Category: Vegetables

Organic Thai Red Curry Chicken

This is better than restaurant Thai food- especially because YOU control the ingredients.   It took me a total of about 25 minutes from start to finish so “no time” is not an excuse here.  You couldn’t even drive to a restaurant and back in 25 minutes!  This meal is perfectly acceptable on the advanced plan and makes wonderful leftovers.  You can control the spice by adding more or less curry paste.  You could also make this a veggie dish by excluding the chicken and adding more vegetables.

Put this up against your favorite Thai restaurant!

2 teaspoons coconut oil

1 pound organic, free range chicken breasts, sliced very thin with a sharp knife

1 tablespoon Thai red curry paste (you can make your own or purchase store-bought but check ingredients!  You don’t want any sugar hidden in there.  )

1 cup organic zucchini, sliced (remember, this is one of the Dirty Dozen- you need to go organic)

1 red bell pepper, sliced into strips (another dirty dozen veggie)

1/2 onion, chunked

1 can full fat coconut milk

1 avocado, cut into chunks

2 tablespoons fresh cilantro (optional)

Other optional add ins:  broccoli, mushrooms, small chunk of lemongrass, 1-2 kaffir leaves (I keep sliced lemongrass and kaffir leaves in my freezer to use in soups, Thai dishes, etc)

Heat the oil in a non-toxic skillet like cast iron or thermalon (GreenPan) and brown the chicken.

Add in the rest of the vegetables and cook until chicken is done and vegetables are slightly cooked but still firm.

Add the coconut milk and red curry paste and mix.

Simmer for a few minutes and discard kaffir leaves and lemongrass.

Top with avocado and add fresh cilantro if desired.  Serve and enjoy.

Kimberly RobertoLeave a comment

Fresh Green Beans from the Garden

My son and I went out to the garden yesterday and hunted through the tangled bean vines and came in with a whole pot full.  There is nothing more satisfying than eating food that was grown in your own back yard.  My husband graciously build up a fenced in garden area so that the monstrous rabbits that co-habitate with us can’t eat everything.  My mother in law runs the planting operation, and my kids and I are on picking duty.  Even if you just grow 1 tomato plant, it is worth it!

I steamed these beans and put some salt and butter just before serving.  Delicious!

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Veggie Strata

I’ve come across several ‘strata’ recipes lately and wanted to try to convert them to a Maximized Living Nutrition Plans recipe.  The cook’s definition for a Strata is : a bread pudding-like layered comfort food casserole made with eggs, cheese and stale cubed bread (or sometimes hash browns).  Since regular cubed bread and/or hash browns were out, I decided to substitute Ezekiel bread which would be acceptable on the Core Plan.  Certainly, you could leave the bread out all together for the Advanced Plan- it would turn out more like a crustless quiche.

The other nice thing about this strata is that you can use any combination of vegetables and cheeses you have on hand.  Don’t be afraid to experiment with flavors.  You can even assemble it the night before and cook it the next day.  This also stores well and can be eaten cold in a lunchbox or on the go.   It is a recipe that you can use for breakfast, lunch, or dinner and is very flexible.  Just use what you have on hand or what is in season.

Veggie Strata

I used grated zucchini and raw cheddar cheese in this strata

1 tablespoon coconut or grapeseed oil

1/2 chopped or grated onion

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme (or whatever other spice you like)

2 cloves garlic, chopped or pressed

Approx. 1 cup of any of the following: organic grated zucchini, chopped asparagus, chopped baby bella mushrooms, spinach, artichoke hearts

Approx 1/2 cup – 3/4 cup any of the following cheeses:  raw cheddar, goat cheese, fontina, parmesan, etc.

1/2 teaspoon sea salt (divided)

8 organic, cage free eggs

1 cup almond milk, raw milk, goat milk

2 tablespoons organic dijon mustard

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (or 1 tablespoon dried parsley)

Black pepper to taste

3 slices Ezekiel (or any sprouted whole wheat bread), crusts removed and cut into cubes – LEAVE THIS OUT FOR ADVANCED PLAN!

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onion, thyme, and garlic and cook until soft.  Add in the vegetables and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and cook until cooked but still crisp.  Set aside.

Whisk together eggs, milk, mustard, parsley, pepper and remaining 1/4 tsp sea salt.

Butter a 9×13 baking dish and place the bread across the bottom.  Spread veggie mixture over the bread then sprinkle with 1/2 of the cheese.  Pour the egg mixture over the vegetables and top with remaining cheese.  Let stand for about 10-15 minutes to let the bread soak up some of the liquid.

Bake in a 375º oven for about 30 minutes or until firm in the center and browned on top.

Let stand for about 10 minutes before cutting into squares and serving.

Cut strata into squares for serving

Kimberly Roberto1 Comment

Stuffed Porto Patty

Last night, I decided to go meatless and made Stuffed Porto Pattys from the Maximized Living Nutrition Plans Book.  One of the many joys of cooking is being able to improvise.  I was out of tomatoes so I just substituted chopped zucchini instead.  I also substituted a very light sprinkle of raw cheddar cheese instead of goat cheese.   The portobello mushrooms are so rich and meaty and satisfying that will satisfy even big appetites.

Before Cooking

These portobello mushroom caps make the perfect ‘bowl’ and can be stuffed with any veggies you have on hand.  You can even leave off the cheese entirely.   The recipe suggests grilling, but since it was raining last night, I just popped mine in a 350 degree oven for about 25 minutes.

