Artichokes

I love getting and reading Natural Health magazine it is full of great tips, recipes and ideas for living a healthy and natural lifestyle.  There was an article in the most recent issue all about artichokes....which happen to be one of my favorite veggies.  Did you know they have more disease fighting antioxidants than any other vegetable.  They are also "natural detoxifiers that improve immunity and help prevent disease by lowering inflamation in the body".  They are only 60 calories and each artichoke(med sized) has about 7 grams of fiber...as well as folate, magnesium, vitamin C, and potassium.  Here is a yummy recipe I found on the natural health mag. website. It is on my list to make in the next week or so...enjoy and let me know your feedback or you have a favorite recipe using artichokes.

Fresh Antipasto with Homemade Giardiniera

This variation on Italian antipasto uses fresh vegetable giardiniera in place of the more commonly used jarred ones, for added nutrients and crunch.

Ingredients

¼ head cauliflower, coarsely chopped (about 1 cup)
1 medium red bell pepper, thinly sliced in strips
3 celery stalks, thinly sliced in small half-moons
½ cup baby carrots
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup Reggiano-Parmigiano, diced
2 3-ounce jars of marinated artichoke hearts, drained
2 cups green and black olives (picholine and kalamata are ideal)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
6 ounces thinly sliced Genoa salami, cut into thin strips (optional)
1 ½ cups bocconcini (about 9 ounces)
6 small basil leaves
Freshly ground black pepper

Nutrition Facts

Per serving: 279 calories, 23 g fat (8.6 saturated), 7 g carbohydrates, 13 g protein, 2 g fiber, 917 mg sodium (40% Daily Value)

Directions

1. To make the giardiniera: In a large bowl, combine cauliflower, bell pepper, celery, and carrots with oil, vinegar, and salt. Stir gently to combine and coat evenly. Cover loosely with wax paper and place in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

2. In a large serving bowl, combine giardiniera with Reggiano-Parmigiano, artichoke hearts, olives, lemon juice, and salami (if using), stirring gently to combine. Top with bocconcini and basil leaves. Season with freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Linking to:

Zucchini and Bacon 3 Cheese Lasagna

Mmmmm Lasagna.  I don't care how many gazillion versions of this recipe there are, I vow to try them all, or at least as many as I can get my hands on.

When I saw this one over at Kevin and Amanda's, I literally drooled on the keyboard, I mean....Zucchini AND Bacon?  Are you kidding me?  That's like heaven on a plate right there.

I'm not going to talk much about this one, I think it's best left to the taste buds to speak for themselves, so here, thanks again to Kevin and Amanda, love that blog.

Zucchini and Bacon Three Cheese Lasagna

Béchamel Sauce:
1 tablespoon butter
1 tbsp flour
1/2 cup milk
Pinch of salt, pepper, & freshly grated nutmeg

Lasagna:
1 zucchini, diced
1 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt & pepper
3 ounces fontina cheese, shredded
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
6 slices bacon, cooked and cut into bite sized pieces
1 egg
1/2 tsp salt & pepper
1 cup of your favorite marinara or spaghetti sauce
3 oz smoked mozzarella cheese
4 oven ready (no boil) lasagna noodles


Directions:
Dice zucchini, add garlic, coat with 1 tbsp olive oil and season with 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper.

Roast in an 8×8 baking dish at 400 degrees for 15 mins until soft. Leave oven on at 400, and save the 8×8 dish for the lasagna.

Combine the zucchini, bacon, Parmesan, fontina, egg, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp black pepper in a medium bowl to blend. Set aside.

To make the béchamel sauce: Melt 1 tbsp butter in a heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the flour and whisk for 3 minutes. Whisk in the milk. Increase the heat to medium-high. Whisk the sauce until it comes to a simmer and is thick and smooth, about 3 minutes. Whisk a pinch of salt, pepper, and nutmeg into the béchamel sauce.

