‘Clean Eating’ Articles at Sweetnicks, Page 4

Recipe: Mock Shrimp Risotto

July 15, 2013 · Narrative

Risotto is one of those things that I just don’t make.

Mostly because it seems too high maintenance and since I’m usually multi-tasking while I’m cooking, I don’t normally go towards recipes that need a lot of babysitting.

(But if you need a risotto recipe, Sarah is totally your girl)

Now THIS recipe? This Mock Shrimp Risotto. This is NOT your mama’s risotto. There is no babysitting. There is no high maintenance.

And the best part? There is no guilt.

Yep, I said it and it bears repeating.

NO GUILT.

Start to finish, under 15 minutes. It’s “mock” because the recipe uses cauliflower instead of rice. And the creaminess comes from a Garlic & Herb Laughing Cow Cheese.

Pretty darn brilliant, if you ask me.

And Madeline tried it and said it didn’t taste as ew as she thought it would be.

So if that’s not a ringing endorsement, I don’t know what it is.

And by taste it, I mean the risotto part, not the shrimp. Neither one of them will eat any kind of seafood. Yet.

Super healthy and full on flavor from the garlic and the Parmesan cheese. Quick to table. One pot dish. Guilt-free. Whether you’re clean eating, doing lean and green, or love risotto but not its stir-stir-stir-don’t-stop-stirring demands, this is the one to make.

Promise.

Tomorrow? June in Instagram.
Wednesday? Boom restaurant review.
Thursday? Book review.

*always subject to change…

Recipe: Asparagus with Balsamic Tomatoes {Cooking Light}

June 5, 2013 · Narrative

When it comes to asparagus, it is pretty much a no-brainer. My go-to way of making it is by roasting it, and when I do, it’s a safe bet that I will demolish the entire bunch in one meal. On my own.

Which is pretty good since the kids have yet to jump on the asparagus eating bandwagon.

Pity that.

When I was planning my contributions to our recent Girls’ Night In party this past weekend, I had pulled this recipe to make.

Because it’s crazy simple.

Because all the ingredients are on the list of foods I am currently eating.

And, well, because asparagus.

Natch.

It comes from the April 2011 issue of Cooking Light magazine in their 20-Minute Cooking section.

Which means it sometimes takes me awhile to try a new recipe.

(And really, two years is nuthin’!)

But it also means I can attest to the truth of their 20-minute claim.

Might have even come in under 15 minutes.

Which made this perfect for a Girls’ Night In contribution.

A quick weeknight side dish.

A great recipe to make with your farmer’s market bounty.

And a delicious way to celebrate asparagus and Spring produce.

And, really, goat cheese?

Just consider that the metaphoric cherry on top.

Hungry for more asparagus recipes?
This Roasted Asparagus Salas with Goat Cheese and Bread Crumbs is to-die-for good. Don’t miss it.
White wine infused shrimp and asparagus? Yes, please.
You can’t go wrong with this Toasted Roasted Vegetable Sandwich, one of my favorites. And hello avocado!
An Eat Your Veggies Stir-Fry that is a great way to take advantage of your farmer’s market haul.

Tomorrow? May 2013 in Instagram Review
Friday? Book review.

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Recipe: Mushroom-Crusted Chicken Burgers

May 13, 2013 · Narrative

“Eww, what is this?” Nick said with a visible shudder as he handed me the package I asked for.

Dried up mushrooms, I answered.

“Yuck.”

Well, you weren’t saying yuck when you ate them last week.

The what’chu talkin’ ’bout Willis glare was shot my direction quickly enough.

Remember those burgers you loved last week? The crust was made from these mushrooms.

I got a quick nod and he was off his merry way.

Unlike Jessica Seinfield’s sneaky shenanigans when it comes to hiding vegetables, those dried up mushrooms were left, right, and center.

Like, they couldn’t have been more obvious.

But neither Nick nor his sister asked one single question as they polished off their burgers.

And so another battle was won. While neither of them will knowingly eat mushrooms, it’s apparently a-ok if they’re mashed into the top of their burger.

I’ll take my victories where I can.

I spied this recipe on Annie’s Eats a few weeks back, and they couldn’t be easier to make.

This is for when you have a hankering for a burger, but don’t want to be guilt-ridden hours later.

This is for the cah-razy weeknights when you need a quick meal for the family, but want to avoid the drive-thru at all costs.

And this is for when you’re entertaining, and you’re looking to keep it casual, with a slight upscale twist.

