Weeknight Easy

November 9, 2011

Jess Do It

As if one marathon wasn’t enough, my wonderful dream friend, Natty, decided to put on her running sneaks and tackle that 26.ridiculous mile New York course again this year. All in the name of Lupus research. All so that someday, people like me won’t have to feel tired, run-down, or kidney-less because of this chronic disease. While Natty ferry’d over to the starting line, the rest of us bundled up and leisurely walked across the Island, bundled up of course, to await her passing. And as we slowly strutted our way uptown, I reflected on this wonderful dream friend of […]

September 2, 2011

Kohlrabi Chicken Salad

Here we are on our last day of the kohlrabi adventure. Most of our kohlrabi has been enjoyed in the raw. Or as art. But it’s time we enjoy this green veggie in a sandwich. With some curry and paprika. Some Greek yogurt. A pinch of freshly ground black pepper. Some quinoa (for texture). And of course, juicy chicken thigh. Cooked. I just popped these suckers in the oven at 375 dg F for 45 minutes, until the inside was no longer pink, and mixed it in with the kohlrabi cubes and other ingredients. And in less time than it […]

August 10, 2011

Chicken Thighs and Pineapple Relish

Cooking Light created a party on a plate and they’ve invited you to all join in. And eat. And enjoy. Party hats optional, but dancing pants required. Thanks to a little blogger love from the wonderful magazine, I get some of their latest dishes before they go to print. And the best part is that I can then share them with you. It’s like looking into a culinary crystal ball and seeing your dinner future. Which, this week, is a quick fix of Southwestern Chicken Thighs topped with a snappy Pineapple Relish. Beyond being glad that they didn’t call it […]

July 20, 2011

Seven Layer Salad

Sometimes, food is good just because it looks cool. Like bagel bites and chicken nuggets shaped like dinosaurs. Or noodles made of zucchini. Or bananas flambe. Which is fruit on fire. So when it comes to jazzing up the basics, a simple twist in the presentation goes a long way. And the next time you think of salads, forgetting about mixing and tossing, and try some layers. This lovely bowl had stripes of chopped red onion, fennel, apple, raw asparagus coins, fresh dill, green onions, cherry tomatoes (heirloom of course), avocado, a twist of lime, a drizzle of vinegar and […]

July 13, 2011

Edamame Education: The Ultimate

Today is completely dedicated to edamame pate. Because sometimes people don’t like chicken livers. And also because a dish like this exemplifies why (and how!) low sodium cooking can be so much more than just a restricted diet. Or worse yet, a boring diet. In reality, low sodium is the ultimate test of your creativity in the kitchen. And once you’ve whole heartedly accepted the salt-free challenge, your mind starts coming up with some crazy ideas. Like edmame pate. Which is just silly crazy. And it tastes equally bonkers. For my dear reader who asked for a salt-free and equally […]

June 20, 2011

Salt and Stove-Free Pasta

Hi! What did you do this weekend? I set my oven on fire. Yeah. I really did. I meant to make chips. I made a huge mess instead. And I’m pretty sure I’m inhaling tons of chemicals as I’m writing this. If anyone has advice on cleaning this thing out, please let me know. But let’s talk about something with less charcoal flavor and more taste. While my range is taking a brief vacation, I started to think about no-cook meals. Ways that I could eat food full of vitamins and flavor without using any kind of flame. And that’s […]

January 21, 2011

Me, You, Blue River Stew

It has been a food education-palooza this week. I’ve clocked approximately 8.7 hours of watching Food Network competitions and past episodes of Top Chef. I’ve made shrimp-less shrimp curry with fellow blogger and Wiley Publishing author, Allison Fishman, over Skype. And tonight, I’m taking a very prestigious course in chicories (read: free wine and fun Bi-Rite staff) at 18 Reasons. That’s a lot of info-cramming for one low sodium brain. But of all the didactic shenanigans, I have to say that one of the must fulfilling (and filling) events in these past seven days has been recipe testing for food52.com’s […]

October 27, 2010

Salt-Free My Recipe: Mama's Enchiladas

A few weeks ago, I received the following, lovely letter from Sodium Girl reader Cindra Fox: Dear Sodium Girl, I’m on a low-sodium diet to prevent complications from migraines. I’ve been on it for over a year now and have found a whole new world of food and flavor that I ignored back when I could just grab a burger at the closest drive-through. What I miss the most, though, is Mom’s famous enchiladas. I’m half-Mexican and we would make these at least once a week. Now it’s been over a year since I’ve had them. But here’s the catch: […]

September 13, 2010

Spice-Rubbed Cob

It’s Corn Week over here at Sodium Girl and to start off this Monday and ramp up this corn fest, I thought it wise to begin with something simple in order to (a) get our corny juices flowing and (b) give me time to actually wake up – I am only two sips deep into my sodium-free coffee and I feel it would be dangerous to talk about anything that requires heavy lifting or sharp knives. As I described last week, my first foray into corn was eating it in its most traditional form – on the cob. My dad […]

August 9, 2010

Hot Pockets

It is true that the easiest way to lower your sodium is to cut out the prepared, packaged items from your diet. But it is false that home-cooked meals, made from scratch, have to be costly, time-consuming, and exhausting to create. Now, I’m not saying your assumption is wrong, because many dishes, like making your own mole sauce, could put you into an ingredient-induced coma for weeks. But thanks to inventions like the slow cooker and immersion blender, you can make flavorful, low sodium meals in the time it takes to order a pizza. For this particular story, let’s just […]

Previous Entries

Next Entries