Jonell Galloway
Recipe for high-protein bread using red winter wheat
What is red winter wheat?
Red winter wheat is a high-protein wheat, known in French as blé rouge d’hiver. It is a hard wheat with qualities similar to durum wheat, which we find in Italy.
Photo courtesy of The Fresh Loaf.
Winter wheat differs from other wheat in that it is planted in the autumn, goes dormant during the coldest winter months, then resumes growth as the weather warms up. It is harvested in spring or early summer.
According to the The Fresh Loaf, hard white wheat of the type we find in France, which is slightly yellowish and not pristine white, was “actually developed from hard red wheat, by eliminating the genes for bran color while preserving other desirable characteristics of red wheat,” such as its high protein content. The Fresh Loaf site contains loads of photos comparing the color of the grains as well the baked product.
This wheat is not grown extensively in Europe, but the actual grains can be found in a good health food store or a supermarket that carries a wide range of natural grains. Large Manor supermarkets in Switzerland often stock it. Of course, to use the grains in a bread recipe, you need to own a flour mill, which many home bakers do.
The Fresh Loaf
For those who love to bake bread, I don’t know of a better site than The Fresh Loaf. It refers to itself as the “amateur baker and artisan bread enthusiast site,” and you are likely to find absolutely any recipe you need there. If not there’s a lively forum that allows you to ask fellow bakers. Much of the bread is the hearty, healthy type you can really sink your teeth in to.
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Jonell Galloway
John Dory, Italian green wild asparagus and blood orange sauce
One of my favorite ways of creating tasty but healthy dishes is using fruit and vegetables as sauce. There are millions of ways to do this, depending mainly on the season.
Oranges are abundant at the moment, so I’ve been using a lot of orange juice to liven up dishes. It adds a burst of flavor, yet requires no cream or butter, thus making it low in calories and high in fiber.
The season is short for wild Italian asparagus, so take advantage of it in April and May.
RECIPE
Ingredients
Serves 3 or 4
One bunch wild Italian green asparagus or similar extra-thin green asparagusThick filet of John Dory, 700 to 900 grams / 1 1/2 lbs./2 lbs., 5 cm / 2 in. thick
Juice of one blood orange, with pulp to add fiber (two if you like a lot of sauce)
Olive oil Salt and pepper
Instructions
Preheat grill or broiler.
Place John Dory on a roasting tin or broiler pan, skin side up.
Wash asparagus. If ends are woody, cut off woody part.
Jonell Galloway
I always get really excited when the strawberries and rhubarb come on the market. For me it’s literally like “breaking news.” They’re really the first local fruit.
Photo courtesy of Happy Hoarfrost.
One of my favorite dishes is strawberry and rhubarb compote. It’s healthy, full of fiber and vitamins; it’s also versatile and can be used in many ways.
In addition, it’s about as easy as you can get.
RECIPE
Basic principle and technique
Compote is just stewed fruit, so it’s not tricky like a cake or soufflé.
Just chop up equal weights of rhubarb and strawberries and put them in an appropriate size saucepan.
Jonell Galloway
Recipe: making homemade crème fraîche + crème fraîche ice cream
Many people think French crème fraîche, translated literally as “fresh cream”, is the cream of all creams.
Whether you do or you don’t, some recipes really do require cream of that particular consistency and acidity. This is by no means available in all countries. And then, you might just like the taste of it. One can always find an excuse to make crème fraîche!
Photo courtesy of Fraternity Kitchen.
I ran on this article by Lia Huber yesterday that not only tells you how to make your own crème fraîche, but also includes a recipe for crème frâiche ice cream. This is, of course, for a day when you’re not counting calories and cholesterol!
The ingredients are simple: full-fat milk and buttermilk (petit lait, lait fermenté, or babeurre, in French). You do have to allow a little time, since it can take 12 to 48 hours to reach the proper consistency. Once you’ve made it, it will keep for a couple of weeks.
