Coconut Curry with Rutabaga, Cauliflower and Chickpeas

Let me tell you about this awesome vegetable I found:

This my friends is a rutabaga: you probably saw it hanging out at the store with the other more popular root vegetables like potato and sweet potato. And those popular kids probably looked down at the humble rutabaga singing "nah nah nah nah everybody loves us, nobody buys you" while the rutabaga silently cried while thinking "one day someone will buy me and realize that if they use me instead of you they will get to wear those pants they don't fit into anymore. And then, it will be over for you smug potatoes!!! bwahahahahaha" . Ok maybe this is a slight exaggeration, but for a long time I have been looking for the holy grail of root vegetables. That vegetable that could take the place of the super starchy potato and even the slightly better sweet potato and cut in half my calories. I tried celeriac, parsnip, parsley root, turnip and kohlrabi. And while all of them have a place in my cooking I think Rutabaga might be the closer candidate to replace potatoes in many of my recipes. Let's have a look at the facts: rutabaga is actually related to the cabbage, much like kohlrabi. But unlike kohlrabi, rutabaga will lose that pungent cabbagey smell and flavor once cooked thoroughly. And that's awesome. It is not as starchy as a potato so I don't know how well it would fry, but that doesn't concern us since fried food isn't exactly what we are looking for, right? Let's say that you have a soup, and you need to add some body to your soup: a potato packs 77 calories per 100 g while a rutabaga only 38 so half as much! Rutabaga is also higher in vitamin C and calcium then potatoes, but potatoes do have slightly more protein. 

For my first experimentation with rutabaga I decided to make a coconut curry. None of my curries are exactly authentic, I just adapted some of what I learned from experience and I am sure this is a very westernized, very unauthentic version of curry, but it works for me and I hope my Thai or Indian readers will forgive me for even calling this a curry.

I thought it tasted delicious AND at 347 calories a serving ( see complete nutritional info at the bottom) I think it is definitely a keeper! My version was pretty heavy on the spices because that's the way I like it, you can go lighter or heavier, I would love to hear your variations in the comments below!

Ingredients (for 3 servings)

2 large carrots, diced
3 cups of peeled and cubed Rutabaga (1 medium-large)
10 oz of cauliflower cut  into florets
1 large onion, diced
1 tablespoon of olive oil
200 ml (half a can) of lite coconut milk
1 can of garbanzo beans
4 oz of sugar snap peas, cut into 1 inch chunks
1-2 cups of spinach
3 tablespoons (or to taste) of curry powder or other curry of choice (if you use a curry paste beware of the extra fats!)
red pepper flakes (optional, to taste)
1 tablespoon of fresh ground ginger
3-4 minced garlic cloves
3 cups of vegetable broth

Preparation

Put the olive oil in a dutch oven and cook the onion and the carrots with 2 tablespoon of the curry powder until they are translucent than add the garlic and the ginger and cook 30 seconds or until fragrant.

Add the rutabaga and the broth (add more water if needed) then cover and cook on medium for at least 15-20 minutes or until the rutabaga is soft (it could be longer, depending on how small you cut it)

Add the cauliflower, stir, add the remaining curry powder and the red pepper flakes if needed. Then add the coconut milk and stir. Cover again and cook another 5-10 minutes. I like to over cook the cauliflower in my curry so that it becomes almost a paste or a cream that "holds" the curry together. 

Add the sugar snap peas, the rinsed garbanzo beans and the spinach. Cook only a couple of minutes until the spinach is wilted.

Serve with your favorite chutney or with a wedge of lime and a spoon of freshly cut cilantro!

