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Curried Vegetable Samosas with Cilantro-Mint Chutney+

5 points

Yield:  4 servings (serving size: 5 samosas and about 1 tablespoon chutney)

Chutney:
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup chopped red onion
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon water
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon sugar
1 serrano chile, coarsely chopped
1 (1/2-inch) piece peeled fresh ginger

Samosas:
1 1/4 cups mashed cooked peeled baking potatoes
1/4 cup cooked yellow lentils
1 tablespoon minced fresh mint
1 teaspoon Madras curry powder
1 teaspoon butter, softened
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 cup frozen petite green peas, thawed
10 egg roll wrappers
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Cooking spray

1. To prepare chutney, combine first 9 ingredients in a blender; process until smooth. Set aside.

2. To prepare samosas, combine potatoes, lentils, mint, curry powder, 1 teaspoon butter, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and cumin. Gently fold in peas.

3. Working with 1 egg roll wrapper at a time (cover remaining wrappers to prevent drying), cut down middle to form 2 long rectangles. Moisten edges of wrapper with egg. Spoon 1 tablespoon potato mixture near bottom edge of wrapper. Fold up from 1 corner to the opposite outer edge of the wrapper, making a triangle. Fold over to opposite side again as if folding up a flag. Repeat fold to opposite side to form a triangle. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling.

4. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Lightly coat samosas with cooking spray. Add samosas to pan, and cook 1 minute on each side. Drain on paper towels. Serve with chutney.

CALORIES 288 ; FAT 2.6g (sat 0.9g,mono 0.5g,poly 0.2g); CHOLESTEROL 29mg; CALCIUM 43mg; CARBOHYDRATE 58.3g; SODIUM 574mg; PROTEIN 11g; FIBER 5.4g; IRON 4.6mg

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September 2, Cabane de Prafleuri to Arolla

Day Summary

    • 6.5 hours (Kev time)
    • 9.5 miles
    • gain 735 m, lost 1353 m

And we thought yesterday was hard…  Looking back, if I had known what this day entailed, we might never have taken the trip.  Or I would have at least done anything to avoid this day.  I HATE heights.  I like to think that my fear of heights is healthy.  There are reasons why you shouldn’t get too close to the edge or be too far off the ground!  I’m not an over-the-top acrophobe; I can rock climb, as long as I’m roped in and trust my belayer.  But I once had a small panic attack before climbing up Half Dome in Yosemite, and I was unable to overcome a more serious sense of panic while attempting the Mountaineer’s Route of Mount Whitney in California.  I’m actually surprised that I was able to meet today’s challenge without a similar episode.  And I guess I’m also surprised that this trail is even included on the Walker’s Route – it is seriously vertical.  If you can handle ladders (which I don’t do well with), then there is an “easier” way over Riedmatten (Pas de Chevres); but however you slice it, getting over the pass is seriously steep.

Here is the journal entry for today:

Today was another LONG day.  Kev’s distance and timing are laughable (or cryable!).  Prafleuri is in a DANK, DARK area that is the beginning of a dam further down.  We first had to hike a short distance to get to Col de Roux – not so bad.  Then it seemed to take forever to get down to Lac Dix.  Barry’s blisters really bothered him.  He felt slow, and even worse, he felt bad about being slow.  CURSE Kev and the signs for being misleading about time expectations.  We finally made it around to the bridge on the other side of the lake where we stopped and fortified ourselves with a snack.  Then we were ready to attack the long ups and downs before making the final push UP to Col Riedmatten.  There was a detour to get past an avalanche wash-out of the trail (noted in the book), and then over and up and down and around lots of boulders.  I’m getting really tired of that.  But the “hike” – that is CLIMB up to the col was crazy/amazing.  Forget not making it up Whitney, this was even more challenging.  And the weather was on again/off again with showers and clouds.

This was a challenging day – have I emphasized that enough?  Making the col was fabulous, but it was cold and windy, so we had to descend before taking a break for lunch.  We have learned to celebrate making it over passes by having little butter cookies with chocolate Matterhorns on them (called Mont Chocos).  YUM!

