Tag: recipes

Vegetarian Wild Rice Salad

On By Cultivate WellnessIn Cooking, eating, Health and wellness, Recipes2 Comments

wild rice

Last week when I went with my 12 year old “up north” I had a wild rice salad at the lodge that I thought was pretty good. I liked the textures, with the chewy wild rice and the crunchy water chestnuts. I wasn’t crazy about the honey mustard dressing, but I loved the addition of grapes. This was a true “midwestern salad”, I’m not afraid to admit. I decided I would try to remake it but with a different dressing and the addition of some other favorite add-ins.

One thing I love about wild rice (which actually isn’t rice at all) is that it has far more nutrients than white rice. In one cup of cooked wild rice, there are 7 grams of protein and 35 grams of carbohydrate, including 3 grams of fiber. It’s lower in calories than white rice and the protein it contains is higher quality because it has more of the essential amino acids.

Here is the recipe I came up with, with the help of a different recipe from my local grocery store chain.

VEGETARIAN WILD RICE SALAD

Ingredients:

4 cups cooked wild rice (about 1 cup uncooked). I like to put some Better Than Bouillon in the water to create more flavor.

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup milk

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon Fine Herbs (or your choice of favorite dried herbs)

1/3 cup sliced green onion

1 (8 oz can) sliced water chestnuts, drained

salt and pepper to taste

2 cups sliced red seedless grapes

1 cup nuts of your choice (I used a mixture of cashews and sliced almonds)

Instructions:

Make the dressing by mixing the mayonnaise, milk, lemon juice and herbs together in a small bowl.

In a larger bowl, combine In larger bowl, combine wild rice, green onion, water chestnuts, salt and pepper. Stir in mayonnaise mixture until blended. Refrigerate, until cooled. Before serving, fold in grapes and nuts. Take to your next potluck. 

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Maybe It’s The Weekend And Weekends Were Made For Cocktails! The Rhubarbarita.

On By Cultivate WellnessIn cocktails, Cooking, health, Health and wellness, Recipes1 Comment

It occurred to me that maybe some of you might think that I drink a lot of cocktails every week, seeing as I’m so enamored with trying new recipes. Truth be told, I drink maybe two a week, so I’m sorry to burst your bubble. I do have a small glass of red wine most nights. You know, for the resveratrol. I’m a very compliant patient, and since Mayo Clinic’s website says red wine is good for the heart (in small doses) then I feel like it’s my duty to oblige.

Anyway, it’s the weekend, and for me that usually means trying a new cocktail recipe (or at the very least an old favorite). This recipe for a twist on the classic margarita enticed me. It’s rhubarb season in Minnesota, so naturally a recipe for Rhubarbaritas seem like just the thing.

It’s supposed to hit 84 degrees here in the Twin Cities today. A cold summery beverage is maybe (definitely) in order. Cheers!

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Maybe I Want A Friday Cocktail: The Rosemary Greyhound

Mocktails — Green Tea Mojitos

Friday Cocktails: The Caipirinha!

Maybe Some Rice Noodle Salad For Dinner Tonight?

On By Cultivate WellnessIn Cooking, diet, eating, family, Health and wellness, Kids, Nutrition, Recipes, summer, wellness3 Comments

Maybe allergies are kicking my butt. I woke up yesterday with my ears completely clogged and everything sounded like I was underwater. I generally just didn’t feel great. So after I got home from picking up the 12 year old from school and it was time to make dinner, I was thankful I had planned on making this simple Rice Noodle Salad With Cucumber, Peanuts, and Basil. It took about 20 minutes from start to finish and there was absolutely no cooking involved. If you’re lucky, you have a kid that likes to cook and will make the dressing for you while you sit comfortably. This would make for a perfect summertime supper when it’s just too hot to turn on the stove. The recipe also fits with our Meatless Monday plans, which I would say we adhere to about 90% of the time. Going meatless once a week can reduce your risk of preventable diseases like cancer, heart disease, diabetes and obesity. It can also help reduce our carbon footprint. Plus, it’s generally cheaper to make a meatless meal. Win/win!

