From France with love

Care package from France

My best friend is living abroad and I think I get to reap the benefits, this just came in the mail over the weekend and I'm so excited to break it open. Unfortunately there were German Ginger cookies inside I already consumed before I photographed...So all I can say about those is that they were a buttery, gingery perfection.

These are delicate strawberry jam filled wafers. The jam is chewy and a bit gummy. Its a nice little midnight snack.


This cracks me up! Quinoa chocolate from Ethiopia, I think the one person who has my taste in adventure and food, buys me this! Quinoa is in chocolate is great because its used as a rice crispy substitute. YUM!

I used the herbed fleur de sel today to dust my salad dressing yum!!! Fleur de sel is delicate tasting sea salt, its in the name. I'm so excited to use this!!


So I'm going to have to save this for like some sort of life milestone! How cool is this! It's got nuggets of flower in the chocolate. I can't wait to try it. I've had pepper, chillies, bacon, lavender, salt...basically you name it I've tasted in chocolate. But I can't wait to dive in to this beauty!

When its rainy and cold outside because I'm living in the land of rain and fog, its nice to have a taste of warmth from across the pond.

Spring Salad with Modena Balsamic Vinaigrette

So I call this a spring salad because its colorful and light. I wanted it to show off my cheese...and I think it made my cheese look rather sexy. I used spinach because the flavor is light and dry so it doesn't overwhelm the citrus of the fruit or the creaminess of the feta. I added mixed nuts with cranberries. I sliced the mangoes thinly. I dusted the feta with some black pepper, the specks of black just look so pro. A few items that make this salad superior then your McDonald's verity I promise!


Black truffle oil, I hate mushrooms and swear with my life I can never eat them. The smell and texture makes me want to gag! But, for some reason olive oil infused truffle makes me salivate.

White truffle oil, a lighter more delicate taste, not as popular as black but a just as good in my book!
A good friend of mine was so sweet to buy me Wustof Santuko knives. I used the pairing knife to slice the mangoes paper thin. It was the most gratifying experience! After all, love is in the details.

The Dressing is just as important as the produce! For this recipe I used a simple vinaigrette, however the technique is pretty sweet. I spotted this recipe while watching a chef make Ceasar Salad dressing. I adapted the recipe to suit my balsamic needs.

Recipe Spotting's Balsamic Vinaigrette

Ingredients: serving size two

Your choice of Balsamic vinegar
Cold pressed olive oil
1 small egg
sea salt
black pepper
a pinch of cane sugar or agave juice

Recipe:

1. In a small bowl add 3 table spoons of balsamic
2. add a pinch of salt a dust or pepper and a pinch of sugar, mix
3. Separate the yolk from the white, add the white to the balsamic beat with fork
4. Add in olive oil until the mixture is loosened

You'll notice that the mixture will be fully incorporated and will the oil will not break away from the vinegar. The protein in the egg white allows the oil to bond with a non oil. Spoon over your salad and enjoy.

Fromage Blanc

I MADE CHEESE!

So there are a few things in life that one should simply never have to live without. One is amazing quality chocolate, the second is well cultured cheese and the third is love. What one needs to remember is each in moderation. While I'm trying to live by the 80/20 rule still (eat healthy 80% and indulge mildly 20% of my week). This doesn't exclude me from trying new things. I basically live mostly dairy free, sugar free, gluten free and wheat free. I do this because it helps me drop body fat. But mainly because my body doesn't tolerate these things well and neither does yours.

However upon pondering, if I did eat cheese, I'd want to know what goes in it. So it was quite refreshing to know just how easy it was to make my own organic cheese. It also gave me a deep appreciation for my local cheese farmer. Basic mozzorella is pretty simple. But moving on to Gouda, I think I'll have to block out a whole day. When I do attempt Gouda, you'll be the first to know about it...but I'll need to barrow a 45lb weight. Anyone in the market for free Gouda in return for loaning me a weight?

A few things in life that are priceless, a kitchen full of friends celebrating with you joking about "cutting the cheese" is one of them. So whatever choices you make in life, make sure you share it. --This is by far the best health advice I could possibly give you, because no amount of weight loss in the world can substitute authentic Love.

A few tips on the ingredients purchasing:
Ok so on to the cheese. I used Humboldt creamery organic milk. Cow's milk is easy to start with, its favor is mild and its a good choice to start with if your a cheese newbie like me. I am after all a city slicker and this is all new to me too.

For the one who wants to splurge a little and put the health consciousness a side for a min, also buy organic CULTURED buttermilk.

Thirdly you can squeeze two table spoons of lemon juice but if you've got some cuts just go buy organic lemon juice. It'll be useful later on when I move on to Gouda making. This way you don't have to worry about straining out the seeds and pulp.

