A Fooled Hash Brown & Roasted Pepper Avocado Salsa

Hashed Browns with Broad Beans (Fool) & Red Split Lentils

topped with a Roasted Red Pepper, Tomato & Avocado Salsa

I decided to do this recipe, since I had soaked lentils & cooked (boiled) broad beans from the night before. It was a simple recipe, but considering these two items were already for me, it took away from prep time.

 

Broad Bean Hashed Browns

1 Potato grated

1 cup Broad Beans chopped

½ cup Soaked Split Red Lentils (not cooked)

½ Onion chopped

2 cloves Garlic finely chopped

1 Tbsp Roasted Red Pepper chopped

4 Cherry Tomatoes diced

½ cup Boiled Rice

1 tsp Turmeric

1 tsp Paprika

1 tsp Cumin ground

½ tsp Cayenne powder

½ tsp Black pepper 

1 Egg

½ cup Flour + additional flour for consistency

• Preheat oven at 350°
• Prepare all ingredients & Mix together
• I quickly pan friend the mix which helped in molding the mixture
• Made mini patties & placed on an oiled tray 
• Cooked until lightly browned

Then Begins the Salsa Preparation


Roasted Red Pepper, Cherry Tomato & Avocado Salsa
½ Onion finely diced
1 cup Cherry Tomato quartered
½ to 1 Avocado diced
½ Roasted Red Pepper diced
pinch of black pepper
1 tsp salsa mix (optional)



Top the hash browns with the Salsa & Enjoy!!

Olive Beet & Nut Tapenade

I'm in love with Olive Tapenade, so decided to make my own. Once again no recipe because anything goes!!

Olives, Almonds, Walnuts, Beets are the ingredients.

Rough Olive Beet & Nut Tapenade Recipe:


2 or 3 Tbsp Olives (Black & Green) pitted
1 Tbsp Raw Almonds
1 Tbsp Raw Walnuts
1 Tbsp Cooked Beet
2 small cloves Garlic
1 fresh Tabasco pepper
1 tsp soaked Fava Beans
1 tsp soaked Chickpeas
2 Tbsp Turmeric Infused Olive Oil & Kalunji Oil
1 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar

Thanks to The Bullet, I blended them all to make a paste consistency.

Please note:  Avoid adding - the deadly white - Salt.  The olives are usually soaked or preserved in salt water, so they provide the dish with enough salt.

Nutting is better than Nuts

Nut Crust  3 Tbsp Raw Almonds 3 Tbsp Raw Walnuts 2 Tbsp Raw Pistachio 2 Tbsp Shredded Coconut   1 Tbsp Flax Seed 1 tsp Kalunji (Nigella Black Seed) 3 tsp Pinenuts 2 Tbsp Raw Sesame Seeds 2 Tbsp Zaatar Mix 2 tsp Turmeric 2 tsp Sultana Raisins 2 Tbsp Dried Figs 2 Cloves Garlic 1 Egg (extra ground nuts or flour to fix dough consistency)
	Grind & Mix together all Nuts, Fruit & Spicing Ingredients  Add Egg & knead dough until you get a play-dough consistency More ground nuts or flour can be added to reach desired consistency Pre-heat Oven at 350° Oil your tray or baking dish Press dough to form ½ cm pizza crust Bake for 15 min or until slightly golden

Check out other Nut crust Recipes:

Raisin and Nut Crumble with Coconut Curried Chicken, Radicchio & Red Peppers

Nuts, Raisin & Fig Crust Chicken Pizza

Mini Nut Crackers with Spicy Chicken & Tomato Topping  

     

All the Curried Nuts a Chicken Can Get

 

Raisin and Nut Crumble with Coconut Curried Chicken, Radicchio & Red Peppers

All within a few days of each other, I ended up with the same ingredients. But I wanted to do a different recipe. So SPICES to the rescue!

Curry it was! 

which means more Turmeric 

I prepared the Nut & Raisin Crumble the same way as I prepared it in the Nuts, Fig & Raisin Crust Chicken Pizza minus the eggs and the zaatar. The dough didn't hold too well due to the lack of a binder (the egg) - so I crumbled it. I also added a tsp of curry powder to the mix.

On the side I had marinated the chicken in the curry powder & cooked it with garlic & onions. Unlike the Pizza recipe, I decided to slightly cook the available vegetables by adding them to the cooked chicken right before I took it off the stove. 

Red Bell Peppers

Radicchio

Lettuce

Raisins

1 tsp shredded Coconut

Lastly I needed a sauce, so went with a Coconut Curry sauce. 

