Earthly Edibles

Make a simple tomato salad using a variety or heirloom tomatoes and basil

Get the tomatoes while they are still plentiful. This tomato salad includes purple Cherokee, yellow pear, stripey,and rose from our garden with a brandywine, red and green zebra ones from the Asheville City tail gate market. I then added purple and green basil leaves and some local mozzarella cheese! I tossed the salad with a little olive oil, salt and pepper and I hope to make it several more times before the frost hits! I had my own private tomato tasting and determined that the the purple Cherokee and the stripey won for my favorites! I will be sure that they have a place in my garden for next year. My husband and I also picked up a big box of tomatoes from the farmer’s market and made a big batch of salsa to enjoy through the winter. We just used even amounts of tomatoes, hot peppers and onion. Added garlic, salt and vinegar and placed in canning jars and processed them in a hot water bath. I hope to pick up a box or two more and put away a few tomatoes, spaghetti sauce and maybe a little more salsa. Jar number one is already missing and it is not even winter! Tomatoes are a great source of potassium, Vitamin C, fiber and lycopene and are also very low in calories so eat up!

When I think of Labor Day weekend, two of the things that I think about are the fact that the peaches will become few and far between locally and the apples will become plentiful! Two weeks ago my husband and I headed to the farmer’s market and bought a big basket of peaches and froze a large number of them to be used in our oatmeal and smoothies during the winter. I also made a fresh peach crisp and threw in a few raspberries for a wonderful fruit crisp. For my topping take a look at my fruit crisp from Dec 9, 2008! If you miss the peaches, through in some apples and pears! I think one of the best financial investments that I have ever made is to purchase a raspberry bush. It seems to be the gift that keeps on giving. It has spread throughout the entire raised bed that my husband built for me and it provides berries abundantly! I want to share this wonderful picture of raspberries and peaches that my webmaster Pam Keene created for me! If you would like to find out more about her services contact: www.plkeenecc.com

Here is a sampling of wild blueberries in Western North Carolina

It is wild blueberry season here in Western North Carolina. Be sure to save some for the bears and birds. Blue berries and other berries are rich in vitamin C, fiber and phytochemicals that add benefits to our health. They are also make a low calorie dessert! This year, I froze a few berries and made a wonderful barbeque sauce created by Isa Chandra Moskowitz http://www.theppk.com/using a few adaptations of my own. Enjoy this new way of using blueberries!

Blueberry Chipotle Barbecue Sauce

1 tablespoon peanut oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 inch chunk of peeled ginger, minced
2 cups blueberries (raspberries or blackberries would work great also)
½ cup water
2 tablespoons ketchup
2 tablespoons Braggs Amino Acid
1 chipotle chopped fine with adobo sauce
1/4 cup molasses
2 tablespoons sugar (or more to taste)
Salt to taste, if needed

Preheat a sauce pan over medium heat. Saute the onions in the oil for about 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Add the garlic and ginger, saute for a minute more.

Add the blueberries, water and soy sauce and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add the chipotle, molasses and sugar. Lower heat and let simmer for about 45 minutes, until it’s reduced by about half. It should be nice and thick. Adjust sugar and salt if you need to. Turn the heat off and let sit for about 15 minutes before using, stirring occasionally.

I have just turned a new leaf! If you have read my previous posts, you may have noticed my focus on local, fresh plant -based foods.  There is now  a new name and look for my blog to capture this. Stay tuned for more recipes using fresh, whole ingredients, stories of local families farmers, restaurants and even artists who are trying to make Western North Carolina a more sustainable community and of course a few words of wisdom about nutrition.

With the garden bursting with tomatoes, zucchini, bell peppers, greens, rosemary and basil, here is a great recipe from Steve Petusevsky from the Cooking Light many years ago, it has been one of my husband’s favorites.

Tuscan Skillet

2 t olive oil

1 cup chopped zucchini

½ cup sliced onion

½ c sliced celery

½ c diced red or green bell

1 t oregano

2 cloves of garlic minced

1 c diced tomato

1-15 oz cannellini beans (or other white beans) rinsed and drained

2 sprigs rosemary

1 c chopped spinach or other seasonal green

½ shredded mozzarella cheese

½ t salt

1/8 t black pepper

Can also top with fresh basil

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add zucchini and next 5 ingredients and cook until slightly soft. Stir in tomatoes, beans and rosemary and cook about 2 minutes. Stir in spinach and remaining ingredients and cook about a minute until spinach wilts and cheese melts. Discard rosemary. Top with chopped basil Yield: 4 servings at 1 ¼ cup each and 205 calories. Serve with a salad to top off the meal.

I look forward to having you come visit again soon!

Eat it Green!

Denise

How did you do over the Thanksgiving weekend? Take time to weigh in. If you had not done as well as you had hoped, just remember that there are a lot more weeks that you can be successful.

The holidays can put extra stress in our routine because we add more to do. Lack of time can make healthy eating a challenge. Many of us are tempted to go through the drive-thru. Have you ever noticed the longer lines in the drive-thru and the food courts at the mall during the holidays and have told yourself, “I don’t have time to wait in that line!”. You might try packing a peanut butter sandwich and a piece of fruit to eat on the run. This can save time, money and calories. Here are also some tips that you can use to make healthy fast food choices that my friend Marcie has shared with me:

Here are some other time-saving ideas for the busy holiday season:

1. Make a list and plan menus. Pick one day a week convenient for you to shop.

2. Stock your pantry and freezer when things go on sale if you will need them in the near future.

3. Use one day over the weekend to do food preparation for the week by chopping, making sauces and cooking/freezing certain foods ahead of time.

