This recipe is from Relish Magazine!  I can't wait to try it!

Crab and Sweet Potato Hash

Recipe by Chef Sarah Lee MyersKITCHEN TESTED 

• YIELD 4-6 servings
 
• PREP 
• COOK 30 minutes

Classic potato hash is modified with seafood favorites.

Mark Boughton Photography / styling by Teresa Blackburn

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Use white potatoes leftover from dinner instead of sweet potatoes and shrimp or lobster in place of the crab if you prefer. — Chef Sarah Lee Myers

Ingredients

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped

1 large shallot, thinly sliced

1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika

 Freshly ground pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 tablespoons butter

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

 Finely grated rind and juice of 1 lemon

1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

12 ounces lump crab

4 ounces baby spinach

4-6 fried eggs

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Place sweet potatoes and shallot on a large baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt, paprika and pepper. Drizzle olive oil over top and toss. Place in oven and roast 20 to 30 minutes, or until sweet potatoes are tender.
3. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, lemon rind, Old Bay Seasoning and crab. Cook 1 minute. Add lemon juice and spinach. Toss until coated with butter. Add potato mixture. Serve warm, topped with fried eggs. Serves 4 to 6.

STUFFING by Sarah

1 lb mild Italian pork or chicken sausage, casing removed (I used chicken sausages from my local butcher)

4 ½ cups mushrooms, diced

1 medium yellow onion, diced

6 celery stalks, diced

4 carrots, diced

1/2  cup chicken broth

1 tablespoon diced fresh sage

½ tsp minced fresh thyme leaves

½ cup dried cherries, finely chopped

½ cup slivered almonds

½ tablespoon minced garlic

4 tablespoons lard, butter, or ghee

Sea salt and black pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. In a large soup pot, sauté onions in lard, butter, or ghee until translucent.

3. Add the sausage and brown.

4. Add the carrots, celery, mushrooms, chicken broth, cherries, almonds, sage, thyme, garlic powder, salt and pepper.

5. Mix well, bring to a simmer, and cook for 5-10 minutes or until the veggies begin to absorb the chicken broth.

6. Transfer to a large glass baking dish, cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

From: http://everydaypaleo.com/thanksgiving-menu-2013/

Baked Oatmeal (adapted from a bunch o’ recipes)

2 1/2 cups  rolled oats

1/2 cup buckwheat groats or buckwheat flour

2 tablespoons of an acidic medium such as apple cider vinegar, yogurt or whey

2 bananas, sliced

2 cups mixed berries

1 cup coconut cream

2 to 4 large eggs, lightly whisked

1/2 cup maple syrup, agave or honey

4 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1 cup nuts (could be one or a combination of the following: walnuts, pecans, almonds, cashews, sunflowers)

Eight to twenty-four hours prior to serving oatmeal: Combine oats, buckwheat, and apple cider vinegar in large bowl. Fill bowl with enough filtered water to cover and to allow for expansion of oats. Place dishtowel over the bowl and set aside to soak.

When ready to prepare the Classic Baked Oatmeal, pour oat mixture into large, fine sieve to drain. Rinse and drain well. Note: If using buckwheat flour instead of groats, you will rinse away the flour but it has done its job to aid in reducing phytic acid during the soaking time.  Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350.  Put butter in a 9x13 baking dish and put in oven for 10 minutes or so to melt the butter.  Remove from oven, spread butter around and place sliced bananas on top of butter, filling entire pan.  Sprinkle berries on top of bananas.

Mix coconut cream, eggs and vanilla in a small bowl and set aside.  Mix baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves in large bowl.  Add oats to spices and mix well.

Spread oats/spices on top of fruit.  Pour wet ingredients all over and gently press everything down into pan.  Sprinkle nuts all over the top.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Bacon Cordon Kale

 (Why this name? Because I can and I like the way it sounded. ;-))

(Credit to Kathy Bunch!)

