Salty Fig is the place to Collect, Organize and Share your recipes. It is the place to save recipes that are healthy for your body. The Picky Eater our newest partner, is not about getting your kids to branch out from chicken nuggets and cheese pizza, it’s a blog about eating healthy, recipes you want to save and use every day!
Meet Anjali Shah creator of The Picky Eater…..
Anjali Shah creator of The Picky Eater Blog
Anjali has been featured on The Food Network, The Dr. Oz Show, The Stir, Shape, Thin dish, The Kitchn, Healthy Eats, Examiner.com, The Daily Meal. The Picky Eater Blog was nominated for the 2012 Healthy Cooking Blog Finals. Thanks for Joining Salty Fig, Anjali…We are honored!
Anjali’s passion for writing her blog stems from her “White Bread” husband and making him healthy. Read on for her inspiration….
Q: What is your specialty?
“My specialty is making healthy food taste good. I want to make healthy eating easy, accessible, delicious and fun! My blog chronicles my adventures in getting my “fast food loving husband” to eat healthy meals – so all of my recipes are “husband approved.” You’ll find healthy recipes, easy & healthy lifestyle tips, beautiful photography and fun stories on my blog. ”
Q: Why should people visit your blog?
“My blog is perfect for anyone who wants to try to start cooking at home and making healthier meals! People should visit my blog for the easy, delicious and good-for-you recipes, along with my entertaining stories about using my husband as a “guinea pig” for my meals 
”
Q: What is the most popular recipe on your blog?
Both of these recipes are so flavorful – they taste like it’s bad for you, but it’s actually really good for you!”
Q: Why did you start cooking? Why are you passionate about it?
“I started cooking after I got married. Because I had to figure out: What would the picky eater and her fast food husband eat for dinner? I realized that the only way I would be able to bridge the gap between my husband’s “white bread” world and my “wheat bread” world would be to cook healthy versions of foods that my husband enjoyed. And so, at the age of 24, I taught myself to cook. I’m passionate about cooking because it’s such a great way to bring family together, to eat mindful meals, and to really get to know what’s in your food. Cooking at home immediately puts you on a path to a healthier life.”
Q: What is your favorite food memory?
“When I was a kid, my dad came home with a donut, which he proceeded to cut into 8 pieces. He gave me 1/8 of the donut as “dessert.” That story encompasses my food philosophy of everything in moderation, and it’s a funny reminder of how health-conscious the household I grew up in was.”
Q: What is your most bizarre food experience?
“When I was hiking through the Amazon Rainforest, and my guide roasted a larvae on a stick right in front of us, and then offered it to us to eat. Needless to say, I did not eat it!”
Q: What is one tool in the kitchen you couldn’t live without?
“My immersion blender! It’s great for making smoothies, soups, purees – it’s awesome, and super easy to clean!”
Q: What are three ingredients you have to have in your kitchen at all times?
“Milk, Fresh vegetables, and my Indian spice box.”
Anjali's spice box
Fresh Vegetables
Milk
Q: When you need a creative food fix where do you go?
Q: What is your biggest flop in the kitchen? Would you ever make it again?
“It was a recipe for Greek stuffed peppers, and I think the recipe’s spice and vinegar proportions were just WAY off. The filling ended up tasting super sour and pretty disgusting, and I threw it out. I will never make it again!”
Q: What is your #1 piece of advice for novice cooks?
“Don’t be afraid to get in the kitchen and start cooking! I was really apprehensive the first time I cooked a dish on my own, but what I realized is that if it doesn’t turn out well – you can just learn from the experience and try it again later! Cooking at home is way easier that I thought it would be, I just needed to get started. I’d say pick a super easy recipe that’s kind of like a no-fail recipe – like these homemade pita pizzas: http://pickyeaterblog.com/homemade-whole-wheat-pita-pizzas/ - that’ll help get your confidence up and you can try something a little harder next time!”
Q: What do you think is the biggest mistake people make in the kitchen.
“Hmmm – that’s a hard one. I’m not sure if this counts as a mistake, but I think people could probably use way less oil when they’re cooking meals at home. 1 Tbsp for an entire dish is enough, try using less oil next time – I promise you won’t miss any of the flavor!”
Here is Anjali’s definition of The Picky Eater:
FEATURED RECIPE
Black Bean Chili Stuffed Peppers
A Recipe for you from The Picky Eater
INGREDIENTS1 medium red onion, chopped fine16 oz diced crimini mushrooms 1-2 jalapeño peppers, minced (obviously if you don’t like things too spicy, use less jalapeno!) 1 16-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed well 1 1/2 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen 1 15-ounce can diced fire-roasted tomatoes 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 1 Tbsp chili powder (use less if you don’t like too much spice) 1 tsp cumin Optional: 1 tsp oregano Optional: 1/8-1/4 tsp cayenne pepper 1 teaspoon salt 3 red bell peppers, sliced in half vertically 6 Tbsp shredded cheddar cheese 5 green onions, thinly sliced | METHODStep 1: Preheat oven to 400F. Heat a large non-stick skillet or saucepan. Add 1 tsp olive oil and the onion. Cook, stirring often until it softens, about 4 minutes. Add the mushrooms and jalapeno and continue to cook until mushrooms soften.Step 2: Add black beans, corn, tomatoes, and spices. Cook for a few more minutes to allow most of the tomato liquid to cook off. Step 3: Meanwhile, prepare the peppers by cutting them in half through the stem end (vertically), removing the seeds and membranes, and rinsing the insides to make sure all the seeds are out. Spray a baking sheet big enough for the peppers with cooking spray. Step 4: Fill each pepper half with the chili and place it on the baking sheet. Step 5: Bake until peppers are tender, about 40 minutes. Step 6: Top the peppers with 1 Tbsp cheese each, and pop them back into the oven. Bake until the cheese has melted – only a few minutes. Step 7: Sprinkle each pepper with sliced green onions and serve hot. The nutritional stats on these peppers is AWESOME. Two HUGE pepper halves will have about 250-300 calories (depending on how much filling and cheese you use), 12g fiber and 11g protein. Note: you can make this vegan by just eliminating the cheese, and it’s already gluten-free! You can even make extra filling and use it later in the week for other Mexican meals like a filling for burritos, tacos, or even as a topping for healthy nachos. |
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