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With the Super Bowl upon us, there are enough people out there offering advice on how to lighten up those buffalo wings and telling you to choose salsa over guacamole, so I will refrain from any such banalities. Instead, I thought I would share my musings on a topic near and dear to my heart: dips.

I love the dip. Ever since I tasted my first potato chip dipped in Frito Lay sour cream and onion dip back in the mid 1980s, I was hooked. I love the Mediterranean dips (hummus, babaganoush), the Latin dips (guacamole, salsa, bean dips), even those creamy non-dip foods that practically beg for something to be dipped in them (peanut butter, smoked whitefish salad).

My dilemma resides with the dip delivery systems.

Chips have so much fat on their own that they dramatically cut into my dip-eating allowance.

Crackers, pita chips or french bread slices are mostly off limits to me because of their wheat gluten content. (And if you’re still hungover from the same 2 month Halloween-to-New Year’s Eve caloriefest that I am, then they’re no friend of yours, either)

So few restaurants seem to have any vision beyond the old, standby dip-delivery systems (ho hum, pita wedges AGAIN?), which means I have to either eat hummus with a spoon (which makes me feel like Adam Sandler as the Zohan…and I don’t love it THAT much), or be left out of the dipping action altogether. Unacceptable!

I’ve decided that an ideal dip delivery system should compliment the dip either in flavor or texture without competing with it and should deliver the dip without burdening the eater with unreasonable levels of additional calories. An ideal dip delivery assortment should also be democratic, and have something for those of us who can’t eat wheat. (OK, well maybe that last one is more like catering to special interests than being a true representative democracy, but in case I end up at any of your places for the Super Bowl, I thought I’d toss it in.)

So without further ado, here are some of my favorite dip deliverers for the special dips in my life.

1. Endive
Tell me: was there ever a leaf better suited to deliver dip than crunchy, concave endive? Each boat-like leaf peels off the endive head curved and ready to hold large amounts of dips or salads. Its crisp, ever-so slightly bitter character makes it a perfect counterpart to creamy, textured and slightly sweet toppings. A classic presentation involves a sweet cheese and some sort of nut, such as cream cheese or brie and pecans or goat cheese and walnuts, but it’s also delicious topped with a fish salad, like crab salad, shrimp salad, smoked salmon salad or even tuna salad. The shape also renders it an excellent vehicle for a nice gluten-free tabbouleh, since it will keep all of the little bulgur-wheat impersonating-quinoa-grains on board as they travel mouthward. The presentation is positively elegant. Which I’m sure is a priority for that Velveeta-and-Salsa dip your boyfriend is planning to make this year.

2. Large vegetable “coins” (e.g., carrots or cucumbers)

The large carrot coin is a classier alternative to baby carrots, and along with its cousin the cucumber coin, makes an excellent option for Middle Eastern or Mediterranean dips. Cucumber is brilliant as a carrier for tangy yogurt-based dips like Tzatziki (or it’s American cousins, Ranch dressing and sour cream-based French Onion Dip). And a sturdy carrot coin will hold onto weightier dips like hummus or babaganoush with aplomb. The trick to a successful carrot coin is to buy really fat carrots, peel them, and slice them on a diagonal so that the coins are elliptical in shape instead of round. For beautiful cucumber coins, wash the cucumber and use a vegetable peeler to peel ‘stripes’ down its side before slicing.

3. Red Pepper triangles

OK, I must give full credit to Martha Stewart for coming up with this idea. She suggests serving them with an Italian relish that uses olives and proscuitto, but these sturdy and colorful triangles would also go well with anything white and creamy or cheesy, like homemade onion dip, garlicky white bean dip, or a delicious, reduced fat artichoke dip.

4. Hollowed-out cherry tomatoes

Cherry tomatoes like to hold sharp-flavored, thick or pasty-textured dips, like cheese spreads, cream cheese-based dips, creamy smoked whitefish salad, or even a guacamole. Their mild flavor allows the dips’ strong flavor to take center stage. Since they’re small, they’ll naturally limit the portions of these fattier dips; and since they’re fat-free, they won’t add additional calories to an already-indulgent filling. Plus, they look super cute when arranged on a platter. If you like your foods a little bit more picante, a stuffed pepadew pepper would create a similar effect as a stuffed cherry tomato with a bit more kick. The clever people at Whole Foods suggest filling cherry tomatoes with a beautiful green edamame hummus. How could I argue with that?

5. Nut Thins
Sometimes, the occasion calls for a bona fide cracker. So thank you, nice people at Blue Diamond, for making a gluten-free cracker that looks and tastes like a cracker and isn’t just a flavorless puff of rice. Nut thins are really delicious crackers made from ground almonds (or other nuts) and rice, and are a versatile carrier for most any dip, as well as a perfect cheese-and-crackers cracker. Even better, each generous 16-cracker serving has only 2.5g of fat and a reasonable 130 calories; which is on par with reduced fat Wheat Thins or the equivalent of 7 reduced fat Triscuits. They’re widely distributed and, unlike many gluten-free crackers, they’re priced similarly to normal crackers. Touchdown!

6. The nouveau Tortilla chip

Lastly, we come to the trusty tortilla chip. Surely by now you’ve noticed that the tortilla chip category has exploded, with new riffs on the classic that range from baked to blue, multigrain to flavored. These are clearly the most versatile dip deliverer of all, and one of the most addictive. I try to pick organic ones made from non-GMO corn with no added preservatives. Baked are a smarter choice, though truth be told, the fried ones taste much better to me, so I’d rather just eat less of them and enjoy them. That’s a matter of personal preference. The multigrain ones are usually quite tasty, but ignore the marketing hype about them being a good source of omega-3’s due to their flaxseed content. Flaxseed coats are pretty darn resilient, and most of those whole seeds will make it all the way through your digestive system totally unscathed.

So there you have it. I am officially ready for the Super Bowl. Now: can someone please tell me who’s playing this year?

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Cauliflower soup is one of the easiest soups to make, and the pureed effect gives the soup a creamy taste and texture without actually having to use heavy cream. It’s also a good way to sneak in some extra calcium to your diet. It’s super-mild as far as flavor goes, but you can elevate this unassuming potage in any number of ways with your garnishes.

It was after an overzealous cauliflower soup-making session that I discovered another reason to love my humble cauliflower soup leftovers: they made a healthy substitute for bechamel (white) sauce to make a creamy, luxurious but still low-fat white lasagna. Most white lasagna recipes call for a sauce made with milk, flour and a non-trivial amount of butter. By using pureed cauliflower soup instead of traditional bechamel, this white lasagna can be made lower fat AND gluten-free. As a bonus, the creamy texture of the soup-turned-sauce eliminates the need to put ricotta cheese in every layer, which lightens up the recipe substantially. And since making sauces from scratch can be the most time-consuming part of cooking, recycling your leftover cauliflower soup will shorten the prep time for the lasagna.

Here’s how to do it:

DAY 1:

Cauliflower soup (serves 4… but if you’re making it with the express purpose of having leftovers, consider making a double batch)

1 large head cauliflower, roughly chopped into florets

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cups broth (chicken or vegetable, preferably low-sodium)

2 cup low fat or skim milk (or rice milk for a dairy-free version)

Directions:

1) In a stockpot, add cauliflower, onion and broth. Bring to a boil and simmer covered for 15 minutes.

