Lauren's Table

Berry Banana Smoothie with Beet Greens

November 17, 2011 by Lauren

Berry Banana Smoothie with Beet Greens

Here’s another great smoothie recipe. It’s super good for you with all those berries and beet greens. I promise you won’t taste the beet greens!! It’s a quick breakfast on the go too!

1 cup frozen mixed berries (I use a mix of blueberries, raspberries & blackberries)
1/2 banana
1/4-1/2 cup yogurt (vanilla, honey, plain, soy or coconut)
A drizzle of agave syrup
3/4 cup almond milk (vanilla or plain – but make sure it’s unsweetened)
2 organic beet greens

Blend until smooth. Enjoy! (serves 1)

Ingredients notes:

Yogurt: don’t use non-fat. First of all, the flavor is in the fat (with anything you eat), but more importantly, there are nutrients in the fat that you need to digest the dairy.

Milk Alternatives: Do it! Cow’s milk is not good for you and it promotes all sorts of disease and inflammation in your body, especially pasteurized milk. But when choosing an alternative, such as soy, almond or coconut – make sure it isn’t sweetened – And unless it specifically says “Unsweetened” on the label, it will contain cane sugar of some sort. Starting your day with a high glycemic meal just sets you up for a roller-coaster the rest of the day which is in part responsible for weight gain. Berries, especially blue berries, help maintain healthy blood sugar levels. The banana not only helps make your smoothie creamy, but it adds a little sweetness too.

I like almond milk because it has a mild flavor-so it goes great in recipes, and the fat in almonds is good for your heart.

Beet Greens: They should be organic, or at least no-spray/chemically grown. Any kind of green will do here – Kale, chard, spinach, etc… I separate the greens from the beets as soon as I get them home. Wash and spin them (dry) and put them in a zip lock baggy in the fridge for stir-fries, smoothies, wilted greens or lasagna etc… I actually do that with all my greens so they are easy to use in my busy week. If you have these growing in the back yard – just pick them as you need them. If you’re going to eat vegetables grown with pesticides, from half way around the world (even organic), picked 3 weeks ago – don’t bother! They are probably doing more harm than good- to you and the environment. The nutrition you get from the food you eat is dependent on the health of the plant, the soil, and when it was harvested. You are only as healthy as what you eat.

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You Are What You Eat!

August 5, 2011 by Lauren

The old saying is really true: you are what you eat. In fact, you are what you eat eats! How healthy is the food eaten by the cow you just ate? How healthy is the soil the vegetables grew in that you just ate? For people to become healthier, we need to become aware of these simple things. Our health is not really that much of a mystery or an impossible feat. It just takes our awareness.

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Summer Market Tacos

June 24, 2011 by Lauren

We live in an area where good restaurants are few and far between, and the closest Mexican food (worth eating) is 2 hours away. So I am always craving that fresh Southwest flavor!

These tacos were thought up while daydreaming about Mexican food on my way to the farmer’s market —using fresh peppers, tomatoes, cilantro and onions from the market.

Ingredients:
Grilled Spiced Chicken
Fire-Roasted Peppers
Guacamole
Steen Salsa
Cilantro Leaves, washed and spinned and large stems removed.
Corn Tortillas, warmed in foil in a 350°f oven for 15 minutes.

* * * * * * * * *

Grilled Spiced Chicken:
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thigh meat, trimmed of fat etc… (free range organic)
2 TB evoo (extra virgin olive oil)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
Juice of one lime
1 TB *Cajun Creole Seasoning (salt free) (Spice Hunter brand)
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup cilantro, fresh minced

Rinse chicken well and place in gallon ziplock bag with remaining ingredients. Seal bag and massage chicken a little to disperse all ingredients evenly. Let marinate in fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat and clean outdoor grill to high. Turn heat down to medium and grill chicken, turning once, until internal temperature reads 175°f on an instant read thermometer. Chicken should be nicely browned on the outside but still tender and juicy on the inside. Remove to a plate and cover chicken with foil to rest for 10 minutes. Then slice chicken to make 1/2″ slices.

* If you can’t find that particular spice blend, just use some 2 tsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp thyme & 1/2 tsp cayenne.

