HOME & LIVING
TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2022
THE OBSERVER & BAKER CITY HERALD — B3
or vinegar (see Note)
1 cup sugar
ANGEL
Continued from Page B1
For the lemon fi lling:
“It was a classic of the
1950s,” said François, “and
I think Rachel will sin-
glehandedly make this
an essential dessert in
America again.”
4 egg yolks, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup fresh-squeezed lemon
juice (from about 2 lemons)
GRANDMA
LU’S LEMON
ANGEL PIE
2 cups heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Zest of 1 lemon
Serves 6 to 8.
Directions
Note: This is Rachel Swan’s version
of her grandmother’s angel pie
recipe, which occasionally appears
on the menu at her south Minne-
apolis bakery, Pie & Mighty. The
key to making a meringue crust
that doesn’t crack is to not open
the oven during baking or after.
The longer you can leave the oven
closed, the better. “Here’s the thing
with this pie: The most important
ingredient, not listed, is time,”
Swan said. Swan calls her lemon
fi lling “goo.” She suggests pushing
the fi lling and the whipped cream
all the way in toward the edge of
the crust, an act she calls “tuckle
the goo.” This recipe must be
prepared in advance.
For the meringue
crust:
Coconut oil, for greasing
4 egg whites, room temperature
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar,
or 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
For the whipped
cream:
Preheat oven to 275 degrees
Fahrenheit. Generously grease a
pie plate with coconut oil.
To prepare the meringue
crust: In the bowl of a stand
mixer fi tted with the whisk
attachment or in a large bowl
using an electric mixer, combine
the egg whites and cream of
tartar (or lemon juice or vine-
gar) and beat on medium-high
speed until foamy, about 2
minutes. Gradually add the
sugar and beat until the mixture
is stiff and glossy, up to 10
minutes. Spread the meringue
onto the pie plate and shape
the crust up the sides with a
rubber spatula, hollowing the
center and making decorative
dollops around the edges. (To
spread the meringue more
evenly, use a piping bag to pipe
a spiral around the bottom and
pipe rings around the edges of
the plate up to the rim. Pipe a
decorative rim around the top
to look like a crimped edge.)
Richard Tsong-Taatarii/Minneapolis Star-Tribune
Rachel Swan shows a cross section of a properly fi nished angel pie in Minneapolis.
Bake for 1 hour. When the timer
goes off , turn off the oven but
do not open the door to remove
it until the oven has fully cooled
— at least one hour and up
to overnight.
To prepare the lemon fi lling:
In a small stainless-steel bowl,
beat egg yolks, adding the sug-
ar until thick. Add lemon juice
and place the bowl over a pot,
fi lled about a quarter of the way
with boiling water (double-boil-
er method). Stir constantly until
mixture is thick and mounds
slightly when dropped from a
spoon, about 10 minutes. Re-
move from heat and cover with
plastic wrap on the surface of
the fi lling, to prevent a fi lm from
forming. Cool completely.
To assemble the pie: Make
the whipped cream. In the bowl
of a stand mixer fi tted with the
whisk attachment or in a large
bowl using an electric mixer,
combine the heavy cream and
sugar until thick. Add vanilla.
Take the meringue crust and
lightly knock down the inside
of the shell, which may have
puff ed up during baking, mak-
ing a cavern underneath the top
edge. Spread half the whipped
cream into the shell, reaching
all the way into the sides (aka
“tuckle the goo”). Spoon in the
lemon fi lling and smooth it
over the whipped cream with a
spoon or off set spatula. Some
of the fi lling and cream will
mix together.
Put the rest of the whipped
cream into a piping bag (or a
sandwich bag with the corner
snipped off ) and pipe the
cream around the pie where the
meringue shell meets the fi lling.
Sprinkle the lemon zest all over
the top of the pie. Refrigerate
the pie at least 4 hours, prefera-
bly overnight.
Developing a brain-heathy menu plan
By GRETCHEN McKAY
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
PITTSBURGH — Laura
Ali has helped countless
clients fi ne-tune their diets
to promote healthy eating
habits in her three decades
as a registered dietitian
and culinary nutritionist,
16 of them in a clinical set-
ting at the Cancer Institute
at UPMC, now Hillman
Cancer Institute.
