A cardiologist who’s also a serious foodie is my dream come true. And that’s exactly what today’s guest poster Dr. Elizabeth Klodas is. A specialist in preventative cardiology, Elizabeth is also obsessed with great food, and I’m thrilled that she’s not only taken a liking to my blog, she’s offered to share one of her favorite recipes:

I find that many people are under the misconception that healthy food is complex to make and tastes bad. Nothing could be further from the truth! The beauty of healthy eating lies in its simplicity – and the wonderful flavors come naturally from the quality ingredients used. And cooking healthfully does not have to be expensive. With this Pineapple Frappé, you’ll get 4-6 desserts out of one fresh pineapple!

Pineapple is an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory powerhouse that boasts:

• A high vitamin C content
• Phytosterols that compete with cholesterol for absorption, so they help lower cholesterol levels
• Manganese, which is an important co-factor for the enzyme superoxide-dismutase, a powerful free radical scavenger.

So all in all, a great way to end a meal!

Pineapple Frappé

1 fresh pineapple, peeled, cored and cut into chunks, chilled until extremely cold (along with any juice from cutting the fruit)

10-12 ripe fresh strawberries sliced or quartered

Put the pineapple chunks in a blender (in batches if you’re doing whole pineapple) and puree until very smooth (you may need to push the chunks down into the blender intermittently – with the motor off – to get the mixture to start liquefying). Pour into wine or champagne glasses, garnish with the strawberries and serve immediately.

Serves 4-6

Recipe notes from Cathy:

-I added a sprig of mint as an additional garnish. It looks nice, but it’s not essential!
– Be sure serve immediately. In time, it will separate a bit, as you see in my photo.

An old fashioned recipe for date walnut bread caught my eye recently. It’s the kind of thing your great grandmother would have baked.  If she did, she probably baked it in Campbell’s Soup cans. Yep, that’s the way it used to be done. Why?  I haven’t the foggiest idea – but it made this bread even more intriguing to me. I also liked the fact that you soak the dates and then use the soaking liquid as part of the batter.

Of course, the traditional date walnut bread is made with white flour, butter and white sugar. Today I’ve given it the Cathy treatment:

– I substituted a heart-healthy oil for butter

– I used whole wheat pastry flour instead of refined white flour

– I cut the sugar in half, and used raw sugar which is less refined

– I added oats and flax for even more health benefits

These are the standard heart-healthy changes I make to recipes for baked goods, and it generally works well (although I’ve had my share of failures, believe me!)  Here, it worked brilliantly. The bread has a hearty personality thanks to the whole grains, yet it’s tender and moist. I can’t think of anything better to have with my morning or afternoon tea.

Oh, and if you’re the type to plan ahead, December 22 is National Date Nut Bread Day. Um, why? I guess it’s just another one of those date nut bread mysteries.

Whole Grain Date Walnut Bread

1 cup chopped dates
1 cup boiling water
1 egg
3 tablespoons organic canola oil
1/2 cup turbinado sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup oat flour (or old-fashioned oats, ground in a food processor)
2 tablespoons ground flax
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup chopped walnuts

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the dates and boiling water in a small bowl and let stand for 15 minutes.

In a medium bowl, vigorously whisk together the egg, oil, sugar and vanilla.

Combine the flours, flax, baking powder, soda, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl. Stir in the dates with their liquid, along with the egg mixture and stir just to combine. Fold in the walnuts.

Pour into a lightly oiled 9 x 5-inch loaf pan and bake for 50-55 minutes, until a toothpick or knife inserted in the center comes out clean.  Let cool thoroughly before slicing.

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The combination of butternut squash and warm spices with the piquant flavors of olives and preserved lemons give this Moroccan chickpea stew the kind of sweet, salty and tangy complexity I can’t resist. This recipe is also proof (like I needed more proof) that you don’t need meat to make a hearty main course. This is about as satisfying – and nutritious – as it gets.

I based this stew on an Aida Mollenkamp recipe, but used a more interesting spice mixture – including ground caraway seeds and coriander – as suggested in Martha Rose Shulman’s chickpea stew recipe from her book Mediterranean Harvest.

The harissa is an essential ingredient here, both in the stew and as a garnish. I bought a commercial brand, but here again, you can easily go the DIY route. I had never used preserved lemons before, and was quite taken with them. In fact, I might add even more of it next time I make this. Interestingly, when Deb from Smitten Kitchen made the same Aida Mollenkamp recipe, she hated the preserved lemons. I have to wonder if it was something about the particular brand, because the ones I bought were delicious. It’s also easy to make your own.

While you can make this with canned chickpeas, I do hope you’ll cook your own from scratch if you have time (it takes about two cups of dried chickpeas.) Not only are they tastier than canned chickpeas, it will save you a few bucks. And who doesn’t need that?

