Eat Real Food

I'm doing my best to live up to this mantra. Here's what we had for dinner last night:

Linguini with Swiss Chard and Italian Sausage

1/2 lb linguini, reserve 1 cup cooking water
2 Italian hot sausages, casing removed and chopped
1 bunch Swiss Chard, stems removed and chopped; leaves rolled and chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 Tbsp olive oil
Salt and Pepper
2 sprigs fresh thyme

- Heat oil in a deep skillet on medium heat. Add sausage and brown. Add add onion, garlic and bell pepper to skillet and cook 2-3 minutes. Add chard stems and cook another 5 minutes. Add chard leaves and salt and pepper. Then add tomato paste, salt, pepper and thyme. Cook covered over medium-low heat for about 10 more minutes.

- Cook pasta for 9 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta water. Uncover greens and add 1/2 cup reserved pasta water. Stir. If the consistency is too dry, add more liquid. Toss with pasta and serve.

Roasted Broccoli

Last night, I had my heart set on making some swiss chard. Unfortunately, I communicated this desire too late to my dear husband, who had already made it to the store and purchased another vegetable: broccoli. "Broccoli?," I said. "Ugh." Whenever I think of broccoli, I think of steamed floretts, tasteless and tough to chocke down. But I realized that I don't have to eat it like that. I had a change of heart and decided that I would roast the broccoli and make it awesome. So that's what I did. And it was awesome.

Roasted Broccoli

Two small heads of broccoli, base removed, cut into small florets
Olive oil, both plain and meyer lemon infused, about 1/4 cup total.
Crushed red pepper, a few shakes
Oregano, a few shakes
Sea Salt, two shakes
Fresh ground pepper, a couple of turns
Dried parsley, a few shakes
Onion powder, a few shakes

Preheat oven to 425. Place the cut broccoli in a bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and combine with your hands. Place in a casserole dish. Roast for about 30 minutes, stirring occassionally, or until the broccoli is tender.

Thai Food Adventure

I have never even tried making Thai food before last night I was intimidated by the level of complexity in the flavor of my favorite Thai dishes. I figured I'd need a bunch of hard to find ingredients and a lot of time. I was dead wrong. I found a Thai market close to my office that had everything I could ever need while cooking Thai food. Then, when researching Thai curry recipes, I discovered that cook time is quite minimal. All excellent things!

Fancypants' Thai Curry

1 can coconut milk
1 can water
3 tbsp. curry paste (I used a mix of Thai red curry paste and another one)
1 onion, chopped
1 nub ginger, peeled and chopped
1 nub ginger-like root (I can't remember the name offhand), peeled and chopped
3-4 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 red bell pepper
1 yam, peeled and cubed
1 Japanese eggplant, chopped
2-3 dried red chilies
dried black mushrooms
1 stalk lemongrass, chopped into quarters
2 tbsp peanut oil
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp peanut sauce
Thai Basil - a few sprigs, chopped
Lemon Basil, a few sprigs, chopped
Green onions, 3-4, chopped
dash white pepper

Heat oil in a large dutch oven. Add onions, garlic, ginger and other root to pan and saute 5 minutes. Add yam and curry pastes. Stir to combine. Add the other ingredients and stir. Cover and simmer about 15 minutes or until yam is cooked through. Serve over brown rice or jasmine rice.

Running on the Strand and The Veggie Grill

Last night, my friend Amy and I hit the Strand in Hermosa Beach for a short (2.75 mi) jog. It was a lovely evening. I had a decent run and even passed a fat dude! The only thing that made it better was the fact that I found out that there is a Veggie Grill in El Segundo, conveniently located on my route home. I love that place. If you've never been there before, its a vegetarian chain restaurant that has some amazing and healthy food. I usually go to the one on Sunset Blvd. in West Hollywood. Tonight I got the All Hail Kale salad. Yum. I would have taken a photo, but I ate it too quickly!

The Veggie Grill

Roast Boneless Leg of Lamb

Since it was Easter Sunday (I'm not a believer that Christ is risen, but I do enjoy a good brunch), I decided to roast a leg of lamb for a potluck over at our friend's place. I did a take on the pesto I made earlier in the week. Things turned out quite tasty...

