WHITE BEAN HUMMUS

This dip is super easy, and my children actually prefer its texture to that of a traditional garbanzo bean hummus. It is mild, easy to flavor with whatever roasted veggies of spices you like. This version is tame, with only a bit of garlic and lemon added. YUM!

Recipe

White beans, cooked and juice drained (reserved) - 2 1/2 C
Salt - 1 teaspoon
Garlic cloves, peeled and cut in half - 2
Sesame seed - 1/2 C
Lemon juice - of 1 lemon

Put sesame see, salt, garlic and 1/2 C bean juice. Process in food processor about 2 minutes, or until seed and garlic have been finely ground. Add in beans. Process another minute. Add more bean juice or salt if desired.

Serve with cucumbers, carrot sticks, cherry tomatoes, or whatever veggies you love.

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

CRANBERRY AND FENNEL CORN MUFFINS

Oh my goodness. So good! I have been trying to find a cornbread that was moist, interesting and delicious. And so, here it is. I made it. I love it. I hope you love it! We loved the muffins so much, we ate them all before taking a picture. Sorry!

Recipe

Cranberries, chopped in half – 1 C

Fennel bulb, chopped in ¼ inch pieces – 1 C

Milk – 1 C

Canola oil – ¼ C

Egg – 1

Yellow cornmeal – 1 ¼ C

Soft white whole wheat flour – 1 ¼ C

Honey – ½ C

Baking soda – 1 T

Salt – ½ teaspoon

Lemon juice – 1 T

Lemon zest – from 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 400. Grease the bottoms only of 18 muffin cups (1 ½ muffin tins).

Combine milk, oil and egg, and stir. Then, put the rest of the ingredients into the bowl, and gently stir just until they are combined. DO NOT OVERSTIR. Batter may be a little lumpy, but that is fine.

Pour batter until muffin cups are about 2/3 full. Bake for 12-18 minutes, just until the batter is set, but not too brown.

Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. Serve warm with butter and commence smiling.

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

COCONUT CURRY BAKED SPINACH

Ever since I was first introduced to curry, I’ve been a little in love with Coconut milk. It is so dense, creamy, sweet and savory all at once. It’s a little bit of magic, too, with how versatile it can be.

This idea came to me when I opened my fridge and spied a 3 lb bag of spinach I needed to use. I wondered if coconut curry would blend well with the spinach. And, well, yum! You can put a little less curry in if you don’t want to overwhelm immature or heat-sensitive taste-buds.

Recipe

Spinach leaves, fresh – 8 cups

Coconut milk – 1 14 oz can

Ginger, peeled and diced – one inch piece

Sweet onion, diced – 1/3 C

Honey, runny – 3 T

Lemon juice – 1 T

Sea salt – ½ to 1 teaspoon

Preheat oven to 350. On stovetop, combine coconut milk and curry. Bring to a boil over medium high heat, and cook about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in honey, lemon juice and salt.

Mix spinach leaves and sauce together, then place in a 2 quart casserole dish. Bake about 15 minutes, or until spinach is nicely wilting. ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

CRANBERRY AND CABBAGE CHICKEN SALAD

I love chicken salad. We didn’t have it much when I was a kid. I remember tuna. Yes, that memory is hard to forget. It is still a little hard for me to eat tuna today. But chicken salad I love.

This version is light, refreshing, and so tasty. I think the dressing is key to its delicious notes. It’s super easy to make, and should be an easy crowd pleaser.I hope you like it!

Recipe

Sweet onion, diced – 1/3 C

Roasted chicken, diced – 3 C

Cranberries, dried and sweetened – 1 C

Cabbage, finely shredded – 2 C

Nonfat Green yogurt, plan-  ¾ C

Mayonnaise – ¾ C

Garlic, peeled and crushed – 2 cloves

Lemon juice – 1 T

Combine onion, chicken, cranberries and cabbage. For the dressing, combine yogurt, mayo, garlic and lemon juice. Season to taste (a little pepper, a little salt).

Mix dressing over salad and ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

SPAGHETTI WITH CAPERS, ANCHOVIES, TOMATOES AND BASIL

I may never go back to marinara again! This recipe is one I found and then tinkered with. I went much heavier on the capers…because I LOVE their earthy, pickled tang. I also added in a some herring I had…yum! It may look “interesting” but I know you’ll love it. It’s easy, quick and delicious!

My four-year old and 6-year old didn’t complain once about dinner. They sat and ate it quickly. They even knew about the fish and capers in the sauce!

