In season

Although this may not be all local fare, it is always a good idea for taste, nutrition, and the pocketbook to know what is in season. We bought some fresh fava beans at the international market today, per Ruby's request....not sure what to do with them yet but excited to find out.

Okay here is the list:


Look for these, they're at the height of their season:
Hass Avocado
Fava Beans
Beets
Sweet Onions
English Shelling Peas

Enjoy these before they go out of season:
Navel Oranges
Leeks
Kale
Spinach
Chard

*I will shortly be posting a rocking leek salad I made.

Indian Spicy Dip

Tonight I tried this recipe out for a girls night out activity or "meeting" or whatever you want to call it. You were supposed to bring your favorite crock pot recipe to share. Oh well, folks seemed to like it. Here is Kelli gracefully posing with dip in hand.

This is adapted from "Living on Live Food" and the author said it resembles the Indian dish palak paneer to her. For me, it is like a yumidy spiced guacamole (with a lot less fat).

Indian Spicy Dip

4 cups spinach
1 large avocado or 1 1/2 small avocado
1/2 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon Herbamare seasoning salt*
1/2 clove garlic
1/4 teaspoon curry
1/8 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
dash chili powder
dash cayenne
dash of cumin

Blend together in a food processor. Serve as is or slightly warm (warm barely in microwave or the raw food way- in a dehydrator for a few hours at 105). ** Serve with veggies or other favorite dip "vehicle".***


* I have never heard of Herbamare before this recipe. I substituted kosher salt. You could substitute sea salt if you have that.
**I served the dip room temperature and it was yumidy!
***I served it with sliced cucumbers, sliced carrots, celery, and red pepper wedges. The red pepper plus dip combo was fabulous!

Collard Rolls

I recently returned from the western lands where I went to play (and work) with my sister. My sister is trying lots of raw food recipes. Most of the recipes we tried were from Alisa Cohen's book "Living on Live Food". Even if you have no interest in the raw food way of life, who doesn't love yummy recipes full of delicious veggies?! (Well okay, but if you were a brown food person you wouldn't be reading this blog at all, right?) Okay better stop digressing and get to the recipe. Here is the first "raw food" recipe my sister tried out on me (the picture is of Ali with a collard roll in hand).

Who knew that collard greens are sweeter than they are bitter?! I craved this recipe and made it first since returning to Georgia. And the good news- there are lots of collard leaves for cheap here!

Collard Rolls
*adapted from Alisa Cohen's "Living on Life Food"

2-4 collard leaves (depending on how stuffed you want your roll) with very fibrous end trimmed off
1 zucchini, shredded
1 carrot, shredded
1 avocado or guacamole*
1 cup red onion sliced in ringlets or diced
1 cup of mushrooms, cut in bite size pieces**
1/2 cup Braggs liquid aminos
2 cups shredded lettuce

Marinate onions and mushrooms in Bragg Liquid Aminos for 10 minutes. Stir periodically throughout the 10 minutes. Lay collard leaf flat on plate with inside facing up. Drain the onion/mushroom mixture well. Place avocado, carrot, zucchini, mushroom mixture, and lettuce inside the collard leaf (like a burrito). Roll leaf up and enjoy!


*I use mashed avocado with a bit of lime, salt, pepper and dash of cumin)
**Recipe calls for portabellos, but cremini or baby portabellos work great too. Also there is a great dried mixed mushroom mix that CostCo is carrying now that works well too. Just rehydrate the mushrooms and then marinate.

Italian Kale Soup

It must be winter! All I want are warm comforting foods like soup. Here is a recipe for an easy and yummy Italian Kale soup. Ruby gobbled this one up- even the kale. This recipe was adapted from allrecipes.com.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
1 bunch kale, stems removed and leaves chopped **
8 cups water
6 cubes (or teaspoons) vegetable bouillon **
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
6 red potatoes, scrubbed and cubed
2 (15 ounce) cans cannellini beans and/or navy beans
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
2 tablespoons dried parsley
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot; cook the onion and garlic until soft. Stir in the kale and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. Stir in the water, vegetable bouillon, tomatoes, potatoes, beans, Italian seasoning, and parsley. Simmer soup on medium heat for 25 minutes, or until potatoes are cooked through. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

**Notes:
**For faster soup prep time, look for bags of kale that already have stems removed and are chopped.
**I really like Better than Bouillon vegetable base that come as a thick liquid is a small jar.

