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Easy Slow Cooker Red Lentil Soup

11/13/2014

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This soup is great on a cold winter afternoon for lunch.

Ingredients

·         1-2 tbsp olive oil

·         1 medium sized onion diced

·         3-5 garlic cloves minced

·         2 tsp ginger minced

·         2-3 tsp curry powder

·         2 cups red lentils

·         4 cups water

·         4 cups veggie broth preferably homemade (or can use all water)

·         4 carrots sliced

·         4 cups of kale or swiss chard

·         3 tbsp lemon juice

Add all ingredients except kale or swiss chard and lemon juice to slow cooker.  Cook on low 5-6 hours until lentils split and mixture thickens.  Add kale or swiss chard and lemon juice cook for 10 more minutes. If you don’t have a slow cooker you can add all ingredients except kale or swiss chard and lemon juice to a pot and bring to a boil and simmer until thickened and follow directions above.

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Salad and Salad dressing

11/5/2014

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With salad and salad dressings there are endless possibilities.  Here's a basic salad idea and salad dressing.

Salad


·         1 cup lettuce: spinach, arugula, mixed greens, kale or boston leaf

·         1 cup vegetables: broccoli, cucumber, pepper, tomato, grated carrot, green onion

·         ½ cup protein: black beans, lentils, chickpeas, chicken, fish

·         ½ avocado for healthy fat

·         1/8 cup cheese (goat feta, goat cheese, sheep feta, sheep cheese, organic cheddar) optional

Cut vegetables and mix together.  Changing vegetables and protein makes a whole new salad.  Also, homemaking and changing the spices and vinegars for salad dressing can vary it as well.  Adding pear, apple or berries and raw nuts (like almonds, pecans, walnuts) and raw seeds (pumpkin, hemp hearts) is another option. 

Salad Dressing

·         ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

·         1-2 cloves minced garlic

·         2-3 tbsp apple cider vinegar or balsamic vinegar

·         1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice or 1-2 lemon wedges squeezed

·         1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

·         Tamari to taste

·         Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Add all ingredients in a bowl and whisk together.  Note: Can add spices like turmeric, basil, oregano, cumin, thyme, cayenne.  Store in jar in the fridge - oil may harden so either bring out before using or run jar under warm water to soften oil.


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Quick and Easy Broccoli Soup

5/20/2014

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This is a very simple and quick dairy-free broccoli soup.

Thick Broccoli Soup


·         1 tbsp coconut oil

·         1 medium onion thinly sliced

·         4 garlic cloves minced

·         4 cups veggie stock (see previous blog on how to make soup stock)

·         6 cups broccoli cut up

·         3 cups mushrooms sliced

·         Pepper and sea salt or Herbamare


In a large pot set on medium add coconut oil and melt.  Add onion and cook till soft about 5 minutes and then add garlic and stir for 1 minute.  Add broth and 1 cup water, broccoli and mushrooms.  Bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium low and simmer for 15-20 minutes until broccoli is tender.  Add some fresh ground pepper and sea salt to taste if desired.  Puree soup with an immersion blender or transfer to blender to desired consistency.

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Homemade Vegetable Soup Stock

11/5/2013

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Veggie Soup Stock Recipe

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I don't know why I was so resistant to making soup stock considering I make almost everything from scratch but when I finally first tried this I was shocked at how easy it is.  It literally takes about 5 minutes to make!  The vegetables can be chopped coarsely and skins can be left on since you strain it at the end.  This stock has made my soups taste so much better, plus you are getting many more nutrients than you get from bouillon cubes and you can control the amount of salt you put in.  I freeze mine for future use and it works great to take it out of the freezer the night before I am going to make a soup.  I feel really great about this stock and recommend you take the time to make your own as well.

Homemade Vegetable Soup Stock Recipe

Chop all vegetables coarsely and add them to a large stockpot:
  • 1 large onion (skins left on)
  • 1 leek (chop the bottom white part and discard the hard green tops)
  • 2 carrots (not peeled)
  • 4 stalks celery (chop the top and all)
  • 4-6 cloves garlic (skins left on)
  • 1/2 a bunch of parsley or 1 tbsp dried parsley
  • 1-2 tsp wakame or a couple strips of dulse (optional) (I like adding sea veggies for the iodine content)
  • 12 cups of water
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 1 tsp black peppercorns
  • 1 tsp each of thyme, rosemary and marjoram
  • 1 tsp Herbamare or sea salt
Add everything to the pot and bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low.  Simmer 2-3 hours.  Strain stock and discard vegetables.  Store in the fridge or freezer.  Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from one of my favourite cookbooks: The Whole Life Nutrition cookbook by Alissa Segersten and Tom Malterre.



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The finished product!
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Mushroom Tacos and Kale Salad

6/19/2013

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This a really quick and nutritious lunch or dinner.  The mushroom tacos are something we just whipped up one night when we didn't have too much left in the fridge.  Portabello mushrooms would also be delicious.   The kale salad is one of our favourites which is adapted from the recipe in the Alive magazine which is free and can be picked up at most local health food stores.  Enjoy!

