spinach Archives | Fake Food Free

Tropical Honeydew Melon Smoothie

August 19, 2018

I’m happy to say that Fake Food Free has transitioned to the Substack Newsletter called Every Corner of the World.

I hope to see you there.

My plan was to get figs and peaches at the farmstand last week. I found them and filled my bag, but as I was turning towards the checkout stand, something else caught my eye.

I have an on-again, off-again relationship with melons. It’s not unlike my relationship with shakes and smoothies, now that I think about it.

Watermelon is in last place. I can have a few bites of it for the summer, or not, and I’m good.

A super ripe cantaloupe is second. I buy at least a couple each summer.

I’ve narrowed down my favorite to honeydew melon. That being said, I’m not sure if you’ve had a tasteless honeydew from a salad bar like I have, but if so, then you know that a good one is hard to find.

But this time, I didn’t find it. It found me. More accurately, I smelled it.

Simple Pineapple and Greens Shake

June 13, 2018

Things have been simple around here lately. My next recipe is proof of that.

Life has been busy. Cooking has been light. The focus has been on fruits and vegetables. Especially before we take off to the Big Island in a few weeks where all bets will be off. I can’t visit Hawaii without consuming a fair amount of kalua pork, rice, and mac salad.

So breakfasts like these have been common.

Pappardelle Pasta Tossed with Creamy Almond Spinach Sauce

April 3, 2018

This pasta is tossed in a creamy, dairy-free almond spinach sauce. It’s a meatless meal that is flavorful and filling!

If I had to pick one ingredient that I’m really inspired to work with right now, it would be nuts. But not nuts as a crunchy snack or topping.

Nuts as a soaked and blended ingredient to make things creamy while also adding protein.

A couple years ago, I made this Broccoli Cashew Soup. There have been plenty more experiments.

This time I’m using almonds. I bought a big bag of slivered almonds a while back with every intention to start perfecting my macaron making skills.

Spinach, Garlic and Tahini Soup

March 13, 2018

A simple meal, this spinach garlic, and tahini soup is pureed in a blender before being simmered, then served.

I was checking out at the supermarket the other day when the conversation turned to the food I was buying. This happens all the time. It usually starts with a comment about me cooking or eating healthy foods.

Comments like these don’t make me proud of myself or happy. As a former health professional, they always sadden me a bit. That’s because they mean that the foods in my cart stand out to the cashier as being very different from the foods the majority of other people are buying.

But this conversation went a step further to a comment I had yet to hear.

Spinach and Chickpeas in Coconut Curry Sauce

October 20, 2016

I completely understand the argument that some people don’t like to cook. Not everyone enjoys being the in the kitchen like I do.

The same goes for feeling too tired to cook. Even those of us who love it have days when we would give anything if someone would just bring us our meal already prepared.

But when I start hearing about having no time to cook, that’s when I start timing my food prep and preparing a defense.

This meal here is the kind of thing that I throw together on a regular basis for lunch. It’s the kind of recipe I don’t often post on the blog, because while delicious, it doesn’t have a wow or originality factor.

Grass Fed Sirloin Steaks with Spinach Horseradish Pesto

March 23, 2016

These grass fed steaks are perfect for a special occasion, but they are also simple enough for a quick weeknight meal. Both the pesto and steak pair well with Cabernet Sauvignon, like the 2013 Leaky Lake Cabernet Sauvignon sent to me by Cultivar Wine.

I try to stay aware of my environment. It’s something that I find easier to do after living in several places across the country. I realize that my food seasons and local selection aren’t always the same as yours. So I try to highlight what is so great about living in California without causing you to say, “Great, thanks for another post about a rare citrus I can’t get.”

I may not show it here often enough, but I still remember the days I couldn’t get good strawberries in early March or 10 varieties of greens in January.

I also want to keep you from thinking things like, “There’s another grilling recipe in the dead of winter.” Or in early spring, for that matter. I mean, did you see the snow in Colorado this week. My goodness. It made me well aware that you might not be able to dig out your grill as easily as I can.

So I like to make sure I throw in a standard in-the-kitchen recipe that everyone can make.

These steaks are it.

Lentils with Curry Turkey Meatballs and Lemon Spinach

July 8, 2015

In this recipe, slow cooker lentils are topped with turkey meatballs and then brightened with a sprinkle of fresh spinach for an easy one-bowl meal!

I tend to eat in earth tones. It’s something I didn’t realize until I began photographing my food.

Think about it. The occasional leafy green aside, many healthy foods are pretty much a big bunch of off white, beige and brown.

Lentils, beans, chickpeas, cauliflower, oats, onions, garlic, meats, mushrooms — all pretty much the same boring color. It’s unfair, too, because they can be pretty darn delicious.

spinach

Tropical Honeydew Melon Smoothie

Simple Pineapple and Greens Shake

Pappardelle Pasta Tossed with Creamy Almond Spinach Sauce

Spinach, Garlic and Tahini Soup

Spinach and Chickpeas in Coconut Curry Sauce

Grass Fed Sirloin Steaks with Spinach Horseradish Pesto

Lentils with Curry Turkey Meatballs and Lemon Spinach

Thanks so much for reading!

My New Cookbook published in 2020!

Looking for a post? Search here.