Tag: healthy

Zesty Pickled Banana Peppers

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Pickled Banana Peppers
Pickled Banana Peppers

My banana pepper plants are starting to produce and I think they taste best when picked. Here is what I did with them and they came out great.

Ingredients
  •  banana peppers (about 10)
  • 1 cups white vinegar (5% acidity)
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 garlic clove per jar, minced
Directions
Slice banana peppers into rings 1/4-inch thick.  Fill pint mason jar with banana peppers. Add minced garlic to each jar. Heat the vinegar, water, salt, and sugar and stir until completely dissolved. Boil for about 3 minutes then pour with peppers and garlic. Screw on lid and when cooled put into the fridge. In a day or two they should be ready.

Simple Healthy Eggplant Curry

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Spicy Eggplant Curry
Spicy Eggplant Curry

Eggplants are in season and my garden is producinga lot of them. So, to enjoy them in an easy to  make dish, I came up with this easy to make curry.

Ingredients

  • 1 black eggplant or 2 Asian eggplants chopped into 1/2  inch cubes.
  • 1/2 large onion chopped in 1/2 to 1inch pieces
  • 1 very ripe tomato or 1 6 oz can of tomato sauce
  • 2 tbsp Olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp red. pepper flakes
  • 1 tsp garam masala
  • l  tsp cumin seed
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric
  • 2 doves garlic finely chopped

Directions

Heat pan till hot. Add olive oil and cumin seeds and fry till the seeds start to pop. Add onion, garlic and eggplant and fry for about 3 minutes. Now add  in spices and fry for 1 more minute. Add tomato and cook about 15  more minutes till eggplantis cooked and tomato is disintegrated. Add additional salt and pepper flakes as desired. Serve and enjoy.

Healthy Turkish Red Lentil soup

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Healthy Red Lentil Soup
Healthy Red Lentil Soup

This is a easy, quick and. healthy meal. You can make it ahead of time and store it in the fridge an it will last up to 2 weeks.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup of Red Lentils
  • 32 oz chicken or vegetable stock
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1/2 of a large onion finely chopped
  • large carrot finely chopped
  • I tsp salt
  • 4 cloves garlic finely choppe
  • I tbsp olive oil
  • 1  lemon cut into wedges
  • optionally  top with freshly ground pepper and cilantro

Directions

Fry onion, garlic and carrot in the olive oil till translucent, but not browned.  Add in the rest of the ingredients except lemon and bring to a boil, then  reduce heat and simmer until lentils are starting to fall apart. Spoon into serving  bowls an serve with the lemon wedges to squeeze into the soup.

Hearty Quick Chili

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Hearty Homemade Chili
Hearty Homemade Chili

This is a great meal to make and is ready in as little about 45 minutes and it tastes great. You can taste all the individual elements since it is not cooked for a really long time and this makes it have a really fresh taste.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb 0f lean ground beef or vegan beef substitute.
  • 1/3 can of low salt Red Kidney Beams
  • 1/2 onion diced
  • 1/2 bell pepper green or red diced
  • 1 cup water
  • 2 serrano peppers finely diced. Seeds removed for less heat.
  • 4 cloves garlic finely diced
  • 3 tbsp of Chili Powder
  • 1 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1/2 tbsp of cumin
  • 1 tsp of dried oregano
  • 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper
  • 1/2 tsp of salt
  • 2 tbsp olive oil

Directions

Fry the onions, bell pepper, and garlic in a sauce pan with the olive oil over medium heat till tender (3-4 min). Remove, pour in a bowl and set aside. Brown the meat in the pan with the serrano pepper then add back in the onions, bell pepper, beans, and garlic with about 1 cup of water, all the spices and tomato paste. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 30 to 45 minutes. Serve and enjoy.

