Smørrebrød

Smørrebrød is a Danish-style open face sandwich. When I was researching places to eat on our honeymoon, I stumbled upon this word many times. My favorite smørrebrød from our trip was topped with tomato chutney, arugula, and farmer's cheese served with a smokey corn soup.

This week's Food Matters Project recipe is updated tea sandwiches hosted by Aura. I decided to mix it up and make smørrebrød. I made Bittman's wheat bread and piled it high with delicious toppings: yogurt cheese, cucumber, cooked beets, and balsamic glaze. Cooked beets are my new favorite sandwich filling.

Eat with a side salad or bowl of chilled soup for lunch or serve a platter as appetizers at a dinner party.

Yogurt cheese
1 c organic plain yogurt (use low or full fat)
2 tbsp mixed herbs (parsley, cilantro, dill, basil)
freshly ground pepper

Line a strainer with a large piece of cheesecloth. Set over a bowl and add the yogurt. Refrigerate. Let the yogurt drain overnight or up to 24 hours. You want the whey to drain completely from the yogurt, so it's nice and thick.

Remove yogurt from cheesecloth and put into a small bowl. Add the herbs and pepper. Mix well and spread onto the bread.

Balsamic glaze
1/4 c balsamic vinegar

Add vinegar to a saute pan and bring to a simmer. Stir often, cooking for 8-10 minutes. You want the balsamic to thicken and become almost syrupy. Remove from heat and drizzle over top of your sandwich (or anything really).

Friday Favorites with Happyolks

Kelsey, the lady behind Happyolks, has a way with words. I get lost in her stories about life and time spent in the kitchen. I love her honest recipes like these beans or this curried bowl of goodness. Her videos are breathtaking as well. I can't wait to try her beet, seed, and blood orange cake.

So Kelsey, what's your favorite food?

Image courtesy of Happyolks

Kelsey: If I were a food, I'd be a beet. Earthy, feisty, sweet. Funky on the outside, bursting with life on the inside. Cut 'em open and be surprised. Love 'em or hate 'em, they (literally) know how to leave their mark. 

Thanks Kelsey! Have a great weekend, everyone!

Beautiful beet soup and a look ahead

I started this blog about 4 years ago. If you scroll back to 2008, it looked and sounded a lot different than it does now. Since then, I've switched jobs, gotten married, studied holistic nutrition and a few natural chef classes. My photos, recipes, and writing are lot more refined these days (to say the least). I've grown as a person, a designer as well as in the kitchen.

What started as a hobby has now become a big part of my life. And in the next couple of months, I plan to (finally) start my health coaching business! Wow it feels good to say that. This means I can work with you one-on-one to clean up your diet so you feel better and have more energy as well as arm you with a library of recipes, cooking tips, healthy shopping lists, and more. Sound good? Stay tuned as I share more information about this in the coming months.

None of this could have been possibly without the amazing and passionate food blogging community. I can't tell you how inspired I am by reading your stories, perspectives and of course, recipes. I wish I could invite you all for coffee, so we could meet in person. Kelsey wrote a great post about this very thing (with a beautiful lemon tart by Jacqui) which resonated deeply with me last weekend.

I also can't thank the people enough who actually come to my blog, read, comment, and cook my recipes. Thank you, thank you, thank you. You're the reason I write this blog and will start my new business. I hope I inspire, motivate and get you into the kitchen armed with healthy, veggie-packed dishes and wholesome desserts.

And thanks to the lovely Roxy over a CupofTe, a friend and client, for letting me share my accomplishments of 2011 and my dreams for 2012. If you haven't checked out her new business she started last fall you should!

Today I'm posting an adaptation of Sarah's beet soup recipe from Whole Living (check out the 21 day menu plan). I stumbled upon Sarah's blog a year or two ago now, and am always inspired by her healthy, beautiful recipes, and love that she shares nutrition facts with each dish.

If you like beets, you'll love this soup. Beets actually belong in the same family as spinach and swiss chard. And don't toss the beet greens, saute them like you would kale or swiss chard. Beets are packed with beneficial antioxidants and phytonutrients, and they're perfect for cleansing or detoxing. The earthiness of the beet marries well with the sweetness from the sauteed onion, carrot, and celery. Don't skip the vinegar, it really brings out the flavor. I even added a little extra to my bowl.

Beautiful beet soup

Adapted from Whole Living Sarah B's beet soup

1 large red beet or 4 small beets

1 tbsp coconut oil 

1/2 medium onion

1 carrot, diced

1 celery stalk, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 thyme sprig

1 bay leaf

dash of cayenne

1/4 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp sea salt

dash of freshly ground pepper

2.5-3 cups water or veggie broth

1 tsp white balsamic vinegar (or regular balsamic)

garnish with chives and plain yogurt or herbed cashew cream

Preheat oven to 350. Place beet on a parchment lined baking sheet. Make sure to get your paring knife and make a few small slits in the beet, so some of the steam will escape. Roast for about an hour, depending on the size of your beets. When tender, remove from oven and cool. Peel skin off and cut into small cubes. You could do this ahead of time and refrigerate until ready to use.

Saute onion in the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the carrot and celery, cooking for another five minutes or so. The veggies should begin to soften. Add the remaining garlic, herbs and spices stirring for a few more minutes. Add the water and beets. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer for 10 minutes and remove from heat. Pour hot liquids into a blender or use an immersion blender straight in the pot. Blend until smooth. Add the vinegar. Garnish with chives and yogurt or herbed cashew cream.

Makes enough for 2-3 servings.

Raw beet salad with dill & walnuts

Everyone seems to go pumpkin crazy this time of year. But there's another vegetable that shows up at the farmers market that often gets overlooked. The humble beet. I know some of you might dislike beets, but please give them another try. Any beet lovers out there? I've mentioned this before, but it took me years to appreciate beets.

Beets are excellent for your health. They're great if you want to detox or cleanse which means they support a healthy liver. They also provide the body with beneficial antioxidants and phytonutrients.
I usually roast beets, but today I decided to grate them into a lovely raw salad. I also added apple, ginger, orange juice, balsamic and dill. It was a nice contrast eaten with a warm bowl of butternut squash soup.

Look at that beautiful, deep red color. You know that means it must be good for you. Oh and don't toss out the beet greens. Save them and cook like any other leafy green.

Raw beet salad with dill & walnuts

4 large red beets, peeled
1 golden delicious or gala apple, peeled
1.5 inch piece of ginger, peeled
1.5 T balsamic vinegar
1 T freshly squeezed orange juice
1 tsp cider vinegar (optional)
2 T walnut oil or olive oil
1 T dill, minced
1/2 tsp salt
dash of cracked pepper
Toasted or raw walnuts, to garnish

Grate the beets, apple and ginger (with the grate attachment of your food processor or a cheese grater). Add the next seven ingredients into a small jar (with lid). Screw on the lid and shake. Pour over the beets and mix well. Garnish with walnuts and serve.

My weekend

I hope you all had a great weekend. It flew by. I can't believe its almost Tuesday. 

I bought more beets at the farmer's market as well as some of the most beautiful carrots I've ever seen. They were yellow, orange and purple. I cut the beets and carrots, and roasted them with coconut oil. Then I tossed them into a bowl of quinoa along with orange juice and green onion. Mmm.

I also picked up some vidalia onions. I roasted them in the oven with olive oil & balsamic. They would be delicious way to dress up a veggie burger.

Busy week for me, including a day trip to Chicago on Wednesday. But I'm excited to start reading this The Ayurvedic Cookbook. 

Have a great week. Eat your vegetables.