To round out our month of trying to be healthier players, lets talk about a wondrous sandwich which I call the CLT. The CLT is made with three primary ingredients: cheese, lettuce, and tomato. Unlike the BLT, where primary flavour comes from the bacon, the tomato actually brings the most to the party in the CLT. These sandwiches are best with fresh, large tomatoes.
Equipment:
1 chef's knife
a cutting board
Ingredients:
slices of Mozzarella/Provolone cheese, 1~2 per sandwich
1~2 tomatoes, thickly sliced
Lettuce (Romain is nice), washed and ripped
Mayonnaise
Salt (Sea Salt is best)
Sliced bread, toasted
Directions:
1. Apply mayo to bread slices
2. Place 1~2 slices of tomato on the sandwich
3. sprinkle/grind salt over tomato
4. add cheese and lettuce to sandwich
5. close the sandwich
Serve! 1 medium sized tomato should yield enough for 3 or 4 sandwiches, at least.
Possible Alterations:
Sandwiches are very flexible, but aside from different sauces, there isn't much in the way of additions or subtractions one can make without making something that isn't a CLT. That doesn't mean that they'd be bad, by any stretch though!
Now it is also important to note that these sandwiches, while tasty, aren't necessarily the most filling things on the face of the planet. They'd be best served with a side of some sort of hefty side dish. One might consider rice and beans, or some kind of bean salad.
Happy gaming!
Monday, June 27, 2011
Friday, June 17, 2011
Greek French Onion Dip
As much as I love crudités, they can be a bit boring. Then again, so can chips and pretzels, and so many other snack foods. There are several things that can be done to combat blandness, however. The simplest, by far, is to have some dip with your snacks.
Dips can be a snap to make, and delicious to boot. However, they tend to be made out of things like sour cream and mayonnaise, which are hefty in terms of calories and bad for people who are trying to be healthy. Since this month is about getting some healthy snack options around the table, a run-of-the-mill dip just won't do. Luckily, I know just the thing.
Equipment:
Stirring Spoon
Mixing bowl
Measuring implements
Ingredients:
1 packet French Onion Soup Mix
8 oz Greek-style yogurt
2 Tbsp Mayo (or to taste)
Directions:
1. Mix all ingredients in bowl
2. Let sit in refrigerator for 10~15 minutes
Serve with crudités, or ruffled potato chips.
Possible Alterations:
Greek-style yogurt can be pricey, and while I've not tried this recipe with plain yogurt, it certainly seems like it could work. If you're willing to try it, please report back here and I'll update this post. A friend of mine has also mentioned that you can fake Greek-style yogurt by straining plain yogurt with coffee filters for a few hours, so that could also be something worth trying. Also, if you're uncaring to how healthy your snacks are, you can substitute sour cream for the yogurt. You may want to add a bit more mayo if you do, but you don't have to. Of course, there is also the Bacon French Onion dip I mentioned a while ago.
Happy gaming!
Dips can be a snap to make, and delicious to boot. However, they tend to be made out of things like sour cream and mayonnaise, which are hefty in terms of calories and bad for people who are trying to be healthy. Since this month is about getting some healthy snack options around the table, a run-of-the-mill dip just won't do. Luckily, I know just the thing.
Equipment:
Stirring Spoon
Mixing bowl
Measuring implements
Ingredients:
1 packet French Onion Soup Mix
8 oz Greek-style yogurt
2 Tbsp Mayo (or to taste)
Directions:
1. Mix all ingredients in bowl
2. Let sit in refrigerator for 10~15 minutes
Serve with crudités, or ruffled potato chips.
Possible Alterations:
Greek-style yogurt can be pricey, and while I've not tried this recipe with plain yogurt, it certainly seems like it could work. If you're willing to try it, please report back here and I'll update this post. A friend of mine has also mentioned that you can fake Greek-style yogurt by straining plain yogurt with coffee filters for a few hours, so that could also be something worth trying. Also, if you're uncaring to how healthy your snacks are, you can substitute sour cream for the yogurt. You may want to add a bit more mayo if you do, but you don't have to. Of course, there is also the Bacon French Onion dip I mentioned a while ago.
