Indian Fusion Cabbage Stir Fry

So I was reading and enjoying my "Organic Gardening" magazine when I stumbled upon this recipe that I just HAD to try.... It contained very few ingredients, most of which I already had in my pantry/ fridge...

Recipe Courtesy of Suvir Saran, ( owner and chef of the popular Indian Fusion restaurant in Manhatten, De'vi)

It contains turmeric which is highly medicinal herb with many healing properties.

This picture does not do the colors in this amazing recipe justice but I urge everyone to try it...

• 3 TBSP Canola Oil ( i used coconut oil )
• 1 1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
• 1 tsp. Ground Turmeric Powder
• 3 dried Red Chile Peppers
• 2 cups toasted unsalted peanuts ( can substitute with soynuts )
• 1 ( 3 1/2 lb ) head of cabbage cored and finely chopped
• 2 cups frozen peas
• 1 to 1 1/2 tsp Sea Salt or Kosher Salt

1. Heat the canola/coconut oil with the cumin seeds, turmeric powder, and chile peppers in a large pot or work over medium high heat , stirring ocasssionally, until the chiles become smoky and the cumin seeds start to pop..

2. Add the peanuts and cook for 2 minutes to brown them slightly and heat them up.

3. Add one half of the cabage and all of the peas, stir to combine with the herbs. After about 2 minutes and the cabbage has started to wilt ,, add the remaining cabbage. Cook stirring often, until the volume has reduced by one third and the cabbage looks somewhat browned around the edge . Mix in salt and serve warm or at room temp.

RASBERRY no bake CHEESECAKE !

OH what can this simple bowl of RASBERRIES can inspire ? ?

So Lily got an AWESOME Christmas gift this year ! A NEW COOKBOOK... Mom and Me Cookbook- Have fun in the kitchen by Anabel Karmel )


Many of you who know me,, know that her book "First Meals" is one of my regularly referenced cookbooks when Lil plum was a wee tott... So,,, On this lovely winter day off we decided to bust it out and hit the kitchen.... armed only with what we had in our pantry we were going to make a treat and OH what a treat we made,,,,, ( keep reading ) only 8 ingredients too ! SWEET !


RASBERRY RIPPLE CHEESECAKE ( no bake)
1 stick of butter
8 oz of graham crackers.
1 tsp vanilla extract
16 oz cream cheese ( thats 2 blocks )
1 cup super fine sugar
2/3 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
2 1/2 cups fresh rasberries ( we used frozen and it worked fine )

1. Put crackers in ziploc bag and use rolling pin to roll and crush them into a crumble

2. Melt butter in saucepan and add crackers to the melted butter.

3. Line a 8 inch springform pan with plastic wrap or parchment paper and pour graham cracker mixture into bottom of pan.

4. Press flat with potato masher and place in the refrigerator to chill .

In the meantime...................................

5. Make rasberry puree. Bring rasberries and powdered sugar to a boil... lower heat and simmer on low for about 10 minutes. Cool and then strain through a sieve or cheesecloth to remove all seeds.

6. Mix together the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla . In a seperate chilled bowl whip the heavy whipping cream in a separate bowl til stiff.

7. Fold the whipped cream into the cheese mixture.

8.. Spread 3/4 of the cheese mixture on top of the graham crust.

9. Spoon 3/4 of the puree on the top and swirl it into the cheese mixture. Carefully trying not to let your lovely toddler lick the spoon in between layers :) LOL

10. Gently spread on the remaining cheese mixture and drizzle straight lines of remaining rasberry puree on top. Pull and skewer or chop stick through the lines to make a feathered effect.

Refrigerate for a couple hours or overnight.......... and.............................

VOILA ! YUMMY PERFECTION ! ! As you can see..... LILY would agree.... In this kitchen we not only take cooking as "serious business" We HAVE FUN too . ! ! DELICOUS FUN !

Corn Cakes

YUMMY QUICK CORN CAKES !

So,,,, I'm on Winter Break for the next two weeks so I thought what better time to have fun in MY kitchen for a while,, instead of at work.... I decided to bring back an oldie,, but a goodie from Lilys younger years..... I made some yummy strawberry blueberry syrup at work last week and was looking for ways to make use of it before it went bad. I decided to make some of these corn cakes for "brunch" today topped with some of the sweet and delicous strawberry/blueberry syrup. Add some fresh diced pears on the side and VOILA,,, a quick and nutritious brunch for me and the lil plum.

