Hopping on the bandwagon

They're taking over the foodie blogosphere like an infectious disease. They contain ingredients feared by some and foreign to others. Their name even sounds a little dangerous. What in the world am I talking about?

Green Monsters!

Whether or not you've heard of the Green Monster Movement, we're all familiar with the concept of sneaking some extra health into our smoothies. I've been a fan of adding wheat grass powder and hemp protein (separately, not together) to mine for quite some time now, but they've never actually been green in color because fruit is my dominant produce of choice in the morning. I've been missing one key ingredient that will transform my morning smoothie from simple blended berries to Green Monster madness. Any guesses as to what that might be?

Spinach! Kale! Collards!

That's right, more potent green nutrition. The 2-3 cups of leafy greens in a Green Monster is what gives it that signature color. Luckily, when blended thoroughly, this addition is barely noticeable. And by that I mean taste wise, because the color definitely is.

source

This morning, I was keen on making my first Green Monster and joining the club. However, I was disappointed to discover that we didn't have any spinach. I wasn't about to put mixed greens in, because that just doesn't sound good at all. But I went ahead and made one with hemp protein powder, wheat grass powder, frozen banana, berries, almond butter, yogurt, a splash of maple syrup, and some unsweetened cocoa to mask the grassy taste. It was actually pretty great.

I fully intend to join the Green Monster fun as soon as I can get my hands on some spinach or kale, and I will share this adventure with you accordingly. For now, you can read more about Green Monsters and their creator here.

Happy sipping!

Brunch at Bambino's

This unbelievably beautiful Saturday was followed by an equally splendid Sunday. Always always eager to eat, Lindsay, Virginia and I walked to Cole Valley and found ourselves at Bambino's around 11:30 am. Our experience can be summarized in one word: Divine!

I ordered a low-fat chai latte which came to me in the form of a low-fat latte. But no matter... it was still lovely to look at.

Instead of bread, we were presented with freshly-baked mini currant and lemon scones. I'm tough to please when it comes to scones... they can often be very dry and chalky, in which case I don't enjoy them. But these were some of the freshest, cutest, most-perfectly-moist scones I've ever had. And how unique! Props to Mr. Bambino.

When our meals arrived, mine looked a little something like this:

Smoked salmon, goat cheese, and green onion omelet with a side of greens. I was full about 3/4 of the way through, but I just had to finish it. It was so good! I also hadn't eaten much of anything until then, so it was in my best interest to eat the whole thing. (There's always some way to justify licking your plate clean!)

So peeps, the votes are in, and all are in favor of Bambino's! We fully enjoyed our experience and lingered to chat after our meal. The staff was super friendly, helpful, and looked happy to be there. Visually rustic Italian, the interior is accented with warm colors and soft natural light. Best of all, it was not crowded in the least. The low conversation floating over us from nearby tables and the clinking of plates in the kitchen just added to the authentic feel. We will absolutely be returning!

Bambinos

945 Cole Street

San Francisco

Ode to Spinach

According to Healthy Eats newsletter, today is National Spinach Day! I'm glad somebody's taken initiative to spread awareness. Spinach is one of Mother Nature's super-duper foods. I personally eat spinach every single day, and I think you should too. Not only is it delicious a multitude of ways, I believe it has been sent from the fitness gods. Remember Popeye? There you have it. In addition to fueling and healing your internal organs, skin, eyes, teeth, muscles and brain, spinach can be easily included in your breakfast, lunch, dinner AND snacks! You basically have no excuses when it comes to not eating spinach. Like eggs? Toss it in a veggie omelet for breakfast. Like sandwiches (who doesn't...)? Instead of iceberg lettuce, wedge it between your other fave ingredients and toast it for a delicious panini at lunch. This can also be done ahead of time (read: the night before) for those of you strapped for actual lunchtime. For snack, include a handful in any kind of smoothie- I promise you won't even taste it! And at dinner, saute with garlic and sesame oil and serve under a sesame-crusted salmon fillet. Or, layer it into your lasagna or eggplant parmesan. As always, though, a simple spinach salad works just as well/easily. I've included my go-to spinach salad recipe at the end of this post. But for now, here are some more reasons from trusted sources on why you should get your hands on this leafy green gem:

Elizabeth Somer, M.A., R.D., has named spinach one of her top 12 Super Mood Foods. She says that leafy greens, like spinach, are the very best sources of the B vitamin folate (otherwise known as folic acid). Poor intake of folate increases the risk for depression, fatigue, poor memory, and possibly schizophrenia [birth defects for your unborn child too, as I've read elsewhere]. What's more, people who are clinically depressed only respond to antidepressants if their blood levels of folate are high (What?!). She also says that just one serving of dark leafy greens supplies an entire day's requirement for vitamin A, more than 3 milligrams of iron, almost 1/3 your daily need for folate, and lots of calcium and other B vitamins. This is all for about 20 calories (WHAT?!). Oh, one more thing: leafy greens contain a lot of magnesium, which can curb symptoms of PMS. Awesome. Thanks, Elizabeth.

