Protein

Now that the holidays are over and we want to shave off few pounds we gained here and there, continue staying in shape, and watch what we eat - I want to share some useful information with you that will help you develop healthy habits in picking some foods over others. I have to mention that I am a BIG believer in Good food and there are times when I will pick Mac and Cheese over Tofu without thinking twice. But if you know me, you also should know that you would not see me eating Mac and Cheese every day. So the point is to enjoy life and not limit yourself with what you eat or how much you eat, rather how you it each and with whom you are sharing it with (or not sharing at all).

We need protein to make and repair cells and tissues and to create hormones. Protein is also needed for the regulation of acid and alkaline, water balance, and elimination of water. Here is the translation: protein provides the main source of building materials for our cells, tissues, muscles, nails, hair, skin, bones, blood, and internal organs.

Excellent Protein source (10-20 G per serve):

Eggs, Cheddar Cheese, lentils, sesame seeds, peanuts, and tofu.

Very Good Protein source (6-12 G per serve):

Bagels, English Spinach, bulgur, sunflower seeds, cashew nuts, cottage cheese, and peas.

Good Protein source (2-8 G per serve):
bread, milk, fruit, rice, pasta, yogurt, and vegetables.

Since out daily protein requirement is based on our age, weight, health and activity levels, it varies for each person. You can calculate your protein requirements here:

http://www.healthcalculators.org/calculators/protein.asp

Lentil 101

Lentils are low in fat and high in protein and fiber, and are an excellent supplement to cereal grain diets because of its good protein content. Lentils have a fair amount of calcium and vitamins A and B, and are a good source of iron and phosphorus.

It can be used in soups and salads; its flavors are enriched when combined with bacon, bay leaves, feta cheese, garlic, goat cheese, ham, lemon, mint, olive oil, onions, parsley, peppers, pork, radishes, sausages, scallions, spinach, thyme, tomatoes, and vinegar.

Before cooking, always rinse lentils and pick out stones and other debris. Unlike dried beans and peas, there's no need to soak them.  Lentils cook more slowly if they're combined with salt or acidic ingredients, so always add those last.

Lentil is popular in some parts of Europe and throughout much of the Middle East and India. It is commonly used as a meat substitute. There are three main varieties of lentils. The French or European lentil, Egyptian or red lentil and Yellow lentil: all of these varieties are dried as soon as they're ripe. The regular brown lentils are commonly found in supermarkets whereas the red and yellow lentils are available in some Middle Eastern or East Indian stores. Lentils should be stored airtight at room temperature and will keep up to a year. 

Lentil Salad

Ingredients:

2 cups of lentil

1 large tomato

½ onion

¼ cup of olive oil

3 tbsp lemon juice

¼ bunch of chopped cilantro

salt and pepper

Cover lentil with water by 3 inches and bring to a boil. Turn down to a simmer and cook until tender all the way through about 30 minutes, add more water if necessary. Drain and rinse with cold water. Chop the tomato, onion and cilantro; mix all ingredients in a large bowl and ready to serve.

Salad Olivieh a/k/a Stolichniy

For all of my Armenian and Russian friends and family salad “Olivieh” will always be associated with New Year and Birthdays. Growing up, I do not remember any feast without this salad. While women took the decoration part pretty seriously, as it was an undisclosed competition amongst households, the rest of us impatiently waited to taste it. When someone mentions “comfort food” instantly this is what I think of. While recipes vary from family to family, the concept is ultimately the same. This salad also has its second name “Stolichniy” – which is the most common name in my part of the world.

Here is what you will need:

3 medium potatoes

2 large carrots

2 medium dill pickles

½ pounds of boiled beef

1 can of sweet peas


1/3 cups mayonnaise
 and sour cream (each)

salt & pepper

1 small onion - optional

2 hard-boiled eggs – optional

How to make: 

Boil potatoes, carrots, and beef. 

You can boil the vegetables together, but make sure to boil the beef separately.

Cut potatoes, pickles, carrots and cooked beef into small cubes.

Add green peas, mayonnaise and sour cream mix the salad.



Add salt, pepper to taste. 



Additionally:

You can add chopped eggs, but you cannot keep the salad for more than 24 hours.

Onions will add extra flavor: if you decide to use them, make sure to chop them very finely.

Often beef is substituted by chicken or sausage, which changes the taste completely.

Lastly it will taste better if you add mayo and sour cream before serving to each portion and refrigerate the mix without mayo and sour cream.

For Curious Minds:

The name of this salad goes back 1860s to Lucien Olivier who invented the salad. He was the chef of the Hermitage restaurant in Moscow. While this salad became very popular, its recipe was kept secret.

Some speculate that the ingredients were, veal tongue, caviar, lettuce, crayfish tails, capers, smoked duck. Also supposedly the original Olivier dressing was a type of mayonnaise, made with French wine vinegar, mustard, and olive oil: its exact recipe, however, remains unknown. 