Once on the other side, it was much easier hiking down into Arolla.  When we finally arrived, we stopped for a beer and a break to relieve the blisters.  Then walked down to our hotel – Hotel Mont Collon.  This is a crazy OLD hotel – with 5 stories and I think there is only one other room occupied tonight.  They knew who we were when we arrived.  Old, creaky place, and though I had reserved a room with just a sink, the owner graciously offered us a room with a bath at no extra cost 🙂

Dinner was amazing!  The food was great and the service equal to the best restaurants we’ve been to – and there was only one other table of 2 being served (though the owner’s family was also eating at a large table around the corner).  We had a full 4 course meal – soup, salad, entree and dessert that was delicious.

Tomorrow we plan a break from the original schedule.  The weather isn’t great and Barry’s feet need some time to heal.  Bon soir.

—————————————————————————————

The view down to Lac Dix after passing Col de Roux

It didn’t look that far away, but it seemed to take forever to get down to the lake – maybe that was just because of the blisters…

There were a lot of marmots checking out our progress

Lac Dix from the other side – you can see the road that we walked on the left side of the lake

Hiking up to Col Riedmatten – steep, but the ladders at Pas de Chevres scared me more than this did

WE MADE IT!

It was cloudy and cold – so we made our way down before stopping for lunch

The town of Arolla

Mont Collon

Our fabulous hotel

Our “summit” treat (to celebrate making it over passes since we weren’t actually summiting anything)

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Leg of Lamb with Roasted Pear and Pine Nut Relish+

5 points

Relish:
6 firm ripe Anjou pears, peeled, cored, and quartered
1 sweet onion, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
Cooking spray
2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted

Lamb:
1 tablespoon grated lemon rind
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
4 garlic cloves
1 small onion, cut into 8 wedges
1 (5-pound) boneless leg of lamb, trimmed

Preheat oven to 400°.

To prepare relish, arrange pears in a single layer in a 13 x 9-inch baking dish. Arrange onion slices in a single layer in another 13 x 9-inch baking dish; lightly coat onion slices with cooking spray. Bake pears and onion slices at 400° for 40 minutes or until tender, turning once. Cool; chop.

Combine 2 teaspoons rind and next 7 ingredients (through 1/4 teaspoon black pepper) in a large bowl; add chopped onion and pears, tossing gently to combine. Stir in nuts just before serving.
To prepare lamb, combine 1 tablespoon lemon rind and next 10 ingredients (through onion wedges) in a food processor; process until finely chopped. Roll roast, and secure at 3-inch intervals with twine. Spread the onion mixture over lamb; cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 450°.

Place lamb on the rack of a broiler pan coated with cooking spray; place rack in pan. Bake at 450° for 20 minutes. Decrease oven temperature to 300° (do not remove lamb from oven); bake an additional 1 hour or until thermometer registers 145° (medium-rare) to 160° (medium). Let stand 10 minutes before slicing. Serve relish with lamb.

Yield:  18 servings (serving size: about 3 ounces lamb and about 3 tablespoons relish)

  • CALORIES 246
  • FAT 10g
  • FIBER 2.6g

 

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Ancho Pork and Hominy Stew+


Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 1/3 cups)


2 tablespoons ancho chile powder
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 pounds pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
2 cups chopped onion
1 1/2 cups chopped green bell pepper
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 1/2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 (28-ounce) can hominy, drained
1 (14.5-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes, undrained

1. Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; set 1 1/2 teaspoons spice mixture aside. Add pork to remaining spice mixture in bowl, tossing well to coat.

2. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add pork mixture to pan; cook 5 minutes or until browned, stirring occasionally. Remove pork from pan; set aside. Add remaining 1 teaspoon oil to pan. Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic; sauté 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Return pork to pan. Add reserved 1 1/2 teaspoons spice mixture, broth, hominy, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Partially cover, reduce heat, and simmer 25 minutes.

CALORIES 300 ; FAT 8.3g (sat 2.1g,mono 3.7g,poly 1.4g); CHOLESTEROL 76mg; CALCIUM 51mg; CARBOHYDRATE 26.9g; SODIUM 523mg; PROTEIN 28.9g; FIBER 6.1g; IRON 3.2mg

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Golden Corn Salad with Fresh Basil+

7 points

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 2 1/4 cups)

8 ounces small yellow Finnish potatoes or small red potatoes
3 cups fresh corn kernels (about 4 ears)
2 cups assorted tear-drop cherry tomatoes (pear-shaped), halved
1 1/2 cups chopped red bell pepper
1/4 cup minced shallots
3 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
6 cups arugula, trimmed
1/2 cup torn fresh basil leaves
2 ounces goat cheese, sliced

1. Place potatoes in a small saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil; cook 11 minutes or until tender. Drain and chill. Cut potatoes in half lengthwise. Combine potatoes, corn, tomatoes, and bell pepper in a large bowl.