Happy gaming!
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Crudités 'round the Table
Your traditional snacks for D&D might include any of following: pretzels, corn chips, potato chips, cheetos, peanuts, and maybe popcorn. All tasty things, but sometimes you need a break from the usual. Enter Crudités.
Crudités (pronounced Crew-Day-Ta) is a fancy French word for something simple; Crudités is just sliced, raw vegetables. They make a nice change of pace from your regular snacks, and they're simple to boot!
Ingredients:
4 large carrots
4 stalks celery
1~2 green peppers
1-2 heads Broccoli
Equipment:
1 carrot scraper
1 cutting board
1 chefs knife
1 paring knife
1 plate (large is best!)
Directions:
1. Prepare the carrots:
a. Scrape the carrots.
b. Chop off the tips.
c. Cut carrots into sticks
d. Place carrot sticks on a plate
2. Prepare the Celery:
a. Wash the Celery stalks.
b. Placing the celery so that it is concave down.
c. Cut off the leaves and base, and save the leaves for later use.
d. Slice down the center lengthwise.
e. Slice into sticks
f. Place on same plate as carrots.
3. Prepare the Peppers
a. Wash the peppers
b. Remove the stem using the paring knife.
c. Cut the pepper down the center.
d. Remove the seeds with the paring knife.
e. Cut into strips.
f. Place pepper strips on the plate
4. Prepare the Broccoli
a. Wash the broccoli
b. Remove the stalk, and place to the side.
c. Break up the florets (the tree-like parts)
d. Take the stalk and cut it into manageable sticks.
e. Place the florets and the stalk slices onto the platter
Serve immediately with dip or cover in plastic wrap for short term storage. Place separately in plastic zip-top bags for the long term storage.
Possible Alterations:
Different vegetables can certainly be used. Cucumber slices, or sticks, are delicious, as are asparagus stalks. Cauliflower is also acceptable, but I don't find it as tasty raw as the previously mentioned veggies. As always, suggestions are appreciated!
Happy Gaming!
Crudités (pronounced Crew-Day-Ta) is a fancy French word for something simple; Crudités is just sliced, raw vegetables. They make a nice change of pace from your regular snacks, and they're simple to boot!
Ingredients:
4 large carrots
4 stalks celery
1~2 green peppers
1-2 heads Broccoli
Equipment:
1 carrot scraper
1 cutting board
1 chefs knife
1 paring knife
1 plate (large is best!)
Directions:
1. Prepare the carrots:
a. Scrape the carrots.
b. Chop off the tips.
c. Cut carrots into sticks
d. Place carrot sticks on a plate
2. Prepare the Celery:
a. Wash the Celery stalks.
b. Placing the celery so that it is concave down.
c. Cut off the leaves and base, and save the leaves for later use.
d. Slice down the center lengthwise.
e. Slice into sticks
f. Place on same plate as carrots.
3. Prepare the Peppers
a. Wash the peppers
b. Remove the stem using the paring knife.
c. Cut the pepper down the center.
d. Remove the seeds with the paring knife.
e. Cut into strips.
f. Place pepper strips on the plate
4. Prepare the Broccoli
a. Wash the broccoli
b. Remove the stalk, and place to the side.
c. Break up the florets (the tree-like parts)
d. Take the stalk and cut it into manageable sticks.
e. Place the florets and the stalk slices onto the platter
Serve immediately with dip or cover in plastic wrap for short term storage. Place separately in plastic zip-top bags for the long term storage.
Possible Alterations:
Different vegetables can certainly be used. Cucumber slices, or sticks, are delicious, as are asparagus stalks. Cauliflower is also acceptable, but I don't find it as tasty raw as the previously mentioned veggies. As always, suggestions are appreciated!
Happy Gaming!
