Turkish Carrot-Lamb* Rice Pilaf and Radish Gazpacho (*with vegan option)

Comforting, warming, and invigorating, cooling at the same time. This duo is a perfect match for your taste buds and for the Fall season. The radishes, in particular, are fantastic to keep your immune system strong and help you clear out any bugs like the flu that you may catch, as they help dispel phlegm and have strong antioxidant properties.

The Carrot-Lamb Rice Pilaf
Since this is the main meal, one serving is a generous 1 cup of prepared rice pilaf. Makes about 4-6 servings.

Ingredients

1.5 cups brown rice, rinsed (Turkish recipe traditionally uses white rice, but I’m making this more fiber- and nutrient-rich this way)
3 cups of chicken stock or vegetable stock
2 medium or 1 very large carrot, washed and cut into 1″ long matchsticks
1 lb of lamb stew meat, excess fat removed and cut into small (~ 1/2″) cubes
1 medium yellow onion, sliced into thin half moons
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 TBS ground Allspice (add more, to taste, after cooking)
1/3 TBS ground cinnamon (add more, to taste, after cooking)
2 TBS olive oil for the carrots
3 TBS olive oil for the onions & lamb
2 tsp sea salt, more to taste
1/2 tsp black pepper, more to taste

Directions

1. In a medium or large skillet, warm 2 TBS of olive oil on low-medium heat, then add the carrots and sautee until tender but not overcooked (about 8-10 minutes).
2. Set carrots aside in a bowl to cool.
3. In a large stockpot or casserole pot with a well fitting lid, warm up 3 TBS of olive oil on low-medium heat. Once oil is warmed up (be careful it’s not too hot or smoking), add onions along with with 2 tsp sea salt and stir occasionally on low-medium/medium heat until softened.
4. In the meantime, bring to a boil the stock in the same pan used for cooking the carrots.
5. Add the cubed lamb, cumin, and black pepper to the onions and continue to stir. The meat will first let go of its juices and then soak them back up. Wait until the meat has soaked up all its juices and has been nicely browned before continuing.
6. Add the rinsed brown rice, allspice, and cinnamon to the meat and onions. Stir until the rice is warmed through.
7. Add the boiling stock to the rice/meat/onion mix and stir a couple of times to dislodge anything stuck to the bottom of the pan.
8. Tightly close the lid, bring to a boil, then turn your flame down until there’s a brisk but low simmer in the pot. The rice should take about 40-50 minutes to cook.
9. Check the rice after about 35 minutes, and turn down the heat if the liquids are boiling off too fast.
10. Once the rice is cooked, turn off the heat, fluff the rice with a rice paddle or large serving fork and let the rice “rest” for about 15 minutes before serving. Taste before serving and adjust the spices to your liking. The cinnamon-allspice blend should taste balanced – neither one should overpower the other.

The Radish Gazpacho (you can make this a day ahead of time)
One serving is approximately 1/2 – 3/4 cup. Makes about 4-6 servings.

Ingredients

4 cups filtered cold water
2 bunches of radishes, greens removed, washed, and grated finely
4 large garlic cloves, mashed
Juice from 1 large lemon (more, to taste, after preparation)
1 TBS pomegranate syrup (you can find this in the Middle Eastern / ethnic section of your grocery store, or boil down 1/2 cup of 100% pomegranate juice to make your own – you can make more and store the rest in a glass container in the fridge)
1 TBS dry mint (more, to taste, after preparation)
2 tsp dry oregano (more, to taste, after preparation)
1 tsp sea salt (more, to taste, after preparation)

Directions

1. Mix all the ingredients, except for the water. Let stand in the fridge for at least an hour before serving, for the flavors to intermingle. It’s even better the next day.
2. Add the water about 15 minutes before serving.
3. Adjust lemon juice / mint / oregano / pomegranate syrup to taste. The gazpacho should taste sour-sweet, mostly sour, with a nice lemony kick to it.
   
4. Serve chilled but not too cold.
   

Variations:

• Vegan: For the rice pilaf, use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. Instead of lamb, add peas, roasted almonds or almond slivers, and finely chopped kale, and navy beans. The Radish Gazpacho is already vegan.

Enjoy!