Good nutrition is a cor-
nerstone of good health,
with study after study
showing that adults who eat
an adequate, well-balanced
diet not only live longer, but
also lower their risk of heart
disease, diabetes and cer-
tain cancers.
Yet it was Ali’s own
genetics that got her
thinking about the new
eating plan known as the
MIND diet, which is meant
to support memory. She
was so struck by its pro-
posed benefi ts that during
the pandemic, she wrote a
cookbook with 65 simple
recipes based on its recom-
mendations. Published in
March, it’s called “Mind
Diet for Two” (Rockridge
Press, $14.99)
Both Ali and her hus-
band have a family history
of Alzheimer’s disease and
have watched close relatives
suff er from dementia. So as
she inched toward middle
age, the Pittsburgh native
grew increasingly intrigued
by the role food plays in
long-term cognitive health.
Hoping to avoid the same
fate, “I wanted to learn
more to see if there were
things we could do to slow
down or prevent dementia
altogether,” she said.
Her reading led her to
the work researchers at
Rush University in Chi-
cago have been doing with
elderly residents via the
MIND diet, the fi rst eating
plan that focuses on foods
that specifi cally support and
improve cognitive health.
Created to slow the loss
of brain function that hap-
pens with age, the MIND
diet combines two diets
considered to be super-good
for the heart: the mostly
plant-based Mediterranean
diet, and the low-sodium
DASH diet, developed in
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the 1990s by the National
Heart, Lung and Blood
Institute to prevent and treat
high blood pressure.
Both build meals around
fruits, vegetables and
whole grains, with varying
amounts of lean meats, fi sh,
sweets and healthy fats
allowed per day or week.
The MIND diet takes it a
step further by encouraging
regular consumption of 10
types of “brain healthy”
foods — berries, leafy
greens, other vegetables,
nuts, beans, whole grains,
fi sh, poultry, olive oil
and red wine — and lim-
iting foods in fi ve groups
including red meats, butter
and stick margarine, cheese,
pastries and sweets, and
fried or fast food, because
they are high in saturated
fat and trans fat and known
to increase cholesterol.
When people age, Ali
writes, plaque builds up
on the brain, causing the
communication system to
short-circuit and interfere
with the brain’s messages
to the body. Substances
called fl avonoids, found in
foods like fruits, vegetables,
cocoa and wine, contain
antioxidant and anti-infl am-
matory properties, which
protect the body’s cells
from damage and reduce
infl ammation.
That’s important because
Alzheimer’s patients tend
to have brains that are
infl amed, while people with
hypertension and diabetes
are at a great risk for stroke,
which is a major factor
for vascular dementia and
Alzheimer’s.
“It’s just a healthy way of
eating,” Ali says.
Research suggests that
the MIND diet lowered the
risk of Alzheimer’s by as
much as 53% in participants
who rigorously followed to
the diet to a T, and by about
35% in those who adhered
to it moderately well. But
improvements start to
weaken at about year 7.
Ali says she knew the
cookbook would prob-
ably strike a chord with
home cooks because people
today are so much more
aware of what they should
be eating, and the role that
good nutrition can have in
maintaining and improving
health. While we still want
the convenience of drive-
through, or eating quickly
on the run or at our desks,
“there’s true desire to eat
better,” she says.
In deciding which foods
to include, Ali — a lifelong
cook who has done culinary
consulting for Giant Eagle,
StarKist and Del Monte
Foods — chose 65 recipes
that use ingredients readily
available in any grocery
store. She also steered clear
of recipes that required spe-
cial equipment like an air
fryer or Instant Pot because
not everyone has one.
“I approached it as what
[the average person] typ-
ically eats,” she says —
quick breakfasts, simple
lunches and mains that
can be made in 30 minutes
or less.
Many are gluten- or
dairy-free, and all come
with nutritional infor-
mation, along with prep
and cook times. She also
includes a servings chart,
kitchen tips and a seven-day
sample menu to get you
started.
The cookbook is unique
in that all the recipes serve
just two instead of the stan-
dard four to six for a family.
That’s because by the
time most people are wor-
ried about dementia, they
are often cooking for two
most of the time as empty
nesters.
“At this point in life,
people are often caring for
elderly relatives that may
have dementia and are
seeing the real eff ects it has.
I think they become wor-
ried about their own health
as they age.”
With food waste a
growing problem, people
also don’t want to have to
throw away leftovers.
“But most can easily be
doubled for four or more,”
she says.
