Recipe: The Superfood Baked Potato

Now that's a fully loaded potato! Baked potatoes are great in anyone's diet, but this masterpiece of mealtime might just earn the title 'Superfood'! Check out "Recipe: The Superfood Baked Potato"

The Superfood Baked Potato

Serves 4

4 large baking potatoes, about 3 1/2 pounds
Olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the salmon: 
1/2 pound salmon, preferably wild-caught
1/2 teaspoon green tea leaves
2 cups hot water, about 160°F - 170°F
1 teaspoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon rice vinegar

For the braised kale: 
10 ounces chopped kale
2 teaspoons coconut oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 inch fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons water

For the yogurt: 
1/2 teaspoon turmeric 
2 tablespoons boiling water
1 teaspoon maple syrup
3/4 cup yogurt

For the toppings: 
2 tablespoons white or golden quinoa
2 tablespoons flax seed
1/2 cup pomegranate arils

To roast the potatoes: Preheat the oven to 425°F. Clean the potatoes thoroughly and pierce several times with a fork. Rub lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place in a foil-lined baking pan and roast for 50 to 60 minutes or until the potato can be easily pierced with a fork all the way to the center. Flip the potatoes once or twice during baking.

To marinate and cook the salmon: Pat the salmon dry and remove any visible pin bones. Steep the tea leaves in the hot water for 5 minutes, then strain them out and stir the soy sauce and rice vinegar in to the green tea. Pour it into a deep dish, such as an 8x8 pan, and place the salmon in it, skin up. Put in the fridge for 30 minutes or until you’re ready to cook it.

In the last 20 minutes of baking the potatoes, remove the salmon from the marinade and pat dry. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper, and roast, skin-down, in the upper third of the oven for 12 minutes or until it can easily be flaked with a fork. Remove from the oven, remove the skin, and shred the cooked salmon for serving.

To make the braised kale: Wash the chopped kale thoroughly then pat dry. Over medium heat, heat the coconut oil in a deep sauté pan or wok large enough to hold the kale. Add the minced garlic and ginger and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute or until fragrant. Add the kale in big handfuls, stirring to wilt down a handful before adding the next, if necessary. Sprinkle salt and pepper over the kale and stir. Pour in the lemon juice and water, cover the pan, and cook for 10 minutes or until the kale is cooked and tender but still toothsome. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper if necessary.

To make the turmeric yogurt: Whisk the turmeric into the boiling water, then whisk in the maple syrup. Whisk into the yogurt, making sure the turmeric is completely stirred in.

To make the popped quinoa: Heat a deep pan over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons quinoa and cook undisturbed for 1 minute or until you hear a tiny pop. The quinoa will not pop up like popcorn, but it will bounce in the pan and the kernel will expand slightly. Shake the pan and watch for all the seeds to pop lightly and turn a darker golden color. Remove and cool. Popped quinoa can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

To serve: Split a baked potato down the center and top with the turmeric yogurt, kale, salmon, popped quinoa, flax seeds, and pomegranate arils.

(Image credits: Faith Durand)

Original Article Here: http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-the-superfood-baked-potato-recipes-from-the-kitchn-201261

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Easy Easter DIY: Use Discarded Eggshells to Make Colorful Tealights

Get started on your Easter Activity planning early this year! Check out these adorable tealights here and get your DIY on with "Easy Easter DIY: Use Discarded Eggshells to Make Colorful Tealights"

These tealights would look beautiful clustered in a group as seen in the tutorial below, but would also look nice individually or as a small group of tealights in a bowl for small gatherings. The pastel colors obviously go well with the Easter theme, but I bet these would also look great if the eggshells were painted gold, silver, and black for something a little more glam.

What do you think? Would you ever make something like this for Easter or any other spring celebration?

Get the tutorial → DIY Eggshell Tealight Candle Centerpiece

(Image credits: Little Inspiration )

Original Article Here: http://www.thekitchn.com/easy-easter-diy-use-discarded-eggshells-to-make-colorful-tealights-202041

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Recipe: Lamb Meatballs with Lemon Sauce

Have you ever tried lamb before? If not, would you consider trying something new? If you said yes to either of these questions, you should check out "Recipe: Lamb Meatballs with Lemon Sauce"

Lamb Meatballs with Egg & Lemon Sauce

Serves 8 (makes 24 meatballs and 1 1/2 cups of sauce)

For the meatballs:3 tablespoons olive oil
2 large cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 large yellow onion, finely diced
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
1 cup matzo meal
2 jumbo eggs
1 cup water
10 large sprigs flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 pound ground lamb
1 pound extra lean (96/4) ground beef

For the egg and lemon sauce:1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
4 jumbo egg yolks
1/8 teaspoon ground turmeric (optional, for color)

To make the meatballs: In a large (12-inch) skillet over medium heat, sauté the garlic in the olive oil just until some small bubbles appear around the garlic and it becomes aromatic, about two minutes.

