SUPER EASY PIZZA DOUGH FROM SCRATCH!

Once you get the hang of this dough, you will never go and buy dough from the store again.  This is cheaper, fresher with no preservatives.  I've tackled many pizza dough recipes, and I've adjusted them to come up with this recipe.  Feel free to add oregano or other herbs to the dough.  For some Omega 3s, I sprinkle about a tablespoon of ground flax seed to rolled out dough before putting on the toppings.

•  3 cups flour (2 cups all-purpose flour and 1 cup whole wheat)
• 1 tablespoon oregano or Italian herbs (optional)
  
• 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1 1/4 cup warm water (90 - 110 degrees F)

In a Pyrex or other microwave save bowl, microwave water until about 90 - 100 degrees (bath water temperature - not hot or you will kill the yeast).  Mix in sugar until dissolved, then mix in yeast and olive oil.

 

In a stand up mixer with dough hook extension, add all the ingredients into the bowl.   Mix at a lower speed like 2 or 4 until dough is smooth and elastic and should form into a ball. 

 Put dough in an oiled bowl and cover with damp kitchen towel for one hour at room temperature. 

After an hour, divide in half and put into two different oiled bowls with damp kitchen towel for another 10 minutes. 

You can then roll out onto oiled pan.  Poke the rolled out dough with a fork in several places.  This is a trick to keep bubbles from forming on the dough when baking. 












 

Add pizza toppings, bake at 425 degrees for 11 - 15 minutes, depending on your oven.

HOW TO GET YOUR PICKY LITTLE DARLINGS TO EAT BETTER

 When my 15 year old was in Kindergarten, my coworker had us over for dinner.  She had made this elaborate and beautiful meal.  Right when we were about to eat, before we even starting serving, my coworker got up and got her toddler daughter a Gogurt.  Her toddler didn't even ask for it.  Of course my kids, quickly getting over the shock of not having to eat what was served, also wanted to eat the colorful sugary Gogurt for dinner too.  In the end, my coworker's daughter did not have even one bite of her mother's delicious cooking.

Recently I was at the Costco food court waiting for my husband.  I watched the family next to me, where the mom was hand feeding her 9 or 10 year old child a slice of Costco pizza (700- 820 calories per slice, 14 grams of saturated fat).  Her overweight son didn't want to eat it, but she forced him, and he washed it down with gulps of soda.

I love going out to eat at good restaurants and bring my children along.  However, the proliferation of children's menus at restaurants, consisting of mostly fried and processed foods, makes my kids assume that those are the foods they should eat.

How did we start allowing our children to eat like this?

Yes, it's our fault as parents that we allow our kids to eat this way.  But realistically, when we see everyone eat this way, it becomes the norm.  But it shouldn't be.  It's against human bodies to eat these highly-processed/high-fat, -sugar and -salt/no vitamins and minerals substances.  And we see the results of this diet with our country's rising obesity and illnesses.

How do we stop?
Here are some ideas to start your kids on a lifelong path to healthful eating.  Take some or all of my ideas and make up your own.

1.  Don't bring junk food into the house.
     If you forget everything I say in this post, remember this one.  Don't bring junk food into your house.  If you don't have junk food, you won't eat it.  When you're hungry, you'll have an apple instead of a bag of Doritos.  Everything else will just flow from this one rule.

2.  Be a role model:
      When your children see you eat fresh fruits and vegetables, they will follow.  When they see you eating highly-processed Lean Cuisine, they think that's what they are supposed to eat (nope, not real food, and I don't care how many times companies tout their processed foods as "lean," "natural," or "healthy".).

Eat well.  It's good for your health and it's good for your children.


3.  Take your kids grocery shopping:
     It's unbelievable how many children can't identify vegetables and fruits.  Even high school kids.  Even college kids.  They won't eat it if they don't know what it is.  Commit to taking your children grocery shopping often and allow them to pick out the fruits and vegetables.  Don't second guess their choices:  it's worth buying an old tomato your child picked (and one you wouldn't have) because it allows your child to make mistakes and allows your child to feel confident in shopping for fresh vegetables and fruits.

