Passionate about Pesto!

If you have been wondering if I have fallen off the blogosphere - here I am!  Though admittedly on the missing list for the time being - it will only be temporary while I help my mother with her move!

HOW I SURVIVE THE TIME-CRUNCH

While sorting and packing, selling and dispersing - my diet has become more or less minimalist and simple.

One of the things I have grown quite passionate about during these busy days is pesto.  I have been making parsley pesto, mint pesto, basil pesto, cilantro pesto and today I am going to make dill pesto.

I make the pesto in large batches with pine nuts, olive oil and all the familiars, freeze it in ice-cube trays, wrap the frozen nuggets in wax paper, and store them in baggies in the freezer.

When I am short on time I pop one out of the freezer knowing that it will defrost in moments and add no end of pizzaz to my meal.

These little shots of flavor really do wonders for a streamlined life-style.  

Since most of us experience the occasional time-crunch it is nice to have a repertoire of meal time solutions to help us through those times.  Some of the things that have helped me through my own time-crunch has been crock pot meals, big batches of soup that last 3 - 5 days and only need re-heating, yams and sweet potatoes baked in a toaster oven, and occasionally even frozen vegetables (probably peas are my favorite as they hold up fairly well to freezing).

When things get really ridiculous I have been known to go to Whole Foods and get a freshly made sushi roll with brown rice and avocado.  I NEVER get tired of sushi.

Yes Please to REAL FOOD!

The Little Chef

Here is a photo of my very most precious nephew Colton.  Colton and I have something important in common.  We both say "Yes Please!" to real food. Food fascination is something that definitely runs in our family.  My brother Paul, Colton's father, in fact, who works as an attorney by day, is actually an exceptionally accomplished and adventuresome chef once he gets home at night.  He often sends me mouth-watering photos, via e-mail, of his latest kitchen creation that he and Colton and Amanda enjoy together.

Here are some of Colton's favorite foods:

Favorite Fruit:            STRAWBERRIES

Favorite Vegetable:   POTATOES

Favorite Cheese:        ROBUSTO From Whole Foods

Favorite Snack:          YOGHURT AND KEFIR

Favorite Meal by Dad: SPAGHETTI with HOMEMADE MARINARA made with finely chopped onions, celery carrots (mirepoux) sauteed in olive oil and garlic with San Marzano crushed tomatoes and a bay leaf.

Favorite thing to make in the kitchen:  Colton likes to husk CORN and bake and decorate COOKIES.

I invite you to leave comments for Colton on my blog and I will make certain that Colton receives them.

Eating For Ageless Beauty

Ever wonder how to keep the body agile and flexible and the skin soft and radiant at all ages?

EATING FOR AGELESS BEAUTY

Friday - September  28th - 9 AM

This class forms the foundation for the rest of the day.  Loaded with information - the purpose and focus of this class will be eating for ageless beauty.  We will take a fascinating look at specific foods, nutrients, minerals, and antioxidants and discover which ones are the most beautifying.  During class we will enjoy the most skin-hydrating smoothie imaginable - aptly called "Cleopatra's Beauty Secret."

Cost:  $25.00

BREAKFAST IN FIVE

Friday - September 28th - 10 AM - 12 Noon

Come and learn to create delicious satisfying breakfasts in less than 5 minutes!  These amazing raw breakfast recipes, ranging from granola to smoothies, will jump start your day as well as load you up with all the skin-protective nutrients and antioxidants that you need.

Cost:  $40.00

RAW JAPANESE BENTO

Friday - September 28th - 2 - 4 PM

This class is truly amazing.  Learn to create the most eye-appealing bento-style lunch imaginable  Replete with a hands-on sushi lesson. You will love this class.

Take all three classes for $100.00

Register now at lisascookingclass@gmail.com

All classes are 100% gluten and dairy-free.

Vegetarian and vegans will want to know that we will serve mock-tuna salad at the Raw Japanese Class.

Refreshing Jicama Salad

Jicama Salad in Baby Romaine Nest

Some of you may be asking - "what is jicama?"

Jicama is a root vegetable, known as the yam bean root, (yes jicama is related to the sweet potato) that looks very much like a large brown turnip.

When you peel and slice jicama it is crispy, juicy and mildly sweet.  I like to eat jicama slices with dips such as hummus or baba ghanouch.

This week I have been experimenting with jicama. Some of the jicama experiments have turned out surprisingly well and others not so well.  One of the jicama experiments that turned out well is jicama salad.  Light and refreshing, and requiring no cooking on a hot summer day, jicama salad was a great compliment to our pan braised salmon last night.  My husband, who is not adventuresome when it comes to food, actually had two helping of jicama salad.  Now that is pretty amazing!

RECIPE FOR JICAMA SALAD

Salad:

2 c. jicama, cut into small 1/4-inch cubes
1/2 c. red bell pepper, diced
1/2 c. celery, diced
1/4 c. red onion, diced
1 avocado, cubed

Toss the jicama, red bell pepper, celery, and red onion together.  Pour the dressing over it and stir well. Top with cubes of avocado.  Serve in a nest of baby romaine lettuce.

Dressing:

2 T. sesame tahini
2 T. water
1 1/2 T. lemon juice
1 T. prepared mustard
1 T. minced parsley
1/4 t. ground cumin
1/4 t. tamari
1/4 t. agave nectar
dash sea salt

Pour all ingredients into a glass jar and shake until well mixed.

