Tom Colicchio Doesn't Eat "Healthy"

In an interview posted on the New York Times' Well Blog today, celebrity chef and restaurateur Tom Colicchio shares some interesting opinions about how kids should eat and how parents should be cooking.

The Top Chef head honcho will participate in a panel discussion on family eating this weekend at the South Beach Wine and Food Festival, along with the likes of Rachael Ray, South Beach diet founder Dr. Arthur Agatston and cookbook author and famous significant other, Jessica Seinfeld.  Even though I have no little ones of my own (unless you count dust bunnies), I found his comments on this subject enlightening and refreshingly off-the-cuff.  For instance, when questioned about whether restaurants are doing their fair share when it comes to promoting healthy eating, Colicchio quipped, "What chefs can do when it comes to getting the word out is have people understand food differently.  If food is well sourced and well prepared, I don’t think the word healthy needs to be brought into it. ...I’m not worried if I’m using four different cheeses and it’s high in fat.  It’s real food.  That’s what’s more important."

I wholeheartedly agree.  Between this and his recent life-saving heroics, Mr. C's stock has gone way up in my book.  Click here to read the interview in its entirety. 

C&S

 

Are You Ready For Some Football (Food)?

In my house, football season is greeted with the same excitement usually reserved for kindergarteners on Christmas morning. Every weekend we anticipate the Longhorn’s and Cowboys’ match-ups, and catch as many games our Fantasy Football players are playing in (yes, I play Fantasy Football) as possible.

Few foods pair as well with football and beer as chili. However, few foods make a room full of guys (and gals) as sluggish and let’s face it, gassy, as traditional chili. Over the years, I have cultivated a healthier chili recipe. It is satisfying, easy and deeply delicious - if a little unconventional - and pleases any football fan (and even those who aren’t - just ask C&S).

Robin’s Four Pepper Turkey Chili

2 tsp. olive oil
1 yellow onion, coarsely chopped

1 poblano pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped

1 red bell pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped

1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped
1 tsp. salt (preferably kosher or sea salt) + 1 tsp. salt
2 jalapeño peppers, seeded (or not, if you like it uber-spicy) and minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 lb. of lean ground turkey (93/7 is good)

28 oz. can of tomato sauce

28 oz. can of petite diced tomatoes (drained)
28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes

15 oz. can of Rotel tomatoes, drained
2 tbs. chili powder
2 tbs. cumin
2 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
6 oz. can of tomato paste
15 oz. can of hominy, drained

In a large non-stick pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onions, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, and poblano pepper and sprinkle with 1 tsp. of salt. Sauté for 5-7 minutes or until the onions start to get translucent. Add the jalapeños and sauté for another minute. Add the garlic and sauté for another minute. Transfer the pepper mixture to a plate.

In the same pot, add the turkey breast and brown. Once cooked through, add the peppers back to the pot and combine. Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, Rotel tomatoes, 1 tsp. salt and the rest of the spices. Bring to a slight bubble and add the tomato paste until completely incorporated. Add the hominy last, reduce the heat to medium low, and cover. Cook for at least an hour or as long as you can stand it.

Serve it with:
Cilantro
Sour cream
Fritos

New Breakfast Obsession: Banana Chocolate Vivanno

For those of us that work an 8-5 Monday-Friday job, how often do you rush out the door in the morning without eating breakfast? If you’re me, it’s approximately 5 days a week, and the other two days you just sleep through breakfast. But somehow, I do make the time to stop at Starbucks almost every day.

The problem is—those pastries and muffins they sell at Starbucks really don’t appeal to me. They’re just sugar-laden obstacles in the way to getting my Triple Grande Soy Latte. So, basically, I end up drinking my breakfast every morning, and am starving by 10:30.

Starbucks, however, has introduced a new drink that has changed my life. It’s called the Banana Chocolate Vivanno, and it has revolutionized my breakfast routine. The shake combines a whole banana (Fruit! Actual, honest to goodness fruit!), 2% milk (Calcium!), bittersweet cocoa (Chocolate!), fiber powder (Powdered regularity!), and whey protein (Hello, South Beach!). But the best part is, if you ask, they will also blend in a shot of espresso (Caffeine!), making it the most well-rounded and efficient breakfast I’ve ever consumed.

On top of that, this is no uber-sweet and sugary Frappuccino. It’s actually relatively low in fat and calories (5 g/270 calories), especially considering that it works as a meal substitute. And with 6 grams of fiber and 21 grams of protein, it actually keeps you full all morning.

Thank you, Starbucks! You’ve once again earned my love, along with my $5 a day.

A few things I'm in love with this week...

Here are a few things that have captivated me, food-and-beverage-wise, in the last week or so. Below you'll find an offbeat recipe, a new grocery item and a must-visit winery right here in Dallas (it's classy and sassy, just like you-know-who). I'm sure that one or more of them will be up your alley, too.

Ingrid Hoffman's Mini Cuban Burgers (Fritas)

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_66374,00.html

I love Ingrid Hoffman and her Latin-influenced cusine. What a welcome change of pace from the endless parade of Italian iterations that seems to be taking over my favorite cooking shows! These sliders are exceptional: sweet, tangy and a little bit like a meatloaf sandwich with a kick. Be advised that the recipe made 24 generous mini-burgers for me (the link above will tell you 12, but I believe it's a misprint). I was pleasantly surprised by the surplus - a little time in the kitchen gave me dinner plus a freezer full of burger-liciousness for cravings to come.

Orowheat Double Fiber Bread

http://www.oroweat.com/

Finally, a great tasting whole wheat bread that doesn't suck all the moisture from your cheeks in the time it takes to eat your sandwich. It's so good, in fact, that I'd choose this bread over just about any other sandwich loaf, even if it wasn't so nutritous and packed with fiber. You know, when you're a semi-pro eater like me, you've got to give yourself good stuff whenever you can. That way you can justify the ginger creme brulee you might happen to sneak in after lunch once in a while (totally hypothetically speaking).