Moroccan Chickpea and Vegetable Stew

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large Spanish onion
6 large cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground caraway seeds
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
pinch cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 pound butternut squash, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
1/2 pound carrots, chopped
¾ pound new or Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
4 cups cooked chickpeas
1 1/2 teaspoons harissa
pinch crumbled saffron threads
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes, with juice (recommend Eden Organic tomatoes, which are diced very small)
3 ½ – 4 cups vegetable stock
½ preserved lemon, finely chopped
1 cup large green olives, such as Cerignola

Garnishes:

Toasted sliced or slivered almonds
Chopped fresh cilantro
Plain yogurt (soy or regular)
Harissa

Heat the oil in a large dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot. Add the onions, garlic, spices, salt and pepper and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Stir in the squash, carrots and potatoes and cook for 5 minutes. Add chickpeas harissa, saffron, and tomatoes. Add vegetable stock to just barely cover the vegetables. Cook, covered, for about 20-30 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Season with additional salt to taste, then stir in the preserved lemon and olives. Serve, garnishing with the suggested additions as you like.

Serves 6

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With ramps in season, it’s time to act fast – and this quinoa with baby artichokes and ramps is the perfect showcase for them.

My friend and co-worker Jenna didn’t seem to think she’d like quinoa, and she had never heard of ramps. So rather than trying to talk her into cooking them herself, I brought some of my leftover pilaf to the office. After a few bites of this light and super springy dish, she couldn’t stop talking about how light and flavorful it was. I had made a quinoa and a ramp lover out of her in one fell swoop! And being somewhat of a health fanatic, Jenna was excited to learn that quinoa is a complete protein.

For a delicious variation on this recipe, try using asparagus instead of artichokes (but steam it separately and add to the quinoa just before serving).  You can also use more ramps than I’ve called for here….it depends on how much of a fan you are.

Some people would call this kind of dish “quinoa risotto.”  Sorry, I don’t really buy quinoa as a risotto grain. Barley or farro risotto, I get that.  But quinoa is a different animal – actually, it’s a seed – so I’m calling this a pilaf.

In any case, I hope you’ll run to the nearest farmer’s market this week and snap up some ramps. You don’t want to have ramp regret come June, now do you?

Spring Quinoa Pilaf with Ramps, Artichokes and Peas

1 bunch ramps (about 15-20)
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest
Juice of one lemon
2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley, chopped
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 lemon, halved
10 baby artichokes
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon fresh thyme
2 cups quinoa, well rinsed (unless you use a pre-rinsed variety)
1/2 cup dry white wine, such as sauvignon blanc
3 1/4 cups vegetable broth
1 cup fresh shelled or frozen peas
Salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Cut the green ramp leaves off the stems, and chop the stems. Bring a pot of water to boil. Drop in the ramp leaves and blanch for about one minute. Drain and puree in a food processor with the lemon zest, lemon juice, parsley and 2 ½ tablespoons olive oil. Set aside until needed.

Squeeze the juice from the lemon into a large bowl of cold water, and throw the squeezed lemon halves into the water, too.

Peel away the tough outer leaves of the baby artichokes, until just the more tender light green leaves are left. Cut off the top 1/2 inch from the artichoke and trim the stem of any tough-looking parts. Quarter the artichokes and put them in the lemon water while you start the risotto.

Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat in a large heavy saucepan. Drain the artichokes from the lemon water and sauté them for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and chopped ramp stems and cook 5 minutes more. Add the quinoa and sauté for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add the wine and fresh thyme, and cook until the liquid is absorbed, about 1 minute.

Add the broth; bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the peas and simmer another 4-6 minutes, stirring often. (The quinoa should be almost soft but still have a bit of a crunch. You should see a little white ring separating from each grain.) Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in ramp puree and serve.

Serves 6 as a main dish, or 8 as a side dish

This is being submitted to this week’s Weekend Herb Blogging, hosted by Min at Honest Vanilla.

I hope you’ll Like, Tweet or StumbleUpon this post using the handy buttons below. Gracias.

Back when I was a meat eater, I thought vegetarian gumbo was a joke. And who could blame me – there are so many bland, tomato-y versions out there (real gumbo doesn’t contain tomatoes, people!). So being a serious gumbo fanatic, I just had to tackle the challenge of making one that lived up to my high standards while still being relatively heart-healthy.

My version starts with a deeply-colored roux, which of course is the heart and soul of any real gumbo. I followed Alton Brown’s easy oven method and it worked like a charm – I’ve never achieved a roux so beautifully dark on the stove. Other essentials include the “holy trinity” of onions, green peppers and celery, and herbs and spices like sage, thyme cayenne and white pepper. So far, so traditional.

But here’s where I veer off the beaten path: portobello mushrooms, vegetarian sausage and chicken-style seitan, which provide a nice variety of chewy textures for this meatless gumbo. I use Field Roast’s smoked apple sage sausages, and they are remarkably good here, albeit way too high in sodium. I’m sure there must be other good faux meat products out there somewhere, but I find most of the soy-based sausages to be sorely lacking in comparison. Next time I make this, I will try VeganDad’s homemade seitan Andouille sausages. Smoked paprika, always my friend, provides the requisite smokiness. The resulting bowl of gumbo is deliciously rich and sultry. Even though it contains no shrimp, I swear you can almost taste the bayou.

