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The Olive Oil Hunter News #8

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Roasted Squash and Sage Risotto Recipe, Spotlight on Squash, The Power of Soy and Exercise and Depression

As fall’s chill takes hold, it’s time for stick-to-your-ribs meals and taking advantage of farmers’ markets bursting with the seasonal bounty of winter squash. This issue of The Olive Oil Hunter Newsletter has everything you need to cook up a storm…

There are a few tricks of the trade I want to share so you’ll avoid common risotto speed bumps. The first concerns the rice. A short-grain rice is a must for getting the texture just right—the longer jasmine or basmati styles just don’t give off enough starch. Most risotto recipes designed for the American kitchen call for arborio, a great choice. But Italians, who are understandably very particular about the rice they use, prefer Carnaroli rice because it keeps its shape better—it’s harder to overcook, making your risotto more foolproof as well as light and creamy. Now, just to make things more interesting, over in Venice, the favorite is Vialone Nano, grown only in the province of Verona. It, too, stays firm while creating a light and creamy dish. So, it’s a matter of preference. Gustiamo.com sells both kinds if you’d like to do your own taste test! Whichever rice you choose, do not rinse it—you want its starch intact.

This tip is simple but essential: The cooking liquid, usually broth, must be kept hot in a second pot on the stove so that the temperature of the risotto stays consistent as you ladle in the liquid. And now for something I find is really helpful, though it’s not traditional—I prefer to use a small metal spatula with a straight, blunt edge to stir the risotto because it makes better contact with the pan than a spoon. 

For this recipe in particular, roasting rather than boiling the squash adds extra depth without adding any extra cooking time. The Healthy Kitchen Nugget below has everything you need to know about the prep.

If you want to watch the doyenne of Italian cooking, Lidia Bastianich, making risotto before you begin, she has a video master class with Fortunato Nicotra, her executive chef at Felidia in New York. It features great techniques and an exotic beet risotto recipe.

Roasted Squash and Sage Risotto

  • The Olive Oil Hunter News #8 - Squash Risotto Roasted Squash and Sage Risotto

    Risotto is a time-honored classic from Milan, in northern Italy, where the culinary emphasis is on dairy, unlike the tomato-based dishes of the south. It’s labor-intensive because you must slowly add liquid to the rice and stir constantly to coax it to creamy perfection. Risotto is an impressive dish for entertaining, but you want to have the technique down first. While you don’t want to make your first risotto when company’s coming, it can be mastered quickly, and once you know the basics, you can start to experiment with different ingredients—shrimp, wild mushrooms, peas and leaks…risotto is infinitely customizable.

    Ingredients

    • 1-1/2 pound squash, such as Hubbard or kabocha 
    • 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 
    • 3 large fresh sage leaves, finely minced 
    • 1 leek, trimmed, cleaned and thinly sliced crosswise 
    • 5 to 6 cups chicken or vegetable stock, homemade or low-sodium canned 
    • 1-1/2 cups rice, such as Carnaroli, Vialone Nano or arborio
    • 1 cup dry white wine, warmed
    • Pinch of nutmeg
    • 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more for serving
    • 5 ounces baby spinach, rinsed and patted dry with paper towel
    • Salt and freshly ground black pepper 

    Directions

    Step 1

    Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Peel, seed and cut the squash into 1″ cubes to make 2 cups (if your yield is higher, roast them all and save the overflow to toss in a salad the next day). Place 2 tablespoons of the olive oil on a rimmed baking sheet, add the squash and sage and toss to coat. Bake for 30 minutes or until tender, flipping them with your metal spatula at the halfway point. 

    Step 2

    Meanwhile, heat a large, heavy sauté pan over medium-low heat and add the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the leeks and sauté them until soft, but don’t let them color. While they’re cooking, heat the stock in a saucepan. Once the leeks are soft, immediately add the rice to the sauté pan and stir to thoroughly coat with the oil. Cook until the rice is slightly translucent, about 7 to 10 minutes. Increase the heat to medium, add the wine and nutmeg, and stir until the liquid has nearly evaporated. Ladle a cup of the hot stock into the rice mixture and stir attentively. When the liquid has mostly been absorbed, stir in another cup of hot stock. Repeat until the rice is nearly al dente, about 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in the 1/2 cup of Parmigiano-Reggiano, the roasted squash and the spinach. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until the squash is warmed through and the spinach is wilted. If the risotto seems a bit dry, add a little more stock. Season to taste—the risotto might taste salty enough from the cheese, but add a few twists from your pepper grinder. Top with more grated cheese and serve immediately.

