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Recipe Roundup: May and Early June Edition

June 8, 2017 By Jessica Braider 2 Comments

Recipe Roundup: May and Early June Edition

This morning I heard a story on NPR about this guy who realized that he was living a very comfortable, happy life but that one day he realized that his whole life was being lived in a bubble, so he decided that he was going to break out of the bubble by attending randomly selected, open to the public events in his city. It was an inspiring story about breaking out of your comfort zone and trying new things. He talked about how uncomfortable it could be at moments and how there were times when he was tempted to turn around and walk away, but he didn’t, and the outcomes were wonderful. As I listened to his story, I couldn’t help but challenge myself to think carefully about ways in which I do and do not venture outside of my own bubble. In some ways I am an adventurous person, but in others I’m not, and I hope that hearing this story will push me to start exploring some other worlds, even ones that are close by.

If taking a step outside of your comfort zone sometimes involves cooking, then I’ve got some great recipes for you in this Recipe Roundup! The first two recipes in the Roundup came about because one of my clients gave me some homemade goat milk paneer (Indian cheese) and since Saag Paneer is one of my all-time favorite dishes, I jumped at the chance to make it for the first time, so an Indian dinner was in the cards. The waffle recipe is a game changer if you are a fan of waffles that are crispy on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside. And the Southwestern Spinach and Black Bean Dip is likely to become a go-to in our house. Are you ready to step out of your bubble and try a new recipe?

Image courtesy of Food Network

Saag Paneer: Spinach with Indian Cheese after poking around online for a while I settled on this recipe because it seemed to be the most manageable. Instead of using frozen spinach I used spinach from my farm share, I used coconut oil instead of vegetable oil, and I skipped the chili pepper in the hopes that my boys would be more open to eating it. Other than those modifications, I followed the recipe closely and the outcome was AMAZING. I could have eaten it for a week straight. My boys still weren’t convinced, but did eat the little bit that they each had on their plate, and my husband loved it almost as much as I did.

Make again? Absolutely and soon!!

Image courtesy of Food.com

Potato Curry with Peas and Carrots I made this to accompany the Saag Paneer because I was confident that my boys would enjoy it, and I was right. I found the directions on this recipe to be a little vague for my taste, but I have made enough curries that I could figure it out. It did take longer than I had anticipated, but the flavors were fantastic and it was relatively simple to make.

Make again? Yes. But I’ll probably type up my own directions to follow. Maybe I’ll post that recipe sometime soon…

 

 

Image courtesy of Inspired Taste

Best Homemade Waffle Recipe I stumbled upon this recipe last weekend as I was trying to find a waffle recipe that only required one egg. The secret ingredient in this recipe is cornstarch and I have to say that I am a convert! I made this recipe using spelt flour instead of all purpose flour, to add some whole grain heft, and they were still light and fluffy on the inside and crispy on the outside. All four of us LOVED these waffles. Two quick notes: 1) the batter is much runnier than any other waffle batter I have ever made and seemed to require more batter per waffle, so be prepared and 2) I will never make a single batch of this recipe again. Even for my family of four, this recipe was barely enough for breakfast and I guarantee you will want leftovers for the freezer.

Make again? Yes! This is going to be my new go-to waffle recipe!

Southwestern Spinach Black Bean Dip I made this to take as a side dish to a taco night at a friend’s house. Instead of canned corn I used frozen and I added a bunch more spice, but other than that I followed the recipe. It was delicious, filling, and packed with spinach. It also makes a TON! We gorged on it and there was still a lot leftover, which I then mixed with some leftover chicken to make a variation on my baked chimichangas, which were the biggest hit of the week in my house.

Make again? Definitely and definitely will turn the leftovers into baked chimichangas again, too!

Filed Under: Breakfast, Dinner, Family Dinner, Feeding Kids, Freezer Cooking, Healthy Eating, Sides, Snacks, Uncategorized Tagged With: curries, dips, Indian, mexican, recipe roundup, vegetarian, waffles

Mexican Street Corn-Style Popcorn

May 4, 2017 By Jessica Braider 5 Comments

Mexican Street Corn-Style Popcorn

Popcorn is a go-to snack in our house. In part because it is a healthier snack option, in part because it is a cost-effective and simple snack solution when you’ve got increasingly hungry kids to feed, but if I am being honest, it is really mostly because I looooove popcorn and so I make it for me just as much as I make it for the kids.

Over the years I have experimented with lots of different toppings: garam masala, za’atar, chili powder, cinnamon, parmesan, and nutritional yeast are some of my favorites. But in honor of Cinco de Mayo this year I wanted to push the envelope and try something different: Mexican Street Corn-Style Popcorn….

