YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Stuffed Pumpkin & Braised Onions

My kitchen counter is once again covered with pumpkins and onions, so it must be getting close to November! Here are two unusual and extraordinary recipes to use up your pumpkins and onions. If you have time, try to make the onions the day before, because as good as they are, they taste even better the next day! And they are great recipes for holiday celebrations, too. Continue reading


YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Watermelon Gazpacho

Once, when we were in Sedona, Arizona, my brother-in-law sent us to eat at a restaurant called ChocolaTree. It was like a dream come true. We entered and then made our way through to the back of the establishment, so that we could eat on the stone patio under a very grand tree. It was a peaceful oasis, a quiet center in the midst of a busy town. The wait staff were exceedingly patient as they guided us through a menu unlike any we had ever seen before. Which is saying a lot. What good fortune to have learned about this restaurant. When you have time, check out ChocolaTree to see their remarkable menu and recipe collection. Continue reading



YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Lentil Soup & Sweet Potatoes

You know how much I love slow cooking and crock pots, greens and sweet potatoes. Put this delicious recipe up to cook on Sunday, and you’ll be all set for days. Consider it your “standby dinner” in case you get stuck in traffic, or at the office, or in a turnstile or a revolving door, or between a rock and a hard place. Or stuck for an idea. Or just plain don’t feel like cooking when you get home. Continue reading


YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Zucchini with Cilantro Pesto

Thank you to Terry Walters and Clean Start for this beautiful, inspired recipe. It’s the kind of recipe many of whose ingredients, or at least some, may already be on your counter, and it’s got all kinds of valuable substitution possibilities that can keep you experimenting for a good long while. Continue reading


YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Lebanese Potato Salad

This past weekend I had the great pleasure of collaborating with a friend on a collection of recipes for a beloved young couple starting their married lives together. Many of the recipes came from my friend’s mother and her grandmother, who came to the U.S. from Lebanon so many, many years ago. In honor of my friend, Judith, therefore, and the culinary heritage that she has been so lucky not just to inherit but to perpetuate, here is a recipe for Lebanese Potato Salad. Continue reading


YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Raspberry-Coconut Popsicles

These popsicles are just what I need — the perfect antidote to 88 degrees and 100% humidity. In June.

Note that you have to plan ahead, so don’t try to make these an hour before the party. Although it will take only around 20 minutes to put together the popsicles, you’ll need about 6 hours from start to finish after you add in all the freezer time. Continue reading


YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Strawberry-Pecan Spinach Salad

The quintessential springtime salad! Can you just imagine this recipe’s tiny sweet strawberries bursting in your mouth? Soft, gently flavorful leaves of spinach, fresh from the ground? With a bit of bite from the onion and some satisfying give from the pecans? Thank you, lowfatveganchef.com, for the original version of this recipe.

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