Healthy recipes

[David N. Snyder]

This thread can be to share some of your favorite healthy recipes. I'll start it with:

Collard & Curd (Ethiopian dish)

Ingredients:

4 bunches of collard greens
3 small containers of cottage cheese (Vegan option: 3 packages of firm tofu)
3 Tablespoon (Imperial) of Metimita Ethiopian spices
1 package of ten injera flat breads

Preparation:

Cut four bunches of fresh collard greens into small pieces. Grind them in a food processor to smaller pieces. Place collards into a large pan.

Strain the four packages of cottage cheese to remove the watery whey part. Place curds into the large pan with the collard. (Vegan option: remove water from the tofu packages and crumble the tofu into the large pan of collards.)

Cook for a few minutes on the stove top the collards & curd. Add metimita Ethiopian spices to the pan. Cook a few minutes more. (Semi-raw alternative: mix the ingredients, but don’t cook them. The collard greens will be raw and the only cooked food will be the tofu from the factory and the injera bread.)

Serve with the Ethiopian injera flatbreads. The injera is used to pick up the food (no forks!) and eat.

The Metimita spices and the injera can be purchased at any local Ethiopian food mart. Nearly every major city has at least one Ethiopian food grocery. If you cannot find an Ethiopian mart in your area, substitute cayenne pepper or Tabasco for the spices and pita bread instead of injera; culturally, it will not be Ethiopian, but it will be close and in taste, it will not be as good, but may be similar.

Health benefits:
Plenty of protein in the curd.
Plenty of protein in the teff grain in the injera.
Collard greens are loaded with anti-oxidants and vitamins, naturally.

A complete food, covering the vegetable group, protein group, and breads and grains food groups.

[Ben]

Looks fantastic David.
Thank you for sharing!
I'll add some more recipes later today.
kind regards

Ben

[LauraJ]

Easy Veggie Curry

Ingredients

* 1 tablespoon olive oil
* 1 onion, chopped
* 2 cloves crushed garlic
* 2 1/2 tablespoons curry powder
* 2 tablespoons tomato paste
* 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
* 1 cube vegetable bouillon
* 1 (10 ounce) package frozen mixed vegetables
* 1 1/2 cups water
* salt and pepper to taste
* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. In a large saucepan over medium-high, heat oil and saute onion, and garlic until golden. Stir in curry powder and tomato paste, cook 2 to 3 minutes.
2. Stir in tomatoes, vegetable bouillon cube, mixed vegetables, water, salt and pepper to taste. Cook approximately 30 minutes until vegetables are well done (not crunchy). Sprinkle with fresh cilantro prior to serving.

[Ben]

Hi everyone

If you could indicate whether your measures are imperial or metric - it would be a great help because 1tbsp (metric) does not equal 1tbsp (imperial)!! Also, if you could indicate whether oven temperatures are in Farenheit or Celsius.
Thanks heaps.

Ben

[David N. Snyder]

Easy Veggie Curry

I curry. It is like a magic ingredient that makes anything taste good.

[Ben]

Did someone say "curry"??

Easy Veggie Curry

I curry. It is like a magic ingredient that makes anything taste good.

I never use bought curry powder anymore. The closest I'll come to it is a satchel or jar of curry paste. If I've got the time, I'll make it myself. Here are a couple of recipes:

All measures are in metric.

Madhur Jaffrey's curry powder:

2 tbsp whole coriander seeds
1 tbsp whole cumin seeds
2 tsp whole peppercorns
1.5 tsp whole brown mustard seeds
1 tsp whole fenugreek seeds
5.6 whole cloves
3 hot dried red chillies, crumbed
1 tsp ground tumeric

,- Set a small cast-iron frying pan on medium heat. When it is hot, put in the corriander, cumin, peppercorns, mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, cloves and chillies. Stir around until the spices emit a light, roasted aroma. A few of the spices will turn a shade darker. Put in the tumeric, and stir for ten seconds. Empty the spices out on to a clean plate to cool. Now put the spices into a clean coffee grinder or other spice grinder (such as a mortar and pestle), in two batches if necessary, and grind as finely as possible. Store in a clean jar, away from heat and sunlight.
Makes 5-6 tbsp.

Sri Lankan raw curry powder

Perfect for all vegetable curries.