1 pkg or bundle of fresh kale

Olive oil, balsamic vinegar, course ground salt and pepper

1) Wash, dry and loose chop kale ~ Put in large bowl, drizzle oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Toss. Spread evenly on aluminum lined cookie sheet. Bake in preheated oven at 250 degrees for 1 hour.

4 chicken breasts (skinless, deboned) Thighs work well too

8 pieces of bacon

Goat cheese

Sour cream  (I haven’t tried greek yogurt but could be a possibility as well)

Glaze of choice to pour over chicken while baking to keep in moisture. I am going to try course ground Dijon mustard with lemon juice and a liquid sweetener substitute. (Agave, Yacon)  OR  Balsamic Vinegar with grated fresh ginger or garlic.

2) Trim all fat from bacon and cut in small pieces. Medium Low fry until sizzling but do not make crunchy. Spoon out on paper towel to soak up all grease. (I roll the paper towel with the bacon in it and squeeze when cool enough)

3) Wash and trim all fat from chicken, pat dry and set aside.

4) Crumble half disk of goat cheese in large bowl, put hot kale over goat cheese and fold until blended on kale well. Mix in bacon. Stir in ½ cup sour cream/yogurt.

Stuff kale in chicken breasts or thighs.

(I use the same foil lined pan to place chicken back into.) Spread glaze over chicken. Bake in 350 degrees preheated oven for 35 to 45 minutes depending on size of chicken pieces. 

Buffalo Chickpea Dip

-         2 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed

-         6 oz. cream cheese

-         ¼ cup ranch dressing

-         ¼ - ½ cup buffalo sauce (Frank’s is a good brand)

-         1 ½ cups + 2 cups shredded cheese (cheddar works nicely)

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Put chickpeas in a large bowl.  Mash with a potato masher until roughly mashed.
3. Mix in cream cheese, ranch dressing, buffalo sauce and 1 ½ cups of the shredded cheese and stir together well.
4. Put all ingredients in a 9x13 baking dish and sprinkle remaining cheese on top.
5. Bake for 30 minutes or so until bubbling and cheese starts to get golden.
6. Serve with crackers, chips or veggies.

Salmon Cakes

-         1 14.75 oz. can salmon

-         2 green onions, chopped, using white & green

-         ½ red bell pepper, chopped fine

-         1 clove garlic, minced finely (optional)

-         ½ cup panko bread crumbs

-         2 eggs, beaten

-         1 – ½ tsp. salt

-         ¼ tsp. pepper

1. Mix all ingredients and form into patties.  
2. Heat your choice of oil (olive or coconut) in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
3. Gently place patties in pan and cook for 3-5 minutes per side or until golden brown.

Serving Suggestions:

-         Make a big salad with dark greens (I love the ones that come in the clam shells at the store – mixed baby greens or spring greens), diced colored sweet peppers, cherry tomatoes and whatever other veggies you like in salads.  Make a vinaigrette with salt, pepper, Dijon mustard, red wine vinegar and olive oil.  Coat salad with dressing and put desired amount on a plate.  Place a salmon cake on the salad.  Cover with a spicey mayonnaise (mix sriracha or other hot sauce with mayo).

-         Serve with fried or poached eggs for breakfast.  Serve with hollandaise sauce if desired.  Try eating a salad like above for breakfast, too!  A great way to get veggies in right away!

Crockpot Chicken and Root Vegetables

Because sometimes you need a quick and easy and nutritious meal waiting for you after a long day of work!

What you'll need:
1 package boneless skinless chicken thighs
2 large onions
6-7 medium carrots (peeled, whole)
3-4 red potatoes (peeled or not, whichever you prefer....leaving skins pack a more powerful nutrient punch)
2 sweet potatoes (peeled and cut into thirds or quarters)
olive oil
salt and pepper
garlic powder
parsley flakes

Place chicken on the bottom of your crockpot, arrange vegetables on top of chicken. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with seasonings. Set crockpot on low and cook 7-8 hours.

