Green Strawberry Gazpacho from Elizabeth’s Gone Raw

Green Strawberry Gazpacho from Elizabeth’s Gone Raw

by | Sep 12, 2018 | All, Home, Nutrition, Recipes

“Rich in vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, fiber & antioxidants, plant-based foods lower cholesterol and decrease the risk of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, kidney disease & obesity. Plant protein is more varied than meat protein and offers a much wider variety of options for creating innovative, healthful menus. Sophisticated vegan cuisine is the new frontier. There is so much undiscovered potential in this arena. The focus at Elizabeth’s Gone Raw is to create monthly a seven-course tasting dinner comprised of organic plant-based ingredients. It is our intention to offer the public an indulgent healthy dining experience, visually exciting, sensual and provocative.”

Chef Francisco Hernandez

Elizabeth's Gone Raw

Photography by: Greg Powers

Photo credit: Belathee Photography

Elizabeth’s Gone Raw is located at the following location:

Elizabeth's Gone Raw

LA Fitness Connecticut Ave.

Distance to closest LA Fitness: 0.8 miles to Connecticut Ave. LA Fitness

Elizabeth’s Gone Raw is located at 1341 L St NW, Washington, DC 20005. Open Friday from 5pm to 12am. For reservations, menu, and additional details, please visit elizabethsgoneraw.com.

Photography by: Greg Powers

Green Strawberry Gazpacho

Ingredients

For the Strawberry Gazpacho

  • 1 pint of green strawberries
  • 1 fennel head
  • 1 cucumber (skin off)
  • 1 cup of green grapes
  • 1 oz. of spinach
  • a very small handful of cilantro (optional)
  • 3 tbs. condimento bianco
  • 2 mint sprigs
  • 2 tbs. agave
  • 1 quart of fresh almond milk (soak one cup of raw almonds for 8 hours, strain and blend on high speed with one quart of water, then strain with a nut bag)

For the Fermented Carrot Quenelle

  • 1 tsp. smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp. onion
  • 1 tsp. garlic
  • 1 tsp. harissa
  • 1 tsp. fennel seeds
  • 3 tbs. sweety drop peppers
  • lemon zest from one lemon
  • orange zest from one orange

Optional

This soup is topped with olive tapenade which is optional.

Method

Step 1: Blend together the ingredients for the Fermented Carrot Quenelle, then cover with parchment paper and let ferment at room temperature for two days. Form in the shape of a quenelle using two teaspoons and place in the bottom of the bowl.

Step 2: Blend together in a Vitamix (or blender) all the ingredients for the Green Strawberry Gazpacho.

Step 3: This soup is topped with olive tapenade which is optional.

Step 4: Enjoy!

 

Featured Recipes

Egg in an Egg with Morels and Asparagus From Michelin-Star Chef Patrick O’Connell

Egg in an Egg with Morels and Asparagus From Michelin-Star Chef Patrick O’Connell

by | Aug 8, 2018 | All, Home, Nutrition, Recipes

Chef Patrick O’Connell. All photos courtesy of The Inn at Little Washington.

This year, The Inn at Little Washington is celebrating its 40th anniversary. Just weeks after the Inn opened in 1978, a DC restaurant reviewer wrote: ”Once in a great while there comes along a restaurant so good that you worry. You ask yourself, was everything that happened a series of fortunate flukes? Or, if it’s that good, will it crumble under the pressure of success?” Since then, the Inn and Chef Patrick have won five James Beard awards, two Michelin stars and this year became the longest tenured 5 Star and 5 Diamond restaurants in the world. For information about 40th-anniversary events, go to theinnat40.com or to make reservations, go to theinnatlittlewashington.com. 

