Tag: Mediterranean Diet
Lemon Honey Olive Oil Muffins
You know the phrase, “If you want something done right, do it yourself”? Well, you may not think this phrase applies to the humble muffin, but I’m here to tell you it does.
As a muffin–o–maniac, I am constantly scouring the internet for new muffin varieties to try, but sometimes, alas, I just can’t find exactly the recipe I want for the ingredients I have on hand.
Thankfully, muffins are the perfect drawing board for recipe experimentation, even for anyone new to the process. If you can’t find a recipe for exactly what you want, you can always take the DIY route. Muffins are like a bake-able paint-by-numbers kit: hard to screw up and with a bit of room for creativity. All you have to do is find a good basic recipe (like this one from King Arthur Flour or this one from Mark Bittman) and tweak it to your liking, or to fit whatever items in your kitchen need using up. You might even use a flavor guide like The Flavor Bible for inspiration on ingredient combinations. That’s how I ended up with these Lemon Honey Olive Oil Muffins–which, by the way, are no basic muffin.
Popping with lemony tartness both in the batter and in a glaze on top, these little gems also have an undercurrent of the distinctive, mellower flavor of olive oil. They were just what I was hoping for when I decided to roll up my sleeves and figure out a recipe that used honey, lemon, olive oil, and whole wheat flour. Knowing they were awaiting me for breakfast even motivated me to get out of bed in the morning during this week of my kids’ return to school after Christmas break. (How did I get so used to sleeping in after only two weeks?)
So tell me, what kind of muffins would you make if you were to create your own recipe? Or what other types of foods do you find easy to experiment with? I’m always looking for new ideas!
Lemon Honey Olive Oil Muffins
These lemony muffins get their sweetness from honey and their moist texture from olive oil.
Servings: 10 muffins
Ingredients
For the muffins:
- 2/3 c. honey
- 1/2 c. olive oil
- 2 eggs
- 1/3 c. sour cream
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 Tbsp. almond milk
- juice of 1/2 a lemon (about 2 Tbsp.)
- 1 c. all-purpose flour
- 1 c. whole wheat flour
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- zest of 1 lemon
For the glaze:
- juice of other 1/2 of lemon
- 1/2 c. powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spray 10 cups of a muffin tin with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the honey, olive oil, eggs, sour cream, vanilla, almond milk, and lemon juice until smooth.
- Add all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, salt, baking powder, and lemon zest and mix until just combined.
- Spoon into greased muffin cups and bake 3 minutes at 425, then reduce heat to 375 degrees and bake an additional 15-17 minutes.
- Cool at least 10 minutes in the pan. Meanwhile, make the glaze by whisking together the remaining lemon juice and powder sugar. Remove muffins from tin and drizzle with the glaze. Store in an airtight container.
Notes
A Love Letter to Food Original Recipe.
Creamy Red Pepper Cauliflower Soup
This recipe is one of those with a name too long for my blog’s title box parameters. If I had my way, I would call it “Creamy Roasted Red Pepper and Cauliflower Soup with Goat Cheese,” but that’s, like, more characters than you can even fit in a Twitter post. When you’re a food lover and recipe developer, though, it’s kind of like being in love–when you find a great recipe, you want to shout from the rooftops about all its wonderful qualities (and the various ingredients that give it its complex flavor profile). You don’t want to leave anything out. With this soup, I want to tell the world that it manages to be both creamy and chunky, that it beautifully blends the boldness of roasted red peppers with the subtler flavor of cauliflower, and that it’s a perfect bowl of healthy vegetarian comfort on a cold winter’s night. But my title box on the blog can only take so many words, so let’s just call it by the abbreviated name “Creamy Red Pepper Cauliflower Soup.” Think of it like that Fiona Apple album that everyone just calls When the Pawn, when the real title is:
“When the Pawn Hits the Conflicts He Thinks like a King What He Knows Throws the Blows When He Goes to the Fight and He’ll Win the Whole Thing ‘fore He Enters the Ring There’s No Body to Batter When Your Mind Is Your Might so When You Go Solo, You Hold Your Own Hand and Remember That Depth Is the Greatest of Heights and If You Know Where You Stand, Then You Know Where to Land and If You Fall It Won’t Matter, Cuz You’ll Know That You’re Right.”
You’re welcome for that.