Asian Noodle Salad Meatless Monday

The original recipe came from Redbook Magazine but I made some changes to the recipe and adapted it, so here’s my version:

Rice Noodle Salad With Cucumber, Peanuts, and Basil

THE SALAD:

6 oz pad thai rice noodles

1/4 medium purple cabbage

1/2 sliced english cucumber

1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced

4 scallions, white and green parts sliced

1/2-1 cup fresh basil and cilantro, chopped

1 cup chopped peanuts, cashews or almonds

Sesame seeds

THE DRESSING:

1/4 cup lime juice (I love buying Santa Cruz organic bottled lime juice. It’s just so much easier)

3 Tbsp toasted sesame oil

2 tsp soy sauce

2 tsp honey

1/2 tsp garlic powder

HOW TO:

Pour hot water over noodles to cover and let sit for about 5 minutes, until softened. Drain and set aside. Meanwhile, cut all the veggies up into thin slices, place the nuts in a baggie and whack them with a rolling pin to “chop”, and whisk together the dressing ingredients. Assemble the salads, drizzle dressing over the top, and sprinkle with sesame seeds. ENJOY!

NOTE: If you want more protein in your salad, it would be very easy to add rotisserie chicken, tofu, shrimp or any leftover meat you have. Maybe it’ll become a new family favorite.

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Healthy Breakfast Recipe — Tuna Stuffed Avocado

On By Cultivate WellnessIn breakfast, Cooking, diet, disease, eating, health, Health and wellness, Nutrition, Recipes3 Comments

I recently created an educational handout for healthy breakfast recipes with lots of protein. Because here’s the deal: if you notice yourself craving carbs and sugar throughout the day, many times it’s because you aren’t getting enough protein at breakfast. A bowl of cereal with lots of refined flour or grains is satisfying at first, but really it doesn’t sustain you for long.  You ideally should be having high quality protein, healthy fats, and quality carbs (this can be in the form of vegetables or fruits) at breakfast. So, an avocado filled with tuna has healthy fats (tuna, avocado), high quality protein (tuna), and healthy carbs (avocado,which is also high in fiber, and red bell pepper).

If you have a problem controlling yourself around sugar, don’t blame your lack of “willpower”. When your caveman brain is telling you it needs sugar, it’s very hard to resist. But you can help to quiet that voice by setting yourself up to avoid those cravings in the first place. A savory breakfast can help. If you have a sugar problem, but you start your morning eating something really sweet, even if it’s a healthy smoothie, you’re just feeding into it. If you start with a savory breakfast that has fat/protein/healthy carbs, you might find yourself slowly craving sugar less and less.  Just a note: fruits and smoothies aren’t “bad”. But if you are having trouble with sugar, it’s best for a few days to skip the sweet breakfast.

I’ll post one breakfast recipe each day for the next three days. Just give them a try for the next few days and let me know if you notice any difference! This first one couldn’t be any easier, and will take just a couple minutes more than pouring a bowl of cereal.

Enjoy!

 

tuna-stuffed-avocado

Super Bowl Cocktails — The Grapefruit Margarita

On By Cultivate WellnessIn cocktails, Cooking, Recipes1 Comment

grapefruit-margarita

Seems like just a year ago I was posting a recipe for Super Bowl Cocktails. Oh, right! How time flies. The Spicy Michelada was last year’s pick. This year I’m going in a different direction by not including beer in the mix.  And we are going sweet instead of savory.

So for this Super Bowl I’m featuring a Grapefruit Margarita. Margaritas are universally loved, but it’s always fun to do something a little different with them for special occasions. And I love the idea of giving a nod to the Mexican culture so prevalent in Texas.