Crunchy Nut Protein Bars

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Nutritious Yummy Nut Protein Bar
Nutritious Yummy Nut Protein Bar

Ingredients

  • 2/3 cup of raw unsalted Walnuts
  • 1/2 cup of unsalted roasted sunflower seeds
  • 1/4 cup of flax seed
  • 2/3 cup of unsalted roasted pumpkin seeds
  • 1/2 cup of raw unsalted almonds
  • 1/2 cup of old fashioned rolled oats (not instant)
  • 2/3 cup of puffed millet
  • 2/3 cup of brown rice syrup
  • 1 tbsp of vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp of cinnamon
  • 1 tbsp of coconut oil
  • Optionally 1 – 3 tbsp of honey or more if you like it sweeter. I didn’t use any since it is very lightly sweet from the brown rice syrup

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Mix all dry ingredients (except cinnamon) in a bowl and wet ingredients and cinnamon in another bowl (microwavable) and stir. Microwave wet ingredients for 1 minute, then pour over the dry ingredients while stirring until evenly incorporated. Now put the mixture into a 9 x 13 baking pan lined w/parchment paper starting from one side and only fill as much of the pan as you need to to get the bars to the thickness desired. Then use another piece of parchment on the top to pack it firmly and form it into the desired shape (Should be a sheet of the mixture about 1″ thick). Bake for 25 minutes, remove, and press down and pack tightly again. Then let cool. When cool it should be hard. Pick up from pan using parchment and cut into bars on a cutting board with a sharp knife.

Hearty Daal Makhani Recipe

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Delicious Daal Makhani
Delicious Daal Makhani

This is a flavorful vegetarian curry and can easily made to be vegan. I like to make it spicy with extra pepper powder and extra hot peppers. It goes great along with naan.

Ingredients

  • 1/3 cup of urad daal
  • 1/3 cup of red kidney beans (rajma)
  • 1/3 cup of channa dal
  • 1 small onion finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp ginger paste
  • 4 oz tomato sauce
  • 4 cloves of garlic smashed and minced into a paste
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 2 tbsp canola oil
  • 1 tbsp butter (olive oil for vegans)
  • 1/2 to 1 tsp garam masala
  • 1 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1/2 tsp tumeric powder
  • 1 -2 Serrano pepper minced or finely sliced
  • 2 tbsp minced cilantro (optional)
  • 1/4 cup cream (coconut cream can be used for vegan substitute)
  • water listed in recipe below.

Directions

Soak red kidney beans, urad daal, and channa dal overnight OR add to pan cover with 4″ of water and bring to a boil, remove from heat and cover, then let set for an hour. Then pour off water and add in water to cover by at least 3″ and bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer just under boiling for about 2 hours till kidney beans are tender. Strain them, put them in a bowl and set aside. In a frying pan or sauce pan heat pan then add canola oil and cumin seeds and fry till they start to pop. Now add in onion and fry for about 2 minutes, then add garlic and ginger and fry for an addition 2 minutes. Add in dry spices (garam masala, cayenne pepper, tumeric) and fry for another minute, then add tomato sauce and fry for another 3 minutes. Add 1 tbsp of butter (olive oil can be use for vegan substitute) and add back lentils and beans set aside earlier along with 1 cup of water. Smash up the lentils and beans some, stir and cook adding additional water to make into a paste consistency as shown in picture, about 30 minutes stirring occasionally. If you’d like you can sprinkle a little extra garam masala on top and stir in at the end of the cook time along with the cream. Top with cilantro, serve and enjoy.

Healing Bitter Melon Pickles

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Bitter Melon is such a healthy food. It has been reported to help regulate blood sugar (good for type II diabetes),  rid the body of kidney stones,  cleanse the liver, help reduce cholesterol, fight pancreatic cancer, and help with weight loss. Wow have you ever heard of a food with such benefits. It does have a bitter taste as the name implies but it is a taste that I actually have acquired over some time, however these pickles do reduce the bitterness and add other flavors. Best of all they preserve the bitter melon for several months. Eat and enjoy the health benefits, here is the recipe.