If you’re someone who
doesn’t already eat a lot of
fruits, grains, fi sh or leafy
vegetables, it can take some
time to adjust to the MIND
diet — for your body as
well as your palate. (The
increased fi ber can cause
bloating, gas or constipa-
tion.) She suggests starting
easy by sneaking some of
the ingredients into your
dishes — say, add some
spinach or salmon to your
scrambled eggs, serve a
leafy salad with dinner,
or stir vegetable into your
pasta.
Tougher still may be
learning to limit favor-
ites like cheese, butter and
steak. But the daily glass
of red wine you’re allowed,
she says with a laugh,
makes up for it.
“It’s a relatively easy
way of eating,” she says.
BLUEBERRY
SMOOTHIE
Packed with essential
nutrients, fi ber and antioxidants,
blueberries are one powerful little
berry. Research suggests they
can lower the risk of dementia
and support a healthy, well-func-
tioning immune system. Kefi r,
a fermented milk drink, is also
thought to have positive impacts
on brain health due to its probiot-
ic content.
This tangy smoothie comes
together in minutes and has just
261 calories, making it a perfect
(and healthy) breakfast or mid-af-
ternoon snack.
1 ½ cups kefi r
1 5.3-ounce cup nonfat
Greek yogurt
¼ cup fi nely chopped walnuts
1 cup fresh blueberries
2 or 3 ice cubes
In a blender or food processor,
place the kefi r, yogurt, walnuts,
blueberries and ice cubes. Blend
about 1 minute on high, until
mixture is completely combined.
Divide between 2 glasses and
enjoy.
Makes 2 smoothies.
— “Mind Diet for Two” by Laura
Ali (Rockridge Press, 2022, $15)
SOBA
NOODLES
WITH SPICY
PEANUT
SAUCE
This spicy noodle dish takes
less than 15 minutes to prepare,
and is packed with MIND-di-
et friendly ingredients. Soba
noodles, made with buckwheat,
are rich in fi ber and also contain
fl avonoids, which can reduce
infl ammation. The real star is the
edamame, one of the few vegeta-
bles that is a complete protein.
For peanut sauce
¼ cup creamy peanut butter
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon lime zest
1 tablespoon lime juice
½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
½ teaspoon red pepper fl akes
½ teaspoon freshly grated ginger
For noodles
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup shredded carrots
½ cup thinly sliced bell
pepper strips
1 cup shelled edamame
(thawed, if frozen)
1 tablespoons sliced scallions,
green and white parts
6 ounces soba noodles
¼ cup shredded red cabbage
¼ cup peanuts, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
In medium bowl, whisk
together the peanut butter,
soy sauce, lime zest, lime juice,
sesame oil, red pepper fl akes and
ginger until well blended. Set
aside.
In medium skillet, heat olive oil
over medium heat. Add carrots,
bell pepper and edamame. Cook
for 2 minutes, until just hot. Add
scallions and stir for 30 seconds.
Remove from heat.
In a large saucepan, bring 6 to
8 cups water to a boil over high
heat. Add soba noodles and cook
according to package directions
until just al dente, 4 to 6 minutes.
Drain and put the noodles back
in the saucepan.
Immediately toss the soba
noodles with the peanut sauce to
coat. Add cooked vegetables and
toss well.
Divide between 2 plates and
top with cabbage, peanuts and
cilantro.
Serves 2.
— “Mind Diet for Two” by Laura
Ali (Rockridge Press, 2022, $15)
SPICY
AVOCADO
DRESSING
Avocados are rich in monoun-
saturated fat and potassium, both
of which are important for blood
pressure control and may help
improve blood fl ow to the brain.
Use as a spread for sandwiches,
toast or tacos, or as a thick and
creamy salad dressing. Also works
as a dip with crudites.
1 medium ripe avocado,
pitted, peeled and diced
1 teaspoon lime zest
3 tablespoons freshly
squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon chopped
jalapeno pepper
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
(about 2 cloves)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped
fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon chopped
fresh parsley
Place ingredients in the bowl
of a food processor. Process until
completely combined and no
large pieces are visible.
Store in an airtight container in
the fridge for up to 1 week. (The
lime juice will keep the dressing
from turning brown.)
Makes 3/4 cup.
— “Mind Diet for Two” by Laura
Ali (Rockridge Press, 2022, $15)
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