Healthy Food Recipe

Archive for August, 2009

(serves 6)

12 eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup freshly grated parmesan
Freshly ground black pepper
Olive oil
500g broad beans, skin removed*, cooked and roughly chopped.
1 bunch rocket, stalks removed
5ml balsamic vinegar
20ml olive oil
50g parmesan, shaved

1. Combine egg, parmesan and pepper. Place in an oiled frying pan over a high heat. Add broad beans and reduce heat. Cook until eggs are almost set.
2. Toss rocket with vinegar and oil, then sit on frittata with parmesan. Serve immediately in pan.

*Shell beans. Put in boiling water for 3mins. Drain, run under cold water then remove skins.

Serving size: 1/2 cup bean mixture, one flour tortilla. Makes four servings.
• 2 cups canned black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder, or to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice
• Pepper to taste
• 4 (9-inch) low-fat flour tortillas
• 1/2 cup white or brown rice, cooked
• 4 tablespoons salsa
1. Coat a medium-size, nonstick pan with cooking spray. Sauté garlic and onion until lightly browned and softened.
2. Add beans, water, chili powder, all spice, and pepper. Heat until hot and most of the water has been absorbed.
3. Heat tortillas in oven or on burner. Put rice in each tortilla, then spoon in beans, and roll each tortilla up.
Serve with salsa.

Nutrition facts per serving Calories: 221 • Carbohydrates: 38g • Fat: 3g
Cholesterol: 0mg • Protein: 10g • Fiber: 9g • Sodium: 327mg
Food exchanges: 2 starch/bread • 1 lean meat

Grand Marnier Mussel Stew was a recipe that was created for a contest given to San Francisco chefs for alternate food creations for Thanks Giving. This mussel stew being an alternative for the traditional clam chowder.
The recipe is in two movements: a fume with mussels in alcohol and cream based soup with potatoes and vegetables.
Fume
• 4 tbsp. Butter
• ½ c Bacon or salt pork or barbecued tofu depending on your pleasure, chopped
• ½ c each carrots, celery, onions, mushrooms, parsley, chopped fine
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed & chopped
• 1 tbs. Each oregano & thyme
• Dash saffron, curry. & fresh cracked pepper
• 5 lbs. Mussels
• 1 cup each brandy and Grand Mariner

Melt the butter; put in the spices. meat or meat substitute, and sauté the vegetables in descending order of toughness. When onions are clear and carrots are soft, dump in Mussels. Don’t bother to clean the shells … adds more flavor. Pour in liquor cover to steam.
Remove Mussels when shells open and meat begins to coalesce. Don t over cook. Place in a pan to cool. Allow fume to simmer. You want to reduce the fume by ½. Remove Mussel meat from shells, discard beard, and save meat.
Soup
• 4 oz. Butter
• 1 slices Bacon. salt pork. or barbecued tofu, chopped
• 2 cup carrots finely grated
• 2 cup celery, onions, portabello mushrooms, parsley & cilantro, chopped course
• 3 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped
• 2 tbsp. Each oregano & thyme
• 2 c up 1 inch chopped, boiled red potatoes, aldente
• 2 qt. Whipping cream, or ½ & ½, or nondairy creamer—your preference
• 1 tsp. Each curry, saffron & pepper
• ½ cup flour
Melt butter in a 1-gallon soup pan. Put in ham meat and cook till clear. sauté vegetables in descending order of hardness. Save parsley & cilantro to the end. Mix in spices. When onions are clear mix-in the flour. When flour is well mixed add cream. Mix until smooth.
Add boiled potatoes. When Mussel Fume is to the desired concentration, filter it into this soup mixture. Do not pour the last of it for it contains the “enemy”, sand. Add parsley and cilantro at the end. As you serve add the 2 tbsp. of Mussel meat to each portion.

Ingredients:
1 pkg frozen green beans — (16 ounce) 500g
1 pkt chicken broth — dry crytals
1 bunch scallion
2 lg garlic bulb
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp splenda
1 tbsp peanut butter — creamy
1/8 tsp sesame oil — chinese
Directions:
In a 2-quart 2 litre microwave-safe casserole dish, combine green beans and broth granules. Cover and microwave on high for 4 minutes. Meanwhile,
slice white bulbs of scallion into rings and mine garlic. In small bowl, combine ginger, soy sauce and SPLENDA. Add scallion rings and garlic. Set
aside. Remove green beans from microwave and uncover. Pour sauce over beans and stir. Cover and microwave on high for 4 minutes. Stir in peanut
butter and sesame oil until sauce coats the beans and serves immediately.

