Food

Chickpeas are high in protein and B vitamins, which help support healthy neurotransmitters and a good mood. We love the yogurt here because it’s an easy way to incorporate probiotics into a savory meal, so they can strengthen your gut to keep you feeling healthy and uplifted.

Salad may seem like an odd thing to eat for breakfast but, truthfully, many people around the world do eat it for their morning meal. We often think of sweet things when we think of breakfast, but why not get in your rainbow of veggies and fiber early in the day? Plus, salad for breakfast can be refreshing and invigorating. Eating colorful, fresh vegetables, especially in the morning, energizes your brain and body. We have a deep love for Middle Eastern flavors, which is why this salad slightly resembles tabbouleh. The star spice here is sumac, which you can find at most grocery stores—it’s a gorgeous reddish purple and tastes lemony. This salad’s high fiber content promotes blood sugar balance, which helps keep energy levels and mood stable. and steady.

Sarah: Many years ago, I went on a women’s retreat and fell in love with a sweet potato noodle dish they served, a recipe by Rachel Molenda. This dish is inspired by that. Sweet potatoes provide vitamins, phytonutrients, and fiber to support your gut and neurotransmitters to help you feel balanced, focused, and joyful. You’ll love this creamy and tangy almond butter sauce—it works on any vegetable, so sub in whatever you have.

This is a great pick­me­up recipe, whether it’s enjoyed as a snack or a dessert. The protein­rich yogurt and polyphenol­rich fruits help your body make feel­good neurotransmitters to uplift you, and the magnesium­rich chocolate helps you feel calm. Simply spread yogurt out on a baking sheet and go nuts with the toppings you love.

This delicious twist on classic banana bread, packed with whole-food goodness―and gluten free to boot—is sure to become a lunchbox staple. The use of buckwheat flour adds a subtly earthy flavour that perfectly complements the natural sweetness provided by the ripe bananas.

These delightful mini quiches are a delicious blend of convenience, nutrition, and flavour. Egg protein is recognized as highly digestible, an excellent source of essential amino acids, and important to skeletal muscle health.

These easy-to-make, protein-packed lunchbox bites are a great way to fuel the whole family through the afternoon. Seeds such as pumpkin and hemp are surprisingly high in protein, even surpassing most nuts. If you’re feeling a bit decadent, feel free to sub out the apricots for a good handful of dark chocolate chips.

Chrysanthemum is popular as a summertime tea ingredient in southern China, but the flower grows in Canada’s climate, too. In fact, most mums prefer longer nights, so we can enjoy them into the autumn. If you grow honeysuckle, choose a non-invasive variety. Dried blossoms or teas of both—believed to have a cooling effect on the body—can be found at traditional Chinese medicine suppliers and some health food stores. Blossoms only While the blossom of the honeysuckle flower and its sweet nectar are edible, most honeysuckle varieties have poisonous berries.  

A cold tea featuring a weed may sound about as enticing as a grass clipping spritzer, but don’t fear. Honeydew melon, boiled to extract its sweetness, makes this tea as easy on the tongue as it is on the tummy. Plus, any leftover nettles can be boiled and eaten in place of spinach in just about any dish. Soothing herbs Members of the mint family fight bloating and indigestion, and once you use boiling water to take the bite out of stinging nettle, you’ll find this weed has a lot to offer. It’s been used to treat joint and muscle pain and is full of vitamin A and calcium. Watch out Be sure any plants you grow or harvest from the wild have been identified correctly and haven’t been sprayed with pesticides or exposed to pollutants such as car exhaust.

Raspberries are perhaps the hottest commodity in any garden—but people tend to be less keen on eating a bowl of raspberry leaves, although the leaves have a long and storied medicinal history. Combined with orange and rosemary, raspberry leaves make a surprisingly decadent-tasting herbal iced tea. Tip: Make ice cubes out of freshly squeezed orange juice if you prefer a more citrus-flavoured beverage, or freeze some of the tea into ice cubes with raspberries in them. Double duty If you make a more concentrated version of this tea by using 3 cups (750 mL) water instead of 4 cups (1 L), it can be turned into a bubbly beverage. Fill your glass halfway with iced tea and top up with sparkling water.

Colour-wise, this is the showiest of these herbal iced teas. Its brilliant magenta hue comes from hibiscus, a plant known for its tart taste and health benefits (hibiscus tea has shown promise in lowering blood pressure in mildly hypertensive people). Strawberries curb the tang of hibiscus, especially when we take a page out of Russian tea culture and sweeten this tea with jam. Jammin’ Choose jam naturally sweetened with agave or juice rather than refined sugar. Ice queen When you make a pot of hot tea or prep fruit for fruit salad, make a habit of setting aside a little tea or a few pieces of fruit to freeze as ice cubes so you’ve always got gorgeous ice on hand. If you want fruit or other solids to rest in the centre of a cube, fill the ice cube tray only halfway with water or tea, add the fruit pieces, and freeze. Then fill the remainder of the tray with liquid and freeze again.

This recipe uses a combination of decocting (extracting the essence of an ingredient by simmering it) and infusing, the method of flavour extraction most common to herbal teas. Boiling lemon grass unleashes a heavenly scent; no wonder lemon grass tea is a beloved beverage in Thailand. Coconut water naturally sweetens this tea, while Thai basil ensures the drink doesn’t become cloying.

For the most part, soggy mayo-laden tuna salad sandwiches and subs are far from culinary bright spots. This incarnation is another matter, as it’s a plateful of wonderful textures and fresh flavours. Look for pole- or troll-caught tuna, which is the most sustainable option. You can also use a good quality canned albacore tuna.