Fire-Roasted Peppers:
1/2 pound of sweet and spicy peppers

At the market in late July- October you will find a variety of peppers, sweet reds and yellow and chocolate colored, to hot and spicy greens. Choose your favorites, about a half pound or so. Wash them well and pat dry. Put them on the grill on medium high and turn them as they blacken. When sufficiently browned/burnt on all sides, remove them and place in a gallon ziplock bag – all together is fine – and seal. Let sit until peppers are cool enough to handle and then peel the skins off. Cut the stem off and slice the pepper open to remove the seeds. Wash hands very thoroughly after this step to remove the capsaicin from your fingers, or wear gloves. If you don’t, this can come back to haunt you hours later when you rub your eye! Slice the roasted peppers into thin strips.

Guacamole:
2 large ripe avacados
Juice of half a lime or to taste
kosher salt to taste

Slice the avacado in half and remove the pit by gently hitting it with the blade of your knife. If you have trouble releasing the pit from your blade, using both hands, place the pit on your cutting board and using both hands on top of your knife, simply slice through the pit. Scoop the avacado from the skin into a bowl. Using a fork, mash the avacado and add a pinch of salt and the juice of half a lime. Combine well and add more salt if desired.

Steen Salsa:
3 1/2 cups seeded* & diced tomatoes – must be organic fresh vine-ripened (in other words REALLY flavorful) (OR use 1 – 28oz can of fire-roast diced tomatoes by Muir Glen)
1 – 4oz can fire-roasted chilis (hot if available)
1 small red onion diced
3 TB lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 bunch cilantro, washed and dried

Process all ingredients together in a food processor until finely chopped, not pureed – you do still want some texture – see photograph. I have to do this in two batches as my food processor isn’t large enough. So I mix all of the chunky ingredients together in a large bowl and then pour it into the processor half at a time.

Refrigerate until ready to use. Best if you can make this a few hours or a day ahead of time to let the flavors meld.

*a simple way to seed tomatoes: Cut the tomato in half (so you have a top and bottom half) and gently squeeze the seeds into the sink.

To assemble tacos, place a tortilla on your plate, a few slices of chicken, top with fire-roasted pepper strips, guacamole, salsa and a few cilantro leaves. Yum!

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CULINARY SCHOOL GRADUATION!!!!

June 13, 2011 by Lauren

Posing with Chef Dani & Chef Shawnna

Graduating Culinary Students Class of 2011

Our commencement was yesterday. It was hot and stuffy! The last time I went through commencement, I was graduating from Oregon State University. It was hotter and a lot longer! I swore I would never go through another commencement again! This wasn’t nearly as bad though, and they did a good job of keeping it short. It was nice going through the ceremony with people that I started the program with 21 months ago. And it provides a bit of closure on my efforts and achievements. It has always been a desire and a goal to go to culinary school… and I did it.

So that’s it. Hard to believe it’s been two years. Time does fly when you are having fun. I interviewed a lot of schools, including Le Cordon Bleu – Portland, before deciding to attend the school I went to. It’s hard to tell for sure which is better without attending both. All the schools I interviewed are accredited by the American Culinary Federation and have to follow a set curriculum by the ACF. I do know that with any program you get out of it what you want (what you put in), giving me the satisfaction of knowing I got as much as I possibly could out of my program. I also think our school gave us the opportunity for more hands on experience than the other schools and we had three food service outlets at the college from which we served the public on a daily basis, giving us a lot of real world experience. The only thing I wonder about is that we are located in a very small town and not a very good foodie scene (or any other culture for that matter) around. That may have limited my opportunities for things to be involved in and networking.

I have a feeling though, no matter where I live, I will find a way to be involved in things that make me thrive. Reaching out to people to enrich their lives as well as to enrich my own.

Congratulations to everyone from my culinary class on your great accomplishment!

Here are some of my favorite food pictures… of things I made in culinary school:

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Garden Update- Look at those Favas Now!

June 9, 2011 by Lauren

Here is a little update on the garden. We’ve had a really slow spring, very cool and wet. It’s just now getting up into the 60s during the day now. Needless to say, my plans of rotating crops all year are a bit behind. I’m still on the first crop, but things are looking really good. We’ve been eating spinach and kale and radishes for a few weeks now and the fava beans are flowering. The lettuce is ready for eating as well, and we might have a salad of lettuce, chives & radishes with dinner tonight. Peas are looking great, but a long way off from being ready.

