All About the "Q" - and Spanish Almond Caper Sauce! A guest blog by Intern Haley Warren

This week is all about quercetin! If you have never heard of this, this will be a great read for you. You may be asking what quercetin is and why it is good for you? Well, here is the answer! Quercetin contains many phytonutrients, vitamins that are essential for health, and antioxidants. Studies have shown that quercetin acts as an anti-carcinogenic, anti-bacterial, and anti-inflammatory agent. Not only does it provide all this goodness, it also has good levels of vitamins and minerals. So basically, it is REALLY good for you!

Now, you may also be asking, why is the world is she talking about quercetin? Well folks, capers are the second highest sources of quercetin bringing 180 mg of quercetin for every 100 grams of capers, and the recipe I would like to talk about today is Spanish Almond Caper Sauce. Last week, Chef Nancy taught a group how to make this sauce for skewers from the grill. YUM! I have been wanting to make it for my family ever since the class, and I was given the perfect chance to over the weekend. It was a major success that everyone loved!

Spanish Almond Caper Sauce:

1/3 Cup Toasted Whole Almonds

1 TB Water

3 TB Sherry Vinegar

1/2 Tsp Sea Salt

1/2 Tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper

2/3 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 Cloves Garlic, Peeled

1 Tsp Smoked Paprika

1 Tin Anchovies, drained

1 Cup Capers

Chopped Parsley for Garnish

In a food processor or blender, pulse the almonds until coarsely chopped. Add the water, vinegar, sea salt, pepper, olive oil, garlic, paprika and anchovies and pulse to combine. Place in a bowl and add the capers. Stir until thoroughly combined. Serve over protein from the grill-and garnish with chopped fresh parsley.

** Also, quercetin is found in skins of apples, onion, tea, green vegetables, berries, herbs and red wine.

Avocados All Around! A Guest Post by Haley Warren, Taste and Savor Intern

Hi! I'm Haley Warren, the lucky new intern with Taste and Savor. I'm a graduate of the University of Georgia, doing my internship through Iowa State University. I'm on my community rotation right now, and will be moving over to Piedmont Hospital in a bit, to start a clinical internship. 

Over the past week, interning with Chef Nancy has been incredible! I have gotten to witness some amazing classes with her, but one class I would have to say was my favorite. We went to the Thomas F Chapman Family Cancer Wellness Center at Piedmont Hospital in Henry County to spread some herb lovin’. Chef Nancy and Sous Chef Lea created an incredible menu of summer dishes - all made with herbs and spices. 

My favorite was the  Avocado Salad. Instead of avocados in the salad itself,  it was a mix of greens, an array of chopped herbs, lettuce and grape tomatoes. Avocado was used to  make the dressing flavorful, cool and creamy without a lot of extra oil.

Avocado Salad Dressing

2 Garlic Cloves, Peeled

1 Large Avocado

2 Tsp Lime Juice

1/2 Cup Nonfat Greek Yogurt

1 Tsp Smoked Paprika

1/4 Cup EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)

1/2 Tsp Fine Sea Salt

Place all ingredients into a food processor and puree it.

That's it - super easy and delicious. 

Another interesting Avocado tip I learned this week was all about Guacamole. Substitute 1/4 part of Frozen Green Peas to 3/4 Part of Mashed Avocado in  your favorite recipe. No one will be able to tell the difference - and you are getting lots of good nutrition from the bright green peas, without all the fat from the avocados. Yum. 

I'm looking forward to next week and all the adventures we are going to have in the Healthy Kitchen!