You can also assemble the mushrooms ahead of time and just sprinkle with the cheese and pop them in the oven when you are ready.  It only took me minutes to gather and chop the ingredients, then just 25 minutes in the oven.

 

4 medium portabello mushroom caps

1 large tomato, diced

1 organic yellow bell pepper, diced

6-8 kalamata olives, sliced

4 leaves chopped basil

1/2 small red onion, diced

2 handfuls organic spinach

2 teaspoons garlic, minced

2 tablespoons grass fed butter or avocado oil

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon course ground black pepper

goat cheese crumbles or raw cheddar cheese, optional

 

Melt butter or avocado oil and lightly cook garlic until tender.  Wipe off any dirt from the mushrooms with a damp towed.  Brush insides of mushrooms with half of the melted butter/garlic mixture.  Sautee peppers, onion, tomatoes, spinach, olives, salt, and black pepper with the rest of the butter/garlic for  3-4 minutes or until tender.  Meanwhile, grill or bake mushroom caps for approximately 4 minutes or until softened.  Fill the caps with the veggie mixture and cheese if desired, continue cooking until cheese is melted and everything is heated together.

After Cooking

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Kale Chips- Unbelievably Yummy!

I’m not sure I would have ever believed that Kale chips would be a good replacement for potato chips but these things are awesome.  The trick is to use a dehydrator to get the crispy texture.  I made these as samples at our Total Food Makeover last Saturday and I had so many comments about how good they were.  Here you see my kids “massaging” the kale to get it prepared for the dehydrator.

Dehydrated Kale Chips

2-3 bunches of fresh kale (lacinato/tuscan or curly)

1/4-1/2 cup olive oil

Juice of 1/2 lemon

Sea Salt to taste

Any other spices you would like:  garlic powder, chili powder, red pepper, etc.

#1 – Prepare the kale – I prefer to leave most of the stems in but if you are preparing for kids or skeptics, you may want to cut out the hard stems.  Chop into bite sized pieces and put in a big bowl.

#2 – Add the rest of the ingredients and here’s the trick:  massage the kale to incorporate all of the flavors and to soften the texture.  It should be about 1/2 the size of where you started.

#3 – Spread on the sheets of a dehydrator.  (I use an Excalibur that I bought refurbished for about $150- it has 9 dehydrating shelves).  Set dehydrator for 115 degrees – this keeps all of the enzymes in tact meaning it is still considered a raw food.  The dehydration process takes about 8 hours.  I usually put it in before bed and it is ready to go first thing in the morning.

ALTERNATE METHOD:  You can bake them in a 350 degree oven for about 10-15 minutes but you lose the raw status and they are definitely not as crispy.

Kimberly RobertoLeave a comment

I love it when a meal comes together

One of my main goals on my mission for better nutrition is to GET PEOPLE IN THE KITCHEN!  Most people are surprised to learn that most of the meals I make come together in less than 30 minutes, use few ingredients, and appeal to the whole family.  This is an example of one of those quick, easy, and tasty meals that I made on a night that was very hectic.  I actually found that taking that short mental break while I was preparing the food was just what I needed.  I enrolled my kids to help which allowed us some time to cooperate and communicate.  Not to mention, when the kids help, they are much more likely to try the food.  For example, my 7 year old helped chop the zucchini and my 9 year old skewered the chicken.

On the menu:

CHICKEN SATAY (from Maximized Living Nutrition Plans) – CORE & ADVANCED PLAN

2 tablespons raw almond butter

1/2 cup liquid aminos, coconut aminos, or organic tamari

1/2 cup fresh lemon or lime juice

2 tablespoons curry powder

6 skinless, boneless organic chicken breasts, cubed

1 teaspoon hot pepper or chili sauce (check ingredients!)

2 cloves garlic, chopped or pressed

Combine almond buter, aminos, lime juice, curry powder, garlic and hot pepper sauce.  Place the cubed chicken in the marinade and let marinate 30 minutes – overnight.  Weave the chicken on to wooden skewers (presoaked in water to prevent burning) Preheat an indoor cast iron grill pan to high than reduce to medium heat.  Cook skewers approximately 5-8 minutes on each side until no longer pink inside.

SAUTEED ZUCCHINI

2-3 large zucchini – chopped into cubes

1/2 onion – chopped into cubes

Sea salt

Spices to taste

Coconut oil or grapeseed oil

Heat oil in a pan (I used GreenPans here but cast iron or stainless steel will also work – stay away from aluminum or teflon!) to med-high heat, put vegetables in the pan and do not touch until browned.  This gives the vegetables a nice color and provides a different taste.  I used a premade spice mix – just check the ingredients.

WILTED SWISS CHARD

1 bunch swiss chard or any type of greens

olive oil

garlic

salt

lemon juice

To prepare the chard, start by cutting out the hard pink stalks and chop the rest of the greens into bite sized chunks.  Combine the chopped chard with the salt, olive oil, garlic and lemon juice in a bowl.  Massage the chard to combine the flavors and soften the leaves.  Put into a pan and heat lightly until desired doneness.  I prefer mine just lightly wilted.  DO NOT heat the olive oil too much because it cannot withstand high heat.

Kimberly RobertoLeave a comment