quick healthy pizza

There's something comforting about a delicious piece of pizza. Now, we all know that dabbing grease off of our slice from the corner pizzeria or the pie we've just ordered in isn't the most appetizing (or artery-friendly) meal. Luckily, making your own pizza at home can be easy, quick and healthy. Here's how I like to make mine (as usual, feel free to swap, add or reduce types of veggies):

Pre-heat the oven to 350F. Take a whole wheat pita (I cut it in half the long way to make it thinner), cover with whatever type of tomato sauce you like (I like tomato basil), veggies* such as peppers, broccoli, spinach, tomatoes, corn, etc., a little protein such as canned tuna or cooked chicken (don't forget: one serving of protein such as chicken or fish is the size of a deck of cards), and cover with thin slices of fresh mozzarella. Finally, sprinkle with basil (dried or fresh), black pepper and my favorite: sea salt. Place in oven until cheese is melted. Note: the pita might not become crispy if there is too much sauce and liquid on the pizza.

*I don't always have fresh veggies around, especially not a variety, so I keep bags of frozen veggies in my freezer for those days when I don't have time to run to the grocery store or want a quick, healthy meal. Before adding frozen veggies as toppings, defrost in the microwave; this way all parts of the pizza will be done cooking at the same time.

Mareike about to enjoy her pizza during her NYC visit.

quinoa

What is quinoa (keen-wah)? It's a grain-like crop originally from Chile and Peru that was sometimes called the "gold of the Incas." Now it is frequently referred to as a "super food" because it is one of the few non-animal products that supplies complete protein. "Complete protein" just means that it provides us with all the essential amino acids (the building blocks of protein) we need, ie that our body cannot manufacture or make enough of. You can also combine a grain and a legume, such as rice and beans or barley and peas, to make a complete protein. In this case the grain provides some essential amino acids, the legume the others.

But back to quinoa...I have found that the health food store has the best prices and sells quinoa that has already been rinsed--a huge plus since otherwise it can be sandy and bitter. Because of it's relatively high fat content, quinoa can become rancid more quickly and should therefore be stored in the refrigerator if you plan to keep it for more than a month. The same goes for brown rice and whole wheat flour. Quinoa is cooked like you would cook rice (a 2:1 water to quinoa ratio) and can be used in salads, for stuffing or as the starch and protein content of a meal. I've stuffed acorn squash halves with a quinoa, almond, onion and honey mix (yum!), have enjoyed it with sauted veggies and have used it as the base for various cold salads. Here's my favorite one:

Quinoa Asparagus Salad
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
1 bunch asparagus (approx 12)
1 large tomato
1 lemon
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup chopped kalamata olives
salt and pepper to taste
feta cheese to sprinkle on top

Bring water and quinoa to a boil and then simmer covered until the quinoa becomes fluffy and soft. Transfer to large serving bowl. While the quinoa is cooking, remove the hard ends of the asparagus and then steam until it's still a bit crunchy. Cut into one inch pieces. Rinse, core and chop the tomato and the olives. Add asparagus, tomato and olives to the quinoa. Wash the lemon well then grate the very top layer of the peel to make lemon zest. Don't rasp below the top layer--the white pith is bitter! Squeeze out 3 tablespoons of lemon juice and add that along with the zest and the olive oil to the quinoa. Mix well and salt and pepper to taste. Feta can be crumbled on top or can be served on the side.
Notes: I find that this salad has more flavor when it's been allowed to sit (in the refrigerator) for a few hours. Also, I always have a bottle of lemon juice in the fridge in case I don't have a fresh lemon; it doesn't affect the taste much. Feel free to use other vegetables (in the picture above I used tomatoes, broccoli and zucchini) or more than the recipe calls for; I love extra veggies.
Enjoy!

pumpkin!

Orange and versatile, pumpkins can be used for decoration or in various dishes, savory and sweet. I recently discovered a recipe for pumpkin cookies which I then altered to make a bit more healthy. They are delicious, moist and not too sweet.



Pumpkin Cookies
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp all spice
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 ground cloves (optional--I didn't have any)
1 can pumpkin
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter (unsalted)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
chocolate chips (however many you wish to add...most would like one bag)
chopped walnuts (optional--I don't like nuts in baked goods so I left them out)

Preheat oven to 375F. Cream butter and sugar with a mixer, add eggs, oil, pumpkin and vanilla. In a separate bowl mix flour, spices, baking soda and baking powder. Slowly add this to the liquid mixture while beating. Add the chocolate chips and optional chopped nuts at the end. Place on a cookie sheet in small mounds and bake until bottoms have browned and a knife comes out clean (time with depend on the size of your cookies).