2) Add milk and use immersion blender to puree the mixture in the pot. Or, transfer to a blender in batches and puree. (Remember what I told you abut investing in an immersion blender?)

3) Return the pureed soup back to the heat and allow soup to simmer uncovered until some excess liquid cooks off and soup reaches a slightly thicker texture, about 10 minutes (it shouldn’t be watery). Salt to taste if necessary.

4) To serve, garnish individual soup servings with one or more of the following:

• A few drops of truffle oil (or other flavored oil)
• A few drops of herb-infused oil, like sage or basil (take a handful of fresh herb leaves and blend with 1/4 cup olive oil in a blender; strain through cheesecloth.)
• Toasted almond slivers
• Fresh thyme leaves
• A sprinkle of freshly-grated parmesean cheese

Note: Because this soup contains liquid cow’s milk, it’s only recommended for babies age 12 months or older. If you’re making it specifically for a baby/toddler over the age of 12 months, use whole milk instead of skim and don’t add in the extra salt.

DAY 2:

Spinach and Mushroom White Lasagna

You’ll need about 1.5 cups of leftover soup for this recipe, assuming you’re using an 8×8 baking dish. (The recipe quantities below will make lasagna for 4 in an 8×8 baking dish.) For a 9×13 size pan, just double the recipe, and consider making extra soup the day before to accommodate your leftover needs!

~1.5 cups leftover cauliflower soup,

1/2 lb no-boil lasagna (any variety; or for a gluten-free version, try DeBoles rice lasagna)

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

~1 lb fresh spinach, chopped

10 oz mushrooms (cremini, baby bella or white button), washed and sliced

2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp nutmeg

8 oz grated part-skim mozzarella (You can also supplement the mozzarella with a little sprinkle of parmesean for a slightly sharper flavor.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To start, prep the vegetables as follows:

• Saute the sliced onion in 1 tsp of olive oil until soft and translucent. Set aside.
• Saute the mushrooms with 1 tsp olive oil, 2 tsp of oregano and 1/4 tsp salt until just cooked but not overly shrunken. Set aside.
• Saute the spinach in 1 tsp olive oil. As it softens, sprinkle with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp nutmeg and stir until just cooked. Set aside.

Spoon 1/4 of the cold cauliflower soup into the baking dish until bottom is just covered with a thin layer.

Place one layer of dry lasagna noodles into the dish to cover the bottom.

Spoon 1/2 of the onions, mushrooms and spinach, respectively, onto the noodles and spread so that they are evenly distributed. Spread another 1/4 of the cauliflower soup atop the vegetables and sprinkle half of the cheese on top.

Place another layer of dry lasagna noodles atop the vegetables and spread the remaining vegetables and another 1/4 of the soup.

Cover the vegetables with one last layer of dry lasagna noodles. Spread the remaining 1/4 of cold cauliflower soup atop the noodles. Sprinkle the second half of the shredded mozzarella atop the sauce.

Cover loosely (to avoid the cheese sticking) with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, then remove foil and cook for 15 minutes more. After removing from oven, let the lasagna sit for 10 minutes before cutting.

Now, if someone can figure out a way to recycle the leftover lasagna, we can keep this cauliflower soup alive forever!

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Buckwheat joins the Jerusalem artichoke in the category of misleadingly-named foods. It’s not wheat–nor is it even technically a grain–but rather a plain old flowering plant whose seeds bear enough similarity to wheat grains so as to earn its name. Rest assured, my fellow gluten-intolerant friends: your intestines can’t read, so they won’t mistake this naturally gluten-free grain for a relative of the Wheat family. (Don’t ask me why we refer to the grains as groats. I have no clue.)

You’ve probably tasted Buckwheat pancakes, and possibly even eaten buckwheat crepes (Galettes de Sarrasin),which are the traditional way of preparing savory versions of this French delight. If you’re fancier than I am, you may also have encountered buckwheat in the blini served with your caviar. Recipes for pancakes and crepes using buckwheat flour–which is very easy to find at most supermarkets–abound online, so I won’t bother posting one here.

But there are many more everyday ways to include buckwheat in your diet, and many reasons to consider doing so.

Why buckwheat?

• Buckwheat is a whole grain, and as such, offers the same benefits as other whole grains as far helping to reduce blood cholesterol levels, with an added benefit for cardiovascular health through its flavonoid content. Flavonoids are plant compounds that occur naturally in fruits, vegetables, teas, legumes, etc… and support health in a variety of ways. The one contained in buckwheat is called rutin, and it works in tandem with Vitamin C to enhance vascular health by maintaining the integrity of blood capillaries, preventing blood clots and as an antioxidant that prevents the oxidation of LDL cholesterol, which can lead to arterial plaque deposits in the blood vessels.

• Buckwheat is gluten-free, but less starchy and higher-fiber than more commonly-eaten GF grains like corn and rice. For example: 1 cup of cooked buckwheat groats has 155 calories and 34g of carbohydrate, of which 4.5g is fiber. By comparison, 1 cup cooked long-grain brown rice has 216 calories, 45g carbohydrate, of which 3.5g is fiber. This, by the way, makes it a smart substitute for rice in the diets of people with diabetes.

• Buckwheat tastes goooood. It’s a little nutty (not unlike teff, which I’m sure you’ve all tried by now), a little earthy…it has much more flavor than plain ol’ wheat flour.

Ways to prepare buckwheat

Groats (aka: Kasha)

Buckwheat groats are known as “kasha” among Eastern European people, and they are the star ingredient in two classic Jewish comfort foods: knishes and a dish called “kasha varnishkes.” The latter is a surprisingly delicious mixture of bowtie pasta, cooked kasha and some sauteed onions. My stepfather loves to make this dish, and he agreed to share his recipe with you all. Sadly for me, I have yet to find a company that makes bow-tie shaped gluten-free pasta, so I substitute gluten-free rotini instead, which allows the buckwheat groats to get all caught up in their spirals to similar effect as the bowties.

Recipe for Bill’s Kasha Varnishkes

• 1 cup Wolff’s kasha, coarse or medium (buckwheat groats)
• 2 cups broth-of-your-choice or water
• 1 TBSP butter (or your substitute of choice)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1-2 pinches pepper
• 1 egg
• 1/2 to one 16-oz box of farfalle (bowtie pasta)… or ridged gluten-free pasta of your choice (e.g., fusilli or rotini). (Amount of pasta you use should depend on your desired kasha-to-pasta ratio.)
• 2 large onions, thinly sliced
• 2 TBSP vegetable oil

Directions

1. Make the kasha:

• In a saucepan, heat broth, butter, salt and pepper to boiling
• Beat egg in a bowl. Add kasha and coat it with the egg.
• In a separate non-stick skillet over high heat, add egg-coated kasha and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, until egg has dried and kasha kernels start to separate. Reduce heat to low.
• Stir in the boiling liquid and cover. Simmer until liquid is absorbed and kasha is tender, about 7-10 minutes.

2. Make the pasta according to package directions

3. Sautee the sliced onions in oil over low heat. Stir periodically as onions soften and slowly caramelize. Cook for 15-30 minutes, depending on amount of onions and level of heat.

