Cool Ranch Massaged Kale Salad

The ying and the yang, good v. evil, each action has a corresponding reaction, every rose has its thorn...we live in a world of opposites.

Remember my Hot Massaged Kale? Not to be outdone by Newton's third law, I developed a complimentary salad to answer to the spicy kick of the chipotle in the first recipe. Enter the Cool Ranch Massaged Kale Salad. Where the "Hot" was, well, hot, the "Cool Ranch" is not. The herbs in this salad give a feel of spring, despite the December air. I recommend making double the dressing so you have extra to dip crudités into!

Cool Ranch Massaged Kale Salad

Ingredients:

1 head kale, destemmed and torn into bite size pieces

1/2 tbs salt

2 tbs olive oil

1 avocado

1/2 tbs honey

2 tbs fresh parsley

2 tsp fresh dill weed

1/8 wedge from a small yellow onion

1 small clove garlic

1/4 tsp pepper

1 tbs lemon juice

1-2 tbs almond milk, as needed

6 cherry tomatoes, quartered

1/4 c carrots, thinly sliced

1 tbs sunflower seeds

Directions:

In a medium bowl, combine kale, salt, and half the olive oil. Massage the kale until the leaves start to take on a shiny, wilted appearance.

In a blender, puree the rest of the oil with avocado, honey, herbs, onion, garlic, pepper, and lemon juice until smooth, using the almond milk to thin as necessary. Toss the remaining ingredients and the dressing with the kale to combine. Serves 2.

Big Pot of Chili and Jalapeño Beer Bread

As part of my preparation for my raw experiment in January, I'm trying to cook everything that I will most likely crave in the wee weeks of the year. One of those things is a steaming hot bowl of meat-ful chili and a thick slice of toasted bread.

Also, I wanted to try out my shiny new Cuisinart. Formerly when I wanted ground beef, I'd pick up the cut of meat I wanted then have the butcher grind it down for me (I have a very serious aversion to pre-packaged ground beef....I mean, really, who knows what is put in there?). With the powerful new processor on my counter, I can grind my own meat. Yay! These are the things that make me happy....

So here it is....a HUGE pot of chili. I wasn't thinking clearly when I decided to grind one pound each of chicken and beef (instead of total). The result is enough chili to feed a small army....or just my family for two nights.

The bread was a vehicle to help me get rid of an insane number of jalapeños from my parents' garden. I still have quite a few, but at least this made a dent!

Big Pot o' Chili

Ingredients:

1 lb chuck roast, placed in freezer for about an hour

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs, placed in freezer for about an hour

4 tbs butter

1 tbs dried marjoram

1 tbs dried savory

1 tbs mustard seed

1 tbs caraway seed

1 tbs peppercorns

1 tsp salt

1 tbs chili powder

1 medium yellow onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 medium carrots, thinly sliced

2 celery stalks, thinly sliced

1 6oz can tomato paste

4 15oz cans diced tomatoes, undrained

2 c water

2 15oz cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 tbs Chipotle Tabasco sauce

additional salt and pepper

greek yogurt and fresh parsley, to garnish

Directions:

Cut the beef and chicken into 1" cubes. In a food processor, pulse until ground to desired consistency.

Melt the butter over medium-high heat in a large stock pot. Add the ground meat and allow to brown. In a spice grinder, combine marjoram, savory, mustard, caraway, and pepper; grind into powder. Add ground spices, salt, and chili powder to the browning meat and stir to combine.

Once the meat is mostly brown, add onions, garlic, carrots, and celery. Allow to cook 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the tomato paste and stir to coat ingredients. Pour in the diced tomatoes and stir to combine. Add water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add kidney beans and Tabasco. Stir to combine, cover, and reduce heat to medium-low. Allow to simmer 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

If needed, add additional salt and pepper to taste. To serve, ladle into individual bowls and top with a spoonful of greek yogurt and some chopped parsley. Makes a whopping 16 servings of chili!

Jalapeño Beer Bread

Ingredients:

3 c unbleached all-purpose flour

3 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/4 c sugar

1/2 c roasted jalapeños, diced

1 c shredded smoked cheddar

1 12oz bottle beer

1/2 c butter, melted

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375F degrees.

Combine the dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Add the jalapeños and cheese. Pour the beer into the mixing bowl and stir until blended. Pour mixture into a greased 9" loaf pan and pour melted butter over the top of the loaf. Bake one hour or until golden brown. Cool for 5-10 minutes in the pan, then remove from pan and cool an additional 10 minutes before slicing. Makes one spicy loaf of bread that is perfect for dipping into soup or sandwiching for grilled cheese with a kick.

A Vegetarian Baby Shower - Part II - Avocado Sandwiches, Quinoa-Stuffed Peppers, and Rum Runner Punch

It's part deux of the baby shower goodies that graced my sister's party! Here we have miniature avocado sandwiches with tomato pesto, sweet peppers stuffed with Indian-flavored quinoa and served warm, and the non-alcoholic punch meant to mimic a rum runner. Enjoy!