Saturday, June 4, 2011
A Big Ol' Bag of Salad
Salad. When people think of people sitting around a table, playing games, they don't think of salad. They think of people eating cheese doodles and pizza, and drinking large quantities of soda. And sometimes it's a true statement.
That doesn't mean it has to be all the time, however.
In this world of convenience, it's very easy to go to the store and get a large bag of salad. They make for a great side dish, or you can add extras like chicken or tuna to get a good, full meal.
Bag salads are great for when you don't have a lot of time to prepare, but I find them to be a bit more expensive than necessary. So lets make our own!
Ingredients:
1 head Romaine lettuce
3~4 medium-large carrots
3 sticks of celery
2~3 handfuls cherry tomatoes
~1/2 of a small-medium red onion
Equipment:
Cutting board
1 chef's knife
1 carrot scraper
Collander/medium sized bowl
1 Gallon zip-top bag
Directions:
1. Wash the lettuce, tear it up, and place into the gallon bag.
2. Scrape the skin off the carrots and remove the tips. Slice the carrots up and put into the bag.
3. Wash the celery, and chop off the base. Leaving the leaves on, slice the celery and place into the bag.
4. Wash the cherry tomatoes, and toss them into the bag.
5. Peel the onion, and slice off the roots and the stem. Cut in half, and dice. Place the remainder of the onion into a sandwich size zip-top bag, and store in the fridge.
6. Seal the bag and shake vigorously.
Store it in the fridge, or serve immediately.
Possible Alterations:
Salads are great, but they need a bit more than vegetables to make them filling enough to be an entire meal. This salad will store well, but storing it with things like nuts, chicken, or beans isn't going to be great. I recommend storing these things separately and then adding them before serving. This is especially handy if one needs to feed vegetarians/vegans, because then one simply does not add meat/cheese to their plate, and viola! No need for two separate salads!
I would also recommend that you store that other half of the onion diced in the zip-top bag, because it makes life easier. Having pre-diced onion means you don't have to pull out the knife and cutting board every time you want to add a little onion to something. Just pull out the bag, grab a handful, and toss it in. If stored properly, the onion can last for a good number of weeks.
Happy gaming!
That doesn't mean it has to be all the time, however.
In this world of convenience, it's very easy to go to the store and get a large bag of salad. They make for a great side dish, or you can add extras like chicken or tuna to get a good, full meal.
Bag salads are great for when you don't have a lot of time to prepare, but I find them to be a bit more expensive than necessary. So lets make our own!
Ingredients:
1 head Romaine lettuce
3~4 medium-large carrots
3 sticks of celery
2~3 handfuls cherry tomatoes
~1/2 of a small-medium red onion
Equipment:
Cutting board
1 chef's knife
1 carrot scraper
Collander/medium sized bowl
1 Gallon zip-top bag
Directions:
1. Wash the lettuce, tear it up, and place into the gallon bag.
2. Scrape the skin off the carrots and remove the tips. Slice the carrots up and put into the bag.
3. Wash the celery, and chop off the base. Leaving the leaves on, slice the celery and place into the bag.
4. Wash the cherry tomatoes, and toss them into the bag.
5. Peel the onion, and slice off the roots and the stem. Cut in half, and dice. Place the remainder of the onion into a sandwich size zip-top bag, and store in the fridge.
6. Seal the bag and shake vigorously.
Store it in the fridge, or serve immediately.
Possible Alterations:
Salads are great, but they need a bit more than vegetables to make them filling enough to be an entire meal. This salad will store well, but storing it with things like nuts, chicken, or beans isn't going to be great. I recommend storing these things separately and then adding them before serving. This is especially handy if one needs to feed vegetarians/vegans, because then one simply does not add meat/cheese to their plate, and viola! No need for two separate salads!
I would also recommend that you store that other half of the onion diced in the zip-top bag, because it makes life easier. Having pre-diced onion means you don't have to pull out the knife and cutting board every time you want to add a little onion to something. Just pull out the bag, grab a handful, and toss it in. If stored properly, the onion can last for a good number of weeks.
Happy gaming!
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