Easy Kale and Coconut

kale and coconut with figs
Originally uploaded by coffywoman.

This is one of our favorite ways to eat kale. The coconut adds a nice nutty flavor that complements the taste of the greens really well (or, at least, we think so!). It's dead easy to make, takes about 10 minutes to prepare, and our 2-year old gobbles it up and almost always asks for more!

Ingredients

• 1 bunch of kale (our favorite is dinosaur kale)
• ~1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes or shredded coconut
• dash of salt
• ~1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 tbsp. olive oil

De-rib kale and cut in coarse chiffonade.

Sautee kale in olive oil over medium heat until slightly wilted (approx. 2-3 minutes).

Add in coconut and continue to cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Add lemon juice and a dash of salt to taste.

Enhanced Hot Cereal

enhanced hot cereal
Originally uploaded by coffywoman.

We're always looking to bump up the nutritional profile for many of the things we feed our 2-year old toddler. One of the ways we do this is to just make a basic hot cereal (we like Bob's Red Mill multi-grain cereals -- 7-, 9- or 10-grain) and then add coconut milk (our own idea) and a little flax seed oil (inspired by Le Pain Quotidien's Omega-3 Oatmeal).

The coconut milk adds a nice nutty flavor to the cereal as well as adding extra fat (essential to toddler development) while the flax seed oil adds extra protein and omega-3's.

Dylan loves it!

Ingredients

• hot cereal (prepared as usual)
• 1 tbsp. coconut milk
• 1 tbsp. flax seed oil

Prepare cereal as you normally would.

Stir in some coconut milk and drizzle on some flax seed oil and enjoy!

Chickpea-Quinoa Pilaf with Steamed Broccolini

chickpea-quinoa pilaf with broccolini
Originally uploaded by coffywoman.

The quinoa is the first recipe we tried from Veganomicon and it was super good and super easy to make (that means it tasted good even though I cooked it!).

Having some steamed broccolini from this week's farm share was the perfect accompaniment (and Dylan loves broccolini!). The quinoa was a little on the salty side for our taste (we'd probably reduce salt a smidge next time) and the broccolini helped cut through the salt hit.

We'll post a modified version of the recipe soon....We are planning on adding butternut squash or sweet corn to make it even more interesting next time.

Bananas in Coconut Milk

This is a super easy variation of a Thai dessert called Kluay Buat Chee and is basically a minimalist version of Filipino ginataan. It takes all but 10 minutes in total to make! And, if you're wary about the coconut, rest assured that coconut milk has many health benefits.

Ingredients

• 1-14oz. can of coconut milk
• 1 or 2 medium bananas cut lengthwise and then cut across into about 4 pieces
• 1 tsp. maple syrup

Bring coconut milk to a boil over medium heat.

Add bananas and cook until soft (about 3-4 minutes).

Add maple syrup.