This cocktail features the bright and fresh flavors of grapefruit and lime. And after the past couple of weeks here in the U.S., I think we could all use a little bright and fresh, don’t you agree?

What I love about this recipe is that it’s super easy to make and doesn’t take a lot of time, which frees up your hands for eating too many finger foods (guilty as charged) and making crude totally appropriate gestures at the referees.

NOTE: If you feel like adding some heat to the recipe, place a sliced round of fresh jalapeño pepper at the bottom of the cocktail shaker and muddle it with the ingredients. You can also add a few shakes of chili powder to the salt for a spicy rim (just keep it 3 parts salt to 1 part chili powder)

INGREDIENTS:
2 ounces tequila
1 ounce Cointreau
1 ounce pink grapefruit juice
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice (keep the wedges for a garnish)
Ice cubes
1 slice of fresh jalapeño (optional)
Course salt for the rim of the glass (optional)
Chili powder for the salt rim (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

Combine all the ingredients up to the salt in a cocktail shaker and shake for 10 seconds. Strain into a margarita (served up) or a rocks glass (served over ice) with a salt rim (use the lime wedge to wet the rim). Garnish with lime wedge.

GO TEAM!

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NEW RECIPE! Kale Chips

Mocktails– Mango Mule

New Recipe: Easy Peanut Butter Balls (and an update on the elimination diet).

 

 

Mocktails– Mango Mule

On By Cultivate WellnessIn Cooking, Health and wellness, Kids, Nutrition, Recipes2 Comments

cocktailsmocktails

Have you heard the term “Drynuary”? It’s the thing of where you abstain from alcohol for the month of January as a way to reset. Some people do it every year. I can see the draw. Even if I don’t drink enough to feel like I need to take a break (as much as I love talking about cocktails and trying new recipes, it’s rare that I have more than one a night), there are a lot of nights when I have a glass of wine just because. So it’s a good way to be more intentional about your alcohol intake.

Anyway, as I was sipping on a margarita served straight up last night while out to dinner (yes, I see the irony), it occurred to me that starting a collection of non-alcoholic cocktails would be fun. After all, not everyone drinks alcohol. There are all sorts of reasons why someone wouldn’t, like being in recovery, being allergic, not liking the taste, religious reasons, health restrictions, etc.

Hey, and maybe even the kids will enjoy them!

So, here’s the first installment of Weekend Cocktails Mocktails!

This Mango Mule with cucumber looks so good I wonder if we won’t even miss the vodka (of course, I’m sure this recipe easily lends itself to a jigger of something like Prairie Organic for those days you aren’t abstaining). The mango puree will add a bit of i to the drink, which in the middle of winter is a good thing. And I really love the addition of cucumber in just about everything. 

Give it a try, and let me know what you think!  Happy New Year!

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HEALTHY NEW YEAR

NEW RECIPE! Kale Chips

LET’S GET OUT OF HERE!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEW RECIPE! Kale Chips

On By Cultivate WellnessIn Cooking, diet, eating, health, Health and wellness, Nutrition, Recipes, wellness7 Comments

kale-chips

Have I lost you already? Did you stop reading when you saw the word “kale”? Please stay with me, it’ll be worth your while.

If you are like me you love salty, crunchy snacks. Unfortunately most commercially made salty crunchy snacks aren’t so healthy. They usually have hydrogenated or other low quality oils, super processed flour or potatoes, and tons of sodium.

May I suggest making a batch of kale chips? They are salty. They are crunchy. There is that pleasing release of olive oil when you bite into them. And dangit, they are good for you too!

What I love about kale is that it’s low calorie, high in fiber, and has tons of antioxidants. It is high in iron (beating beef calorie for calorie) and Vitamin K, C, and A. It has magnesium (which you’ll remember is the “relaxing” mineral) and calcium. You really can’t say that about a bag of potato chips.

Every time I make this recipe for our neighbor gatherings, adults and kids gobble it up immediately. Just make sure you sip on your Aviation or Cucumber Sangria cocktail after you eat them to rid your teeth of any pesky green pieces.

