Tag Archives: vegetarian

Chame’s Spinach, Figs and Blue Cheese Salad

12 Mar

This is my current favorite salad… hands down, I have been making it for 2-3 weeks straight almost every time I cook for myself at home.

Chame is my friend for 15+ years now.  And she has been inspired by our little blog here to follow a healthier lifestyle.  By reducing the animal products she and her family eat, they have been able to lose many pounds.  She tells me she feels with more energy, her cholesterol numbers are lower, she is trying new recipes each week … basically, she is in love with their new lifestyle.  The message here is that shifting your habits and lifestyle overall, does lead to improvements in weight and self-esteem.

When I was in Miami recently she invited me over to dinner.  She wanted to “brag” about the changes they’ve made in their diet and lifestyle and wanted to showcase one of their favorite meals – A mini pizza with a spinach salad with blue cheese and figs.  After my experience at Cocina Abierta recently, I am certainly a believer of figs in a salad.

Inspiration goes both ways… I am grateful to Chame for inspiring me to create this salad.  This is as easy as any salad is, and impressive enough to make for company.

CHAME’S SPINACH, FIGS AND BLUE CHEESE SALAD

Baby Spinach
Grape or Cherry Tomatoes, sliced or diced
Dried Mission Figs, diced
Pickled Onions
Sliced Almonds
Crumbled Gorgonzola Cheese
Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
Aged Balsamic Vinegar
Salt and Pepper to taste
  1. Assemble all salad ingredients in a salad bowl – from the spinach up to the cheese.
  2. In a measuring cup or bowl mix together 2 parts olive oil to 1 part balsamic vinegar with a dash of salt and pepper to season.  Mix well and drizzle over salad.  Toss to coat.

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Gorgonzola Stuffed Bell Peppers

9 Mar

Stuffed peppers are definitely one of my favorite clean-the-fridge meals. I tend to make these recipes a little bit different each time because I work with all the little bits and pieces I have in my fridge. I use mostly left-over rice as a filling, but orzo pasta, quinoa or even couscous work deliciously here. I have even used left-over butternut squash risotto from a large party, added a few extra veggies and made stuffed bell peppers for a crowd after my sister’s baby shower once.

 

However, the other day I purposely made a conscious effort to think of what I would put in. I am in a blue-cheese kick lately ,so I wondered how would my beloved stuffed bell peppers would taste using gorgonzola as the main cheese. I know I already loved them filled with goat cheese… so this would be a nice twist if successful. And successful it was.

 

BLUE CHEESE STUFFED BELL PEPPERS

1 large bell pepper – I prefer yellow, orange or red for this… but a green one will do also
1 cup cooked brown rice
½ medium onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped finely
1 small carrot, chopped small
1 small tomato, chopped
3-4 white button mushrooms, chopped
3 large handfuls of baby spinach or any other hearty green lettuce
2 ounces cream cheese
1/2 cup gorgonzola crumbles
½ cup walnut pieces or almond slivers
¼ cup mozzarella cheese, shredded for topping
Olive Oil
Salt and pepper to taste
  1. In a large skillet over medium heat, add the olive oil, onions, garlic and carrots. Season with salt and pepper lightly and sauté for a few minutes for the onions and carrots to soften.
  2. While this cooks, cut the bell pepper in half and clean the insides of all ribs and seeds. Set aside.
  3. Add the mushroom pieces and cook for a few minutes. Add tomato pieces and cook for them to release their juices.
  4. Add the spinach and mix together so it wilts. Season with salt and pepper to help the spinach release its juices.
  5. Remove from heat. Add the cooked rice and mix well. Add the cream cheese and gorgonzola. If you feel the mixture is a bit stiff, add a drizzle of olive oil to soften it.
  6. Add the walnuts or other nut you might have handy.
  7. Fill generously each bell pepper half with rice/cheese mixture. Top with some shredded cheese to make a nice cheesy crust on top.
  8. Place the pepper halves in a baking dish and cook in a 425F oven for about 25-30 minutes. The filling is already cooked but this will cook and soften the pepper outside.

Serve alongside a crisp green salad and dinner is served!!!

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Pickled Red Onions

7 Mar

Onions are the cornerstone of my cooking… I rarely cook without onions. But my onion of choice is mostly the yellow onion. Red onions, on the other hand, are not part of my usual grocery shopping list. They’re more like a treat.

However, I love to add red onions to my salads… very thinly sliced red onions are perfect to give that little something to a huge plate of greens. But I have noticed not everyone is a fan of onions in salads like I am. The times I have tried to add red onions to the salad course at the Yoga Center, I have been received with resistance. They’re too pungent… they’re too strong… my breath will stink afterwards… are some of the critiques I have received.

So I’ve had to become creative when delivering my onion news to those non-believers… How about a pickled onion?? The flavor of onion, but mellowed out to satisfy the skeptics.

Here’s how I do them…

 

PICKLED RED ONIONS

1 red onion, sliced as thin as possible
2 tbs rice vinegar
1 tbs warm filtered water
1 tsp salt
  1. Place the sliced onions in a bowl with a cover.
  2. Add the rest of the ingredients. Toss to coat.
  3. Allow the onions to soften in the vinegar/salt mixture.

Now you can certainly enhance this basic pickle technique. I have added lime juice instead of vinegar. I have added fresh parsley and sometimes even a clove of garlic. You could add some pepper too…

The basic premise is that by marinating the onions in vinegar and a little bit of water, the onions will soften and the flavor will soften as well, making them the perfect addition to your salad.