Pour the béchamel sauce into the bottom of the 8×8 dish. Top with 2 lasagna noodles, the zucchini mixture, 2 more lasagna noodles, the marinara sauce, mozzarella cheese, and a little more parmesan cheese to top.

Cover tightly with foil.

Bake at 400 until heated through and the sauce bubbles, about 20 minutes. Uncover and bake until the cheese on top becomes golden, about 15 minutes longer.

Let stand for 10 minutes.


Makes 4 servings.

52 Weeks of Giving - Week 26 - Pick up Litter

For Week 26 of the 52 Weeks of Giving challenge, the girls cleaned along the road and in the ditch right by our home.  They found a coffee cup, pop cans, small pieces of paper and garbage, firecracker debris, and a small piece of plastic tubing.

Sophia found perhaps the largest and most unexpected piece of garbage along the road: a piece of metal siding slightly buried under the tall grass and tiger lilies.

Sophia found and uncovered this piece of siding

along the side of the road.

With the exception of the huge piece of siding, the ditch and side of the road were not as littered as anticipated which was good. We were happy that the wildlife that lives here has a clean environment in which to make their home.

Use your feet to help people eat!

The 4th annual Walk Off Hunger to benefit the Food Bank of WNY will be held Saturday July 30th.  The walk is an easy stroll of less than two miles, beginning and ending at Temple Beth Am, 4660 Sheridan Drive in Williamsville.  Check-in is at 5:00 and the walk is at 6:00.

Registration is for one person, for a couple, and for a family up to four. ( for each additional child)

Walkers with more than 0 in pledges will get gift cards, walkers with the most pledges will get prizes, and the first 25 children with in pledges will get Speed Racer cars.

Buster Bison and Billy Buffalo will both be there, and Channel 2’s Jodi Johnston & 97 Rock’s Rob Lederman are the emcees.

The walk is followed by Summerfest, featuring food, entertainment, and children’s activities.

Sign up online at http://www.foodbankwny.org or check it out on Facebook.

Registration forms are also available at the service counter of Wegmans.

Cucumber Sandwich with basil-mint-cilantro chutney

Picnic food would be incomplete without sandwiches. And cold sandwiches to cool you down would be the best. This sandwich is made with cucumbers and smeared with some cream cheese and basil-coriander-mint chutney. It is very simple to make and can be made ahead and left to chill in the refrigerator till you enjoy them. Make these sandwiches along with other delicious and simple to make picnic food like desi omelet, kale chips, 10 minute banana bread, marble cake, falafel-pita sandwich and wash them all down with this gorgeous blueberry lemonade.

For the blogging marathon, I was paired with Harini and I had to make something from her blog based on the picnic theme. I chose this basil-mint-cilantro chutney and made simple cucumber sandwiches with the chutney. The chutney paired the cucumbers really well and made a great evening snack. This can also be packed as lunches for kids. I made the chutney with my homegrown basil and cilantro harvested fresh from my garden!

Ingredients for the Chutney

Recipe Source: Tamalapaku

Basil - 1 cup

Mint - 1/2 cup

Cilantro/Coriander leaves - 1/2 cup

Tamarind paste - 1 teaspoon

Green chillies - 2

Oil - 1 teaspoon

For the seasoning - Mustard seeds(1 tspn), urad dal(1 tspn), channa dal(1 tspn), red chillies(1), hing(1 pinch)

Salt to taste

Directions

In a small pan heat the oil and do the seasoning with the mustard seeds, urad dal, channa dal, red chillies and hing. Once the dal turns brown in color, add the basil, cilantro and mint. Saute for a minute until the leaves wilt.

Allow it to cool and blend it together with the tamarind paste, green chillies and salt without adding any water.

To assemble the sandwiches

Cut the edges of the bread and slice them into triangles. Smear some cream cheese/butter on both sides, followed by 1/2 a teaspoon of the prepared chutney on each slice. Place 3 or 4 sliced cucumber rounds and place another slice of bread on top to make a sandwich.

Enjoy!
Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#6

Sending these sandwiches to Sandwich Mela and to the Giveaway by Ruchika Cooks