Recipe: Roasted Beet & Arugula Salad

If you don't like beets, no worries! It is just because you haven't had them like this! When I was interning at the Greenbrier, we had a salad similar for a week or so. I had to roast so many beets that it literally took me a good 2 hours of prepping them plus the hour long cooking time.... sometimes more! Luckily, you won't be spending a few hours on this yum salad.

Baby beets are grown year around. The vibrant colors and sweetness of the beets and blood oranges in this salad are accentuated by the creamy-white feta and crunchy nuts. Feel free to substitute baby mixed greens, mache, or frisee for the arugula. Fresh goat cheese works jsut s nicely as feta. In fact, the farmer's market usually has it, and you can taste the difference! No comparison! If you can't find baby beets, the larger ones will do fine. Just take a little longer to roast.

Roasted Beet & Arugula Salad- Serving: Yields 4 (as side salad)

Ingredients:
- 1 # Roasted Baby Beets at Room Temp.
- 1/3 c. Orange Walnut Vinaigrette or Walnut Balsamic Vinaigrette (see below)
- 6 c. Baby Arugula, carefully rinsed and dried
- 2 Blood Oranges or Naval Oranges, segmented
- 1/4 c. Crumbled Feta Cheese
- 1/2 c. Spiced Candied Walnuts or if it's fam dinner just toast the walnuts for a few minutes

Method Of Preparation:

1. Cut the beets in half or quarters so that they are bite size. Place beets in a small bowl, add 1 to 2 Tbsp. of the vinaigrette, and toss until the beets are coated. Can be done in advance if desired.

2. Jusst before serving, place arugula in a large salad bowl. Add about 3 Tbsp. of vinaigrette. Toss to lightly coat the arugula, then taste to see if it needs more.

3. Transfer the argula to individual plates/platter. Arrange the beets, orange segments, sprinkle feta on top and walnuts over them. Serve immediately.

This is a great salad to do a couple times that week. Roast beets ahead of time, and you have a great snack. Serve the salad twice to the family, and so it really was worth your while!

Orange Walnut Vinaigrette- Makes about 1 1/4 c.

Ingredients:
- 1/2 c. Good Quality Walnut Oil
- 1/4 c. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Tbps. Fresh Orange Juice or Blood Orange Juice
- 1 Tsp. Finely Grated Orange Zest*
- 5 Tbsp. Sherry Vinegar
- 2 Tsp. Dijon Mustard
- 1 Tbsp. Finely Minced Shallots
- 1/4 Tsp. Salt
- 1/4 Tsp. Fresh Black Pepper

*Do a little extra zest and use it on some asian chicken... Try making your own marinade with garlic, orange zest, ginger, soy, and bourbon for later that week. Serve extra orange segments for before dinner or a snack for you!

Method of Preparation:
1. Place all ingredients in a glass jar and seal the lid tightly. Shake the jar vigorously to combine. I say this a great way for the kids to get involved. I typically like to do fresh dressing before I start on dinner itself, so that it has time to sit and let the flavors intermingle. Save left over dressing and store in the fridge for up to 1 month!

If you see things on the ingredients list that you know your family won't eat or get near. Or you thing that buying a couple ingredients will go bad in your house, e-mail me so we can figure out how you can personalize it to you! Happy cooking everyone!

Love Me Some EVOO!

    Hey my friends! It's been too long! I wanted to share what is on my mind this Friday which is a few recipes that Extra Virgin Olive Oil takes all the credit for making so perfecto! So, you probably here about olive oil and its benefits on the food network or other cooking shows. Truth is olive oil is so great for you! In fact, I rarely ever buy butter anymore unless I am baking. I have come to substitute olive oil for everything, and I want to share a few recipes with you on how I do that!

Cooking With EVOO

It's not very helpful to us if we are using EVOO in cooking, but not using it properly to receive all the nutrients! To make sure we are getting all those great polyphenols everyone speaks of we must heat it to only about 400 degrees that is a pretty low smoke point for sauteing... Once we go over our smoke point, we no longer have all the benefits of EVOO in our food!  So, keep the sauteing and cooking on medium.