3 tbsp whole coriander seeds
1 tbsp whole fennel seeds
1.5 tbsp whole cumin seeds
1 tbsp whole fenugreek seeds
3 whole sprigs (about 60) fresh curry leaves if available or a small handful of dried ones)
1 tbsp dessicated coconut
1.5 tsp raw rice
0.5 tsp whole brown mustard seeds.

- Preheat oven to 65degC / 150degF / gas-mark 1/4
- Spread the seasonings on a tray and put them into the oven for 1 hour. Cool. Empty into a clean coffee grinder or other spice grinder and grind as finely as possible. Store in a tightly lidded jar away from heat and sunlight.

-- From Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian Cooking

[catmoon]

Does anyone here make kimchi? I tried but so far the results are more like a wilted spicy salad than kimchi. I don't think its fermenting at all.

[Tex]

Was recommended this link for healthy pasta recipes: http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/food/he ... ta-recipes

I made the "Cod Fra Diavolo", but without the cod. It was tasty, quick, and relatively cheap. If you're really sensitive to spicy foods you might go with less red pepper, but it's not overwhelming or anything. It could also use more marinara sauce, in my opinion.

Ingredients
U.S.

8 ounce(s) multigrain or whole wheat fusilli pasta
1 teaspoon(s) olive oil
1 medium red onion, coarsely chopped
1 medium red pepper, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
3 clove(s) garlic, chopped
1/4 teaspoon(s) crushed red pepper
1/2 cup(s) fat-free marinara sauce
1 can(s) (14 1/2 ounces) Italian-style diced tomatoes
Salt
1 pound(s) cod fillet, cut into 1-inch chunks
Fresh basil leaves for garnish

Directions

Heat large covered saucepot of water to boiling over high heat. Add pasta and cook as label directs.
Meanwhile, in nonstick 4-quart saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and red pepper, and cook 8 to 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender and lightly browned, stirring occasionally. Stir in garlic and crushed red pepper; cook 1 minute. Stir in marinara sauce, diced tomatoes, and 1/2 teaspoon salt; heat to boiling over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 5 minutes more.
Add cod chunks to sauce, pressing down with the back of a spoon to submerge in tomato sauce. Cover and cook over medium heat about 6 minutes or until cod is cooked through.
To serve, drain pasta well and place in 4 large shallow bowls; top with cod and sauce. Garnish with basil.

[Annapurna]

Great recipes! I love the image you shared, David, and looked at my breakfast and thought I'll photograph it for you guys.

It's not only a breakfast, but also a great dessert or snack with not so many calories, but many healthy things in it. After eating this, you'll feel refreshed and energetic.

Ok, here it is.

Orange-banana 1 M.jpg (197.57 KiB) Viewed 2977 times

Ingredients:

1 banana, sliced
1 organically grown orange, chopped
mild yogurt, 1,5 % fat, (preferably with living cultures, and without any sugar etc)
Vegan version: Soy yogurt
Fresh lemon balm leaves from the garden, peppermint will be also fine

Add a few chopped nuts if you like.

Especially nice: thin, crisp almond slices, shortly roasted in a pan without oil, just let them take a bit of color.

Health benefits:

1. Raw food, with full content of vitamins.

2. Rich in vitamins, minerals & fibers,

3. Carbohydrates, protein.

4. Low fat without nuts. If with nuts, good fatty acids, omega 3, (amount depending on what you choose)

5. DELICIOUS!!!

6. Keeps you full for a while.

It usually lasts me until about 11. Then I eat some fruit, like an apple, until I eat lunch around around 12.

[Ben]

Thank you Anna for that recipe and sharing a photo of your dish with us!
metta

Ben

[Annapurna]

Loved your curry recipes, Ben! My respect for making curry yourself! I use curry even in pasta sauce! You too? I also add Garam Masala, I think that gives it a special flavor...

[Ben]

That sounds lovely, Anna.
Some of my secret ingredients in pasta sauce is smoked paprika (from La Vera region in Spain), ground corriander, cumin and sometimes a trace of chilli which seems to accent the other flavours. Speaking of pasta, I've been making my own lately. Tagliatelle and Pappadelle have been successes and only one success with ravioli. Ravioli is very fiddly and frustrating, especially when the very thin sheets of pasta dough have holes in them.
I've been making my own pasta on a weekly basis and it just leaves the store-bought dry pasta for dead. And the kids love it!
metta

Ben

[Annapurna]

Really? Wow...I never made pasta myself! Do you use a noodle machine or cut them by hand?