Jonell Galloway
Ingredients
500 g / 1 lb. of canned corn, drained 2 eggs 1 T. of fresh chives 2 dl / 1 cup crème fraîche Optional: 1/4 cup fresh chives, choppedSmall baking dish Another baking dish that is a little larger to make a bain-marie
Instructions
Preheat oven to 180°C / Mark 7 / 350° F.
Put 8/10 of corn in a food processor. Blend until smooth.
In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs. Add cream and corn from food processor. Beat gently until smooth.
Fold in remaining corn kernels and chives. Salt and pepper to taste.
Pour mixture into smaller baking dish. Put smaller baking dish into larger one. Pour hot water in bottom dish, about half-way up.
Bake for 30 minutes or until flan sets.
Jonell Galloway
Recipe: Lacquered pork tenderloin, roast potatoes and wild garlic leaves
Lacquered pork tenderloin with roast potatoes and wild garlic or ramson.
Lacquered pork tenderloin with roast potatoes and wild garlic or ramson.
Ingredients
Serves 4
800-gram / 1 3/4-lb pork tenderloin roast (“filet mignon de porc”)5 T. honey 30 grams / 2 T. butter 2 t. Colman’s mustard powder or 2 T. whole-grain mustard 2 T. coriander seeds Beans of one vanilla pod Olive oil Salt and pepper to taste 12 small raclette or new potatoes, unpeeled 237 ml / 1 cup thick veal or chicken stock (“fond de veau” or “fond de volaille”) 2 bunches wild garlic leaves (“ail des ours”)
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Jonell Galloway
Recipe: prime rib steak, smashed russet potatoes and wild garlic leaves
Serves 2
Ingredients
1 prime rib steak with bone, large enough for two people (about 600 grams / 1 1/3 lbs) (in French, “côte de boeuf”)8 small to medium russet potatoes, scrubbed well 1 cup thick veal stock (or you can use the “fond de veau” powder you find in France) Salt and pepper to taste 150 g / 10 T. low-fat Greek yogurt 1 bunch of wild garlic leaves (in French “ail des ours”; in English, called by many names, including ramson (Allium ursinum))
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Jonell Galloway
Recipe
This is another low-fat, high-fiber meal that fits perfectly in to any weight loss plan. All these ingredients are available in April.
4 to 6 scallops per person 6 to 8 spears of green asparagus per person Balsamic vinegar 500 grams / 1 lb. strawberries (for 3 or 4 servings)Szechwan pepper to taste
Instructions
Preheat broiler or grill.
Wash, top and slice strawberries. Put into a medium-size saucepan. Cover with Balsamic vinegar, until vinegar is about 2.54 cm / 1 inch above strawberries. Add Szechwan pepper to taste.
Bring strawberries and Balsamic vinegar mixture to a boil, then turn heat down to medium, stirring from time to time. Cook until it forms a sauce of a syrupy consistency, with bits of strawberry in the “syrup”. This usually takes 15 to 20 minutes.
Jonell Galloway
Recipe
Ingredients
Photo courtesy of Five Prime.
Preheat grill or broiler.
Cut stalk end of fennel out, then slice thinly in the lengthwise direction.
Scrub potatoes, but do not skin. Slice thinly.
Jonell Galloway
Please, Mara des Bois, get thee here! Even though we still don’t have local strawberries in the Lake Geneva region, it’s almost impossible to resist the Spanish and French ones that are already available.
Photo courtesy of Sodapix.
Strawberries are extremely high in fiber as well as vitamins, so I try to use them in as many dishes as possible. You can also make low-fat or no-fat sauces and salads that are highly complimentary to a weight loss diet. And contrary to traditional wisdom, they can be used in both sweet and savory dishes.
Recipes
Strawberry and seed salad
For salads, put sliced strawberries into a vinaigrette made with Balsamic vinegar and marinate them for about 30 minutes. When ready to serve, add mixed greens or mesclun and toss. You can also use baby spinach. (Both of these are in season right now.) Right before serving, add some mixed seeds (the kind you find in the supermarket in Switzerland), or you can mix your own favorite seeds: pumpkin, sesame, etc. Toss well and serve immediately.