Quick Healthy Recipes For You

Sweet Potato (Kumara) and Semolina Patties

• Cook together 1 Kumara ( sweet potato)and 1 Potato – medium size and mash
• Chop a bunch of parsley and several spring onions finely cut or chopped
• 3 – 5 capfuls of Shoyu or Tamari
• Semolina to mix
• Mashed Tofu (couple of slices – optional but nice if you have some on hand – otherwise its almost as good without)
• Mix and mold into patties. Roll in Semolina and cook in frypan

We make this often and it is always delicious and quick and easy to make – even my husband has been know to make it !

Photo shows without parsley and spring onions as we had some great kumaras and no parsley or spring onions that had not gone to seed !

If you enjoyed this recipe go here for more Vegetarian Cooking Made Easy

Tree tomato/ Tamarillo Salsa to go with it will be posted soon …

By Suzanne De Cornelia

Eat green and stay healthy and lean, that’s my motto. I’ve always loved healthy salads. Ever since my late father’s medical condition precluded his enjoying the greens he also loved, I’ve never taken them for granted and enjoy them even more. My favorite salad mainstays come from Earthbound Farm that began 25-years ago as an organic backyard garden in Carmel Valley, California. Now I live just a few miles away in Carmel, long committed to organic for me and the planet. You can find their produce in Whole Foods, Trader Joes, and many other locations, and can even buy it farm direct: ebfarm.com/

In 2009 alone, Earthbound’s 33,000 acres avoided the use of over 305,000 pounds of toxic pesticides, 10.3 million pounds of synthetic fertilizers, and conserved 1.6 million gallons of petroleum by avoiding the use of petroleum-based pesticides and fertilizers. With sustainability the goal they use 100% post-consumer recycled PET for plastic salad containers and 99% post-consumer recycled corrugate for shipping cartons.

With the local deer sporting their new autumn and fall antlers, and beautiful red Pyracantha berries reminding me how they centered our Thanksgiving dinner tables growing up, this is a beautiful looking and healthy salad is perfect for fall and winter, alone or try it paired with artisan bread and soup.

Carmel-by-the-Sea Roasted Pear, Goat Cheese and Candied Pecan Salad

1 package of spring mix salad greens
2 unpeeled pears
1/2 c of dried cranberries
1/2 c of candied pecan pieces
4-6 oz goat cheese log
1/4 c apple juice
3 T brown sugar
1 T white wine vinegar
1 T extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Cut the pears into fourths length-wise and core. Place in a baking dish. Combine the apple juice and brown sugar and pour over the paces. Bake 20-30 minutes until they are tender, basting occasionally with the juice. Remove to a plate and reserve ¼ cup of the juice mixture.

Whisk the reserved apple juice and white wine vinegar in a small bowl, whisk in the olive oil, season with salt and pepper to taste. I use sea salt and no pepper. Toss this dressing together with the greens in a salad bowl. Crumble in the goat cheese and mix throughout with a couple of light tosses. Divide onto four plates. Sprinkle each with the dried cranberries and candied pecans. Cut the pears into slices and arrange. Bon appetit.

Pasta is such and quick and easy meal and if you make it yourself then you can be sure of what you are getting and know there will not be a stack of preservatives and additives and you can add anything that takes your fancy or that you have on hand or in the garden at the time. Sage leaves are a tasty addition to pasta dishes and can transform even the plainest dish into a gourmet delight that takes only a few minutes to saute some sage leaves or oregano will add a different dimension to your pasta meal. Fresh is best always and the freshest herbs can be so simple to grow and have to hand.

Click here to visit The Pasta Shop

Try your hand at this quick and healthy recipe for Pasta by Alan Beggerow:

“If you’ve got some time and are willing to put forth some effort, you can make your own home made pasta. The basic ingredients are:

• 3/4 cup unbleached white flour
• 1 egg
• pinch of salt

That’s it. Some folks use a little (1/2 teaspoon) extra virgin olive oil in their pasta, but it is optional. This recipe makes pasta enough for 2 regular servings, so if you want more increase the amounts in the same proportions.

The classic way to make pasta is by putting the flour on a board, make a well in it, and put the egg and salt into the well. With a fork, gently mix the egg with the flour until a rough dough forms, then knead the dough with your hands until it becomes soft. But it can also be made in a bowl, a food processor or a mixer with a bread hook.

A few tips: If the dough is still too sticky, dust with a little flour and knead it some more. If the dough is too dry, sprinkle a little water on it and knead it in. The humidity in the air determines if a dough will be too sticky or dry with the basic recipe, so you’ll need to act accordingly.

After the dough has been kneaded and is soft and elastic, wrap it in plastic wrap and allow to rest for 20 minutes. This will help ‘relax’ the gluten in the dough and make it easier to roll out.

