Diet, Dessert and Dogs

*Or, Nori is the New Kale

[Sometimes, you just want a dish that's quick and easy--no fuss.  I've decided to offer a mini-post every once in a while, for a dish that comes together incredibly quickly or else is so simple to make that no recipe is required. Here's today's "Flash in the Pan." (For other FitP recipes, see "Categories" at right).] 

[Just a friendly reminder: today is the LAST DAY to enter the four-book giveaway! Check out three fabulous cookbooks plus a wonderful literary coffee table book here. And enter! Then come back tomorrow to see who won!]

Remember this old joke?

Ricki: I’m on the seafood diet.

HH: What’s that?

Ricki: I see food, and I eat it.

Story of my life.

I’m aware that a common term for seaweed (ie, arame, nori, dulse, wakame, etc.) today is “sea veggies,” but every time I hear the term, I think of that old joke.  Then again, there’s nothing wrong with eating sea veggies!

Seaweed is actually a stellar source of Omega 3s, those essential fatty acids (EFAs) that help feed the brain, decrease inflammation, prevent chronic degenerative diseases such as arthritis and heart disease (and even lupus), and basically just keep us healthy.  Because our bodies can’t manufacture EFAs on their own, we need to eat foods that contain them.  For many people, salmon or fish oil is a key source, but those of us following vegan diets need to find other means.  For many years, flax seeds were the stars in the Omega 3 arena, but recently chia has taken over that first place position (walnuts are also great sources).

But guess what?  All those salmon and fishies people consume for the high Omega 3 content have to get their O-3s somewhere, too–and their source for EFAs is–seaweed!

The toasted nori craze has been around for a while, but I came rather late to the bandwagon (or, in this case, submarine). I was delighted to be a guest this week on the Rogers TV show In the Know with Julia Suppa.  Our topic was “The Problem with Sugar,” and as an example of a sugar-free snack, I brought some toasted Sea Veggie bites with me.  The ones I brought were store-bought, but I knew they wouldn’t be hard to make at home.  So I pulled out my nori and got baking!

I consulted this recipe for inspiration, but in the end made my version quite differently (except for folding the nori in half before baking).  Compared to standard sea veggie crisps, these strips are thicker and crunchier because of their double thickness.  I will warn you, though, they are incredibly addictive!  It’s very easy to eat the entire batch on your own. 

In fact, if you see these nori snacks, you may just eat these nori snacks–all of them. Well, there’s nothing wrong with getting some extra Omega-3s, right?

I thought this recipe would be great as a submission to Amy’s Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays this week.

Last Year at this Time: Review and Recipes: Becoming Raw (Zucchini “Linguine” with Marinara and Hemp Parmesan–all raw!)–ACD Stage 1 & beyond

Two Years Ago: Blog Break

Three Years Ago: Old Reliables: Salads You Can Count On (3-Bean Salad, Coleslaw, Baby Greens w/ Hearts of Palm)–ACD Stage 1 and Maintenance

* Or, It’s a Privilege to Eat You (thanks, Whole Foods).

Happy “Celebrating Our Country’s Freedom Day” to both Canadians and Americans (and anyone else who’d like to take part in the party!).**

And before I forget (because I’m at that age when I do forget), let me also say “THANK YOU”  to everyone for your amazing, supportive, generous and kind comments and emails while I’ve been away!  Of course, I would have returned to the blog in any case just because I love it, but your encouragement may have hastened the process just a wee bit.

It does feel great to be back.  And just what have I been doing for the past month, you may ask? 

Well, most importantly, I’ve been assiduously following my ACD and have definitely made progress in terms of overall health (in fact, as my naturopath studied my live blood cells under a microscope the other day, he commented, ”The membranes look really healthy. They’re in great shape.” Alas, if only he’d been able to say that about my hips and thighs). Still, I’m sure my immune system was flattered.

While a couple of the most annoying symptoms do still persist, I’ve determined to continue with the regimen, which will likely mean a few more months of restrictions.  So for those of you who are relatively new to my blog, you should know that I don’t normally consume gluten-free foods exclusively, but I will be doing so for a while longer.  I’ll be eating more vegetable-based dishes and more raw foods as well. And some fruits are back on the menu, though (and let me tell you, even the serpent in Eden wasn’t this gleeful to see apples).

With the school year just completed, I thought I’d summarize my last month and save space by posting a report card instead of writing about it at length: 

Student: Ricki Heller;   Term:  June 2009; Program: Get the Candida Out!  Age: You’re kidding, right?

