Category: FOOD

Ina Garten’s New Potato Salad… easy and delicious!

On By Barbara StroudIn FOOD, Recipe6 Comments

Ahhh, Ina’s potato salad. Simply the best. I’m not a potato-salad-kind-of-gal… prefer my macaroni salad any day. But one day I was watching the Food Network show with the Barefoot Contessa herself (AKA Ina Garten) and she made potato salad. It intrigued me. I loved the way she cooked the potatoes for a short time and then covered them with a clean kitchen towel to steam. Brilliant! Nothing like mushy potato salad, and that does the trick, no more mush! Hey, maybe that’s why I never cared for it before? This is tasty, makes a good bit and is EASY. My husband needed to take something into the office, so I tried this recipe and he didn’t come home with any (not that THAT is a true indication, long story short, at an office I had worked at I burned a Pop Tart (yes, you know, those little healthy tarts filled with all things good… ha… I think I heard they last 13 years on the shelf… I buy them in case of a hurricane, hee), I didn’t just burn the edges the entire thing was solid dark black. I was about to toss it when someone said not to throw it away, to put it on a plate on the table in the breakroom and one of the programmers would eat it. I came back an hour later and that puppy was GONE and it wasn’t in the trash!!), but I’m sure they ate this potato salad because it was DELICIOUS! Try it for yourself!

INA GARTEN’S NEW POTATO SALAD

Ingredients

  • 3 pounds small red potatoes
  • Kosher salt
  • 1 cup good mayonnaise
  • 1/4 cup buttermilk, milk, or white wine
  • 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
  • 2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cup chopped celery
  • 1/2 cup chopped red onion

Directions

Place the potatoes and 2 tablespoons of salt in a large pot of water. Bring the water to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, until the potatoes are barely tender when pierced with a knife. Drain the potatoes in a colander, then place the colander with the potatoes over the empty pot and cover with a clean, dry kitchen towel. Allow the potatoes to steam for 15 to 20 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, buttermilk, Dijon mustard, whole-grain mustard, dill, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Set aside. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut them into quarters or halves, depending on their size. Place the cut potatoes in a large bowl. While the potatoes are still warm, pour enough dressing over them to moisten. (As the salad sits, you may need to add more dressing.) Add the celery and red onion, 2 teaspoons of salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Toss well, cover, and refrigerate for a few hours to allow the flavors to blend. Serve cold or at room temperature.
Print Recipe

Catch you back here tomorrow! Check out my photo blog at http://almostdailypic.wordpress.com

Image and recipe via www.foodnetwork.com

Are you one to jump on the Meatless Monday bandwagon?

On By Barbara StroudIn FOODLeave a comment
Image: MeatlessMonday.com

There is an ever growing movement to have us all have a full day of meatless meals. Personally, we have plenty of meat free meals, and days with meat free meals, so it’s not a hard thing for us to do. I like meat, I just like a lot of other things that don’t include meat. There are countless websites, a few are:  MEATLESS MONDAY (click to get to website), MEAT FREE MONDAYS (click for website; started by Paul Mc Cartney to help save the planet) – Whether you give up meat one day a week to get in better shape, eat more veggies or to help keep global warming at bay and help reduce greenhouse gas emissions try eating one meatless meal a week. If you’re a big meat eater then try maybe just one meatless meal for a day a week, hey, it’s a start, and it’s cheaper!

 Check out the above websites for meal ideas if you need them! I have plenty of things that I like that are meatless… tonight is salad and a baked potato with green onions, Greek yogurt and 2% sharp cheddar… oooh, can’t wait!
Check out my photo blog at http://almostdailypic.wordpress.com !

Oranges, lemons, tangerines and grapefruit to prevent cancer… Today’s tip.

On By Barbara StroudIn FOOD, HEALTH2 Comments
Image: Prevention.com

Oh, oranges, lemons, tangerines and grapefruit! MMMM, the crisp clean scent of citrus… delicious eaten as is or squeezed into water… Today’s cancer tip is from a great magazine article “Edible Healing: Food Cures for Cancer” by Prevention Magazine! If you haven’t been a reader of Prevention magazine, I highly encourage you to read it, check it out! On to today’s tip…

Disease-Fighting Fruits – Part One

Fresh and frozen varieties provide year-round protection

Oranges, tangerines, lemons, and grapefruit contain anti-inflammatory compounds called flavonoids that stimulate the detoxification of carcinogens by the liver. Certain flavonoids in the skin of tangerines–tangeritin and nobiletin–can also help promote the death of brain cancer cells.

How to Eat It: Sprinkle grated citrus zest (from organic fruits) into salad dressings or breakfast cereals, or steep in tea or hot water. Eat whole fruits out of hand, toss with other fruits in a salad, or use in a salsa to season grilled fish.

