Warming Curry Medley

Tonight I had a warming curry medley which integrated the inspiring colors of spring, but was grounded in the reality that it is still somewhat cold outside!

Here is the recipe for Warming Curry Medley (see picture to the left):

For the beans - 1 cup white beans, soaked for 4 - 6 hours, rinsed, brought to boil, and simmered for 45 - 60 minutes

For the rice - 1 cup long grain brown rice (brown basmati rice would also be fine), 2 cups water, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp mustard seeds, 4 garlic cloves, minced, 1 cup carrots, diced, 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1/4 tsp red chili flakes, 1 tsp curry powder, 1/2 tsp sea salt, 1 tomato, chopped, 2 cups water, 1/2 cup peas (I used frozen peas because I didn't have fresh peas at this time of year!), 1/4 cup cashews, chopped, 1 green onion, chopped

Place brown rice in pot, bring to boil, reduce to simmer for 20 minutes. Place olive oil in an additional pot over low heat, add cumin and mustard seeds, cover and allow mustard seeds to pop for 1 minute. Add garlic and saute for 2 minutes. Add carrots, turmeric, red chili flakes, curry powder, and sea salt and saute for 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and saute for 2 minutes. Remove rice from heat, add to mixture, add additional 2 cups water, bring to boil, reduce to simmer for 20 minutes. Stir in peas and cashews and simmer for another 2- 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in green onion.

For the stir fry - 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 medium onion, chopped, 4 garlic cloves, minced, 1 tbsp ginger, freshly grated, 1 cup mushrooms (I used a combination of portobello and white button mushrooms), chopped, 1/2 tsp turmeric, 2 tsp curry powder, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp sea salt, 2 cups zucchini, chopped, 2 cups cauliflower, chopped, 2 cups black kale, chopped

Place olive oil in large pan over low heat. Add onions, garlic, and ginger and saute for 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and saute for 2 minutes. Add turmeric, curry powder, cumin, and sea salt and saute for 1 minute. Add zucchini and saute for 3 minutes. Add cauliflower and saute for 2 minutes. Add black kale and saute for 1 minute. Remove from heat.

Combine all 3 dishes together and serve.

Once this meal was dished up, it was seasoned with sea salt and flax oil and was a delicious cooler Monday meal.

Green Smoothie!!!

I attended a class at the end of January that focused on healthy blood sugar balancing and one of the concerns that the teachers brought up was that a morning fruit smoothie tends to contain higher glycemic index foods, which are rapidly digested and absorbed, and can cause imbalanced blood sugar as a result. Although I haven't felt like the regular fruit smoothie that I have been drinking in the morning for many years caused blood sugar fluctuations for me, I still wanted to experiment with introducing more lower glycemic index foods into my smoothie. Low glycemic index foods have a rating of 55 and lower. Many fruits do fall into the low glycemic index category (apples are 30, pears are 38, and strawberries are 40, all of which I have still been including in my smoothie), but most vegetables have a considerably lower glycemic index (spinach and cucumber, both of which I have also been including in my smoothie, are 0). I have also been soaking chia seeds (which are rich in protein, fibre, omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids, calcium, phosphorous, and manganese and also have a low glycemic index of 1) in water over night and adding them to my smoothie - when soaked, the chia seeds form a mucilage which also slows down the absorption of the nutrients in the smoothie, further supporting healthy blood sugar balance. When I initially thought of adding vegetables to my smoothie, I couldn't imagine being able to drink it(!), but I have been very pleasantly surprised by the taste and now thoroughly enjoy my new smoothie (and I feel like my blood sugar remains well balanced for many hours after drinking my smoothie).

Here is the recipe for the basic green smoothie (see picture to the left): 1 cup greens (I have been using a mixture of spinach and parsley), chopped, 1/4 cucumber, chopped, 1/2 cup frozen strawberries, 1/2 apple (or I have also used 1/2 pear instead of 1/2 apple), chopped, 1 tbsp chia seeds, soaked, 1/2 cup water

*I have also been adding 1/4 cup of pecans for extra protein and 1 tsp of coconut oil for further blood sugar balancing support

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.

