I HAVE to share this food love. It’s so damn good, even day 3. Day 2 and day 3 better than day 1, so plan ahead for this. It’s worth it.
I’ll surely be making this one early & often for spring & summer gatherings . . . try it with sliced ficelle, pita chips, veggie crackers, on a corn thin (that’s how I just ate it), heck, it’d be a wicked tasty spread for a sammie on an everything bagel with lots of veggies. My next plan is to get D. to grill baguette slices that have been brushed with a little olive oil, and use it on that. You are gonna want to bathe in this. Trust me.

Truffled White Bean Spread (adapted from The Kitchn)

1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley

In a medium pot, combine the broth, beans, garlic, and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer until the beans are tender, about 45 minutes. Season the beans, to taste, with salt and pepper. Cool in the liquid. Drain the beans & garlic, remove the bay leaves.

Place the beans & garlic in a bowl and coarsely mash with a potato masher. Mash in the oils, keeping the mixture fairly coarse. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the scallions and parsley. Spoon into a serving bowl and drizzle with more truffle oil if desired.

I think this is best prepared a day ahead – so prep it through stirring in the scallions & parsley, cover and refrigerate. Before serving, let it come to room temp (you want to taste that spendy truffle oil, don’t you??). This makes 1 cup, but you’re CRAZY not to double this recipe. You’ll hate yourself if you don’t.

© 2011, Sarah. All rights reserved.

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I dunno about you, but I’m always on the hunt for easy, fun munchies to put out for the holidays.  Or to wrap up and take as a hostess gift.  This mix is Chex Mix for the new millennium.  It’s got an Asian twist, is sweet, salty, crunchy and a just a little bit spicy.  Perfect with a nice glass of wine or a beer. 

FYI, Trader Joe’s is a great place to find the components for this recipe.  And when you’re done, find some gifty little glass containers or tins (for those of you around Boston, China Fair is a great spot to find these), fill ‘em up, wrap ‘em with a bow, and off you go!

Sarah’s Sweet & Spicy Snack Mix

Preheat the oven to 275 degrees.  In a large bowl (needs to be huge! or else use 2 large bowls), combine the cereal with the nuts, rice cracker mix, sesame sticks and pretzels. 

Combine the butter, maple syrup, soy sauce and curry paste in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer, whisking to dissolve the curry paste.  Pour the mixture over the snack mix and toss to coat.  Season generously (do not be timid – it’s snack mix, it’s supposed to be salty!) with salt and pepper and spread on 2 large rimmed baking sheets.  Bake for approximately 1 hour, stirring frequently (every 10-15 minutes), until nearly dry and toasted.  Let cool completely, stirring occasionally.

This makes 27 cups!  Enough for a big party or several gifts/get-togethers.  If you want to make this ahead of time, store in airtight containers – it’ll keep at least a couple of weeks.  If you need to recrisp the mix, throw it on a baking sheet and bake at 275 for a bit, stirring occasionally.

© 2009, Sarah. All rights reserved.

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Happy Friday, friends!  Today I’m blogging about a food I have a love/hate relationship with: commercially-prepared microwave popcorn.  On the love side:  it’s convenient, and it’s a great, crunchy and low-calorie snack (if you get the light version, as I do).  On the hate side: it’s spendy and loaded with nasty chemicals and artificial ingredients.  I’ll be honest – microwave popcorn has been a bugaboo for me for a while.  Even though I eschewed artificial stuff in other areas of my life, I was still eating the stuff, especially when strictly watching what I eat (as I am now). 

Well, I’ve decided to get on the wagon and get this junk out of my life.  I no longer own an air popper – had one in college and have no idea where it went.  I do own a Whirly Pop, which is essentially what my grandparents and parents used to pop corn – but that involves oil (and usually copious amounts of butter and salt), and while delicious, it’s not the low-cal snack option I’m looking for often.

A few days ago, I tried popping popcorn in a paper lunch bag, and let me tell you, it’s marvelous!  I have no idea why it took me so long to get here.  Here’s what I do.  Put 2 tablespoons of kernels in the bag (I get organic popcorn at Whole Foods, but any type will do), fold the top of the bag down twice and secure it with Scotch tape (this is the microwave, so don’t get any bright ideas about using paper-clips, people!).  Stand it in the microwave, and set your micro to go for 5 minutes.  DO NOT let yourself become distracted by children, small animals, or heaps of dishes overflowing from your sink . . . you need to listen to your corn because microwaving times may vary.  It’ll pop hard for a couple of minutes, and once it slows way down, take it out.  Carefully open the bag (hot steam), and you will see a few cups of nice, fluffy corn waiting for you.  Consume as-is, or doctor it up with seasonings of your choice . . . . and if you want to indulge a bit, try this recipe for microwave caramel corn.