Jen's Quinoa Salad

Jen's Quinoa Salad
2 cups uncooked quinoa
3 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons extravirgin olive oil
1 teaspoon minced fresh basil
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon sherry vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 cup thinly sliced spinach
1/2 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped English cucumber
1/3 cup (about 1 1/2 ounces) crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese
3 tablespoons chopped pitted kalamata olives
1 tablespoon minced red onion

Preparation

1. Place quinoa in a large bowl; cover with water. Let stand 5 minutes; rinse well, and drain.

Bring broth to a boil in a large saucepan; stir in quinoa. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Uncover; fluff with a fork. Cool to room temperature.

2. Combine olive oil and next 5 ingredients (through sea salt) in a large bowl. Add cooled quinoa, tomatoes, and the remaining ingredients; toss well.
   

Snacks

Is this what you think of when you think snacks? (This is a real picture of real snacks that I purchased with real money and my husband and I had the other night.  I felt so yucky after eating this stuff!)

My husband brought home the leftovers from a snack from work the other day (different from the picture above!).  It was a tray of some sort of danish or pastry with a couple of slices left over.  My kids were ecstatic!  They gobbled it up right away, and I even licked some of the frosting off of the container.  Hmmmm.... not very satisfying.  That, combined with a snack I saw at a recent meeting, got me thinking about eating when you're at work.  

It's hard, isn't it?  You're at work, slogging along (well, hopefully that's not how you feel about your job most of the time!), and then someone brings in treats.  Or you go to a meeting where food is served.  How do you know what to eat?  Should you just eat with abandon?  It IS this one time only, right???  Should you not take anything and deprive yourself of some of the pleasure that comes with sharing food with others?  Are there some options that look good?

Why do people insist on bringing in the things that are so bad for us?  Is it just an excuse to eat things that they crave?

I have experienced a really interesting phenomenon over the past few months.  Cravings that I once had and loved to give into for nutrient-lacking foods have been replaced by cravings for better-for-me foods and a stronger ability to say no to things that I know won't really do me any good.  I have become a label-reading fiend, refusing (almost every time) to buy things that aren't as close to "whole" as possible.  That means that products that have ingredient lists that are longer than just a few items are discarded immediately. 

As you saw above, I'm not 100% fiendish, and I still believe that you should treat yourself every once in a while, and also that eating feeds more than just your body, and sometimes your soul needs "comfort food."

But what about snacking?  What are some good options for snacks that you can bring for yourself, and how can you be a good example for your co-workers about what's good to eat?  

A quick disclaimer: I refuse to eat food that I don't enjoy.  For example, I really hate raw broccoli.  I'm sorry, I just do!  But I love it roasted with olive oil, salt & pepper.  So I will choose to eat roasted broccoli.  But I love raw peppers and carrots and spinach and tomatoes, for example.  So I will eat them raw because I know raw veggies are super good for me.  It's important to me for you to know that I don't advocate for eating things just because they're good for you.  I want you to love the way they taste, too.  And believe me, you *can* learn to love the taste of things you never thought you would.  Because even though I don't want you to eat things just because they're good for you, I do want you to eat things that are good for you!  Got it?

So, anyway.

Here are some things that I love to snack on.  Snacks are part of your daily diet (obviously), so they should be part of your overall intake of a variety of foods.  Raw veggies are awesome.  And they are even awesomer with a bit of dip - hummus is awesome, easy and cheap to make and full of good-for-you ingreds.  Grab a jar of roasted red peppers (or roast your own!) and blend them up with some garlic and spices.  You could then dip raw red peppers in your roasted red pepper dip.  Yummy!

How about some berries with yogurt?  How about a variation on the pb&j sandwich: berries with a scoop of nut butter?

Handful of almonds?  Love that one.  Love the flavored almonds, and you can usually find some that aren't full of 500 crazy ingredients, too.

Is it possible for you to be in charge of bringing snacks for your next work event?  Show your coworkers where your food values are and bring something out of the ordinary!  