Egg in an Egg with Morels and Asparagus

Ingredients

  • ½ bunch asparagus, cleaned and cut on a bias
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 cup (about 6-7 ounces) wild morel mushrooms, thoroughly cleaned and roughly chopped
  • 1 tablespoon diced shallots
  • 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
  • Salt and white pepper to taste
  • 7 eggs
  • 3 tablespoons crème fraîche
  • Freshly grated nutmeg to taste
  • 2 tablespoons of finely chopped chives

Method

Step 1: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Fill a large bowl with ice water. Drop the bias cut asparagus into the boiling water and cook, uncovered, until tender – about 45 seconds. Remove the asparagus immediately and refresh in the ice water until completely chilled. Drain thoroughly and set aside.

Step 2: In a medium-sized skillet, heat the butter over medium-high heat. Add the chopped morel mushrooms and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the garlic, shallots and blanched asparagus and sauté for 1 minute more. Remove from heat, season with salt and white pepper.

Step 3: Using a sharp pairing knife, slice off the top of each egg. Pour the raw eggs into a chinois or fine mesh strainer. Save the shells, rinse carefully, and set aside.

Step 4: In the top of a double boiler or in a stainless steel bowl which will rest securely on top of a pot of simmering water, whisk together the eggs, 1 ½ tablespoons of the crème fraîche, salt, white pepper, and nutmeg

Step 5: Place the bowl over a simmering pot of water and stir the eggs with a rubber spatula until they are very lightly scrambled.

Step 6: Remove the eggs from heat. Gently fold in the sautéed morels and asparagus and chopped chives. Pour the scrambled eggs in a pastry bag and pipe into the reserved egg shells. Top each shell with a dollop of the remaining crème fraîche. Serve immediately.

Serves 6 as an appetizer and 4 as a first course.

Featured Recipes

Italian Eating Made Healthy

Italian Eating Made Healthy

by | Jul 4, 2018 | All, Home, Nutrition, Recipes

Photo credit: Katherine Parske 

If you think Italian cooking is only carb and calorie loaded, think again. We spoke with Chris Disney, Director of Operations for Picazzo’s Healthy Italian Kitchen and learned a thing or two about how healthy eating doesn’t have to mean sacrificing flavor or enjoyment of your meal. Check out the QA with Chris below and then make Picazzo’s delicious Chocolate Avocado Mousse recipe for dessert tonight!

Q: Italian food is known for being very carb-heavy. While this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, a lot of our readers are looking for ways to work on their nutrition to become their best healthy (and fit) selves – what makes the food at Picazzo’s so healthy?  

Chris Disney: Healthy is such a broad term- for some of our guests, it means a gluten-free diet, while for others it means following a vegan diet or just eating “clean” foods. For us, it is offering something for each specific diet where our guests can be confident knowing that they are not filling their bodies with hormones, antibiotics, pesticides, genetically modified organisms or artificial preservatives. We have many guests that have food allergies, digestive problems, cancers, diabetes and many other struggles or have made conscious decisions to live a vegan lifestyle and we offer these individuals a dining experience with choices that fit their specific needs. For example, we offer 99% of our menu gluten-free, while offering a completely separate vegan menu that has over 40 different menu items available.  

Q: What are some of your favorite ingredients to work with? Why those? 

CD: I actually like root vegetables a lot. They are so versatile; they can be braised, roasted, grilled or baked. They can be served hot or cold and they hold up very well. Right now our menu has an herb-roasted sweet potato that is great and we are also adding golden beets into the mix very soon. I also really like using fresh herbs- cilantro, rosemary, thyme, basil- they all have such flavor and aroma and bring a freshness to any recipe.

Q: On your website, you define what a “healthitarian” is, would you mind sharing with our readers? 

CD: We have so many guests with different dietary needs from eating gluten-free to vegan to organic. The one thing they all have in common is that they all focus on their health in one way or another, so we decided to define what that meant and become ambassadors of the movement to live, eat and be healthy. Our definition of what a Healthitarian is, is: 

HEALTH • I • TAR • I • AN  

/helth-ə-ˈter-ē-ən/  

[noun]  

  1. A person that enjoys a healthy lifestyle of nourishing the body with health-centric foods and supporting healthy habits. 
  2. An advocate for positive health, mentally, physically, spiritually and emotionally.

