Food

Ayurveda focuses on balance, and there’s no better way to eat in equilibrium than with this warming blend of textures and flavors. Here, roasting brings out the naturally sweet qualities in carrots and asparagus, both served up with warm grains and tamarind-infused chickpeas.

You Do You

This beautiful dish is delicious as a standalone meal, but it also doubles as an impressive side. The deep red beet sauce is supremely good for heart health. And making matters easier is the fact that, if scrubbed well, you don’t need to peel the beetroots. Roasting softens the skin, which is then whirled into creamy perfection. There are loads of options for toppings, ranging from any variety of cheese (or none at all) to a wide assortment of toasted nuts.

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A warming winter taco meal is everyone’s favourite. Our delicious hummus made from heart-healthy lima beans and spinach is an excellent way to fill up on healthy plant proteins. Lima beans help lower cholesterol and provide heathy fibre. Coupled with a medley of diced veggies, it becomes an über-healthy crowd pleaser!

From dark leafy greens to brightly coloured squash drizzled with a creamy avocado dressing, this dish is the quintessential heart-healthy meal.

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Is there such a thing as a crispy heart-healthy cake wedge? We think so. In this chew-worthy snack, we’ve combined oats with coconut, a little flaxseed, and some nutty hemp hearts. Together they make a perfect treat that your heart will love.

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For an easy weeknight dinner, sheet pan meals are perfect—this dinner can be assembled and eaten within 25 minutes! Salmon is an excellent heart-healthy star option. Coupled with little nugget potatoes, fresh beans, and diced yellow turnip, it becomes eye candy on a plate. The dazzling flavour of za’atar livens everything up! Although there are plenty of premade variations of this spice available, we’ve provided a tasty version you can DIY in a jiffy.

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If you like to sleep in on the weekends and eat brunch instead of breakfast, this recipe is for you. You can whip up these scrumptious avocados the night before as long as you brush the cut edges with a little lemon juice and add a squeeze of citrus to the filling to prevent the avocados from oxidizing and turning brown. Cover them tightly in plastic wrap on a plate and store them in the refrigerator until you’re ready to serve them.

Flavour boost

Flourless chocolate cake became my obsession in the bustling kitchen of a gourmet restaurant where I worked in the early 90s. I was fascinated by the dense but creamy texture as well as the deep, dark fudgy flavour of this masterpiece. I experimented with different chocolates, sweeteners, number of eggs, and flavourings until I found the perfect combination. This should be the cake you serve when impressing and spoiling your guests is the goal. You might never use flour again.

Flavour boost

This drink gives you the same sensory satisfaction as your usual tall latte from Starbucks, but without the jolt: It’s caffeine free. Dandelion “coffee” anchors this healthy cup of comfort.

I love this dish for its great flavour, but also for its visual impact on the table. It is a perfect example of the senses working in union. You can’t hide the wonderful visual effect of the dish and then the joy of eating the textural contrast between the pieces of beetroot and the smooth yogurt. The chili provides a background lift, while the toasted caraway provides a second tier of bready flavour over the beetroot’s earthy sweetness. Carrot and Lime Leaf Kebabs and Beetroot and Coconut Dip recipes were extracted from Cooking for the Senses: Vegan Neurogastronomy by Jennifer Peace Rhind and Gregor Law, published by Singing Dragon. Order your copy at singingdragon.com.

There’s nothing more alluring than the scent of garlic emanating from the kitchen. And in winter, garlic-enriched foods are even more important to our well-being. There are a multitude of reasons to embrace the humble bulb. Not just because it adds depth to a dish, but also because of its abundant health kicks. Garlic has been studied for its potential to reduce cardiovascular disease risk; for its antitumour, antimicrobial, and antiviral effects; and for its benefit on high blood glucose concentration.

Just as cacao adds depth to mole sauce, it works wonders here too, bringing complexity, richness, and a pleasant, subtle bitterness to this comforting soup. A cool garnish of sour cream and mint provides a stunning contrast.

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A chocolate salad dressing? How else would you dress a salad during this month of love? Don’t let the unusual flavour combinations of this salad dissuade you—juicy meat and mellow mozzarella are brazenly balanced with sweet-tart chocolate balsamic vinegar dressing. Blasting strawberries in the oven is a method to coax out more of their inherent sweetness as the flavour of the berries cooks down and concentrates. If desired, you can use chicken breast instead of turkey.

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Two of Mexico’s greatest culinary exports, mole and tacos, come together in a festival of flavour and texture. Tempeh provides a plant-based meaty taco filling. Beer is an unconventional mole ingredient, but along with chocolate, it makes a nice bittersweet companion for the chilies. If Mexican-style cheeses are not available, you can use crumbled feta or dollops of sour cream.

Hot stuff

A whisper of cacao adds an enticing element to this Moroccan-inspired one-pan dinner. It’s a great dish when entertaining or simply feeding a hungry family. Try serving with whole-grain couscous or freekeh. If harissa paste is not available for the marinade, you can replace it with paprika.

Big bird

It’s not the most calorie-conscious dessert, but these silky cakes are the epitome of #epicchocolate. It’s a decadent way to spread the love at the end of the day. If needed, an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend can be used.

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Adding grain to a salad immediately raises salad to a whole new level. It not only adds substance, such as fibre, but also makes a satisfying lunch dish when combined with heart-healthy, delicious greens and fruit. We’ve paired it with a chive dressing. Try drizzling the dressing over grapefruit segments, and you’ll be eating this combo of grapefruit and chives at every opportunity.

Studies are proving that eating plant foods rich in colours of the rainbow—from dark blue and purple to green, yellow, orange, and red—is the key to good nutrition. Take butternut squash as an example. Its brilliant orange colour indicates it’s chock full of carotenoids, bioflavonoids, and vitamin C, essential to decreasing the risk for certain diseases, including cancer and heart disease.

This dish is a satisfying “bowl-in-one” supper. It’s low in calories, high in fibre, and a valuable source of vitamin C, manganese, and B6—all helpful antioxidants. Bake squash ahead, following our helpful tips, for an easy weekday meal.

This is a spinoff of a typical borscht soup common in Eastern Europe. It’s perfect for the end of the cold winter season and provides a flavour step into spring while still holding the flavours of winter roots.

Eating a rainbow of colourful foods, including dark blue and purple, is essential to good health. Considered the king of antioxidant-rich foods, the rich blueberries in this delectable tart are especially amazing health givers.

Our rainbow salad pretty much covers all the colours of the rainbow. Chock full of healthy ingredients, it’s a bell ringer that’ll satisfy the fussiest of eaters. Grilled prawns top the dish with a light drizzle of tahini dressing laced overtop. Heart-healthy antioxidants with enormous eye appeal and delicious flavour—what more do you need in a dish?

Skip the drive-thru and turn to everyday pantry ingredients to make your very own plant-based, fast food-inspired burger. Vegans, vegetarians, and omnivores alike will find something to love at first bite, no matter how you top your patty. Swap the lab coat for an apron and cook up a batch of these crowd-pleasers tonight.

Any of these quick dips would be great on their own. But if you put them together, you have something that’s way more than the sum of its parts. Lentils are a fabulous source of vegan protein. Just 1 cup of cooked lentils has a whopping 18 g of protein. Get ready, set, dip!