Kale Waldorf Salad

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 This is my Gram.
YoungGram

She was a total fox, right?

She was full of snap and sparkle.  She had a sharp tongue and quick wit.  She lived a wild life before leaving this world at the ripe age of 91. In her younger years, she smooched plenty of cute boys, danced until dawn with a young Merv Griffin, Aaron Spelling, and Errol Flynn in San Francisco during WWII. She survived a near fatal car accident that resulted in a broken back, and a million other crazy things that would amaze you.  In her later years, Gram kicked a life-long addiction to alcohol, became the belle of her church singles group when she was in her 70’s after my grandfather passed away, and loved riding on the back of her church friends’ motorcycles in her leather Harley vest and boots. She was a complicated, outspoken, generous and amazing lady. I loved Gram then, and I love her still, brambles and all.

Gram was a devoted veggie lover. I’ve actually never seen anyone eat more vegetables without juicing them.  She ate a big salad for lunch every single day, and always ate salad at dinner, too.  And then she ate more veggies on the side.  She obsessed over vegetables, and salads in particular.  I’m certain her consumption of vegetables will be remembered for decades to come.

A few years ago, I found myself preparing a meal for most of my extended family for a small reception after Gram’s memorial service.  And since salad was her very favorite food group, I had to honor her, right?

Since 90% of the prep had to be done the night before, I needed to find something that could withstand overnight storage.  I needed to pull it out of the fridge and get it on the table in 10 minutes.  It also had to be something that I could eat and that my family would want to eat.  (Sometimes, we don’t always like the same things.  Shocking, I know.)

Kale definitely fit the bill. I knew that my mom would really like it, since she is my Gram’s daughter.  I knew my brother would probably try it, even though he really dislikes kale, just because he trusts my cooking.  I also have a previous track record of helping him overcome aversions to certain foods, like brussels sprouts.  My dad is ridiculously easy to please.  My cousin and his wife are mostly vegetarian, and are fairly food-adventurous.  As for the rest of the family, they would either try it to be nice, or discreetly move on to the chicken salad and veggie tray.

But all those reasons aside, I knew Gram would love this dish and enjoy every bite. I hummed her favorite 40’s songs while I prepped, and smiled when I served it in her favorite wooden salad bowl.

waldorf

Ingredients:

2 bunches of kale, de-stemmed and cut into ribbons

2 cruncy apples, sliced into little quarter-moon pieces (I prefer honey crisp or pink lady)

1/2 cup dried unsweetened blueberries or currants

1/2 cup pine nuts

3 Tbsp (heaping) stone ground mustard

1 Tbsp white wine vinegar

2 tsp basalmic vinegar

1/2 small lemon

1/2 tsp grated nutmeg

black pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. In a VERY LARGE BOWL, place your prepared kale, apples, mustard, vinegars, mustard and lemon juice then mix well.
  2. Add dried blueberries, pine nuts and nutmeg
  3. Mix everything together using your hands and gently squeeze until kale starts to reduce slightly in volume.
  4. Taste it.  What does it need?  Pepper?  More nutmeg?  More baslamic vinegar?  Add it.
  5. Transfer to a sealed container and store in refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Making food that connects me to the people I love long after they’ve passed is a way for me to actively keep who they were to me alive and tangible, even through a dish as simple as a salad.  The power of food is incredible.  Thank you for letting me share it with you.

CarrieGram

Veggie Lover for Life,
Carrie

 

Crêpes Florentine {Grain-Free}

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Crepe CloseThis is a story about Paris.

In my early 20’s, I did some short-term non-profit work in Kenya.  I had an option of extending my layover in London for $20 for up to two weeks.  I jumped at the opportunity to do a little backpacking and fulfill a lifelong dream to visit Europe.  I took the Chunnel from London to Paris and couldn’t wait to fall in love with the City of Lights.

Except it was broad daylight and I was lost and carrying a 50lb pack with all of my worldly possessions in it.  After wandering and backtracking and asking directions from the disapproving locals, I found my hostel after an hour.  I nearly cried with relief.

The neighborhood was…sketchy.  Close to the Moulin Rouge, it had a fascinating mix of people, mostly tourists, drug addicts, and aggressively struggling artists.  I was terrified and charmed at once.

I checked into the hostel which matched the neighborhood.  It was filthy, but I was in Paris.  Paris is dirty, right?  Like every other big city in the world.  I paid a few extra bucks for bed linens, threw my stuff in my room, and took off to explore the city in the early summer light.

