Peachy Red Wine Sangria

This past week my family rented a camp for a little stay-cation in Maine.  With such long winters, when you live here you really want to enjoy the few months (weeks?) of the year that the weather is so warm and sunny.  We had a great time kayaking almost every day and we did build a fire each night, even after a rainy day.  

I have to say we ate very well; lots of salmon, lobster and grilled veggies.  To drink one night mom and I made sangria.  A first for us, it was extremely easy to prep and tasted so good!  Not too sweet with deep flavors and a nice citrus kick.  I think when I make this again I will make a double batch as it only filled the pitcher halfway, although keep in mind one batch was plenty for three people.  

Hope you all have had some time for vacation this summer, too or have some coming up in the near future!  See you back here soon!

Ingredients:
2 oranges
1 lemon
1 peach
1 Tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup triple sec
1 bottle red or white wine

Directions:
Slice one orange, the lemon and peach.  Add to pitcher along with the juice of the remaining orange and sugar.  Muddle together with a wooden spoon.  Add the triple sec and wine and stir.  Store for 2-8 hours in the refrigerator and serve.

Grilled Fruit with Balsamic Reduction

If you haven't tried grilling fruit yet this season, put it on your Summer Goals List pronto.  Typically, I simply grill the fruit on a lightly greased grill and serve it plain since the sweet flavors are perfection as is but for the blog I thought I'd amp it up just a tad.  

The balsamic reduction was actually very easy to make but it does require a close eye.  Once finished, it adds a slightly tart but sweet flavor and the saltiness from the feta compliments the fruit nicely.  Some of my favorite fruits to grill are pineapple, watermelon and mango but get creative!  If I was a huge nerd I might say, "If you can dream it, you can grill it!" but I'll refrain.

Hope you all are having a lovely summer!  See you back here soon!

Grilled Fruit with Balsamic Reduction
by Ali Caron, RD
Serves 2-4

Ingredients:
3-4 cups cubed fruit (such as mango, watermelon, honeydew melon, cantaloupe or pineapple)
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup feta cheese crumbles

Directions: Prep grill by cleaning and wiping lightly with a olive oil on a paper towel.  Allow grill to come to medium heat.  If using wooden skewers, soak in water for several minutes.  Place fruit onto skewers, alternating types.  Grill for about 10 minutes total, rotating about five minutes in.
Place on serving dish and drizzle the balsamic reduction and sprinkle with feta cheese.  Enjoy immediately.


Balsamic Reduction:  Heat 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar over low-medium heat for about 25-30 minutes.  Stir every few minutes until reduction starts to thicken and resemble syrup.  Watch very closely towards the last 10 minutes.







Nutrition Facts: 121 Calories, 2g Fat, 22g Carbohydrates, 3g Protein, 2.5g Fiber, 113mg Sodium, 114mg Potassium

Pear and Fig Pizza Appetizer

Hope you all had a great weekend!  I went for a nice hike with my mom and dog, refurnished a new dresser I bought and enjoyed some R&R around the house between coats of paint.  After our hike on Saturday morning my mom and I stopped at the Blue Hill Co-Op as usual and they had some beautiful fresh figs for sale.  Now, figs can be pretty pricey, and by that I mean these were 15 dollars a pound(!).  You'll be happy to know this recipe only calls for 3 figs which comes in around a couple bucks and the flavor they add is totally worth it.
I made a recipe similar to this one a few years ago but since figs weren't in season at the time, I settled for fig jam and used it as the sauce for this "pizza".  Fig jam is a much more economical way to make this pizza but keep in mind it also is much sweeter. 
This recipe makes a great appetizer that is really easy to prepare.  You can cut it into rectangles or into triangles to serve.  Or if you're like me you can enjoy a whole one for yourself with a glass of wine and an episode of Will & Grace after a long day of furniture rehab. 
Have a great rest of the week!  See you back here soon!

Pear and Fig Pizza Appetizer
by Ali Caron, RD
Serves 4

Ingredients:
2 peices Naan bread
3 fresh figs, sliced
1 pear, sliced
1 cup arugula
1 oz goat cheese
1/2 Tablespoon olive oil

Directions:  Preheat oven to 375 degrees Farenheit.  Place naan on pizza stone or baking sheet.  Place half the arugula in a layer on each peice of naan.  Arrange pear and fig slices on top of the arugula.  Using your fingers, break up the goat cheese and sprinkle it on top of the fruit.  Drizzle olive oil over each pizza and place in the oven for about 10 minutes or until goat cheese just starts to brown.  Let cool slightly and slice into strips or triangles. 

Nutrition Facts: 224 Calories, 6g Fat, 36.7g Carbohydrates, 7g Protein, 3.6g Fiber, 168mg Sodium, 159mg Potassium

Watermelon Lime Cocktail

Its feeling like summer is finally here!  As seasonal watermelon has started to pop up in grocery stores I thought I’d try my hand at making a beverage using it.  I’ve made a similar cocktail once before using whipped cream flavored vodka and seltzer water and magically it tasted like cotton candy.  Try it, I dare you!  This time around I thought I would use lime juice to keep it light and fresh.  My favorite thing to add is coconut rum but feel free to add (or exclude) whatever floats your boat. 

Keep this recipe as well as my Watermelon Salad with Mint Vinaigrette on hand as an alternative way to use up that watermelon this summer, besides devouring it plain of course. 

