Crunchy Couscous Salad, NE NephCure Meeting

Here is a light summer salad I made for the kidney-friendly pot luck buffet we had during a recent NephCure New England Chapter support meeting.  Several parents and families came together for conversation, support, and to hear valuable information from an experienced renal dietitian from Children's Hospital. While my daughter is still in remission* and isn't on a special diet anymore (she was on a reduced sodium diet for two years, although we still watch her sodium intake), there's always something helpful to learn and I like to stay connected with NephCure and the families I have met over the past few years.

When we have these pot luck dinners I love to make a recipe from the DaVita website, a great resource for kidney patients and their families with kidney-friendly recipes and nutritional information.

Crunchy Couscous Salad
Recipe by Carol, a DaVita dietitian. Click here for their printable version.

1/2 cup dry couscous
3/4 cup water

Mixture
1 cup cucumbers, thinly sliced and quartered (I used the English variety)
1/2 cup red bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup sweet onion, chopped
2 tablespoon black olives, chopped (I used pitted Kalamata olives)
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Dressing
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons white wine or unseasoned rice vinegar (I used unseasoned rice vinegar)
2 tablespoons feta cheese crumbles (I looked for the lowest-sodium)
1-1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon salt (I omitted due to the sodium in the feta cheese and olives)
1/4 teaspoon pepper (I used a few turns of the pepper mill)
Juice of half a lemon (my addition to the recipe)

I started with the couscous because it needs time to cool before adding the other ingredients.  In a medium sauce pan, bring water up to a boil. Remove from heat and add couscous. After about 5 minutes and all the water is absorbed, turn couscous into a large bowl and fluff with a fork. Let cool.

Next, I made the dressing so flavors would start building while I made the mixture. Simply combine all ingredients in a small bowl.

Prepare ingredients for mixture and to the cooled couscous (fluff up some more and if not cool wait a few more minutes). Mix in dressing. Refrigerate at least one hour before serving. I thought it needed a little lemon so I squeezed juice of half a lemon over the salad.

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Nutrients per serving (my version might be a little different since I used Kalamata olives and lemon and omitted salt): Calories 121, protein, 3 g, carbohydrate 14 g, fat 6 g, cholesterol 4 mg, sodium 167 mg, potassium 105 mg, phosphorus 51 mg, calcium 47 mg, fiber 1.4 g

Renal and renal diabetic food choices: 1 vegetable, low potassium, 1/2 starch, 1 fat

Diet Types: CKD non-dialysis, dialysis, diabetes

Patients: Always check with your dietitian or nephrologist.

For more nutritional and helpful links for renal patients and families that the dietitian provided at our meeting click here.

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*Yes! My daughter is still in remission (she was diagnosed with FSGS Syndrome in February 2008 and has been in remission since February 2010). We received the good news yesterday from her nephrologist. Given her continued remarkable lab results, we are again reducing her Prograf, an immunosuppressant, by another 1 milligram. It's great news but any changes in her medication, even this tiny amount, could cause relapse so we'll be closely monitoring her protein level.

Farm To Table Simple Salad

Sometimes it's just what this family needs. Nothing complicated. Simple, fresh vegetables. A salad. It's a relief. A lesson, even, in the art of simple eating.

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The temperatures soared the other day. It was the second day of high 90 degree heat and very high humidity. While driving home from an Essence of Tuscany cooking class at Johnson & Wales University I thought about making something light for dinner. 

I imagined pairing the gorgeous red lettuce I had picked up at our local farmers' market with the plump luscious-looking strawberries growing in my garden. 

Kale, swiss chard from Confreda Greenhouse & Farms
Red lettuce, onions, cherry tomatoes, radishes from Oakdale Farms
See links mentioned below

As I drove home from class, I pictured the deep rich colors together, like the palette of a masterful baroque era oil painting.

Well, when I got home, my dreamy salad never turned into that beautiful painting I pictured in my mind. I went out to pick the strawberries and they were all gone! All of them. Poof! Gone. Nothing left. I guess some little creatures had the same dreamy idea.

Thank goodness I had picked up some other terrific vegetables at the farmers' market. Broccoli from Confreda Greenhouse & Farms. In addition to their red lettuce, I had cherry tomatoes from Oakdale Farms Country Barn & Garden Shop.

The cheese is also local, "Atwells Gold" from Narragansett Creamery. It felt good to make the meal from mostly local food, local businesses and farmers.

Chickpeas, while not local, are always a staple in my pantry closet and were a nice addition for a little added protein.

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Mussels In Red Sauce

I hope you enjoy this mussel dish as much as we did. I've been trying to find a good recipe for mussels in red sauce and hope to soon create my own because this is my daughter's favorite meal. This recipe was a great starter and she gave it two thumbs up! It tasted fresh and was easy to make. 

