I am a Clevelander and Michael Symon the famed Iron Chef and celebrity du jour also, hails from this mid-west town.

Along with his acolyte, Johathon Sawyer, cuisine in Cleveland continues to function as a pork delivery system, along side of french fries in duck fat and fois gras as garnish.

Food trends happen for many reasons and conspicuous consumption factors in, I’m sure.

But at what point do we question celebrating gratuitous overindulgence as a substitute for culinary genius?

I get it. If you like bacon then food cooked with or otherwise augmented with bacon is delicious.

Like ice cream? Like Bacon? Mix the two and, voila! Genius!

I think not.

It’s like putting a girl in a bikini on a car.

Is it a better car? Is the design imaginative or ground breaking?

Or is it just a car with a scantily clad girl astride?

A dish which is flavorful and healthy, appealing to the eye and created without death and suffering; now that takes some talent!

Make cauliflower sexy; without bacon! and make me lust for a fruit dessert over the chocolate molten, whatever and I’m impressed.

There is a place for everything, I will concede. However, the Malthusian mathematics will come back to haunt is all.

Technology aside, there is only so much land to fill the appetites of food porn addicts and the lowest common denominator of palates!

And while some of my favorites may be no more or less creative and unique, I would like to think that they are environmentally friendly and healthy.

Coconut milk soups, fruit purees, fried broccoli rabe with Marcona almonds, nut creams both sweet and savory and an endless array of spices and greens presented in inventive and unexpected ways will satisfy and delight time after time.

Check out the article below for a short list of tired favorites.

Read the whole article here.

It’s not really bread.

It’s dough from my favorite pizza place spread with veggies and cheese and egg.

I happened to have these items in the fridge.

I sauteed the spinach and mushrooms with some crushed garlic and olive oil.

While the bread is raising let the sautee mixture cool and whisk together two eggs; reserve 2 TBSPN to brush on the loaf after you roll it.

Spread the mixture evenly being sure to go all the way to the ends.

Roll the loaf and cover with the egg wash.

Some of the mixture may seep out, try to contain it.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until deep goden brown.

I tried to get photos of the finished product but this was devoured in minutes.

It is great for kids lunches, a travel meal or anytime you want a filling, satisfying treat; hot or cold.

Warm this up sliced in the oven like toast and the edges get crispy. Just delicious!

Once notorious for his love of junk food and his famous stops at McDonald’s, former president Bill Clinton has embraced a vegan lifestyle to prevent heart disease.

Former President Clinton now considers himself a vegan. He’s dropped more than 20 pounds, and he says he’s healthier than ever. His dramatic dietary transformation took almost two decades and came about only after a pair of heart procedures and some advice from a trusted doctor.

Summertime around here has meant a huge flurry of activity.

The hot and steamy weather hasn’t slowed us down much but appetites tend more toward light and flavorful rather than rich and filling.

And the schedules are all over the place! From sport activities to musical gigs, weekend getaways and family gatherings I find that preparing and serving nutritious meals is more challanging than ever.

Especially when I am not there to supervise everything!

Well, I’ve learned to “let go” and create easy, ready to prepare and assemble food for my family; even the picky ones.

I have been in the habit of keeping a big container of cooked brown rice in the fridge.

I also will sautee corn with cilantro and onions and keep that around.

In addition, I’ll chop green onion and fresh cilantro and keep that in the fridge, also.

There are always cans of organic vegetarian beans or refried beans in the panty.

I also make sure to keep stocked up on ripe avocados and limes.

By having these ingredients handy eating on the fly is healthy and quick.

Even the little ones can do it; even the chronically lazy!

We also like to garnish with fresh salsa and a tangy homemade yogurt or sour cream.

This meal and it’s many variations has become a summertime staple that everyone can enjoy and customize to their own preference.

Burrito style for those who are always running late and eating on the way or pizza stlye with a little Manchego cheese for weekend movie night.

So, don’t get frustrated get creative!

These budget friendly meals are flexible. Use what you have around and get fancy when the budget allows.

They are built in to be nutritious so you just can’t go wrong!

With only healthy options even the least culinary inclined among you can’t help but choose something delicious and nutritious while you enjoy a little fun in the sun!

I remember growing up in my European immigrant family with great food.

Some from Italy and some from Eastern Europe but all of it driven by the freshest ingredients and much of it, meatless.

My grandmas and aunts always had their own gardens and were “putting up” or canning something at any given time.

For me summertime always means tomato and mayonnaise sandwiches.

These were not gourmet growing up.

