Recipe: Sunrise Smoothies

I also had the opportunity to attend the C.H.O.I.C.E.S. (Center Helping Obesity In Children End Successfully) Expo. I did a demonstration making Sunrise Smoothies and it was lots of fun. They had different types of booths, with some pretty interesting props. One booth had a model of 5 pounds of fat! Eww! It was really educational, and lots of fun. The Atlanta Falcons' mascot was there too! It was fun watching kids dancing and playing with hula-hoops and taking pictures with the mascot. I hope I can go again next year!

INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 cup all-natural 100% orange juice (not from concentrate)
  
• 1 cup all-natural yogurt, either plan or vanilla flavor
  
• 1 banana
  
• 1 cup frozen strawberries (or any other favorite berry)
  
• 2 tablespoons wheat germ

Pour OJ and yogurt into blender, add banana (break into a few pieces) and berries along with wheat germ. The wheat germ adds more fiber. Blend until creamy. If you like really thick smoothies, add 1 cup ice.

Servings: 2

Tip: Use berries that are in season because they have the best flavor and are usually priced lower than out of season fruit. Stock up buying berries in season, rinse, place in freezer bags, then pop in the freezer. When you add frozen fruit to smoothies, it also serves as ice cubes.

Thanks for reading,

Lizzie Marie

Recipe: Italian Kale Chips

In our CSA veggie box we received some kale. We are at the end of the kale season in Georgia. I thought it would be fun to make 'kale chips'! They were delicious, healthy and super easy. Here's the recipe:

INGREDIENTS:

• Several stalks of fresh kale, rinsed, stripped off stem, torn into bite size pieces
  
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
  
• Few splashes balsamic vinegar
  
• To taste sea salt, cracked black pepper
  
• To taste fresh grated Parmesano Reggiano cheese

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Dry fresh kale pieces with paper towels to make sure the oil and vinegar will stick to the pieces. Because I had so much kale, it would not fit into a large ziploc bag to coat with the oil and vinegar, so I spread the kale on a baking sheet lined with a silpat mat (non-stick mat) and drizzled oil and vinegar onto kale and sprinkled with salt and pepper. I mixed the kale pieces with two silicone spoons to make sure all the pieces were lightly coated, then spread the kale evenly on the pan again. Bake about 10 - 15 minutes until crisp. Serve kale chips with freshly grated cheese.

Servings: 4

Post by Lizzie Marie Cuisine.

Recipe: Bittman Brown Rice and Salmon Sashimi

My mom recently showed me some of Mark Bittman's online cooking videos. I thought they looked really cool and I especially thought his ginger fried rice sounded delicious. The next day my mom and I went to a specialty foods store and picked up some yummy ingredients, like Salmon Sashimi and sesame seeds. Since I was inspired by Bittman's videos, I decided to try to make my own fried rice recipe.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 piece of sashimi-grade salmon or tuna, about 4 ounces, sliced
  
• 1 cup cooked brown rice, prepared according to package
  
• 1/4 cup edamame, shelled
  
• 1 handful snow pea pods, rinsed
  
• 1/2 small onion, minced
  
• 1 clove garlic, minced
  
• Two or three dashes ground ginger
  
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
  
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  
• 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
  
• Splash low-sodium soy sauce

Heat olive oil on medium heat in a skillet and saute onion, garlic and ginger until lightly brown. Be sure to not over cook to a dark brown color because it will taste bitter. Cook edamame according to package (basically boil in water for a few minutes) and drain water. Add sesame oil to onion/garlic mixture and then add edamame and snow pea pods. Saute for a few minutes until pods are crisp-tender to bite. Stir in rice to skillet and cook for 1 more minute. Serve brown rice mixture topped with sesame seeds and a splash of low-sodium soy sauce if you like. Serve sashimi on the side with more soy sauce for dipping.

Servings: 1

Sashimi is basically sushi without the rice roll; in other words, it's sliced, raw fish. The salmon was smooth, buttery and delicious! I can't wait to make it again!

Expo Tomorrow to Help End Obesity in Children

I am so excited to be part of the 6th Annual C.H.O.I.C.E.S (Center Helping Obesity In Children End Successfully) Expo on March 26, 2011!

C.H.O.I.C.E.S is a great program that helps families end childhood obesity by giving tools and resources on how to live healthier.

This year's Expo is supported by the Atlanta Hawks, Atlanta Falcons, Atlanta Braves and Fulton County. It will be a fun day of:

• Cooking demonstrations and snacks
  
• Fun and Fitness Performances on Stage
  
• Nintendo Wii and DDR on 7ft Screens
  
• Free Health Screenings
  
• Silent Auctions
  
• Scavenger Hunt
  
• Vendor Exhibits
  
• Youth performances

(click here for more details on the expo)

Stop by the cafeteria to sample my smoothies! Adamsville Recreation Center, 3201 Martin Luther King Jr. SW, Atlanta, GA from 10:00am-4:00pm.