At any rate, this soup is a whole food recipe you can feel good about in the midst of this season of indulgence. Make it a meal by serving with a side of crusty bread. And when you taste the mix of roasted red pepper, cauliflower, onion, garlic, spices, and goat cheese, you’ll understand what I mean about acknowledging every ingredient. Feel free to shout from your rooftop!
Creamy Red Pepper Cauliflower Soup
This vegetarian soup is both healthy and hearty!
Servings: 4 as a main course
Ingredients
- 4 red bell peppers, sliced in half and seeds removed
- 1 small head cauliflower, cut into florets
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp. fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp. dried)
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes
- 1 qt. vegetable broth (or chicken, for non-vegetarian version)
- 1 tsp. smoked paprika
- 4 oz. crumbled goat cheese
- juice of 1/2 a lemon (about 2 Tbsp.)
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Heat broiler to high and place red peppers, cut side down, on a baking sheet about 4 inches from the broiler. Broil until skins are mostly blackened, checking frequently, about 5-7 minutes. Place in a sealed container and let steam for 20 minutes. Peel off skins and dice peppers.
- Meanwhile, heat oven to 400 degrees. Toss cauliflower in 1 Tbsp. olive oil and spread evenly on a baking sheet. Roast 20-30 minutes, stirring once halfway through.
- Heat the other 1 Tbsp. in a stock pot over medium heat and saute the onion until tender, about 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic, thyme, and red pepper flakes and cook about 1 minute. Add diced red peppers, roasted cauliflower, broth, paprika, and goat cheese and simmer 10 minutes.
- Puree to desired consistency with an immersion blender, stir in lemon juice, season with salt and pepper, and serve.
Notes
Adapted from Closet Cooking.
Honey-Orange Cranberry Sauce
No matter your thoughts and feelings about canned cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving, you have to admit it has a singular ability that is both fascinating and a little repellant.
I am speaking, of course, of the ability to slide out of the can completely intact in one fell swoop, and stand alone as a quivering magenta tower on a plate.
Sklooooooooooosh.
Boooooiiiiinngg.
There’s something vaguely disturbing about watching your food being birthed wholesale from its packaging in this fashion. Something, dare I say, un-CAN-ny? Or something just a little too reminiscent of dog food, perhaps. And while we’re on the subject, what’s IN that stuff? I’ll tell you: a whole lotta high fructose corn syrup (and possibly some kind of food lab Jell-O product they can get away with calling “natural flavor”?) I honestly don’t mind the taste of the classic straight-from-the-can Ocean Spray jellied sauce, but Real Talk: it’s not exactly made of wholesome ingredients, and it’s not the classiest item on the Thanksgiving table, with its sklooshy jiggle and the grooves around its circumference that give it away as canned every time.
So, this Thanksgiving, might I suggest a detour from the can? This homemade orange cranberry sauce is sweetened naturally with honey (not high fructose corn syrup like the wiggle-jiggle variety) and will give your Thanksgiving table a touch of class and a colorful sweet-tart pop. Plus, it’s super easy and smells AMAZING as it cooks. It’s even fun to make because you get to hear the ping! of the cranberries as they burst in the saucepan.
So go ahead and be the superstar of your Thanksgiving gathering by bringing this wholesome, delicious knockout. My guess is you’ll never go back to the canned variety again.
Skloooooooooosh!
Honey Orange Cranberry Sauce
You'll never go back to the canned variety after you've tried this orange-flavored naturally-sweetened cranberry sauce!
Prep Time5 mins
Cook Time15 mins
Total Time20 mins
Servings: 1 cups
Ingredients
- 12 oz. fresh cranberries
- 1 stick cinnamon
- 1 pinch cardamom
- 1/2 c. honey
- zest and juice of 1 orange (about 1 1/2 Tbsp. zest and 1/2 c. juice)
Instructions
- In a saucepan over medium heat, bring all ingredients to a boil and cook about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until cranberries have burst and sauce has thickened to your liking.
- Remove cinnamon stick and let cool. Serve immediately or store refrigerated in an airtight container.
Notes
A Love Letter to Food Original Recipe.
Salmon Kale Caesar Wraps
If it seems like it’s been quite awhile since the last post here blog, there’s a reason for that. The hiatus wasn’t intentional. Apparently, someone on the other side of the world hacked my site, putting all kinds of trashy-trash links to their trashy-trash ads on my site, creating an entire day’s work for my husband (saintly technology pro that he is) to fix it.
