Soba Noodle Salad

I love this salad so much that I could have it for lunch everyday! I am happy I made enough yesterday to have some leftovers for lunch today. :)

This salad is so colourful and would be great to bring to a dinner party or a picnic! 

You can add tofu to it too if you want some extra protein!

Soba Noodle Salad:

Serves 3-4 people.

Ingredients:

• 180gr of soba noodles
• 1/2 red capsicum
• 1 carrot
• 1/2 cup of diced red cabbage
• 1 cup of diced snow peas
• 1/2 cup of diced coriander
• 1 tbsp of tamari sauce
• 1 cm of ginger grated
• 1 tbsp of tahini
• 1 tbsp of sesame oil
• 1/2 lime juiced
• 1-2 tbsp of sesame seeds

Steps:

1. Boil a pot of water and cook your soba noodles for 3-4 minutes once the water is boiling. Be careful not to over cook them.
2. Chop your carrots, capsicum, snow peas in small sticks and mix them with the diced red cabbage and coriander.
3. In a jar/mug/cup mix the tamari, sesame oil, ginger, tahini and lime juice.
4. In a salad bowl, mix the cooled down soba noodles, vegetables and the dressing. 
5. Dress with sesame seeds, coriander (or mint!).

I hope you enjoy my recipe. Let me know if you make it! tag me @healthyfrenchwife on isntagram or comment below! thank you xx

Running Post

I am not sure if anyone is interested but I thought I would do a blog post about running. It is my own blog after all I should be able to share what I feel like!

I have been quite addicted to running lately. It is my favourite way to exercise and since becoming a mum a great way to have some "me time". I have been running on and off for the past 5-6 years completing quite a few fun runs ranging from 5k to 14km but I have not run much at all since giving birth to my twins. Almost 2 years ago!

This year I only started running in April and have been going for early morning runs before my husband and twins wake up at 5h30/6am 2-4 times per week and I do a "long run" on Sundays. I started very slowly and not running more than 10-20 minutes just to get my fitness back up and get into the habit of waking up early and going for a run in the dark. I have been using the Nike+ Run Club app and their coaching program.

I have found after a weeks it is my favourite moment of the day (although coming back and jumping in the hot shower and sometimes back into bed is amazing too!) The days I go for runs I am much happier, calmer, more patient with my cheeky twins and more energised.

A long time goal of mine has been to complete a half marathon. I decided to sign up and do the Perth City 2 Surf Marathon at the end of August this year. It starts in Perth city, goes around Kings Park and finish at the beach! 21.1 km will definitely be very hard but I am excited to see if I can do it!

So I have 9 more weeks to go and increase my long runs while staying injury free and in the meantime I will keep making lots of yummy healthy vegan recipes! Because the best thing about running lots is able to eat all the food I want haha

I will post a few more blog posts about running and training for a half marathon while eating vegan. In the meantime let me know if you like running? have you done a half marathon?



Clairexxx

Vegan Blueberry Lemon & Poppyseed Loaf

This recipe was a huge hit on my Instagram page. So thank you everyone for loving this recipe and my picture so much! It has been a few weeks since I made it so I think it is time for me to make this loaf again this weekend. I love baking or making something sweet over the weekends. Do you do too? I love sharing a slice with my hubby and twins for afternoon tea!

Recipe:

2 cups of wholemeal flour
1/2 cup of rolled oats
1 cup of soy milk or nut milk
2 1/2 tsp of baking powder
2 tbsp of lemon juice or 4 drops of lemon essential oil
1/3 cup of olive oil
1/2 cup of coconut sugar- more if needed
1 tsp of vanilla extract
2 tbsp of poppyseeds
Pinch of salt
Zest of 1 lemon
1 cup of frozen blueberries





1. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius and line a loaf tin with baking paper,
2. In a bowl mix all the dry ingredients together and add the nut milk, lemon juice and olive oil,
3. Mix together and gently fold in the blueberries. Do not over stir.
4. Place in your loaf and cook for 45-50 minutes until a skewer inserted is clean.
5. Leave to cool completely before slicing.
Top with coconut yogurt (optional)

Easy Shrimp Curry Recipe

Here's one of my strategies for dinner in a hurry--tweak a classic dish by loading it up with vegetables and creating a one pot meal. Recently I worked on a shrimp and feta recipe, it started out very much the same as many other recipes, but I added lots of fresh fennel. Basically this shrimp curry recipe started with a simple coconut curry recipe to which I added sugar snap peas, bell peppers and cherry tomatoes. I happened to have some sugar snap peas from Mann's produce (another great time saver because they are stringless and don't need any prep), but I could have added broccoli or sweet potatoes or some other study vegetables. Just add rice or noodles and dinner is done!