Q: What are the “Dirty Dozen” and “Clean 15”? 

CD: The Dirty Dozen and Clean 15 is a produce list that outlines the 12 most pesticide-heavy fruits and vegetables as well as the fruits and vegetables that are considered to be the cleanest. Generally, the items that are more porous and exposed will absorb the most pesticides, while items that have rinds or natural barriers give the flesh protection from absorbing large amounts of pesticides. This guideline is helpful to those who want to avoid conventional produce but may not want to pay a higher premium or cannot obtain 100% organic items.  

Q: How does balancing a healthy diet and healthy lifestyle impact your way of life?  

CD: Balancing a healthy diet and lifestyle is important for me since I am always on the go. I oversee 5 restaurants and my wife and I have three young kids that are 5, 3 and 8 months old so it becomes difficult to sit down and eat a healthy prepared meal, especially on a regular schedule, for all meal periods. In the restaurants, you are constantly taste-testing your product and don’t realize how much grazing you do in just quality checks. I have to be conscious and plan ahead about my choices to avoid the “auto-pilot” of eating whatever is convenient and instead, plan on having healthier snacks available like a banana, granola, yogurt or simply grape tomatoes. It is the same way with physical activity- it has to be planned and prioritized for it to happen. 

Photography by: Katherine Parske 

Picazzo’s is located at the following locations:

Picazzo's

Picazzo's - Location #2

Picazzo's - Location #3

Picazzo's - Location #4

Picazzo's - Location #5

Chocolate Avocado Mousse 

Photo credit: Grace Stufkosky 

Ingredients

  • 2 Very Ripe Avocados, Peeled & Pitted 
  • 1/4 Cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder 
  • 1/4 Cup Agave 
  • 1/2 Tbs Vanilla Extract 
  • 1/8 Tsp Salt 
  • 3 Tbs Unsweetened Almond Milk 
  • 1 Tbs Water 

Method

Step 1: Blend all ingredients in a food processor (or traditional/immersion blenders will work too) until a smooth and creamy texture is present. 

Step 2: Enjoy.

Featured Recipes

Oaxaca Tacos with Black Bean Stew and Tangy Swiss Chard from Cafe Flora

Oaxaca Tacos with Black Bean Stew and Tangy Swiss Chard from Cafe Flora

by | Jun 6, 2018 | All, Home, Nutrition, Recipes

Owner Nat Stratton-Clarke. Photo credit: Chustine Minoda

Meet owner of Cafe Flora and Floret by Cafe Flora, Nat Stratton-Clarke.

Q: What is it about Café Flora that makes it unique to alternative healthy dining experiences?

Nat Stratton-Clarke: Cafe Flora has been a local favorite since we opened in Seattle in 1992. At that time vegetarian dining was seen as just brown rice and vegetables, we flipped that and showed our guests how textural, interesting and delicious vegetarian cuisine is. Our chef team has always worked creatively to bring in flavors from all types of cuisines, this keeps things interesting and so flavorful.

With Floret by Cafe Flora now open at Sea-Tac International Airport we have the exciting opportunity to do the same thing with travelers and share with them our delicious variety of breakfast, lunch and dinner items for both sit down and grab-and-go. They can enjoy real, healthy foods that taste amazing and just happen to be vegetarian. Also just because we are located at the airport doesn’t mean we changed our ways, we worked hard to get our farm partners “badged” to deliver to the airport so we can offer the same fresh, local produce our guests have come to know and love.

Q: How often does the menu change at Café Flora?

NSC: Our menus change seasonally so about four times per year. This allows us to plan with the seasons and for our local farmers to showcase what is fresh from their farms right now.

Q: What would you like our readers to know about adopting a more plant-based diet?

NSC: It is easier to do than you think. Dining at Floret and Cafe Flora gives our guests inspiration for when they are cooking at home. Our chef team is incredibly creative and people leave realizing there are easy ways to make delicious food that doesn’t involve animal products but is filling and packed with flavor.

