I must have been born with an abnormal, enlarged worry gene. When things go wrong, I worry about everything. When things go right, I worry about when the trend will end. This has been a lifelong pattern, and I’ve done a pretty strong job ingraining it over the years. When I was seven, my mom took me to a neurologist to explore why I experienced such frequent and intense headaches. We were told I simply stressed out too much.

I used to think that by the time I hit thirty, I’d have things pretty well sorted. I imagined myself having created this zen, optimistic energy shield by then. In fact, I even used the certainty of my settled, adult self-confidence as justification for wanting to wear makeup in junior high. Because the raccoon-like effect of smearing eye liner around one’s eyes has much greater and immediate reward potential to an awkward middle schooler than a few tricks with shadows and light could possibly have on someone who is already “old” anyway.

This year I turned thirty-and-enough-extra that I can understandably decline to share my age, and I worried insanely about gray hairs, wrinkles, belly fat, aches, pains, impaired vision, hearing and memory loss of the future.  I still fret way too much and too often about what people think of me, in spite of the recognition that chances are half the people I worry about don’t actually think about me at all. At the same time, though, I can acknowledge there is a little bit of “wiser” growing alongside the “older”. I can shake off certain things I couldn’t before.  I can truly feel competitive with myself and let go of competitiveness with others, most of the time. And on a lesser scale, but just as impactful on a regular basis, I am finally becoming OK with showing up places alone. The reason I bring up the latter–for my birthday, Dave bought me a place in an Essential Knife Skills class at Sur La Table. I’ve never been to anything like that, although I’ve wanted to for a long time. As much as I love cooking, I’m very aware of my lack of real technical skills.

Although Dave’s present was so thoughtful–really, really, great–I know my initial reaction was disappointing. All I could say was, “Do I have to go alone?”. But I did go solo, in any case, and it was so much fun, in spite of the fact that this kind of thing is clearly a great “date night”. It didn’t matter, though. The atmosphere was friendly, the teacher (Danielle Edmonds) had a great way about her that was no-nonsense yet friendly, and there were plenty of occupying and ice-breaking activities like hand-washing, apron-donning, and knife exploring at your individual station.

Let me tell you, I got so much out of that class, foremost the realization that it was high time to sharpen my two good knives, which I’ve had for over 10 years. Important items that were emphasized from start to finish included: 1) the stance–dominant foot out almost perpendicular to your cutting area at your side, with the opposite hip about touching your cutting table in front of you; this is to ensure your knife action slices straight ahead, and not across your body; 2) placement of your knife when you’re not cutting–in front of your board, blade facing away from you; 3) keeping your cutting surface continually clean–seems like a no-brainer, but I regularly cram loads of vegetables on the board, and it’s a cutting not a storage board.

There are lots of other facts, tips and skills I can share another day, but this post is already getting overly long, and I want to tell you about one of my favorite parts (next to mincing), “supreming” citrus fruits. This is more aesthetic and show-offy than real skill, but also fun. It’s a method for peeling your citrus and removing all the membranes, too. This can also be applied to cutting watermelon, pineapple, and any rounded fruit.

“The shape of an orange is round,” Danielle repeated hypnotically, using her hands for added emphasis.  Another no-brainer statement, but just think how tempting it is to slice straight down regardless (think pineapple, especially). To supreme citrus, you do get to make two initial straight cuts, thinly flattening out the top and bottom. But after that, you have to carefully aim for the natural curvature. Become one with the fruit, if you will. The first cut is the toughest. After that, you can turn the fruit slightly with each successive cut, and follow the line, turn by turn until you’ve removed the outer skin.

When the peel is all removed, you turn the fruit on it’s side, and, steadying with your fingers in your “claw” (gripping in a manner that puts the knuckles against the knife so you don’t actually cut yourself), carefully use your knife to remove the membranes segment by segment. This is easier than it sounds, though it can be fiddly depending on the size of your fruit.

For fun, I decided to practice my skills on a variety of citrus, starting with the big grapefruit to ease in. In one go, I supremed two grapefruits and a bunch of oranges: cara cara (my favorite, kind of a beach sunset, orangey color), navel, hamlin, and minneola. By the time I was finished, membranes were flying off like they were nothing.