NOTE: These cakes can be made in advance,,, frozen in individual bags and heated as needed. Also,, for the lil ones,,, these serve as a GREAT replacement to those awful boxed cakes you can get for your lil one. Make them smaller,,, like silver dollar size and pop one out of your freezer as your headed out for the day and it makes a great quick, nutritious snack for the lil buggers instead of nutrient dense pretzels or chips! !


OK,,, on to the good stuff.... The recipe.

1/2 pint sour cream or green PLAIN greek yogurt
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 egg,beaten
1/2 tsp. Baking Soda,
1 TBSP Golden ( or regular) Flaxseed meal
1/2 cup Yellow corn meal
a dollop of coconut oil for frying

- Whip egg in small bowl, set aside
-Combine remaining ingredients in medium size mixing bowl.
- Add Egg and whisk all ingredients together til all combined well.
-Warm frying pan on medium heat
- add coconut oil and spoon mix onto frying pan. About a 1/4 cup at a time.
- fry each side til golden brown. ( time varies depending on stove ) VOILA ! Serve with your favorite fruit spread or syrup. Makes about 6 medium size cakes and 10 smaller cakes.

This is much healthier option than regular white flour pancakes. Some of you may be daunted by the flax seed meal if you are not used to cooking with this. It can be found at close to any big brand grocery store chain these days,, in the aisle with all the other baking needs/ flours,,,, I especially like Bobs Red Mill. Flax seed meal adds much needed fiber as well as omega 3 oils that are great for heart health, inflamation and namely improved brain functioning. This is ESSENTIAL for young children whose brains are growing at exceedingly rapid rates. They are like little sponges Studies show the great value of omega 3 in improving areas of learning, memory, and concentration.
Much of the typical american diet lacks the eseential omega 3 essential fatty acids and are loaded with the bad omega 6 fatty acids. Whenever possible it is good to add Omegs 3's into our childrens diets in small but subtle ways,, such as this. I also like to add a TBSP in cookie recipes, cereals, oatmeal, yogurt,,,, etc. etc. In fact many of you who have eaten my cookies have probably eaten flax seed meal and didnt even know it :)

But,,, are these good ?? Well,,, Lily LOVES them. Most children who arent used to the taste might need some syrup on top,,, this is how I like them. Not maple syrup,, I recommend a thicker more fruit based syrup,, however, my lil plum likes to eat them plain,,, she came back for seconds after I was already full from my first serving !

Sweet Potato Fry OH MY !

Sweet Potato Fries
My Lil Plum NEVER ate sweet potatoes,,,,
Needless to say i NEVER complained because she ate just about everything else I put in front of her so,,, beggars cant be choosers right ?

Um,,, no,, not with this foodie mama !

So,, I figured I would continue to try and swing Lil PLum into the land of SWEET POTATO ENTHUSIASM,,,,,
Three words,,,
Sweet
Potato
Fries

A friend of mine told me she does something similiar with butternut squash and they arent as sweet,, you could try this too.

SWEET POTATO FRIES
3 Organic sweet potatoes scrubbed well.. (if you dont have organic I recommend peeling them ) The skins have all the nutrients so this is why I reccomend leaving them on.)
EVOO ( extra virgin Olive Oil ) or Coconut Oil ( about 1/4 cups,, enough to coat all potatoes well as this will be the oNLY Oil you use in this recipe )
Cinnamon
Cumin
Garlic salt
Sea Salt
Crushed Black Pepper
Oregano
Gallon size Ziploc Baggie

Preheat oven to 375
Cut and slice potatoes in french frie size ( place in bowl)
Pour in Ziploc Baggie ( have child do this part )
Add oil to bag ( Have child do this as well )
Add Herbs .(Have child do this as well,, this is why I reccomend having all spices already measured in a small child size bowl,, like a ramekin so they can dump em right in the bag )
Seal and shake up fries well til all coated with oil and spices ( Children especially like the shaking part )
Place in Roasting pan in oven and watch carefully. ( open bag for child and have them pour into pan )
Bake til soft inside ,, about 45 minutes,,, each oven is different so Im leary to put an exact time on this. Just watch themn til they are your desired consistency.

