What To Make When You're Feeling Sick

It's hot, it's cold, it's raining, it's sunny, it was 53 degrees yesterday, and now it's snowing? This winter's weather has been nothing short of bizarre, unpredictable, and incredibly frustrating. And as a result of the weather's inability to make up its mind, many people (myself included) have been coming down with some sort of cold. Stuffy nose, sore throat, feeling as if you're coughing up a lung...yep, it's that time of year. As far as cooking yourself a delicious and nutritious meal is concerned...well, there is no consideration. Let's be honest, in your groggy and non-functional state of mind the last thing you want to do is cook. All you really want is for mommy or daddy to hug you, serve you homemade chicken soup, and tell you everything is going to be alright. Well, for those of us who have left the nest and are living as free birds, mommy ain't coming by with a bowl o' soup anytime soon! We have to improvise and take care of ourselves, independent of mom and dad's healing powers. What we need is a low-maintenance, tasty, nourishing, make-ya-feel-better-just-like-mom-and-dad-would recipe. I found the perfect one. 


Here's what to make when you're feeling sick: Ginger Tofu Soup (from the cookbook: Moosewood Restaurant Cooking for Health). For those of you meat-and-potato eaters who fear any form of protein that wasn't once alive, do not be scared by the title of this recipe. Yes, there is tofu in the soup. No, you will not die from eating it - if you haven't tried it, don't diss it. I love tofu, and though you may not, I promise this soup is a life saver (literally...I was SUPER sick for the past two weeks and when I finally decided to make this soup I felt better the next day). This is a comforting soup with a delicate (practically non-existent) taste of rice & tofu, rejuvenating flavor of ginger, and soothing warmth of the broth. The longest part of this recipe is waiting for the rice to cook, so plan ahead and start making the rice 45 minutes before you know you want to eat...go take a hot shower or somethin' while you wait. Other than that, this recipe is about as low-maintenance as they come.


What you need:
-2 cups chicken broth (the original recipe called for vegetable broth, but I wanted the "mommy made it" feel. I bought my broth from the store, but if you're feeling well enough to make your own broth or you have some in the fridge, go for it!)
-2 celery stalks, diced
-1 garlic clove, minced
-2 tablespoons of ginger, cut in thin strips
-1 tablespoon soy sauce
-roughly 3/4 cup tofu, cut into cubes
-1/2 cup cooked brown rice
-optional: 1-2 scallions, diced

Step #3

Here's what to do:
1. Make rice according to package
2. Heat broth in saucepan over stove & bring to boil
3. Add celery, garlic, ginger, and soy sauce, then reduce heat to low & simmer for 5 minutes

Step #4 and #5

4. Add tofu
5. Stir in rice --> simmer for another 5 or so minutes
6. Pour into bowl, top with scallions


To all of you suffering from a cold or flu, this soup is just the thing you need. But even if you're healthy and well, this is still a delicious, inexpensive, and quick dish to make any night of the week. I've found my new go-to recipe for when I'm feeling under the weather. It's certainly not the same thing I got when I was a kid...I might actually argue that it's even better.


What do you make when you're feeling sick?

Keep It Simple

We live in a world where the zanier and more complex something is, the better. I just finished making a soup that required two pans, a soup pot, and an immersion blender. It tastes fantastic. It required a lot of time, skill, and energy, so I'm proud of the accomplishment. It also left me with a big frickin' pile of dishes to clean. I don't know about you, but sometimes I forget that "simple" can be quite enjoyable; at times, simplicity is actually what we're looking for to satisfy a craving, desire, or need. 

This past Thursday I arrived home exhausted from a late evening of work, but excited to cook myself a delicious dinner. While deciding what to make I came across this recipe in the Moosewood Restaurant Cooking For Health cookbook: Polenta with Greens and Eggs. I was intrigued, and astonished, by how few ingredients are involved (basically three) and how effortless the dish seems. Then I became skeptical if the dish would even taste good...if it's not a challenge, how could it be great, right? However, I had all the ingredients, and the recipe called for greens of any kind - the perfect chance to use the remainder of the broccoli rabe I had from Saturday's fish dinner. So despite my apprehension, I decided to try the recipe out. Boy am I glad I did. 


Even though the original recipe is for four, I easily adjusted it for one: 
Three main ingredients: polenta (aka yellow cornmeal), greens (you choose...swiss chard, kale, spinach, broccoli rabe), eggs (1-2...your choice).
Pantry item ingredients you'll need: 1-2 garlic cloves (minced), olive oil, red pepper flakes, balsamic vinegar.


First, make the polenta: cook one serving (3 tablespoons) according to the package. Once cooked, turn the burner off & keep polenta warm by keeping the top on the sauce pan. 

Second, make the greens (make sure you chop the stems and leaves of your greens separately): sauté minced garlic cloves, a little bit of olive oil, a pinch of red pepper flakes, and the stems from your greens for a few minutes. 