It looks a bit scary, but it does taste very good!

Happy Spring!!

With the official arrival of spring, I am looking forward to the upcoming gardening season (even though it still seems quite far away with all of the snow we still have!!). I was very happy to find Stellar Seeds and Urban Harvest certified organic seeds a few weeks ago at Earth's General Store (9605 - 82nd Avenue, Edmonton, 780-439-8725) - previously I have a hard time finding certified organic kale seeds in Edmonton, but last year I was able to find them at Earth's General Store and I was happy to see them so early this year. I picked up a great variety of lettuce, spinach, kale, collards, carrot, bean, pea, arugula, zucchini, cucumber (which never seem to grow for me, but hopefully I will have better luck this year!), and leek (which I haven't planted before and I look forward to seeing how things unfold) seeds. I can't wait to plant the seeds, watch the plants grow and then eat the freshly picked veggies!

German Bio Shops

Heiligenstadt Kneipp/Kurpark Bath

Hahnemann House and European Homeopathy Library Photos

Germany September 2010

I traveled to Germany for 3 weeks in September 2010 to visit with family, and although this post is more than a bit late and out of place at this time of year, I wanted to share some of the interesting photos from my trip. I hope you enjoy them!

Germany is the birthplace of Naturopathic medicine and I was able to visit two very interesting places while was there. One was a house that Samuel Hahnemann (the founder of homeopathy, which is one of the therapeutics I work with as a Naturopath) had lived and practiced in from 1821 - 1834. Interestingly, the house is only about 15 minutes away (in a city called Kothen) from where I was staying with my mom's cousin and her family. The house has now been turned into a small museum and is situated right beside the European Library of Homeopathy. I was able to go through the

museum and the library and it was awesome to see many of the original

remedies that Hahnemann had prepared and worked with and to be in the same space he had practiced in. This was definitely a highlight of my trip!

Another exciting place I was able to visit was Heiligenstadt, a city that was about 30 minutes from where I was staying with my mom's other cousin and his family. Another therapeutic utilized in Naturopathic Medicine is hydrotherapy, or water therapy, which was developed by Sebastian Kniepp, and there as was an outdoor Kniepp bath/Kurpark in Heiligenstadt that I was able to try out. It was a VERY refreshing (cold!) arm and foot bath and felt great, circulation and energy wise! This was also another highlight of my trip!

When I last visited Germany, it was 1993 and my mom's family let me know it would be hard to find natural food

choices at that time, so I was prepared and took a 40 pound bag of food

with me (as a carry on too because I wasn't letting that bag out of my sight!!)! This time, I knew it would be much easier and I was pleased to find lots of natural food stores and lots of organic (called Bio in Germany) food choices. I was able to find most all of the foods I would find at home, although they only grow kale (grunkohl) as a winter crop, so there was NONE to be found during my entire trip! I stayed primarily in small villages, and everyone has a large garden, as well as fruit trees. I was able to eat fresh carrots, zucchini, kohlrabi, plums, and pears from my mom's cousin's garden. As well, while I was in Germany, everything was still green and growing, so I was able to see lots of beautiful plants and flowers (see top three pictures to the left). There was especially an abundance of goldenrod, which is a great herb for supporting both lung and urinary health (see bottom picture to the left).

Overall, my trip was a great learning experience and I look forward to being able to visit again in the future.

Coconut oil!

