I wish I could say that I’ve been more productive today, but the rain and gray skies have kept me in the house this morning. I truly don’t mind the rain, but Fridays I like to take a long walk and get in any errands, and unfortunately this weather makes that a little difficult. I got up this morning and drank a cup of coffee, swaddled myself on the couch, and started getting some work done.

The best part of the morning was calling my oldest friend Sara to wish her a happy birthday! We’ve been friends since the age of five and love being silly with each other. She’s spent the week celebrating her birthday in Chi-caaaa-go. She’s already been to the recording of this weeks “Wait Wait….Don’t tell me!” on NPR, and is planning on going to a delightfully odd performance at Redmoon Theater and a dinner at the vegetarian Chicago Diner. I wish I were there with her!

After finishing my coffee (which took several hours, and, admittedly, a midway point microwave to rewarm it) I started fretting about lunch when I realized not only was I starving, but I hadn’t actually eaten breakfast yet. Sometimes it happens…

I have a lot of salad greens in my fridge, but it seemed too cold for a salad, so I did what I do when I either a) have leftover salad greens threatening to go bad, or b) just want something warm and green, and started on putting together a warm salad.

Yes, that’s right, warm salad. Trust me on this one.

I first put the greens in a colander inside a pyrex to soak. I had some fresh farm romaine lettuce, and a whole lot of cilantro that needed to be used.

I then put a pan on the stovetop, added a splash of olive oil, and started warming a shallot and some garlic that I roughly chopped as the base of my flavor. It’s always a good idea to start things with garlic and shallot (or onions), as they really bring a lot of flavor to a dish.

I had a little less than a cup of chickpeas left, so I added those in as well. I let those go for a few minutes to heat through and get a little bit browned.

Then I …. wait for it … dumped all of the lettuce into the pan over everything. That’s right, I cooked my lettuce, just like you would any sort of leafy green.

I cooked them just until they wilted down, and then tossed in a little bit of balsamic vinaigrette, and worked it all around.

I dumped it all onto a plate, and then topped it with about an ounce of crumbled Humboldt Fog Cheese - a really delicious goat milk cheese made in Northern California by Cypress Grove Chevre. If you can ever get your hands on this stuff, it’s pretty delicious with a great tang…

The result was warm, green, and satisfying. Success!!

Success #2: The SUN is PEEPING OUT!!!! Well, on one side of the apartment at least, the other side looks ominous!!

Do you have any experiences with warm salads? Other than the poached egg, lardon, and frisee, I think there are all too few of these! I’m always looking for new ideas!

Technorati Tags: Balanced Lunch, Lunch, Lunch Recipes, Salad

Hooray for productivity! Laundry done, dishes loaded, posts written, some cookbook research done. I was going to go to the gym this afternoon, but the car went to the shop for a check-up because of the check engine light, and it’s not going to come home until later, so I’ll do some walking instead, and hope it doesn’t rain down on me!

I’m going to a wine tasting with some food friends tonight at Solano Cellars in Berkeley, so I made a light lunch to balance things out.

Let me introduce you to this useful product: pre-peeled organic garlic cloves from Christopher Ranch. I hate to admit it, but I’m a sucker for pre-peeled garlic. I use a lot of garlic, and saving even five minutes that it takes peeling five cloves makes quick meals a lot easier. I also have whole garlic heads in my kitchen, but this stuff is great in a pinch.

In a pan, I put a teaspoon of olive oil, some minced garlic (about four small cloves worth), and three large cups of baby spinach. I grated in some fresh pepper, and gave it a good stir.

I let it wilt just slightly, and then added in two farm eggs, from pastured free-range chickens. A good quality egg is really important – the flavor is incomparable to the stuff you pick up in the supermarket. Even more than a week old, these eggs are about 20 times better because of the grass, bugs, and other goodies that the chickens get to feast on.

Once the eggs are just set, I added an ounce of grated Cabot pepperjack, covered the lid, and turned down off the heat until the cheese just melted.

Once it melted, I gently transfered it to a plate, and then topped it with some fresh salsa!

On a hungrier day, I might eat it with toast, or a tortilla. Just look at that yolk!!

A few more errands, and then I’m off to BART, taking as roundabout way as I can to get in my 10,000 steps, and maybe even a few more for good measure.

There are rumors that we are going to have a stop at Gordo taqueria for a pre-wine snack, and maybe to the Xocolate Bar for some chocolate zen experience. It’s going to be fun!!

Technorati Tags: Healthy Living, healthy lunch ideas, Lunch Recipes

As a child, I never ate sandwiches. Over the years though, as I started making my own lunches every day, I realized the value of the sandwich as a lunch box savior. These sandwiches are just a start to expand your range of sandwich possibilities – here are several healthy sandwich options to get you going!
It starts with the bread – plain bread alternatives: Pita bread, tortillas, dinner rolls, naan bread, challah bread, bagels, english muffins, pain de mie, rye bread, flatbread, butter lettuce leaves – don’t be afraid to branch out! If you are looking for optimum healthy bread options, try picking a bread with several grams of fiber per slice, and whole grains – preferably ones you can actually see in the bread.

Good Spread options: pesto, hummus, olive tapenade as a basis for any sandwich – just add vegetables. To add some punch, try some whole grain dijon mustard (Maille brand is a favorite), or a thin spread of harissa – a north african chili paste.

Textural additions: try adding raisins, granola, sesame seeds, pickles, cornichon pickles, chocolate chips, popcorn or potato crisps – if you are eating the sandwich right away.

Omnivore sandwiches:
- pep up your chicken or tuna salad with some lemon juice, paprika, and chopped onion
- egg salad and with steamed or grilled asparagus on baguette or pain de mie
- smoked salmon and cream cheese (sprinkle of dill or capers optional)
- turkey, cream cheese and tomato on a toasted bagel
- bacon and avocado, or bacon, lettuce and tomato
- soft cheese such as brie or goat with grated carrot, coarse salt, and cracked pepper
- hummus and a poached or fried egg
- turkey and cucumber raita on naan bread

Vegan sandwiches (vegetarian addition in brackets):
- (honey), peanut butter, and banana
- banana and chopped dates (ricotta)
- sliced avocado and olive oil with a sprinkle of salt and pepper on rye bread
- hummus and cucumber
- grilled asparagus with lemon vinaigrette and lettuce wraps
- almond butter, strawberry jam, and mango* (thank you Pal’s takeaway!)

Am I missing your favorite sandwiches? What kinds of sandwiches do you love? What sandwiches do your kids love?

Photo: Kasiaflickr

Technorati Tags: omnivore sandwiches, sandwich, Sandwich recipes, vegan sandwiches, vegetarian sandwiches