¼ cup light coconut milk

1 tsp soy sauce

½ tsp toasted sesame oil

1 tbsp shredded Coconut

½ tsp curry powder

1 clove garlic, minced

½ tsp Sriracha hot chili sauce

1 tsp cornstarch

Whisk all ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat and let the mixture simmer for about 2-3 minutes until glossy and thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

With pretty much the same ingredients, I was able to make 2 different recipes with different tastes. The options are endless!

Going Nuts For Pizza

Nuts, Raisin & Fig Crust Chicken Pizza

I've been experimenting with nuts lately, and I decided to make my self a pizza. I wanted all the nutrients I can get in my veggies, so I kept them away from heat. Hence my partially raw pizza. I ended up only cooking the chicken, and the crust for as little I can, just to crisp it up.My measurements were rough, so there is no exact recipe. But anything goes!

	Nut Crust  3 Tbsp Raw Almonds 3 Tbsp Raw Walnuts 2 Tbsp Raw Pistachio 2 Tbsp Shredded Coconut  1 Tbsp Flax Seed 1 tsp Kalunji (Nigella) 3 tsp Pinenuts 2 Tbsp Raw Sesame Seeds 2 Tbsp Zaatar Mix 2 tsp Turmeric 2 tsp Sultana Raisins 2 Tbsp Dried Figs 2 Cloves Garlic 1 Egg (extra ground nuts or flour to fix dough consistency)	Kneaded Dough
Grind & Mix together all Nuts, Fruit & Spicing Ingredients	Add Egg & knead dough until you get a play-dough consistency More ground nuts or flour can be added to reach desired consistency	Pre-heat Oven at 350° Oil your tray or baking dish Press dough to form ½ cm pizza crust Bake for 15 min or until slightly golden

On the side I had prepared the Pizza Sauce 1 small Tomato ½ Onion 3 cloves Garlic 2 tsp Tomato paste 2 tsp roasted Chilli peppers ½ tsp Oregano ½ tsp Basil ¼ tsp Black pepper pinch of salt	I used some of the pizza sauce to flavor my chicken, but the remainder of the sauce was used as a raw sauce. While cooking the crust, I added some cheese. Then topped it with my pizza sauce flavored chicken bits.
To treat my self I made some caramelized onions. But fresh is better. If I had green onions I would have used that instead. Caramelized Onions 1 small Onion 2 Tbsp Sugar ¼ cup Water - Boil water - Melt Sugar - Add sliced Onions -  Stir until water evaporates & sugar starts browning	Over the chicken bits, I added the sauce, and then the caramelized onions. Now to choose my Toppings. Red peppers Raddichio Avocado Black Olives Lettuce The amount is up to you. Add more or less of what you like and dislike.

Tasted wonderful, and I loved the colors.

Leafy Greens & Chicken Crêpe with Beet Béchamel Sauce

So I decided to attempt the crepe. And I flipped it too!

I had some defrosted chicken and a bunch of random greens in the fridge. Beets were simmering in pot on the stove & almonds were soaking in water overnight.

Chopped the chicken into pieces and marinated them with mashed garlic, half a lemon and beet juice. Pinch of salt, pinch of  pepper and a squeeze of mustard.

As for the leafy's, I had Dandelion greens, Brussels sprouts, and Radicchio (red in colour), which i roughly chopped. As I also did with the soaked almonds.






On the side, I had the batter for the Crêpes prepared
½ cup water 
½ cup milk
1 cup flour
2 eggs
2 tbsp butter
¼ tsp salt


Beet Béchamel Sauce
1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp flour
Stir flour into hot oil , slowly add
1 cup milk
Avoiding adding it quickly, so sauce may clump
Add a pinch of salt and white pepper to taste (White pepper gets disguised, whereas black pepper can be seen) as well as mashed garlic.

For added flavor, you can add herbs or cheese or even spices.

Here, I added beet juice to the sauce to give it a pinkish colour,
 
Then got a little excited and added my turmeric infused Olive-Kalunji Oil for a health kick, the colour went from pinch to peach, but still tasted good.


- I sauteed the chicken, then added the greens and the nuts and slightly sauteed. 
- Crêpes batter, was poured in pan & swirled around.

Plating time:
Placed sauteed chicken & green mix into crêpe, folded it & poured beet béchamel sauce over it.

Cough be Gone!

My need for heat has come again. I've just spent a wonderful month with my twin niece and nephew, along with my brother and sister in law. Now the fun is over, and back to work. Unfortunately, in this cold weather we all came down with a cough. So I decided to remedy all with a little bit of Apple cider vinegar and cayenne pepper. The worst thing about a cough is how it lingers, especially when you're trying to sleep. Throat tickles, and once you cough once, you just can't stop.

