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Forbidden Rice Salad with Cauliflower

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Forbidden Rice Salad~A Stack of Dishes   Because you’re going to gorge on Turkey, stuffing and pie…. oh yes… the pie… Make a batch of rice, dress it, and keep it in the fridge. Then steam or sauté some veggies, add some greens, and keep on shopping/cooking/eating….  you get the picture.

Forbidden Rice Salad with Cauliflower
Forbidden or black rice can be found in the Asian aisle at your market. It's rich in antioxidants and has a lovely chewy texture. In a pinch you can switch it out with Jasmine or Brown rice.
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313 calories
46 g
1 g
12 g
6 g
2 g
344 g
75 g
3 g
0 g
10 g
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size
344g
Servings
8
Amount Per Serving
Calories 313
Calories from Fat 107
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 12g
19%
Saturated Fat 2g
9%
Trans Fat 0g
Polyunsaturated Fat 2g
Monounsaturated Fat 8g
Cholesterol 1mg
0%
Sodium 75mg
3%
Total Carbohydrates 46g
15%
Dietary Fiber 3g
11%
Sugars 3g
Protein 6g
Vitamin A
10%
Vitamin C
68%
Calcium
6%
Iron
9%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your Daily Values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
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Ingredients
  1. 2 cups black rice
  2. 3.75 cups water
  3. pinch of salt
  4. 1 head of cauliflower, broken into bite size florets
  5. 1 tbsp lemon zest
  6. 3 Tbsp lemon juice
  7. 1 tbsp mayonnaise
  8. 1 tsp dijon mustard
  9. 6 Tablespoons olive oil
  10. 2 Tablespoons fresh minced tarragon
  11. 10 cups mixed baby salad greens
Instructions
  1. Place the rice, water and salt in a rice cooker and set to cook. Alternatively cook in a pot, bringing the water to a boil, then reducing to a simmer. Cover pot and cook until water is absorbed and the rice is tender. About 20 minutes.
  2. In a large skillet over medium heat, warm 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add the cauliflower and cook without stirring until charred on bottom side, about 3 minutes, then turn and repeat. Add 2 Tablespoons of water, cover the skillet and cook for another 2-3 minutes until cauliflower is tender. Season with salt and pepper.
  3. In a medium bowl combine: zest, lemon juice, mayonnaise, mustard and 5 tablespoons olive oil. Whisk until emulsified, then season with salt and pepper to waste.
  4. When the rice is done and still warm, toss with half of the dressing, then add the tarragon.
  5. Let rice cool for 10 minutes, then add the cauliflower and the remaining dressing.
  6. Serve over greens
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calories
313
fat
12g
protein
6g
carbs
46g
more
A Stack of Dishes https://www.astackofdishes.com/
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Forbidden Rice Salad~A Stack of Dishes

Creamy Polenta with Bacon and Mushrooms {and A Healthy Hunger is born! Almost…}

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Creamy Polenta w Mushrooms~ A Stack of DishesIt’s been a super hectic week as I’ve been furiously working on fleshing out the new website- A Healthy Hunger. As my loyal fans know, the new business is a menu subscription service for folks who want to improve their health with better eating. I offer a Clean Eating menu plan and a Diabetic Friendly menu plan.

I cannot begin to tell you how excited I am about this. First off it’s just such a blast creating healthy menus. There is SO MUCH good food to be had that is also healthy for you. Of course my food style as experienced here will translate into AHH. No boring plain-o plain-o. Nothing horribly esoteric either, just beautiful, delicious and healthy eating. Sounds heavenly right??

With luck the final touches on the techy aspect of things will be complete by Tuesday and we can launch full bore. In the meantime you can swing on over there and take a poke around and see what you think. BTW- feel free to drop me a line with thoughts or insights. Good or bad, I would appreciate it. I really want this to be a successful resource for people, so any advice to help me stay on the mark would be much appreciated. Thanks!

Meanwhile, MY eating has been sporadic to say the least. Quick, simple comfort food, such as this creamy polenta, is what’s fueling me right now. In another week I’ll have reached cruising altitude, so I’ll enjoy these indulgences for now.

