The Avocado Toast: Revisited

I posted a while back about my favorite any-time snack, The Avocado Toast. It's healthy and fresh, full of flavor and satisfying. I have turned many people with many different palettes onto this and I've recently upped-the-anti with a few additions. I continue to enjoy this savory creation, playing with new and different flavors, especially as the Summer months approach us with all of its ripe produce.

I used Mana Bread in this recipe, but any good multi-grain bread will do the trick. Mana bread is organic and sprouted, and contains no yeast, salt, oil, or sweeteners. It's full of protein and fiber and has a wonderfully nutty taste. It's a bit dense, but sliced thin and extra toasted, it makes for the perfect bite.

I top off this recipe with fresh organic, raw sauerkraut. I have really gotten into pickling and fermentation lately and favor the tastes, along with the health promoting qualities that this process offers. Naturally fermented foods contain active cultures and enzymes (like those found in yogurt) that help support proper digestion, aid in nutrient absorption and contribute to healthy metabolic function. Studies have shown that regular consumption of naturally fermented vegetables positively correlate with low rates of asthma, skin problems and autoimmune disorders in children and also have potential anti-cancer links. You can make your own sauerkraut or purchase from your local market. I recommend Real Pickles brand, but just be sure it's raw and organic. 

Avocado, Tomato + Sauerkraut Toasts

Serves 2

6 slices mana bread (or other multi-grain bread)

2 avocados, halved + pitted 

juice of 1 lemon

sea salt

crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 ripe tomato, thinly sliced and cut in half

couple Tbsp raw sauerkraut

fresh basil tops

splash of extra virgin olive oil

Slice bread thinly and toast to liking. Scoop out the avocado and place in a bowl. Add the lemon juice + a pinch of salt and smash until slightly chunky. Spread the avocado onto the toast with a fork and top with crushed red pepper flakes. Next stack the tomato slice, then the sauerkraut and top with the basil. Finish with a drizzle of good quality extra virgin olive oil and a bit more crushed red pepper flakes.

Culinary School: Update through Images

 

 

 

 

Will write again soon...

Arugula, Avocado + Citrus Salad

This is a wonderful and simple winter salad right when citrus is at its peak. The almonds add a nice crunch and the olives a good salty bite that pairs well with the creamy avocado. 

Arugula, Avocado + Citrus Salad

Serves 2

Ingredients

1 bunch baby arugula, washed and dried

1 clementine, peeled, separated into segments and cut into bite-sized pieces

1 avocado, pitted and diced

black kalamata olives, sliced

slivered almonds, toasted

4 Tbsp, or more, extra virgin olive oil

juice from 1/2 lemon

1 tsp dijon mustard

sea salt and black pepper, to taste

To make the dressing, combine the dijon mustard and the lemon juice in a bowl. Whisk in the olive oil until it emulsifies. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Place the arugula, avocado and olives in a bowl. Toss with dressing and top with toasted almonds. Serve immediately.

Maple Quinoa with Butternut Squash and Shitake Mushrooms

I threw this dish together on a whim, so feel free to play with other flavor combinations that you think could work or that you might have on hand. I used this maple vinaigrette from a recent salad experiment and it complimented the flavors really well.  This hearty dish is perfect on a cold night. Serve with a fresh citrus and avocado salad or a shaved raw Brussels sprouts salad for a complete meal.

Maple Quinoa with Butternut Squash and Shitake Mushrooms

Serves 3-4 as a main dish

Ingredients

1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded and diced into bite-sized pieces

1 cup quinoa

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 onion, cut into small dice

1/2 cup shitake mushrooms, sliced

handful of pine nuts, toasted 

handful of dried cranberries

4 Tbsp pure maple syrup

5 Tbsp olive oil

3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

freshly chopped parsley

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Spread the butternut squash pieces out on a baking sheet and drizzle with 2 Tbsp of the maple syrup. Sprinkle with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place in the oven and roast for about 20-25 minutes until the squash is tender (a fork should easily be able to slide in and out).

Meanwhile, cook the quinoa by dry toasting in a saucepan for a minute or so. Add 2 cups water and and pinch of sea salt and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer, cover and cook for about 10-15 minutes until all of the water is absorbed. Fluff with a fork and set aside.