TOPICS AND GRADES:

Adherence to ACD:  100% (not an off-program crumb since March 7, 2009)

Current strictness of ACD Phase (II): 95% (allowed some fruit and oats now)

Current health status:  80% (only one really nagging symptom left)

Percentage of weight lost toward goal:  66% (lost 28 pounds–only 17 to go!! Regular updates on the Progress Tracker.)

Percentage of airtime devoted to Farrah as opposed to Michael:  2.5% (It should be a crime, really.)

“Good for you, Mum!  But they forgot to mention that you share and play well with others (especially canines).  And we agree–even though Michael seemed to be fond of animals, what about poor Farrah’s fifteen minutes?”

The most important thing I’ve discovered over the past month, however, is that I am a lousy multi-tasker.  So rather than attempt to keep up with work, blog, cooking, promoting a cookbook, baking for said cookbook, Facebook, and any other “-book,” I’ve decided to slow the pace somewhat.  I will still be blogging regularly, though perhaps not quite as often.  And while I promise to keep reading all the blogs I love, please forgive me if I don’t comment as often as I used to–but know that I’m still there!

And now, on to the über-healthy (and ACD-friendly) recipe!

On weekends, the HH and I usually enjoy a leisurely brunch before starting our day in earnest (well, if a meal at 9:30 or 10:00 AM can properly be called “brunch.” You see, as in most areas, when it comes to mornings, the HH and I are polar opposites. When I lived on my own, my natural proclivity was to wake at 6:30 AM every day, weekends included. In contrast, the HH, left to his own devices, would have just fallen into bed around that time, then sleep until long past noon.  Our compromise is a 10:30 brunch). 

Our typical habit (once the meal is dispensed with) is to sit across from each other, sipping our respective hot beverages (He: Hazelnut Coffee with Full Cream and Sugar; She: Green tea, straight up) while we read the newspapers.  In a positive spin on that scene from Citizen Kane, we read choice tidbits aloud to each other (too nerdy, I know).  The HH invariably peruses the Real Estate section in The National Post.  The other day, for instance, he pointed out that they were profiling the home of artist Ken Danby, at around $3 million.  There was also a suburban mansion with a 2,000 square foot (610 metre) kitchen.  A 2000 square foot kitchen!!!  Do you think they’d let me live in the pantry?  (No, seriously.  I understand that bulk bags of rice can serve as very comfortable pillows.)

Running in the social circles I do (okay, more like “speed-walking in the social circles I do”), I can often forget that there are a lot of incredibly wealthy dudes in Toronto (even without Prince and the Torontonian wife he divorced who once lived on The Bridle Path ).  A casual stroll along Bloor Street West in the tony Yorkville area will yield sightings of Chanel, Hermes, LaCoste, Tiffany & Co., Harry Rosen, Holt Renfrew, Dolce and Gabbana, and pretty much any other unattainable-to-the-average-shopper stores you can think of.  As for me, I get a kick out of peeking through the smoked glass windowpanes, gawking at all those privileged folk who can buy $1500.00 thong sandals without batting a (false) eyelash.

Given the average net worth of shoppers in the area, it makes sense that  Toronto’s first Whole Foods Market decided to set up in Yorkville. After all, they don’t call it ”Whole Paycheck” for nothing.

About a week before their grand opening (in an effort to curry favor with local residents), they published this recipe for their popular Kale and Seaweed Salad in the local paper (in fact, I do believe I read it aloud to the HH over brunch).  I also remember thinking, “This is one of their most popular recipes?  Are all those rich customers slightly touched as well?”  Having never tasted sea veggies at the time, I couldn’t imagine the magical commingling of salty, mineral-rich arame with chewy bits of barely-cooked kale, peppery shards of fresh ginger and crunchy sesame seeds, all bathed in a smoky, nutty sesame oil dressing. 

In order to sample it from the source, I (along with throngs of other curious shoppers) made the trek to Yorkville and purchased a small container of the stuff (price:  about $6.47 for three miniscule forkfuls).  I must admit, though, I was smitten; it is truly an inspired mix of ingredients, and one that I still, all these years later, love. But I couldn’t bring myself to buy it again for that price since I, unlike the local denizens, am not a magnate/ celebrity/ third-generation billionaire/ ostentatious nouveau-riche/couture designer/ plastic surgeon/ or other financially privileged resident.   