Nutritional info per portion according to MyNetDiary:
Calories 347
Total fat 10g
Saturated fat 4.1g
polyunsaturated fat 0.9g
monounsaturated fat 3.4g
cholesterol 5.6mg
potassium 1037mg
total carbs 55g
dietary fiber 15g
sugars 14g
Protein 12g
Vitamin A 184%
Vitamin C 153%
Calcium 14%
Iron 18%

Kale, Pepper and White Bean Salad

I must admit this salad didn't come to me out of profound inspiration. It was one of those times when you are starving and you look in the fridge and kind of just throw stuff together. But, it turned out so good, so nutritious and so satisfactory that I decided to share. The trick with kale is to make sure the seasoning really gets on every leaf to soften the harder fibrous leaves. Massaging kale is the best way to get the best out of this amazing superfood, plus you get a nice oil mask for your hands while you do it, so it's a win-win situation right? Normal bell peppers might work too, but I prefer the mini peppers because they are thinner and easier to chew, plus I find them easier to digest, as long as I discard all the seeds.

Ingredients:

4 leaves of lacinato kale
1/2 cup of canned small white beans
1 vine ripened tomato
5-6 mini sweet peppers
2-3 green onions
1/2 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tablespoon of red wine vinegar (or more, to taste)
salt to taste

Preparation:

Cut the kale leaves along the stem. You can discard the stems or keep them for smoothies or juicing. Tear the leaves apart into 1-2 inches pieces.

Season the kale with salt, oil and vinegar and "massage" the seasoning into the leaves. Let it rest while you prepare the other ingredients.

Take the stem off the mini peppers and make sure to wash away all the hard to digest seeds then cut into 1 inch bites.

Cut the tomato into wedges and discard the liquid-seedy part.

Chop the green onions.

Rinse the white beans until there isn't anymore foam.

Add all the ingredients to the kale and toss well. Enjoy!

Total Calories: 367
Total fat 7.9 g (1g saturated fat)
Total Carbs: 62g
Dietary Fiber: 19g
Sugars 8.7g
Protein:17g
Vitamin A: 403%
Vitamin C: 610%
Calcium: 26%
Iron: 33%

"Lucchese" Soup with Lentils, Wheat Berries and Amaranth

Tonight I felt like I needed a little bit of home. I usually like to explore new tastes and since I have changed my diet I have been experimenting quite a lot with new flavors, but tonight I needed something that would bring me back home to Tuscany. One of the typical local foods of Lucca is Farro soup with lentils. Farro is a delicious kind of wheat, a more ancient variety of red wheat and if you can find it and want to spend a little extra, by all means I encourage you to try it. I had red wheat berries at home so I used those instead. The result was exactly what I needed: as warm in my stomach as it was in my heart. Most of the ingredients I used are staples in my house, that's why the herbs are dried rather than fresh, but if you have fresh herbs even better. The anchovies have a very important function: they add saltiness and umami-ness to the dish, and you can't actually taste them at the end. In the traditional italian soup some kind of pancetta or bacon is often used to impart smokiness and fattiness to the whole soup, I decided to use the anchovies instead and they worked great. Make sure to use the oil packed kind and not the salted kind, I usually find them in the Italian aisle of my supermarket. I also used three different kinds of lentils because I had only a little bit left from each package. I think the end result was very pretty and pleasant, but if you only want to use one lentil I think a green or a brown lentil would work as well. 

Total Calories: 469, Fat: 10g (1.4 saturated), Fiber:15g, Protein: 19g

Ingredients: (for 4 bowls)

1 cup of wheat berries (soaked overnight)

1/4 cup of brown lentils (soaked overnight)

1/4 cup of green lentils (soaked overnight)

1/4 cup of red lentils (soaked overnight)

1/4 cup of Amaranth

2 cloves of garlic, minced

2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

4 medium carrots, diced

3 celery stalks, chopped

1-2 bay leaves

1 whole clove

2 teaspoons of paprika

2 tablespoons of tomato paste

1 tablespoon of dried thyme

1 tablespoon of dried sage 

1 vegetable bouillon

2-3 anchovies fillets (oil packed)* for a vegan version just skip the anchovies

salt

pepper

2 green onions (for garnish)

Soaking ( at least 12 hours):

Wheat needs to be soaked overnight before you cook it and I actually found that the longer you soak it the better. When it soaks long enough the grains become nice and soft and loose all of the chewiness factor that some people (aka my husband) dislike. While lentils don't really need to soak I decided to soak them anyway as I read it helps with the uncomfortable side effects (gassy ones) some of us experience with legumes. I thought the lentils where particularly tender and there was no bitterness to them so I would recommend soaking them. Do not put them in the same bowl as the wheat though since you will have to add them separately to your recipe.