And please remember, read the ingredients of any processed food!!!!  Low-Fat does NOT equal good for you!  Low fat chip dip has so many insane ingredients, it can absolutely not be better for your body than full fat nut butter, for example!  Our bodies were not made to process man-made ingredients and fake food and artificial ingredients!!!!!  

Better yet, bring some sort of whole food.  A real vegetable or fruit is your best bet!!!!  

Below are some snacks I purchased for a gathering last night.  For processed food, I feel OK about eating them because the ingredient lists aren't that long.

This is a brand of chips that is super yummy and has really decent ingreds.  I just bought this bag at HyVee North.

This is another super yummy cracker that my family inhales.  I feel better about eating this because it has pecan meal as the 2nd ingredient.  I really am not a fan of "natural pecan flavor and natural butter flavor," but compared to other brands of crackers out there, this one is much better!



If you need more ideas for snacks, let me know!  There are tons!  Happy snacking!

Conquering Fear

 So today I was forced to ride my bike to the studio to teach my morning Zumba class.  Most of you will think I'm a big baby, and I think I really am.  Riding your bike around town is not that bad, right?  Except that it's a weird fear that I've had for a while.  It might be due to that time when I was a young girl, riding my bike home from the swimming pool one summer day (I'm pretty sure my mom made me ride, like, 54 miles to and from the pool!) when my I (stupidly) rode over this big grate on a sidewalk (kind of like this one).

Only it was running in a perpendicular sense so that my front bike tire slipped down in one of those spaces!  It was near a busy intersection, and I'm sure everyone in my hometown saw me, and I was so embarassed! 

 Oh, you're wondering if maybe I got super hurt?  Nope.  Just my pride.

  And that is the dumbest reason ever to have a fear of something.

Fast forward to this morning, and one of our cars wouldn't start.  Since it was blocking "my" car, I wasn't able to drive.  Heavens!  So I grumbled that I would ride my bike, hoping that just by saying that, the car would magically fix itself, rendering my sacrifice unnecessary.

But, alas.  That was not to be, and so I reluctantly strapped on my helmet and set off, calling what would no doubt be my last words of affection to my husband, "If I die, you can marry someone eelllllllsssssse..."

Now, you will understand why I am somewhat justified in my fear of riding my bike around Rochester.  We live at the top of a moun- I mean HUGE HILL!  So I could just picture myself spinning out of control down the hill, hitting a rock (or someone who was hiding in the woods sticking their foot out) and flying head over heels smack onto the concrete sidewalk, scraping up my whole entire body, including my face, breaking all my bones and just generally almost dying.

So I decided just to walk my bike down that hill.

Then I hopped on and rode the rest of the way to the studio.  

And it wasn't scary!

In fact, it was beautiful.  It was marvelous.  It was time outside, away from the computer.  I didn't have to do anything else except move my legs up and down.  

It was a perfect fall morning with a slight breeze.  I got to ride on part of our most awesomest bike trail, past the gurgling falls that is my favorite spot in Rochester.  

I even rode on the street for a while (because that's my other fear - getting killed my a car whose driver is doing something irresponsible like reaching back to comfort their crying baby and doesn't see me and runs smack into me, causing me to fly head over heels smack onto the concrete sidewalk, scraping up my whole entire body, including my face, breaking all my bones and just generally almost dying).

I'm not generally very good at going outside of my comfort zone, so this was sort of a big deal for me, and I'm proud.  

Plus, I've decided that this is a very good look for me:

Do you have any fears, rational or irrational?  Have you ever been forced to overcome your fear?

Crockpot White Beef Chili

Crockpot White Beef Chili

Ingredients

½ Chuck Roast, cubed

2 cans Goya Small White Beans, drained and rinsed

1 small can diced green chiles (mild)

1 medium onion, chopped

2 yellow or green zucchini, chopped

3c water

½ c flour

2T olive oil

Spices 2tsp each: cumin, coriander, garlic salt

Directions:

Mix flour and spices together in a medium bowl. Toss the cubed beef around in the flour mixture, until evenly coated. Heat olive oil in skillet over medium-high heat, add beef to the skillet. Lightly stirring, heat until lightly browned. Add 1 cup of the water, scraping all of the drippings from the skillet. Add all contents from the skillet to your crockpot.

