A Muffin for all Seasons

With some long-forgotten strawberries lurking in the fridge, I filed through my torn-out, peeled-off, photocopied recipes to find the one I saved with strawberries in mind. This muffin recipe comes to you straight from a crumpled foil yogurt lid, compliments of Stonyfield Farm. (Ironically, I ended up altering this recipe since I was short on yogurt).

After sampling a couple warm & steamy muffins–at around 150 calories each, two is certainly not gluttonous–I was convinced I had found my go-to muffin recipe. Boasting fiber, calcium, protein and antioxidants without a cloying sweetness, this muffin fits my breakfast and snack bill nicely.

Best of all, this recipe can be adapted to any season. Leftover grapes that have seen better days? Grape muffins. Or cherry, banana, apple or mango. Don’t toss it, make muffins!

Strawberry Muffins (adapted from Stonyfield Farm)

Makes 12 muffins

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup low-fat plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup chopped strawberries (or other seasonal fresh fruit)

1. Preheat oven to 375. In a small bowl mix flours, sugar and baking soda. In a medium bowl mix eggs, yogurt, applesauce, butter and vanilla.
2. Add strawberries to the flour mix and gently toss. Pour the yogurt mix into the flour mix and stir.
3. Spoon batter (using a standard size ice cream scoop) into a greased muffin tin. Bake 20 minutes, or until tops are golden brown.

Fancy Me a Scone!

Overflowing with blueberries at your house too? You can only make so many blueberry pancakes!

This Blueberry Oat Scone recipe comes from Molly Wizenberg, who authors the food blog, Orangette, and the “Cooking Life” column in Bon Appetit magazine. I’ve been a fan since discovering her blog, and like to think of us as kindred spirits…both born & bred Oklahomans who split for a coast to cook, eat, and write about it.

Follow the link to the recipe–enjoy!

Blueberry Oat Scones

Wheat and Wild

My overstocked fridge continues to inspire more home cooking this week. Homemade Whole Wheat Fettucine with Zucchini and Beans fed us at the beginning of the week, when I had energy to roll out fresh pasta like my Grandma Efrosina (with the pin, not the crank). Salmon Nicoise Salad with yogurt-cucumber-dill dressing was a way to highlight Garden of Eve‘s beautiful lettuce and farm-fresh eggs. The salmon is wild Sockeye from Alaska–far from local, but worth purchasing when in season and shipped fresh.

I try to choose wild salmon when possible since there are both health and environmental risks to eating farmed. Since wild salmon can be prohibitively expensive, try buying beautiful fillets and steaks once a year when fresh, and choose frozen and canned the rest of the year. Most canned salmon is wild Alaskan and is already cooked and ready for salads and, my favorite, croquettes.

To better understand the differences between wild and farmed fish and for recommended servings per month, please click the link:

Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Guide

If you will be in the NY area this fall, The Hunger and Environmental Nutrition group of the Greater NY Dietetic Association will be hosting a discussion on sustainable seafood September 10th (more details to come). Come hear the latest  recommendations on what we should eat (and avoid eating) from local and international waters. We have an excellent panel of experts lined up representing the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Blue Ocean Institute, and Reclam the Bay (RCTB).

Also, please check out the first major documentary about “the imminent peril facing the world’s oceans due to the devastating impact of overfishing,” End of the Line. It may be playing at a theater near you!
http://endoftheline.com

No-Sweat Greens and Blues

If you can’t stand the heat but still want to stay in the kitchen, here are some no-cook dishes featuring Garden of Eve’s Swiss chard and blueberries. The recipes are adapted from Jackie Newgent’s Big Green Cookbook, which is full of low-carbon cooking techniques such as marinating greens that are traditionally slow-cooked, and baking in the microwave.

The Swiss chard & black bean salad was a hit at yesterday’s July 4th BBQ. The spice & acidity of the jalapeno-lime dressing was a nice palate cleanser between bites of Nathan’s famous-ly fatty & rich hot dogs.

For those of you looking to tote something healthy to a summer pot luck, this is the perfect alternative to a humdrum lettuce salad. You can dress the chard ahead of time and not worry about a sad, soggy mess. Actually, the longer you marinate, the better the texture and flavor.

The Blueberry crumble bars, pictured above, were 100% microwaved! Made with whole wheat flour and a whopping pint of blueberries, these can be a hearty dessert, breakfast or snack. Toss all thoughts of previous microwaved disasters, after these bars take a spin on your microwave carousel the topping stays crunchy and the bread super moist!

Tomato, Chard and Black Bean Salad with Spicy Lime Vinaigrette

• Juice of 1 lime (2 Tbsp)
• 2 Tbsp Extra Virgin olive oil
• 1 small jalapeno with some seeds, minced
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• 3/4 tsp sea salt, or to taste
• 2 packed cups (1 bunch) chopped fresh chard leaves and tender stalks
• 1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained, not rinsed
• 2 vine-ripened tomatoes, diced
• 1/3 cup finely diced red onion

1. Whisk the lime juice, oil, jalapeno, garlic, and salt in a medium bowl.
2. Add the chard, beans, tomato, and red onion and gently toss.
3. Serve at room temperature.

Blueberry Crumble Bread Bars

For bars:

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2/3 cup turbinado (raw sugar)
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup vanilla soy milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 2/3 cups whole-wheat flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 pint fresh blueberries (local if possible)

For topping:

• 1/2 cup turbinado sugar
• 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup unsalted organic butter
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp sea salt

1. Grease a 2-quart microwave-safe dish (glass Pyrex rectangle works well).
2. Cream the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Whisk in the egg, soymilk, and vanilla extract until combined.
3. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt onto the the wet ingredients; stir until just combined. Gently fold in the berries and spread into the greased dish.
4. For the topping, combine the sugar, flour, butter, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl. Blend with a pastry blender or fork until crumbly. Sprinkle over the batter in the dish.
5. Microwave on medium (1200 watt microwave) or high (800 watt microwave) about 13 minutes, rotating the dish halfway for even cooking. Let cool 20 minutes on a rack. Cut into 12 pieces and serve.