I’m not always in the mood (or don’t always have the time) to wash, stem, and chop greens on the fly.  For busy days, a home cooked dinner can only happen if I have a few things on hand that I can grab and just toss into a pan.

When I came home from the farmer’s market last week with 2 beautiful bunches of fresh kale and 2 bunches of beets (w/ greens attached), this is what I did to make life easy for the rest of the week….

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I removed the stems (simply lay each leaf down with the stem facing right & the leaves facing left to do this with one easy slice).

Then I used my hands to roughly tear up the leaves and tossed them into a large, over-the-sink-colander.  After rinsing the leaves thoroughly in cool water, I spun them in a salad spinner to remove most of the water (you can also gently pat them down with a clean towel or paper towels).

I then lined a gallon sized storage bag with paper towels (use 2 paper towels – still attached to each other).

And then, of course, I placed the leaves in the bag for easy use throughout the week.

1 large bunch of kale will yield roughly two 6 oz bags of greens, so including my beet greens, I ended up with 5 bags of greens — stemmed, chopped, washed, dried, and ready to go.

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A few ways I’ve recently used my “just toss ‘em in a pan” greens…..

• Roasted bone-in/skin-on chicken breasts and legs with balsamic-roasted-beets and sautéed beet greens w/ garlic
• Lamb stew with vegetables – including kale (I’ll be posting this recipe soon)
• Peppers-onions-kale-&-eggs (I simply used sautéed kale & garlic in place of the lamb sausage that I originally suggested in my recipe).  Of course, all of my recipes can be altered any way you’d like — depending on what you have on hand and what you’re in the mood for…
• Simple-stovetop-chicken-breast with a side of garlicky-kale mixed together with buttery rice
• Potatoes-greens-rosemary-&-garlic (shown below)

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2 TBSP butter, ghee, or coconut oil
approx 12 oz high quality lamb sausage, removed from casing
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 bell pepper, diced
pure salt and pepper to taste
6 pastured eggs
freshly grated parmesan cheese (optional)

• Heat the butter or oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
• Add the sausage, and using a wooden spoon, break it apart in the pan as it cooks until it’s browned (about 4 minutes).
• Add the onion, bell pepper, salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
• Stir to combine, then cover the pan until the vegetables are softened, about 10 mins.
• Beat eggs in a separate bowl and sprinkle in a little salt and pepper.
• When vegetables are soft, pour the eggs into the skillet and scramble for a few minutes until cooked through.
• Serve immediately with some cheese over the top if desired.

Serves 3.

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 SIDE NOTES

~  We had this for dinner last night, but of course, it can be breakfast, brunch, or lunch just as easily.

Enjoy!

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Certified Eating Psychology Counselor — 2013

I trained at the institute for the Psychology of Eating — the worlds leading school in Nutritional Psychology where I received my certification as an Eating Psychology Counselor.  In IPE’s internationally acclaimed program, I learned powerful, cutting-edge tools and protocols that enable me to work with weight issues, body image challenges, overeating, and binge eating.  It has also empowered me to address a variety of nutrition related health concerns such as digestion, fatigue, mood, immunity, and others from a mind-body perspective — as dietary improvements in and of themselves don’t always get us the full distance.  There’s much more to the equation than food.

This certification has enabled me to combine the powerful new fields of Dynamic Eating Psychology and Mind-Body Nutrition with a solid foundation of Nutritional Science.  The skills I use from this training are a combination of practical coaching techniques, results-oriented psychology, clinical nutrition, body-centered practices, mind-body science, and a positive and compassionate approach to challenges with food and health.

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What is Mind-Body Nutrition?

Mind-Body Nutrition is an exciting and timely new field that advances the practice of clinical nutrition by exploring the psychophysiology of how thoughts, feelings and beliefs impact nutritional metabolism and health. Originated by Marc David, Founder of the Institute for the Psychology of Eating, it goes far beyond classical nutrition by focusing on the fascinating connections between brain, body, and behavior. Simply put, what we eat is only half of the story of good nutrition. The other half is who we are as eaters. Mind-Body Nutrition reveals how stress physiology, the relaxation response, breathing, awareness, pleasure, meal timing and much more profoundly influence digestion and calorie burning. And it offers practical and results-oriented strategies for the most commonly seen eating challenges and health issues of our times.

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What is Dynamic Eating Psychology?

Dynamic Eating Psychology is a powerful, breakthrough discipline originated by Marc David, Founder of the Institute for the Psychology of Eating. It’s a positive, empowering and transformational approach that’s designed for anyone who eats. Each of us has a unique, fascinating, and ever-changing relationship with food. Dynamic Eating Psychology affirms the primary importance of this relationship. It sees our challenges with eating, weight, and health not as an indication that we’re broken, but as a beautiful opportunity to grow and evolve. Previously, eating psychology has been limited to those with clinical eating disorders. Dynamic Eating Psychology is for everyone. It affirms that our relationship with food has important lessons to teach us if we choose to listen. And it recognizes that our challenges with eating, weight, and health are intimately connected to other primary life dimensions – relationship, family, work, sexuality, our search for meaning and fulfillment, and so much more.

