Recipe: Strawberry Salmon with Roasted Red Potatoes

Strawberry Salmon with Roasted Red Potatoes (Recipe by Jeannine Skinner, RDN)

Time-saving tip: Read through the steps BEFORE starting so you are sure you have everything before you start. I wrote the recipe in this order since the potatoes need longer to roast, and you can let the salmon marinate while they cook, and even clean up the kitchen while you wait for your meal to finish roasting. If you need this meal faster...... choose Option 2 for the veggies, since instant mashed potatoes and steamable veggies are time-savers. :)

Prep time: 5 min + marinating for 10-30 min.; Bake time: 30-40 min;  Ready in 1.5 hours

Servings: 3-4 (~$3 each)

Ingredients

2 T soy sauce

2 T lemon juice (PLUS more for later)

1 T dijon mustard

¼ tsp. pepper

4 salmon fillet (6 oz each)

⅔ cup (or 6 oz) strawberry preserves (PLUS more for later)

4-5 red potatoes

~2 T olive oil

Spices (to sprinkle as desired)

season-all salt or regular salt

paprika

chili powder

black pepper

~ 1-2 cups frozen broccoli & cauliflower

A sprinkle of garlic powder

A bit of butter

(TIP: Keep the lemon juice and strawberry preserves handy, since you may want to add more when the fish has finished cooking.)

*Your choice of starch and veggie

Option 1) Roasted Red Potatoes & frozen broccoli and cauliflower. (Tip: Garlic powder and butter go really well with the broccoli.)

Option 2) For easy prep, a great combo for this meal is instant mashed potatoes and a bag of steamable frozen peas.

Prep:

• Gather ingredients and tools. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Take individually packaged frozen salmon from the freezer, place in the sink (still packaged) and run warm water over them to thaw.
• Prepare potatoes: rinse, slice into wedges, toss in a few tablespoons of olive oil, then, leaving the middle open to add the fish later, place potatoes on both sides of a 9X 13" baking dish or cookie sheet sprayed with non-stick cooking spray, then sprinkle with spices. Start roasting the potatoes in the oven for ~ 15-20 minutes.

• In a large resealable plastic bag or plastic container, combine soy sauce, lemon juice, mustard, pepper, and strawberry preserves. Add salmon, coat completely with the marinade, then let rest for 10-30 minutes (set a timer, if that helps!).
• In a microwavable container, add a little bit of water to the frozen broccoli and microwave for a few minutes to thaw. Drain, add a bit of butter and garlic powder, set aside.

• After potatoes have been cooking for ~ 15-20 minutes, remove from oven, and then pour the marinated salmon onto the middle of the pan (spooning more strawberry preserves on top, if desired). Add the broccoli to a part of the pan at this time, too.

• Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees for 15-20 more minutes or until salmon flakes easily with a fork and reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees. Option at the end... broil for 2 minutes to get a golden, crispy top. Watch for burning!   

RD Notes: The sauce or veggies may burn if cooked too hot and for too long... so when you check the temp of the fish (and if it's not done yet), add a bit of water to the pan to prevent the sauce from blackening or getting burned. When the fish reaches an internal temp of 145 degrees, and the potatoes are slightly charred, you are done!

Please let me know what you think when you try it!

Happy cooking!

Jeannine =)

Butternut Squash Soup

Butternut Squash Soup
              Even if you know me personally, some of you may not know how much I love to cook and eat tasty things. These past few months I have tried a handful of recipes and sent a picture of each meal to my sisters (since they have asked me about meal planning in the past).  Some other cool facts about me.... when I have a day off work in the middle of the week, you can often find me doing a work-out video in the living room, playing some music, or cooking in the kitchen. (It's common with my job to have a day or two off in the middle of the week... and I love it. Working 4 10's at the hospital is just the perfect job for me right now, and I'm so grateful for the experiences I'm having there).
              Anyway, just to introduce this recipe, it's that time of year where savory soups are in style. Especially while it's still cold outside..... enjoying a delicious, home-made bowl of soup is a nice way to warm up (just like cuddling up in a blanket or drinking some nice hot chocolate or decaf herbal tea).  
            Here's the recipe of the soup I tried out recently, and I thought I'd include it if you want to try it out. The directions may look a little complicated, but just follow them and you'll be fine. Why I love this recipe: It's delicious, it's cheap, and it goes a long way.  My ingredients are listed below, and I was kind of experimenting with it, so I trust you to do the same. Have some fun :)  

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375°F. Cut squash in half, remove and discard seeds, then place cut side down on oiled baking sheet and roast for 40-45 minutes or until very soft. Remove from oven and let cool. 

Meanwhile, turn heat down to 350°F.  Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large pot. Add chopped onion and garlic (I omited the garlic bcz I didn't have any at the time, but I had a spice which I added later); sauté on medium heat until onion is translucent. Add curry powder and other spices and stir for 2 or 3 minutes, until fragrant.