Too Much Of Anything Isn't Good For You

Just like drinking red wine, there is a limit. Olive oil is a really healthy fat that helps with your skin, heart, and just easy on the gi tract; however, a little goes along way. If you typically have a hard time with portion control, note this: Fat should consist of 30% of your daily intake. Also, if you tend to pour oil heavy in the pan then try a aerosol can especially designed for oils to be spritzed on your food! I know Harris Teeter and most specialty grocery stores carry them for about $20. Great kitchen investment!

~Recipes Using EVOO~

Herb Infused Extra Virgin Olive Oil

This is a great way to get creative for those especially weary of trying the greenish yellow liquid that is not butter. So, if you swear up and down you don't like EVOO, I promise you, you just haven't found how you like it! This is a great way to bring extra to flavor to traditional EVOO.

Basic Vinaigrette

This takes 10 minutes! I absolutely rather eat a bare salad then put some of the junk that people call salad dressing! There is sooo many calories and chemicals in salad dressings, even the ones that have less this and more good stuff. Nothing beats a homemade vinaigrette! So, once you get this basic vin down, you will be adding shallots and red wine vin or lemon juice and poppyseeds.... make it your own! There are so many wonderful combos for a great homemade salad dressing!

Garlic-Herb Marinated Olives

This a quick recipe that will have your party guests thinking you are so sophisticated... well, you may be but this recipe is so simple! Add some pita chips and its an appetizer! Or what I love to do is hit up the Harris Teeter Olive Bar if you have no time and add some fresh mozzarella with it and its a great snack!!

I hope you enjoyed these tip and recipes on what to do with your bottle of olive oil! If create some yum vinaigrette we can feature it on the blog!

Recipe: Quick Veggie Pizza

     As a Private Chef, I am always modifying recipes. Its always a challenge, which I love. It is not as simple as adding fish for a superior fat-burner to add to one's diet. They may despise fish! One thing nobody ever turns down is pizza! So, here is a quick and easy recipe that won't add the carbs that usually one trip to dominos will add. This is very light and crispy for the thin-crust lovers!

Ingredients: Serves 2 or 4 (if using it as a snack)
• 1/2 cup of low-fat plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup of a/p flour
• 1/2 cup of wheat flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 2 tbsp. low-fat/skim milk
• 2 1/2 tbsp. olive oil
• salt to taste
• 5 oz. can of tomato pieces, drained
• 3 oz. mushrooms
• 1 sm. bulb of fennel*
• 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 2 oz. Gouda cheese, grated
• 6 black olives, pitted
• 6-8 basil leaves

* If you aren't sure about the fennel, leave it off. If you think buying one will go to waste, chop the rest up and throw on salads.

Method of Preparation:

1. For the dough, knead together the yogurt, flour, baking powder, milk, 2 tbsp. oil, and 1/2 tsp. salt.

2. Preheat the oven to 400 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

3. Wipe mushrooms with damp cloth, slice, and also slice fennel** very thin.

4. On a lightly floured work surface, rollout the dough to a thin rectangle and transfer it to the baking sheet.

5. Pierce with the fork several times.

6. Distribute the tomatoes, sliced mushrooms, sliced fennel, season, and sprinkle with red pepper flakes and cheese. Drizzle with the remaining 1/2 tbsp. oil over the top.

7. Bake for 25-30 minutes on the middle rack. Garnish with olives and basil.

** To properly cut fennel: Trim the fennel because you want just the bulb, Wash, Cut it into 4 quarters, and then into thin slices.

For Added Spice:
Add chiles! Eating spicy foods will flood your brain with endorphins, the messenger chemical that eases pain and lifts your spirit. A good mood translates into a more active and slender you! Spiciness also heats up fat cells, causing them to move.

     If you have some picky eaters then take away add what you like bell peppers, feta, kalamata olives. Get creative! Also, this is a great kid-friendly recipe to create family time around food.