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Eggplant Tomato Rice Pastelón / Arroz Relleno

5 Mar

I have been meaning to make a recipe for a Rice Pastelón for quite some time… and then the other day, my mom and Mili surprised me with the news they’re making a rice pastelón and they want me to document it for the blog. Sweet!!!

When I was growing up, the mom of a very, very good friend of mine loved to cook rice pastelones, or Arroz Relleno as she would call it. At the time it was rice on the bottom, stewed chicken in the middle and rice on the top, covered of course with cheese. I have debated how I would adapt Lolita’s recipe to make it vegetarian and as reminiscent of that original arroz relleno as possible… that’s where I stayed in the idea/concept stage.

But Mili and Mami did one better… Picture this – imagine layers of rice with layers of eggplant and tomato and cheese in between. Genius, right?? Genius and DELICIOUS… you will make a large mold of this because you WANT to have leftovers. I guarantee it…

EGGPLANT TOMATO RICE PASTELON

3 cups of cooked brown rice
2 large tomatoes, sliced
1 large eggplant, peeled and sliced
1 large onion, chopped large
½ cup of strained tomatoes or tomato sauce or marinara sauce
2 cups of shredded cheese
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to Taste
Garlic and Herb Seasoning
1 vegetable bouillon cube

First, you need to cook all the components…

  1. Cook your rice the usual way you know how to cook brown rice. I make it in a rice cooker seasoning it with a little bit of salt, a drizzle of olive oil and a vegetable bouillon cube. I try to smash the cube and mix it in water before turning it on so the water is flavored evenly. After the rice is made, set aside.
  2. Meanwhile, season the tomato slices with salt and garlic/herb seasoning mixture. Place slices side by side in a baking dish or tray. Drizzle a bit of olive oil over the tomatoes. Roast in a 400F oven for about 25-20 minutes. The idea is to concentrate the flavors of the tomato. Take out of the oven and set aside.
  4. Also, season the eggplant slices with the same salt and garlic/herbs mixture. Place slices side by side in a baking dish or tray. Drizzle a bit of olive oil over the eggplant slices. Roast in the same oven where the tomatoes are at 400F for about 25-20 minutes too. Take out of the oven and set aside.
  5. And while the tomatoes and eggplants are cooking and rice is finishing, sauté the onions in a large skillet. Add a little bit of olive oil to the pan over medium heat. Season with salt and pepper. The idea is to soften them by cooking them over medium heat for about 10 minutes, without browning them too much. Set aside.
  6. Take the strained tomatoes and season them with salt, pepper and garlic and herbs. Add a little drizzle of olive oil to add extra flavor. Set aside. If using marinara sauce, you don’t need to season it then.

Now that everything is basically cooked, we assemble the pastelón as if it were a lasagna…

  1. Using a 9 x 13 baking dish, place 1/3 of the rice at the bottom of the pan. Flatten as much as possible.
  3. Add a drizzle of the strained tomato sauce over the rice.
  4. Add a layer of eggplants and tomatoes using half of the quantity you have available, trying to cover the layer of rice.
  6. Add some onions on top of eggplant/tomato layer.
  8. Add a layer of shredded cheese over the onions.
  9. Repeat with a second layer of rice. Drizzle some tomato sauce. Another layer of eggplant/tomato. Another layer of onions. Another layer of cheese.
  10. Finish with a last layer of rice. Add any remaining ingredients you might still have. Don’t let anything go to waste. And top with plenty of shredded cheese.
  11. Bake in the oven covered for 20-25 minutes in a 350F oven for all the flavors to combine. Uncover for the last 10 minutes of cooking to brown the cheese on top.

Just like with lasagna, there are several steps to this pastelón, but none of them are particularly difficult. After it’s assembled all you need to do is bake to melt the cheeses inside and on top. A nice salad on the side and dinner is ready!!!

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Fro-Yotopia in West Palm Beach…

15 Feb

If you live in the West Palm Beach area I urge you to try Fro-Yotopia…

I thought this was a franchise of some sort, but no… they’re a locally owned business located at the Downtown @ The Gardens open mall in Palm Beach Gardens.

I wish I had taken more pictures… but these are frozen yogurts with probiotic Active Live Cultures, which are good for you and your digestive system. They are delicious…

The concept is you take a cup and you fill it with your favorite flavor or flavors of soft serve frozen yogurt. You add as much or as little yogurt was you want. You serve it yourself… Add as many toppings and syrups/sauces as you want and the end concoction is then weighed and you pay by weight. You are the designer of your own dessert…

They have a lot of flavors to choose from: Vanilla, Strawberry, Tart, Chocolate, Dulce de Leche, Blueberry Acai, Cake Batter, Sweet Coconut, Banana, NSA Coffee, among others. You just need to ask which flavors are made with eggs. Some of them are, but not all…

Then they have a whole suite of toppings you can choose from – all sorts of fresh fruits like strawberries, mangos, blueberry, kiwi, raspberries, walnuts, almonds, pecans, candy bars, chips, m&ms, you name it!!!! I like it they have it all color-coordinated so all the colorful stuff is together and all the white add-ons are placed together. So cute and fun!!!

I had the Tart and Strawberry fro-yo’s, which none contain eggs in their formula… topped with fresh strawberries and mango. I wanted to add some syrup, but I hesitated and my sister took the cup out of hand to weigh. I was holding the line…

I really enjoyed it a lot… If you’re in the West Palm Beach neck of the woods, visit this nice store and help them to continue bringing a great delicious product. And maybe even consider expanding to Puerto Rico!!!!! Hint hint 😉

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