thank you, Caesar

This post is dedicated to my "other" Mom and Dad:
Tonight I made Rachael's Caesar Lettuce Cups and they were so good, we don't have leftovers for tomorrow night like we usually do. But that's ok!

Of course, the Parmisiano Reggiano cheese made this meal, both on the croutons and in the chicken stir-fry part itself. I greeted Stevo at the door when he got home with a new kind of kiss: a homemade crouton made from ciabatta bread leftover from Easter dinner (thanks, Mamamia) and Parmisiano Reggiano cheese straight from Italy herself (thanks, Dad).

The result was a meal quite flavorful in every bite, even without the anchovies. (I knew I wasn't gonna pull that past my hubs.) Of course, Rach didn't show us how to roll the stir-fry inside the lettuce leaves without any falling out. Maybe you can experiment and let us know.

Ironically enough, our dinner discussion, falling on Tax Day and Tea Party Day, involved an unpacking of Jesus' words "render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's." We will ungrudgingly render to Caesar the thanks due him for inspiring such a delicious meal!

chicken soup for the nose

Let me tell you about aromatherapy. It does not need to come from expensive candles and oils. My endorphins are bouncing around right now from the aromas flowing from my own kitchen, the product of my own hands. (There is nothing more satisfying right? Than enjoying the work of your hands.)

Fresh baking bread, roasting garlic, and boiling onions, bay leaves and chicken. I'm not sure there is a better savory combination in the whole of the universe, or at least, at this very minute, I am absolutely sure there isn't!

Stevo woke up with a sore throat this morning, poor guy, and somehow Rachael Ray knew. I made this Garlic-Lemon Chicken Noodle Soup for him tonight, along with some whole wheat bread in our new bread machine. It was my first time to roast garlic, and the results were not as good as the smell. I only got a very small amount of gooey garlic out of 3/4 of a clove, and will have to try again. The smell was worth it though!

This soup turned out really yum, with strong lemony-dill overtones. Stevey ate three bowls. In fact it's so good, you may want to fake a cold for an excuse to make it...

a walk through TJ's

I used to roll my eyes, inwardly of course, when my friends would say they got this frozen meal at Trader Joe's and that healthy snack at Trader Joe's and this appetizer for the party at Trader Joe's (I'm sorry, Kara).

Well, now that I have said neighborhood grocery store close by (or rather, now that I don't have a Giant in my basement)...and go every single week, and swear by them and rave about them and constantly recommend their products, I'd say I'm now part of the cult. Completely sucked in. Although I still refuse to buy the canvas reusable bags. There is a limit even for this addictive personality.

Whether you've been there or not (there are some people who have not yet been!), I'm sure you'll appreciate my recommendations as we do a virtual walk-through. And by the way, TJ's encourages its customers to try all their products; if you don't like something, you can take it back opened. I've done it.

Happily situated behind our little red cart, we first come to the bread section (after checking out the colorful and reasonably-priced cut flowers):

• multigrain sandwich bread with 6 (!!) grams of fiber per slice
• whole wheat artisan bread, very nice as breakfast toast or grilled cheese
• whole wheat naan, warmed in the microwave and paired with TJ's hummus you'll be transported to celestial realms
• whole wheat plain and cinnamon raisin "British muffins," very tasty as an egg-yolk dipper or with lots of crunchy peanut butter slathered on top

Now double back to the cereal section on the other side of the aisle:

• Maple-frosted Mini Wheats; my first bowl said it would be my only one, but somehow there was a second and I was hooked for life
• Shredded Spoonfuls, tastes like Life but much healthier
• Shredded Oats, full of fiber and crunch, and needs only a dash of sugar (organic of course)
  
• Autumn Wheat, not as good as the Maple-frosted but a good sub if they're out

(That is the only bad thing about TJ's: they do not always have everything in stock, but I think it's perhaps intentional; you know, the neighborhood market idea where you buy what they have that day.)

Continue down that side of the aisle to pick up your...

• steel cut oats: see April 3 post
  

Breeze past the fruit stand in the middle of the aisle for exotic fruit like kiwis and mangoes for cheaper prices than Giant

• Mini Pearl grape tomatoes, bright red and sweet all year 'round

In the next aisle, our (mostly my) favs are...