Moroccan-Style Dinner Tonight!

Dinner tonight... Want something fast, easy, tasty, and hearty? Try this tasty dish.


INGREDIENTS
1 can (15.5 oz)chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 can tomatoes with green chilies **
1/2 cup diced onions
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp ground cumin
1/2 tbsp ground ginger
1 tbsp ground coriander
3/4 cup vegetable broth
Salt and pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS
Saute garlic and onion in olive oil over medium heat for about two minutes.
Stir in cumin, ginger and coriander.
Cook until onion is tender.
Add chickpeas, vegetable broth and tomatoes with juice and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for ten minutes.
Serve alone or over brown rice or over fresh spinach or over steamed vegetables.

**When I made it tonight I only had canned diced tomatoes and canned green chilies. I added 7 oz green chilies to 28 oz of diced tomatoes for a double batch (doubling all the other ingredients as well). Reduce chilies for less spice.

Roasted Cauliflower

What do you do with cauliflower beside chop it up and eat it on a veggie tray?...Roast it! My mom and good friend have both loved this recipe when I made it for them. It is a perfect fall and winter dish. (This recipe is from Cooking Light)


Mellow, slightly sweet roasted garlic and onions round out the flavor of cauliflower.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 cup)
Ingredients

* 2 teaspoons olive oil
* 2 medium onions, quartered
* 5 garlic cloves, halved
* 4 cups cauliflower florets (about 1 1/2 pounds)
* Cooking spray
* 1 tablespoon water
* 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard (*see note below)
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, optional

Preparation

Preheat oven to 500°.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and garlic; cook 5 minutes or until browned, stirring frequently. Remove from heat.

Place onion mixture and cauliflower in a roasting pan coated with cooking spray. Combine water and mustard; pour over vegetable mixture. Toss to coat; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 500° for 20 minutes or until golden brown, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with parsley.

Note: * I have made with spicy brown mustard because I don't have dijon and it is dynamite!

Eggplant Schnitzel

Eggplant is great for you (high in fiber,folate, potassium, manganese, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, thiamin, niacin, Vitamin B6, pantothenic Acid, magnesium, phosphorus and copper, and phytonutrients) but I have struggled to find scrumptious low fat vegetarian recipes. Please share if you have any eggplant recipes that fit this category. I adapted this one from recipezaar.com.

Ingredients
* 1/2 to 3/4 cup milk (see note below)
* 1 large egg
* 2 cups dried Italian seasoned breadcrumbs (*see note below)
* 1 Aubergiune eggplant, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds

Directions:
Whisk the milk and egg together in a shallow bowl. Spread the breadcrumbs on a large plate. Dip the eggplant slices into the milk mixture, then coat the slices with breadcrumbs. Shake off the excess crumbs, and place on a prepared baking sheet. Spray the vegetables with cooking spray(or you may brush with some olive oil**), and bake 10 minutes. Flip vegetables, and spray again with the cooking spray (or more olive oil). Bake 10-15 minutes more, or until the eggplant slices are tender and breadcrumbs are dark golden brown.

Top with hummus and/or roasted red pepper tapanade and serve with a huge mixed spring green salad! Yumidy!

Notes:
*Use whatever milk you use - rice, soy, almond, cow, etc.
**Use whatever you have or any gluten-free substitute that you may use for breadcrumbs. I have made my own Italian breadcrumbs by adding Italian seasoning and basil and kosher salt to regular breadcrumbs or matzah meal.
**I have made this without the spray or olive oil. The cooking spray just helps the browning process.
***This recipe can also used with portobello mushrooms, as well.

Grilled Portabellos

Grilled portabellos! Better than steak (at least to me)!
This is a fast and easy main dish that I made up from reading a bunch of recipes online.