Stir in the rest of the ingredients. Cook for 7-8hrs on low or 5-6hrs on high

Stretch Your Heart

Last night my husband and I had the chance to go out with some really good friends.  I had really been looking forward to it.  Then my husband and I got into a fight.  It was a classic situation of mis- (or rather non-) communication.  I was a Super Sulk for the first bit of our outing, despite being at the super-cool new Doggery, the prohibition-era-ish place on Historic 3rd, and despite having a most delicious and lime-y daquiri, followed by the smoothest red wine I've ever tasted...  Anyway, in a fit of "how cool can we be?" we decided to continue the outing at Chester's, where we couldn't help but order the delicious chocolate cake.  I mean, honestly.

While waiting for our deliciousness to arrive, I went to powder my nose.  If you've ever experienced the ladies room at Chester's, you know that it's really rad and low-lit.  And it has a giant mirror in one corner that sits at a slant and is handy for looking at the reflection of your rear through the mirror in front of the sink on the opposite wall.  You see what I mean?  Anyway, I made the mistake of spending some time looking at the reflection of my own rear.  In all my sulkiness and high emotions, that was a grandiose mistake.

I have been on a general upswing when it comes to my self-esteem since turning 30 (a while ago...).  I get a fair amount of exercise in my role as group fitness instructor.  And, all things considered, I think I'm in pretty good shape and feel good about my body.  But it's interesting how your mind can do funny things, especially when your emotions are high.

That (stupid) mirror reflected a wide butt and short, stumpy legs.  Now I *think* that the slant of that particular mirror probably affects its accuracy, but it got me thinking about looking at our reflections.  What do we see?  Is it an accurate vision of who we really are or do we judge ourselves extra harshly based on what we see in our reflections?

And then in church this morning, the message was about spiritual hospitality.  The importance of welcoming people wherever they are on their spiritual journey, even (and maybe especially) if it's different from ours.  And how we embrace (figuratively) and accept strangers, family & friends, and ourselves.

Embrace ourselves?

It's easy to embrace strangers.  Slightly more difficult to embrace those we know and love.  And virtually impossible to embrace ourselves, where we are, who we are, what we look like, without expectation or thoughts about what we *could* be, if only...

Since conflict stays with me and affects my emotions longer than I care to admit, the fight with my hubs was still lingering and had me on high emotional alert.  That, combined with some beautiful and haunting music provided by Leon Littlebird, made me very receptive to the message of acceptance in church.  We were encouraged many times to "stretch your heart open" to strangers, friends and family, and ourselves.

So many of us feel as though we are "not there yet," striving toward something that we want.  I'm thinking specifically of the context of our bodies.  We are constantly thinking about what we want to look like, unwilling to accept ourselves and "open our hearts" to who we are, at this very moment.

And while striving toward things is generally a good thing, it's important also to make sure that you are loving yourself up at each stage of your journey.  You only have one chance to be you.  You're the only you that exists in this world, and therefore, the world would not, could not be the same without you being exactly who you are right now.

I challenge you to go look in a mirror right now.  Let everything fall away except for you and your reflection.  Forget about things that are bothering you.  Forget about that fight you had with your husband.  Forget about the worries on your mind (as Debarge once said).  Really look at yourself.  This is who you are!  It's you!  You are special and perfect just the way you are.