Note: During fresh okra season, definitely use a pound or so of that in place of the mushrooms. If you do that, skip the filé powder: it’s one or the other.

Serious Vegetarian Gumbo

½ cup plus 1 teaspoon organic high-oleic safflower oil
½ cup white whole wheat flour
3 medium onions, chopped (about 3 cups)
3 stalks celery, chopped (about 2 cups)
3 medium green peppers, chopped (about 3 cups)
3 portobello mushroom caps, gills scraped off, chopped (about 2 cups)
3 large cloves garlic, minced
½ cup dry sherry
4 cups chicken-style vegetable broth (recommend Imagine’s No-Chicken Broth)
1 tablespoon vegetarian Worcestershire sauce (use regular if you’re not a veg)
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
1 teaspoon dried sage leaves
1 teaspoon white pepper
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper, or more to taste
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon smoked paprika, or a bit more to taste
4 vegetarian sausages, sliced (I used Field Roast smoked apple sausage)
1 16-ounce package chicken-style seitan

For serving:

Gumbo filé powder, optional
Tabasco sauce
Cooked rice

Preheat the oven to 350. Combine the oil and flour in a large ovenproof dutch oven. Bake for 1¼ hours, or until the roux is very dark.

Add the onion, peppers, celery, mushrooms and garlic and cook on the stove over medium heat for about 7 minutes. Add the sherry and cook for one minute, then add the vegetable broth, Worcestershire sauce, herbs and spices.

Simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. If the gumbo seems too thick, add water as you see fit (you can leave the gumbo on the thicker side if you’re not serving the filé powder on the side).

Heat the remaining teaspoon of oil in a large skillet. Add the sliced sausages and brown on both sides. Add the seitan and cook for one minute more, stirring.

Add the sausage and seitan to the pot and simmer for 8-10 minutes. Remove the bay leaves. Serve over brown rice, and pass the file powder (if using) and Tabasco.

Gumbospotting

Yes, there are a few other vegetarian gumbo recipes out there that are worth their Tabasco:

Wednesday Food Blogging’s vegetarian gumbo with smoked tofu

Vegan Dad’s gumbo with homemade seitan andouille sausage

Chow.com’s Gumbo Z’herbs

Deborah Madison’s Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone

I love how recipes morph in the food blogosphere. I first saw this blood orange olive oil cake on Smitten Kitchen, and noticed that it had been (slightly) adapted from a New York Times recipe from Melissa Clark’s In the Kitchen with A Good Appetite. Then I came across a version on Healthy Food for Living, where blogger Lauren made some healthy substitutions including whole wheat pastry flour instead of white flour and applesauce in place of some of the oil.

I followed Lauren’s lead for the flour, but I’ve given the recipe a couple more twists, replacing one of the eggs with a “flax egg” to reduce the saturated fat, and adding a touch of Grand Marnier. I kept the original amount of olive oil, because that’s what this cake is all about, right?

I have a feeling that the quality of your olive oil matters here. I used a fruity, unfiltered extra virgin olive oil and loved the result. The cake is quite moist, with a pleasant hint of bitterness from the blood orange zest. It’s especially delicious served with the gorgeous, tangy-sweet blood orange compote on the side.

Blood Orange Olive Oil Cake
Adapted from Healthy Food for Living, via Smitten Kitchen, via In the Kitchen With A Good Appetite

3-4 blood oranges
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon Grand Marnier
1/2 cup plain nonfat yogurt 
(not Greek)
2 large eggs
1 tablespoons ground flax seed, whisked vigorously with 3 tablespoons water
2/3 cup (156 ml) extra virgin olive oil
1 ¾ cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch freshly ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt

For optional blood orange compote:

3 blood oranges
2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons Grand Marnier

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Lightly oil a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan or a 9-inch springform pan.

Zest two blood oranges. Then cut off the bottom and top of each orange so you can stand them up on your cutting board. Cut away any peel and pith, following the curve of the fruit. Cut the segments out of their membranes (this is a pain), and chop into ¼-inch pieces. Place in a bowl, along with any accumulated juices.

Juice another blood orange into a measuring cup until you have ¼ cup. If you don’t enough, use the optional fourth orange.

In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, orange zest, Grand Marnier and yogurt. Whisk in the eggs, flax mixture and olive oil.

In another bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg and salt. Gently stir the dry ingredients into the wet ones. Fold in the orange segments. Pour the batter into a prepared pan.

Bake for 50 minutes (check at 45 if you use a springform pan) or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes, then unmold and cool to room temperature before serving. Serve with plain or with blood orange compote.

Blood orange compote:
Combine in a small saucepan: 3 blood oranges, in small pieces as in recipe above, 1-2 tablespoons honey, 2 teaspoons Grand Marnier. Simmer 5 minutes or until it reaches a consistency you like.

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