Another Question of the Week

 Random food question of the week - if you could eat one thing and one thing only - regardless of nutritional value - what would it be?

Let us know.I don;t know what mine would be

Spring Food Essentials

 This is the time for picnics and easy eating. The New York Time s had a lost of easy recipes to get through the Spring season and into summer. What you do need is a list of staples togt you through the season.

What should you have?
Cans of tuna and salmon these are great with may and chopped celery for quick salads or chunked into salad Nicoises.

Veggie chunks. 

Think peppers, grape tomatoes, broccoli and cauliflower florets. You can use these in kabobs along with salads.They're also great steamed with rice or with pasta in  alight sauce,

Buy a rotisserie chicken every now and then.

The parts will come in handy for all sorts of dishes from moles to salads.  You can also buy containers of the shredded meat at grocery stores like Acme.

Olive oil

This goes without saying. Use it in all sorts of cooking and salad making

Boxes of rice and containers of pasta

Uses these for hot and cold dishes. Leftover rice and pasta can be repurposed with chicken, fish and veggies for a tasty salad.

Fruits of the season

Strawberries and blueberries are in abundance right now. They're great with any kind of whipped cream as a relatively low  calorie dessert.They also work well added to a vinaigrette and salad.

Keep your Spring kitchen stocked with these for easy cooking and easy eating. It's also a healthier spin on what to make, especially with all the in season fresh produce. This is a list to keep.

Guilty Pleasures Diet Style

 Sometimes it;s just strawberries and coconut whipped cream. Sometimes it's just lemon hummus with stome ground crackers. They make dieting fun and they're actually tasty.

Here's the question -what is your guilty dietetic  pleasureit could be a bar of ninety percent cocoa.It could be a tofu fry up.Mine is blueberries with coconut whipped cream on them.It;sa healthier alternative to ice cream.

What is yours .Let is know.

Sick Day

 It's day off with hot soup and a glass of iced Pepsi.

Not Your Typical Outdoor Fare

 This is the time for eating out and having barbecues.Yet burgers and hot dogs may seem too ordinary to celebrate warm days and dinners outside. Instead try a Greek or Turkish twist.It gives that al fresco meal and extra lift.

Regular contributor Dave Tanis gives this exact spin  for his recipes seen today in The New York Times Wednesday Food section. He gives some lift to tje average salad. He does what many Greek andTirkish chefs and home chefs do - adding some pickled veggies. he makes pickled beets with a sweet -sour  brine of coriander and cinnamon .Hard boiled eggs are also added to his and they come out a delightful bright pink color.  Since these and the beets are already pickled fresh lettuce and cucumber spears are also added. The salad can keep for a week in the fridge.What would follow thos? Think a veggie pie, not made with spinach like typical spanokopita but one rife with Swiss chard,and softened leeks. Creamy cheeses such as ricotta and feta give it body and protein It;s wrapped in a buttered phylo dough which makes for a crispy crust.Nutmeg and sesame seeds give it a more Hellenic twist.

Dessert isn;t the typical smores.Mr. Tanish gives wamut truffles , again walnuts play an important part in  Greek baking.This only has a dusting of cocoa, so it;s not the typical fudgey truffle.It also has coconut and sweetened with honey and sugar. The spicing is cinnamon and cloves along with ginger for bite .There is a dose of Gran Marnier , much like other truffle bite.Olive oil moistens the whole mixture. Everything is first pulsed Ina food processor the olive oil is applied to the hands which moistens the mixture. They're rilled int tablespoon sized balls and can be rolled into coconut or cocoa powder. Refrigerate over night or just  a  few hours.Pull out of the fridge and hour before serving. The spices could be varied so one flavor isn;t as overwhelming. There should be about three and a half cups of walnuts used for this.Keep in mind that this could also be made for any other barbecue too.

There's nothing like a Greek spin on outdoor foods. Try bring a taste of the Eastern Mediteranean to the back yard. It'sa great way to celebrate the warm weather,

New Diet New Spin

 Sometimes your body tells you to go on a diet. Kidney stones, gallstones, stomach issues, they all gently dictate that maybe we should eat healthier  and better.  THe foods have to get better.The old habits have to be replaced by new.