This recipe comes courtesy of American Shrimp Company, they kindly sent me some more of their fresh wild gulf shrimp. The shrimp are bursting with flavor and can be used in so many dishes. They arrive clean, deveined, peeled, fresh, not frozen, perfect for when you don't have much time for meal prep since they really don't need marinating and cook in just minutes. I don't use all the shrimp at once so some of them go in the freezer to use at a later date.

The benefit of making a one pot meal is that you don't have to bother cooking multiple side dishes and in this case, the vegetables swim along with the shrimp in a delicious curry sauce. I'm going to continue to experiment with more dishes like this. What classic shrimp dishes would you add vegetables to in order to make it a meal? Shrimp and grits? Scampi? Shrimp gumbo? The possibilities are endless. 

Easy Shrimp Curry

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 Tablespoon coconut oil or vegetable oil

2 garlic cloves, grated

1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger

1/2 sweet onion, sliced

1/2 red bell pepper, sliced

1/2 orange bell pepper, sliced

3/4 pound raw peeled and deveined shrimp

1 Tablespoon curry powder

1 cup sugar snap peas

1/2 cup cherry tomatoes

1 (14-ounce) can coconut milk

1 teaspoon soy sauce

Pinch cayenne pepper, optional

1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro, optional

Instructions

Heat a large deep skillet or wok over medium high heat and add the coconut oil. Add garlic and ginger and cook for 30 seconds then add the onion and peppers. Stiry fry until the vegetables have slightly softened, about 5 minutes. 

Add the curry powder and  the snap peas and stir for a minute then add the coconut milk and soy sauce. Increase heat and bring the mixture to a boil and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the shrimp and cook just until they shrimp are cooked through, about 2-3 minutes. Taste for seasoning. You can add more soy sauce or a pinch of cayenne pepper if you like. Serve with rice (or rice noodles) and garnish with cilantro. 

Enjoy! 

Disclaimer: My thanks to The American Shrimp Company and Mann's for providing me with shrimp and sugar snap peas. I was not compensated monetarily for this or any other post. 

Pecorino Toscano & Pecorino Sardo

Yesterday I wrote about Pecorino Romano, today Pecorino Toscano and Pecorino Sardo, two other kinds of Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) Pecorino you are likely to find in the US.

Pecorino Toscano

I ate the fresh version of Pecorino Toscano practically daily when I lived in Tuscany. In Florence, fresh Pecorino Toscano was like the Italian version of Monterey Jack, the cheese I grew up eating in California.It's mild, slightly herbal, sweet, approachable, easy to love. It's really great in a sandwich--either cold or grilled.

Pecorino Toscano is made from milk produced in Tuscany, Lazio and Umbria. As with all cheeses, it gets harder and drier as it ages. In the US it used to be much easier to the find the aged versions than the really fresh soft ones. The fresher version is particularly mild and creamy. The aged version is buttery, sometimes nutty with a peppery finish It’s just a great table cheese, perfect for an antipasto platter. Even aged it tends to be much milder than the Pecorinos from Lazio and Sardinia. 

Pecorino Sardo Maturo & Pecorino Fiore Sardo

Pecorino Sardo 

This is the Pecorino I know the least about, so I turned to cheesemonger and author Gordon Edgar to help me get a better understanding of it. Here's what he had to say: 

“The tricky thing about Pecorino Sardo is the variation contained within the name. Whereas Pecorino Romano means hard, aged, grating cheese and "Fresco" means semi-soft and young, Pecorino Sardo just means sheep cheese from Sardinia which is where a lot of Italian sheep cheese comes from, labeled as Sardo or not.