Recipe

Spaghetti noodles – 1 ½ lbs

Canola oil – 2 T

Garlic cloves, peeled and chopped – 5

Pickled herring in oil, drained and finely chopped (from a tin)– 2 oz

Anchovies in oil, drained and finely chopped (from a tin) – 2 oz

Black olives, roughly chopped - 12 oz (two cans)

Capers, drained/rinsed – 5 or 6 T

Cherry tomatoes, sliced in half – 10 oz

Sea salt

Basil leaves, roughly torn – ½ C

Put 4 Tablespoons of sea salt in 6 quarts of water. Heat to boiling. When boiling, place noodles in, stir, then cook until al dente.

Heat the oil over medium heat in a large, tall frying pan. Add in garlic, herring and anchovies. Cook until aromatic, about 1-2 minutes. Add in olives, capers, tomatoes and stir over medium heat. Cook until tomatoes begin to collapse.

Drain pasta and toss in a large bowl with the sauce. Adjust seasoning as needed, though the salted water the pasta was cooked in, and the saltiness of the sauce ingredients should be sufficient.

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH! 

PORK LOIN WITH RASPBERRY APRICOT SAUCE

I love the tang of raspberries, and the richness of sweet apricots. Here, I’ve married them in a chunky sauce to dress moist pork loin. Delicious!

Recipe

Pork loin, cut into pieces ¾ inch thick – 4

Oil – 3 T

Salt

Pepper

Apricots, dried – ¾ C

Water – 1 C

Raspberries, fresh – ½ C

Honey – 1 T

Basil leaves, for garnish

For the sauce, place dried apricots and water in a pot on the stove. Heat the water on a  medium setting. Simmer for 10 minutes.

While simmering, work on the pork.

Season pork fillets on all sides with desired amount of salt/pepper.

Heat oil in a  skillet or pan to medium heat. When nice and hot, place pork fillets in the pan. Sear on each large/flat side for about 3-4 minutes. Finish off smaller sides of pork (edges) in the pan to get a nice, dark sear.

Place in a preheated over (200 degrees) to keep warm while you prepare the sauce.

Apricots should be softened now, so place them and the water you cooked them in, in a food processor. Add berries, seeds and all. Hurray for fiber! Add in honey and process until nicely combined.

Remove pork from the oven, dress with the sauce, garnish with basil and ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

Parmesan Cheese Sauce

This is super easy to prepare, and uses whole ingredients, so you can feel great about feeding it to your family. Forget about powdery packets of artificial flavors and anit-caking agents. This is the real deal, and it is really delicious.

Recipe

Butter - 2 T
Whole Wheat Flour - 3 T
Mlik - 2 C
Salt - 1 teaspoon
Garlic cloves, pressed - 2
Parmesan cheese, shredded - 1 C

Melt butter over low heat and whisk in flour until smooth. Turn heat to high and whisk in milk until smooth. Boil for about one minute, then lower heat to low. Add in salt, pressed garlic cloves and parmesan cheese. Stir until well combined. 

Use over pasta, potatoes, vegetables, whatever else you love with cheese!

GRAHAM CRACKERS

Again, with the wheat, I try to have lots of recipes on hand that will utilize whole grains. This cracker recipe is not as sweet as what the store will sell you. But it is infinitely more healthy. And easy to assemble. And preservative free. For less than $10 a box! Which is what I feel like we pay so often for good quality food.

As with the wheat crackers I posted earlier, make sure that when you bake these, you bake them long enough for them to crisp, to become crunchy as a cracker should. It’s easy to take it out too soon, and then be disappointed by the soft texture. Varying humidity will really affect the time you need it to bake, so watch carefully.

Recipe

Butter, softened – ½ C

Brown sugar – ¾ C

Vanilla – 1 teaspoon

Whole wheat flour (hard red) – 2 C

Whole wheat flour (soft white, or pastry) – 1 C

Baking powder – 1 teaspoon

Baking soda – ½ teaspoon

Salt – ¼ teaspoon

Milk – ½ C

Preheat oven to 350. Mix butter and sugar, then add in vanilla. Combine flours, salt, soda and baking powder, then fold in until nicely combined. Add milk in last.

Lightly flour countertop, then roll out dough to 1/8 inch thickness. Cut into whatever shapes you like, then place on a greased cookie sheet. Bake until crisp and browning, anywhere from 8 to 20 minutes. Remove to cool.

