I think my Madison friends will really enjoy this recipe. It is from L’Etoile Restaurant in Madison, Wisconsin. If you are from the area, you know what L’Etoile is and what it is all about.

L’Etoile is a restaurant that focuses on supporting local farmers and artisan producers and it just so happened that this recipe was featured in a recent Bon Appétit. I always get really excited when I’ve either been to or know of a restaurant that is featured in Bon Appétit or Food & Wine. It makes me feel like I kind of know about the food world.

The recipe sounded great – I love all things curry – and because L’Etoile has such a great reputation I figured it would be a good one. I switched a few things up in the recipe, mainly because I get frustrated when recipes call for 1/2 can of coconut milk or 3/4 cup broth. I don’t want to open it, use half and then throw the rest away! Right?

But the curry, oh this curry.

It was slightly sweet, really creamy and we loved the flavor. It is definitely a warming dish, perfect for fall and winter evenings.

I definitely wouldn’t skip the roasted squash, the texture was a welcome addition to the smooth curry. Since the curry itself didn’t really contain any veggies, I served it over brown rice and steamed green beans, but your favorite vegetable would work.

Have you ever eaten at a restaurant…

and seen something that sounded so interesting but you just weren’t able to order it because there were so many other things on the menu that you needed to try?

When that happens to me, I jot down a few words and email them to myself. Inspiration I call it. Hopefully I’m not the only one who does this crazy, little thing. (Please tell me I’m not the only one?)

So on April 16, 2010 I emailed this to myself:

And proceeded to think about it every now and then for the last 19 months.

I have no idea what possessed me, but I finally made it. And I’m so glad that I did. For starters, I can now delete that email. I can also share a recipe that can be mostly made in the slow cooker and will be a nice change from the standard BBQ pork.

I wish I could remember where we saw this, I know it was some dark bar in Denver, and we ate mac & cheese with truffle and mushrooms (been wanting to make that ever since too) and something about it just sounded right to me.

The Taster on the other hand was thoroughly confused.

“Chinese BBQ pork with provolone?”

“On a corn tortilla?”

“I don’t get it.” “Why?”

During times like this, I usually just shove some food in his face and wait for his (always honest) opinion.

This doesn’t top his list of favorites, but I loved it.

It is part nacho, where the edges of the corn tortilla get all crispy like chips.

Part tostada, with the classic corn flavor and juicy meat.

And part, “what? I don’t get it.”

Which is the best part of all.

Hi Friends!

The last few daily eats posts have had some sort of theme, but I’ve got nothing for you this time! Just a normal, old day.

I started out the day with some green tea. Even though I just picked up a new coffee pot (I broke mine last week) I might be on a tea kick. I love the flavor of coffee, but when I had it the other day, I just didn’t feel  as clean(?) as I do with tea. More experiments coming on this front.

Breakfast: needed to be light since it was 8am and I had a workout scheduled for 10:30 so I had a slice of sprouted bread (French Meadow) with one organic egg.

Workout: This was our second time doing the Lunch Crunch workouts by Open Sky Fitness and they are TOUGH! In a really good way. It is a quick-moving circuit of exercises and drills and an intense workout outside at the La Brea Tar Pits Park –  I love it!

(I went a little darker with my hair, what do you think?)

Lunch: Greek Salad (cucumber + tomato + red onion + olives + goat feta cheese + olive oil +salt + pepper) with a side of Kale & White Bean Soup.

After my first course of soup and salad I decided I was still hungry so moved onto 1/2 sprouted tortilla + tuna salad (leftover from the Tasters lunch) + sprinkle of cheese + arugula – all baked in the oven. It was just ok.

Snack: Last night I re-stocked my dried fruit stash, so I snacked on some dried mango + pineapple for an afternoon snack.

Then I was hungry again (thanks to my light breakfast and hard workout) so I had a little wine, cheese and proscuitto!

Dinner: We haven’t found a good burger joint in our new neighborhood (haven’t even gone out for burgers since we moved here!) so we decided to try out The Counter. It is a build-your-own burger bar…which was much harder to do than I thought!

Ultimately I chose beef + pepperjack + tomato + fried onions + lettuce + pickles all on an english muffin. Oh, and a combination of regular and sweet potato fries hiding in the back. The burger was great, but I’m not sure how I feel about the whole “choosing your own” which is surprising, because normally I love that kind of stuff! Maybe I’ll be more adventurous next time.

Needless to say, it was a good burger.

The night was finished off with some of my favorite chocolate and relaxing with the Taster – perfection!

Enjoy your Thursday!

I’m not really sure how to describe this dish to you.

It’s definitely Asian, I can tell you that much.