The remainder of the cleanse went well, but I was mainly drawing from already posted recipes and simple suppers, so unfortunately I didn't have new recipes to share. As well, the cleanse ended a few days early for me (at my favorite restaurant, Fresh!) because I went to Toronto for a class on Jan 29 and 30th. The class focused on healthy blood sugar balance and the wide ranging impact it has on all the systems in our body. One of the simple suggestions for healthy blood sugar balance that I picked up from the class was to integrate coconut oil into our daily routines, at 1 tsp 3 times per day (if possible) to support stabilized blood sugar throughout the day. So far, I am only managing to integrate it into my morning smoothie, but it has been easy to do and it adds a yummy coconut flavor to the smoothie. If you do not like the taste of coconut, you can pick up refined coconut oil - the refined coconut oil still offers the benefits of unrefined coconut oil, but tends to have a less strong taste. The reason I went with the brand in the above picture (which is an unrefined coconut oil) is because it is in a glass jar and it is always best to purchase fat based foods in glass to prevent the leaching of xeno-estrogens found in plastic containers into the food that is in the plastic container.

Creamy Cauliflower Soup

Tonight for supper, I had a yummy cauliflower soup. Cauliflower (and kale) is from the brassica family of vegetables which all offer great support for healthy liver cleansing, so this soup is a great cleanse meal!

Here is the recipe for Creamy Cauliflower Soup (see picture to the left):

1 tbsp olive oil, 1 medium onion, chopped, 4 garlic cloves, minced, 1/2 leek, chopped, 2 celery ribs, chopped, 1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped, 2 cups vegetables (I used zucchini, portobello mushrooms, and shitake mushrooms), chopped, 1 head of cauliflower, chopped (this was approximately 2- 3 cups of cauliflower), 6 cups vegetable broth/water (I used water with 1 tsp of sea salt), 1 1/2 cups nuts (I used cashews, walnuts, and pine nuts), 1/2 cup nutritional yeast, 1 lemon, freshly squeezed, 1/2 cup water, 2 green onions, chopped, 2 cups leafy greens (I used black kale), chopped, 2 cups cooked beans (I used chickpeas, but a smaller bean, like a navy bean, may be a better fit), 1 cup cooked rice (I used short grain brown rice), 1 avocado, sliced

Heat olive oil in soup pot and saute onions and garlic for 3 minutes. Add leek and celery and saute for 2 minutes. Add basil and saute for 1 minute. Add assorted vegetables and saute for 2 minutes. Add cauliflower and saute for 3 minutes. Add vegetable broth/water, bring to boil, and reduce to simmer for 15 minutes. In a food processor, combine nuts, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, and water and blend to a smooth consistency. Once 15 minutes have passed, remove soup from heat, add nut blend mixture, and mix well. Blend soup (I used a hand blender) to a chunky consistency. Mix in green onions, leafy greens, beans and rice. Garnish with a few slices of avocado and serve.

Once the soup was dished up, it was seasoned with flax oil and sea salt. It was a rich, creamy, and delicious meal!

Stir Fried Broccoli with a Lemony Twist!

I recently got a great new cookbook called Appetite For Reduction by Isa Chandra Moskowitz, who is one of my favorite cookbook authors. This stir fry is inspired by a broccoli and chickpea bake recipe in her new book.

Here is the recipe for Stir Fried Broccoli with a Lemony Twist (see pictures to the left):

1 tbsp olive oil, 1 medium onion, chopped, 5 cloves garlic, minced, 1 green onion, chopped, 1/4 cup parsley, chopped, 2 cups assorted vegetables (I used a mixture of carrots, zucchini, snow peas, shitake and portobello mushrooms), chopped, 2 tsp lemon zest, freshly grated, 1/2 lemon, freshly squeezed, 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano, 1/2 tsp sea salt, 2 cups broccoli, chopped, 2 cups leafy greens (I used collard greens), chopped, 2 cups cooked brown rice (I used long grain brown rice and cooked the rice while the stir fry was being prepared), 2 cups cooked chickpeas (the chickpeas were soaked for 4 hours prior to cooking and they were also cooked while the stir fry was being prepared)

Heat olive oil in a large pan and saute the onion, garlic, green onion, and parsley for 5 minutes. Add assorted vegetables and saute for 3 minutes. Add lemon zest, lemon juice, oregano, and sea salt and saute for 2 minutes. Add broccoli and saute for 3 minutes. Add leafy greens and saute for 1 minute. Remove from heat and serve with rice and chickpeas.