This remedy I find, beats halls, or any cough drop remedy. And the good part is, you're doing your body good, without taking in any strong synthetic formula. Even better, it helps build your immunity, gets your blood flowing and stabilizes your pH. Not only can this be a remedy for coughs, but it could be a weight loss solution.

This recipe calls for:

½ cup Apple Cider Vinegar
½ cup Water
1 tsp Cayenne Pepper
4 tsp Natural Honey

HOW TO:
Take one tablespoon on the onset of a cough attack. Moreover, take one spoon before bedtime.

I used to take 2 tablespoons at one time to speed the healing process. If you can tolerate the two spoons, you can by all means do that as well. Don't feel the need to restrict your intake of this in just the times I mentioned. You can take a spoon before or after meals - This can aid in digestion.

This Mix (minus the honey) is a great remedy for acid reflux or stomach ulcers as well. Both Apple cider vinegar and cayenne are helpful in the process.

Eggs BUNedict

Eggs make for a great day. Here I attempted to make egg Benedict with homemade bread. Sausages and tomatoes.

Hot Leeky Quinoa

Spicy Quinoa & Leek Salad

Immune Boosting, Digestive clearing salad. Consists of quinoa boiled in chicken broth and slightly cooled. Chopped Leeks, green onions and Cucumbers were added to the mix, and finally topped off with an Olive-Oil & Mustard dressing.

I'm a fan for heat, and I try to include it in many of my meals to increase circulation and maintain heart health. I've added cubed Cayenne peppers to this dish to give it a little kick and add some health.

Wholy Wheat & Nuts

Whole Wheat & Nuts


Great as a snack or a breakfast. This dish is filled with nutrients, vitamins and dietary fibres. It consists of boiled whole wheat (which unlike porridge - keeps it's shape due to the outer layer of the 'whole' wheat)  it's this skin in whole wheat that provides us with the whole wheat health benefits. As for the nuts, a mix of natural raw almonds, raw pistachios, and raw walnuts are added. Take note that they are raw, this is the best way to get all the benefits and nutrients from nuts. 


This dish is beneficial for Digestive Health, Heart health & Mental Health.

 
HOW TO:

This recipe is trés simple.
Portion size: 2

½ cup Whole Wheat
2 ½ cup Boiled Water

¼ cup Mixed Raw Nuts (Walnuts, Whole Almonds, Green Pistachios)
½ tsp Honey



You could also add:
2 tbsps of Shredded Coconut (powder)
2 tbsps Dried fruits (Raisins, prunes, apricots, figs, dates)
OR
2 tbsps Pomegranate Arils

 


 DIRECTIONS:

• It's best if the nuts are soaked in water over night, or less - but if you are making it on the spot you can use non-soaked nuts.
• In a pot boil the whole wheat for about 30 minutes.
• Drain whole wheat of water, and let cool slightly
• Mix in nuts (coconut) & Honey
• Enjoy

I have to admit, I sometimes cheat with this recipe, and add sugar instead of honey - Against what I preach since I think sugar is one of the "deadly whites", but I sometimes prefer the taste that sugar adds to this recipe. So since your tastes buds may not be familiar to this recipe, I suggest you train them with a healthier option for sweetening.

Note: With the addition of dried fruits, you could avoid addition of sugar or sweetening agents since they'd provide with the 'sugars'

Avocado Olive Dip

So last night I posted a pic of my Avocado Olive Dip, and was kindly asked to include the recipe. So here goes. Before I show you the recipe, I wanted to show you my other forms of avocado feasting.

LEMON AVOCADO 

Before I get stated, I wanted to show you my personal favorite & traditional way of eating an avocado. This method simply consists of an Avocado cut in half, pit removed and sliced in a grid like form. On the side, a good squeeze of lemon, and a mashed up garlic clove with a pinch of salt. Pour the lemon-garlic mix into the avocado, stir & eat.

AVOCADO & OLIVES

Then there's the inspiration to this recipe. A staple at the dinner table after our meal, we include the avocado and the olive. I prefer a spoon, my family members prefer a "La'meh" of pita bread (when the pita bread is used as a scoop to hold food). The lemon-garlic mix can be excluded here & it still tastes amazing


Finally off the the recipe:

AVOCADO OLIVE DIP

• 1 Avocado cubed
• ½ Lime or Lemon squeezed
• 1 clove of garlic mashed
• 1/2 tomato cubed
• 5 olives pitted & cubed
• pinch of salt

You can also add

• ½ tsp cumin ground
• ¼ tsp coriander ground
• ¼ tsp fresh hot peppers

Wild Purple & Yellow Breakfast

 
Today I woke up with the thought of making breakfast. Initial thought was eggs, but I needed more oomph to the dish. Not having an idea as to what's in the fridge, I opened it to notice some boiled beets, & boiled quinoa.  I felt like I needed more ingredients, so I opened the vegetable drawer to find some yams and orange bell peppers.  All ingredients out of the fridge, now I needed to figure out what to make.



