Kalyn's Kitchen Picks: Zout Laundry Stain Remover

I think Zout is a miracle product for messy cooks!

It feels like time for another one of my Kalyn's Kitchen Picks spotlighting a favorite product that I buy over and over, and this is the first time I've ever featured something like Zout Laundry Stain Remover.  You may be wondering how Zout can be considered a kitchen item, especially if you're one of those neat cooks who always wears an apron, keeps the counter completely cleared off, and never spills food on your clothes.  I am completely in awe of cooks like that.   

Recipe Favorites: Twice-Baked Cauliflower

I have fond memories of Twice-Baked Potatoes, but now this Twice-Baked Cauliflower would suit me better!

(Updated with better photos and a slightly lightened recipe, November 2011.) I'm one of those people who really like cauliflower, and I especially like this dish, possibly in memory of all those twice baked potatoes I ate before I started eating the lower glycemic index way. I remember my mother making them for special occasions, and I'd help scoop out the potato insides and mix them with sour cream, cheese and butter, and lots of cheese sprinkled on top when the potatoes went back in the oven for the second baking. In those days all the Denny siblings considered twice baked potatoes to be the ultimate gourmet treat, something my mother didn't make very often for the twelve (12!) people she was cooking for.

Recipe for Easy Penne Pasta with Balsamic Sweet Potatoes, Baby Arugula (or Spinach), and Parmesan

Easy Penne Pasta with Balsamic Sweet Potatoes, Arugula, and Parmesan for Meatless Monday

Sometimes my best recipes happen when I have a certain ingredient I've been infatuated with but suddenly I want to do something different with it.  A few weeks ago that happened with my favorite Baby Arugula Salad.  Oh yes, I love that baby arugula salad, but that day I found myself with half a tub of baby arugula and a yearning for something different than a salad.  I knew arugula was great with pasta, and I always have sweet potatoes on hand, so I ended up creating this meatless dish that combines sweet potatoes sauteed and glazed with balsamic vinegar, wilted baby arugula, and a generous handful of good quality Parmesan cheese.  This was comforting and satisfying on a colder-than-I-might-have-wanted November day.

Recipe for Turkey (or chicken) Lasagna with Sage and Three Cheeses

Turkey Lasagna with Sage and Three Cheeses is one of my favorite things to make with leftover turkey!

(Republished with updated photos and a lighter version of the recipe, November 2011.)  Five years ago I posted this fabulous lasagna recipe that I created using leftover turkey from Thanksgiving and the last of the sage from my garden.  This has been one of my favorite post-Thanksgiving dishes to make with leftover turkey, turkey gravy, and turkey stock all adding a lot of flavor.  But the original recipe made a huge dish of lasagna, and it was a pretty rich dish.  (My brother Mark jokingly asked if this was phase five for South Beach when I made it the first time.)  For Thanksgiving 2011 I thought I'd give this recipe a little makeover, and the new recipe makes a smaller dish of lasagna with less cheese for a lighter version that's still quite delish.  (I'll keep the printer-friendly link for the original version as well, in case anyone has enjoyed that version and has it bookmarked.)

Recipe for Easy Leftover Turkey Pita Sandwiches with Fresh Cranberry Salsa

Trina's Fresh Cranberry Salsa made these pita sandwiches into a real treat!

Yes, I realize you probably don't have any leftover turkey yet, and you might even still be looking for diet-friendly Thanksgiving Recipes if you haven't decided what you're making for the big day.  But in that funny world of food blogging, I cooked a turkey breast and a whole turkey last week so I'd have leftover turkey for recipe experiments.  That way I can get them posted before Thanksgiving for people to consider when they *do* have leftover turkey.  And although I've made a lot of good things through the years using leftover turkey, these tasty little pita sandwiches with Trina's Fresh Cranberry Salsa may have just gone to the front of the line for this year.  I made my leftover turkey into a turkey salad mixture to go in the pitas, but if you didn't want to bother with that turkey + cranberry salsa + pita bread would also taste pretty fantastic!

