NAUGHTY Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies

These have salt in them- but they are remarkably tasty for having no butter or eggs. They melt in your mouth. Vegans and non-vegans alike have asked for more more more! You can thank Elise Bulger for these...

Ingredients:

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
8-10 oz of peanut butter
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp vanilla

1) Mix brown and white sugars evenly.

2) Add rest of ingredients.

3) Make 1 tbsp size balls of dough and place on cookie sheet.

4) Score with fork in a criss-cross method.

5) Bake 10-12 minutes (not sure what temp--sorry! Keep an eye on them, my guess is around 325)

6) Cool 5-10 minutes.

7) Best if eaten still warm...enjoy!

Winter Squash Risotto

Roasting squash lightly caramelizes it, making a naturally sweet vegetable even sweeter. I stir a small portion of the roasted squash into this luxurious risotto at the start of the cooking process and the rest at the end. The squash that is added at the beginning falls apart as the risotto cooks, enriching the mixture and adding color.

Ingredients:
-1 pound winter squash (about 1/2 of a good-size butternut, for example), such as butternut, banana or hubbard, peeled, seeded and cut in 1/2 inch dice
-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
-7 to 8 cups vegetable stock (or use sodium free vegetable bouillon if you want to be salt free)
-1 small or 1/2 medium onion,
-2 large garlic cloves, minced or pressed
-1 1/2 cups Arborio or Carnaroli rice
-1/2 cup dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc
-1 teaspoon chopped fresh sage
-3 to 4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
-Freshly ground pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Cover a baking sheet with foil. Toss the squash with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and spread it on the baking sheet in an even layer. Place in the oven and roast for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until tender and caramelized. Remove from the heat.

2. Bring the stock to a simmer in a saucepan.

3. Heat the remaining oil over medium heat in a large, heavy nonstick frying pan or a wide saucepan and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until the onion begins to soften, about 3 minutes, and add one third of the squash, the garlic. Cook, stirring, until the onion is tender and the garlic fragrant, about 1 minute, and add the rice. Cook, stirring, until the grains of rice are separate.

3. Stir in the wine and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. The wine should bubble, but not too quickly. When the wine has just about evaporated, stir in a ladleful or two of the simmering stock, enough to just cover the rice and squash. The stock should bubble slowly. Cook, stirring often, until the liquid is just about absorbed. Add the sage and another ladleful of the stock, and continue to cook in this fashion, not too fast and not too slowly, adding more stock when the rice is almost dry, for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the rice is cooked al dente. Taste and adjust seasonings.

4. Add the remaining roasted squash and another 1/2 cup of stock to the rice. Stir in the parsley, and immediately remove from the heat. Add freshly ground pepper. The rice should be creamy. Serve at once.

Yield: Serves 4 to 6

Advance preparation: You can get ahead on the risotto, cooking it halfway through Step 3, about 10 to 15 minutes, then spreading the rice out in the pan or on a baking sheet. Reheat and proceed with the recipe shortly before serving.

Andean Bean Stew With Winter Squash and Quinoa

This savory, filling pot of beans is inspired by a Chilean bean stew and uses quinoa instead of the corn called for in the authentic version. Make it a day ahead for the best flavor.

Ingredients:

-1 pound dried pinto beans, rinsed and picked over, soaked in 2 quarts water overnight or for 6 hours
-1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
-1 medium onion, chopped
-1 tablespoon sweet paprika
-4 large garlic cloves, minced
-1 bay leaf
-1 (14-ounce) can chopped no salt added canned tomatoes, with liquid
-1 pound winter squash, such as butternut, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
-1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed thoroughly
-Freshly ground pepper
-3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil or parsley

1. Place the beans and soaking water in a large pot. Add water if necessary to cover the beans by about 2 inches, and bring to a boil. Skim off foam, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer gently for 60 minutes, or until the beans are tender but intact.

2. Heat the oil over medium heat in a large, heavy nonstick frying pan and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes, and add the paprika. Stir together for about a minute, and add the garlic. Cook, stirring, for a minute or two, until the garlic and onions are very fragrant but not brown, and stir in the tomatoes. Cook, stirring often, until the tomatoes have cooked down slightly and smell fragrant, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and scrape the contents of the pan into the pot of beans.

3. Bring the beans back to a simmer, add the bay leaf and winter squash, and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes, or until the squash and beans are thoroughly tender. Add the quinoa and simmer for another 20 to 30 minutes, until the quinoa is translucent and displays an opaque thread. Add a generous amount of freshly ground pepper. Stir in the basil or parsley, simmer for a couple of minutes more.

Advance preparation: This tastes best if made a day ahead and reheated. The stew will thicken up, so you will probably want to thin out with water and adjust seasonings accordingly. Add the fresh herbs when you reheat. It will keep for at least five days in the refrigerator. It freezes well.