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Filed Under: Snacks Tagged With: Easy, mexican, popcorn, snacks

Mexican-Style Potato Gratin

December 21, 2016 By Jessica Braider Leave a Comment

Mexican-Style Potato Gratin

While I am not a huge risk taker, I do love it when something pushes me outside of my comfort zone just a little bit. As my family and close friends will attest to, I love adrenaline rushes, as long as they don’t involve flying over water (I am cool with heights, but am terrified of drowning, go figure). So when this month’s The Recipe Redux challenge showed up I was psyched because it felt like a fun risk to take.

The challenge was to grab the closest cookbook and use a recipe from any page in the book that included the digits in 2016 as inspiration for a new recipe.

Why is this a risk? Because the cookbook that was closest at hand was a true favorite because the recipes are as close to perfect as I think you can get and because it already offers lots of variations, so coming up with a new version would be a challenge. Also because it is a cookbook by a chef, Rick Bayless, who loves to use spicy peppers, which was going to be tough on my kids and husband, none of who are big fans of spicy foods. But I was up to the challenge!

The recipe I landed on was his Seared Zucchini with Roasted Tomato, Chipotle and Chorizo (Tinga de Calabacitas). I decided I was going to focus on two areas of change, simplifying the recipe and making it seasonal. In order to simplify the recipe I removed two steps: rehydrating chipotle peppers and roasting tomatoes, especially since it isn’t tomato season. Instead I used chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, which are canned, and canned fire roasted tomatoes. In addition, instead of zucchini I wanted to use a seasonal vegetable and ended up settling on potatoes. And that is when it hit me! I could change this sort of stew recipe into a gratin recipe instead! It would be simple, packed with flavor, and very flexible—all qualities I strive for in my recipes. Oh, and one last added bonus: the leftovers are to die for so it makes a great lunch the next day!…

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Filed Under: Dinner, Family Dinner, Sides Tagged With: cheese, mexican, potato, recipe redux

Baked Chimichangas

July 7, 2016 By Jessica Braider 1 Comment

Baked Chimichangas

I don’t know about you, but getting meals on the table during the summer can be a bit of a challenge. I always think that the summer is going to be slower and more relaxed, and in some ways it is, but then suddenly, because of that relaxation and lack of routine, it is 6pm, I’ve got starving kids, and I haven’t even started thinking about dinner yet! Panic!

That is where quick and easy dinners save the day and I have been depending a lot on quick pastas, egg dishes, and rice bowls of various sorts. These are all great, but we all need something new from time to time… or at least I do.

Enter the baked chimichanga. Now, I know that this is not even close to a traditional chimichanga, especially since they aren’t deep fried, but to be totally honest, calling them chimichangas was quite a selling point with my kids. They thought it was fun to say and if it is fun to say, then maybe it is fun to eat, and then suddenly I have two boys who are in love with a new dish to the point where one declares that he loves chimichangas more than hot dogs (true story!). So maybe I could call them baked-delicious-pockets-of-goodness, but it just doesn’t quite roll off the tongue in the same way….

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Filed Under: Dinner, Family Dinner, Feeding Kids, Healthy Eating, Quick Dinners Tagged With: black beans, chicken, Easy, healthy, kids, mexican, Vegetables, vegetarian, zucchini

Getting Over Your Fear of New Ingredients and a New Recipe: Baked Squash Blossoms

June 23, 2016 By Jessica Braider Leave a Comment

Getting Over Your Fear of New Ingredients and a New Recipe: Baked Squash Blossoms

Six years ago my family joined a CSA (community supported agriculture), otherwise known as a farm share. We joined because I really wanted to take advantage of local, responsibly grown produce. Being a member of the farm share has been a truly wonderful experience—from the warm and friendly staff, to the community atmosphere amongst the members, to the access to truly seasonal fruits and vegetables!

Our CSA is sort of unique in that instead of just picking up a box of pre-selected produce, you get to pick your selections in a farm stand-type set up. When I was first starting out, this feature was nice because I was nervous about cooking with unknown vegetables, so falling back on familiar ingredients made me more comfortable. As I have become a more confident and curious cook, though, one of the things that I have really grown to enjoy is trying out a new ingredient every week (or almost every week). This season the highlights so far have been kohlrabi, tatsoi, and squash blossoms.

As I have experimented with these new ingredients over the years I have figured out five tricks to make it fun and easy:…

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Filed Under: Sides, Tips and Tricks Tagged With: baked, cheese, CSA, farm share, healthy, mexican, seasonal, squash blossoms, vegetarian

Jessica Braider

Hi! I'm Jessica. I love delicious food that is simple and easy. As a busy mom, I am always on the lookout for ways to make life easier and tastier! Read More…

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