Cosmic Rhino

Mei, one of my CrossFit Long Beach friends, just made this and said it was delicious. I wanted to share with everyone now because I can tell it’s going to be amazing.

On the spiralizer, I am shopping for one now. Mei has this spiralizer and loves it. She also recommends the horizonal kind, not the vertical ones.

Ingredients

• 4 zucchini
• 2 handfuls basil (leaves removed from stems)
• 3 garlic cloves
• pinch sea salt (or any salt you have)
• juice of 1 lemon
• 3/4 cup olive oil
• handful of pine nuts, toasted (if desired)

I’ve been working on a quick version of this Cosmic Rhino recipe and finally figured out the right formula. This version has no cream and uses Trader Joe’s frozen vegetables so no chopping required. I’ve been making this on Sunday so that we have breakfasts or lunches for the next couple of days already made.

Ingredients:

• 2 bags of TJs frozen spinach - I used the 10oz pesticide-free bag
• 1 bag of TJs frozed roasted bell peppers (red,  yellow, green) and onions.
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper

Seriously, everyone needs to try this today. It may be my favorite new recipe of the year. My friend Jeff made it for us last month. He took leftover grassfed steak and did a quick pan fry–like fajitas. He served the steak with the pickled peppers below with corn tortillas. Fantastic.

Ingredients

• 3 red and 3 yellow peppers
• 2 cups white vinegar
• 1 cup apple vinegar
• 2 garlic
• 4 T sugar
• 1 T salt
• oregano

Instructions

• Pan roast peppers but keep firm. To pan roast, heat a skillet to medium-high heat, lightly brown each side and remove from pan.

My sisters and I made this for breakfast this morning and honestly, I can’t think of a better way to get anyone to eat a boatload of spinach. It’s like a quiche except that it has no crust and has more spinach than a typical quiche.

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil, plus more for dish
• 6 shallots, thinly sliced
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 8 large eggs
• 1 cup half and half
• 4 10 oz packages frozen spinach, thawed and drained
• 2 cups (8 oz) grated gruyere (or jarlsberg)

This recipe is from the kitchen of Mrs. Homan who is a legend in my family (her cherry cake is to die for!). It’s a real treat when we get an actual recipe from her because most things she just whips up without a recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium cucumber, sliced thin
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup sour cream (or Greek-style yogurt)
• 1 tbsp vinegar (omit if using yogurt - see note below)
• 1 to 2 drops Tobasco sauce
• 2 tbsp chopped chives
• 1 tsp dill seed
• dash of pepper

My mom is on a vegetable kick and just made this delicious stir-fry.  She can vouch that even busy working professionals can whip up simple healthy meals.

Ingredients:

• Grapeseed oil or canola oil (olive oil smoke if it gets too hot, which is no bueno)
• A couple handfuls of chopped broccoli flowers
• A couple handfuls of chopped purple cabbage
• 1-2 bell red/yellow bell peppers, chopped in 1/2 squares or 1/4 ” strips
• A couple handfuls of spinach (or more, if you want)
• Optional: 1 cup of cooked, chopped chicken breast or other cooked meat of choice.

Today’s recipe comes from the spectacular kitchen of Emily Duval, personal trainer extraordinaire, and co-founder of South Bay Fit Camp. You will love this one!

Ingredients:

• Butternut squash, peeled & cubed
• Olive oil
• Fresh pepper
• A bit of blue cheese
• A handful of toasted pecans

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400
2. Toss squash lightly in olive oil and pepper, place on baking pan/sheet and bake for, oh say, 20 minutes or until soft.
3. Remove from oven and immediately plate it and sprinkle a little blue cheese and toasted pecans. Because the squash is still hot, the cheese melts slightly.

I gotta hand it to my friend Jeff. He always steers me right. The latest savory gem is so easy! I’ve done this two weeks in a row with the tomatoes I received in my Beachgreens delivery. Last week it was orange heirlooms, this week orange cherry tomatoes. The recipe is the same.  Chop up the tomatoes, add some fresh basil (picked mine the same day from my shared garden at the Long Beach Organic garden), trickle with some best quality olive oil, chunk up some feta on top, salt/pepper to taste, and that’s it! I promise you, you will wonder how such simple flavors can taste so incredible together. Enjoy!

Greetings! I’m happy to report that CosmicRhino is back after a long hiatus. So let me get straight to the point and share an amazing recipe for a zucchini bread recipe. Instead of white flour, we use whole wheat. And guess what!? It’s also loaded spinach, flax, spinach and walnuts, all superfoods with a wide range of health benefits.

I have to give my super sister props for this one. She makes it for her kids but when her aunties visit, we can’t get enough of it. Of course, my sister grows her own zucchini, ’cause she’s amazing that way. Hope you like!

I can’t believe that until a few months ago, I rarely ate parsley and certainly did not use it to cook at all. But after I got a bundle in my weekly veggie delivery, I started looking up ways to use it. Hands down, one of the best options is a chimichurri sauce.

There a million different varieties. Try a different vinegar, add some basil or oregano, squeeze some lemon juice to give it more zing. And, you really can tailor this to your taste as well.

Here’s a recent one I tried which is great.