Times Ten Cellars
http://www.timestencellars.com/

This Lakewood gem is a must-visit for anyone who loves wine. The space is eclectic and warm, and the wines are earning praise left and right. Slip into the tasting room on a Saturday afternoon for a sip of something cool, or head over after work for a light dinner of pate and artisinal cheese. Gaze at the crystal chandeliers twinkling over oak in the barrel room, then head out on the patio for a little people-watching. Don't forget to take home a bottle or two of the award-winning rose or whichever winds up being your new fave from the Times Ten line-up.

Be Your Own Italian Grandmother

I don’t have an Italian grandmother (although I wouldn't trade my grandmas for the world), but if I had a bonus grandma, I think these would be a great approximation of what she would make.

The meatballs are lightened up a bit, using turkey instead of beef or pork. Sure, I'm too lazy to peel tomatoes, so I use the canned kind, but the sauce still tastes ten times better than anything you buy in a jar. Both recipes are easy, but make for a great dinner!

And even better, both are freezable and perfect for pulling out of the oven on a busy weeknight.

Pasta Sauce

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small yellow onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 32 oz. can of whole tomatoes
3 tablespoons fresh Italian parsley leaves
3 tablespoons fresh chopped fresh basil
1 32 oz. can of tomato sauce
½ tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried fennel seeds
½ tablespoon dried thyme
½ tablespoon dried oregano
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
1 cup dry red wine

In a large stock pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and sauté for 5 or 6 minutes until the onions are translucent.

In a food processor, combine the whole tomatoes (drained), Italian parsley, and basil, pulse several times until the tomatoes are broken up into very small pieces, but still have texture. Add to the pan with the onions and garlic, and then add the tomato sauce, red pepper flakes, fennel, thyme, oregano, and tomato paste. Bring to a bubble. Add the red wine and bring to a bubble again. Reduce heat to low and let simmer, stirring occasionally for two hours or as long as you can take it. The longer it cooks, the better it tastes, but honestly, it tastes pretty good as soon as you add the red wine.


Turkey Meatballs

1 small onion, grated

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 large egg

1/4 cup dried bread crumbs

3 oz (half a small can) of tomato paste

1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves

1/2 cup grated Parmesan

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried fennel seeds
1 teaspoon oregano

1 pound ground dark turkey meat (Don’t use the super-lean turkey or they will turn out very dry. I think if you used a mix of lean and dark it would probably turn out okay, though.)

2 tablespoons olive oil

Add the onion, garlic, egg, bread crumbs, tomato paste, parsley, Parmesan, red pepper flakes, fennel seeds, oregano, salt and pepper to a large bowl and blend. Mix in the turkey. Shape the turkey mixture into 1 1/4-inch-diameter meatballs. Place on a large rimmed baking sheet covered in foil and sprinkled with the olive oil. Roll the meatballs around in the olive oil. This keeps them from sticking to the foil and helps them brown in the oven. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.

Bake for 10 minutes, then pull them out and turn them over. Bake another ten minutes. Add to heated pasta sauce and let simmer for 10 minutes or so until they are completely cooked through. Serve over pasta.

Indulgence vs. Penance

I have a confession to make: On a weekend night I have been known to consume an entire dinner of, oh, say, roasted salmon in lemon beurre blanc with fingerling potatoes and baby beets, then after spending a few hours with friends, turning right around and eating another meal from the drive-thru on my way home. All right, so maybe this wasn't some randomized example...maybe it actually happened last Saturday. Maybe it happens a couple of Saturdays a month. And maybe a Friday or two thrown in for good measure. Point is, though I prefaced this as a “confession”, in reality I go out of my way not to feel guilty about such things. Guilt is a useless emotion fraught with the peril of obsessing over that which cannot be changed.

Where was I?

Oh, yeah – instead of getting down at the mouth about what a horrible person I am, wrecking my arteries with clarified butter and (oh, so delicious) deep fat fried fast food, I try behave myself for a couple of days. I developed the recipes below for when I'm in a mood to purify...they are sinfully delicious but entirely virtuous. That way, I can enter a new weekend feeling light and free and clean and ready for action. Yet again.

Homemade Granola Bars

1/2 stick butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
pinch of salt

2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup Rice Krispies (or other crispy rice cereal)

1/2 cup raisins*
1/2 cup chopped almonds*

Directions: Line an 8” square or 8 x 11” baking dish with wax paper – enough to hang slightly over the sides. Spray paper with non-stick spray.

Combine butter, sugar, honey and salt in a saucepan over medium heat until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved.

Meanwhile, combine oats and remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Pour butter mixture over oat mixture and stir to combine. Working quickly, turn out oat mixture onto prepared sheet, spray hands with non-stick spray and press firmly into the pan. Fold excess waxed paper back over the edges of the rectangle and press, to help form even sides and uniform thickness. Cool in refrigerator 1 – 2 hours before cutting into bars.

* Replace with any combination of nuts, dried fruit or chips that floats your boat.

Reduced Fat Whole Wheat Brownies

1/2 stick butter, melted and cooled slightly
4 oz. low-fat or non-fat vanilla flavored yogurt
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/3 cup cocoa powder

1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 8-inch square pan with parchment or foil and spray with non-stick spray. Combine butter, yogurt, sugar, vanilla and eggs in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until well-combined. Add cocoa powder and pulse until combined. (a mixing bowl and electric mixer can also be used)

Combine flours, baking powder and salt in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Add cocoa mixture and stir gently until just combined. Pour into prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake in preheated oven for 20 – 25 minutes.