Of course, my results were far from perfect. I let bits of membrane stick, and the majority of my segments were sliced into smaller segments. But it was surprisingly fun, and citrus really does have a way of producing carefree sunshine in the mind, especially on a rainy Sunday. Then I made this citrus and strawberry salad, and you know it was just supreme. ; )

Spinach and Strawberry Citrus Salad

• 2 cups baby spinach leaves, washed and patted dry
• 1 medium grapefruit, supremed/peeled and sectioned
• 2 oranges, same as above
• 1 1/2 cups strawberries, sliced
• 1/4 cup canola or olive oil
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• dash salt
• 2 tablespoons honey

You know how “they” say, don’t sweat the small stuff? I put “they” in quotes because, although most everyone I know acknowledges the wisdom in this sage but simple advice, it’s a lucky individual who truly manages to abide by it. I’m trying to adopt it with more genuine follow through, but it’s hard. I also think, incidentally, we who wish to choose happiness need to remember to celebrate the small stuff, too.

I bring this up because, it seems like for years we’ve put off kicking off our shoes and relaxing, in so many different situations. There’s a brief moment of exultation when something is accomplished, and so quickly it’s replaced by a sterner focus, or even fear as the next goal rears its head.

I’ve been preoccupied with aging/aka having to grow up already–even more than usual lately, and one thing I’m realizing is that there is enough that is going to go wrong, break down, and cause stress already predetermined, so I’d better start making my mind up to be happy with myself more often while there are things to be happy about at hand.

Today, I’m happy about a really, truly, satisfying weekend; and I want to get down in the books before I forget it was good.

First thing, we competed at Duathlon Nationals in Tuscon on Saturday, and what a fun, friendly, smoothly organized event that was! All the more so considering it was a Nationals event. The duathlon crowd is so much more casual/so much less intense than the tri scene, or at least that’s my impression. Maybe that’s more a reflection of how much more relaxed I can be sans swim.

Of course, I was far from relaxed pre-race. In fact, I was practically catatonic the whole day prior, to Dave’s huge annoyance. I guess I hadn’t realized how nervous I was for this race. I’d been too preoccupied with the miserable combination of allergies, sinus infection, and pink eye the week prior to focus on racing, or so I thought. When we arrived at the Tuscon airport, however, the monitors were all issuing “Welcome Duathletes” messages, and suddenly the full impact of what “Nationals” means hit me with new force.

It’s sort of a shame that my A race preparation seems to involve losing entire days of my life to sleep and stupor beforehand, but at the same time I’m starting to accept that’s just the way it is. Now that I’m aware, we’ll see if acceptance really does pave the way for progress. I did promise Dave we could have fun as soon as the race was done.

Props to USAT’s organization on this race. Everything was a breeze to get sorted, from packet pickup and bike dropoff to a clean, clear-cut transition and ease of getting information from enthusiastic an plentiful volunteers. My only complaints are total incidentals, and personal preference. One, the sticky tattoos replacing body marking took me 5 days+ to take off. I didn’t mind the first day or two, but 5 days later, it’s a stretch to explain to your co-workers that you do indeed shower. Another minor moan, the guy at registration who secured my wrist strap (to enter transition and get food) made it so tight I think it cut off circulation at one point. But then I should have spoken up. Why didn’t I just say!? Finally, the big one: the course was just hard! Hot and hilly, bike and run. The bike was  only up or down, no middle ground. So, it was hard to get the speed up, especially being a crappy descender, even on non-technical roads. Oh well. Work’s cut out for me.

We’d been told that all we had to do was finish to qualify for Worlds, but secretly I hoped, doubtfully, I might be able to just squeak into the top ten age group. Top fifteen automatically qualify, with a usual roll-down as far as 20-25. I finished 9th in my age group in the end, in spite of feeling so alone on the bike that for awhile I wondered if I was the only one left “racing” out on the course. Dave placed 8th in his division. So, two true, non rolldown qualifiers at Nationals! Woohoo!