It has curry paste, but it’s not quite a curry.

It has peanut butter, but it’s not quite a peanut sauce.

Along with the fact that it most certainly has an Asian vibe, I can also tell you that it is out of this world. Did I mention that it can be made while you work all day? Or alternatively, while you go watch football at a bar all day, or alternatively, while you go Holiday shopping all day??

Whatever you do while your asian chicken stew is cooking is really up to you. Heck, maybe you’ll be all healthy and workout! But when its finished cooking and you serve up a big bowl over some brown rice, you’ll be a very happy person.

This, I know.

Wow, I can’t believe it is already November!

I surprisingly didn’t eat too much candy on Halloween, but did drink my share of wine and eat pizza, so I was a little slow-moving this morning. Nothing a little coffee, water and work can’t fix. Sometimes its best to just throw yourself into it!

Peet’s Coffee was completely decked out for the holidays – an overnight transformation complete with red & green sprinkled almond bark, holiday blend beans and holiday music. I’m ready for the holidays, but that seemed like a bit much!

I returned home (cousins home, we move into our place Thursday!!) and promptly made some breakfast. I’m looking forward to getting back into a routine once we get settled. My type-a personality is freaking out!

Breakfast: French Meadow Sprouted Cinnamon Bagel + pat of butter + hard boiled egg + strawberries.

Both strength and cardio were on my list today so I did a quick weight routine before we headed out to run a few errands in our new neighborhood!

Lunch: Being that it was World Vegan Day (pointed out to me by Pepperoni is not a Veg – thank you!) I really wanted to eat vegan all day, but because I don’t have my own fridge, usual food options, etc. I wasn’t able to make it the whole day. (Soon I’ll do a Vegan Day!) But, we did have an excellent vegan lunch at Veggie Grill. I’d been wanting to try Veggie Grill since I saw one of them and figured today was a perfect reason to try it out. I was starving and needed more than a salad so I tried the VG Cheeseburger, which the guy in line behind us said was amazing. I ordered it with the red cabbage slaw side and I gobbled it up in no time at all. 

Then it was time for some more work. I loooove being able to work outside. In November.

A 50 minute walk with Ruby (the dog) was “cardio” for the day. Not necessarily a great workout, but because I had a dog with me I wasn’t worried about a certain length of time or getting in so many miles, I just enjoyed the walk and the afternoon. It was really, really nice.

We made dinner tonight for my cousins and the Taster decided to make a Minnesota speciality, the Blucy. (Blue cheese stuffed hamburger) No shortage of burgers (both real and not) for me today!

Dinner: An amazingly delicious blucy sans bun + salad + sweet potato fries + sriracha mayo for dipping.

Dessert: I was gifted some unwanted halloween candy.

Now I’m sipping tea and getting ready for bed, lots to do today!

Last weekend I was working on some shrimp recipes for a project and when I mentioned the thought of shrimp pizza to the Taster he got a little excited. Before I knew it there were multiple topping ideas being tossed out, but in the end, we went with pesto (as the sauce), red onion, roasted red pepper, goat cheese and shrimp a top none other than my favorite sprouted tortilla.

It had been weeks since I had had my beloved tortilla pizzas and as soon as I realized they were no longer a thing of the past, I was the excited one.

This pizza concept would work on any crust, I also made it on some Middle Eastern Flatbreads for my cousin who I wasn’t sure how he would feel about the sprouted tortilla. For the record, he said he liked them both the same. Score for kids eating whole grains!

I love these pizzas vegetarian, but I must say that I’ve been slacking on protein lately, and I can definitely tell. So an added opportunity for some additional protein from the shrimp is a score for a healthy adult!

P.S. Happy Halloween! I’ve got to find some sort of costume to wear tonight for trick-or-treaters…help!

Hi Guys! I’m currently in the middle of moving our entire life across the country so Lindsay (Pinch of Yum) is here for the day! 

I made the small mistake of looking at the pictures and write-up that Lindsay sent me for this guest post as I was in the middle of packing up our apartment and we had absolutely no food left. Ok, exaggeration, we did have food left, but pretzels lose some of their appeal after looking at these quesadillas. Right?

Thanks so much to Lindsay for helping me out during a very crazy part of life. Lindsay is Twin Cities blogger/teacher/amazing photographer who is always coming up with my kind of recipes. I can only hope that someday my pictures are as good as hers!

Hello friends!  I’m Lindsay from Pinch of Yum.

When Emily (the smart and healthy-conscious nutritionist) asked me to do a guest post, I panicked.

Nutritionist?  Post?

Time to get healthy.

But then something weird happened during my favorite part of the day: snacktime.  I wasn’t even trying to come up with a healthy recipe, and it just showed up on its own.