Health Secrets Of Dragon Fruit

Just when you think you have a few things figured out about food along comes something to really shake things up.  So, here is a new one for me folks, the little known, (at least to me), dragon fruit.

As you can see from the photo I took dragon fruit is a beautifully and brilliantly packaged, (you could give one as a present) fruit.  And, as you can see from the photo, when cut, dragon fruit bleeds all over the cutting board!  There are several varieties of dragon fruit.  The most delicious is said to be the red-skinned and red-fleshed variety.   I LOVE the pizzaz and eye-appeal of the deep red-violet flesh specked with tiny black seeds.  When I cut it open, not knowing what I would find inside, it was quite a pleasant shock to my uninitiated eye!   The pure wildness of the color was just amazing!

Though I think dragon fruit would be spectacular in a smoothie, (imagine the color!), for my very first experience of dragon fruit I chose to eat it as is, simply scooped out with a spoon.  Dragon fruit is said to have a taste and texture similar to kiwi fruit and I tend to agree.  Though initially mesmerized by the vivid and unforgettable color I found the flavor, though tame by comparison, quite mild and agreeable.  Most important, I liked it!   Even the tiny crunchy seeds, which are said to be a good source of essential fatty acids, were not a big deal.

After I ate it, I googled dragon fruit and I found out all sorts of interesting factoids about it.

Dragon fruit is also called pitaya because it has many scales.  The dazzling and fragrant flowers of the pitaya cactus, (yes!, dragon fruit is a vining, flowering and fruiting cactus), bloom only at night.  How exotic!  Dragon fruit is sometimes called "moonflower,""queen of the night" or "lady of the night."

HEALTH BENEFITS OF DRAGON FRUIT

• Antioxidants in dragon fruit helps protect the body from free radicals.
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• The fruit helps to neutralize toxic substances, such as heavy metals, in the body.
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• Regular consumption of dragon fruit is said to help asthma.
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• High amounts of vitamin C enhance wound healing and immunity.
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• The vitamin B2 present in dragon fruit helps one recover from loss of appetite.
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• The vitamin B1 enhances energy production and the metabolism of carbohydrates.
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• The presence of vitamin B3 helps lower bad cholesterol.
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• Dragon fruit moistens and improves the appearance of the skin.
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• Dragon fruit helps prevent hypertension.
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• It is such a good source of phosphorus and calcium that it strengthens bones and teeth.
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• Dragon fruit is reputed to help reduce blood sugar levels in people with type-2 diabetes.

Though all of the reasons to eat dragon fruit are appealing and compelling, most of all I enjoyed the levity of eating, for the first time, this completely wild, wacky, and fun-filled fruit!

Raw Food Lunch - Mexican Fajitas

Vegetables Fajitas

Today we started the third raw food adventure off with a light and refreshing bowl of tomato basil soup, reminiscent of gazpacho, which was actually made with a coconut water base.

Perfectly seasoned vegetable fajitas, simply warmed in the dehydrator for one hour, were served in paper-thin slices of jicama, along side fresh corn salad.

For dessert we tried to decide which dairy-free mousse, (the mousse also featured coconut water as one of the secret ingredients), we liked best - chocolate or carob?

 Fresh Corn Salad With Cherry Tomatoes

RECIPE FOR CORN SALAD

4 ears of organic corn, cut off the kernals (2 cups)
1 c. organic cherry tomato, sliced in quarters
1/4 c. chopped fresh organic cilantro
2 T. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 t. celtic salt

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.  Serve at room temperature.  Delicious served in baby romaine lettuce leaf cups.

Raw Food Adventures

Making A Raw Asian Style Salad

RAW FOOD ADVENTURE - PART I

Just enjoyed two fabulous high energy raw food classes with an awesome group of ladies today.  I am including photos of SOME of the delicious food that we sampled.  In the Wrap, Stack, and Roll class we made a variety of easy to make meals, collard green wraps, onion bread stacks, and baby romaine lettuce rolls, with a variety of pates, and farmer's market condiments.  Trina, our college student told us she was getting tired of packing the ubiquitous peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch.  She said she is going to try these easy to make wraps, stacks and rolls for a change.  We topped the meal off with a raw chocolate dessert - a chocolate cinnamon roll sprinkled with chocolate nibs.  I am sorry that I don't have a photo of the raw chocolate dessert.  It vanished too quickly.

Getting Creative - Wrap, Stack, or Roll

Sunflower Seed Pate in Collard Leaf and all the Fixings

RAW FOOD ADVENTURE - PART II

Some of us took a hike while others went shopping to work up an appetite for Part II of our raw food adventure.  This afternoon we enjoyed a refreshing Thai Coconut Soup made with Thai green coconut water, Raw Asian Salad (pictured below), and Fresh Raw Spring Rolls with Orange Dipping Sauce.  We finished the meal with Banana Chocolate Ice-Cream sprinkled with chocolate nibs, chopped walnuts, and, thanks to Pam, mint leaf.  Sorry there are no photos of the dessert.  It was melting so quickly that we ate it up pronto!

Raw Asian Salad Marinated For One Hour

Fresh Spring Rolls With Dipping Sauce