Condiments: favoring the cheese is key at this level. Since there's no aging involved you'll need some sea salt or your cheese will be flat. you can also add any herbs to your leisure. For this first go, I'm going to keep it simple. I'll drizzle it with pepper and cold pressed olive oil upon serving. Eat it with crackers, bread, fruit etc. So as usual I spot recipes and make them BETTER. With this one, the key is freshest milk possible, the best salt and above all cold pressed olive oil. My other secret? White truffle oil. Yeah a few drops go along way!

Recipe Spotted: Fromage Blanc

Ingredients:

1 quart fresh organic, local whole milk (for newbies, pasteurized)
1 cup active-culture buttermilk
2 tsp lemon juice or white vinegar, more if needed
3/4 tsp salt, or to taste

Tools:

Cheese cloth
Medium pot
whisk
chopstick
rubberband or kitchen twine
strainer
medium bowl

Recipe:

1. Bring milk to a slow boil. Be sure to whisk so milk doesn't burn. To be accurate stick a thermometer in and measure milk to 180 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Once milk boils or reaches that temp turn off heat

3. Pour in buttermilk and stir to make sure buttermilk is thoroughly incorporated. At this stage you'll see the curdles happen.

4. Pour in lemon juice, stir and let sit for 15 mins.


5. Strain pot into cheese cloth lined strainer.


6. pour out the whey (liquid)


7. Wrap up the curds, do not squeeze. I use a chopstick and rubber band to hang the sack so it can continue to strain out the liquid.


8. let it strain for 30 mins.

9. check on your cheese and take it out of the cloth. You'll see sexy cheese cloth marks. Then you know that you did a good job.


10. Add seasalt to taste, mix it into the cheese or pat on top, the salt will develop flavor and work its way to the middle of the cheese. If you have a ramekin, mold your cheese to the ramekin and cover with saran wrap to chill in the fridge overnight. It's ready to eat but its at room temp and isn't well developed yet.


11. Cheese is a cottage cheese consistency but has a mozzarella taste. Serve on a plate drizzed with cracked pepper and olive oil. slice it up and make Bruschetta. Either way you have just made yourself the freshest cheese on earth! enjoy!

There comes a time of year, usually right before summer. I start to feel restless and inconsolable. I have to bid goodbye to a lot of my graduating students and often a few peers too. I suck at goodbyes and I'd rather just pat them on the back, say "see ya" and drive off into the sunset. But people are not like that, they like to give me long hugs that make me want to drip from the eyes. This time of year, can trigger desires to feed the "emptiness." So sometimes a little comfort food can really go a long way. If you know this is something you need, make a plan. Don't go buck wild, make sure the thing you consume is really worth it. That it is high quality and worthy of a cheat. What better way to cheat, then to make your own ice cream. It's really therapeutic and to me, cool as hell. But I grew up in "everything taste good from Costco" household..therefore anything homemade to me is cooler then hell.

Gelato is not the same as ice cream. While its made with some of the same ingredients, the concentration of the flavor is much more dense. Gelato has a lower butter fat content but higher sugar content then American ice cream. In yellow custard based gelato egg is used to give it that silky pudding-like texture.

When I lived in Europe Gelato was pretty much a food group. I've searched far and wide for something in the States to satisfy my taste buds but nothing compares to a scoop from Italy and eating it on the Spanish steps. -move aside froyo movement. I'm going back to the stuff kings ate.

Summer Strawberry Gelato

By MARTHA ROSE SHULMAN

I’m calling this “winter” strawberry gelato only because I’m making it with frozen organic strawberries. You can use sweet, fresh strawberries when they’re in season. The recipe is inspired by Sherry Yard, a pastry chef who taught me that you can make perfectly wonderful ice cream with no cream and no eggs. I make this one with 2 percent milk, but you could use whole milk. If you’re thinking of using skim milk, substitute water and make sorbet.

1 1-pound bag frozen strawberries; or 1 pound ripe, sweet strawberries, hulled

1/2 cup sugar, preferably organic fair-trade sugar

1/4 cup water

2 cups milk (2 percent or whole), Raw cows milk is great if you can get your hands on some

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Pinch of salt

1. Place a 1-quart container and one smaller container — for any extra gelato — in the freezer. Combine the strawberries, sugar and water in a medium saucepan, and bring to a simmer. Simmer until the strawberries thaw and become very soft, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat, and transfer half the mixture to a blender. Since the mixture is hot, just cover the top of the blender jar with a dish towel pulled down tight. Blend until smooth, and then add half the milk. Blend again until smooth. Repeat with the remaining strawberries and milk. Transfer to a bowl, and chill in the refrigerator.

