holistic health coach & vegetarian chef. working hand-in-hand with lifestyle & diet, i help those in need return to a state of nourishing balance & well-being.
Quinoa with Mint & Pistachio Pesto
As of recently I’ve become obsessed with making pesto. Store bought pesto just doesn’t stand a chance to the fresh homemade kind you can whip up, quite easily, yourself. Plus this way you can play with ingredients, and mix and match your favorite herbs with your favorite nuts! This week I wanted to experiment with mint. Now, I know to some of you (ahem…mom) this doesn’t sound all that appetizing because your mothers made you eat mint jelly with your omelets in the morning (yes, THAT sounds disgusting and cruel), but I’m telling you, this is on point. Especially when pairing it with pistachios, a true match made in heaven, you will be thanking me. This would taste wonderful with pasta too of course, but don’t forget about your other gluten free grains that are just as delicious mixed with pesto. Saute some greens, dice up some tomatoes, add whatever veggies you desire, you really cannot go wrong here. You will notice that I do not add cheese to my pestos. Yes, because it is THAT good without it. Happy Blending! :)
Ingredients:
2 cups mint, rinsed well
1/3 cup RAW pistachios
2-3 garlic cloves (depending on if it is date night)
1/3-1/2 cup of your best quality olive oil
sea salt to taste
Procede On:
In your blender add your mint, pistachios, garlic, a good pinch of salt and about 1/2 of your olive oil.
Start to blend, when you see there isn’t much going on this is when you need to be slowly drizzling in the rest of your olive oil. Continue to blend until smooth. Season with salt as needed. Feel free to add some chili flakes if you want to spice it up a bit!
Raw Kale & Quinoa Bowl
Though this is a new post for me this is definitely not a new recipe. I’ve made this a handful of times before and I knew I had to post it for all of you to try. My good friend (Chef) Neil told me about this very nutritious meal, it’s actually one his wife Katie has perfected as well! Kale, especially in it’s raw state, is one of the most nutritious greens you can eat and we all know how good quinoa is for us by now. Adding the warm quinoa on top of the kale wilts it a bit so it’s not so hard for those who are new to raw kale to try it out. The raw salsa and avocado add the perfect amount of acidity, flavor and fat to make it a well rounded, delicious dinner. No need for me to post a recipe for this beauty! All you need is….
-organic kale (washed and chopped)
-organic quinoa (soaked over night, rinsed and cooked according to directions)
-homemade salsa or organic salsa
-organic ripe avocado (diced)
Pile everything in a bowl in that order and wah-lah!, the easiest (and probably the healthiest) dinner you’ve prepared in weeks!
Vegan Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
I must say, I am becoming quite the vegetarian! I’ve actually been a great pretty good vegan, not to toot my own horn or anything, but it isn’t a very easy transition. Especially for a Personal Chef, who for the most part has to cater to her clients needs and wants. I think the hardest thing for me to cut out as a vegan is dairy, ugh, okay fish is really hard too. I mean I never really desire anything creamy or covered in a layer of cheese but I do love my fair share of fresh parmesean. Even goat cheese I used in a LOT of my recipes. It’s also hard to transition when you offer to still cook for clients who aren’t vegetarians. Anyway, before I veer too far off subject let me share with you the newest addition to my vegan collection.
These stuffed peppers are SO easy to make. You can even prep them the night before and toss them in the frig with cooking instructions in hopes that your roomie (or significant other) gets home before you to pop them in the oven. Feel free to play around with your own assortment of veggies.
Ingredients: (recipes adapted from Kimberly Snyder)
6 bell peppers (red, orange or yellow)
1 medium white onion, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 cups broccoli florets
1 cup minced basil
3 cups spinach, chopped well
1 jalapeno, seeded, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp low-sodium tamari
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup dry quinoa (soaked over night, rinsed well before using)
2 cups water (or low sodium vegetable stock/broth)
coconut oil
Instructions…
Make an incision at the rounded top of each pepper, about 1 to 1/2 inches from the stem. Cut all around the stem in an even circle. Then pull out the stem and the seeds. Discard the stem and reserve the pepper tops to chop and add to the filling. Clean out the inside of the pepper and discard of any seeds.
Bring water to a boil in medium size sauce pan. Add the quinoa and simmer, covered, until cooked (about 12-15 minutes). Strain quinoa and reserve.
In your largest saute pan over medium heat, add 1-2 tbsp of coconut oil. Add garlic and gently cook. Then add the onions, and stir until the onions become translucent. Add the broccoli, spinach, carrot and chopped pepper tops and gently cook for a few minutes. Add the basil, tamari, sea salt and pepper to taste. Add the cooked quinoa and stir everything together real well.
Adjust the seasoning to your taste. The mixture should be slightly saltier than your taste, as the seasoning with be less concentrated when we stuff the plain bell peppers. Once you are satisfied with your filling, spoon it into each pepper, right up to the top.
Place the peppers tightly together in a glass baking dish so they remain upright. Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes. Garnish with fresh basil just before serving.
Quinoa Salad over Kale with Avocado and Homemade Salsa
A detox meal that I would actually eat off the detox? Here it is. A good friend of mine and his wife are also on the detox and they told me about this lovely combination and I was instantly convinced to make it. Quinoa is an essential source of protein! It is especially recommend for vegetarians in order for them to get their 9 amino acids, seeing how it’s easy for them to lack necessary amino acids that come from animals. It cooks in a mere 15 minutes, and takes on any flavor you dream to add to it.
We all know that adding greens to our diet is generally nutritious, but kale in is a head above the rest. Kale isn’t only one of the best sources of beta-carotene (believed to play a major role in the battle against cancer and heart disease) it also is an incredible source of well-absorbed calcium (one of the many factors to help prevent osteoporosis). For this dish I just sliced the kale into a nice chiffonade and quickly wilted it in a bit of olive oil with a pinch of salt.
I then topped off the kale with some red quinoa lightly seasoned with salt and a bit of cayenne to add some spice. A nice creamy avocado, diced and sprinkled over top with a spoonful of homemade salsa. I might have had a couple brown rice crisps to make it feel like I had some good for you tortillas chips to add to my Mexican inspiration, I swear I only had a couple though!
