Chef Suzanne Landry

The last Saturday in August proved to be another gorgeous day in Santa Monica! We were excited to meet another Chef to follow around the Market! You know how much I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Santa Monica Farmers Market and when you add a great Chef to the mix, it’s a Win-Win!

Meet Suzanne Landry – Fresh Food Chef and Educator and her equally talented son, Chef Aaron Steinbach! I love this quote: “Good health is within your reach. The road to good health is a joyous journey of learning. Our bodies gently teach us each step of the way. We need only to listen and learn.”

We listened and learned quite a bit as we followed Chef Suzanne around the market, starting with strawberries!

Did you know the smaller berries are sweeter? They are better for you too! Those big berries we all know and love, are processed with chemicals, we don’t all know and love! I’ll take smaller berries and locally grown from now on, thank you!

Suzanne taught us about honey and how to make sure it’s pure, not cut with corn syrup! I learn something new every time we follow a chef!

We got back to The Gourmandise School of Sweets and Savories, where Suzanne showed us how to make Cheesy Kale Chips.

OH MY GOODNESS! These are so delicious! She described them as tasting like the crispy corners of your baked macaroni and cheese casserole. You know what? She was right! Here is how they looked before going into the oven:

One of the tricks to making these Cheesy Kale Chips, is to use BIG pieces of Kale. Suzanne told us they will shrink more than 60%, so bigger is better in this case. Seriously, you have to try these! I’d eat them instead of potato chips any day! Here is Suzanne’s recipe:

Cheesy Kale Chips

Yum…yum…yum…yum…that’s all I have to say other than I know you won’t be able to stop at one.

1 head curly leaf kale

1 cup raw cashews (soaked for 1 hour), drained

1 whole red pepper, seeded and diced

1 lemon, juiced

¼ cup nutritional yeast

½ tsp. sea salt

1 clove garlic minced

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

Optional: extra virgin olive oil.

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Strip kale leaves from stem. Whatever stem remains on top is tender enough to eat. Reserve stems for juicing or soup stock. Wash, drain and spin dry kale. Place in large bowl.

2. In a blender, add red pepper, salt and lemon juice. Blend until liquid. Add cashews and remaining ingredients. Blend on high until you get a very smooth consistency. There should be no lumps of nuts in this sauce.

3. Gently, massage the kale with both hands to soften the leaves. Now add the cream and massage the kale with the sauce until all kale is coated.

4. Place on cookie sheet on single layer. Use 2-3 cookie sheets if necessary. Place in oven and bake for 2 hours. If you have a dehydrator then place on racks and dehydrate for 12 hours.

Note: It is nutritionally better to soak the nuts but not necessary for this recipe.

Out of the oven, they look like this:

Chef Suzanne and Chef Aaron made us a fantastic Tangerine and Beet Salad! Aren’t these beets pretty? They remind me of my Grandmother.

It was fun to hear both Suzanne and Aaron share their passion for good food, prepared simply! I have to agree. I completely fell in-love with the Tangerine and Beet Salad. There are just a few ingredients and I’ve already made it twice and shared with friends. It’s THAT good!

Suzanne also made us a Tuscan Tomato and Bread Salad that takes perfect advantage of those gorgeous end-of-the-season Heirlooms. With the huge, homemade croutons, you’ve got a meal!

I could give you these recipes, but they’re all in Suzanne’s cookbook “The Passionate Vegetable.” You can find a copy on Amazon! It’s filled, not only with great recipes, but Suzanne’s “Bites of Insight” which teach you about food, nutrition, and ways to better your health!

She signed my copy! Squeeee!!!

The Cheesy Kale Chips, Tuscan Tomato and Bread Salad and (my favorite) Tangerine and Beet Salad were all delicious! Check out Suzanne’s web page www.suzannelandry.com for more information about her and her fabulous cookbook!

Many thanks to Chef Suzanne and Chef Aaron for a delightful morning! There is no better way to spend a Saturday, than by living and learning about ourselves and the ways we all share in this wonderful planet! Food is the great uniter. I am looking forward to exploring more of Suzanne’s cookbook and hopefully connecting with her again in the future!