Share the Love: Honey Balsamic Harvest Steak Salad {$50 Whole Foods Giveaway}

One of my joys in life is creating meals that my family and our friends delight in when they eat it.

But it doesn't come easy in this house ... at least with the kids it doesn't.

I don't know about your kids, but mine consider things like macaroni and cheese {which has its place in life} the king of all feasts.

And sometimes -- like when I made super delicious apple-cider braised purple cabbage and apple-chicken sausage for dinner -- I hear their protest cries. Loudly.

We parents have a lot going against us when the rest of the free world seems to taut chocolate cookies as the touchdown of all snacks and schools serve low-fat but high-sugar chocolate milk with snacks and lunches.

Now I'm not anti-treat or anti-mac and cheese or anti-chocolate milk, but, darn it, those things sure give vegetables a run for their money when it comes to choosing.

This is why I so appreciate the initiatives made by the Whole Kids Foundation, a nonprofit committed to improving childhood nutrition by increasing the availability and consumption of fruits and vegetables, both at schools and at home.

The foundation just kicked off its annual fundraiser to support school salad bar and garden grant programs and nutrition education classes for teachers, and in doing so, Whole Foods Deerfield has asked me to help spread the word about the importance of including a hearty heaping of veggies into our families' diets by creating a salad recipe the whole family will enjoy.

Well. Twist my arm.

So John and I set out to make a salad that our whole family, a friend and a friend's whole family would enjoy -- which translates to one baby, four kids and five adults, three of which are gluten-free and one who is dairy-free.

We decided to make two main dishes: a Honey Balsamic Harvest Steak Salad and Mini Tomato Salads {aimed at appealing to the minis}.

Honey Balsamic Harvest Steak Salad Recipe:
{fed five adults and four kids with leftovers}

Steak Marinade:
-Your choice of steak -- we used 1.2 pounds of flank steak
- 6 T of gluten-free soy sauce
- 2 T brown sugar
- 1/2 t dry mustard
- 1/2 t of ginger
- 1/2 t of onion powder

Let steak marinate over night.

Salad Ingredients:
- 1 Green Pepper
- 1 Avocado
- your favorite harvest tomatoes
- 1 pound of cremini mushrooms
- a heaping handful of pecans
- a container of sheep's milk {or cow's milk} feta
- two heads of romaine lettuce {you'll likely use 1.5}

Dressing Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 cup of olive oil
- 1/8 of honey

Stir ingredients to blend well.

Grill the steak. While the steak is grilling, sauté mushrooms in butter or coconut oil and add a tablespoon of balsamic to the pan. Chop all of the veggies. Toss veggies, mushrooms, steak, lettuce and dressing together. Top with pecans and feta.

Mini Tomato Salads Recipe 

Ingredients
- about 25 cherry tomatoes
- one to two balls of fresh mozzarella
- handful of basil leaves
- toothpicks

Slice cherry tomatoes in half. Slice mozzarella into bit sizes. Place tomato, basil leaf and mozzarella chunk on each toothpick. Serve with balsamic vinegar and olive oil blend.

Here's how it panned out: 

-The adults raved about both salads.

-Three kiddos gave the Honey Balsamic Harvest Steak Salad a thumbs up. My oldest said, "Well, I'm shocked. This is actually good." {Thanks, kid.}

-One kiddo thought the Mini Tomato Salad was awesome, but they all tried it. Quote: "Wow. I really like those."

So want to make your own salad creation or recreate one of these salads? Whole Foods Market Deerfield is giving away a $50 gift certificate for Whole Foods Market!

  a Rafflecopter giveaway Disclosure: Whole Foods Market Deerfield provided me with a $50 gift card to make these salad creations. 

Living Healthfully: {Creative} Soul Food

Two weekends ago we hosted our second Creative Soul event focused on nourishing the mind, body and spirit.

Along with Toni from Food (Just Sayin'), I undertook the challenge of not just feeding but nourishing our guests with food not just cold-weather comfort food but also soul food.

Photo courtesy of Alita Maini.

As Toni and I spoke about preparing a menu for a large group of people, we had a few requirements:

the meal had to be heathy, moderately seasonal and absolutely delicious.

You might imagine that's no small task; but it was made possible by our gracious sponsor Whole Foods Market Deerfield, who provided ingredients for our meal!

So what does one make in the dead of January that fits all of the requirements of healthy, moderately seasonal and absolutely delicious? Glad you asked!

Photo courtesy of Alita Maini.

Our Creative Soul Menu:

• Coffee from Julie’s Coffee and Fruited Water
• White Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls topped with Flax & Poppyseed from Alley Side Bakery
• Roasted Red Pepper Hummus with Organic Vegetables
• Chicken Curry Winter Stew over Organic Golden Rose Brown Rice
• Mango Pudding topped with Organic Strawberry Sauce &  Tajin

Photo courtesy of Alita Maini.

We focused the bulk of our seasonal requirement on the main dish -- the winter stew --  by using local raised chicken and winter root vegetables.

The sweet potatoes and the turnips were absolutely perfect additions to the stew, making it hearty, filling and colorful!

And I learned from Toni that turnips actually taste a lot like regular old white potatoes while obviously giving different nutrients to the stew! Nice!





And, boy, was it a hit with our guests returning for seconds! Here's the Chicken Curry Winter Stew, which we served over whole grain brown rice, in all of its delicious glory.

Photo courtesy of Alita Maini.

Want to make it? Get the recipe at Food (Just Sayin')!

For a nutritious and tasty side dish, Toni and I used my trusty Vitamix to whip up a batch of roasted red pepper hummus and served it with a delectable array of veggies.

I love hummus for a few specific reasons: it's made with a generous portion of the heart-healthy fat, extra virgin olive oil, it's bursting with fresh flavors like garlic and red pepper and it's an simply extravagant tasting dish that almost always proves to be a crowd pleaser!

Photo courtesy of Alita Maini.

One important step I shared in making hummus was the importance of soaking beans in water for 4-8 hours and taking care to rinse them well before blending them into hummus.

Like with grains and nuts, soaking legumes is a way to mitigate the phytic acid, an anti nutrient that binds to minerals. Soaking maximizes nutrient density, which greatly aids in digestion!
Learn more about the importance of soaking grains, nuts and legumes at The Nourished Kitchen.


And then be sure to give the Roasted Red Pepper Hummus recipe a whirl; Toni shared it with us here!

Photo courtesy of Alita Maini.

After our morning spent cooking, I sunk into the cozy couch satisfied. We knew by the second helpings, the conversation and the energy in the room that our meal didn't just nourish the bodies in the room but also the souls with our {Creative} soul food.