Kids Are Our Future

Kids Are Our Future

I have begun my quest in teaching children how to eat healthier and live healthier lives. This is extremely important in light of the growing obesity epidemic in children and teens in our country. One way to help kids eat better is to teach them how to make healthier choices, and to show them how to start making these good decisions at an early age. Here are some tips that will help your children grow up happier and healthier:

1. Cook with your children. Find a simple job for them to do and let them do it. It will get them excited about what they are eating for dinner and encourage them to try something new.
2. Eat a meal with your family as often as possible, but at least twice a week.
3. Make dinner a routine. Whether or not you are eating with them, keep the time consistent.
4. Children don’t know everything, so when you are grocery shopping talk to them about the food you are buying.
5. Lead by example. Make sure you are eating healthy, and that they see you eat this way.
6. Treats are fine (McDonalds, Taco Bell, chips, candies) in moderation.
7. Watch the Food Network together.
8. Look up recipes on the internet and make them together.
9. Create lists of vegetables and let your child check off that they have tried them, even if they like them or not. Six months later do it all over again.
10. Don’t make food a battle.

What I Cooked Today… BBQ Ribs

A classic at my house:

1 slab of baby back ribs
½ cup of a good spice rub
1 bottle bbq sauce (I love KC Masterpiece original)

In a large pot boil the ribs for 20 minutes. Heat a bbq grill to medium heat. After boiling ribs, take them out of the pot and rub the dry rub mixture all over the ribs. Add salt and pepper. Then grill for 15 minutes and flip. Grill for another 15 minutes, and then brush on bbq sauce and grill for another 15 minutes. Enjoy.

Ingredient of the Day: White Eggplant

It is always fun to see what you can grow in other parts of the world. While I was in Michigan I was exploring new territory and new produce. One of the incredible things I saw there was the ghostly vegetable known as the white eggplant. What strange sight to behold.

White eggplant is softer and has a milder flavor than its purple counterpart. One of my favorite dishes to make with them is Mousaka or Melenzalata. Because the white eggplant has fewer seeds, the dish will actually come out beautifully and even better than the same dish made with the purple variety. Give them a try.

Food Styling

Hot Dog Stand I did food styling for with Chris Brown.

One of the perks of living in Los Angeles is being able to work on movie sets doing a little thing called “food styling” – something I only learned briefly about while taking some cooking classes in Dallas back in the day. Even though the instructor merely touched on the topic, I was intrigued, and once I moved to Los Angeles, I knew I had to try it.

Food styling is literally designing the way food looks for a scene. Today, my task is to design a great cafeteria scene and make it look authentic. Mixing set design with culinary technique is an interesting challenge. It’s a dirty (and, of course, yummy) job – but someone’s gotta do it!



Weekly Menu

Monday:
Tilapia with a fresh salsa (fruit or tomato)
White rice
Steamed snow peas

For kids: Bake the fish with a little butter.

Tuesday:
Rosemary & Garlic Roast Leg of Lamb
Rice Pilaf
Steamed Broccoli

For kids: If you have leftover fish, make fish tacos for the kids; if not, make chicken and broccoli.

Wednesday:
Baked chicken stuffed with rice and green beans
(add pine nuts for fun)

For kids: Chop up chicken for the kids.

Thursday:
Shredded Chicken Enchiladas (you can use any leftover chicken from the night before)
Sliced Avocadoes
Black Beans and Sour Cream

For kids: Make cheese and chicken quesadillas for the kids.

Friday:
Lasagna! Great for the whole family!

Ask Mary: Corn on the Cob

Dear Mary,

I really love this time of year. One of my favorite things is eating corn on the cob. But I hate dealing with hot scalding water - it's dangerous and messy! What can I do?

Dear Corn Lover,

I actually never boil corn. I either grill it or bake it in the oven. Wrap the cobs in foil and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. The foil retains the juices, keeping the corn as tender as if you'd boiled it. Grilling is also fun - leave on the husk, and areas of the cob will turn brown and crispy.

Bill's Farm

Sneezing and sniffling, camera thrown over my shoulder, a cup of coffee in my hand - I am a city girl on an exploration. It's seven-thirty in the morning. I'm an hour early, but workers are already hard at work unloading bins of corn for the soon-to-arrive shoppers. I take a couple of shots and listen to their easy banter.

I'm at Bill's Farm in Harbor Springs, Michigan - a family-built, owned and operated farm. We're surrounded by acres and acres of fresh fruit trees, vegetable and flower rows. Since they knew I was coming, I make myself at home. Eagerly, I head off into a field. Because I'm only wearing flip flops, I feel the dirt between my toes, and wonder if maybe I should have worn my Nike Air tennis shoes. But, who cares? It's glorious!

Bill's main crops are corn (my favorite) and melons. Both are growing like weeds (pardon the expression), and I can't help it - I jump, like a kid, between the rows, to get a better look at the vegetables. Taking more pictures as I go.