There is a name-controlled version "Fiore Sardo DOP" which is raw milk and slightly smoked and one of the most amazingly complex sheep cheeses available anywhere.  Rich, milky, nutty, mutli-layered, briney, and, yes, a touch smokey in a complimentary way, not the way smoke is often used to cover defects in cheese.  Personally I mostly use this as a table cheese to eat with cold cuts or other cheeses.  If you dislike "pecorino," this cheese may well change your mind.  Make sure it says DOP though, because some importers  and retailers can be a little loose with the American naming of their Italian cheese

Most Sardo sold in the US fits the middle-ground, age-wise between fresco (from whatever region) and the hard, crumbly Romano. If not name-controlled, the Sardo Maturo is my favorite one to buy.  It can work as a less intense and salty alternative to grating than a Romano, but also works as a table cheese, often lending a grassy, potato-y flavor absent from many pecorinos. The aging (maturo) lets flavor develop and my favorite brand is Central Formaggi (though this is often not labeled at point of sale). You can kind of tell how strong Sardo will be based on the texture, so -- if you can -- try and squeeze it a little before purchase.”

Curious about Pecorino Romano? Read about in yesterday's post. 

Pecorino Romano

Pecorino Romano and Pecorino Gran Cacio Etrusco

Knowing Italian is sometimes a help in the culinary realm. But not always. Pecora means sheep in Italian providing the clue that Pecorino refers to sheep’s milk cheese. But after that it gets complicated. There are 6 kinds of Pecorino with Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) in Italy but only a few you are likely to find in the US. First up is the most commonly found Pecorino cheese, Pecorino Romano and tomorrow, Pecorino Toscano and Pecorino Sardo.

Pecorino Romano is the easiest to find Pecorino cheese in the US. The name is a bit confusing however. It’s not just a cheese from Rome or even Lazio as you might assume, but is also produced in the province of Grosseto in Tuscany and in Cagliari, Nuoro, Oristano and Sassari on the island of Sardinia. In fact, Sardinia is the biggest producer of Pecorino Romano, go figure. It’s an ancient cheese and it was mentioned by Pliny the Elder almost 2,000 years ago. It was such an important cheese, that it was part of the Roman legion’s rations—hence “Romano” in the name. It’s salty and dry, and has a wonderful sharp flavor that sets it apart from other dry cheeses. A good one will also have a bit of sweetness to it. You may recognize it from the black wax coating on the cheese. Fresher versions are aged for 5 months and the harder cheese used for grating is aged at least 8 months. 

The more aged version is most often used in recipes, but the fresher version can be eaten on a cheese plate. It’s traditional to eat Pecorino with fresh fava beans in Spring. Pecorino Romano's sharp bite makes it the ideal cheese with rich pasta dishes like bucatini all'amatriciana and spaghetti alla carbonara. It is also the cheese you must use for the pasta dish cacio e pepe. Cacio literally means Pecorino in the Roman dialect, so please, do not substitute Parmigiano Reggiano for Pecorino Romano in the recipe. The classic recipe calls for only spaghetti, freshly ground black pepper and Pecorino Romano, though I won’t quibble if you want to add a bit of butter or olive oil. When the cheese combines with water it melts into a sauce, rather than gooey strings. 

The brand of Pecorino Romano I’m most familar with is Fulvi made by I Buona Tavola. They make the only Pecorino Romano made in Lazio that's imported to the US. It’s aged 10 months to a year and made from full fat sheep’s milk, which means the cheese is not quite as hard as most Sardinian Pecorino. It’s salty but not too salty with a pungency but also a sweet finish. In addition to Pecorino Romano you may find another cheese from Fulvi called Pecorino Romano Gran Cacio Etrusco. It’s salted with Sicilian salt and rubbed with olive oil for several months. It’s a bit softer in texture and sweeter, definitely more nuanced and in my opinion, worth the slightly higher price. You can read a post about a visit to the caseficio where they produce Fulvi Pecorino Romano cheeses on cheesemonger Gordon Edgar’s blog, Gordonzola.

Lillet

Lovely Lillet always reminds me of Summer. I first drank it in France one magical Summer when I spent a week with friends at their country house in the Loire Valley. Afternoons melted into evenings over an aperitif or two. Sitting by the pool I sipped on my Lillet and felt very chic. While there's a red and rose version of Lillet, You can use any of the versions of Lillet in cocktails or to make creative versions of sangria (combine it with Sauvignon Blanc and grapefruit or orange juice and maybe some fresh berries or stone fruit like peaches or nectarines). I’m still most fond of the blanc version, either over ice or in a spritz with equal parts Lillet and tonic or sparkling water, garnished simply with either a slice of lemon of lime. 

