CLEANSE

I've got to be honest, I am not a fan of the master cleanse-you know the one that people start January 1st when they resolve to eat healthier and to get into shape. It's the one where you don't eat anything but you drink water with lemon juice, cayenne and honey. I could NEVER do that. I like to eat but more than that, I am really active. I run at least 30 miles per week, there is no way I could do a traditional cleanse while not eating. I had heard a lot about "CLEAN" by Alejandro Junger and decided to give it a go.

Junger suggests following his plan for 21 days, although he admits that one or two weeks will be beneficial as well. I decided to try out with one week. The plan is an elimination diet. There is no alcohol, caffeine, dairy, wheat, red meat, sugar, soy and more. In addition to eliminating certain foods from the diet, you are to eat two liquid meals and only one "real" meal during the day. Replace breakfast and dinner with fresh juices and smoothies (not the kind from Jamba Juice that are loaded with frozen yogurt) but nutritious smoothies that include fresh fruits and vegetables. The idea is that in replacing real food with liquids, you are giving the digestive system a break and allowing the liver to deal with the toxins it has been storing away for a raining day.

Remember that episode of I Love Lucy where she and Ethel are working at the chocolate factory. The conveyor belt speeds up and they cannot manage the chocolates and start stuffing them wherever they can. The liver does the same thing. The liver processes all the toxins that we take in from the air, water, food but because we live in a toxic environment and are constantly stuffing our faces, the liver cannot tackle all of the toxins that enter the body. So it stores them in the body, it stores them in fat cell with the hopes that it can deal with them at a later time. Following a cleanse gives the liver that break it needs to process the toxins.

Most people I came into contact with last week swore that they could never do a cleanse, but most people would benefit from giving the body a little rest to recover from all of the abuse it sustains. I'll be honest, I was a bit skeptical, but I felt great and I wasn't really hungry. Ok, maybe toward the end of the day, I was slightly hungry, but it was really manageable. If you are thinking about cleansing, pick up CLEAN. It's a great read explaining the importance of detoxing from time to time. It also gives you a clear understanding of how to begin and follow his program, recipes included.

BREAKFAST

Poached eggs over sauteed kale with guacamole and asparagus

My mom always said breakfast is the most important meal of the day. She used to drive me crazy saying that, but she was right. The reason is that the body has been fasting for presumably 6-8 hours (hopefully closer to 8), without replenishing nutrients, it will not function properly. Ideally, you should eat within an hour of waking up. Now, for many of us, this is tricky because we like to work out first thing in the morning and the last thing we need is one more obstacle (making breakfast) in our way. For others, they say that they just aren't hungry when they first wake up. Both groups still have to eat, even something small and even if you don't feel like it.

In addition to the skipping breakfast altogether, the mistakes that I see with breakfast tend to involve eating the wrong thing. Baked goods are never the answer, I don't care if they are sugar free, fat free, low fat, high fiber. It's really not a good balance of macronutrients. In other words, baked goods (muffins, croissants, etc) are generally sugar bombs with little healthy fat and very little protein to keep your blood sugar stable. From time to time, it is ok to have your favorite muffin (hopefully homemade by someone, rather than from a package at the convenience store) but it should not be part of your routine. Another common breakfast-cereal with skim milk, is on my list of not great breakfasts. Let's just assume that we are talking about some sort of "whole grain" variety and not the sugar loops kind. First of all, the "whole grains" label on many of the packages is misleading. There may be other grains, beside wheat or corn but most of them are not in the "whole" form, but no one monitors the accuracy of that claim, so it can slide. More than the false claims of health on the box is the simple fact that many cereals are not enough calories to keep you going through the day. Again, there is not enough protein and coupling it with non fat milk, there's not enough fat to keep you satiated for very long.

