-- Simple Smart Nutrition

Zoodle Artichoke Spaghetti

Zoodles are the new noodles! Full of nutrition, and LOW CARB! No more fattening, gluten-y pasta. Zoodles are the fat burning version of yumminess. I just got a Veggie/Noodle maker so I thought I’d give it a try. You can buy these gizmos at Target or any local kitchen gadget store. Or online…they aren’t expensive! Or, you can often buy Zoodles at some stores already zoodled! If not, just make some thin sliced zucchini and/or summer (yellow) squash.

Ingredients
Garlic-I used a lot!
Red onion, sliced or chopped
Olive oil
Canned artichokes
Organic red pasta sauce (check for a low sugar or no sugar variety)
Ground beef

Directions
Saute in onions and garlic in pan, set aside. Cook beef in another pan, add artichokes and red sauce and heat on low. Add ZOODLES or zucchini to onions and garlic and saute over high heat stirring the whole time for about 3-5 minutes. Dont over cook. When tender but still firm, remove from heat.
Add salt and ground pepper.
Drain excess water from zoodles, and pile zoodles on plate. Add generous scoop of red meat sauce and enjoy!!

Can be made without meat if desired.

Damn Big Salad!

My local healthy grocery store has an amazing little salad bar with organic veggies. I go there almost daily, I mean DAILY for a salad. I try to vary it some, but usually just end up getting a bit of everything–as far as veggies go. I mean, even if you are eating a low carb diet (which I am), veggies are basically free–in terms of carbs and calories (does anyone count those anymore?). AND they are FULL of all kinds of amazing, awesome nutrition, antioxidants, and massive phytochemicals that fight cancer, disease, keep you young and trim your waistline. Go for it!

If you can find a great salad bar near you–and avoid all the gloppy, fattening, sweet, processed foods, load up. I usually get a pile of greens, red onions, red cabbage, carrots, tomatoes, arugula, mushrooms, artichokes, and a little bit of beans or garbanzos. Drizzle with EVOO and a snizzle of apple cider vinegar. Dig in! Sometimes I add a few chunks of roasted chicken or hard boiled egg too.

Dandelion Green Omelet and Sweet Potatoes

Ever eat Dandelion greens? They are delicious–with a spicy bite a little like arugula, and full of massive amounts of nutrients. Try them this way–in an omelet. Add in a little bit of (raw) goat cheese at the end and enjoy!!

Saute greens in butter until tender, add beaten eggs, cook until almost done, fold in goat cheese and serve with browned sweet potatoes. Your day will start out RIGHT with this breakfast! (toast optional)

Mediterranean Chicken and Veggies

A quick and easy, but fantabulous meal! Keeping a rotisserie chicken on hand is the best way to find a base for an easy and quick lunch or dinner. Try this one from my friend who is making a wonderful documentary about What to Eat.

Mediterranean Veggies with Rotisserie Chicken

Ingredients
Eggplant
Red onion
Red pepper
Green pepper
Zucchini
Fava beans
Olive oil
2-4 cloves garlic
Sea salt and fresh pepper
Oregano and/or basil
Grated Parmigiana Reggiano

Directions
In a big frying pan, heat the olive oil, and saute the onion and garlic till tender. Add other veggies and saute until tender. Add chopped chicken and heat for a couple minutes. Add oregano or basil if desired, serve topped with Parmigiana Reggiano (optional).

Light Lunch Salad with Mixed Nuts

For a light lunch, try this:

Micro greens, pecans, walnuts, almonds, etc and citrus dressing.

(Photo and recipe by Greg Kiger, What to Eat)

Salad Ingredients
Organic baby arugula, baby kale, micro greens or variety of sprouts, chopped red cabbage, etc.
Tomatoes
Any other greens or vegetables that are in season, especially locally grown
Pecans, almonds, walnuts

Citrus Dressing
Equal parts lemon and fresh squeezed orange juice
1 Tbsp olive oil
Sea salt and fresh pepper
Mix with fork or whisk and drizzle over salad

Dump a very generous amount of greens on your plate. Add leftover chicken, fish or beef–or a bit of canned tuna if you wish for added protein.

