Big Vegetable Bowl – serves 2

Adapted from a recipe in The Fat Resistance Diet
By Leo Galland MD, Jonathan Galland

Asparagus Frittata – serves 4

Ingredients & Method:

By Cait Johnson,
Inspired by Full Moon Feasts, by Jessica Prentice

Stuffed Peppers with Turkey and Vegetables – serves 4

Preparation time: 20 mins
Cooking time: 30 mins

Sensuous Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms – serves 4

Portobellos are the perfect size for these dinner-sized stuffed mushrooms. They’re filled with good-for-you broccoli and spinach, while the creamy cheese and buttery breadcrumb topping–as well as the French flavors of thyme, leeks, and shallots.

INGREDIENTS:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 leek, white parts only, diced
1 shallot, minced
4 large Portobello mushrooms
1 cup broccoli, chopped
1 cup spinach (fresh or frozen, thawed), chopped
1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese
1/4 cup dry breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons butter

METHOD:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add leek and shallot and saute, stirring often, until they are softened and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Remove mushroom stems from caps and chop stems.

2. Add chopped stems and broccoli to the pan and continue to saute, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes more, until broccoli is crisp-tender but still bright green. Add spinach and saute a few minutes more, until wilted. Add parsley and thyme, stir well to combine, and remove from heat.

3. Place mushroom caps, gill side up, in a lightly-oiled baking pan. Mound sautéed vegetables evenly in caps. Top with crumbled goat cheese.

4. In a small skillet, melt the butter and add breadcrumbs, stirring to coat evenly. Sprinkle buttered crumbs over the tops of the mushrooms.

5. Bake in preheated oven for 25 – 30 minutes, until crumbs are golden brown and cheese is melted. Serve immediately.

Rainbow Wraps – serves 6 for lunch, 12 for appetisers or snack

There’s no better way to get lots of vitamins, minerals, and enzymes in your diet than by eating a mixture of different brightly-colored veggies–since bright colors in natural foods signal the presence of antioxidant flavonoids. Here, flour tortillas enclose a wonderful melange of fresh raw veggies and hummus for a tender wrap experience that makes a great picnic or lunchbox offering, snack, or appetizer.

INGREDIENTS:

6 large flour tortillas
1/4 small head red cabbage, shredded
1/4 bunch spinach, chopped
1 yam, shredded
1 zucchini, shredded
1 cup hummus (store-bought works fine)

METHOD:

1. Warm the tortillas in a microwave, grill top, or oven.

2. Place 1/6 of the ingredients in each tortilla.

3. Roll up burrito-style, then cut in half on a slight diagonal.

Pork & Seashells with Summer Vegetable – serves 4

"Chunks of browned pork and summer vegetables are cooked in a tomato sauce and served over seashell pasta."

INGREDIENTS:
225 g seashell pasta
20 ml olive oil, divided
3 boneless pork loin chops, cut into bite sized pieces
Worcestershire sauce to taste
salt and pepper to taste
60 g green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 yellow squash, cut into bite sized pieces
1/2 zucchini, cut into bite sized pieces
85 g fresh mushrooms, sliced
55 g onion, chopped
1-1/2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
1/2 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
15 g tomato paste
30 ml red wine
3 g dried basil
0.7 g dried thyme
0.8 g dried oregano
1 bay leaves
1/2 dash red pepper flakes
grated Parmesan cheese for topping

METHOD:
1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add seashell pasta, cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until al dente, and drain.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place the pork in the skillet, and season with Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper. Cook and stir 10 minutes, or until almost done. Remove from heat, and set aside.
3. Heat the remaining olive oil in the skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir the green pepper, squash, zucchini, mushrooms, onion, and garlic 3 to 4 minutes. Return the pork to the skillet.
4. Mix in the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, and wine into the skillet. Season with basil, thyme, oregano, bay leaves, and red pepper flakes. Reduce heat to low, and simmer 35 minutes. Remove the bay leaves, and serve over the cooked pasta with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese.

Prep Time:15 Minutes
Cook Time:1 Hour
Ready In:1 Hour 15 Minutes

Courtesy of Collier Austin, from AllRecipes.