Once the food was dished up, it was seasoned with sea salt and flax oil and was a delicious and refreshing meal on a cold winter night!

Cashew Cream Sauce

Tonight for supper, I had a delicious Cashew Cream Sauce that livened up a simple supper of stir fried veggies, chickpeas, and brown rice pasta.

Here is the recipe for Cashew Cream Sauce (see picture of full meal to the left):

3/4 cup cashews, 1 cup warm water, 1 tbsp nutritional yeast, 2 garlic cloves, minced, 1 lemon, freshly squeezed, 1/8 tsp sea salt

Soak cashews in warm water for 30 minutes. Drain cashews, saving 1/2 cup of the soaking water for the sauce, and place cashews and water into food processor/blender. Add remaining ingredients and blend to desired consistency.

The Cashew Cream Sauce can be served over grains, legumes, vegetables to add an extra sparkle to any meal!

Butternut Squash and Almond Cream Stew

Tonight for supper, I had a delicious butternut squash stew that was a wonderful winter treat. The squash was baked along with the Butternut Squash and Portobello Mushroom Delight recipe that was posted last week which made for a much easier and quicker cooking process.

Here is the recipe for Butternut Squash and Almond Cream Stew (see picture to the left):

1 tbsp olive oil, 1 medium onion, chopped, 2 garlic cloves, minced, 1 celery rib, chopped, 1 1/2 cup shitake mushrooms, chopped, 1 cup zucchini, chopped, 1 1/2 cup sweet potato, chopped, 2 medium carrots, chopped, 1 1/2 tsp curry powder (I used mild curry powder), 1/2 tsp sea salt, 4 1/2 cups vegetable broth/water, 1/2 cup almonds (blanched, de-skinned), 3 cups baked/mashed butternut squash, 2 cup leafy greens (I used a mixture of black kale and collard greens), chopped, 1 tbsp ginger, freshly grated, 1 lime, freshly squeezed, 2 cups beans (I used a mixture of black beans and pinto beans), cooked, 1 cup of rice (I used a mixture of short grain brown, long grain brown, and wild rice), cooked

Heat olive oil in soup pot and saute onions and garlic for 3 minutes. Add celery and shitake mushrooms and saute for 3 minutes. Add zucchini, sweet potato, carrots, curry powder, and sea salt and saute for 3 minutes. Add vegetable broth/water, bring to boil, reduce to simmer for 40 minutes. Remove 1/2 cup of stew, mix with almonds, blend (I used a hand blender) and return to soup. Mix in butternut squash and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and partially puree stew (I pureed approximately 25% with the hand blender). Add leafy greens, ginger, lime juice, beans, and rice and serve.

This stew was seasoned with flax oil and sea salt and was a warming and filling cleanse meal.

Butternut Squash and Portobello Mushroom Delight!

Tonight for supper, I had a delicious multi dish meal. There are lots of steps, but each one is relatively simple.

Here is the recipe(s) for Butternut Squash and Portobello Mushroom Delight! (see picture to the left):

To prepare the butternut squash, preheat oven to 350 degrees. With the squash, cut in half, scoop out seeds, drizzle each half of the squash with canola oil, sprinkle with sea salt, rosemary, and sage (a pinch of each for each half of the squash), place in covered casserole dish (I always put some water in the bottom of the casserole dish to help the squash cook and to prevent it from burning) and place in oven. While squash is in oven, chop 1 small onion and 2 crimini mushrooms and then add to hollowed out center of squash after it has been baking for 30 minutes. Return squash to oven for another 30 minutes (or until squash is fully cooked). Remove from oven.