Seared Tuna with Micro Greens and Spinach With Balsamic Dressing

A simple lunch using whatever greens you have on hand–micro greens are delicious and bursting with nutrition. Can often be found at your farmer’s market or health food store. If you cannot find them, pick up some sprouted seeds–radish, sunflower, etc.

Add in some leftover seared tuna and viola! A lunch better than what you would find in a restaurant!

Healthy Chicken Nuggets

A far far healthier version to the chicken tenders you would get at a restaurant, but every bit as good!
The crunchy crust is coated with oregano. This delicious savory herb contains an active ingredient called rosamarinic acid, a very potent antioxidant that also has powerful antiviral, antibacterial, and antifungal properties. In fact, oregano oil is a powerful antibiotic on its own.
The best oil to cook this in is coconut oil. While it’s generally delicate tasting, it stays stable in heat and does not degrade, like olive oil does. Avoid using canola or other vegetable oils, these are highly process and often with GMO ingredients. These oils are even more unhealthy when heated to high temps during cooking.

Ingredients
2 lbs of boneless, skinless chicken breasts or boneless skinless thighs
2-3 eggs, beaten in shallow dish
1 cup rice flour, coconut flour or almond flour or a mixture of all
Sea salt and pepper
2 tsp garlic powder
3 Tbsp of finely minced fresh parsley
1-2 tsp of dried oregano or fresh
Virgin coconut oil

Directions
Heat oven to 375-400 degrees F. Add dry seasoning and herbs to flour mixture. If using whole chicken breasts, slice in half to make thinner cutlets. You may also pound these out with a mallot if desired.

Dip each piece in egg, then dredge in flour mix. Gently press flour on to stay better. Melt coconut oil and add half to shallow cooking pans with sides. Drizzle the rest over the top. Cook in oven about 10 minutes per side till golden brown. Serves 4.

Makes great leftovers hot or cold. I love these on a salad for lunch too!

Harvest Apple Walnut Salad

This is such a great salad for this time of year–or whenever you can find fresh, crisp tart apples. Apples have so many health benefits, the list can go on forever…

Try this with a bowl of plain Greek yogurt for breakfast!

Apples contain compounds that help prevent osteoporosis and increase bone density, help asthma, protect brain cells from free radical damage, lower cholesterol, prevent lung, liver, breast and colon cancer, maintain a healthy digestive tract with their rich fiber and help in weight loss. Whew!

Always choose organic apples whenever possible, as conventionally grown ones are highly sprayed with lots of toxic pesticides–that cannot be washed off–they are IN the apple. One of the best new varieties out there is the honeycrisp–although they are expensive–they have the perfect blend of juiciness, tartness, and crispness. They are great in a salad or just eaten out of hand.
And don’t forgot those walnuts in this salad are full of healthy fats, including omega 3 fats which are anti-inflammatory, high in protein, and help you burn fat better! What are you waiting for??

Salad Ingredients
2 cups cored and sliced apples with skin on
Juice from 1 lemon
2 cups celery, sliced
1 sweet onion
1/2 cup walnuts
Red leaf lettuce leaves

Dressing
1/2 cup Primal or homemade mayo
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp grainy mustard
Sea salt to taste

Directions
Chop apples and toss with lemon juice in small bowl. Add celery, onion, and walnuts into a large bowl, mix in apples and toss all ingredients.

Blend dressing ingredients in separate bowl by hand until smooth. Pour over salad and toss. Serve on top of lettuce leaves and garnish with some chopped celery tops. Serves 4.

Zucchini and Tomatoes with Basil

When zucchini and tomatoes are in season, nothing compares to the delicate nutty taste of fresh picked zucchini and the sweet juicy tang of tomatoes. Finding both of these locally grown means that these vegetables are at their peak of flavor and nutrition. Tomatoes are full of lycopene and other powerful antioxidants, as well as vitamin A and C. Zucchini is an excellent source of manganese, vitamin C, magnesiu, vitamin A, fiber, potassium, folate, copper riboflaviin and phosphorus.

