Mmmmeatballs

Mmmm. Delicious meatballs. 

Meatballs mean comfort food, but they don't have to mean heavy and unhealthy. I've replaced the usual breadcrumbs with quinoa and the ground pork with leaner, more flavorful wild boar. Add in chopped nuts, golden raisins and herbs for a flavor punch that's good for you.

These are so easy to make and perfect for a crowd. They freeze well which means you can make a large batch in advance and keep them on hand for those times you need to throw together a quick meal with minimal effort. I make a huge batch each winter before we take a group of friends up to our cabin in June Lake. I let them defrost on the drive up and then I'm ready to feed a crowd of hungry travelers as soon as we arrive. Easy peasy.

I found wild boar in the freezer section of my local Bristol Farms, but it can also be ordered online here and here or here in bulk. My favorite serving suggestion is included in the recipe below.

Wild Boar Meatballs

Makes

1 lb ground wild boar

1/2 cup cooked quinoa

1/2 cup walnut pieces

1/3 cup golden raisins

1/2 bunch of parsley, leaves removed and stems discarded

4 sprigs of mint, leaves removed and stems discarded

1 tsp kosher salt

Place all ingredients aside from wild boar in a food processor and process until roughly chopped. Transfer to a bowl and add the ground boar and stir gently until combined. Do not over mix.

Take a large spoonful of meat mixture and roll it between your hands to form a meatball. Repeat with remaining meat mixture to form around 14 meatballs.

Either freeze for later use or cook as desired.

Serving Suggestion:

Preheat oven to 350. Sear meatballs lightly and transfer to a baking dish. Top with 1 cup of Speedy Pomodoro and scatter chunks of feta or mozzarella around the dish. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes until the meatballs are cooked through. Scatter chopped parsley over the meatballs and serve.

Speedy Pomodoro

Purists and Italian Nonnas alike would probably kill me for this, but I don't spend all day letting my tomato sauce simmer away on the stove. I make this super-speedy version and keep it in the fridge to use on pizza, meatballs, in omelets and as a sauce for simmering vegetables. I would love to be more traditional, but there just isn't time in my life.

If there's not time in your life, but you still want to make something from scratch rather than pick up a jar at the store., you should try out this recipe. Just don't tell your Nonna.

Speedy Pomodoro Sauce

1 28-Oz can of whole plum tomatoes with juices

1 red or sweet onion

4-6 cloves of garlic

1/3 cup olive oil

1/2 t kosher salt

1/4 t crushed red pepper

Place all ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth. Transfer to a medium pot and simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes until thickened slightly. Taste, adjust seasoning and set aside to cool.

Use immediately or store in the fridge for up to a week. 

Beet Detox Smoothie

It’s the time of year when I’m ready to move on from the holidays, but instead find myself dealing with the dregs. The last few gifts still need to be mailed or purchased, decorations need to be put away and then there’s all that extra food begging to be dealt with.

This year we gave away all the sweets that were left lying around as Rob and I were both looking to make a clean start. The other leftovers? Well, I couldn’t quite bring myself to get rid of the cheese and pâtés and other indulgent treats, so we’ll just have to work on our moderation skills (wish me luck with that; it’s not my strong suit).

Lest you think we only feasted on unhealthy eats this holiday season, I’m also currently in possession of bags of fresh cranberries and Brussels sprouts, pecans and a mountain of sparkling water.

This smoothie recipe will help use up those leftover cranberries (should you have them laying around) as well as move you in the clean start direction – beets are great support for liver function and cranberries are loaded with antioxidants.

Make yourself a serving and you may not feel so guilty about finishing off that holiday pâté.

Beet Detox Smoothie

Makes 1 Generous Serving

1 raw beet, peeled

1/2 lemon, peel, pith and seeds removed

1/2 cup fresh cranberries

1 cucumber peeled

1/2 cup water, more as needed to reach desired consistency

1/2 avocado

Place all ingredients in a high-powered blender and process until smooth.

New Year's Day Black-Eyed Pea Tabbouleh

I was born and raised in Los Angeles, but both my parents hail from the south. A number of their food traditions have become my traditions even though they're not typical of an Angeleno's upbringing.

One tradition my mother was never able to get to stick with us was serving black-eyed peas on New Year's Day. I have a recollection of an old bag of dried peas hanging out in the cupboards until it was time to cook them down with a ham hock. This did not appeal to a couple of kids with picky tastes.

Eating black-eyed peas on New Year's is meant to bring luck in the coming year. There is some debate over the origination of the tradition as well as exactly how it must be carried out. I'm taking a risk and assuming simply eating them will suffice. So, this year, I'm bringing back the black-eyed pea - just not that sad old bag of dried beans.