Luckily, the salad is easy to make at home, and it’s become a regular feature in our summer menus. It’s also the perfect introduction to sea veggies for anyone who’s never tried them and may feel a little wary; arame is one of the mildest forms of seaweed, decidely not ”fishy.”  The recipe is also fairly quick to prepare, despite the presoaking and then boiling of the arame.  (While the seaweed soaks, simply cook your kale and prepare the dressing; then rinse the cooked seaweed with cold water and toss all together). And don’t forget that sea veggies offer an ample nutritional boost, helping to foil cancerous growths, keep your thyroid healthy (lots of iodine, there!), prevent cardiac disease and inflammation, and provide a full array of minerals and vitamins (particularly iodine and Vitamin K ).

As we munched on our portions of salad the other night, the HH remarked (and I quote verbatim), “I really love this salad.” 

So go ahead, give kale and seaweed a try this summer. At the very least, you can feel as if you’ve been intermingling with the upper crust for a little while.

I thought this would be a great entry for Food Renegade’s Fight Back Fridays, too! Learn more here.

**I meant “Canada Day” and “Independence Day,” of course!

And finally:  Don’t forget to check out the winners in Shellyfish’s Sweet Freedom Giveaway–announced today! Click here for winners.

Kale and Seaweed Salad (suitable for ACD All Stages)

adapted from from Whole Foods’ recipe, originally published in The Globe and Mail

A delicious first course to a stir-fry or rice noodle dish; or serve as a side salad with nutroast and sweet potato fries.

1-1/2 cups (about 0.5 oz/  15 g) dry arame or other strands of dried seaweed (such as hijiki)

1 large bunch kale, washed, large vein removed

2-inch (5 cm) piece of ginger, peeled and cut into thin matchstick pieces

2 Tbsp (60 ml) roasted sesame seeds

1/4 cup (60 ml) Bragg’s liquid aminos, tamari, or soy sauce

1/4 cup (60 ml) reserved soaking water

2 Tbsp (30 ml) toasted sesame oil

In a medium bowl of cold water, soak the arame about 20 minutes, until softened.  Drain, reserving 1/4 cup (60 ml) of the liquid.  Place the drained arame in a medium pot and cover with water.  Bring to boil, then cover and turn off heat.  Let sit 5 minutes, then drain and rinse with cold water.  Place the drained, cooled arame in a large salad bowl.

Meanwhile, steam the kale or cook in a minimal amount of water until just tender (about 5 minutes).  Drain the kale and rinse with cold water; spin in a salad spinner to dry.  Chop roughly or tear into bite-sized pieces.  Add the kale to the salad bowl with the arame.  Sprinkle with the ginger and sesame seeds.

In a small bowl or glass measuring cup, combine the Bragg’s, reserved soaking water, and sesame oil.  Pour over the salad and toss to mix well.  Arrange on a serving platter or individual plates, discarding excess liquid (the dressing is quite thin, but I found you need all the water to offset the saltiness of the Bragg’s or soy sauce).

Serve immediately or refrigerate and serve cold.  Makes 4 servings (but only 2-1/2 in our house).  Will keep, refrigerated, for 2 days.

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Last Year at this Time: The Staff of the DDD Household

If you’re looking for Canada Day/4th of July desserts, you might like these:

• Maple Cupcakes with Maple “Buttercream“
• Vegan Butter Tarts (all-Canadian dessert!)
• French Toast Soufflé with Summer Berries (some red, white and blue!)
• Gluten Free Bean Brownies
• Mrs. K’s Date Cake (great for buffet or picnic)

© 2009 Diet, Dessert and Dogs

Full disclosure: even if I hated seaweed and loathed green soybeans, I would still have tasted this salad based on the poetry of its name alone.  I mean, how can you pass up such alliteration, such euphony, such gastronomic lyricism?

Just listen to it:  AH-ra-may.  EEE-da-MAH-may.  “Arame” brings to mind ”aria.” And “Edamame” –well, “edamame” just makes me want to break out into song:  “How I love ya, how I love ya, my EEE-da-MAH-MAYYEEE. . . .” 

When I think of poetry, most of the time I think of how much I abhorred  it in university (mostly because I could never understand it). Even when I went on a poetry bender at the suggestion of my crush-cum-mentor, Dr. D, I never quite “got” it.  Let’s see; here’s my experience with poetry, in a nutshell:  T.S. Eliot’s “Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock” –I did dare, I did dare, but it just would not sing to me; Wallace Stevens’s “Sunday Morning,”–say what? WHO is the mother of beauty?  (Just too creepy); Ezra Pound’s “In a Station of the Metro“–I was haunted by apparitions in every crowd for months; ee cummings’s “in-just”–it was spring and the world was mud-luscious, but the poems just weren’t; Sylvia Plath’s “Daddy“–I felt the need to throw away my black telephone; William Carlos Williams’s “The Red Wheelbarrow“–(because so much depends on a red poet–no, make that red poet’s society–no; oh, whatever. Who cares?) 