We went to Baskin Robbins later that day and were rewarded with a sick amount of ice cream. Who knew a scoop could encapsulate so much mass? Sad to say, though, I didn’t like the ice cream. I felt kind of nauseous, to tell the truth. (Yeah, that small detail has no function at all but for the sake of illusion that this post is connected all the way. )

On our flight back, we got to share a small Southwest plane with a hoard of middle-schoolers heading to DC! Now that is a precious experience, let me tell you. If you forget for a moment that you’re getting old, it’s a grand reality check. They seemed like pretty sweet kids overall, though. At the end of the flight, there was an announcement congratulating all the duathletes who had qualified for Worlds and were going to France, and there was this rush of junior high breath and inquisitive turning heads. For the first time, I really wanted to take the spot and go to Worlds in September.

All the nice feelings up to this point were nothing compared with picking up Riley from the kennel, it just goes without saying. And, as it the big faceful of dog saliva and unconditional love weren’t enough icing for this cake, when we arrived home, the proofs I had ordered for my (and my friend and co-worker Melissa’s) book!

I won’t wax on about Plot to Plate: Grow, Cook, Create! (yeah, that’s the book). Not now. It deserves it’s own post. But this project first started as a bud in my head when I first read Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle years ago. I wanted to create something like that for kids and families, an activity workbook complete with gardening, science, and cooking activities. You wouldn’t know it from the final project, but the years since then have included lots of small starts, back-slides, revisions, additions, and deletions, and we have learned so much.

As always, next steps and goals are starting to loom dauntingly, but for a change I’m making a point of celebrating small steps with each step along the way. Which brings me back to luscious, and on the light side, strawberry buttermilk ice cream, made with beautiful Driscoll’s organic strawberries I had super coupons for. Yep. (This recipe is modified from April’s Cooking Light, and it’s lovely.)

Strawberry buttermilk ice cream

• 2 cups chopped strawberries
• 1/3 cup agave nectar
• 1 cup whole buttermilk
• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup dark chocolate shavings (OK–I really just threw pieces of dark chocolate into the food processor with strawberries, because it was much easier. But shavings seems the smart thing to do)

1. 1. Combine berries and nectar in a blender; process until smooth (about 1 minute). Add buttermilk; process until well blended. Add vanilla; pulse to mix. Add chocolate. Chill mixture 1 hour. Pour into freezer can of an ice-cream freezer; freeze according to manufacturer’s instructions.

The thing about these muffins, inspired by a recipe from Runners’ World, that excites me the most is the sheer potential of flax meal, or ground flaxseeds. Breaking the hard outer shell when grinding flaxseeds creates a floury, slightly oily powder. Unlike its seed form, the meal is easily digested, and provides a hefty dose of fiber, plus omega-3 fatty acid, alpha-linolenic (ALA).

I love sneaking flaxmeal into things (especially baked goods), tossing it in cookies, cakes, breads, oatmeal, yogurt, and more. Only recently I’ve learned what true potential it has for accommodating special diets. You can replace eggs with a flaxmeal/water mixture, for example, substituting roughly 1 tablespoon flaxmeal in 3 tablespoons water for one egg. You can also replace fats like butter or oil with flaxmeal. Check out this link from the Flax Council of Canada for more details.

What I should also tell you about these muffins is, they are a bit of an acquired taste. I’ve been tweaking them, and I’ve enjoyed both (so far) variations, but I’m not sure they’re an automatic kid-favorite. For kids, I’d maybe include a little jam filling, or increase the sugar a little bit. For myself, I love them with less sugar than I’m listing here, down to 1/3 cup of honey or maple syrup.  And although I’d never expect anyone (and would hope  no one) would really eat them all straight from the oven, that is indeed when they are best, so be sure to warm them, and play around with them, too. I used raspberries in these one tie, strawberries the other, but I’m itching to try blueberries and some sliced almonds.

Of course, despite the fact that it excites me that you can replace eggs with flaxmeal and water, I threw not one, but two eggs, in these. I also like them with one egg and one egg white. You could say, I am simply a fan of eggs these days, and the easily affordable, high quality protein they provide. I’m pretty sure you can go without eggs, too, however, and I’ll let you know when I find out for sure.

Flaxberry muffins

• 1 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry (or regular whole wheat) flour
• 1/2 cup quick oats
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 cup flaxmeal/ground flax seeds
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup almond or skim milk
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup berries (I used raspberries)

Mix flour, oats, baking powder and soda, spices, and flaxmeal in a large bowl. Combine liquid ingredients in a separate bowl. Stir liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients all at once. Stir until thoroughly moistened but lumpy, and fold in berries. Fill muffin tins, lined with paper or foil cups, to about 2/3 full. Bake at 400°F for 20 to 25 minutes.

