A Picnic-Worthy Fruit Salad

April 24, 2013April 24, 2013 ~ Crystle ~ 3 Comments

Here I am, five weeks postpartum and I’m going through some serious sugar withdrawals. They’re bad. The irritability and cookie cravings are out of control, I tell you.

Pregnancy was super fun because I enjoyed a faster metabolism and eating under the guise of ‘hormones’. I gained a sturdy 29 lbs over the 41+ weeks I was pregnant, and it’s unfortunately not coming off as quickly as I had anticipated. I even started exercising again, but it’s not nearly as easy as I remember it (especially after a cesarean!). Isaac and I were up to 10 miles on our long-distance runs when I found out I was pregnant. Now I can hardly complete one full mile. It’s discouraging.

Knowing what had to be done (as it never should have begun), I decided to kick my cookie, ice cream and candy habit. At least until the next pregnancy, wink-wink.

I remember trying to kick my life-long sugar habit in college, and I did it with this fruit salad. It’s become my signature bring-along over the last 8 years since it truly never disappoints. Preparing this fruit salad brings back fond memories of music festivals, barbecues, hiking trips, and potlucks. Each event was the perfect occasion to bring along this fruit salad.

It’s incredibly simple, and healthy, and requires basic ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen.

I’ll be chowing down on this until I can see my sugar cravings in the rear-view mirror.

My Picnic-Worthy Fruit Salad “Recipe”

Ingredients

1 Large Honey Crisp apple, or 3 small ones. This should total 2-3 cups.

1-2 Bananas, depending on size. I prefer to buy the longer ones.

1 single-serve container of Greek Vanilla Yogurt, approximately 5 ounces.

2/3 cup Granola, I always use Kashi’s Go Lean Crunch.

Directions

1. Chop apples into bite size pieces.

2. Slice banana into bite size pieces.

3. In a large mixing bowl, combine apples, bananas, and yogurt. Mix until coated evenly.

4. Sprinkle granola mixture over the top of the salad, and serve.

Notes

-Keep the granola separate until you’re ready to serve, if you mix it in prematurely, and the fruit salad sits for a period of time, the granola gets soggy.

-The ratio of apples to bananas should be roughly 1:1.

-I’ve always used vanilla yogurt, feel free to try out Strawberry, Orange, or another fruit-flavored yogurt instead.

-Kashi Go Lean Crunch is a staple around my house, if you have another granola based cereal, or snack at hand, feel free to try it out instead.

-Tart Apples tend to do this dish an injustice, I highly recommend sticking with Honey Crisp or Red Delicious.

-You can also throw in some grapes, or strawberries, but just like the childhood song, I like to eat apples & bananas.

A Springtime Strawberry Galette

April 8, 2013July 22, 2013 ~ Crystle ~ 7 Comments

Cooking, baking, and really all kitchen activities have become a bit more difficult to take on since bringing Margot home. In fact, as I’m writing this post, she’s napping cozily on my chest, supported by my nifty Boba wrap. Given her expected level of neediness in these early months, taking on difficult recipes is just not really an option — at least until I become more efficient with juggling chores and baby care.

Without considering this reality, Isaac and I over-committed to fresh produce in bulk from Costco, once again, and bought 5 pounds of strawberries. We’ve done a great job of munching on them with yogurt, but I needed to put a big dent in our supply. Sooo, I took on a simple strawberry galette this afternoon.

I love galettes. Once I learned how to construct them, they quickly became a favorite meal around here. I typically throw roasted vegetables and cheese in them to make a savory dinner, which is contrary to their reputation as ‘sweet’, but this time I prepped one that was true to form.

I try to keep store-bought pie crusts around because I really hate having to make my own from scratch; even when I had more time on my hands, I didn’t appreciate the extended process. I have no qualms about calling myself out as lazy on this. If you try out this recipe and want to try a crust from scratch, try this recipe from the Food Network.

Now for the recipe:

Ingredients:

2-3 cups fresh strawberries, depending on size

1 tablespoon flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/8 cup of sliced unsalted almonds, or unsalted chopped nuts of your choice — I used the pre-sliced almonds from the produce section that are made for salads

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon to dust

1 store bought pie crust

Ice cream or whipped cream to top

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Rinse strawberries, hull and slice thinly.

2. Gently toss the strawberries in the flour and sugar.

3. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and unroll pie crust on center of parchment paper.

4. Sprinkle 3/4 of the almonds directly onto pie crust, leaving a 2 inch margin clear around the perimeter of the pie crust.

5. Thinly layer strawberry mixture onto pie crust, again leaving a 2 inch margin clear around the perimeter of the pie crust.

6. Fold edges of pie crust up around the edge of the strawberries, pinching folds of the crust to itself as you rotate the galette. See the image below for reference. This step took some practice for me to get the hang of.

7. Lightly sprinkle cinnamon over the entire galette, then add remaining almonds to garnish.

8. Bake galette for 20-25 minutes, until crust is lightly browned and crispy.

9. Serve warm, topped with ice cream or whipped cream. Try Cookies and Cream ice cream: paired with the strawberries, it’s divine!

If you do decide to whip this up, throw caution to the wind and have it for lunch. I just did, and it’s making my afternoon all the more awesome.

Saturday Brunch featuring Soyrizo Frittata

June 23, 2012July 22, 2013 ~ Crystle ~ 10 Comments

I’m probably not the only Washingtonian wondering why the weather stays sunny and dry during the week, then rains like crazy on the weekends. Well, it does. So it’s a good thing my husband and I went for our weekly long distance run yesterday, when the rain wasn’t as heavy. For some insane reason, he wants to run a marathon. I’m trying to be a supportive running partner, but because I’m only half-crazy, I have no desire to run any further than a half-marathon. This is about the biggest problem we have at the six month mark into our marriage. Another concern is that I’m constantly cooking him vegetarian meals. Most of the time he doesn’t notice, but occasionally he “needs” a meal with red meat. Today’s brunch was one of those occasions, faked.

While the rain beat down outside, I whipped up my favorite Mexican inspired frittata. And let me preface the meal description with this: I may have dropped my Mexican maiden name, but that in no way means I’ve abandoned my Mexican ways. I still love chorizo and eggs. That will never change.

Instead of the traditional pork based sausage, I use soyrizo, a brilliant and delicious substitute. I like Trader Joe’s take on Soyrizo, but there are other options.

For this recipe, which is adapted from a master recipe formula by Pam Anderson, you’ll need the following:

8 large eggs
1/4 cup goat cheese (or feta, queso fresco, parmesan etc.)
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1 heaping handful of arugula
1 1/2 cups of Soyrizo, or half of the included package
2 tablespoons of minced garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
Cracked pepper to taste
Sea salt to taste
1 cup halved plum tomatoes to garnish

Move your oven rack to the highest position in the oven. Turn oven on to broil (set to high if the setting is available).

In a large mixing bowl, combine the eggs, cheese and salt & pepper. Mix evenly.

Turn the stove to medium-high and coat the oven safe cast iron pan with the olive oil. When it’s glistening, add the chopped onions, arugula, minced garlic and Soyrizo. Cook until the onions are translucent (about 5 minutes). Then turn the heat down to medium and make sure the ingredients are evenly distributed across the pan. Add the egg mixture. Once the eggs start to set around the edges, place cast iron pan in the oven.

Broil the dish for 3-5 minutes, until the surface is lightly golden brown. Let it sit for 5 minutes to cool then garnish with tomatoes and arugula. Serve and enjoy!

Also, if you haven’t picked up Pam Anderson’s Cook Without a Book: Meatless Meals, you should! It’s my cookbook bible.