Thanks, random person in Romania!
Honestly, it’s a lesson learned the hard way that I need to stay on top of my website updates (which guard against this sort of thing)–and a sad reminder that there are people who have no qualms about spewing their trashy-trash barfy-barf all over someone else’s content. Not that I’m bitter.
On a happier note, I’ve been waiting two whole weeks to share these Salmon Kale Caesar Wraps with you, and now I finally can! If you’re the kind of person who has issues with fish–“fissues”?–either because A) It’s too expensive, B) It’s hard to justify eating it for sustainability reasons, or C) It tastes too “fishy,” this recipe is for you. First of all, it takes only three-quarters of a pound of salmon and stretches it to make four servings, cutting the cost of fish per serving to about half of what it would be in a typical salmon dinner. And using less salmon perhaps allows for a splurge on more a sustainably farmed/caught (and therefore more expensive) fish. Also, because the salmon gets tossed with several other flavorful ingredients and wrapped in a whole wheat tortilla, it’s definitely not your usual fishy-fish entree.
I know, right? Mind. Blown. No more reasons to not eat fish. (Well, maybe you have your reasons. Maybe a fish robbed your grandmother…or hacked your website.)
Anyway, add to all this goodness that this recipe is mega-healthy and dead-easy to make in the space of half an hour, and you’ve got yourself a foolproof weeknight dinner or casual lunch.
Enjoy!
Salmon Kale Caesar Wraps
A Love Letter to Food Original Recipe
Ingredients:
3/4 lb. salmon
1/4 lemon
drizzle olive oil
salt and pepper
6 c. kale, chopped
1/3 c. purchased or homemade Caesar salad dressing
1/4 c. shredded Parmesan cheese
4 whole wheat tortillas
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spray a small baking dish with cooking spray. Place salmon in the dish and squeeze 1/4 lemon on top, followed by a drizzle of olive oil and some salt and pepper. Bake 15 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork.
- Meanwhile, assemble the salad: in a medium bowl, toss kale with Caesar dressing and Parmesan.
- Add cooked salmon to the salad and toss to combine.
- Fill tortillas with completed salad, wrap, and serve.
Serves 4.
Beef Kofta Meatballs
Hey! Remember that post a few days ago about the Rice with Almonds and Golden Raisins inspired by our favorite local ’50s-diner-themed Middle Eastern restaurant? Well, as delightful as that recipe is, I wanted to share the veritable meat centerpiece that topped it off when we enjoyed it last week. (P.S. Please do not Google “meat centerpiece” like I just did. You will be sorry.) After all, even an inspired side dish needs a little something extra to make an actual meal, unless you’re working on your Biggest Loser extreme weight loss 900-calories-a-day life plan. And that little something extra might as well be as intriguing and delicious as the rice, something like, oh, maybe beef kofta meatballs?
Some people may say less is more, but the combination of eleven spices (commonly found in your pantry, don’t panic) in these meatballs provides a flavor package that makes me say MORE is sometimes actually more. In a one-and-a-half-inch diameter, these little morsels contain garlic, parsley, cilantro, onion, cumin, and even a hint of cinnamon. And 5 other spices, but I won’t try your patience listing them, too. See the recipe for a multi-spiced main dish that pairs perfectly with almond and golden raisin rice and will make you say واو (عِبارة للتعَجُّب)! (Arabic for “Wow!” Or I may have copied that wrong from the online Cambridge English-Arabic dictionary. That may actually say “Wow! Look at that car!” But, you know, you get the gist.)
Beef Kofta
(Adapted from Allrecipes.com)
Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp. kosher salt
3 Tbsp. grated or finely diced onion
1 Tbsp. dried parsley
3 Tbsp. fresh cilantro, minced (or 1 Tbsp. ground coriander)
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. allspice
scant 1/4 tsp. ground red pepper
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. black pepper
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl, thoroughly mix all ingredients, using your hands if necessary to evenly distribute spices.
- Shape meat mixture into 1 1/2-inch meatballs and space evenly on a large baking sheet.
- Bake for 25 minutes. Serve any way you like: with rice, pita, tzatziki/garlic sauce, tomatoes, cucumbers, etc.
Serves 4.