Recipe for American Greek Salad

I'd never get tired of American Greek Salad for a meatless lunch or dinner!

(Republished with new photos and updated recipe, November 2011.)  Here in the U.S. we're just about to head into what can be the most indulgent food week of the entire year.  Although I try to encourage healthier holiday eating with my Low-Glycemic Thanksgiving Recipes, I know this is a time when making good choices can be a challenge.  Personally I think it's okay to splurge a little on a holiday meal, because over the long haul healthy eating is all about balance.  This long-time favorite recipe for American Greek Salad is something I first posted when I was a teacher about to go on summer vacation, but it's also a good choice when you need to balance out some heavier meals.  I recommend this salad at my pick for Meatless Monday this week if you'd like to start the week with something that's tasty and fresh.

Kalyn's Top Ten Favorite Thanksgiving Recipes for 2011 (and ten honorable mentions!)

These 100% Whole Wheat Stuffing "Muffins" are definitely on my list of favorite Thanksgiving recipes!

In case there's anyone in the U.S. who hasn't noticed, Thanksgiving is now less than a week away!  I love Thanksgiving, both the idea of giving thanks for our lives of abundance and also the wonderful food that's enjoyed on that day.  For the last six Novembers I've been testing Thanksgiving recipes; then posting the ones that make the cut and adding them to my index page for Low-Glycemic Thanksgiving Recipes.  My standards are extremely high about what shows up on the blog, so that index page has a lot of very delicious recipe ideas for Thanksgiving.  When I decided to make a list of all-time favorites for Thanksgiving 2011, it took me quite a while to narrow it down to just the list of favorites you see here.  (In fact, I originally intended to pick just ten favorites, but there were simply too many!)  If you're looking for something new for Thanksgiving this year, here are 20 of my best recipe ideas for Thanksgiving-worthy dishes that I'm sure you'll enjoy.

Recipe for Roasted Green Beans and Red Bell Pepper with Garlic and Ginger

Beautiful roasted green beans and red bell pepper for Thanksgiving or Christmas!

Oh dear.  I just said the name of that December holiday that starts way too soon, and we haven't even celebrated Thanksgiving yet.  I think the bright red and green colors of these Roasted Green Beans and Red Bell Pepper with Garlic and Ginger made me lose control there for a minute.  Don't think that I'm becoming one of those holiday-skippers though; it's mid-November and I promise you I made this recipe to add to my collection of Low-Glycemic Thanksgiving Recipes.  (But if you want to make it again next month for that other holiday, I'm guessing it will be a hit then as well.)

Recipe for Kalyn's Favorite Baby Arugula Salad with Lemon, Balsamic Vinegar, Parmesan, and Pine Nuts

For arugula lovers, this simple salad would be a perfect new flavor for the Thanksgiving table.

It was about three years ago that I noticed salads with baby arugula, lemon, and Parmesan showing up on the menu at several of my favorite restaurants.  I'm a huge fan of arugula, so I happily sampled the various arugula salads everywhere I saw one.  Then a few weeks ago I decided to try to actually write down a recipe for my take on the perfect combination of ingredients for an arugula salad like this.  It took a little experimenting to find the exact mix that made my tastebuds happy, but the one I'm sharing here (with just a touch of white balsamic vinegar added to the lemony dressing) is the arugula salad I would happily eat over and over.  Not everyone will want arugula for Thanksgiving, but I'm adding this to my list of Low Glycemic Thanksgiving Recipes because I know arugula lovers like myself will love the sharp flavor of arugula and lemon along with our turkey, stuffing, and cranberry salsa!  Truthfully, I could happily eat this salad any time of year and I doubt if I'd ever get tired of it.

Recipe for Spinach and Feta Casserole with Brown Rice and Parmesan

Pam and I both gave this Spinach and Feta Casserole with Brown Rice and Parmesan two thumbs up!

