YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Watermelon Gazpacho

Beautiful color, beautiful flavor, beautiful summer food. Something different and delicious…

8 cups watermelon (peeled from rind, seeded, and chopped)
3 pickling cucumbers (approx 6 inches long), diced
1 red bell pepper (cored, seeded, and diced)
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
3 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
2 Tbsp. green onions, chopped
3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 tsp. salt

Mix together all the ingredients in a large bowl.

Measure two cups of the ingredients into a blender or food processor, and pulse until chunky (not smooth). Collect the blended ingredients in a pitcher.

Continue to blend one small batch at a time until just 1/2 cup of the unblended mixture remains. Add this to the pitcher without processing, and stir. Refrigerate for at least 2 hrs, and serve chilled. Garnish as desired with more basil or parsley. 

Yield: 6+ cups


Real Food and the End of the Pandemic

For all the years I’ve written this blog I’ve talked a lot about real food, the kind our great-grandparents ate. Food that comes from the ground (or air or water). Unadulterated food, as opposed to “manufactured calories,” or “food-style products.” I’ve heard this idea expressed in different ways, like:
“Eat close to the garden.”
“Eat food that’s been through as few machines as possible.”
“Eat nothing that contains more than four ingredients.”
“Don’t eat anything your great-grandparents wouldn’t have recognized as food.”
“Be wary of foods that never go bad; if the bugs won’t eat it, it’s not food.”

I didn’t actually eat any differently this year, but talking about it on the blog felt like preaching. It’s not that the message was no longer relevant, but that it just didn’t feel nearly as important as usual. The most important message this year was to be kind to yourself, to do whatever it takes to get through the day. The worst part of all was that we didn’t know how long it would going to be that way. But this week I am feeling hopeful. Continue reading


YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Green Herb Sauce

Here’s something you can make that will elevate absolutely everything from just good enough to supremely good enough. Spoon it onto your eggs (whether fried, scrambled, poached, or boiled), spread it around on toast, or drizzle some on your salad, pasta, cheese, tofu, chicken or salmon. Or you can eat it straight from the spoon. Basically, anything goes, and it will stay fresh in your refrigerator for a few days at least. If you don’t feel like grating a lemon, don’t worry about it. If you have a different kind of hot pepper, fine. It will still be delicious. I’m trying to keep this easy. Continue reading


A Call to Our Chefs — Could We Call a Salad Something Else?

When my friend’s husband said that he was sick and tired of eating “salad,” she was kind of surprised, because she had thought that, if anything, their dinners had recently had more variety than usual. That was true of the ingredients, she realized, but not of the dishes. Caesar salad, Waldorf salad, Chef Salad, Salad Nicoise, Cobb salad, and Caprese salad (fresh mozzarella, tomatoes and basil) had all been on the menu in the prior two weeks. It seemed to her that it wasn’t that he was actually tired of the food, but more that he was tired of the word “salad.” Continue reading


YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Grains and Greens

This is one of those wonderful recipes that works no matter what’s in your kitchen. It gives you the opportunity to use whichever grain you feel like eating today, whichever greens are in season, and whichever other vegetables you are in the mood to sautè. I chose bulgur, red pepper, asparagus and spinach here, but you should feel free to use whatever is in the veggie bin. The onions and garlic are important, as are the herbs and spices, but everything else is flexible. Continue reading


YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Rustic Chicken

Any minute now the tomatoes are going to begin ripening and our counters will be absolutely covered in all kinds of tomatoes, big and small, yellow and red, green and orange! If you are looking for a special recipe to use them, you’ve come to the right place! One thing that I love about this recipe is that you can do the prep work earlier in the day, set it up in no time flat, and then pull it out of the oven in time for a lovely, sunset dinner. This dish makes a great visual impression, yes, but the slow cooking process caramelizes everything to impress your taste buds just as thoroughly. Bon appetit. Continue reading



YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: “Party Salad” or Sweet & Spicy Kale Chips

If anyone in your house is not eating as many greens as you think they ought to be (whether it’s you, or the kids, or your spouse), then make this asap! Think of it as a kind of party salad. You’ll notice that this particular recipe uses two large bunches of kale, but don’t think that’s too much: once they shrink in the oven, they turn into a moderate-sized bowl of chips at best. Continue reading


YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Lentils, Grapes & Hazelnuts

You know this recipe comes straight from your dear friend who can cook incredibly authentic Lebanese food like nobody’s business (because she learned it from her own beloved mother of blessed memory) when she tells you exactly which type of green lentil she prefers for this salad and you’ve never even heard of it. Carry on. Any green lentil is better than none.

