Caramelized Carrot and Ginger Miso Soup with almonds and pomegranate

Caramelized Carrot and Ginger Miso Soup with almonds and pomegranate

by | Le Blog, Recipes and Culinary Nutrition

Caramelized Carrot and Ginger Miso Soup with almonds and pomegranate

Typically carrots are oven-roasted to develop caramelized sugars but pan roasting can create some of these flavor compounds in a one-pot dish—less washing and no hot oven! The garnishes add a crunchy almond texture and contrasting sweet-tart pomegranate seeds.

Caramelized Carrot and Ginger Miso Soup with almonds and pomegranate

Author: Chef Michele
Ingredients
  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil or enough to coat the pot
  • 2 pounds of carrots, peeled, cut into 1 inch “cylinders”
  • ½ large yellow onion, cut into 8 wedges
  • ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 4.5 cups vegetable broth
  • Big pinch of cayenne
  • 2” piece (2 heaping teaspoons) ginger root, peeled and chopped*
  • 1/3 cup of white or yellow miso or ¼ cup red miso
  • Fresh lemon juice from half a lemon
  • 1-2 tablespoons honey
  • Garnish Ingredients: Toasted almond slices and Pomegranite seeds
Instructions
  1. Heat oil in a large stock pot on medium-high heat until oil is very hot but not smoking. Add carrots (should hear a sizzle). Every 5 minutes toss carrots to caramelize more areas and prevent burning.
  2. Sauté for about 14 minutes or until carrots have darkened in color. Pull out any small pieces that have burnt and nibble on as a snack (dark flecks are hard to blend out of a pureed soup).
  3. Lower heat to medium-low, sprinkle salt on carrots, add onions stir and cook until onions have softened.
  4. Add the broth, ginger and cayenne and cook 30-45 minutes on a simmer until carrots are tender enough for a knife blade to easily pass through the carrot.
  5. Add lemon juice and miso**. Use an emulsion blender to puree the soup or in a blender, puree in batches.
  6. If soup is too thick, add more broth or water and blend. Taste soup and add more honey and salt if desired.
  7. Serve in bowls and garnish with pomegranate seeds and toasted almond slices.
  8. *chopped into ⅛ inch pieces if the blending device is powerful, otherwise grate the ginger
  9. **miso has better flavor when not heated for long times or at high temperatures.

    About Me

    The pleasure of food, good health and well-being through simple habits for eating well and flexitarian low-key cooking.
    Michele Redmond

    Michele Redmond

    French-trained Chef, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist & Food Enjoyment Activist

    It's about Making Food First

    Get Eat Well Academy periodic updates on easy ways to choose and cook foods that satisfy your appetite, nurture your body and make eating well a pleasure.

    Black-eyed pea and Hominy Texas Caviar

    Black-eyed pea and Hominy Texas Caviar

    by | Le Blog, Recipes and Culinary Nutrition

    Black-eyed pea and Hominy Texas Caviar

    Black-eyed Pea and Hominy Texas Caviar

    This recipe highlights how canned beans can make you popular and happier. For happy, you can quickly toss together this dish as an appetizer, side dish or picnic nibble. It’s a popular party pleaser that also offers flavorful fiber and isn’t calorie dense—just nutrient dense. The recipe was inspired by a self-described “good ol’ boy from Texas” who made his version a popular office pot-luck contribution.

    Black-eyed Peas and Hominy Texas Caviar

     

    Ingredients:   

    1 can (4-ounce) diced roasted green chilies, diced 1 can (15-ounce) Black-eyed peas 1 can (15-ounce) Golden Hominy (white can work also) 1 red bell pepper, diced (about 1 ½ cup) 3 garlic cloves, minced ¼ cup apple cider vinegar 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt as needed (depends on the salt level of the canned ingredients)

    Steps: 

    1. Open cans, drain hominy and peas and add to a mixing bowl.
    2. Dice the red pepper and mince the garlic and add to the hominy mixture.
    3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the dressing elements (garlic, vinegar, olive oil and salt). If you plan to store the bean caviar for 1-2 days before serving you can make a classic vinaigrette by adding all the ingredients except the olive oil and whisk it in slowly to make an emulsion that will hold.
    4. Add the dressing to the hominy mixture and gently mix together
    5. Adjust salt seasoning to taste if needed.
    • 4g of fiber—a flavorful addition to the goal of 25-30 grams of fiber per day
    • Can use green peppers also, red offers a nice color contrast to the chilies
    • Golden hominy tends to have fewer calories, fat and sodium than white hominy
    • Serve as a party topping for crackers (try whole wheat, Wasa rye or Bran crisp crackers).
    • For a side dish, can add crumbled feta or parmesan for additional flavor contrasts
    • Can make 1-2 days in advance, but 2 days causes the beans to soften more and have shed their “skin”