Those are the words that first draw your attention on the Gaiam “About” page, and on this dewy, clear Sunday morning, they really resonate. Gaiam is a Boulder-based company that specializes in organic living, mental, physical, and spiritual well-being, and I’m just tapping into what a resource their site is. The blog, for one thing, is packed with great material, from healthy recipes and eco-living tips, to important and thought-provoking information, such as articles on the relationship between sickness and profit, the impact of disappearing honeybees. I’m bookmarking this site for regular reference, and am so pleased to have a chance to share these two fresh and gorgeous summer salads from Erica Hill, at Boulder-based Gaiam TV. Enjoy!

Black bean, tomato, avocado and corn salad:

• 2 cups black beans (if canned, well rinsed)
• 4 Roma or similar tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1-2 avocados, diced (optional)
• 2-3 ears of grilled sweet corn, or 1 cup frozen, thawed
• 1 jalapeño, finely diced
• 1/3 cup chopped cilantro
• ½ red onion, finely diced
• Hot sauce (Tabasco or your favorite)
• 1 juiced lime plus zest
• 1-2 tbs Olive oil
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp ground coriander
• ½ tsp sea salt

Combine a few shakes of hot sauce with olive oil, cumin, coriander, salt and lime juice and zest and set aside.  Mix the rest of the ingredients together in a large bowl.  If you don’t eat corn, feel free to substitute avocado.  Or, add both!  Mix the dressing with salad and let sit in the fridge for 30 minutes or more before serving.   Lately, I’ve decided that making beans from dried is worth the effort.  If you make a big batch, you can portion them out in cup sized portions and place in the freezer- that way you have beans ready to go, just like canned, but with less sodium and better taste and texture.  This dish makes a great summer side dish.

Nectarine and tomato salad:

• 3-4 ripe nectarines or peaches sliced
• 3-4 ripe tomatoes of your choice, sliced
• 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
• ¼ cup chopped cilantro OR mint OR basil
• ¼ teaspoon red chili flakes
• Drizzle of olive oil
• Fresh squeezed lime OR lemon juice

Slice the tomatoes and peaches/nectarines the same size.  Mix with red onions and chili flakes and fresh herbs.  Cilantro, basil and mint all work very well, and you can change it up based on what you have on hand.  Just before serving, toss with a drizzle of olive oil and fresh squeezed lemon or lime juice.

Erica Hill works with Gaiam TV, a healthy lifestyle media company based in Colorado that produces a wide range of nutrition videos.

The thing is, as much as it can be a little like brain barf, it’s also FUN to read symbolism into things sometimes. And, at least when symbolic interpretation is devoted to outcomes related to food I am cooking anyway, the thinking is less inclined to spiral into over-thinking when the job’s done. So I’m giving myself liberty to project emotions and extract hidden meanings with regard to food preparation. But the deal is, in exchange, I have to refrain from doing pointless things one may have a tendency to do when the mind is cluttered with habitual, reflexive worry, like reading into other people’s moods, words, or lack of outreach; or dwell for no particular reason on something awful or awfully embarrassing (usually the latter) one did once, upon a time.

All that rambling,  just a lead up to explain that this salad dressing is representing how what could be considered failure is not far removed from what could be considered success. The task in this case, was: try to replicate a certain lemon poppy seed dressing for Melissa H, who enjoys this dressing enough she would possibly drink it out of the bottle (but not really).

I was really excited about this little task I set myself, but it was a FAIL from the beginning. One, I didn’t buy the original for comparison. I couldn’t recall the brand she gave, for one thing. Also, I didn’t feel like spending the money. So. Two, I didn’t have poppy seeds. I thought I did, but I didn’t, as I discovered mid-way through trying out this recipe idea. I must have been thinking of sesame seeds. I seem to have stockpiled a lot of those, and I’m really not sure why.

A fun thing about kitchen science/play, it’s really so gently forgiving. And it encourages creativity and flexibility. This recipe was a success, therefore, because I got to exercise those skills, and because I did like the result (and so did Dave!). I’ll make it again, too, as dressing and as sauce.