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What is Eating Psychology Counseling?

Eating Psychology Counseling is an advanced, cutting edge approach developed by the Institute for the Psychology of Eating. It effectively addresses weight concerns, binge eating, overeating, body image challenges, and various nutrition related health concerns. As an Eating Psychology Counselor, my approach is positive and empowering. I don’t see your eating challenges merely as a sign that “something is wrong with you” – but as a place where we can more fully explore some of the personal dimensions in life that impact food, weight, and health. Oftentimes, our eating challenges are connected to work, money, relationship, family, intimacy, life stress and so much more. By working in the realms that are most relevant for you, success is more easily achieved. As an Eating Psychology Counselor, my goal is to support you with strategies and nutrition principles that are nourishing, doable, sustainable, and that yield results.

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How is My Approach Different?

For far too long, we’ve been inundated by negative messages about food, weight, and diet. We’ve been told that we’re willpower weaklings or that we need more control. The majority of nutrition experts promote conflicting advice. The result is that people are confused about what to eat, and how to have a happy relationship with food and a healthy metabolism. In my professional practice, I combine the best strategies from nutrition science and eating psychology — offering a very unique, individualized, and  holistic approach. With less emphasis on “black and white” generalizations, I focus on what’s right for your body and your personal style. As we work together in this way, eating and health issues become a place of exploration. Instead of seeing such challenges as the enemy, they become opportunities for growth and self improvement.

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Institute for the Psychology of Eating

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2 lbs boneless, skinless, pastured, chicken breast
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 cups freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 TBSP dried basil
1 TBSP dried oregano
1 TBSP dried parsley
pure salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 cups (give or take) marinara sauce
fresh mozzarella cheese to taste

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Lightly coat a 9 x 13 baking dish with butter
• Shred the parmesan cheese (a food processor is convenient for this).
• Combine the parm with the dried herbs in a shallow bowl.
• Beat the egg in a separate shallow bowl.
• Dip each piece of chicken into the egg, then into the parmesan mixture until well coated.
• Add the chicken pieces to the buttered baking pan, sprinkle with salt & freshly ground black pepper, and cook for roughly 25 minutes (give or take, depending on the thickness of your chicken).
• Remove from oven (but keep the heat on), dollop sauce over each piece of chicken, add a layer of mozzarella cheese, and a bit more sauce over the top.
• Return to oven and bake for an additional 5 – 8 minutes – until the cheese is melted.

Enjoy!

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SIDE NOTES:

~   This is a delicious and simple way to prepare chicken.  I almost always have a few mason jars of marinara sauce in the freezer which makes it even easier.

~  For the best flavor, I recommend picking up a hunk of what’s considered the king of parmesan cheese:  parmigiano-reggiano (deli section).  It’s in a class of its own.

~  This time, I used 2 lbs of chicken strips (instead of breasts) because that’s what I happened to have in the freezer.  I thought it would be a little annoying to prepare this way (with such small strips), but it was actually easier and faster.  Instead of dipping in one chicken breast at a time, I put the entire 2 lbs of chicken into the bowl with the egg, and used my hands to combine well.  Then I transferred it all directly to the cheese mixture, and used a large spoon to toss until all the chicken was coated with cheese.  Then I simply dumped it all into my buttered baking dish.

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1 pound shrimp, peeled & de-veined
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 tsp pure salt
2 TBSP lemon juice
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese (optional)

• Preheat oven to 325.
• Place shrimp in 9 x 13 baking dish.
• Combine melted butter, salt, and lemon juice and pour over shrimp, tossing to coat.
• Sprinkle cheese over the top.
• Bake for approximately 25 minutes.

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SIDE NOTES:

~  This is a very simply and tasty way to prepare shrimp.

~  Shown above with garlic-mashed-turnips and turnip greens which are delicious, simply sautéed with butter, garlic, salt & pepper.

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1/4 cup tamari/soy sauce
1 pound grass-fed minute steak or stew meat, sliced into bite sized chunks
1 – 2 TBSP coconut oil
3 – 5 cups assorted, seasonal, vegetables, chopped if necessary (our favorites for this type of dish are carrots, onions, bamboo shoots, zucchini, peppers)
1 – 2 cups beef broth (optional)

• Marinate the steak in half the tamari (2 TBSP) for 15 mins.
• Prep the veggies while the steak is marinating.
• Heat oil in pan, then brown marinated steak on all sides.
• Remove steak from pan and set aside.
• Add vegetables to the pan (onions/carrots first, then softer veggies) and stir fry (may need to add more oil) until done to your liking.
• Add meat and remaining tamari to pan, tossing to coat.
• Add 1 – 2 cups beef broth (if using), and cook until heated through.

Divide into bowls and enjoy.