Roast Leg of Lamb

1 boneless leg of lamb (remove netting)
1 bunch mint
1/2-1 bunch Italian parsley
4 whole roasted garlic cloves (roast with salt, pepper and olive oil)
Good amount olive oil
Salt and pepper

In a food processor, combine mint, parsley and roasted garlic. Blend to combine. While blending, slowly drizzle in oil until you get a good consistency, like a paste, but a bit more liquid. Season with salt and pepper.

Place lamb in a shallow roasting pan (I used a large copper gratin pan). Cover lamb completely on both sides with marinade. Tie lamb with cooking string or similar item to allow lamb to retain its shape. If you have some extra garlic, cut a few slits into the roast and stuff with whole cloves. Refrigerate overnight.

Allow lamb to reach room temperature before roasting. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Roast lamb for 10 minutes and then reduce temperature to 325 degrees. Cook about 18 minutes per pound, or until a meat thermometer reaches 150 degrees (for medium rare). Allow meat to rest for at least 30 minutes before carving. Serve with pan juices. You could also deglaze the roasting pan with wine and serve with that gravy.

Paul McCartney and Joan's on Third

Last night my husband and I went to the Hollywood Bowl to see Paul McCartney. All I can say was that it was truly one of the best shows I've ever seen. It's refreshing to know that when you shell out $80+ for a ticket, you will actually get your money's worth once in a while. Sir Paul rocked the house for over 2 hours straight without taking a break. Then he came back for multiple encores. Epic.

Since we were going to the show, we couldn't cook at home (if I had been well-prepared, I could have made pasta salad out of the pesto we had left over from last night...). Instead, we picked up some delicious food at Joan's on Third. Joan's is one of my favorite places to eat and get food to-go. They have a wide variety of delicious prepared salads and lots of delicious cheeses. They also make a mean sandwich and have some really good desserts. But I must say that breakfast at Joan's is my absolute favorite. They make the best omelet in the city in my humble opinion. I prefer the herb omelet. So fresh tasting. All omelets come with a side of creme fraiche, which allows you to skip the cheese.

Last night we picked up a Cobb salad (for me) and roast beef sandwich (for him), a side of grilled veggies (to share), roasted beet salad (for lunch today), and a chocolate peanut butter cupcake (for him). And with the KCRW Fringe Benefits discount, our meal was actually pretty reasonably priced. Huzzah!

Joan's On Third
8350 W. Third Street
Los Angeles, CA 90048
323.655.2285

Cauliflower, Pesto, and Eggs

Sounds weird, but it was tasty.

Cauliflower Puree

1 head cauliflower
1 tbsp Smart Balance
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup water

Fill pot with 1 cup of water. Affix with steamer basket. Bring to a boil. Peel leaves off of cauliflower. Cut out core. Break apart cauliflower florets and place in steamer basket. Cover and cook about 10-12 minutes until cauliflower is tender, but still retains some bite. Retail liquid. Put cauliflower in a large bowl, add smart balance, salt, pepper, and a bit of the water. Puree with an immersion blender. If you want the consistency to be more liquid, add more water and puree.

Fancypants' Mixed Pesto

1 bunch Italian parsley
1 package spearmint
1 large box Italian basil
Hemp seeds
Pine nuts (pinolas)
1-2 tsp Lemon Zest
3 garlic cloves
Red pepper flakes
Salt and black pepper
2 cups olive oil
1/2 cup Parmesan, pecorino Romano, or other hard Italian cheese, shredded.

Place garlic cloves and lemon zest in food processor bowl. Blend. Measure out hemp seeds and pine nuts according to your taste. Toast seeds and nuts in a skillet until golden brown. Add to bowl. Blend again. Wash parsley, spearmint and basil. Remove stems and place in food processor bowl. Add cheese. Blend. Slowly drizzle olive oil into mixture until it reaches a consistency you like. Taste and add salt, black pepper, and red pepper to taste.

Fry 2 eggs, over-easy, for each serving. Place cauliflower puree in the center of a plate. Put eggs on top, then top with pesto. Serve.

You can do virtually any protein in place of the eggs: chicken, pork, beef, tofu. Experiment and have fun.

Use the leftover pesto as a topping for pasta, a spread for sandwiches, etc...