It Ain't Easy Being Green

For the past week, I've been a guinea pig. (OK, not literally.) I volunteered, along with few others, to test out a diet book for an upcoming article at work. I thought it would be a good opportunity to hit the reset button and stop pretending that I can eat and drink like I am 21. Which I am not. I thankfully only have to commit for two weeks. By the way, I'm calling it a diet because it is. (And it says so on the front cover.) It's only meant to be followed for four weeks to achieve rapid weight loss and is not meant to be incorporated into one's lifestyle full time.

While I have dropped 4 pounds in the first week, I can't believe that the weight loss will last long. The caloric restriction is a bit much. For example, by 5:00 pm today I had only consumed 550 calories. (Yes, I was getting hangry!) According to my tabulations, on most days I have been limited to 1000 calories tops. There's no way I'll be able to sustain that on my own, particularly because I am currently required to include several meals that should consist of either a 200-calorie fruit smoothie, protein shake or low-sodium soup. I personally don't like to drink my calories, so have opted for the soup. I quickly realized that I better start making my own soups because on my last run to Pret A Manger for my liquid-ish lunch, I discovered that several of their small soups top out at 1100 mg of sodium! (Your entire daily intake should be between 1500 mg and 2300 mg.) No joke! Also not a joke? Saturday's 100-calorie snack suggestion of 2 tablespoons of poppy seeds OR 6 oysters. Ummm…when is the last time you or anyone you have ever met in your life has eaten poppy seeds? That weren't in a muffin? And who snacks on oysters without a glass of wine? (Oh yeah, I'm not drinking alcohol or coffee either.)

So...I bring you fresh pea soup. Or frozen pea soup. Whatever you can find. It's super quick and easy and meets my stupid diet requirements. Typically fresh pea soup is coupled with mint but I found a recipe from The NY Times that suggested tarragon which I thought was a nice alternative. It's delish. I think I'll save the mint for all of the mojitos that I'm going to make once this is all over!

Summer Pea Soup

Adapted from Bon Appétit

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth, divided
6 cups shelled fresh peas (from about 6 pounds pods) or 1 (16-ounce) bag of frozen peas, thawed
1/2 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
1 teaspoon kosher salt, 

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1. Melt the butter in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring often, until softened but not browned, 6-8 minutes. Add 2 cups broth and bring to a boil. Add the peas, reduce the heat, and simmer gently until tender, about 5 minutes for fresh peas, about 2 minutes for frozen.

2. Remove the pot from the heat. Add the tarragon and remaining 1-2 cups broth to pot, if desired. (Add any additional broth according to your desired consistency.) Purée the soup in a blender or with an immersion blender until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve warm or chilled. Serves 4 - 6.

Curry in a Hurry

There's almost no point to making Thai food at home when you live in NYC. There are no less 18 Thai restaurants within a 10 block radius of my apartment. I took a Thai cooking class at ICE years ago and it was awesome, but I have yet to EVER make the recipes ever again! So why make a green curry at home? Because I need another way to make shrimp! Haven't you noticed how many posts I have on shrimp? They cook quickly and are tasty but I can't keep making garlic shrimp over and over again (but I do). And this green curry is not made like it was in my Thai class where we made the curry paste from scratch. I just bought the little jar o' paste at the grocery store. I don't think the addition of peas is authentic, but I like the slight sweetness paired with the spicy sauce. And the extra green looks purdy.



Shrimp Curry with Coconut Rice

Cooked basmati rice
1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small jalapeño pepper, minced
1 pound medium raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
1 (14-ounce) can unsweetened coconut milk
1 cup chicken stock or canned low-sodium broth
1 1/2 tablespoons Thai green curry paste
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped basil leaves
3 tablespoons minced cilantro
Freshly ground pepper

1. In a medium skillet, toast the coconut over moderately low heat, stirring, until golden, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate and let cool. Sprinkle over the cooked rice.

2. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Add the jalapeño and cook for one minute. Add the shrimp, season with salt and pepper, and cook 1 minute per side. Transfer to a bowl.

3. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil to the skillet. Add the onion and the ginger and cook over moderate heat for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the coconut milk, stock, and curry paste and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Simmer the sauce for 5 minutes, until thickened. Add the cooked shrimp, peas, 1/3 cup of the basil, 2 tablespoons of the cilantro and simmer until heated through, 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

4. Transfer to a serving bowl. Garnish with the remaining 2 tablespoons of basil, 1 tablespoon of cilantro. Serve immediately with the coconut rice. Serves 4.

Spring In Style

I have way too many cookbooks for a studio apartment (or any apartment) and almost as many extremely annoying stacks of magazines and random pieces of papers. Occasionally I do consult these stacks because within them are recipes that had once caught my eye, most likely pages ripped out of magazines or printed emails or envelopes with recipes scribbled on the back. Not all of my magazine recipes are from obvious food magazine sources, however. In the case of this orzo recipe, my inspiration came from In Style of all places.

The original recipe featured the orzo with asparagus and it caught my eye because it looked so seasonal, especially after a dearth of green vegetables this past winter. It came in especially handy when brainstorming side dish ideas for our Easter lamb dinner, but we made some slight changes by substituting sugar snap peas for the asparagus, losing the truffle butter, and adding toasted pine nuts. Even with the heavy cream it's still light. I think I may make another batch with extra spring vegetables including white and green asparagus, peas, artichokes, and fava beans...and a nice chianti.



