Date & Chorizo Kale Salad

We don�t usually have salad at our Thanksgiving feast, do you? I�ve always felt like, who wants to fill their plates and bellies with lettuce when there are already too many other good things to get through?

But this year, I�m throwing this salad option out there for you, just in case you want a dose of something green and leafy. And it�s kale, so really, no worries about that whole lettuce issue I mentioned above.

I got the inspiration for this salad from the New York Times Thanksgiving by State article. An article which, by the way, has Washingtonians very confused. Glazed shiitake mushrooms with bok choy!? So random. I get the Asian influence, we do have a lot of that here. But they seem to have totally passed over all of our amazing local ingredients that typically go into a Washington fall feast: chanterelle mushrooms, which are in-season and abundant in certain parts of the state right now; apples, for which we have orchard upon orchard upon orchard; Walla Walla sweet onions from, you guessed it, Walla Walla Washington; salmon and dungeness crab� I mean, they had so much to work with! And they failed. Big time.

Sometimes I feel like everyone on the east coast is like �Washington� DC, right?� And I�m like �Hello! We�re over here! We�re a state!� Like in the 90s, when we first got (dial-up) internet at home and I spent all my time in chatrooms (um, geocities, amiright!?) and whenever I got A/S/L�d, I obviously lied about the A and said I was a cool, older 16 year old�I was really more like 14 (sorry mom), and even though I was supposed to lie about the L (sorry mom), I would say �Washington,� and my chat-mate would always think DC. Every. Damn. Time. Also, I got in trouble when my mom discovered my chat name was something like �cutiegirl16.� IT WAS THE 90S YOU GUYS. To Catch a Predator wasn�t even a thing yet.

Oh, sorry. I digress. Back to this kale salad. I was inspired by California�s non-terrible representation: kale/date/almond stuffing! Since all these ingredients can be saladified with different proportions, I went that route. The bread becomes crunchy rustic croutons, the kale gets a massage but stays fresh and raw. I nixed the ground turkey and cooked onions because texture, and added Spanish chorizo, cranberries, and a little shallot-lemon dressing, because flavor. It all comes together for a fresh, autumn salad, perfect for Thanksgiving or any other fall dinner. 

(PS. this is a husband arm modeling our chorizo, below!)

Date & Chorizo Kale Salad

Makes 4 servings

Unlike its crumbly, un-cooked Mexican cousin, Spanish chorizo is a hard, cured link, similar to salami. If you can�t find it, you can order online: http://www.tienda.com/food/chorizo.html

1 load sourdough bread

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 sprigs of fresh rosemary, chopped

2 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped

Salt & pepper

2 bunches of Lacinato Kale, rinsed and dried

Olive oil

Flaked sea salt

5 large dates, pitted and roughly chopped

� cup toasted almonds, roughly chopped

Spanish chorizo, sliced or diced, about 1 cup

1 cup fresh cranberries, roughly chopped

Juice from half a lemon

1 teaspoon finely diced shallot

1 teaspoon brown mustard

1 teaspoon olive oil

Fresh ground black pepper

First, croutons. Preheat oven to 400.

Cut the crust off the bread, and cut or tear the rest into rustic, large-but-bite-sized chunks. Spread bread chunks on a sheet pan, and drizzle with the 2 T olive oil, rosemary, thyme, and a couple heavy pinches of salt and black pepper. Toss together until the bread is well coated.

Bake for about 15 minutes, until croutons are lightly browned and crunchy. Set aside.

Next, kale.

Remove the stems, and tear the leaves into bite sized pieces. Add kale to a large bowl, and drizzle with a little bit of olive oil (less than tablespoon), and a heavy pinch of flaked sea salt. Massage the salt and oil into the kale leaves with your hands�this helps break down the tough leaves�until the leaves are softer and a more vibrant green.

Add dates through cranberries to kale.

Finally, the dressing.

Whisk together lemon through black pepper, and pour over salad. Toss everything together, and enjoy! Can also be eaten the next day.

Peanut Butter Date Shakes

I feel like I've been really boring on here lately. I'm sorry! I've made and eaten plenty of tasty things this month, but most of them are quick little salads, soups, or thrown together bowl-meals, none of which are particularly blog worthy. 


I do have some more donuts to share with you soon, but I need to make them again for photos� and I have a cold (seriously!? As if I wasn't already sick for the first two months of the year�). I don't want to germ-up a bunch of donuts that other people are going to eat, and I certainly don't need 12 amazingly delicious donuts sitting around my house. I will eat every single one. Donut will power is not a thing. It doesn't exist. So, I want to be sure I can safely share with friends before I make them again. Because coconut. And ginger glaze. See what I'm saying about will power? 

In addition to quick little dinners, I've been using my Vitamix like crazy. I know they're expensive, but guys� I'm telling you� life changing! I used to make smoothies like once a month. My old blender sucked so bad, it took forever to blend everything up, and was just an all-around pain in the ass to use. So I saved up my credit card points, and used them to get a Vitamix. Now I blend things almost daily! Sometimes twice daily. Even thrice daily, on occasion. Fruit & veggie smoothies, creamy soups, nut milks and butters, hummus, bean dip, sauces. All thing things. I highly recommend a high-powered blender (for a more affordable option, my parents have a Ninja, and love it). 