2. Stir in the lemon juice and salt, and transfer to the container of an ice cream maker. Freeze according to the manufacturer’s directions. Scrape into the chilled container, and return to the freezer for at least two hours before serving. If frozen solid, allow to soften in the refrigerator for 20 to 30 minutes before serving.

Yield: Just under five cups, serving six to eight.

Advance preparation: This will keep for a couple of weeks in the freezer. The strawberry base can be made up to a day before you make the gelato.

Nutritional information per serving (six servings): 135 calories; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 0 grams monounsaturated fat; 7 milligrams cholesterol; 28 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 44 milligrams sodium; 3 grams protein

Nutritional information per serving (eight servings): 101 calories; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 0 grams monounsaturated fat; 5 milligrams cholesterol; 21 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 33 milligrams sodium; 2 grams protein

Martha Rose Shulman is the author of "The Very Best of Recipes for Health."

Beef Carpaccio with Miso Arugula Salad

So I have to admit that this blog is one part rant and one part food and health. However I wholeheartedly hope it is 100% recipes for better living.

This one is dedicated to how much I hate people. Please don't misunderstand. I love my friends, my family and I'd die for them. Why? because the ones worth loving are wonderful and its what Jesus would do. I'm talking about those naysayers. Those who think they know you, the ones who give you bad advice about your hair because their jealous of you. PEOPLE STOP YOUR SHENANIGANS!

Living a healthy life is knowing when to say no to the "others." One thing I've learned is to be patient with those who supply you with advice, but ultimately to listen to your gut.

Being dependent on someone else's opinion of you can cause a lot of problems. Let's say you want to eat healthy and you've been given the know of what to eat to achieve this. I guarantee there will be some co-worker who will be the first to tell you that just ONE little bite of cookie won't kill you. Politely turn to this person and tell them to shove it.

An example of this is someone who recently said to me, "oh my gosh you are crazy, you are losing too much weight, your eating TOO healthy!" --ok stick thin person I no longer like, you just said its a crime to be too healthy..hmm...

YOU know whats good for you. And you know how to take care of yourself. So while at first it can seem lonely, to diet and exercise alone...but once you start to yield results you'll feel happy and realize there is nothing greater then to invest in one self. One last thing to remember is to always keep an open mind. Soon after I know you'll find new friends who will come along and give you the exact support you need. People who share your love for health and happiness...these are the people you need to surround yourself with.

I spotted this recipe inspired by this thought. The thing, is beef carpaccio is nothing new, but its not something people eat everyday--in fact most would stare at me and give me that " is that safe?" look..but I think the friends in my life, those I'd drive hours for? They'd share a plate with me. In fact they'd be the one ordering it.

There are many, many verities of this but this is the one I tried and loved. For those of you who don't know Carpaccio is the Italian's method of preparing a raw meat anti-pasta. \ dish was named Carpaccio by Giuseppe Cipriani, in reference to the Venetian painter Vittore Carpaccio, because the colors of the dish reminded him of paintings by Carpaccio

Beef Carpaccio with Arugula and Frisee salad

6 oz. beef tenderloin
2 tsp. olive oil,
a few drops truffle oil,
the juice of 1/4 lemon,
1 pinch fresh basil, chopped,
1 oz. Parmesan shavings,
1 tsp. sweet balsamic reduction,
salt to freshly ground black pepper to taste.
a hand full of arugula and sprigs of frisee

Directions:

This recipe is for one entree or two appetizer servings of beef carpaccio:

-Wrap the tenderloin in plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 2 hours.

-After 2 hours, unwrap the tenderloin and thinly slice the beef into approximately into 1/8 to 1/4-inch pieces.

-Lay out sheets of plastic wrap and place each slice onto the plastic.

-Top with another piece of plastic and gently pound the meat with a meat mallet until paper thin. -Keep two dinner plates in the fridge and take them out before serving. -Arrange the carpaccio in the plates in the form of a flower - Mix together the olive oil, truffle oil, lemon juice, fresh basil, salt and pepper, and brush it over the carpaccio.

Top with the Parmesan shavings.
Drizzle some sweet balsamic reduction on the edges of the Carpaccio plate for decoration.

**some choose to sear the tenderloin first before slicing. this is up to you, i prefer the rawamazingness. But if its your first time and your a bit timid about raw beef, searing will def be a good choice for you. only sear each side very quickly...too much and you'll overcook it!

Salad:
Mix miso, sesame oil, salt pepper and lemon together and mix with salad, add some sliced almonds and. decorate your plate with your salad, shave Parmesan on top

enjoy!