And speaking of Michael Franti, watch this video to hear him tell about his inspiration for the song that we all love to dance to in Empowered Wellness Zumba class.  I lovelovelove the upbeat-ness of this song, and it usually makes me want to cry when I'm dancing to it, leading a class in shaking our hearts open and our butts into shape, and he says, "You're perfect just the way you are."  With all of your imperfections, you are perfect.  How d'you like that???  I like it.  A lot.  Now, I'd better go make up with the hubs...  Even though it was all his fault...  ;)

 

Chicken and Dumplings Soup

Chicken and Dumplings Soup

Ingredients:

For the Soup:

• 1 1/2 lbs. chicken breast, cut into 1/2 cubes
• 1 large onion, peeled and diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 celery stalks, thinly sliced
• 4 carrots, thinly sliced
• 1 half stick (2 tbsp.) butter
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp. ground mustard
• 1/8 tsp ground  turmeric (for color)
• 1 bay leaf
• 64 oz. low-sodium chicken stock
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh  parsley
• Pepper to taste

Dumplings:

• 3/4 cup flour
• 3 Tb. grated parmesan cheese
• 1 Tb fresh thyme leaves, finely minced
• 1/2 tsp. fresh rosemary, finely minced
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. ground pepper
• 3/4 cup milk

Directions:

1. In a large sauce pot, melt the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, cook for about 3-4minutes. Add celery and carrots. Cook for another 7-8 minutes. Stir occasionally.
2. Add the mustard,  turmeric, bay leaf and chicken stock. Bring to a boil. Stir in the chicken. Then cover, lower the heat, and simmer for 30 minutes
3. Meanwhile, put the ingredients for the dumplings in a medium bowl. Mix with a fork until a wet doughy consistency is reached.
4. Once the soup base has cooked down, bring the  temperature  back up to a boil. Then use a spoon to drop scant 1/2-teaspoon  lumps of dough into the soup. Simmer 5 minutes, until the chicken and dumplings are cooked through. Remove the bay leaf and serve warm.

Fall Garden Vegetable Soup

Fall Garden Vegetable Soup

With this being the end of the season, we're doing lots of harvesting of our veggies and putting them to good use. I'm particularly fond of garden veggie soup. This week's soup includes vegetables from our garden and my inlaws' garden: green pepper leaves, tomatoes, butternut, eggplant, zucchini, 2 serrano peppers and from the store: onions, garlic and carrots.

Ingredientes:
1/2 eggplant cubed
1 large zucchini cubed
2 medium carrots chopped
1 large onion cubed
garlic to taste (2-3 cloves is good, minced or sliced thinly)
3 medium tomatoes, diced
2 serrano peppers minced
1c cooked, mashed butternut squash
2-3 handfuls whole green pepper leaves (plucked right off of the plant, top tender leaves are best)
2c chicken broth
In a large heavy bottom stockpot, heat 3 tbsp olive oil. Mix together eggplant, zucchini, carrots, onions, serrano and garlic. Heat until veggies are tender (about 5-7minutes), stirring occasionally. Add tomatoes, heat and stir about 5min. Add broth, squash and leaves. Bring to boil, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 30min. Serve with fresh bread. Great leftover too or with meat (shrimp is delightful) or chickpeas would be a good protein addition.

Garden Chickpea Salad

Garden Chickpea Salad

2 small cucumbers, diced

2 medium slicing tomatoes, diced

1 small zucchini

1 medium green pepper, diced

2T chopped chives

1 can chickpeas, drained

Vinegarette:

2T balsamic vinegar

4T olive oil

1t dried basil or fresh (to taste)

pinch of salt

Whisk vinegar, olive oil, basil and salt together into an emulsification. Toss cucumbers, tomatoes, zucchini, green peppers, chives and chickpeas together in a medium bowl. Drizzle the vinegarette in and toss. Serve over fresh spring greens, romain or green leaf lettuce.

Sweet Potato Kale and Sausage Hash

Sweet Potato Kale and Sausage Hash

Ingredients

• 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into a fine 1/4" dice
• 1 medium onion, finely sliced
• 2 - 3 cups fresh kale ( ribs and stems removed, roughly chopped leaves)
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• Salt
• Ground black pepper
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Ring of keilbasa, smoked sausage or turkey sausage (chopped)

Instructions
Add a tablespoon of olive oil to a medium-high skillet, toss chopped keilbasa in and cook about 5minutes, stirring. Until golden. Remove from pan and set aside. 
 
