Braised Kale

Here is Emeril's recipe for braised kale. It's a healthy and delicious side dish. I'll eat kale with breakfast, lunch and dinner!

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups thinly sliced onions/shallots
1 teaspoon salt
12 turns freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons minced garlic
8 cups (firmly packed) torn and stemmed kale pieces (I used both dino and curly varieties)
2 cups chicken stock (water will work too, but stock is more flavorful)
Splash cider vinegar

Preparation

Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the onions, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add the garlic, kale, and stock and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes; add a splash of cider vinegar in the last minute of cooking. Remove from the heat. Serve immediately.

Red peppers stuffed with bison, wild rice and lentils

Just a random dinner on a weeknight. Healthy and filling! I could see myself making this again, but with slight modifications. For instance, It's probably better to stuff half peppers instead of full ones. Also, I tried my best to make it spicy and the jalapeño AND serrano AND cayenne were not enough. Hmm... Also, I want my stuffing to stay together better, maybe an egg would help? Not sure, but it's delicious regardless.

Ingredients

4 Red bell peppers (medium sized), cut off tops and remove seeds
1 bunch green onions (regular would be fine too)
1 serrano
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
3 cloves garlic
1/2 cup spanish pardina lentils
1/2 cup wild rice (or any other whole grain)
Salt to taste
Grated cotija cheese and cilantro to garnish

To prepare the stuffing:

Boil water in 2 small sauce pans. Cook lentils by bringing water to a boil, then cover and simmer for 20 minutes. At the same time, cook wild rice the same way, but boil for 30-40 minutes (until tender.

Meanwhile, start the bison. Sauté the onions, garlic, and serrano for 2-3 minutes. Add bison, 1 tsp cumin, 2 tsp salt, pepper, 1/2 teaspoon chili powder and cook until browned (medium), probably 5 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350.

Drain your lentils and rice, season with salt, pepper, and a dash of cayenne. Mix together with the bison and stuff the peppers with the mixture using a spoon and lightly packing down mixture. Add cotija cheese on the top and bake for ~40 minutes. *** Note: I think next time I will boil the peppers for 2 minutes to get them softer and then they will only have to bake for 20 minutes or so. ****

Garnish and serve w/salsa.

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

Easy & versatile - this green salsa can be used as an enchilada sauce, an accompaniment to chicken, a dipping sauce, or (my favorite) on top of scrambled eggs for chilaquiles!

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

Gadgets: Blender or food processor

Ingredients:

1 lb Tomatillos
3 Jalapeños (try serranos for added heat!)
1 while onion
6 cloves of garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin power
3 teaspoons of salt (approximately, so add 1 at a time and taste!)
Olive oil
Cilantro
Lime Juice

Preparation:

Set your oven to broil

Rinse tomatillos and peel off their sticky husks. Halve the tomatillos and jalapeños and put them into large baking dish with the garlic cloves and roughly chopped onions. Drizzle liberally with olive oil.

Broil for about 10 mins until the tomatillos are soft in the center and everything is starting to brown.

Transfer roasted veggies to the blender, add a little more olive oil and blend!

Now that you have the basis for the sauce, taste it! I think tasting is an important part of learning about ingredients and learning how to tailor your recipes.

Now, add the cumin, salt, and a handful of cilantro leaves (no stems please). Adjust the seasoning, add a squirt of lime juice, and garnish with more cilantro.

Makes approximately 5 cups

Healthy Oatmeal Cookies

I am a sucker for oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, so it's only appropriate that I learn to make a "healthy" version of my favorite treats. I use the term somewhat loosely, since I do not skimp on the amount of chocolate chips in the dough. However, the recipe does eliminate processed sugar and uses whole grain flour. Close enough... right? Because of the honey, these cookies are not overly sweet and, depending on how long you leave them in the oven, the consistency can range from soft and chewy to a little crunchy.

Before you put on your apron, beware- they never last longer than 2 days in my apartment. A friend of mine can devour a entire batch in a matter of hours. Don't say I didn't warn you....

Dark Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Cookies

Adapted from a Whole Grains Gourmet recipe

Dry ingredients

1 cup whole wheat flour (I use whole wheat pastry flour from the bulk foods section of Central Market)
1 1/2 cups of large flake rolled oats
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Nutmeg (optional)

Wet ingredients

1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup olive ol
1/4 cup applesauce (unsweetened)
1 Tablespoon Maple syrup or Molasses
1 egg (beat with 1 Tbsp Water)
1 tsp Vanilla

Optional ingredients

1/2 cup dark choc chips
1/2 cup dried cranberries, cherries, or favorite nuts

Preparation:

In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients together.

In a medium bowl, mix all the wet ingredients together. Note: Spray the measuring cup with a little pam to prevent your honey from sticking to slides.

Mix the wet stuff with the dry stuff. Add the choc chips/dried fruit. If the mixture seems too wet, add a bit of flour. This dough will seem a bit wetter than normal cookie dough and will be pretty grainy because of the oats. It's okay though!

Cool the mix for about 20 minutes in the fridge.

Preheat the oven to 335 degrees (honey burns more easily, so the temp needs to be lower).

Use a teaspoon to drop the dough on to a baking tray (spray with pam to prevent sticking!) Press down with a fork to ensure even cooking.

Bake for about 15 - 18 minutes or until golden on the bottom of the cookie. Makes approximately 20 cookies, depending on size.