This interpretation of the iconic BLT has plenty of crunchy appeal. Crisping seasoned tempeh in the oven is a stellar “facon” alternative to traditional bacon without the overload of fatty calories. Although the tomato vinaigrette can be made two days ahead if chilled, it’s best used warmed or at room temperature, and the chives should be stirred in just before serving. Make and take Each of these sandwich-salad hybrids can be enjoyed for lunch or dinner. To take them to go for workday lunches, proteins such as tuna or chicken can be prepared ahead of time and tossed with vegetables in your transport containers. To avoid unappetizing soggy greens, however, keep dressings separate and add to salads just before serving. Up in smoke If you’re not using liquid smoke for the tempeh marinade, consider applying smoked paprika for a little smoky essence.

Originating from Cyprus, semisoft and slightly nutty halloumi cheese is unique in that it resists melting when heated, so you can luxuriate in its warm, golden crust and velvety centre. Look for this high-protein cheese in Middle Eastern markets or in some supermarket cheese aisles. When boiled and oven roasted, quinoa is transformed into tasty crunchy crumbs. Soon you’ll want to sprinkle them on everything from salads to pasta dishes and stir-fries to soups in lieu of bread crumbs or nuts. Simple swaps Come stone fruit season, you can swap out the strawberries for juicy peach slices. If you can’t locate fiery-sweet peppadew peppers, use roasted red peppers.

Although often as exciting as laundry, turkey and cheese remains one of the most popular lunchtime staples. Here, we’ve kicked things up a notch by serving moist poached turkey on a bed of greens and adorning it with tangy goat cheese dressing. Great groats Crunchy buckwheat groats are sure to become your new favourite salad topper. If you come up short locating groats in stores, you can use toasted walnuts instead.

PB&J may ride high on nostalgia, but it’s hardly a well-balanced meal. Here, the Thai-inspired peanut dressing stands in for peanut butter, raspberries add sweetness in the spirit of jam, and granola is a crunchy garnish in lieu of toast. Thigh highs The best thing about using chicken thighs to lend this salad plenty of satiating protein is that you can relax a bit when you’re grilling them. Even if you overcook the meat a bit, it won’t dry out to the same extent that breast meat would.

Miso and maple syrup are a surprising pairing that work together beautifully to elevate salmon’s buttery flesh. Serve with roasted potatoes, grilled asparagus spears, or even on a bed of soba noodles.     Woodn’t you know? Cooking your catch of the day on cedar planks not only infuses the salmon with smoky, woody flavour, but also encourages even cooking and protects the fish from direct heat—so there is less risk of dealing with a sticky situation. Be sure to only use untreated cedar.

Asian meets Latin American in this incarnation of ceviche. Crunchy edamame beans provide a wonderful textural contrast, while placing all the contents in lettuce leaves makes each bite taste extra fresh. Ceviche doesn’t make for good leftovers, so make sure you’re feeding a table of salmon lovers. Alternatively, you can halve the recipe for a more intimate dining experience. To quicken prep, ask your fishmonger to skin the fish for you.

Here is a dish that is as fetching to the eye as it is delectable to the palate. Buttery salmon, a vibrant sauce featuring earthy-sweet seasonal peas, and toasty fried shallots make it worthy of company. If preferred, you can also use skinless salmon.

Gravlax is a traditional Scandinavian preparation of salmon in which it is cured with salt and dill. Delicious! Plus, it’s far from a high-flying kitchen feat to make your own gravlax, though it does require a certain amount of patience before you can slice the velvety flesh—three days, to be precise. Use this recipe as a perfect make-ahead option for summer get-togethers or turn it into a quick and cool midweek dinner by doing all the prep work over the weekend.

Who says burgers are just about the beef? These salmon burgers are sure to become a summer favourite for the grill, while the strawberry-infused salsa will guarantee that nobody will miss the bun. For a grill-free option, you can pan-sear the salmon burgers on the stovetop. If you are avoiding wheat or gluten, you can replace bread crumbs with pulverized gluten-free crackers.

The net effect of stuffing a quesadilla with rich-tasting salmon, fiery kimchi, sweet pineapple, and a creamy avocado spread? Wow. Here, the half-moon quesadilla method better keeps all the contents from spilling out in the absence of cheese. 1 ripe avocado Juice of 1 lime 1/2 lb (227 g) cooked wild salmon, thinly sliced 1 cup (250 mL) chopped pineapple 1 cup (250 mL) chopped kimchi 2 green onions, thinly sliced 4 - 8 in (20 cm) organic whole wheat or gluten-free tortillas In small bowl, mash together avocado and lime juice. Heat skillet over medium heat. Spread one-quarter of avocado on tortilla, leaving a 1/2 in (1.25 cm) border. Place one-quarter of salmon, pineapple, kimchi, and green onions on bottom third of tortilla and then fold tortilla over from top to enclose toppings. Heat quesadilla for 1 1/2 minutes, or until bottom of tortilla is darkened and crispy. Carefully flip and cook for about 1 1/2 minutes more. Repeat with remaining tortillas and fillings. Serves 4. Each serving contains: 393 calories; 19 g protein; 17 g total fat (3 g sat. fat, 0 g trans fat); 39 g total carbohydrates (7 g sugars, 8 g fibre); 381 mg sodium Choose salmon wisely Check that the salmon you are about to purchase is sustainably caught or farmed (in land-based closed-containment). If in doubt, check Ocean Wise’s Seafood Items Listing under Salmon for confirmation. oceanwise.ca/seafood source: "Dinner Worthy Quesadillas", alive #391, May 2015

Lentils and rice create a delicious hearty salad, containing healthy amounts of protein, fibre, and vitamins. The vinaigrette dressing is an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids, thanks to camelina oil.