Ingredient List:

Eggs - Quinoa - Beets - Wild Rice - Flax Seed - Raw Almonds - Yam - Orange Bell Peppers - Garlic - Cayenne - Black Pepper - Olive Oil    AND    Blackberries


Wild Purple Quinoa 
I decided to mix the quinoa with the beets and add some fibre to it. I boiled some wild rice, and also ground flax seed and ground raw almond nuts.

Yam & Pepper Medley
For this, I chopped the yam and peppers, (boiled the yams) and then quickly stir fried the with some cayenne and black pepper & garlic. I had accidentally made too much wild rice for the quinoa, so I used the rest here.

Egg
Simple easy sunny side up egg, with a sprinkle of cayenne, blackpepper and salt.

Blackberry Beet juice
to top this all off I made a juice to drink later on as a mini snack. I say snack, because along with the beets and blackberries & orange juice, I added ground flax seed and ground raw almonds. These provide you with the nutrients, without altering the taste of the juice. Please note NO SUGAR was added. Blackberries alone give the sweet taste, and Beets are usually a source of sugar.. so don't add the sugar if you don't need it.

Zaatar breakfast with my Nephew

Boost your Brain!!!

My nephew loves zaatar (as I do) and we were in need of breakfast, this one PA day morning. Of all the choices, he decided on Zaatar & Chai (Black tea).

So off to the kitchen to make a dough. He helped me mix a flour & butter dough and we topped it off with Zaatar. The zaatar was mixed into the dough along with some black olives, and rolled into sticks and bite size balls. Then baked at 350 Celsius. Quick, easy and tastes wonderful!

We finished the presentation with sliced tomatoes, a bit of Labneh infused with turmeric, a hint of cayenne, and paprika for the dipping sauce, and of course a mug of black tea.


Zaatar is great for the Brain & Heart. It prevents coagulation and clotting of the blood, which in turn allows for transport of oxygen to tissues and organs. The oxygen dose to the brain replenishes it and boosts it's power.

Quinoa Kibbeh

Use the food groups to give you ideas. Opt for grains other than bulgur to complete your kibbeh platter, here we have substituted quinoa for bulgur, and it tasted wonderful, with added texture.

Base-ically Nuts!

Mini Nut Crackers with Spicy Chicken & Tomato Topping

Nuts are a wonderful addition to foods, when in search of a healthy diet. Fiber full - nuts can clean your digestive system, help in losing weight & add plenty of nutrients to the body

To prepare this recipe, you'll need a Handful each of walnuts, almonds, pinenuts, coconut powder, and dried figs. A tablespoon of Kalonji and 2 tablespoons of Flax seed all mixed together and ground into a powder.


I added some turmeric to the mix and a drop or 2 of water. Now u have a dough like paste.

Flatten in to crackers and bake until golden.




The crackers taste wonderful as is! Very similar to a nut filled granola bar. You can add a little bit of natural sweetener and you've got yourself a nut filled cookie. I didn't find the need for sugar (maybe because I added dried figs to the mix, which probably gave it it sweetness.)  You can change the recipe to your liking, add more of what you like, or eliminate what you don't like. Plus there are plenty of other nuts that weren't included here, that you can include if you like.




Or you can add any toppings you'd like.

Here I have stir fried chicken, with fresh tomatoes, fresh purple cabbage and fresh hot peppers. My spices for the chicken consisted of cayenne of course, and Cajun spices.

Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar

Apple Cider Vinegar


It's probably the last thing one might think of regarding a healthy diet; but apple cider vinegar goes a long way in helping us to sustain our bodies. It's a great aid for weight loss, it improves heart health, eliminate heartburn or acid reflux and, even helps your liver.




Digestion, Weight-loss & ACV:

• Apple cider vinegar helps control cravings by reducing ghrelin (the 'hunger' hormone that's produced due to an empty stomach). 
• Keeps you feeling full for longer. By having the ability to delay the gastric emptying time, ACV allows you not to get hungry as quickly.  
• ACV can also improve nutrient absorption - helps specific digestive enzymes and beneficial bacteria.
• Helps in breaking down fat.
• Fixes your pH balance.