Q: Why is it important for people to buy local and use sustainable ingredients versus buying from bigger grocery chains?

NSC: We have worked with local farmers and purveyors since the beginning of Cafe Flora. You not only support these hard-working folks but you support a whole community of jobs in your backyard when you buy local. And of course, it’s good for the planet. I grew up in Berkeley, CA during the Alice Waters farm-to-table movement and my family made weekly trips to the farmers market to purchase food for the week. It was what you did and it felt so natural to support what was being grown, baked and prepared right in our community. It’s something I’ve always been passionate about and it excites me to do this on a larger scale with Floret and Cafe Flora and really help other small farms and businesses thrive.

Q: What is your current favorite dish at Café Flora?

NSC: I love our Oaxaca Tacos available at both Cafe Flora and Floret. They are the most brilliant combination of flavors and textures from the cheesy mashed potatoes in crisp corn tortillas to the black bean stew, fire roasted salsa, and lime sour cream. Also, our vegan cinnamon rolls are a crowd favorite and we’ve brought our same recipe to Floret for travelers to enjoy on the go!

Photo credit: Belathee Photography

Cafe Flora is located at the following location:

Cafe Flora

Floret

LA Fitness Ballard

Distance to closest LA Fitness: 6.2 miles to Ballard LA Fitness

Cafe Flora is located in Seattle’s Madison Valley neighborhood at 2901 East Madison Street. Open Monday-Friday at 9 a.m. for breakfast, lunch and dinner with weekend brunch from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. and dinner at 5 p.m. Menus and additional details at cafeflora.com.

Floret by Cafe Flora is located at Sea-Tac International Airport between A and B Terminals and is open daily for grab-and-go from 5 a.m. – 9 p.m. and dine-in from 6 a.m. – 10 p.m. both offering breakfast, lunch and dinner items. Full menus available at floretseattle.com.

 

 

Oaxaca Tacos with Black Bean Stew and Tangy Swiss Chard

Ingredients

For the Tacos

  • 1 ½ pounds (about 3 medium) russet potatoes, peeled and quartered
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup (about 2 ounces) smoked mozzarella cheese, shredded
  • ½ cup (about 2 ounces) cheddar cheese, shredded
  • A big pinch of red pepper flakes
  • Vegetable oil for preparing the tortillas
  • 8 thin corn tortillas
  • 1 small red or green pepper, seeds removed, finely diced
  • Toothpicks

For the Black Bean Stew

  • 1 cup dried black beans, soaked for 8 hours, or 1 (15-ounce) can black beans
  • 1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
  • ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • ½ teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted and ground
  • ½ teaspoon chili powder
  • ½ teaspoon dried oregano
  • ½ tablespoon brown sugar
  • ¾ teaspoon salt

For the Chard

  • 1 big bunch red or green Swiss chard, most of the stems removed, leaves left whole
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 tablespoon fresh-squeezed lemon juice
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Garnish, to taste: crumbled feta, crème fraiche, Pico de gallo salsa

Method

Step 1: Cook the beans. If using dried, soaked beans, drain them and put them in 5 cups of boiling water. Reduce heat to low and simmer, partly covered until the beans are tender, but still hold their shape, about 1 ½ hours. If using canned beans, drain and replace with 1 cup cold water. Combine the cooked beans with the corn, garlic, cilantro, red pepper flakes, cumin seeds, chili powder, oregano, brown sugar and salt and simmer until the flavors are blended, about 15 minutes.

Step 2: Cook the potatoes in just enough boiling water to cover until they are tender, about 20 minutes. Then mash the potatoes with butter and salt and keep warm. In a small bowl, combine the cheeses and red pepper flakes and keep them nearby.

Step 3: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and have ready a baking sheet or roasting pan to hold the tacos. Heat 1/8 inch of vegetable oil in a skillet over medium-high heat and soft-fry the tortillas, without allowing them to become crisp, one at a time. (The tortillas should be oily and soft so they will crisp in the oven after they are filled.)