Yesterday my sister Pam and brother-in-law Kelly came over, and Kelly replaced my broken garbage disposal (thanks Kelly!)  While he worked on that I showed Pam some of the new features on the blog, including the new Recipe Box option where you can save recipes with Ziplist.  Then Pam and I raided the fridge where there were some leftovers of this Spinach and Feta Casserole with Brown Rice and Parmesan.  A few hours later Pam called me. saying she had set up her Ziplist account and wanted to save the spinach and feta casserole, but couldn't find it on the blog. I had to tell her I was sorry that I hadn't posted the recipe yet, but I was very happy that she liked it so much!

Recipe for Trina's Low-Sugar Fresh Cranberry Salsa with Cilantro, Lime, and Jalapeno

I loved everything about this Low-Sugar Fresh Cranberry Salsa with Cilantro, Lime, and Jalapeno!

When my friend Trina started to talk about the fresh cranberry salsa she's been making every Thanksgiving for years, I was a bit skeptical until she told me the ingredients list.  I'm not someone who loves all things cranberry, but the combination of fresh cranberries with cilantro, green onion, lime juice, and jalapeno had so many of my favorite flavors, it was pretty much a given that I'd like it.  As soon as I tasted this (and loved it!) my brain started imagining ways to eat it.  Of course, this cranberry salsa would be fantastic on your Thanksgiving dinner plate next to the turkey, but I'd also love it spread on a turkey sandwich, layered into a turkey casserole, dipped up with celery or pita chips, or eaten as a pan-sauce over sauteed pork or chicken.  I can already tell this is one of those recipes I'll be making over and over, so thanks for sharing Trina!

Fun Friday News: Blog Updates and New Features for Kalyn's Kitchen!

Kalyn's Kitchen has changed a lot through the years!

Do you know there's a site called The Wayback Machine where you can enter the url of a website and see how it looked in the past?  I love seeing how my site has changed through the years, and please repeat after me: Change is Good!  I do try to embrace that motto, and for a few months now I've been making a series of little changes to Kalyn's Kitchen, adding features designed to make the blog more user-friendly.  It started in the summer with social media buttons at the top of the post to help people share recipes using Twitter, Facebook, or StumbleUpon, something I resisted for quite a while until I saw how many people used them on the blogs I visited.   Now I'm used to that row of buttons, and I greatly appreciate readers who use them to share my recipes with friends.

Recipe for Steamed Green Beans and Carrots with Charmoula Sauce

Adding Charmoula Sauce turns plain steamed green beans and carrots into a gourmet treat!

I don't think there are any awards for Thanksgiving side dishes, but if there were I'd nominate this dish of Steamed Green Beans and Carrots as the Most Interesting New Side Dish.  And when I say interesting, what I mean is we couldn't stop eating it, all the while remarking how plain steamed green beans and carrots had been transferred into something amazing by the sauce.   Charmoula is sometimes referred to as cilantro pesto, and it's a North African sauce made of chopped herbs and spices.  It's often used as a sauce on fish, which is probably the next way I'll trying using it.  Charmoula is also fairly similar to Chimichurri Sauce, which is a South American sauce served on meat.   If you're not a cilantro fan, I think you could adapt this recipe to use more parsley and less cilantro and get a good result, but I'm not sure how it would work with no cilantro at all.

Recipe for Barely-Blanched Broccoli Salad with Feta and Fried Almonds

Barely Blanched Broccoli Salad with Feta and Fried Almonds is a nice change for Thanksgiving!

Even though there's a great list of Low-Glycemic Thanksgiving Recipes in the recipe index, every year I have fun testing new ideas that might make it onto the Thanksgiving table.  Last year my favorite new Thanksgiving recipe was probably 100% Whole Wheat Stuffing "Muffins" with Sausage and Parmesan, a dish I worked on for several tries until I got it just right.  It's too early to tell what's  going to be my favorite from Thanksgiving 2011, but I know that this Blanched Broccoli Salad with Feta and Fried Almonds is something I'll be making over and over.  If you like broccoli, Feta, and almonds, be sure to try this dish even if you don't make it for Thanksgiving.