I found the subway with no problem this time.  I boarded and felt my heart leap as we came above ground and I had my first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower.  I might have gotten choked up seeing the great steel structure.  I had dreamed of Paris since I was a little girl.  And my dream was coming true.

I got off the subway at the nearest stop to the Eiffel Tower.  I made a beeline for it, overwhelmed with the grandness of it.  It was everything I dreamed it would be.

I spotted a man with a small crêpe stand, and ordered a Nutella crêpe. It was the most revolutionary thing I had ever eaten. Then I ordered a savory crêpe with spinach and ham and brie.  It was the second best thing I had ever eaten.  I took my crêpes and a bottle of water to the lawn in front of the Eiffel Tower and laid back.  I watched people come and go, everyone full of laughter and early summer sparkle.  Then I grabbed another Nutella crêpe on my way back to the train.

It was 9:00pm and still light outside.  I made my way back to my hostel, suddenly feeling very vulnerable.  I held my head high, looked straight ahead, and expertly ignored the calls for attention and invitations to share cigarettes with French men.  I got to the hostel with a sigh of relief and headed up to my room.

I opened the door.  A tiny mouse scattered across the floor.  It was charming in an odd way. I mean, it was very Parisian, right?  I made my bed, took a shower, and headed downstairs to see what was happening in the bar/lounge.  I made some friends, shared a cheap bottle of wine, and then went back to my room to sleep.

Except I did not sleep.

I pulled my sheets back and there were…unwanted bed mates.  I wish I could say they were bedbugs, but they were much larger and horrifying.  I swatted them out of my bed (remember, I had just been in Africa so it was NBD), and pulled out my can of African bug repellent.  I opened the window to ventilate the room and tried to settle in.

My sleep was uneasy, to say the least. Noise and lights and music from the street drifted into my room and I felt like I was actually in the middle of the revelry. People on the fire escape outside my room were drinking and singing. It was too hot and poisonous to close the window, though.

I finally nodded off around 3:00, only to be woken up by a cat chasing a very large rat around my room.  They had both entered through my open window. I watched the cat catch the rat, incapacitated it, and then took his leave through the window.  Then it was just me and a slowly dying rat in my pest-infested hostel room at 6:30 am.

It was a sign.

I got up, showered again, packed all of my gear, and checked out.  I spent the morning searching for a decent place to stay, and in the process offended every Parisian ever with my questions and unintelligible French. All the good hostels had been booked well in advance.  I ate another fantastic crêpe by the Eiffel Tower and then booked an overnight train to Prague.  While I loved the tower and crêpes, I couldn’t leave Paris fast enough.

I’ve been back to Paris a few times since then.  Each experience was progressively better, but besides the food, art, and architecture, I never was able to surrender my heart to the city.

I still have a strong affinity for crêpes, though.  They’re hard to master, but I certainly try even with my food intolerances.  I gave this recipe a go, and I love the simplicity and versatility of it.  The crêpes themselves are simple, and so is the filling.  This particular crêpe lands somewhere between a Florentine and Lorraine, so I created a hybrid.  I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Crepe Big

Ingredients for Crêpes:

  • 2 eggs
  • 2 oz cream cheese
  • pinch of nutmeg and cinnamon

Directions for Crêpes:

  1. Blend all of the ingredients together in a blender or magic bullet until smooth.
  2. Tap the batter on the counter to release some of the bubbles. (I’m too impatient to wait for them to settle on their own!)
  3. In a lightly greased sautee pan on medium low heat, pour batter into pan. Rotate the pan quickly to spread batter out before it cooks too much.  You want the crepe to be thin and even.
  4. Flip when crepe is firm and the batter is no longer shiny on top.  Once flipped, the crêpe will cook very quickly, (30 seconds).

Ingredients for Filling:

  • 1 slice of ham, cut into postage stamp sized pieces
  • 1 handful of raw spinach
  • 1 small slice of brie

Directions for Filling:

  1. Heat up ham in a skillet (I use the crepe skillet)
  2. Add the spinach and just wilt it a bit.  It should be warm but not slimy.
  3. Put filling in an open crepe, and top with brie.
  4. Crack a little fresh pepper over it, and if you have it, a garlic mustard aioli.
  5. Fold up like a burrito, leaving one end open.  Serve immediately.