4.  Try new vegetables and fruits:
    The first time my niece tried a fresh pomegranate, she was about 10 years old and visiting my house.  It was love at first bite.  From then on, I always try to have a fresh pomegranate for when she visits.  Jicama is a root vegetable that is pleasing to many children's palate.  I skin and chop up the jicama into sticks and leave them out on a plate.  Kids gobble them up.  Good ol' cherry tomatoes are also fun to eat fresh.  Cut star fruit was one of my favorite snacks as a child.  Because it looks like a star, kids really want to taste them too.

5.  Start growing:
     Research shows that kids who garden tend to eat more fruits and vegetables.  More importantly, kids who eat from their garden tend to prefer the taste of fruits and vegetables to other foods!

Don't have enough space?  Try growing some mushrooms in your basement or closet.  I'll be growing tomatoes and herbs this season in topsy turvy planters.  Strawberry planters are also very easy and fun and can be grown on a porch where kids can pick the strawberries straight from the planter.  And if you're really gung-ho, you can join the global apartment gardening movement.
     

6.   Allow your children to help cook dinner.

     Food tastes better when you make it yourself, and this applies to children as well.  They are more tempted to eat the meal they help make since they saw what went into it  (As a side note, I'm not a huge proponent of hiding vegetables in other foods because I want my kids to know what they should be eating, not tricking them into eating spinach disguised as a pancake).

An added bonus?  Your kids learn to cook. 








7.  No second dinners:
     Eat what's for dinner; no exceptions (well, except see #8 below).  If you don't falter from this rule, your kids will learn that they will eat what is served or eat nothing at all.  And don't worry about your picky child skipping a couple of meals.  I've heard of no child dying because he didn't like what was for dinner.

8 a.  Allow for "parts" of the meal:
     My children know that they can't have anything except what's for dinner, with the one caveat that  they can have any part of the meal separately, so long as it consists of mostly healthful food.  For example, they can eat the leftover noodle, spinach, and cheese from the lasagna I've made instead of a slice of lasagna.

8 b. Allow the kids to pick what's for dinner:
    No, not ice cream sundaes or fast food.  A homemade dinner that they like.  For example, my kids like to eat breakfast for dinner.  This allows your children some power and decision-making in creating a meal plan.

If you and your family currently eat fast food and highly-processed ready-to-eat foods, starting a healthful plan is going to be difficult.  You don't have to start out whole hog, so to speak.  Allow yourself some time to ease into them, but I would suggest that once you start, try not to go back.  If you make a mistake, just remember, 3 steps forward and sometimes 2 steps back.  You can start gradually, with one or two ways of eating better, and gradually add more and more.

Just jump in and try.  Keep trying to make the right food decisions every day.  Make healthful eating a life style change.  Do it for yourself and the health of your children.

END-OF-THE-WEEK FRIED RICE

The half-Chinese in me always knew I could make really great fried rice.  Yet, when I made fried rice, the rice would either be too wet or gummy, or too greasy.  Finally, after years of trying, I figured out a way to make delicious fried rice where the rice pellets don't stick together and the dish is not greasy.

AND..... you can use whatever leftover vegetables you have in your refrigerator at the end of the week.  It's also one of those easy dishes where you don't need to measure everything.  It doesn't matter if you have too much rice or too many vegetables; it still tastes great.  A delicious, filling comfort food for all.  My husband, who has always preferred white rice, says this is the best fried rice he's ever eaten, and it's made with brown rice.

This dish uses about 3 - 6 cups of cooked leftover brown rice. But don't be afraid of using whatever you have leftover and just adjust the vegetables and sauce to what you have on hand.

UNGUMMY, UNGREASY FRIED RICE:

In a large wok or pan, scramble eggs (I use 3-5 eggs depending on how many people are eating over).  When just done, break apart into pieces and set aside on plate or bowl.  Saute cubes of tofu, if using, with a little soy sauce until browned, about 5 minutes.  Set aside with eggs.