I’m eating the plain version of this a lot now, and I’m finding that since I’m not eating much junk, I’m tasting and enjoying the nice nutty taste of the corn more than I thought I would.  I love the crunch, and the volume.  I’m excited because the winter CSA we signed up for says it’ll have popcorn as part of the share – it’ll be fun to try out different varieties.  So while this is not your satisfyingly buttery/salty indulgence, it is a way to get a low-calorie (about 100 calories for those 2 T. of kernels), high fiber, all-natural snack.

Have a great weekend!

© 2009, Sarah. All rights reserved.

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Remember how I mentioned “the boot” on Monday?  And how I haven’t been exercising much?  Well, I’ve got a confession to make – I got on the scale yesterday and the picture’s not pretty.  All this not moving has caused weight gain I’m not comfortable with.  Sure, I expect that I’ll spread out at a time like this – I can’t do the gagillion squats and lunges I depend on to keep things in check – but now I know I’ve also been too lax in the eating department.

So, the hammer’s coming down.  Back to 1,200 calories.  Back to logging everything that goes in my mouth.  Back to rules and goals – if I can’t log it, I can’t eat it, and if I make my first goal, I’m treating myself to a massage.  Those who know me know I treat myself pretty well – but a massage is a true indulgence for me.  It’s definitely something to look forward to if I can reign it in a little bit here for the next month.  And that’s how I go about this, and you might want to, too.  Small, intermediate goals help you feel the sense of achievement you need to stay on track.  Sure, you might want to change your life radically in some way, maybe it’s weight-loss, but if you set a huge goal for yourself it just might be too overwhelming to deal with after a week.  I’m all about baby steps – now literally and figuratively (groan).

But another confession, I’ve been enjoying eating anything I want.  I’ve been conscious of moderation, but I’ve definitely been eating more calorie-dense foods.  I like the variety of foods that being more relaxed has allowed me to eat.  So my other goal for this time is to come up with some yummy new ideas for snacks and meals that will still fit into my calorie budget.  Add to that the easy-prep angle, and I’ve got a challenge.  But lucky for all of us, I love a challenge! 

Today I hit TJ’s again, and I just whipped up a little snack that is so good, I had to share:

Toast the muffin half, spread with the hummus, and then top with some pea shoots.  The hummus is slightly smoky and a little spicy and the shoots are sweet and crisp.  The combination of the soft toasted muffin and the toppings is quite satisfying, and you’ll clock in at just under 100 calories, 3 grams of fiber and 4 grams of protein.  If you’re like me and can’t give up carbs completely, then this is a good little carb fix.

Another great snack that I have gone back to is an idea I got from an old issue of Clean Eating Magazine.

Stir the apple butter into the cottage cheese and sprinkle the sunflower seeds on top . . . a little sweet, a little crunchy, and with this one, you’ll come in at just under 150 calories and 13 grams of protein.

Need something that’s portable?  Don’t want a bar?  Trader Joe’s makes organic light string cheese.  Now I know, string cheese doesn’t taste all that great, but it’s easily portable and portion-controlled.  Really, the cheeses I love are all too high in fat and calories for me to eat regularly when I’m dieting.  So instead, pair a light cheese stick with a medium apple and throw it in your bag/briefcase and you’re sure to have a healthy snack when mid-morning hunger pangs strike.  This run will run approximately 140  calories, with 4 grams of fiber and 7 grams of protein.

There’re always nuts – a handful of almonds or walnuts are easy to put in a little container to take with you.  I never quite find that satisfying enough, though – and you do have to be very careful with nuts.  They’re super nutritious, but they’re also calorie-dense and small . . . the risk, for me anyway, of over-indulging here is higher than with other foods.

I’ll keep you posted, and I’ll keep posting new ideas for easy and low-calorie menu ideas.  And please, if you have ideas, post them in the comments.

I know that January is the most popular time for weight-loss resolutions, but I never make them then.  For me, fall is a time of change and new beginnings – guess that’s the kid in me.  Are there any changes you want to make this September?  Think of how ahead of the curve you’ll be come January!

© 2009 – 2010, Sarah. All rights reserved.

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