My favorite treat lately has been this peanut butter date shake. It tastes milkshakey, but is full of good for you stuff like peanut butter, banana, almond milk, dates, and oats. I won't lie and say this is a low calorie shake, because it's not. But everything in it is natural and healthy-like, and it's a major protein boost. It's quick and easy to make, so perfect before early morning workouts. Just kidding� I don't work out in the mornings, who do you think I am? I wish I was a morning person, but no matter how hard I try, it just doesn't happen. I'm pretty sure my REM sleep kicks in at 8AM. So instead I have this shake as an afternoon snack, dessert, or late-morning breakfast.  

Peanut Butter Date Shake

Makes 1 big shake, 2 small ones

3 pitted dates (I used the large medjool dates. If you like it less sweet, start with 2, and the 3rd as needed)

1 banana (the riper it is, the more you'll taste it--I go for less ripe)

2 tablespoons peanut butter

1/4 cup rolled oats

1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk (plus more if needed)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Pinch of cinnamon

Pinch of salt

1 overflowing cup of ice

Depending on your blender, you may need longer blending times. I add everything except the ice to the blender, and blend until it's all smooth (the dates take awhile). Then, since the long blending time has likely warmed up the mixture, I add my ice last, and blend until smooth. Taste test as you go. Add more peanut butter or vanilla if you want, or more almond milk if you like a runnier shake. Sometimes I also add toasted coconut!

Note: This post is in no way affiliated with Vitamix, I just happen to be obsessed with mine, and all opinions are my own. 

Carrot Cake Smoothies

I had this recipe ready for you guys earlier this week, but decided it was probably a bad idea to post it on April Fool�s day. Then you�d be all like �Oh, it�s not actually a carrot cake smoothie, its cake�right?� I�m sorry. It�s really a smoothie, no jokes here. There is no cake.

But, also not a joke: this smoothie is really good! And it�s good for you! And, if you�re gonna be filling your Easter keister up with a ton of ham, potatoes, deviled eggs, Cadbury cream eggs, homemade ricotta, coconut cakes, lemon pies, and other pastel-inspired goodies (like I will), then a pre-feast smoothie might be in order.

This smoothie has all the makings of a good carrot cake, minus the cream cheese frosting, butter, eggs, and cake parts. Carrots, coconut, nuts, and spices get all whirled up in your blender with other good and creamy things like coconut milk, bananas, and dates. It�s almost a carrot cake shake, rather than smoothie.

If you�re feeling really festive, you can top it all off with toasted coconut and chopped nuts. And also� that remaining coconut milk? Go ahead and whip that into a smooth and fluffy whipped cream. It�s really like the icing on the cake�or the smoothie shake, if ya know what I�m sayin�.

Carrot Cake Smoothies

Serves 2

5 medium-large carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1/2 cup coconut milk (if you're using remaining for whipped cream, be sure to use a full fat version)

2 large dates, pitted

1/2 large banana

1/4 cup almonds or other nuts

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Pinch of fresh nutmeg and ground cloves

2 cups of ice

Toppings:

Toasted coconut

Chopped nuts

Whipped coconut cream

Place everything except ice and toppings in blender, and blend until smooth. Add ice, and blend until smooth. Pour into smoothie glasses or jars, and serve with toppings. 

Almond Stuffed Dates, Baba Ghanoush and Grilled Pineapple Salsa on CBC's Weekend Morning Show!

This morning I had the pleasure of presenting three dishes on CBC's Weekend Morning Show with guest host, Ismaila Alfa.  The first, traditionally to break fast at Ramadan, was stuffed Dates.

Beautiful Stuffed dates are available now at Herat Foods on Pembina and Halal Meats and Specialty Foods on Maryland.

They are so simple to prepare:

Blanch almonds if they have the skin on and peel the skin off.  Poke out the pit of the date, stuff with 1-2 blanched almonds.  Serve.  Optional to drizzle a bit of tahini mixed with honey over the dates.
Enjoy!


Baba Ghanoush

1 globe eggplant, pricked and baked until very soft
1 green pepper, seeded and diced
2-4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup tahini (really good tahini at Herat Foods on Pembina)
juice of one lime
salt, to taste
1/4 cup yoghurt

Puree all ingredients in food processor or blender.  It will seem very loose.  Refrigerate.  Serve with olives, harissa, olive oil, etc.  Enjoy!

 Grilled Pineapple Salsa

1 pineapple, cored then grilled, then chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, roasted whole over grill then chopped
1 ear corn, roasted or 1 cup pan fried
1/2 cup cooked black beans
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground chipotle peppers
1/2 cup chopped or pureed tomatoes
salt, to taste
2 tbs brown sugar
2-4 tbs vinegar
drizzle olive oil
3 tbs fresh chopped mint

Combine all ingredients in a bowl.  Refrigerate and enjoy with tortillas or in your favourite dish.  Try with fish tacos.  Excellent local corn tortillas are available at Dino's Grocery Mart on Notre Dame.