Add the diced onions and salt to the skillet, and sauté until the onions are softened, translucent, and have wilted considerably but not yet begun to brown, about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and set the mixture aside to cool to room temperature.

In a large bowl, whisk together the matzo meal, eggs, water, parsley, and black pepper to form a paste. Let sit for about 15 minutes.

When the onions and garlic have cooled, add them to the mixing bowl with the matzo meal paste and stir until thoroughly combined.

Add the ground lamb and beef to the mixing bowl. Using your hands, a sturdy spatula or a wooden spoon, gently combine the ground meats with the matzo meal mixture until just combined.

Preheat the oven to 400°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Use an ice cream scoop or 1/4-cup measure to portion out the mixture into meatballs, rolling them by hand and placing on the baking sheets, two inches apart.

Bake the meatballs until cooked through and golden brown on top, about 40 minutes.

To make the egg and lemon sauce: In the top pot of a double boiler over medium heat, whisk the olive oil, lemon juice, salt, egg yolks, and turmeric together. Whisk often and vigorously until hot and thickened enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon, about 10 minutes.

Serve immediately, spooning about a tablespoon of sauce onto each meatball.

Recipe Notes

• If you are holding the sauce before serving, it will thicken up a bit — thin it out to a pourable consistency by whisking in a tablespoon or two of hot water.
• If you are unable to track down ground lamb, you can ask your butcher to grind a pound of lamb shoulder, or grind your own at home. Here’s our tutorial on how to use your food processor for this task.

(Image credits: Coco Morante)

Original Article Here: http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-lamb-meatballs-with-egg-lemon-sauce-recipes-from-the-kitchn-201810

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10 Meals in 10 Minutes

Are you in a time crunch between all of your priorities?  Check out these ten great meals that you can make in under ten minutes.  You can learn more about quick easy meals at The Kitchn. 
1. Quick and Easy Fried Rice: Fried rice can come together even faster than 10 minutes if you happen to have a good selection of leftovers floating around. It's the end-all recipe to using up leftover rice and is tasty enough to eat for any meal of the day — yes even breakfast.

2. Apple-Arugula Salad Wraps: Although wraps seem more like a lunch food, for a quick dinner they can contain actual food groups and even do away with dishes if needs be. Perfect, no clean up!

3. Thai Crab Salad with Chili, Ginger, and Coconut: Since this meal merely needs to be chopped and tossed, it's quick to throw together and has big bold flavors that will satisfy without a laundry list of ingredients.

4. Miso Soup: Miso soup is perfect for those worried about over cooking tofu as it simply warms in this rich broth and suddenly, dinner is served! Check out this version with a poached egg — extra tasty!

5.The BEST Pancakes Ever: Pancakes might traditionally be breakfast food, but they're perfect for any meal in fact... we want some right now!

6. Egyptian Tomato Soup: This recipe just barely passes the 10 minute mark, but it can be made entirely from your pantry so there's minimal chopping or prep — making it a winner in our book!

7. Friday Night Slow-Cooked Brisket and Onions: So technically speaking this meal takes 5-8 hours to make, but there's really only 10 minutes of prep work involved. Make it before you head out the door to work and when you return dinner is already done for you!

8. Spicy Grilled Shrimp: These shrimp get a quick brine before hitting the grill, but since they cook up so quick, we're willing to overlook the extra brining time (only 30 minutes). Just make sure to drop them in the brine the second you come home from work or possibly lessen the salt and brine them while you're away (so they don't get too salty) to make things extra easy.

9. Thai-Style Omelet (Kai Jeow): This recipe comes together in less than 10 minutes which might even leave you time to walk the dog or check your email before dinner!

10. Scrambled Eggs with Fresh Corn, Goat Cheese, and Oven-Roasted Tomatoes: This meal is labeled as a 10 minute dish and mixes up with many things that you probably already have on hand.

What are your favorite no-time, extra-quick weeknight meals?

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How To Clean an Oven With Baking Soda & Vinegar

Keep your cleaning simple with just a few basic resources and no nasty chemicals! Check out "How To Clean an Oven With Baking Soda & Vinegar" to make your oven nearly sparkle!