Next time I may swap apple sauce for the oil to make it even healthier. Also, I made some as mini muffins which were even better. Next time I'll make some as large cupcakes and add a cream cheese filling (mix cream cheese, powdered sugar and a pinch of cinnamon together). Enjoy!

a cuban thanksgiving

I love big family get-togethers. In order for me to celebrate with a large number of family members I must either fly to Germany or make my way to New Jersey where most of my Cuban relatives live. Obviously the latter was the ideal choice for Thanksgiving and it certainly wasn't a let down! The evening was spent conversing with various family members (sometimes in my broken Spanish), admiring their seemingly inborn ability to dance, running after a two year old and of course enjoying Cuban-American Thanksgiving food. What did the latter consist of? We had turkey, stuffing, potatoes and sweet potatoes with marshmallows (no, I didn't make these) known to many Thanksgiving tables. In addition we had the traditional Cuban foods present at most of our family events: black beans with rice, two versions of pork (I didn't even get to try these--sad, I know), tamales and, something I'd never had before, a corn souffle.


Tamales (pictured above) are basically cornmeal, spices and in our case pork, cooked together and then steamed in a corn husk or plantain leaf. Lupe made them for this event and they were sensational. I sometimes don't like the taste, but these were mmm mmmm good! My favorite dish of the evening, however, was this new corn souffle. It was light, creamy and a little sweet from the corn. What a wonderful new dish!

A note about Cuban food: many people think Cuban food is spicy. It's actually much milder and sweeter than Mexican. So, if you like the taste of Mexican food, but prefer a little less fire, give Cuban cuisine a try, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

chocolate peppermint cake

My dad likes After Eights or York Peppermint Patties so I decided to make him a chocolate cake (his favorite) infused with mint--an After Eight cake! I placed a few stems of it in the melted chocolate and butter, the base of the cake mixture, allowing it to sit for at least ten minutes before removing the mint, then added the rest of the mint to 2 cups water 2 cups sugar, brought it to a boil and then let it sit, making a mint syrup. This syrup can be stored for a while without spoiling (sugar is a preservative) and can be added to hot or iced beverages or to dessert (it tastes fantastic over ice cream!). After taking the cake out of the oven I poured syrup over the top, spreading it around and allowing it to seep into the cake. To add some kitsch and deliciousness I chopped up a few York Peppermint Patties and distributed them on top. It wasn't the most beautiful cake, but it was quite delicious!

(my sister, dad and the cake!)

Tip of the day: focus on being active rather than working out. If you can't get to the gym or don't have time for a run, take the stairs instead of the elevator, walk part of all of the way home, or complete some exercises whenever commercials interrupt your favorite show.

pre-thanksgiving thanksgiving

Senior year my suitemates and I decided to have our own Thanksgiving celebration (and feast) prior to the actual holiday for which we would be with family in various areas of the country. Everyone contributed in some way, whether by cooking a certain dish or by bringing wine. I decided on a sweet potato recipe complete with cinnamon, nutmeg and maple syrup, topped with marshmallows. Yes, it's quite sweet and probably one of the least healthy versions of a sweet potato, but it really is amazing! This pre-Thanksgiving celebration has become a tradition. Last Saturday we celebrated our fourth, and while it was wonderful to see some of my dearest friends and enjoy everyone's delicious dishes, only six of the original 14 suitemates were present. Those who couldn't make it were missed! I am thankful that I was able to spend time with a few close friends and able to partake in this tradition which I cherish once again this year.

food cravings

I'm sure we have all craved various foods or tastes at one time or another. Why? I think it depends; maybe it's emotional, maybe your body is lacking a particular nutrient, maybe you've just had much of one particular taste and are now craving the opposite (sweet vs. salty) or maybe you just imbibed a good amount of alcohol. One particular instance of food craving comes to mind when I think back to my year in Germany. The other grantees and I had been there for over a month and were each coping with the difficulties and excitement of living and teaching in a new place. On a beautiful Saturday afternoon those of us residing within an hour train ride of Dusseldorf met downtown near the Rhine promenade for lunch. We passed various ethnic and German restaurants but finally decided on 'Louisiana.' Yes, we chose the one American restaurant and yes, ordered burgers and beer...I'm not even a big burger eater! Were we craving these American classics because we were lacking iron? Probably not. While we were enjoying living abroad, we did miss the American culture. Eating these burgers gave us a little piece of home and filled some of that which we were missing.
Sometimes we also confuse hunger or food craving for thirst. Last night, for example, I went out with friends and no, did not crave pizza, bagels or fried food when I got home. Instead, all I wanted was the leftover salad with tomatoes and balsamic mustard dressing sitting in my fridge. I don't think I craved the sour taste of balsamic vinegar (although, I love my home-made salad dressing); I just wanted something juicy because, in the end, I wasn't hungry, I was thirsty. Our bodies generally do a good job telling us what we need; we just need to be better listeners.