*Note: A delicious third method is to grill cubes of watermelon on skewers, along with pineapple and honeydew melon.  Just clean and lightly grease the grill with an oiled paper towel first!

Watermelon Lime Cocktail

Serves 2

Ingredients:

2 cups watermelon, cubed

6 ice cubes

¼ cup limeade or lime juice

¼ cup water or lime seltzer water

1-2 oz vodka, tequila or rum (I used coconut rum)

Directions:

Add watermelon, ice, limeade and water to blender.  Blend until smooth.  Add alcohol (optional) to glass and pour blended watermelon on top.  Garnish with watermelon slice or fresh mint.  Enjoy immediately. 

Peanut Butter Yogurt Dip

Every day I bring to work three staples; an apple, a (Greek) yogurt and a 100-calorie pack of cocoa-covered almonds.  Sometimes an individual pack of carrots or fruit cup makes an appearance.  I will either buy the remainder of my lunch from work or bring it from home but those three things are almost always present.  I typically eat the yogurt at 10am, eat the apple with lunch and snack on the almonds around 2pm when a sugar-craving hits. 

This week I was staring at my sad little apple and yogurt lunch and decided to try out an idea I saw on Pinterest for dips made from yogurt, honey and peanut butter.  With a slight modification, all I had to do was buy a small packet of peanut butter from the cafeteria at work and I was golden.  When I made this the second time, I added cinnamon because I am on a serious cinnamon kick.  Antioxidants, baby.

Remember, while this recipe is nutrient-dense, it is also calorie-dense.  (Most adults should aim for around 500-600 calories as meal times with two - 100 calorie snacks.)   Serve entire recipe with 1 sliced apple at breakfast, as part of your lunch or post-work out or share with a friend as a high-protein snack.

Peanut Butter Yogurt Dip

Serves 1-2

Ingredients:

6oz vanilla non-fat Greek yogurt

1 ½ tbsp. peanut butter

1/8 tsp. cinnamon

Directions:

Combine yogurt, peanut butter and cinnamon.  Serve with apple slices or other fruit.

Nutrition Facts: 307 Calories, 8g Fat, 44g Carbohydrates, 17.5g Protein, 5g Fiber, 69mg Sodium

Watermelon Salad with Mint Vinaigrette

One of the great things about summer is the abundance of watermelon in everyone’s fridge and at every barbeque.  This simple recipe adds a classy twist to an otherwise deliciously casual fruit.  My version here is adapted from Giada De Laurentiis’ Watermelon and Cantaloupe Salad with Mint Vinaigrette.   I prefer the color of the honeydew and like how light it tastes in this salad.  I also halved the sugar as always and it is still perfectly sweet.  So, go ahead! Buy that one-millionth watermelon of the season!

Watermelon Salad with Mint Vinaigrette

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 cups watermelon, cubes (about half a watermelon)

2 cups honeydew melon, cubed (about 1 honeydew melon)

1 small bunch fresh mint leaves, chopped into ribbons

Juice of 1 lemon

¼ cup simple syrup*

Directions:

In a small bowl, combine lemon juice, mint and simple syrup.  In a large bowl, combine melon and pour vinaigrette over top.  Gently toss and serve in 1 cup dishes.

Optional: Serve salad in half a hollowed out watermelon for parties.

*Simple Syrup: Heat ½ cup of water and ½ cup of sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and allow syrup to cool.  Extra syrup can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container.

Nutrition Facts: 73 Calories, 0.3g Fat, 23mg Sodium, 300mg Potassium, 18g Carbohydrates, 1g Fiber, 1g Protein

Contains 47% Daily Value of Vitamin C (Based on 2000 calorie diet).

Peaches and a Perfect Day

It has been hot here in Maine the last few weeks and this weekend was no exception.  Saturday morning I was able to finish a book, fit in a coffee run and a wander through the local farmer’s market before my toddler sitting and Penny’s doggy play date.  We napped away the afternoon after our friends left and spent the rest of the day at my parents’ house, complete with dinner and a backyard fire. 

For dinner we ate grilled haddock, rice and rainbow chard from my mother’s trip to the farmer’s market (like mother, like daughter).  We aren’t normally big into desserts but mom’s boss had brought her back some giant peaches from his recent trip to South Carolina.  But what to make with them? Peach cobbler?  Sangria? I finally decided it was much too hot to turn the oven on and said, ”there must be a way to grill these.”

This recipe is adapted from Bobby Flay’s Grilled Peaches with Cinnamon Sugar Butter.  Basically, I cut the recipe in half and quartered the sugar.  Even my dad who can be slightly picky about new things raved about these peaches.  Slightly sweet, tender and refreshing it was the perfect ending to a delicious summer meal.

Grilled Peaches

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 peaches, halved

1 tbsp. canola or olive oil

4 tbsp. butter or margarine

½ teaspoon cinnamon sugar

½ teaspoon granulated sugar

Pinch of salt

Mint leaves (optional)

Directions:

Let butter come to room temperature and stir until smooth.  Add in cinnamon sugar, sugar and salt. Stir until combined.  Set aside.

Halve the peaches and use a spoon to remove the pit.  Rub oil on the cut side of the peaches. Lay face down on the grill for 5-10 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove from grill.

Spoon the cinnamon butter over the peaches and garnish with mint.  Enjoy as the butter melts!

Nutrition facts: 104 Calories, 9g Fat, 1.4g Saturated Fat, 6g Carbohydrates, 0.5g Protein, 105mg Sodium, 96mg Potassium