Here’s how to make kale chips.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 head of kale, any type, washed and dried (make sure it’s really really dry. Try wrapping and blotting it with paper towels, or just spreading it out for a bit to air dry)
  • Generous drizzle of olive oil
  • Flake sea salt (or any salt you prefer)
  • Garlic powder (optional but super delicious)

METHOD:

  • Preheat oven to 275 degrees
  • Separate the leaves from the ribs of the kale. The ribs are gross and you don’t want them.
  • Cut or tear the leaves into 1-2″ pieces
  • Spread leaves out on a rimmed baking sheet
  • Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic powder and salt.  Jiggle the baking sheet to coat the leaves with the good stuff.
  • Bake until crispy, being sure not to burn. This will take about 20 minutes. Make sure to stir the leaves around about halfway through.
  • Serve

Did you try this recipe? Please let me know what you think!

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Midweek Mashup

On By Cultivate WellnessIn Cooking, diet, disease, eating, family, health, Health and wellness, Nutrition, Recipes, wellness1 Comment

MIDWEEK MASHUP

Happy Wednesday. It’s a short week! For that let’s celebrate. Surely all the kids are back in school and this week is probably hectic for many. Here’s some good information and a quick recipe to get you through to Friday.

I’ve always believed that if more people got in the kitchen and cooked meals for themselves and their families, they would be healthier overall. An acquaintance once lamented that she felt like there were so many nutrition rules that it felt impossible to feed herself and her daughter “the right way”, so she gives up and resorts to takeout. I say that the nutrition and wellness community has failed her if that’s what she (and likely so many others) feel. The truth is, a jar of decent quality pasta sauce and a box of whole wheat noodles with a bagged salad on the side is vastly healthier than a drive-thru burger and fries. So, if that’s where you are starting, that’s ok. Trust me, you will progressively become more confident in your cooking and before you know it you will have a repertoire of healthy and delicious meals that don’t feel overwhelming to make on a weeknight. I loved Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl’s take on this in her article “The Cure Is in the Kitchen” in  Experience Life’s recent issue. Take a look.

Speaking of making things easier in the kitchen, one approach that I’ve always practiced is to make extra for the freezer or fridge. When making soup, I often double the recipe and fill up Ziploc gallon bags with the excess. Lay them flat in the freezer for easy stacking. On busy nights just pull out a bag and reheat. Sides like roasted veggies are delicious warmed up or cold from the fridge all week long. In fact, I just bought another rimmed roasting sheet on Monday so I can easily make even more.  After this hectic week of back-to-school and houseguest coming on Friday,  I will also start using my weekends or Mondays to make a big batch of quinoa or other healthy salad that I can eat throughout the week for lunch. 

And finally, here’s a simple and delicious looking recipe for your next Meatless Monday or whenever you want to load up on veggies. These Vegan Thai Curry Vegetables look fantastic for a cool fall day, and the gentle spice should be well tolerated by all in your house. I would serve them over brown rice and fruit on the side and call it a day. In fact, it’s what’s for dinner tonight.

That’s it for this week. I hope you enjoyed reading. As always, please pass it along, post it to your pages, and subscribe if you did! And I would love to hear what you think in the comments.

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Friday Cocktails: The Aviation

On By Cultivate WellnessIn cocktails, Cooking, holiday, Recipes, summer12 Comments

 

Aviation_cherry_(6127689536)

It’s Friday, and I’ve missed a couple weeks of Friday Cocktails but I am making it up with a whammy of a cocktail that I’ve recently fallen in love with. The Aviator was presented to me last Sunday evening and upon the first sip I knew it would be a keeper.

To back up a bit, I was given a bottle of Luxardo maraschino liqueur for my birthday by my neighbors because I love all things cherry.  Lest you think this is some neon-red concoction full of artificial everything, you should know that maraschino liqueur is a clear liqueur made from special maraschino cherries that has been produced by Luxardo (first in convents in Croatia, then in Italy) since the early 1800’s.  It’s got a fantastic flavor profile and while it is sweet, it’s not cloyingly so.