4. In a large bowl, combine the drained pasta and onions and mix. Then add the kasha mixture and mix. Serve

Soba noodles

Unlike Japanese udon noodles which are made with wheat, traditional soba noodles are made of buckwheat. (Note that some brands are made with a mix of buckwheat and whole wheat, so if you’re eating out and avoiding wheat gluten, ask your waiter to check with the kitchen that the soba noodles you’re about to order are indeed 100% buckwheat.) Tasty soba noodles make a great meal when served as part of a noodle soup with vegetables, fish and/or meat; as the base for a stir-fry; or cold as part of an Asian noodle salad. The Eden Foods website has a ton of easy recipes featuring soba noodles… just search “soba recipe” and you’ll find them all. If you’re avoiding gluten, be sure to buy the 100% buckwheat variety, as they also make some varieties that use wheat.

Note: many Asian recipes using soba noodles will call for soy sauce, which is made with wheat and can be a problem if you’re avoiding gluten. No worries: look for the wheat-free Tamari variety of soy sauce… and try for the reduced sodium version while you’re at it. The brand I’ve seen most is called San-J.

Hot Cereal

Like rice cereal, naturally gluten-free cream of buckwheat cereal is a perfectly appropriate complementary food for infants and babies aged 4-6 months and up. It should be noted that unlike most infant rice cereals, cream of buckwheat is NOT iron-fortified. (Buckwheat has a decent amount of iron in it naturally, but it is not as bioavailable as the iron in fortified cereal.) Cooking the cereal with iron-fortified infant formula instead of water will certainly address this issue, but if your infant is exclusively breastfed and not taking an iron supplement, then unfortified cream of buckwheat cereal would not be a good substitute for iron-fortified rice cereal to meet an infant’s iron needs.

Of course, adults can eat Cream of Buckwheat cereal for breakfast, too. And they don’t need to cook it with infant formula to enjoy it. It tastes sort of like farina, and makes for a nostalgic winter morning breakfast.

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Look, ma! No salmonella!

In case you haven’t heard, America’s second-annual peanut-butter related salmonella outbreak is underway. This year, the contaminated peanut butter source has been linked to commercial-sized tubs produced by Peanut Corp. of America used by food manufacturers in many popular snacks for humans and canines alike, as well as in food service operations to make things like PB&J sandwiches for kids’ school lunches. (Click here for a link to the full recall list.) While individually-sized jars of peanut butter that you may have at home are not part of this recall, it’s worth checking the list to see if you have any of the affected cookies, snack cakes, bars or dog treats lying around the house.

So how does salmonella get into your peanut butter, you may ask? Well, the cause this time around is not yet known. But last year’s recall of contaminated Peter Pan peanut butter stemmed from sanitation conditions at the factory, where a leaky roof dripped contaminated water into post-production peanut butter. (It is suspected that the water itself became contaminated from contact with birds on the roof of the building, since birds and poultry–unlike peanuts–are common carriers of the salmonella bacteria.) Since you don’t cook peanut butter before eating it (which would kill the bacteria), a contaminated batch is likely to make you sick.

Gross. It’s enough to make one want to swear off all packaged foods entirely.

Well, perhaps we’ll start with baby steps. How about finding a home-made replacement for those peanut-butter-flavored energy bars that were subject to this latest recall? (Which include any peanut-butter containing flavors of Clif, Luna or ZonePerfect bars, as well as Nature’s Path Peanut Butter Optimum Energy bars.) I’ve been meaning to come up with a good alternative to these types of bars anyway, since they tend to be high in added sugar and loaded with heavily-processed soy protein isolate (SPI), which is an ingredient that’s been showing up in everything from my breakfast cereals to my granola bars and one that I have trouble with digestively and philosophically.

So I set off to find recipes that I could make or modify to be the all-time best salmonella-free-peanut-butter-bar snack ever.

Recipe #1:

Online searching brought me to this Breakfast Bar recipe from a May, 2005 issue of Body & Soul magazine. I modified it to replace the gluten-containing spelt flakes with quinoa flakes, but clearly that step would be optional depending on your preferences and what’s available locally. If you’re using salted nuts, don’t add in the additional salt that the recipe calls for. Also, I thought the 1/2 cup of honey was a bit calorie-excessive on top of all those nuts in the recipe, so I tried 1/3 cup instead. Due to this reduction, my mixture needed a smidge more wetness when I mixed the wet and dry ingredients together, so 1 TBSP applesauce did the trick. Generally speaking, applesauce, pumpkin puree or fruit butters (apple butter, pumpkin butter, etc..) make good substitutes for some part (no more than half) of the oil, butter, honey or corn syrup, especially in baking recipes like this, where you’re not worried about batter or dough rising. Since they’re much less calorically-dense, they’ll help lighten up the recipe without anyone noticing much difference in taste.

The results were great: a slightly chewy bar with crispy edges that tasted like real food (because it is) and wasn’t cloyingly sweet like a store-bought one. It was more of a nut and fruit bar than a peanut-buttery-tasting bar.

If you cut this recipe into 8 bars as the instructions say, I estimate each one would have ~250 calories (about the same as a peanut butter Clif bar), 11g of (mostly healthy) fat from the nuts and flaxseeds; 5g of protein, and 33g of carbohydrate, of which 4g is fiber. Of course, you may cut smaller bars if you like the sound of this recipe but don’t want a 250-calorie bar.

Recipe #2:

Another search brought me to this Martha Stewart recipe for Peanut-Butter granola bars.I followed her recipe to the letter and the results were deelish–it was a crispier/crumblier bar that was slightly sweeter and peanut butterier than the first recipe. If you cut the pan into 16 bars as the recipe specifies, each one will contain: ~130 calories, 6g protein, 9g of fat and 12g of carbohydrate, of which 1.5g is fiber. If you cut it into 8 bars, then just double these numbers for the nutritional info.

Since it’s a more traditional oat-based bar, it may or may not work for you if you have celiac disease. Most, but not all, gluten-intolerant people can tolerate up to 1 cup of cooked oats/day, which is 1/4 cup dry oats. You can always use certified gluten-free oats to be on the safe side; my own personal experience is that some brands of conventional oats, like Quaker, are fine, while others–like store brands– wreak havoc on me. But everyone is different, so GF oats may just be your best bet. Otherwise, you can substitute quinoa flakes, which is essentially using rolled whole quinoa instead of rolled whole oats. This substitution will work in any recipe calling for rolled oats, by the way.

A parting thought on homemade energy bars

These bars have a healthy amount of protein, but it will still be less protein than a store-bought bar since they are not fortified with soy protein isolate. Since most Americans eat twice the amount of protein per day than they actually need, I doubt this should send anyone into dire nutritional straits. Therefore, the calorie profile will be more skewed toward (healthy) fats and a mix of simple and complex carbohydrates. That’s what makes them energy bars! (You don’t want to be burning protein for energy!) Total calories are what matter at the end of the day as far as weight management goes, and these bars are made primarily of whole grains and healthy unsaturated fats at the same calorie levels as processed, store-bought bars. Therefore, I’d say they make a good, healthy, unprocessed substitute. Have one of these babies with a mug of green tea at 3pm and you won’t pillage the fridge from ravenous hunger when you get home from work.

Besides, these homemade versions are 100% salmonella free. And your house smells like delicious baking yumminess for hours after you’ve made these. How many processed bar manufacturers can make those claims?

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There is certainly no shortage of books (or blogs, I suppose…. guilty as charged) trying to tell you what to eat.  At least 75% of them can be sorted in to one of two bins before you take them to the curb for trash pickup: (1) Scientifically unfounded hogwash, or (2) the same basic message (eating less, exercising more and getting enough fruits and vegetables) wrapped up in a slick marketing program.  Perhaps in a future post, I will list some current books and tell you which bins they belong in.