A quick note about this dressing…it uses silken  tofu. Soy is frequently depicted as a villain these days, but I’m not so sure it’s a bad guy. There are definitely issues to be wary of, like Monsanto’s genetically modified soybeans and monopolizing bullying. As with every single food we set eyes on today, it’s becoming more and more important to consider the source before we support it with our dollars, and especially before we put it in our mouths.  I am fascinated, however, by the swinging pendulum on soy, and it seems that there are numerous potential benefits supporting its place in the diet, if allergies are not an issue.

I asked MD and RD Christine Gerbstadt, who is THE ABSOLUTE BEST in prompt responses and enthusiasm, whether you’re inquiring on behalf of a national magazine, or for your personal, small potatoes food blog. Coincidentally, she had just been to a conference on soy, and gave it a hearty endorsement. “Research is revealing cardiovascular benefits of soy,” Christine says. Regular intake is associated with lowered LDL (bad cholesterol) and perhaps even higher HDL (good cholesterol). It’s also a good source of iron, protein, and heart-healthy omega-3 fats, among other nutrients.

In any case, I am optimistic enough about moderate amounts of soy to prefer it over high percentages of oil, even heart-healthy oil, when splashed over my salad. This recipe was adapted from a dressing from Clean Eating (creamy lemon dressing, March/April 2010). When I get my hands on some poppy seeds, I’ll try replacing the dill with those. I’m pretty sure that will work out nicely. We’ll see, though–I’ll have to read into that later.

Lemon dill tofu dressing

• 4 ounce silken tofu
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1/2 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon chopped dill
• salt and pepper to taste

This soup of the day owes in part to Lisa, actually, who told me recently that she tried putting spinach in smoothies and liked it. Maybe that’s a common thing, but I just had to admire the idea. I thought I threw spinach into about everything routinely, but not that (do you hear Meatloaf whenever you say anything even vaguely similar to “but I won’t do that”, or is that just me?). On reflection, it shouldn’t have been surprising at all, however. If wheat grass goes, why on earth wouldn’t spinach?

Thicker version

So, not only is this soup semi-inspired by Lisa, it also happened a little by accident. I won’t flatter myself into thinking you’ve noticed the recent lack of productivity on this blog, but the truth is I have not been exceedingly productive. I’ve been assiduously occupying free writing time with another project–a story for another day. It’s not quite finished but almost, so chances are, I’ll continue to be less prolific than the already average standard of approximately once weekly. I’ve also been a little absent-minded in the kitchen, because of the to-do list as always, of course, but more so because of the raving, sloppy, gargantuan mess that is the kitchen table!

If only you could see. Poor Dave; from new appliances not working to a whole kitchen cupboard shelf crashing out of the blue, this has been a demanding week for his precious off-hours (and so, he probably really deserves something he loves, like an Indian takeaway instead of spinach and squash soup…Lisa, it’s ever so slightly possible he may have a small bone to pick with you). The result is miscellaneous (at least, to me, choosing to remain ignorant about how to confront the issues) piles across the table, and they’ve been sufficiently distracting that I’ve been less focused while cooking.

Thinned out a little with extra broth, and given addition of beans

OK, maybe that last assertion is a stretch, but whatever the reason, I threw spinach into the food processor along with the chunks of roasted butternut and leeks without thinking. I’m glad I did it, too, because I love the results. They sing of spring. I used some “trash soup”/aka homemade veggie stock and added white beans I’d cooked up earlier in the week at the end. I don’t know what you’ll think, but I am sure the resulting combination has “notes” you might not expect, and I hope you like it, too.

Butternut, spinach, and leek soup

• 1 medium butternut squash
• 4 teaspoons olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 large leeks, thinly sliced
• 1 bunch spinach (or about 2 cups)
• 3 cups vegetable stock (or low sodium chicken broth)
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup cooked white beans (optional)
• sea salt and ground pepper to taste)

1. Place whole squash onto an ungreased baking sheet while already cooking, and prick in a few places with a sharp knife. Bake (at 350-400 degrees F), uncovered, approximately 60 minutes or until tender.
2. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add leek and garlic; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. At the same time, remove skin and seeds from squash, and cut into chunks.
3. Place squash and leek mixture in a food processor in batches, dividing the spinach, stock/water between each. Process until smooth and return to pot. Stir in beans, if using, and add sea salt and pepper to taste.