To make the dressing, combine 3 Tbsp vinegar and 2 Tbsp maple syrup in a bowl. Whisk in 4 Tbsp olive oil until combined. Add sea salt and black pepper, to taste. Set aside.

Heat the remaining olive oil in a medium saute pan. Add the garlic and onions and saute until just fragrant and the onions become translucent. Add in the mushrooms and saute for a few minutes. Then add the butternut squash, cranberries, and 1 cup of the quinoa. Stir to combine. Drizzle with the dressing and top with the pine nuts and freshly chopped parsley. Serve immediately.

Spinach + Quinoa Salad with Pears, Chickpeas and Pecans

 'Tis the Season with warm, wintry flavors. I made this salad over the Thanksgiving weekend but it's festive enough to remain on your menu throughout the holidays. The bright cranberries adds a wonderful color, flavor and texture that compliments the nuttiness from the walnuts and protein punch from the quinoa and chickpeas. Drizzle with a maple vinaigrette for a seasonal touch.  You could use pears or apples in this recipe- either one will work.

Spinach + Quinoa Salad with Pears, Chickpeas and Pecans
Serves 6 as a side dish

Ingredients
1 cup quinoa 

2  handfuls of organic baby spinach leaves, washed, drained
1 large ripe pear, washed, stemmed and cored, cut into bite-size pieces
1/2 cup chickpeas, rinsed, drained
1/4 cup pecans, toasted and roughly chopped

1/4 cup dried cranberries

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

Freshly chopped parsley
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

Dry toast the quinoa in a saucepan for a few minutes. Add 2 cups fresh water and a pinch of sea salt to the pot. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer, cover and cook until all the water is evaporated and the quinoa is tender, about 10-15 minutes. Fluff with a fork and set aside.
 

To make the dressing, combine the balsamic vinegar and pure maple syrup in a bowl. Slowly whisk in the olive oil until combined. Season to taste with sea salt and black pepper.

Combine the spinach, pear, chickpeas, parsley cranberries and 1/2 of the quinoa in a bowl.  Fluff to combine. Pour on the vinaigrette and toss gently to coat, adding more quinoa if needed. Season to taste with sea salt and ground pepper. Just before serving, add the toasted pecans and lightly combine.

Holiday Recipes!

It's that time of year again! I know I'm a bit behind on posting this, but here are a few of the dishes that made the table at this year's Thanksgiving. There were a lot of repeats from last year, like the Brussels Sprouts and Apples and the Warm Butternut Squash and Arugula, my mother-in-law's Wild Rice Salad, Oatmeal Crunch Apple Crisp...they've definitely become staples.  I did decide to give Pure Food and Wine's raw, vegan Dark Chocolate Ganache Tart a shot and we changed up my mother's traditional "candied yams" (or sweet potatoes with marshmallows and corn flakes, of course) to a slightly healthier version. These are all great ideas for your Christmas dinner in a few weeks!

Candied Sweet Potatoes

Serves 6

2 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes
1/3 cup coconut milk
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated (or less if you're not a big ginger fan)
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

2 tablespoons olive oil  

1/2 cup marshmallows

1/2 cup corn flakes

Preheat your oven to 350F degrees. Oil a medium-sized casserole dish. Wrap each sweet potato in foil, pierce numerous times with a fork and place in the oven for about an hour, until each is baked through (you should be able to slide a knife through the center flesh easily). Remove the potatoes from the oven, let them cool for a few minutes, then cut each sweet potato in half. Scrape the flesh into a large mixing bowl and mash the sweet potatoes with the coconut milk. Stir in the ginger, maple syrup and salt. Let sit for a few minutes, stir again and taste - adjust the seasoning if you need to. 

Spoon the sweet potato mixture into the baking dish, drizzle with olive oil and bake uncovered until warm, roughly 30 minutes. Remove and sprinkle with the marshmallows and corn flakes, alternating each in diagonal rows. Bake for an additional 10 minutes or so until the marshmallows toast and brown slightly.

