Fun Healthy Recipes that Cut Disease Risk

The Mediterranean diet is healthy and delicious. Have fun.

Fat is Not the Enemy, My Friends

More research, a biggie this time.

Jamaican Jerk Chicken

Marinated drumsticks in what I thought was a Meyer lemon, but turned out to be an orange, and apple cider vinegar. Second step was just sprinkling the meat with Spice World's salt free Jamaican Jerk Blend and baking. The chicken came out tender and delicious.

Weekly Prep

I filled my refrigerator with hard boiled eggs, washed and cut celery and radishes, bags and bags of arugula, spinach, and maiche greens. I stocked up on chard, Chinese broccoli, cabbage, broccoli, onions and garlic, Greek yogurt, raw Swiss cheese, and I made salmon salad. I also made Jamaican jerk chicken (see next post).

How I Tried to Eat Clean in New Orleans - Part II

The Louisiana oysters were tasty, large and mild. They were also quite reasonably priced (about $13 per dozen), especially compared to what I've seen in LA, but I suppose that's to be expected. We got these at Desire, a seafood restaurant on Bourbon Street in the French Quarter. The service was excellent there. The oyster shucker was friendly and many people went up to check out what he was doing.
My entree was grilled snapper with green beans and red pepper, all topped with lump crabmeat. I thought that sounded safe and healthy-ish. I should have been thinking more clearly, as each element was literally doused in butter. I believe in butter but this was overkill. But I won't lie to you. It was fantastically yummy and I ate every single melt-in-your-mouth bite. I had to roll myself out of the chair and take a walk down Bourbon to recover.
My companion had shrimp and grits etouffee (sp?), which was also quite rich. I tasted it and it was thick with flour and rather buttery. She couldn't finish it.

How I Tried to Eat Clean in New Orleans

Here are two pictures of shrimp salads I enjoyed in New Orleans. The fresh Louisiana shrimp are tasty and a little smaller, quite different from the shrimp we get here in CA. For lack of a better way to describe it, their flavor is very "shrimpy." What I mean is that each bite is packed with rich shrimp flavor, no wateriness or muddiness.

To be honest, I overdid it on shrimp while in New Orleans! Bubba Gump's on Decatur in the French Quarter, supposed to be a shrimp lovers' paradise, was disappointing. Their shrimp were not cleaned very well at all (gross) and weren't as tasty. Were they not using real Louisiana shrimp?

The bottom pic is a shrimp Caesar salad from Lucy's Retired Surfers' place on Tchoupitoulas and Girod in the Arts District. There was plenty of dressing but it wasn't super salty, and the shrimp was seasoned quite well in the Creole style. Their service wasn't really up to what I would consider Southern standards, but it was basically a sports bar. Other places in New Orleans ended up having wonderful service and I will write about them too. I will try to "recreate" this dish with some Tony's Creole seasoning I bought there, maybe using a recipe for creamy dressing from the current issue of Clean Eating magazine.

The top picture is a shrimp wedge salad from the Green Goddess in the Exchange Alley in the French Quarter. It had hearts of palm, radishes, and cucumber slices as well as romaine lettuce and a milder dressing. The food there was fabulous but it took them three hours to get us our food, a mistake that our hosts assured us was rare.

Oven Fried Chicken

I heavily seasoned some ground golden flaxseed with chimichurri and chili powder. My egg wash was just two whole eggs, lightly beaten. First I dipped the drumsticks in the egg, then the seasoning. I baked it at nearly 500 at first to make sure the coating got crispy, then turned it down to 350. I turned the drumsticks once. They didn't come out picture perfect but they sure were crispy and tasty.

Next time, I think I will oil the pan and marinate the chicken pieces in milk. Oh yes there will be a next time.