I'm discovering this as I found out I'm plagued by kidney stones.These are not little grains of sand..They're huge , honking rocks that are causing blockages. They have to be blasted out of me in what's known as a ureterscopy where a laser is inserted and used to destroy the offending stone. I've had kidney stones for years but they didn't;t become troublesome until some urine tests came back abnormal. Further investigation led to a giant stone in the ureter the tube that takes the urine form the kidney to the bladder. Stones are caused by a number of bad food and drink choices. After all ,like the liver ,the kidneys are filters, filtering any liquid we ingest. I quickly found out my diet soda habit had to be quit.Dark colored colas like Coke and Pepsi (along with other brands) are full of phosphoric acid .This acidifies the urine which produces crystals which eventually become stones.I 've switched to lighter  ro clear colored sodas like Poppi which is lower in sugar along with Fresca. It also helps to try to drink as much water as I can to let the stones flow out (although this can be hard, especially if you're not a water drinker like me)>

Salty foods are also off the table. I can still have chips but they have to be the lightly salted kind. Some fast foods are allowed but only in moderation. Burger King's Impossible Burger is ok to eatbut only once or twice a month.The fries should be the kid portion size. Even taco Bell is allowed with such options as been soft and crunchy tacos.My favorite ,the veggie power bowl with chicken is a fine dinner thanks to the chicken , fresh veggies (just go easy on the tomatoes) and beans. At home I find forgoing the Gardein nuggets which are high in  damaging sodium.Their chicken strips ,made with pant based meat are healthier,especially when dipped unflavored olive oil and then so air fried they resembled chicken fries. Surprisingly the usually healthy veggies like spinach and kale are definitely off the table. Both contain high amounts of potassium . LUckily there is my other favorite  broccoli which I can eat just steamed  and plain. Certain fruits are now forbidden too. Bananas are off the table along with avocados. Coconut is frowned upon too. However I can eat as many strawberries and blueberries  as I want which I love with coconut cream  (which is weirdly allowed.)

Keeping kidney stones at bay requires a new diet.Some foods are old friends. Some old friends have to be forgotten. It's a new world navigating what right and what's good for me.

Jamaican Kidney Bean Soup Spicy Goodness

 If you want a different kind of soup try Jamaican kidney bean .This is a fiery blend of goodness that can be made vegan to satisfy everyone form Rastas to vegans. A great aspect is that is can be tailored to what;s in the kitchen, Just add a few veggies and kidney beans  for a tasty marriage of flavors.

I saw the recipe and wanted to adopt to a vegetarian table. It starts with kidney beans. The original recipe calls for dried beans left to soak overnight but I found those straight form the can with their liquid also work.

Water and coconut are the base but I feel a vegetable broth adds more flavor to this I used the entire container - sixteen ounces pus two cups of coconut milk.

The beans are first sauteed in a mixture of Melt plant butter and olive oil. This is an extra step but it adds sooo much flavor to the soup. IThe spices are added.The original recipe called for Scotch bonnet but that's super hot and super fiery.

A combo of Chili powder and Berbere spice go well together. Chili powder adds a brightness and heat while The Berbere spice gives a sweet mellow heat. Then garlic and onion powder are added too  (although a chopped onion and minced garlic can also be used)

You can add any kind of veggie you want ,Jamaicans use root veggies like turnips and carrots but I also used crushed tomatoes which gives the soup a Manhattan clam chowder vibe 

I microwaved this for five minutes to tenderize the flesh.It was then cut into manageable slices and lightly mashed.I plan on using turnips and parsnips for the next time I make this.

Everything was brought to a rolling boil to really cook down the beans and yam slices. This also helps to meld the spices too.

This is one of the best soups I;ve made in a long time. I loved the spiciness and the coming together of the chili powder and Berber spice blend. It had a Manhattan clam chowder vibe like earlier stated, warm and flavorful, along with being deeply satisfying.It;s also good with rice if you want to add that later.

Jamaican kidney bean soup is a great soup to make for the weekends or week days. It's a spicy tasty blend. There really is flavor in every spoonful!!