In the next field over, I spot a tractor. A man sits up high on its seat - staring into the distance. I follow his gaze and see the hills. They are covered in golden yellows and green sage and speckled with wild flowers. I take a deep breath with him, and for a moment, we enjoy the morning.

When I trek back up to the house (where they hold the market), my mind wonders in amazement - the food growing in those rows finds its way onto my table. After buying my produce, I turn, reluctantly, to leave as eager shoppers rush past, chattering on about close parking spaces, bulk purchases and great deals.

Driving away, I spot a mother turkey with her five large babies walking in single file alongside the road. I take another deep breath. I'm so glad I took the time to have this adventure!

Ingredient of the Day: Honey Rocks!

This ingredient is great to eat at breakfast, delicious as a garnish, and a perfect addition to any fruit salad. And no - it isn't honey from the bee - it's a cantaloupe! This melon, grown mostly in Northern Michigan, has a great name, but it's also my grandmother's favorite fresh fruit. Fall is the perfect time of year to enjoy a juicy, beautiful slice of cool cantaloupe - and Honey Rocks - are the best of the best!

Time to Plan...

When they learn that I'm a chef, there's one question people always ask, "What should I make tonight for dinner?"

There's a way to avoid the stress of "oh, no, not chicken again!?" It's called weekly menu planning. This may seem like an added chore, but once you get used to it, you'll enjoy its benefits.

When you create a dinner menu plan for the week, it gives you a chance to check your refrigerator and pantry for items you might already have at home. That way, you won't accidentally purchase another bottle of ketchup at the grocery store, or forget that you needed a stick of butter. Once you've purchased all of the items you need for the week, you won't have to swing by the supermarket on your way home from a long day at work, just to pick up a spring of parsley! (It will also keep you from pulling into that fast-food drive-thru, because you're too tired to figure out what to make for dinner!)

To get you started, I've posted a simple weekly dinner menu plan. I'll leave the food preparation to you - this is about learning the ease of weekly planning. There are some dishes posted twice - because it's good to use leftovers!

Monday:
Tomato salad with basil and mozzarella
Grilled fish (any type) with Herbs of Provence add a squeeze of lemon
Steamed broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots
Steamed brown rice

For kids:
Baked plain white fish (Tilapia is a good cheap option)
Raw carrots
Serve with ketchup

Tuesday:
The wedge - 1/4 iceberg lettuce with Blue Cheese dressing and diced tomatoes
Penne pasta with mushrooms, artichokes, sundried tomatoes, parmesan, chicken and green onion

For kids:
Penne pasta with chicken

Wednesday:
Shredded iceberg with carrots, cauliflower, and broccoli with Ranch dressing
Chicken enchiladas (stuffed with brown rice, chicken and cheese)
Black beans
Corn on the cob (sprinkle parmesan and parsley)

For kids:
Cheese quesadillas
Try shredded iceberg salad

Thursday:
Romaine with avocado and Italian dressing
Flank steak
Blue cheese couscous
Green beans

For kids:
Steak
Green beans

Friday:
Romaine with cucumber tomato and basil
Turkey and vegetable lasagna

For kids:
Turkey meatballs with tomato sauce

Ask Mary: Scallop Cooking

Dear Mary,
How do I cook scallops properly? I love to eat them in restaurants, but whenever I try to make them at home, they come out as chewy as a rubber band.
Frustrated Scallop Lover

Dear Frustrated Scallop Lover,

When I was in culinary school, I went home for the holidays and announced that I would be cooking dinner for my family. Among all of the dishes that I could have chosen to impress them with my new-found culinary skills, I chose to make them scallops. What a mistake! The scallops arrived at the table clear and completely under-cooked. I was so embarrassed and quickly boiled up some pasta.

Since then, I've practiced and found some tips to making great restaurant-like scallops:

Use a cast iron skillet. Put a little oil in it first so that the scallops won't stick. Get the pan really hot. Season the scallops with salt and pepper. And then sear. Sear 5 minutes on one side (more time if scallops are bigger, less if they are smaller), and then turn them over and sear 3 minutes the other side. When you are finished, throw some butter in the pan and gloss them a bit before serving.

No more chew - just buttery and delicious! Your friends and family will be totally impressed!

Happy Cooking!
Mary

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

I always try to cook with fresh, organic and healthy foods. It's the way I feel everyone should shop; of course some stores make it easier and more affordable than others. Fortunately, I have a great big pantry that holds all of my goodies. (When you buy in bulk, you save.) But the other day, I spied a moth in my pantry. If you've ever had a moth in your pantry, you know the nightmare that awaits: the hunt for bugs.

