The excess of the holidays is past, and we're looking forward to lighter, healthier cooking this month at The Kitchn. We are going to focus (mostly!) on eating light this month. What does that mean?
Well, it means that we're (again, mostly!) avoiding sugar this month, looking for healthier ways to get our sweets. We're going to be cooking a lot of vegetarian and vegan dishes, lightening up on meat. And when we do use meat we'll be using it more for flavoring than for heft. Here and there when we do cook meat it will be of the thrifty variety, with ideas and tips for stretching your dollar.
A big focus this month will be grains and beans! We are enamored of Rancho Gordo's newish book on beans (it came out last fall). We want to cook nearly everything in it, immediately. The rich flavor of our first pot of beans this winter (see the photo above!) reminded us how much we love these heirloom beans. The liquid the beans give off, even without the addition of a lot of other ingredients, is rich and heady. Beans are marvelously delicious, as well as nutritious and rather inexpensive.
Here's a look at some of our previous Rancho Gordo coverage:
• Rancho Gordo New World Specialty Food
• Recipe: Basil Parmesan Pot Beans
So, welcome to a month of eating light. We want to hear from you, too -- what does eating light mean to you, and how would you like to cook and eat this month?
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How do you eat sweets without sugar? Are you talking fruits, dates and Splenda?
Looking forward to more bean recipes. I've been in love with them the past few months.
I'm on day 3 of a sugar-free week. I figured a week was pretty manageable to get back on track whereas a month seemed a little crazy as I don't consume a lot of sweets normally. Fruit is allowed (especially the clementines!) as well as my morning granola which is lightly sweetened.
Nothing else with sugar though and I'm trying to minimize the processed carb intake (1-2 tortillas okay, pasta not so much) this week, too. It will likely be a meat-free week, too, although that is more out of circumstance than intention...
Besides Rancho Gordo, another wonderful source for exotic beans is Native Seeds Search -- http://www.nativeseeds.org/catalog/index.php?cPath=5_54
For sweets, check out their low-glycemic index Agave nectar or mesquite bean jelly.
Yes!
I am SO with you guys on this. Although all the home baked goodies and deliciously fatty cuts of meat through the holidays were lovely, I am totally sick and tired of eating them.
Today's lunch: 1/4 pepper squash & steamed broccoli with a 1/2 container of cubed tofu in a ginger/teriyaki sauce plus some salt & pepper. Totally simple, colourful, and flavourful without that "ugh" feeling afterwards.
Overall my plan is to reduce the amount of meat/fish and increase the veggies...and avoid the urge to eat desserty foods every night.
i'm trying to incorporate more veggies at every meal, which will automatically lighten everything up. we had broccoli with our last two breakfasts, so good!
i'm really looking forward to your rancho gordo posts. in the last few months i started cooking my own beans instead of buying them in cans. while i like cooking them and knowing they didn't come from a can, i prefer the taste and texture of the canned beans. i'd really love to know how to make my beans better. right now i'm cooking them in the crock pot after soaking them overnight. they end up being kind of dry, even though they're in plenty of liquid, and bland.
any suggestions?
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Thanks for lightening it up! I'm also looking to lighten up my load of kitchen chores. After more than a month of cooking for many people with plenty of chopping, dicing, searing then baking with multiple processors and mixers (you get the idea)... can we lighten up on the chores? I'm hoping for some recipes with minimal prep and hands-on time so I can snuggle up by that fire.
Yay! As a vegetarian, I am definitely looking forward to this month. :)
I'm definitely on board with this one. I'd definitely like to see some recipes for meals hearty enough to ward off the ongoing winter chill without being loaded with fat and calories. I can put on a jacket, I don't need any more fattening up for winter!
Splenda... yuck. If you must have a sweet try Stevia. It's a lot easier to cook with and the aftertaste is not nearly as bothersome.
I'd just like to say: Thank you in advance!
My resolution was to eat locally, get over my fear of going to farmers market. My breakfast today: Leftover single burger from Tommys. Damn those resolutions.
My boyfriend and I kicked off Soup January last night. It's our attempt at 1) eating lighter fare and 2) keeping to our budget. Soups FTW!
I too love the "light" mantra this month. Truth be told, I have 10 extra pounds that I would like to lose that I can no longer blame on my 10 month old daughter. But hubby and I started eating cleaner last week as I figured why wait for the first Monday of the new year to do so. That has meant homemade , a roasted Turkey with NONE of the trimmings one night, turkey noodle soup the next evening ,stewed lentils another and veggie hoppin john and greens on New Years Day itself. By circumstance we have also begun to cook with more beans (cheap protein and they are quick) but like many others out there, rely on canned ones for convenience. In the past I did not have much success w/dried beans (too tough) so abandoned the idea all together but am willing to try again if I am given more hints and tricks. Thanks in advance.
This is timely as I am looking to avoid many processed foods this month; I want to learn more about cooking whole grains, and eat raw foods only once per week.
i also often fall back on canned beans, but have been making a real effort to plan ahead a little so i can use dried beans. i prefer the soak overnight in cold water method to the boil and soak method. to make sure they're flavorful, i cook the beans with a bay leaf as well as misc trimmings from the rest of the dish (carrots, onions, celery, leeks, parsley stems...)
i'd also like to see more recipes using winter vegetables.
thanks for a great and timely topic for the new year!
The Susan Ciminelli website has an amazing soup recipe that I have used for a few years. Ginger, adzuki beans, cilantro, lime juice, garlic. It's all so cleansing which is why she features it. The only trick is planning well to soak the beans overnight and then actually cook them the next day. I freeze some and it's great to pop it in the pan when I'm too tired to cook. http://susanciminelli.com/recipes_more.php
There's another one with chick peas and garlic which I haven't tried but sounds so good.
I soak my beans overnight and then use a pressure cooker. Quick to cook and they are not tough. In the past I have tried slow cooking on stovetop and in crockpot with inconsistent results.