Jen's Sumi Salad

Mike and I recently discovered a tasty Japanese grill close by our house. I loved the sumi salad. It reminded me of a cabbage salad that my mom used to make except hers had ramen noodles in it. I decided to experiment with my own version. So here it is!

I'm not sure why the picture turned out tiny but it is definitely big on flavor. badabing! Okay, so here's what you want to do. First, start out by going on down to Trader Joe's and picking up a bag of shredded cabbage, a bag of chopped kale, and a bag of the broccoli slaw. You'll thank me later.

Ingredients for Jen's Freakin' Awesome Sumi Salad:

1 bag shredded cabbage (about 2-3 cups)
2 cups of chopped kale (rinse, remove big stems, and chop into smaller size)
1/2 bag of broccoli slaw (about 1 1/2 - 2 cups)
4 stalks of celery, chopped
2 cups of rinsed, chopped cilantro
5-7 green onions, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 orange bell pepper, chopped
1/3 cup sesame seeds, toasted
1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Dressing:

2-3 T. sesame oil
3-4 T. rice vinegar
2 tsp agave, OR a couple packets of Stevia (that's what I used)
1 tsp kosher salt
Lots of fresh ground pepper

Toast the sesame seeds and almonds on the stove top in a dry nonstick pan or in the oven at 400 for a few minutes and then set aside to cool. Combine all your veggies in a big bowl. Whisk your dressing and add to veggies. Stir to coat evenly. It won't look like you have enough dressing but trust me, it will be fine. You can add choose to add the sesame seeds and almonds now or before serving. I just added mine. Chill salad for a few hours. Tastes great for days and is a tasty way to get in your veggies!!!

You can add or subtract any veggies you want. I tried chopped parsley in my first batch and wasn't too impressed but you know how healthy parsley is so maybe I'll just add less next time. I usually buy my peppers in the 3 pack from TJ's and you could opt to add the yellow pepper too.

Jen's Flourless Nut Lover's Chocolate Chip Cookies

I did it! I made a great tasting chocolate chip cookie without any flour! I was surprised at how great these cookies turned out! I have always tried to incorporate whole grains in my cookies. I love to sneak all kinds of goodness in them. Today, I substituted the flour in one of my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe with some wholesome grains I had on hand. If you're looking to healthify any recipes, start by substituted the white flour with any of the following or combinations of: unbleached, unbrominated white flour (King Arthur's is a great choice), white whole wheat flour, whole wheat flour, oat flour, almond meal, ground flaxseed, quinoa flakes, etc... Substitute some of the sugar for organic sugars, or honey. Most cookies are far too sweet. You can usually cut back 1/4 of what the recipe calls for without noticing a difference.

Jen's Flourless Nut Lover's Chocolate Chip Cookies

1/2 c. unsalted butter, soft
1/2 c. organic brown sugar
1/4 c. organic sugar
1/4 c. honey
3/4 tsp. vanilla
1 egg, organic cage free

1/2 tsp. aluminum free baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 c. old fashioned oats
1 c. slivered almonds
1/2 c. ground flaxseed
1 c. unsweetened coconut, finely grated
1/2 c. shredded coconut

Add-ins: Nuts of your choice! or dried fruits if you wish
1/2 c. unsalted roasted sunflower seeds
1/2 c. walnuts
1 c.70% cocoa chips, carob chips or chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.

In a blender or food processor, blend the oats and slivered almonds until you get a flour like consistency. Set aside.

Next, cream butter, sugars, honey, egg, and vanilla.

On stir speed, add baking soda, salt, oat/almond flour, ground flaxseed, and coconut. Mix until well combined. Stop and scrape the sides as necessary.

Coarsely chop up the sunflower seeds and walnuts. My husband doesn't like nuts in baked goods. Shhhh...don't tell him about the ground up slivered almonds...he didn't notice! So I made half the batch with the extra nut add-ins.

Finally, stir in the add-ins of your choice.

I used the medium cookie scoop and flattened each ball a tad on a silpat or parchment paper lined cookie sheet.

Bake for 9-10 minutes.

Almond Joy Cookies

Here's my version of an Almond Joy Cookie:

1/2 c. softened butter

1/2 c. sugar

1/2 c. brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. pure vanilla OR pure almond flavoring

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 1/4 c. white whole wheat flour

1 c. old fashioned oats

1/3 c. almond meal

1/4 c. ground flaxseed (optional)

1/4 c. finely ground coconut

1-2 c. semisweet chocolate chips

Cream butter, sugars, egg and vanilla. Scrap bowl and mix well. Add dry ingredients. You may have to play around with the dry ingredients. I sneak in all kinds of wholesome stuff in my cookies. Shhhh...don't tell my kids.

Bake on silpat or parchment paper on a cookie sheet at 375 for 10-11 minutes.