Sunny Days and Happy Thoughts

Did you miss me yesterday? Bill and I spent the day in ATL at a retirement party for one of his old buds. Walking 2 blocks from the parking lot to the old Rich's bldg, passing by the 5 Points Marta station, and numerous (questionably) homeless people made me very thankful to look out at the beautiful mountains this morning!

This blog REALLY should be about food - right? So, enough about the well and lets talk good food. Like everyone else, I realize that the past couple of months have been filled with high calorie, rich, too much sugar, and generally just too much food. After all, we did eat our way through 5 countries in 2 weeks then came home to 2 Thanksgiving dinners, a cookie swap, and Christmas dinner! Now is the time to DO something about it.

Yesterday I started out on the right track. I grocery shopped at Publix before returning to the world of rotten veggies at our local Wal Mart. The fresh green beans were tender and bright green, red peppers on sale, and fresh baby spinach literally called out to me as I strolled past. Yes, as I used to tell my high school home ec students, healthy eating is COLORFUL and CRUNCHY.

Fresh salmon was on sale and one big fillet will be 2 generous servings when paired with the fresh veggies and couscous.

Get on the program - Five a Day - fruits and veggies.

CRUNCHY and COLORFUL !

Broccoli with Soy, Rice Vinegar and Sesame Seeds

Roasting brings out the best in broccoli. The tips of the flowers char lightly while the stems stay nicely crisp. And best of all, roasting turns this strong-flavored vegetable into a mild, sweetly flavored flower stalk. The secret is high heat. For a particularly attractive presentation, serve the broccoli atop strips of roasted red bell pepper .

1 lb. broccoli spears, tough ends trimmed
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 Tbs. peanut oil
1 Tbs. Asian sesame oil
1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
1 Tbs. sesame seeds
1 Tbs. soy sauce
1 Tbs. rice vinegar

Preheat an oven to 475°F. Arrange the broccoli spears in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Season lightly with salt and pepper. In a small dish, stir together the peanut and sesame oils and the garlic. Brush the broccoli spears on all sides with the oil mixture. Roast the broccoli, turning once, until the stems are nearly crisp-tender and the florets are beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and sprinkle the broccoli evenly with the sesame seeds. Continue to roast until the seeds are toasted, the stems are crisp tender and florets are browned, about 5 minutes more. Remove the pan from the oven and arrange the broccoli on a platter. Drizzle with the soy sauce and vinegar and serve warm or at room temperature. Serves 4.


Variation: To prepare broccoli with garlic oil, omit the peanut and sesame oils, sesame seeds, soy sauce and rice vinegar. In a small bowl, stir together 3 Tbs. olive oil and the garlic. Arrange the broccoli on the baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper and brush with the garlic oil. Roast for about 15 minutes. Drizzle 2 tsp. fresh lemon juice over the broccoli and serve.