Egg Flower Soup... the best sick day soup ever

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Sophie recently got a cold that ended up turning into a pneumonia. Don't worry, she is ok now. :)  However, she did pass her little germs along to myself, Michael, my mother in law and my brother in law. It's crazy how sick that little bundle of love can make you. She's given me the stomach flu and several colds. I've been battling a cold for a 2 1/2 weeks now. When I am sick, I love soup. There is something about being sick and slurping down warm goodness that makes you feel a little bit better. I love egg flower soup when I am sick, because it is so quick and easy to make. It can literally be made in the time it takes to boil water. It's that quick. In the spirit of cold and flu season, I thought it would be nice to share my recipe.

• 6 cups of chicken stock (homemade or store bought)
• 6 eggs, two full eggs and four egg whites whisked together
• 1/2 cup green onions, sliced
• 1/8 tsp sesame oil (optional)
• salt and pepper to taste

In a large sauce pan bring 6 cups of chicken stock to a boil. Next slowly pour in eggs in little drops. Add sesame oil and green onions. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Sweet Potato, Carrot and Blueberry Pancakes

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If you have children and are anything like me you are constantly trying to provide the best foods possible for them. I've always made my own baby food and love providing Sophie with variety and new flavors. I may have created a monster though. Sophie has quite the sophisticated palate. It's nearly impossible for me to get her to eat bland foods. If I cube up veggies and present them to her, she literally turns her nose up to them. However, if I puree some veggies like squash and sweet potatoes with lentils and curry powder, she scarfs them down and begs for more. I can't complain, I like having a little baby gourmet, it's one of those times where I see a lot of myself in Sophie. The other day, she seriously ate clam chowder. And the day after that, Asian style noodles. She eats a lot of what Mike and I eat, which is nice. This morning I woke up and decided to make some pancakes. My goal was to sneak in some vegetables and wholesome goodness. Total success, by the way. I ended up making Sweet Potato, Carrot and Blueberry pancakes with whole wheat flour and bran flakes. They were seriously delicious and Sophie enjoyed them. I made a good sized batch and decided to freeze some for Sophie to eat throughout the week.

1 half sweet potato, peeled and grated

1 carrot, peeled and grated

1/2 cup blueberries

1 tsp butter

1 cup of whole wheat flour

1/2 cup bran

2 tsp baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 egg

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla

In a small sauce pan melt butter and slowly sauté sweet potato, carrots and blueberries. Cook on low heat for about 5 minutes. In a large mixing bowl combine all remaining ingredients and whisk together. Add in the sweet potatoes, carrots and blueberries. Stir with a spoon. Cook pancakes on a griddle or pan until golden on each side.

Yogurt Cheese: A creamy and healthy substitute

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I love low fat and fat free plain yogurt. It is versatile, healthy, inexpensive and many many other things. Yogurt is such a great addition or accompaniment to several dishes. Yogurt with a little dill is a great veggie dip or topper to things like stuffed peppers, salmon, or gyros. Yogurt can be used in place of mayonaise, it can be used in smoothies, seriously the possibilites are pretty much endless. Yogurt is rich in protein, live cultures, calcium other nutrients. After a run with antibiotics you should eat a ton of yogurt to replace the good bacteria and get the digestive track healthy again. One of my new favorite ways to use yogurt is by making "yogurt cheese". Yogurt is already good at thickening and adding a degree of creaminess to dishes, but taking the step to drain some of the liquid can make your dishes even creamier. Yogurt cheese is a bit of a misnomer, because it isn't really cheese at all, it is just yogurt thickened to the consistency of cream cheese

1. Place yogurt in a fine mesh sieve or colander lined with four layers of cheesecloth. Place the sieve over a large bowl to catch the liquid that drips out of the yogurt. Place this set-up in the refrigerator and let stand 2-24 hrs. If you have all night, let it sit. The thicker the better. If you need the yogurt cheese soon, a few hours of sitting should give you a thicker consistency.
2. Discard the liquid in the bowl below and you are left with rich, creamy yogurt cheese in the cheesecloth.
3. Use to add creaminess to soups, sauces, dips... really anywhere you see fit. This is a great substitute for heavy cream, cream cheese and sour cream.

Butternut Squash Soup

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I recently read that soup eaters tend to be thinner. The idea behind that is those who eat soup before a meal, typically will consume smaller portion of the main course. Now, of course that probably wouldn't be true if we always ate fat filled soups like broccoli cheddar and other cream based soups. In order for this approach to be effective, you'd want to stick to lower calorie, healthy soups. Below is a recipe for Butternut Squash soup. This warm, velvety soup is sure to impress. I've been making this soup for years, it is great before a meal, with a grilled cheese sandwich, or topped with some mascarpone or cream cheese.

1 large butternut squash

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 small onion, diced

2 stalks of celery, chopped

1 carrot, peeled and diced 

2 garlic cloves, diced

1 cinnamon stick

salt, preferably kosher, to taste

freshly ground black pepper

4 cups chicken stock or broth (can easily sub vegetable stock to make this vegetarian)

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional

1/2 cup non fat or low fat milk, optional

 

 

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Cut the butternut squash lengthwise and place face down on baking sheet. Roast for about 40 minutes, or until tender. Remove from oven and set aside. Preheat a large pot. Add olive oil, onions, celery and carrot to pot. Sauté on medium for 7-8 minutes until carrots are tender. Add salt and pepper to taste. Next add 4 cups of chicken stock, all spices/herbs and milk. Let come to a boil. Next scoop out the squash from the rind and add to the soup. Use and immersion blender to blend the soup together until it is thick and creamy. If you do not have an immersion blender, you can use a regular blender. Make sure not to fill to the top when blending and ensure to hold the lid tightly when blending. Blending hot ingredients in blender cause the ingredients to overflow and leak out of the blender if you don't follow the steps above. Hot soup flying everywhere is messy and dangerous.

Makes approximately 8 cups.

Thai Quinoa Salad with Shrimp

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Thai Quinoa Salad with Shrimp

· 1 1/2 cups quinoa

· 3 cups chicken or vegetable stock

· 3 tbsp smooth peanut butter

· 2 tbsp low fat coconut milk

· 3 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar

· 2 tbsp or soy sauce

· 1 tsp of Sriracha (add more or less depending on spice level)

· 1 tsp oil (coconut oil is great, but any will work)

· 2 cloves garlic, minced

· 1 tbsp ginger, minced

· 2 medium carrots, cut into julienne strips

· 1 cup chopped cabbage (napa, red/purple, bok choy, any will work)

· 1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined

· ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped (mint or basil will work if you don’t have cilantro on hand)
 

1.       Bring 3 cups of stock to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add quinoa and simmer until quinoa is tender, about 15 minutes.

2.       Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine peanut butter, coconut milk, vinegar, soy sauce and Sriracha. Whisk together. Add a tbsp. of hot water to thin if necessary

3.       In a sauté pan, sauté garlic and ginger in oil on medium-low for 2 minutes. Add carrots and cabbage. Cook for 3 minutes. Add shrimp and cook for about 2-3 minutes per side, until fully cooked.

4.       When quinoa is ready, transfer it to the bowl with peanut sauce, along with the veggies and shrimp. Add cilantro and toss to combine.

 

Serves 4