Dressings

April 10, 2012

SAVEUR This

Have you heard about all the crazy things you can do with salt? According to the book, Solve it With Salt, you can put that salt shaker to work to: remove water stains from your porcelain tub (if you have one); make grease, red wine, and ketchup disappear from your rug; shine up your favorite brass candleholders; clean up oven spills (in place of smelly, toxic cleaners); razzle dazzle art projects with home-made salt glitter; keep ants out of your house; and soak up that smelly odor from your shoes. But are you also aware of the number of crave-worthy [...]

March 16, 2012

Low-Sodium Thousand Island Sliders

A few interesting things happened this morning. I lugged every piece of heavy cooking equipment out of the cabinets. Food processor. Stand up mixer. Blender. I covered my kitchen in flour. I whipped up salt-free burger buns in less than an hour. Really. And I totally dominated an all veggie, low-potassium, low-sodium slider with low-sodium drippy and delicious thousand island dressing. A recipe that not only completes this week’s run of drive-through makeovers for Nick Cannon. But also lends itself perfectly to introducing you to a low-sodium reuben sandwich recipe (made by my amazing sis-in-law and her boy-toy) that you can enjoy this [...]

March 13, 2012

Low-Sodium Nuggets for Nick Cannon

In case you missed it, there was big news in the lupus and kidney world last week. Nick Cannon, star of such films as Drumline (which I’ve watched three times in one night — thank you TBS), the host of America’s Got Talent, and hubby to Mariah Carey announced that his recent kidney troubles are due to a form of lupus that attacks the kidneys, called lupus nephritis. Sound familiar? What’s thrilling for the lupus and kidney disease communities is that Nick is so open about his diagnosis, helping raise major awareness about both conditions. But what is equally exciting [...]

February 21, 2012

Salt-Free, Hand-Mixed Worcestershire

Here’s a fun fact: Majoratively. It’s not a real word. I know, I just found that out too. And I’ve been using it for a long time. A very long time. And you know what? I have no intent of stopping. Because there are a lot of weird words already out there that have been deemed “usable” and “real” and “in the dictionary.” February? Raspberry? Library? Are you serious, Webster? So, yeah. I’m keeping majoratively and I’ll use it whenever I want. And as for things like worcestershire, which I can hardly spell let alone say, I’m going to stick [...]

March 28, 2011

Always Use a Condiment

One of my favorite questions to ask people is, if they could only have one condiment for the rest of their life, what would it be? Mine is honey mustard. Obviously. Luckily, though, there hasn’t been a condiment shortage in the world, quite yet. And thanks to one of my favorite restaurants in town – Frjtz – choices aren’t limited, they are extensive. I love Frjtz not just because of their perfectly crispy french fries, which they make salt-free. But mainly because of their large menu list of condiments. They are loaded with salt. But they are also inspriring. Thai [...]

March 4, 2011

Salt-Free Ranch Revealed

Ok. Now I know how my parents felt when my brother and I begged for a puppy. After weeks of being told “no” and that “just because” is a perfectly acceptable answer, they finally caved in. And Snickers, our cocker spaniel that eventually went blind and deaf but was a cuddle bug all the same, was eventually welcomed to the family. Arm, twisted. So after weeks of receiving wonderful emails from you all, requesting the ingredients for the secret low sodium ranch dressing – that I was going to save for the book – I just couldn’t resist any longer. [...]

January 25, 2010

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, the Lunch Edition

Last week, I played caterer to a very special guest. Apron tied on tight, prep bowls aplenty, and a glass of white wine to keep me cool under pressure, I served a three course meal that was light, bright, and of course, low in sodium. While my companion’s identity will remain anonymous – sorry, I’m keeping this one to myself – I will share with you the secrets that made this mid-afternoon feast an easy success. I went simple, choosing recipes that I could make the evening before, that required minimal attention, and that, well, honestly, had a lot of margin [...]

January 14, 2010

Holly Holly Hollandaise

Happy Semi-Hump Day (just two more afternoons to go until the weekend) and a special thank you to those readers who wrote in their votes for this morning’s post. The winner, of course, was the perfectly poached Eggs Benedict that Mom whipped up during Stanford’s bowl game on New Year’s Eve. The origin of this dish is still a mystery. Multiple people and places have been accredited for its creation, from a special order by a hungry (and demanding) patron at the Waldorf Hotel circa 1894, to a traditional French cuisine named œufs bénédictine, consisting of a toasted piece of [...]

January 13, 2010

Holy Anchovy

When my kidneys failed six years ago, and I began my low sodium diet, I assumed certain foods were permanently off the “safe food” list. Anchovies, sardines, and any other tiny fish packed in a tin can, I thought, were swimming in sodium, and while I cannot say that I ever consciously chose to eat them before my diet changed, I found myself wincing with culinary jealousy when I read about other cooks using this fishy flavor to enrich their dishes. Anchovy and herb pate, kale puttanesca, a chunky Mediterranean tapenade, a milky Cesar salad dressing, even bread – these [...]