Arugula & Red Cabbage Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

Happy happy new year! I am back and have certainly missed blogging. The last two weeks I've been cooking up a storm. From meatball soup with kabocha squash and carnitas to apple crisp and persimmon cookies, I've certainly gotten my fill of rich food. You know you've had enough holiday eating when you wake up craving water and a salad. Something clean and refreshing, please! That being said, there's not one bite of holiday goodness I would give back. December for me is a month to let go, enjoy, and ring in the new year with love and self acceptance. Now I don't go crazy, like downing a box of See's candy, but if I want a persimmon cookie (or 4) I eat it. What's amazing too is that when I give myself permission to have what I want, I end up eating less. It's just not as much fun to gorge myself when I'm allowed to.

I haven't always been so ZEN about holiday eating, however. Consumed by guilt and fear of weight gain, holiday gatherings were a serious emotional ordeal. I constantly worried about what I ate, how much, and the caloric ramifications of my sugar-laden actions. Each bite of double chocolate cheesecake brought about simultaneous feelings of pleasure and pain. I loved my Mom's homemade cheesecake with its creamy decadence yet with eat bite, up went the calorie tab in my head. And of course the worst part of my eating insanity was the more I stressed about my food and tried to restrict it, the more I shoved into my face. I remember inhaling cranberry pear tart at midnight because earlier in the evening I stated I was done eating tarts! The more aggressive and restrictive I got, the more my inner child rebelled. "No more desserts, you say? I'll show you!!!" And of course who ended up stuffed to the gills and anxiety ridden after such a binge...me!

This nasty cycle went on for years and didn't really clear up until I started looking at food as a way to nourish and heal myself rather than a mechanism for control. I think it's almost impossible to take the emotionality out of eating. However, when we nourish ourselves in the context of self-care, gratitude, and love, the urge to stuff our over-active neurosis with food melts away. I now take the food I need, thank my tummy for digesting all I put into it, and I'm done.



How the heck did I even get on this topic? Oh right, craving salad. So here is my way of balancing out the heaviness of holiday fare and guilt...a bright winter salad! This combo is a great mix of textures with a fantastic sweet and pungent punch. Cabbage and arugula are also helpful detox foods, making this salad perfect for cleansing the system after unaccountable cookies and too much champagne.



Arugula & Red Cabbage Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette
Serves 3-4

3/4 of 1 head organic red cabbage
2 cups arugula, washed
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup fresh mint, chopped
3 scallions, chopped
2-3 tablespoons unrefined and peppery olive oil (my fav is Bariani)
2 tablespoons sweet balsamic vinegar (my fav is again, Bariani)
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup dry roasted almonds, chopped

Start by shredding the cabbage. Place cabbage on it's flat end and cut in half. Cut in half again, which gives you 4 quarters. Place one quarter in the fridge for another time. Slice cabbage into thin strips, avoiding the white core. Cut the cabbage strips in half and place in a large bowl. Add in the arugula, cilantro, mint and scallions. Drizzle with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and salt and toss well. Top with almonds and serve. Enjoy!

Coriander Collard Greens with Sweet Potatoes

"Are you sure this is safe for human consumption?", he said with a concerned look on his face. I had just placed a beautiful plate of braised kale with carrots and garlic in front of my new boyfriend. "Yes, Gray. Humans can eat all sorts of leafy greens. Mustard greens, bok choy, collards, kale. They are all delicious and really good for you." "I'm not sure," he wavered. "The only time I ever bought kale was to feed my pet iguana, Spud!"

And so goes the American relationship with greens. They are for garnish or iguana food, certainly not for the pristine palates of humans! In fact it is rare for anything green to cross most people's plates on a weekly basis, let alone daily (and no, parsley doesn't count). In my experience those who say they don't like greens just haven't had them prepared correctly. For example, I always thought I hated asparagus because my grandmother boiled it to grey mush. Yet there is nothing more divine in late spring than asparagus on the grill with a punch of lemon and Parmesan. OMG! We must all remember it's not the green we detest, but what's been done to it.



Gray now devours any green I put in front of him and loves every bite. (Or so he tells me.) So, what's my greens secret?...I NEVER steam or boil them. Alright, let me rephrase. I never serve vegetables prepared plain without any sort of aromatic or fat. Would you just boil meat and serve it up? I hope not. Greens, like any other whole food, need a little help. Aromatics (garlic, onion, shallots) bring out the greens' innate sweetness while fat rounds out the flavor. Steamed or blanched is fine, just be sure to top the vegetables with a nice vinaigrette, pesto, or fruity olive oil.



