An easy stir fry like this with Spanish flavours can be on the table in 15 minutes using some leftover rice, cured Chorizo sausage (or any other desired variety including veggie options) and some chopped vegetables. For this dish I used a wild rice blend with some brown rice, it has a nutty flavour and firm texture that holds up well- making it a good option for batch cooking. Even for those more comfortable with white rice, a dish like this with lots of flavours and colours can distract from a transition to healthier, more wholesome varieties. Continue Reading →
Greek Pasta Salad
I love a big bowl of Greek salad in the summer and adding some whole grain pasta and chickpeas bulks it up and transforms it into a filling meal. The fresh vegetables offer impressive ranges of antioxidants, minerals and vitamins while the pasta and chickpeas greatly increase the fiber and protein of the dish. Fresh food like this is what gives the Mediterranean Diet the fame it has in the nutritional world. Such fresh, vibrant, nutrient dense ingredients, with so little modification, are integral to keeping a strong cardiovascular system and maintaining a healthy body weight. Continue Reading →
Asparagus Penne with Avocado Sauce
Asparagus is a fresh, nutritious vegetable indicative of spring. It is bursting with a range of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants but what really sets it apart is its inulin content. Inulin is a unique type of carbohydrate in that it doesn’t get fully broken down like other carbohydrates do. It makes it all the way to the large intestine and becomes food for the good bacteria. Continue Reading →
Berry Chia Pudding Parfaits
There are currently a couple pretty trendy dishes to make from chia seeds- chia pudding and chia jam- and this is sort of a combination of the two. Along with some yogurt and a thick smoothie it makes for a very healthy parfait with a large range of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Continue Reading →
Fried Quinoa
One of the main keys to eating healthy is being prepared. An easy, regular way to do this is to cook a large pot of whole grains at the start of the week and use it to create fresh, fast meals. Asian style fried brown rice, or quinoa in this case, is something my brother and I have been making pretty regularly lately. He takes the extras for lunch, topped with some baked, diced chicken to make it extra filling. Brown rice, millet or any other whole grain can be used instead of quinoa, they all work pretty well and have subtle, nutty flavours that go well with eggs, tamari (or regular soy sauce) and any vegetables desired. Continue Reading →
Quinoa Greek Salad
Quinoa is, like most whole grains, a great source of several minerals and B vitamins and fiber but what makes it special and unique is the type of protein it contains. Protein is made up of building blocks called amino acids and there are 8 which we must obtain through food (our bodies can make the other ones on their own as needed). I like to think of each as a different colour of lego and most plant foods are missing one or two colours. Quinoa, an ancient grain prized since ancient times is technically a seed and it contains all 8 amino acids needed- making it a “complete protein”. Continue Reading →
Lemon Tarragon Chickpea Chicken
As much as I love cooking there are days when it is the last thing I feel like doing. In such scenarios there is one trick that revives my affection for toiling over the oven- getting weird and unusual ingredients. The moment I found these purple yams my creative juices started flowing and I was looking forward to preparing something new. Both yams and butternut are quite sweet and starchy, making them sweet and satisfying. Combined with fiber-rich chickpeas and light zucchini, they all make the chicken into an easy one-pot dish. Some fresh herbs and lemon add in lots of flavour and a bit of broth keeps the chicken moist. Continue Reading →
Bacon Yam Waffles with Corn Salsa
There are so many different ingredients that can be put into a waffle maker and be transformed into fluffy waffles with lightly crisped edges. This version uses mashed yams as the main ingredient (potatoes would work too) and they are held together with eggs and flavoured with onions, chili powder and fresh thyme. Bacon is an optional addition- when chopped into tiny pieces it folds in well to the yam mixture and offers a rich, smoky, meaty touch in every bite. Continue Reading →
Chana Masala
Chana Masala is an Indian dish featuring chickpeas in a spiced tomato sauce, with chana meaning chickpeas and masala meaning a spice blend. It is warm, fragrant, comforting, stick-to-your-ribs kind of food. On cold, dark February nights with the rain pounding outside there are few things I find more comforting than gathering around a candlelit table with friends and eating hearty, spiced, exotic food like this. Continue Reading →
Spicy Soba Salad
Soba noodles are a great option to use as a base for a salad, then load it up with leftover vegetables, herbs and perhaps some meat or legumes like chickpeas or soy beans. The noodles have a mildly nutty flavour and a heaviness that makes them very filling and satisfying. Continue Reading →