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Ganache & Swiss Buttercream

May 14, 2011 by Lauren

It was one of those weekends where I needed a baking project. I was in the mood to make a chocolate cake and we were invited to a potluck so it was the perfect opportunity. This cake was fun to make…

It’s covered with swiss butter-cream with ganache added to it, for flavor and color. I used leftover chocolate cake crumbled to coat the sides after I coated it with the butter-cream. There is also a thin layer of raspberry-vanilla jam on each layer. I want to make another one though because I ran out of icing and only had a little bit left to decorate the top. I had about 30 minutes to build the entire cake and decorate it so there was no time to make more . . . and I want to practice those roses! Maybe I can make it at school for a special event or something – then I’ll get my chance.

This cake is so moist and chocolatey… and the buttercream is light and fluffy. The raspberry filling just takes it over the top. It disappeared rather quickly at the potluck! I was able to slice 20 good-sized pieces from this 8″ three layer cake.

Here is how you make a swiss buttercream with ganache . . . so amazingly good – light, fluffy and flavorful:

Ganache:

Ganache is a very versatile product for your baking kitchen. You can use it cover cakes, put it in a piping bag and decorate, roll it into balls and make truffles . . . the possibilities are endless.

5 oz good quality dark chocolate
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 TB unsalted butter

Shave the chocolate by using a serrated bread knife to slice off thin shavings of the chocolate bar. Place in a glass bowl. Heat the butter and cream to just before a boil and pour over the chocolate. Give the bowl a little swirl and shake, then leave it be for a few minutes. Whisk, (being careful not to incorporate air!) until smooth and combined. Let cool before adding to the swiss buttercream.

Swiss Buttercream:

10 egg whites (about 10 oz)
2 cups sugar
pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla
2 C butter (just cooler than room tempurature)

Have your ganache made. Have all ingredients ready, and include a thermometer. Starting with a very clean SS mixer bowl from your stand mixer, add eggs, sugar and pinch of salt. Over a pot of simmering water, whisk the egg mixture until it reaches 160°f and it’s light and foamy. This could take 10 minutes… so eat your Wheaties before you start! Immediately put it on the mixer with the whisk attachment and whip on high until soft peaks and the mixer bowl is cool to the touch. Begin adding butter a TB at a time. It will start to look curdled, then suddenly it will come together and it will be fluffy and smooth. Slowly add 1/4 cup of the ganache. You can use the other 1/4 cup for decorations on your cake if you like. If you are decorating a 8″ cake and want to do more decorating on the top of the cake, I would make one and half times this recipe.

The idea for this cake and how it’s decorated came from one of my favorite bakers: Gesine Bullock-Prado, and her second book: Sugar Baby. Check it out… it’s fantastic!

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French Macarons

May 12, 2011 by Lauren

We made French Macarons yesterday in the bakery. I’m starting to find myself wanting to move beyond my sous chef duties of inventory, ordering, managing, mise en place & baking scones & cookies for our outlets, to doing some interesting baking projects as well. I’ve started making bagels with a sour dough starter that we are selling in our outlets and want to make a few other breads as well as a few cakes. I am hoping this is alright with my instructors – I guess as long as I have time in addition to my other duties, and I sell them, it will be.

Yesterday we made French Macarons, which if you don’t know, are similar to meringue with the addition of almond flour, so you get the sugary lightness of the meringue and a little nuttiness too. They are flavored and filled with an endless variety of creams and flavorings. We made rose flavor, which is interesting, I’ve never tasted that before. As long as you don’t use too much rose oil, it doesn’t taste soapy. We also made chocolate espresso flavor.

The difficulty in these comes when it’s rainy and/or really humid. Sugar has such an affinity to water that it absorbs enough to ruin the process… think about leaving a cookie out in the air over night… it will be kind of soggy by morning, just by absorbing the humidity in the air. And a plain cookie doesn’t have nearly as much sugar as these do! These can become quite sticky if they absorb too much moisture. It was raining yesterday when we made these so we used a little bit of meringue powder to help combat that.

They came out remarkably well considering it was first time for each of us.

Honestly, they are just too much sugar for me to want to eat them, but they are really fun to make and there are so many variations you can play around with.