In the depths of a chilly winter, I wanted a contrast to all the squash-focused and root vegetable dishes, and hearty meals that mark the season until the groundhog sees his shadow.  Since it’s crab season, I decided to take on a different kind of work this weekend– shelling my own fresh crab.  Yum!

I picked up 3 smallish crabs, planning at first to make crab cakes with cucumber-mango salsa, but then decided to go with a less work-intensive version.  The crunch of cucumber goes so well with the softer mango and the sweetness of the crab.  And I love a kick of pepper to spice things up– just the thing to satisfy a warm weather craving!

Summer Crab Salad

All the proportions here are approximate and can be adjusted to taste.

1/2 large English cucumber, peeled and diced

2 mangoes, peeled, pitted and diced

1/2 lb crab meat (Approximately 1.5lbs whole crab)

1/2 tsp cayenne powder

1/2 tsp paprika

juice of 2 limes

sea salt and pepper to taste

Prepare the cucumber and mangoes first, and toss with salt, cayenne, and paprika before letting it rest in the fridge.  The cucumber will release water while you shell the crab; drain the excess liquid when you are ready to add the crab.  Fold in the crab, dress with lime juice, adjust seasonings.  Serve on a bed of lettuce with fresh French bread on the side.

What better time to take advantage of a clean kitchen and stocked fridge?

Here’s what I made:

Sat evening:

• Homemade turkey meatballs with freshly chopped herbs – I made meatballs instead of patties so they could be packed easily as part of a bento lunch.  We ate quite a few of them as finger food hot off the stove– oops!
• Teriyaki chicken tenders – These aren’t McNuggets; they’re the small piece of chicken that usually comes attached to the breast.  I like buying packages of the tenders at Trader Joe’s since the greater surface area to volume ratio allows max flavor penetration from the marinade.  Plus, the tenders cook more evenly and are perfectly sized for incorporating into sandwiches or salads.
• Steamed broccoli and cauliflower – 1 head each.  I peeled the broccoli stems and sliced them thinly on the diagonal, and steamed them as well.  They add a great crunch to salads!

Sun evening:

• Homemade pizza – dough from scratch using Mark Bittman’s recipe from How to Cook Everything.  Yum!  Toppings included meatballs (from Sat), mushrooms, veggies, and some light mozzarella.

All ready for the oven!

• Tzatziki – a Greek cucumber and yogurt dip that is fantastic on its own or with pita bread.  Super easy to make: peel and slice cucumber using a mandoline.  Add salt to cucumber, wait an hour, press out excess water.  Add greek yogurt to cucumber mixture.  Eat and enjoy.
• Oh yeah, and I made eggs benedict as breakfast-for-dinner as well, per the bf’s request.

It seems like a lot of food when I list it out like this, but really it was all very simple and took minimal time– maybe an hour total each night?  And now I have a ton of healthy, prepared food in my fridge all ready for work lunches.

Seriously, a few years ago I’d have laughed my ass off at the idea of me cooking for any reason other than a party or special event.  But now I look at prepared items in the grocery store and think, “I could make that at home, for less money and with healthier/organic ingredients.”  So I do– and it’s immensely gratifying, even for simple meals.  Ok, ok, I know I’m kinda behind the curve when it comes to the domestic arts, but we’ve all got to learn sometime.  And the stuff I used to have to plan is now second nature.

What next?  I’ve also been entertaining the idea of making bento boxes for the bf and myself, but I’m not so sure it fits our eating habits well.  (FYI: a bento is basically a boxed lunch that is supposed to be nutritionally balanced, with a diversity of colors, textures, and flavors.)  More on my attempts at this later…

Anyone else end up cooking (and eating) more during the winter?  Guess the hibernation urge is strong even in California.

The weather’s warming up and all sorts of veggies and fruits are in season…  I love the beginning of summer!  City Girl’s cucumber watermelon cooler and Smitten Kitchen’s asparagus/goat cheese/lemon pasta got me jonesing for those hot summer nights that haven’t quite reached the West Coast yet…  you know, the ones where you lie around basking in doing nothing.

Speaking of doing nothing, it’s pretty easy to achieve in the kitchen when you’ve got a bunch of produce and can just throw things together.  I always have salmon (flash-frozen wild alaskan from Costco) on hand because it’s tasty, easy, and good!  Since I was resisting the lure of Whole Foods one weekend morning, this was our brunch:  pan-grilled salmon with wasabi (canola) mayo, avocado, and tomatoes on a toasted English muffin.  I popped some potato wedges with herbs and parm in the oven before prepping the fish, and voila– lazy Sunday brunch!   It’s pretty healthy too, what with all those omega-3s and monounsaturated fats…  enough that a small grating of cheddar didn’t hurt.

At first I was debating about putting this up since it’s not really a recipe, per se, but I was drawn to the colors and the sheer simplicity.  Honestly, during the height of summer I probably could subsist on caprese salad, fruit, and grilled veggies alone; the less stovetop cooking, the better!  Mmmm, heirloom tomatoes and sweet corn…

What’s your favorite “taste of summer” food?

Now, I’m a girl who likes her sweets, but sometimes moscatos are too syrupy even for me.  The Ravenswood Leggero is effervescent and light, great as a palate cleanser and versatile enough to be paired with any number of desserts or cheese plates.  What’s truly amazing is how the fruit lingers on the palate– I adore the finish.  It’s absolutely memorable but not cloying or overpowering, a tough balance to find.

More fun with moscato:
Freeze and shave down into a sinfully sophisticated sorbet
Pour over fruit for a dessert
Substitute for mimosas during a lazy brunch

Apparently, this bottle will even keep for 2-3 weeks in the fridge after opening.  I laughed because there’s no way it’d last that long for us, but good to know anyways.

