Food Day with a Healthy Dose of Flavor
By Morgan Davis, RD, LDN
The aroma of whole toasted cumin was warming the room just minutes into Wilmington Performance Lab’s celebration of Food Day 2012. WPL hosted a cooking demonstration last night to recognize the second annual Food Day, a day created by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) to act as a nationwide celebration and movement for healthy, affordable and sustainable foods. For more information on Food Day, please visit the website- http://www.foodday.org//.
Our purpose for celebrating Food day was to teach our friends and clients that improving the nutrition quality of their diets is as easy as cooking with real, minimally processed foods and flavors. And who better to instruct our group in the art of fresh flavors, then a local chef and expert in all that tastes delicious? Chef James Bain, owner of Epic Food Co. (http://www.epicfoodco.com/), was on a mission to demonstrate to our audience that flavor does not have to equal fat. And he had a menu to prove it!
When the flavor of the toasted cumin had sufficiently developed, Chef James demonstrated how to grind the spice using a mortar and pestle. He then lightened up a guacamole recipe, not by adding fat-free processed ingredients, but by adding in fresh organic peas. The pop of the peas and the creaminess of the avocado created a texture contrast fit for Top Chef! Zest of fresh citrus fruits brightened the flavor, making this healthy dip the perfect appetizer for what proved to be a satisfying, healthy and energizing meal.
As we snacked on our cool and creamy avocado dip, the edge of hunger was blunted just enough to become enthralled in Chef James’ culinary techniques once again. He showed us how to create a salad far more exciting than the lifeless iceberg lettuce found at any lunch café. Instead of lettuce, fiber- and vitamin C-packed baby Kale stole the center stage. Carotenoid-rich butternut squash was roasted just enough to bring out its sweet, seasonal flavor. Toasted almonds and dried cranberries added the nutty and tangy flavor contrast that left our taste buds wanting more! The final ingredient- whole grain quinoa (pronounced keen-wah), which is the only grain that can claim to be a complete protein and has a substantially higher concentration of calcium than its starchy relatives.
To accompany this culinary work of art, Chef James prepared a muscle-building chicken dish that left even our most fried chicken-loving clients forgetting about biscuits and gravy. James introduced us to “the new bacon”- red onions were caramelized and then brought to the next level of flavor with smoky, sweet paprika. The scent of the onions was reminiscent of the camp fires of our youth, and the savory flavor perfect to top our lean, protein-packed chicken.
The dietitian in me says desserts in moderation, but the sweet-tooth side of me admits that I like something sweet to end a good meal. Chef James has allowed us to find a happy medium. He combined some of nature’s candy to create the perfect ending to this wonderful evening. Fresh pineapple, real vanilla bean, and just a touch of coconut sugar were put together in a magical combination of tangy, sweet and comfort.
The flavor spoke for itself at this first cooking demonstration held for WPL clients. For those of you unable to attend this exciting evening of culinary awakening, do not fret. All of us at WPL are looking forward to future events in which we can show you how easy, tasty and fun cooking nutritious meals can be!