Basil is also a powerful superfood and contains flavonoids anv volatile oils which are uniquely health protecting. Basil actually provides protection against dangerous bacteria which can cause food poisoning including: listeria, staph, E.coli, and more.

Ingredients
1lb or so of fresh small zucchini, sliced thinly
2-3 firm medium to small tomatoes, (Roma tomatoes are good), chopped
2 Tbsp extra irgin olive oil
2-4 cloves of garlic crushed and minced
handful of fresh basil chopped
sea salt
fresh ground pepper
1-2 Tbsp grass fed butter
A couple of thin slices of prosciutto or cooked bacon

Directions
Add olive oil, zucchini, and garlic to a pan over medium heat and cook for a couple minutes until zucchini is beginning to be tender. Add tomatoes, seasoning and just heat through–30 seconds or so. Add bacon and basil and toss. This is also AMAZING added to scrambled eggs!

Serves 4

Steak with Peppercorn Mustard Sauce

Ever had a steak at a really nice restaurant? Chances are, they may have served it this way. This is a delicous classic and elegant way to serve a steak–easy enough for a weeknight–elegant enough for guests.

Peppercorns stimulate the taste buds, and help to increase hydrocholoric aid secretion in the stomach which improves digestion, especially of meat. Pepper also has antioxidant and antibacterial effects. And in addition, it helps your body breakdown fat cells for energy–especially if you normally eat a low carb diet.

Ingredients
4 4 oz grass fed beef tenderloins or other cut of steak
sea salt, coarsely ground
2 Tbsp multi colored, green or black whole peppercorns
4 Tbsp grass fed organic butter
1/4 cup minced shallot
1/2 cup dry red wine–or white
1/2 cup organic beef broth
1/4 cup Dijon mustard

Directions
Crush 1 Tbsp of peppercorns with a rolling pin, and press salt and pepper into steaks. Heat butter in cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add steaks, turn up heat to high and sear on both sides. Turn heat down low and cook 2-4 minutes–dont overcook! Remove steaks from pan, add shallots and saute for 30 seconds. Add wine, cook for another 10 seconds. Add broth, mustard and the rest of peppercorns and stir in. Spoon sauce over steaks and serve. Serves 4.

White Chicken Chili

White Chicken Chili

A delicious variation of regular chili that is lighter and uses chicken instead of beef. This recipe tastes especially good with generous amounts of cumin and when you see the health benefits of cumin, you will enjoy its taste even more!

Cumin seeds stimulate the secretion of pancreatic enzymes which are necessary for optimal digestion of proteins, fats and carbohydrates, and helping the body use the nutrients in the food you eat. Cumin seeds also have anti-cancer properties as well. In one study, cumin was shown to protect against stomach or liver tumors.

Cumin, like cinnamon, helps keep blood sugar levels stable, which means cumin is great for diabetics or pre-diabetics, and it means less chance of weight gain and excess body fat. Cumin has been proven to work as well as some commonly used diabetic drugs at regulating insulin and glycogen. Cumin is also a very good source of iron, vitamin C and vitamin A, which benefit the immune system. Add cumin liberally to this recipe!

Ingredients
2 lbs. organic chicken breasts, or boneless skinless thigh meat
1-2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 cans white beans
2 medium onions, diced
1 small can mild green chili peppers, chopped
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 cups chicken stock or more or less to taste
2-4 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp chili powder
Sea salt and pepper
Red pepper flakes, if desired

Directions
Cook chicken in large soup pan in extra virgin olive oil with garlic and onions. Remove the chicken from the pan and allow it to cool. When cool, shred with a fork. Add all ingredients to a large pan and simmer over medium low heat. Cook for about 30 minutes or more, stirring occasionally.
Garnish with a dollop of avocado slices, organic sour cream, organic grass fed cheese, and a generous handful of cilantro—or all of the above. Serves 4 or more.

Healthier Mayonnaise

This mayo is absolutely divine–and easy to make! And it doesnt have all those harmful, fattening ‘bad fats’ in it, like soybean oil and corn oil, and sugar/corn syrup. The best oil to add is avocado–it’s delicious, rich and full of antioxidants and nutrition! And you don’t need a lot.