To prepare wild rice, place 1 cup of wild rice and 2 cups of water in small pot, bring to boil, reduce to simmer for 40 minutes. Remove from heat.

To prepare lentils, bring 2 cups of water to a boil, add 1 cup lentils, 2 bay leaves, pinch of sea salt, and 1 small chopped onion. Reduce to simmer for 20 minutes (or until lentils are tender). Remove from heat and remove bay leaves before serving.

To prepare portobello mushrooms, wash thoroughly, remove stems, place in casserole dish, and brush both sides with sesame oil. Add 1 minced garlic clove to each mushroom and cover casserole dish. Place in 350 degree oven for 10 minutes, then remove, add 1/2 freshly squeezed lemon, and then place back in oven for 5 minutes. Remove from oven.

To prepare simple stirfry, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in pan and saute 1 chopped leek, 2 minced garlic cloves for 3 minutes. Add 2 cups chopped vegetables (I used zucchini, shitake mushrooms, and portobello mushroom stems) and 1 tsp oregano and saute for 4 minutes. Add 1 cup chopped carrots and saute for 2 minutes. Add 2 cups chopped leafy greens (I used collard greens) and saute for 1 minute. Remove and add 1/2 freshly squeezed lemon.

To prepare sauce, add 2 tbsp tahini, 1 freshly squeezed lemon, 1/2 tsp sesame oil, 1/4 tsp sea salt, 1 tbsp water, and 1 tsp nutritional yeast in bowl and mix thoroughly. Drizzle sauce over wild rice, lentils and squash when serving.

After all the dishes were finished being prepared, the food was dished up, seasoned with flax oil and sea salt and the meal was a delicious late week treat!

Simple Chickpea Curry

Tonight for supper, I had a delicious chickpea curry. I generally don't eat very spicy food, and this curry was a good fit because it was only mildly spicy.

Here is the recipe for Simple Chickpea Curry (see picture to the left):

1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp yellow mustard seeds, 1 medium onion, chopped, 4 garlic cloves, minced, 2 - 3 tbsp fresh ginger, grated, 1 cup mushrooms (I used shitake and crimini), chopped, 1/2 cup zucchini, chopped, 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes, 1 tbsp curry powder (I used mild curry powder), 1 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp sea salt, 2 cups vegetable broth/water (I used a mixture of water and 1/2 tsp sea salt), 1 cup carrots, chopped, 2 cups yams, chopped, 1 cup broccoli, chopped, 2 cups cauliflower, chopped, 2 cups collard greens, chopped, 1 lime, freshly squeezed, 1/2 orange, freshly squeezed (lemon is also fine), 2 cups cooked chickpeas (which were cooked while the curry was being prepared)

Heat olive oil in large pan and add mustard seeds, cover pan, and let seeds pop for approximately 1 minute. Add onions and saute for 5 minutes. Add garlic and ginger and saute for 2 minutes. Add mushrooms and zucchini and saute for 2 minutes. Add red pepper flakes, curry powder, cumin, and sea salt and saute for 3 minutes. Add vegetable broth/water, carrots, and yams, bring to boil, and reduce to simmer for 15 minutes. Add broccoli and cauliflower and simmer for 3 minutes. Add collard greens, lime juice, orange juice, and chickpeas. Remove from heat and serve.

I had the simple chickpea curry with short grain brown rice (which was cooked at the same time as the curry was being prepared - brown basmati rice would have been an even better fit, but I didn't have any!) and it was a lively and warming meal.

Pinto Bean Mash Up!

When I first became a vegetarian in the 90's, my mom gave me a cookbook (called the cookbook for people who love animals) which was written in the early 80's and had great, simple, healthy recipes. This pinto bean mash up recipe is inspired by this cookbook which I still use on a regular basis!