Cut away peel from squash, and cut into bite-sized pieces. Place curried onion and garlic mixture in a blender or food processor; add enough squash and broth to fill. Puree then transfer to pot. Puree remaining squash and broth, and transfer to pot. Next, add in your milk or cream (if you choose to add it), then stir mixture and bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Season with salt, then serve it up in shallow bowls (or bread bowls if you want to be fun).

If you want additional flavor, try putting a dollop of Greek or vanilla yogurt on top of each serving. Or, if you so desire, drop in some orzo pasta/ or Rice A Roni (if you want that special “add-in”).

(Later, I even tried stirring a just a touch of condensed tomato soup to get more of the red-orange color... and loved the taste, so I may add it to the original recipe next time.)

Please comment with any questions or suggestions if you decide to try out the recipe :)   Enjoy!

J

Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients:

1 (2 to 3 pound) butternut squash, peeled and seeded
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium onion, chopped (I used a red onion)
5- 6 cups chicken stock

Cream/Milk (to get smooth consistency- I used about ½ cup milk)
A pinch of Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Curry Powder, Garlic Powder, Brown Sugar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

(Try adding some condensed tomato soup, a spoonful of cooked orzo pasta, Rice-A-Roni, or even some Greek yogurt at the end)

Love, your personal chef

Or the girl next door :)

Jeannine Elaina

Reflection on Memorial Day

(In response to a post by a good friend,  http://sorensonadam-eng295.blogspot.com/2012/05/out-of-hands-of-one.html )


As a Dietetics student, training to be a competent health professional is of most importance to me.  I study hard to be able to teach principles of health and wellness to those who need help.  It has become apparent to me that many of the eating issues that people have today are deeply rooted in emotional problems.  If we, as health professionals, don't understand the deepest shell of each client (but we only see just the superficial level of the problem--- the actual eating behavior), we will be unable to help our clients change their lifestyles for the better.  Once a person's basic needs are met, then he or she will be able to focus on higher needs and wants, such as change and personal development. (Referring to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs).  The ironic thing is that  physiological needs are at the bottom of the pyramid, yet if the belonging and esteem needs near the top of the pyramid are not fulfilled... self-destructive habits (such as disordered eating) tend to develop.

Most people decide to be Dietitians because they have a strong desire to help people.  If they can join together, it might be possible to decrease the rates of obesity and eating disorders.  If they can join together, maybe they can be a positive voice in the community and share the strength people can have through healthy eating. If they can join together, people might be able to feel the love for themselves that they once felt.  Maybe, we can help them realize why they want to get up in the morning and be thankful for the blessings they do have in this country. I love people and I want to help them realize they are loved and that they can love themselves.  I want to help people find reasons to smile and to find joy--- it is a service I feel I was created to offer.

Because I am blessed to live in this country, I have the choice to become who I want to be.  I have the opportunity to study what I love so that I may be able to help those who I come in contact with.  I am also grateful for the men and women who gave their lives to protect those rights, and for those who continue to do so today.  

Good news!

I feel so blessed this summer. First off, I have great roommates and I am loving living at the apartment complex I am in right now. The ward is really fun and we have an activity almost every night--- which helps to develop friendships quickly.  This summer, I plan on gaining great experiences that I can put on my resume.  I have one thousand hours of experience and now I'm just doing more to develop my skills and it is going great so far.  I am reading some books that are applicable to my profession and I am volunteering as a Nutrition Coach on campus, and I even had two clients my first day! It is so incredible to actually do something that I might actually do as a career in the future.  Counseling people on nutrition and health is so fulfilling (it helps that I am passionate about nutrition and food).  I've always wanted to help people feel healthy, and now I have many of the skills to accomplish that.  I hope that I can help those who come to me with questions about health this summer, and in the future as well.

Besides my professional goals, I am working on developing my musical talents further than ever before.  I've had many years of piano lessons, but I still feel inadequate when I play the hymns in church.  This feeling of inadequacy urges me to practice those hymns--- and I think it's a great way to spend some time.  And... of course I'm still singing. I WILL sing until I die; music is so important to me.  I will be trying out for BYU Singers and Concert Choir in the Fall, and I want to keep my voice strong so I can have a shot at being one of the sopranos in a choir again.

I have two part time jobs right now, and I might get a third. If I get this one at the hospital, I will jump for joy.  I want to help people enjoy life, even though we all have problems, we can still enjoy what we've got. Especially since it's summertime, life is incredible. So I say, "soak in the rays, and get that Vitamin D!"

So.... what's new in my garden?