For all those reasons.

And just because.

Super simple to make. A juicy, healthy burger. Bursting with flavor.

Just make ’em already, and you’ll see what I mean.

Tomorrow? April Instagram in Review.
Wednesday? Children’s book review.

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Recipe: Turkey Salsa Salad

April 17, 2013 · Narrative

Is that not a beautiful plate of deliciousness or what?

Oh how I love Spring. I love everything about it except how crazy our schedules get. Between Nick’s track practices, acting workshop, and Scout meetings, and Madeline’s soccer practices, having recipes like this is a total lifesaver.

That and the fact that groceries are delivered to our home.

Just sayin’.

I am all for convenience and automation whenever it saves me valuable time and means we can be total homebodies instead of schlepping around the grocery store aisles.

Most days.

If your schedule is just as crazy, you need this recipe in your life. I made it last week while Nick was finishing up homework before we dashed off to track, and he wandered into the kitchen just as I was finishing.

“What smells so delicious?”

He rarely comments on food smells (except onions, which he hates), so that was huge in and of itself.

I prepped it before we left for practice, and we sat down to dinner as soon as we walked in afterwards.

Perfection.

Whether you’re clean eating. Or doing high protein. Or no carb.

Or a plethora of other eating lifestyles.

This can fit that.

Super simple to make, packed with flavor, and completely guilt-free.

And even better? Pretty kid-approved. Madeline was slightly less enthusiastic, but still ate half her plate.

Which I consider a win.

Tomorrow? A book review!
Friday? The Atlantis Aquarium review!
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Recipe: Garlic Cauliflower “Mashed Potatoes”

March 25, 2013 · Narrative

Holy Grail of Garlicness!

My first tip regarding this recipe is to not use the five large cloves of garlic it calls for.

Because, man, I do love me some garlic, but it was way.too.much.

For realz.

Like Nick, who doesn’t like “mashed potatoes” and who I finally convinced to try a bite, was gasping for water because it was “so spicy.”

Spicy wasn’t the right word, but potent certainly is.

My second tip with this recipe? Make it.

Remember when fake-out mashed potatoes via cauliflower were all the rage some years back during the low carb diet craze? My Mom was definitely making them back then, but I never got around to, but luckily they’re baaaack!

To save a little bit of time, and since I don’t have a steamer basket, I skipped the whole first step and just used a Ziploc steamer bag to steam the whole head of cauliflower. I only had one bag left, and had to be a bit strategic to get it all to fit, but it worked beautifully.

Then, once the cauliflower had been steamed, I just pulverized the heck out of everything in my mini food processor. And it was done.

Now for serving? I think these are most perfect with a pulled pork or brisket or roast chicken. And with a bite of the meat and the “mashed potatoes” together on each fork-full. This recipe or this one or this one or this one would be awesome to go with it.

Paleo. Vegetarian. Clean eating. This recipe fits all those groups. And more. Super easy. And pretty guilt-free. Creamy. Flavorful. Delicious.

Go get ’em.

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Recipe: Very Veggie Rice Bowl {Minute Rice}

March 5, 2013 · Ad-Free, Narrative

Brown rice is sometimes a tough sell. In fact, it wasn’t until 1998 that I started liking it. It was one of a handful of trainer-approved foods that I was eating, in a mad dash effort to lose weight before my wedding, and I made a ridiculous amount of stir-fries with it.

Because stir-fry is totally where it’s at.

With the somewhat tougher texture that brown rice has, I think it’s better when it’s paired with other items, rather than eating it alone. And with this dish, I went to town.

Minute Rice makes these ready-to-serve cups that makes it really quick and easy to cook the rice, and when you’re pressed for time, it’s a great short cut. No measuring, no adding water, no nothing. Microwave the cup for one minute. Done. Boom.

Roasted asparagus.

Sauteed mushrooms and garlic.

Mrs. Dash salt-free seasoning.

A dash of soy sauce.

And then the fun began. The plating.

I mixed my vegetables with the cooked rice, and that went down on the plate first. Topped by two deliciously runny eggs (protein!). A drizzle of hot sauce. A few crumbles of goat cheese. A side of avocado and a slice of wheat toast.

And, oh man, it was soooo good. Healthy. Satisfying. Filling. Deliciousness to the nth degree.

Zero guilt here.

I shared some of my leftovers with my Mom, and after she had a chance to try it, she came back to report in.