( Notice: I didnt give measurements to herbs because use them to your liking . I used the above combination because I wanted an indian flair. On that note,, I use a SMALL amount of Oregano,, as this tends to overwhelm recipes if used in large amounts. I also PROMISE the combination of Cumin and Cinnamon is DIVINE,,, just try it.
Here is a GREAT Way to get your kiddos to try new flavors in a FUN way. I STRONGLY believe that one of the EASIEST ways we can get our children to open up their culinary palettes is to get them to taste "Different" herbs,, other than salt and pepper and garlic,, ( the most commonly used spice in N america) They may be leary at first but if you continue on this herb journey they will develop a taste for these different flavors .

Studies show by the time children are 4,, their tastebuds have been formed for life,,, trust me on this,,, I have a 16 year old too,,, and tr ying to CHANGE their eating habits later in life is not IMPOSSIBLE but it IS quite difficult,,, So START EARLY !
Dont give in to the notion that children dont "LIKE" Spicey foods,,, BLAH BLAH BLAH !
I say,,, as long as its not flavored with Jabanero Peppers,,, they will be fine.

Remember,, their is a difference between being "Spicy" and being "Flavorful " This is why I like using the word herbs a lot instead of spices.

Studies also show that you need to "try" new food and flavors 8 to 12 times before children will be receptive to them... so bottom line.
DONT GIVE UP ! and HAVE FUN with cooking with your kiddos !

By the way,, Lil Plum LOVED these and I think in part to the fact that she "helped"
Did I also mention that this recipe in TOTAL took only about 15 minutes to prepare,, simple and easy and FUN !

Day off BREAKFAST,,, Egg Pizza Please aka, Fritatta

Mom's you TOO can make a balanced breakfast for your lil one with little effort.

The KEY to getting kids EXCITED about healthy food is to get them INVOLVED with FOOD.

I recently had a day off of cooking for the children at school and decided to go back to where it alll started,,, COOKING for my Lil Plum at home...

Of course,,,, Lil Plum was,,,,,,, you guessed it.... INVOLVED ( and excited I might add ) Heres how it went ..... down......

CHEEZEY GARLIC SPINACH FRITATTA...........
4 eggs,
1 TBSP Milk ( u can use soy or almond milk too,, just unsure its unsweetened and unflavored )
Salt
About 2- 3 cups loosely packed spinach,, rinsed( do not dry,, leave droplets of water on leaves for moisture during simmering)
2 garlic cloves,
1/3 cups monterey jack cheese
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste

Whip eggs and milk in large bowl...................

Shred Cheese and prepare remaining ingredients ( the key to getting kids involved is to let them help with things like,,, shredding cheese,,, then pouring it into small containers,,, small enough for their little hands to pour in when needed. Whisking eggs,, etc... etc....

Saute, Garlic in frying pan with about 3 - 4 TBSP Olive Oil
Add spianch and saute til wilted. Make sure you continue to stir around to ensure all spinach is wilted.

Add Whipped Egg and lower to heat to REALLY LOW,,,,
Once it looks like its setting a tad,,, add MOnterey Jack cheese.
Continue to watch CAREFULLY,,,, for about 2 to 3 minutes.
Add Parm cheese on top
Transfer to Broiler on high and watch like a HAWK .
Once it starts puffing up and is slightly browned on top,,,, take out and let cool.

Some IMPORTANT tips..
Make sure u use a frying pan with a handle that is oven safe
Make sure u use enough Olive OIl to ensure eggs dont stick to pan,,, I use a non stick pan... Obviously my friends at EWG might not agree to the use of a teflon coated pan but in cooking sometimes this is a NECESARRY evil...
Eggs once done should slide right out of pan with a teensy weensy spatula loosening effort on the edges...

Cut this "fritatta" into small triangles that resemble pizza to make it fun for children and serve with whole grain bread and a side of fruit..
VOILA ! Healthy and Balanced breakfast,,,,,,Kid involved and Kid FUN !