From the WBWC Blog:

Recipes

Quinoa, Lentil, and Tomato Salad

by Brianna Honea I recently served this yummy quinoa dish at a family reunion and a baby shower and everyone seemed to enjoy it so I wanted to pass it along.   You can easily double the recipe. Feel free to change it up and add other garden favorites like squash or cucumbers.  It is also good with pine nuts or chopped walnuts.  Enjoy!     Ingredients ·         1/2 cup red quinoa ·         1 ¼ cups water, plus 1 ¾ cups water ·         1/2 cup lentils ·         1 teaspoon Dijon mustard.  (Dill mustard is a tasty substitute) ·         2 tablespoons red wine vinegar ·         1/4 cup olive oil ·         1/2 teaspoon of dill ·         1 teaspoon garlic powder ·         1/2 teaspoon of cumin ·         Juice of 1 lime and ½ Tbsp of lime zest ·         Juice of 1 lemon and ½ Tbsp of lemon zest ·         Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.  (fine Himalayan Sea Salt is great.  I use 2 tsp) ·         1 cup of sliced fresh tomatoes           ·         2 Tbsp fresh chopped herbs.  Use cilantro, parsley or basil leaves, whichever is your favorite.  Directions Put the quinoa in a sieve and rinse in cold water. Bring quinoa  and 1 1/4 cups water to a boil for a couple minutes then reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 15-20 minutes.  Remove from heat and fluff with a fork. Put the lentils in a sieve and rinse in cold water. In a saucepan, bring lentils to a boil with the 1 ¾ cups of water then simmer the lentils (low/med) until the lentils are tender, but not mushy, about 30 minutes. Drain and cool. In a small bowl, whisk the mustard, and vinegar together, and drizzle in the olive oil to make an emulsion. Then add and whisk in the garlic powder, cumin, dill, lemon/lime zest, and salt, and pepper, to taste. Assembly: In a medium bowl, mix the quinoa, lentils, tomatoes, and chopped herbs. Top the salad with the dressing, toss and serve. Serve cold or warm.  Optional:  If you have time, let in chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to let the flavors meld.     

Hearty Meat-Free Soup

 By Brianna Honea  Black beans and sweet potatoes are healthy and low in cost — great for families on a tight budget. Legumes and beans are low in fat, contain no cholesterol and are high in folate, potassium, iron and magnesium. They also contain beneficial fats and soluble and insoluble fiber. A good source of protein, legumes are a healthy substitute for meat, which has more fat and cholesterol. It can be challenging to serve healthy meals on a budget, but with planning you can eat better for less. You can save money by adding meatless meals to your weekly menus. Meatless meals are built around vegetables, beans and grains — instead of meat, which is more expensive. Meatless meals also offer health benefits. A plant-based diet emphasizes vegetables and fruits, grains, beans and legumes, and nuts, is rich in fiber, vitamins and other nutrients. People who eat only plant-based foods — aka vegetarians — generally eat fewer calories and less fat, weigh less and have a lower risk of heart disease than meat-eaters. I have adopted a plant-based diet (I am vegan) and feel healthier than ever.  I think a plant-based diet has helped me to have more energy, clarity and a great immune system.   I encourage everyone to consider the advantages of plant-based diet for their family.    I love this hearty soup — this recipe brings a lot of flavor. Black Bean & Sweet Potato Soup Recipe adapted from Plant-Powered 15 written by Dreena Burton Serves 4-5 Ingredients 1-2 tablespoon(s) water 1½ – 1¾ cups chopped onions (one large onion) 1½ cups combination of chopped red peppers and green peppers 1¼ teaspoon sea salt freshly ground black pepper to taste (generous is good) 2 teaspoons cumin seeds (if substituting cumin powder, use a little less; fennel seeds can also be a substitute) 2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves ¼ teaspoon allspice (rounded) ¼ teaspoon (or less/more, to taste) red pepper flakes 4 medium-large cloves garlic, minced or grated 4½ – 5 cups black beans (reserve 1 cup; this is three 14-15 oz cans) 3 cups water 2 tablespoons tomato paste 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice ½ – 1 teaspoon pure maple syrup 1 bay leaf 1½ cups cubed (in small chunks, about ½”) yellow sweet potato Optional: Chopped cilantro, lime wedges or chopped avocado with a dash of lime and salt  for serving   Instructions: In a … Read More