Recipe for Curried Rice and Red Lentils

This nutritious combination of Curried Rice and Red Lentils is perfect for Meatless Monday.

(Updated with new photos and added to Recipe Favorites November 2011)  This dish combining Curried Rice and Red Lentils is an old favorite that I recently I made with Jake, and we both loved how the simple combination of ingredients creates so much flavor in this recipe.  I don't know that I was thinking about Meatless Monday when we decided to make this, but since the combination of lentils (or beans) and rice are famous in vegetarian cooking for the way they create a complete protein, it really is a recipe that's perfect for meatless meals.  And I'm happy I have new photos to update the post and stick to my pledge to try to have a meatless recipe on the blog every Monday, since I ended up spending the weekend at the house of my sister Valerie (Jake's mom) and just got home a few hours ago.

Friday Favorites: Favorite Healthier Sweet Potato Recipes for Thanksgiving

I'd love these Twice-Baked Sweet Potatoes with Feta and Sumac for Thanksgiving!

For many, many years I was one of those people who would wrinkle their nose up at the mere mention of sweet potatoes (or yams as they are often mistakenly called.)  I really didn't think I would ever like them, but then I tried Spicy Sweet Potato Fries and had a sweet potato epiphany.  I realized that what I didn't like was those overly-sweet dishes with sweet potatoes, brown sugar, and mini-marshallows,  the ones that so many people serve for Thanksgiving.  Since then I've experimented with different ways to prepare sweet potatoes sans marshmallows and I've picked six favorite ones to recommend for your Thanksgiving table, starting with the Twice-Baked Sweet Potatoes with Feta and Sumac shown above.  Even if you're one of the people who like those marshmallow-topped holiday sweet potato dishes, I bet some of my favorite recipes for sweet potatoes for might be things you'd like to add to your sweet potato options.

Recipe for Ground Turkey and Quinoa Patties with Mint, Cumin, and Yogurt-Tahini Sauce

These Turkey and Quinoa Patties with Yogurt Sauce were amazing!

Before we launch into new ideas for South Beach Friendly Thanksgiving Recipes, I really want to share this recipe I tried a few weeks ago with my nephew Jake.  I'll tell you that honestly the entire time we were making these ground turkey and quinoa patties, we were more than a little skeptical about whether they would turn out to be anything special.  In particular we thought there was going to be far too much quinoa compared to the amount of meat, but we shouldn't have worried.  Once we had the mixture combined and Jake was frying the patties, we sampled one with a little bit of the yogurt sauce on it.  I took one little piece, walked into the office, and when I walked back a minute or two later, Jake had eaten the entire patty.  Yes, we both thought they were amazingly good!

South Beach Diet Phase One Recipes Round-Up for October 2011

Kalyn's favorite Phase One Recipe from October 2001 was definitely Kale and Romaine Caesar Salad!

I'm not quite sure how it happened, but it's November!  I don't know if people think about Phase One Recipes once the winter holidays are approaching, but my theory is that if you're trying to lose weight or maintain your weight it never hurts to rotate a generous selection of Phase One Recipes into your meals all year round, and I spotted a few interesting ideas fin this monthly round-up of Phase One Recipes that I'm sure will be on my menu soon.  Other than that, most people are probably in countdown mode for Thanksgiving for the next few weeks.  I've been trying some new recipes that I'll be posting soon and adding to my index page for Low-Glycemic Thanksgiving Recipes.  Those are all recipes designed to help you celebrate without straying too far.  There are plenty of good ideas there from other years, so take a peek if you're one of those people who starts early thinking about the Thanksgiving menu.  And Happy November everyone!