Using the same pan, saute a medium diced onion in 1 tablespoon of oil until just translucent.  Then add chopped or sliced vegetables (broccoli, bell peppers, mushrooms, asparagus etc) until just tender, but try not to overcook.  Set aside separate from eggs.

Using the same wok, now empty and quickly wiped clean, heat 3 tablespoons of olive or canola oil on medium-high.  When you see wisps of smoke coming from the pan, quickly add the leftover rice.  Coat the rice with the oil in the pan for about a minute or two, then slowly add about a cup of vegetable stock until absorbed.  If you don't have stock, no need to add anything.  Next, add frozen peas (if using), then add the sauteed vegetables and combine for another minute.  Add the tofu and eggs and stir fry for another minute.  Turn down heat to low.

For the sauce, use about 1/3 cup soy sauce, 2 tablespoons rice or regular vinegar, 1 teaspoon sugar (optional), 2 tablespoons sesame oil and 1 teaspoon of ginger (optional).  You can also put in my secret ingredient, about 1 teaspoon of Miso.  Whisk before putting on your fried rice.  Adjust seasoning depending on how much fried rice you have.  Stir to combine and serve immediately.  Have some hot sauce on hand for those who like it spicy.

Enjoy!

SIMPLE COUNTRY BROCCOLI PASTA WITH SHAVED PARMESAN

This dish is well-loved by children (well, the ones who like broccoli once in awhile).  The beauty is in the simplicity of this dish.  Even if you think your children don't like broccoli, this might be a good dish to try.  My children ate the broccoli first.  The shaved cheese entices children to wrap the slivers around the broccoli.

This dish is also easy.  The broccoli is cooked with the pasta, so you use less pots.  Make sure that you buy real and good Parmesan cheese in a block if possible.  The stuff in bags that is already grated tends to be more processed.  Good Parmesan is better for you and has tremendous flavor.

One pound of whole wheat spaghetti, cook in large pot with more water than needed;
5 - 6 cups of broccoli florets;
4 tablespoons olive oil ;
5 garlic cloves, minced;
dash or more hot pepper flakes;
1 tablespoon salt
Block of good Parmesan.

 Here, I add the broccoli 2 minutes before the pasta is done al dente.

Cook the pasta and broccoli together for 2 minutes.

Before you drain the pasta and broccoli, take a cup and reserve some of the water for later.  Drain.

In a large wok or pan, saute garlic and hot pepper flakes on low for 1 minute.  Make sure not to burn the garlic.  Add salt and mix.

Turn heat to medium/medium-high and add about a cup of the broccoli and pasta. Toss.  Keep adding about a cup or so of the broccoli and pasta and toss well until you've used up the pasta and broccoli.  (You may need to do this in batches if your pan or wok can't hold all the pasta and broccoli.  A large wok usually works well to hold the ingredients in this dish)

Add the reserved water, a little at a time, and toss until the pasta is loose and not sticking.   Place in large bowl.

Shave the Parmesan cheese with a vegetable peeler into a plate or bowl.

The Parmesan will look like beautiful delicate curls and strands.

Serve immediately.  Each diner can place an individualized amount of Parmesan on her plate.

This is what we had for dinner tonight:  Spaghetti with broccoli, mixed salad with asparagus and olives, and sweet and sour brussel sprouts.

Buon appetito!

THAI PIZZA

One of my favorite pizza joints is a place called Zeek's Pizza in Seattle.  They make this amazing pizza called Veggie Thai One On, and you can order the spiciness from 1 to 5 stars, 5 being the spiciest.  The pizza uses peanut sauce, shredded carrots, red onions, broccoli, bell peppers and cilantro.  My friend Danna and I used to eat a large Thai pizza 5 stars by ourselves in one quick sitting.  Once, when we had a male friend over for dinner, we were too embarrassed to order the large, so we ordered the medium instead.  Let's just say we later made another call for delivery to Zeek's.  And we never felt the need to impress another man again by ordering a medium.

