Kale and Z'aatar Chx

The spice z'aatar from Middle East is thyme, sesame seed and some other stuff. I've done several versions of "Z'aatar Chicken." Tonight I was cooking up about 3/4 lb of thin sliced, with intentions of putting a little piece in my lunch each day this week. In making the chicken, I shake the pieces in a bag with some of the z'aatar, cinnamon, cardamon, coriander, chili powder, chinese five spice, nutmeg. I alter the choice of spices each time. Usually doing about 1/2 to 1/4 tsp for each, except the z'aatar which is usually about 2-3 tsp. Shake and fry in 1-2 tsp olive oil. 

Steam/wilt in microwave for up to 2 minutes:

1 cup Kale

1/4 cup peas

1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 Tbsp white wine

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp Mrs Dash

Sprinkle of water if needed to help with the steaming

After steaming, add:

2 tsp parmesan, grated

2 Tbsp chopped walnut

Serve with 1/3 cup of already prepared Z'aatar Chicken.

Rated a 4.6 on the Kale Scale.

Curry Squash Kale

This started with a recipe from Sunset Magazine for Cashew, coconut, and pumpkin curry. I was catching up on my reading saw 2-3 reader letters raving about this vegan recipe. So dug up the recipe. I didn't have a pumpkin, but I did have an acorn squash which I substituted in. Here is the jist of the recipe - I cut the magazine version in half and made 2 servings. I am listing the ingredients for 1 serving.  The rice pushes the calorie count by about 175!  Next time I'll leave out the rice.

Cook basmati rice.

Cook acorn squash in microwave until it's about 2/3 done, so that you can still get some cubes out of it. Follow your oven's instructions.  Use 1/2 of the squash.

Saute until brown

2-3 tsp olive oil

1/4 onion, sliced

Add and continue for a minute:

1 Tbsp  diced green chiles (canned)

1/2 tsp  cinnamon

1/2 tsp  turmeric

1/2 tsp  cumin seed

1/2 tsp  curry powder

Add and cook until squash is soft, and spices meld together:

3 oz of coconut milk (lite) 

1 bay leaf

1/2 acorn squash, cubed (to the extent you can get cubes out of the cooked squash; otherwise use the squash scrapings)

Cook 1 cup Kale (in bite size pieces) in microwave for 90 seconds.

Serve by putting kale on the plate, top with about 3/4 cup cooked rice and then top with the curry squash mixture, and then top with 1/4 cup roasted cashews.

Rated a 4.646 on the Kale Scale.

Sweet Potato Hash Kale with King David Apple

I started with a recipe off internet for Savory Sweet Potato Hash. As I was making it, I realized I had a small leftover from yesterday morning's scramble. So shift gears. I left out the bacon, and only put in a portion of one sweet potato, and bit of onion along with the scramble leavings. Turned out to be pretty good!

Saute:

1 tsp Olive oil, amore

1/3 cup Onion, chopped

¾ cup Sweet potato, diced

1 tsp Black pepper, ground

Add and continue:

¾ small King David apple w/skin, diced

Add and keep cooking till sweet potato and apple are done:

1/3 cup Soy milk

1/4 tsp allspice

1/2 tsp thyme

Add and heat through:

1 cup Scramble leftover (with fake sausage, corn, tomato and egg)

1 tbsp Parsley, raw

1 tbsp Pecan, dried, raw

Add, cover and wilt Kale:

2 fl oz Cranberry pomegranate juice, POM

1 cup Kale, raw

Rated a 4.6 on the Kale Scale

Kale Inundated with Blockhouse Cafe Lentil Soup

Had one of our Design Meetings at the Blockhouse Cafe last week, and took a bowl of their dee-licious Lentil Soup home for dinner. Added 1 cup of Kale (chopped up) and it was dinner!  Talk about fast food,  nutritious and tasty too. [No calorie count today.]

Rated at 4.7 on the Kale Scale.

Sweet Potato Persimmon Kale Saute

It's sweet potato time, so I decided to do a savory concoction (as opposed to a sweet one). Very filling, and quite tasty. 