    “There are those who adore the black-eyed pea and those who deem it better suited to the provisioning of livestock”

    Courtney Bond

      About Me

      The pleasure of food, good health and well-being through simple habits for eating well and flexitarian low-key cooking.
      Michele Redmond

      Michele Redmond

      French-trained Chef, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist & Food Enjoyment Activist

      It's about Making Food First

      Get Eat Well Academy periodic updates on easy ways to choose and cook foods that satisfy your appetite, nurture your body and make eating well a pleasure.

      Galettes de Bretagne or Buckwheat Crêpes

      Galettes de Bretagne or Buckwheat Crêpes

      by | Health and Food Culture, Le Blog

      Galettes de Bretagne or Buckwheat Crêpes

      When I ask other Americans about a French food they are most familiar with, crêpes are at the top of the list. In cooking classes, we often make crêpes because they are the easiest fancy food ever.

      “Crêpes have a gourmet mystique

      yet fold into on-the-go street food and with a few tricks are easy to make.”

       

      My favorite types are galettes de Bretagne or buckwheat crêpes which originated from Brittany in Northwest France. Buckwheat (Sarrasin in French) crêpes don’t look or taste like most crêpes served in the U.S. From a sensory perspective, the color, when cooked is a toasty brown, the texture is crispy around the edges and are made thicker than all-purpose flour crepes.

      This first crêpe from Crêperie Josselin in Paris is filled spinach and goat cheese and served with the required alcoholic cider beverage.

      Buckwheat crêpes: healthy, happy eating

      Nutritionally, for people who must eat gluten-free, buckwheat crêpes can expand their food options. But for eaters without restrictions, these are a fun addition to your meal time for both savory and sweet dishes. I will be posting some recipes and nutritional details in upcoming posts.

      Crepe Brittany Josselin ed

      My egg and “lardon” crêpe may cause some hesitation by those avoiding dietary cholesterol but I was hungry after four hours of walking about Paris running errands.

      “I didn’t hesitate because dietary cholesterol doesn’t have a significant impact on blood serum cholesterol levels.”*

      Also, because I don’t eat based on the amount of exercise I do, rather I eat when I feel hungry and what appeals to me per my no-food-rules life.

      I confess to only eating half this crêpe and sadly leaving the rest behind as it was too filling. Next time, I bring a friend to split with me so I can have a salted caramel dessert crêpe!

      Crêperie Josselin https://plus.google.com/104826267487524352578/about?gl=us&hl=en Buckwheat Crêpes josselin

       

       

      *The 2015 Dietary Guidelines and decades of research! This applies to the majority of people even those with high cholesterol blood serum levels; however, there’s always exceptions as everyone is unique.

        About Me

        The pleasure of food, good health and well-being through simple habits for eating well and flexitarian low-key cooking.
        Michele Redmond

        Michele Redmond

        French-trained Chef, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist & Food Enjoyment Activist

        It's about Making Food First

        Get Eat Well Academy periodic updates on easy ways to choose and cook foods that satisfy your appetite, nurture your body and make eating well a pleasure.

        Catsup Chutney

        Catsup Chutney

        by | Recipes and Culinary Nutrition

        Catsup Chutney

        Chutneys are fruity, sweet, sour or tangy with some heat from spices and ingredients such as ginger. This fast chutney uses canned tomato sauce as the “fruit” source because it’s available all year round and luscious, sweet tasting tomatoes are hard to find.

        Because this chutney has the texture of traditional catsup, it’s an homage to the old word for ketchup. This chutney can serve many purposes and so it’s a make once, use several times item for your week!

        Use this chutney as a sauce to cook or serve with chicken and salmon or as a condiment on sandwiches or for dipping french fries or fritters into (see crispy chickpea flour shrimp fritters ).