Since that fateful gift, I have sought out any cocktail I could find that features my new favorite liqueur. I looked at a cocktail menu last Sunday and there it was: The Aviator.  I love the bright flavor from the fresh squeezed lemons. I love the crispiness of the gin. And I love the sweetness from the maraschino liqueur. My  husband, who doesn’t love sweet drinks, thought it was really nice.

I am planning on making this for friends over the long holiday weekend and will look forward to hearing what they think.

One note: some versions of the Aviation include Crème de Violette to make it blue like the sky. I haven’t tried that version, and since I love the Aviation the way I tried it, I think i’ll keep it that way.

So, here it is. Buckle up, this is a strong cocktail that is best sipped! 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 1/2 ounces gin
  • 3/4 ounce maraschino liqueur
  • 3/4 ounce fresh lemon juice
  • Maraschino cherry (optional)

METHOD:

Add all the ingredients to a shaker and fill with ice.

Shake, and strain into a cocktail glass. I like to pour it over an ice ball so that it stays nice and cold.

Garnish with a cherry if desired.

NOTE: I have not been compensated for mentioning Luxardo in my post. I simply really enjoy the product!

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Midweek Mashup

On By Cultivate WellnessIn baking, Cooking, diet, disease, eating, family, health, Kids, Nutrition, Recipes2 Comments

MIDWEEK MASHUP

Happy Wednesday.

This week I bring you a delicious cookie recipe that happens to be vegan and wheat free (whaaaat?!) and some information that will hopefully enrich your life a little and maybe even make it better.

Do you eat granola?  And if so, do you consider it a healthier option than other popular breakfast foods? Nutritionist have long known that most commercial granola is chock full of sugar and consider it a dessert. I suppose that rings true with many of the granolas you’ll find on the shelves. I have found one I love with only good ingredients like oats, dried fruit, millet and quinoa. Purely Elizabeth has an ancient grain line that I love, with my fave being cranberry pecan. It has 6 grams of sugar per 1/3 cup. Ok, yes, 1/3 cup is a very small serving. I pour that much into my bowl and add slivered almonds, fresh blueberries and chia seeds. So, then I’ve got good proteins and fat and it isn’t overwhelmingly sweet. You can also use it to sprinkle on unsweetened yogurt. The thing about granola is that it isn’t meant to be eaten in large quantities. Think of it as an addition to your breakfast rather than the main event. 

As you might have read in previous posts, my 11 year old is in the middle of an elimination diet. She’s about halfway through. It’s been a challenge, to say the least. But she’s getting used to it. Yesterday she told me she thought giving up wheat and dairy would be the hardest but actually it’s corn and nightshades, because potato starch and/or corn derivatives are in most packaged foods. Most gluten-free products contain one or both. Almost all candy has corn syrup (yes, candy isn’t healthy, we know that). It’s hard to avoid corn, no matter how much you might try, unless everything you eat is prepared at home from scratch (hello, unrealistic for most).One thing that she has missed is a good chocolate chip cookie. Most chocolate chips have dairy, but I found a brand called Enjoy Life that are vegan and also free of almost all allergens. Yesterday she made a batch of spelt chocolate chip cookies that were to die for. I’m not kidding, they are so good. She found the recipe here: Chocolate Chip Cookies. The only thing I did to help was put the cookies in the oven and take them out at the end. Don’t these look amazing?


And finally, if you’re like me and try to make meals using up your pantry items a few times a year, here’s a great list of things you can cook. My husband gets super excited when I do this because it means I’m being economical and there’s nothing sexy than being economical!

Here’s to a great rest of your week. As always, please share this post with someone you think might enjoy it. Even better, click to subscribe to my blog so you don’t miss any great tidbits!