Recipe: Blueberry White Chocolate Chip Scones

by Claire C. McKiernan 2 cups of flour (can substitute ½-1 cup whole wheat) ¼ cup sugar 2 tsp baking powder ¼ tsp salt 1/3 cup butter cut into pieces 1 egg 1 tsp vanilla 1/2 cup of milk or buttermilk (need to mold dough with hand, so it shouldn’t be too wet) ½-1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries ¼-½ cup white chocolate chips (See alternative flavors and health options at the end) Preheat oven to 375. Mix all ingredients together, in order shown above, in a large bowl or gently in a mixer. If using a mixer, mix in blueberries and chips with a large spoon or by hand at the end, or with the mixer very gently and for a short period of time so the blueberries aren’t crushed (this is less likely with frozen blueberries). On a floured surface, use your hands to pat out the dough into a 7-8 inch round, about the size of a pie or cake pan (not thin and large like a pizza). The dough will be about an inch thick. Cut into 6-8 pie wedges, separate, and place on greased cookie sheet. Bake for 18-23 minutes and until lightly browned. ALTERNATIVE: Pat the dough into a greased cake pan (does not need to meet the edges of the pan, just the shape). Bake for 30 minutes (test the center with a toothpick). Cut into wedges when you are ready to serve. Note, this won’t give the nice crust around all the edges of the wedge like a true scone and will have a more cake-like texture, but it still tastes great! FLAVOR OPTIONS: instead of blueberries and white chocolate chips, try frozen raspberries (less likely to get crushed than fresh) and chocolate chips, OR raisins and walnuts and ½ tsp cinnamon, OR craisins and lemon zest, or any other flavor combo that suits you (pickles and radishes, anyone?) HEALTH OPTIONS: Replace a small amount of flour with flax seeds (~2 tsp), wheat germ (~1 tbsp), or almond meal or oatmeal (~1/4 cup).

Recipe: Garlicky Leafy Greens

Brianna Honea recommends this tasty greens dish, from Hawthorn University’s website (http://www.hawthornuniversity.org/)  as a delicious way to add iron, calcium, B6, vitamins A, C, and K, and loads of other nutrients to your diet.  Serve as a side with your favorite meal!  2 bunches tender kale, Swiss chard, or spinach (about 6 cups) 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil 2 cloves garlic, minced Pinch of red pepper flakes 1/4 teaspoon sea salt  Squeeze of fresh lemon juice Few drops of maple syrup (optional) -Remove all tough stems from the greens. Chop greens into bite‐size pieces, and cover with cold water. Set aside. -In a medium saute pan, heat the olive oil over medium‐high heat. -Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and saute for 30 seconds, just until aromatic. -Add the greens and salt and saute until the greens begin to darken and intensify. -If necessary, add a splash of water to cook the greens until they’re tender. -Add the lemon juice and taste the greens. You may need to add a pinch of salt or a few drop of maple syrup to round out the flavor. Serve immediately on a small platter. Makes about 2 cups, serves 4

Recipe: Banana-Oat Muffins

These are some seriously tasty muffins.  I’ve been playing with a recipe that I found online a few years ago, and now have a delicious muffin that makes an easy breakfast or great afternoon snack.  They freeze well, too (if your children don’t eat them all immediately!).  If you prefer a banana bread instead of a muffin, just pour the batter into a loaf pan and bake it a little longer. Ingredients: 3/4 cup packed brown sugar 1/4 cup honey 3 tbsp butter, melted 1/4 cup applesauce 2 large eggs + 1 egg white 2 large, very ripe bananas, mashed 1 cup regular oats 1/2 cup lowfat milk 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 cup whole wheat flour 1 tbsp baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease muffin pan or line with paper muffin cups. Combine brown sugar, honey, eggs, butter and applesauce.  Mix well. In a separate bowl, mix banana, oats, and milk; add this to the sugar mixture and beat well. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Stir with a whisk, then add to the sugar mixture.  Mix until just moist. Spoon into the prepared muffin pan. Bake about 20 minutes, until the muffin tops are springy.

Recipes: Kid and Mama friendly hors d’oeuvres

by Claire C. McKiernan Whether you are entertaining or want to bring something along on your holiday visit, here are three easy, healthy appetizers that kids will enjoy making and eating.           Stuffed Dates Pitted whole dates Cheddar cheese cubes or walnut halves Kids can break shelled walnuts in half and place one in each date, or cut up cheddar cheese cubes to stuff into dates. (If you buy the cheese already in cubes, they still need to be cut in half.) Celery Boats (healthier version of ants on a log) 4-6 Celery stalks (cut in halves or thirds) 2 small mashed Bananas, or one large 6 Tblspns Peanut Butter Nuts, seeds, and/or raisins (such as slivered almonds, walnut pieces, sunflower seeds, etc.) Mix bananas and peanut butter, spread into celery “boat” and press nuts, seeds, and/or raisins gently on top so they stick. Fruit Dip 4 oz. regular or reduced-fat cream cheese (half package) 1.5 – 2 cups Greek yogurt (plain or vanilla, 0% fat) 1 tsp lemon zest 1/8 – 1/4 cup honey (according to taste) Mix and serve with chunks of fresh apples, melons, grapes, firm pears, and/or pineapple. For a different flavor, substitute ½ tsp. cinnamon for the lemon zest. 

