The Holistic Kitchen

“Risotto”

 

If you’ve never eaten risotto (translation “rice dish”), think rich, creamy and savory.  Traditionally, risotto is prepared s l o w l y, lovingly, laboriously, with Arborio rice. 

 

But I wouldn’t be Chef Nancy if I didn’t put a twist on it.  In this case, a healthy and hurry up twist!  Traditional risotto is made with Arborio rice and almost constant attention for 30 minutes, minimum, while the liquid is added a bit at a time to coax the starch out, creating a creamy sauce.  I wanted to create the same creamy and savory result with a high fiber, quick cooking, whole grain and add other goodies to make this an ultra healthy dish. 

 

The fun thing about risotto is that you can switch up the additions to your hearts content.  Try some sweet red pepper to add color and flavor.  Use mushroom broth instead of vegetable; Miso instead of Parmesan cheese for safe vegan protein and a similar flavor.  Variations are limited only by your imagination!!

 

First I tried using brown rice instead of Arborio, to increase the fiber.  It took even longer to cook!  Then I tried buckwheat – not even rice at all – but cooked it using the risotto method, in nearly half the time.  Ta da!!

 

And I made a video for you, so you could see it done first hand.   I call it Risotto in 11 Minutes and you can view it below.  Find the recipe on page 50 of Chef Nancy’s Recipe for Health !

 

Pronounced 'keen-wa.

• Miso soup – heat some low sodium vegetable broth, add a heavy pinch of toasted nori crinkles and stir in a tablespoon miso until dissolved. Voilà! Soup.
• Use in place of Parmesan in your favorite Pesto recipe.
• Toss pasta noodles with olive and miso to distribute evenly, then dress with your favorite sauce.

 

Lemons

 

Lemons are a must in the kitchen!    

 

Use lemon juice to brighten the flavors in nearly any dish.

 

Use lemon juice to prevent browning of fruits such as apples and avocados.

 

Use lemon juice on salads and in dressing, instead of vinegar (especially if you have been told to avoid fermented foods for reasons of yeast overgrowth or Candida).

Use lemon juice to deodorize your hands from fish, garlic, etc.

 

Drink warm lemon water daily, to support your liver. Though lemons provide acidic flavoring, they are actually very alkaline (that’s a good thing)!

Use lemon juice as a solvent for gummy, sticky things.

When lemons are in season, squeeze the juice and freeze it in ice cube trays for a quick "juice of one lemon" fix.

Best way to extract the juice?  If you have a quantity, I recommend an electric citrus juicer.  Just one or two lemons?  Forget about fancy gadgets – cut the lemon in half, grab a fork, stick it n one half and squeeze!  Repeat until it's given all it will.  If you do this over a strainer, you won't have to go picking out seeds.

And don't forget that fabulous zest for a delightful lemony edge in a recipe – you'll notice the difference when you use the zest a recipe calls for, instead of substituting juice.   

Remember:  Harvest the zest before squeezing the juice!! 

 

Are lemons out of season, crazy expensive or just a nuisance for you? Look for Organic lemon juice, NOT from concentrate in the natural section of your grocery store. It’s a staple in my refrigerator!

 

The health benefits of garlic are well documented, from natural pest repellent, to natural anti-biotic.

 

Raw garlic is high in compounds that are anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and also fight free radical damage and inflammation with powerful antioxidant properties.

 

Though garlic is reputed to be beneficial in lowering LDL’s (“bad” cholesterol), studies have not proven this.  I don’t mind that – there are a lot of foods with a healthy track record of benefits that “studies” have not been able to prove.  When you consider that garlic is widely used in the Mediterranean and heart disease is much lower there than in the U.S., I’m willing to make the leap that it plays a healthy role!

 

The rich, sweet flavor of roasted garlic can be mashed into a paste and used in a multitude of ways, such as whisking with oil and vinegar for a dressing, adding to mashed potatoes or spreading on rustic bread instead of butter, just to name a few!

 

Method 1 (whole bulbs):

Place whole bulbs on a bed of coarse salt in a small baking dish.  Roast in a hot oven (temp is not actually critical – anywhere from 325F to 475F will do) until the skin has turned brown and juices are beginning to escape.

Allow the bulbs to cool.  Slice off the bottom and squeeze out the flesh.

Method 2 (individual cloves):

Leave the skin ON.  "Crack" individual cloves with the flat side of your chef's knife and a bit of pressure from the palm of your hand.  Toss the cracked cloves with olive oil, salt and pepper and bake on a cookie sheet lined with parchment or in a baking dish, for approximately 20 minutes at 425F.  Cool slightly (just enough so you can handle them).  Discard skins and proceed with use of the flesh!

Mmmmm.  I can smell it from here!!

 

   

 Eggs

 

 

I’m an advocate of eating less animal protein (see my Free Report to learn why), but of the animal protein I do eat, I choose that which is the least evolved, emphasizing naturally raised, local eggs and wild caught fish.

 

Consider these points about eggs:

 

·       They are available year round

·       They can be eaten alone or used as an ingredient

·       They are a kitchen workhorse, acting as volumizer, emulsifier and/or binder

·       They help prevent blood clots

·       They reduce serum cholesterol

·       They promote weight loss

·       They protect against cataracts and age related Macular Degeneration

·       They are a good source of Vitamin D, Iodine, B12 and other micronutrients.

 

How is this so?  Eggs YOLKS are the richest food source of choline, which is vital to brain health and messaging throughout the nervous system.

 

It is estimated that more than 90% of Americans are deficient in choline.  Both the choline and B12 in egg yolks convert damaging homocysteine into safe components, thereby improving cardiovascular health.

 

It is true that egg yolks are high in cholesterol, but more recent studies have revealed that eating 1-2 eggs, daily, coupled with a low fat diet, creates NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE in blood levels of cholesterol or risk of heart disease and (I think it bears repeating) can actually improve it!

 

And, as if these points aren’t enough, choline inhibits inflammation ~ yahooooo!!

 

If you’re like me and allergic to egg WHITES, you can eat your yolks alone – raw in a morning smoothie, swallow ‘em whole or scramble them with your favorite milk product (mine’s coconut milk).  It is also worth noting that if you are allergic to the whites, the protein associated with the allergy is often neutralized at high temperatures, such as those associated with baking.

 

If you’d like to learn more about the health benefits of eggs, I recommend the following link: http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=92

 

From Michael Pollan’s Food Rules An Eater’s Manual ¹

1. Eat food.
2. Don’t eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food.
3. Avoid food products containing ingredients that no ordinary human would keep in the pantry.
4. Avoid food products that contain high-fructose corn syrup.
5. Avoid foods that have some form of sugar (or sweetener) in the top three ingredients.

Sticking to these rules (and they are only the first five, from Pollan’s Food Rules¹)  will go a looong way toward maintaining a healthy (and healing) diet for you and your loved ones!

¹Pollan, Michael.  Food Rules, An Eater’s Manual.  Penguin Books, 2009.  5-13.

If you’ve read Michael Pollan’s In Defense of Food, per my recommendation or otherwise, you’ll know this about what is considered FOOD:

1. Don’t eat anything your great grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food.
2. Don’t eat anything incapable of rotting.
3. Avoid "food products" that are