**Choose nice not wilted portobello caps
**Scrape gills and center out using a spoon
**Gently wash the portobello
**Drizzle with olive oil, tiny bit balsamic vinegar and sprinkle with salt and pepper
**Grill on medium high for about 7 minutes per side. Watch to make sure they do not burn. I haven't tried it but I am sure you cook these on an indoor grill pan or in the oven.

Top with with hummus (white bean pesto hummus is great- recipe to come) and roasted red pepper tapenade (on the stem side and a luscious green side salad, Mediterranean style is tasty, tasty (various olives, cucumbers, grape tomatoes, sliced pepperoncini peppers, etc.)

buon appetito!

Roasted Red Pepper Tapenade

This tapenade is the best! I use this for a topping on Mediterranean inspired salad instead of dressing, as an accompaniment to grilled portabellos and eggplant snitzel, as a dip for cut raw veggies like zucchini, cucumber, carrots, etc. I first bought some at Trader Joe's and it is really good. It is in a small jar- Roasted Red Pepper Tapenade. I looked for a recipe to be able to make it myself. I found one (allrecipes.com) and tested it on several friends and they thought it was good. So here it is:


Ingredients

* 1 (7 ounce) jar roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
* 1 (6 ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
* 1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro
* 1/3 cup olive oil
* 1/4 cup drained capers
* 4 cloves garlic, chopped
* 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
* salt and pepper to taste

Directions

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the red peppers, artichoke hearts, cilantro, Parmesan cheese, olive oil, capers, garlic, and lemon juice. Pulse until finely chopped and the mixture is blended. Transfer to a serving bowl and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving to blend the flavors.

Notes:
**Be sure to mince or chop the garlic and you might want to reduce the amount of garlic the first time.
*I put the capers in the processor first to finely mince and then add the rest of the ingredients.

Let me know if you make it and come up with other uses! Enjoy!

Fresh Spring Rolls

Ruby and I love fresh spring rolls. They are perfect for lunch or dinner and also for entertaining. Kids and company love them because you get to make your own. We had them tonight for dinner so I had to blog "fresh spring rolls". So super yumidy!

The thing about fresh spring rolls, also called Thai basil rolls, is that most vegetables will work in them. So light, so fresh, so refreshing.

Fresh Spring Rolls
*Note A*
1 package large dried rice wrappers (also called "rice paper") *Note B*
fresh sweet basil, roughly chopped if leaves are large *Note C*

~Your choice of veggies- any combination- usually at least three but the more the better- for example, cabbage, cucumber, carrot OR spring greens, red pepper, avocado, cucumber~

cucumber, sliced into matchstick-like pieces
carrot, grated
fresh bean sprouts
spring greens
lettuce
napa (chinese) cabbage, chopped
avocado, sliced
red bell pepper, sliced thin
green onion, sliced into strips
snow peas

Directions:

Place all the cut veggies on a platter, cutting board, or cookie sheet for easy access. Soak one rice wrapper in bowl of warm water until soft. Place wrapper on plate add choice of veggies and herb(s) into the center. Fold each end over and roll- like making a burrito. Serve with dipping sauce. *Note D*

If you have never made fresh spring rolls this is a good step by step guide with pictures.


Note A: The rice wrappers keeps for a long time, so just make the amount you will eat.

Note B: Rice Wrappers The rice wrappers are becoming increasingly easy to find at your local grocer and megamart; however, Asian food stores would be a sure bet. Here is a picture of what you are looking for- Banh Trang Spring Roll Wrappers.

Note C: Herbs The herb component is essential for me personally. The herbs I have tried and enjoyed on fresh spring rolls are sweet basil, thai basil, mint, and cilantro.


Note D: Dipping Sauces My favorite dipping sauces are peanut ones.
The basic thai peanut sauce recipe is 1 part natural style peanut butter (no sugar), 1 part hoisin sauce, 1 part water. I got the recipe from an Asian grocer when I tried to buy peanut sauce in a jar- he told me "That no good. Make your own." I recently found this San J Thai Peanut Sauce pictured here and love it as well.

