IT’S THAT TIME AGAIN!

I’m talking about summer time. Woohoo!! 

If it’s summer time, you know what that means, BBQ TIME!!! I love a good bbq. 

Here is a great chicken & cilantro recipe that Victoria and I love to have during the summer time. 

Enjoy!

Kesto!

Basil pesto, puh-leassse!  Let’s spice this sucker up by using kale instead. Kale pesto.

I know what you’re thinking, GENIUS! Ill be honest, it wasn’t my idea. It was my mother in-law’s. She is the mad scientist behind this recipe. We’re also using walnuts instead of pine nuts.

Kale is wonderful for so many reasons. It’s highly rich in antioxidants, high in fiber, high in iron, high in vitamin K and vitamin A, has anti-inflammatory properties, etc. 

Let’s just say IT’S REALLY GREAT FOR YOU!

Without further a-do here is the best kale pesto (aka kesto) recipe:

Tools:

- Food processor or food blender

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 Cups of Kale
• 1/4 Cup of Walnuts (Chopped)
• 2 Cloves ofChopped Garlic
• 2/3 Cup of Olive Oil
• 1/2 Cup of Grated Cheese

Step 1: In a food processor toss in the kale, walnuts, and garlic. Blend them together until all of the kale & walnuts are finely chopped

Step 2: Pour in half of the olive oil and blend for about 30s. Then toss in the rest of the olive oil and blend again.

Step 3: Lastly, put in the grated cheese and blend. Here comes the best part, put it on whatever you would like. Ha! It is SO GOOD!! Enjoy it! 

Simply Slow

I think one of the top 5 best inventions in the world is the slow cooker. 

Ok, I might be exaggerating a little bit, but if you don’t have time to cook or if you want to prep your meal the night before and still have it steaming hot to eat, the slow cooker is your best friend. 

Here is a yummy chicken slow cooker recipe that Victoria and I had last night. 

Wet Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of Ketchup
• 1/4 cup of Soy Sauce or Bragg Liquid Amino's (soy sauce replacement)
• 1/4 cup of Olive Oil

Dry Ingredients:

• 2 Medium sized Sweet Potatoes (Chopped)
• 1 cup of Baby Carrots or Large Carrots (whichever you prefer)
• 1lb of Chicken Breast
• 2 servings of Celery
• 1 Tablespoon of Onion Powder
• 1 Tablespoon of Italian seasoning
• 1 Teaspoon of Parsley Flakes
• 2 minced Garlic Cloves

Step 1: In a measuring cup mix the ketchup, soy sauce, olive oil, & all of the spices together until well blended and set aside.

Step 2: Put the chicken in the slow cooker with the carrots, sweet potatoes, and celery. 

Step 3: Pour the olive oil mixture into the slow cooker and make sure all of the dry ingredients are covered. 

Step 4: Cover the slow cooker with the lid and set it on low for about 8 hours (or you could also put it on high for about 3-4 hours).

Step 5: Take the lid off and enjoy all of the juicy greatness of the slow cooker.

BUNS OF STEEL!

Now that I have your attention obviously these buns are not made out of steel. That would not be tasty. 

Instead they are made out of cauliflower. 

The other day Victoria and I were making burgers but we didn’t have any bread or buns. The only thing we had was cauliflower.

So what does one do when there is only cauliflower? They make cauliflower buns of course!

They do taste pretty darn good and you get to have at least two servings of veggies per burger. BOOMSHAKALAKA!!

Here is my cauliflower bun recipe: 

Ingredients:

-   3/4 of Cauliflower

• 4-6 Tbsp of coconut flower
• 2 Tbsp of garlic powder
• 1 Tbsp of salt
• 4-6 Eggs

Tools: 

• Food processor

Step 1: Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Take out a baking sheet and line it up with parchment paper (if you don’t have that, you can use aluminum foil).

Step 2: Put all the cauliflower in the food processor and pulse until finely shredded. 