Ingredients
1 whole egg
2 egg yolks
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard or grainy mustard
1 Tbsp lemon juice
sea salt to taste
1/4 tsp white or black pepper
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil (usually has a strong olive oil taste) or avocado oil

Directions
Combine the eggs, mustard, lemon juice, salt and whilte peper inbleder or food processor. On low speed, add oil slowly, drizzling in. Continue blending until oil is well mixed in. Makes about 1 1/2 cups. Refrigerate to thicken and store in airtight container for up to two weeks. Enjoy on everything!

Easy Shish Kabobs

Read about the amazing health power of onions here!

Shish Kabob Ingredients
2 lbs beef, lamb, chicken cut into 1 and a half inch cubes
1/2 lb of Baby Bella or white button mushrooms
1 large or 2 smaller sweet red onions or Vidalia onions quartered
1 medium zucchini or summer squash or both cut into thick slices and sliced down the middle
1 fresh pineapple cut into thick slices
1 each green, yellow and red peppers, quartered and cut into 1″ slices

Marinade
1 cup tamari (gluten free soy sauce)
3 Tbsp of honey
Juice of 1 lemon or lime
2-4 cloves of garlic, crushed and minced
1 thumb freshly grated ginger root
a couple shots of Tabasco sauce, Sriracha, pinch of cayenne, OR hot pepper flakes

Directions
Mix up marinade in large glass bowl or glass baking dish. Cut up meat and veggies and place all EXCEPT THE PINEAPPLE in marinade. (don’t put pineapple in with meat and veggies, it turns the meat into slimy mush-ugh!)

Marinate 1-4 hours or overnight. Thread meat onto skewers and thread veggies and pineapple onto separae skewers. This prevents veggies from getting overcooked while meat is cooking. On a grill over medium high heat, grill skewers, turning carefully until evenly browned and meat is cooked through-or at least pink if beef. Delicious served with browned garlic and quinoa.

Thai Orange Seafood Soup

Thai Orange Seafood Soup

This beautiful and exquisitely delicious Thai soup makes a gracious addition to any table. Serve it as a special appetizer for a dinner party or just make it for the main course. In Thai, it’s known as “Geng Som Pla” – which actually means “Orange Fish Curry” – an ancient recipe from the Central Plains region of Thailand.

It is a hot and spicy soup with both sour and sweet overtones that make for a lively combination, especially when paired with your choice of fish and/or seafood. Use plenty of fresh local vegetables to make this a wonderfully healthy Thai soup.

I served this soup on a cold and blustery day to a friend of mine who was coming down with a cold. It hit the spot and was declared, “the best soup ever”! It’s also actually very good on a hot day! In Thailand, it’s very hot and they eat hot and spicy soups all the time to stay cool.

You can vary the vegetables in the soup, as long as the seasonings stay intact. It can also be served with brown rice or quinoa on the side.

Ingredients

6 cups organic, free-range chicken stock

2-3 medium fillets of wild caught cod, cut into chunks

10 medium shrimp OR other shellfish

Juice of 2 oranges, OR about 1 cup prepared orange juice

2 tsp. tamarind paste (available at Asian/Indian food stores) OR 2 Tbsp. lime juice

1 Tbsp palm sugar

3 Tbsp fish sauce

2 cups baby bok choy, chopped

Handful of cherry tomatoes

Handful green beans, cut into 2 inch lengths

1 small zucchini, cut into quarters and sliced

4-6 green onions sliced

PASTE

Blend in food processor, OR mince by hand—

1 shallot OR 1/4 cup purple onion

1/2-1 fresh red chili OR chili flakes to taste

1 thumb-size piece ginger

3-4 cloves garlic

1/4 tsp ground white pepper

1 extra tsp. fish sauce

1 Tbsp fish sauce

Generous handful fresh coriander (+ extra for later)

Directions

Make the soup paste, either by mincing and mixing paste ingredients together by hand, OR by placing paste ingredients in food processor and processing well.