Next up: Stephanie Tourles, raw food guru extraordinaire. Her take on spinach is this: Spinach is loaded with antioxidants such as lutein, beta-carotene, several anti-inflammatory flavonoids, vitamin C and K, folic acid, iron, calcium, potassium, and magnesium. She likes to mince it up and add it to vegetable dips. Yum!

So, if you haven't jumped out of your seat by this point to buy yourself some spinach, I don't know what your problem is. If you're sticking around to hear what else I have to say, I'll entertain you. But promise you'll go to the store as soon as I'm done.

As I'm researching all these spinach facts this morning, I've come up with some thoughts. Let's go back to the birth defect thing. We've all heard that pregnant women are supposed to take a prenatal vitamin with lots of folic acid, right? Maybe you've been there yourself and have had this advice given to you. Regardless, I'm starting to wonder why we as a culture place so much value on supplements. Is it out of laziness? Do we think to ourselves, Oh, no need to drink my milk today, I took a calcium pill...? Is it because we crave a sense of security? We'd rather overdose on vitamins than underdose? (That's definitely not a real word, but I don't care.) Well, I've got some news for you. It is entirely possible to get all the nutrients you need from food alone. In fact, overdosing on certain vitamins and minerals, especially some of the B vitamins, can become toxic and detrimental to your health. Yes, something we believe is good for us can actually become bad for us. But this little philosophy is not new to you- you already know that too much of anything can become a bad thing (you thought it only applied to molten chocolate cake!). So here is my non-certified-but-heavily-supplemented-by-research-and-reading opinion: PROCEED WITH CAUTION. I'm certainly not going to tell you to not take a multivitamin, because that would be hypocritical. But if we all did a little research of our own, we may discover that other rich sources of B vitamins include beans/legumes (like chickpeas, kidney beans, lentils, peanuts), yogurt and milk products, whole grains (brown rice, quinoa, barley), and wheat germ. We may discover that we don't have to depend quite as heavily on nutritional supplements if we can include more of these foods in our daily diets. This applies to any nutrient you'd like to get more of or think you're deficient in. My favorite formula: Awareness + Action = Awesomely Healthy. Be aware. Act accordingly. Improve your health.

I said earlier that I'd include a recipe in this post to give you a way to use the spinach you just bought. Here's my absolute favorite way to do spinach:
Toss it raw with toasted pecans, roasted red bell peppers, halved cherry tomatoes, avaocado, goat cheese, and basil. Drizzle with a simple dressing of olive oil, balsamic and/or red wine vinegar, black pepper, raw garlic, and a little dijon mustard. Delish!


Now, EAT YOUR SPINACH. Or else.

Now if only there was FIG sangria...

Our spontaneous trip to Palo Alto's Joya on Sunday resulted in blank stares and a headache. I guess I've learned my lesson: midday wine = bad idea.

But it was so worth it! White peach sangria: to die for. Fruity, tangy, delicious, and with a bite from the wine. Just how sangria should be. It was the perfect compliment to my garbanzo burger and sweet potato fries. I'm a sucker for those damn sweet potatoes.

All in all, everything was delicious. A little bit pricey for my budget, but I definitely plan on going back for more.

Get yourselves to Joya!

Tea Muffins

This recipe came about after numerous statements from Elliott (whose camera finesse is much appreciated, by the way) that he wanted to "eat this tea instead of drink it." I should probably state RIGHT NOW that I am just as obsessed with tea as I am with chocolate and figs. I probably should have named this blog The Chocolate Tea Fig. But if I was to include tea, I wouldn't want the Greek yogurt, oatmeal, or local honeys to feel left out. So I'd have to call it The Chocolate Tea and Yogurt Oatmeal Honeyed Fig Blog. And that's just too long.

ANYWAY. I'd finally opened some rose champagne-flavored black tea from a while ago, and its delicate aroma had been saturating the kitchen for several days. I'll admit, it was hard to stop myself from scooping a spoonful and chewing on it. However, I decided it was a better idea to grind a few tablespoons into a powder and bake it in some muffins. We added toasted almonds and almond extract for another twist. The result was.... SO. GOOD. Light, airy, not at all filling morsels with the perfect aroma from the tea and a wonderful earthiness from the almonds. They were uhhmazing with a fresh cup of the same tea. The only thing I might change is to chop or grind the almonds- they were a little too crunchy and dense for the otherwise delicate muffin. I think using black tea worked well, but I would definitely support experimenting with different teas and add-ins. Green tea and dried cherries might be good.



Tea and Almond Muffins

Ingredients:
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2-3 Tbsp black tea, ground fine into a powder
1 cup milk
1/2 cup light olive oil or other vegetable oil
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp almond extract
1/2 cup toasted almonds, chopped

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.

In a large bowl, stir together flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, and tea. In another bowl, mix milk, oil, egg, and almond extract.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredient; add wet ingredients and mix thoroughly. Add almonds and stir until incorporated.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups and bake 15-20 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool 5-10 minutes and serve warm, or store in airtight container at room temperature.