Green Low Glycemic Rice with Cilantro

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Son Jeff came to visit us for 10 days in February and told me about an outstanding rice dish he had recently made. It sounded so delicious and so different from any rice I'd had that we decided to try to replicate it and this is what we came up with. And because I used Uncle Ben's Converted Rice, it's low glycemic to boot. I made it again later using a brown rice medley I'm fond of and it was equally delicious. So if you don't have to watch your intake of starches, go for whatever rice you desire.

I'm so very lucky to have both cilantro and parsley growing in my garden - still! They've been there all winter long through snow and heavy frost, refusing to give up. A lot of cilantro is used for this dish, imparting a beautiful green color (to say nothing of the flavor) just in time for St. Patrick's Day. The fresh lime juice adds sparkle and zip. Adjust it to your liking. Trust me, if you like cilantro, you're going to love this.

Green Low Glycemic Rice with Cilantro
With thanks to my son Jeff
Ingredients:
1 cup, packed, coarsely chopped cilantro
1/2 cup, loosely packed, coarsely chopped flat leaf parsley
1 large onion, peeled, cut into eighths
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1/2 cup, scant, fresh lime juice (2 large limes)
2 cups water
1 teaspoon kosher salt
A few grindings of good black peppercorns
1 1/2 cups Uncle Ben's converted rice or a rice of your choice
Preparation:

Place the cilantro, parsley, onion, garlic and lime juice in a food processor and buzz until finely blended.

Add the water, salt and pepper and pulse until blended. Yield is about 3 cups liquid.

If using a rice cooker:

Place the liquid in the rice cooker and stir in the rice. Place the lid on the cooker and turn on. The rice is done when the cooker turns off. Give the rice a stir to blend the herbs and let sit with the lid off for about 10 minutes before serving.

If using a saucepan on the stove:

Place the liquid in the saucepan and bring to a boil on high heat. Stir in the rice, cover with a lid and lower the heat to simmer. The rice will take 20-30 minutes to cook for the Uncle Ben's, longer for brown rice.

Suitable for vegans and vegetarians as well as all rice lovers!

Looks good enough to drink, doesn't it?

Copyright © 2005-2009, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Low(er) Glycemic Carrot Hazelnut Cake

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I'm currently taking a series of classes at the Eureka Co-op in regional French cooking with local chef Alex Begovic. In our last class Alex made a simple carrot cake for dessert, unadorned with pineapple or other too-sweet detractions. Just lots of carrots plus chopped hazelnuts. It was delicious, the flavors were perfect, it wasn't too sweet, and I was determined to take the recipe home, up the fiber and lower the glycemic impact. I think I did a pretty good job. The cake came out moist and delicate despite the large chunks of hazelnut you see in the photo. And the carrots fairly sing their presence. A very nice nosh to have with your afternoon tea.

Low(er) Glycemic Carrot Hazelnut Cake
Adapted from a recipe by Alex Begovic
Ingredients:
2 cups shredded carrots
2/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2/3 cup white whole wheat flour
1 cup Splenda Granular (or 1/2 cup Splenda-Sugar Blend)*
1 cup toasted hazelnuts, chopped (husks removed, see Cook's Notes)**
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted
3 eggs (I used 2 large and 1 x-tra large)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt (fine kosher is best)
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Butter a 12x8 glass baking dish and set aside.

Using the fine shredding disc on a food processor, shred enough peeled carrots to equal 2 cups. (I shredded too many carrots, the excess of which ended up in this soup.)

Whisk all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl, the hazelnuts will go in later.

In a small bowl whisk the eggs until blended then whisk in the melted butter, a little at a time so you don't cook the eggs.

Stir the egg-butter mixture into the dry ingredients until blended.

Stir the shredded carrots and the chopped hazelnuts into the batter until fully incorporated.

Pour the batter into the prepared dish and bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Alex said it should cook for a full 35 minutes, but mine was done within thirty.

Allow the cake to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes then loosen the edges with a spatula and turn out on a board. Flip the cake right side up and set on a rack to cool.