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Pictured above with carrots, zucchini, bamboo shoots, onions, and sugar snap peas. Pictured below swapping the peas for red bell pepper, omitting the onion, and making it broth-y.

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SIDE NOTES:

~  This is one of my son’s favorite meals, and it’s so simple to prepare — not much to it!

~  You have the option of making this a juicy dish if you use broth.  I this case, you can either add the broth at the end (as I described above), or alternately, after you remove the meat from the pan, add the broth and heat, then add the veggies and cook them in the hot broth instead of stir-frying them.  I usually do it a little differently each time.  Just do what’s easiest or what appeals to you most.

~  If you’re in a rush and don’t have the extra 15 minutes to marinate the steak, you can skip that step and simply add all the tamari to the pan at once.

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1 tsp pure salt
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1 – 2 TBSP coconut oil
2 – 4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 lbs boneless chicken breasts

• Combine the salt, pepper, rosemary, and crushed red pepper in an empty spice shaker.
• Heat oil in pan over medium heat.
• Add chopped garlic to pan and cook for a minute or 2 – just until beginning to color.
• Remove garlic from pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.
• Add chicken to pan, sprinkle with spice mixture, and immediately flip chicken so the spiced side is facing down.
• Sprinkle the second side with the remaining spice mixture.
• Cook chicken for about 15 mins total, flipping half way through.
• Serve with cooked garlic over the top

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SIDE NOTES:

~  As the name implies, this is a very simple way to get a delicious dinner on the table quickly.  Add a simple side dish or two and you’re all set.

~  The cook time will vary slightly depending on the thickness of chicken.

~  Enjoy!

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2 TBSP coconut oil
1 pound carrots, washed & shredded
1 pound parsnips, washed & shredded
pure salt & freshly ground black pepper
2 TBSP butter
1 TBSP chopped fresh rosemary (or 1 tsp dried)
1 & 1/2 TBSP honey

• Heat coconut oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
• Add shredded carrots and parsnips and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Saute about 12 minutes, until vegetables are beginning to brown slightly.
• Add butter, rosemary, and honey, tossing until heated through and vegetables are glazed (just a few minutes longer).

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SIDE NOTES:

~  This has become a favorite side dish for us.  If you have a large food processor with a shredding blade, the prep work is extra easy.  Alternately, you can simply chop the vegetables into rounds which I’ve done before (we like the shredded version better).  The few times I diced the vegetables into rounds, I added the carrots first, as they take a little longer to cook than the parsnips (if shredding, you can add them both at the same time).

Adapted from epicurious.com

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For The Steaks:

2 grass-fed steaks, approx 1 inch thick (T-bone, porterhouse, top blade, filet mignon, NY strip, rib eye)
3 TBSP garlic-herb-rub (see below)
2 TBSP coconut oil
2 TBSP butter or ghee
1/2 cup bourbon

Garlic-Herb-Rub:

2 TBSPs dried oregano
1 TBSP dried thyme
1 TBSP dried rosemary
2 & 1/4 tsps pure salt (or 1 & 1/2 TBSP coarse salt)
2 tsps garlic powder
2 tsps ground black pepper
1 tsp ground fennel

• Combine the garlic-herb rub ingredients, and generously coat both sides of each steak (use your fingers and press firmly) (store extra seasoning mix in a sealed container for future use).
• Set the steaks aside for about an hour and bring to room temperature.
• Heat the oil and butter in a skillet over medium heat.
• Once the oil is hot (begins to splatter lightly), add the steaks.
• Cook for about 5 – 6 mins per side for medium-rare, or until they achieve the desired level of doneness (the internal temp should be between 120 and 130 degrees).
• Remove the steaks from the pan and let rest.
• Turn heat to low, add the bourbon, and simmer 2 mins longer, stirring constantly and scraping up any browned bits.
• Set the steaks on plates, top with the bourbon pan sauce and serve.

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SIDE NOTES:

~  So far, I’ve made this with T-bone, porterhouse, and rib eye.  It is absolutely delicious.  I have failed a few times, trying to cook steaks under the broiler.  For me, this stove-top method (adapted from “The Grass Fed Gourmet”) is much easier, and to be honest – produces some of the best steaks I’ve ever had.  I know many people use an outdoor grill for steak, but flames & meat aren’t a good combination.

~  It’s important to let the steak come to room temp (have it sit out for about an hour) before you begin to cook, otherwise, you’ll have to cook it longer and it may become tough.

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2 TBSP dried oregano
1 TBSP dried thyme
1 TBSP dried rosemary
2 & 1/4 tsp pure salt (or 1 & 1/2 TBSP coarse salt)
2 tsps freshly ground black pepper
2 tsps garlic powder
1 tsp ground fennel

• Mix.

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SIDE NOTES:

~  This herb rub will work on pork, lamb, veal, venison, goat, or beef.

~  You can make a double or triple batch to keep on hand for a quick, convenient meat seasoning.

~  Adapted from “The Grassfed Gourmet”.

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