Category: Uncategorized

Ingredients:

(Serves 6)

• 20 Brussel Sprouts
• 1 Head of Romaine Lettuce (sliced into strips)
• 3 Oz crumpled goat cheese
• 3/4th cup of cranberries
• 1/3rd cup of toasted Hazelnuts
• 8 strips of bacon (cooked well done)

For the dressing:

• 1 garlic clove (finely minced)
• 1 tsp honey
• 2 tsp’s fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 2 tsp’s red wine vinager
• 1 Tbsp Pomegranate Molasses
• 1 cup Olive Oil and 1.5 tsp, divided

Putting it together:

1. Pre-heat your oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit, line a sheet tray and toast your hazelnuts for about 8 minutes until toasty and fragrant. Afterwards crank up the heat to 400 degrees, place 8 bacon strips on a sheet tray and bake until crispy (about 18-20 minutes). Afterwards, place the bacon in between some paper towels to absorb the oil.
2. Wash your lettuce, dry it well, and cut it into strips. Remove the outermost layers of your Brussel sprouts and using a mandolin or food processor, slice all your sprouts and place them on a long parchment lined sheet tray , drizzle the 1.5 tsp of olive oil on them, season with salt and pepper, toss all the sprouts together until evenly coated and cook for up to 15-20 minutes (tossing occasionally) until the sprouts look cooked and charred.
3. While that’s cooking, you can make your dressing by putting your minced garlic in a small bowl, add your honey, lemon juice, red vinegar, pomegranate molasses and then whisk in your olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Add your sprouts to a medium sized serving bowl along with your lettuce, hazelnuts, cranberries and goat cheese. Crumple your bacon into the bowl add your dressing and give that a good toss. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as needed. Enjoy!

Nourishment for your body: Brussel Sprouts are rich in vitamins and minerals. They contain vitamins C and K as well as have folate, calcium, iron and potassium. Having a diet that is high in cruciferous veggies such as Brussel sprouts, cabbage, broccoli, and cauliflower is said to reduce certain types of cancers.

Tips when cooking: I recently purchased this trio of Olive Oils at Trader Joe’s. They made for fantastic dipping and salad dressings. I used the one from Spain to make this salad dressing. I loved it’s fruity, smooth and buttery finish. They’re fun to use as an olive oil tasting at home! I think this salad would also work beautifully with blue cheese crumples.

(Yields 8 servings)

Ingredients:

• 4 Lobster tails
• 4 cups of Lobster or Crab Stock (see previous 2 posts)
• 1 large onion (finely chopped)
• 2 carrots (finely chopped)
• 2 Celery stalks (finely chopped)
• 1 Tbsp fresh chopped thyme
• 1 Tbsp fresh chopped tarragon leaves (plus 1 Tbsp chopped tarragon for garnish)
• 1/2 tsp of salt
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 4 garlic cloves (minced)
• 2 Tbsp’s tomato paste
• 3 Tbsp’s All purpose flour
• 1 and 1/4 cup dry white wine ( I used Chardonnay)
• 3/4th cup light cream

Putting it together:

1. Fill a small stock pot up with 4 cups of water and a generous amount of salt. When it reaches a boil drop your lobster tails in and cook for 6 minutes.
2. Afterwards, strain your liquid (making sure to reserve it!) and once lobsters have cooled a little take the meat out of their shells (see tips below). Cut the meat into small desired chunks.
3. Heat the butter on medium heat in a medium sized stock pot. Add the mirepoix (onions, carrots, celery) and fresh herbs and cook until veggies soften (about 6 minutes).
4. Stir in the minced garlic, salt and pepper and continue to cook for another two minutes.
5. Mix in the tomato paste until all the veggies are coated, sprinkle your flour on top and continue to cook for another two minutes.
6. Pour in the wine, simmer until the soup is reduced by half. Stir in your stock and cayenne pepper, lower the heat and simmer for about 30 minutes until the liquid has slightly thickened. Make sure that your cream is pre-heated.
7. Take the soup off the heat, VERY CAREFULLY , transfer to a blender and blend the soup until it is completely smooth.
8. Return the soup to low heat, stir in your cream and adjust your seasoning.
9. Add lobster chunks to the center of your serving bowls, ladle the soup into them and garnish with freshly chopped tarragon. Enjoy!

Nourishment for your body: Lobster is a great source of protein, zinc, omega 3 fatty acids, and contains multiple vitamins and minerals. However, it would be wise to eat it sparingly due to higher amounts of sodium and cholesterol compared to other crustaceans.

Tips when cooking: To remove your lobster meat: Place lobster tail on your counter with the back of the tail facing up. Use sharp kitchen shears to cut down through the centre to the end of the tail. With your thumbs and fingers, open the shell to loosen it from the meat, opening the meat away from the shell side walls. Pull the meat up from the bottom of the shell to seperate the shell from the meat underneath it. Other white wines that can be used are Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Riesling, Viognier, and Semillon. You can use a hand held immersion blender to puree this soup, but pureeing it in a blender (especially a vitamix blender) will give you a much smoother consistency. Other nice garnishes for this soup can be croutons, fennel fronds, creme fraiche , fresh parsley.