But once in a while, a book comes along that actually offers some practical, relevant advice and that clarifies more than it confounds.   Surprisingly, the “Eat This, Not That” series by Men’s Health editor in chief David Zinczenko, along with the Food & Nutrition Editor Matt Goulding, fits this bill.  I say ’surprising’ because the most recent Supermarket edition has a fluorescent orange cover with gimmicky bright yellow sunbursts all over it that advertise “the NO-DIET weight loss solution.” And I found it at the cash wrap at Bed, Bath & Beyond, which is not the first place one might think to look for some common-sense advice of the nutritional nature.  But what was that about not judging a book by its cover?  So there you have it.

To be sure, the authors are not offering diet advice per se.  (Which is a good thing, because neither one of them has any sort of nutrition or health credentials as far as I can tell.)  They don’t discuss the fundamentals of a well-balanced diet and they don’t offer recommendations as to what an ideal diet would look like.  Any nutrition information they offer is pretty general and backed up by seemingly reputable sources.  A few small nits that I should mention: I always find these claims about cutting out X calories per day resulting in a 10lb weight loss per year (or whatever) to be a bit disingenuous.  As in, “if you swap out your daily Haagen Dazs for Breyers, you’ll lose 15lbs per year!”  These claims are always theoretical, and I don’t think that they usually bear out in reality for a whole variety of reasons.  Also, their book seems to imply, (though if you read more carefully, I don’t think they mean this at all),  that a diet full of packaged and processed foods isn’t necessarily a problem, so long as we pick the right packaged and processed foods.

But still, since packaged/processed foods are a convenient and necessary part of most of our lives–for better or for worse–we might as well know which ones to avoid.  Which brings us to the real meat of the book: the authors start with the assumption that the recommended daily intake for most Americans is: 2,000 calories, 65g of fat (no more than 20g of which should be saturated), no more than 2,400mg of sodium, and minimal added sugar.  Then, they go down the supermarket aisles and show you which products stack up the best and the worst by these standards.  In so doing, they reveal certain truths about packaged and processed foods that even surprised me, which reminded me of an often-forgotten lesson that you should never make an assumption about a particular food choice based on its category, its brand or its health claims. Rather, you need to judge the individual food by what it says on the label.

Some examples from the book that reminded me of this important lesson:

• Donuts (as a category) tend to be viewed as one of the most nutritionally bunk foods you could eat–especially for breakfast.  But in fact, a single packaged Otis Spunkmeyer banana nut muffin has 270 more calories, twice the fat and 3x more sugar than a single Krispy Cream Original Glazed donut.  The former has 460 calories, 22g fat and 32g of sugar; the latter has 190 calories, 11g fat and 10g sugar.  Not that either one makes a stellar choice, to be sure, but if you happen to be someone who just needs to have a sweet pastry for breakfast, then some not-stellar choices are still significantly better than others.

• I happen to like Stonyfield Farm Organic yogurt.  I like the brand, the fact that they use organic milk,  their friendly little cow logo, the fact that they recycle their used containers to the Preserve people to turn into plastic razors and toothbrushes.  Which is why I’ve probably allowed their brand halo to distract me from the fact that they put a ton of added sugar into their yogurts!  One 6oz container of their fat free Chocolate Underground yogurt contains 35g of sugar.  Now to be fair, about 12g of that would be naturally-occurring milk sugars (lactose), which means that they added ~23g of sugar.  (The fact that it’s organic sugar does not excuse it.)  To put that into terms most people can understand: a sugar packet, which is also a teaspoon, contains about 4g of sugar.  So this particular yogurt product contains the equivalent of about 6 sugar packets on top of the natural sugar contained in that tiny little yogurt container!  And lest you think that this product is an anomaly because it’s chocolate, I looked at their other flavors too.  They contain between 23g-26g of sugar per container, which means 11g-14g of added sugars.  That’s still a solid 4 tsp on average.  You’re better off just buying plain yogurt in bulk, adding your own fruit and, if need be, topping with 1 tsp of honey if you prefer some more sweetness.

• The previous example also illustrates the third point about not allowing health claims (”Fat free” and “organic,”  for example) to distract you from evaluating an individual product’s healthfulness.  The cereal aisle provides countless additional examples of this principle, making it one of the most treacherous places in the supermarket.  Take General Mills’ Basic 4 cereal, which has at least 3 large health claims printed on the front of the box: “Whole Grain guaranteed (1)” and a “low fat (2)…part of your heart-healthy diet (3).”  In fact, 1 cup of this cereal contains 200 calories, 13g of sugar (4+ tsps) and a mediocre 3g of fiber.  Compare that to a boring old classic, that makes no claims on its package other than a lame “Great new look! Same great taste!”, Post Shredded Wheat.  1 cup of that contains 170 calories, 0g sugar and 6g of fiber.  Even if you wanted to spruce it up by sprinkling a tsp of sugar on it, it would still be a healthier choice.  And if that doesn’t appeal to you, there are plenty of other lower-calorie, lower-sugar and higher-fiber cereal choices that the book lists: Cheerios, Nature’s Path Heritage Heirloom Multigrain and Kashi Vive, to name a few.  My own personal rule of thumb when it comes to cereal: I aim for no more than 10g of sugars per serving and at least 3g fiber–but ideally closer to 5g of fiber per serving. That should weed out a good 80% of cereals out there and help you focus on a smaller set of better choices.

Even if you don’t buy “junk food,” if you buy even a small amount of some packaged food basics– maybe some microwave popcorn, some cereal, some snacks for the kids, bread, cheese, yogurt, an occasional energy bar and some frozen entrees for emergencies– chances are you’ll find this book quite helpful in navigating the supermarket and ensuring that your choices aren’t undermining your health goals.  (Of course, if you don’t want to buy it, just read it while waiting on line to check out at Bed, Bath & Beyond.)   And if you find this edition helpful or entertaining, there are two others: a restaurant one and a kid’s food one.  The restaurant one is absolutely horrifying and infuriating, but if you never eat out at chain restaurants like Hardee’s, Chili’s or TGI Friday’s, you’ll probably also be entertained and happily smug in your superior self.

If you grow all your own food, milk your own dairy cows, bake your own bread and churn your own butter, then you probably won’t learn that much.  But you’ll probably be very entertained (or, possibly, horrified), at some of the foods that food marketers have the audacity to try to sell us.

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Beans don’t get nearly enough credit. In my opinion, they are one of the best foods anyone could eat. They’re a very low-fat source of protein, they’re high in the kind of fiber that helps lower blood cholesterol and maintain even blood sugar levels, they’re packed with cancer-fighting antioxidants and B-vitamins and they’re a good source of iron. Oh, and they’re cheap!

I’ve heard many carb-phobic women talk about avoiding beans because they’re “high-carb,” which makes me nuts. I’d recommend beans to anyone looking to control their weight; between the super-filling fiber (go ahead and try to eat more than a cup in one sitting. You’ll want to explode.), their high protein content and their naturally low-fat nature, they’re my secret weapon to feeling truly satisfied after a lower-calorie meal. (In fact, when my 3pm hunger rumble rolls around, one of my favorite snacks is a small cup of lentil soup, which has 200-300 calories and keeps the munchies at bay until dinner.) I eat beans almost every single day in some form or another.