I hope to see you tomorrow!

Recipe: Chicken Kebabs on Rosemary Skewers

In my science class, I am doing a project on the Zebra Moray Eel which has the body of an eel, but the markings of a zebra! My mom suggested we go to a local sushi bar to try my first taste of eel. We got a 'Caterpillar Roll', which was a sushi roll with eel, avocado and eel sauce. I thought I wouldn't like it or that it would taste weird. I was pleasantly surprised! It tasted a little salty (probably because of the eel), but it was really good. My mom didn't like it that much, so I got to finish the pieces. I also tried Midori Rice, a type of rice seasoned with wasabi and spinach. It had an amazing flavor, and it was a pretty green color. Since mom and I walked to the local sushi bar, we decided to have dessert and walked to Menchie's, a great frozen yogurt shop. I had vanilla yogurt with strawberry, raspberry, kiwi, chocolate-covered sunflower seeds and shredded coconut. It was really yummy!

We recently got our Bluebird CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) box that contained fresh rosemary sprigs. I love to grill in the summer and had heard rosemary sprigs can be used instead of skewers! I decided to make Chicken Kebabs on Rosemary Skewers.

Chicken Kebabs on Rosemary Skewers

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 package skinless, boneless chicken tenderloins, cut into 1-inch pieces
  
• 6 - 8 fresh rosemary sprigs, rinse with water
  
• Use your favorite vegetables (rinse with water first), I used ...
  
• 1 package cherry tomatoes, no need to cut
  
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
  
• 1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
  
• 1 small zucchini, cut into 1-inch pieces
  
• 1 medium vidalia onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
  
• 1 set of chopsticks to poke holes through ingredients

Marinade:

• 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce or Bragg's Liquid Aminos
  
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
  
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger or if you have fresh ginger, grate it with a microplane, about 1 teaspoon
  
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Cutting all the meat and vegetables into similar size helps them cook evenly. Be sure to cut raw meat on a separate cutting board to avoid contamination of other ingredients. Take one chopstick and poke a hole through the center of all the vegetables and use the second chopstick and poke hole through the center of all chicken pieces. Start stacking meat and vegetables onto rosemary sprigs, about 3 pieces of chicken and 3 pieces of veggies per sprig.

Whisk together the marinade ingredients and spread about half of the mixture into the bottom of a shallow baking dish. Place kebabs into baking dish and spoon remaining marinade onto the top of the kebabs. Cover baking dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 hour.

Heat grill or grill-skillet to medium high heat. Because chicken tenderloins are a thinner cut of chicken breast, they will cook pretty quick. Cook kebabs about 3 minutes and turn to grill other sides. Every 3 minutes, turn the kebabs to continue to grill all sides of meat and vegetables. Total cooking time, about 10 - 15 minutes. Leftover kebabs taste amazing the next day for lunch.

Thanks for reading,

Lizzie Marie

Post by Lizzie Marie Cuisine.

Check Out the Healthy Cooking with Chef Lizzie Show at WebMD

» Healthy Cooking with Chef Lizzie

Hi everyone! Today is the official launch of the Healthy Cooking with Chef Lizzie show at WebMD on their new FIT channel. These episodes are featured in the FIT Kids portal under "Food."

The first episode, Green Eggs and Ham is a great recipe to celebrate on St. Patrick's Day. You can also "go green" with my episode called Banana Breakfast Bash that features a colorful green smoothie that tastes delicious and is super healthy.

The FIT channel is based on 4 pillars: Food (what you eat), Move (need to exercise), Mood (your emotions) and Recharge (rest and relax). FIT teaches families how to live healthier by offering fun games for the kids and great tools for the parents. I had so much fun filming the cooking episodes. I hope you enjoy them. You can view them here (there are multiple episodes):

» Healthy Cooking with Chef Lizzie

This is another way I'm continuing to work towards my goal of ending obesity by helping families live healthy and fit.

Recipe: Morning Muesli (with bonus popcorn recipes!)

Over the weekend I decided to try to make my own cereal, or 'muesli', which is a mixture of different nuts and fruit. Here's the recipe:

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/4 cup old fashioned oats
  
• 1 tablespoon roasted or raw pumpkin seeds or (unsalted)
  
• 1 tablespoon roasted or raw sunflower seeds (unsalted)
  
• small handful toasted walnuts or almonds (unsalted)
  
• 1 teaspoon wheat germ
  
• fresh seasonal fruit (strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, banana etc.)
  
• 1/3 to 2/3 cup unsweetened almond milk, depending on how much milk you want
  
• Drizzle agave syrup
  
• Optional: Add raisins or craisins if you like them

To toast walnuts in toaster oven, place walnuts on baking sheet, bake 8 minutes at 300 degrees until lightly brown. Place oats, nuts, and wheat germ in a bowl and mix together. Top with fresh fruit, pour milk into bowl and top with a light drizzle of agave syrup. To make the muesli thicker, heat it in the microwave for about 20 seconds.