The other dipping sauce is a soy vinegar sauce. Take 1 part soy sauce or Braggs, 1 part rice vinegar, thinly sliced green onion. Add a little water if too salty to your taste. For a spicy option, I add a bit of thai red curry paste. A few drops of sesame oil are really good as well. (This is the basic recipe I use as an Asian inspired salad dressing.)

TTT: The Trevor Test - Trevor likes them if there is a meat additive (shrimp, crab, etc.) and he leaves out the herbs (he doesn't know what he is missing) but he does add and eat the veggies- amazing!

Black Bean Hummus

I love hummus of all sorts. It is a perfect snack especially if you are craving something crunchy and savory (actually, ruby and I have hummus and veggies for lunch often). I highly recommend the white bean and basil hummus from Trader Joes. I would love to find or invent a recipe for that one. Any takers?

This is an awesome hummus recipe compliments of my good friend, Symony. Think TExMEx hummus. It is quick, easy, and very yumidy! Thanks Symony!

Black Bean Hummus

2 cans black beans drained, some liquid reserved
2 T tahini
2 T jalapeno seeded and chopped *Note A*
2 T bean bean liquid
1 1/2 T vinegar *Note B*
1 tsp oil
1 clove of garlic chopped
2 T cumin
1 tsp salt or to taste

Blend in a food processor or blender. Add more of the reserved black bean liquid to reach desired consistency, if needed (like thick cake batter). Serve with sliced and chopped veggies such as carrots, cucumber, zucchini, broccoli, cauliflower, bell pepper, etc.

Note A- Any type of jalapenos will work or none at all depending on your family. Vary the amount depending on how spicy you like your food. I blend up the hummus without the jalapenos take out half for Ruby (she devours it, by the way) and then add the jalapenos for me. I tried this recipe last week with chipotles and it was great. Added a nice smokey dimension.

Note B- Any acid will work. You can add white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, rice vinegar, etc. I actually use fresh lime juice if I have it available. Lemon juice will well work, also.

Yumidy tip: I never need a whole can of chipotles in adobo sauce at once; so I put the leftovers in a baggie and keep it in the freezer. I just slice off what I need for any given recipe.

Happy Dipping!

Thai Coconut Soup

This is a yumidy soup perfect with and Asian inspired salad side. It is quick to make too which is helpful about 15-20 minutes start to finish including chopping.

Nearly Instant Thai Coconut Soup
INGREDIENTS:
1 tablespoon light olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 to 5 scallions, white and green parts, thinly sliced
1 medium red bell pepper, cut into short, narrow strips
8 oz sliced mushrooms (optional)
Two 15-ounce cans light coconut milk
1 1/2 cups rice milk
One 16-ounce bag frozen corn
2 teaspoons good quality curry powder
1/4 teaspoon Thai red curry paste, more or less to taste
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS:
1. Heat the oil in a small soup pot. Add the garlic, the white parts
of the scallions, and the bell pepper. Sauté over medium-low heat
until softened and golden, about 2 to 3 minutes.

2. Add the coconut milk, rice milk, corn, curry powder, the green
parts of the scallions. If using the curry paste, dissolve it in a
small amount of water before adding to the soup.

3. Bring to a rapid simmer, then lower the heat. Cover and simmer
gently for 5 minutes. Season with salt and remove from the heat.

4. Serve, passing around the cilantro for topping.

**Notes- The original recipe did not have mushrooms I added sliced baby portabellos but white mushrooms or shitake would work too. Mushrooms add texture that can be important when eating botanically based food. I like a chunky soup so I added a bit more corn. I think curry paste could be used if you do not have powder. Thai red curry powder is spicy so add to your and your family's taste.

Adapted From: Vegan Express: Featuring 160 Recipes for Quick, Delicious, and Healthy Meals, by Nava Atlas.

Mashed Potato Kale Cakes

This recipe is family friendly (it passed the Trevor test). It is adapted from Cooking Light.