Lillet blanc is made from 85% Semillon from Bordeaux, and 15% citrus liqueur with both sweet and bitter oranges. It was created in 1872 and originally had a more bitter flavor profile thanks to the addition of quinine which is no longer part of the recipe. Today it’s floral, sweet and a bit herbal.  In the 1960’s a red version was introduced using Merlot and in 2011 a rose version with same Semillon base. All are 17% alcohol so about the same as vermouth. 

It’s hard not to be enchanted by this classic drink which was served on cruise ships and popular in high society at the turn of century, popularized in part thanks to those snazzy French posters. In the 1930’s there were 22 Lillet cocktials in the Savoy Cocktail Book and in 1953 James Bond ordered the Vesper cocktail (another Ian Fleming creation) in Casino Royale. Supposedly Jackie Kennedy was a fan of Lillet as was the Duchess of Windsor. While I may not share their luxurious lifestyle, I certainly share their taste in fine liqueur. No matter the era, Lillet remains pure glamour in a glass. 

Fish with Olives and Leeks Recipe

Recently I got a delivery of Pacific Grenadier from Real Good Fish. Grenadier has the unfortunate reputation as a "junk fish" because it's by catch--caught unintentionally by fisherman going after black cod. It's a deep water fish, with a long body and a very thin tail. Pacific Grenadier has a delicate texture similar to cod, snapper and orange roughy, and a very mild flavor. The thin fillets cook very quickly and need to be handled gently. Because it's not a large commercial fishery you may have trouble finding specific recipes for it, but you can use pretty much any recipe that calls for snapper or orange roughy. 

This is yet another recipe inspired by what was in my refrigerator. It's a little fussier than I would like because you have to cook the leeks and onions in a skillet before transferring them to a baking sheet to form a bed for the fish. But I like the combination of a savory olives, sweet onions and leeks and juicy tomatoes. Lately I've been finding one pot or one pan recipes to be particularly appealing. Less clean up is definitely a factor! 

When preparing leeks I slice them lengthwise and rinse them thoroughly. I often chop them and soak them in a bowl of cold water since the soil can really get stuck between the layers. The water clinging to the leeks is just enough to cook them so there's no need to any extra liquid to the recipe. I like the combination of leeks and onions, but you could certainly skip the onions if you don't want to bother with them. You could also add a clove or two of garlic if you're using an olive paste or tapenade with no garlic. I found the saltiness of the olives was enough seasoning for the fish, but add salt to taste if you find it needs it.

Fish with Olives, Leeks and Tomatoes

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 pound grenadier fillets 

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved, optional
2 cups chopped leeks (white and pale green) about 2

1/2 cup chopped onion

Olive pesto

1/2 cup green or black olives, pitted preferably oil cured (or a combination)

3-4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Instructions

To make the olive pesto combine the olives with the olive oil in a food processor and blend until creamy but not completely smooth, you will need to scrape down the sides of the bowl a few times. You can use prepared olive tapenade, paste or pesto if you have it on hand. 

Heat oven to 400° F. Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the leeks and onions, and cook for 5 minutes over medium high heat.

Transfer the leek mixture onto a parchment lined rimmed baking sheet top with the fish fillets. Spread with about 1/4 cup of olive pesto. Scatter the tomatoes on the sheet, if desired; bake until the fish is opaque, about 10 minutes. Transfer fish and vegetables to plates. 

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: My thanks to Real Good Fish for supplying me with the fish. I was not compensated monetarily for this or any other post.  If you live in the Bay Area, visit their website to learn more about their subscription program. 

Choosing a Mandoline

I recently wrote a story about mandolines on Tasting Table. I’ve had a lot of experience with mandolines and yes, some of it involves band-aids. Here’s the thing, a mandoline is a serious tool. I was once sent one that had so many blades and was so big and heavy it scared me. I’ve used a low end model for years, but frankly the blades are getting dull and there isn't an easy way to sharpen them. 