Hope this helps! Catch you back here tomorrow!

Hey Mom!! Well this is treatment number 9… only 3 to go… can you believe it? You are awesome! Love you… me

A serious addiction… Starbuck’s Frappuccino

On By Barbara StroudIn FOOD3 Comments
Image: Frappuccino.com

I am addicted to coffee flavored Starbuck’s Frappuccino’s… the ones in the little bottles that come in a 4 pack at the grocery store… yep. It’s a shame. BUT, like with all things that aren’t technically “good for you” (although I do try hard to justify this, milk instead of cream, just a wee bit of sugar, etc. etc.) I have rules… ha ha. I only drink one 4-pack a week… the bottles are 9.5oz. So on most days I drink 1/2 bottle, and one day a week I get to enjoy the whole enchilada… and I look forward to that day! Now you realize 1/2 bottle is literally a few sips… but it is the sweetest few sips of my morning! If you have tried a Frappuccino you know what I’m talking about… if you haven’t, hmmm, I’m not sure I would try… I’m thinking it’s like a cigarette… it’s tough to quit… no butts about it… (hee hee. pun intended).

Catch you back here tomorrow! If you get a chance… http://almostdailypic.wordpress.com !

 
 

Something quick and easy to toss on the grill!

On By Barbara StroudIn FOOD, RecipeLeave a comment

We had been out all day and were starving! What’s quick and easy to throw on the grill and call a meal?? Kabobs! We picked up some chicken Italian sausage, whew! It was out of this world, along with some potatoes, onions and peppers we had a meal! It’s important to use cooked Italian sausage unless you’re really going to monitor to be sure it’s completely cooked… this meal was QUICK… To keep this moving along quickly, we did put the potatoes in the microwave until barely able to pierce with a fork, then finished on the grill. We quickly soaked the skewers while we cut up the veggies and sausage… anything else that sounds good, go ahead and add it!  Corn on the cob broken into 2-3″ sections would have been good. Prior to adding to the grill we brushed with olive oil and lightly sprinkled with salt and pepper… had some nice sweet watermelon afterwards. Yum!

It would have been really nice if I would have taken more than a “before” photo… Trust me… the “after” photo would make your mouth water… I guess I was too hungry to snap a quick picture, heavy sigh…

Catch you back here tomorrow!!

Die Cancer Die… Fatty fish is here to save the day!

On By Barbara StroudIn FOOD, HEALTH, THOUGHTSLeave a comment
Image: Prevention.com

Onward ho with the cancer prevention tips!! Today’s cancer tip is from a great magazine article “Edible Healing: Food Cures for Cancer” by Prevention Magazine!  Another goal to work on… along with my fish oil, going to try to start eating more fish…

Now… on to the tip…

Fatty Fish

The risk of several cancers is significantly lower in people who eat fish at least twice a week. Several studies discovered that the anti-inflammatory long-chain omega-3s found in fatty fish (or in high-quality purified fish-oil supplements) can help slow cancer cell growth in a large number of tumors (lung, breast, colon, prostate, kidney, etc.).

How to Eat It: Have a seafood-based meal two or three times a week. Choose small fish, such as anchovies, small mackerel, and sardines (including canned sardines, provided they are preserved in olive oil and not in sunflower oil, which is too rich in pro-inflammatory omega-6 fats). Small fish contain fewer environmental toxins such as PCBs and mercury. Wild salmon is also a good source of omega-3 fats, and the level of contamination is still acceptable. Choose fresh over frozen whenever possible, because omega-3 content degrades over time.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Super Simple Salad… Tomatoes, basil and olive oil…

On By Barbara StroudIn FOOD, Recipe2 Comments

I saw some pretty little grape tomatoes in the fridge and a pot of basil that was begging to be used. I whipped my mom up a small super simple tomato salad… It took no time and it was delicious to boot!

Tomatoes are so good for you because they contain lycopene, an antioxidant. To get the most nutrition when you eat a tomato pair it with a little olive oil. The good lycopene found in tomatoes is fat soluble, so if you add a little good fat, like olive oil it helps your body absorb lycopene more easily. Here’s the recipe… no need to even write it down… cut up the tomato into bite sized pieces (whatever kind of tomato you like, the darker the tomato the more antioxidants), drizzle with a little olive oil, sprinkle a little salt and pepper then top with fresh basil. If you happen to have a little fresh mozarella (MUST be FRESH, that’s my opinion) chop up a bit and toss it in, that’s delightful! Quick and easy!Added tip… cooked tomatoes are more concentrated, therefore have more lycopene…  Enjoy!