CrepeFilled

This is street food at it’s finest.  It’s so yummy and easy.  I love this for breakfast, especially because you get your greens in.  You can make the crepes in advance and use them for sandwich wraps, or make it sweet and add a little honey and vanilla to the batter and stuff with hazelnut chocolate spread.  You could make them thicker and call it a pancake.  The options are endless!i

This is as  close to Paris as I ever want to be again.  Italy, on the other hand…

Ouî Ouî,
Carrie

 

 

Grilled Kohlrabi and Apple Salad

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Kohlrabi Apple Salad 1

I get seriously bored with food.  Can you relate?

I have a few tricks for food boredom.

  • Feel defeated and drink wine instead of eating food.
  • Give up entirely and eat Thai noodles or salami for every meal.
  • Eat frozen peas by the handful while standing in front of the freezer.
  • Roam the produce aisle or hit up a farmer’s market for inspiration.
  • Buy a piece of produce I’ve never even heard of and figure out what to do with it.

I bought the kohlrabi on a whim out of a compete and utter lack of kitchen inspiration.  I’ve had it a few times before at restaurants and knew the basic taste (broccoli-ish but way better), and that it was full of cruciferous goodness.  I also love a bit of sweetness with my broccoli, so I went with apple. Add the earthy crunch of the hazelnuts, tangy creaminess of the goat cheese with some fresh chopped herbs and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar to give it a kick?  It’s a complete dish that hits every single taste and texture.

Kohlrabi Grilling

I tried this dish raw. It’s okay.  But it’s a million times better with just a touch of warmth and coconut oil.  I used my grill pan over the stove but I think an actual grill would make it much tastier.

Also, under-cook the apples.  The crunch is fantastic and provides just the right texture.

Ingredients:

  • 1 large bulb of kohlrabi, sliced 1/4 inch disks (I use a mandolin for this, but a sharp knife and some excellent skills would work, too.)
  • 1 medium apple, sliced 1/4 inch thick
  • 1 Tbsp melted coconut oil
  • 1 Tbsp goat cheese crumbles
  • 1 Tbsp chopped hazelnuts
  • 3 leaves of chopped mint or basil
  • Balsamic vinegar
  • Pinch of sea salt

Directions:

  1. Coat sliced kohlrabi and apples in melted coconut oil.
  2. On a hot grill or grill pan, sear kohlrabi on both sides.  If you want a softer texture, sear until it turns translucent. I prefer it more cooked, but to each their own!
  3. Next, sear the apples. (If you have a grill or large grill pan, you can sear them at the same time with the kohlrabi.)  It should only take about 30 seconds on each side, but if you prefer soft apples, sear longer until they are translucent.
  4. Layer the apple and kohlrabi, alternating slice by slice.  Add a sprinkle of sea salt on top.
  5. Add goat cheese, hazelnuts, and herbs.  Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and eat immediately.

Kohlrabi Apple Salad 2

This does not refrigerate well, so you should definitely cook this to serve. Room temperature is fine, too.

So, there you have it.  My way to get out food boredom.  It worked this time, but who knows about next time?

Never a dull bite,
Carrie

 

 

Roasted Cauliflower Soup

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cauliflower soupIn the late 1980’s, my family moved from a small island off the coast of Juneau, Alaska, to a town in West Texas.  We went from constant rain, mountains, ocean, icebergs and black bears to hot, dry, flat, dusty, tumble-weedy  ol’ West Texas.  Talk about culture shock!  The sunsets  were amazing, though, and the thunderstorms were terrifically terrifying.

Alaska...so beautiful.
Alaska…so beautiful.
West Texas...so parched.
West Texas…so parched.

Since the majority of our food came in on a barge from Seattle, most of the “fresh”, exorbitantly-priced produce spoiled before it even hit the shelves of  the grocery store, along with the milk and bread.  (My mom baked bread every week for this very reason. It was heaven.  We also had to drink powdered milk, which was…not heaven.  It was disgusting.)

When we made our cross-country move from rainy Alaska to parched West Texas, we finally had access to endless access to fresh veggies.  You can imagine my mother’s joy at perusing the produce section and picking up almost any vegetable her heart desired and being able to feed it to her decidedly unenthusiastic children.  Cauliflower was one of those veggies.  I had never tasted it up to that point in my (very) short  life.  And I hated it.  Cauliflower was my mortal food enemy.  Steamed, sauteed, hidden underneath a pile of cheese…ick.  I just couldn’t stomach it.

Something changed.