4. How many times have you wished that someone would have your supper made for you when you get home? Try these great “Slow Cooker Recipes” at:

http://www.cookinglight.com/eating-smart/

Sorry to have missed Week 2 of your holiday eating challenge, my father died on November 20 and I was out of town without my computer and not thinking about the blog!

Week One: How Do I Measure Up? Get a Baseline of How You are Doing!

How do you measure your success if you don’t know where you are? This is why you need an initial weigh-in. Use the weekly weigh-in sheet to track your weight and see if you are maintaining. If your weekly sheet begins climbing, determine why and how you can prevent it from happening in the upcoming weeks.

You can also prevent extra pounds from creeping up by viewing your current eating habits and how they affect your weight. That is why a food record can be a critical piece of the puzzle, check out this website www.thedailyplate.com. Getting a closer look will help you make small changes adjustments over the next few weeks to balance your holiday intake. For example, a Thanksgiving meal may provide 500-1500 extra calories or more and many of us overeat the entire four day weekend. There are 3500 calories in a pound, so you can see how easy it is for them to add up. Most of us don’t notice before it is too late.

2009 Holiday Survival Food Challenge

Ready to maintain your weight this holiday season? Many of us gain least 1-2 pounds or more which is almost impossible to lose after the New Year.

The holidays may not be the time to make major lifestyle changes but you can prevent additional holiday pounds from sneaking on.

For weekly inspiration, check out my blog to receive holiday recipes, behavioral tips and other helpful information. You can print off the weekly holiday weight log below to track your own progress over the next six weeks.

Looking forward to helping you maintain this holiday season!

Denise

Holiday Survival Eating Challenge

Weigh-In Log Sheet

Date

11/16____________________________________________

11/23____________________________________________

11/30____________________________________________

12/07____________________________________________

12/14____________________________________________

12/21____________________________________________

12/28_____________________________________________

01/04_____________________________________________

In Western North Carolina, there is a vast availability of wonderful and healthy local food and I am going to share some of these with you in my series titled “Healthy Mountain Harvest”. I am starting with one of my new favorites, the Sunburst Trout Farm outside of Canton, North Carolina. Recently, I had the pleasure to take a tour with Sunburst’s owner, Sally Eason to visit the farm and see the process of how the fish get from their farm to our plate. Sunburst raises the trout sustainably in an environment that is totally free of pollutants such as mercury, PCBs or pesticides. The food provided to the fish contains no animal by-products, antibiotics or growth hormones. One of the greatest health benefits of eating farm raised trout is that it is a great source of omega 3 right up there with wild salmon. In addition to the health advantages trout has, its flavor, color and texture make it a wonderful choice. Some of my favorite ways to prepare it include poached, grilled or broiled. Besides fillets, Sunburst also offers a variety of products made from trout which include caviar, sausage, jerky and smoked. If you have not tried Sunburst trout, you can pick it up at Ingles, Green Life and Earth Fare. You can also purchase it at the Asheville City Market and meet some of the wonderful team members from the farm.

Although, I absolutely love fall but feel a little sad when summer ends. This past Tuesday on September 1^st, I taught a cooking class titled “Great Grains” at the North Carolina Arboretum. I paired these grains with the last of bit summer’s produce. I made quinoa risotto with corn and tomatoes, a buckwheat pilaf with eggplant and roasted red pepper and a wild rice salad with peaches and raspberries. Below I have included the risotto recipe:

Quinoa Risotto with Corn and Tomato

Serves 6

1 ½ fresh corn taken off the cob

1 cup chopped tomato

½ cup chopped onion

1 clove garlic minced

¼ cup chopped basil

1-2 tablespoon parmesan or local goat cheese

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 ¼ cup vegetable broth

1 cup quinoa

Salt and pepper to taste

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until soft and translucent, about 4 minutes. Add corn and cook at minute or two and then garlic and quinoa and cook for about 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Don’t let the garlic brown.

Add the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the quinoa is almost tender to the bite but slightly hard in the center, about 12 minutes. The mixture will be liquidy. Cook until quinoa grains have turned from white to translucent, about 2 minutes longer. Add chopped tomato towards the end.

Stir in the cheese and basil. Season with the salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

When thoughts come of summer, we often think of watermelons, picnics and the barbecue grill.  Preparing meals on the grill not only keeps the heat out of the kitchen but also provides an opportunity to eat outside. The foods that we choose can often be started ahead of time so we can spend more time with family and friends. Here is a warm weather menu idea that is not only mouth watering but also a healthier alternative to some of those old standbys. Happy Summer!

Summer Grill Menu:

Grilled Salmon with Mango Jalepeno Salsa

Southwestern Sweet Potato Salad

Marinated Green Beans with Tomatoes

Watermelon

Blueberry Sherbet

Here are some links to these recipes:

Grilled Salmon (you can use the corn salsa recipe instead of the mango one below)

http://zoneperfect.com/recipes/pm-Spicy-Grilled-Salmon-with-Roasted-Corn-Pepper-Salsa

Mango Salsa:

http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1611703

Southwestern Sweet Potato Salad

http://www.fabfrugalfood.com/side-dishes/southwest-sweet-potato-salad/

Blueberry sherbet

http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1023821