“I hate brown rice,” she said. “But I LOVED that. I did everything but lick my plate.”

And if that isn’t a ringing endorsement, I don’t know what is.

When I posted the pictures of this dish on Instagram last night, someone asked how I get my kids to eat this type of food. And this type of food, really, is the simplest. Because it can be easily deconstructed to account for individual likes and dislikes.

For example, Madeline doesn’t like eggs yet (except deviled) or avocado. So her plate is the vegetable rice mix and toast. Nick will eat all of this, but isn’t a fan of mushrooms, so I just include less on his plate.

A layered dish like this makes it easy to plate each dish accordingly, without feeling like a short order cook.

Which, on a busy weeknight, is pretty awesome.

Total start to finish? Less than thirty minutes.

Ready.

Set.

Go!

PS Visit Minute Rice for recipes, including Minute Ready to Serve Stir It Up recipes ideas and more information about the Minute Rice family of products.

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Recipe: Make-It-Your-Own Couscous

February 27, 2013 · Narrative

When I was at the hair dresser this weekend, we got to talking about eating habits and diets. She wanted to lose weight (although I don’t think she needs to), and I mentioned clean eating to her. It’s a good go-to because it doesn’t require any counting calories or reading labels or keeping track of anything. You just eat food. Not products. Good food that is good for you.

She said that it must be hard, with the kids, to make separate meals for everyone, and that’s when I stopped her. Because I am not a short order cook. There is none of this “separate meals for everyone” business. For the most part, other than a few individual things that someone likes or doesn’t like, we all eat the same thing. Because whether I’m clean eating or not, I’m all about introducing the kids to as many new foods and flavors as possible.

Our kitchen counters always have fresh fruit, and the cabinets, refrigerator, and freezer are filled with the good stuff. But there is the infrequent “trashy” item here and there too. Sure there are Oreos. But it’s the exception, rather than the rule. 80/20, if you will. On the weekends when the kids are with The Ex, one of my phone conversations with Nick and Madeline will routinely revolve around what they want to put on the grocery store list.

This weekend? Nick asked for his favorite yogurt (the vanilla one from Light and Fit) and frozen strawberries (because he makes smoothies for us). Madeline asked for fresh strawberries and blueberries, and chocolate chips (for pancakes).

They came home on Sunday night and complained that there was nothing healthy to eat at The Ex’s house. That when they were there, they went to the store to buy snacks, but it was all junk.

And they didn’t like that.

And man, how that made my heart soar.

They know the difference. And continue to make the right choices on their own. I suggested that perhaps they could put some granola bars, nuts, bananas, and applesauce packets in their backpacks so they had something better for them if they needed it, and we agreed that could work. Along with a conversation with The Ex about maybe laying off the junk a little bit. And how he was trying to make them happy and buying them the fun stuff, and then, well, you know how those conversations sometimes go.

I don’t think making healthy food choices is necessarily something that should be taught to kids. I think it’s more in the seeing and doing. Seeing me make the right choices. Seeing the right food available in our kitchen. Putting good food in front of them time and time again. It was years before Nick tried an artichoke, and these days, they’re a favorite for both of the kids. I ate them. He watched. They were available. And eventually he tried it with an open mind. They were both that way about broccoli. Going from the you-must-try-a-bite to they oftentimes request it on their own.

Keep making the good stuff available. Keep changing how you cook and serve something. Keep reintroducing foods that they might not have liked before. And eventually, kids will make the good decisions on their own. It’s what they know.

On Monday, Madeline and I were out for a quick bite while Nick was at a Boy Scout meeting. I opted for a vegetable wrap, but wanted something healthier than the french fries that came with it. As the waitress rattled off the choices (black beans, refried beans, rice, mixed vegetables), Madeline immediately piped up “We’ll take the vegetables!” The waitress laughed and then looked at me for my approval. You know, since it was my entree that Madeline was deciding for.

And, of course, she made the right choice because she knew what it was.

Couscous is a great go-to when I’m packing my lunches (the kids have yet to warm to couscous). I like it because it’s healthy, and it’s e-a-s-y. Once it’s cooked, you can mix in whatever you want. Make a Greek version with kalamata olives, feta cheese, chopped cucumbers, and oregano. A Mediterranean version with sun-dried tomatoes, green olives, and roasted red peppers. Make a version with whatever you need to use up. The possibilities are endless.

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Recipe: Lemon Garlic Flounder

February 26, 2013 · Narrative

On Sunday afternoon, I bought a three pound package of chicken tenders.