This can be served warm or at room temperature, with whipped cream or without. It goes especially well with Simona's orange ice cream. You'll have to ask her to post it though. ;)

Cook's Notes:

*If you're not a Splenda user, 1 cup of sugar is what Alex used in his cake.

**Please notice the measurement here. Measure 1 cup of hazelnuts THEN chop them.

To toast and husk hazelnuts, place the hazelnuts on a baking sheet in a 350 degrees oven for no more than 15 minutes or until you can smell the nuts. Immediately remove the nuts from the oven and pour onto a clean terrycloth kitchen towel. Enclose the nuts in the towel and rub them vigorously until most of the husk has been removed.

I used 2 large eggs and 1 extra-large egg because that's what I had on hand. They worked well in this cake because I used white whole wheat flour for one-half of the flour called for, and it's been my experience that this coarser flour needs more moisture. You could up the fiber even more by using 1 cup of the white whole wheat flour and 1/3 cup regular flour or even whole wheat flour. Just remember that you will may need to adjust the eggs to add more moisture. I wouldn't compensate by adding more butter.

This cake may be made vegan by substituting 1/2 cup Earth Balance Stick for the butter and 3 ripe mashed bananas for the eggs.

Copyright © 2005-2008, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Lemon Blueberry Ginger Tea Cake

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First, not one but two risottos and now cake? Is there no help for this low carb cook?

Fear not. What you see here is one light moist lemony delight that has been tampered with to lower its glycemic impact without compromising its taste one iota.

Meyer lemons lend their fresh citrusy-sweetness here and compliment the chewy crystallized ginger and tiny dried organic blueberries. Just a week ago, dear friends Erika and Bill sent me another box of the prized fruits and much of my cooking these days is being influenced by the heady scent of these beauties gracing my kitchen counter.

Okay, and sometimes I just need a little something to go with my afternoon tea. We all need a little something sometimes.

Lemon Blueberry Ginger Tea Cake
Inspired by a recipe found in Williams-Sonoma Holiday Favorites Cookbook
Ingredients:
For the batter -
1 1/2 cups organic whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/2 cups regular unbleached flour
1/2 teaspoon each baking soda and fine Kosher salt
3/4 cups Earth Balance Buttery Sticks (room temperature)
1 cup Splenda granular
3/4 cup fine sugar
grated zest from 2 Meyer lemons
3 large eggs (may use 3/4 cup egg substitute)
1/4 cup Meyer lemon juice
3/4 cup buttermilk (low fat is fine)
1/2 cup (heaping) dried organic blueberries
1/4 cup chopped crystallized ginger

For the glaze -
1/3 cup Splenda granular
juice from 1 Meyer lemon
2 tablespoons Earth Balance Buttery Stick

Preparation:

Batter -

Combine the first three ingredients with a whisk and set aside.

Cream the EB sticks on high speed in the bowl of an electric mixer until light and fluffy.

Beat in the Splenda and sugar then beat in the eggs, one at a time, until incorporated.

Beat in the lemon juice and zest.

With the mixer on medium, add 1/2 of the flour mixture and mix well.

Add the buttermilk and beat until smooth.

Add the remaining flour mixture and beat until smooth.

With the mixer turned off, stir in the dried berries and ginger pieces.

Pour the batter into a greased and floured bundt pan or other cake pan of your choice.

Bake in a 350-degree oven for about 50 minutes. Check for doneness by probing the cake with a toothpick. It should come out crumb free.

Allow cake to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes on a rack, then turn out onto the rack to finish cooling.

Glaze -

Over medium heat, mix the Meyer lemon juice and the Splenda together in a small saucepan until the Splenda has dissolved. Add the 2 tablespoons EB and whisk until melted. Continue to whisk, maintaining the heat, until the liquid thickens slightly, about 3 minutes more.

Place the tea cake on a large plate and carefully pour the hot glaze over the top; most of it will be absorbed but some of it will drip off.

Remove the cake to a fancy-schmancy cake plate and pour the drippings from the first plate over the cake again.

There. Cut a slice while it's warm. Take a bite. Mmmmmm. Oh, and don't forget to make yourself a cup of tea. That was the whole reason for this exercise, right?