Canned vs. dry

Canned food as a genre gets a pretty bad nutritional rap, and generally speaking, it’s for good reason. Canned beans, however, are an exception in my book. Unlike many other vegetables, beans only lose a small percentage of their nutrient value when canned: ~15%, according to the sources I consulted. To me, this is a very worthwhile trade-off for convenience, as most working people I know aren’t going to soak their dry beans overnight in anticipation of tomorrow’s dinner. The one exception to the low-nutrient loss is folate: beans, which are naturally high in folate–a nutrient especially important during pregnancy–lose about half of this nutrient during the canning process. So if you are pregnant and depending on canned beans as a key source of folate in your diet, be aware that you should be looking to other foods-and possibly supplements–to ensure your needs are met.

The exception is dry lentils and split peas, which cook quite fast. It is much cheaper and tastier to prepare these from dry rather than buying them canned, and that’s what I do.

Also, I steer clear of canned baked beans. They’re full of added sugar, and there are so many healthier ways to enjoy beans, as you’ll see below.

Health benefits

There are too many to list, really, so I will offer just a few key highlights.

• Beans support cardiovascular health through their cholesterol-lowering effects (compliments of the fiber) and their mineral content (see discussion below on magnesium and potassium.) If you live with someone who has heart disease but is resistant to making dietary changes, try incorporating a weekly 3-bean chili meal into their rotation (see recipe below). It’s so hearty and substantial that it somehow doesn’t feel “vegetarian” (god forbid!), and could be a first step toward opening them up to healthy, satisfying meals which don’t feature a big hunk of red meat at the center of the plate.

• The type and amount of fiber in beans promotes a slower release of the beans’ carbohydrates, which helps control blood sugar levels. This keeps you feeling fuller for longer and prevents the blood sugar spikes and crashes which lead to hunger…and is especially beneficial for people with diabetes.

• Beans are a very good source of iron. If you like breathing as much as I do, then you want to be sure to get sufficient iron from foods in your diet. (Iron is responsible for transporting oxygen through your blood via its home in your red blood cells.) Despite the fact that they contain natural compounds called phytates, which bind to iron and prevent absorption, beans have enough iron that a fair amount will be absorbed nonetheless. Also, you can greatly improve absorption of the iron in beans by eating them with foods rich in vitamin C, such as tomatoes or bell peppers or any cruciferous vegetable. Groups with increased iron needs include children, teens, pregnant women and pre-menopausal women, so beans can be an especially excellent addition to their diets.

• Beans contain high levels of antioxidants. This type of antioxidant, called an anthocyanin, is the same type found in grapes and berries, and has been attributed with inhibiting the growth of malignant tumors and preventing the type of inflammation that can exacerbate chronic conditions like diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The amount of antioxidant content will vary by type of bean, but as a rule, the darker the bean, the more antioxidants it will contain. Black beans and dark red kidney beans, therefore, are great choices.

• Beans contain high levels of many vitamins and minerals, including certain B vitamins (folate and thiamin), which are essential co-factors in energy metabolism and play an important role in forming new DNA for cell replication. They also contain minerals such as magnesium–a key electrolyte which has a role in regulating heart contractions and stabilizing your bone matrix– and potassium, which also helps regulate normal heart contractions and maintain a healthy blood pressure. Some varieties are even decent sources of calcium, especially white beans.

Keep a well-stocked bean pantry

My pantry is always stocked with several cans of red kidney beans, black beans and garbanzo beans. I’ll often keep a can or two of cannelini beans and pintos as well, but there are so many varieties, so pick your favorites and keep them in stock. Refried beans are a great staple, too. Look brands that are low in added salt, but if you can’t find them, then rinsing your canned beans before use will help to remove some excess sodium.

Additionally, I always keep dry brown lentils, red split peas, yellow split peas and green split peas in my pantry. Once in awhile, I’ll splurge on French lentils (aka lentils du puy) or Beluga lentils–named so because of their resemblance to the caviar. These latter varieties hold their shapes much better when cooked and are better suited for use in salads.

I know this seems like a lot of beans to keep in a pantry, but they never go bad and are a reliable protein option for those weekday dinners when you’ve got no meat or fish in the house but still want something substantial and filling.

My favorite, fast ways to prepare beans, culled from all over the world:

1. Bean Salads

• Click here for an awesome “formula” to make bean salads from multiple types of beans, courtesy of the New York Times. My favorite one is the Italian version using cannellini beans and champagne vinegar. It takes 5 minutes to make and is a fantastic appetizer or side dish. No joke: I once caught a houseguest raiding the refrigerator of our beachhouse in the middle of the night, devouring the leftover Italian bean salad straight from the Tupperware. It’s THAT good.

2. Split pea and lentil dishes:

• Click here for my go-to red lentil soup recipe from Cooking Light magazine. If you have an immersion blender, this recipe is even easier to make. A 1-cup serving is only ~250 calories with 17g of protein and 7g of fiber! And it’s beyond delicious. And baby-friendly, too.

• Click here for my favorite 30-minute recipe for yellow split peas from the Mayo Clinic. I use more spinach than the recipe calls for (the bagged variety works just fine here), and you can, too. Put on a pot of rice, millet or quinoa before starting the bean part and the entire meal will be ready to eat in the time it takes to watch half of a Law & Order rerun.

• Click here for an awesome main-course salad recipe using French lentils, shrimp and green beans, from one of my favorite chefs/cookbook authors, Bill Granger. You can use frozen shrimp to make this recipe even more convenient.

• Split pea soup is one of my winter favorites. This recipe comes from the Daily Soup cookbook, my version of which is stained and dog-eared and falling apart from overuse. I eat mine vegetarian, but if you have kids (or husbands, in my case), that like the smoky flavor effect of those bits of ham floating around in it, I’ve recreated that effect by cutting up small pieces of a nitrite-free, lower-fat organic chicken hot dog (like Applegate Farms brand, for example), and adding them in right at the end once the soup is done just so that they warm up. (They’re already pre-cooked.)

3. Chili!

• Chili is one of my all-time favorite dishes to make, and one I’d recommend for anyone who needs more iron in their diet. This is especially important for pre-menopausal women, pregnant women, people with anemia and vegetarians/ vegans. Whether you add ground meat (ideally, turkey) to your chili or keep it vegetarian, chili is an excellent source of iron..especially since the vitamin C-rich tomatoes and peppers will aid in iron absorption. Click here for a super-easy vegetarian chili recipe from Martha Stewart… all you do is chop up a bunch of veggies and dump them in the pot at once…. then add a bunch of canned ingredients and let it cook. Voila! To keep it low in fat, I use plain lowfat greek yogurt in lieu of sour cream as a garnish, and/or just a sprinkle of shredded sharp cheddar for flavor.

4. Indian-style bean stews

• On my laziest of lazy days, I turn to these admittedly overpriced ($3.99/packet) but VERY tasty, convenient, and low-sodium spice mixes from Arora Creations. The Rajmah blend is for canned red kidney beans and the Punjabi Chole is for canned garbanzo beans (chick peas). Each packet has instructions on the back to make a fast stew using fresh chiles/hot peppers, fresh tomatoes (I substitute 1 15-oz can can of diced tomatoes), onion, ginger and cilantro. I use one can of each type of bean for either mix, though, just for variety. Each packet makes enough stew to serve 4-6 people. Put on a pot of rice or your favorite grain before starting the stew or serve with your defrosted, leftover teff crepes, and dinner will be ready in 30 minutes or less. Leftover stew also makes a great filling for burritos, tacos, crepes or omelets.
  

