I’ve been trying to eat very healthily to prepare for my marathon in a few weeks; I’d like to think that that could make up for a full season of laziness and daily desserts. And so I’ve been eating lots of beans, vegetables, and nuts. This dish has all of that. It’s a flavorful mix that’s perfect for a hearty vegan entrée or a side dish to some fish. I use walnuts in place of pine nuts for some added omega-3’s(also, if you’ve ever shopped for pine nuts you might notice that they cost more per pound than some precious metals). Beans, beans, the magical fruit; the more you eat… let’s just say you should be eating them.

Cannellini Beans With Kale And Walnuts

Ingredients(Makes 4-6 side servings or 2-3 entrees):

• 4 cups chopped kale
• 2 cans cannellini beans, drained of water
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil plus more for finishing
• 1/2 cup toasted walnuts
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Heat a large pan with 2 Tablespoons of olive oil over a burner set to medium.

Add in the kale and sauté until it has reduced to about half of its volume.

Mix in the 2 cans of beans and leave on the heat until they’re warmed.

Turn off the heat. Add in the walnuts, lemon juice, salt, and pepper and stir the contents of the pan until fully mixed. Serve hot and drizzle on top some of the good extra virgin olive oil(the kind you would serve Ina Garten).

This is my idea of hearty Italian comfort food. The only thing that might make it better would be sautéing some garlic into the oil in the beginning, but my breath really doesn’t need any more garlic.

Here’s to March being the best month of the year. Since my birthday’s at the end of March, I figure there will be a lot of cake and cupcake recipes around then so I might as well start the month with something healthy.

Matt has mentioned on his blog and in his e-book about the combination of a grain, a green, and a bean. Well, my favorite grain is quinoa, bean is chickpea, and green is kale, so I thought I’d make a recipe with those three ingredients. And a little butter and honey never hurt.

Chickpea, Quinoa, and Kale Medley

Ingredients(Makes 2 servings):

• 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed and drained
• 1 can of chickpeas, drained
• 1 1/2 cups chopped kale
• 1 Tablespoon butter
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon white vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Cook the quinoa completely either in a rice cooker or over the stove. Make sure there’s no excess water in the pot with it.

Add in the chickpeas and kale.

Next add to the pot the butter, honey, salt, and vinegar.

Stir until the butter has melted and it’s all one dish. Serve hot or cold as leftovers.

I don’t know whether it was because I was getting over the flu and started getting my appetite back or because I just love honey + butter but I think I broke a world speed record eating this.

Yeah, I hated it.

I’m a sucker for a sale. So when I saw sole on sale for 50% off at Whole Foods, my gut reaction was to buy it. Never mind that I hadn’t cooked/ate fish for probably half a year. It was on sale.

When I actually thought about how I wanted to eat it, fried and spicy seemed right. This dish has everything you could want: the fish is a soft; the avocado is creamy; the kale is a little tough and gives it all a bit of a bite. It felt like something you’d order at a restaurant.

Chili-Rubbed Sole With Sautéed Kale And Avocado

Ingredients(Makes 2 servings):

• 1/2lb sole(or other white fish)
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 bunch of kale, chopped
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 avocado
• Lemon for serving

Cover one side of the fish with half of the chili powder and rub it in. Shake off the excess and do the same for the next side.

In the meantime, heat a large pan over medium-high heat with the oil.

Lay the fish in to cook. After about 90 seconds flip the first side over. Use a wide tool and be careful not to break the fillet.

Cook for another 90 seconds or so until the center is cooked through. Gently remove the fish from the pan to rest but not the oil.

When the fish is removed, add in the kale to sauté in the oil. This is a great time to use frozen kale for a cheap but nutritious option.

Sauté the kale until it’s soaked up the oil and reduced to about half the size. Season with 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

To plate, first make a bed of kale. Next add a piece of the fish fillet and season that with a sprinkle of the remaining salt. Cut the avocado in half and then into wedges and lay them down among the fish, serving with a wedge of lemon.

I really really hope this sale goes on for a while.

Lunchtime is a funny time. I usually just want hot food fast, that still tastes good but won’t take too long to cook(because that might interfere with watching Days of Our Lives). I usually opt for leftovers, quick-cooking quinoa, or—a big favorite of mine—a stir-fry. Start to finish, a stir-fry only takes 12-15 minutes to cook, and it usually has a lot of flavor. I make this with frozen veggies which makes the preparation even faster without changing the flavor.

Lunchtime Stir-Fry

Ingredients:

• 1/2 block extra-firm tofu, cubed
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 2-3 garlic cloves, diced
• 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1/2 cup steamed broccoli
• 1-2 handfuls spinach
• a pinch of salt

Heat the oil in a pan with the garlic. Let it sauté for a few minutes over low-medium heat to flavor the oil.

Once the garlic starts turning slightly browned, add in the tofu, soy sauce, and salt. Keep stirring the pan as the ingredients cook and the tofu browns.

Once the tofu has browned on all sides, add in the broccoli and spinach and continue to cook until they have absorbed the liquid.

All the flavor and none of the fuss. To steal the words from Ina Garten(and actually mean them), “How easy is that?” My favorite part is the broccoli after it has sucked up all the salty sauce and is tender and juicy when you bite in.

Comfort food rarely looks appealing, and yet there’s nothing we want more. It’s warm, thick, and often rich with flavor; who cares what it looks like? This has been my favorite comfort food lately. It’s not really a stew because there’s no liquid. Instead, it’s a thick, creamy bowl of flavorful carbs. And that is the most comforting thing in my eyes.

Lentils With Potatoes And Caramelized Onions

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dry lentils
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 3-4 starchy potatoes, diced and cooked
• 1 onion, julienned
• 2 tablespoons olive oil plus more for finishing

Start by cooking your lentils to completion with the bay leaf, salt, and pepper. When the lentils are done cooking, remove the bay leaf and discard.

Meanwhile, caramelize onions in a large frying pan with the olive oil. Once the onions are loose and translucent, add in the potatoes as if you were making a hash and cook for 10-15 minutes until they start forming a crust.

Add the onions and potatoes in with the lentils and mix the contents together well. Don’t worry if the lentils start mashing and the potatoes break apart; that just means the flavor will blend together more. Serve hot and drizzle with good extra virgin olive oil(the kind Ina’s always pushing).

I didn’t promise a pretty bowl, but I will promise that you can’t eat this without smiling. It’s thick and hearty and can please the cravings of a meat and potato lover. I like to eat this with ketchup, which is weird because I don’t normally put ketchup on anything. I’d also suggest eating this on the couch watching trashy TV wearing old sweat pants, because it’s that kind of comfort food.