Copyright © 2005-2007, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Grilled Lamb Kebabs (Kebobs, Kabobs)

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Mmmmm. Lamb. I love lamb. Tasty on its own with a sprinkling of salt and pepper, lamb takes to marinade like a duck takes to water. Which is what you will find out for yourself if you prepare the recipe below.

Lamb is a lightly marbled, lean meat with most of the fat blanketing the outside, which is easily dispatched with a sharp knife. Inner fat is mostly along the connective tissues between muscles, also easily removed, leaving luscious, lower fat, healthful meat. Yep, I said healthful. Take a look here to read why that is.

I recently received an 8-pound boned and butterflied leg of lamb courtesy of the American Lamb Board. The lamb came from Superior Farms in Dixon, California, a mere 8 miles from where I grew up in Davis.

"At Superior Farms we pride ourselves on not only the quality product we offer, but the superior care with which we give our animals," Angela, a representative from Superior Farms, told me. "Not only do we follow and exceed the requirements of the Humane Slaughter Act," she continued, "we are inspected throughout the day, every day by USDA Food Safety Inspection Service personnel. We are audited annually by an outside third party - specifically addressing animal welfare prior to and during harvest. Our management team, as well as the on-line workers have all gone through animal welfare and humane handling training and a refresher course is given annually. We have even had Dr. Temple Grandin, the leading animal behaviorist concerning humane treatment of livestock, visit one of our plants to further improve our handling practices."

That was encouragement enough. My lamb arrived and I quickly divided it into sections that will allow me to share with you at least 4 delicious ways to prepare this tasty and healthful meat.

Grilled Lamb Kebabs

Click here to print recipe
Christine's Original Marinade Recipe
Ingredients:
(Marinade - measurements approximate)
1/4 - 1/3 cup cup good olive oil
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Turkish oregano (mine is from Penzey's, courtesy of the American Lanb Board)
generous pinch of Kosher salt
generous grindings of good black peppercorns (I only use Tellicherry)
1/2 cup dry red wine

(Kebabs)
18 to 24 pieces lean lamb, from a boneless leg, cut into 1-inch x 2-inch rectangular chunks
1 large sweet onion cut into 10 or 12 wedges
1 large red bell pepper cut into 1-inch square pieces
2 portobello mushroom caps cut into 10 or 12 wedges
1 basket juicy red grape tomatoes or any tasty cherry tomatoes

olive oil

Preparation:

Mix all the marinade ingredients in a deep glass bowl. Taste and adjust seasonings to your liking.

Add the lamb chunks, cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or longer or even overnight if possible. Turn the lamb to make sure it gets fully coated with the marinade.

Prepare all the vegetables.

Have 6 skewers ready.

Remove the lamb from the marinade. Discard the marinade.

Beginning and ending with a piece of onion, thread the lamb and vegetables onto the skewers, making them fit snugly against eachother. I threaded the lamb through its 2-inch dimension and the tomatoes longwise, through the stem end.

Place the kebabs in a roasting pan and drizzle with a bit of olive oil. You can sprinkle them with kosher salt and black pepper if desired.

Grill the kebabs over medium-high heat until the lamb reaches an internal temperature of 140 degrees.

Remove the skewers from the heat and allow the kebabs to rest in a warm place for 5 to 10 minutes. The lamb will continue to cook and raise in temperature to at least 145 degrees which is medium-rare. Grill lamb longer if you prefer it to be more done.

Cook's Notes:

Because I started late in the day, I marinated the lamb for just one hour and it was flavorful, juicy and succulent.

I served these kebabs over a bed of crisp salad greens that had been tossed with my golden balsamic viniagrette.

I used a Saint Joseph 2000 Rhone Table Wine for the marinade and for drinking with the meal. I purchased it at Kermit Lynch about 5 years ago and it was delicious.

This makes a great low-glycemic meal for two or three people allowing 2 skewers apiece.

I'd like to extend my appreciation to the American Lamb Board for their Summer Grilling Kit and thank them for this opportunity to showcase lamb, one of my favorite meats.

