The New Intimacy

#EdenCooks - Green Jamaican Soup with Guest Host Melissa Ramos - Mon. March 19 at 8pm EST

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Contributor: wrmbreze wrmbreze
Quote:
Originally posted by Kithara
Walnuts are delicious, but I love to snack on almonds. They sell wasabi covered ones that my mom will not eat, too, and the spice keeps me from eating them all in one go.
I have tried wasabi cashews, they were AWESOME!!
03/19/2012
Contributor: Antipova Antipova
Quote:
Originally posted by wrmbreze
No one in my household like walnuts but me.
Sorry to hear that I was really missing out.

And Stormy, you will have to send me your cake recipe! That sounds like an awesome birthday cake for people with August birthdays.
03/19/2012
Contributor: Jul!a Jul!a
Quote:
Originally posted by Kithara
Walnuts are delicious, but I love to snack on almonds. They sell wasabi covered ones that my mom will not eat, too, and the spice keeps me from eating them all in one go.
I'm really not a huge nut person. I like pistachios and peanuts (I know, not actually nuts), but I've had to develop the ability to tolerate most other nuts.
03/19/2012
Contributor: Antipova Antipova
Quote:
Originally posted by Jul!a
I'm really not a huge nut person. I like pistachios and peanuts (I know, not actually nuts), but I've had to develop the ability to tolerate most other nuts.
Are pistachios not nuts? Shows what I know!
03/19/2012
Contributor: wrmbreze wrmbreze
Quote:
Originally posted by Jul!a
I'm really not a huge nut person. I like pistachios and peanuts (I know, not actually nuts), but I've had to develop the ability to tolerate most other nuts.
Cashews, honey glazed peanuts, almonds and macadamia nuts are the ones I like.
03/19/2012
Contributor: Melissa Ramos Melissa Ramos
Quote:
Originally posted by Jul!a
Ooh, a spicy chocolate brittle sounds amazing!
It's so good and it takes 15 minutes from start to finish! I'll upload the newsletter video when I spoke briefly about it! Hang tight!
03/19/2012
Contributor: Say Say
Quote:
Originally posted by Melissa Ramos
Hey there, you can definitely make this soup and simply omit the spices! That's not a problem at all. I love topping this soup with toasted walnuts...soooooo good!
For those of us with limited spice-tolerance, are there other ways to keep vital energy flowing? I don't like to think of my Qi-channels clogging up because I can't resist a good walnut.
03/19/2012
Contributor: Jul!a Jul!a
Quote:
Originally posted by Antipova
Are pistachios not nuts? Shows what I know!
Haha, peanuts aren't nuts I thought. They're legumes. And that's about all I know, lol.
03/19/2012
Contributor: Jul!a Jul!a
Quote:
Originally posted by Melissa Ramos
It's so good and it takes 15 minutes from start to finish! I'll upload the newsletter video when I spoke briefly about it! Hang tight!
Oh I would love to learn how to make that!
03/19/2012
Contributor: wrmbreze wrmbreze
Quote:
Originally posted by Jul!a
Haha, peanuts aren't nuts I thought. They're legumes. And that's about all I know, lol.
Pistachios are nice to nibble on instead of junk food.
03/19/2012
Contributor: wrmbreze wrmbreze
Quote:
Originally posted by Jul!a
Oh I would love to learn how to make that!
Same here.
03/19/2012
Contributor: Ansley Ansley
Quote:
Originally posted by Antipova
Sorry to hear that I was really missing out.

And Stormy, you will have to send me your cake recipe! That sounds like an awesome birthday cake for people with August birthdays.
You can actually make it all year round, no berries required though I would never ever say no to adding actual blackberries. The tricky part is finding the right gelatin.
03/19/2012
Contributor: Antipova Antipova
Quote:
Originally posted by Jul!a
Haha, peanuts aren't nuts I thought. They're legumes. And that's about all I know, lol.
Oh, I thought you meant both!
03/19/2012
Contributor: Jul!a Jul!a
Quote:
Originally posted by Antipova
Oh, I thought you meant both!
Haha nope!
03/19/2012
Contributor: Kithara Kithara
Quote:
Originally posted by Jul!a
I'm really not a huge nut person. I like pistachios and peanuts (I know, not actually nuts), but I've had to develop the ability to tolerate most other nuts.
I wonder if you'd like almond butter. It tastes pretty much like peanut butter, but has much more protein and other good supplements, as well has having half the fat as peanut butter.
03/19/2012
Contributor: Melissa Ramos Melissa Ramos
Quote:
Originally posted by Starkiller87
*

