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Basil is a potent healing food. It has been used medicinally as a digestive aid, as a mild sedative and for the treatment of headaches. The oil of basil has antibacterial properties and it is effective in treating intestinal ailments. It contains flavonoids that protect against free-radical damage, making it an important anticancer food.
Read MoreApples are very high in pectin, a soluble fiber which can lower cholesterol levels significantly — adding just one large apple a day to your diet can reduce cholesterol levels by 8 to 11 percent. Eating two a day has been shown to reduce cholesterol levels by up to 16 percent. We all know the old saying — “An apple a day keeps the doctor away,” well recent research indicates that this is actually true.
Read MoreMy mom shared this recipe with me recently. Here's what she has to say about it:
This recipe started when I was trying to come up with something easy for dinner that would also leave enough leftovers for another meal. I had been craving turkey, but I never cook it because it's such a big production. A whole roasted turkey isn't hard to do, but it takes a long time and is way too much food for two people. Still, I thought there must be a way to satisfy my craving without the big mess.
Read MoreThere is one crucial component to this delicious and healthy soup — you must soak and boil your own beans and reserve the cooking liquid from the beans for your stock. This makes the soup creamy, delicious, and hearty. I've tried it several different ways and this is the way to go. Plus, it's economical and you avoid any nasty chemicals that may be present in canned beans and packaged broth (see my article in The Atlantic on obesogens for a bit on this and my book for all of the latest information).
Read MoreBrian's chili is just one example of the comforting, warming meals we often eat at home, especially in the fall and winter months. In the fall, peppers are still abundant at the Farmer's market and tomatoes are everywhere — a homemade chili is the the best place to use all of these nutritious ingredients.
This meal couldn't be simpler but it tastes gourmet. The egg yolks coat the sweet roasted asparagus and the Parmesan cheese provides a salty, nutty counterpart — all you need are some delicious pastured eggs, seasonal asparagus, and a bit of good Parmesan cheese and dinner is served in less than 20 minutes. A good crusty baguette wouldn't hurt either.
Read MoreThis simple and nutritious salad and can easily be prepared for a weeknight meal. People think that making your own Caesar dressing is difficult, but with a food processor or blender it's ready in about 5 minutes. I use raw egg in mine but you can omit it if you are worried. If you're buying your eggs from a local farmer who raises his or her chickens on pasture, raw eggs are safe to eat — but I would never recommend eating a raw industrial egg! I used shrimp here but you could use salmon, chicken, or top it with hard-boiled eggs. This is a simple, delicious, and a very nutrient dense meal just in time for Spring.
Read MoreI make variations of this soup all winter since cabbage and potatoes are some of the only vegetables we can get locally. This last batch was especially good and I think it has to do with the technique of layering flavors throughout the cooking process. This is an extremely economical and easy meal.
Read MoreThese veggie burgers are easy to make, have infinite variations, and are delicious — far superior than any store bought option and far more nutritious too. This is based on Mark Bittman's recipe from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian. He recommends either pan frying them or baking them but having tried both methods, I found baking them was easier, less messy, and helped with holding the burgers together. I highly recommend these! Best of all you can make a double batch and freeze half of the patties before cooking so you've prepped two dinners at once. Serve them with baked sweet potato wedges and a green salad.
Read MoreCorn bread is a great addition to your Thanksgiving feast and this is the best recipe I've made yet! Simple as can be with corn meal and spelt flour as its base and lightly sweetened with a bit of palm sugar. When corn was in season here in New York, the added juicy sweetness of the corn kernels was a real treat, but it's great without them too. As I mentioned last week this goes perfectly with the Potato Leek Soup. Enjoy! Corniest Corn Bread (or Muffins)Adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s Baking
Read MoreThis is an incredibly simple soup, but it tastes like you've been cooking it for hours. Truth is, you can make it from start to finish in less than an hour, so it makes a great weeknight meal. The most time consuming part of it is cleaning and chopping the leeks. People often tell me that they are intimidated by leeks and don't know what to do with them. Well, here is your answer! The easiest way to prep them is to chop off most of the green tops, slice them down the middle and rinse them well under cold water in the sink (save the green tops for your next Vegetable Mineral Broth).
Read MoreI love quiche and this one was especially delicious. The gruyere and carmelized onions add a great depth of flavor and the buttery, spelt crust was amazing. Serve with a simple green salad for a healthy and satisfying dinner.
Read MoreMaking refried beans from scratch is simple — no cans necessary! This is loosely based on Mark Bittman's recipe found in How to Cook Everything Vegetarian. If you must use canned beans, try Eden brand. They now makes cans without BPA lining, which has been shown to cause all sorts of problems. The great thing about this recipe is that it can be adjusted to accommodate any season. Right now, peppers are overflowing at the farmers markets as well as in our own garden. But in the winter, you can simply use onions instead. If you are lucky enough to live in a place where avocados are local and in season, they make a great addition to this meal. The recipe below is the bare bones version. Feel free to pep it up with some peppers, greens, zucchini or whatever else you can think of.
Read MoreI wanted to make fresh blueberry cobbler but I also wanted it to be eaten at a potluck — so it had to be portable and it had to be easily cut and eaten without much mess — so I created these bars. First I decided to make blueberry jam (rather than just baking the fruit as you would with a traditional cobbler) which is what held the bars together. I made the jam from fresh blueberries and chilled it overnight, then I made the cobbler in the morning. I count these as another success in my quest to tweak all of my favorite recipes so as not to need any refined sugar or white flour.
Read MoreThis recipe is adapted from one recently posted on smitten kitchen — very barely adapted. It is so delicious though, that I had to post it here. Naturally, I changed the white flour out for spelt flour and I made a few other minor tweaks — other than that, it's the same. I'm calling it rustic, because it doesn't look nearly as pretty as Deb's does, but no matter, it tastes divine. Although the instructions look a bit complex, do not be intimidated! This does involve several steps, but it's actually quite easy and well, well worth it. The pastry shell itself is so light and flaky even using the spelt flour — and the nuttiness of the spelt compliments the ricotta cheese, garlic and basil beautifully.
Read MoreI've made this potato salad for two BBQ's so far and both times it was a big hit. This is my grandfather's recipe that I modified only slightly by making my own mayonnaise. The recipe for homemade mayonnaise follows as well. It is so easy and much more healthful than any store-bought brand. Making your own potato salad is great way to indulge in one of summer's treats without having to worry about what exactly is in that white-ish goop covering the potatoes and other vegetables. This recipe is also nutrient-dense — full of hard boiled eggs, onions, parsley, celery and healthy fats from the homemade mayonnaise. This makes enough to feed a crowd!
