Eating a Rainbow: Easy Chicken Stir Fry

A couple months ago I read an article in a health magazine that said you should try to incorporate as many colors as possible into your daily meals.  No, Doritos do not count.  I'm talking about produce, people.  Basically the article was encouraging people to incorporate a larger variety of veggies in their diet, because they all offer so many different nutritional goodies.

I've been trying to make our meals as healthy as possible (when I actually have time to cook), and really took this advice to heart.  As much as Ryan eats frozen and canned crap (seriously, the man actually likes Chef Boyardee for chrissakes), he is really good about eating vegetables.  So when I get the chance to stuff him full of them, I do.  Plus, rainbow food is just pretty.

I make stir fry at least once a month, it's one of Ryan's favorites, and cooks up in under 20 minutes.  Healthy, fast, and tasty?  Sold.

Now, don't cop out and go buy a bag of frozen stir fry vegetables that are already coated in "asian seasoning."  Just don't do it!  Go to the produce section of your grocery store, and start grabbing colors!  This is also a really great way to use up any spare produce you have hanging out in your fridge that you aren't quite sure what to do with.  Seriously, I've gotten rid of extra eggplant this way.  It's also a prime opportunity to try out some of those weird and fancy-sounding items hanging out over by the avocados in the grocery store.

If you've never stir-fried before, it's pretty idiot proof.  Just chop up your veggies (add a protein if you want, I cut up some chicken breast), and sauté with a few tablespoons of an oil of your choice on high heat.  If you have a wok, great, if not, a large sauté pan will do.  As for oil, I had vegetable on hand, but sesame or peanut would work equally well.  I'm thinking next time I'll try using coconut oil and throwing some lemongrass and peanuts into the mix for a different flair.  About halfway through cooking, I like to add in my soy sauce.  I don't know if this is the correct procedure, but it works well for me.

Ryan and I are also big fans of a condiment called chili garlic paste.  I always add a tablespoon or two in the last few minutes of cooking.  Add at your own discretion, this stuff is spicy!  I also boil up some whole grain brown rice to serve the stir fry over.

So there you have it.  Stupid easy, stupid good, and stupid healthy.  Now, go eat yourself a rainbow.

Spinach and Pine Nut Pasta

Just when you thought you couldn't possibly consume one more green smoothie, alas, a solution!

And you thought pine nuts were only for going into pesto?

Prepare to have your world rocked.

Because friends, I have here a recipe for the easiest and tastiest pasta ever.

EVER!

Also, it's only around 420 calories a serving.

You're welcome.

Okay enough gloating.  Here's what you'll need:

1.  1-lb. bag of tortellini.  Doesn't matter what kind. Use what is cheap you like.

2.  Bag of baby spinach.

3.  Container of sliced portobello mushrooms.  You could slice them yourself if you're feeling extra Martha Stewart but I've got more important things to do than cut up mushrooms.

4.  Pint of cherry tomatoes, halved.  You're going to have do the slicing on this one, because they don't make pre-halved cherry tomatoes.  I checked.

5.  Garlic.

6.  Pine nuts.

7.  Cheese of your choice (not shown).

8.  Extra virgin olive oil (also not shown).  

Alright, let's make this bitch!

1.  Boil the pasta according to the provided instructions.  Duh.

2.  Meanwhile, heat up a few tablespoons of EVOO (yeah, I just Rachel Ray'ed you) in a large saute pan over medium-high heat and add mushrooms, tomatoes, and one clove of minced garlic (if you're a freak like me and have a 97-gallon tub of minced garlic in your fridge, 1/2 tsp = 1 clove).

3.  When mushrooms have started to soften (about 2-3 minutes), add ENTIRE bag of spinach.  You're going to have a spinach mountain and you'll wonder why the hell you ever decided to follow one of my recipes.  REMAIN.  CALM.

The spinach is going to cook down quickly, so just gently poke it down into the pan until its volume is reduced enough that you can stir it without making a huge, spinachey mess.

See?  Not so scary.

4.  Your pasta should be cooked and drained and transferred either back into the pot or into a serving dish right now.  If you've managed to forget this step, you should probably go do it now.

5.  Add the contents of your skillet to the pasta, INCLUDING that weird spinach/tomato/olive oil water at the bottom.  This is a sauce-less pasta, but not having any moisture at all would be gross and not very tasty.  That's what she said.