And a pound of flounder.

Sunday night, we had leftovers.

Monday night, we unexpectedly ended up having dinner out.

And we already knew we weren’t going to be home for dinner on Tuesday.

So I began to fret about my uncooked chicken and fish sitting in the refrigerator.

Food waste weighs heavily on my mind, and although I am sometimes a victim of it, I really try hard not to let something go bad before I can cook, eat, or freeze it. Which, when you’re loading up on fresh fruit, fish, and vegetables, is even harder.

And I knew that if I didn’t do something with the chicken and fish, it would end up going in the garbage.

So at 10 pm on Monday night, what do you think I was doing?

Yep. Cooking chicken and fish.

Thirty minutes later, I now had three pounds of cooked chicken to use for assorted lunches and dinners, and fish for lunch the next day.

Sometimes you just have to pull up your big girl pants and git ‘er done.

And sometimes, also, we forget just how easy cooking can be.

We overcomplicate it with fancy ingredients. Techniques. Kitchen accessories.

And we really don’t need to. Not always anyway.

And so it was with this fish.

Lemon. Garlic. Oregano. Bake.

Really.

It would be perfect alongside some brown rice and steamed vegetables. Or couscous (a recipe coming tomorrow). Or roasted tomatoes. Or a million other things. For my lunch, I served it with half an avocado and a little bit of melted Cabot cheddar. With each bite, I put a piece of the avocado with the fish, and dredged it a bit in the lemon juice sauce.

I may or may not have licked the plate when I was done.

When you have something you simply must cook now, go back to basics. Skip the fancy. It really is as simple and satisfying as that.

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Recipe: Sicilian Pasta with Tomatoes, Garlic, and Almonds {Eat. Live. Be.}

February 21, 2013 · Narrative

Two years ago, when I first started clean eating, people would ask me what “clean eating” meant.

And to answer them, I pulled from a variety of explanations.

“You eat God-made food, not man-made.”

“Food that’s not made in a factory.”

“Food that’s in its most natural, wholesome state.”

The other day, while browsing Instagram, I spied another excellent way to explain what clean eating is … you don’t eat food with ingredients.

And it really is that simple.

Oreos have ingredients. Tomatoes do not.

For example.

And tonight’s new recipe (and dinner!) is a great representation of that concept.

Pasta.

Cherry tomatoes.

Anchovies.

Raisins.

Capers.

Almonds.

Extra virgin olive oil.

Basil leaves.

In exactly twenty minutes, you have a perfectly healthy, completely delicious meal on your table. Without the guilt. Without having to run to the store to search high and low for special items. Without a second thought.

Twenty minutes.

While the pasta is cooking, you whirr the rest of the ingredients in a food processor. Top it over the pasta once it’s done.

That’s it.

For realz.

A little sweetness from the raisins. Full-bodied flavor from the raw tomatoes. Slightly salty bites from the capers. Just all ’round goodness that you can feel right about putting on the table … and into your mouth. And if you find yourself thinking ick from raisins, almonds, and anchovies mixed together, I promise since they’re blitzed in a food processor, you won’t notice them at all, just the combined wonderful flavor they produce together.

And if that doesn’t motivate you, the 20 minutes from start to finish to make this dish certainly will.

The recipe is from Nigella Lawson’s newest cookbook, Nigellissima (which I don’t have yet, but this recipe was shared in a recent issue of People magazine). I’ve found that her recipes, and those from Jamie Oliver, all fit pretty neatly on the clean eating spectrum.

Dig in!

*PS in the grand scheme of things, pasta is not clean eating. But we have it in moderation at best. Once a month, at most. Had a run to the grocery store been in the cards today, I could have used a whole wheat pasta, or other enriched pasta, to make it even better. For those that like spaghetti squash (I haven’t jumped on that bandwagon yet), this sauce would be great over that as well.

*PPS If you read Sweetnicks by typing in the url and going to the actual site (as opposed to a reader), you may have noticed me playing with the header image over the past few days. I wanted to make a change but wasn’t quite exact about what I wanted. Yesterday and today I had a chalkboard image as the background, and liked it, but didn’t love it. And it didn’t help that two other opinions I asked for didn’t like it either. And then late this afternoon I had an inspiration for a different background, and that’s what you see now. Which I love. And luckily my back-up opinionators do too. I kept the font, words, and sizing all the same (and it has been consistent forever and a day), because I feel like that’s part of my branding. The background image? It happens to be a piece of a watercolor Madeline painted me last month. Which makes me love it even more.