Recipe: Paintbrush Cookies

by Rosalind Baglio, boutique manager Ingredients: 1/3 cup softened shortening 1/3 cup sugar 1 large egg 2/3 cup honey 2 ¾ cups flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon salt ½ teaspoon vanilla Egg Yolk Paint: 1 egg yolk 1/4 teaspoon water drops of food color Directions: Preheat oven to 375F. Roll out dough using a well floured counter top to 1/4″ thickness. Cut into different shapes using cookie cutters. Set on lightly greased baking sheet. Paint designs with egg yolk paints. (Blend egg yolk and water. Divide among several custard cups. Add different food coloring to each cup. Paint designs using small paintbrushes. If egg yolk, thickens while standing, add few drops water.) Bake 8-10 minutes at 375F. Place on brown paper (bags opened up) to cool. For clear colors, do not let cookies brown. MAKES: 5 DOZEN COOKIES  Every fall my Mother and I would use her set of red plastic Chilton cookie cutters shaped as the twelve days of Christmas to make a slew of these. Manufactured originally in 1978 and boasting “durable plastic” on the packaging the cutters make great “outlines” to follow for little ones and adults alike.   I found a set on eBay and gifted them to myself last year. If you search for them they are now considered “vintage”.  Each cutter one measures 3, 4 or 5 inches so they are the perfect “too large” cookie size. My favorite is the “partridge in a pear tree”. The trick to the batter is to make it the day before, divide into three equal sized dough balls, wrap in saran wrap, and leave in fridge to get really cold over night. While you are cutting out shapes and painting the other dough balls can remain in the fridge. The cold dough is best to work with and seems to burn less in the oven. Crisco brand makes “Butter Flavor Cooking Sticks” that are delicious in this recipe and using a local honey only makes it that much sweeter. Spread cheer~

Bean Recipe

recommended by Marcelaine Tanner This is my favorite recipe for beans. I got it from my sister-in-law, who shared it on our family recipe blog, heritagerecipes.blogspot.com. I used to think beans were bland, but with this combination of spices I am happy to eat them all by themselves for lunch. You can use the beans in any recipe that calls for beans. Beans also freeze well. I make a double batch and freeze the beans in one-cup portions, which I pull out whenever I need them for a recipe. 2 cups pinto beans (or any beans), sorted and washed 2 tsp. granulated garlic powder 1 tsp. parsley 1 tsp. dried basil 1 tsp. cumin 1/2 tsp. dried oregano 1/2 tsp. dried cilantro (or 1 1/2 tsp. fresh cilantro) 1/4 tsp. cumin seeds 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper 6 cups water 6 bouillon cubes, either chicken or beef 2 tsp. crystallized ginger, chopped (or 1/8 tsp. ginger)–the ginger helps reduce the gas-producing effect of beans Rinse the beans–the easiest way to do this is to put them in a colander and spray them with the sprayer on your sink. Soak the beans. You can do this by placing them in plenty of water and leaving them for about eight hours. A faster way is to put the beans in a pot on the stove with 6 cups of water, bring it to a boil, then turn the stove off and let the beans sit for 1-2 hours. After soaking the beans, rinse them again. Return the beans to the pot and add all the spices and the 6 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat so that the water is just simmering (I turn the knob to 1 or 2 on my stove). Let the beans cook until they are soft–usually this takes 1 1/2 hours, but it depends on the beans. If you want refried beans, mash the beans using a mixer, blender, or potato masher, adding a little of the cooking water if needed.