Pure Food and Wine's Dark Chocolate Ganache Tart

Serves 6

For the tart crust:

3/4 cup cocoa powder

3/4 cup fine almond flour

1/2 cup maple syrup crystals

1/4 cup coconut butter

pinch of sea salt

In a standard mixer with a paddle attachment, mix all ingredients until thoroughly combined into a dough. You can do this by hand as well, with a wooden spoon in a large bowl. Press the dough evenly into a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to chill 1 hour or more.

For the ganache filling:

2 1/4 cup cocoa powder

2 1/4 cup maple syrup

1 cup coconut butter

Blend all of the filling ingredients in a blender until smooth. Taste the ganache to make sure it's not grainy. If needed, blend further until completely smooth. Pour into the chilled tart crust. Place in the refrigerator to chill and set at least 3 hours.

For the vanilla cream:

1 cup raw cashews, soaked 4 hours or more

1 cup coconut meat

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup agave nectar

1/2 cup coconut butter

2 Tbsp vanilla extract

seeds of 1/2 vanilla bean

1/4 tsp salt

Blend all the ingredients until completely smooth. Transfer to a separate container and refrigerate to chill and set, 2 hours or more.

Cut the tart into 12 slices (running the knife under hot water between each slice) and top each slice with a spoonful of the vanilla cream. I could not get enough of this!! Unbelievably decadent.

Culinary School

I know that I haven't blogged in quite some time and I feel incredibly guilty. But let me explain...I have just completed my fifth week of culinary school at the Natural Gourmet Institute.  After attending Fran Costigan's Vegan Baking Boot Camp there over the summer, I remember walking away feeling fully inspired, loving it, and thinking I’d never actually have the guts to apply and take on this full-time commitment. Running a healthy cookie company while teaching fitness classes at Physique 57, there was no way that this could be possible. The school is so unique to other culinary programs, as it includes classical training and cookery technique with a health-supportive and natural foods curriculum.  I will learn everything from French and Japanese knife skills to how foods contain healing and medicinal properties.  The first week alone I learned and practiced dozens of ways to cut a vegetable, I tasted distinctive fruits and vegatables, and I sat in on lectures covering various topics such as serving styles and food-borne illnesses.  I have since been introduced to every grain and bean that exsists, herbs and spices that I had never heard of, sea vegetables, soy proteins and whole foods lectures on the yin and yang and other theories on food energies. My fingers are cut up, my arms are sore, my feet ache, and my legs are usually swollen at the end of each day, and yet I couldn’t be happier. If you know me, or read my blog, you know that I have an obsession for food, in particular healthy foods, as well as a passion and need for movement. In order to live a healthful and balanced life, I believe that these two things go hand-in-hand. I am hoping to take my knowledge and skills to the next level and I think that this program will be a major stepping stone in that direction. I have already been introduced to so many things, I am excited to see what all is to come over the next several months. As life is handed to us all, sacrifices and changes were made in order to take on this challenge. I do look forward to getting back to the fitness world once I complete the program though I hope it will be with a new and different outlook, combining a culinary degree with my exsiting knowledge and background in movement and health. I invite you to stay with me along my journey to becoming a natural chef.  Please continue to support O'Cookies and follow along!

Roasted Squash + Ginger Apple Quinoa

 

Another night cooking with ingredients from the Hamptons I decided to stay on the apple track and add one of my all-time favorite Fall produce, the acorn squash. LifeThyme market has the best roasted vegetables in their hot bar these days, loaded with all types of squash, carrots, onions...picking up dinner from there has become quite a habit but I thought I'd put my own spin on things tonight and do things my own way.  This recipe was pretty much a test so the measurements are not exact. Feel free to play with your own flavors and let me know what you come up with!

Roasted Squash + Ginger Apple Quinoa

(Serves 2-3 as a main)

1 acorn squash, quartered and seeded

pure maple syrup

sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup cooked quinoa

almond slivers, toasted

1 garlic clove, minced

1 tsp fresh ginger, minced

1/2 onion, chopped

fresh parsley, chopped

2 tsp dijon mustard

1/2 cup crimini mushrooms, chopped into bite-sized pieces

1/2 apple, cored and cut into bite-sized pieces

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the squash cut-side up on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, pure maple syrup, sea salt and black pepper. Bake for about 30-35 minutes until you can easily poke with a fork.

