You know what happens when you go fruit picking. You come home with 10 pounds of fruit hoping your neighbors will want to go halfsies. What is one to do with all those pears and apples? Here is one idea from Chef Nicole:
We went fall picking last week and had a lot of Asian pears. These happen to be one of our family's favorite fruits and they can be hard to come by in the market, not to mention extremely costly. Lyman Orchards in Middlefield, has rows and rows of these delicious fruits available for picking now. It is worth the drive to this lovely orchard to pick these uniquely sweet, crunchy, delicious pears. They will quickly become one of your favorite snacks. Pick some extras to make these flatbreads. I made them for some friends and we devoured them with some nice cold white wine. It's a delicious and beautiful dish that can be made in a snap with a few little grocery shortcuts.
Asian pear, Caramelized Onion and Blue Cheese (or Goat Cheese) Flatbread
These ingenious little 'chips" double as a healthy side dish and a kid-friendly guilty pleasure. Because they are baked, not fried, and include a trifecta of delicious root vegetables, they are a healthy alternative to their traditional greasy cousins. If your kids are begging for French fries (as mine often do), why not just give them what they want. Try Chef Nicole's recipe for Sweet Potato, Yukon Gold, & Carrot Chips.
There is something about serving dinner in a tortilla that instantly turns an everyday meal into an event. Children everywhere enjoy wrapping up and assembling their own entree without an assist from Mom or Dad. It is empowering and fun, and these multi-tasking flour or corn shells have many healthy and delicious possibilities. Chef Nicole Straight of Time to Eat! has two great 15 minute recipes your kids will love; Moo Shu Pork and Baja Fish Tacos. I've sampled both. Your kids will love them...and you will too.
Watch Chef Nicole's step-by-step video for Moo Shu Pork
As a kid I viewed back to school with both excitement and trepidation. As a parent, I can relate to the Staples commercial where the father gleefully skips down the "back to school" aisle while the kids trudge forlornly behind. I both welcome the structure of the school year and feel overwhelmed by its rigidity.
I have, however, come to find that the more organized I am with my kids' lives, the less stressed out my life is. Breakfast has historically been the most difficult meal in our household, because my children are not early risers (nor am I) and I feel perpetually rushed to provide a wholesome, nutritious meal, while ensuring hair is brushed, shoes are ties and lunches are packed, all before 8 a.m.
Here are some delicious recipes we make in our house to both de-stress mom and ensure the kids start their day on the right foot.
Chef Nicole Straight of Time to Eat!has all the answers when it comes to simple preparations for healthy delicious meals. This week she brings us a great recipe for Grilled Fish with Herbed Sauce. We used Branzino, but any white fish fillet will work just fine.
The key to enhancing the fresh taste of this beautiful dish is the use of herbs. Sure, if you have a garden, you can pick your own, but if herbs are out of season, you can still capture the summer fresh taste with frozen processed herbs (Here's Nicole's recipe). Of course, you can also swing by Trader Joes and grab their frozen herb cubes in a pinch. Enjoy Chef Nicole's "How to make perfectly grilled fish".
Watch chef Nicole's step-by-step video below for additional tips and tricks.
There is nothing quite as fresh and sweet as summer corn. It seems to define the season, and the act of shucking provides hours of entertainment for children young and old. Although corn requires very little to bring out it's farm fresh flavor, sometimes you want to dress up this sunny side dish with a little kick. Here is a quick recipe for Lime, Cayenne, Cilantro Compound Butter over Grilled Corn from chef Nicole Straight that will impress your dinner guests, and delight your taste buds.
Summer offers a bounty of wonderful fresh herbs, but when summer is over, how can you continue to enjoy that garden fresh flavor? Many of us purchase herbs from the market during the off season, use the few sprigs required for a recipe, and let the rest grow old in the fridge. Another option is buying frozen herbs (like the cubes from Trader Joe's) that you can drop into recipes, decreasing cooking time, but maintaining taste. Chef Nicole Straight has been using these frozen herbs for years, but recently decided she wanted to make her own processed herbs from her summer crop. Processing herbs is a simple 5 minute project, and it's a wonderful way to preserve the fresh taste of your summer garden (recipe below).
Join Chef Nicole Straight at the Farmer's Market, and learn how to make an amazingly simple and delicious recipe with fresh local mussels: Thai Coconut Steamed Mussels. This beautiful dish takes 10 minutes from start to finish, but it like looks like you've been cooking for hours...perfect for simple summer entertaining.
While I’ve known about the health benefits of leafy green vegetables for years, I often find myself shying away from these great greens for lack of proper cooking knowledge or inspiration. One of our readers felt the same, so we called in Nicole Straight, our Time to Eat chef, to demystify these power veggies. Join her as she selects her ingredients at the local Farmers Market, and then goes back to the kitchen to whip up some great quick recipes (there's even one that kids will eat). But first...a little background on this nutritional powerhouse.
I recently accompanied Chef Nicole Straight from Time to Eat to the Westport Farmer's Market where she helped me navigate (and identify) some interesting and unique local ingredients. I was looking for a great sandwich to bring to my 4th of July picnic. Her beautiful Summer Sandwich was the perfect answer, and can be seen below.
I picked up this Tonnino Yellowfin Tuna Fillets with Oregano during one of my frequent outings to our local Whole Foods. I must confess that I am not a big fan of the creamy tuna sandwich, but have always loved the Italian tuna packed in olive oil the way we ate it while in Positano many years ago. I was excited to find this brand of chunk tuna in extra virgin olive oil. Tonnino packages their product in glass jars to maintain the flavor of their premium tuna. It is a little more expensive than Chicken of the Sea, at about $6 a jar, but the flavor is worth every penny.
One of the things I look forward to every summer is heading out to the local farms to pick berries.There are a couple of great farms in Southern CT that are not over run with the NY crowd, and I will share them if you promise not to tell the others…
Local chef Nicole Straight, of Time to Eat, is dedicated to good, healthy food and the techniques that make it easy for parents and busy people to enjoy cooking and eating 15-minute meals.
Here is her recipe for Asian Watercress Pesto inspired by a trip to the local Farmer's Market. It freezes beautifully if you happen to have a run on watercress. It's delicious tossed in with udon noodles, smeared on salmon then roasted or even used as a thinned out sauce for steak.
I found this Chardonnay Smoked Fleur de Selin Whole Foods the other day. It's made by a company called India Tree, and has a distinct smoky smell and flavor making it the perfect seasoning for fish, chicken, or even freshly sauteed spinach with a squeeze of lemon juice. It's a great shortcut to a uniquely tasty meal.
Here is a great recipe for Cod that features this food find:
You know what happens when you go fruit picking. You come home with 10 pounds of fruit hoping your neighbors will want to go halfsies. What is one to do with all those pears and apples? Here is one idea from Chef Nicole:
