food

Coconut Lime Berry Cake

/ still a dreamer / 8 Comments

Berries are in season! So I decided to make my dessert for my friend’s and my Memorial Day get together utilizing some of nature’s bounty. I clipped a recipe for a Coconut Lime Berry Cake a while back from Martha Stewart, and this seemed the perfect time to make it.

I used three very full cups of berries, one each blueberries, blackberries and raspberries, and here it is ready to go in the oven.

It wasn’t a cake that browned very much except around the edges, but it did take a bit longer time than the recipe specified, which I checked twice with the standard toothpick in the middle test.

The cake turned out well, and was very moist. It’s all butter and includes buttermilk, so it’s hard to go wrong on that count, and the berries got soft and mushy, dropping through the batter. Although the grated lime and fresh lime juice gave it a nice tropical kind of kick, I am thinking now that I might like it even better with lemon instead of the lime. And there’s always more time to bake with berries in season.

Grilled Cheese Strikes Again!

/ still a dreamer / 10 Comments

When you want some veggies but don’t feel like salad or even like putting too much energy into your meal, the occasional grilled cheese with some healthy additions is always good. So here’s my latest grilled cheese. (Apologies for focus on the photo; I wanted to eat my sandwich while it was hot and rushed a bit on the picture taking!)

Grilled cheese with simple veggies

I’m using The Baker bread again, this time whole wheat and bran. On that I have sliced tomatoes, lots of shaved sweet red onion, and a mix of 50% reduced sharp cheddar and fat free Feta. Although I do love butter, I don’t always make my grilled cheese sandwiches with it. This time I used organic Smart Balance to keep the fat content in check. Still comes out quite good, but in my opinion, butter is ALWAYS better. And on the side, Dude Ranch Tortilla Chips from Early July.

Enjoy!

Salad Called My Name

/ still a dreamer / 2 Comments

Salad and I haven’t really been talking much of late. In fact, we’ve been on the outs.

Although it’s been a warm winter out this way, soup, veggie pizza and many other vegetable concoctions have really been hogging the conversation. Salad just didn’t seem to have much to say.

It’s not like Salad and I don’t get along. We go way back. But as of late? Salad’s mind seemed somewhere else and so did mine. I started to wonder if it was really over. You know … OVER.

But then while food shopping this past weekend, Salad caught my eye in some half-pleading, half-come-hither kind of way. Next thing you know, some veggies I hadn’t entertained in my cart in a while were along for the ride. And on their way home with me.

And then, fellow blogger D. LaSauce, featured this beautifully plated salad yesterday. It felt like a conspiracy, but Salad was somehow working the magic behind the scenes.

Lunch today? Salad totally had me. Called my name and I waltzed to the kitchen helplessly in thrall and put together the tasty organic dish you see above. That’s Spring baby greens, red onion, cucumber, orange bell pepper, and feta cheese tossed with light salt and pepper, extra-virgin olive oil and lemon juice.

That Salad’s a pretty clever one, eh?
Being back together is always sweet and Salad knows it.

The Dirty Dozen … and Safer Eating for You

/ still a dreamer / 2 Comments

Are you looking to make some healthier changes in the way you eat? Here’s one way – lower your intake of pesticides. The timing is perfect as yummy fresh produce is making its way to local merchants of all kinds.

The Dirty Dozen is a list of produce which carries the highest pesticide load of any fruits and vegetables in the U.S. This list has been publicized by many including Dr. Andrew Weil, Martha Stewart, Prevention Magazine, Oprah, the Environmental Working Group and more, yet this information still seems to not have reached a great deal of the general public. Pesticides, particularly organophosphates, which are the most widely used, can harm the nervous system and are stored in tissues. The developing brains of young children and festuses are at the highest risk. Organophosphates are also used to make nerve gas, and often remain present even after washing and peeling. What to do? Don’t be discouraged … just make better choices.

The Dirty Dozen – it is recommended that these 12 fruits and vegetables be purchased as 100% organic** and that baby food including these 12 be also purchased as 100% organic. Here are the Dirty Dozen – apples, celery, peaches, strawberries*, spinach,  nectarines (imported), grapes (imported), sweet bell peppers, potatoes, blueberries (domestic), lettuce and kale/collard greens. (Prevention Magazine – see link above – covers this more broadly and includes how pesticides are also found along the food chain in meat, dairy, etc.)

The Clean Fifteen – and now the good news – the following fifteen fruits and vegetables carry the lowest pesticide load and can be eaten safely: onions, sweet corn, (this is one of the most common GMO crops in the U.S. — if a concern, buy organic), pineapples, avocado, asparagus, sweet peas, mango, eggplant, cantaloupe (domestic), kiwi, cabbage, watermelon, sweet potatoes, grapefruit and mushrooms.

It is always recommended that we eat a good variety of fruits and vegetable to assure we are not taking in particular pesticides to excess.

*According to Prevention Magazine – “Strawberries are the crop that is most heavily dosed with pesticides in America. On average, 300 pounds of pesticides are applied to every acre of strawberries (compared to an average of 25 pounds per acre for other foods). Thirty-six different pesticides are commonly used on strawberries, and 90% of strawberries tested register pesticide contamination above safe levels.”

* *Here’s more good news. With the arrival of Spring, farmer’s markets and roadside stands are popping up and selling fabulous fresh produce. Ask your local farmer about how he uses pesticides. Increasing numbers of farmers may be growing organically but not going through the costly, (as I understand), process of being certified, or are growing their food sustainably with a minimum of pesticides. Don’t be shy … ask! They’ll usually be happy to share what they do, and you can make more informed, safe and delicious choices.

(Note: Although this is not generally the subject matter of this blog, I thought I would share this information due to the timeliness and the season.)

Making A Cup of Excedrin

/ still a dreamer

Perhaps you didn’t know … I only found out yesterday by chance … there was a massive recall in January of all Excedrin products by their manufacturer Novartis, as well as a recall of Bufferin, No-Doz, and Gas-X.

Yesterday, I woke with a screamer combo sinus/migraine headache. My go-to med is Excedrin. I have two scrips – one makes my heart race and the other knocks me out, though both are effective, just not if you want to have a pleasant day, or a day at all. Excedrin does the trick as a rule, but wanting to take it with food, I waited, and then happened across the recall information. So first I panicked – now I might have small pieces of other drugs in my Excedrin – even though Novartis’ web site says there have been no reported incidents and that it was a precautionary recall. Forget that I had two bottles and had already used a fair amount from both. Now I was in trouble. I checked the web site for lot#, but mine had been 2 bottles in a box and I no longer had the box. Maybe I escaped this fate! I called Novartis. Nope. My bottles were on the recall list. Crap.

So let’s forego the logic that the Excedrin I had on hand were OK so far. Now I eyed them suspiciously. I decided to try an experiment. I would make my own Excedrin.

Checking the amounts on the bottle for each tablet, I made up the equivalent by combining Tylenol, aspirin and a cup of coffee, (Yes, I looked up how much caffeine was in a cup, etc.) I took it all together, and wouldn’t you know … it worked!  It took a little longer than Excedrin alone as the delivery system was somewhat compromised, but still …

So if you’re stuck with a recalled bottle, make yourself up a cup of Excedrin! Or … use the ones that have already proven perfectly safe, or buy a generic/store brand in the supermarket. That’s what I did this afternoon, and they may work out every bit as well. But really, I prefer coffee.

p.s. A note for all you Excedrin takers:  According to the woman I spoke with at Novartis, the Excedrin that were not part of the recall and definitely safe were those that come in packages of 2, 4, 8 or 10.  So if we can find them, she said these are OK.