Italian Cobb Salad

 

I have been craving salads and I have been craving Italian summer food. This is the time I usually get to work and live in Europe for 6 months, but this year I can’t because I have a real job:)

So I thought I would bring some Italian food into my American world. This is a simple salad with a bunch of goodies from my organic garden.

Rocket: A Handful of rocket. This is similar to arugula, but I like it better. It grows very well and quickly.

Mozzarella di Bufala: You can buy it at Publix. One will do. It is expensive but it is amazing.

Sliced Turkey: 2 slices.

Half raw zucchini sliced really thin.

One spoon of tapenade olive spread paste

Prosciutto crudo (2 slices) or coppa

one tomato (sliced)

Olive oil, lemon, salt and pepper.

Sliced all the ingredients and places them in glass container or tray. I brought it to work so I put it in a glass container. You can alter one slice of tomato with one slice of mozzarella, place all your zucchini in the middle and your meat on a side. Sprinkle with tapenade and olive oil and you are done.

 

 

 

Pasta with artichokes

My friend had made this pasta and posted on #instagram. It looks so easy and yummy that I asked her if I could use it for my blog. This is how she made it.

What you need: one small shallot; one or two big fresh artichokes or 4 already prefaced and ready to use. 4 slices of prosciutto crudo or ham. Parmigiano cheese.

If  you don’t know how to clean artichokes watch this video. Otherwise, clean your artichokes and slice them very thin. In a skillet with extra virgin olive brown the shallot and when transparent add the artichokes. Cook until soft and gold, but not dry. Add the ham chopped in small dices and let cook for other few minutes.

Cook the pasta according to the directions, drain and place in the skillet with the sauce. Add parmigiano reggiano cheese, salt and pepper and serve.

 

 

Italian Pulled pork

This is such an easy and quite healthy recipe. It also requires 10 minutes to prepare. I was inspired by a restaurant in London called Negozio Classica, which makes a very similar dish. I adapted mine to what I had around the house.

what you need
Pulled pork (any type) 1 cup
A metal round shape tool
1 cup cherry tomatoes
1 cup cannellini beans

Wash the beans and boil in fresh water. In the meantime using a brush, brush the meat with vinegar and olive oil. Take a plate and using the metal round shape tool place the meat piling it like you were making a brick wall;)

Chopped the tomatoes placing them around the meat. Do the same thing with the beans- sprinkle all with olive oil, pepper and salt.

Place in the fridge- I like to serve it cold- Enjoy with a nice glass of wine-

I keep eating

I keep eating in Italy. I can’t believe people eat this much. I follow a strict micro diet in the States, super healthy but when I am here I stuff my mouth with cured ham, cheese, focaccia, pasta, and ice creams. It is uncontrollable. You don’t eat just one dish, you have 3 courses. I don’t know how they do it.

For my uncle’s birthday we were invited to a dinner at Vipore on the hills of Lucca. The restaurant is owned by friends, which was awesome because he opened the place just for us. It has been a long time since the entire family did not spend time together, which I guess pushed everyone to eat everything that was on the menu and to drink every bottle of wine in the restaurant.

I believe we had hams, farro, crostini, bread, salads, fettucine with rabbit, pasta with spicy sausages, tortelli with ragu, french fries Italian style, steak, fiorentina, rabbit, cakes, red wine, spumante, champagne, corretto, liquors…..I just can’t remember… so I will leave it to pictures to tell the story of that night. Happy Birthday to my uncle Titti.

and here I stop!

Minestrone Gin

This is all I had in the fridge:

The only thing I could even imagine to cook was some sort of minestrone, stew, frantoiana. Frantoiana is the best soup you can ever eat. It’s a dense zuppa famous is #Lucca, #Tuscany. It’s made with cabbage, beans and roasted spicy bread. I decided to improvise and make some sort of #zuppa. Let me tell you, at first I was skeptical but it turned out to be delicious.

Minestrone a la Gin

one bag frozen peas and carrots

one bag frozen cauliflowers

half onion (diced)

4 cloves of garlic (chopped)

half lemon

some fennel

one shallot

one large patotoes

one can of tomatoes

one tablespoon of cumin

one tablespoon tandoori spices

one tablespoon oregano

salt and pepper

olive oil

one can organic pinto beans smashed

old bread to toast and make croutons (as well as a variety of dry herbs)

2 cups of water (half liter).

pecorino cheese

the butt of parmigiano reggiano cheese

fresh herbs (oregano, basil, cilantro, thyme, rosemary, etc)

I hope that’s all. I really put everything in here. I wanted to be tasty, so I experimented with a lot of different spices. I met not too long ago a PhD student from Iran and she told me how she use lemon with her stew. It was awesome.

The first thing you want to do is place all the chopped onions, garlic and shallot, fresh herbs in a large pot covered with generous layer of olive oil. Add the oregano, the cumin and the tandoori spices. Add the lemon and the fennel chopped finely as well. Let it cook until it is brown and gold.