A few years ago, I mashed it up with all kinds of delicious dairy products.  (Dairy makes everything better.)  It became like potatoes, but better.  And remarkably less healthy.  I now have a full-blown love affair with the pungent white veggie called cauliflower, and try to find any way I can to make it in delicious and healthy ways.  It’s a great substitute for potatoes, rice, and even pizza crust.

Over at Elena’s Pantry, I found this recipe for Roasted Cauliflower Soup.  I tweaked it to suit my own tastes and method, and it turned out wonderfully.

Ingredients

  • 1 head of cauliflower, de-leafed and cut into thick slices.
  • 4 Tbsp of olive oil or ghee
  • 2 quarts chicken or veggie stock
  • 1 shallot, diced
  • 1/2 yellow onion, diced
  • S & P
  • Paprika
  • Micro greens or finely shredded kale

Directions

  1. Slice cauliflower into 1″ pieces. Drizzle oil on both sides of the cauliflower.  Go ahead and rub it in a little.
  2. In a large glass or ceramic baking dish, lay slices of cauliflower down flat.
  3. Sprinkle with salt and add 1/2-3/4 cup of water to dish.
  4. Toss it in the oven at 350 degrees for a good hour, and go do something else. Like paint a portrait.
  5. After the cauliflower is nice and brown and tender, take it out of the oven.
  6. In a large soup pot, add 2 Tbsp of ghee or olive oil (I prefer ghee), and saute onions and shallots until soft and golden brown
  7. Add stock and water (and a tiny bit of Better Than Bouillon if you have it), bring to a boil and  add cauliflower.
  8. Reduce heat and allow to simmer for 10-20 minutes
  9. In small batches, puree your soup in a blender until smooth.
  10. Put your pureed soup back on the stove in the stock pot on low heat, then add a little black pepper.
  11. Ladle into bowls, sprinkle with paprika and olive oil, then pile high with shredded kale or micro greens.

I love that there is no dairy in this soup (with the exception of the optional ghee), and it’s so satisfying and rich.  It feels like it should be bad for you, but it’s not.   In fact, it’s GOOD for you.  And it tastes phenomenally better than powdered milk.  Trust me.

And if you want to bastardize it and add cheese and bacon, it tastes more like a hearty, wonderful baked potato soup and you’ll eat ALL of it.

Zucchini Goat Cheese Lasagna

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Photo of Zucchini Goat Cheese LasagnaHave you ever prepared a dinner that made everyone happy?

Yeah, no. Me either. I share my recipes with the internet, which has something for everyone, but not everyone likes the same thing.

This one comes close to pleasing ALL people of the internet, though. Maybe even the closest. Except for the ones who don’t like goat cheese, tomatoes, or zucchini. So, roughly 1% of the internet population. Okay, maybe more. But that’s the great thing about the internet. It’s full of amazing people with vast ideas and preferences.

You’ll notice in the picture how the lighting is less than ideal. The food isn’t beautifully plated or photographed. That’s because EVERY TIME I serve this to my friends or family, it is consumed too quickly to take the time to make it pretty. I love eating and serving food that looks good. But I love eating and serving food that tastes good even more. Plus, I would much rather eat my food while it’s hot than waste precious minutes getting the “perfect” shot.

This grain-free lasagna, utilizes creamy goat cheese, has a strong vegetable base and substantial protein punch. This is ideal for a cold winter evening, a hearty weekend lunch, and like a charm in the toaster oven if you’re lucky enough to have leftovers.

Ingredients:

  • 1 quart tomato sauce (Homemade is best but if not, be sure to buy organic and with NO SUGAR added.)
  • 
1/2 lb organic grass-fed ground beef or turkey, browned
  • 
12 oz baby bella mushrooms, chopped
  • 4 medium zucchini, sliced in thin rounds (the mandolin is a wonderful and inexpensive invention which yields perfect results)
  • 
6 oz goat cheese, crumbled
  • 
4 oz parmesan, shredded
  • 
1-2 Tbsp Italian seasoning
fresh herbs, chopped (optional)

Directions:

  1. In a baking dish, coat sides and bottom with olive oil.
  2. Layer zucchini, meat, mushrooms, Italian seasoning, sauce, and cheeses.
  3. Repeat step 2 twice, then finish with parmesan on top.
  4. Cover with foil and bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes.
  5. Uncover and bake for an additional 10 minutes until bubbling and brown.
  6. Remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before serving. Enjoy!