BEST FOR VOLUME AND PRECISE CUTS IN A VARITY OF THICKNESSES

OXO has been making and perfecting their high end model for years. The OXO Good Grips Chef’s Mandoline Slicer 2.0 has lots of features that make it really worth considering. It sells for $79

Here are what I consider the highlights: 

1. The hand guard is really well designed and stores conveniently under the slicer. It is spring loaded so it grips the food firmly. Still, you might want to consider using a cut resistant glove.

2. The dial on the side allows you choose the thickness of your slices, allowing up to 21 different cuts. 

3. Only one removable blade! And it stores inside the mandolin. 

And the drawbacks: 

1. It’s large and bulky and really can only be used safely for larger items that you can use with the guard. 

2. The thinner slices and waffle cuts can be a bit tricky to master and to get as uniform as other cuts such as julienne and matchsticks.

3. It really is a chef's tool, it might be overkill for many home cooks. 

BEST FOR EVERYDAY SLICING & SHREDDING

If, like me, you like the uniformity you get from using a mandoline but don’t need to make 21 different cuts, you might be satisfied with the OXO Good Grips Complete Grate & Slice Set. You could argue that it isn’t really a mandoline, but it functions very much the same way. It sells for about $29 

It’s also very well-designed, the slicing blades all fit in a container which doubles as the base when you are using the blades. It’s easy to use (no instruction guide necessary), takes up very little space, stores easily. 

On the downside the hand guard is extremely flimsy and each blade only slices or shreds to one thickness. But to be honest, I don’t find that to be much of an issue. If I need thicker or thinner slices I can use a knife or food processor instead. 

BEST FOR SALADS

Last but not least, I’ve written about this tiny mandoline slicer before, but I’ll mention it again because it’s so great for slicing small items that can’t be sliced on a mandoline such as radishes, carrots and cucumbers. It’s perfect for slicing vegetables for salads. I got mine at a Japanese housewares store for about $2

Disclaimer: My thanks to OXO for providing products for me to review. I was not compensated monetarily for this or any other post. This post includes affiliate links.

Lugana Wines

Lugana is a small Italian wine region that you’ve probably never heard of before.  It straddles Veneto and Lombardy, right around the Southern shore of the the stunning Lake Garda. It's neighbors are Soave and Valpolicella and there are just a little over 100 producers. Lugana wines are made from an indigenous varietal called Trebbiano di Lugana or most accurately Turbiana which is related to Verdicchio. The clay soil adds a touch of salinity and savory quality and the wines are zesty and bright with lemon, grapefruit and tangerine and sometimes sweeter notes of peach, almond and even mint. I visited Lake Garda and Lugana in the Fall of 2015 and Cantina Castelnuovo winery. I was struck by how much more delicious and compelling the wines were than the more common and often insipid Pinot Grigio. The most challenging thing about Lugana white wines is finding them in the US. 

The un-oaked Lugana DOC wines are fun and fresh and represent about 90% of the wines that are produced. The Superiore wines are aged for one year and Riserva wines are aged 2 years, they have an added layer of salinity and minerality in addition to a rounder character but still have great acidity and freshness. I think of these wines as an analog to the Margarita. Youthful, juicy, refreshing with great acidity the wines are easy to enjoy (with salt of without!). They go great with spicy food but also seafood and even blue cheese. I opened a bottle of Lugana and served it chilled with a Cobb salad. It was perfect. But honestly, it’s a wine that drinks well as an aperitif too. Not surprisingly these wines are popular with Germans who are accustomed to drinking wines like Riesling. 

Recently I was at a tasting and particularly enjoyed trying wines from producers including Borgo La Caccia, Selva Capuzza, Ca Dei Frati and Bulgarini. Unfortunately these were not the wines I was able to locate in stores here in the Bay Area. However I did find a bottle or two of Lugana at Biondivino, Enoteca Vino Nostro and K&L Wine Merchants. But the best selection was from The Wine House. They import directly from Ca’ Lojera and had seven different bottles of varying vintages, including the Riserva and Superiore. The prices for the wines generally range from the mid teens to the high thirties. Personally I’ll be heading back to The Wine House to buy more of the 2014 Ca’ Lojera Bianco, on sale for just $9.99, it’s a riduclous bargain and is destined to be my house wine this Summer. 

Disclaimer: I was a guest at a Lugana tasting and dinner, however I purchased the full bottle of wine.