    Yields 4 main course or 6 side dish servings.
Healthy Ingredient Spotlight: Ode to Squash

Healthy Ingredient Spotlight

Ode to Squash

Pumpkin might steal the spotlight for holiday pies, but winter squashes get the glory for sweet side dishes without the need for sugar. Many varieties can be as satisfying as sweet potatoes, plus they have all the wonderful nutrients of orange veggies, like vitamin A, with fewer calories. They have great taste on their own but will also benefit from spices and herbs you like. Here are some of the best:

Acorn
The yellow flesh of this small round, ribbed squash is more savory than sweet. Look for mostly green skin—too much orange means it’s past its prime. 

Butternut
This cream-colored squash with a rounded bottom and long neck has sweet orange flesh. 

Delicata
Oval in shape with light yellow and green stripes, this squash has yellow flesh and a mild flavor. 

Hubbard
With its gnarly, pale blue-green skin and large size, you might overlook this variety, but its orange flesh is rich and sweet. (There’s also a Hubbard variety that’s small and orange.)

Kabocha
Available in dark green or red, kabocha is among the sweetest of squashes—a great change of pace from pumpkin in desserts. 

Spaghetti
Milder and lighter in color (both the rind and the flesh) than other types, this squash separates into thin spaghetti-like strands when raked with a fork after roasting, making it the perfect sub for pasta. 

Sweet Dumpling 
This one’s close in size to acorn squash but has a much sweeter taste, plus the skin is thin enough to eat. 

Regardless of variety, a squash should feel firm and be free of soft spots and bruises. Most will keep up to a month or two in a cool, dry location.

Healthy Kitchen Tip: Easy Prep Squash

Healthy Kitchen Nugget

Easy Prep Squash

For a quick hack, I love buying precut squash chunks because most varieties have thick skin that can be difficult to deal with. But I don’t want you to be deterred from buying whole squash at a farmers’ market or even growing your own. Here’s a great and easy prep. 

Use a sharp paring knife (dull knives are a real danger in the kitchen) to make a 1/8″ deep cut around the circumference of the squash in the right direction to later halve it, and then pierce it all over just as you would a sweet potato. Place it on 5 or 6 sheets of paper towel and microwave it—3 minutes for a small squash, 5 minutes for a large one. This won’t cook it, but it will make it easier to cut. Use oven mitts to remove the squash from the microwave, and let it cool for a few minutes before proceeding. 

If you need cubes for a recipe, use a vegetable peeler to remove the skin at this point, but if you’re ultimately making a purée or soup, leave on the skin for roasting—it will come off very easily afterward. 

Now use a sturdy kitchen knife to go through the cut line you made earlier to separate it into halves. With a soup or grapefruit spoon, scoop out all the strings and seeds and proceed with your recipe. Note: When roasting squash halves, always place the cut side down.

Bonus hack: Turn squash seeds into a fast snack! Rinse them off, use paper towels to absorb the excess water, spread them out on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, sprinkle with your favorite herbs or spices, and bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes until brown and crispy.

For Your Best Health: The Power of Soy

For Your Best Health

The Power of Soy

One of the most-studied foods is soy, and research shows that it belongs on the menu whether you’re following a plant-based plan or simply want a nutritious meat alternative to include in your diet. Whole soybeans, including edamame, and foods made from soy, such as tofu, miso, tempeh and natto, are rich in nutrients called isoflavones. A study published in March 2020 in the journal Circulation found that people who ate at least one weekly serving of tofu or another isoflavone-rich food had up to an 18% lower risk of developing heart disease compared with 12% for those who ate these foods less than once a month. Other research has found that it can help you stay vital as you age and, according to a report by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, eating soy may help prevent cancer, including breast cancer in women and prostate cancer in men—you can read more details here. 

Though soy is the richest source of isoflavones, they’re also in alfalfa, chickpeas, beans and pistachios, so make these foods part of an overall healthy diet.