Melissa what is the perfect feel sexy dinner menu? From appetizers to desert, what is your absolute go to items?
Honestly I want to make sure everyone realizes that when I talk about "sexy" I'm not referring to aphrodisiac. I'm saying that sexy = healthy! So my go-to for appetizers right through to dessert would be:

Snack
Nut crackers with garlic-cumin hummus

Dinner
My killer kale salad w/ my pretty in pink dressing (link)

Dessert
My blueberry lemon "cheesecake" (link)
03/19/2012
Contributor: Antipova Antipova

Making this dish (which reminds me a little bit of callaloo, a Caribbean dish I've only had in restaurants and don't know how to replicate) made me really wish I was more familiar with Caribbean cooking. I noticed that a lot of the method is similar to Indian cooking, which I'm pretty familiar with, so my Spicy Green Jamaican Soup might be "Spicy Green Jamaican Soup---Indian Version"... but it tasted great all the same.

I started by chopping up the onions, the garlic, the ginger, and the chilies. Once the onions were chopped I heated up my cooking oil and added the onions until they began to caramelize. Then I added in my other aromatics---the garlic, ginger, and chilies.



Then I added the turmeric and cumin (and apparently only took a picture of the turmeric. Whoops! I promise the cumin got added too---this would taste boring with turmeric alone. Pretty as it is, turmeric is not very flavorful.



The same as with Indian cooking, the idea is that flavors are usually oil-soluble, so adding the onions, garlic, chilies, ginger, and cumin to your cooking oil is how the flavors are bound and enhanced, and how they're able to stick around tasting delicious once you add the vegetables and water to your soup. Some recipes have this flavor step last (after you have cooked a pot of beans all day, say) but with short-cooking vegetables, first is just as good as last.

I also started up my rice (1 cup of rice + 2.25 cups of water, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer with the lid on) at this point.
03/19/2012
Contributor: Melissa Ramos Melissa Ramos
Quote:
Originally posted by wrmbreze
*

What would you recommend for people who don't cook a lot of homemade stuff? Do you have an easy recipe to suggest?
Well, I'd ask why you don't cook a lot. Is it because you don't like to? Because your kitchen is disorganized and you find the space intimidating? Is it a lack of knowledge?

Let's get to the root of the cause wrmbreze!
03/19/2012
Contributor: Antipova Antipova
Quote:
Originally posted by Melissa Ramos
Honestly I want to make sure everyone realizes that when I talk about "sexy" I'm not referring to aphrodisiac. I'm saying that sexy = healthy! So my go-to for appetizers right through to dessert would be:

Snack
Nut ... more


I have to admit, that mock cheesecake looks amazing. I'm going to pretend *my* birthday is in June so I can make it for myself!
03/19/2012
Contributor: Kithara Kithara
Quote:
Originally posted by Melissa Ramos
Honestly I want to make sure everyone realizes that when I talk about "sexy" I'm not referring to aphrodisiac. I'm saying that sexy = healthy! So my go-to for appetizers right through to dessert would be:

Snack
Nut ... more
Oh man! I LOVE the combination of lemon + any berry! I am going to have to try that one out!
03/19/2012
Contributor: Starkiller87 Starkiller87
Quote:
Originally posted by Melissa Ramos
Honestly I want to make sure everyone realizes that when I talk about "sexy" I'm not referring to aphrodisiac. I'm saying that sexy = healthy! So my go-to for appetizers right through to dessert would be:

Snack
Nut ... more
Seems like we all have a love for hummus here. hhaha.