Easter Orzo
(Adapted from Amanda Freitag)

1/2 pound sugar snap peas, washed and ends trimmed
1 1/2 cups orzo
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus additional for garnish
Truffle butter or oil (optional)
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts (optional)

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Meanwhile fill a large bowl with ice water. Place the snap peas in the boiling water for 1 minute, then remove with a strainer or slotted spoon (keeping the water boiling) and place directly in the ice water until cool. Drain the snap peas and slice in half crosswise. Set aside.

2. Add the orzo to the pot of boiling water and cook according to the package directions. Drain and set aside.

3. Place a medium pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the snap peas and orzo and stir to coat.

4. Add the heavy cream and butter, stirring until combined. Turn off the heat and add the cheese, salt, and pepper, and a drizzle of truffle oil, if using. Stir to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve immediately topped with additional Parmesan and pine nuts if desired.

Gone Fishin'

I eat a lot of fish. I would say that 90% of the time I go out, I order fish. Ask the waitress at Bianca. I always order the salmon even though I pretend that I might order something else. I've even perfected the art of cooking fish in my toaster oven. (Who wants to turn on the oven in the middle of summer?) Sometimes I get a conscience. Which are over fished? What are we supposed to boycott? Will I get mercury poisoning like Jeremy Piven? Check out The Monterey Bay Aquarium website for the latest information and to look up your favorite fish to see how it rates.



In the meantime, I have a killer recipe that is easy enough to make on a weeknight after work (takes 20 minutes!) yet will impress any guest. (OK. If you have a food processor or one of those mini-preps, life will be much easier.) Wrapping fish in prosciutto makes it a bit more elegant than it would be on it's own, and adding a dollop of pesto definitely gilds the lily. Thanks to Mark Bittman and his Minimalist column in the NY Times, I've been making this recipe since last fall. I decided to add a side of peas since I still had about half of a 1 pound bag after making last week's Pasta with Peas. It's like a vibrant green version of mashed potatoes. No! It's nothing like baby food. Try it! You'll like it!



Prosciutto Wrapped Fish (via Mark Bittman)


1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup pine nuts
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 (4-6 ounce) fillets of halibut, cod or other white-fleshed fish
2 - 3 ounces thinly slice prosciutto
2 tablespoons butter


1. Heat the oven to 450˚F. In a small food processor, combine the herbs with pine nuts, olive oil and salt and pepper to form a thick paste.

2. Season fish fillets with salt and pepper. Lay two slices of prosciutto on a board, slightly overlapping like fish scales. Smear the prosciutto with a layer of herb mixture, then lay fish in the center and wrap it up.

3. Heat a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes, then add the butter. When the foam subsides, cook the fish for a minute on each side then roast until tender, 5 - 10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish. Fillets are done when a thin knife will pass through their thickest point with little resistance. Serve immediately. Serves 4. (I will make the whole amount of pesto but then only roast one piece of fish, saving the pesto for other things.)

*The recipe above calls for Halibut or Cod and according to the Monterey Bay Aquarium website, one should avoid Atlantic Cod (Pacific Cod is good) and Atlantic and California Halibut (Pacific Halibut is good).



Pea Puree (adapted from Gourmet)

1/2 (16-ounce) bag of frozen peas
6 mint fresh leaves
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a medium saucepan combine the peas with 1/4 cup water and the mint leaves and boil, covered, for about 5 minutes, or until the peas are cooked and tender. Drain well, and in a food processor, puree with the cream and butter, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately. Serves 2 - 3.

Easy Peasy

So I've decided that if you think you don't have a green thumb, all you have to do is plant mint. It seems to take care of itself and will flourish in your yard (or completely take over). As a result it will build your confidence as a gardener. Most everything I've ever planted has died, but I have a feeling that I could handle the minimal attention to mint that's required.

I've already written about making a minted simple syrup, as well as a lemonade, from a stash of mint that I got from my co-worker, Lisa. But since that was over a holiday weekend and I decided to skip town at the last minute, I didn't get to try the savory recipes that I had in mind. Fortunately while I was in the country this weekend, all I had to do was grab a pair of shears and clip myself a new bunch of mint to give it another go.

I originally found this recipe in Bon Appétit. It's quite light despite the cream. I made some slight modifications to the recipe since I was just cooking for myself, but it will definitely serve two, or one plus extra for lunch the next day.



Creamy Pasta With Peas, Parsley, and Mint

6 ounces dried pasta (such as shells or penne-I used whole wheat)
1/2 cup heavy cream
6 ounces frozen peas (about 1 1/2 cups), do not thaw
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1. Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, according to package instructions. Drain the pasta about 1 minute before the suggested cook time.

2. While the pasta is cooking, bring the cream to a simmer in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the peas and simmer until heated through, about 2 minutes. Add the 1 cup of cheese and stir until melted. Stir in the mint, parsley, salt and pepper. Add the drained pasta to the skillet and toss to coat. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve immediately with additional cheese as desired. Serves 2 well.