Fitness Flash: Physical Activity and Depression

Fitness Flash

Physical Activity and Depression

We’ve all heard about the feel-good chemicals called endorphins that kick in during exercise, but the effects of working out could go even deeper. An international team of researchers writing in the American Journal of Psychiatry looked at dozens of studies on the link between physical activity and depression and found that people with higher activity levels had lower levels of depression than people who are fairly sedentary—this connection held true for men and women, young and old. We don’t know the full explanation, but it’s due at least in part to the fact that exercise reduces physical risk factors, like inflammation, and increases protective factors like self-esteem. Until we learn whether there’s a magic amount of exercise needed, aim for the 30 minutes a day on most days of the week suggested by leading health organizations.

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The Olive Oil Hunter News #7

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Greek Fava Recipe, Spotlight on Legumes and Gluten-Free Legume Pasta, and the Truth About Diet and Exercise

This is the time of year when I’m usually in Italy and Greece, tasting the most amazing, freshly pressed olive oils and working with my growers on creating flavorful and unique blends. There’s nothing quite like spending fall in the heart of the Mediterranean, with its comfortable daytime temps and cool evenings, wonderful for unwinding at a Greek taverna, savoring luscious mezze—their wide array of appetizers—and wine with people who not only love them, too, but are responsible for growing the crops that chefs and vintners depend on.  

Mediterranean food is rich, heart-warming, stick-to-your-ribs cuisine. With this week’s recipe, you can bring one of my favorite tastes of Greece to your own table…

In Greece, “fava” is a creamy purée made from the yellow split peas traditionally grown on the island of Santorini. These split peas are not related to fava beans, though both are legumes. Yellow and green split peas are great pantry items, and supermarket brands cost just cents a bag. But if you really want to splurge, for just a few dollars more, you can buy true Greek yellow split peas from Arosis, a purveyor that sources them from small Greek farms. Many online merchants sell a variety of the company’s products. 

Greek Fava

  • The Olive Oil Hunter News #7 Greek Fava

    Greek fava is a wonderful twist on hummus, the better-known legume-based dip. Fava has a silky creaminess for a great mouthfeel. It’s often topped with caramelized onions and capers and served with toasted pita wedges, but I love using cucumber spears and sliced veggies for dipping.

    Ingredients

    • 1 cup dry yellow split peas
    • 3 cups chicken or vegetable stock, homemade or low-sodium canned
    • 2 small onions, diced
    • 2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
    • 1 bay leaf 
    • 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more if desired
    • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
    • 1 tablespoon fresh oregano or flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
    • Coarse salt
    • Freshly ground pepper
    • Paprika (smoked if possible)
    • Optional: capers, caramelized onions and lemon wedges

    Directions

    Step 1

    Rinse the split peas in cold water to remove any grit and drain. Transfer to a large saucepan and pour in enough stock to cover by at least an inch—start with 2.5 cups. Add half the diced onion, the garlic and the bay leaf. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and skim off any foam that accumulates on top. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the peas reach a thick, porridge-like consistency, 30 to 60 minutes. Stir occasionally and add the final half-cup of broth if all the liquid is absorbed before the peas are tender—don’t let them dry out or scorch on the bottom of the pan. 

    Step 2

    When the peas are done, allow them to cool. Discard the bay leaf. Transfer the peas to a food processor using a slotted spoon and reserving any remaining cooking liquid in case needed. Add 5 tablespoons of the olive oil and the lemon juice and process until smooth. The consistency should be like mashed potatoes. If the mixture is too dry, add any stock that remained in the pan or a couple of tablespoons of water. Add the oregano or parsley and pulse until well distributed. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

    Step 3

    Mound the fava in a serving bowl and top with a sprinkle of paprika and the remaining diced onion and tablespoon of olive oil or more to taste. If making ahead, refrigerate and then let it come to room temperature before digging in. Garnish with capers, caramelized onions and lemon wedges as desired.

    Quick Kitchen Hack: Once a week I like to make a batch of caramelized onions. Not only are they great on the fava, but they’re also delicious as a condiment or flavor booster on everything from eggs and burgers to steamed vegetables and even toast. Slice three or four large onions and sauté in 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Cook them low and slow—it could take up to an hour—until completely soft and brown, a sign that their natural sugar has been released. Finish with a splash of your favorite balsamic vinegar, pack into a glass jar, and refrigerate.

    Yields 6 appetizer servings.