Mashed Potato Kale Cakes
Yield: 8 patties
Ingredients

* 12 cups water
* 1 bunch kale, trimmed (about 4 ounces)
* 2 2/3 cups (1-inch) cubed Yukon gold or red potato (about 1 pound)
* 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
* 1 tablespoon olive oil
* 3 cups diced onion
* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage (I used 1 to 1/2 tsp ground sage)
* 1/4 cup sliced green onions
* 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* Cooking spray


Preparation

Bring water to a boil in a Dutch oven; add kale. Cover and cook over medium heat 5 minutes or until tender. Remove kale with a slotted spoon, reserving cooking liquid. Chop kale and set aside.

Add potato to reserved cooking liquid in pan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until tender. Drain; partially mash potatoes. Stir in kale and 1/4 teaspoon salt.

Preheat oven to 400°.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, diced onion, and chopped sage. Cook 13 minutes or until browned. Combine potato mixture, onion mixture, green onions, and pepper. Remove from heat; cool slightly. Divide potato mixture into 8 equal portions, shaping each into a 1/2-inch-thick patty. Place patties on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes.

Preheat broiler.

Broil patties for 5 minutes or until browned. Garnish with sage sprigs, if desired.

**Notes- Look for big bags of pre-trimmed and chopped kale in the produce area. Be sure to remove the woody spine if you are trimming your own. I kept the potato skins on and they were good. I used a metal form to press mixture into to form patties. I skipped the broil step. Feel free to reduce the salt and then add at the table if needed.

What about Kale?

Kale is a superfood that is power packed.

A one cup serving of kale has 1327% of the recommended daily value (DV) of Vitamin K, 192% of the DV of Vitamin A, and 88% of the DV of Vitamin C. WOW! It is also a great source of many other nutrients including protein- yes, protein! This web resource gives a good view of the nutritional profile for kale. Also, kale and other cruciferous vegetables have received attention because of their sulfur-containing phytonutrients that seem to be powerful cancer preventing and fighting antioxidants.

Recipes:
Mashed Potato Kale Cakes

SuperGreens

I could never write and summarize all the benefits of green leafy vegetables from cancer fighting phytochemicals to immune boosting vitamins. Trust me on this one the verdict is out, green vegetables are super good!

Here is a nice summary of 12 "Hearty Greens" from Cooking Light: 12 Hearty Greens.

Yumidy tip: eat as many and as much variety of green leafy vegetables as possible.

Yumidy menu suggestion: Salads! Lots of salads made interesting by mixing lettuces with spring green mix and adding lots of toppings such as tomatoes, cucumbers, green bell peppers, corn, green onion, what ever your imagination can think of.

I often make a themed salad such as tex-mex which might have lots of greens topped with roasted corn (leftover grilled corn), diced avocado, green onion, black beans, and salsa (medium or hot to make it interesting). Other themes are Mediterranean (olives, green onion, kidney beans, roasted red pepper tapenade) or Asian (bean sprouts, cucumbers, carrots, asian vinaigrette). (I will soon post the recipe for the asian vinaigrette I invented and the roasted red pepper tapenade I fell in love with.)

Why Yumidy?

There is a revolution going on in my life. A wake up call. A majority of Americans are overweight, fat, obese- on top of that most Americans, even if they are not overweight do not feel well, experiencing chronic fatigue and pain as well as a whole range of more serious conditions. A perfect storm of events happened so that I realized I needed to change the way I feed and fuel myself and my life.

Based on research, deep thought, and personal experience I have chosen to follow a primarily botanical diet that is nutrient rich, power-packed with antioxidants, vitamins, and phytochemicals- all the good stuff. My sister calls this SuperFoods eating.

Admittedly it is difficult to eat and live this way in the carb rich, fat laden, processed, food additive, nutrient-poor, refined sugar food world. My sister is on a similar even more difficult journey. This blog was started out of our conversations about eating to feel good and be truly healthy and how to do it. "Yumidy" came out of a conversation when I was enthusiastically describing a dinner I had made with a beautiful mixed spring green salad juxtaposed next to spicy lentil curry- "It's just yumidy!"

These are the basis: lots of green leafy vegetables, vegetables, some amount of starchy vegetables, lots of mushrooms, fruit, nuts, and beans. That is basically it- you can fill in the avoid list. This blog will contain recipes that I have invented or found, as well as, tips and informational tidbits.