Roasted Vegetables and Creamy Cheese Pasta – serves 4 to 6

INGREDIENTS
6 cups winter squash, such as acorn or butternut, cut into 1-inch chunks
3 cups cauliflower or broccoli, cut into bite-size florets
1 1/2 cup onions, cut in largish chunks
1 cup red or green bell peppers, sliced into 1-inch wide strips
8 garlic cloves, sliced thickly
5 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves (or 1 1/2 tablespoons dried)
Sea salt, to taste
1 pound penne pasta
One 6-ounce log goat cheese, cut into chunks (or you could substitute fresh mozzarella)

METHOD
1. Preheat oven to 400F.

2. In a large mixing bowl, place squash, cauliflower or broccoli, onions, peppers, garlic, oil, and rosemary, stirring well to mix.

3. Place vegetables in a baking dish and cover. Bake 45 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.

4. As vegetables bake, bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil and add pasta, cooking until barely al dente according to package directions. Drain and transfer to a large serving bowl.

5. Add roasted vegetables to pasta and toss to combine. Top with chunks of goat cheese or mozzarella and serve.

Sweet potato hash browns – serves 4

INGREDIENTS

* 2 large sweet potatoes(2 pounds), cut into 3/4-inch dice
* 6 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 medium onion, peeled and cut into 1/3-inch dice
* 2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
* Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

METHOD

1. Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Add sweet potatoes, and cook until they can be easily pierced with a fork but still offer some resistance, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain, and rinse under cold running water. Refrigerate until completely chilled, about 1 hour.

2. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions, and sauté, stirring occasionally, until onions are tender and golden brown, about 20 minutes. Transfer onions to a small bowl, and set aside.

3. Pour remaining 4 tablespoons olive oil into the skillet, and place over medium-high heat. Add potatoes, and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Add reserved onions, and cook 2 minutes. Toss in parsley, and adjust the seasoning to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Note: If you like the robust flavor and simple preparation of hash browned potatoes for breakfast, but you‘d like more nourishment and fiber than the usual version, then this recipe is for you! Sweet potatoes offer healthy anti-oxidant beta-carotene along with lots of good-quality fiber, so they are a healthier choice than white potatoes. And the down-home flavor of this recipe just can’t be beat.

African potato stew – Serves 4

INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups chopped onions
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
2 teaspoons poppy seeds
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 tablespoon ground coriander seeds
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cauliflower head, cut into bite-size florets
1 sweet potato, peeled, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
4 cups thinly-sliced collard greens
1/4 cup raisins
1 tablespoon apple cider
vinegar
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

METHOD
1. In a large pot, heat the oil over medium heat and add the onions and garlic, cooking them for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until softened.
2. Add ginger, poppy seeds, mustard seeds, coriander, and cloves and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes.
3. Add potatoes to the mixture an stir to combine. Stir in 4 cups of water and turn heat up to high. Once mixture comes to a boil, add the teaspoon of salt and stir well. Turn heat to low and simmer stew, uncovered, for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Add cauliflower, sweet potato, collard greens, and raisins, stirring to combine. Continue cooking for 10 minutes until potatoes are tender.
5. Season stew with vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste. If the stew is too dry, add a little water. Serve hot.

Simple Solutions: You can serve this comforting one-pot meal by itself or on top of rice, couscous, or quinoa.

Recipe inspired by Vegetarian Planet, by Didi Emmons (Harvard Common Press, 1997).

Sweet potato Latkes – serves 4

INGREDIENTS
4 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and grated
1 cup minced onion
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup or less matzo meal or unbleached white flour
4 tablespoons olive oil or butter
Chopped green onion, optional
garnish: Sour cream, optional
garnish: Applesauce, optional garnish

METHOD
1. In a large bowl, combine grated sweet potatoes, onion, salt, pepper, and eggs and stir well to combine. Add matzo meal or flour and mix again. (Only add enough to make a batter; mixture should not be too dry or stiff.)
2. Heat half the oil or butter over medium-high heat in a large, heavy-bottomed skillet. Drop large spoonfuls of the batter into the skillet, pressing gently with a spatula to flatten each latke. Do not crowd them. Fry for 4 to 5 minutes, until underside is brown, then flip and cook another 3 or 4 minutes more. Remove latkes to a warm plate, then repeat process with remaining oil and batter.
3. Serve immediately, with any of the optional garnishes.

Simple Solutions: Sweet potato latkes make a quick-and-easy supper (always a help during this busy season): all you have to do is add a salad and you’re set. You can top them with chopped green onion and sour cream, or with applesauce, or leave them plain.

Recipe courtesy of Cait Johnson, author of Witch in the Kitchen (Inner Traditions, 2001).