Chef’s Favorites
Mediterranean Greens: Monday, April 15, 2024
Pay a visit to your favorite “bistro” tonight and enjoy a succulent plate of Mediterranean Greens. The bistro is located in your kitchen, and on this night you’ll become your best version of a Greek chef.
The sautéed greens rest over a creamy Mediterranean white sauce and are served with wholesome quinoa and a generous dollop of traditional hummus. It’s all garnished with a dusting of crumbled feta cheese. You’ll want to savor every flavor-loaded mouthful of this offering. Kompliménta ston sef! (Compliments to the chef!)
Comfort-food Greens with Egg and Roasted Potato Rounds: Thursday, April 4, 2024
Lacinato kale plays the leading role in tonight’s production, but it’s the supporting cast that makes this ensemble sing. Smoky tempeh delivers a powerful performance (filling the role of bacon) and poached eggs anchor this tasty production with savory richness. This memorable ensemble is completed with caramelized potato slices.
Bravo to the comfort food experience!
Roasted Beet Dinner Salad: Thursday, March 28, 2024
The rich loamy tones of roasted beets and buttery avocado join forces with crisp greens, thin-sliced apple and toasted walnuts in a powerhouse dinner salad. Top it with a quick honey/mustard dressing, add an artisan roll and enjoy this dinner salad feast.
You already may have roasted beets in the fridge from Sunday. If not, plan on roasting beets today. (Wear some latex gloves as you handle the cooked beets.)
Dark Greens with Dried Apricots and Toasted Hazelnuts: Wednesday, March, 20, 2024
Lacinato Kale is in the works tonight and it’s cooked in a tangy sauce with dried apricots. The greens are topped with sliced chickenless tenders and the special umami of toasted hazelnuts.
Hazelnuts are also known as Filberts. (You remember Aunt Hazel and Uncle Filbert? They had great taste, but they were both nuts!)
Pasta Prima Vera Aglio e Olio: Monday, March 4, 2024
This time of year prima Vera vegetables are simply what you can find in the produce aisle. The mix in this recipe will probably be available in most stores. We’re serving this pasta in garlic and olive oil which some call the “Mother Sauce.” It is one of the most simple sauces to carry off and is fabulously delicious! You can substitute nearly endless variations of herbs and vegetables to this pasta dish if you wish.
Caesar Salad with Chicken Strips: Friday, March 1, 2024
You may have thought it was named after the emperor, but Chef Caesar Cardini invented the Caesar Salad on a busy 4th of July weekend in 1924 when he was running low on ingredients at his restaurant in Tijuana. The salad was so popular it became a regular menu item.
I offer this salad with a terrific eggless Caesar Dressing. We’ll throw some browned Chick’n strips (or optional sliced chicken) on the salads to add extra interest.
Chef’s Salad with Sweet Potato: Wednesday, February 21, 2024
Chef’s salad, which is considered one of the great American dinner salads, is presented tonight with the standard sliced deli meats and salad makings. You’ll also add bell peppers, cabbage, fennel and marinated sweet potato to this mix. If you prefer not to use the sweet potato, the salad stands just fine without it, but, this marinated sweet potato is really good.
This Chef’s version, also replaces the meats or cold cuts, normally associated with Chef’s Salad, with plant-based choices. The salad is dressed with a low-calorie Creamy Basil Dressing.
Stroganoff with Red Cabbage, Tuesday, February 20, 2024
History suggests that this main course dish was designed by a French Chef in the employ of a wealthy Russian family in the 1890’s. It is thought that the thin strips of meat were part of the meal design because the head of the household had bad teeth. The guy with bad teeth is long gone but this recipe is a classic.
We’re adding a German version of Red Cabbage or Rotkohl (pronounced “wrote coal”) to round out this meal. Delicious food is one example of how cultures can happily come together.
Festive Enchiladas: Sunday, February 11, 2024
This recipe was inspired by a recipe in Vegetarian Times. I’ve engineered some of the fat out of the recipe. It’s a great celebration meal for family or company.
This dish presents a festival of colors and flavors by combining rich orange garnet yam, tender zucchini, multicolored sweet bell peppers and bright yellow fresh mango. The flavor profile is finished with fresh cilantro, basil and lime juice. They’re served with homemade guacamole and low-sodium salsa. Buenos!
Hazelnut Tortellini, Friday, February 9, 2024
Something special is in store tonight. You’ll start with a simple cheese tortellini and then wrap it in a rich-tasting, toasted hazelnut sauce.
The dish is topped with chopped tomato and shredded Parmesan. Add dressed greens to the plate and this meal is finished. It’s easy, but it tastes like a complex gourmet meal.
Edamame Risotto with Cilantro/Lime Pesto: Tuesday, February 6, 2024
Our meal tonight starts with rice, an ancient food of the Arabs and Spaniards. It was later adapted in the kitchens of Italy to become Arborio rice.
With Arborio rice in hand, we’ll make risotto. We’ll fold additional cultures into the meal as well. Mediterranean and North-African countries contribute to the plate with the use of a cilantro/lime pesto. The protein in the dish comes from edamame beans with roots in East Asia.
Hang out your United Nations flags and enjoy!
Asian-style Chard with Mandarin Oranges, Tofu and Quinoa: Thursday, January 25, 2024
Tonight your dinner plate will feature chard. These dark leafy greens have been adopted and adapted as a food source by nearly every culture on earth.
You’ll serve it over quinoa, (pronounced “keen-wa”), an ancient grain from the Andes that is very high in protein.
This recipe also calls for Mandarin orange sections. Look for them under other aliases like Satsuma, tangerines or clementines making sure they’re the seedless variety. (You can also use canned Mandarin oranges.)