Creamy Polenta with Bacon and Sauteed Mushrooms
The smokey salty bacon and the vinegar just love the earthiness of the mushrooms. I ate mine with a luscious zinfandel. I highly recommend it.
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196 calories
34 g
7 g
3 g
9 g
1 g
298 g
794 g
8 g
0 g
2 g
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size
298g
Servings
4
Amount Per Serving
Calories 196
Calories from Fat 27
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 3g
5%
Saturated Fat 1g
5%
Trans Fat 0g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1g
Monounsaturated Fat 1g
Cholesterol 7mg
2%
Sodium 794mg
33%
Total Carbohydrates 34g
11%
Dietary Fiber 3g
14%
Sugars 8g
Protein 9g
Vitamin A
9%
Vitamin C
2%
Calcium
20%
Iron
11%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your Daily Values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
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Ingredients
  1. 2 cups skim milk
  2. 2 cups water
  3. 1 cup polenta
  4. 1 teaspoon salt
  5. several healthy grinds of black pepper
  6. 1 basked of cremini mushrooms (you can mix in other varieties, but this was the offering at my market this week)
  7. 2 slices bacon, diced
  8. 2 cloves garlic sliced
  9. 1/4 cup picked sage leaves
  10. 3 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  11. salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. In a medium saucepan add the milk and stir in the polenta until smooth. Then turn on the heat to medium and add the water and salt. I find this method is best as preventing lumps and takes the flurry of activity over a hot flame out of the equation.
  2. Simmer the polenta until thickened and cooked, about 10 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile: in a saute pan, cook the bacon over medium heat until crispy and most of the fat is rendered. Remove the bacon and pour off excess grease, leaving about a tablespoon of fat in the pan.
  4. Return the pan to a medium heat flame. Add the mushrooms top side down and cook for 3 minutes. Then turn over the mushrooms and add the sliced garlic. Cover and let cook for 3-5 more minutes, then remove the cover and add the sage and vinegar. Sprinkle with a generous pinch of salt and a grind of pepper.
  5. Serve a portion of polenta onto one of four plates then place the mushrooms on top. Return the pan to the flame and reduce the vinegar sauce until thickened, about 2 minutes.
  6. Sprinkle the mushrooms with bacon and drizzle with vinegar sage sauce.
  7. Serve immediately.
Notes
  1. A little shaved parmesan would be fantastic here- sadly my larder was bare. Add a hearty green salad and you've got an easy and complete meal.
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calories
196
fat
3g
protein
9g
carbs
34g
more
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Spiced Pork Chops with Mango Salad

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Spiced portWith the threat of the holidays upon us, I like to begin preparing for the season with some light eating.Here I made lean pork chops that I sprinkled with warm spices and then easily pan seared. The mango salad replaces the classic apple sauce. Fruits and pork just seem to go together, and this version offers with it some brightness and hot spice too.

spices

I find myself turning to pork more often as I am surely going to sprout feathers from all the chicken I tend to reach for. Pork is quite lean and most of what we get in the market has a neutral flavor profile, making it complimentary to spices and flavorings. Pork has been bred during the recent generations to accommodate the American palate, which is to say that we like neutral flavors as opposed to too gamey. As a result we don’t see a variety of breeds offered at the butchers. Pork farming has become relatively homogenous. 

Savvy chefs and food lovers have been seeking out small family farmers who have begun to cultivate lesser known breeds with more expansive flavor profiles. There is little romance on the factory farm- as you may have heard- so when given the chance, PLEASE seek out and support your local farmers. Aside from the joys of an expanded taste profile to choose from, we should be doing all we can to preserve and cultivate an array of breeds. Nature creates diversity, we should be protecting and nurturing it.

Spiced Pork with Mango Salad ~ A Stack of DishesIf you’re so inclined, make a larger batch of the spice mix to keep on hand. The combo is great to rub onto chicken- if you happen to be one of those who has succumbed to the  sprouted feathers.

Spiced Pork Chops with Mango Salad
A mixture of warm spices is rubbed into the pork chops, then pan roasted. Mango salad replaces the traditional applesauce, and the chili adds some zing.
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361 calories
28 g
88 g
15 g
30 g
3 g
313 g
541 g
23 g
0 g
8 g
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size
313g
Servings
4
Amount Per Serving
Calories 361
Calories from Fat 135
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 15g
23%
Saturated Fat 3g
16%
Trans Fat 0g
Polyunsaturated Fat 2g
Monounsaturated Fat 6g
Cholesterol 88mg
29%
Sodium 541mg
23%
Total Carbohydrates 28g
9%
Dietary Fiber 4g
15%
Sugars 23g
Protein 30g
Vitamin A
49%
Vitamin C
107%
Calcium
11%
Iron
16%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your Daily Values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
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Ingredients
  1. 1 lb of lean boneless pork chop, thinly sliced
  2. 1/4 teaspoon salt
  3. 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
  4. 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  5. 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  6. 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg (preferably freshly grated)
  7. cooking spray
  8. 2 ripe mangos, chopped, about 2 cups
  9. 3 Tablespoons fresh lime juice
  10. 1 Tablespoon canola oil
  11. 1/2 teaspoon chili flakes
  12. 1/2 teaspoon salt
  13. 1 scallion sliced
  14. 1/2 cup mint leaves
Instructions
  1. Rinse the pork and pat dry with paper towels.
  2. In a small bowl combine the spices, then sprinkle evenly on both sides of the pork chops. Set aside to rest while making the mango salad.
  3. In a medium bowl combine the lime juice, canola oil, chili and salt and stir thoroughly. Add the mango and toss. Set aside.
  4. Heat a saute pan over medium high heat. Spray the pan with cooking spray then add the chops, cooking for 2-3 minutes on each side until done. No need to cook the chops to within an inch of their lives. A little pink is both healthy and delicious.
  5. Divide the pork and mango salad between four plates, then sprinkle salad with scallions and mint, then serve.
Notes
  1. Serve with some jasmine rice for a complete meal.
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calories
361
fat
15g
protein
30g
carbs
28g
more
A Stack of Dishes https://www.astackofdishes.com/
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