In the end, I felt as if I’d read thousands of miles of poetry and all I got was a lousy T-shirt.

One form of verse that always did intrigue me, though, was haiku (you were wondering how all this related to the recipe, weren’t you?  And here we are:  both Japanese-themed!).  I’m sure you’re familiar with the stuff–a specific set of three metered lines, first seven syllables, then five, then another seven.  What’s great about haiku is that pretty much anyone can do it. 

Here are some examples to give you an idea:

Poetry scares me. 

Once, I tried to understand.

Alas! What a waste.

Or this:

Winter is cold, long.

Snow falls, so soft and so white.

Must I suffer so?

Or how about:

Elsie sleeps sweetly.

Chaser is a crazy girl.

Sit! Stay! Be like her!

In fact, the HH informs me that even he composed in this form of verse once, in grade school.  Here’s his masterpiece:  

He comes off the ride.

As the fair whirls round his head,

His dinner comes up.

Ah, yes, HH, The Sensitive Artiste. 

More than anything else, I think that haiku makes poetry easy and accessible. 

Well, think of this salad as the haiku of Japanese food, if you like–making seaweed accessible to all (or “sea vegetables,” if you prefer the more literary term).  If you’ve ever wondered about kombu, nori, wakame, dulse, or any of those others but have been afraid to try them, this seaweed salad is for you.  In fact, it’s already been taste-tested (and mightily approved) by hundreds of thousands of others, since I modeled this recipe on the extremely popular salad of the same name sold at Planet Organic stores.  Except at Planet Organic, it sells for something like $6.99 per 100 grams ($31.73 a pound), which means you pay approximately $17.42 for two tablespoons (okay, I’m exaggerating–but just a little).  Clearly, my version is infinitely preferable.

The salad is incredibly simple to prepare, with just arame (a fairly mild seaweed that looks sort of like black spaghetti) and edamame (green soy beans) as the major ingredients.  Toss these with a rice vinegar/sesame oil dressing and some lightly toasted sesame seeds, and you’ve got yourself a delectable dish that perfectly combines sweet (the beans), salty (the tamari) and even umami (the seaweed).  The bonus is a great source of protein and Vitamin C from the edamame, plus some much-needed trace minerals (and a few major ones, too) from the seaweed.

The soy and seaweed

Are in perfect harmony.

You will love this dish.

Arame and Edamame Salad

This makes a great appetizer salad or side dish to miso soup, sushi, or any other light fare–but it’s delicious on its own, too.  

2/3 cup (180 ml) dry arame (don’t pack it or you’ll end up with too much–it really expands while soaking).**

about 1 cup (240 ml) shelled edamame (see how much arame you end up with after soaking, and use about double the amount of edamame)

1 tablespoon (15 ml) rice vinegar (seasoned is fine)

1 tablespoon  (15 ml) tamari or Bragg’s liquid aminos

2 tablespoon (30 ml) lightly toasted sesame seeds

5-8 drops liquid stevia or 1-2 tsp (5-10 ml) agave nectar, to taste

1 clove garlic, minced

2 tablespoons (30 ml) extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon (15 ml) sesame oil

1/8-1/4 teaspoon (.5-1 ml) fine sea salt, to taste

Place the dry arame in a heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water; allow to sit 5-15 minutes, until the arame is soft and about double in bulk (the longer it soaks, the less it retains a “fishy” taste).  Drain and reserve 1 Tbsp (15 ml) of the soaking liquid, if desired.

Cook the edamame according to package directions (if not pre-cooked) and allow to cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, in a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients except for the arame.  Add the drained arame, edamame and soaking liquid (if desired) and stir to coat the soy and seaweed.  Allow to sit at least 15 minutes before serving (this is actually better the next day).  Store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.  Makes 3 servings.

** You can use wakame instead if you like, since it looks almost the same once soaked; but beware, wakame is known to have more of a “fishy” taste than arame.

Last Year at this Time: Could This Be Love?  Post V-Day Dinner

© 2009 Diet, Dessert and Dogs