Iced Ginger Tea with Lemon

While May has been quite a rainy unspring-like month, we have had a few really warm days that tell us Summer is on it's way. In the summer I often turn to refreshing drinks during the day time, as a way to spice up that usual cold glass of water. I usually go on 'streaks', where I drink a particular concoction every day for a few weeks. Last summer it was lemon water. Every morning, and sometimes in the afternoon, I'd have a large glass of water with half a lemon squeezed into it, with lots of ice. Very refreshing and a good dose of vitamin C. Last summer I also experimented with Iced Green Tea. I loved having a pitcher of it in the fridge, as you cannot really make iced tea on demand. I'm not big into sweet beverages so adding just a bit of frozen fruit does the trick.

A few weeks ago I made some ginger tea as a way to use up some ginger I had laying around. I loosely followed this recipe. I didn't like it so much warm, but after chilling it in the fridge and adding some lemon I loved it! The lemon neutralizes a bit of the spice of the ginger and makes quite a refreshing beverage.

The easiest way to make this is to:

1. Slice the ginger, add some cold water, bring to a boil, cover, remove from heat and then let sit on the stove until it is warm to touch.

2. Transfer to a pitcher (removing ginger pieces) and put in the fridge.

3. Once chilled, add the juice of 1 lemon (for about 4 servings).

The more ginger you add, or the longer you let the water simmer, the stronger the ginger flavour will be.

Again, I don't sweeten this usually but a few frozen raspberries add some natural sweetness.

I am looking forward to experimenting with some more iced tea combinations as the summer approaches.

I also would like to share that I baked my first yeast bread last week without the use of a bread machine. I made the Oatmeal Sandwich Bread from Good to the Grain. I had to make a substitution so the bread was a bit crumbly but the flavour was still amazing! It was great on its own with some jam or peanut butter. I saved a butt end of the loaf to make a stuffed french toast similar to this. The long weekend is a great time to experiment with new breakfast recipes and I am totally taking advantage. I have recently played around with chickpea flour and I have an idea for a pancake recipe which I am hoping turns out so I can share it with you all.

Hopefully everyone is having a great long weekend and have managed to get into the outdoors a bit. Here is a shot I took on Saturday from Princess Point in Hamilton.

Not the nicest scenery but it was nice to be outside. On Mother's Day weekend I got a nicer shot from the Bayfront on the other side of the bridge.

One thing is for sure, the rain is sure making the grass green.

My First Whole Foods Trip and Stir Fried Rice

What a lovely day it has been today. It reached about 17 degrees C, but with the sun felt much warmer. I wore capris, and sandals, and was very warm wearing shorts and a T shirt on my run. Not only was the weather nice but I went to Whole Foods in Oakville for the first time. I have heard all about it through reading lots of American blogs and just couldn't wait to go myself. I figured today would be a perfect day! (disregarding the volume of shoppers out on this Holiday weekend Saturday)

The produce section was smaller than I expected but the rest of the store sure made up for it. The meat/seafood section was VERY impressive. There was lots of organic and "properly raised" meat, along with a big selection of grass fed beef, which is where my Dad picked it up for my 23rd Birthday dinner. The seafood is all labeled with where it is from and they had a lot of sustainably wild caught and properly farmed fish. There was also an impressive amount of prepared foods. I was very glad I ate lunch before I went because I would not have been able to resist the salad and hot food bar.

Any lingering hunger I had was supressed by the samples throughout the store. I tried a strawberry jalapeno jam on brie cheese. It was amazing and definitely worth the 8 dollars a jar for a special occasion. There was a ton of in-house made foods. Fresh pasta, sauces, salads, soups, sandwiches, pizza, meats, anything you could ever want! Was it pricey? Yes. But you know what, if I could afford it, didn't have the time to prepare something, and wanted to ensure I was eating something made from real food with natural ingredients, I would definitely head to Whole Foods (if there was one in my city, anyway).

Although I took the trip mostly just to take a look, see what all the hype was about, and check out some prices of some of my favourite products, I knew I would buy myself something. First I picked up some Green Mountain Gringo Hot Salsa which was on sale for $2, regular $6! To go along with that I chose one of my favourite brands of tortilla chips Guiltless Gourmet. I chose the spinach artichoke parmesan flavour. This brand is awesome because the seasonings are made with natural ingredients, a rare find in "healthy" chips. Finally, I picked up a berry scone. As soon as I saw it I knew that is what I wanted to have for breakfast on Easter Sunday when Lent is finally over. The cherry on top of the whole trip was that at the checkout, I got the chips for free because they didn't scan, and got 10 cents off for bringing my own bag, all while we listened to the live Jazz band playing by the checkouts.

I could get used to that place.

I'll send you off with a recipe I put together one night when I got home late and was starving. It was quick, easy, and very filling.