How To Clean The Oven

What You Need

Oven
Baking soda
Water
Rubber gloves
Damp dish cloth
Plastic or silicone spatula
Spray bottle
White vinegar

Instructions

1. Remove the oven racks: Remove your oven racks, pizza stone, oven thermometer, and anything else you have inside the oven. Set aside.
2. Make a baking soda paste: In a small bowl, mix a 1/2 cup of baking soda with a few tablespoons of water. Adjust the ratio of both as needed until you have a spreadable paste. For me this took about 3 tablespoons of water to get the desired spreadable consistency.
3. Coat your oven: Spread the paste all over the interior surfaces of your oven, steering clear of the heating elements. I used gloves for this portion as my oven was pretty grimy. It helped me really get in there and coat the dirtiest nooks and crannies without having to worry about all that grime under my nails. The baking soda will turn a brownish color as you rub it in; it also might be chunkier in some places than others. That is fine. Just try to coat the whole oven to the best of your abilities, paying attention to any particularly greasy areas.
4. Let it sit overnight: Allow the baking soda mixture to rest for at least 12 hours, or overnight.
5. Wipe out the oven: After 12 hours or overnight, take a damp dish cloth and wipe out as much of the dried baking soda paste as you can. Use a plastic or silicone spatula to help scrape off the paste as needed. I found that the damp cloth was enough for me, but a spatula might come in handy in those hard-to- reach places.
6. Spray a little vinegar: Put a little vinegar in a spray bottle and spritz everywhere you still see baking soda residue in your oven. The vinegar will react with the baking soda and gently foam.
7. Do a final wipe down: Take your damp cloth and wipe out the remaining foamy vinegar-baking-soda mixture. Repeat until all the baking soda residue is gone. Add more water or vinegar to your cloth as needed while wiping to really get the oven clean and shiny.
8. Replace your oven racks: Replace the oven racks and anything else you keep in your oven, and you're done!

(Image credits: Gina Biancaniello) 



Original Article Here: http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-clean-an-oven-cleaning-lessons-from-the-kitchn-201191

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Recipe: Baked Chai Spiced French Toast

It's always easier to wake up in the mornings with some awesomely delicious breakfast! This recipes fits that bill, so check out "Recipe: Baked Chai Spiced French Toast" and make the most of the mornings!

Baked Chai Spiced French Toast

Serves 4

For the Chai Spice Mixture:
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

For the French Toast:
4 large eggs
1 1/2 cup 2% or whole milk
1/3 to 1/2 cup granulated sugar (use less if serving with maple syrup)
1/2 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon Chai Spice Mixture
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
9 to 10 cups day-old challah bread, chopped into cubes

For the Topping:
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon Chai Spice Mixture
Pinch salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and chopped into small pieces

In a small bowl, whisk together the cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, allspice and cloves for the Chai Spice Mixture. Set aside.

For the french toast, whisk together the eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon of the Chai Spice Mixture in a medium bowl.

Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan with the butter and layer the cubed challah inside the pan, gently pressing it down. Briefly re-whisk the liquid ingredients and pour them evenly over the bread, taking care to cover all of the exposed bread. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 30 minutes or as long as overnight to allow the mixture to absorb into the bread.

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F. In a small bowl, combine the topping ingredients until crumbly.

Uncover the loaf pan and gently press the bread down evenly until the liquid begins seeping up. Spread the topping evenly over the bread. Bake for 45 minutes until the top is golden and crunchy.

Allow to cool for several minutes and then slice and serve.

(Image credits: Jennifer Farley)

Original Article Here: http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-baked-chai-french-toast-recipes-from-the-kitchn-198717

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Overcome the Winter Depression

Are you ready for summer?  Everyone across the United States is feeling the effects of this winter.  Here are some great tips on how to overcome that winter depression!  You can learn more at apartment therapy.

1. Smile. Smiling at our friends when we feel like frowning, really does make a difference for you and them. 
2. Look outside at the sky. Even when it's miserable outside, spend time meditating by the window. Look at the bigness of the sky and think outside of the space and present issues of your house. (Both points 1 and 2 are coming from this blog post, a religious blog, but I don't think you necessarily need to be religious to agree that smiling and looking at the sky are great places to start.) 
3. Remember, you can still go outside. Even though it is cold. Even though it might be snowing. Take a short walk with a friend or loved one.
4. If nothing is helping, go and see someone. Talk to a friend. See a doctor. It might be as simple as taking Vitamin D. But if you are feeling hopeless, anxious, depressed, have little energy, don't want to see people, are oversleeping, and are gaining weight you may have Seasonal Affective Disorder. It can be easily treated with light therapy and a management plan.

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