During a moment of extreme hunger, and an attempt to use up the last of the tomatoes from my neighbors garden – which were gifted, not stolen, although I had been eyeing them – these little Tomato Corn and Basil Quesadillas were born.

Talk about a perfectly fresh and filling snack!

And then I remembered that, actually, I kind of like to eat healthy snacks.

Especially healthy snacks with melted cheese.

Oh, yes.

Tomato Corn and Basil Quesadillas (makes 1 quesadilla)

• 1 whole tomato, chopped
• 1/3 cup corn
• 4 leaves fresh basil, cut into ribbons
• 2 tortillas
• 1/3 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• hummus, optional
• salt and pepper

1. Put the chopped tomatoes in a strainer and mix with the corn.  Add salt and allow juices to drip out for a few minutes.  Press on the mixture to make sure most of the moisture gets out.  Add ¼ cup cheese to the mixture and stir.
2. Preheat a skillet or a Panini press to medium-high heat.
3. Spread a tortilla with hummus (optional) and top with the tomato mixture.  Top with the remaining cheese and basil leaves, and place the other tortilla on top.  Grill for a few minutes on each side until cheese is melted and outside of tortilla is toasted/grilled.  For a more crispy outside, add a little butter or olive oil to the pan before grilling.
4. Let cool for a few minutes, then cut into wedges and serve!

It’s the quintessential lunch, right?

It can definitely be a great, easy lunch option if you are into brown-bagging it.

And if you want it to be, it can be really healthy too. Here are my tips for the healthiest turkey sandwich!

• Bread: Because I work at a bakery, I’m a total bread snob so I use Sprouted Bread but 100% whole grain is also a good option- each slice should have at least 3 grams of protein and fiber.
• Turkey: Natural turkey is best – no antibiotics, hormones, weird fillers, etc.
• Cheese: Adding a slice of cheese can add a serving of dairy and some extra protein to your meal – just make sure it is real cheese!
• Toppings: I’ve got nothing against mayo, but a topping like avocado adds good fats and lots of vitamins. Mustard is a low calorie way to add in extra flavor as well. (Or a blend of mustard + a little mayo gives you that creamy flavor without all the calories!)
• Vegetables:  Always add vegetables! Lettuce, tomatoes, sprouts, cucumbers – whatever you can think of or have around – the more the better!

How do you make your sandwich healthy?

My good friend Megan and I made “Mexican Pizzas” for the full year that we lived together on a very regular basis. They were simple, cheap and really satisfying – the perfect college food! Tortilla + refried beans + cheese + hot sauce all microwaved into a hot, cheesy mess.

I still think about those pizzas a lot (along with the fun we had as 20 year olds) but this time, nearly 8 years later, I thought it was time to class it up a bit. The tortillas are now organic and sprouted, the beans are black, salsa verde and fresh herbs are used along with grilled chicken and mozzarella cheese. A little more grown-up maybe, but still a hot, cheesy, satisfying mess.

Is it really August?! I’m kind of in denial. Last weekend was my Dad’s surprise Birthday Party, so yesterday felt more like a Monday and after a crazy weekend, I’m actually ready to get back into my normal eating and exercising schedule!

6:00 am: treadmill run/walk workout – 45 minutes, 3.82 miles. It has been a looooong time since I last ran, but for some reason was feeling a little motivated so decided to get a nice run/walk workout in. It felt good to push myself in a different way and I may even start running/walking/jogging more often!

Commute: coffee + coconut creamer with The Help – I can’t stop reading it!

Breakfast: 2 eggs + 1 slice sprouted bread

Lunch: 1 serving quinoa + garlic and spinach chicken sausage + sauteed kale (from Dad’s garden!)

I’m still stuck on these quinoa lunch bowls – they are so easy to throw together and I love that they don’t require any last minute chopping/prep work.

Snack 1: home made batch of kombucha – and it actually tastes like kombucha!!

A little over a week ago I made my first batch of kombucha…my habit was growing expensive and I’d heard it was *easy* so Averie sent me the starter and I got a fermenting! I mixed mine with a little grape juice and now I have to start the process again. I have a feeling I’ll be consuming lots of kombucha since the Taster isn’t really that interested in helping me drink it.

Snack 2: another fermented beverage that involves grapes…some wine along with some recipe development for work then cleaning, laundry and getting my life back together after being gone for the weekend.

Then it was time to get going on dinner…

Dinner: bahn mi hotdog and cucumber salad – recipe coming soon – loved it!

Snack 3: popcorn + truffle salt

Estimated Totals via Lose It App (1,700 calories, 56 grams of fat, 29 grams of fiber, 75 grams of protein)