Take this fresh, crunchy crock of BIG FLAVOR to a spring potluck, or serve it to friends at a celebratory luncheon, or pack a bowl for lunch at work, or fill up a large, colorful pottery bowl for the middle of the dinner table, along with a big bowl of tomato soup. Yes, it has a lot of ingredients, but that’s how you make the magic. You cannot go wrong with quinoa, and you cannot go wrong with this meal-in-one. I’m also sure you’ll be glad to know that it will keep in the fridge for a few days. You can make it as simply (canned beans, quinoa pre-made, store-bought lime juice) or as involved (heirloom beans, red quinoa, organic limes) as you like. It’ll be delicious either way — promise! Continue reading
Category Archives: Recipes
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Deep-Dish Greens with a Millet-Amaranth Crust
Looking for something to do with those collards?! Still trying to figure out what to do with that millet you bought in a weak moment a few months ago already? This is what you’ve been waiting for! What I love most about this beautiful recipe is the unusual and complementary pairing of greens and grains to highlight their different tastes and textures. Once you get the hang of it, you may even want to try it with other grains, like polenta (corn) or brown rice. Don’t skimp on the stock — water just doesn’t give it as much flavor. Continue reading
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Scrambled Eggs and Broccoli
After the requisite amount of hemming and hawwing, I picked up a copy of Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything as a shower gift for our young cousin and his beaming Australian bride-to-be. When they opened it, he quipped “Well, we won’t be needing any other cookbooks.” True dat! Try this broccoli beauty for starters. Or dinner. Continue reading
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Smoky Tofu and Black Bean Chili
You probably know that I’m a big fan of beans! Rich in both fiber and protein, they are truly the magical fruit. Here’s an unusual recipe in that it features not just one but TWO (black beans and tofu, from soybeans) different kinds of beans! Continue reading
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Spicy Pink Sauerkraut
A few months ago I set up a green cabbage to ferment, and that’s exactly what happened! Tonight is the night that it’s going to be set free from its crock, spread over the bottom of a large Dutch oven, covered with turkey sausages, and made into yum! I’ll probably add some roasted potatoes on the side. Continue reading
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Quinoa, Squash and Bean Soup
Here’s a great, simple recipe from my friend’s friend’s daughter-in-law. We’re practically family! Check out Marci’s blog at veggingattheshore.com. You can say that YHIOYP sent you.
P.S. Note the regionalism in her blog title: that kind of talk is something you’ll hear only in Philadelphia and South Jersey. If you live in that part of the country, you would never say that you’re going to the beach. It’s “down the shore” for you! I have so many great memories of the Jersey shore, where the food is great and the living is easy. Continue reading
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Cauliflower Polenta with Mushrooms
My dad says that you shouldn’t eat anything white except cauliflower. Plus, he loves cauliflower. It may seem a little drastic, but it’s definitely a reasonable strategy for eating more vegetables and less stripped carb. Plus there is so much you can do with cauliflower. Continue reading
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Spicy Black Bean Soup
I’m trying to get you to eat more beans, in case you can’t tell. Peasant food, rustic. Old-fashioned. From the old country. Why did they eat so many beans? Beans are the only food on the planet that’s rich in both fiber and protein. This makes them very special, filling, nutritious. And inexpensive. So eat your beans! Thank you to Mark Bittman, and How to Cook Everything Fast, for the original version of this recipe. If you use canned beans, dinner can be ready in 15 minutes. Continue reading
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Black Bean Nachos Grandes
Feed me! This is for the Super Bowl, in case you were wondering! Continue reading
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Rice & Collards Soup
Last year I was asked to give a talk on vitamins and minerals. For lack of a more inspired approach, I decided to go in alphabetical order, plodding through all these micronutrients like an elementary school teacher. As part of the talk I shared ideas for good sources of the various vitamins and minerals. To my delight and surprise, I discovered that greens were a source of almost every vitamin I mentioned! Who knew? Greens even have tons of orange and yellow nutrients, like beta-carotene. The dark green pigment hides the lighter ones, but they’re still there. Continue reading