I haven’t been doing baking posts quite as much lately, being swept up in various Kitchen DIY phases and great greens. In spite of, or maybe because of, lingering fatigue today, getting down to some concentrated baking made me feel a little heady, and I have to say gleeful. The results were gratifying, too, even better. In fact, I really, really wanted to include the word “yummy” in the title of this post, but I’ve been told that’s redundant and shows a lack of confidence, so I held back.

Quickly, a few words about millet: until recently, you might have known it better as bird food. In recent years, it’s become positively trendy, and is lending crunch and texture to many natural baked goods and products. It’s presence seems to add a little extra confirmation that something is wholesome. That may be because millet actually has some special health benefits you wouldn’t necessarily expect in a tiny yellow ball of a seed. One cup of cooked millet provides approximately 19% of the DV for notably heart-healthy magnesium, an important nutrient also reputed to help reduce cholesterol, and to ease migraines, and even asthma. Millet is also a good source of other valuable nutrients like phosphorus and manganese. And, the more I learn and inquire about nutrition, the more it strikes me how much more there is to the mysterious total package of a whole food than the sum of its parts (thanks, Michael Pollan!).

These bars are not twin to the delectable coffee shop originals.  But they’re a very solid and scrumptious first step, I think, and I will definitely make them again with no tweaks. This recipe template is so tempting to toy with, though, with swaps like honey or some kind of blackstrap molasses combination for agave; or addends like shredded coconut, dates, etc, etc. You get to eat and play  with your food. Kind of like having your cake and eating it, too, I suppose. If you find a fabulous flavor combination for these, let me know…and the fun goes on…

 Whole grain millet bars

• 3/4 cup millet
• 1/4 cup flax meal/ground flaxseeds
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup shopped walnuts, divided
• 1/2 cup oats
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup agave nectar
• 1/2 cup coconut oil

Moving along, obviously I do harbor a little secret wish to make over the “wardrobe”, thus the lingering first paragraph. But, as long as I can keep “What Not To Wear” at bay another year, I’m going to let “dressing” refer to fun pastimes like “the Salad Challenge” instead. The Salad Challenge being: finding interesting and efficient ways to have ready-made salads and pre-prepared veggie sides available to serve as swap-ins satisfying afternoon snack cravings (most specifically Dave’s).

You know the Salad Challenge hasn’t really been a challenge. Nothing very novel about it at all, actually. The difficulty lies in finding time, and incorporating a little variety within that. I’ve said before, I’m not that bold or smooth when it comes to dressings. I have one intuitive recipe I love, a maple mustard vinaigrette that always tastes slightly different due to no measuring, and I tend to go with it whenever it matters. I’m OK with oil and vinegar–hard to mess up–and I’ll make citrus vinaigrettes and honey mustard and such too, but because I always use equal or greater amounts of vinegar to oil,  my dressings tend to be a little too sharp. I think the maple syrup in the maple-mustard has a way of harmonizing the flavors into something happy.

Salad Challenge “Week 1″, I played things safe, and made just easy variations of a simple vinaigrette. This week, I’m trying a couple more adventurous ideas: curry, orange tarragon, and ginger soy. The first two are taken/slightly adapted from a treasured issue of Clean Eating (love that mag!), and one is an ongoing experiment…I’ve been trying to come close to replicating  Annie’s Light Gingerly Vinaigrette.

These three dressings haven’t just dressed up salads with new twist, they’ve inspired easy new salads and sides. Nothing’s touching my go-to fave yet, but that’s just the way it is with favorites. These are more unique and less all-purpose, but I like them, and here they are:

Curry dressing (adapted from Clean Eating Mag)

This dressing is adding kick to spinach, chopped boiled eggs, and tuna this week; it’ll go well with potato salads and brown rice salads, too.

• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 1/4 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• sea salt and pepper to taste

• 2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon fresh tarragon, minced
• 1/2 tablespoon fresh oregano, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon orange zest
• sea salt and pepper to taste

Whisk all ingredients in a small bowl. Use immediately or refrigerate until using.