Make 6 servings
Nutritional information, per serving (excluding unknown items):
52 Calories; 2g Fat (29.4% calories from fat); 3g Protein; 7g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 143mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain (Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 1 Vegetable; 0 Fat.

Couscous is tiny grains of pasta that is often used in Moroccan cooking.
It combines well with dried cherries in this salad that’s a great accompaniment to pork, lamb or poultry.

Makes four cups, about six servings.
• 1 cup water
• 3/4 cup quick-cooking couscous, uncooked
• 1/2 cup dried tart cherries
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped carrots
• 1/2 cup chopped cucumber
• 1/4 cup sliced green onions
• 1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds (optional)
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard
• Salt and pepper, to taste
1. Bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan; stir in couscous.
2. Remove from heat; let stand, covered, 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Uncover; let cool 10 minutes.
3. Put cooked couscous, dried cherries, carrots, cucumbers, green onions and
almonds in a large mixing bowl; mix well.
4. Combine vinegar, olive oil and mustard; mix well. Pour over couscous mixture, stirring to coat all ingredients. Season with salt and pepper.

5. Serve chilled or at room temperature

Nutrition facts per serving Calories per serving: 171 • Total Fat per serving: 5.6 g
Cholesterol: 0.1mg Food exchanges 1 starch/bread • 1 fat

This is kind of Chinese Chicken recipes, Chinese cooking can be very healthy as it contains low carb as well as low fat dishes.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons Dry sherry
• 4 green (Spring) onions, chopped
• 1 Piece of root ginger, shredded
• 500g (1 pound) boned chicken, cut into 1 inch strips
• 2 Celery sticks, sliced
• 125g (4oz) button mushrooms, quartered
• 1 Green pepper, cored, seeded, and sliced
• 2 tablespoons Light soy sauce
• Shredded rind of 2 lemons
• A few lemon slices to garnish
• 2 tablespoons oil for stir-frying

Directions:
Put the sherry, spring onions and ginger in a bowl. Add the chicken, toss well to coat, then leave to marinate in the bowl for 15 minutes.
Heat the oil in a wok or frying pan. Add the celery, mushrooms, and the green pepper and stir-fry for one minute. Add the chicken and marinade, then
cook for 3 minutes. Stir in the soy sauce and lemon rind then cook for a further minute.
To serve, pile into a warmed serving dish and garnish with lemon slices.

Makes 4 to 6 servings. Preparation Time: 45 minutes
Nutritional information, per serving
294 Calories; 6g Fat (20.0% calories from fat); 53g Protein; 3g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 144mg Cholesterol; 346mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain (Starch); 7 1/2 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 0 Fat.

Although the mussel has played a noteworthy role in gastronomy for thousands of years. Americans rank as late appreciators of this delectable shellfish. Historical indifference in this country—few early cookbooks even acknowledge its existence—relegated the mussel to wallflower status while its cousin was endlessly feted at elaborate clambakes.
Over the years, however, as the country has become home to people from every corner of the globe, the esteem in which this mollusk is held internationally has spread to the western side of the Atlantic. Traditional recipes have been assimilated and adapted and have served as inspiration for new preparations, creating a rich potpourri represented in
part by the recipes that follow. The sweet, delicate flavor of the mussel can be highlighted by such simple treatments as steaming in wine, or the mollusk can be combined with a variety of ingredients to produce a dish of great complexity as well as elegance.
Whereas mussels are cultivated in Europe to supply a multitude of devotees. American shores harbor a natural, and still relatively neglected. abundance. The prolific blue-black bivalve is easy to harvest along the littoral at low tide as it clings to piers or surf-washed rocks. Called “poor man’s oyster,” the mussel supplies a wealth of flavor and versatility at nominal outlay, and the investment of effort in cleaning and preparation is amply repaid in savor.
How To Clean Mussels
Scrub the mussels well in several changes of water, scrape off the beards, and rinse the mussels. Soak the mussels in just enough cold water to cover for several hours or overnight to disgorge any sand. Or soak the mussels in cold water sprinkled with a handful of cornmeal for 1 hour. Drain the mussels and rinse them under running cold water.