Copyright © 2005-2007, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Pomegranate Gelee

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Straight from the back of the Knox Gelatin box, this jello, or gelatin to be more generic, if made with good, unsweetened, low to medium glycemic fruit juices, can be a healthy boon to those of us who have the unfortunate dilemma of sugar intolerance combined with an incorrigible sweet tooth.

Pomegranate has been shown to have many health attributes as well as being in the medium range on the Glycemic Index.

Now, this is not to say that pomegranate juice is low in calories. The kind I used, Knudsen's Just Pomegranate, has 150 calories per 8-ounce serving and 36 grams of fruit sugar carbs. As in, no sugar was added to the juice; those 36 grams are in the juice. But, as can be seen by clicking on the above links, pomegranate juice has great antioxident health properties and is much, much better for you than, say, a can of soda.

And by making this juice into gelatin, you can stop by the fridge, pop a few into your mouth to satisfy a sweet craving, and then be on your way.

To eat one of these jiggly little cubes is delightful. They're tartly sweet, richly satisfying, taste of pure pomegranate, and they're RED!

Pomegranate No-Added-Sugar Gelee
Recipe adapted by Christine from Knox Gelatin
Ingredients:
1 32-ounce bottle of Knudsen's Just Pomegranate juice
4 packets Knox Gelatin (there are 4 packets in a small box)
4 packets Splenda
Preparation:

Sprinkle the gelatin over 1 cup of room temperature pomegranate juice and let sit for 1 minute to allow the gelatin to soften.

At the same time, pour the remaining 3 cups of the pomegranate juice into a 4-cup glass measuring cup and microwave on high for about 4 minutes or until the juice comes to just under a boil. The same may be achieved on a stove top if you prefer.

Pour the heated juice into the gelatin mixture and stir until all the gelatin has dissolved.

Pour into a mold of your choosing. I used a glass, 13x9-inch pan.

Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, cut into cubes and store in small containers so you're not tempted to eat all of them at once.

Copyright 2005-2007, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved. No content from this site, including text and photos, may be copied, re-located or otherwise reproduced, in part or in full, for personal or monetary gain, without the express permission of the administrator/owner.

A Meyer Lemon Curd Throwdown

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(3-18-07: I'd been working on this overworked and over-aggrandized post, unable to reach a satisfying conclusion, for some time when I realized the problem was that I was trying to compare apples to oranges, as it were. It just can't be done. What I was trying to posit is that a no-sugar, low-fat, no cholesterol lemon curd could be favorably compared in taste to a lemon curd made with sugar, eggs and butter. And what I did was prove myself wrong. There simply is no comparison. It's not that the faux curd is bad, it's just not great, and it doesn't stand up to the real thing. With that disclaimer right up front, I give you my silly little experiment as simply that - an experiment. Do with it what you will.)

When the box of Meyer lemons arrived in the mail from Bill and Erika a while ago, I knew I would use some of them to make lemon curd.

If you read this blog with any regularity, you will know that when it comes to desserts, or sweets in general, much as I love the real thing, I often try to lower their glycemic impact on my body by reducing (or eliminating) the amount of sugar, white flour and fat.

Now, even I know that to mess with the traditional ingredients of lemon curd borders on the sacrilegious. There's simply nothing that compares to the bright, puckery, pure lemony deliciousness that "real" lemon curd imparts to tongue and scone.

Still, sure that I could fool an unsuspecting taster, I decided to try an experiment by making two batches of curd, employing no-sugar, good-fat, no-cholesterol ingredients in one batch, and full on sugar, butter and eggs in the other. The only constants were the recipe employed (from the lovely little book "Having Tea", albeit an earlier version than is available on Amazon now, by Tricia Foley and Catherine Calvert), the measurements used, and the Meyer lemons themselves.

Mr. CC was my willing blind-taste-testing accomplice, who wasn't informed beforehand of the ingredients lists.


The 'Real Deal' Meyer Lemon Curd
Recipe adapted from Having Tea by Tricia Foley and Catherine Calvert
Ingredients:
3 eggs
5 tablespoon melted butter
1 cup superfine sugar
the juice and grated zest of 2 Meyer lemons

Preparation:
In the top of a double boiler over simmering water, gently whisk the eggs into the melted butter until fully combined then stir in the sugar.
Gradually stir in the lemon juice and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture has thickened and coats the back of a spoon.
Remove from the heat and stir in the zest. Cool completely.
Pour into small, clean jars and keep in the fridge for up to a week.