Ginger soy dressing

This is lending flair to steamed vegetables this week; it’ll be perfect with an Asian-style cabbage slaw, fish, or mixed greens, too.

• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 to 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Whisk all ingredients in a small bowl. Use immediately or refrigerate until using.

You may have heard me whine (just a little) about the tests and trials I’ve been enduring perfecting the supposedly easy process of making yogurt. For various reasons, I’ve had several failures, along with a few successes. First they were on the amusing side, and then they became plain annoying. Most recent: the slow cooker yogurt. This was the seemingly long, easy way of yogurt making without a yogurt maker. I equated it in my brain to a long, slow run, something I enjoy. Perhaps that’s why I felt inexplicably a little offended when the pure concoction of beautiful consistency that resulted had an odd taste I can only describe as “slow-cooker ghost meals” attached, like a bad aftertaste.

Long story short: I’m not sure it’s worth my while, with all the other, much more rewarding creative kitchen tasks dabbling each week, to regularly prioritize homemade yogurt. That said, I’m not about to run out to buy a rod of fluorescent GoGurt, and a lot of “grown-up” yogurts aren’t much better when  it comes to heavy amounts of sugar, coloring and additives. That’s why I’m excited about Better Whey of Life brand yogurt.

There are a lot of yogurt styles being marketed right now, and I need to do a little research on the ins and outs of Greek versus Australian, and how many live and active cultures are optimal, etc. Regardless of what I learn, however, I do know that when I eat yogurt I want it to be naturally rich in protein and low in sugar, and it should taste like something worth eating in the first place, too.

Better Whey of Life recently hit the shelves in Colorado, and is available in King Soopers and City Market stores. Launched by Tula Foods, Inc, a healthy foods manufacturer, Better Whey of Life uses whey protein from grass-fed cows. While many Greek yogurts strain out the whey, rich in amino acids that help maintain muscle and burn fat, the Better Whey of Life brand uses a unique process that retains the whey.

The best part of the delicious, thick, creamy product to me (aside from creamy deliciousness, that is) is that there are only 4 grams of sugar per 6 ounce cup (compare to other brands, and you’ll see a difference of up to over 20 grams). It’s high in calcium, even higher than typical brands, contains prebiotics and probiotics, and is free from artificial ingredients. Bonus, four of the six current flavors are extraordinary: there’s your standard, must-have plain and vanilla bean, but also strawberry goji berry, raspberry white grape, acai mixed berry, and blackberry pomegranate, created with assistance from a James Beard award winning chef.

I’m not saying I’m throwing in the towel on homemade yogurt. But products like these make it tempting. And, seeing the movement towards real health,  not just claims reeking with chemicals and empty calories, is just whey (ok, sorry…way) cool.

Lest my inner conscience tries to expose me as a hypocrite, let me quickly say, I do stand by assertions that bananas aren’t the most sustainable food.  They require boatloads of fuel to transport, for one thing. Further, monoculture banana plantations are major contributors to the destruction of tropical rainforests.

However, I am still going to eat bananas. They’re packed with potassium, fiber, and vitamin B6. They go with and in about a million things, they fuel workouts quickly and cleanly, and they moisten baked goods. I’m just trying to eat fewer, which also offsets the slight extra cost for buying (kinder to the earth and less chemical laden) organic. Now, a greater proportion of those bananas I consume anyway will be frozen first, which is doubly good news, since the conversion to brown spottiness is a quick one.

I first found out about silky smooth banana cream here, and may I quickly say, theKitchn is hands down one of the most wondrous, mesmerizing, and gorgeous sites I’ve ever seen. There’s a 3-ingredient healthy ice cream posted there I’m going to try later this weekend, so stay tuned. I’ll keep you posted.

Once you enjoy frozen pureed bananas for yourself, the possibilities will distract you, be warned. For you athletes who like to incorporate a little whey protein into your diet, this is a great way to sneak it in. A dash of cinnamon’s nice, too. And look what happens with a spoonful of cocoa powder…

My sisters and I discovered recently we’ve all been enjoying this frozen cocoa banana wonder independently of each other, and we all love it. Only while I had the idea as an offshoot of TheKitchn post, Susan discovered it herself, and shared with Laura. But that’s neither here nor there…however you discover it, I am pretty sure you, or any ice cream lovers you cater to, will be hooked.