Beef Tenderloin w/ Barolo (Wine) & Poblano

My boyfriend Jason came up with this recipe and it is so delicious I had to immediately pester him for all the details so that we could make it again! I have a feeling this one could become a staple and a crowd-pleaser in our house, just like the badass fish stew has! So, without further ado:

Beef Tenderloin with Barolo (Wine) & Poblano

Select a very lean beef tenderloin, and cut out the very small bits of fat, for an optimal texture and ease of consumption!

Marinate for four hours with:
salt & pepper; 4 cloves of garlic, pressed; 3 tablespoons of seeds and skin of Poblano (lots of seeds); 2 full cups of red wine covering the steak (we used leftover Barolo from the night before).

After the four hours of marinating (we did 2 hours marinating out at room temperature, then moved it to the fridge), remove and completely dry off the meat.

Put it in a dry pan at high heat, brown on both sides (2 minutes/side), moving it around constantly!

Lower heat: cook for 2 more minutes/side.

Add marinade back in, cook while taking it out and checking for optimal done-ness (approx 4 min).

Voila!

Good with quinoa or a grain, as well as sauteed onions and carrots.

Note: can continue to add more wine to the pan during the last stage of cooking, as it can continue to soak up more wine while cooking.

Best with an expensive cut of meat.

Awesome Kale Chips

Today I had a huge package of kale, and needed to use it. I decided to do the best thing one can do with kale, and make it into kale chips.

I found this recipe and adapted it slightly --


4 cups of kale leaf pieces
1 1/2 T olive oil
2T nutritional yeast
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp salt

So first I put the dry kale leaf pieces (they must be dry, makes better chips!), in a large ziplock bag. I added the olive oil, zipped up the bag, and had a very fun time smooshing around the kale and olive oil until I was sufficiently entertained.

Next, I added all the dry spices to the bag, zipped it up again, and this time shook it (which was also, entertaining).

MEanwhile, I've been having my oven heating up to 300 degrees.

Now I open up my yummy looking seasoned kale bag, and dump it out onto a baking tray (I needed two trays actually). I smooshed them all around a little bit more in the tray until each leaf had its own spot more or less and they were not on top of each other.

Then, I put the kale in the oven for 10 minutes.

Then, I checked on it, and turned the trays around.

Next, I forgot about the kale for a little bit so they got a little overcooked but were still so very tasty. Ideally this next stage should only take 10-15 minutes. Make sure to check on your kale chips every 10 minutes to make sure they are not getting brown.

The only step after that is to take them out and eat them more or less immediately. :D

<3

Grain Free Roasted Tomato Soup

My neighborhood market, Berkeley Bowl has these soups that they make in-house. They're delicious. A few weeks ago, they had a tomato bisque that I wasn't allergic to...miraculously.

Now, if you're on a strict grain free diet, you already know how hard it is to find safe soups. If they don't have noodles in them, they have rice or corn or are thickened with corn starch. It's frustrating, because soup is delicious and efficient.

So, after trying that bisque, I had actual dreams about it. It was the right combination of creamy and sweet and a little bit acidic. But then. Then. Someone at Berkeley Bowl decided that it would be just swell to add bread to their recipe. No more fresh soup for Laura.

So, I made my own. After doing some research, I realized that a great, grain free tomato bisque isn't that difficult. Here goes...

Laura's Grain Free Roasted Tomato Soup

Prep time: 
15 minutes (thanks food processor!)

Cook time: 
Roasted tomatoes: 15-20 minutes (do these while you're prepping the other ingredients);
Soup: 10 minutes

Ingredients

• 6 large ripe tomatoes (on the vine)
• 2 cans of diced tomatoes
• 6 cloves garlic (peeled)
• 4 cups chicken broth (or fresh bone broth)
• 1 bunch of basil (stems removed)
• 1 qt heavy whipping cream
• 2 avocados (seeded and skin removed)
• Salt &pepper (to taste)
• 2 avocados
• 1oz goat cheese
• Olive oil (or avocado oil)

Instructions

• Roast the Tomatoes
• Preheat Oven to 425
• Place whole tomatoes (on the vine) on a lined baking sheet, sprinkle with salt and oil
• Roast until skins start to look golden and crispy (about 10 minutes)
• Using tongs, gently rotate so the skins crisp on the other side 
• When done, remove stems and place in food processor.

• Using a food processor, combine garlic, 1/2 of the basil, the roasted and diced tomatoes and the avocado (use the mix/puree setting, if you don't have one, use a conventional blender). 
• Pour mixture into large pot and add broth.
• On medium heat, let the soup come to a boil.
• Reduce to low heat and slowly stir in goat cheese and heavy whipping cream.
• Salt to taste.
• Once mixed, use an immersion blender to remove any lumps (skip this step if you don't have one, the soup will just be a little lumpy).
• Serve with basil as a garnish. 

Badass Fish Stew

So, as it turns out, making a badass fish stew is super easy (and fairly cheap) to make!

This recipe feeds 4 very hungry people, and cost a little less than $19 ($10 of which was the fish itself !)

Total prep & cooking time: 35 mins

Here's what you'll need:

1 lb white fish (I used cod :)
3 cloves garlic - minced
4 large tomatoes - diced
1 small jalapeno pepper - minced
2 cups diced mushrooms of your choice (I used some kind of asian mushroom, that seemed to work well)
2 cups roasted potatoes and onions - diced (I used leftovers from a simple potato and onion bake with fresh sage, salt & pepper, just put it all in the oven, chopped, with olive oil at 400deg for 30min)
1/2 cup fresh parsley - minced
paprika - to taste
red chili powder - to taste
olive oil - for cooking

Okay, first step is to add some olive oil to a large pan, heat it to medium, and add the minced garlic. Mind that as you chop the tomatoes & etc. After a couple of minutes, add the tomatoes. Then about 5 minutes later throw in the mushrooms and jalapeno. Let that all cook together, stirring it regularly and inhaling the maniacally delicious aroma.

After about 5 minutes or so (the tomatoes should be getting nice and soft and saucey now), throw in the potatoes & onions. About a minute or two after, add the fresh parsley and spices.

Then after 5 minutes of all the veg ingredients stewing together at medium heat, it's time to add in the cod.
It's up to you whether you want to chop the cod or leave it in larger pieces - we did a little of both - but just be warned that if you chop it really small it's likely to fragment into tiny pieces in the stew which might be the kinda thing you love but just know..
So, add the cod to the stew (just lay it on top and kinda squish it down a little :), then cover the pan with a lid, and let it cook for 8 minutes.

After the 8 minutes, check on the cod and taste it (it should be perfect), and remove it from the heat when satisfied that it is perfect.

Serve & enjoy!

☮ & ♥

Ze First Post!

Howdy all!

Welcome to Rays of Sunshine - a blog devoted to nourishing lifestyle choices!

Here we will explore our favorite recipes (all extremely tasty, let it be known), and chat about general lifestyle topics like finance, food, philosophy, spirituality, and all that good stuff!

☮ & ♥ !!!