Scrambled Tofu with Turmeric

This is my absolute favorite recipe when I am feeling sick, my tummy hurts or my joints ache! It is packed with turmeric (which always makes me feel clean on the inside and reduces inflammation) and butter (mmmmm). This is a real comfort food. Some of these ingredients are found at Indian specialty food shops. My favorite store for spices is called Kalustyan's. You can order online or visit their brick and mortar store on Lexington ave between 28th and 29th. Kalustyan's also has a great deli counter upstairs!

This recipe serves two. I like to double it up and use the leftovers as filling for my swiss chard rolls that I bring for lunch during the week! (note: hing is also called asafoetida).   

Ingredients

1/2 pound (1/2 package) tofu
1 tablespoon ghee or butter
1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/8 teaspoon hing
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin

Warm ghee or melt butter in heavy skillet. Add mustard seeds and heat until they begin to pop. Add tofu, putting whole cube into skillet and then mashing it into small pieces with a fork in the skillet. Add rest of ingredients, stirring well. Cook on medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes. 

We Swans love to eat this with a side of sautéed greens and a healthy grain. It is a quick, easy and comforting meal, perfect for nights when you get home late from work but still want something healthy and home cooked!

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Quinoa Crust Pizza

This GF flatbread/ pizza crust recipe is a weekend staple of our household. We have been topping it with pesto, kale, artichokes and feta. If you are avoiding dairy you can easily top with any delicious veggies that you like!

Ingredients:

Cooked Quinoa (1 cup dry) - cooked and cooled.
I have been cooking my quinoa and everything else in bone broth these days. 

2 eggs

1/4 teaspoon of arrowroot powder

pinch of cream of tartar

1/2 teaspoon of the following fresh rosemary, oregano, garlic powder, kelp or dulse granules, sea salt.

Fresh pepper

1 teaspoon olive oil

1/4 cup of cheese (totally optional) 

Pre-heat oven to 425. Mix the herbs, arrowroot, cream of tartar and pepper into the cooled quinoa. Make a well in the quinoa and beat the eggs + olive oil with a fork. Then mix well. 

Cover a small cookie sheet with parchment paper. Spread mixture into the cookie sheet making sure to even out the thickness. Place in the oven for 25-35 minutes. Be sure to check often. (I must mention my oven doesn't hold or maintain heat well so be sure to check your crust it might take more or less time!) The crust should brown a bit on top and around the edges, but more importantly when you lift a corner away from the parchment paper it should hold together. 

Once the crust is ready, pull it from the oven and top as you like! Then put it back in the oven until cheese is melted and kale is wilted. I like to bake mine for about 10 minutes and then put it under the broiler for a few to brown the cheese. Enjoy!

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Memorial Day Weekend Adventures!

Three day weekends are magic. They open up a world of possibilities to all the Monday to Friday people of the world. They should not be taken lightly and should certainly not be wasted. So have a cook-out, go on an adventure, spend the day inside on the sofa watching movies because you have not been able to do that for months. See a parade. Do some Pilates! Celebrate those who have died in the service of our country's armed forces by living a full and happy life!

Need some help figuring out what to do? We thought you'd never ask!

Memorial Day parade in Brooklyn, 1895! (Image from untapped cities.com)

In massive need of some R&R? Make yourself stop by the grocery store on your way home and pick up all the snacks you could possibly need. Our favorites are hummus, baba ghanoush, fresh mozzarella, cured meats, carrot sticks, rice crackers, deviled eggs...you get the idea! Then settle in for some serious sofa time. Time Out New York has a list of the 50 Best War movies in honor of the weekend!

Get outside! New York City is home to over 5,000 different public parks. Grab a blanket, a good book and some snacks (because snacks are important in case you had not noticed) and head to your favorite park for some quality time with the sun. Feeling extra adventurous? Go on an exploration and discover some of NYC's hidden green spaces! 

Image from ny.curbed.com

Bryant Park, 1925. Photo courtesy of the NYPL archives

Tis the season to impress your friends with your amazing cook-out food skills. Our cookout recipe suggestions from last summer remain spectacular! Never ones to settle when it comes to new recipes, we have found quite a few since then that we can't wait to pull out this weekend!

This Snap Pea, Watermelon and Edamame Salad is delicious and easy!

We continue to embrace our watermelon obsession with this wonderful Ceviche recipe!

If all you have been thinking about for weeks is firing up that girl, this recipe is for you. So is this one!

If you are lucky enough to get out of the city for the weekend, we would love to know where you are headed! Always looking for more great weekend retreat ideas to add to our #Adventuretime series!

Have a great weekend! See you in the studio!

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Three Turmeric Recipes

I may be a little bit obsessed with the Spring so I have been thinking a lot about sunshine and feeling good inside. Here are three recipes that are beautiful, delicious and inflammation reducing. I like to buy my turmeric from Kalustyan's.

This beverage recipe from Sense-Serendipidy.com breaks down why turmeric is so good for you as well as talking in depth about the other ingredients. Simple and delicious!

This elixir recipe from iFood.tv is a little bit more involved because it requires a juicer. Not to worry, there is a video detailing how to make the juice. AND it uses coconut water! YUM.

And this recipe from Ascensionkitchen.com is a raw mango turmeric tart. Need I say more?

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Swiss Chard Rolls

What's for lunch?! We have had our eat-clean, eat-healthy bug kicked back into gear at the same time as we needed a new go to for lunches. This week Swiss Chard Rolls have us satisfied, healthy and gluten free. Plus Chard is beautiful! 