Mussel Soup (Zuppa de Cozze)  
From Angela's Italian & Sicilian Recipes (easy printable version, a little different from below, though, can be found here).  I named it Mussels In Red Sauce because that's what my daughter likes to calls it.

2 lbs mussels
1 onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, (I minced mine)
1/4 cup dry white wine
4 large ripe tomatoes (I used one 28 oz can whole tomatoes but fresh will be really nice when garden tomatoes are available. For fresh tomato instructions, go to link above.)
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley (loosely packed)
6 basil leaves (I chopped them)
1 teaspoon crushed red chili pepper, optional (I added)
Extra virgin olive oil as needed
Freshly ground black pepper
Sea salt


Scrub mussels clean, pull off beards, if any. Our mussels were pretty clean already by the fishmonger, making this part a breeze.

Dice onions and mince garlic. Saute onions in a little olive oil until translucent in a stock pot over medium heat. Add garlic and cook through.

Add wine, canned tomatoes with juice (break up tomatoes with hands first), pepper, crushed chili pepper and heat to a gentle boil.

Add mussels, cover pot and steam until mussels open. It doesn't take long for them to open. Check mussels in a few minutes and gently stir. Cover and check again in a few minutes. Remove from heat when all mussels are open.

Gently stir in parsley and basil (the recipe I followed left out the basil from the instructions. Since it's fresh, I added the basil at the end). Add salt to taste. This recipe served all four of us.

Bruschetta:

Use an Italian loaf or French baguette, extra virgin olive oil, and about 3-4 garlic cloves, halved.

To make bruschetta: Slice the bread to accommodate servings. Brush a little olive oil over one side of each slice. Lay slices out on a baking sheet. Toast until lightly brown under the broiler or your preferred method. Rub garlic halves over each slice.

After we eat our first mussel, we like to use a mussel shell as our spoon!

Asparagus With Sauce Gribiche

Oh, Sauce Gribiche, where have you been all my life? 

I can't believe that I've never heard of Sauce Gribiche until now. Maybe the question should be, "Oh, where have I been?" Either way, I'm glad to have climbed out from under my rock and find Sauce Gribiche.

I discovered this wonderful French sauce by accident a few weeks ago. It was coincidental that I had just bought Schartner Farms' asparagus when I opened Edible Rhody and turned to a recipe called "Schartner Farms Asparagus With Sauce Gribiche." It caught my caught my eye immediately. Reading on, I got excited that I had all the ingredients except cornichons. Luckily, I had homemade pickled zucchini with a similar flavor that I had also bought at the farmers' market. So, without any planning on a beautiful spring day, a delicious and elegant lunch had come together. Serendipity!

Beautiful fresh Schartner Farms' asparagus. Fresh parsley and chives from my garden:

Sauce Gribiche
Printable version can be found at Edible Rhody, recipe by Nemo Bolin at the Cook & Brown Public House, Providence

6 hard-boiled eggs, whites and yolks separated

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus a little more to finish
1/4 cup brined capers, chopped
1/4 cup cornichons, chopped (I used pickled zucchini)
3 shallots, finely minced
1/2 bunch flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped (I just adjusted to my taste)
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh chives
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

I started by boiling the eggs, about 10 minutes (I add eggs to cold water, bring to a boil, turn off heat and let sit about 10 minutes).

While eggs were boiling, I started preparing the mixture by chopping and mincing the other ingredients and put them aside.

Capers: I had small capers which I've never chopped before. The recipe doesn't say small or large, but I thought, okay, I'll give it a try and chopped the small capers. Perhaps it imparts more flavor? I don't know. Next time, I'd try the sauce without chopping the capers to see if there's a noticable difference. If you haven't chopped small capers before either, I leave the chopping decision up to you! (I found it amusing that I wasn't the only one who thought this.)

When the eggs were done, I peeled them under running cold water and separated the yolks from the whites. In a shallow medium bowl I mashed the yolks into a paste with the back of a fork, stirred in mustard and vinegar, then slowly drizzled the olive oil to incorporate. It doesn't need to emulsify like a hollandaise or mayonnaise, so don't worry about it separating. I mixed in the remaining ingredients, chopped the egg whites and gently added them to the mixture. Seasoned with salt and pepper to taste, drizzled with a little more extra virgin olive oil to serve.

Blanch Asparagus
I served the Sauce Gribiche with blanch asparagus. I definitely prefer roasted or grilled asparagus, but here is the recipe if you'd like to serve the sauce with blanch asparagus: Place cleaned and trimmed (snap woody ends off) asparagus in boiling water for 2 to 3 minutes. While they boil, get a large bowl ready with iced water. Remove asparagus and cool immediately in the ice water.