Most of my clients, particularly women, look to salads for their vegetable intake. While salad is good, it only gets you half way there. To really get all the vitamins and minerals you need, you've got to go darker and leafier. Try branching out from spinach and romaine lettuce and pick up a gorgeous bunch of kale or collard greens. These foods are not only delicious but also loaded with fiber to help move out all that excess holiday food ;)

This is a wonderful anytime dish and would even go nicely on your holiday table. What, you weren't going to serve anything green at your holiday festivities? Well, now you are. I also like to make extra and scramble it up with eggs in the morning.



Coriander Collard Greens with Sweet Potatoes
** FYI- Collards can be a bit bitter. If you are sensitive to this flavor, try the recipe with kale instead.

1 yellow onion, diced
2-3 tablespoons olive oil or organic butter
2 cups sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1/4 cup water, divided
sea salt to taste
3-4 cups collard greens, washed and finely chopped (kale or swiss chard work well too)
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped (optional)
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

In a large saute pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and saute for 5 minutes, until onions become translucent. Toss in the cubed sweet potatoes and coriander and stir until evenly coated. Add half the water to the pan and cover, allowing the potatoes to quickly soften, 7-8 minutes. (Add more water if necessary.) While the potatoes are cooking, cut the collards. Roll the greens into long cigars and chop into thin strips from one end to the other. Cut the strips in half for even cooking.

When the potatoes have softened, remove the lid and add the collard greens and cilantro. Mix thoroughly and add another quick pinch of salt and the remaining water. Return the lid to the pan and reduce the heat to low. Let the saute cook for another 8 minutes or until the collards are dark green. Remove the lid and stir the mixture together. Season with salt to taste and drizzle with the lemon juice and a touch more olive oil. Enjoy!

Curried Sweet Potato Latkes

Martha Stewart always reminds me of Hanukkah. Not the Martha Stewart of today, but Martha circa 1982. Every December my mom drags out one of her most utilized cookbooks, "Entertaining, by Martha Stewart" and scours the pages to decide what to make. If you've never seen the book, I highly recommend checking it out. (Though I don't think you can find original editions anymore.) Besides gazing upon a young and seemingly jovial Martha, the layout and pictures are simply gorgeous. I will say this, the woman knows how to put a table together! I remember sitting at the kitchen counter, flipping each page with glee to see the next gorgeous dish Martha deemed a must-make for any real hostess. Yes, there are parts of this book that are ridiculous. Like the insane homage to table settings. Did you know different china sets must be used depending on the theme and time of year of said soiree? How many dishes do you think I have, woman? Though the recipes are traditional and certainly dated (crown roast of pork with paper tassels in tow), there is something very warm and comforting within its folds. To this day I like to sit in my mother's kitchen and turn to the page featuring "Black Bottom Pie"; a sugar and dairy bomb of a dessert that my mother never made and I yearned for.

Picture of my lovely mother in her holiday glory...on the phone as usual!
It's completely bizarre that I associate Martha with Hanukkah, especially as her book regales the numerous ways to host an authentic Christmas gala. Whatever! Ultimately it's about being with family, smelling fried latkes and wishing for one of our party guests to bring me that Black Bottom Pie!

Though maybe not up to Martha's standards (we did use every day plates, after all) this year's Hanukkah party was certainly a hit. For many reasons in fact, but particularly due to the sweet potato latkes. I sound like a freak when it comes to my mom's food but it's just so good that I one) can't stop eating it (what happened to mindful eating?) and 2) don't want to share it. Luckily there were plenty to go around so I didn't resort to horde-mode. These sweet, spicy, and starchy little cakes are a welcome twist on the classic potato pancake. It's a latke with spunk! Be sure to make extra as they are a brilliant treat for breakfast.



Curried Sweet Potato Latkes

1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled
1 onion, peeled
1/2 cup buckwheat flour (Buckwheat is a gluten-free flour that gives the latkes a nice crispiness. Whole wheat flour will work as well)
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons curry powder
salt to taste
2 organic eggs, beaten
3 tablespoons olive oil, coconut oil, or ghee for frying (I usually don't recommend olive oil on high heat but this once won't kill you)

Grate sweet potatoes and onion and put together in a bowl. Add in the flour, baking powder, curry power and salt and mix thoroughly. Stir the beaten eggs into the mixture.