Summer has started with a few new surprises and some great moments so far--- I wonder what else is in store for the rest of my summer.  This time around, I moved into my new apartment not knowing whom I would be rooming with beforehand (I've done this quite a few times and all (but one) have turned out quite well.  Turns out, they are all 18 and 19. But, I'm not worried. As I got to know them during the first week, I fell in love with all of them. They are all fun and sweet (and gorgeous) and we will get along well. Another plus is that they eat healthily just like I do. I love seeing a lot of fruit and vegetables in the kitchen.  Yes, I'm the oldest in the apartment, just by a few years, but enough to make me feel like a mother (which I'm a fan of--- I get to nurture the motherly instincts in me quite easily here).  That being said, I still feel young, and we get along pretty well. I tend to be pretty easy going with most people, so this is just another occasion where I get to use my people skills.  I'm so excited that my roommate likes to sing as much as I do. She can sing most anything, but in choirs she is normally an alto ---which is perfect, since I'm normally a high soprano. AND.... she loves to play the piano as well! We are a perfect pair-- and I can't wait to do music with her more often. I know we'll have fun with music while we are together, and we've already had some good chats already. I kinda like this girl.

If you haven't figured it out yet, I love trying new foods (either creating them in my kitchen, or tasting them anywhere else).  So, you might find me putting recipes on my blog every once in a while--- because I also love to share. :)

Yesterday, I made my first artisan sourdough bread and it turned out fantastic.  I love the smell and taste of freshly baked bread, and I just had to try this recipe. It is a pretty easy recipe, but it just takes some time from start to finish.  Oh, just in case you didn't know, (I found this out today), the longer you "proof" the dough (meaning let it sit out to rise and let chemical reactions occur) ... the more sour it will get. I don't like my sourdough to taste too sour, so luckily I proofed it for only 2 to 3 hours.  Anyways, here is the recipe if you are salivating like I am right now.

Artisan Bread

Ingredients:

3 cu lukewarm water

1 1/2 Tbsp yeast

1 1/2 Tbsp salt

6 1/2 c flour

cornmeal

Combine water and 3 1/4 cup flour. Add salt, yeast, and the rest of flour. Don't knead. Rise, covered, for at least 2 hours. Place in fridge for at least 3 hours, or up to 2 weeks.

Gently shape dough into 4 round loaves on a well floured surface. This should only take a few seconds, or dough will deflate. Place in cornmeal to coat the bottom to give it a delicious pizza peel. Place on pan lined with parchment paper and allow to sit rise for 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 450 F. Dust top of bread with flour, then slash lines into the top. Place a pan with 1-2 cups water on lower shelf of oven. Place pan in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.

For best results when cutting, allow to cool first. Otherwise, it will still be delicious, but will deflate some when you cut it.

Besides baking, many things are happening in my life right now.  Recently, I have been working on a lot of things........

• Applying to jobs and volunteer positions applicable to Dietetics
• Studying my one online class: History 201
• Reading and studying the Book of Mormon
• Reading a novel called "The List"
• Reading a few books to increase my knowledge and skills in counseling ("Life Without Ed" and "Intuitive Eating")
• Cooking and baking delicious things :)
• Playing the guitar.... and attempting to write a song
• Running
• Singing
• Tennis
• Various sewing projects
• My Dietetics Portfolio (which will help me get a Dietetic Internship after graduating with a Bachelor's degree)
• .... and I'm sure this list could go on if I listed EVERYTHING I am doing, but I won't bore you to tears. I'm nice like that.

So, to elaborate on my first point, I am currently working at the Food Sensory Lab on campus, but I don't get very many hours from this job. I applied to Kneader's (but didn't show enough interest quickly to get the job) and then I talked to BYU Catering yesterday and I put my name on the waiting list. I have worked for them before, but apparently they have enough employees. I hope they decide they want me back when EFY rolls around. I'm still looking for more work, but I did hear back from the volunteering position I applied for. This position is a nutrition coach, and I got it! A handful of others got placement too, and I am so excited to have this opportunity!!!  I will get about 25 hours each term, and just a little bit of compensation for my time.  This will help me decide if I will want to work towards this more as a profession, or not, and in any case, it will help my counseling skills which will benefit anyone I come in contact with who has questions about health and nutrition.

Overall, I'm having a pretty awesome summer. I get to see my friends, work, study,bake, and read a lot, and once my pool is ready... I will definitely spend some time there.