6.  Divvy up your dish among bowls and sprinkle (liberally) with pine nuts* and cheese of your choice.  Parmesan is always a good go-to, but Pecorino Romano is practically made for this dish.  The nuttiness of the cheese plays off the pine nuts' flavor beautifully. 

7.  Resist the urge to dump salt over everything, you cholesterol-loving American.  The pine nuts and cheese will provide plenty of flavor.

8.  Enjoy!

* Pine nuts, if you don't already know this, are a tree nut, so if you're allergic to things like peanuts, do not use them unless you are trying to commit literal culinary suicide or have an epi-pen handy.

** You're going to have a bunch of pine nuts left over.  Just seal 'em up in a ziploc bag and pop 'em in the freezer.  Makes excellent snack.  And no, the nuts won't actually freeze.  Yeesh, learn to trust me, why don't ya?

Easy Eggs

I have probably THE WORST eating habits of anyone I know.  Namely, I eat one full meal a day, and it's usually at 10:30 pm after I get out of work.

Working in a restaurant for what is now approaching five years can seriously jack up your eating schedule.

I've been getting into the habit of eating breakfast, but it leaves me feeling a little peckish before I go in for the dinner shift.  I don't want to stuff up on heavy food because I'm still in the habit of eating dinner late in the evening (and if anyone has ever worked in a restaurant, you know how much mid-shift snacking goes on).

So, here's one of my tried-and-true late afternoon snacks: hard boiled eggs!

Hard-Boiled Eggs with Mustard*

136 cals

374 mg chol

0 g carbs

240 mg sodium

12 g protein

0 g fiber

Here's what you'll need:

Two eggs

Coarse mustard

Salt

Fresh herb of your choice (I used basil in the picture above, but cilantro and parsley are equally delicious)

Make It!:

1.  Hard boil your eggs.  Don't know how to do that? It's easy!  

2.  Place your eggs in the bottom of a small saucepan, add COLD water to cover your eggs by about an inch.  Add some salt in case your eggs crack while boiling (this will keeps your whites from running out into the water).  Bring water to a boil, then TURN OFF YOUR BURNER!  

3.  Leave your pot where it is, and just cover it and let those babies sit for 10-15 minutes (12 minutes is the magic number on my crappy electric stove, but times will vary; gas burners may need to sit a little longer, as the electric coil holds heat whereas a burner won't.).  

4.  Remove eggs with a slotted spoon and run under cold water or place in the fridge or an ice bath until you can handle them.

5.  Peel and cut in half.

6.  Top with a dollop of grainy mustard and an herb of your choice.

7.  Enjoy!

*Recipe adapted from Whole Living

The Cure for a Sore Throat

1. Spend all night at work feeling like crap.

2. Come home and drink one mug of piping hot Hot Buttered Rum (add some honey for a little extra throat-soothing sweetness. Also, only use 1/3 the amount of rum Emeril suggests. Seriously.)

preferably in front of one of these:

3. Get plenty of sleep.

Using a shot of 100 proof rum may or may not have killed any organisms attempting to live in my throat.  Results not evaluated by the FDA.

Have a happy weekend!

Apple & Pear Crostadas

I've been a busy bee over here, trying to get both my semi-grownup life and my Halloween costume together.  And I've been recruited to be Ryan's official makeup artist tomorrow night.  He's going to be some kind of Satanic demon-priest?  And he wants his look to be perfect.  This guy is putting on the pressure, let me tell ya!

I digress.  Needless to say, between the makeup and the aforementioned roommate situation, I've been a little stressed out.  Which means I've gone into blog-reading overload.  Some people, when stressed, drink. Or cry.  Or clean.  I read blogs.  In fact, on Tuesday I didn't even get out of bed until it was time for my night class.  But before I was forced to put on pants get it together, I was pulled in by that homemaking maven, Martha Stewart.  This woman ALWAYS gets me in trouble.

I was browsing her Thanksgiving recipes (I refuse to think about Christmas yet), and found a recipe for an Apple and Cheddar Crostada.  So, I got to baking and let me tell you, these things are perfection.

Please, try not to drool on your keyboard.  Wanna know how to make this puppy?  Of course you do!  It's so easy even I didn't screw it up!