No Chicken Needed For This Curry

  

Looking for a light, vegetable-based curry, that packs quite the flavor? Nicki Sizemore, who wrote the new cookbook Fresh Flavors for the Slow Cooker came by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her recipe for this amazing dish, which is based on red curry paste, onion, garlic and ginger. Nicki says she also uses coconut milk and peanut butter to give it a creamier texture. She uses cauliflower, but Nicki says you can use most other vegetables create this curry, which is nutritious and delicious.

Ingredients

Aromatics

• 1 tablespoon virgin coconut oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced ginger
• 2 tablespoons red curry paste

Slow cooker

• 2 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce (preferably Red Boat brand)
• 1 tablespoon tamari or soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
• 1 large head cauliflower (2 1/2 pounds), cut into 2-inch florets
• 1 pound red potatoes (about 3 medium potatoes), cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2 cup canned coconut milk, well stirred
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2 cups frozen cut green beans
• 1/3 cup roasted, unsalted peanuts
• 1 tablespoon sriracha
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For serving

• Cooked rice or quinoa
• Coarsely chopped peanuts
• Chopped cilantro
• Sriracha

A Curry For The Fall

 

Looking for a light, vegetable-based curry, that packs quite the flavor? Nicki Sizemore, who wrote the new cookbook Fresh Flavors for the Slow Cooker came by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her recipe for this amazing dish, which is based on red curry paste, onion, garlic and ginger. Nicki says she also uses coconut milk and peanut butter to give it a creamier texture. She uses cauliflower, but Nicki says you can use most other vegetables create this curry, which is nutritious and delicious.

Ingredients

Aromatics

• 1 tablespoon virgin coconut oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced ginger
• 2 tablespoons red curry paste

Slow cooker

• 2 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce (preferably Red Boat brand)
• 1 tablespoon tamari or soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
• 1 large head cauliflower (2 1/2 pounds), cut into 2-inch florets
• 1 pound red potatoes (about 3 medium potatoes), cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2 cup canned coconut milk, well stirred
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2 cups frozen cut green beans
• 1/3 cup roasted, unsalted peanuts
• 1 tablespoon sriracha
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For serving

• Cooked rice or quinoa
• Coarsely chopped peanuts
• Chopped cilantro
• Sriracha

Exquisite Escarole

   

Talk about an Italian Delight! Michele Scicolone, who wrote the Italian Vegetable Cookbook stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her recipe for sautéed Escarole. Michele says her recipe is a delicious way to excel at Escarole and very easy to make as well. She notes you can serve it as a lunch with poached eggs, or whatever you wish, as it goes well with a number of items. See the recipe below in the dialog box.

Powerful Fritters

   

Thinking about those tasty fried morsels known as fritters, the first thing that probably wouldn't come to mind, is that of a power food.  But that's exactly what these fritters are!  Camilla Saulsbury, who wrote The Chickpea Flour Cookbook, stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her delicious idea for Power Veggie Fritters.  Not only do they pack a nutritious punch, but they really taste good.

Camilla says the key to keeping the fritters healthy, is the use of Chickpea flour, which contains far more nutritional value then just regular flour.  Combine that with the vegetables you'll use, and you're looking at a very powerful snack!

• 4 -1/2 cups shredded zucchini (about 4 medium, 2 lbs)
• ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt, divided
• ¾ cup chickpea flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup finely chopped green onions
• 2 teaspoons Sriracha
• 2 tbsp olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Set a mesh sieve or colander over the large bowl; line with a clean dish towel
2. Place zucchini on top of towel and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon of the salt. Let stand for at least 30 minutes
3. Gather the ends of the dish towel together and squeeze as much liquid as possible from the zucchini into the bowl; discard liquid and place zucchini in bowl.
4. Add the eggs, green onions, chickpea flour, baking powder, Sriracha, and remaining salt to bowl; mix with wooden spoon until well blended.
5. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Working in batches, drop ¼ cupfuls of zucchini mixture into skillet, flattening slightly; cook until golden and crisp, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer fritters to a paper towel-lined plateRepeat with remaining batter, adding remaining oil as needed.

NOTES

*You can keep the fritters warm in a 200°F oven as you cook the batches.

*Feel free to vary these with your favorites herbs (e.g., basil, dill,cilantro) or a bit of cheese (e.g., ⅓ cup grated Parmesan or 1 cup sharp Cheddar).

Excellent Escarole

  

Talk about an Italian Delight! Michele Scicolone, who wrote the Italian Vegetable Cookbook stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her recipe for sautéed Escarole. Michele says her recipe is a delicious way to excel at Escarole and very easy to make as well. She notes you can serve it as a lunch with poached eggs, or whatever you wish, as it goes well with a number of items. See the recipe below in the dialog box.

Escarole par Execellence

 

Talk about an Italian Delight! Michele Scicolone, who wrote the Italian Vegetable Cookbook stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her recipe for sautéed Escarole. Michele says her recipe is a delicious way to excel at Escarole and very easy to make as well. She notes you can serve it as a lunch with poached eggs, or whatever you wish, as it goes well with a number of items. See the recipe below in the dialog box.

Powerful Fritters!

 

Thinking about those tasty fried morsels known as fritters, the first thing that probably wouldn't come to mind, is that of a power food.  But that's exactly what these fritters are!  Camilla Saulsbury, who wrote The Chickpea Flour Cookbook, stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her delicious idea for Power Veggie Fritters.  Not only do they pack a nutritious punch, but they really taste good.