Ingredients
3 medium-sized bitter melons
2 cups apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons kosher salt and additional salt for sprinkling over then to extract some bitterness.
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon red chile flakes (or to taste)
2 1/2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh giner

Directions
Slice each melon in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds and cottony bits with a spoon, then slice crosswise in about 1/2 inch to 1/4 inch. Put the slices in a colander in the sink and sprinkle generously with salt. Let stand about 20 minutes, then rinse and drain the slices. Put the bitter melon and the ginger in a clean one-quart glass jar or two pint jars. Combine vinegar, salt, sugar, and chile flakes in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil stiring till the salt and sugar dissolve.  Pour the hot brine over the bitter melon slices and ginger in the jar. Screw on a lid and refrigerate. Let the pickles set inf the fridge for about 3 days and then they will be ready to eat.

Chocolate Almond Biscotti

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Delicious Chocolate Almond Biscotti
Delicious Chocolate Almond Biscotti

These are great accompaniments to morning coffee or just for a snack. Kids love them and can have them with milk. If you use the healthier coconut oil in place of the butter, you will add a hint of coconut flavor (which I like). If you go totally vegan and decide to use the banana, it will add in a banana flavor which also gives it a nice flavor. If kept dry and sealed, these will last for several months.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • Pinch of salt (1/16 teaspoon)
  • 1 large egg (Vegan Substitute: 1/2 to 1 smashed banana, or Vegan Egg replacer equiv. to 1 large egg)
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened or coconut oil
  • 1/3 cup raw almonds
  • 3 tablespoons milk or soy milk

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Add 1st 5 ingredients in to food processor. Process till mixed. Add remaining ingredients in and process for about 7 seconds. It will not fully come together as a dough but will be mixed. Pour onto some plastic wrap and roll up. Squeeze together to fom into a 3″ wide roll about 1″ high.  Remove plastic wrap and put onto foil lined baking sheet. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Then slice crosswise into 1/2 to 3/5″ slices using a serrated knife. Arrange slices layed out flat in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake at 350 for about 30-40 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 30 minutes then you can eat them. If you are going to store them, put them in a sealed container after they are completely cool. They will last several months if they are around that long.

Sara’s Braised K/C

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CabbageandKale

A friend of mine gave me this recipe and it is really good. When you cook it like this, it brings out the sweetness in the cabbage and kale and it is really healthy. It can be cooked as a side dish or a main dish.

Ingredients

  • 1 bunch of kale
  • 1 med head cabbage
  • 2 TBS garlic powder
  • 4 TBS Olive oil
  • Salt to taste
  • 1/4 TSP Red Pepper

In a deep pot add olive oil and chopped Kale. Sprinkle garlic powder over the top and cook at high heat. Shred entire cabbage (core and all). Stir kale. Drop cabbage on top and add salt. Put lid on top of pot (add very little water if any) Turn to med/low and cook until cabbage starts to breakdown then stir and cook some more.

Chinese Vegetable Noodle Soup

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Spicy Chinese Veg noodle
Spicy Chinese Veg noodle

This is a great satisfying vegetarian dish. I like to add the crisp chili oil to it and make it nice and spicy.

Ingredients

  • 1.5 quarts of vegetable stock from veg stock recipe
  • 2 to 3 tbsp of black bean and garlic sauce
  • 4 to 5 tbsp of dark soy sauce
  • 3 cloves garlic sliced
  • 1 inch piece of ginger peeled and sliced
  • 4 pieces of orange peal, just the zest, I use a peeler on an orange.
  • 6 pieces of star anise
  • 5 dried hot red peppers
  • 1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
  • 5 to 7 Sichuan peppers Ajika Sichuan Peppercorns Chinese Pepper, 2.5-Ounce
  • 1/4 top sugar
  • Noodles (Can be Rice Noodles or Chinese egg noodles)

Add ins: baby bok choy, spinach, green leaf lettuce, fried tofu, Crisp Chili Oil

Topping: green onion, cilantro

Directions

Add all ingredients and bring almost to a boil then simmer on med low for 1 hour, removing orange peal after 20 minutes or it will make the soup bitter. Remove from heat and strain broth and add cooked Noodles (fresh are best) pieces of bock chop, spinach, fried tofu, etc. Top with chopped green onions and chopped cilantro. Note bok choy, spinach, and lettuce need to cook in broth till soft.