Step 3: Crack all of the eggs in a large bowl with the dry ingredients and slowly add in the cauliflower and mix it all together. 

Step 4: Take a small portion of the cauliflower mixture and put it on the baking sheet. Press down on the small portion with your hands until it becomes flat. Continue to do this until all of the mixture is on the baking sheet. I personally made 6 buns with this mixture, but you probably could make smaller buns and make more. 

Step 5: Stick it in the oven for about 20-25 minutes or until the bottom is golden brown. 

Step 6: Take them out of the oven and let them sit for about 2 minutes. After that, enjoy a bite into those awesome buns of cauliflower. Haha!

American baked?

This is not French and it’s not fried, so should we call it American baked? 

I am giving everyone my homemade baked french fry recipe. 

IT IS MY JAM (not the jelly kind, the cool kind. Haha)!!!

The best part about this is you can’t tell that they are baked because they are still golden brown and crispy. 

MIND BLOWN!

Without further ado, here is my baked french fry recipe: 

Ingredients:

• 1 medium russet potato
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• Half tsp minced onion
• Half tsp garlic powder
• Basil
• Salt & Pepper

Step 1: Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees. Take out a baking sheet and line it with aluminum foil. Make sure you spray the aluminum foil with non-stick spray (I use coconut).   

Step 2: Wash the potato. I like to keep the skin on because I like the taste of it but that is up to you. Cut the potato in half (short ways) then into quarters (long ways), then into slices. Stick all of the cut pieces of potato in a bowl.

Step 3: Put all of the spices into the bowl with the potato slices and pour 1 tablespoon of olive oil on top. Mix until all of the potato pieces are covered and then dump the fries on the baking sheet.

Step 4: Line up the fries evenly on the baking sheet and make sure they are not touching each other (if they are, they will steam each other and it will take longer to cook). 

Step 5: Stick them in the oven for 20 minutes. Once the 20 minutes are up, take them out of the oven and flip them. Put them back into the oven for another 10 minutes. 

Step 6: Take them out and let them cool down for about 2 minutes. Then enjoy the crunch of the delicious baked french fries.

The Delicious Delicata Squash

Out of all the squashes, I think this is our favorite. 

It is the easiest to prepare and it has a slight nutty taste with a little bit of crunch from the skin. NUM NUM’S!!!

Here is my delicata squash recipe:

Ingredients:

-Delicata squash

-1 Tsp Olive oil

-Salt & Peper

Step 1: Pre heat the oven to 420 degrees and put aluminum foil on top of a non-stick baking sheet. 

Step 2: Wash your delicata squash and cut the ends off.

Step 3: Cut the delicata squash in half and scoop out all the seeds.

Step 4: Cut the delicata squash into 1/2 inch pieces (they should look like stars).

Step 5: Place the pieces onto the baking sheet and sprinkle salt & pepper and drizzle the olive oil. Mix it all around until each piece is completely covered.

Step 6: Separate them on the baking sheet, so they are not touching each other and stick it in the oven for 12 mins. 

Step 7: Once the 12 mins are up, take them out of the oven and flip them (it should have a slight char or brownness to the side that was down). Put them back into the oven for another 12 mins. 

Step 8: Take them out and let it sit for about 2min. Then, it’s time for my favorite part. TIME TO CHOW DOWN!!

Got Almonds?!

Almond milk that is….

Victoria and I usually have at least 96 ounces of almond milk ready to go. Not kidding. We love the stuff! This is a great option for those that are lactose intolerant and it’s low in fat. 

Fun fact: it also contains minerals like calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, and zinc. Woohoo!

Ingredients:

Almonds

Water

Dates (Optional) 

Vanilla extract (Optional)

Salt

Tools:

Blender

Strainer

Cheese Cloth (If you don’t have one, paper towels work perfectly) 

Large bowl

Step 1: Soak a cup of almonds in a bowl of water for 8-48 hours. Make sure the almonds are completely covered by the water.