Here is the recipe for the Pinto Bean Mash Up (see pictures to the left):

1 tbsp olive oil, 3 garlic cloves, minced, 2 onions, chopped, 2 celery stalks, chopped, 1 carrot, chopped, 2 cups additional vegetables (I used zucchini, green beans, crimini mushrooms), chopped, 1 cup collard greens, chopped, 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped, 1 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp sea salt, 1/4 tsp turmeric, 2 cups cooked pinto beans, mashed, 2 - 3 tbsp

tahini, 1/4 tsp paprika, 1

cup cooked rice (I used a mixture of japonica and short grain brown rice)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat olive oil in large pan and saute onions and garlic for 5 minutes. Add celery and saute for 2 minutes. Add carrots, additional veggies, collard greens, parsley, cumin, sea salt, and turmeric and saute for

5 minutes. Remove from heat and combine with mashed pinto beans, mixing well. Add tahini and mix well. Transfer mixture to a lightly canola oiled casserole dish, sprinkle with paprika, and bake, covered, for 30 minutes.

Once the mash up was baked, it was served with rice, seasoned with flax oil, and sea salt, and was a tasty and fortifying meal!

Yellow Split Pea Soup

Tonight for supper, I had a delicious split pea soup. Split peas are very easy to work with because they do not require any soaking, so they are a great protein option if one realizes they haven't soaked any legumes and it is already time to make supper!

Here is the recipe for Yellow Split Pea Soup (see picture to the left):

1 tbsp olive oil, 1 medium onion, chopped, 4 garlic cloves, minced, 1 celery stalk, chopped, 1 1/2 cups carrots, chopped, 2 cups additional veggies (I used zucchini, crimini mushrooms, shitake mushrooms), chopped, 4 tsp paprika, 2 tsp thyme, 1 tsp sea salt, 6 cups vegetable broth/water (I used water with 2 tsp of sea salt mixed in), 1 1/4 cup spilt peas (yellow or green is fine), 1 lemon, freshly squeezed, 1 cup leafy greens (I used collard greens), chopped, 1 cup short grain brown rice (which I cooked while the soup was being prepared)

Heat olive oil in soup pot and add onions and garlic and saute for 4 minutes. Add celery and saute for 2 minutes. Add carrots, additional veggies, paprika, thyme, and sea salt and saute for 5 minutes. Add water and split peas and bring to boil, reduce to simmer and cook for 40 minutes. Remove from heat and partially puree soup (I used a hand blender), creating a chunky texture. Add lemon, greens, and rice.

Once the soup was dished up, it was seasoned with flax oil and sea salt and was a tasty and filling meal!

Happy New Year!!

With the start of another year, I am also starting my yearly January cleanse for 2011. Because I don't think I can come up with another 31 brand new recipes, I will be posting less often with this cleanse, but I will be sure to share any yummy new recipes that I try.

During the cleanse, I will be starting my day with a morning smoothie (see Jan 1, 2010 blog post for recipe) - I recently picked up some frozen cherries and they are a great addition to the smoothie! To reduce the amount of cooking/food preparation required during the cleanse, I will be generally having leftovers from the previous night's supper for lunch.

Tonight I had a pretty simple supper (see picture to the left) of chickpeas, rice soba noodles (I have recently discovered a new gluten free soba noodle by King Soba - tonight I had the pumpkin, ginger, and rice variety and I added fresh parsley and green onions to the noodles after they were cooked), stir fried veggies (which consisted of onions, garlic, crimini mushrooms, zucchini, carrots, green beans, and collard greens), and a ginger lime almond butter sauce (which consisted of 1 lime, freshly squeezed, 1/2 lemon, freshly squeezed, 1 - 2 tbsp of ginger, freshly grated, 1/2 tsp sesame oil, 1 clove garlic, minced, 1/8 tsp sea salt, 2 tbsp almond butter, all mixed together in a glass bowl). After the meal was dished up, it was seasoned with flax oil and sea salt and it was a quick and delicious way to start the cleanse!