Healthy Ingredient Spotlight: Quick Croutons to garnish homemade meals

Healthy Ingredient Spotlight

Superstar Legumes

Legumes are superstars among plant-based foods because of their fiber, protein and wealth of other nutrients. Within legumes is the group called pulses. These are specifically plants that have pods, explains USA Pulses, and a pulse itself is the dry edible seed within the pod. Among the most delicious types are whole and split dry yellow and green peas; green, French green, red, black and small brown lentils; and a veritable army of beans, including the well-known kidney beans, great northern beans and black-eyed peas (a bean, not actually a pea!), adzuki beans, the oversized cranberry bean, and, yes, the fava bean. Explore more at pulses.org.

Healthy Kitchen Tip: Storing Squash

Healthy Kitchen Nugget

To Soak or Not to Soak

Not all legumes need a long soak before they can be used. Simply rinse lentils and dried peas, removing any tiny pebbles you might find. For cooking, a good rule of thumb is to start with 2.5 cups liquid per 1 cup lentils, 2 cups liquid for 1 cup dried peas, and add more as needed during cooking. They’re often tender after a 30-minute simmer.  

You can cook beans without soaking first, but they’ll take a lot longer. For chickpeas, use 3 cups water to 1 cup chickpeas, and soak for 8 to 24 hours. For beans, use enough water to cover and soak overnight. Your bowl should allow for the beans to double or triple in size. Drain, rinse with cool water and simmer 1.5 to 2 hours, depending on your recipe. 

For a faster no-soak method, USA Pulses recommends a quick boil and rest: Boil 2 cups water and 1 cup beans for 3 minutes, or 3 cups water and 1 cup chickpeas for 2 minutes. Remove from heat, cover and wait 1 hour before proceeding with your recipe.

For Your Best Health: Homemade meals and your health

For Your Best Health

Gluten-Free Legume Pasta

You know that regular pasta is part of the pantheon of refined flour-based products that lack the micronutrients of whole grains. Enriched pasta contains some, but hardly all, of the vitamins and minerals lost when the wheat is refined. But whole-grain pasta isn’t the only alternative, particularly if you want gluten-free or simply fewer carbs. Enter legume-based pasta—black beans, chickpeas and red lentils are taking the starring spots among pasta alternatives from companies like Eden Foods and even pasta king, Barilla. Plus, they have more fiber and more protein than whole-grain pasta, according to a report by UC Berkeley. To keep the goodness going, think vegetable- and olive oil-based sauces rather than butter or cream.

Fitness Flash: Setting Achievable Exercise Goals

Fitness Flash

The Truth About Diet and Exercise

Whether you’re a casual or serious fitness enthusiast, you know that exercise and diet work together to build a better body. But it turns out that some sports nutrition lore is actually incorrect. At last year’s meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine, renowned Newton, Massachusetts-based sports nutritionist Nancy Clark, RD, set the record straight.

  • You don’t need protein supplements to build muscle. Getting about 110 to 150 grams of real protein a day will do it. To increase muscle size, the answer is strength training.
     
  • Think protein if you want a bedtime snack. In fact, a study published in the British Journal of Nutrition in 2018 found that a cup of cottage cheese about an hour before you turn in will help with muscle repair while you sleep.
     
  • For vegans, make sure to get enough leucine, the amino acid that triggers muscles to grow. Nonanimal sources include nuts, seeds, soy foods, lentils, beans and other plant proteins. Since a standard serving of most of these plant-based foods doesn’t have as much leucine as a serving of meat, for instance, you might need to have a serving at every meal and for snacks to get the recommended daily intake, Clark advises. 

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The Olive Oil Hunter News #6

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Grilled Skirt Steak with Salsa Verde Recipe, Spotlight on Indoor Herb Gardens, the Power of Protein-Rich Foods and Weight Training

Americans have had a love affair with the backyard grill for nearly 100 years, and you have carmaker Henry Ford to thank. Back in the day, wood was used in various components of the Model T, and the milling left quite a lot of scrap. Ford found a way to capitalize on the waste, using a formula developed by a chemist for combining it with tar and cornstarch and turning it into lumps. Ford marketed the new product as briquettes, and they were soon being sold in grilling kits at car dealerships, adding another facet to the adventurous American lifestyle he had pioneered. 

As grilling (and smoking) meat has been elevated to a culinary art, many chefs have turned to natural hardwoods, not just as a flavor enhancer but also as a full alternative to Ford’s invention. I prefer hardwood lump charcoal to briquettes because they don’t contain any additives. Above all, you want to stay away from briquettes labeled “fast-starting” because they contain lighter fluid—in fact, lighter fluid shouldn’t have any place in grilling. (The Healthy Kitchen Nugget below has more on how to use hardwood.)

