Mystery Ingredient #3: Coconut

One of my very favourite hostess gifts looked like this:

For your blog my friend had said when she handed it to me.

I had never opened a coconut before. Frankly, the process kind of intimidated me. But, now that there was a real life coconut sitting in my kitchen, and I was going to figure it out. I started by asking Google.

There are actually a surprising number of 'How to open a coconut' tutorials out there. Apparently, this is a very common problem (either that, or people just like writing about it and creating YouTube videos).  I attempted the 'Tap and rotate' method recommended by wikihow. It sounds really simple and straightforward, but I ended up sticking the coconut in a plastic bag and hitting it with a hammer. Finally, the coconut cracked:

This is the coconut water:

 A lot of the natural food types I've rubbed shoulder with recently have advocated the use of coconut water as a fantastic workout fuel. I just can't get past the taste... If such things as coconut water controversy interest you, I recommend reading pharmacist Scott Gavura's blog post. Like so many controversial topics, the comments are as interesting as the post.

Anyhow, back to the coconut odyssey.
After finally getting the coconut to crack open, you need to pry the white flesh out. Youtube videos will make this look easy peasy. It wasn't (hence all those small pieces in the bowl).

The brown coating on the fleshy pieces needs to be removed. I used my dollar store carrot peeler. I'm sure there is a more efficient way of getting the job done.

Next, the (all white) pieces need to be grated. I'm lazy, so I used my food processor.

Finally, I decided to toast the coconut in a pan.

When I started the project, I had all kinds of great ideas for what I was going to do with my sugar-free, preservative-free fresh coconut. By the time I actually had the coconut in hand, I was pooped.
So, I tossed it into the blender with some frozen strawberries and a touch of agave to make something along the lines of faux ice cream. It was delicious.

Anyone else have any experience with opening coconuts? Any words of wisdom to offer? What are your favourite coconut recipes?

Mystery Ingredient #2: Kale

It feels like everyone is talking about kale lately. Major newspapers like The Vancouver Sun and The Detroit News have both featured kale in recent months. I've seen mountains of kale in mainstream grocery stores. Kale chips seem to be everywhere I look. Hopefully, this is a reflection of a widespread shift toward healthier nutrition. And as far as healthy choices go, kale is hard to beat.

Kale belongs to the brassica family -- meaning it is related to broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, and collard greens. The brassicas are nutritional powerhouses, loaded with vitamins and antioxidants. Some of the phytochemicals present in kale are thought to promote immune system wellness and play a role in the prevention of certain cancers including ovarian, bladder, and breast.
More nutritional information: Whole Foods has created an extensive, referenced write-up on the benefits of kale.
Diet as it relates to cancer: I recommend the work of Rebecca Katz. Chef Katz is one of my culinary heroes. She trained at The Natural Gourmet Institute and then went on to complete her master's degree in nutrition. Her approach is one of science-based tastiness.

Alright, back to the kale. Kale is not an ingredient that I am experienced in preparing. I mentioned this to a friend who was staying with me at the time. Oh, you HAVE to try kale chips! was her immediate reply. She even bought kale for me at a farmer's market.



Kale Chips
The basic principle of kale chips is pretty simple:
1. Wash kale and remove stems.
2. Mist with oil and sprinkle with salt.
3. Bake until crispy but not burnt.

I've included before and after pictures. The plant comprises mostly of water, so it shrinks down to a fraction of its original size during baking.
  

As you can also see from the pictures, I skipped the 'remove stems' part. Big mistake. The stems are edible, but they get really chewy. It's worth the extra few minutes to take out the stems.

The kale chips tasted something like a cross between roasted pumpkin seeds and seaweed.

All in all, I would try these again. I also saw lots of recipes for more adventurous kale chips -- interesting flavours, using a dehydrator. I may try out some of the variations for comparison.

Mystery Ingredient #1: Garlic Scapes

While exploring the topic of nutrition, it seemed appropriate to expand my horizons a little and try some new things. This post is the first of a series I will title Mystery Ingredients where I choose an ingredient I have never eaten before and then figure out what to do with it.

While at a local farmer's market, I spotted baskets with long curly green things in them that were labeled garlic scapes. They were, in my opinion, the weirdest looking things I had seen all day. I had to buy them.

Excerpt from conversation between me (M) and the farmer (F):

M: So, uh, what exactly do people do with these?
F: What? Oh, is this your first time?
(Clearly, these garlic scapes were serious stuff.)
M: Yup.
F: Ok, well you need to cut the end off - the flower - because it's bitter. Like this (he demonstrated). Then, chop it up. You can either use them in a salad just like that, or toss some into an omelette. Delicious! Just toss the paper bag in the fridge, and it'll keep for a couple weeks. Enjoy!

I took his advice.

However, I felt like just making an omelette and a plain salad was getting of the hook easy for a Mystery Ingredient post, so I also prepared a garlic soup. Original recipe can be found here.
I made the following modifications (based on what was in my kitchen and my dairy intolerance):
-regular organic garlic instead of the green garlic in the recipe (I don't even know what green garlic is)
-coconut oil instead of butter
-dry instead of fresh thyme
-water with celery seed, marjoram, oregano, sage, and a bay leaf instead of broth
-coconut milk instead of dairy milk

The farmer was right - delicious!