---- <3 -------------- <3 -------------- <3--------------- <3--------------- <3------------------- <3---------------<3-----

22nd Birthday and Talent Show

So... I do other things besides think about food. This post is about one of those occasions. Have you ever heard of those college wards doing talent shows? I performed in mine last night, and I had a blast! I got to wear my sparkly little black dress-- and sing into a microphone on the stage of a lecture hall in the Tanner Building on BYU's campus. My favorite part about this is that I got the song ready in 5 days. The song that I performed brings back some great memories of my high school choir. Last night, I sang "A Wink and A Smile." Many of you may know this song from the movie, "Sleepless in Seattle," but my first exposure to it was back in high school. Anyways, I love to perform, and I had a blast. I learn a little bit more about myself and about performing every time I take the stage. Music will always be a part of my life, so keep that in mind if you're having trouble getting me something for my birthday or as a Christmas gift (you can also include anything with the kitchen or food for that matter as well..... ) :)

Here's a pic from the talent show (and no, I didn't have my hand behind my back for the entire song, just for the first few seconds)



Here comes a tangent.......
So, for my birthday this year, (which was last monday, the 13th).... I turned 22!!!! And, my family made me feel so special on this day. I feel so blessed to have the family that I do- each person is really incredible in his or her own way. I asked for a few things, and I received them! One of those items was an apple corer, which improves my healthy eating habits by decreasing the effort on my part to eat an apple. Thanks, Sharalyn! Also, I got a kitchen scale to measure ingredients with. I KNOW I'll be using that later when I have the time and money to make some incredible dishes from my On Cooking textbook...where most ingredients are listed in metrics. Thanks, Julia. Last, but not least, my parents got some music items for me that I have been dying to have. First, the Mikey. It is a recording microphone that you can hook into your iPod and it records things like a charm. I was playing with that for over 3 hours yesterday... yeah... so I wasn't doing homework all day yesterday. My bad, but I got a much needed, enjoyable break by spending time with my music. And, I also got an electronic guitar tuner, which will be very helpful when I'm not near a piano or a computer.

Besides all of the gifts I have received, the most important thing to mention is that I had the happiest birthday so far because of the people in my life. My roommates and friends prepared for me a wonderful birthday party... and a lot of my friends, new and old, came to celebrate it with me. I couldn't have asked for anything more than that. The little things count big in my book. So, thank you. All of you.

And, you know what? On the eve of my birthday, it SNOWED! That made me happy as well. Most of it melted before the night of my party, but it was there for a moment, and the sun was shining brightly that day as well. This life is a good one. Enjoy the happy moments, don't let them pass you by.

With much love, Jeannine

PS: If ANYONE knows how to put up a sound recording on the internet, let me know. As far as I can tell... the file is too large for it to go in email form, and I don't know how to upload it with blogger. My next idea was Facebook, but I don't really want to share the sound recording with the entire world.... but then again, I was okay with the idea of putting it on youtube (the only thing is, I don't have a youtube account). Should I get one? What do you think?

Media is getting to us... not only with fashion... but with food

The media has cornered us. Just by living a "normal" life in the states, we have multiple ways in which we can receive the media with all of our technological devices... which are now even more portable than ever. Computers are getting smaller, and phones are getting smarter. With the great growth of technology we have experienced in the last decade, we now have iPods that fit in our pockets, iPads that are smaller than a notebook of lined paper, and phones that can handle as much news as our tvs can.

How are we to get a break from advertising?

Body Image. Sexuality. Self-esteem. Advertising and the destruction of femininity. And... romantic relationships with food? That's very strange, but it's out there, and it is working very hard to get into our minds to influence our decisions and views of ourselves. The majority of advertising messages are sent through unconscious thinking-- so you may think it does not have an effect on you, but it really does.

The "ideal" body proposed by current media is a disillusioned ideal. Many men will agree with me and say that a woman with curves is more attractive than a woman who looks like she is starving herself. As I watched a video in a social psych class-- I was shocked at how influential the media has become. The video is called, "Killing Us Softly 4" (and it is the most recent edition). I've seen an earlier speech, and I was surprised at how much worse the advertising has become since then.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTlmho_RovY

(Watch with caution-- some images may be disturbing, and some sexual images are displayed to show the themes of current ads. You may choose to just listen to it and still get the big message.)

REAL people are beautiful- and many images we see are not real people. Those images are more like objects than anything. Real people have feelings, and curves, and smiles, and wrinkles, scars, and imperfections.

People. Please. Just try to eat more healthily. Live better. Exercise sometimes. Love more. Take care of your mind, body, and your soul. Do yoga. Forgive more. Meditate and relax. Give real compliments. Enjoy some ice cream once in a while. Hug someone. Eat fruit for dessert. Go dancing. Listen to one of the MormonMessages. Hike a mountain (and take a break from technology). Read a good book.

Body types come in all sizes and they are genetically made that way. Do your best to eat healthy and live an active life- and all will be well. Make a healthy relationship with food. I can share from experience that when I eat well, and am active, I feel well. I feel strong when I eat well. There is a lot of science that goes into MyPlate. If you don't believe me, try it for yourself. Try harder to follow the tips on choosemyplate.gov and then see how you feel. If you feel you need extra help, talk to a dietitian or another health professional for ideas on how to be a healthier you. I'm sure they will be completely willing to help!  If you wish, please share you experiences in a comment below.

---thought of the day---