The key to maintaining good health and to losing weight is to keep blood sugar levels even and the way to do that is to eat often and to include protein and healthy fat at every meal-in addition of course to all the vegetables that you should be eating too. Make breakfast part of your routine and mix it up-don't have the same thing everyday. Prepare some hard boiled eggs when you have some time and they will be ready for you as you head out the door. Smoothies are another quick fix. You can use fresh or frozen fruit, almond milk or full fat coconut milk or coconut water throw in some flax seeds, maybe a little spirulina (a seaweed that is packed with nutrients), half of an avocado (for some healthy fat) and a scoop of organic protein powder for a completely satisfying meal. The addition of the fat and protein will keep you going until lunch.

I already have my breakfast planned for the morning, how about you?

FIG RESTAURANT SANTA MONICA

I love FIG!!! It has been my favorite restaurant for quite some time because the menu is insanely delicious. It is the epitome of seasonal California fare, with an emphasis on local and organic food. The menu has a runner along the bottom listing seasonal produce, specifically what is at its peak and what produce is about to hit the market and it is obvious that the chef respects the value of perfectly seasonal produce. You really can see and taste the influence that the Santa Monica farmers market has in every dish. For someone like me, a menu that emphasizes seasonal produce is right up my alley, but for god sakes they also have something called bacon wrapped bacon for all of the meat eaters. That dish is crazy, pork belly wrapped in bacon and served as a starter with cabbage and baby heirloom tomatoes. I could eat a plate of that alone.

Here is the greatest thing about Fig that I just found out. Apparently, starting yesterday, everything on the menu from wine and cocktails through dessert is 50% off daily between the hours of 5-6. This may be the best deal in the city. There is no special menu, no smaller sized plates, it's the whole menu at 50% off! Now, granted this might be a little early for most of us to eat but it is so worth it. If you work, you need to leave early to take advantage of this deal. They also have some really good lunch specials as well, but nothing compares to this 50% off deal.

Fig needs to be at the top of your restaurant if you love to cook or eat. It is such a great, shining example of simple, clean food that lets the ingredients speak for themselves. It isn't fussy or pretentious, and it displays how perfectly seasonal fruits and vegetables can taste so good. As someone who loves to cook and eat, I love Fig and get so much inspiration from its menu. I can't wait to go back.


Fig Restaurant
Located in the Fairmont Miramar
101 Santa Monica Blvd.
Santa Monica, CA 90401

VEGGIE BURGER

I don't know what I am doing lately. I have been trying to shop mostly at the farmers markets and supplementing a few items from Whole Foods. The problem is, I am completely in a fog and have no idea what I am doing. When I get home, there's a random assortment of vegetables in my bags and a piece of chicken or something. I have been pulling recipes from my you know where. Yesterday I came up with this veggie burger with leftovers that were in the fridge. Since there was nothing in the fridge except some quinoa and black rice, this is a pretty minimal burger.


Veggie Burger
1/2 ish cup of quinoa, cooked
1/2 ish cup of black rice, cooked
1 onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3/4 cup flour (any kind-I used quinoa and rice flour)
1 or 2 eggs
olive oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Sauté the onion and garlic until translucent. While it's cooking, mix the quinoa and black rice in a large bowl. Add the remaining ingredients, including the onion and garlic and form into patties. You may need to add a little more flour as necessary to hold it all together.

Heat a medium frying pan and add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil. Cook patty until golden, then flip and cook the other side. When both sides are nicely browned, transfer to the oven to finish cooking.

I mixed the cooked quinoa, black rice an egg, some flour, chopped onion and chopped chives. I promise you this is all the food that I had.

Options- You could add shredded carrot, chopped spinach or any other cooked vegetable. You could use substitute any rice or grain for the quinoa and rice in this recipe.

TRUTHINESS

So, the truth is that I may eat a little better than many, but I eat "normal" food too. In fact, I am about to order a pizza. I just cannot look at the chicken that is in my fridge. First of all, I had chicken for lunch and I cannot face it again tonight. Secondly, I am feeling slightly uninspired tonight. Sometimes, I don't feel like setting foot in the kitchen or trying to come up with something interesting to make out of a boneless, skinless chicken breast. So I am choosing to do nothing. I think it is unrealistic to eat well 100% of the time and tonight is one of those times. More often than not I do, but sometimes, I just throw it all out the window.