Only available at the Ravenswood tasting room, it’s well worth a stop if  you’re anywhere in the vicinity.

Do you have a favorite dessert wine?

This is a great little summer red– light enough for easy drinking when it’s warm out, but the moderate acidity, medium body, and a nice spicy flavor with subtle cherry notes make it a great pairing for anything from pizza to poultry or meat dishes.  Honestly, it’s quite versatile and ups the ante of a meal without taking too much thought.

And another point in its favor?  We picked this up at our local wine shop for just under $8.  (Ok, so we snagged a few bottles, not just one.)  Great value and quite a little gem!  Stock a few at home, there’ll be plenty of opportunities to open it over the coming months.

Baking served a twofold purpose here:  it’s calming, plus it’s a yummy reward for the BF who was an absolute angel.  At least I can try and be productive with my stress, right?  (I might be just a tiny bit type A…  only a little.)

I like making mini-loaves as they bake more consistently, stay moist longer, and are great for sharing.  After trying a recipe from Cook’s Illustrated that was a little too moist in the center, I made a few adjustments, including the substitution of whole wheat flour for half the AP flour, and have been happy with the consistent results ever since.  This recipe also makes delicious muffins for an on-the-go fix.

Of course, you can add nuts or chocolate chips or whatever you prefer, but this recipe is moist and full of unadulterated banana flavor, so none of that is really needed.  Bon appetit!

Banana Bread

Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated
Yields 3 mini loaves (approximately 18 slices)

Ingredients

1 c. whole wheat flour
1 c. AP flour
2 tbsp ground flaxseed
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 c. sugar
1/4 c. butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/2 c. mashed ripe banana (about 3 bananas)
1/3 c. plain low-fat yogurt
1 tsp vanilla extract
Cooking spray

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk.

Place sugar and butter in a large bowl, and beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 1 minute). Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add banana, yogurt, and vanilla; beat until blended.

Add flour mixture; beat at low speed just until moist. Grease 3 mini-loaf pans (3×6) and divide batter evenly between them. Bake at 350° for 45 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.

Karate Kat Graphics offers whimsical designs based on children’s artwork, and half the proceeds go to charities selected by the young artists themselves.   If that doesn’t give you the warm fuzzies, I don’t know what will!  The store offers so many cute products, including stamps, cards, mugs, t-shirts, and much more.

I was the lucky winner of the Karate Kat giveaway on Wedding Fanatic– thanks, Mary!  As my prize, I got these gorgeous “to have and to hold” stamps.  The quality of the stamps is terrific, and I’m so excited to start using ours on wedding-related correspondence!  It’d be so perfect for save-the-dates or a shower invite.

During my email exchange with Mary I was also incredibly inspired by her warm personality and down-to-earth approach to life.  She encourages her kids to be creative, while also teaching them how fortunate we are.  I will absolutely be buying products from her again!

One of my favorites is this bag:  how cute would it be with personalized text for bridesmaids or out of town guests?

Making a difference doesn’t have to be some grand sweeping gesture; it can be as simple as buying a stamp.  All together now:  awwwwww.  Go and check out the infinite cuteness of the Karate Kat line, now, and keep the warm fuzzies going.  Happy Monday, everyone!

What are your favorite organizations to contribute to?

Not sure yet if I’m going to send out a bunch of these or not… this card was a trial run and turned out decently, I think.  The sentiment and clovers are from Studio G; stamped on light green vellum.  (Note: Use a dye ink, not a pigment ink, for vellum, otherwise your stamped images will take ages to dry!)  I rounded the corners of the vellum and finished it off with emerald organza ribbon with a satin edge.

There’s no simple, easy path to getting healthy– you have to commit to certain lifestyle modifications, rather than trying to do it all at once.  Education is also an important factor in being good to your body.  If you don’t know what you’re putting in it, and blindly follow the recommendations of a proscribed plan, how do you continue to make positive change when you become solely responsible for your health?  Start by reading labels at the grocery store, buying some organic foods, and learning about the origin of various things at the grocery store.

Go slow, and make incremental changes.  Total deprivation is usually not the answer.  Life is for enjoying, after all!  For most people without serious health conditions, it’s ok to have “bad” foods once in a while.  So splurge on that eggs benedict, but the rest of the week, get your fruits and vegetables in.  I like tricking myself– eating a burger and fries feels like a guilty pleasure, but the homemade version comes with some hidden health benefits.

Here’s one of my favorite healthy breakfasts that feels like an indulgence.

Yeah, doesn’t look so healthy, right?   But these are the key substitutions:  nonfat yogurt instead of regular, and non-sugary cereal instead of granola.

Here’s why I chose the items:

Whole Foods’ store brand organic nonfat yogurt:  At 120 calories per 1/2 cup serving, you get 25% of your daily calcium, plus protein to slow your digestion slightly.  And the entire 36 oz tub is regularly priced at $3 here in CA, compared to ; you save money and reduce packaging waste by buying in larger sizes.

Use any fruit you have on hand– I like bananas for potassium and vitamin C, plus dried cranberries for the antioxidants, and a punch of tart sweetness.

Cinnamon may help to manage insulin tolerance and blood sugar levels, plus it smells too yummy to pass up.

Trader Joe’s O’s:  Oat bran is a good source of fiber, and also helps lower your cholesterol.  Granola may sound like a health food, but the grains are coated with sugar, which is not exactly an essential component of a healthy diet.

Much less frequently, I also make crepes and fill them with similar ingredients.  What’s your favorite breakfast or snack splurge?

The WSJ crowd is not your typical bargain-hunting set, but the paper’s article on $10-$20 wines may be signaling a sea change.  Go here to check out some RTW value picks that taste a lot pricier than their tag would suggest.

Image courtesy of Ilan Brat / The Wall Street Journal