Step 4: Fill each tortilla with 1/3 cup of the mashed potatoes, 1/8 cup of the grated cheese mixture and a generous tablespoon of the chopped pepper. Roll the tortillas around the filling and secure them with toothpicks. Arrange the tacos in a single layer on the baking sheet or roasting pan and bake until the cheese has melted and the tortillas are crisp, about 18 minutes.

Step 5: While the tacos are baking, steam the chard in a covered pan over a small amount of boiling water until just tender, about 5 minutes. Puree the garlic with lemon juice and olive oil, and season with salt and pepper, then toss it with the steamed Swiss chard.

Featured Recipes

A Taste of Tryst in DC

A Taste of Tryst in DC

by | May 16, 2018 | All, Home, Nutrition, Recipes

A Hello From Tryst DC! 

Tryst is turning 20 this year! We’ve been bringing people together over great food and drink in the nation’s capital for two decades.

Tryst stands in the center of the nation’s capital, in stark contrast to the suburban culture and coffee chains that proliferate the country. No, our silverware doesn’t always match and we don’t have 75 different kinds of pre-made caramel-nilla-frapp-a-ccino-supremas or 64 flavored vodka martinis. What we do have is outstanding, specialty coffee, craft cocktails, and a commitment to being the city’s ‘third place’. The Greeks have tavernas; the French have cafes. DC has Tryst – a place that helps define ourselves and the community.

Q: Fast-casual dining is often thought to be less healthy than home-cooking, but I’d disagree. What are some of the healthier options Tryst DC offers that diners can enjoy guilt-free?

Executive Chef Kevin Eckert: The thing that separates Tryst from other fast-casual restaurants is that we use small batch recipes and that nearly everything on the menu is cooked from scratch.  Every day we are making soups, pesto, granola, and frying our own chips not to mention the daily selection of fresh baked goods.  I believe that this makes a big difference in the result of the quality of the end product and allows our customers to eat guilt-free.

Q: I assume that with an eclectic menu, the drinks offered at Tryst DC are just as artfully crafted. Do you have a favorite drink you feel pairs well with the featured dish provided?

KE: We take our bartending and barista crafts very seriously. I like to eat the Chia Seed Pudding with a masala chai latte.  Cinnamon and cardamom are naturally sweet flavors that taste amazing without the addition of a ton of sugar and I find that refreshing.

Q: What would you like our readers to know about food and nutrition?

KE: Balance is key. Diet is part of a healthy lifestyle. It should be easy to eat well every day but we shouldn’t feel guilty for enjoying things occasionally in moderation either.

Q: If you had to include one constant ingredient to every dish you created from here on forward, what would it be? Why that ingredient?

KE: Mung beans. I can’t get enough of them lately. They are packed in nutrition and versatile. They can be sprouted and eaten raw or sautéed, work great in stews especially with curry, and can be soaked and pureed and made into a dosa. Hard to go wrong.

Q: Coffee or tea?

KE: Both!  It depends on the time of day. I will always start my day with a cup of hot coffee but as the day goes on I like to switch to tea, especially an iced green tea when I need an afternoon pick-me-up.

Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity. 

Tryst DC is located at the following location:

Tryst

LA Fitness North Bergen

Distance to closest LA Fitness: 1.8 miles to Washington DC – Connecticut Ave. LA Fitness

Tryst Chia Pudding

Ingredients

  • 1 cup Chia Seeds
  • 4 cups Almond Milk, unsweetened
  • 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
  • 3/4 cup Pure Maple Syrup
  • 2 tsp Cinnamon, ground

Method

  1. Add all ingredients to a mixing bowl and whisk until combined.
  2. Refrigerate for at least 12 hours, stirring occasionally to prevent lumps.
  3. Portion into bowls and top with fresh berries, granola, banana and coconut flakes.

Featured Recipes

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