 Here's a photo of half a Veggie Thai One On Pizza from Zeek's from the last time I was in Seattle (the other half was pepperoncini and mushrooms for my husband).








I make my own peanut sauce and usually have some leftover.  One of my favorite things to do is make my own Thai pizza.  Instead of using red sauce, I use peanut sauce as a base.  Then, I add close to the same ingredients as Zeek's.  It comes out delicious every time!  And it's an easy way to get protein and vegetables in form of a pizza.   Why don't you give it a try?  ขอให้เจริญอาหาร! (kŏr hâi jà-rern aa-hăan!)

Ingredients:
Flat bread or naan.
Add a layer of peanut sauce.
Then top with all or any combination of the following:

Broccoli,
thinly sliced red or yellow onion,
red and/or green sliced green peppers,
grated carrots,

Bake for about 15 minutes at 375 degrees;

Then top all or a combination of the following:
Cilantro leaves,
bean sprouts (mung),
crushed peanuts,
squeeze of a quarter of a lime,
hot pepper flakes.

PRESTO no-cheese PESTO!

We love freshly-made pesto in our house, and it's so easy to make that there's just no excuse not to make it yourself.  The other night, I thought I had all the ingredients for pesto.  So there I am, half way through making the pesto, and BAM! -- no Parmesan cheese in the refrigerator.  Well, pesto doesn't really need cheese, but I wanted to give it some kick, so I went to my secret ingredient.  Miso to the rescue!

Miso's flavor mimics that of cheese but keeps the whole dish vegan.  An excellent substitution for those who want to limit their cholesterol intake without losing flavor.  Please try this recipe.  You'll be incredibly surprised at how savory it is.  My oldest daughter ate 3 bowls.

* one package (2.5 oz) of organic basil
* equal amount of sliced almonds (you can use pine nuts, but I like almonds, and I use the sliced and roasted ones because it's so easy)
* 3 large sections of garlic
* 1 tablespoon red or white organic miso
* 1/2 cup olive oil
* 1/2 a jalapeno (optional)

Put all ingredients in a food processor and pulse to combine.  If the pesto is too dry, add some more olive oil.

Add on top of noodles or flat bread and serve.  If you have any leftover pesto (very unlikely), you can keep it in the refrigerator for about 5 days.  The pesto might discolor, but the flavor will still be delicious.  Buon appetito!

END-OF-THE-WEEK DINNER STRATA

I don't use too many recipes for weeknight cooking.  And when I do use recipes, I change them quite a bit depending on what's in my refrigerator.  I believe cooking is an art, not a science.  The wonderful thing about my kitchen art experiments is that I discover great dishes, invented by me.  The bad thing is that not all my dinners are delicious (if I ever invite you over for risotto, make sure you decline, or eat ahead of time).

However, my mistakes are less and less as I experiment and cook.  And as I can't stand wasting food, at the end of the week, I try to see what I can do with the leftovers and make a meal out of it.  This dinner strata is one of those "everything-but-the-kitchen-sink" meals.  You use leftover bread, leftover vegetables, whatever cheeses you have on hand, some eggs, and bake it.  Super easy and delicious.  In my last strata, I had broccoli, onions, and mushrooms with cheddar.  My favorite strata includes asparagus with Gruyere.  What will your dinner strata have in it?

Dinner Strata:

*Saute about 1 pound of cut vegetables.
* Shred or have on hand 1 pound of shredded cheese.
*break into bite-sized pieces (or cut cubes of) about 2/3 of a loaf of left over Italian or french bread (preferably whole wheat)
*In a 9 X 9 inch baking pan:
          1) scatter one-third of the bread pieces,
           2)Top with one-third vegetable mixture,
          3) sprinkle one-third of cheese; repeat twice more, ending with cheese on top.
* Whisk 2 cups milk and 4 eggs and salt and pepper to taste; pour mixture evenly over strata and let it rest for about 20 minutes for the bread to absorb the mixture.  Depending on how much bread and veggies you've used, you may need to add more milk.  The strata should look damp, but not doused in liquid.
*Cook at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.  Let strata cool for about 5 minutes before serving.  Enjoy your creation!