Grilled Skirt Steak with Salsa Verde

  • The Olive Oil Hunter News #6 Grilled Skirt Steak with Salsa Verde

    If you love to grill like I do, you probably don’t limit yourself to summer BBQs. Here’s a perfect dish for a crisp fall evening.

    Ingredients

    For the salsa verde:
    • 1-1/2 cups packed flat-leaf parsley 
    • 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
    • 1/4 cup capers, drained
    • 1 to 2 anchovy fillets (optional) 
    • 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
    • 2 medium cloves garlic, minced (about 2 teaspoons) 
    • 1 tablespoon lemon juice 
    • 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest 
    • Kosher salt 
    • Freshly ground black pepper 

    For the steak: ​

    • One 2-pound skirt steak
    • Kosher salt
    • Freshly ground black pepper 

    Directions

    Step 1

    To make the salsa verde, roughly chop the parsley and place it, along with the olive oil, capers, anchovies (if using), vinegar, garlic and lemon juice and zest, in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Pulse until the parsley is well chopped, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a gravy boat or a small bowl and set aside. 

    Step 2

    Set up your grill or grill pan for indirect grilling, and heat it to medium-high. Generously season both sides of the steak with salt and pepper. Grill for about 3 minutes per side, or until done to your liking. Let rest for 2 minutes before carving thinly against the grain. Serve with the salsa verde.

    Quick kitchen hack: Carving the right way is key with certain cuts of meat, like skirt or flank steak. Whether you see it described as “on the diagonal,” “on a bias” or “against the grain,” it means the same thing—slicing in the direction opposite the meat’s muscle fibers. So, if you’re looking at your steak and the fibers are running vertically from top to bottom, you want to slice horizontally or across from side to side. The reason is simple: This creates a more tender chew.

Healthy Ingredient Spotlight: Quick Croutons to garnish homemade meals

Healthy Ingredient Spotlight

Indoor Herb Gardens

If your outdoor herb garden is nearing its end or if you don’t have one at all, it’s time to start growing herbs indoors. Parsley for my salsa verde is a great first choice, and then consider basil, cilantro and rosemary for a versatile mix. 

All you need are a few steps to replicate the outdoor conditions that herbs like. Because even a sunny windowsill doesn’t get a full 14 or so hours of summer-style daylight once fall arrives, grow lights are a great help. You can get a simple floor or desk model to shine on your plants or go full board with a stacking modular shelf and light system that can support racks of plants (to see one example, check out gardeners.com).

Starting new plants from seeds will give them a healthy advantage if you think you’ll move them outdoors come spring. But it’s easier (and faster) to buy small transplants if you want a head start. According to University of Maryland Extension, a good rule of (green) thumb is to use two parts of soilless potting mixture and one part of perlite. If space allows, grow each herb in its own pot—that way, you can water each one with the right frequency. Make sure your containers have drainage holes and sit in a dish or tray to catch any excess water. Keep your plants away from drafts as well as heat vents. Mist them every day to create some humidity, especially if the air in your home is dry. Be patient before cutting in order to give your herbs time to take hold. And when you do clip some sprigs, resist taking more than a third of the plant at one time. Find out more here.

Healthy Kitchen Tip: Chimney Starter

Healthy Kitchen Nugget

Grilling Tip: Chimney Starter

My friend Steven Raichlen, the ultimate grill master, has an amazing website called barbecuebible.com, where he details the best ways to get your grill fire going. The secret is a chimney starter, a metal cylinder or box with two sections, one for the charcoal and the other for a wad of newspaper. Place the loaded chimney starter on the bottom grate of your grill, light the newspaper and, in 15 to 20 minutes, the charcoal will be ready to go.

For Your Best Health: Protein-Rich Foods

For Your Best Health

Protein-Rich Foods

Protein-rich foods don’t just taste great, but they’re also the body’s building blocks, keeping muscles strong and helping us stay vital and independent. But did you know that our protein needs increase as we get older and that eating more of it has many benefits? 

One study, published in the journal Nutrients, found that people who eat between 20% and 50% more than the standard suggested daily amount (that’s technically .36 grams for every pound you weigh) have greater lower-body strength and a faster walking speed. 