My personal favorite way to enjoy these is with a nice slice of cheddar cheese on top. The flavor combination reminds me of cheesecake. YUM!

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

KATSU SAUCE

I love this sauce, and am so excited to make it at home. Now I don’t have to get take-out when I crave this amazingly tangy, spicy flavor. Be careful to add your mustard powder, garlic and black pepper a little at a time. They can get quite spicy, and you may get more kick than you expect!

Recipe

Ketchup – 1 C

Mustard powder – 2 teaspoons

Garlic cloves, peeled and crushed – 2 small

Black pepper, ground – ¼ - ½ teaspoon

Worcestershire sauce – 2 ½ T

Mix all ingredients and let sit for two or so hours to blend.

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

WHEAT CRACKERS

I have hundreds of pounds of wheat in my basement. It’s a food storage thing. Like, end of the world, or end of our jobs scenario. And what will we eat? Well, lots of things made out of wheat.

This recipe is one I’ve made before, but always forget just how good it is, and so neglect it far too often. It is super versatile, as you can add in lots of different kinds of spices to flavor it whatever way you like.

It’s also whole-grain, no sugar, and tastes lovely and wholesome at the same time. My kids really enjoyed this when I made it recently. Just make sure that when you bake it, you bake it long enough for it to crisp, to become crunchy as a cracker should. It’s easy to take it out too soon, and then be disappointed by the soft texture. Varying humidity will really affect the time you need it to bake, so watch carefully.

Recipe

Whole wheat flour (hard red) – 1 ¾ C

Whole wheat flour (soft white, or pastry) – 1 ½ C

Salt – 1 teaspoon, and extra for sprinkling

Canola Oil – 1/3 C

Water – 1 C

Preheat oven to 350. Mix flours and 1 teaspoon salt together. Add in oil and water, and mix thoroughly. Roll out to 1/8 inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, sprinkle with salt and cook for 15-20 minutes, or until light brown and crisp. Remove from oven and cool, then break into cracker segments. So good, so wholesome!

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

CHOCHOLATE CHOCOLATE CHIP ZUCCHINI BREAD

I sort of feel like if you eat your vegetables in your bread, you’re entitled to a little chocolate to go along with it.

Enjoy this treat of a whole wheat, veggie bread. You’ll never guess how good it is for you!

Recipe

Zucchini, shredded – 3 C

Demerara (or sugar) – 1 2/3 C

Canola oil – 2/3 C

Eggs, large - 4

Whole Wheat Pastry flour – 3 ½ C

Baking cocoa, 1/3 C
Baking soda – 2 teaspoon

Salt – 1 teaspoon

Cinnamon – 1 teaspoon

Baking powder – ½ teaspoon

Shredded coconut – ¾ C

Chocolate Chips – 1 ½ C

Blend all dry ingredients (flour through baking powder). In a separate bowl, combine zucchini, demerara, oil and eggs. Add in dry ingredients, then coconut and chocolate chips.

Bake in a two greased loaf pans. When done and cooled, try not to inhale in one sitting. 

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

MUENSTER BASIL MASHED POTATOES

If I could only choose one herb to cook with for the rest of my life, it would be basil. Hands down. The herb is amazing, versatile, refreshing, and pairs so well with so many things. It really livens up these potatoes, and gives them a fun green hue.

Recipe

Russets, medium large, chunked to 1-inch size pieces -  7 potatoes

Muenster cheese, sliced, torn into 1 inch or so squares – 4 oz

Basil leaves, large – 16

Butter – 2 T

Salt – ½ teaspoon

Milk or Half and Half – ½ C to 2/3 C

Boil water, and when rolling, add in potato chunks (skin and all). When tender, drain. Put 1 C cooked potatoes, all basil and butter into a food processor, and process until smooth.

Put rest of potatoes into your mixing bowl. Add basil/potato/butter mixture. Add in salt and milk. Mix until desired consistency, smooth if you like that, or a little chunkier if that’s your style. I meant cuisine style, not body type.

If only we were speaking in person…you could slap me. In the interest of full disclosure, however, chunky is my style….in more ways than one!

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

GOUDA PORK BASIL LETTUCE WRAP

Summer nights SCREAM for light, fresh, and cool eats, and this sandwich fits the bill perfectly. You can swap out the meat or cheese for other varieties, but this is what we came up with, and loved it.

As always, the Asian Chili sauce is optional, but exceptional.