Continue reading


Colorful Vegetables

We’ve been eating more and more produce at our house:  Yesterday at lunch we had broccoli/cauliflower soup, a tossed green salad, a tomato salad, sour pickles, guacamole, baked apples stuffed with dried figs and shredded coconut.  There was also homemade bread and local butter, and a cheese tray with chevre, cheddar and blue cheese.  Most of the credit goes to my husband; he baked the bread and thought up the baked apples.  Can you hear me cheering?

Even though the meal did not exactly have a theme (like Thai, or Mexican, or even Chesapeake), it did have a lot going for it.  I’m talking about vegetables.  And color.  It had red, green (light, medium, and dark), white, yellow, brown, orange and blue (of sorts).  That’s a lot of colors for one meal.  And, as my mom taught me, the more colors at a meal, the better.

Colors are indicative of different kinds of nutrients, and so the greater the variety, the more likely you are to get what you need.  Also, the deeper the color, the more nutrition.  That’s why you keep hearing so much about including dark greens (kale, chard), rich oranges (sweet potatoes) and purple/reds (like beets) in your meals.

We’re not the only ones who benefit from eating vegetables.  Especially at this time of year, when there is no grass to be found, I make an effort to toss substandard lettuce leaves, pits and shells with bits of avocado still clinging, carrot ends, and anything else I can think of, into the chicken coop.  Yesterday I gave the chickens a piece of aloe that I pruned from a plant in the kitchen.  We’ll see what they think of that — if they didn’t care for it, I will find it still on the ground when I go out to check on them this morning.

A story on the joys of vegetables would not be complete without a couple of great recipes.  Here are some especially colorful ones from Cleveland’s noted Kosher cook and author, Joan Kekst, who was kind enough to submit these recently, along with a beautiful story that you should look for soon on these pages.  Apologies for deleting 1/2 t sugar from the ingredient lists of these recipes — you can certainly add it back if you’d like, but I have a feeling that they will be sufficiently delicious without it!

BROCCOLI SLAW
1 lb. shredded broccoli stems, julienne (can be purchased in some supermarkets)
2 large carrots, julienne
2 red onions, julienne (approx. 2 cups)
1 cup kalamata olives, pitted
Juice of 1 lemon
2-4 T olive oil
2 T fresh lemon thyme leaves
2 T flat leaf parsley, chopped

Combine broccoli, carrots, onions and olives in a mixing bowl. Toss with lemon juice and olive oil. Season to taste with pinches of salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add thyme. Allow to blend for 30 min, stir occasionally. Serve at room temperature or chilled, garnish with parsley leaves. Serves 8. Keeps well for 5 days.

COLORFUL VEGETABLE SLAW
1 lb. Chinese or green cabbage, cored
1 large carrot, peeled
1/4 lb. snow peas
1 red bell pepper, seeded
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded
1 green bell pepper, seeded
12 green beans
1 small red onion
2 ears fresh sweet corn, shucked
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1 T olive oil
1 pinch celery seed

Shred cabbage as thinly as possibly. With a vegetable peeler, shred carrots thinly to make curls. Use remaining carrot scraps elsewhere.  Julienne pea pods, peppers, green beans and onion. Remove corn kernels from the cob.

Combine all vegetables in large mixing bowl and flavor with vinegar, celery seed, oil, salt and pepper to taste. Allow to blend for 20-30 min. [NOTE: Use shredded zucchini or yellow summer squash, if desired.] Keeps 3 days.

TOMATO BASIL SOUP
1 T olive oil
1 large carrot
1 large celery stalk
1 large leek, white only
1 large garlic clove, cracked
2 lb. plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
4 cups water or vegetable stock
1 T tomato paste
1 bay leaf
6 to 8 fresh basil leaves, more to garnish
Several sprigs of thyme
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup sour cream [optional]

In a non-corrosive pan, heat the oil and cook the carrot, celery, leek and garlic until softened, 5–7 min. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 20-25 min. Cool and discard the bay leaf and thyme sprigs.

Puree soup in batches, strain into a pitcher or bowl, and chill. Adjust salt and pepper. Stir in sour cream just before serving, and do not reheat once sour cream is added. Serve warm or cold, in goblets or mugs.  Garnish with fresh basil leaves. Makes 6 C. Keeps 3 days chilled.

Bon appetit!