Heat the oil in a frying pan on medium-high heat. Caution: You do not want the oil to smoke. Drop 2-3 tablespoons of the batter (depending on what size you like) into the oil and flatten. Fry over medium heat on both sides until golden. Place on a paper towel to drain excess oil. Serve with a dollop of sour cream sprinkled with scallions or apple sauce. Enjoy!

Vanilla Maple Granola

When I first met my husband 6 years ago (goodness that's a long time!), he was a root beer drinking, white pasta and Tyson frozen chicken eating grad student. Though he usually denies such allegations ("I never drank soda! I just had it in the fridge that one time your came over.") his diet left much to be desired. In fact, he never really thought about food until we met. He ate when he was hungry and that was about it, where as I'm one who thinks about lunch while chomping breakfast. His parents weren't food-oriented (It's OK if I call them out, they don't read this anyway) so the delicious sense-engaging nature of food was not at the top of my dear husband's priority list. I am being a little hard on him though. While a student he had a crazy schedule with very little time to shower, let alone eat well. And yet, it's when we run around like chickens with our heads cut off that we NEED good food to fuel our overworked bodies. There were times I brought him dinner during certain all nighters, but for the most part I let him fend for himself. What a lovely girlfriend I was. I can't believe he married me! It's OK, I make up for it now. Every morning he rolled out of bed to a bowl of dry sugared cereal with milk or a frosting-shellacked danish on the way to class. Let's shoot our blood sugar through the roof before 9 am, shall we! I tried my hardest to explain the poor quality of his morning meals but to no avail. If there is one thing I know about my man, its that he will not tolerate being told what to do. Even if I'm right!



So what I've learned is if I can't go through him, I will go around him. My way of getting around the breakfast debacle was to simply give him a better yet similar option. "Have you ever tried granola?", I asked one morning. "Yeah, it's OK," he replied, not really listening to me. "What if I got you some to try instead of your regular cereal?", I queried. "Sure, I'm open." I'm open??? Sweet! Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, I ran off to Whole Foods to get what I thought was a healthy breakfast alternative. Man, was I wrong! Most of the granola available had almost as much sugar as regular cereal complete with bizarre freeze dried strawberries and other "fruits". I was able to find one that fit my requirements but for the most part the selection left much to be desired. After a few months (yes months!) of eating barely Jamie-legal granola I said, "You know, the granola you get is kind of expensive and loaded with sugar. What if I make you some instead?", I offered. "Sure, I'm into it."



And so it was on that very day that Gray became a homemade granola man. He liked the first batch so much he's been making it himself every few weeks for the last 3 years. It's the only thing he makes, but he makes it good! I certainly feel proud of my little triumph over the sugared breakfast cereal. Now I just need to work on the copious beer consumption. Though I fear that's a lost cause!





Vanilla Maple Granola

2 cups organic whole rolled oats
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup raw nuts, chopped (almonds, walnuts, pecans, cashews)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup shredded coconut (optional)
1/3 cup organic maple syrup (you can us a little extra if you like things particularly sweet)
1/3 cup extra virgin coconut oil or organic butter, melted
1 tablespoon real vanilla extract (no corn syrup or coloring added)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine oats, seeds, nuts, salt and coconut in a large bowl. Whisk together the maple syrup, oil/butter, and vanilla and pour over the dry ingredients. Spread out in a large Pyrex baking dish. Make sure the granola is not piled on too high. Use two smaller Pyrex dishes if necessary.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden, stirring twice during baking. Remove from the oven and let it cool. Store in a large cereal container and enjoy! This granola also make a fantastic gift.

Preserved Lemons

I have been eying a clay cooking vessel for a while...years actually. Ever since my friend Jacqueline made a ridiculous vegan lasagna in a terra cotta dish. I'm like an elephant, I never forget. And little did my poor husband know that he was about to buy me one on our most recent trip to Sonoma. This idea had been percolating since June when Steve Sando mentioned the new Sonoma clay cookware shop Bram. Perfect! As we drove up to Sonoma I couldn't help but think about my soon-to-be purchase. What shape do I want? What about the color? Which piece will be the most versatile? When we got to the square and began to walk around, I discreetly headed towards the shop. "Oh, look at this!", I exclaimed in my most naive voice. "A clay cookware store. Who knew! Can we go in?" My husband has never once said no to a request that would benefit him culinarily. We were both excited by Bram's gorgeous collection and Gray was so into it, he actually picked out the piece we bought (I've got to let him make a few decisions). As we checked out, I looked to my right to see Paula Wolfert's new book Mediterranean Clay Pot Cooking: Traditional and Modern Recipes to Savor and Share Of course, another book I'd been pining after. "That's a signed copy," said the clerk. "SOLD!" Hey I needed this book and besides, I've got to know how to use the clay cooker right?