When you are picking your chard, try to find the biggest leaves possible. Rinse before you set up to roll. If you have a smaller leaf and the center steam seems flexible you can use the whole leaf. Ideally if you find HUGE, gorgeous rainbow chard you can use half of a leaf per roll. Tear the larger leafs in two vertically working your way down either side of the stem. No matter what, put your fillings on the back of the leaf so it naturally curls around them.

This week we layered in a bit of tahini, cubed tofu and sliced avocado. Last week we used left over burrito fillings from a dinner party to stuff our swiss. Possibilities are endless. Make sure you don't over stuff as the leaves will tear if they are too plump when you roll. Snuggle your rolls in a tupperware and eat them with some turmeric tea and fruit. 

Now tell us what your favorite filling is!

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Quinoa Tomatillo Chicken Bake

This delicious bake is spicy, makes for great leftovers and is gluten free. The dairy makes it not paleo friendly, but for veggies you can easily sub cubed tofu for the chicken. Prep time is about 20 minutes.

Ingredients:

1 cup of dry quinoa

1 cup of bone broth or veggie stock

1/2 cup of canned black beans, drained and rinsed.

2 cups of Kale chopped

1-2 cups of pulled chicken

1 10-12oz jar of tomatillo salsa

1 4.5 oz can of mild chopped green chilies

1/2 teaspoon of cumin and 1/2 teaspoon of chili powder

3/4 cup shredded mozzarella and 3/4 cup of shredded cheddar

2 tbsp of chopped fresh cilantro

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degree. Cook the quinoa as directed in 1 cup of water and the broth. 

2. In a large bowl combine the beans, salsa, chilies, cilantro, cumin, chili powder and kale. 

3. We used a small rotisserie chicken to cut down on our prep time and make sure it was tender enough to pull. Carve off all the meat and remove the skin. Pull and tear the chicken into small bite size shreds. You can prep your own chicken as well, but it might be good to do this beforehand. Put the chicken in the large bowl and stir. 

4. Combine the cooked quinoa in with the rest of your ingredients. Then add 1/2 cup of mozz and 1/2 cup of cheddar. Stir well. 

5. Grease a 3qt casserole dish or baking pan. Pour the mixture into the pan and spread evenly. Top with the rest of the cheese. 

6. Bake for 30 minutes. 

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Sunshine Soup from The Fat Radish

Making this soup today.  It is so beautiful and anti inflammatory.  YUM, my joints will thank you. (thanks Well + Good)

Black Bean, Butternut Squash and Hot Sauce CHILI

This veggie filled chili from Baker by Nature is beyond satisfying and a little sweet with out any added sweeteners. We made a few tiny adjustments to the recipe to suit our Swan fancy. One, we used the whole bunch of kale- cause why not? Two, we subbed in chicken bone broth and veggie stock instead of the veggie broth. Three, we bought the pre cut butternut squash as we weren't in a Sunday mood to work on our grip strength while chopping. Four, we are all about Red Clay and subbed it in for the Sriracha. (get yours here!)

Image from bakerbynature.com

Crepe Cake!

Some really good friends of The Swan are having a baby ANY DAY NOW. So for their baby shower a couple weeks ago, I embarked on a very involved adventure in crepe cake making. It was a three day long process involving two dozen eggs, pounds of butter and more milk than I have seen ever go into a bowl. I based the recipe on this one.

I made dulce de leche pastry cream the first night. Have you ever done that? EEK. You basically make a really fancy vanilla not-quite-scrambled eggs concoction with cornstarch and then painstakingly put it through a very fine sieve.  

The second night was relatively easy. I browned some butter and made crepe batter.

Day three I woke up sweating at 7am (on a Saturday) because I needed to make 40 crepes, cool them, layer them and assemble the whole shebang. I was a nervous wreck and may-or-may-not have yelled at my husband a few times. I brûléed the top and dusted the cakes with shimmering pink dust I found at NY Cake.

Results: AMAZING

Bison Chili in an Acorn Squash OMG

Um. This might be the most delicious sounding healthy comfort food recipe we've seen in a while. Place one of these babies on top of a bed of garlicky kale? I'm out the door, running to the farmers market and I'll see ya later, skater.

The Year in Review -- #yums

Any blog post labeled with #yums is exactly what you think it is, a post that contains a swan-approved recipe sure to brighten up your cooking life. We have a passion for food that is both healthy and delicious, and we love to share our recipe finds with you. See a few of our favorites below and keep checking out the #yums section of the blog for all things yummy! 

Masala Vegetable Stew

This delicious, Swan tested recipe utilizes great fall veggies and was adapted from a stew found in the Nava Atlas Vegetarian Soups for All Seasons cookbook. We think it's a great way to nurture yourself with nutrition as we nestle into Fall. See the recipe here! 

Deviled Eggs 3 Ways from an anonymous southern expert

My life motto is "if there aren't deviled eggs, you really shouldn't call this a party." In that vein, here are three variations on a cook-out/get-together classic. Those recipes and more warm weather deliciousness here! 

Baked Lemon Tofu

There are two staples I count on to keep my lunch life exciting. They are soups and salads! Both can suit practically any palate, are infinitely customizable and are relatively easy to make. Soups contain a certain advantage of ease and of heartiness, but I have discovered a delectable way to prepare tofu that has significantly upped my salad-for-lunch game. See the recipe here!