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Recipe: Eggplant Salad with Chick Peas and Feta

October 9, 2012 · Narrative

If you add roasted vegetables to most anything, I can almost guarantee that I’ll pretty much love it. And chick peas? Talk about a home run. I don’t know what it is about chick peas, but I can eat them with reckless abandon. Unfortunately the kids don’t share the same feelings.

Unless they’ve been turned into hummus. Then Nick will eat them. If not? No dice.

When I saw this recipe for a salad that featured roasted eggplant with chick peas and feta, it was pretty much a given that I’d make it. I mean, how could I not? Some of my favorite flavors mixed together into a healthy and quick dish? It became a side to dinner that night, and lunch for several days after. The recipe originally comes from Martha Stewart Living, which is surprising since her recipes are usually way more involved than this one is.

The other reason for loving this recipe? It’s totally clean eating. Totally free of processed ingredients and full of nothing but good stuff. And it definitely speaks to some of the five principles of Oxfam’s GROW campaign … two of which include “buying food that is in season, to cut down on greenhouse gas emissions” and “eating less meat and dairy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and water use.” Where our food comes from, and the types of food that we choose to eat is something that I talk about regularly with the kids. Although when I hear them launch into explanations about why their Mom won’t let them eat this thing or the other, it sounds like they’ve been brainwashed a bit, but quite the contrary. I try to do what I can to educate them about our food, how we get it, the best choices to make, and the whys behind it all. Sometimes, it turns out, they actually listen more than I think.

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Eat. Live. Be. and Eating Whole Foods

January 25, 2012 · Narrative

Last night, we were sitting around the dining room table, just chatting, long after the plates had been cleared. Somehow the topic of Twinkies came up, though, for the life of me, I can’t remember why.

“Twinkies? What are Twinkies?” Nick asked.

I looked at Mystic and said, “My nine-and-a-half-year-old doesn’t know what Twinkies are. I don’t know whether this means I’m doing a good job as a Mom or not.”

“I think if Nick doesn’t know what Twinkies are, you’re doing a great job as a mom.”

Oh how I love that man.

And it’s true. Although I was surprised Nick didn’t know what they were, I have to say, I was pretty proud of that too.

While it is sometimes hard to get the kids to sit down and focus on eating a meal, largely because they both fall into the “grazer” category more, I don’t often complain about how or what they eat.

The snack drawer is filled with organic applesauce, packages of goji berries and pomegranates, and granola bars. Fresh fruit or cherry tomatoes makes it into Madeline’s lunch box nearly every day of the week, and she usually eats that first. Homemade hummus is an oft-requested lunchbox item for Nick. The amount of yogurt we all eat is ridiculous. More often than not, they make the right choices on their own, with no prompting from me.

Do we have processed foods in our house? Yes. Without a doubt. There is a package of Oreos or two. An occasional foray into Cheez-Doodles. Ice cream from the local dairy. But it is the exception, rather than the rule.

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Recipe: Kid-Friendly Mini Meatballs

December 21, 2011 · Clean Eating, Eat. Live. Be., Narrative

No sooner did Mystic’s daughter finish the plate of mini meatballs and noodles last week did she ask when we could make it again. We scheduled it for today, which is perfect for this week’s edition of Eat.Live.Be. The “print” edition.

I found this recipe two years ago in an issue of Redbook magazine, from Giada DeLaurentiis. I like her recipes because a lot of them are perfect for easy, weeknight meals for your littlest picky eaters (just noticed she has a new title coming out in a few months with a weeknight theme as well). Although the recipe calls for ground chicken, I alternate between chicken and turkey, and both versions are scoffed up by all the kids. In fact, Madeline who adores most pasta of any kind, actually favors the meatballs more than the pasta, and asked for a meatball only lunch for tomorrow’s school day. A request I’m all too happy to fulfill.

I use a mini cookie scoop when forming the meatballs, which makes it really quick work, and not too fiddly to do after a long workday. The mini size works well for the kids, a nice bite without being too overwhelming, and they are super tender and flavorful, which is why they are so eager to scoff them up. A mostly clean eating, guilt-free recipe that has me just as eager to make them.

I usually serve them with this recipe for Orzo with Herbs, or mini noodles with a little chicken broth as the sauce (along with those wonderful brown bits scraped up from the bottom of the pan of meatballs).

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