Sauce Gribiche is a classic French sauce that's very versatile. It can be served with vegetables, fish, meat, and bread. Even though it's a classic sauce, it can be made in various ways and with different combinations of herbs. Popular combinations I read about, in addition to above, included parsley (always), chervil, chives, and tarragon.

This recipe made quite a bit for our family so I used some on crackers for a snack one day and I shared the rest with my friend. She served it with grilled asparagus over Memorial Day weekend and told me it was a big hit!

Pork Bulgogi, A Family Dinner

Are you thinking . . . hmm . . . this sounds familiar?

Well if you know Lizzy, who writes "That Skinny Chick Can Bake", then, yes, you probably read about this recently. And when I saw it I knew my family would love it.

Pork Bulgogi
A recipe by Lizzy, that she adapted from her friend, Norm Matthews

1 pound pork tenderloin, sliced wafer thin (easier to achieve when pork is slightly frozen)
Peanut oil

Marinade:
1/4 cup soy sauce (I used low sodium)
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4-6 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger
2 tablespoons dry sherry or saki
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes (she reduced it to 1/2 teaspoon, and so did I)
1 large onion, cut into 12ths

Garnish:
Toasted sesame seeds, optional

Method: mix all the marinade ingredients together. Add sliced pork and set aside at least 10 minutes. (I let the pork marinate about 30-40 minutes while I got the rice going.) Heat peanut oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet or wok. Working in batches, cook pork and onions until pork is no longer pink.

After I cooked all the pork, I added the remaining marinade to the skillet and cooked over high heat until reduced a little. Then I used it as a sauce over the pork. (It looks like a lot because I doubled the recipe.)

Pork Bulgogi, brown rice, and blanched asparagus, which were leftovers from the other night, made a great sit down family meal.

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Dessert was charred fresh pineapple slices topped with Tahitian vanilla ice cream and lemon sorbet for my daughter, her favorite.

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Bulgogi is a historical Korean dish dating back to around 37 BC-668 AD. The name means fire meat, the word fire coming from the way the dish is usually prepared over hot heat.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulgogi, http://www.mct.go.kr/html/symbolImg/eng/bulgogi/sec01.html.
Here's an interesting article I found with variations of the dish and different ways to serve it:
http://ezinearticles.com/?All-About-Bulgogi---Korean-Beef&id=5505977

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White Bean Grilled Panini With Basil, Tomato, And Mozzarella

Bring on the flavors of summer with this delicious grilled panini adapted from A Little Bit Crunchy A Little Bit Rock And Roll's recipe for Provolone White Bean Grilled Panini With Tomato & Basil.

I didn't want to make changes to Jenn's recipe. It sounded great just as it was with white beans, basil, tomato, provolone, mayonnaise and red onions. I could just imagine that creamy blend and looked forward to those flavors.

But when I looked for the provolone at around 7 pm last night it was gone! My little cheese robbers ate it without my knowing. All that was left was fresh mozzarella so I made a little change. The mayonnaise, I thought, would go well with the smokey flavor of provolone but I didn't think so with mozzarella. So I substituted extra virgin olive oil for mayonnaise in this version. I also didn't have a red onion so I used a shallot. However, I'm still thinking about her recipe and can't wait to make it her way. My son would have preferred it also since he loves sandwiches with mayonnaise.

White Bean Grilled Panini With Basil, Tomato And Mozzarella
Ingredients for 4 sandwiches:

1 medium shallot, minced
Between 1/4 -1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
About 1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Pepper to taste

1 large tomato, thinly sliced

2 balls of fresh mozzarella, thickly sliced

Italian bread, preferably a grain mix or wheat, sliced

1 can white beans, cannellini or navy, slightly smashed

Mix shallot, basil, oil, and pepper together first and let sit while preparing the rest of the ingredients. Slice tomato, cheese, and bread. Slightly mash beans.

To put this panini together:

Combine oil, shallots, basil, and pepper.

Slice Italian bread and lay slices out on sheet pan. I bought "rustic" Italian bread from the farmers' market over the weekend, thinking it was a grain blend like last week, but it doesn't look that way. I might have grabbed the wrong bag.

Slice tomatoes and cheese. Spread basil mixture over each slice of bread then layer sliced tomatoes over half the bread. Oops! Here is where I should have added the beans. Add beans before the cheese so it helps keep the sandwich together. Don't forget the beans!

Lay down thick slices of mozzarella.

Warm up the grill. Cook over medium heat. Press sandwiches down with a weighted pan. Flip when nice grill marks are achieved.

I can just imagine how amazing this sandwich will taste when my fresh garden tomatoes come in. Can't wait.

To make Jenn's creamy panini go here: http://alittlebitcrunchyalittlebitrock.blogspot.com/2011/05/provolone-white-bean-grilled-panini.html.