So, I began my quest of conquer and toss. It felt horrible to throw out boxes of food because they were contaminated with larvae, but it had to be done. After several hours, I was satisfied that I'd taken care of the problem and went to bed. But the next morning, when I went in to make my coffee, what did I find? Another moth on the wall. Furious, I made a call to my lovely exterminator.

After a lengthy conversation, he said that I could put up pheromone traps in my pantry. Unfortunately though, he told me that the real problem wasn't coming from the pantry: the moths were riding in on the food that I'd purchased. Without chemicals in my food, there would be bugs.

So, here was my dilemma: if I bought chemical-infused products, I could be assured there would be no bugs, just chemicals. If I continued on with my organic regime, I would have to be prepared to greet a bug from time to time.

I decided to go with the lesser of two evils: if moths won't eat the chemicals, neither should I.

What I Cooked Today... Prosciutto and Fig Pizza

For the Game!

Pizza with prosciutto, arugula, figs and emanthel cheese...


Ingredients

1. 8 figs
   
2. ¼ c emanthel cheese
   
3. 1 ½ mozzarella
   
4. ½ c fresh olive oil
   
5. 4 slices prosciutto
   
6. ½ cup arugula
   

Basic pizza dough recipe: (pizza dough really is easy to make but if you don't have time you can always buy it.)

1. 1 (1/4-ounce) package active dry yeast 
   
2. 1 cup warm water 
   
3. 2 tablespoon vegetable oil 
   
4. 1 teaspoon salt 
   
5. 3 cups all-purpose flour, divided use
   

Activate the yeast by adding it to the warm water (water should not be too hot or it will kill the yeast) then add the oil, salt and flour, mix gently, sometimes if you over mix the dough will become tough. Let it rest in a large greased bowl in a warm place to proof cover it with a towel or syran wrap. Te dough should double in size, this should take around an hour. Then you want to beat it with your hands to eliminate the air.

Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface. This recipe is best with thin crust pizza so about a 1/4 " thick.

Add a little olive oil and top with mozzarella cheese and then with the emanthel cheese. Add prosciutto and figs. Bake at 325 for 20 minutes.

Top with fresh arugula.
Serve.

For added fun: grill the pizza dough and then add the ingredients above.

Grease the grates on the grill, throw the pizza on top of the grill with out any other ingredients.  Let it cook for 2 to 3 minutes and then flip.  Add the cheese and other ingredients on top.  Close the lid and finish cooking.

Happy Cooking, Mary

Ingredient of the Day: Green Figs

Green Figs

A few years ago, I was introduced to the green fig. When I pulled it apart with my fingers, I was shocked to discover that its juicy center was a beautiful bright pink.

Figs are now quite possibly one of my favorite fruits. The wonderful thing about them is that they're seasonal, so just when I feel I can't possibly eat one more, they're gone!

These days, I have a fig tree in my backyard. So, I'm always fighting off other neighborhood creatures for a handful of little plump delights: yesterday it was a gathering of brightly colored birds, then a lizard and later in the evening, a possum. Everybody loves figs. Except my mother.

My mother believes figs are an acquired taste. They're earthy, yet extremely sweet. And she simply cannot acquire the taste long enough to actually fall in love with them! But oh, how I have tried and tried!

So, tomorrow, I'll feature one of the great recipes I created along the road to the fig-conversion of my mother: Pizza!

New Season.

New Fall Line Up!

1. Monday- Webisodes or weekly menu break down
   
2. Tuesday- Ingredient of the day/ In my kitchen
   
3. Wednesday- Recipes
   
4. Thursday-Funny Story/Tip/Fact
   
5. Friday-Ask Mary
   

September blogs!

I can't believe it's been a whole year since I created my blog; sharing my recipes, holidays, traveling adventures and even building my own website -- with you! It's been great to learn about what you like and discover new things that I like, too. If there's one thing I've learned, it's definitely that there's still so much to learn!

Fall is just around the corner - I can smell it in the air. I'm sad to see the light-hearted easy ways of summer disappear, along with some of my favorite foods, like fresh fruits and fresh barely-cooked meals, but there is a certain excitement brewing.

Fall brings to life one of my much-loved guilty pleasures: football. No kidding. Sundays, after shopping at the farmer's market near my house, I always come home and put on the TV so that I can listen to a game while I unload my produce. It's not really about the game, though, it's the nostalgia. Football always makes me think of college. And college football was about tailgating parties. Mixing vodka with o.j. or serving Bloody Mary's. Tailgating was the perfect excuse for serving up a few classics: buffalo wings, hamburgers, hotdogs, sausages with peppers (if you were an East Coast fan), seven-layer dip, chili, nachos...

These days, I don't need tailgating parties as an excuse to grill. I make my fall favorites for friends who come over to watch the game and eat my buffalo wings. Me? I just listen -- I'm too busy in the kitchen whipping up fresh Bloody Mary's!  

Happy Cooking!

Mary