Step 2: Pour the almonds into the strainer and get rid of all the water. You may notice that the almonds look bigger. 

Step 3: Put the almonds in the blender. Measure out 4 cups of water and pour in (for every cup of almonds, you would use 4 cups of water).

Step 4: Technically, those are the only ingredients you need but I like to sweeten it up a little. If you do too, add two dates and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract with a pinch of salt (Don’t forget to remove the pits from the dates).

Step 5: Blend on low for 1 minute. As that is blending, grab your large bowl, strainer, and cheese cloth (or paper towels). Put the strainer on top of the large bowl (this will catch any almonds that might slip out of the cheese cloth) and lay the cheese cloth on top of the strainer. 

Step 6: Once the almonds are all blended, take the blender over to your station and slowly pour the almond milk onto the cheese cloth (the cloth or paper towel should catch all of the chopped almonds). Pick up the corners of the cloth and squeeze out the milk and throw away the almonds. You might have to do this a few times to get all the almond milk out.

Step 7: My favorite step! Enjoy the frothy almondy goodness. Maybe, even with a puppy. Haha! Just kidding! I promise we really don’t give him almond milk.

Why Did They Let the Turkey Join the Band?

….Because he had the drumsticks. HAHA!! I crack myself up.

Thanksgiving is a time for gratitude, a time for family & friends, and LOTS of food!!! I’m kind of excited because I love to eat. 

Who doesn’t?!

The best part about all the food (for me at least) is definitely the sides. I’m here to give you my turkey bacon brussels sprouts recipe. This one might turn some heads at thanksgiving. 

Normally there’s so much rich, calorically-dense food on the table, that it’s a great idea to have something more fibrous and green, but also appealing.

Ingredients:

2 and half pounds of Brussel sprouts

1 large Onion (chopped)

4-6 Slices of turkey bacon

Olive oil

Thyme (optional)

Salt & Pepper (For Taste)

Lemon Juice (Optional)

Step 1: Bring a large pot of water to boil and cut the brussels sprouts in half.

Step 2: Once the water boils, toss in the brussels sprouts for about 3-5min or until slightly tender.

Step 3: While the brussels sprouts are boiling, cook the turkey bacon until slightly brown in a large pan on medium heat.

Step 4: Take the bacon out and set aside. In the same pan, toss in a teaspoon of olive oil and chopped onion, stirring often.

Step 5: Once the onions are slightly soft, lower the heat and toss in the brussels sprouts. Add salt, pepper, and thyme. Mix all together and taste.

Step 6: Once the brussels sprouts are tender, mix in the turkey bacon and lemon juice. 

Step 7: Enjoy the deliciouso-in-your-bellyoso!

What Kind of Socks Do You Need to Plant Squash?

…Garden Hose! Get it?!!

When you look at certain variations of squash (by the way, did you know there are more than 50 variations of squash) are you unsure how to eat it? You might say, “What the heck am I supposed to do with that?!” or “That doesn’t even fit on my counter!” Haha!

There are technically two types of squash, summer and winter squash. More popular types of summer squash include: yellow zucchini, crookneck squash, and Cocozella Di Napoli (Italian heirloom zucchini).

The most well known types of winter squash include: acorn squash, butternut squash, and kabocha squash (sweet with a mild nutty flavor). 

Today I am going to show you how to prepare one of our favorites, an acorn squash. It is soooo easy it will blow your mind. 

Ingredients:

-acorn squash

-olive oil (you can use coconut oil if you want to make it sweeter)

-salt & pepper

Step 1: Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Step 2: Wash the acorn squash and dry it

Step 3: Cut the top of the acorn squash to get rid of the stem so it’s easier to handle

Step 4: Cut the acorn squash down the center from the bottom

Step 5: Take out all the seeds and guts (you can use the seeds for a later time)

Step 6: Score the acorn squash vertically and horizontally. Score simply means to cut a line on the surface of what you’re cooking. I do this to allow the oil to get all the way through

Step 7: Rub the olive oil all over the acorn squash (except the skin) and season with salt and pepper

Step 8: Place it in the oven for 1 hour

Step 9: My favorite part. TIME TO CHOW DOWN ON SOME GRUB!!!