Saute:
1/2 cup Sweet potato, raw, diced
1/3 cup Onion, raw. Chopped

After a bit, add a little liquid, cover, lower heat, and continue to cook
1 tbsp Wine, white table

Add, and continue saute:

1 fruit Persimmon, Japanese or Hachiya, raw, peeled and chopped

6 olives Olive, castleverano, pitted, halved

Add, scramble to bits:
1 medium Egg

Add on kale on top, add the liquid, lower heat, cover and wilt the kale as desired:
100 gram Kale, chopped to bite size pieces

2 fl oz Cranberry pomegranate juice, Pom (100% juice)

2 fl oz Water

Rated a 4.77 on the Kale Scale.

Whole Wheat Mac 'n' Kale

Needed some fast food - Amy's Macaroni and Cheese to the rescue. Used their whole wheat version, and mixed in 1+ cup of Kale into the serving.  The box says it makes 2.5 servings, but, in reality, it made only 2 servings (big ones, but not overly huge). I adjusted the calorie count to accommodate this.

Follow box directions for Whole Wheat Mac ' n' Cheese. 

Wilt Kale - 1.25 cups of ripped to bite size pieces of Kale in microwave.

Mix mac and kale. Put 1/2 the mac in a bowl and mix in the kale.

Serve and enjoy.

Rated a 4.67 on the Kale Scale.

Butternut Squash Ravioli On A Bed of Kale

This was quick and easy, made with some ready to prepare food items.  The result was delicious! I'll have the leftovers tomorrow.

Prepare pasta and kale:

- Boil water, put in the ravioli (Cucina Fresca, Butternut Ravioli)

- Turn the heat down and top the pot with a steamer on top of which you put 1.3 cups of kale. As the kale wilts,
put it on the serving plate.

Prepare the marinara:

I used a Marinara Sauce made by Souper Natural. Made in Tigard, with all natural ingredients, and no sweetener, no sugar product.

- Heat up the sauce in microwave or on stovetop.

Put things together:

- Strain the pasta, and return to the pot.

- Add the heated marinara sauce, stir.

Serve:

Put about 1/2 the pasta with about 1/2 of the sauce

on top of the bed of 1.3 cups of kale on the serving plate.

Theoretically, the ravioli package has 2.5 servings (I used 1.25), and the marinara sauce has 4 servings (I used 2).

Rated a 4.76 on the Kale Scale.

Elephant Beans With Squash and Steamed Kale

I have several concoctions that I've not yet put in this diary, because I just haven't had the time to do the official documentation. But, one by one here they come.

Tonight, I used a can of Elephant Beans in Oil from Turkey which I purchased at Barbour World Foods a couple weeks ago.  The label says "pilaki" as a sub title, which means "a style of Turkish meze and may refer to several dishes that are cooked in a sauce made out of onion, garlic, carrot, potato, tomato or tomato paste, and olive oil" as per Wikipedia. The ingredients on my label were: Elephant beans (like a huge lima bean but texture like a kidney), tomatoes, onion, carrot, pepper, tomato paste, mint and spices. 

Yesterday I cooked and peeled a butternut squash, with the intention of making a squash casserole. But, I forgot to get the rest of the recipe ingredients, so had to change plans which brought about this tasty dish.

This recipe makes two servings.

Saute:

1 tsp olive oil
1/3 cup Onion, raw

Add and saute  more:

14 oz Elephant Beans in Oil, Selena Brand

1.25 cup Butternut squash, raw

5 item Tomato, grape, Tastini

1/4 tsp Seasoning blend, Mrs. Dash

1/4 tsp Black pepper, ground

5 leaves Basil, fresh

4 tbsp Sherry, dry

Add and make bit of sauce:

1/4 cup Soy milk

1 fl oz Wine, white table

1 oz Jarlsberg cheese, chopped up, let pieces melt in

Steam (2 min in microwave) and put on plate:

1 cup Kale, ripped to bite size pieces

Put on top of the Kale, one half of the bean mixture

Serve with 1/2 tsp sesame seeds and dollop of non-fat greek yogurt (both optional and not included in calorie count).

Rated a 4.74 on the Kale Scale. Very tasty!