Another study, published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, compared protein intake among its participants and found that those who ate the most protein had less risk of developing Alzheimer’s than those who ate the least. The researchers pegged an ideal amount at about 120 grams of protein a day. 

The top highest protein-rich foods are lean beef, pork, lamb, turkey, chicken, fish and shellfish, with about 7 grams per ounce; eggs, with 6 grams each; edamame, lentils and beans, with 8-9 grams per half cup; milk and yogurt, with about 8 grams per 8 ounces; and nuts, with 4-6 grams per ounce, according to Hopkins Medicine.

Fitness Flash: Weight Training

Fitness Flash

Weight Training

Diet is only one part of the health equation. Exercise is the other. While cardio workouts are vital, you might not be getting the weight training that you need for optimal strength. If the idea of working out with weights doesn’t appeal to you, research published in Sage Open Medicine points out that resistance bands can be just as effective. And a research review in the journal Sports Medicine found that we can get great gains, particularly in arms and legs, from these stretchy pieces of elastic, even later in life. The bands come in a variety of tensions, so you can easily increase the difficulty as you gain strength to keep those gains coming.

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The Olive Oil Hunter News #5

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Cauliflower Steaks with Dukkah Recipe, Spotlight on Cauliflower, Benefits of Plant-based Eating and Mind-Body Exercise

I’m intrigued by all the latest meat alternatives, but concerned about what’s really in them. That’s why, when you want to go meatless, I’m a much bigger fan of using vegetables, like cauliflower, that have a chewy mouthfeel. Served on a light brioche bun and topped with your favorite condiments, a Portobello mushroom “burger” can be oh-so-satisfying. And there’s no reason to stop there. This issue of The Olive Oil Hunter Newsletter has one of my favorite beef substitutes of all time, so let’s get cooking…

A New Twist on a Classic:
Cauliflower “Steaks” With Dukkah

These days, cauliflower is on menus all over the globe, prepared a myriad of ways because it makes such a great canvas for spices, but I’ll never forget the meal I had at the legendary Charlie Trotter’s restaurant back in the late ’90s. That dinner was the first time I ever had cauliflower steak and it was completely innovative. Trotter was already a legend for elevating vegetables to the starring role at the table, and for me, as a young culinary student, the dish was an eye-opener—how cooking techniques and interesting ingredients could transform simple produce in ways most people, even other chefs of the era, couldn’t imagine.

  • The Olive Oil Hunter News #5 Cauliflower “Steaks” With Dukkah

    My twist on this now-classic dish is to serve it with dukkah, a little-known nut-and-spice blend that’s Egyptian in origin but has been wildly popularized half a world away in Australia. Dukkah is wonderful on vegetables, but you can use it to make compound butter or as a sandwich spread, to add zest to a basic pesto, or simply instead of salt and pepper—I like to think of it as five layers of flavor in one little sprinkle. At Aussie restaurants, you’ll often find it added to the dish of olive oil that is served with bread.

    Ingredients

    • 2 large heads of cauliflower
    • Extra virgin olive oil
    • Coarse kosher or sea salt
    • 2 lemons, each cut into 4 wedges, separated
    • Fresh chopped curly parsley

    For the dukkah:

    • 1 cup hazelnuts, cashews or almonds 
    • 1/2 cup sesame seeds
    • 1/4 cup coriander seeds
    • 2 tablespoons cumin seeds
    • 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
    • 1 teaspoon coarse salt
    • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne

    Directions

    Step 1

    To make the dukkah, start by toasting the nuts. Place them on a rimmed baking sheet and roast for about 10 minutes at 350°F until lightly browned. Set aside to cool (it’s not necessary to remove their skins), reserving the baking sheet for the cauliflower. Dry-toast the sesame, coriander and cumin seeds in a small frying pan on the stovetop, stirring constantly until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Keep your eye on them because they can burn easily. Transfer the nuts and seeds to a food processor and add the salt, pepper and cayenne. Pulse just until crumbly. Don’t overprocess, or the dukkah will turn into a paste. Alternatively you can use a mortar and pestle or spice grinder. (This can be made in advance. Refrigerate if not using immediately.)

    Step 2

    Next, turn the oven up to 400°F and prep the cauliflower. Remove the green outer leaves from each head and carefully trim back the stem. Stand the cauliflower upright on a cutting board and cut 2 “steaks,” each about ¾” thick, from the center of each head. Reserve the remaining cauliflower florets for another dish. 