Ingredients:

• Shells from 3 Dungeness crab Clusters (will yield about 3-4 cups)
• 2 Tbsp’s vegetable oil
• 1 medium sized white or yellow onion (coarsely chopped)
• 1/4 cup of Brandy
• 3 Tbsp’s Tomato Paste
• 1 small bay leaf
• 1 Tsp whole peppercorns
• 3-4 sprigs of Thyme
• 3-4 sprigs of tarragon

Putting it together:

1. Heat the vegetable oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add the crab shells and cook, stirring and pressing until lightly browned (about 5-7 minutes).
2. Stir in your chopped onion, tomato paste, bay leaf and peppercorns and cook until the onion is slightly softened (about 3-4 minutes).
3. Add the Brandy and cook until evaporated. Add 6 cups of water and your tarragon and thyme and bring to a boil.
4. Reduce heat and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half, for about 1 hour.
5. Strain the stock, pressing hard on the solids with a wooden spoon. You can strain the stock a 2nd time through a fine mesh strainer.

Nourishment for your body: Crabs are a great source of protein, omega 3 fatty acids, selenium, vitamin B-12, copper and phosphorus.

Tips when cooking:

After steaming, boiling , grilling or baking the crabs, break the shells using either wooden mallets, a nut-cracker, as well as your forefingers and thumbs. Gently remove the meat. Crab stock can be kept frozen for 2 months. It is a wonderful addition to have in your kitchen to make soups such as bisques and chowders and a number of sauces. If you steam or boil your crabs, you can reserve this cooking liquid to use in place of regular water when making this stock.

How to re-create this recipe:

Ingredients:

(Serves 4)

• 1 Cup of water
• 1/2 a cup of Buckwheat/groats
• 5 Candy Cane Beets
• 3 Tbsp Cranberries
• 1/2 a cup of toasted Hazelnuts (toast for 8 minutes in a 300 degree oven)
• Some chopped parsley for garnish

For the dressing:

• 1/2 a cup of Vegetable Oil
• 2 Tbsp’s Lemon Juice
• 2 garlic cloves (finely minced)
• 1 Tbsp Stone Ground Mustard
• 1 Tbsp honey
• 1 Tsp Poppy seeds
• Salt and black pepper to taste

Putting it together:

1. Bring 1 cup of water to a boil in a small stockpot, add some salt, the Buckwheat and simmer for 20 minutes until all water is absorbed. Afterwards, cool to room temperature.
2. Pre-heat your oven to 425 degrees, clean your beets well, cut off the beet stems from both sides and then wrap each beet with a small amount of foil paper. Roast the beets for about 40 minutes until they are fully cooked through. The time may vary depending on how big your beets are. After they have cooled a bit, using a small hand towel, remove the skins off them and then cut them into thin slices .
3. While the beets are roasting, you can make your salad dressing. In a small bowl add your mustard, honey, lemon juice , garlic cloves, and poppy seeds. Whisk in the vegetable oil well and add some salt and black pepper.
4. When everything is done being cooked add all your Buckwheat to a medium bowl, half the sliced beets , half the Hazelnuts and half the cranberries. Add only half the salad dressing and toss all ingredients together very gently so your beets don’t tear. Add a little more lemon juice ,salt and black pepper to taste.
5. Place on a nice platter, garnish with the rest of the beets, hazelnuts and cranberries and add your chopped Parsley for garnish. Enjoy!

Nourishment for your body: Buckwheat/ Groats are seeds that are high in protein and fiber. It is also Gluten free. It is known to improve heart health, may prevent diabetes, and is packed with vitamins and minerals. Beets are packed with nutrition! Beets are high in Iron and folate (helps to keep the cells in the body healthy). Beets contain betaines which helps protect  the cells in the body from environmental stress and inflammation. It helps the body process toxins. Betaine also helps to improve stamina by increasing oxygen to the blood which can help with athletic performance.

Tips when cooking: I reserve the other half of this dressing in an air tight container for future use. This dressing is pretty versatile and you can enjoy it on many other salads. This salad was definitely an ode to my Ukrainian roots. Russian people call Buckwheat Kasha and a popular way to have it is as a breakfast food (think porridge). Some people will toast the Buckwheat in a skillet pan (to make them extra fluffy) and then cook it in milk. Buckwheat has strong, nutty notes and is definitely a comfort food to eat in the wintertime. It is very symbolic in Russian culture of reaching a milestone in one’s life, as it is typically the first solid food that is given to toddlers. Other popular ways of having it is tossing it with a beef stew or adding it to a combination of sauteed onions and bowtie pasta.