So why am I giving you a recipe for preserved lemons and not clay pot chicken with charred tomatoes? Well for one, tomatoes aren't in season (HA, gotcha!) and two, I'm totally intimidated! I know its hard to believe but I am seriously nervous to break in my new equipment. I've read Paula's book cover to cover and already know what I want to make (Bulgar and Greens with Pistachios and Yogurt) but I just can't get myself to do it. YET. That being said, now I've put it out there so I have to do it. Alright, I will. Go Jamie go!



In the meantime, try these super easy preserved lemons. It's a great way to keep lemons you don't have time to use while fresh. They also make a fantastic gift. As for uses, chop them up and put in your eggs, salad, lentils, greens, and grain dishes. Enjoy!


Preserved Lemons
Adapted from Paula Wolfert's Mediterranean Clay Pot Cooking

3 medium sized organic lemons
1/3 cup coarse salt
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (from your other organic lemons)
extra virgin olive oil

Scrub the lemons and dry well. Cut each into 8 wedges. Mix them with salt and place in a 1 cup capacity glass jar. (I used a 1 1/2 cup capacity jar and it was fine.) Pour in the lemon juice. Close the jar tightly, give it a good shake, and let the lemons ripen at room temperature for 7 days. Be sure to shake the jar every day to distribute the salt and juice. To store, add olive oil to cover and place the jar in a cool cupboard or the refrigerator. They will last for up to a year. Be sure to rinse lemons before use.

**According to Paula, a white lacy growth MAY appear in your preserving jar as the lemons mature on the shelf. Don't worry about it. Simply discard it when you open the jar and rinse the lemons before use.

Maple & Spice Glazed Nuts

Every year my parents throw a huge holiday party. Come December, 50 people descend upon my familial abode to enjoy fantastic food, drinks and the guaranteed impromptu jam session. (My father is a musician and loves to keep the party raging into the wee hours...around 11 pm.) My mom, heaven love her, is a total control freak about the food (ahem!) and likes to make most of it herself. To see her in the kitchen is like watching Giada De Laurentis on fast forward. Flip the potato latkes, stir the ratatouille, check the frittata, knead the cookie dough. It is complete insanity and I love it! I love it now, I should say. In my late teens and early 20's holiday cheer was unfortunately mixed with a heavy dose of food anxiety. Fear of fat and caloric overload kept me from fully enjoying the bounty. "How much fat does the cranberry pear tart have?" I'd bemoan. "Jamie, RELAX." my mom would say. "Just have a little bit and enjoy." I could have slapped her in that moment. What do you mean just have a "little bit"? My mother, the queen of self control, could take just a sliver of each dessert and be perfectly satisfied. What the heck is that? Unlike my mother, I'm an all or nothing kinda girl. I'd either eat half the tart or none at all. No little slivers for me thank you! The most troubling of her holiday delectables were her spiced nuts. You could smell the spicy sugary goodness down the street and every year they did me in.

Walnuts and pecans cooked down with tons of sugar and spice to make an awesome holiday munchy...how could I resist? She'd spread them all over the house so no matter what room I entered, there they were starring at me, willing me to eat just one more. Of course, one more turned into another handful which turned into me nonchalantly grazing in every room so that our guests wouldn't catch on to my sugared nut frenzy!

Thankfully this all stopped when I cut white sugar out of my diet. It still amazes me how much less stress I experience by not freaking out over calories and fat during in the holidays (family freak outs are another issue, however). Instead, I look at how the food reacts in my body and I know white sugar is a definite no no. My compulsion around the nuts was not only about my fear of fat but also the biological reaction that when I eat sugar I NEEDED more of it. And yet, over the years I've realized you cannot be all or nothing about food, or life in general. Rigidity leads to compulsion which inevitably makes way for anxiety and self-criticism.

