The Bon Appetit Food Lovers "Cleanse"

I "like" Bon Appetit on Facebook, so I get little updates from them fairly frequently. Last week, they sent a link for what they called a "Food Lovers Cleanse." It's a two week meal program, super light on the dairy and carbs, heavy on the whole grains and veggies. For one hot minute I thought about trying it out and doing it to the letter, then decided: 1) it's kinda pricey (mache? how about just good old baby spinach?), 2) I frankly don't have the time to make dinner every night, and 3) it's going to take a back seat to the Sugar Bowl, and TNDC. Sorry, I'm just not that dedicated.

However, I did peruse the menu and figured I could try out some new ingredients/recipes in an attempt to start the new year off right. At the grocery, I picked up some quinoa (a grain that's been around for centuries and is, in my opinion, a cross between, couscous and barley), vanilla almond milk, and other assorted ingredients.

Breakfast for a couple of mornings this week has been a quinoa "oatmeal." I cooked a batch of quinoa in water and the almond milk early this week and divvied it up for a couple meals. Topped with some blackberries I froze this summer, some chopped almonds, cinnamon, and maple syrup, it's been pretty alright. Quinoa's got a really mild nutty flavor, and definitly needs the help of the toppings to give it some zing. It's pretty filling, so that's good too.

There's a recipe on Day 4 for Edamame "Hummus." I also made a big batch of that, and had it for lunch Monday and Tuesday with carrots, cucumbers, broccoli, and a piece of whole wheat pita. It's not bad, but a little bland--while it does have a nice lemony note--it maybe it could use a little extra salt & pepper, or a splash of hot sauce. (I'll have to remember to bring some for tomorrow's lunch.) One thing I did determine, is that blanching broccoli for a few seconds and then cooling it makes for a much more delicious experience. Sometimes raw broccoli is just too, well, raw.

Last night was the first dinner I tried from the menu--and holy crap, was it good. Day 2's Bengali Mustard Salmon & Black Eyed Pea Curry was some of the best Indian food I've made in a while. The curry was built on layers of flavor--onions, chilis, a paste of ginger and garlic, multple spices, and tomatoes that I canned this summer (yay!).

The salmon was equally delicious, and took all of 5 minutes to throw together. Leftover curry should be good for lunch tomorrow or this weekend, and I'm pretty sure it's going to become part of my regular rotation.

The next few dinners are ok--grilled chicken (duh, I can do that), an overly complicated miso soup, and a beet soup (I'm sorry I just cannot get into excessive amounts of beets), but the grilled hangar steak recipe for Day 6, might make it on the dinner menu for tomorrow. Paired with a salad and topped with pickled ramps, I think it'll work.

Anyone else see this program and trying it out? What are your thoughts?