5. 20-minute Moroccan-style chick pea “tagine”

• Before starting, put on a pot of whole-wheat couscous (or get the same effect from millet, if you are gluten-intolerant). Then, just add one 15-oz can of chick peas to this easy recipe for Steamed Butternut Squash with Chili Sauce and you will have a super-fast, super-healthy Moroccan-style tagine to serve over the couscous. (Hint: go ahead and use 1 TBSP of oil to saute the onion… no need to use the broth method suggested in the recipe. A little smidge of fat will help you absorb the squash’s Vitamin A.)

So there you have it: all of my bean-making, bean-eating secrets, revealed. I’m always looking for more, though, so if you have any others that are hits in your kitchen, feel free to share!

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His 'n' her pozole

I first encountered pozole at a small Mexican restaurant in Hell’s Kitchen, New York. It was a freezing cold day, much like today, in fact, and one of my friends ordered a preternaturally red, steaming, spicy bowl of pozole–or, Mexican pork and hominy stew. Big, hearty kernels of white hominy floated around in the bright red broth as lovely pieces of cilantro clung to them. The smell was divine. It was exactly what I was craving…except for the large hunk of pork-on-bone anchored right in the middle of the bowl.

I decided to find a vegetarian recipe that I could make at home, and came up empty. So I went about creating my own version, based partly on my memory of what was in that steaming bowl and partly on some of the many soups I had tasted when traveling around Puebla, Mexico last January. (I had been very surprised to see zucchini used so frequently in Mexican soups, as I had never really thought of it as a Mexican vegetable.)

My version lacks the shocking red color, which actually derives from a natural seed called called achiote (or annatto, in English). I left it out because it’s only there for color, not flavor, and unless your supermarket has a large Hispanic foods selection, it can be difficult to find. (You may recognize annatto from your natural cosmetics; it’s used to impart orange and red colors to lip balms, soaps and body washes.) We fake the achiote effect here by using the canned tomatoes with their juice.

Hominy is dried white corn that has been soaked in a basic (as in pH) solution, traditionally lime water, so that the hulls are removed from the kernels. (As a bonus, this alkaline bath helps make the niacin in the corn more bioavailable.)  In Mexican cuisine, you’ll see hominy mostly in soups, though it is also used to make tamale flour. In the U.S. south, you’ll also see hominy used to make grits. The big, soft kernels (which look like oversized soft corn nuts) help give this soup a hearty, substantial-ness that I find is lacking in some vegetable soups. (Of course, I’ve included beans and mushrooms for this same purpose.  What can I say?  I like soups that eat like a meal.)

Since pozole is a soup I crave in the cold, dead of winter, when the pickin’s can be slim as far as fresh, inexpensive and flavorful produce goes, I designed this recipe to take advantage of some pantry staples you can keep in the cupboards, supplemented with a just a few, key fresh ingredients. Just be sure to choose low-sodium versions of the canned ingredients when possible; or to rinse the canned beans and canned hominy before using to minimize excess sodium sneaking into your recipe.

Depending on what’s available locally in your area, you can use fresh zucchini or chayote, which is a small, green-skinned, mild-flavored summer squash (well, it’s really a gourd, technically) that looks sort of like a quince or a pear. In my area, where there is a large Hispanic population, it’s cheaper and easier to find in winter than zucchini is, so I’ve offered it as an option for this recipe. If you can find it, try it! Chayote is super low-calorie and is a good source of Vitamin C, potassium, folate and fiber.

Lastly, don’t be put off by the long list of ingredients. This soup is a breeze to make, since you basically just dump in all of the ingredients and let the thing simmer for an hour.

Tamara’s Pork-free Pozole

(Makes a big-ol’ pot that should serve at least 10.  Leftovers freeze well.)

1 onion, chopped

1 TBSP olive oil

1 29-oz can white hominy

1 4-oz can diced green chiles (hot) (e.g., Hatch brand)

2 small zucchini, quartered and chopped OR 2 chayotes, peeled, seed removed, and chopped

2 cups sliced mushrooms

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 15-oz can diced tomatoes, including the juice (so choose low-sodium, if possible)

1 handful of cilantro, chopped

2 tsp cumin

2 tsp oregano

8 cups broth (chicken or vegetable; low-sodium, if possible; or, 8 tsp bouillon and 8 cups water)

Salt to taste

To serve:

1 15-oz can kidney beans, rinsed

Monterrey jack cheese, shredded OR fresh diced avocado

1 lime (optional)

Directions:

1. In a large stockpot, sautee onions in olive oil until translucent.
2. Add all other ingredients EXCEPT for kidney beans and cheese/avocado, bring to a boil, and simmer partially-covered for 1 hour to let flavors blend. Salt to taste.
3. Before serving, scoop 1/2 cup kidney beans into each serving bowl. Add soup. Squeeze a small fresh wedge of lime into bowl.
4. Top with a sprinkle of shredded cheese OR diced avocado. Serve.

If you want to heat up leftovers, you may need to add some water before re-heating. This pozole has a tendency to become stewier and stewier after the first round.

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It may be named for an artichoke and look like ginger, but the Jerusalem artichoke is very much its own vegetable. It’s not even from Jerusalem, so it’s actually as politically neutral as Switzerland. And since it’s at its peak of deliciousness now, what better time than to get to know this misunderstood tuber?

About Jerusalem Artichokes

Well, to start. It’s not an artichoke. It’s the root tuber of a sunflower, probably named after an actual artichoke because when it’s nice and cooked and soft, its subtly sweet flavor tastes just like an artichoke heart. (Not the briny kind you get from a jar, but the fresh kind that most of us are too lazy to cook at home.) You may also have heard it referred to as a sunchoke.

The business case: why you should give Jerusalem Artichokes a try

1. They are delicious. And starting in October through the early spring, they’re at their sweetest and peak deliciosity.
2. They are a healthy alternative to potatoes.
   When cooked (boiled or roasted or sauteed), they’ll resemble a slightly creamier cooked potato, but because of their unique carbohydrate profile (see below), they’re slightly lower in calories and have a much lower glycemic index. In other words, their impact on blood sugar is minimal compared to a similarly-sized portion of regular potatoes. This makes them a good potato-substitute for potato-loving people with diabetes or for anyone looking to help control their appetites by eating foods that don’t cause major spikes in their blood sugar levels.
3. They have multiple digestive health benefits, owing to their high levels of inulin–a form of soluble fiber known as a “prebiotic”. Inulin is also shown to increase calcium absorption substantially, so you could think about trying them out in a meal containing calcium-rich foods to get more out of your mouthful.
4. They’re a good source of iron. A modest 1/2 cup serving contains about 14% of the daily value for iron, compared with approximately 4% in the same sized portion of baked potato.

What’s inulin and what’s in it for me?

Most root vegetables–like potatoes–store their energy in the form of starch. What starch basically is is a long chain of glucose (sugar) molecules that human digestive enzymes are able to break apart and use for energy.

