Quickie: Kimchi Tofu Soup and the Benefits of Fermented Foods (v, gf)

2 Comments March 27, 2014 Lauren

So it’s springtime. Allegedly. Can’t verify that for you right now, I’m too busy scraping ice off of my windshield. Or at least I was this morning… Sheesh! This should be the time to make chilled soups and bright, minty salads dotted with neon green peas! Instead, I find myself craving warmth, spice, and honestly, detoxification, thanks to an overzealous Friday night with friends (who are totally worth celebrating- hello, ladies). So I suppose that will be my spring theme for this delectable Korean-inspired recipe: renewal!

The spicy, fragrant, good for you star of this detoxifying soup, kimchi, is a Korean side dish made with fermented vegetables, mainly cabbage. While kimchi is near and dear to my heart, all fermented and cultured foods are powerful nutritional underdogs. I’ll quote Casey Seidenberg’s Washington Post rundown of why we should all be eating fermented foods: Seidenberg, co-founder of D.C.-based nutrition education company Nourish Schools, says,

“Organic or lactic-acid fermented foods (such as dill pickles and sauerkraut) are rich in enzyme activity that aids in the breakdown of our food, helping us absorb the important nutrients we rely on to stay healthy. | Fermented foods have been shown to support the beneficial bacteria in our digestive tract. In our antiseptic world with chlorinated water, antibiotics in our meat, our milk and our own bodies, and antibacterial everything, we could use some beneficial bacteria in our bodies. | When our digestion is functioning properly and we are absorbing and assimilating all the nutrients we need, our immune system tends to be happy, and thus better equipped to wage war against disease and illness.”

What a delicious way to get the good bugs in our systems- by EATING! If kimchi’s not your style you can nosh on sauerkraut, beer (easy, tiger, easy), stinky cheese, dill pickles, yogurt, miso, sourdough bread, and kombucha to make your tummy and immune system happy and healthy. Or if you like kimchi and have five minutes, you can make this soup. Happy winterspringtime, everyone!

KIMCHI TOFU SOUP (KIMCHI JJIGAE)

Adapted from Competitive Cyclist

Ingredients:

2 cups of your favorite kimchi, packed and chopped (I used two packages of Trader Joe’s napa cabbage kimchi)
1 package tofu, cut to medium dice
1 1/2 tbsp white vinegar
4 cups water
2 tsp low-sodium vegetable cooking base or 2 tsp bouillon
1 tbsp low-sodium tamari or soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp Korean chili paste or garlic chili paste, such as Huy Fong
1 bunch scallions, sliced and divided
eggs, optional

Directions:

Chop your kimchi into bite-sized pieces. You may eat as much as you want as you chop. Watch your fingers.

Dice the tofu block. It’s really fun.

Mix the kimchi and vinegar and add to a large stockpot. Add the water, cooking base, tamari or soy sauce, sesame oil, chili paste, and half the scallions. Stir this together, then gently stir in the tofu blocks and bring the soup to a boil. If you’d like, crack a few eggs into the boiling soup and cook until the whites are opaque. If not, serve and top bowls with remaining fresh scallions, passing sesame oil around. So very tasty and so, so good for you.

Kale and White Bean Korma (v, gf)

Quickie: Coconut-Chili Shrimp & Snow Pea Brown Rice “Risotto” (gf)

Michael Pollan, Saturated Fat, and Braised Fennel (veg, gf)

Leave a comment February 23, 2014 Lauren

Fennel. So lovely, so fragrant, so exotic-looking when wedged between carrots and celery in the produce section, like a ballerina on a bus. It stumps check-out clerks and home cooks, causing both to miss out on its nutritional benefits if they do not know what in the heck to do with a bulb once they’ve brought it home.

feathery fronds

Fennel packs vitamin C, fiber and potassium in each serving, making it a nutritional powerhouse and especially beneficial to runners and athletes recovering from hard workouts. Low in calories and incredibly flavorful, it’s a stellar addition to any home menu. All while earning you “cook unafraid of unusual vegetable” points (score!).

