Food

Too cold to have a salad? Here’s your answer in a cup of cozy soup. You can use any variety of baby greens in this Many Greens Soup—spinach, watercress, baby beet greens, et cetera. Just be sure not to include lettuces, which don’t heat well.

Did you know?

Apples and squash go hand in hand as BFFs (best flavor friends) … and of course curry makes everything just a little bit better. This is a wonderfully complex soup you’re bound to make time and time again.

Long, long (I mean, like, embarrassingly long) before it hit the mainstream health scene in North America, quinoa enjoyed a storied history in Central and South American kitchens as an inexpensive, nourishing and environmentally friendly protein. One of quinoa’s many famous uses is in sopa de quinoa, a recipe that varies from region to region (and cook to cook), but is usually made with quinoa, potatoes, squash and any other vegetables that might be on hand.

Superfood boost

This is a veggie-powered, peanut-free version of the popular stir-fried Thai noodle dish. Experiment by preparing it with buckwheat noodles, black bean noodles, mung bean noodles, rice noodles or veggie noodles and a variety of veggies—but really, it’s all about the sauce here.

Psst …

Get saucy

Play with it

The sweet, honey taste of fresh figs is magic when paired with caramelized onions and cashew cheese.

Figet about it

Sometimes the best way to spend a Sunday is making an incredible pot of homemade chili to serve with fresh bread. With each day that goes by throughout the week, the flavors meld, becoming better and better. This recipe requires a bit of effort, but it’s really worth it.

Bean there, done that

Up in smoke

Roasting brings out the natural flavours of veggies in this vegan entertaining platter. Switch up beans and herbs to transform this dish into something new. Turn this platter into pizza: spread cooked flatbreads with hummus, chop vegetables to add on top, slice, and serve.

Quick curries using a handful of fresh ingredients and pantry staples get dinner on the table in under an hour. Instead of apple and tofu, try peeled and diced sweet potato and chickpeas. A superb base recipe, this curry can be easily adapted to what’s available in your kitchen. For additional creaminess, a scoop of natural peanut butter or almond butter makes this curry taste even more luxurious.

Whole grain (and gluten-free) sorghum adds a nutty chew to this warm salad. You don’t have to sear the lettuce, but it adds a smoky char and elegance to make it a touch more extraordinary. A herbed, creamy coconut and tofu dressing holds it all together. If you’re crunched for time, use quinoa or cooked chickpeas in place of sorghum. Add any extra dressing to potato salad, crudité platters, and avocado toast.

Heart-healthy ingredients such as whole grain flour, oats, and olive oil easily replace the typical white flour, refined sugar, and butter often found in this classic cookie. Try making your own chia jam by mixing 2 cups (500 mL) cooked berries with 2 Tbsp (30 mL) chia seeds and some lemon and maple syrup, to taste.

Berries are rich in a particular type of antioxidant known as polyphenols. Studies have shown that eating these polyphenols (also found in red wine and dark chocolate) may lower one’s risk of heart disease. In the spring and summer, feel free to use any antioxidant-rich fresh berry in this recipe, from black currants to strawberries.

Avocado adds a rich and creamy base to this pudding, which is rich in monounsaturated fat. Eaten in moderation, monounsaturated fats can help lower LDL (bad) cholesterol and may help decrease one’s risk of heart disease. Feel free to taste and add a touch of maple syrup if desired, or for natural sweetness, try adding a banana to the mixture before blending.  

Adding beans to your baking is a great way to increase the fibre as well as adding a cholesterol-lowering ingredient to more of your meals. If you don’t have almond butter, try substituting any other type of nut butter.

While a cake is still a cake, simple substitutes such as whole grain flour, maple syrup, and olive oil help turn this traditional Wacky Cake recipe into a more heart-healthy treat. To make these extra special, chill a can of full-fat coconut milk overnight. The next day, open the can and scoop out all of the hard, solidified coconut cream (save the coconut water for a smoothie). Beat coconut cream with a little vanilla and maple syrup, as you would whipping cream. Top each cupcake with a dollop of coconut cream and sprinkles.