So what can we do about the holiday foods that do us in every year? Why make a Jamie|Living version, of course! Here is a delicious rendition of my mom's holiday nuts without the white sugar. And where did I get the recipe? From my mom! Over the last few years she too has jumped onto the no white sugar bandwagon and has altered a number of her recipes to make them a bit more healthy and just as divine. Now be careful, even without the white stuff it's hard to just have a few ;) Enjoy!



Maple & Spice Glazed Nuts

3 tablespoons real organic maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (add a bit more if you like things spicy!)
1 teaspoon lemon zest (optional)
2 cups nuts (pecans, walnuts and cashews work best)
1 pinch of salt

Toss all ingredients together and place on a baking sheet. Bake at 300 degrees for 15 minutes. Allow to cool fully for the syrup to harden. Spread around the house so you are always within arms reach of this scrumptious treat :)

Black Bean Pilaf with Cilantro Lime Dressing

Let it be known, I am a bean freak! I have never met a bean I didn't love (though I've met a few who did not love me). I eat some sort of bean or legume every day (told you I was a freak) whether in soups, salads, sautes or casseroles. Beside their fantastic flavor, beans always make the Top 10 Healthiest foods list with their high protein and fiber content. These scrumptious staples can be put into almost any dish and yet many people suffer from what I call "bean bashfulness". That is, they deem beans too difficult to cook and therefore are bashful and subsequently unfamiliar with the beautiful bean's many uses.

I say this coming from a place of empathy because about 5 years ago I was in a full "bean bashfulness" flare-up. At the time I was 95% vegan (I ate fish twice a month) and used only tofu as my main source of protein. "Beans take too long," I complained. "First you soak them then cook them and when done, you're stuck with a giant pot of beans. What do you do with that?" Oh, naive little Jamie! But heck, what did I know about beans? The only beans I grew up eating were hidden in hummus and split pea soup or lovingly refried in lard and served up with menudo by my Mexican neighbors. (Who, by the way, called me skinny-bone Jones and claimed my mother was starving me to death!) The point is, I was at a bean loss and perfectly happy to stay there. As a side note, while eating countless blocks of processed tofu, I experienced uncomfortable stomach aches and flatulence. "Couldn't be the tofu", I blindly decided. "The stuff is WAY too healthy." Then one day I ran out of tofu and was forced to make lentils for my lunch and dinner. I had bought the lentils a few months prior at an attempt to branch out, which never happened.

The outcome was astonishing. Besides realizing how easy and delicious lentils were to make, I had no stomach distress all day. Unbelievable! After that I cut out processed tofu and replaced it with every type of whole bean and lentil I could find. My favorite beans now are heirloom varietals that have a rich smoky flavor and creamy texture I've never experienced with any other type of bean. Yes, standard black, pinto, and garbanzo are good too. Heirlooms just make the dish a bit more special.

I recently made this dish for a pot luck where all the guests were parents. I could barely make out the oohs and aahs from the satisfied tasters over the cacophonous noise of children's screams, grunts, and I think, a few howls. Though I had liberated these "bean bashfulness" sufferers with my pilaf I couldn't help but notice my own "conceiving cowardice" begin to grow. However, that's for another entry!

Black Bean Pilaf with Cilantro Lime Dressing

Feel free to used alternative grains that you like. Mixing in brown rice with the quinoa works wells and adds a nice texture.

Serves 4 as a side dish

1 1/2 cups quinoa, picked over, rinsed and drained

3 cups of water

1 1/2 cups Eden canned black beans, rinsed, drained and quickly blanched for 1 minute (If experimenting with heirloom beans, go for the Midnight Black Beans)

1 1/2 cups leftover cooked dino kale (you can also use broccoli, green beans, or swiss chard)

4 scallions, chopped

1/3 cup tamari roasted pumpkin seeds

Dressing

5 tbsp. fresh lime juice

1 tsp. sea salt

1 1/4 tsp. ground cumin

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

In a medium pot, add in quinoa, water, and a pinch of sea salt. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 16 minutes. Transfer the quinoa to a ceramic/glass bowl and let cool for a few minutes. Add in the beans, greens, and scallions.

For the dressing, use a small bowl and whisk together the lime juice, salt, cumin, and cilantro. Then add the oil in a continuous stream, making sure to continue whisking. Drizzle the dressing over the pilaf and mix well. Add in a bit more salt to taste in you desire. Top with pumpkin seeds and serve. Enjoy!