Stir-Fried Rice

1/2 tbsp olive oil
dried chili pepper (whatever you can handle)
~2 cups of frozen veggies (I used a blend of broccoli, pepper, carrot, beans, and water chestnuts)
1 garlic clove
1 tsp minced ginger
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 egg
1 egg white
dash of milk
soy sauce to taste

1. Heat oil with chili pepper on medium heat.
2. Add half defrosted veggies and garlic, and saute until no longer frozen.
3. Add ginger and rice and stir to combine. Heat for 3 minutes or so.
4. Meanwhile, beat egg, egg white and milk together. In a pan on medium-low heat, cook egg until about 1/2 done. Add to rice mixture and stir to combine, stirring until egg is cooked and veggies/rice are hot.
5. Serve topped with a bit of soy sauce.

This was my first time making a fried rice with egg and it turned out pretty good. I have made this twice since, and will probably make it many more times.

Have a fantastic Easter weekend!

Apple Cinnamon Rice Pudding

After almost 4 weeks with no treats, I have been in need for something sweet. This is a perfect time for me to experiment with modifying some traditional desserts to contain no added sugar (or very little) and I have yet to do this. Until today!  Rice pudding is something I have not really had before. I have definitely tried a spoonful or something, but never really eaten a serving myself. That being said, I am no rice pudding expert. I imagine that it is usually quite sweet and creamy, after taking a look at some traditional recipes out there. This recipe contains no butter, no dairy, and no added sugar, and while it uses white Arborio rice and not brown rice, I'd say it is a fairly healthy alternative to the traditional.

Apple Cinnamon Rice Pudding

2 cups water
1 cup Arborio rice
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup unsweetened soy milk
3 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ginger
3 tbsp chopped walnuts

1. Bring water to a boil, and add arborio rice. Once a simmer is reached, add applesauce. Reduce to low-medium heat and continue to stir.
2. In a separate pan, warm soy milk, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.
3. As the rice mixture thickens, add the milk mixture 1/3 cup at a time. After each addition, continue to stir until no longer liquidy, then add the next milk portion. Continue until all the milk mixture has been added and the rice is thick and soft. Stir in walnuts.
4. Remove from stovetop, allow to cool (will thicken more), and refrigerate.

 
I am going to be straight with you, this isn't the sweetest dessert out there. If it wasn't for Lent, you bet I'd be drizzling it with a bit of maple syrup, or adding a couple tsp of brown sugar to the milk mixture. Even using some sweetened vanilla soy milk would have made it a little better. Come to think of it, in it's current state, this recipe would make a pretty good breakfast on a weekend. Next time I would also add more of the cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger; dare I say double it.

I am not sure if this satisfied my craving for something sweet but I have a few other tricks up my sleeve.

Spiced Veggies and Chickpeas

I made this dish last week when all I wanted was to consume a large amount of vegetables that were packed with flavour. I added the chickpeas to add some protein to make it a little more hearty. I wish I could say I remember exactly how much of everything I added but I can't. All I know is that I knew from the get go that a basic pan would not hold all my veggies, and that a saucepan would have to be used. Turns out this was an excellent idea, as the vegetables got very soft and almost stew like, without the sauce. In this recipe I got to use a spice combination I picked up at the One of a Kind Craft Show in Toronto in December. It is called dukkah. It is great on toasted naan or pita, but also makes a nice topping to dishes such as this. By the way, I cannot wait for the next show to treat myself to another new spice/condiment. The products that you can find there are fantastic. Oh...and did I mention there are free samples...EVERYWHERE?!?


Spiced Vegetables with Chickpeas

I appologize for how rough this recipe is, but it must be flexible since I winged it and it turned out great. It is also all about your taste and how much spice you can handle. Don't like ginger? Use less or leave it out. Love garlic? Start mincing those cloves! I also kept the size of the chopped veggies fairly large which is also a matter of taste.

1.5 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp chili flakes
1.5 tsp cumin
red onion, chopped
cremini mushrooms, sliced
carrots, chopped
celery, chopped
brussel sprouts (cut into halves/quarters)
1 can of water chestnuts
1 small cauliflower head, chopped
1 brocolli crown, chopped
3/4 tsp tumeric
4 coves garlic, minced
1 tbsp chopped fresh ginger
1 can chickpeas
black pepper
1-2 tbsp sesame oil

1. Heat olive oil over medium-high heat with chili flakes and cumin. Once fragrant, add the onions and saute for a couple minutes.
2. Add the rest of the vegetables. Stir well for 5-10 minutes until vegetables begin to cook.
3. Add tumeric and stir well to combine.
4. Add chickpeas, garlic, ginger, and black pepper. Stir and continue to heat on medium until vegetables are soft.
5. Drizzle with some sesame oil, mix in well and remove from heat.
6. Serve with dukkah sprinkled on top.

This is a good intermediate dish between wanting the fresh salads riddled with vegetables of the summer, but still craving the warm comfort food of winter.