Recipe

Pork roast – 4 lbs

Gouda cheese, sliced – 1 lb

Romaine hearts – 2

Basil leaves – 15 +

Mayonnaise

Asian Chili Sauce

Season (to taste) and slow cook the roast until done (high for 5 hours should do it). Slice into pieces about the size of pink pearl erasers (1/2 inch wide by 2 inches long by ¼ inch thick).

Using a whole single open lettuce leaf, layer cheese (1/2 oz) and pork (1 oz). Garnish with basil leaves (yum!), mayo and chili sauce. SO good. Almost as good as brownies for dinner. But infinitely better for you.

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER BANANA SHAKE

So…speaking of bananas. We really eat a lot. One of the things we like best to do is to peel them, wrap them in wax or parchment paper, and freeze them in Ziploc bags for later use. They make the BEST base for many milkshakes.

Below is my personal favorite. You can make it at home for less than $2, or buy the equivalent amount at a fancy smoothie shop for about $10! Hmmmm….hard decision!

Recipe

Spinach, fresh or frozen – 1 C

Baking cocoa – 1 T

Honey – 3 T

Peanut Butter – 1 ½ T

Milk or Half and Half – 1 ¾ C

Frozen bananas – 1 ½ - 2

Place spinach, cocoa, honey, peanut butter and milk/half & half in the blender. Liquify until smooth. Add in frozen bananas, and pulse until shake is smooth. YUMMY!

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

APRICOT CHOCOLATE CHIP BANANA CAKE

We eat a lot of bananas around here. Like 12 pounds a week, or so. That’s a lot of potassium!

So we like to experiment with different recipes to use this favorite family fruit. This is a new favorite we just came up with. Eat it for breakfast, because it’s basically jazzed up banana bread.   

Recipe

Large bananas, mashed – 3

Eggs – 2

Demerara (or sugar) – ¾ C

Buttermilk – 1/3 C

Oil – 1 T

Vanilla – 1 T

Whole Wheat Flour – 1 ¾ C

Baking powder – 1 ½ teaspoons

Baking soda – ½ teaspoon

Salt – ½ teaspoon

Apricots, dried, cut into fourths – ¾ C

Chocolate Chips – ¾ C

Blend all dry ingredients. Add in bananas, eggs, demerara, buttermilk oil and vanilla. Fold in apricots and chocolate chips.

Bake in a greased 9 X 13 pan at 325 for about 20-35 minutes. Cake is done when just lightly browned on the top. After it has cooled, dust lightly with powdered sugar.

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

WHOLE WHEAT RASPBERRY COCONUT CHOCOLATE CHIP BANANA PANCAKES

We are always trying to push the envelope of this amazing, all-American, delicious breakfast. This recipe may have the best of all available ingredients that belong to the magical world of pancakes.

You cannot even taste the whole-grain goodness of the whole wheat flour, due to the decadence of the other ingredients!

Enjoy our latest version!

Recipe

Bananas, mashed - 2 

Whole Wheat Flour - 1 C

Baking Powder - 2 teaspoons

Sea salt – ¾  teaspoons

Cinnamon – ½  teaspoon

Nutmeg – ½  teaspoon

Demerara - 1 T

Milk - 1 C

Eggs - 2

Rasperries, smashed - 1 C

Flaked coconut – ½ C

Chocolate Chips – ½ C

Blend all dry ingredients. Add in milk and eggs, then stir. Gently stir in bananas, berries, coconut and chocolate chips. Cook on medium heat on a buttered griddle until just browned on each side. Enjoy with any topping you prefer. The chocolate inside will likely be enough, though.

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

RASPBERRY CREAM DIP

I love fennel. Its flavor is reminiscent of childhood summer days, lazily gnawing on yummy black licorice while spending all day out of doors. I love that eating my vegetables makes me feel like I’m eating a treat!

So…I wanted to make a delicious dip to complement the sweet veggie. Below is my first attempt. It is quite good, and will pair lovely with many things, including fruit, pancakes, crepes, and toast. ENJOY!

Recipe

Cream cheese, softened – 8 oz

Half and half – 1/6 C

Raspberries – 1/3 C

Demerara/honey – 1 T

Vanilla – 1 teaspoon

Mix all ingredients, except berries, on high speed in your food processor, or with a high-powered mixer. When well mixed and smooth, add in berries, gently smashing them as you do so.

Serve with fennel sticks ( I love this flavor combination ) or with whatever else you fancy.

