Dinner Party: Tri-Tip Roast

There is nothing quite like a Sunday roast for entertaining guests and filling the house with delicious smells.

For the best flavor, I suggest letting the meat marinate overnight.






Ingredients:
2 lb tri-tip roast

1/2 cup olive oil
3/4 cup white wine
1 cup orange juice
rosemary
thyme
salt
pepper

(optional)
sliced carrots
yellow onion
celery

Directions:
Combine olive oil, wine, juice and seasonings. Pour over meat and marinate for 12 - 24 hours, rotating occasionally.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Slice carrots, onions and/or celery place in bottom of roasting pan. Remove roast from marinade and place on top of vegetables.

Cook meat at 425 for 15 minutes. Lower temperature of oven to 350 degrees continue cooking for an additional 20 - 30 minutes until meat reaches an internal temperature of 135 degrees Fahrenheit (for medium rare doneness).

Remove from oven and let sit for 5 - 10 minutes to seal in juices.

Best Served With: Roasties, Yorkshire Pudding, Green Beans, Salad, Red Wine

Rainy Day Recipe: Potato-Fennel Soup

When the weather is wet, the Spice Girl gets cooking!  After much traveling and eating on the run, I am happy to be back in the kitchen tonight.  I got my latest box of organic produce from my CSA this week and it was packed full of some hearty vegetables, including - to my surprise - a bulb of fennel.

Now, fennel is not normally a vegetable that I would pick up in the store and buy, but that's why I love my CSA box.  It pushes my creativity in the kitchen.  So with the weather outside pouring down, I decided to whip up a delicious and warm potato-fennel soup.

Ingredients:
olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
2 cups vegetable broth
potatoes (I used about 15 fingerling potatoes)
1 bulb fresh fennel, chopped
salt
pepper
cream

Supplies:
Hot Plate
Pot
Cutting Board & Knife
Hand Blender
Ladel

Directions:
Start by sauteing the onions in olive oil over medium heat in your cooking pot.  When onions are soft and slightly translucent, add the vegetable broth and bring to a boil.

In the meantime, chop potatoes and fennel and add to pot.  Cook for approximately 20 - 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are soft.

When potatoes are soft remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes.  Then puree the vegetables using the hand blender until smooth.  Add salt, pepper and dash of cream to taste.

Simple, absolutely delicious, and extra servings store well for lunch.  Bon apetit!

Homemade Turkey Stew

I had already taken a bowl
before the picture :)

On a rainy day like this, there is nothing quite like a stew to warm the soul.

This cleanse-friendly stew is my first meat recipe on the blog.  After many years of vegetarian- and pescetarian-ism, I began eating organic meats in small portions when my body was encountering some health problems and I had to go off of carbohydrates for a while (my vegetarian diet being very carb-heavy).  So now instead of calling myself "vegetarian" or "pescetarian," I've settled for "I'm just particular."  :)  I was never much into labels anyway. 

I hope you meat-eaters out there enjoy the recipe. 

Ingredients:
1 lb turkey thighs or breast, cut into cubes
1 small yellow onion, peeled and chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1/2 qt vegetable or chicken broth
3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into slices
1 medium turnip, peeled, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes
(parsnips, rutabagas and beets are all good subs/additions too)
1/2 t salt
pinch of rosemary
pinch of thyme
pinch of basil
fresh ground pepper to taste
garlic to taste
olive oil

Supplies:
Hot Plate
Toaster Oven
Shallow Oven-Safe Dish with Lid
Cutting Board + Knife

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Place pan on hot plate and heat small amount of olive oil over medium high heat.  Add turkey pieces and brown, 2-3 minutes on each side.  Add onions and celery to pan.  Cooking for 2-3 more minutes until onions start to become slightly translucent.

Add salt and 1/2 the broth.  Bring to simmer.  Cover and place pan in oven, cooking for one hour.

After an hour, remove from oven and add the rest of the vegetables, herbs and stock  Return to the oven and cook until vegetables are tender - approximately one hour.

Remove and let cool slightly before serving.

Warm Beet Salad

A delicious and colorful winter salad.

Beets are low on calories, full of vitamins, remove toxins from the body and nourish the bloodstream.  So why aren't you eating more of them?  Well now, there is simply no excuse.





Ingredients:
1-3 Beets, depending on size and your appetite
Vinaigrette
Goat Cheese
Fresh Mint
Orange Wedges

Supplies:
Foil
Cutting Board
Knife
Toaster Oven

Directions:
Preheat toaster oven to 450 degrees.  Rinse beets and cut off tops.  Wrap in foil and cook in oven for 40 - 50 minutes, cooking until soft.  Remove from oven and let cool.

When cool enough to handle, peel skin off beets (watch out for perma-pink fingertips).  Slice beets and arrange on plate.

Peel orange and break into segments.  Add to top of beets.  Drizzle vinaigrette over the top of the beets.   Chop up fresh mint and sprinkle over the top of the salad, along with goat cheese.  Bon Apetit!


Warning:  Don't freak out if your pee turns red.  It's gonna happen.  Cuz beets are cool like dat.

Apple Cider-Acorn Squash Soup

Speaking of eating in-season.  This delicious winter soup uses acorn squash and in-season honeycrisp apples.  A small acorn squash produced two perfect single servings - one for dinner and one for lunch tomorrow.  (Also great for guests!)

Like any good soup, the  recipe is a little in-exact.  Just taste and alter to your liking and squash size.

Ingredients:
1 small acorn squash - the size of a large grapefruit
2 apples
1 cup vegetable broth
1 T butter
honey
cinnamon
nutmeg
allspice
salt and pepper

Supplies:
Toaster Oven and Baking Dish
Large Pot
Juicer (or just buy the apple juice/cider instead)
Hand Blender
Spoon

Directions:
Cut the acorn squash in half.  Spoon out seeds.  Place 1/2 tablespoon of butter in each half and drizzle with honey.

Roast the acorn squash in the toaster oven at 400 degrees.  Cooking time will vary based on your oven and squash size.  But 30 - 45 minutes is a good window.  Poke squash with fork and remove when soft.  Set aside to cool.

In the meantime, chop and juice the two apples.  Mine made about 12 ounces of juice.  Place apple juice in large pot and dash with cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice.  Bring to boil and reduce to simmer.  Cook for 5 - 10 minutes.

Add 1 cup vegetable broth and cook for a few more minutes.  Remove from heat. 

Drizzle any liquid butter and honey from the center of the squash into the pot, then scoop the squash out of its skin using a spoon.  Put squash in pot with juice/broth, throwing away the skin.

Using hand blender, puree squash into soup.  Add more broth as necessary for appropriate thickness.   Taste.  Add salt and pepper as desired.

Served Best With:  Fresh Bread

Candida Modification:  Lose the honey