        Catsup Chutney
        Recipe Type: Condiment or Sauce
        Author: Michele Redmond
        Ingredients
        • ½ teaspoon whole cumin seeds
        • 1 1/2 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds
        • 1 teaspoon coriander seed, crushed fine (optional)
        • 1 14-ounce can tomato sauce (no herbal seasonings added)
        • 1 Tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
        • 1/3 cup sugar
        • 3 Tablespoons honey
        • ½ cup apple cider vinegar
        • ¾ teaspoon red pepper flakes
        • ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
        Instructions
        1. Add the cumin and mustard seeds in a pot large enough to contain the recipe ingredients.
        2. Over medium heat, dry toast the seeds until you begin to smell the cumin and/or the mustard seeds may begin to pop—just 1-3 minutes.
        3. Then add the coriander, tomato sauce, ginger, sugar, honey, vinegar, pepper flakes and salt. Mix together.
        4. Turn down heat so that sauce gently simmers. Stir periodically to prevent from sticking. Cook for 40 minutes or until sauce has reduced and thickened.
        5. Adjust salt seasoning if needed (not to be salty but to balance and enhance the tomato flavor) and add more pepper flakes if a hotter version is desired.
        6. Pull off heat and place in a bowl to cool in the refrigerator if not using upon finishing. The chutney can store refrigerated for up to one week.

         

          About Me

          The pleasure of food, good health and well-being through simple habits for eating well and flexitarian low-key cooking.
          Michele Redmond

          Michele Redmond

          French-trained Chef, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist & Food Enjoyment Activist

          It's about Making Food First

          Get Eat Well Academy periodic updates on easy ways to choose and cook foods that satisfy your appetite, nurture your body and make eating well a pleasure.

          Marmalade Apple Chutney

          Marmalade Apple Chutney

          by | Le Blog, Recipes and Culinary Nutrition

          Marmalade Apple Chutney

          Marmalade apple ginger chutney on sandwiches or tartines.

          Here’s a tartine with the chutney, Italian Spring red onions, crispy slab-smoked bacon and melty, gooey cassarrigoni tallegio cheese.

           

          Marmalade Apple Chutney
          Recipe Type: Condiment
          Author: Chef Michele
          Chutneys have a long and diverse history. This means no one agrees what they are except that fruit is a central ingredient which is most commonly boiled with spices, sugar and vinegar. Vinegar, a central chutney ingredient credited to British influence, increases the shelf-life. Apples, popular in American and British chutneys, are used in this recipe but lemon replaces vinegar to brighten and complement the apple—so enjoy it within 3 days of making. [br][br]To make this chutney more “Indian-style”, you could add some mustard seed and coriander as a start.
          Ingredients
          • Ingredients
          • ¾ cup of low sugar marmalade
          • 1 medium sized gala or red delicious apple, peeled and diced (about ½ cup diced)
          • 2 tablespoons red onion, finely minced
          • 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
          • Few pinches red chile flakes (ginger provides the primary heat)
          • ¼ teaspoon Indonesian ground cinnamon (Ceylon works also)
          • 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (red wine or cider vinegar can substitute)
          Instructions
          1. [b]Fast non-traditional method: [/b]Mix ingredients together in a bowl. Taste, adjust as needed. Enjoy. [br][br]
          2. [b]Cooked method[/b]: Mix all ingredients together and either cook in a sauce pot on low heat until apples are soft or carefully microwave in a bowl until apples are soft. Taste, adjust as needed. Enjoy. Refrigerate unused portions in a tightly covered container for up to 3 days.
          Notes
          [b]Serving options: [/b][br]1) As jam, no duh. So try on toast, w/ bagels and cream cheese etc.[br]2) Sandwiches (open face tartines or regular sandwiches). Use as is or blend into a spread.[br]a. Chutney, taggliatelli, slice of bacon, red onion sliced thin, arugula[br]b. Chutney P&J, chicken salad—chutney mixed with greek yogurt and add toasted pecans[br]3) Make into a vinaigrette using a blender and adding olive oil or a neutral oil[br]4) A sauce for grilled, pan-roasted or baked chicken, pork, salmon or on top of crispy-fried tofu[br]5) Glaze for any of the above (blend the chutney into a puree) and thin a bit with water[br]6) Use as a topping for vanilla ice cream

            About Me

            The pleasure of food, good health and well-being through simple habits for eating well and flexitarian low-key cooking.
            Michele Redmond

            Michele Redmond

            French-trained Chef, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist & Food Enjoyment Activist

            It's about Making Food First

            Get Eat Well Academy periodic updates on easy ways to choose and cook foods that satisfy your appetite, nurture your body and make eating well a pleasure.

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