If you share this recipe, please include this blurb with it:

This recipe shared with you courtesy of Delicious Health, Inc., a health, nutrition, and lifestyle consultancy whose mission is to transform busy bodies into healthy, balanced beings (TM). Learn more about Delicious Health at www.enjoydelicioushealth.com or www.delicioushealthblog.com. Have a deliciously healthy day!

Jicama – Cucumber Salad with Citrus Dressing

This recipe was a hit this afternoon at my Ladies Who Launch ‘reunion’ BBQ out in beautiful Sausalito. Our theme was Mexican food. Perfect, sunny day in paradise. Love my LWL girls. (Girls? We’re all over 30 but who’s counting?)

I fell in love with jicama (pronounced “hekuhmuh”) during our March trip to the Yucatan. The fruit plate I’d get would have jicama in it, and now I just cut it up and eat it like a fruit, although it’s really a root vegetable. Root veggies – like beet roots, celery root, sweet potatoes – are generally associated with winter months and warming dishes. The great thing about jicama is that you can have your root and eat it too – in the summer! Sooo refreshing, especially for the warmer months.

Great source of fiber, low glycemic, naturally low calorie, filling, crunchy, sweet, no need to cook it – what more can a busy girl ask for?

And it’s super easy to make:

Jicama – Cucumber Salad with Citrus Dressing
Makes enough as a side for 6, or 2-3 meal-size salads

Ingredients

1 medium jicama, peeled and cut into matchsticks
2 medium cucumbers, peeled, halved horizontally, and cut into thin half moons
1/2 small red onion, peeled, quartered, and sliced into very thin moons
leaves from 1/2 bunch of cilantro, washed, finely chopped
leaves from 1/3 bunch of fresh mint, washed, finely chopped
the juice of 1 lime
1 large or 2 small oranges, peeled, cut into wedges/ segments, without the membrane (watch this stop-action “video” to see how – just like on the cooking shows! http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=preptip&dbid=94)
1/2 tsp sea salt; more later, to taste
2-3 cranks of freshly ground pepper
1 tsp canola oil

Directions

1. Gently ‘massage’ the red onions with the sea salt, to mellow out their acidity and flavor (both my grandmothers’ trick)
2. Add the remaining ingredients
3. Toss!
4. Add more sea salt, to taste

Variations

• Great with shredded chicken
• Add 1/2 bunch of watercress for a peppery kick
• Spice it up with some chili powder
• Add some sweet color with some red paprika powder (caution: nightshade)
• Add pumpkin seeds for crunch and protein

That’s it! Enjoy!

If you share this recipe, please include this blurb with it:
This recipe shared with you courtesy of Delicious Health, Inc.
Find us at www.enjoydelicioushealth.com or www.delicioushealthblog.com. Have a deliciously  healthy day!

Simple Salty-Sweet Marinade for Tofu / Tempeh / Chicken / Meat

This salty-sweet marinade is great for tofu, tempeh, chicken, or red meat. I’ll use tempeh as the ingredient here.

Delicate layers of tempeh

Ingredients
1 package tempeh of your choice (pick a gluten-free one), cut into 1/5″ strips
1/4 cup tamari (soy sauce without wheat)
1 TBS chopped fresh gingerroot (in a pinch, can use 1 tsp ginger powder)
3-4 garlic cloves, chopped finely (depends on how garlicky you like it)
2-3 TBS mirin (sweet rice vinegar)
1-2 TBS sesame seeds
Optional: hot sauce or hot red pepper flakes for some spicy kick, to taste

Mix all the ingredients in oven-safe cookware – glass (such as Pyrex) is best for this – a bread pan size does well. Cut tempeh into 1.5″ strips and place in marinade. Let it marinate for at least 10 minutes, and up to several hours if you have the time.

To cook
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Place dish into oven, let it bake for 10-15 minutes.
3. Remove from oven, drain the extra liquid, trying to keep the garlic, ginger, and sesame seeds in. At this point, you may want to add up to 1 TBS more of mirin.
4. Add about 1 TBS refined sesame oil (vegan) or ghee or coconut oil (vegan) to a warmed pan. Let the oil warm up on low medium heat for 1-2 minutes.
5. Add and saute the tempeh until crispy on both sides and cooked through.

The tempeh can serve as the main attraction and be accompanied by greens, beans, grains, vegetables, or used in a salad of mixed greens (get creative with added ingredients!) with a refreshing lemon vinaigrette. Enjoy!

Curious to learn more about tempeh? Check out this informative site:
www.tempeh.info