Warm a medium-size soup pot over high heat. Add a little butter in the bottom then add the paste you just made. Stir-fry 1-2 minutes to release the fragrance, then add stock, orange juice, tamarind or lime, and sugar. When soup comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium.

Add the firmer of the vegetables–the beans and white parts of the bok choy. Simmer 4-5 minutes, or until beans have softened.

Add remaining vegetables, plus fish and shrimp. Simmer 2-3 minutes, until fish has turned firm and opaque-white and shrimp are pink and plump. Finally, add the fish sauce.

Don’t over-stir at this point, as this will cause fish pieces to break up.

Spicy Black Bean Veggie Salad

Black Bean Salad

Black beans are rich in healthy fiber, which makes them a satisfying low glycemic snack, and they are full of a very potent antioxidant, anthocyanin—the same kind of antioxidants that grapes and blueberries are rich in! Of any bean, black beans contain by far the most antioxidants of any bean.

Beans also help stabilize blood sugar, and help prevent cancer, increase energy and fat burning metabolism, and are full of protein, vitamins and minerals.

You can purchase black beans already cooked in a can or boil your own from dry beans. Similar recipes often contain corn as an ingredient as well, but I don’t recommend using corn as it is high glycemic, fattening and genetically modified.

Try adding some chopped jicama for an extra sweet crunchy taste! This hearty salad is also a great side dish to grass fed beef dishes like burgers, steaks and more. Or try seasoning a chicken breast with a little cumin and chili powder and serve on top of this. It’s also great alongside your eggs in the morning!

Since beans are a low glycemic carbohydrate, limit your serving size, and avoid eating it with chips, crackers, etc.

Ingredients
2 15oz/425 gm cans of black beans, drained and rinsed, or 3-4 cups cooked beans

1 ripe tomato, diced

1 red onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

Generous handful of fresh cilantro, chopped

1 small red, green or yellow bell pepper, chopped

1 small jalapeño, minced, ribs and seeds removed or hot pepper flakes

Juice of 1 lemon or lime

Sea salt and pepper to taste

A pinch of cumin powder

Directions

Combine all ingredients in glass bowl, mix and enjoy! Serves 4.

Delicious Home-made Kale Chips with Tahini Dressing

These chips are delicious!! Better make a double batch, because they shrink when cooked and they go FAST!

A few good things about kale…

Kale can provide you with some special cholesterol-lowering benefits if you will cook it by steaming. The fiber-related components in kale do a better job of binding together with bile acids in your digestive tract when they’ve been steamed. When this binding process takes place, it’s easier for bile acids to be excreted, and the result is a lowering of your cholesterol levels. Raw kale still has cholesterol-lowering ability—just not as much.

Kale’s risk-lowering benefits for cancer have recently been extended to at least five different types of cancer. These types include cancer of the bladder, breast, colon, ovary, and prostate. Isothiocyanates (ITCs) made from glucosinolates in kale play a primary role in achieving these risk-lowering benefits.

Kale is now recognized as providing comprehensive support for the body’s detoxification system. New research has shown that the ITCs made from kale’s glucosinolates can help regulate detox at a genetic level.

Researchers can now identify over 45 different flavonoids in kale. With kaempferol and quercetin heading the list, kale’s flavonoids combine both antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits in way that gives kale a leading dietary role with respect to avoidance of chronic inflammation and oxidative stress.

Also…

Kale is high in Vitamin C. This is very helpful for your immune system, your metabolism and your hydration.

Kale is high in calcium. Per calorie, kale has more calcium than milk, which aids in preventing bone loss, preventing osteoporosis and maintaining a healthy metabolism. Vitamin C is also helpful to maintain cartilage and joint flexibility

Kale is a great detox food. Kale is filled with fiber and sulfur, both great for detoxifying your body and keeping your liver healthy.

Ingredients
1 large bunch of kale, inner ribs removed
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons tahini
1 teaspoon nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F (or plug in your dehydrator). Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment.

Wash and thoroughly dry the kale, then remove the leaves from the tough inner stem. Slice or rip into large pieces. Remember- they’ll shrink as they dehydrate so don’t go too small. Place in a large bowl.

