The Laura Lea Balanced Cookbook. Laura Lea

skillets should work just fine.

      Cast-iron skillets. A different animal

       altogether, these classic heavy pans are

       a great investment. They don’t cost a lot

       and they get better with age, if properly

       taken care of. Cast-iron takes a little

       while to get hot, but it gets screaming

       hot and has excellent heat retention. I

       use my cast-iron skillet when I want to

       make sure that the dish is cooked evenly

       through, such as my Pesto Chicken &

       Spinach Frittata (page 137) or Summer Peach & Blueberry Crumble with Coconut Cashew Cream (page 323). I also use it for nonstick cooking, like with my Customizable Oat Johnnycakes with 20-Minute Chia Berry Jam (page 118). “Seasoning” your cast-iron skillet protects it from heat and makes it durable.

      To season cast-iron: Preheat oven to

       325° F. Wipe down skillet with a wet cloth

       and dry thoroughly. Apply a thin coat of

       any oil of choice to the skillet (I use olive

       oil). Place skillet upside down on center

       oven rack, and place a sheet of aluminum

       foil on bottom rack to catch dripping oil.

       Bake for an hour, turn off oven heat, and

       allow skillet to remain until completely

       cooled. You’ll know you need to re-

       season your skillet when it is no longer

       smooth and shiny.

      To clean your cast-iron skillet. Do not

       wash with soap or scrub with a metal

       brush or sponge; this will damage it.

       Wash under hot water with a textured

       sponge as soon as possible after cooking.

       If this doesn’t clean it completely, add a

       few tablespoons of sea salt and scrub the

       salt into the skillet with a paper towel or

       dish rag. Rinse thoroughly.

      Green nonstick pan. Traditional nonstick

       pans/skillets have been shown to release

       toxic gases at high temperatures, making

       them an unsafe option. However, some

       companies are now making “green”

       nonstick ceramic skillets that purport to

       eliminate health concerns. I have one grill

       pan from a company called GreenPan,

       and I’ve used it successfully. If you would

       prefer not to invest in a cast-iron skillet,

       you can look into “green” or “eco” pans

       to determine how you feel about them.

      • Immersion blender

      • Ice cream maker

      • Wire cooling rack (can use a slotted baking

       sheet instead)

      STORAGE EQUIPMENT

      • Variety of glass sealable containers

       (I like Glasslock)

      • Food storage zip-top bags: Perfect for frozen

       fruit and dry goods such as flours, nuts,

       and grains.

      • Insulated food and beverage containers:

       I like Thermos brand. These are useful for

       food-to-go and in lunch boxes, for both

       hot and cold items. An optional item is a

       Yeti cup (or one from a similar, knock-off

      brand), which keeps liquids hot or cold for a

       long time.

      • Mason jars: Great for soups, smoothies, and

       salad dressings.

      Pantry Food Staples

      The following are MY staples and the staples

       for this book. If you buy and stock these, all

       you will have to do is purchase perishable items

       when you want to make a recipe: fruits, veggies,

       meat, eggs, dairy. Start here and feel free to

       experiment with ingredients as your comfort

       with cooking grows. Note I have tagged some

       ingredients with an *. These are ingredients

       that are a bit more exotic—I have included

       suggestions for using them starting on page 42.

      Swapping

       healthy fats

       into your diet

       is as simple as

       using grass-fed

       butter, organic

       coconut oil, and

       olive oil, and

       leaving behind

       hydrogenated

       and trans fats.

      FATS

      • Extra-virgin olive oil: As classic as it gets;

       I probably use olive oil every single day in

       cooking. Its slightly savory umami flavor

       pairs with almost any protein or vegetable,

       and it is full of heart-healthy fats. When

       it comes to olive oil, make sure you are

       purchasing “extra-virgin first cold-pressed”

       oil, and look for a bottle that is dark/opaque

       (to protect it from destabilizing sunlight

       heat). This ensures you are getting the

       freshest, highest quality olive oil, which

       easily goes rancid.

      • Extra-virgin organic coconut oil*

      • Grass-fed butter: What is left to be said

       about butter? It makes everything taste

       better, richer, more satisfying, and more

       complex. I use it in moderation, as I do

       all ingredients, but there are certain

       instances in which nothing beats butter—

       like slathered on a freshly baked muffin

       or tossed in pasta with a pinch of sea salt.

       I always have Kerrygold grass-fed butter

       in my fridge, and unless you have a dairy

       allergy or intolerance, I recommend the