How To Steam Mussels
Arrange the mussels in one layer in a baking pan and put the pan in a preheated very hot oven (450° F.) for 7 to 8 minutes, or until the shells have opened. Discard any unopened shells.

Porphyra nereocystis
Porphyra nereocystis is epiphytic (real close neighbor to) on the Bullwhip Kelp, genus name Nereocystis. Porphyra as most know it, is commonly called nori. If you eat sushi, then you have probably seen Porphyra. It’s the seaweed that
your uncooked fish is wrapped in at the sushi bars.
Porphyra, commonly know as nori, is the most widely consumed seaweed in the world! It’s commonly found in Asian food, especially Japanese food, which has lead to the huge nori industry in Japan. With a very interesting
heteromorphic life history, Porphyra has just everything you would want in an alga! And they’re great to eat!
Nereocystis luetkeana
Otherwise known as the Bullwhip Kelp, Nereocystis is one of the giant kelps that make the great kelp forests, where sea otters and other critters live. Washed up on the beach they may look like dismembered tentacles of mythic sea creatures, or horrendously huge pieces of spaghetti. They have been used to weave baskets and also make great musical instruments.
Pelvetia compressa
Pelvetia compressa (now Silvetia compressa) is a common rocky intertidal brown alga on the west coast of North America ranging from Coos Bay, Oregon to lower California (Ensenada.)

Pelvetiopsis limitata
Resembling a dwarf Fucus, and even behaving like Fucus (if one were to believe that algae can behave in specific manners at all), Pelvetiopsis grows mostly atop of rocks in the upper intertidal zone. One way to distinguish these two from each other, is to look for a midrib. Fucus has a midrib and Pelvetiopsis lacks the midrib. Also, believe it or not, if you squeeze the receptacles (swollen tips) of Fucus, an ooze will come out.
This ooze undoubtedly contains Fucus eggs which if you have microscopic vision, you can see that the eggs are composed of 8, yes count them 8 functional eggs. Pelvetiopsis on the other foot, only has 1 functional egg.
Iridaea flaccida
Greek myths describe Iris, the goddess of the rainbow, as a messenger for the Olympian deities. The characteristics of the alga Iridaea flaccida strikingly reflect its namesake. The same properties of light which produce a rainbow provide Iridaea’s surface with its brilliant iridescence.
Vibrant colors wash across the thallus surface due to the multilayered construction of its cuticle. Flaccida subtly manages to communicate its phase of life history to the casual observer–yet it lives an isomorphic existence. Both its iridescent cuticle and the differences in blade strength between its life phases provide insights into the adaptations of wave-swept algae to mechanical stress.
Ulva fenestrata
Ulva is very common along California in bays as well as heavily exposed sites and easily recognized by the small holes in the thallus. Ulva is a genus of algae that includes species that look like bright green sheets and live primarily in marine environments. They can also be found in brackish water, particularly estuaries. They live attached to
rocks in the middle to low intertidal zone, and as deep as 10 meters in calm, protected harbors. Ulva are usually seen in dense groups.
Commonly known as the sea lettuce or the green laver, Ulva species can be eaten in soups and salads, and used as a substitute for nori (Porphyra), the popular seaweed in sushi. Ten species of Ulva exist worldwide, all of which have representation on the coast of California. The shapes of Ulva are quite varied- circular to oval to long and narrow, ranging in size from microscopic to 65 cm. They have fine, silky textures with waved or ruffled margins. The delicate blades of Ulva are usually only 40 microns thick.

Ulva taeniata
This alga characteristically has a ribbon-like thallus, and we have found it growing abundantly in semi-sheltered habitats.
Postelsia palmaeformis
The common name of this seaweed is the “sea palm”. It grows on the tops of rocks in areas associated with intense wave action. When they reach maturity, spores are produced that slime off of the sharply attenuated blades during low tide, where they then settle and differentiate.
Fucus gardneri
Fucus, pronounced like mucus, is a funny looking alga that grows in the upper intertidal zone. The inflated ends are called receptacles (these house reproductive parts, i.e. eggs and sperm), and they are fun to pop. But be careful, because Fucus sometimes feels like mucus.
Limpets
Limpets are in the group of sea snails that are found all over the world. You will find them clinging to rocks. Their homes are usually a scraped out region of a rock as large and as thick as their shells. During the day, they look for food. They live on algae. Limpets use their tongues to scrape algae off the rocks.