In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients. Pour over the kale and coat each leaf thoroughly. It’s messy, but the best way to do this is with your hands.

Spread the chips in a single layer on the baking sheet or in the dehydrator. The dehydrator should take approximately 8 hours. The oven will take up to an hour (start checking on them after 30 minutes. They’re ready when the seasonings are completely dry and the kale is crispy.

Paleo Cashew Hummus

I found this awesome recipe from Whole9 for cashew hummus–no beans, no starch, just healthy satisfying fats and protein. Here’s the base recipe, and I’ve included info on how to make plain, olive, roasted red pepper and sun-dried tomato versions too.

Ingredients
1 cup raw cashews
1/4 cup tahini
1/3 cup lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cumin
1/8-1/4 teaspoon cayenne
water
chopped fresh parsley, for garnish (optional)

Directions
Soak cashews in a bowl of water for at least three hours. Drain and rinse a few times, then drain well and place in food processor.

Add remaining ingredients to food processor and puree until well-blended. The texture will be very thick. Add water, 1/4 cup at a time, until desired thickness–add it gradually to get the right consistency.

Sprinkle the top with freshly chopped parsley before serving.

For the variations, keep the base recipe the same and add the following:

Olive: Add black olives to the mixture before blending. For canned olives, 20-30 is a good number. For fancier cured Greek olives, start with 10-15 and add more to taste.

Roasted Red Pepper: Add 1-2 roasted red peppers and 1/2 teaspoon paptrika to the mixture before blending. To roast peppers, cook on a grill or under the broiler until charred and soft. Place in paper bag for 10 minutes, then peel. Or take the easy route, and buy them in a jar at the store.

Sun-dried Tomato: Add 5-7 sun-dried tomatoes to the mixture before blending.

Mango/Peach Chicken Salad

It’s too hot to cook right now, so a cooling, refreshing, slightly sweet and tangy salad with chicken just hits the spot! Peaches are in season most places but you can also use mangos or a combination of those bright yellow, vitamin A filled juicy fruits.

Ingredients
1 lb chicken breasts, grilled, baked or boiled, cooled and chopped
2 peaches or 1 medium to large sized mango
3-4 stalks celery, chopped
1/2 sweet onion chopped
1 sweet bell pepper
baby greens, spinach, leaf lettuce or bibb lettuce, chopped
2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar or lemon juice
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil or grapeseed oil
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper

Directions
Mix up all ingredients except salad greens, toss with dressing. You may keep in the refrigerator for several hours before serving over lettuce. Enjoy! Serves 4.

Delectable Summer Salad

Quick and easy and beautiful to the eyes!

Red leaf lettuce, grated fresh carrots, sliced sweet onion, ripe tomatoes, and a delicious dressing of olive oil, apple cider vinegar, and a drizzle of maple syrup. Toss!

For some extra tang, add a 1/2 tsp of dijon mustard.

Fresh Veggies with Garbanzos, Garlic and Olive Oil

This lunch is easy and quick and a picture is worth a thousand words. I made this the other day and it was delightful–especially since veggies are out, local, fresh and bursting with flavor!

Saute up a few chopped cloves of garlic in some butter. Add your choice of veggies and steam veggies until tender crisp. Top with a generous squeeze of fresh lemon, extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, and pepper and dig in!

Mexican Turkey Lettuce Wraps

A little something spicy and delicious for an easy lunch or light dinner!

Ingredients
1 lb of ground turkey, either dark or white meat
garlic, minced
sea salt, pepper
pinch of cayenne
1/2 tsp or so of chili powder
1 tsp cumin
sweet vidalia onion
tomato
cilantro
salsa or hot sauce
green or red leaf lettuce
avocado
coconut oil, olive oil or butter

Directions
In a frying pan, heat up oil, add turkey, garlic, seasonings and cook till turkey is no longer pink. Chop up sweet onion, tomato and avocado and cilantro. Add turkey to large lettuce leaf, top with onion, tomato, avocado, cilantro and salsa. Mmmm-mmm. Serves 4.