Preparation

In a dutch oven or large pot put the oil, the garlic, the onion, the carrot, the celery the bay leaves and the clove and cook for 5-8 minutes until the onion is starting to become translucent and the carrots are starting to soften.

Add the paprika, the tomato paste, the thyme and the sage as well as a generous pinch of salt and keep stirring over medium low fire to let the vegetables absorb the flavor of the spices. 

Add the anchovy fillets and smashed them with the wooden spoon to the bottom of the pot to make sure they kind of melt into your soup base.

Add the drained wheat to the pot and stir well to coat the wheat with the vegetables and the spices. Cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Add 4 cups of water and the vegetable bouillon.

Bring the water to a simmer and then add the lentils and the rinsed Amaranth. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes.

Uncover and taste, let cook a little longer uncovered if too liquid or add more water if too solid. It should not be too soupy however but rather solid.

Garnish with chopped green onion to add a little bit of a fresh crunch (optional).

Zucchini Noodles with Mushrooms and Kale

I have discovered zucchini noodles about a year ago. There is a local restaurant that used to have them on their menu (not anymore, sigh!) and since the first time I tried them I have wanted to figure out how to make them myself. I thought you needed to be some kind of culinary genius with incredible knife skills or something, but instead all I needed was the right tool. First I tried a julienne peeler, it seemed small and convenient and it was recommended by one of my favorite vegan bloggers, Angela Liddon of Oh she glows (seriously if you don't know her blog yet, go check it out right now!) but this time I have to say I did not agree with her. The julienne peeler she recommended not only was hard to use but also did not do a very good job. The universe evidently wanted me to keep trying, because that same week the hilarious Karen Alpert aka Baby Sideburns aka my favorite blogger of all aka my best friend if I ever get to meet her posted this about a thing called Veggetti. Now, she is not usually a food blogger, not at all. So after I stopped laughing out loud and getting weird looks from my kids I decided to check this Veggetti out and I am glad I did. It is so easy to use, it's like sharpening a pencil and the noodles are just the perfect size and texture. Anyway, feel free to use whatever works best for you. You might have a julienne peeler and it might work for you. Or you might have a spiralizer and that's great. I have a Veggetti and I love it!

Another thing I like about zucchini noodles is that I can make the same sauce for the whole family and then I will just give my super skinny husband and kids regular or whole wheat pasta while I just make my own zucchini noodles bowl. Today though my bowl looked so much better than theirs that they all asked to try mine, so maybe I will just have to start buying more zucchini in the future?

I love the combination of mushroom and kale or spinach, it has such an earthy flavor, especially with extra garlic. Don't be shy on the garlic and the pepper because zucchini noodles definitely need some extra zing to spice them up.

Total calories for one bowl: 340
Total satisfaction level: 100% (I could barely finish the bowl I was so stuffed!)

Ingredients: (makes 1 serving)

2-3 garlic cloves finely minced
1 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
8 oz of sliced baby bella mushrooms
1-2 cups of baby kale or regular kale stemmed and coarsely chopped
1 tbsp of pine nuts (optional)
1 tbsp of nutritional yeast (optional)
2 medium zucchini
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

In a non stick skillet pour the olive oil and add the minced garlic. Turn the fire to medium-low and let the garlic cook 1-2 minutes or until fragrant.

Add the mushrooms and a generous pinch of salt and cook them 8-10 minutes until they have released most of their liquid and are soft.

Add the kale and cook another 2-3 minutes or until wilted ( the baby kale will cook faster, regular kale might take a little longer)

Turn off the stove.

Make your zucchini noodles. 

Pour the mushroom/kale mix on your zucchini noodles. If you are using the nutritional yeast and the pine nuts add them now before stirring the noodles.
Adjust the salt and add a generous amount of freshly crushed pepper for extra flavor.