Cardiovascular 'Heart' Health:

• Helps in reducing the hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis)
• Also helps in reducing high cholesterol and hypertension, without any side effects.
• It has also been reported that a daily dose of apple cider vinegar in water has high blood pressure under control in two weeks! 

Gatorade be Gone.. Electrolyte Boost

•  Apple Cider vinegar has the same effects as all those thirst quenching drinks. Its full of electrolytes.  

Sore Throat? :

• Gargle with two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar and a quarter cup (pre-boiled) lukewarm water. It kills what you don't want. Try it and notice the difference.

 Diabetic? Perhaps Apple Cider Vinegar can help:

• Helps in lowering body's need for insulin. By slowing the release of sugar from your food into the bloodstream, ACV can aid in controlling & stabilizing blood glucose levels, in turn affecting insulin production and taking stress off your pancreas. 
• When your blood sugar is balanced, you are less likely to crave carbohydrates.

Protect thy Liver... you need it!!

• The acetic acid present in apple cider vinegar may have the ability to protect our liver cells.

Nausea, Heartburn, Indigestion, Upset Stomach..... oooh

• Apple Cider Vinegar is almost always an immediate relief for all the above. The upside to ACV (as compared to the tums and pink fluids) is that it helps treat and potentially cure long term. While most heartburn relief medications are a cover up that mask the problem, this vinegar also improves nutrient absorption. helps specific digestive enzymes and beneficial bacteria (pro-biotic).

External Use - Cleanse your body:

• Use apple cider vinegar for acne, or even to cleanse your face.
• Soak in a tub of water and some apple cider vinegar to balance your body's pH.
• Can help in reducing dandruff

Be Clean & Green - Household Cleaner:

• With it's anti-viral properties both inside and outside the body - ACV has also proved itself worthy on counter tops too. Replace chemical cleaners (that can be fatal to our hormones) for apple cider vinegar and water to kill bacteria and viruses that can linger on surfaces. Sometimes it may shock you, but these natural product cleaners can sometimes outdo the chemical cleaners. Give it a try!

Although I usually like to write short and sweet, it's a shame not to include all the other known benefits of apple cider vinegar. So here what else it can benefit you with:  cures for allergies (including pet, food and environmental), sinus infections, acne, high cholesterol, flu, chronic fatigue, candida, acid reflux, sore throats, contact dermatitis, arthritis, enhances appearance of complexion, eczema, and gout.

 HOW TO:

Salad Dressings, Marinades, Sauces, Dips, Juice, or take it as a shot of alcohol (with water).

DRINKS

Recipe 1: My top recipe is a couple tablespoons of apple cider vinegar in a cup of water
Recipe 2: Variation of recipe one is to do my D'tox drink: full lemon squeezed in cup of water with 2tbsp acv.
                   (you could add honey to taste, but it's better without - opt for natural sweeteners like stevia )
Recipe 3: ACV Cocktail - 1 tbsp  apple cider vinegar + 1 cup Sparkling water + ½tsp maple syrup

SALAD DRESSINGS

Recipe 1:  Mustard-Shallot Vinaigrette

1 tbsp minced shallot
1 teaspoon dry mustard
¼ teaspoon dry granulated garlic
¼ cup raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar
¾ cup extra virgin olive oil (more or less depending on how thick you make the vinaigrette)
sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste 

Recipe 2:  Pizzeria Style Vinaigrette
¼ cup raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
½ teaspoon dry granulated garlic
½ teaspoon dry mustard
¾ cup extra virgin olive oil – more or less as you like it
sea salt & freshly ground pepper to taste

Recipe 3: Sun Dried Tomato dressing
11/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 lemon - juice
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp honey
1 tsp mustard (powder or liquid)
2 tbsp mixed fresh or dried herbs (choose from basil, rosemary, dill, chives, dried onion bits, thyme, sage, parsley)
2 - 3 cloves fresh garlic chopped
5-6 drops of hot red pepper sauce (or to taste)
2 tbsp. sun dried tomatoes.
Optional:  add 2 tbsp. capers

 

Don't take Apple Cider Vinegar on it's own, the acid can be too harsh on the throat. Mixing & diluting it with a little bit of water is all you need.

Remember Apple Cider Vinegar has a strong taste, if you're not used to it yet, you could always start with a lower dosage, and work your way up.  If you can't go without adding some type of sweetener then opt for something natural. Please avoid the artificial sweeteners at all costs and if possible least for the white sugar last.