• 99 cent Rice Noodle Soup Bowl, and
• a small can of Alaskan pink salmon, to make my own version of Teaism's salmon ochazuke! using half of the salmon in the can for one bowl of soup, that's a healthy/yummy $2 lunch
• roasted flaxseed peanut butter, which has a nice crunch, funky texture, and added nutrition
• organic strawberry or apricot fruit spread, as good as preserves but better for you
• organic spaghetti sauce with mushrooms: this sauce even passes muster with my Italian hubby, savory and sweet and healthy to boot (don't worry, you can't taste the mushrooms)
• balsamic vinegarette, mm! it's got me on a kick right now, every night on my salad it's the balsamic or nothin'

Now for the Aisle of Temptation, that I often avoid altogether, the middle freezer and dessert aisle:

• stir-fry veggies on the left side, perfect for cashew chicken or whatever Asian dish you can sneak past the hubby
• pesto/veggie frozen pizza or spinach/feta frozen pizza: their frozen pizzas are fabulous and healthful too, and perfect for two; we keep on in the freezer at all times
• dunkers: I've resisted this temptation so far, especially because of the price, but dunked in hot chocolate they are out of this world
• cats cookies "for people," a low-fat treat

Now for the nut aisle:

• Simply the Best Trek Mix, one of the least expensive trail mixes and containing all the best stuff--almonds, cashews, dried pineapple, cranberries and tart cherries--without the sweet stuff (chocolate)
  
• strawberry and apple cereal bars, much cheaper than Nutrigrain
• Honey Sesame Almonds, worth every dollar, and a filling snack
• citrus shampoo/conditioner/body wash: smells yummy and so cheap!

And back for the home stretch down the meat and snack aisle:

• Mediterranean hummus, the best stuff you will ever sink your bread/cracker/carrot stick into
• peanut butter filled pretzels, a less guilty treat than combos and just as good
• garlic and parmesan croutons, a perfect mix with the balsamic

Last but by no means least, as we are waiting in line to check out, grab one of those orange-packaged 72% Cacao Dark Chocolate, which is much cheaper than the organic chocolate you were buying at Giant, to have on hand for every choc-attack. Dark chocolate is good for you! In moderation of course. And is an acquired taste. I didn't like it before, but once I heard it could help my fatigue (no joke! I have the article to prove it), I tried it again and am hooked for life. (I get hooked for life alot.)

Of course we get many more tasty items there, as our food bill attests, but these are some of our favs, and I feel like we're eating healthier and saving money when I shop there. Then I go to Giant for the rest of the stuff we need; an investment of time (Monday afternoons are sacred grocery shopping days), but I enjoy it.

whole wheat pancakes...that melt in your mouth!

This morning we had our favorite pancakes. Or I have dubbed them our favorite because they're both super healthy and super yummy!

Steve first discovered the recipe when we were newly married, but googling "whole wheat pancakes" of course. I was still in bed on a Saturday morning, my snoozing disturbed by an occassional shzzz shzz that sounded vaguely like the food processor, followed by the whir of the mixer.

When I came downstairs, there was Stevo, fixing pancakes. What a man! And not just any pancakes. It wasn't only young love that made them taste so good.

Here is the coveted recipe. Steve is very good at the mixing with a "few swift strokes." This morning, we halved the recipe, and I put together the dry ingredients and Steve the wet. We also like to add chopped walnuts to the batter and banana slices to the poured out pancakes (which Steve patiently covers with more batter, otherwise the 'nanas will stick to the pan). Steve eats his with his usual maple syrup and me with my usual agave nectar, which is just as good as syrup and healthy to boot.

The leftover pancakes save ok in the fridge. Make sure to dry them out on a cooling rack as thoroughly as you can (even if your husband laughs at you for it, thinking they are already cool...but you have to get that moisture out of the bottom!).

Yes, please steal this recipe, no matter where you are in your life or marriage.

TJ rec: steel cut oats

This post is dedicated to Daddy...
I've been eating eggs every morning for breakfast for much of my life, mostly because I love them and I must have the protein to make it (literally) to lunch. However, I just read a book on living longer (The Metabolic Plan) that recommended only 3-5 organic eggs per week for different reasons, so I decided to eat more "oaties" as we called them growing up.

I'd accidentally bought a carton of steel cut oats at Trader Joe's and it was sitting in my "pantry" (the laundry closet) until my Dad discovered them at Christmas and showed me that they were in fact edible and how to make them. But even the nutty, full-bodied taste test did not get me to start making them til recently.

If instant oatmeal doesn't fill you up, this will! In fact, I'm often too full because I couldn't stop eating that nutty, oaty goodness til I'd scraped the bottom of my cute little oatmeal bowl.

Don't be alarmed by how hard they are and how different they look from rolled oats. Just soak them in the pot with a little salt the night before, with about a 3-to-1 water to oat ratio. If you forget, as I sometimes do, you can still make them on the spot, it just takes longer. Simply add more water, bring them to a boil, and then simmer on low, covered, for about 10 minutes or according to package directions. Yes, "on low" is key, as the pot will bowl over if covered, even if you're standing there...even if you're standing there and it's already bowled over once just a minute ago. Well, if your name is Nellie at least.

When the oatmeal is soft and before all the water boils out, I pour it into my favorite oaties bowl, pile on some chopped walnuts and banana slices, squirt on some agave nectar (wonderful stuff, more maple-y than honey, and doesn't spike your blood sugar), stir it together, add some milk, and stir it again. Then I sit down to enjoy manna from heaven.