Ive also never had kale in a salad but have had it in numerous amounts of smoothies and juices, kind of weird right. haha
03/19/2012
Contributor: Jul!a Jul!a
Quote:
Originally posted by Melissa Ramos
Honestly I want to make sure everyone realizes that when I talk about "sexy" I'm not referring to aphrodisiac. I'm saying that sexy = healthy! So my go-to for appetizers right through to dessert would be:

Snack
Nut ... more
That pink dressing sounds tasty, and I am a sucker for anything pink!
03/19/2012
Contributor: Starkiller87 Starkiller87
Quote:
Originally posted by Antipova

Making this dish (which reminds me a little bit of callaloo, a Caribbean dish I've only had in restaurants and don't know how to replicate) made me really wish I was more familiar with Caribbean cooking. I noticed that a lot of the method ... more
This part always kills me when im cooking because the smell of cooking onions, garlic, peppers drives me nuts and I want to eat it out of the pan by itself. lol, i could spend forever smelling different spices and ingredients
03/19/2012
Contributor: wrmbreze wrmbreze
Quote:
Originally posted by Melissa Ramos
Well, I'd ask why you don't cook a lot. Is it because you don't like to? Because your kitchen is disorganized and you find the space intimidating? Is it a lack of knowledge?

Let's get to the root of the cause wrmbreze!
I do cook a good bit but not always from scratch. I have never made a soup or anything too complicated. I also have a really picky family. No seafood at all and what they will eat seems to be mostly pasta..They get that from my husband. I also have a really small kitchen with very little counter space, I normally end up using the kitchen table for cooking.
03/19/2012
Contributor: Jul!a Jul!a
Quote:
Originally posted by Melissa Ramos
Well, I'd ask why you don't cook a lot. Is it because you don't like to? Because your kitchen is disorganized and you find the space intimidating? Is it a lack of knowledge?

Let's get to the root of the cause wrmbreze!
I can tell you that for me it's not wanting to do dishes, lol.
03/19/2012
Contributor: Melissa Ramos Melissa Ramos
Quote:
Originally posted by Antipova

So what emotions does the liver cause when it's hot and when it's cool? When should I decide to eat green things?
The liver never gets "cool". I WISH!

It's more prone to getting heated. It gets heated when we drink too much, eat too many fried, fatty foods, etc.

So green foods are naturally cooling (think of green being the opposite colour of red - red being HOT). When the liver has too much heat we are prone to getting angry, frustrated or have that unnerving feeling of being stuck! Anyone ever feel that way?? I know I have.

Well this feeling in Chinese Medicine is called, "liver Qi stagnation" which means the energy of our liver is stuck - usually due to a build up of heat! So by adding in cooling foods (greens, lemon water for example), it helps to cool and move the liver!
03/19/2012
Contributor: Kithara Kithara
Quote:
Originally posted by Melissa Ramos
Hey there, I'm just in the process of uploading it. Hang tight!
*

What does the spoon-in-mouth trick do to help with tears when cutting onions? I've never heard of that technique.
03/19/2012
Contributor: Starkiller87 Starkiller87
Quote:
Originally posted by wrmbreze
I do cook a good bit but not always from scratch. I have never made a soup or anything too complicated. I also have a really picky family. No seafood at all and what they will eat seems to be mostly pasta..They get that from my husband. I also have a ... more
Soup is so easy to make!!! Dont let it scare you. You just throw in a ton of whatever you love in a pot with some broth and salt, pepper and season. And cook for a few hours and done!
03/19/2012
Contributor: Antipova Antipova
Quote:
Originally posted by Starkiller87
This part always kills me when im cooking because the smell of cooking onions, garlic, peppers drives me nuts and I want to eat it out of the pan by itself. lol, i could spend forever smelling different spices and ingredients
I know! This is why cooking is sexy... somebody hovering over a pan of onions garlic and peppers and you're inexorably drawn to it... your taste buds take over your whole body so you fall in love in spite of yourself!
03/19/2012
Contributor: Melissa Ramos Melissa Ramos
Quote:
Originally posted by Kithara
My mom (the spice-hater) LOVES walnuts. This recipe will be definitely be a hit in my family! Thanks!
No problem. I'm always giving some great tips in my Red Couch Confessions newsletter: link

and there are some great recipes with four awesome fun, engaging, dance-with-me kind of cooking videos in the actual Remodel Sexy program:

link
03/19/2012