Then, add the leaves of your greens and cook until leaves are just wilted and still a nice, bright color. Turn off burner, add a dash (like, 1/2 tablespoon) of balsamic vinegar, then transfer greens to a bowl.

Third, make the eggs: in the same pan, drizzle a tiny bit more olive oil. Crack each egg carefully (make sure the yolk doesn't break!), add about 1 teaspoon of water on top of the eggs, cover the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes (until egg whites are completely set, but yolks have not hardened).

*Side note: I have never made eggs this pretty before and turns out it is SO easy to do!


Fourth, put it all together: polenta on the bottom, greens on top, eggs over greens.

I added a bit of grated parmesan cheese and cracked pepper, which is not in the original recipe.

Delicious, nutritious, easy, and quick. Don't underestimate the value of recipe that only uses a few ingredients, with hardly any prep work, and very little cook time. In addition to being the perfect meal for a hectic workday, this dish is a great slap in the face when you need a reminder that not all satisfying parts of life need to stem from conquering a challenge. Sometimes simplicity is just what we need. Keep it simple - you won't be disappointed.

We Bought a Fish!

It may sound crazy, but it's true. Here's how the story goes: Saturday morning my boyfriend (Brendan) and I decided we wanted to cook fish for dinner. So, we traveled to Whole Foods Market (a store I rarely go to because I think it's insanely overpriced... but it was the closest store to my house that sells fish) and perused the large display of seafood. We had NO idea what kind of fish we wanted to make. The salmon looked alright, the tilapia was only so-so, and for a split second we almost decided to go with some fillets of haddock. But then we saw it, peaking out from under a gigantic pile of ice, with its eyes starring straight at us and its mouth gaping wide open: a whole red snapper. I'd never cooked a whole fish before. Brendan had certainly never cooked a whole fish before. So naturally we purchased it...we bought an entire fish. 

What occurred after we returned to my house was a mixture of thumbing through the cookbooks in my kitchen, skimming through food magazines, googling recipes, and watching a series of "how to cook a whole fish" videos on YouTube (which proved quite useful). After about 30 minutes or so of researching we felt relatively sure that we knew how to cook a whole fish...sure, why not? Later that night, we tested our newfound skills:

Step #1: play with the fish...I know our parents always taught us not to play with our food, but COME ON...it's a whole fish for crying out loud! Obviously we were going to have a bit of fun first. 

Step #2: cut the belly open, then stuff with fresh herbs (we used parsley and thyme) and slices of lemon; next, make 3-4 slits on each side of the fish and coat each slit with salt (apparently this not only helps flavor the fish, but also helps moisten the meat). Place fish in baking dish.

Step #3: In preheated oven (375 degrees Fahrenheit) bake fish for approximately 45 minutes. When fish is finished cooking, it should look something like this (meat is nice and flaky, eyes of the fish have popped - apparently a sign that the fish is done): 

Step #4: Eat and enjoy (look out for bones!). 

To accompany the fish, we made Sauteed Broccoli Rabe (3 minced garlic cloves, 1 teaspoons red pepper flakes, salt & pepper to taste, olive oil, enough water to barely coat the bottom of the pan --> sauté together with broccoli rabe until desired tenderness) and an adapted version of Mark Bittman's Quinoa with Caramelized Onions: sauté 1 chopped onion on medium heat (with olive oil) for about 15 minutes --> add 1 tablespoon molasses or brown sugar and sauté for another 2-3 minutes --> add 1/3 cup of quinoa and sauté for 2-3 minutes --> add 2/3 cup of water --> bring to a boil then simmer for about 15 minutes or until quinoa's cooked.

The meal was fantastic. But, there we were left with quite a bit of uneaten fish. What was to become of such leftovers? It certainly was not going to be wasted. And believe me, it was not. 

Sunday night - I made Fish Stock out of the leftover fish bones: combine 6-8 cups of water with fish carcass and bring to boil --> simmer for at least 35 minutes --> when finished, strain through sieve, making sure to remove all bones --> let stock cool and then place in containers...I froze all of my stock, but if you're going to use it within 2-3 days, then you can keep it in the fridge. 

Monday night--

I made Fish Tacos: sauté 1/2 chopped onion in olive oil --> add handful of leftover fish --> add 1/4 cup canned crushed tomatoes and any desired spices (I used a dash of cumin and chili powder) --> sauté for 5 or so minutes, until everything is heated through. Serve on top of warm corn tortillas, and top with some chopped cilantro, sliced lettuce or cabbage, and hot sauce, if desired. 

Tuesday night-- 

I had Fish Salad with a Shallot and Veggie Sauce: in small saucepan sauté 1 small chopped shallot with 1/3 cup red wine (or raspberry wine) vinegar and dash of olive oil on medium heat for about 3 minutes --> add 1/2 chopped onion and sauté for 5 minutes --> add about 1 cup finely chopped veggies (I did mushrooms and broccoli) and sauté for another 5 minutes --> add 1 tablespoon butter and continue to sauté until butter is completely melted. Serve over fish salad (heat up fish in microwave and lay on top of bed of spinach). Eat with warm tortilla, pita, or toasted bread. I also had a small side of roasted sweet potatoes (my fav).