Heat a splash of olive oil in a medium skillet or saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and saute for a few minutes, until soft and translucent. Stir in the mushrooms and the apple and saute a few more minutes. Stir in the garlic and ginger and saute for another minute or so and then add the dijon mustard and toss until all of the flavors start to combine.

Add the cooked quinoa, some of the almonds and the parsley to the skillet and sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper. Drizzle with a bit more pure maple syrup and toss to your liking.

Serve over the acorn squash and top with more almond slivers for a nice crunch.

Hamptons + Fall Recipe

 

Just back from the weekend spent with my husband in the Hamptons celebrating our one year anniversary. The weather could not have been better.  The crisp air, the sun shining and the sea breeze somehow melts you back grounded to reality and takes your mind to another place.  We spent our time there apple and pumpkin picking, farmers' market hopping and eating at our favorite local spots. We came back to the city yesterday with both a weight lifted off of our shoulders and bags and bags full of  farm fresh produce to cook with all week.

There is something about hand-picking your own food literally off of a tree that inspires you to cook to another level, or maybe it's just the incredibly fresh ingredients that make you think that you did a better job.  Either way, the taste of my 'usual' thrown-together avocado-and-tomato-toast breakfast that morning was bursting with so much more flavor than usual...

 

First dinner back...brussels sprouts and apples. I was first inspired by this dish from 101 Cookbook when I made it as a side over the Holidays last year. This time I added tempeh pieces to create a one skillet meal. I like to use Lightlife Wild Rice Tempeh. It has a nutty flavor and texture that adds 21 grams of protein and 11 grams of fiber per serving. I served this over brown rice for a main but you can leave out the tempeh if you prefer and keep this as a side dish (as I did for James) and serve alongside a roasted chicken or pork chop, for the non-vegans of course.  

 

Brussels Sprouts + Apples

(Serves 2-3 as a main)

1 large apple, cut into small wedges

the juice of one lemon

4 ounces tempeh, cut into 1/4-inch cubes

2 medium garlic cloves, minced

a couple splashes of pure maple syrup

1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted

12 ounces brussels sprouts, washed and cut into quarters or shredded into 1/8-inch ribbons

extra-virgin olive oil

Celtic sea salt

Soak the apples in a bowl filled with water and the juice of the lemon. Set aside.

Blanch the brussels sprouts in salted boiling water for a minute or two, just until the color turns brightly green (you can skip this step if shredding the brussels sprouts into 1/8-inch ribbons). Set aside.

Heat a large pan and add a splash of olive oil and a pinch of sea salt. Add the tempeh cubes and cook, sauteing until golden brown, about 5 minutes or so.  Stir in the garlic and then add a splash of maple syrup (about 1 Tbsp), and cook for another 30 seconds or so. Drain the apples and add them to the skillet, cooking another minute or so. Scrape the apple and tempeh mixture into a bowl and set aside. 

Cook the brussels sprouts in the same pan by first adding another splash of olive oil and a pinch of sea salt and turning up the heat to medium-high. Once the pan is hot, toss in the brussels sprouts and add another smaller splash of maple syrup and cook, sauteing for a couple of minutes until you get some golden edges and the rest are brightly colored. Stir the apple mixture back into the skillet and half of the pine nuts and gently toss to combine. Remove from heat immediately and serve with the remaining pine nuts.

Roasted Red Pepper Soup

Beautiful and vibrant, this soup is one of my go-to's to start a good healthy meal. Loaded with antioxidants, it's just filling enough with a big green kale salad topped with your favorite fixings. Depending on the season, I serve it warm or chilled. It's great both ways!

Ingredients

1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked 1-2 hours

2 red bell peppers, halved and seeded

1/2 cup water

1/2 tsp sea salt

black pepper

juice from half a lemon

1/2 tsp agave

pinch cayenne pepper

pinch red pepper flakes

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 basil leaf, sliced (for garnish)

Roast the bell pepper halves by brushing with olive oil and placing under the broiler for about 8-10 minutes, or until the skin is slightly blackened.  Remove the skin immediately with a sharp knife.

Blend all of the ingredients in a blender until smooth. Heat the mixture in a saucepan on low heat until the temperature of your liking. Pour into bowls and garnish with chopped basil. Voila! Serve and enjoy.