food – Move Well with Amy Rizzotto

October 27, 2016October 25, 2016

Perfect Pork Chops

It’s getting chilly out and there is no better time to warm up with some home-cooked goodness than this sweater weather time of year. One of my favorite, grounding and nourishing dishes is seared pork chops. Pork chops are lean, delicious, easy to make, and go perfectly with all that homemade apple sauce you now have from the fall harvest. Bonus: if you have a pup, give them the bone when you’re done. They’ll love you forever (though I’m sure they already do).

Here’s a simple, hard-to-screw-up recipe perfect for a cozy night in. Pair with roasted root vegetables and a simple sample for a healthy meal that won’t break the bank.

PERFECT PORK CHOPS

Serves 2

Ingredients:
– Two 4-6oz pork chops
– Sea salt and pepper to taste
– Olive oil for cooking

Directions:
1. Pre-heat oven to 375 F. Bring chops to room temp, pat dry and season on both sides with sea salt and pepper.
2. Pre-heat a heavy (oven safe) skillet over a medium-high flame. When hot enough a drop of water hitting the pan will hiss and steam.
3. Add 1-2 tsp olive oil and immediately add chops. Cook for 1 minute on the first side, flip and cook for 2 minutes on the second.
4. Transfer whole pan to oven and bake for 8-10 minutes.
5. Remove and let rest for at least 5 minutes on a plate or cutting board. Slice serve whole.

August 8, 2016September 15, 2016

Big Batch Breakfast: Blueberry Coconut Baked Oatmeal

Let’s face it, oatmeal can get pretty boring, but oats are so good for you – loaded with heart-healthy fiber and minerals. What to do?! Get baked. Err, get baking!

My baked oatmeal is super easy, cost-effective, and since it’s a big batch recipe you’ll be set for breakfast all week. Convenience – check! Taste – check! Healthy – check!

Even if you don’t typically dig oatmeal, give this method a try. It changes the texture and fuses the flavors so you might just feel like you’re eating dessert, all the while you’re fueling yourself with clean energy for an active day. And best of all, there’s no added sugar so there’s no guilt with this breakfast decadence.

Go on, shake up your morning meal. It’s good to the last bite!

Blueberry Coconut Baked Oatmeal

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 40 mins Total time: 50 mins
Serves: 8 servings

Ingredients:

1/2 cup roasted, unsalted pecan pieces
1/2 cup toasted, unweetened coconut flakes
1/2 cup hulled hemp seeds
1/4 cup chia seeds
2 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 Tbs ground cinnamon
A pinch of fine-grain sea salt
2 cups fresh blueberries (frozen will work too – just defrost and discard any liquid)
2 1/2 cups unsweetened almond milk
2 large eggs
2 Tbs melted coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
Optional toppings for serving: plain yogurt, maple syrup or honey for drizzling, and/or more fresh fruit

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9×13-inch rectangular baking dish with butter or coconut oil.
In a medium mixing bowl, combine the oats, nuts, coconut flakes, hemp seeds, chia seeds, cinnamon and salt. Whisk to combine.
In a smaller mixing bowl, combine the almond milk, eggs, coconut oil and vanilla. Whisk until blended.
Spread the berries evenly over the bottom of the baking dish then cover the fruit with the dry oat mixture. Drizzle the wet ingredients over the oats. Use a spatula in zig-zagging strokes across the surface of the wetted oats to smooth out the top and push any dry oats down.
Bake for approximately 45 minutes, or until the top is golden (not burnt!). Remove your baked oatmeal from the oven and let it cool for a few minutes before cutting and serving.
Serve with yogurt and a drizzle of honey for a more decadent and delicious breakfast experience!

Notes:

This recipe will keep well in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.
Recipe adapted from Cookie & Kate.

May 25, 2015

Spring Clean your Diet with this Asparagus Detox Soup

Spring is a time for renewal. Let’s face it, we’d all like to be able to hit the reset button on our lifestyle in one fell swoop but positive change takes hard work. As a nutrition coach, I work with clients one on one to determine how we can make their desired healthy living goals attainable. One way to jumpstart a positive dietary shift is to undergo a detox. It just might be the closest thing to a reset button there is.

While developing my seasonal detoxes, I let the foods that are at the peak of freshness and availability speak to me and inform my culinary creations. Since it’s spring, asparagus is certainly abundant and there are countless ways to use it in healthy, cleansing recipes.

Below is one of my absolute favorite recipes. This soup (which can be served warm or chilled) is refreshing and light. It’s perfect as temperatures start to rise here in the District!

Broccoli Asparagus Miso Spring Detox Soup

[makes 2 meal sized portions or 4 appetizer size]

Ingredients:
− 1 bunch of asparagus
− 1 broccoli crown
− 4 -6 cups of chicken broth
− 1 Tbs white miso paste
− 1 Tbs sherry vinegar
− Juice of half a lemon
− 1 Tbs ghee (or organic unsalted butter)
− 1/2 tsp chili powder
− Sea salt and pepper to taste
− Optional: stir in 1/4 cup nutritional yeast for a more “cheesy” flavor

Directions:
1. Trim woody ends off asparagus and cut broccoli into florets (use the stalks!).
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Blanch trimmed asparagus and broccoli florets for 1-2 minutes. Drain and immediately submerge in an ice bath.
3. Cut off the tips of the asparagus and reserve for future use (I like to scramble mine into a couple eggs).
4. In a blender, blend the blanched asparagus stocks and broccoli with broth, miso, vinegar, lemon, ghee/butter, chili, salt and pepper to taste. Add more stock as needed to achieve the desired consistency.
5. Heat over a medium-low flame (or setting) for 10-15 minutes when you’re ready to eat.