Avocado Sandwiches

Ingredients:

2 avocados, peeled, pitted, and sliced thinly

1/4 c fresh lime juice

30 slices whole wheat cocktail bread, toasted

1/2 c prepared sun-dried tomato pesto

1/4 red onion, thinly sliced

1/2 c broccoli sprouts

Directions:

Toss the avocado slices with lime juice. Spread 15 slices of bread with pesto. Top the pesto-covered bread with avocado, onion, and sprouts. Top with remaining slices of bread and secure with a toothpick. Makes 15 mini-sandwiches.

Quinoa-Stuffed Sweet Peppers

Ingredients:

1/4 lb (about 15) sweet peppers

1 tbs peanut oil

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 c carrot, finely shredded

1/2 cup spinach, washed patted dry and roughly chopped

1 green onion, thinly sliced

1/2 teaspoon garam masala

1/2 cup cooked quinoa

salt and pepper to taste

2 tbs pine nuts

Directions:

To prepare the peppers, cut a slit in the pepper lengthwise from the stem to the tip. Gently open the pepper and pull out the seeds and ribs.

In a medium skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté about a minute (don't allow to brown!). Add remaining vegetables and sauté until the spinach is wilted down, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garam masala. Add the quinoa and stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside to cool.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Stuff each pepper with the quinoa mixture and place on a baking sheet, cut side up. Heat in the oven for 15 minutes. Serves 4-6 (I doubled the recipe for the party).

Rum Runner Party Punch

Ingredients:

2 c pineapple juice

2 c orange juice

2 c blackberry juice

1 c pomegranate juice

4 tbs rum extract (1 oz)

2 tbs coconut flavoring

2 bottles sparkling white grape juice

1 liter club soda

Orange and lime slices

Directions:

Chill all juices and the soda before making. Combine all liquids in a large punch bowl and garnish with fruit. Makes about 20 1-cup servings.

Hot Massaged Kale Salad

Here's another raw recipe--this one adapted from The Raw Chef's recipe. By the way, I highly recommend signing up for his e-zine. It's entertaining and has great recipes! I first heard of this individual from my friend, Amber (of Almost Vegan), who had Russell James as an instructor at raw culinary school. I likes his site, so I signed up. So far, it's been a great (free) investment!

Anyway, this salad is great for the cold weather that's hit all of a sudden. Despite being uncooked, it's extremely warming with the spicy chipotle doing what it does best. Chipotle peppers are obviously not raw, but raw Nazis (rawzis?) could sub in cayenne or a fresh serrano for the heat. Kale is typically a pretty rough leaf to tackle, but massaging it with salt and oil causes the fibers to break down a little; this gives the kale more of a blanched texture. Plus, who doesn't love salt and oil?

Just saying the name of this salad raises my temperature a little....imagine a room lit only by candlelight....a little Barry White wafting through the speakers....and then someone says to you, "Hey baby, wanna have some hot massaged kale?" Aw yeah....

Ahem. Or it's just a healthy, easy to prepare salad. After all, who wants a relationship with a bunch of leaves? Now excuse me as I casually walk away from the awkward silence.

Hot Massaged Kale Salad

Ingredients:

1 head kale, destemmed and torn into bite-sized pieces

1/2 tbs salt

2 tbs olive oil

2 tbs grapefruit juice

1/4 tsp grapefruit zest

1 tbs tahini

1/2 chipotle pepper

1/2 tbs agave

1/2 grapefruit, segmented

1/4 c red onion, thinly sliced

1/4 c sunflower seeds

Directions:

In a medium bowl, combine kale, salt, and half the olive oil. Massage into kale until the leaves start to take on a shiny, wilted appearance.

In a blender, combine the remaining oil with the juice, zest, tahini, pepper, and agave. Toss the remaining ingredients and the dressing with the kale to combine. Serves 2.

Raw Asian Noodles (and very rare steak)

I received my first box of raw goodies the other day....just some hemp seeds, seaweed, sun-dried olives, and liquid aminos. The offspring had their curiosity sparked by the kelp noodles and asked me to make something with them.

Hell, I thought....why not? Let's see what this raw-anti-chef-to-be can come up with!

I threw together some standard ingredients and ended up with this raw noodle salad....Asian-style. Because I had it in the fridge, I also did a quick pan-sear on a steak and served it with the noodles. The kids dug it, as did I. Not too shabby for a first try, I don't think!

Raw Asian Noodle Salad

Ingredients:

2 tbs liquid aminos or tamari

1 tbs sesame oil

1/2 tbs fresh ginger, grated

1/4 tsp black pepper

5 pearl onions, peeled and thinly sliced

4 oz lobster mushrooms, julienned

1 medium carrot, shredded

1 stalk green onion, thinly sliced

1 12oz package kelp noodles

Directions:

Whisk together aminos, oil, ginger, and pepper. Toss dressing with remaining ingredients and allow to sit a few minutes to allow the kelp noodles to soften. Serves 4.