Mushroom Tacos Recipe
  • 2-3 tbsp coconut oil or organic butter or organic ghee
  • 1/2 of an onion chopped
  • 3 cloves of garlic minced
  • 1/4 tsp of Herbamare or sea salt
  • 2 cups cremini mushrooms
  • 1/2 tsp of oregano or to taste
  • 4 organic corn tortillas
  • Sheep feta or goat cheese (optional)

Heat oil over low-medium heat.  Add onion and garlic and stir fry for about 5 minutes until softened.  Add Herbamare or sea salt, oregano and mushrooms and stir fry until desired consistency.  Meanwhile, prepare your corn tortillas in another pan by heating a little bit of water on medium-high heat.  Flip your corn frequently until heated through and wrap in a clean dish towel while you prepare the rest.  When the mushrooms are finished distribute evenly between corn tortillas and top with sheep or goat cheese if desired.

Kale Salad Recipe
  • 1 bunch fresh organic kale
  • Freshly squeezed juice from 1/2 of a lemon
  • 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 orange peeled and chopped
  • 2 tsp maple syrup
  • Sea salt to taste
  • Freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds

Trim kale, removing stalks. Stack leaves one on top of the other and thinly slice crosswise into ribbons. Wash and spin dry. Place in a large bowl.  Drizzle with lemon juice, olive oil, and a little salt. Using your fingertips, massage leaves until kale begins to soften and wilt. (Salad can be made up to this point and refrigerated for up to 2 days.)  Add orange to salad. Drizzle with maple syrup. Toss together to coat evenly. Add sea salt and fresh pepper to taste. Sprinkle with pumpkin seeds just before serving.  Adapted from Alive Magazine author Irene McGuiness



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Sensational Salad

4/2/2013

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Our lunch today was so delicious that we wanted to share it with you.  This salad was adapted from one of our favourite cookbooks - the Nourishing Meals cookbook.

Ingredients:
-1/4-1/2 cup brown rice
-1/2 cup raw sauerkraut (homemade)*
-1/2 cup black beans (made from dried)**
-1/2 of a large avocado cubed
-1/8-1/4 cup sliced green onions
-1/2 cup sprouts (grown at home) ***
-1 cup chopped greens (we used organic spinach)
-Herbamare to taste (optional)

Mix all ingredients in a bowl.

*Make your own sauerkraut by slicing a large cabbage (save a few outside leaves and set aside) and smashing it with 1 tbsp of sea salt for about 10 minutes.  Put it in a glass jar and place the leaves on top and push down so juice is above shredded cabbage.  Leave out with the lid not fully closed for about 5-10 days.

**To make black beans from dried beans: Add 1 cup of black beans to 5 cups of water and a boil for 10 minutes then simmer covered for 2 hours.  Add wakame, arame or any sea vegetable to the beans while cooking to make them more digestible.

***See our previous blog post on how to make your own sprouts.

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Delicious and Nutritious Meatless Burgers

5/8/2012

2 Comments

 
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We love veggie burgers but if you’ve ever looked at most of the store bought packages they can be high in sodium, gluten, dairy and other preservatives or processed ingredients.  It’s taken a long time but I’ve finally created a veggie burger that won’t fall apart, has a good flavour and is easy to make.  This recipe has a lot of fiber, protein and lots of spices to make it part of an overall satisfying meal.  I cook the beans myself which allows a decreased amount of sodium per burger since canned beans contain a lot of sodium and the chemical BPA from the can.  I lightly stir fry the vegetables before processing them but you can probably just throw all of the vegetables into the food processor without cooking them but I have not attempted this yet.  It would make it an even quicker and easier process. 

Easy to Make Flavourful Veggie Burgers

·         1 cup shredded carrot

·         ½ cup diced pepper (green, yellow or red)

·         ½ of yellow onion diced

·         4-5 minced garlic cloves

·         2-3 cups white beans (I cook 1 cup and use whatever that makes)

·         1 ½ cups whole rolled oats

·         1 tbsp chili powder

·         ½ tbsp cumin

·         ½ tbsp paprika

·         ½ tsp turmeric

·         ½ tsp black pepper

·         ¼ tsp cayenne pepper

·         2 tbsp Bragg’s liquid aminos or tamari

·         2 tbsp Dijon mustard

·         1 fresh jalapeño (seeds removed use a glove to handle to avoid burns) or 6-10 slices from jarred jalapeño (I prefer fresh)

·         2 free range eggs

·         1 tbsp organic ketchup (optional)

·         ¼ tsp garam masala (optional)

Make beans in advance – follow package instructions.  Stir fry carrot, pepper, onion and garlic 5-10 minutes until softened over low to medium heat.  Preheat oven 400 F and prepare baking sheets with unbleached parchment paper.  Add all ingredients to a large food processor and process until smooth.  Form mixture into patties (Note – it is fairly sticky and try to make all burgers similar size so they will cook the same) and place on baking sheets.  Bake 10 minutes on one side and flip and bake 10 minutes on the other side.  Serve on its own or topped with guacamole (see recipe) or on a brown rice wrap or sprouted grain bread topped with tomatoes, sprouts (see how to sprout) and guacamole.  Or serve with cilantro pesto (see recipe).

2 Comments

    Chris and Darcie

    Health tips and delicious recipes.

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