YUM!

My Secret Chicken Recipe

Some people love to bake their chicken. Some like to put it into the slow cooker. I’m the kind of guy that likes to make his chicken as juicy as possible, in whatever method works. I found this recipe on youtube but then added my own twist to it. I’m not kidding, it’s like butter when it comes out. HALLELUJAH! So without further ado, here is my secret chicken recipe that is not so secret. Enjoy!

1) Lay out all of your spices and chicken (of course). Normally I use my favorite spice from Trader Joe's, BBQ coffee spice rub. But unfortunately, I ran out :( so today I used a different poultry rub.

Laying it all out

2) Put two oven safe pans on the stove on low heat and pre heat your oven to low broil.

Low Broil and low heat on pans

3) Place all of the chicken into a large mixing bowl, use whatever spices your heart desires, and mix away.

Chicken time!

Spicing it up

Happy times

4) Put two teaspoons of coconut oil to coat each pan and swirl it around to make sure you don’t miss any spots. 

Here comes the coconut oil

Swirl!

5) Now it’s time to put the chicken on the pans folks. As you put the chicken on the pans, make sure the smooth part is facing down and you roll the chicken away from you. This will prevent any splatter from the oil. Once all of the chicken is on the pans, turn the heat up to medium heat.

Rolling the chicken away from me

6) Make sure the chicken has a golden brown color and then flip it. To flip it, use a fork, tongs, or whatever you have available.

Golden!

7) Wait until the other side is golden brown as well, then put it in the oven for about 5-10min.

8) Take it out and cut into the chicken or push down onto the chicken to see if it is cooked. When you push down onto the chicken, it should feel like the bottom part of your palm (closer to your thumb).

Woohoo! It's done!

Juicy!

9) My favorite part, enjoy all the juiciness from the AWESOMENESS!

End result.

“Is Prepping Food REALLY That Difficult?”

A lot of people tend to shy away from food preparation because they feel it would take up too much time. Well…I’m here to see to it that I can convince you other wise (in a snooty Downton Abby British accent). Haha! Here are a few cool tips that have helped me and my awesome clients.

Choose one specific day or a few designated times in the week to cook all of your meals. For instance, if you choose Sunday’s, cook all of your chicken, put together all of your salads in tupperware’s, bake all of your starches in the oven, and you are ready to go for the week ahead. BOOM! If you would like to spread out your days so it doesn’t take as long, you can choose to cook on Sundays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. This will eliminate cooking so much on one day and have fresher meals prepared. 

Sweet Potato Wedges

Chicken for the week

If you want to cook everything else but not your proteins, thats easy too! Try a slow cooker. Here’s what I suggest: before you go to bed, place chicken/turkey cutlets, etc. into a slow cooker with broth and spices of your choice. Once you wake up in the morning, you have juicy protein ready to eat (it’s almost like the texture of pulled pork). 

Take ziploc bags or containers of food with you to work. Personally, I use coconut or olive oil on my salads as dressing. If I want more acid I’ll add lemon or lime juice. I’ll put it in a small container and use it later. It’s an easy way to incorporate fats into your everyday adventure. In addition to that, I also put almonds, walnuts, or sunflower seeds in a bag, to add a little crunch to some of my meals.

Coconut oil and Coconut Spray

These are just a few simple tips but the big one is this, YOU SAVE A TON OF MONEY $$$$! In NYC, the average dinner at a restaurant could cost you $150, even without drinks. If you choose to grocery shop once or twice a week, that could be the cost of one week’s worth of food. WOOHOO!!! Saving money and time, who doesn’t want that?! It’s a no brainer. Try to meal prep just for a few weeks and let me know if you can see the changes in your life.