PERFECT BROWN RICE EVERY TIME!

Brown rice is far superior in nutrition than white rice.  Yet, many people shy away from brown rice because it seems difficult to cook.  I have a no-fail way of cooking any type of brown rice, and the rice will come out perfect every time!  The secret is to cook it like pasta.  Even my 15 year old can do it!  Here's a video of her teaching you in just one minute how to make perfect brown rice.  Thanks to my sister-from-another-mister Troy Repuszka for teaching me this amazing technique.

FAQ:
Can I use any kind of brown rice?
Yes, any kind of brown rice, be it long-grain, short-grain, organic, non-organic, etc. will work.

Do I have to measure the water and rice before I start cooking?
 Nope!  That's the beauty of this recipe!  So long as you have enough water to boil the rice for 30 minutes, any amount of rice will work.  If you need to measure because you're a perfectionist, you can still do so!

Can I use this recipe with white rice?
Absolutely not.  Unless you like to eat glue.  Anyway, you should be eating brown rice only.

Do I have to dance the Can-Can while waiting for the rice to cook?
Well, we suggest you do at least a little jig since from now on you'll be making perfect brown rice every time!    

EASY POTATO LEEK SOUP

Soup is filling and wholesome.  It's one of those comfort foods that is actually good for you.  My recipe for potato leek soup is easy to make, and I have one secret ingredient, miso (a secret ingredient I use in many of my recipes), that gives the soup a depth of flavor.  Make sure you slice the leek lengthwise and wash each section well to get rid of the dirt.  To serve my family, I use about 4 leeks.


SECRET INGREDIENT:  Organic, no MSG, no GMO miso!

* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* equal amounts of: (1) cleaned chopped white and light green parts of leek,
     (2) thinly-sliced potatoes, and
     (3) water
* about one tablespoon of organic red miso
* milk or heavy whipping cream to taste, about 1/2 cup (optional)

In dutch oven or soup pot, saute chopped leeks in olive oil over medium until just wilted, about 5 minutes.  Add potatoes and saute for a couple minutes more.  Add water and bring to boil.  Simmer until potatoes are cooked (where you can easily put a fork or knife through the potatoes), about 10 - 20 minutes, depending on how large the potato pieces are.  Let the soup cool enough to put into a blender (or use a handheld blender in the pot).

Mix until somewhat smooth, but don't over-blend as the soup can become gummy.  Return to pot and mix in miso.  If you are using milk, whisk together miso and milk before mixing into the soup.  Bring to simmer, and serve. 

Ith gu leòir! (Eat plenty!)

THE FUTURE YOU HAS SOMETHING TO SAY....

...AND YOU'D BETTER LISTEN.

You know you should floss every day.  You know you should sleep 8 hours and exercise.  You know you should save more money.  But we all skip doing what needs to be done because we don't have the time, forget or are just too lazy.

So what can we do to help us eat better?  Science and technology might be able to help us.


Anyone can start a good habit.  A study at MIT showed that once mice got the hang of a maze and a reward, their brains' activities only spiked at the beginning of the maze and the end (getting the reward).  Going through an unknown maze showed similar spike of brain activity while the mice were trying to figure out where to go.  But once they got the routine of the maze, their brains went into something like "auto-pilot."

You too can go into auto-pilot when it comes to healthful eating.  What is a hateful task at first (let's say, preparing and eating vegetables for example) can become a routine and healthful habit.  The more you do it, the more it becomes habit.  I once heard that you need 3 weeks (or was is 6?) to form a good habit.  So commit yourself to eating well for at least 3 weeks.  As my friend Christine said, she trained herself to like vegetables, and now she craves them.  See if you can go into auto-pilot on healthful eating.  If you do it enough times, the science states it'll become a no-brainer.