Eventually, one of Olivier's sous-chefs, Ivan Ivanov, attempted to steal the recipe. While preparing the dressing one evening, alone as was his custom, Olivier was suddenly called away on some emergency. Ivanov took advantage of the situation, sneaked into Olivier's private kitchen and got everything he thought he needed. Ivanov then quit and went to work as a chef for Moskva, , where he began to serve a suspiciously similar salad under the name "Stolichniy" (The Capital Salad). Even though this salad became very popular once Ivanov sold the recipe for the salad to various publishing houses, it was reported that the dressing on the Stolichniy salad was missing something. 

In 1905 Hermitage closed and the Olivier departed from Russia, thus the salad could not be referred as "Olivier" (spelling also varies).  





As inevitably happens with gourmet recipes the ingredients are rare, expensive, seasonal, or difficult to prepare. So they are gradually replaced with cheaper and more readily available ones until they develop into a common dish we know. This is where this salad has its two names, and the variations. 

Enjoy! 

Sharing my dinner with all of you!

Time for Soup

I think we all have good childhood memories associated with cooking, smells, and comfort food. Well, in my case there was this one soup that I absolutely hated and my grandmother was the only one that made it. For some unexplainable reason the sour scent of vinegar did not appeal to me, to make it worse, it had a very unattractive name consisting of mainly consonants, called “Chkhrtma.”

I attempted to make it last week, and believe it or not I was very close. Close because no matter how much I practice it will never taste like my grandmother’s version, she  makes the best “chkhrtma” in the world. 

So, what do you say, shall we try?

You will need:

¨    2 pieces of chicken breast

¨    3 tbsp olive oiol

¨    2 tbsp white flour 

¨    2 cup chopped onions

¨    3 or 4 large fresh eggs

¨    2-3 tbsp white vinegar

Sauté onions in vegetable oil for 4-5 minutes on medium heat

Slightly fry the flour mix with 1 cup of broth until completely dissolved

Add this mixture to the onions with the rest of the broth and boil for 10 minutes.

Beat the eggs in a bowl and constantly stirring add to the broth

 Remove the soup from heat add vinegar, salt and pepper

¨    You can substitute vinegar with 1/3 cup of lemon juice

¨    You can also add pieces of chicken before serving (my grandmother’s version did not have chicken)

Cabbage and Apple Salad

1 large apple 

1/4 of cabbage

1 Large Tomato

1/5 bunch of parsley

1 tbsp salt and pepper

2 tbs olive oil

2 tbs lemon juice

~ ~ ~ 

Chop apple, cabbage, tomato and parsley

 Add lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper

Mix everything and enjoy! 

~ ~ ~ 

You can use fuji, mcintosh, gala, or granny smith apples 

If you use granny smith apples - use only 1 tbs of lemon juice, 

otherwise it will be too sour

Herb Flavours

If you enjoy delicious flavours of herbs but do not like to have them in your food, do what I came up with:  Chop the herbs; place them in a tea bag; tie a knot and cook with the food. Once done, squeeze and throw away the bag. You will see a light green juice come out - which has plenty of flavour. 

This is perfect for soups or salads that you want to make for lunch and do not want to worry about greens being stuck in between your teeth.

Almond Rice

                                                                    You will need:

                     ½ cup chopped almonds

                     2 cups of basmati rice 

                     4 cups of water

3 tbs olive oil

½ tbs salt     

• Wash the rice in cold water at least 3 - 4 times
• Boil the water add the rice and salt; cook for about 15 - 20 minutes 
• Rinse with cold water and return to the pot, add olive oil and cook for another 3-5 minutes on low heat
• Soak chopped almonds in hot water for 2-3 minutes and add to the rice before serving

Tips: don't forget to wash the rice, and if you soak it in water the cooking time may be reduced. 
You can also add ½ cup of raisins with almonds for sweet treat. 

Rice 101: Why Basmati Rice?

As you might have noticed, I have been using and referring to basmati rice in some recent posts. Here is what you need to know about basmati rice...
Basmati rice is a long-grain rice with aromatic flavour. According to my research, the flavors should intensify as it is cooking; however, according to my experience it really varies from brand to brand. When cooked, grains stay firm, separate, and also become longer.

I always wash it before cooking to clean it from starch and dusty particles. Also if you let is soak in water for 10-15 minutes before cooking it will cook faster and will not stick together.

Basmati rice is naturally low-fat; it contains less than 1g of fat per serving, and each 3/4 of a cup serving contains 3g of protein. It also contains B vitamins and each serving of basmati rice contains a small amount of iron.

I use it in salads and to make pilafs,  and occasionally in soups. 
You can buy it almost in every store.