Year of the Green Goddess

That sandwich was a month on toast. A good month. Not a perfect one but a little braver and with a very satisfying crunch at the end there.

If you're wondering (and I'm always wondering), that is multi-grain toast spread on top with a thin sheen of Rare Bird's Plum Cardamom Orange Preserves which are then holding a substantial blanket of baby spinach in place. Beneath that we've got some fresh roast chicken (a favorite in these parts) and lower still, mixed greens. From there, we pick the sweetness back up again with thin slices of Granny Smith apple. All good things, yes? Good, great in some cases, but not magic. The magic is that last element before we're back to toast (ashes to ashes). You can barely see it on the bottom there.

A closer look. Thick and rich and fully earning its name- Green Goddess.

These are the ingredients for magic and it was a group effort so my thanks to Pop Pop, Elana and Jenn for their respective bits of inspiration. Pop really was the original goddess charmer and I have clear memories of sneaking dips of romaine spears into the blender in the fridge when he was acting as chef-in-residence on his visits. Anchovies are never negotiable when it comes to Pop and I quite agree with him. One thing I did on my own though? No mayo. No oil. Just all manner of green things and some fat free Greek yogurt. Three veggie trays, two salads and one sandwich later, you would never have known that this was holistically healthy by the responses (mine included).

I brought this one to Gina's annual Eve of the Eve dinner. It did a tremendous job balancing out all that wine.

I brought this one to North Woods New Year's at Bob and Christina's. All the while, whenever I started to run low on the special sauce, I treated it like a starter and just kept adding yogurt, herbs and the like.

Green Goddess Dip/ Dressing/ Spread/ Fantastma

16.7 oz container of fat free or low fat Greek yogurt
4 whole cloves of garlic
1 tin of flat rolled anchovies
1-2 cups of fresh spinach leaves, depending on your preferred level of green
2 green onions, roughly chopped
1/3 cup fresh basil leaves (leaves of 4-5 stems)
2 TB fresh tarragon leaves
1 TB fresh oregano leaves
1 ripe avocado (halved, pitted and removed from shell)
Juice of half a lemon
1/2 tsp of kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste

Optional: 1-2 ounces of Roquefort. Great tip from Pop but clearly a little evil. Not a lot for the whole recipe but does add a little something.

Put it all in the bowl of a food processor and whir till you have a uniform mixture. Scrape down the sides, whir some more. I added a little more spinach and some extra lemon at this point for color and zing. And then I made sure it was safe for at least three coated spatulas. I'm a health hazard, what can I tell you? If you want it a little looser for salad dressing, a little water goes a long way.

Unrelated but I noticed this in all my veggie plate prep...how gorgeous is the inside of a red pepper? Happy New Year. That really was a great sandwich.

Couscous with Kale, Clementines, Toasted Almonds and a Poached Farm Egg

Look at that hotbed of overexposed deliciousness. I do feel like I should apologize for the photo but even with the extended bit of daylight (glorious sunshine), I couldn't figure out my dinner decisions till close to eight. No natural light= no lovely photo. I'm sure you understand and I promise I'm about to make it up to you.

I've started saving my cash and calories for my big adventure next month and it's led to a pretty lovely upturn in conscious decision-making. I'll wait till we're 3-4 weeks in to say it's a routine but thanks to the lovely Coach G, things are looking good that I'll stick with it. One hour, five days a week. That's it. Nothing really insane happens during that hour but I sweat and it feels good.

Along with increased activity, I'm eating in when I might typically have eaten out. Aside from a spectacular dinner on Saturday with Caroline at Green Zebra, I've been trying to stay creative with my mealtimes at Wicked Park.

There's a restaurant in my neighborhood called Mana that I've loved since it opened. Mostly vegetarian, inventive and seasonal...tough to ask for much more in a neighborhood joint. Ever since I tried their red quinoa with almonds, currants, mint and tangerine dressing, it's something I crave regularly. I resisted the urge to pick some up and instead tried to recreate with what I had on hand. Recipe serves two so I could relive it for lunch at the office.

Couscous with Kale, Clementine, Toasted Almonds and a Poached Farm Egg


1 cup chicken broth (homemade if you've got it)
1 3/4 tsp olive oil
pinch salt
1 cup couscous (not quite as healthy as quinoa but what I had on hand)
1/4 cup sliced almonds
2 TB water
3 stalks of kale, leaves stripped and cut into 1-2 inch pieces
1 clementine, broken into sections then cut in half again for thinner slices
1 egg
1 tsp white vinegar (optional)
Freshly ground pepper to taste

1) Prepare couscous according to box instructions. Really couldn't be easier. Bring your chicken broth and 3/4 teaspoon of olive oil to a boil. Turn off the heat, add your couscous and cover. Wait 5 minutes, uncover and fluff with a fork. Done.

2) Heat a small frying pan to medium then add your almonds. These will toast quickly so toss them lightly in the pan every 30 seconds until they become fragrant and just slightly golden. Toss these into a ramekin or small bowl-we'll use them in a minute.

3) Add about 2 tablespoons of water to the pan and turn the heat back to medium. Add your kale and cover till the greens are steamed but still bright green in color. Should take about 3-4 minutes.

4) Discard any extra liquid and add kale, almonds and clementine pieces to the couscous. Mix well, divide between plates (and tupperware in my case) then cover plates to keep 'em warm.

5) Can you even believe you're almost done?

6) This is the part that people occasionally find daunting. Poaching the egg(s). Wash out your pot from the couscous and refill about 2/3 full with water. Add the teaspoon of vinegar and bring to a boil.

7) Crack your egg into a ramekin or small bowl (perhaps the one you used for the almonds?) and have it at the ready. Don't skip this part because you don't want to crack the egg directly into that very hot water, it's harder to be gentle.

8) When the water boils, turn down the heat and swirl the water around with a spoon. Gently slide the egg into the center of the swirling, no longer boiling water.

9) After 3-4 minutes have passed, remove the egg with a slotted spoon and place it atop the couscous. Top with ground pepper and enjoy.

Absolutely delicious, takes almost no time or prep and heart-healthy. Yes, please.