My favorite way to prepare fennel is the simple braise outlined below; another favorite is tossing it into this A!G Provencal Fish Stew. This braise pairs well with chicken, fish, or pork, or with loads of other veggies- I’ve served it alongside roasted carrots, onions, and brussels sprouts as a hearty all-veggie dinner. Hope you enjoy! And how else have you prepared fennel?

BRAISED FENNEL

Adapted from McDaniel Nutriton

Ingredients:

3 large fennel bulbs, trimmed and sliced (you can use the stalks as well)
1 cup broth or 1 cup water and 1 tsp vegetable base
4 tbsp butter- this sounds like a lot but bear with me
3 cloves garlic, minced, or 3 tsp crushed garlic
2 tbsp fennel seeds

Directions:

After prepping the fennel, this recipe is a one-step wonder. You’ll toss all of the ingredients into a saucepan and cook in just a moment. Clean your fennel bulbs and cut off a slice of the thick root end. Lob off the fronds and reserve for another use and cop the stems and root into 1-inch slices. I find it easiest to quarter the bulbs and cut from that point.

Now before you toss everything into your pan, let’s talk butter. Recent studies have shown that “bad” saturated dietary fat, if it comes from high-quality organic sources (think organic butter from grass-fed cows, grass-fed or pasture raised beef, raw cheeses, strained organic yogurt, whole organic milk, eggs form pasture-raised chickens, etc.), may not be that bad after all. Scientists and the food-minded argue that it’s the highly-processed trans fats and chemically altered saturated fats and preservatives that are killing us. A 2010 study by the American Society for Nutrition concludes that:

“A meta-analysis of prospective epidemiologic studies showed that there is no significant evidence for concluding that dietary saturated fat is associated with an increased risk of CHD (coronary heart disease) or CVD (cardiovascular disease).”

WHOA. In a recent conversation about the saturated fat vs. high-quality full-fat food debate, a friend pointed out that the food our healthier, more active, longer-living grandparents ate was full fat, was often organic before that was a “thing,” was fresh, and was more satiating due to its high fat (and fiber) content. Hmm. Very true. Our grandparents also ate more vegetables and whole grains than we do- no slabs of meat at each meal and no bags of Doritos and partially hydrogenated cheese dip. And they ate smaller portions. The argument for full-fat foods does not, by any means suggest that eating plates of hand-cured, gourmet, farm-raised bacon with six eggs and toast slathered in butter is a good for you- everything in moderation, my friend. Journalist and food activist Michael Pollan, with whom I’ve recently become obsessed, says it best:

“Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”

So to celebrate that mantra and to test the new theory, which makes perfect sense in my mind, let’s eat veggies and use butter today! Back to the recipe. Add all ingredients to a deep saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes. Uncover and continue cooking over medium for another few minutes, until most of the cooking liquid has evaporated; don’t allow the fennel to get mushy. There you have it! Serve. What are your thoughts on the saturated fat debate? I’d love to hear your comments below!

Quickie: Easy Blender Hummus (v, gf)

6 Comments February 12, 2014 Lauren

Sometimes you just need an easy snack. Something nutritious and fast that you can have around for a while or feed a crowd with. My answer? Hummus. Friends coming over on short notice and you don’t know what to serve? A hummus and veggie tray. Have kids? Want to make lunches with minimal ingredients so you’re not cooking all week? Consider hummus sandwiches, pitas, or snack packs. Need a healthy afternoon pick-me-up at work? Hummus and chips. You see where I’m going with this. I mean, really- throw all ingredients into a blender. Blend. Serve. Who doesn’t love a recipe like that?

Here’s Buzzfeed’s take on how to eat hummus all day long. And here’s Bon Appétit’s list of 10 things to do with hummus.

