Juice your lil heart out!!!

Getting' JUICY!!!

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So, I got an awesome Breville juicer last year for xmas and it's a pretty amazing machine. I learned pretty quickly that you can juice just about anything, the possibilities are endless. The clean-up is really easy which I'm super happy about because I know that the thought of cleaning some beast of a machine would more than likely stop me from juicing on a busy day. While it does take a little time to make sure that you thoroughly clean it, it's totally worth it for the result. 

Today I made a lovely concoction of Carrots, Beets, 1 Pear, 1 Apple a chunk of Ginger Root. Yum!

 Rinse off your ingredients but no need to peel or anything, there's a lot of nutrients in there!

I don't always cut the ends off, I just felt like it today and it's totally up to you.

 I usually cut my fruit n veg into smaller pieces, just to make it easier on the juicer. You'll get a feel for what your machine can handle.
For the ginger, start off with a small chunk, about an inch wide. This is totally a matter of personal taste. I like a LOT of ginger but many people don't. Just experiment with small doses at first. you can always add more.

 I usually start with my beets and carrots first only because I love how vibrant the colors are together. Once you start adding other fruits n veg the color will die down just a bit, but I just love the impact of the bright orange and magenta juices swirling around together.

Always juice the harder items on high then switch to low for soft ones like pears or cucumbers.

Oh, just look at the vibrant goodness!

You can juice just about anything, get yourself one and go crazy!!

Ooh the frothy yumminess, like nature's whipped cream!

Grilled Mahi Mahi with Roasted Beets, Sweet Potatoes and Crispy Kale

 

 Oh man, this one's so good and sooo easy!

Start off with roasting your root veg. You could really throw anything in a little foil packet and roast it up but today I went with beautiful golden beets, red beets and sweet potatoes.
Crank up your oven to 450.

Just look at how lovely these golden beets are! Yum!! Pull out a large piece of foil and place it dull side up always. It took me forever to remember that for some reason, but if you think of the dull side as the non-stick surface than it should be easy to remember to always put the shiny side down.
Now pour a little olive oil onto your foil.

Slice up your veggies. You can do them in big chunks if you like, just remember that the thinner you slice em, the faster they'll cook!
I cubed my beets but cut my sweet potatoes in wedges just for a different look.

 Place them on your foil and sprinkle with S&P and a little for oil over the top. I added some chopped fennel root too...yum! Then shake em up in there to be sure that the oil coats all of your veg.

Wrap up your packet reeeal tight!
Then put it in the oven for 30-45 minutes. They're done when you can ease a fork right into your veg and if you leave them in there even longer, they just get better!
Be careful when you open it, the steam is just packed in there ready to escape!

While your veggies are steaming, cook your kale.

I get a lot of questions about how to do crispy kale properly. There are a few ways you can do it, but I've found that sautéing is the best and that slow and low is the way to go.
I like to use coconut oil for many reasons, one of them being that it has a high burning temp so it won't brown your greens too much. Add a few tablespoons til melted then turn the heat to low and add your kale. You can either chop it up or cheat like I do and use kitchen scissors. Just grip the bunch tightly in one hand and snip off the kale into your pan. You only need to add S&P to your kale and stir it occasionally and it really brings out the natural buttery goodness that's hidden inside of these greens. The longer you sauté it, the crispier it will get...you'll be hooked!

Kale shrinks down significantly while cooking so don't be afraid to add more as you go.

Get yourself a nice piece of fish. Today I chose Mahi Mahi, which has more of a meaty feel than your average whitefish but I think a nice talapia would be awesome with this dish as well. 

Just season with a little S&P and grill that sucker up!

Pull out your packet and observe the caramelized goodness.

 Plate your kale, add your roasted veg and set your fish right on top!

 You're good to go...dig in!!!

 Grilled Mahi Mahi with Roasted Beets, Sweet Potatoes and Crispy Kale

SERVES 2

1 Pound Mahi Mahi
1 Golden Beet
1 Red Beet
1 Sweet Potato
A few pieces of Fennel Root
1 Bunch of Kale, chopped or cut
Olive Oil
S&P

 

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Roasted Beet, Orange & Arugula Salad

Thursday August 1, 2013      

Roasted Beet, Orange, Peach & Arugula Salad!!

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Ok, last night's dinner started off, as it often does, with no specific plan in mind and trying to use up the fresh produce I have on hand.  Just thought I'd whip up an ordinary little salad and ended up with this lil dreamboat here, that was so amazing...I couldn't stop patting myself on the back. :)

-Start by roasting your beets at 450 for 25-30 minutes until you can easily slide a fork into em.

Make a foil packet and lay your beets inside. I chop em up so they cook faster and don't bother to peel them either. Drizzle w/ olive oil and balsamic then coat in S&P. I cut a few sprigs of rosemary and thyme from my garden and threw them in there too! Yum!
While those are roasting, get your dressing together and the rest of your salad prepped.

Get your trusty salad bowl out and grate the zest of 1 orange

I start every salad in my big teak bowl. I treat it like a wok and never wash it with soap. I just rinse and rub dry with a paper towel, that way it absorbs all the wonderful flavors you've used in it before. Mine smells like a lovely concoction of ginger, lemon, thyme and rosemary!

Nectar of the gods

-Next, add some olive oil and my current obsession, peach balsamic!
Oh Em GEEE! It's so good! I got this variety when we went to Austin last March at this cute lil fresh market and I should've bought 10 bottles! I could seriously drink it from a glass!
It's super light and fresh and tastes like you just bit into a peach!

-Add S&P and a lil thyme and whisk it up good.

-Now cut up your fruit and add to the bowl. Peel the orange you zested then cut into slices and those into quarters. Dice some peaches or nectarines and toss those in!

 -When your beets are done, pull them out and open the foil and let them cool slightly before you deal with them.

-Add your arugula

 -Then toss in your beets and mix it all up!

 This salad would be great with a grilled chicken breast sliced on top or with a nice piece of fish. I might throw in some fresh mint next time too!

Roasted Beet, Orange, Peach & Arugula  Salad!! 

by Neicy Wagner Geis

 Serves 2

1 Orange, zested then sliced and quartered
1 Peach or Nectarine, diced
5 or 6 Beets, roasted
2 or 3 big handfuls of arugula ;)
Olive Oil
Peach Balsamic
Fresh Rosemary and Thyme
S&P

 Super easy, super fast and super good!! 

This salad would only take a few minutes to throw together if you roasted the beets ahead of time.

And for tonight's adventure, I'm meeting my awesome rockstar friend Heather Dalton at Root Down for happy hour. So depending on how many hours and how happy we get, I should have a new review posted soon ;)

Enjoy your Thursday, my hungry friends!!

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