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10 Legs in the Kitchen

~ Food. Dogs. Life!

10 Legs in the Kitchen

Tag Archives: avocado

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

25 Tuesday Mar 2014

Posted by Stacey Bender in Eating Out

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

avocado, English muffin, smoothie, Weekday breakfast, wheat grass powder

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Favorite weekday breakfast recipe…hmmmm. Does anyone actually have time to make a recipe for breakfast during the week? I do need to eat breakfast because without it, I am grumpy, and hungry. I like to reserve eggs for the weekend, unless they are hard boiled, in which case I will eat one with sea salt and pepper. I think a slice of rosemary toast, with butter and raspberry jam is divine, but that’s not really a recipe, now is it?

Mid-week breakfast – my recipe
Serves 1
Disclaimer: Written for office commuters. Can be adapted easily in the stay at home/home office kitchen by simply ignoring the “to go” jargon and just implementing at home. The broiler is a fine substitute for a toaster oven (in fact, the toaster oven is actually the substitute for the broiler in the commuter world).

Flailing about in the morning of a weekday, having barely shaken off dinner from the night before, I find a pack-and-go kind of breakfast to be the best choice. In my case, often, it is the only choice. I don’t always (okay, rarely) make lunch in the evening since I spend my time making dinner, however, I do need to have something for breakfast and if it means spending 5 minutes less putting on eyeshadow or ironing my top, well, priorities and all. 5 minutes is like 5 cents was to buy a gum ball once, and time being precious these days (all days really), I pack it and tackle it at work (multi-tasking, of course).

INGREDIENTS

Alarm clock – set 5 minutes earlier than the 20 minute “snooze” button.
Good black coffee, pre-set to go off without any effort (Tom always comes through).
Pantry and fridge stocked with healthy ingredients (such as fruit, yogurt, juice, cheese and grains).
A magic bullet or good blender.
Dogs that do their business without lolly-gagging.
Small bowls, cups and baggies “to go”.
The ability and inhibition to throw things together quickly (while half-asleep) and finish assembling at the office to eat while reading email.
An office that has a toaster oven, a microwave and white porcelain plates.

INSTRUCTIONS

“Don’t sweat the small stuff”. “Variety is the spice of life”. “Breakfast is the most important meal of the day”. Eat well, work smart and remember the important stuff!

A few of my favorites:

THE GOOD
Avocado half with sea salt and citrus

20140325-163558.jpg

This might be one of the easiest and most perfect breakfasts for someone like me on a weekday in that, it is self contained, creates it’s own bowl, is healthy, is filling and is an avocado (which might actually be one of the most perfect foods – I heart avocado). My sister-in-law, Irma, taught me this and all I could think was, “Duh, why didn’t I think of that?”.

STEP 1

Grab an avocado and a lime on your way out the door.

STEP 2

Go to the office, log onto your computer, then head to the kitchenette. Yes, yes, get some water; must stay hydrated.

STEP 3

Cut the avocado in half, lengthwise. Cover the half with the seed in wrap, to save for the next day (or share with a co-worker). Cut a wedge of lime. To the other half avocado, sprinkle with sea salt (do you keep yours in your drawer?) and squeeze over the lime.

STEP 4

Get to that meeting you are late for, avocado in the palm of your hand. Eat avocado, scooping with a spoon as you converse with meeting attendees. This is of course conducive behavior for some meetings and some – not; use your judgement.

20140325-164144.jpgYou could even add a scoop of cottage cheese if you are feeling fancy (or rather, not so fancy).

THE BAD
English muffin with tomato, basil and cheese

20140325-170730.jpg
Not bad in it tastes bad, or even that it is bad for you. This is healthier than a “typical” breakfast sandwich, quick, easy to assemble and cook, but best of all, feels like a civilized breakfast that can be transported to the office with almost no effort. Share one-half with a co-worker; no need to be an oinker.

STEP 1

Pack an English muffin (I use whole wheat), a small tomato, a few leaves fresh basil and a few slices of cheese into a travel bag. For the cheese, I switch between fresh and hard mozzarella, cheddar, Comte, gruyere, lite Jarlsberg, or whatever specialty cheese I might have picked up that week. It is extra convenient (and requires even less time) to use pre-sliced cheese (not Kraft singles) which is what I resort to on the busiest of mornings (pre-sliced cheese, not Kraft that is).

STEP 2

Go to the office, log onto your computer, then head to the kitchenette.

STEP 3

Toast the English muffin lightly in the toaster. While it is toasting, slice the tomato, sprinkle with sea salt (which I keep at the office) and fill up a glass with ice water (to keep hydrated).

STEP 4

Put the toasted muffin halves on a piece of foil and lay a slice of cheese on the top of each muffin half; top with basil leaves then tomato. If you prefer a bubbly top, reverse the tomato with the cheese. Put the muffins into a toaster oven (in a pinch, use the microwave) and set it to “toast” which should take a few minutes during which you can begin reading emails or doing something work-related.

STEP 5

Eat at your desk as you read/answer emails. Be sure to wash your hands and your keyboard/mouse often.