EASY BLENDER HUMMUS

Adapted from my beloved Mark Bittman

Ingredients:

2 cans reduced-sodium garbanzo beans, drained with liquid reserved
1 cup tahini
1/2 cup olive oil
juice of 2 lemons
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp paprika or smoked paprika
2 tsp crushed garlic
roasted garlic cloves, optional
kosher salt, to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a large blender or food processor bowl; you can halve this recipe easily. Blend, pouring in the reserved liquid from the garbanzos until the hummus is as smooth as you’d like (you may need to scrape the bowl). Taste, adjust seasonings, and serve, refrigerating leftovers. Enjoy!!

a cross-section of hummus fixins

Stand Mixer Buttermilk Biscuits, or Ode to the KitchenAid, or Today, I Am A Woman

12 Comments February 10, 2014 Lauren

For Christmas, my thoughtful and generous mother-in-law gifted us the loveliest KitchenAid stand mixer in a retro mint green hue. It is a truly beautiful piece of equipment and an object of design perfection. Opening our new mixer felt like a rite of passage into True Womanhood. Just owning the thing makes me feel like a domestic goddess and I’m pretty sure it’s made me a better wife. Ha!

In my slightly melodramatic, tradition-loving eyes, when one comes to own a KitchenAid, one is inducted into a time-honored order of serious home cooks and bakers. I really feel the blessings of a million lovingly-made birthday cakes and doting grandmothers enveloping my kitchen, and I love them all.

I'm now one degree of separation away from Julia Child. here's her mixer at the National Museum of American History

I’m now one degree of separation away from Julia Child, right? here’s her mixer at the National Museum of American History.

It’s no small surprise that after gazing longingly at the mixer for a few weeks during an especially busy holiday season, as it radiated the mint green glow of graceful experience from its shelf, I launched myself into a series of attempts to make Womanly Things with it. Yesterday’s crack at gender inequality yielded some of the softest, most buttery and delicious biscuits I’ve ever tasted… and I’d made them. WHOA. My gain is your gain! Behold….. buttermilk biscuits!

butter me up

STAND MIXER BUTTERMILK BISCUITS

Adapted from Broma Bakery

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp kosher salt
1 stick butter, chilled and cut into squares
3/4 cup buttermilk

Directions:

Set up your stand mixer. Dust off the top. Pat it affectionately. Pre-heat your oven to 425 and grease a baking sheet. Add the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder to the bowl and mix at medium speed (I used setting 4) with the whisk attachment. With the whisk attachment still in use and the motor running, add butter squares and allow to mix until the crumbs resemble cornmeal. This will take 3-5 minutes, so be patient- it’s still faster than cutting in butter with a pastry cutter and will be much more even.

Butter should mix in like this

Switch out the whisk for the dough hook attachment and turn speed back up to medium. In three additions, pour in the buttermilk, allowing the dough to absorb it between each pour. Let the dough hook mix it all up until the dough hangs on the hook in a ball, about another minute. Don’t over mix.

dough on hook

Lightly flour your hands, a rolling pin, and your rolling surface and plop the dough down. I really dislike the thought of rolling food out on a counter, so I use a flat, heavy, oversized cutting board for working and rolling dough. So there’s that. Pat the dough into a rough ball and begin rolling out in all directions, keeping the rolled surface level. I rolled my biscuits out to a 1/2 inch, but feel free to roll to a 3/4 inch or 1 inch height for taller biscuits, you showy thing, you. Cut out using a biscuit cutter or, as suggested in the original recipe, the top of a cocktail shaker! That worked perfectly for me- who knew?!

two uses- fabulous!

Cut all of the biscuits you can, and re-roll the dough, re-cutting as needed. This recipe yielded eleven biscuits for me, all of which were eaten same-day. Place the biscuits on your prepped baking sheet or, alternatively, in a cake pan or cast iron skillet for fluffy, pull-apart edges. Bake for 15 minutes, turning the baking sheet once. Voila! You’ve rocketed into the floury stratosphere of People Who Can Make Biscuits! Next time, I’m adding more sugar and using for strawberry-rhubarb shortcakes… stay tuned!