You have the added incentive of the compound effect.  The better foods you eat, the better your body is.  The more you do it, the more your body rewards you with lighter weight, less illness, more energy.  Even the most minor change result in bigger changes in the future.  Stop drinking that one-soda-a-day habit without changing anything else in your day?  You can lose a pound a month, getting rid of that ugly 12 pounds in a year.

On the flip side, bad eating habits also have a snowball effect, packing on unwanted pounds, opening you up to higher rates of disease and illness.

Of course saying this is one thing, and doing it is another.  As humans, we have a much easier time thinking that our future selves will start doing all the things we need to do.  That's why I was so interested in this TED talk about how we can see what we will look like in the future via a computer-generated picture of you.  The TED talk primarily focuses on retirement savings, but I wonder if we'd eat better if we could see how our bad eating decisions will affect our future selves.  And what we might be doing to our children (who, let's be honest, are all super cute and active because they are young, so we're not that worried right now).  Would you feed your children fast-food or highly-processed foods if you could see what those substances would do to your now-adult picture of your child a computer can generate?  Will you be setting them up for heart disease, obesity, illness, inactivity?  Yes, dramatic big words, but that's where our nation is headed.  Perhaps sometime in the near future, we'll be able to use technology like this to help us eat better.

So why don't we do what we know we should?  There are so many reasons.   But whatever you need to do to start eating healthful food -- be it by making healthful food a habit, by reminding yourself of the snowball effect of good eating, or by imagining what you and your children might look like in the future -- just start. 

Your future self will thank you for it.

EASY FRENCH DIJON VINAIGRETTE

 This is the basic recipe for Dijon vinaigrette I was taught in France.  I'm sharing this secret with you, and once you try it, you'll never buy salad dressing in a jar again.  I first shared the recipe on my friend Kate's blog which you can find here.

Now you can see how I make it live on this video:

END-OF-WEEK VEGGIE "STIR-FRY"

At the end of the week, I usually have a bunch of vegetables left over in my fridge.  In order to put those to use, an easy stir-fry of leftover veggies is always easy and delicious.  However, because there are six in our family (and usually guests over on Friday nights), there are so many requests for "more of this" and "less of that" and "not too spicy please" that I've come up with a way of granting each individual's gastronomical wishes by baking each person's stir-fry in packets (something I gleaned from watching friends make meals in parchment paper and from cookbooks).

Stay with me here.  So, it's not technically a "stir-fry," but maybe best described as a "stir-bake."

I put chopped leftover veggies in a big bowl.  I then put whatever sauce I'm using to season the veggies (usually I use soy sauce, ginger, garlic, sesame oil mix).  Today I used my leftover peanut sauce, and just added a bit more water and soy sauce to it to make it more runny so that it could coat the vegetables.

Then I place an individual-sized portion of veggies on a large rectangle of heavy duty aluminum foil (about 12" x 18").  I add whatever the eater wants ("more sauce," "less tofu," "add cilantro") to that person's packet and wrap it up tightly.


 

 For me, I love spicy food, so I include many slices of fresh jalapeno in my packet.

When I've finished a packet, I write the person's name with a permanent marker right on the aluminum foil, lest my toddler gets my capsaicin by accident.







Put the packets on a baking sheets on the middle-lower rack at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, and you'll have individual stir-bakes for each person.  Serve on a pile of brown rice.  How easy is that?  吃！

TIPS:
*For people who don't want to use too much fat, this is a great option for the flavor of a stir-fry without the oil.

*Make sure you wrap the foil tightly by crimping and folding at least a couple of times.

*No need to measure the vegetables.  Just estimate a portion per person when chopping vegetables and include at least one more portion just in case.  Remember, the veggies cook down a bit too.

*You can also put in precooked meat.  For shrimp, you can actually put in uncooked shrimp, and they will come out cooked in the packet.

*You can use whatever sauce your little heart desires.  Asian (soy sauce), French (dijon and tarragon), Italian (capers and tomatoes), Mexican (salsa).