Add the frozen veggies and the potato chopped. Salt and pepper and cook on medium/high. Cook at least for 10 minutes. Add a can of tomatoes and the water. Stir and let cook for 15 minutes.

In the meantime smash the beans (one can will be enough). Then prepare the croutons. Cut old bread in cubes. Place in a large bowl with dry herbs and olive oil. Mix well. Then place on a baking sheet and place in the over to toast. Delicious. Set aside.

Taste the soup now. If it tastes like nothing add spices/herbs to it. At this point it should not be as running as early. Add the bean paste. Stir. Cook on low heat for 5-15 minutes. I like mine when it gets a little bit burned on the bottom. It is very dense and not running.

Serve the bread on the bottom (or top). Pour the minestrone. Sprinkle with cheese and olive oil and serve hot.

Omelette with zucchini – Frittata con zucchine

I made a video. Yep. It is actually pretty embarrassing in terms of editing, but I had only 4 hours to cook multiple meals for a dinner I had at my place and was really not trying to figure out Imovie in less than 10 minutes. I will promise I will get better. 

Omelette with zucchini

6 egg whites

2 eggs

2 zucchini

dried tomatoes 

salt, pepper, olive oil

For the sauce

cappers

parsley

olive oil

lemon juice

For the sauce mix all ingredients together until they make a nice and creamy sauce like a pesto. Serve the sauce on top of the omelette. 

This recipe comes from an Italian food magazine called Sale e Pepe. However, I modified it because I did not want all the cholesterol, so I used white eggs and only two eggs. I also used big cappers, not small. Watch the video for the steps on how to make the omelette. Make sure your omelette is thin like a crepes. You should be able to make two rolls with 8 eggs. 

Video Here: 

Asian curry stew

I made this crazy spicy soup/stew served with brown rice tonight out of left overs. Literally, I had nothing to cook except for a left over grilled tilapia fish, 3 chicken stripes, scallions, onions, a can of tomatoes, and 1/4 of coconut milk, oh and fresh cilantro. What could I make with these ingredients that it is actually eatable? I came up with an asian/italian stew/soup. Just to let you know if you keep cooking the sauce on low heat for a long time you will get a stew, kind of vindaloo dish. If you are in a rush you will get more a soup thing. Also this recipe is super spicy.

Asian Italian crazy soup with brown rice

3 strips of chicken cut long and thin

one left over grilled tilapia fish chopped

1/2 cup of fresh scallions chopped

1/4 chopped cilantro

1/4 cocunut milk

1 spoon yellow curry

one can tomatoes

one clove of garlic minced

1/4 chopped onion

one spoon (light) of soy bean sauce (bought at Asian market)

one spoon (light) peanut sauce (bought at Asian market)

one teaspoon chopped finely rosemary

one small bottle of clams or fish juice

Add water as needed

In a skillet heat olive oil with garlic and onion. Add chicken. Brown the chicken then add the coconut milk with the curry. Add tomato can and fresh cilantro and scallions. Stir all. Cook on medium-low heat. Add the peanut sauce, soy bean sauce and stir very well. Add the fish. (if you are vegetarian substitute meat with tofu). 

In the meantime cook brown rice according to package directions. It should be steamed. 

Note:  this is a version of a stew. It will taste better if you cook it on low heat over a long period of time. The flavors will merge together, but I made it in 30 minutes!!

Serve a ball of rice (you can use the measuring cups to shape it) in the middle of a bowl. Add the stew around it. Sprinkle with cashews. Serve if you like with fresh garnish cilantro. Now, this recipe has strong flavors. The curry is spicy as well as the soy bean sauce. The peanut sauce is very powerful and if you put too much it will overpower the entire recipe. Just a head up. This is very spicy. 

 

P.s. If you want a low carb version, omit the rice. That is what I did for me:0

 

Edible Organic Orlando Stuffed Pepper

Orlando it is not only to be associated with Disney or Univeral. We enjoyed some local and organic cuisine. The first day we had lunch/dinner at Pine22. The simple and clean restaurant makes hamburgers. The meat comes from grass-fed cows. I have been obsessed with grass fed beef, milk and cheese. It just tastes so much better. One option Pine22 has is that you can finally have your burger without the bun, instead it is served on lettuce. Side dish is sweet potatoes. Verdict: quality was good but too greasy. I believe we have this idea that if it’s local and organic it must be healthy, light and gourmet. No, the burger was a burger. It was too heavy for my taste, but I would recommend trying it out. I think since we paid $12 for a burger a nicer presentation would be appreciated. Though, I had an organic beer that was delicious Peak Organic Pomegrade — The owner of Pine22, I was told, runs also another restaurant in Orlando on 55 Church Street – The Rusty Spoon – We had dinner there, because again the food was local and some organic. It was good- I had a pork pate` and a dish with fish, broth and grits (very southern). Shawn had a goulash that was amazing. Really reasonable prices and really good food and good selection. The reason why we picked these places was also based on location. We did not have to take the car and we went to different lounges/bars after dinner.

