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Saturday, April 11, 2015

Kitchen Essentials for the Healthy Cook

I'm pleased to feature the amazingly talented food blogger Christine Arel of No Gojis, No Glory on the blog today! Christine and I connected after I saw this awesome Yahoo article featuring Christine as the Yahoo Blogger of the Week.  Let me just tell you, there will be no question why she was selected when you see the recipes she shares on her blog.  All of her dishes are so bright, fresh, and health conscious without losing out on the "good stuff"!  

Take a look at Christine's Kitchen Essentials for the Healthy Cook.  You'll want to get in the kitchen and create a healthy masterpiece once you see these great tools!  (With a bonus recipe at the end of this post! You'll want to try this one!)













Hi guys! Christine here from the blog, No Gojis, No Glory. I'm so thrilled to be here chatting with you today. I'm a big fan of Jacquin and her work, so you better believe I jumped at the chance to write a guest post! Today, I'll be sharing with you some of my "must have" kitchen tools that every healthy cook should try to add to their cooking arsenal...beyond the typical measuring spoons and cups of course. If you haven't already guessed, I'm a healthy food and lifestyle blogger, and I swear... adding at least some of these items to your kitchen makes healthy cooking a lot less tedious and a lot more enjoyable. Let's get to it shall we?













































1. Salad Spinners
Have you ever tried drying little pieces of kale...one by one, just to make some kale chips?  I wouldn't recommend it.  Kale chips aside, salad spinners are the herbivore's answer to quick prep.  This one from OXO not only dries the heck out your greens, but can also double as a serving bowl. 
 2. Digital Kitchen Scale
An accurate kitchen scale is hands down one of the best ways to keep your portions in check, and not muck up your fabulous recipes. The accuracy of the Ozeri is outstanding, not to mention it looks really nice on your counter top.
3. High Quality Blender/Food Processor
Smoothies, purees, and chopped veggies are staples in the healthy cook’s kitchen, but you’ll enjoy the process a heck of a lot more if you don’t have to spend 5 hours standing over a chopping board, or blending and reblending the chunks out of what’s supposed to be a juice.  I personally love the Ninja Kitchen Blender System because it also comes with a food processor bowl, and it’s an uber powerful machine.  Not into getting the whole system?  You can also snag the blender on its own.
4. Enameled Cast Iron Skillet
Toss that non-stick skillet in favor a much healthier and versatile option; enameled cast iron.  My favorite!  Non-stick skillets are great for avoiding sticky cooking.  But the harmful chemicals released during the process...not so great.  Enameled cast iron not only provides a non-toxic way of whipping up almost everything under the sun, but it can go from stove-top to oven, which is awwwesome.  Le Creuset is the mother of cast iron cookware, but you can get some great quality and performance out of the Lodge or Staub brands as well. 
5. Portion Control Plates
Once you get used to what the “appropriate” portion sizes look like, you can toss all those portion control tricks out the window.  But for those just starting out on a journey of healthy cooking, every little bit helps.  In conjunction with a kitchen scale, portion control plates can be extremely helpful.  The great thing about these Slim and Sage plates is that the portion control guides are well hidden within the design.
6. Fresh Herbs
Dried herbs are great and everything, but fresh herbs is where the real flavor’s at!  For us apartment dwellers, these adorable mason gardens are a pretty cool alternative to the real deal.
7. Spiralizer
I would never in a million years give up eating pasta.  But, sometimes you just want a good ol' bowl of pasta, but without all the carbs.  Spiralizers are great for making pasta out of veggies; and it sure beats spending a ton of time trying for the same outcome with a vegetable peeler...
8. Kitchen Shears
What would I do without my kitchen shears?!  I’m not sure, because I use them for everything from snipping fresh herbs to quickly trimming the fat from chicken. 
9. Citrus Zester
Zest instantly brightens the flavor of any dish with the release of its natural oils.  Using a citrus zester instead of a regular grater will help you avoid the white pith, which is bitter and not at all tasty. 
10. Citrus Juicer
My inlaws think lemon juice can solve everything from a sore knee to an upset stomach, whether or not that’s true, there’s just no denying the cleansing power of citrus.  Plus it’s a really tasty way to load up on those vitamins and antioxidants. 

I hope you’ve enjoyed these kitchen essentials for the healthy cook.  Before I go, I want to leave you with one of Jacquin’s favorite recipes from my blog. And it’s a great alternative to fried chicken. Enjoy!

Baked Thai Chicken Wings








INGREDIENTS
  • 4 lbs chicken wings, (removing the tips is optional)
For the Spice Mix
  • 1 tsp cracked pepper
  • 2 tsp sea salt
  • ½ tsp ground ginger
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
For the Sauce
  • ½ cup sweet chili sauce
  • 2 tbsp sriracha (Asian Hot Sauce)
  • 1 tbsp + 1 tsp rice wine vinegar
  • ⅓ cup green onion, chopped
Check here for the full recipe.
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