Quinoa Pilaf With Chick Peas, Pomegranate and Spices

I found this recipe in the NY Times Health section and it looks amazing. Considered by many nutritionists to be a superfood, pomegranate juice is loaded with antioxidants and appears to lower blood pressure. This quinoa pilaf is based on a Turkish pilaf that is traditionally made with rice or bulgur. You can find quinoa in any grocery store near the rice/polenta/bulgur section.

Ingredients:

-1 teaspoon cumin seeds
-3/4 teaspoon coriander seeds
-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
-1/2 medium onion, chopped
-2 garlic cloves, minced
-1 cup quinoa, cooked (4 cups cooked quinoa)
-1 cup cooked chick peas (canned are fine), rinsed
-1/4 cup pomegranate seeds

1. Heat a large, heavy frying pan over medium-high heat and add the cumin seeds and coriander seeds. Toast in the pan, stirring or shaking the pan, until they begin to smell fragrant, and transfer to a spice mill. Allow to cool for a few minutes, then pulse to crush or coarsely grind. Set aside.

2. Return the frying pan to medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Add the onion and cook, stirring often, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, stir together for about half a minute, and stir in the cumin seeds, and coriander seeds. Add the remaining olive oil and stir in the quinoa, chick peas, and 3 tablespoons of the pomegranate seeds. Stir over medium heat to heat through, several minutes. Transfer to a platter or wide bowl and decorate with the remaining pomegranate seeds. You can also mold the pilaf into 1/2-cup ramekins or timbales and unmold onto the plate, then decorate with pomegranate seeds.

Yield: Serves 6

Variation: Some people like to drizzle a few drops of lemon juice over the top of this pilaf.

Advance preparation: This can be made a day ahead and reheated.

Curried Sweet Potatoes

This in from Jason Colón's amazing girlfriend, Jess:

Ingredients:
Curry Sauce
1 onion
2 med carrots
Butternut or any type of cooked squash
1 tps curry powder
Water - (first time i made this I used Pacific Organic Low Sodium Veggie broth)

Saute onions and carrots in non stick pan with a little bit of pam for about 5 minutes.
Add curry powder, cook until fragrent. Cover with water (or broth)) simmer until veggies are tender. Mix in squash, Puree in blender. I do not take it too smooth, I like to leave some small chunks. Have extra water or broth handy, the sauce might need to be thinned out a bit.

Rest of it:

2 sweet potatoes
1 onion
1 small zucchini
any veggie that works with the curry could be used here, I just used what I had on hand the last couple of times I've made it.

Peel sweet potato and cut into bite size pieces. Cover with cold water in pan and bring to boil. Boil only maybe 10 minutes or until done. Don't want them falling apart though.

As potatoes are cooking:
Saute the chopped onion, zucchini and any other veggies in a bit of oil in a pot large enough to hold the potatoes and curry mix. Cook until tender (I sprinkle a little more curry powder on them at this point) When potatoes are done, add the sweet potatoes and curry sauce to the pan. Then simmer together for about 15 - 20 minutes or until sweet potatoes start falling apart along edges.

Note: the curry sauce will probably make more than you need for the sweet potato combination.

Enjoy!

Salad Dressings

God only knows what is in the salad dressings we buy from the grocery store shelves. Newman's Own Organic Tuscan Italian Dressing lists "salt" as its 4th out of 13 ingredient. That's 380mg of salt in only 2 tbsp of dressing. That's a load of salt, people. (That's why it tastes so good). Try these salt-free, easy dressings on your next salad...


Simple Vinaigrette
extra virgin olive oil (eyeball it)
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
3 cloves garlic, pressed or garlic powder
1 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. rosemary

Easy peasy. Mix all ingredients. Taste. Adjust. Add to salad.

Citrus Vinaigrette
1 Orange
1 Lemon
1 tbsp of olive oil
pepper

Whisk all ingredients for a light citrusy dressing. Great on light spinach salads with nuts and berries.

Tahini Dressing
½ cup tahini
½ cup water
1 fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, pressed (or garlic powder)
1 teaspoon cumin, ground (optional)
ground black pepper

Whisk together all ingredients until smooth and then let dressing sit for at least 15 minutes before serving.

*******
Try mixing elements of these three dressings (for example, add a bit of tahini to the citrus dressing, or add a bit citrus to the balsamic...possibilities are endless with basic ingredients: tahini, balsamic and citrus juice.)

Coconut-Mint Frappe

This tastes better than any creamy mint frappe, especially because you won't feel like crap after you drink it. Check it out:

1 fresh young coconut
1/2 a fresh avocado
2 tbsp of agave nectar (find this in the health food store, it's a natural sweetner)
1/4 cup of fresh mint
juice from one lime
5-7 ice cubes

Cut open the fresh young coconut. Pour coconut water into blender. Scrape coconut meat from inside of coconut and add to blender. Blend so that it is a smooth consistency. Add ice cubes and the rest of the ingredients and blend on high until smooth. Delectable...