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

BASIL TEMPTATION MELON SALAD

My kids saw me putting basil leaves in this fruit salad.

“What? I’m NOT eating that. That vegetable does not belong in this fruit salad.”

Well, “ha, ha” kiddos. The joke is on you. Because basil, you see, is an herb, not a vegetable. And it’s going in the salad. So there.

That salad was gone pretty quick. The kids liked it, in spite of the green addition.

See? Mother does know best!

Recipe

Temptation Melon, 1 – seeded and cut into 1 inch pieces

Basil leaves, chopped – 1 C

Nectarines, pitted and chopped – 4

Honey (or demerara) – 1 T

Cinnamon, ground – ½ teaspoon

Combine all fruit, then sprinkle with honey/demerara and cinnamon. Stir lightly and eat quickly!

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

ASIAN CHICKEN SALAD

If you’re like me, you’re always looking for a new way to use left-over chicken. We eat a lot of chicken around here, and it’s nice to dress it up differently, right?

This is totally easy, and totally yummy. And it is nice on a hot summer day…like we’ve been having so many of recently. Thank goodness for air conditioning!

Recipe

Soy sauce – ¼ C

Rice wine vinegar – 1/8 C

Ginger, peeled and finely chopped – 2 T

Sesame oil – 2 T

Demerara – 1 T

Shredded chicken (or pork) – 3 C

Green cabbage, finely shredded – 6 C

Celery, thinly sliced – 2 C

Sweet onion, finely chopped – ½ C

Cilantro, finely chopped – ¾ C

Combine soy sauce through demerara, and stir until nicely combined. Toss chicken, cabbage, celery, onion and cilantro together. Pour sauce over all, and let marinate in the fridge for at least one hour.

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

TOMATILLO PULLED PORK

Who doesn’t like good, saucy pulled barbeque pork? So good! But, I do long for different seasonings on my pork, now and then.

Enjoy this “South of the Border” version of pulled pork. Super easy, and super yummy! Also easy to transfer the recipe to dress up shredded chicken or beef.

Recipe

Pork roast – 4 lbs

Tomatillos, chopped – 4

Chicken broth – ½ C

Dried Chopped Onion – 1 T

Thyme – ½ teaspoon

Paprika – ½ teaspoon

Balsamic vinegar – 2 T

Fresh squeezed lemon juice – 1/3 C

Salt – to taste

Using your slow cooker, slow roast the pork until done. Put tomatillos and broth in pot on stove and cook over medium until the tomatillos are soft. Add in thyme, paprika, balsamic vinegar and lemon juice. Cook until flavors are well combined. Salt to taste, and then poor sauce over pork when the pork is thoroughly done.

Allow pulled pork to rest in the tomatillo sauce at least 1 hour before serving. Serve over rice, green salad, or mashed potatoes.

ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

TURKEY MEATBALLS

I almost never cook with ground beef, ground turkey, ground veal, or ground whatever. But once in a while, a good meatball will just hit the spot.

These meatballs are a little different, but super delish. A few out of the ordinary ingredients make them fun to try, so go ahead…be daring!

Recipe

Ground turkey – 20 oz

Whole Wheat Italian Bread crumbs – 2/3 C

Milk – 1/3 C

Salt – ½ tsp

Worcestershire sauce – 1 tsp

Pepper – ½ tsp

Onion, chopped – ½ C

Egg, whisked – 1

Ginger, minced – 1 tsp

Garlic, peeled and pressed – 2 cloves

Goat cheese, crumbled – 1/3 C

Preheat oven to 400. Mix all ingredients and shape into balls about 1 inch in diameter. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until no longer pink in the middle. Serve with your favorite sauce. AND ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!

NECTARINE AVOCADO SALAD

This salad is a little variation on one my sister-in-law makes all the time. It’s actually quite different, but almost as amazing as hers! Maybe she’ll have me post hers too. If only you are so lucky!

This salad is great over rice, over lettuce, in a taco, a wrap or sandwich. Really, it’s great by itself too. Almost as versatile as the all-American ketchup. Give it a try; the fresh combinatiton of flavors will invigorate you!

Recipe

Avocados, peeled and pitted and diced – 2

Nectarines, pitted and diced – 3 to 4

Cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped – ¾ C

Green onions (white parts and light green parts only) finely chopped – 3

Cilantro, coarsely chopped – ½ C

Lime juice, freshly squeezed – 3 T

Salt – to taste

Mix all ingredients. Use as desired and ENJOY IN GOOD HEALTH!