Serve warm or chilled. If you like a more creamy or cheesy flavor to your soups (I loved broccoli and cheese soup growing up) add 1/4 cup of nutritional yeast to the entire pot and stir well before dishing it out into bowls. You can also add a drizzle of nice olive oil and a hit of freshly ground black pepper for a little flavor enhancement. Bon apetit!

November 27, 2014

Happy Thanksgiving! Recipes & things from me to you

In the spirit of gratitude, I wanted to thank all of my readers with a Top 10 List of my favorite MOARfit recipes:

You may have also noticed that my website has changed a bit. Now that I’ve decided to take the plunge into full-time wellness work, I thought it was time MOARfit got a face-lift. You’ll still find all the recipes you love, but now you’ve also got all my articles, videos, teaching schedule, and information on current and down-the-road offerings at your fingertips.

Other than my recipes (I kid), what are you most grateful for this holiday season?

I’m grateful that I get to spend today with my big sis and her cute-as-heck boys, and that we all have love in our hearts and health in our bodies. Oh, and lest I forget to mention, THE FOOD. I worked extra hard in my yoga classes (abs for days) so that I can go for seconds on my favorite fixing (stuffing).

The other thing I’m really thankful for, today and every day? You! I really can’t thank you enough for taking time to read my ramblings, try my recipes, and show your support.

As a special thanks to all of you who are helping me live the life I have imagined, you can take 30% off all full-price items in my online store–including my New Year, New You 10-Day Detox which is now on sale–from now through December 15th with promo code THANKYA30.

And finally, a universal blessing:

May you be blessed with good friends.
May you learn to be a good friend to yourself.
May you be able to journey to that place in your soul where
there is great love, warmth, feeling, and forgiveness.
May this change you.
May it transfigure that which is negative, distant, or cold in you.
May you be brought in to the real passion, kinship, and affinity of belonging.
May you treasure your friends.
May you be good to them and may you be there for them;
may they bring you all the blessing, challenges, truth,
and light that you need for your journey.
May you never be isolated.
May you always be in the gentle nest of belonging with your soul-love.

~John O’Donohue, “A Friendship Blessing”

July 28, 2014

Seasonal 10 Day Detox

Summer’s now in full swing and so is my seasonal 10-Day Detox with 10 brave and awesome Wellness Warriors! My guided system reset isn’t a starve yourself detox that makes food the enemy, it’s a program to help people redefine their relationship with food. Over the course of 10 days participants learn to listen to their body, strip away the junk and walk away revitalized and more in control of their cravings. It’s a healthy dose of empowerment!

Interested in a future detox? Whether you live nearby in D.C. or across the ocean, shoot me an email at [email protected] for more information.

October 28, 2012

Easy Multigrain Bread

Adapted from the New York Times infamous No-Knead Bread recipe, I started making my own version of this beautiful, easy homemade bread on the regular two years ago. This rustic bread is truly reminiscent of a French-style boule, which in my mind is as good as it gets. I love it’s crunchy crust and fluffy, air-pocked interior. It’s great for toast and even better for breakfast sandwiches!

Amy’s Easy Multigrain Bread:

What you’ll need:

2 ¼ cups unbleached bread flour
1/2 cup whole wheat all-purpose flour
1/2 cup almond meal
¼ cup ground flaxseed
1 3/4 cups water
1/2 tsp instant/rapid-rise yeast
2 tsp salt
Rolled oats for a finishing touch

Note: You’ll also need a 6-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic). I use my trusty 5 1/2 quart Cuisinart dutch-oven and it does the trick!

How to make it:

In a large bowl combine flours, almond meal, ground flaxseed, yeast and salt. Add 1 3/4 cups warm water and mix–using your hands–until it just comes together. The dough will be shaggy and sticky.
Seal the bowl with plastic wrap and let dough rest for 12-18 hours.
Sprinkle flour on a work surface and place your dough on it. Dust your dough with a touch more flour then fold it in on itself gently three to four times. Cover it loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 min.
Using a little flour to keep your dough from sticking too much, gently and swiftly shape your dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton dish towel with rolled oats, put the dough seam side down on the towel and dust the top with more oats. Cover with another cotton towel and let it rise for 2 hours. When it is ready, your dough will be more than twice it’s original size.
A half-hour to 45-min before your dough is ready, pre-heat your oven to 500°F. Place a 6-quart heavy covered pot in your oven as it heats up (lid on).
When your dough is ready (i.e. 2 hours have passed since you coated it in oats), carefully remove the pot from your oven. Slide your hand under the towel and turn your dough over into the heated pot, seam side up. Give the pan a good shake once or twice if you had a bad flip and your dough is unevenly distributed. No worries, it’ll sort itself out while cooking.
Cover your pot with its lid and bake for 30 min, then remove the lid and bake for another 15 min until the loaf is golden brown. Let your boule cool on a rack for at least 20 min before diving in. Then, bon apetit!

photo(2) — Over-easy egg sandwich with arugula, lemon aioli, bacon and Frank’s Red Hot.

For a video tutorial on how to make the original recipe (i.e. just white bread flour) check out this video on YouTube.