2. Combine shallots and next 4 ingredients (through black pepper) in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Slowly pour oil into shallot mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk. Drizzle over corn mixture; toss well. Add arugula; toss. Sprinkle with basil; top evenly with goat cheese.


CALORIES 337 ; FAT 16.5g (sat 4.7g,mono 8.9g,poly 2.4g); CHOLESTEROL 11mg; CALCIUM 131mg; CARBOHYDRATE 43.2g; SODIUM 376mg; PROTEIN 10g; FIBER 6.8g; IRON 2.2mg

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Apple-Cinnamon Granola

3  cups regular oats
1  cup whole-grain toasted oat cereal (such as Cheerios)
1/3  cup oat bran
1/3  cup finely chopped walnuts
2  teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4  teaspoon ground cardamom
2  tablespoons butter
1/3  cup applesauce
1/4  cup honey
2  tablespoons brown sugar
Cooking spray
1  cup chopped dried apple

Preheat oven to 250°.
Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl, stirring well to combine.
Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add 1/3 cup applesauce, honey, and brown sugar to pan, and bring to a boil. Cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently. Pour applesauce mixture over oat mixture, stirring to coat. Spread mixture in an even layer on a jelly-roll pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 250° for 1 1/2 hours, stirring every 30 minutes. Allow to cool completely. Stir in chopped apple.
Note: Store granola in an airtight container up to one week.

Yield: 6 cups (serving size: 1/2 cup)

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Thai Fish Sauce and Lime Chicken

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
¼ tsp salt
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 c chicken broth
3 Tbsp sweetened chili sauce
2 tsp fish sauce
¼ c lime juice
1 tsp creamy peanut butter
2 Tbsp chopped roasted peanuts
lime wedges (optional)

1.  Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to ½ inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin.  Sprinkle chicken evenly with ¼ tsp salt.

2.  Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.  Add chicken; cook 6 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm.

3.  Add broth, chili sauce and fish sauce; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits.  Cook until broth mixture is reduced to 2/3 c (about 4 minutes).  Remove from heat; add lime juice and peanut butter, stirring until smooth.  Serve sauce over chicken; sprinkle with peanuts.  Garnish with lime wedges, if desired.  Yield: 4 servings.

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Sesame Beef and Asian Vegetable Stir-Fry

9 points

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 cup stir-fry and 1/2 cup rice)

1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce, divided
1/4 cup Chinese black (Chinkiang) vinegar or rice vinegar, divided
4 teaspoons dark sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon five-spice powder
3/4 pound top round, cut into1/4-inch strips
1/3 cup water
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons peanut oil, divided
3 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted and divided
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups red bell pepper strips
1 1/2 cups frozen blanched shelled edamame (green soybeans), thawed
1 cup sliced shiitake mushroom caps
1 (15-ounce) can whole baby corn, drained
1/2 cup diagonally cut green onions
3 cups cooked jasmine rice

Combine 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons vinegar, sesame oil, and five-spice powder in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add beef; toss to coat. Let stand 10 minutes. Remove beef from bowl; discard marinade.

Combine 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons vinegar, water, and cornstarch, stirring with a whisk.

Heat 1 teaspoon peanut oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add beef; stir-fry 1 minute. Remove beef from pan. Add 1 teaspoon peanut oil, 2 tablespoons sesame seeds, ginger, and garlic to pan; stir-fry 30 seconds. Add bell pepper, edamame, mushrooms, and corn; stir-fry 2 minutes. Add beef and cornstarch mixture; stir-fry 3 minutes or until sauce thickens. Remove from heat; stir in 1 tablespoon sesame seeds and onions. Serve over rice.

CALORIES 434 (30% from fat); FAT 14.4g (sat 3.3g,mono 4.8g,poly 3.5g); IRON 3.7mg; CHOLESTEROL 36mg; CALCIUM 62mg; CARBOHYDRATE 55.9g; SODIUM 318mg; PROTEIN 21.7g; FIBER 6.3g