Portion Distortion

     When choosing items to eat, do you wonder how much is too much? These days, everyone has their opinions on how to lose weight, find the perfect exercise, and the perfect outfit for your newly sculpted hawt body! I think what works is listening to your body. Being in tune with your body's natural cues will tell you what you need... sometimes professional help is needed to require this technique. It is just as important in listening to what your body needs as it is how much your body needs! 

     Lately, when I have been home alone, those satanic girl scout cookies have been calling my name! On occasion, I will eat 1 or 2. My body wants (not needs) cookies, but I have trained myself to eat what I need. So, when the situation presents itself, and I want a treat, I have the will power to say no more frequently. My self-control comes from a few years of eating mini meals. I eat smaller meals more frequently. My body is at optimum health when I do this. I think we all work a little differently; so, this may not be ideal for you.

     I think we can really benefit greatly by eating smaller portion sizes. This gives opportunity to eat different items versus a large sum of one item. It also promotes a healthy habit of smaller portions.

     Below are 7 categories that list proper food amounts along with an image. This is so that when you are eating, you can better control the portion size. Controlling the portion are going to do a several things for you!

1. For those looking to lose weight, it will keep portions under control.

2. If your body works best when you graze, this will increase your BMR (Baseline Metabolic Rate). BMR is a how fast the body burns calories.

3. If you are also eating 4 to 6 mini meals a day, this will increase your energy level.

4. If you are eating mini meals too, this increase your energy levels.

5. By getting in a habit of eating smaller portions, you are decreasing your appetite.

6. By practicing self-control, you are avoiding falling into emotional eating.

~Serving Sizes~

Vegetables:

• 1 potato = computer mouse

• 1 c. broccoli/carrots = baseball

• 1/2 c. mashed potatoes = light bulb

• 1 c. cooked vegetables = baseball

• 1 c. leafy greens = baseball

Dairy:

• 1 1/2 oz. hard cheese = 3 dice

• 1 c. yogurt = baseball

• 1/2 c. frozen yogurt = light bulb

• 1/2 c. ice cream = light bulb

Meats & Proteins:

• 3 oz. lean beef = deck of cards

• 1/2 c. beans = light bulb

• 3 oz. cooked fish = check book

• 2 tbsp. hummus = golf ball

• 1 oz. lunch meat = cd

• 1/2 c. tofu = cassette tape

• 1/4 c. nuts = golf ball

Grains:

• bagel = 6 oz. can of tuna

• biscuit = hockey puck

• slice of bread = cassette tape

• 1 c. cereal = baseball

• 1/2 c. grains = light bulb

• 1 c. pasta = baseball

• 1 c. popcorn = baseball

• 1/2 c. cooked rice = light bulb

• waffle/pancake = cd

Fruits:

• 1 c./med. apple = baseball

• banana = length of pencil

• 1/2 c. blueberries = light bulb

• 1 oz. dried fruit = golf ball

• 1/2 c. grapes = light bulb

• 1/4 c. raisins= golf ball

• 1 c. strawberries = baseball

Fats & Oils:

• 1 tbsp. butter/dressing/mayo/5 olives = poker chip

Sweets:

• 2 in. sq. brownie = dental floss

• slice of cake = deck of cards

• 1 oz. chocolate = dental floss

•  2 oz. cinnamon roll = hockey puck

• cookie = 2 poker chips

• muffin = hockey puck

• 1 c. pudding = baseball

Mixed Foods:

• bbq ribs = check book

• 1 c. soup/chili = baseball

• 3 oz. burger = deck of cards

• burrito = check book

• 3 oz. chicken parmesan = deck of cards

• 8 oz. pot pie = baseball

• 1 c. french fries = baseball

• sub/hero = check book

• 3 in. sq. lasagna = baseball

• slice of pizza = 2-$1 dollar bills

• 1 c. lo mein = baseball

• 1 c. macaroni cheese = baseball

• 4 oz. nachos = check book

• sandwich = 2 deck of cards