Supernatural Botanicals

Here are five great magazines to get to know better. 

  Body + Soul Magazine:  Articles on whole living, living green, health and fitness articles, recipes.

  Cooking Light:  Hundreds of light, low calorie, and low fat recipes each month.  Great fitness articles.  Wellness.

  Organic Gardening:  Advice on green gardening, eco-issues, environmental issues, living organically.

  Every Day with Rachael Ray:  Many recipes each month, lifestyle advice, decor, girlfriends, household tips, etc.

  Cincinnati Magazine:  A favorite resource guide for local Cincinnatians.  Shopping, dining, events in and around Cincinnati.

If you think Olive Garden and Taco Bell when you think of ethnic foods, you’re missing the boat…the boat to the Mediterranean, that is.  I’ve been cooking lots of Mediterranean dishes this summer, from Greek pizzas, pastas, meats, and even desserts.  This is one of my favorite go-to pasta recipes.  It’s perfect for a quick dinner or lunch, great to stuff into Chinese carryout cartons for a picnic, or even a late night picnic in bed. 

The tomatoes, the basil, the garlic, it all brings such a great combination of flavors to the party.  Quick and simple, and won’t blow your daily caloric intake budget, either. 

Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto and Feta Cheese

Yield

4 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

Ingredients

• 1  (9-ounce) package refrigerated fresh linguine
• 3/4  cup  oil-packed sun-dried tomato halves, drained
• 1/4  cup  loosely packed basil leaves
• 2  tablespoons  slivered almonds
• 2  tablespoons  preshredded fresh Parmesan cheese
• 1  tablespoon  bottled minced garlic
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  black pepper
• 1/2  cup  (2 ounces) crumbled feta cheese

Preparation

Cook pasta according to the package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain through a sieve over a bowl, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid. Return pasta to pan.

While pasta cooks, place tomatoes and next 6 ingredients (through black pepper) in a food processor; process until finely chopped.

Combine tomato mixture and the reserved 1 cup cooking liquid, stirring with a whisk. Add to pasta; toss well to coat. Sprinkle with feta.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

300 (30% from fat)

Fat:

9.9g (sat 3.3g,mono 3.9g,poly 1.6g)

Protein:

12.3g

Carbohydrate:

42g

Fiber:

4.3g

Cholesterol:

61mg

Iron:

3.1mg

Sodium:

570mg

Calcium:

141mg

Don’t shy away from making your own pizza crust.  It’s super economical to make your own, and very easy.  Don’t let rising yeast scare you.  It’s easier than you think.  And lets not forget, better tasting.  You can add extra herbs (such as Rosemary or Basil), or seeds (such as Sesame or Poppy) to your crust to make it gourmet.  Not to mention, less than 300 calories.  Love that!  When the onion and fennel caramelize, they become very sweet and smell amazing (the whole house smells amazing, in fact!)  The presentation is beautiful, and your family and guest will think you spent hours making it. 

Try this delicious pizza with caramelized fennel, onion and olives.   Great for entertaining. 

Servings:  6 servings (serving size: 1 wedge)

Ingredients

• Dough:
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  dry yeast
• 2/3  cup  warm water (100° to 110°)
• 2  cups  all-purpose flour, divided
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• Cooking spray
• 2  teaspoons  yellow cornmeal
• Topping:
• 1  tablespoon  olive oil
• 4  cups  thinly sliced fennel bulb (about 4 small bulbs)
• 2  cups  thinly sliced onion
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  dried oregano
• 1/4  teaspoon  dried thyme
• 1/4  teaspoon  black pepper
• Remaining ingredients:
• 1  cup  bottled tomato-basil pasta sauce
• 1  cup  (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• 1/4  cup  coarsely chopped pitted kalamata olives

Preparation

To prepare dough, dissolve yeast in warm water in a large bowl, and let stand 5 minutes. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Add 1 3/4 cups flour and salt, and beat with a mixer at medium speed until smooth. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 10 minutes); add enough of remaining flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands (dough will feel tacky).

Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 45 minutes or until doubled in size. (Press two fingers into the dough. If an indentation remains, dough has risen enough.) Punch dough down; knead 5 times, and let rest for 15 minutes. Roll dough into a 12-inch circle on a floured surface. Place dough on a (12-inch) pizza pan or baking sheet coated with cooking spray and sprinkled with cornmeal. Crimp edges of dough with fingers to form a rim.

To prepare the topping, heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add the fennel and the next 5 ingredients (fennel through black pepper), and cook for 20 minutes or until golden, stirring frequently.

Preheat oven to 450°.

Spread sauce over crust, leaving a 1/2-inc

   Chocolate Mousse.

I found this Chocolate Mousse recipe in Cooking Light Magazine way back in 2001.  That goes to show you how good this is.  Chocolate Mousse has such a decadent, silky texture, combined with ultra rich chocolate, it just makes your mouth scream spoiled.  I love mousses because they are whipped, and when made with conscious ingredients, can be made into a fantastic healthy luxury for your palate.  This always works well when you are entertaining, as they are easy to make and produce over-the-top praises.   This is one of the best recipes I have found yet, courtesy of Cooking Light Magazine. 

Chocolate Mousse
Cooking Light

3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted
1 (12.3-ounce) package reduced-fat extra-firm tofu
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 large egg whites
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
Fat-free whipped topping, thawed (optional)
Grated chocolate (optional)

Place chocolate and tofu in a food processor or blender, and process 2 minutes or until smooth.

Place salt and egg whites in a medium bowl, and beat with a mixer at high speed until stiff peaks form. Combine sugar and water in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Cook, without stirring, until candy thermometer registers 238°. Pour the hot sugar syrup in a thin stream over egg whites, beating at high speed. Gently stir one-fourth of meringue into the tofu mixture; gently fold in remaining meringue. Spoon 1/2 cup mousse into each of 8 (6-ounce) custard cups. Cover and chill for at least 4 hours. Garnish with whipped topping and grated chocolate, if desired.

Yield: 8 servings

CALORIES 147 (34% from fat); FAT 5.6g (sat 3.3g,mono 1.8g,poly 0.5g); PROTEIN 5.2g; CHOLESTEROL 0.0mg; CALCIUM 26mg; SODIUM 134mg; FIBER 0.2g; IRON 0.9mg; CARBOHYDRATE 22.5g Cooking Light, MAY 2001

A doctor who practices what he preaches?  You bet!  Hottie Columbus-based cardiologist, David Sabgir, M.D. is the founder of Walk With A Doc (www.walkwithadoc.org), a program he started to encourage his patients to exercise.  He invited patients to walk in the park with him every Saturday morning (hello, motivation!)  The outing soon caught on, and now they have between 100-175 people every weekend.  The good doc says, “with the assistance of about 50-70 hospital residents, my goal is to have walks every night of the week.”    

I love the fact that Dr. Sabgir participates with the walkers.   If a busy cardiologist has time in his day for exercise, surely you do too.  He says “I started this program knowing it would become part of my life.  We begin at 8 a.m. with a warmup and a few minutes of light stretching, then we walk at a brisk pace for 30-45 minutes.”  In fact, the good doc makes exercise the first part of each day, not just Saturdays.  “If I don’t workout in the morning, it will never happen” he says.  He runs on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and weekends for 30-60 minutes and swims or bikes on Monday and Wednesdays.  “Friday is my recovery day so I’m fresh for Saturday morning.” 

The benefits of exercise are both mental and physical.  Many of his patients have lowered their blood pressure 20-30 points, feel better, and are motivated to continue to exercise other days of the week. 

I love, love, love the idea of a cardiologist or physician-based walking program.  Attention Cincinnati doctors…..I’m first on board for this.  Let’s go!  Here’s to the good doc from Columbus trying to make our bodies and minds stronger.  And Columbus is not that far away.  I might just join the good doc on a Saturday morning – meow!