    Step 3

    Arrange the steaks on the rimmed baking sheet (you may need an additional sheet if the heads are very large). For each slice, brush both sides with olive oil and squeeze on the juice from one lemon wedge. Season with salt and pepper. Roast, turning once with a spatula, until the cauliflower is tender and both sides are nicely browned, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a platter and liberally dust each piece with the dukkah. Drizzle with more olive oil, sprinkle with parsley, and serve with the rest of the lemon wedges. 

    Yields 4 servings. ​

Healthy Ingredient Spotlight: Cauliflower

Healthy Ingredient Spotlight

Cauliflower

Cauliflower is just one of the superfood vegetables in the cruciferous family, which also includes broccoli, Brussels sprouts, bok choy and cabbage as well as watercress, kale, mustard greens and even horseradish. What sets them apart from other veggies are compounds called glucosinolates, which during digestion are thought to prompt an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant response in the body, according to the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University. This response may be why cruciferous veggies have been linked to helping fight off illnesses from heart disease to certain types of cancer.

Healthy Kitchen Tip: Substitute Rice with Cauliflower Rice

Healthy Kitchen Nugget

Cauliflower Rice: The Healthy Substitute

If you took chemistry in high school, you probably remember the stink of sulfur in experiments. The reason that cruciferous veggies like cauliflower can emit a similar smell is because of the very same glucosinolates that give them their health benefits…these compounds contain sulfur. The key to minimizing the aroma is in the cooking—coat lightly with olive oil and roast at high heat or sauté rather than boil. These methods also preserve more of the nutrients.

Quick kitchen hack: Cauliflower “rice” is a great substitute for regular rice, both to save on carbs and get in lots of nutrients. It also cooks up much faster. And if you’re like my grandmother, who’s in her 80s and managing diabetes, it’s a great way to enjoy favorite dishes like curries without a carb overload. While you can now buy cauliflower rice frozen year-round, it takes just seconds to make your own at home when it’s in season. Cut florets into even chunks and pulse a few times in a food processor until they turn into rice-like pieces.

For Your Best Health: Flexible Vegetarian Eating with Cauliflower

For Your Best Health

Benefits of Flexible Vegetarian Eating

If you’re still searching for a forever diet or getting a little bored with the eating plan you’re on, being a flexitarian might be perfect for you. Plant-based eating is at the heart of this diet, shorthand for “flexible vegetarian.” It’s built on a foundation of vegetables, fruits, (whole) grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, plant-based oils, eggs and dairy, yet you can also choose to have traditional protein sources, from seafood to meat. You might be mostly vegetarian when eating at home, for example, and have meat when eating out. (As with any healthy diet, you want to limit refined carbs, including sugar.)

This flexibility allows many people to stick with the plan for life. Experts at Western Oregon University suggest one way to scale into it: Start by eliminating meat at 6 to 8 of the 21 meals you have each week. After a few weeks, progress to 9 to 14 meatless meals a week. You want to ultimately aim for 15 or more meat-free meals per week.

For the greatest health benefits, the American Institute for Cancer Research recommends limiting red meat and saving processed meats like sausages and bacon for the rarest occasions.

Fitness Flash: Benefits of Mind-Body Exercise

Fitness Flash

The Benefits of Mind-Body Exercise

Chances are you know the advantages of yoga, a wonderful mind-body exercise. Its careful breathing and slow, deep stretches have been studied for benefits like stress relief, flexibility and better balance, and as many as 36 million Americans practice it regularly. While you might have also heard of tai chi, another mind-body exercise, it’s less likely you’ve tried it—it has only about one-tenth the number of enthusiasts as yoga. But now may be the perfect time to add it to your fitness menu.

Though both tai chi and yoga have similar benefits, including helping you achieve a sense of well-being and inner peace, tai chi uses a different type of movement. Originally a martial art, it’s known for graceful, low-impact standing moves done with deep diaphragmatic breathing. A study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society found that doing an hour of tai chi one to three times a week helps many people lower their risk of falling. Other studies have found that it can improve posture and may sharpen your brain and boost your mood—and who doesn’t need that these days?

Tai chi is often done outdoors because of the importance of drawing energy from nature (this also makes it easy to physically distance), but you can tap into virtual options, too. Harvard Health, for one, offers an online tai chi course with 20 moves to get you started. Find it at harvardhealthonlinelearning.com.

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