Low Glycemic Meyer Lemon Curd
Recipe adapted by Christine from Having Tea
Ingredients:
3/4 cup egg substitute (I used Lucerne's Best of the Egg)
5 tablespoons Earth Balance Buttery Sticks
1 cup Splenda granular (for a more sugar-like taste, use 1/2 cup Splenda-Sugar Blend instead)
juice and zest from 2 Meyer lemons

Preparation:
Same method as above.

When the curds were cool enough to sample, I placed a small dish of each kind side by side and asked Mr CC to taste each one. He (unknowingly) tried the "faux" version first. He described it as creamy and sweet, a little tart, with a bit of a not-unpleasant-but-puzzling aftertaste he couldn't describe. Visually, he thought it looked different from the other curd; pale yellow and less translucent which masked the zest.

No sooner had he tried the second dish, his eyes literally popped open and a big grin settled on his face. "Tart" "Sweet" "Clean" "Outstanding!" "A long, lemony finish" were some of the ways he described this spoonful. Visually it was a clear lemon color that allowed the tiny flecks of zest to stand out.

Suffice it to say, he had no trouble picking the Real Deal Lemon Curd as his favorite. I thought he would have had a harder time choosing, which blew a hole in my experiment.

Conclusion:
1. While the faux curd cooks up and firms up just like the real curd, the taste is decidedly different. One could probably mitigate that somewhat by using Splenda-Sugar Blend which would impart a more sugar-like sweetness and allow the tartness of the lemon to shine through.
2. If you want your lemon curd to taste like real lemon curd, you should probably make real lemon curd.
3. Once again my culinary cockiness was lowered a few notches. And I was so sure...





Copyright 2005-2007, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved. No content from this site, including text and photos, may be copied, re-located or otherwise reproduced, in part or in full, for personal or monetary gain, without the express permission of the author.

A Breakfast Protein Smoothie That Packs An Anti-Oxident Punch

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This morning the swallows arrived, bringing with them a stunningly beautiful, warm day, and announcing that Spring is here. I don't care that the calendars say that Spring doesn't start until March 20th, I believe the swallows. They're rarely wrong.

This is a breakfast shake I make when the weather turns from the cold, wet grayness of winter to the gentle sunshine and soft, warm breezes of spring.

It's packed with protein, is low in calories and sports low-glycemic ingredients.

I start with organic, frozen, no-sugar-added sliced peaches and strawberries.

Whey protein powder, organic flaxseed meal and cinnamon are next - all good anti-oxident ingredients.

A little Splenda, vanilla extract and, finally, a pinch of toasted slivered almonds add flavor and texture.

Add water and buzz it all up in a blender and you have a thick, rich, smooth, frosty, decadent-tasting, low calorie, filling, good for you breakfast.

Breakfast Protein Smoothie

Adapted from 40-30-30 Fat Burning Nutrition by Joyce and Gene Daoust

Ingredients:

1 to 1 1/2 cups water

1 22-gram scoop (about 4 heaping tablespoons) whey protein powder

1 heaping teaspoon organic flaxseed meal

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon good vanilla extract (no sugar, no corn syrup)

1/2 cup organic, frozen peach slices (no sugar added)

1/2 cup organic, frozen whole strawberries (no sugar added)

1 packet Splenda (if you use granular, you may have to use more as it's not as sweet)

2 teaspoons toasted, slivered almonds

Preparation:

Place the water in the blender followed by the next 4 ingredients and buzz for a second or two to blend.

Add the fruits, Splenda and almonds and buzz on high speed until the mixture is fully blended and the consistency of an ice cold milk shake.

If you use 1 1/2 cups of water, this will make a 2-cup smoothie. I usually have 1 cup for breakfast and save the rest for a mid-morning snack. Or share it with someone you love.

Copyright 2005-2007, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved. No content from this site, including text and photos, may be copied, re-located or otherwise reproduced, in part or in full, for personal or monetary gain, without the express permission of the administrator/owner.