Jerusalem artichokes, however, store more of their energy in the form of inulin. Inulin is basically a long chain of fructose (sugar) molecules that human digestive enzymes CANNOT break apart and use for energy. That makes it a fiber instead of a starch, and that’s what’s responsible for the fact that Jerusalem artichokes have such a muted effect on blood sugar levels. Other vegetables that contain significant amounts of inulin include asparagus, garlic and chicory root.

But just because human digestive enzymes can’t digest inulin, that doesn’t mean no one can. Certain friendly bacteria in your colon can–and do–digest it. These bacteria–which include species such as the bifidobacteria (whom you may recognize from your yogurt)–are also known as probiotics. Since inulin serves as food for these probiotics, it promotes their growth and proliferation and is sometimes referred to as a prebiotic. When the bacteria digest inulin, they generate only about half of the energy (calories) as you would from digesting a regular carbohydrate: ~2 calories/gram instead of the typical 4 calories/gram. This helps explain why Jerusalem artichokes contain fewer calories for a comparable serving size of potatoes.

A thriving probiotic community in your colon is a very good thing. The bifidobacteria help prevent the growth of pathogenic (disease-causing) bacteria, help lower blood cholesterol levels, help prevent colon cancer, and produce B vitamins. Inulin also increases calcium absorption in the intestines, which is useful if you’re like one of the millions of Americans who prefer their skeleton hard and intact. Lastly, if you’ve got a problem with constipation, foods rich in inulin have a good track record for helping to get things moving in colon-ville. Scientifically speaking, of course.

Are you convinced? Are you ready to run out to your local market to pick up some Jerusalem artichokes? Then read on:

What you should know before trying a Jerusalem artichoke

1. Despite what your recipe may say, you do not need to peel Jerusalem artichokes before using them. (Peeling them is kind of a pain, since they are so gnarled and knobby.)
2. You do, however, need to scrub them very well before using. (They live underground, remember..)
3. You can eat them raw or cooked. Raw, they have that crunchy jicama/water-chestnut-ish texture and a mild, nutty flavor. Cooked, their flesh gets nice and creamy and soft and they taste more artichoke-hearty.
4. If you’ve never tried them before, start with a small portion at first. This is to see how your intestinal flora behave in the presence of the inulin feast you’ve presented them with. Some peoples’ intestinal flora go a little bonkers and produce…oh, what’s the polite way of saying this… “flatus?” (In other words, they can cause a bit of gas…) One way to mitigate this possible effect is not to eat them raw, or try boiling as a prep-method. (Or, if you want to roast them,try blanching them in boiling water for a minute as a little pre-cook before they’re to go in the oven.) The scientific literature claims that this side effect occurs only in a small percentage of people, but in my opinion, it’s best to know whether you’re one of those people before the Queen of England invites you over for dinner and offers you a heaping mound of Jerusalem artichokes.

How to prepare them: (Recipes)

Personally, I like to roast them. I roast them using the same formula I use to roast all of my vegetables, which is: cut into pieces of equal-ish size so that they all cook evenly; toss the pieces in a bowl with olive oil; lay out the pieces on a baking sheet or roasting pan; sprinkle with (kosher) salt and pepper. (I think rosemary is a yummy addition here too, if you’re so inclined.) Bake in a 375-degree oven until they’re soft. (The time will depend on the size of the pieces, but check after about 20-25 minutes, since they can get really mushy if you overcook them.)

You can also boil them and eat. You can also boil them and then puree them to make mashed sunchokes... possibly a substitute for mashed potatoes at Thanksgiving? (After all, mashed cauliflower “potatoes” are so 2008…)

You can make them into a creamy soup by sauteeing 1 chopped onion in olive oil until soft and sweating. Add about 3 cups of sliced Jerusalem artichokes and 4 cups of broth (chicken or vegetable… whatever you prefer). Bring to a boil until the Jerusalem artichokes are nice and tender. Using an immersion blender (or transfering the mixture to a blender), puree the soup until smooth. Add 1/2 cup of fat free evaporated milk (it’s thick like cream) or lowfat milk or ricemilk (to keep it dairy-free) to the puree and add salt and pepper to taste. (Remember what we said earlier about calcium absorption… this is a great way to take advantage!) If you’re feeling decadent, garnish with a drop of truffle oil and invite me over to your place for dinner.

Sources:

Roberfroid MB. Introducing inulin-type fructans. Br. J. Nutr. 2005;93, S13-S25

Kaur N and Gupta AK. Applications of inulin and oligofructose in health and nutrition. J. Biosci. 2002; 27, 703-714.

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Oh, shakshouka. Your beauty is surpassed only by your deliciousness.

It’s the kind of word that invites an exclamation point, doesn’t it?

I first tasted shakshouka as a college student studying abroad in Israel. It’s a brunchy, tomato-and-pepper based egg dish that was contributed to mainstream Israeli cuisine courtesy of the Moroccan Jewish community. (Strangely, though, I’ve visited Morocco twice now and have never actually come across shakshouka there…) Over the years, I’ve made it too many times to count, and always to rave reviews. It’s a vegetable dish that’s sloppy and savory and hearty enough to appeal to the meat-loving, salad-eschewing set… and a sneaky way to get in a solid 1-2 servings of vegetables before noon. It’s also really versatile: you can serve it alone; along with toast; wrapped in a teff crepe or a tortilla (the ingredients and seasonings should give it crossover appeal to lovers of Mexican food); or as I’ve seen them serve it in Israel: stuffed in a pita lined with hummus. Sound weird? Don’t knock it till you try it.

I’d also recommend this as a great breakfast/brunch choice for people with diabetes, served with or without the bread, depending on your individual carbohydrate budget. Since morning hyperglycemia can be a persistent problem for diabetics, finding a few delicious, satisfying but healthy breakfast recipes that aren’t too carbohydrate-heavy is a real good thing. Since it’s a low carbohydrate dish (only 12g per serving), you can even enjoy it with one small (1 oz) slice of whole grain toast and stay under 30g of carbohydrates for the meal. It’s a way healthier choice than an Atkins-like breakfast of eggs with sausage or bacon.

Leftovers can be heated up to make a very respectable weekday dinner, served as suggested above, or as the main filling of a burrito that you enhance with some beans and cheese.

Tamara’s Shakshouka

1 TBSP olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped on thinly sliced

2 garlic cloves, minced or thinly sliced

2 large bell peppers (mix red, orange or yellow for visual appeal), thinly sliced

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

A dash of ground cayenne pepper (optional)

Salt & pepper

1 15-oz can diced tomatoes OR 2 large ripe, juicy tomatoes in season, diced with juice reserved. (Go for low-sodium canned tomatoes if possible.)

4 large eggs

Directions: Heat olive oil in a medium frying pan over medium heat until nice and hot. Add onions and saute until they are soft and somewhat translucent, but not browning (3-4 minutes). Add garlic and continue to saute for another minute. Add the sliced peppers and stir so that the vegetables are nice and mixed up. (Note: if your large peppers yielded really long strips, feel free to cut them in half so they are more reasonably-sized for a mouthful.) Add the cumin, coriander, cayenne (if desired), salt and pepper. Continue to saute until peppers start to soften. Add the tomatoes with all of their juice and stir so that all ingredients are mixed well in the pan. Once the tomato liquid starts bubbling, use your spatula to carve out four ‘holes’ in the bubbling vegetable mixture. Crack an egg into each hole. (If you’re cooking for someone who’s runny-yolk phobic, you may crack your eggs into a separate bowl, whisk them, and then pour them into the holes instead. If you’re avoiding egg yolks for any reason, you can put 2 egg whites or their equivalent in liquid eggwhites into the holes.) Keep the mixture simmering until the eggs are well-cooked and the yolks are semi-hard. (As the eggs start to set, if need be, scrape off some of the gooey egg white from atop the hardening yolks so that it gets a chance to cook, too…) The liquid will start to cook off, leaving you with a firm ’stew’ that you will be able to cut into messy pieces–sort of like a lasagna. When you get to this point, use your spatula to cut the shakshouka into four pieces, each of which should have an egg in it.