I had fun visiting one of my friends who recently got a bunch of chickens! Unfortunately, they do plan to eat them when they mature, but it was really fun to feed the chicks. My friend also got an old-fashioned popcorn machine and it was really fun making a batch or two! Fresh-popped popcorn tastes a lot different from microwaveable popcorn. The fresh-popped popcorn doesn't really have a taste, so we seasoned it with salt, pepper and a little bit of butter. Try making your own popcorn flavor creations! So far I've come up with:

Pizza Popcorn — couple dashes of Italian seasoning, fresh grated on a microplane grater Parmesano Reggiano cheese, little bit of melted butter

Mexican Popcorn — couple dashes of Oregano, fresh grated on a microplane grater Parmesano Reggiano cheese, little bit of melted butter

Spicy Popcorn — couple dashes of red pepper flakes or chipotle powder and a little bit of melted butter What are some of your favorite homemade popcorn flavors? (Let me know on my Twitter @TheLizzieMarie)

Recently, I had lunch with a family friend. I saw that one of the menu items was Succotash, but they didn't have it available that day. I've never heard of Succotash before, so I decided to look it up. Succotash is basically fresh corn and lima beans with butter or cream and sometimes tomatoes. Have any of you ever tried Succotash? What does it taste like? Let me know at @TheLizzieMarie!

Thanks for reading! Bye!

Recipe: Seattle Hash with Poached Egg

My dad recently visited Seattle for several days. On our way back from picking him up from the airport, he told us about a delicious breakfast he had eaten one morning. He said it was a winter root vegetable hash with carrots, sweet potatoes and white potatoes, topped with a poached egg and braised corn beef. That same night my mom and I picked up our Bluebird CSA vegetable box and, to our delight, found sweet potatoes, turnips and rainbow carrots! The next day we recreated the hash my dad had described and decided to call it 'Seattle Hash.' It's a delicious dish that's perfect for breakfast or brunch.

My favorite chef of all time is Julia Child. Several years ago, my family went to New York City for a visit. My mom and I were able to visit the Strand, a gigantic bookstore that has every book known to mankind (or pretty close to it). My dream has always been to get a copy of Julia Child's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" cookbook. Although the Strand had a copy of "Mastering the Art of French Cooking," they also had a collection of Julia Child's cooking DVDs, titled "The Way to Cook" that caught my eye. My mom gave me a choice: I could have the book or the DVD set, and I chose the DVD set.

I frequently watch these videos and recently watched the segment on how to poach eggs. You simply fill a pot with water and add a touch of vinegar. Once the water is almost boiling, you give the water in the pot a quick stir with a spoon and crack an egg into the pot. Stirring the water before adding the egg prevents the egg from sticking to the bottom of the pot when you drop it into the water. The swirling water makes the egg white fold around the yolk and let it cook for 4-5 minutes, depending on how runny you want the egg. Voila! You have a perfect package of poached egg. Poached egg is delicious by itself, over toast or hash, and even on top of salads.

Seattle Hash with Poached Egg

Use any combination of winter root vegetables. I used the veggies and herbs that came in this week's Bluebird CSA box.

Seattle Hash

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 large purple carrot, scrubbed and diced
• 1 large yellow carrot, scrubbed and diced
• 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and diced
• 6 baby turnips, discard root and greens (or eat greens in a salad) scrubbed and diced
• 3 tablespoons baby green Vidalia onion, minced
• 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil (better for cooking at higher heat than olive oil)
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme, strip leaves off stem, discard stem
• 3 fresh sage leaves, minced
• To taste, sea salt and cracked black pepper

I minced the onion because we do not like big pieces of onion. Cut remaining veggies into similar size so they cook evenly. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Saute onions for 2 minutes then add veggies and cook 5 – 10 minutes. Be sure to not move veggies around a lot in skillet otherwise they will not brown. Stir in herbs, salt and pepper. Cook 5 – 10 more minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste a few pieces to see when veggies are no longer crunchy and adjust seasoning to taste.

Poached Eggs

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 eggs
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar

Fill medium sized pot a little more than half full of water and bring to barely boiling (you will see little bubbles at the bottom of the pot that start to rise to the surface). Add vinegar to pot which helps the egg white stay close to the yolk. Stir water with spoon and one egg at a time, crack into pot. By swirling the water before adding the egg, makes the egg white wrap around the yolk. Cook 5 minutes for a lightly firm but runny yolk (see photo). If you prefer a really runny yolk, cook for 4 minutes. Remove eggs with slotted spoon. Place eggs on plated hash and eat while hot.

Makes 4 servings