Healthy - Part 3

Grilling

I hear so often that summer is the easiest time, other than the holiday/Christmas season, to gain weight, and I’m not sure why - probably because we get together with family and friends and keep on having fun, and with that comes eating.  I find summer to be the easiest time to lose/maintain weight (which I proved handily to myself once again this year).  I’m more active in the summer, I drink a lot more water, but I find summer foods to be far healthier than what I eat/cook in the cooler months.

In the cooler months, I crave bigger flavors and heartier dishes.  And let’s face it, maybe we’re not quite as conscious of what we look like when we have sweaters, jackets, and scarves to cover some of it up.

Grilled shrimp sandwich

But in the summer, sure, we barbecue and drink margaritas and eat pie, but I like to keep some of those things to a minimum, and grilling doesn’t have to mean burgers, hot dogs, ribs, and wings every night.  How about chicken and fish?  How about vegetables?  For that matter, how about fruit?  Grilled corn and grilled peaches and especially grilled tomatoes and eggplants are among my favorites.

This week, grilled shrimp and grilled chicken were on the menu, but there was nothing boring or plain about them.

Sancerre rose

Grilled shrimp sandwiches was dinner a few nights ago.  The fresh jumbo shrimp were peeled and deveined, and brushed with barbecue sauce (a concoction of Jack Daniel’s sauce, worcestershire sauce, hickory seasoning, local wildflower honey, and soy sauce), and after the shrimp were grilled, onto fresh rolls they went, with very thinly sliced red onions, sliced avocado, and sliced (massive) local tomatoes.  I also added a dressing of pureed cilantro, fresh lime juice, olive oil, kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic.  With a side of sweet local Long Island corn, that’s a perfectly healthy and delicious summer dinner.  And of course I chose a rose for it - an organic rose from a very small producer in Sancerre.  That means it was a rose of Pinot Noir - dry, clean, bright, with notes of barely ripened strawberries, raspberries, lemon, watermelon rind, and fresh herbs, and white stony mineral.

And last night I made something that not only tasted delicious, it looked beautiful on the plate.

Anjou rouge

Salad for dinner

I bought a small bottle of mission fig balsamic vinegar the other day and wanted to put it to use this week.  So I decided on a salad for dinner.  I opted for organic baby greens and tossed them with a dressing of olive oil, lemon juice, kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic, and then placed it on plates.  I finely chopped shallot and added it to the plates.  Then I added candied walnuts and fresh crumbled goat cheese.  I then grilled somewhat thinly sliced (but not too thin!) chicken breasts which I had seasoned with kosher salt and black pepper, and after they were thoroughly cooked on both sides but careful not to overcook, I removed from the heat, set aside for a few moments, and then sliced the chicken, placed it on top of the salads, garnished with fresh thyme leaves from my plant at home, and drizzled with the mission fig balsamic vinegar.  I can’t remember the last time I was so proud of something so simple, just because it looked lovely and I knew it would taste great.  With it, I sliced a ciabatta loaf, and the wine I selected was a Cabernet Franc.  The Cabernet Franc was an Anjou rouge, from the Loire Valley in France, by a very small producer.  Notes of plum, dark fruits, pine/herbs, pink blossoms, mushroom, forest floor, and a distinct “dirty” earthiness that I expected from a Loire Cabernet Franc, were all present - as well as a fascinating dark inky purple color in the glass but a very clean feel, and medium body, and a lengthy finish - perfect for pairing with the salad.

Healthy dishes don’t have to be boring, and fun, delicious dishes don’t have to be fattening.  Pick fresh, good quality, delicious ingredients for maximum flavor, choose just one or two relatively uncomplicated side dishes, and a good wine, and you’re good to go.