This easily could have been a post about buying and cooking an entire chicken or whole turkey or even a container of tofu - though obviously the cooking methods would be different (tofu does not have a belly to slice open...). The type of protein that you buy is not as important as the underlying messages of this post: 

1. Go big or go home, and if you do, don't let anything go to waste. The original price of the whole fish was quite expensive, and at first I worried that we were making a poor economic choice. But after the wonderful meal that the fish yielded on Saturday, I was able to use that fish three more ways, and in two more meals. In hindsight, the original cost seems super cheap, given how much I got out of my purchase. 

2. Be creative with leftovers. Don't let "leftover night" mean "same meal as last night...and the night before". 

So what do you think? Would you buy a whole fish, or how 'bout a whole chicken, now that I've made my case as to why you should do so and I've given you recipes for the leftovers you'll have?  

When In Doubt, Throw It Out?

Do you ever find yourself looking at something in the refrigerator and thinking "hmm...I wonder if this is still good" or "huh...how long ago did I buy that"? How long will the open can of crushed tomatoes last in the fridge and how long past the "sell by" date can I keep my eggs?  Well fear not my fellow bitches, I have the answers to all your food-expiration questions... actually, I don't personally know the answers, but I know a place where you can find them. But first, a few clarifications. 


There are many different expiration phrases that you may see on packages - "sell by ___" vs. "expires on___" vs. "best if used by ____". I don't know about you, but I certainly never received any formal education on how to distinguish among these different wordings. Instead, we are left to our own devices to try and decipher these expiration codes, and hope that we don't get food poisoning from our lack of knowledge (ok, so I'm being a bit dramatic). Thankfully there is another alternative to complete naivety: use your noggin and simply google "sell by vs. expires on"...the first link is a link to the USDA website, in which the official definitions of these phrases are given. I've taken the liberty to summarize: 


Sell-by date: grocery stores need to sell the product by this date, but the product has not technically "expired". You've got a good couple of days (depending on the item) to use the product after this date comes and goes. However, do not buy the product from a store if the sell-by date has already passed.


Best if used by date: the product is around its peak of tastiness & freshness (supposedly...keep in mind how far your food had to travel, and reassess what "fresh" really means), but there are lingering days of "peak" taste, so you can definitely use the product for a few days after this date.


Use by or expires on date: a company determined that its product technically "expires" on this date...however, if you properly store your food at the correct temperature (ex: you keep your milk in the fridge and don't let it sit out at room temperature for extended periods of time), then you can usually squeeze a day or two more out of the product, once the expiration day hits. 


Now that you've been (briefly) educated on the topic of expiration phrases, I'll share my secret source of wisdom regarding how long to keep and the best methods for storing your food: stilltasty.com. Bookmark it on your laptop, or send yourself an email with the link (although, the name is pretty darn easy to remember...). No longer does your food storage knowledge need to be limited to the "when in doubt, throw it out" mantra (although, if you are in doubt, and you see mold growing, then for goodness sake throw it out!). From now on, whenever you have a question like, "is this peanut butter still good" or "for how long can I keep chicken in the freezer", go to stilltasty.com! 

Do As the Romans Do

There is a reason why societies of certain areas in the world are still in existence today: they have healthy, sustainable diets. They have a food culture. The use of fresh ingredients, cooking from scratch daily, and eating meals as a family are the norm, and an integral part of life. The dietary choices of places with actual food cultures continually show that when it comes to food, good decisions are being made there. But here in the USA, we have no food culture; instead we have the so-called "Western Diet", in which the use of highly processed foods (including lots of added sugars, salt, and preservatives) and a lack of homemade meals are the norm. The Western Diet is neither healthy nor sustainable. In fact, it leads to diseases (such as heart disease and obesity) and eventually kills. Followers of the Western Diet are literally a dying breed.

Great. So how are you supposed to make healthy dietary choices if you live in a society that doesn't even have a proper food culture? Easy. Choose to follow the dietary choices of someplace else... someplace with a food culture...someplace with a society that has been in existence for centuries. Someplace like, the Mediterranean region, Asia, or Latin America, perhaps? The people in these areas have been eating the same way for centuries, so clearly they're doin' something right. 

Granted, the dietary pyramids of these three different regions are unique in their own way. But, there is one common theme: the majority of one's daily intake of food should come from plant-based sources (grains, beans, nuts, legumes, fruits, & vegetables). This is how societies that have been around for years and years, and will continue to stick around, eat. Take it or leave it, but that's the truth. So, when people make suggestions that you eat more veggies or cut back on red meat (best example is Michael Pollan's mantra: Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants) this advice isn't being pulled out of thin air. It might not be such a bad decision to follow the lead of someplace with a history of dietary success. You might not physically be in Asia, Latin America, or the Mediterranean, but you can definitely still eat like them. Do as the Romans (or Asians or Latin Americans) do.