Fresh black-eyed peas are a whole different game. I enjoy eating them right out of the container, but most will probably find them a bit chalky. A quick dip in boiling water will solve that. I'm using them in a fresh salad that aside from the very non-traditional addition of peas, looks an awful lot like tabbouleh. The fresh flavors and healthy ingredients are exactly what I'm usually craving on January 1st when I'm ready to put an end to holiday indulgence.

New Year's Day Black-Eyed Pea Tabbouleh

1 1/2 cups fresh black-eyed peas

2 small (ish) bunches of parsly (flat leaf please!)

1/2 small bunch of mint

1 cucumber

1 pint cherry tomatoes

1/4 cup olive oil

3 tblsp fresh lemon juice (from 1 to 2 lemons)

1/2 tsp kosher salt

Bring a pot of water to a boil (do not salt the water) and blanch the black-eyed peas for six minutes. Drain and rinse with cool water to stop the cooking.

Remove the leaves from the parsley, discarding the stems. Bunch all of the leaves together and chop them finely with a sharp knife. Remove the leaves from the mint sprigs, stack four or five together at a time and roll them up into a bundle as though you were rolling a cigar. Slice the "cigar" finely into a chiffonade. Place the mint and parsley into a bowl.

Peel the cucumber, cut it in half lengthwise and remove the seeds. Dice the cucumber and add it to the bowl. Roughly chop the tomatoes and discard any excess liquid that is left on the cutting board. Add the tomatoes to the bowl along with the cooled black-eyed peas.

Pour the oil, lemon juice and salt in a jar with a tight fitting lid, secure the lid and shake until combined.

Pour the dressing over the salad and toss until combined. The longer it sits absorbing the dressing the better.

Brussels Sprout Salad

Not sure if there will be healthy options at your next holiday get together?

If you've been asked to bring a dish with you, make sure it's this salad. Pair it with a bit of whatever protein is on offer and you can stay on track. Of course, it is the holidays so don't forget to indulge in a few treats along the way.

If you have not been asked to bring a dish with you, be sure to check out Bon Appetit's holiday etiquette guide before appearing with something. They hit the nail on the head with what is actually helpful to your host and what can end up complicating his or her day.

You have two options for the Brussels. Either pull the leaves apart and serve them like a leafy green salad or, my favorite, cut the sprouts in half and then thinly chiffonade them. You can also make quick work of this process by using the thin slicing blade on your food processor. Either way, make sure you let the leaves marinate in the lemony dressing a bit before you serve the salad.

Brussels Sprout Salad

Serves 4

1 pound Brussels sprouts (about 24), cleaned, tough outer leaves removed

1 sweet red apple (like pink lady or honeycrisp) or 10 crab apples (pictured)

1/2 cup walnut pieces

Freshly cracked black pepper to taste

Dressing

Makes 1 cup (use at least 1/2 cup for the salad)

1 small shallot, diced (about 1 1/2 tbsp)

1/4 cup lemon juice (from 2 lemons)

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 cup best quality olive oil

Make the dressing

Combine the shallots, lemon juice and salt in a small jar with a lid. Let sit for a few minutes to allow the lemon juice to mellow out the shallots. Add the olive oil, secure the lid and shake vigorously until combined. You want the lemon and salt flavors to be pretty aggressive for this salad, so add more of either if the dressing doesn't taste strong enough to you. Set aside while you make the salad.

Make the salad

Take the cleaned Brussels sprouts and either pull the leaves apart or chiffonade them as outlined above. Toss the Brussels with about 1/2 cup of the dressing and leave to marinate while you prepare the rest of the salad.

Cut the apple(s) into matchsticks and immediately toss into the dressed salad. The lemon in the dressing will keep the apple slices from oxidizing and turning brown.

Lightly toast the walnut pieces in a dry pan over low heat. They should not turn brown - just warm them to release their oils. Toss the walnuts into the salad and stir in some freshly cracked black pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary.

Raw Cacao Bites

It's next to impossible to avoid sweets and temptations this time of year. My solution? Indulge in something delicious that's not as bad for you as those sugar-laden options lurking around the office and waiting for you at holiday parties.

These bites are loaded with healthy fats and the rich flavor from raw cacao will blow your chocolate cravings out of the water. I use coconut flakes because I think they end up blending better. If you use shredded coconut, it may throw off the ratios.

I dare not make more than one batch at a time, but if you have more will power than I do, this recipe is easily doubled.

Raw Cacao Bites

Makes 12

3 cups coconut flakes

3/4 cup raw cacao powder

1/2 cup maple syrup

1 1/2 tblsp coconut oil

Pinch of kosher salt

Place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until well-combined. The mixture will start to form a ball and pull away from the sides of the bowl when it's fully mixed. At this point, scrape down the bowl and process a little longer to be sure the coconut is fully combined. If the mixture looks really oily, place in the fridge to firm up slightly before rolling into balls.

Roll one tablespoon of the mixture between your hands to form a ball. Flatten the orb slightly and make an indent with your thumb. Place in the fridge to harden and keep there until ready to serve.