after retiring from teaching and now spend half the year down there.  During the time we were there, they were only open for breakfast, but after Thanksgiving, they open for dinner as well. Needless to say, Robby and I ate there every morning we were in Sayulita. I loved their fruit smoothies (Paleo), egg scrambles (Paleo without cheese and beans), and pancakes (not Paleo!). Robby and I especially enjoyed a menu item called “Magical Machaca”. Just in case you are wondering, the answer is yes, it was absolutely magical.  Machaca, essentially shredded beef, is a traditional Mexican dish that is oftentimes served in a flour tortilla.  Ever since our return to Monterey, I have been trying to recreate the Magical Machaca from Rollie’s.  I have finally reached a point where I feel like I have gotten close to the magic we tasted in Mexico. I call it Monterey Machaca. This is a slow-cooker recipe and be warned–it needs a lot of time to cook. I hope you like it!

Here’s what you need:

1 2-3 pound beef chuck roast

1 can of diced tomatoes (with or without salt)

1 jalapeno (or two if you’re adventurous!–by the way, one jalapeno barely adds any spice)

1 yellow onion

3 tablespoons (or more to taste) sea salt

1 lime

3 cloves of peeled garlic

2 teaspoons cumin

Scrambled with eggs on top of sauteed Kale

Here’s how: 

1. Slice the onion into thin slices. While you are chopping things up, go ahead and slice up the jalapeno. I like to cut it length-wise into thin strips, keeping the seeds. Cut the peeled garlic into large slices. Also, go ahead and cut the lime into fourths–whatever is easiest to squeeze the juice out.

2. In a slow-cooker, place the meat on the bottom with the onions, garlic and tomatoes spread around and on top of it. Squeeze the juice of the lime on top of the beef. Set the cooker to low and let it cook for about 6-7 hours.  Extra time won’t hurt if you aren’t home to shred the beef.

3. Beef shredding/pulling! Take the meat out of the cooker and place it on a plate. Take two forks and shred the beef the same way as the Shredded Pork a la Salsa Verde. Refer to this video for a good demonstration: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juogbZevCXE     .

4. After shredding the beef, place it back in the slow cooker and make sure that all the liquid covers the meat. Mix in the salt and cumin and then let the meat continue on the low setting. Let it cook for another hour or two.

5. Ready to eat! There are a multitude of ways you can eat this so play around and enjoy yourself. Some ideas: Machaca scramble (scrambled with eggs), Machaca lettuce tacos, and salad with Machaca on top. It tastes especially good with avocado.

‘Tis the season for fall festivals! Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-fall!

I’m a little bummed to say, though, that we are now on the tail-end of all the festivities.  This past weekend, however, Robby and I were invited to participate in the second part of a Fall tradition our neighbors hold each year.  Part one: the apple picking.  Around one month ago, we ventured into their yard for some apple picking.  By the time we arrived, all the low hanging fruit had been picked and we got to make like monkeys and climb up to pick the fruit in the top branches.  That was part one.

The Apple Press

Part two: apple pressing. Part two involved us taking the many pounds of apples we picked and running them through a 1800s style hand-operated apple press that our neighbor has.  All the guests had a chance, if desired, to turn the crank and help turn the apples into juice.  We were all invited to bring our own empty jugs to take home the fresh-pressed juice.  Over the last couple years I’ve mostly eliminated juice from my diet, but oh my, after standing next to the big bucket of fresh juice, how could I resist the sweet smell?? I could not and I did not.

While I thought this juice was delicious on its own, I also love having hot apple cider on cold Fall days.  I just heat it up in the microwave and sprinkle some cinnamon on top.  I highly recommend getting your hands on some freshly pressed apple juice without added sugar.  Hot, cold, cinnamon spiced…I love it all and think you will too.

As a kid, I remember that after the pumpkin patch and the pumpkin carving came the roasted pumpkin seeds. I don’t actually remember if this was my favorite part, but it was certainly a nice routine.  My family and I would go to the pumpkin patch where us kids could pick out any pumpkin we wanted as long as we could carry it ourselves.  My little sister violated this rule once and proceeded to drop her pumpkin down the hill we lived on as soon as we got home.  Being the big sister I was (and still am), I ran down that street chasing the pumpkin and managed to bring it back with just a few scratches.  But I digress (honestly, I’m probably still bitter that she got away with not following the rules)… After the pumpkin patch, we would come home and carve our pumpkins. From what I remember, we were a pretty simple jack-o-lantern carving family–none of those intricate designs of faces or castles.  As soon as the pulp and seeds were dumped out, my mom would get to work roasting them in the oven so that they would be done around the same time we finished carving.  Yum!

Over the years, though, I had gotten lazy and failed to do anything with the pumpkin seeds.  Pumpkin carving was not customary in Switzerland so I didn’t really have any pumpkin seeds around during my college years anyway.  Last year, I bought and cooked a lot of whole pumpkins but never did anything with the seeds.  This year, though, one of my close friends from grad school has re-introduced me to the savoriness of pumpkin seeds.  She loves pumpkin seeds and every time I talked about pumpkins, she kindly asked if she could have the seeds to eat.  Of course, when I made them for her, I had to “taste” just one (or two or ten).  All of these childhood pumpkin carving memories have come back and I have found a new favorite snack.  Thanks, Chelsea!  I have written out a tasty Chelsea-approved pumpkin seed roasting recipe below.

Here’s what you need: 

all the pumpkin seeds from your pumpkin (about 1 cup)

about 1 tablespoon of melted grass-fed butter or olive oil (enough to just barely coat the seeds)

salt to taste (maybe start off with a couple teaspoons)

Here’s how: 

1. Once you scoop the seeds out of the pumpkin and remove most of the pulp, lay the seeds out on a plate and let them dry overnight.  A good way to separate the pulp from the seeds is to place them in a bowl of water and then, if you need to, get your hands in there to remove the seeds if they don’t  do it on their own.

2. Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.

3. Melt the butter in a small bowl that will fit all the seeds. After the butter has melted, place the seeds in the bowl with the butter and make sure all the seeds get coated.

4. Place seeds on a baking sheet and sprinkle salt over them. If you think they are not salty enough, you can always add some salt after baking. Put seeds in the oven.

5. Let the seeds bake for about 45 minutes or until they turn brown. They may start popping…don’t let this scare you! The popping is ok as long as you remove them from the oven afterwards.

6. Eat them up like popcorn. Yes, you can eat the seeds whole.

Happy pumpkin seed eating!