Nutritional analysis:

The recipe above makes 4 servings. Each serving contains approximately:

160 calories, 12g of carbohydrate, 2.5g fiber, 8g protein, 6g fat, 2g of which are saturated. Each serving also contains ~100mg of Vitamin C from the peppers and the tomatoes, which is 133% of the RDA. Woo hoo!

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Homemade Teff Crepes

If you’ve ever eaten at an Ethiopian restaurant, then you’ve tasted Teff. It’s the primary flour used to make injera, that spongy, sourdough-ish flatbread that you use to scoop up your food. Teff is the staple grain grown and eaten in Ethiopia and Eritrea, and as far as staple grains go, it’s pretty darn spectacular. If teff flour hasn’t hit your local health food store or supermarket yet, it’s worth your while to seek it out. Here’s why:

1) It’s quite delicious. When I use it to make crepes (see recipe below), it reminds me a lot of buckwheat as far as the flavor goes. Slightly sweet, maybe a little nutty.

2) Whole grain teff flour is even more nutritious than whole wheat flour. While both have about the same amount of protein (4g) and fiber (4g) per 1/4 cup, Teff is also a good source of iron and a not-too-shabby source of calcium as well. That same 1/4 cup serving of teff flour contains 13% of the Daily Value for iron (versus about 6% for whole wheat flour) and 5% of the Daily Value for Calcium (versus 1% for whole wheat flour.) This makes teff flour an especially good food to incorporate into the diets of toddlers, children, teenage girls and adult women; all groups that tend not to meet the recommended intakes for iron and/or calcium on average.

2a) Even better: Whole grain teff is one of the few plant foods that’s a source of complete protein, meaning that it contains all 9 of the essential amino acids that your body cannot produce on its own. (Some other examples of plant foods that are complete proteins include quinoa and soybeans.) This makes it a great addition to the vegetarian and vegan pantry.

2b) But wait, there’s more! The iron in teff is more bioavailable than you’d typically expect from a plant food, which means your body can absorb it relatively well. Without getting too technical, this has to do with a favorable ratio of phytates (a naturally-occurring form of phosphorous in many plant foods) to iron in teff. (Phytates bind to iron and inhibit the body’s ability to absorb it.) To enhance the iron’s bioavailabilty even further, you could eat teff in the form of traditional injera, where the yeast fermentation helps break down the phytates even further, or to eat your teff along with foods that contain vitamin C, like tomatoes, red peppers, broccoli/cabbage/cauliflower, fruits, etc..

3) It’s gluten free! This makes it a great choice for people with celiac disease or gluten intolerance, especially since so many of the other available gluten-free flours tend to be low in protein and fiber. A word of caution, though: many (most?) Ethiopian restaurants combine teff with whole wheat flour when they make their injera, so if you’re eating out and avoiding gluten, always be sure to ask what’s in it before you dig in.

Are you convinced?

Where to find whole grain teff flour

I’ve found teff flour sold under 2 different brands at a local health food store and at a Whole Foods Market in NJ: Shiloh Farms and Bob’s Red Mill, respectively. If you can’t find it locally, order it online through the links I’ve provided. I’ve never actually seen whole grain teff in non-flour form that I could cook as a grain anywhere in the NY metro area, so my ideas below will focus on ways to use the flour instead.

How to use whole grain teff flour

There are many ways to use whole grain teff flour, but I will focus on the 3 that I’ve seen the most.

1) As a partial substitute for whole wheat flour in any baked goods recipe (muffins, breads, cookies…). According to the helpful Bob’s Red Mill website, a good ratio would be to replace up to 1/4 cup per 1 cup of wheat flour that your recipe calls for with teff flour. Since I can’t eat wheat flour, I will have to take their word for it. And the Bob’s website has lots of other teffy recipes as well.

2) To make a super fast injera-like crepe that you can use to serve with your own Ethiopian or Indian-style lentil/bean stews or cooked vegetables… or just as brunchy crepes to serve filled with eggs, vegetables or the fillings of your choice.

3) To make peanut butter cookies. Don’t ask me why, but both Shiloh Farms and Bob’s Red Mill feature a recipe for these on their packages, and so I made them one day. They were really delicious, totally gluten-free and have some redeeming nutritional qualities as far as cookies go. Both recipes featured on the bags are very similar. They use maple syrup as a sweetener instead of refined sugar, and just use sea salt, oil, peanut butter, vanilla and teff flour. The peanut butter and teff flour are great sources of protein. The cookies have a non-trivial amount of fat, though, between the peanut butter and the canola/olive oils, but at least its mostly of the healthy polyunsaturated variety. Since the cookies are small, no major damage will be done if you stick to just one or two.

Recipe for Quick Injera (Teff Flour Crepes)

Makes 8 to 9 seven-inch pancakes

This recipe comes from The Healthy Hedonist Holidays, by Myra Kornfeld, Simon and Schuster publishers. It is reprinted here with permission from the author. I calculated the nutrition information that follows.

This recipe is a fast alternative to the traditional injera-making process, which can take up to 3 days. This clever version uses club soda and baking soda to recreate the spongy, bubbly appearance that authentic injera has as a result from the gases produced by the yeast fermentation. The batter will be thin; and as with any pancake or crepe-making experience, sometimes the first one can be a dud. Once the pan is nice and piping hot, you’ll get on a roll and start churning out gorgeous crepes like the ones pictured above.

For best results, make the crepes immediately after mixing the batter. Cover the pan to cook the crepes; there’s no need to flip them.

Ingredients:

1 cup teff flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 TBSP melted butter or melted coconut oil

1 TBSP apple cider vinegar

1 egg

1 1/2 cups club soda

Procedure:

1. Place all of the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth
2. Lightly oil or butter a 10-12″ nonstick skillet using a paper towel. Warm the pan over medium heat. Pour 1/4 cup of batter into the pan, tipping the pan in a circular motion so that the batter covers the entire surface. Cover the pan and cook until the batter is no longer wet, tiny bubbles have formed on the surface and the sides start to lift away from the pan, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Slide (or lift with a spatula) the crepe from the pan onto a plate. Repeat with the rest of the crepes. You don’t have to oil the pan in between pancakes! Stack and keep covered. You can serve these at room temperature or warm them in a 350 degree oven until warmed through.

Note: you can freeze these between layers of parchment. Cover the whole packet in foil. Defrost and warm the whole packet in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes or so until heated through.

Nutrition information (assuming you use melted butter):

Each gluten-free pancake contains approximately:

90 calories, 11g carbohydrate, 4g fat (of which 2 are saturated), 3g protein, 2g fiber and 122mg of sodium (which is 5% of the daily value for sodium). 2 pancakes contain about 1/4 cup of teff flour, which provides 13% of the daily value for iron and 5% of the daily value for calcium as described above.

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