Recipe: Nikki’s Healthy Cookies

recommended by Courtney Scott Courtney has been singing the praises of these delicious little cookies!  She found the recipe on www.101cookbooks.com, a cooking blog by Heidi Swanson, and thought it was too good not to share. You can use unsweetened carob, or grain sweetened chocolate chips, or do what I did and chop up 2/3 of a bar of Scharffen berger 70%. I sort-of shaved half the bar with a knife and then cut the rest into bigger chip-sized chunks. You can make your own almond meal by pulsing almonds in a food processor until it is the texture of sand – don’t go too far or you’ll end up with almond butter. And lastly, the coconut oil works beautifully here, just be sure to warm it a bit – enough that it is no longer solid, which makes it easier to incorporate into the bananas. If you have gluten allergies, seek out GF oats. 3 large, ripe bananas, well mashed (about 1 1/2 cups) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract1/4 cup coconut oil, barely warm – so it isn’t solid (or alternatively, olive oil)2 cups rolled oats2/3 cup almond meal1/3 cup coconut, finely shredded & unsweetened1/2 teaspoon cinnamon1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt1 teaspoon baking powder6 – 7 ounces chocolate chips or dark chocolate bar chopped Preheat oven to 350 degrees, racks in the top third. In a large bowl combine the bananas, vanilla extract, and coconut oil. Set aside. In another bowl whisk together the oats, almond meal, shredded coconut, cinnamon, salt, and baking powder. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until combined. Fold in the chocolate chunks/chips.The dough is a bit looser than a standard cookie dough, don’t worry about it. Drop dollops of the dough, each about 2 teaspoons in size, an inch apart, onto a parchment (or Silpat) lined baking sheet. Bake for 12 – 14 minutes. I baked these as long as possible without burning the bottoms and they were perfect – just shy of 15 minutes seems to be about right in my oven. Makes about 3 dozen bite-sized cookies. from www.101cookbooks.com

Recipe: Grilled Summer Fruit

By Claire C. McKiernan Getting tired of the same old summer fruits, but want to make the most of them while they last? Ingredients: Firm peaches, plums, or nectarines Brown sugar Optional toppings: goat cheese, Greek yogurt, vanilla ice cream, or whipped cream 1)    Halve and remove the pits from the fruits. 2)    Place a teaspoon of brown sugar in the concave area where the pit used to be (this will help sweeten and caramelize the fruit). 3)    Place cut side down on a very hot grill until the fruit begins to soften (maybe 5 minutes). 4)    Turn each piece over and move to a cooler spot on the grill. If using cheese, fill with goat cheese and allow to begin to melt, and, if necessary, allow the fruit to soften some more (it shouldn’t fall apart, but it should be easy to cut with a fork or spoon). 5)    Cool a few minutes and serve as is or with yogurt, vanilla ice cream, or whipped cream.

Recipe: Corn Chowder

by Michelle Stevens     Corn chowder is a great summer meal, especially with fresh corn and veggies from the garden. This recipe makes enough to feed my family of six. It’s great with sandwiches, salad, or bread and is an easy but satisfying homemade dinner! You can also try adding peppers, squash, or whatever your family likes — just add them in when sauteing the onions. Enjoy!  2 tbsp butter 1/4 cup onion, finely chopped 1 carrot, peeled and chopped 1 celery stalk, chopped 2 medium red potatoes, peeled and cubed 2 cups fresh or frozen corn OR 1 14-oz can corn (the sodium-free kind) 2 cans creamed corn 1 cup low-fat milk 1 cup fat-free half-and-half salt and pepper to taste Melt butter in large pot over medium heat. Saute onions, carrots, and celery until onions are translucent and carrots are fairly soft. Add a little salt and pepper. Meanwhile, in a separate small pot, cover potatoes with water and boil until tender. Add the fresh or canned corn and sautee for 2-3 minutes.  Add the creamed corn, potatoes, half-and-half, and milk. Salt and pepper to taste. Ready to serve as soon as it’s hot!

Raw Energy Salad

Contributed by Brianna Honea, WBWC Business Director Feeling fatigued, unmotivated, or just down in the dumps?  Here’s a recipe I found that’s sure to give you an energy boost!  I found it in my vegetarian cookbook. It just looks so colorful and fresh, and it tastes wonderful! Ingredients: 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds 1/4 cup sunflower seeds 2 tbsp sesame seeds 2 tbsp cumin seeds 1/4 of a red cabbage, finely shredded 1 large carrot, grated 1 cooked beet, grated 2 cups baby spinach leaves, finely chopped 1 red onion, thinly sliced 1/4 cup dried currants 3 tbsp finely chopped fresh mint                              Dressing: Finely grated zest and juice of 1 orange 3 tbsp pomegranate molasses (I have personally never heard of this. I substituted 1.5 tbsp of molasses and 2 tbsp of pomegranate juice. You could simply use pomegranate juice or lemon juice.) 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil Freshly ground pepper Directions: 1. Toast the pumpkin, sunflower, sesame and cumin seeds in a medium frying pan over medium heat until golden brown (about 3-5 minutes or so). 2. Combine the cabbage, carrot, beet, spinach, onion, currants, mint and toasted seeds in a large salad bowl. 3. Whisk the orange zest and juice, pomegranate molasses (or other substitute), and oil in a small bowl. Pour the contents over the salad, toss to combine, and season with pepper to taste. Get ready to feel energized! If anyone is curious about the cookbook this recipe came from, it’s called Vegetarian  and was written by Ting Morris, Rachel Lane, and Carla Bardi.