Daily - My Favorite Poem

I have loved this poem ever since I read it in an English class probably in middle school. I also wrote a college entrance essay about it. That essay must not have been spectacular as I remember that I didn't get into that particular school! Anyway, for some reason, the poem really speaks to me and the way I view life. The activities in my life that I find fulfilling are at the top of my priority list and I do them with special care and consideration. Preparing food is definitely the best example of this. I love brainstorming how to put together a nutritiously complete meal, making a neat little grocery list, going to the grocery store and looking at all the beautiful food, coming home and preparing it, and then eating it throughout the week. I also really like cooking for other people. I still have a bit of insecurity that a dish might taste bad (which is why every recipe I blog about I've tried and tasted at least once before), but I cannot wait to nourish my family with home-cooked meals. Well... here's the poem :)...

Daily
By: Naomi Shihab Nye

These shriveled seeds we plant,
corn kernel, dried bean,
poke into loosened soil,
cover over with measured fingertips

These T-shirts we fold into
perfect white squares

These tortillas we slice and fry to crisp strips
This rich egg scrambled in a gray clay bowl

This bed whose covers I straighten
smoothing edges till blue quilt fits brown blanket
and nothing hangs out

This envelope I address
so the name balances like a cloud
in the center of sky

This page I type and retype
This table I dust till the scarred wood shines
This bundle of clothes I wash and hang and wash again
like flags we share, a country so close
no one needs to name it

The days are nouns: touch them
The hands are churches that worship the world

Roasted Carrots and Cauliflower

For some reason, I have had some difficulty making vegetables really delicious and savory (without butter). The following recipe is not only really yummy, but its method of cooking, roasting, is also one of the healthiest ways to cook vegetables. It was simplified from a Martha Stewart recipe: http://www.wholeliving.com/recipe/roasted-vegetables?lnc=12980c8668ec9110VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&rsc=cf_link


Roasted Carrots and Cauliflower

Serves 5-6.

1 lb. carrots, cut into 2 inch lengths
1 cauliflower head, chopped (I prefer yellow cauliflower since it has more nutrients)
1 lb. shallots, peeled and halved
3 rosemary sprigs (optional)
3 TB olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

In a 9X13 baking pan, combine vegetables, shallots, oil, and salt and pepper. Mix. Top with rosemary sprigs if you like. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 1 hour at 350F. Remove aluminum foil. Return to oven to bake 1/2 an hour longer.


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Roasting Vegetables

Roasting is a cooking method that uses dry heat, in our case we use the oven. Roasting vegetables is actually one of the most nutritious ways to cook them. Because many vitamins in vegetables are water-soluble (including the vitamin B complex and vitamin C), they can leech out if they are cooked using water, as in boiling. FYI, water-soluble means that they will enter into solution if it is water based. Some vitamins like A, D, E, and K, on the other hand, are fat-soluble. That is also why if you make vegetable soup, it's a good idea to drink the broth, provided it's not too full of unhealthy substances like oil! The vitamin that we want to preserve in our carrots is vitamin A while cauliflower is a good source of vitamin C, vitamin K, and the mineral folate.

Avocado Chicken Wraps

The following recipe is one that I make very often. I love southwestern food, so I tried to incorporate some of those flavors. But I must admit, this isn't that authentic. :) It's an easy recipe since you don't have to cook anything, thanks to some great ready-made products. Foster farms make these chicken breast strips with southwestern seasoning that are so delicious! Whenever they go on sale, I always buy some to make my wraps or to put in a salad.

Here are some pictures of the products that I use for this recipes:

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Avocado Chicken Wraps

Serves 4.

1 package of tortillas (flavored if you like; I like jalapeno cheddar)
1 bunch of red leaf lettuce
4 handfuls of shredded cheese, Mexican flavors
2 avocados, sliced
2 bags of Southwestern Chicken Strips
4 TB of Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette (see below for recipe)
4 TB canned corn
4 TB chopped fresh cilantro

Heat a tortilla topped with shredded cheese on an un-greased skillet until cheese melts. Divide ingredients evenly per wrap. Wrap with foil for convenient eating.

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The following dressing is to be drizzled over the ingredients inside your wrap. It is such an amazing dressing recipe, combining pretty much all of my favorite flavors.

This recipe was garnered from this website: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/347039. Apparently, the recipe comes from a restaurant, the Continental Divide in Charlottesville, VA.

Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice, they use key lime
1 small jalapeno pepper, ribs and seeds removed, coarsely chopped (leave in some seeds if heat is desired)
1 small clove garlic, halved
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/8 teaspoon honey
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 pinch ground cumin
1 pinch salt, to taste
1 1/2 tablespoon minced fresh cilantro

Put everything but the cilantro into a blender and puree until smooth. Stir in the cilantro, then taste and adjust seasonings if needed. Shake before serving.