Folks who make pasta regularly invest in a pasta machine. While this does make for more uniform noodles, you don’t need one. Take the dough after it has rested and separate it into small portions if you’ve made more than the basic recipe. Dust a board with flour, put the dough on the board and roll it out. Try to get the dough thin enough so that you can almost see through it. If the dough sticks, dust with a little flour.

When you have the dough as thin as you like, dust it with a little flour and roll it up like a jelly roll. With a very sharp knife, cut the roll into very thin slices. Unroll the pasta and let it dry for 20 minutes or so on the board, or drape it over a broom handle covered with plastic wrap that has been suspended between two chairs.

After drying, the pasta can be cooked or refrigerated for use within the next 2 or 3 days. Fresh pasta does not take as long to cook as fully dried pasta, only about 4 to 5 minutes, even less if the noodles are small and thin. You want to cook it al dente (to the tooth, a little firm in the middle, so watch fresh pasta closely as it cooks!

This basic recipe can be varied in many ways. Substitute whole wheat flour for the unbleached white flour for whole wheat pasta. Whole wheat pasta dough will have a little different ‘feel’ to it. Or you can make spinach pasta. Cook 5 ounces of frozen spinach as directed, drain and let it cool. Squeeze as much water as you can out of the spinach. The spinach should be about the size of a large egg when you’re done. Mix it in with the egg before adding to the flour.

Pastas can be flavored with most anything. Add a little garlic, use a little tomato juice, let your imagination run free and experiment! Making home made pasta is easy!”

1 Kg pumpkin
4TBS olive oil
2 TBS pine nuts
1 Lge clove garlic (finely chopped)
2 tiny dried birds eye chillies (crushed)
1/4 tsp salt
75 ml white wine vinegar
75 ml water
2 TBS Sultanas
1/4 cup tiny mint leaves

• Chop pumpkin in wedges, cut out seeds and chop off skin
• Heat oil, add pumpkin pieces once it is hot
• Fry pumpkin, add pine nuts, add garlic, and chilli, sprinkle pumpkin
• with salt and cook 1 min or 2 more
• Pour in the vinegar and water – add sultanas and immediately cover with a lid
• Turn heat to low and cook very gently for 5 minutes or until tender
• Remove lid, transfer pumpkin to a dish with all the juices
• Scatter over the mint
• Serve piping hot in winter or at room temperature when weather heats up

Did you know that most of the food we eat is vegan? You probably never thought of it that way, but plant based foods are everywhere. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snacks, there are plenty of vegan choices out there. Here are a few very easy vegan recipes and snacks to help you choose smart, vegan-friendly food choices for your next meal.

1. Terrific Tofu Stir Fry
Tofu is a great source of soy protein, and you can use it in almost every recipe that calls for meat or eggs. My favorite lunch or dinner meal consists of cubing the firm tofu, fry with vegetable oil and raw soy sauce, and add all the organic veggies of your choice: carrots, eggplant, zucchini, cabbage, bean sprouts, pea pods, and onions. Serve over organically grown rice or brown rice and you have a super healthy, hearty meal to fill up even the hungriest appetite!

2. Cool Cold Cereals
Try a bowl of cheerios, 1 cup soy milk, and a handful of fresh strawberries or raspberries. Craving something sweet? Cocoa beans are organic so why not have a bowl of cocoa puffs or cocoa krispies with 1 cup vanilla soy milk? You can ultimately use any of your favorite cold cereals and fruit here, so use your imagination and go nuts!

3. Awesome Acai Smoothie
How about an awesome fruit smoothie for lunch or a snack? If you can find them, the Acai berry is native to Brazil but one of the super healthy foods we don’t find much of around here. You can also use blueberries if the Acai is not available. Blend together these, fresh or frozen, along with all the other fruit you want (pineapples, mangoes, bananas, strawberries, etc). Add some ice or soy sorbet and blend some more. Top it with some granola and fruit slices for a super cool energy boost! Yum, yum!

4. Cosmic Curried Kale
Everyone should eat more greens in their diet anyway, so this recipe is vegan-friendly and also all raw for those super health food fanatics like my good friend Jill from Minnesota! She calls it Cosmic Curried Kale. She de-stems and washes the curly kale, puts it in a bowl with a shredded carrot, then blends together 1 part Nama Shoyu (raw soy sauce), 1 part lemon juice, 1 part olive oil, 2 cloves garlic, and adds cumin and coriander for the dressing. Super simple and totally organic!

5. Cookoo for Cocoa Pudding
We all love chocolate, and the classic chocolate pudding is no exception. Even vegans can enjoy this well known dessert. Mix 2 cups soy milk with 3 tablespoons organic cocoa, 5 tablespoons cornstarch, 1/2 cup sugar, and 1 teaspoon vanilla until smooth. Cook it over medium heat until it becomes thick. Pour it into serving dishes and chill in the fridge! Now that’s super easy and should satisfy any chocolate lover’s cravings!