[Ben]

Hi Anna

I've got a hand-cranked pasta machine and its got a fitting for making spagetti and tagliatelle. For pappadelle, I just cut the sheets of pasta at the width that I like (2-4cm). The photo below is almost exactly the same as the one that I've got. Making the pasta dough is very easy.
The recipe I am using is essentially 100g "00" plain flour, 1 egg and a pinch of salt (per person) which is more than enough when cooked.
When you mix the dough, you don't have to kneed it as long as for bread - only five to ten minutes, and then let it rest for 15 minutes.
When you cook the fresh pasta, it only takes about 3 minutes.
kind regards

Ben

Marcato%20Atlas%20150%20pasta%20machine%203%20tipi%20di%20pasta%20EQ-90002a.jpg (44.2 KiB) Viewed 2966 times

[Rui Sousa]

Jardineira (Portuguese traditional recipe)

Ingredients

1 big Garlic clove or 2 small cloves
1 small onion
1 leaf of bay leaf
200 gr of Potatoes
100 gr of Carrots
125 gr of pre cooked peas (one small can)

Preparation
Preferably use a non-adherent pot.

Cover the pot base with Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
Chop the garlic and the onions in very small pieces, split the bay leaf in 4 or 5 pieces and place all of them in the pot with the Olive Oil.
Cook with low or medium temperature for a few minutes, When the onions start to change colour add Soy cubes, meat or fish.
Put the lid on an let the Soy\meat\fish cook for a few minutes, stir every minute or two to make the cooking even.
When the Soy\meat\fish starts to change colour (all around) add the carrots, potatoes, peas and other vegetables you may have.
Cook for two minutes and add a bit of water, beer (stout beer will add amazing flavour), or a bit of wine.
With the lid on let it cook until the carrots are done (poke them with a fork every two minutes).

NOTE: Soy cubes suck a lot of the olive oil, you may have to add more olive oil before the vegetables.

[Individual]

Not recommended for people who prefer elaborate preparation for the sake of flavor, but it's ideal for people who can't cook or don't want to cook.

Lazy Man's Healthy Dinner



Ingredients

1 piece of fish
1 bag of steamed vegetables
1 bag of minute-rice

Using an indoor grill (such as George Foreman's grill ), cook the piece of meat. Even if it is burnt to a crisp, it is still edible. In the above case, I used fish, but any meat will work. White meat is better. Instead of an indoor grill, you can use an outdoor grill, although this takes more time and work. An indoor grill takes roughly the same amount of time as a microwave. You can marinate the meat before putting it on the grill also, but again, this is more work.

While this is going on, microwave the steamed vegetables (steams right in the bag!!) and the minute rice.

Warning: Do NOT under any circumstances microwave "minute rice" longer than one minute. The instructions say "one minute" FOR A REASON!! Depending on the microwave, you might get away with cooking it for a minute and a half or so, but somewhere around the 2 minute mark, bags of minute rice will tend to explode loudly as if a gunshot went off. This does not hurt the nutritional value or flavor of the rice, although it's a bit unpleasant for the ears and can startle you if you're unprepared for it.

After the fish (or whatever meat you used) is done, you can add whatever sauce you like. In the above case, I used a very tiny amount of low-sodium teriyaki sauce.

On the side, I added a couple slices of tomato and several olives. And I served it with Arizona's Pomegranate-flavored Green Tea. But you can add whatever you want.

[Annapurna]

Tomato_snack_1.jpg (28.13 KiB) Viewed 2836 times

This is done quickly, and is delicious and healthy:

Toast a breadroll to crispness. Cut breadroll in half, preferrably whole grain.

Cut tomatoes, black olives and artichokes in slices and arrange on the halves.

Sprinkle with Feta cheese. ( I use a greek one, made from goat and sheep milk because the flavors just so much better. Any other cheese will do too. )

Place under grill until cheese turns golden.

Sprinkle with fresh basil and onion leaves. Add fresh pepper.

[alan]

Sounds great. A bit of olive oil, perhaps?

[Annapurna]

Thank you, Allan, would definitely blend in nicely!

I usually eat a greek salad before that snack, (chopped tomatoes, cucumber, bell peppers, feta, and fresh mediterranean herbs, so there would be oil in that, and to keep things 'low fat', I don't use any oil on the snack.

The cheese also has fat, but all in all, olive oil would taste perfect on it!

[andre9999]

I agree, that looks like something I want right now, even though it's 6 am. Maybe I'll get the ingredient this weekend and give it a go.