They were just any bread with mayo, fresh tomato and “crunchy” salt on top.

I spruced these up a little by grilling artisan whole grain bread with olive oil to give crunch and texture to the bread and I’ve also added big fleshy leaves of basil for that peppery edge that basil can give.

Hellmann’s Real Mayonnaise is my favorite with this sandwich.

Even a few slices of avocado would be delish!

Get creative and keep it meatless. The possibilities are endless for a tasty, light and nutritious meal that says, “Summertime” in every bight!

Kaniwa from Roland Products, pronounced “Ka-nyi-wa”, is a staple grain of the ancient Aztec and Incan cultures whhich has been cultivated for thousands of years throughout South America.

The crunchy, earthy grain is loaded with protein and makes a complete meal when mixed with vegetables.

Kaniwa Plant

Roland Foods offers a wide variety of specialty foods from around the globe and was kind enough to send me this box of Kaniwa to try at home.

I have cooked with Quinoa in the past and I love it.

Kaniwa is similar to quinoa but seems to feel hardier and denser.

I gathered all the vegetables I could find and chopped them to equal size.

1 package of Grape tomatoes cut in half, 7 green onions, 1/2 of a red onion, 1 can of pinto beans, 2 cups of corn, 1 red pepper, 1/2 of a English cucumber, 1 bunch of cilantro,the juice of 3 limes, 1/4 cup of olive oil and salt to taste.

I garnished with avocado.

I put all of the chopped vegetables in a bowl, cooked the 12 oz. box ( about 2 cups ) of Kaniwa and added to the veggies.

I added it hot to the vegetables to bring them to peak flavor.

I find that adding hot grains to the veggies gives off just enough heat to liven the flavors.

I mixed everything then added the olive oil and the lime juice.

Serve and garnish with half an avocado.

Add salt to taste.

This was fantastic.

Everyone loved this vegan, protein rich meal which could also be great as a side dish with grilled salmon.

Spinach fettuccine with sauteed baby portobello mushrooms, pesto and shaved parmesan makes a great meatless, filling and nutritious meal.

Along with this beautiful salad of fresh yellow peppers and avocados our vegetarian meal satisfies everyone.

Annie’s Green Goddess dressing makes this salad heaven!

Boil spinach fettuccine, al dente.

Sautee the mushrooms with olive oil and garlic slices.

And mix in your favorites. I love basil pesto which I make myself.

I make it vegan and fresh!

Shaved parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil make this fantastic!

What is better than cheese and crackers with friends on a sunny afternoon?

Fruits and olives, beautiful cheeses and fresh whole grain bread and crackers take this afternoon snack to a whole new level!

Fresh ripe papaya taste like honey and sunshine!

These crackers are melt in your mouth fantastic. So much flavor in wholesome ingredients makes this guilt-free snacking at it’s best.

Lesley Stowe, Raincoast Crisps are my new favorite cracker!

These are unique, delicisious and worth the trouble to find!

These photos with the sun streaming in bring back memories of great conversation and joy with friends.

Fine dining does not have to be complicated.

Some of my finest culinary moments have been born of the simplest ingredients!

Don’t forget to put the love into it to get the most of your food and friends!

It all starts with the bread.

With bread this amazing you really can’t make a bad sandwich.

Ciabatta sliced in half and drizzeled with olive oil is placed under the broiler until golden.

I opened up a bag of frozen veggies and sauteed until soft.

The secret sauce makes this fantastic!

We discovered this at our favorite restaurant in town and the waitress was gracious enough to share the recipe with us!

And now we eat it on everything!

Avocado makes this creamy and delicious

The ciabatta bread is mana from heaven!

Toast it just right with lots of good olive oil.

Add some balsamic vinegar.

I loaded this sandwich with fresh mozzarella….

Lots of veggies…..

The secret sauce…..

And lots of love!

Enjoy!

Super easy and so delicious!

Whole grain spinach spirals and red pepper are perfect paired with a creamy goat cheese sauce.

I roasted the pepper in the oven at 350 for about 20 minutes then chopped them and threw them into the boiling pasta water for abot 10 minutes.

This infused the flavor a bit and softened the peppers.

I started with about 2 tbsp. of butter, 2 cloves crushed garlic, 1/2 cup of half and half, and 1 cup of sour cream.

Let this simmer for a few minutes then add a half a cup or more to taste of soft goat cheese.

Drain the pasta and mix in the goat cheese with the red pepper and stir.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

This is a great meatless meal, nutritious and filling.
Enjoy!