The recipe for today is inspired by the Edible Orlando magazine. Issue 7 of Spring 2012 had a wonderful recipe for stuffed green peppers. I took the freedom to adjust it with my preference for certain foods and availability in my fridge;)

Green Stuffed Pepper

4 medium size green pepper

1/2 cup of crumble feta cheese

1/2 crumble tofu (soft or hard)

1/2 shredded parmesan cheese

3 tablespoons red onions chopped finely

1 garlic clove minced

fresh cilantro to garnish

one chopped tomato

one tablespoon breadcrumbs homemade (you can also buy them)

salt, pepper, olive oil, oregano and thyme

Clean the peppers by removing the top, and internal seeds. Keep the top. You will need it later for decoration. In a bowl combine the feta, tofu, cheese, onion, chopped tomato, garlic, oregano, thyme, salt, pepper, a sprinkle of olive oil, and breadcrumbs. Set aside.

Here the trick – Preheat the oven at 375 – Stuff each pepper with the filling top with some more cheese and breadcrumbs.  Cook for 50-60 minutes. When they come out serve on a plate with the top on it and fresh cilantro.

Serve with Fresh Grilled Jumbo Shrimp and Grilled veggies

To make the shrimp, just rinse with water and place on the grill until they turn pink. Don’t overcooked, unless you like it like that. Buy some organic corn or eggplants, zucchini. Sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper and minced garlic. Place on the grill until cook.

How to avoid junk food when traveling

I went to Orlando this weekend to spend my 8th anniversary with Shawn. We decided to do something fun and really different from our usual routine. So we spent a day at Universal Studios. Now, I am not a big fan of theme parks. I get nauseated from roller coasters. The vivid colors brainwash me. It’s like walking into a casino: my brain just goes nuts. However, I do not want to leave Florida without having seeing the glorious recreation of pleasure and entertainment.

Instead of staying around Universals, we opted for a hotel downtown by lake Eola. I would highly recommend anyone to stay downtown Orlando. It’s beautiful. I mean it is everything I want in a city: urban yet natural, charming bungalow homes, restaurants, clubs, gyms, Publix, everything in within 15 minutes walking distance. We never used the car. Just beautiful. The weather was beautiful too — high 80s with wind. 

Anyway, I wanted to share with you what/how to pack when you travel. One of the hardest thing ever when you travel by car or plane is keeping your healthy diet. Everywhere you turn you are surrounded by junk: hot dogs, fast food, ice-creams, candies, sodas…You just feel you have to give up. So in anticipation of that we packed water, cashew nuts, pistachios, pita chips and organic dried fruit and nuts. We kept those in the hotel, but I would suggest putting one small bag in your purse (I just hate carrying bags).

At Universal Studios it was IMPOSSIBLE to find something decent. The smell of fry was everywhere. Food had neon colors. We walked through the theme park for 3 hours and we did not find ANYTHING FRESH or ‘normal.’ It was unbelievable. It was the epitome of the American stereotype in movies -Homer Simpson. After hours and hours of walking and roller costers and about to pass out we had lunch at this fish restaurant. I had a salad with no dressing. It was not even fresh but I actually enjoyed it. I just needed some nutrients. If I had to go back to Universal or Disney I would pack my own lunch. The only thing is that if you don’t want to carry bags you are stuck with their food or none. It was frustrating I must say. 

Rules for traveling

Pack healthy snacks (apples, nuts, dry fruit, pistachios, water, oranges). While these snacks might only temporary satisfy your hunger, they are a good source of energy and nutrients.

Choose a hotel close by to other attractions so you can walk anywhere and burn calories.

Put sunblock on

Publix has an assortment of organic and conventional nuts. If you don’t have space in your suitcase find a supermarket nearby your hotel and buy some snacks there. It will be cheaper. 

Why is the picture rotated? Click on the picture to see it from the right side. 

(Healthy) Food Blogs I Love

These are some of the healthy food blogs I love to read and replicate recipes.

Lunch Box Lunch: This blog offers vegan recipes that are actually tasty for non-vegetarian eaters. They are also quite simple to make. I don’t usually try recipes often from other sites, but so far this blog has impressed me. The best recipe so far is the mushroom risotto. I swear it is the best thing ever. I have also tried the mac and cheese but it did not turn out the way it looked on picture. I might have messed up the recipe. The fact is that vegan cheese has a very pronounced taste and I am not sure I like it. I tried to use it in the French onion soup and it worked.

Foodimentary: This blog caught my eye because it is concise. It gets to the point with few lines. It highlights food history based on the day (e.g. 2/29). Today it’s National Pistachio Day. The author of the blog, John-Bryan Hopkins also likes to add quotes at the end of each post.

AlternativeEating: This is a blog that it is literally very similar to mine, in the sense that I think and do like the author of this blog. I love all her recipes, her stories of her walks through the snow of Sweden, and her working out routine. And it happens that she is also my age. Check her recipes. They are just so yummy.

Today I have surpassed the master of Banana Bread maker. My friend Brigette is well-known to make great banana bread that I can never replicate. Not until today. I made the best banana bread. Amazing.