THE UGLY (to make you feel pretty):
Super healthy smoothie “to go”

20140325-170835.jpg
Okay, so here is a solid (or not so solid, pun-intended) recipe; I am not on the juicing craze of the rest of the world, but I have to admit that when my husband went out of town a few months ago, I got into the habit of doing this (he would remind me I also ended up in the hospital, but, it had nothing to do with this, honest). I would fill the cup of my Magic Bullet with fruits, spices and yogurt the night before to be ready for a fresh puréeing of it in the morning, right as I walked out the door (glass with lid, in one). The combination below is my favorite; the addition of citrus and ginger, combined with extra cinnamon and cardamon make for a bright, sunny flavor. I don’t actually measure, rather haphazardly throw the various ingredients into the cup (but the quantities listed below, I tested for you). I use Grays Harbor plain yogurt (a local yogurt in Washington) which is not low-fat but has much less fat than a full-fat Greek yogurt would have. The wheatgrass powder adds an extra dose of healthy; helping to extend energy, detoxify and increase our immune system (and who doesn’t want to do that?).

STEP 1

Quickly, very quickly, throw the following ingredients into the cup of a Magic Bullet, Vita-mix, or food processor and purée until smooth:

1/4 banana, peeled
A handful blueberries
A few slices fresh mango
1 TB wheatgrass powder
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cardamon
4-5 slivers of peeled fresh ginger (or just grate some in, to taste)
Juice of wedge lemon or lime
1/4 – 1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup or so fresh squeezed grapefruit (or apple) juice

You can do this the night before and purée just before heading out the door; still do it quickly or else you have missed the whole point. If you don’t have a Magic Bullet, transfer the smoothie to a glass jar with a lid after puréeing.

STEP 2

Go to the office. Yes, you will still be logging onto your computer, then going to the kitchenette (to get water, hydrate, hydrate, hydrate).

STEP 3

You can join a meeting, head to your desk or whatever your calendar has in store for your morning. A sippy cup is usually acceptable in most of the above. It is also okay to have already finished the smoothie in the car, bus, train, subway (you get the idea). Easy! Healthy! Makes you pretty (yes, even you, pretty-boy).

Share your favorites. I would love to hear how your week goes down and how you feed it in the a.m.

Three birds, one stone

18 Tuesday Mar 2014

Posted by Stacey Bender in the kitchen

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

avocado, Banana pancakes, breakfast, grilled citrus

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…or should I say, three cooks, one recipe?

I am intrigued with going back to camp (nostalga). You know the camp for kids as seen on Meatballs with Bill Murray? Frighteningly similar to the camp that I used to attend with my brother Scott when we were young. The kind with cabins and camp counselors (experiencing growing pains, not the show Growing Pains but the actual pains from growing). Lakes and mess halls, and the time I proclaimed to be allergic to eggs. No swimming for me with my broken arm, bee stings and my brother’s best friend for whom I had an enormous crush. Humiliation, exhilaration and fresh air. Making friends and fitting in, missing home and growing up.

Fast-forward to adulthood and here I am, faced with the opportunity to camp. Old school, with fellow food bloggers. Seems perfect, right? Instead of immediately signing up, I wrote to a camp alumni, “Mimi Avocado“, who by-the-way, gave it emphatic accolades. While looking to her for thoughts on the camp, I came across a post she had for banana pancakes made only with banana and egg. I always seem to have an over-ripe banana(s) in my fruit bowl. And there it stays, with the best intentions of using for bread, until it is finally so past it’s prime that it is crawling out of it’s own skin. Then, and only then, I reluctantly throw it into the yard waste bin.

I came by this pancake recipe awhile ago and the intention of making these pancakes emerged again on Saturday, when I faced the demise of yet another unsuspecting banana. That morning, I had also just found out that another fellow blogger, Simon, eats his pancakes sprinkled with sugar and topped with lemon juice. Intriguing, right? Well, as a test, I decided to make the banana pancakes, topped with avocado (for Mimi…avocado, get it?), rather than butter, and instead of maple syrup, lime juice from a grilled lime. The result was actually quite tasty, although I will say, they are extra delicious with real butter and maple syrup, but what’s the fun in that?

Banana pancakes with avocado and grilled citrus
Adapted from Mimi Holtz and Simon Johnson
Serves 2

INGREDIENTS

1 very ripe banana
2 eggs

1/2 avocado
1/2 lime (or lemon) cut into 2 pieces
1/2 tsp natural sugar

PREPARE

In a medium mixing bowl, mash the banana (skin removed) with a fork.
Add the eggs and break them up with the fork. With a hand mixer on high, beat for 1 minute until they are well-mixed and beginning to fluff.

On a hot, oiled griddle. Spoon out the batter into whatever size you prefer. Add the limes to the griddle. Cook cakes for several minutes until slightly browned, then turn over for a few minutes more.

20140318-164501.jpg

Divide amongst two plates and top with a few slices of avocado. Squeeze over a little juice from the grilled lime (or lemon) and sprinkle with sugar.

20140318-163701.jpgI know, this lime is raw, just checking to see if you are paying attention.

20140318-163911.jpg

Disclaimer: Tom does not endorse these cakes, yet they are Ginger, Buddy & Stacey approved!

47.535719-122.054692

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