Heat 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add in the finely diced sweet potatoes, onion, cumin, paprika and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. 
 
Cook mixture, stirring occasionally, until sweet potatoes are cooked through and tender, about 15minutes. Add keilbasa back into the skillet, toss. 
 
Add kale into the skillet approximately during the last 5 minutes of cooking. Taste the hash and season with additional salt or pepper if needed. 
 
Optional: boost of protein, add a fried or poached egg to the top.

Katie and I got to "crash" a wedding this past weekend.  We danced our booties off and did some of our favorite songs with the bride and groom and their guests.  We think the DJ felt like we were ruining his show...  oh well!  We have another one planned for early 2014!  So exciting!

This marks the first day of Make Every Bite Count (more on that later this week).  This morning's breakfast was banana nut pancakes topped with plain yogurt and berries with a side of bacon and some milky sweet tea!  Yummy!

Perfect fuel for our very first R.I.P.P.E.D class which we rolled out this morning to a very willing audience of 15.  It rocked!!!

Make Every Bite Count Zucchini Fritters

Zucchini Fritters (from Smitten Kitchen)

Adapted a bit from Simply Recipes

Yield: About 10 2 ½ inch fritters

1 pound (about 2 medium) zucchini

1 tsp coarse or Kosher salt, plus extra to taste

2 scallions, split lengthwise and sliced thin

1 large egg, lightly beaten

Freshly ground black pepper

½ cup all-purpose flour (Emily's note – or substitute with a nut flour for a less processed option)

½ tsp. Baking powder

olive or another oil of your choice, for frying (Emily's note – try something that is the least processed)

To serve (optional)

1 cup sour cream or plain, full-fat yogurt

1 to 2 TBSP lemon juice

¼ tsp lemon zest

pinches of salt

1 small minced or crushed clove of garlic

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Have a baking sheet ready.

Trim ends off zucchini and grate them either on the large holes of a box grater or, if you have one, using the shredding blade of a food processor. The latter is my favorite as I’m convinced it creates the coarsest and most rope-like strands and frankly, I like my fritters to look like mops.

In a large bowl, toss zucchini with 1 teaspoon coarse salt and set aside for 10 minutes. Wring out the zucchini in one of the following ways: pressing it against the holes of a colander with a wooden spoon to extract the water, squeezing out small handfuls at a time, or wrapping it up in a clean dishtowel or piece of cheese cloth and wringing away. You’ll be shocked (I was!) by the amount of liquid you’ll lose, but this is a good thing as it will save the fritters from sogginess.

Return deflated mass of zucchini shreds to bowl. Taste and if you think it could benefit from more salt (most rinses down the drain), add a little bit more; we found 1/4 teaspoon more just right. Stir in scallions, egg and some freshly ground black pepper. In a tiny dish, stir together flour and baking powder, then stir the mixture into the zucchini batter.

In a large heavy skillet — cast iron is dreamy here — heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium-high heat until shimmering. Drop small bunches of the zucchini mixture onto the skillet only a few at a time so they don’t become crowded and lightly nudge them flatter with the back of your spatula. Cook the fritters over moderately high heat until the edges underneath are golden, about 3 to 4 minutes. If you find this happening too quickly, reduce the heat to medium. Flip the fritters and fry them on the other side until browned underneath again, about 2 to 3 minutes more. Drain briefly on paper towels then transfer to baking sheet and then into the warm oven until needed. Repeat process, keeping the pan well-oiled, with remaining batter. I like to make sure that the fritters have at least 10 minutes in the oven to finish setting and getting extra crisp.

For the topping, if using, stir together the sour cream, lemon juice, zest, salt and garlic and adjust the flavors to your taste. Dollop on each fritter before serving. These fritters are also delicious topped with a poached or fried egg, or strips of seared steak, trust me.

Do ahead: These fritters keep well, either chilled in the fridge for the better part of a week and or frozen in a well-sealed package for months. When you’re ready to use them, simply spread them out on a tray in a 325 degree oven until they’re hot and crisp again.