So here are a few photos of some of the things I have made recently. Merguez sausage which is a Moroccan lamb sausage with carrots and onions, chicken breast with sauteed vegetables, rosemary shortbread and olive oil braised zucchini. The zucchini is going along side of the pizza. The shortbread has nothing to do with anything, except to show you that I am a kick ass baker and I eat sweets from time to time.

Regardless of what I eat, I insist on a lot of vegetables. They are full of vitamins and minerals, fiber, antioxidants. One of my guidelines for eating healthy is to include a lot of vegetables, even with your pizza. Just one serving of salad or one scoop of vegetables might just prevent you from eating one extra slice of pizza and who could argue about that not being a good thing?

LUNCH?

Sometimes, I plan my dishes, other times I just open the fridge, nose around and then put something together and hope it works out. Usually, it does. I knew I had some chicken leftover from one that I roasted last night. I also knew that I had mustard greens that were on their last leg and some asparagus. A closer inspection of the kitchen revealed an open box of orzo, a bag of organic slivered almonds, some vinaigrette from a previous meal and of course the staples-red pepper flakes and garlic. If you haven't figured it out yet, those two along with some good olive oil form the basis of many of my meals.

As I was looking upon all of these, a plan started to come together-toast the almonds, shred the chicken, sauté the greens with the olive oil, garlic and red pepper and toss it all together with the orzo and a splash of dressing. Voilá!

ONE GRAIN, TWO MEALS

Farro is an ancient Tuscan grain. It is a whole grain that packs a bunch of fiber, protein and B vitamins. Over the lat few years, it has become pretty popular, turning up on menus in restaurants and for sale not only in specialty shops but in Whole Foods too. I love farro and use it often. A couple of years ago I went on a farro hoarding spree. Don't ask me why, but I was convinced that I wouldn't be able to find it, so when I did, I bought lots of it. I was down to the last package and no longer fearful of being unable to find it when I prepared these two dishes.

A tip I learned from Heidi Swanson is that you can freeze grains! What a time saving tip. I prepared the whole package, used part of it in a Tuscan inspired mushroom soup, then I froze the rest and a few days later used it as the basis for a pilaf type side dish to go with my Tuscan grilled chicken. Can you tell I have Tuscany on the brain? It's been a year since I first went to Italy and am longing to go back.

For the pilaf, I just sauteed some garlic and red pepper flakes in some olive oil, added some quartered mushrooms and cooked until they were golden, then added some chopped mustard greens and the cooked farro. Sauté until the greens are wilted. Season with salt and pepper and a drizzle of good, fruity olive oil and serve. I topped this with a whole grilled chicken.

Tuscan Mushroom Soup
1 four ounce package dried mushrooms
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, finely diced
1 rib celery, finely diced
1 sprig sage, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup lentils (beluga or green-not red or orange)
1 four quart container chicken stock (or homemade)
1 small bunch kale (chard, spinach, dandelion or any dark green will suffice), chiffonade
olive oil
salt and red pepper flakes
1 1/2-2 cups farro, cooked according to package directions

Put the dried mushrooms in a bowl and cover with boiling water to reconstitute. Set aside for 20 minutes or until soft. Remove mushrooms from water and set the water aside for later. Thinly slice the mushrooms and set aside.

In a large sauce pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery to the pan. Sweat the vegetables until soft, then add the garlic, lentils, sage and red pepper flakes to taste. Add the mushrooms to the pan, then add stock and reserved mushroom liquid. Simmer for about 20 minutes or until lentils are cooked then add farro and kale. Cook until kale is wilted. Adjust seasoning and serve topped with parmesan shavings.