Camilla says the key to keeping the fritters healthy, is the use of Chickpea flour, which contains far more nutritional value then just regular flour.  Combine that with the vegetables you'll use, and you're looking at a very powerful snack!

• 4 -1/2 cups shredded zucchini (about 4 medium, 2 lbs)
• ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt, divided
• ¾ cup chickpea flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup finely chopped green onions
• 2 teaspoons Sriracha
• 2 tbsp olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Set a mesh sieve or colander over the large bowl; line with a clean dish towel
2. Place zucchini on top of towel and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon of the salt. Let stand for at least 30 minutes
3. Gather the ends of the dish towel together and squeeze as much liquid as possible from the zucchini into the bowl; discard liquid and place zucchini in bowl.
4. Add the eggs, green onions, chickpea flour, baking powder, Sriracha, and remaining salt to bowl; mix with wooden spoon until well blended.
5. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Working in batches, drop ¼ cupfuls of zucchini mixture into skillet, flattening slightly; cook until golden and crisp, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer fritters to a paper towel-lined plateRepeat with remaining batter, adding remaining oil as needed.

NOTES

*You can keep the fritters warm in a 200°F oven as you cook the batches.

*Feel free to vary these with your favorites herbs (e.g., basil, dill,cilantro) or a bit of cheese (e.g., ⅓ cup grated Parmesan or 1 cup sharp Cheddar).

Sheet(pan) Happens

  

It could be a mish-mash, or as gourmet as you want it to be. It's called Sheetpan Chicken, and it's a perfect, easy meal to make anytime! Chef Deannie Klein stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her recipe, which when you make it, doesn't have to be to the letter of what she does. You simply take a whole chicken, season it with balsamic vinegar, basil and a little honey and place it on a sheetpan. Then you combine it with whatever vegetables you may have around and roast it all together. It's a great anytime dinner!

Taste The Rainbow

 

Everyone loves popsicles, especially kids. They'll probably want them more as the summer days arrive. So the question, how to give the kids the popsicles they love, while keeping them healthy?  Siri Daly, who's the food contributor for NBC's Today Show and the author of the new cookbook Siriously Delicious, came by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her recipe for Rainbow Popsicles.  Each color is a fruit or vegetable. Case in point, red are strawberries, blue are blueberries and green is spinach. To keep the colors solid, Siri told Tonia to layer thicker smoothie batters like strawberries, on top of thinner ones.  That way the colors should hold.  Note, you will need popsicle molds to make these delicious treats!

Siri Daily Today Show Food Contributor
Author Siriously Delicious

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup fresh raspberries
  
• 1/2 cup fresh spinach
• 1/2 cup raw organic coconut water (such as Harmless Harvest)
• 1/2 mango, peeled, about 1/3 cup
• 1/4 cup fresh blueberries
• 1/4 cup fresh strawberries
• 2 tablespoons hemp seeds
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• One 5.3-ounce container (about 3/4 cups) coconut yogurt, preferably So Dairy-Free Yogurt
• Place all ingredients in a blender and blend on high until smooth. Fill the popsicle molds and place in the freezer until frozen solid, about 12-24 hours.

Excerpted from Siriously Delicious by Siri Daly. Copyright © 2018 Oxmoor House. Reprinted with permission from Time Inc. Books, a division of Meredith Corporation. New York, NY. All rights reserved.

The Healthy "Potato" Chip

 

I love them, you love them. Potato chips are extremely tasty, they're also lacking when it comes to nutrition. But there's a way to simulate the chips and get mega-nutrition while you're snacking thanks to kale. Suzanne Landry, who wrote the cookbook, The Passionate Vegetable came by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her "Cheesy" Kale Chips.  They're loaded with nutrition and taste, and despite the name, they don't actually have cheese. Suzanne told Tonia she uses curly leaf kale for this recipe because it takes the sauce better.  As for the sauce (which is the boss!), Suzanne starts with a whole chopped red pepper, the juice of a whole lemon, and a half teaspoon of teaspoon of sea salt.  Place everything in a blender and mix together.  Then add a 1/4 cup of nutritional yeast and raw cashews.  When the sauce is blended, it looks like Velveeta cheese!  Pour the sauce into a pan and toss the stemmed kale leaves in the mix and bake the leaves until crispy.  Then you enjoy the kale krunch!

1 head curly leaf kale

1 cup raw cashews (soaked for 1 hour), drained

1 whole red pepper, seeded and diced

1 lemon, juiced

¼ cup nutritional yeast

½ tsp. sea salt

1 clove garlic minced

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

Optional: extra virgin olive oil.

1.  Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Strip kale leaves off of stem. Whatever stem remains on top is tender enough to eat. Reserve stems for juicing or soup stock. Wash, drain and spin dry kale. Place in large bowl.

2.  In a blender, add red pepper, salt and lemon juice. Blend until liquid. Add cashews and remaining ingredients.  Blend on high until you get a very smooth consistency. There should be no lumps of nuts in this sauce.

3.  Gently, massage the kale with both hands to soften the leaves. Now add the cream and massage the kale with the sauce until all kale is coated.

4.  Place on cookie sheet on single layer. Use 2-3 cookie sheets if necessary.  Place in oven and bake for 2 hours.  If you have a dehydrator then place on racks and dehydrate for 12 hours.

Note: It is nutritionally better to soak the nuts but not absolutely necessary for this recipe.