If you think pumpkin is best trotted out twice a year as a pie filling, think again. Chef Luptak prefers using Rouge vif d’Étampes pumpkin, a French heirloom variety, when he makes this salad. “Rouge vif d’Étampes” means “bright red from Étampes”—an old commune in France. These flat pumpkins were a fixture in Paris’s central market in the late 1800s. If you have ground spices on hand instead of seeds, they’ll work fine in the pumpkin seed crust as well. Toast them in the frying pan, but skip the grinding.

We’ve broken from tradition with this light and healthy version of paella, adding fresh peas, asparagus, and herbs—the harbingers of spring. Fresh and clean, but still with a hint of smoky flavour. Wine Pairing: Castellblanc Cava Organic Brut Nature, Catalonia, Spain Tip: Bomba rice is a short-grain Spanish white rice. It absorbs far more liquid than long-grain rice but doesn’t become sticky. Alternatively, you can use Arborio or short-grain brown basmati rice for a creamier texture. Tip: Many canned products contain BPA (bisphenol A), which is linked to a variety of health risks, including increased risk for breast and prostate cancers, reproductive dysfunction, cardiovascular disease, and many other ailments. Reduce your exposure and look for organic cans labelled “BPA free.”

Bitter, sour, salty, and bright, this Middle Eastern-inspired salad will awaken your taste buds and appetite to the fresher tastes of spring.

Don’t be fooled by cauliflower and leeks’ white appearance. These vegetables are rich in a variety of nutrients that can stand up to even the heartiest green vegetable.

This colourful salad is sure to please the taste buds of any Earth Day enthusiast. Granny Smith apples make for a juicy base, while the red beets and maple syrup add a natural sweetness that complements the apples’ tartness.

Vegetarians and carnivores will unite over this loaf. Cranberries provide an unexpected pop of sweetness, while cooking the lentils in broth instead of water adds another layer of flavour. Liquid smoke, a condensed smoke in water and not an artificial flavour, is a way to infuse meat-free loaves with hot-off-the-grill smoky flavour.

When blitzed in a food processor, cauliflower becomes surprisingly grainlike and can be transformed into a lower-calorie version of couscous or rice. This highly textured salad can be made up to four days in advance, so use it to jazz up workday lunches. 1 head cauliflower, roughly chopped 2 cups (500 mL) halved cherry tomatoes 1/2 cup (125 mL) roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley 1/3 cup (80 mL) roughly chopped fresh mint 2 green onions, thinly sliced 1/3 cup (80 mL) pitted, sliced kalamata olives 3 oz (85 g) feta cheese, diced 1/2 cup (125 mL) golden raisins 1/3 cup (80 mL) unsalted pistachios 1 Tbsp (15 mL) capers, drained (optional) 3 Tbsp (45 mL) extra-virgin olive oil or camelina oil Juice of 1/2 lemon 1 garlic clove, minced 1 Tbsp (15 mL) za’atar spice mix 1/4 tsp (1 mL) black pepper In food processor, pulse cauliflower florets until they resemble couscous in size. Do this in batches if necessary and be careful not to process cauliflower to the point where it becomes mushy. Place cauliflower in large bowl and toss with tomatoes, parsley, mint, green onions, olives, feta, raisins, pistachios, and capers (if using). In small bowl, whisk together oil, lemon juice, garlic, za’atar, and pepper. Toss dressing with salad. Serves 5. Each serving contains: 271 calories; 8 g protein; 17 g total fat (4 g sat. fat, 0 g trans fat); 27 g total carbohydrates (15 g sugars, 5 g fibre); 313 mg sodium source: "Cauliflower", alive #389, March 2015

Puréed cooked cauliflower has a velvety texture that produces deliciously creamy soups. This Asian-influenced version is sure to leave bowls empty quickly. The cilantro oil adds restaurant-worthy visual appeal. For a splash of added colour and extra flavour, use orange cauliflower if available.

Here’s how to transform a vegetable into a show-stopping main dish. Slabs of cauliflower are blasted in the oven for a roasty, caramelized flavour, then placed on a bed of garlicky cauliflower purée. The high amount of pectin—the compound that thickens jams—gives cooked and blended cauliflower its velvety texture.

This smoothie is more proof that green is the colour of health. It’s often overlooked, but subzero spinach is a great addition to smoothies, as the freezing process helps lock in nutrients. Soft tofu adds extra protein without making the drink taste beany, while hemp hearts are a good source of beneficial omega fats. If you want a sweeter smoothie, you can blend in some honey.