Avocado & Apple Sandwich

This is the sandwich. Everyone I make it for wants to know more about it. It's got a lot of different fresh flavors that complement each other perfectly. You'll have to get some dulse to complete the sandwich's perfection. What's dulse? It can be found in any health food store, in the sea vegetable section. It does not taste sea-weedy, it is a naturally salty tasty leafy vegetable, full of iron and b-12. You are going to love it and end up eating the whole bag...save some for this sandwich!

Ingredients:

-2 slices of multi-grain toast (preferably fresh baked, the kind you can still see the seeds and grains)
-handful of alfalfa sprouts (if you don't like sprouts, a great sub is cucumber)
-2 large slices of avocado
-1 large slice of green apple
-smidgen of grey poupon (this does have salt, but we are only using a small amount)
-fresh basil
-several leaves of dulse

Spread a little grey poupon (or you could use rosemary hummus), on each piece of toast. Stack the apple and avocado, add sprouts (or cucumber), fresh basil and dulse on top. You might need a few toothpicks to keep this sandwich from falling apart. Cut in half and be dazzled by so much deliciousness/nutritiousness in one place.

Sexy Guacamole

A crowd pleaser, every single time...the secret ingredient unveiled below (*). Serve with crudités (celery sticks, carrots, cucumber slices, jicama).

Ingredients:

6 soft avocados, halved with pits removed
2 lemons, juiced
1 small red onion, diced fine or 6 scallions, diced fine
2 pint of cherry tomatoes, diced
1/3 cup cilantro
1 jalapenos, minced
2 cups red grapes, sliced in half*

Scoop out avocado flesh into a large bowl. Mix fresh lemon juice with the avocado. Add next 5 ingredients. Mash gently with a fork to combine the flavors but leave it slightly chunky. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use, but do not make this too far in advance or it might turn brown.

Other ideas, instead of--or in addition to--grapes, try pomegranate seeds, corn, peaches, mango, etc...It's all goooood.

Spinach and Roasted Potatoes

This is a great dish for a cozy evening in...the warmth of the potatoes and the freshness of lemon/spinach will leave you full and satisfied, without over-eating or feeling "heavy" the next morning.



Ingredients:

2 cups of potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
2 tbsp olive oil
handful of parsley, chopped finely
dash of garlic powder
pepper

1 bag of spinach (serves 1-2 people, it shrinks down a lot once cooked)
1 tbsp of olive oil
juice from one lemon

Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees.

Put the potato chunks in a bowl, mix in the olive oil, parsley, a few dashes of garlic powder, and as much pepper as you desire (any spice substitute will work if you don't want to use garlic and/or pepper). Put the potatoes on a baking sheet and bake at 450 until tender and golden (about 40 minutes).

Once the potatoes are done, saute the spinach on low heat with a little olive oil. Do not overcook, keep it lighter green if you can (more nutrients remain when it is only lightly sauteed and not over-cooked/dark green). Add the lemon juice and keep stirring.

Add the potatoes to the spinach and stir. Serve warm and enjoy!

Rosemary Hummus

Nothing like your own fresh hummus. Serve with crudites (celery sticks, carrots, cucumbers, jicama). This only takes a few minutes to prepare!

Ingredients

-2 lemons, squeezed
-sprig of fresh rosemary, torn into smaller pieces (the more you use the stronger the "essence" will be)
-1-2 tbsp olive oil
-1 can of salt free chick peas (Eden Organics--find in health food store)
-pepper

Blend lemons and rosemary together, then strain the mixture, so there are no rosemary "twigs" left. Blend this mixture with the beans, olive oil, pepper. Fresh basil is also a good option instead of rosemary (you don't have to strain it). Add tahini to make it richer.

Welcome to D+N

Welcome to Delicious Plus Nutritious, a place to find healthy recipe ideas that will help you detox from everyday toxins found in nearly everything the standard American diet offers. By eating the recipes I suggest on a regular basis, I'm confident you'll experience an increase in energy, a return to your ideal weight, loss of cravings, a more focused and clear mind, a glowing complexion, not to mention a longer and healthier life... It does matter what you put in your body...even if you are not showing signs of illness, weight gain or aging yet, it will catch up with you. Practice good habits now and treat your body like it deserves to be treated. You will thank yourself later...

I made a whimsical decision after reading a book on natural healing and detoxification called, "A Way Out" by Matthew Grace, to cut meat, dairy and processed foods from my diet for one month. One month has turned into nearly two years, and I have never felt better!

I've helped family and friends detox from salt, caffeine, preservatives and additives that the American diet is chock full of. These toxins make us feel old and less energetic, and they lead to weight gain and sickness. It does not have to be this way! Those who have detoxed by eating on this plan have reported instant weight loss, increased energy and an overall healthier state of being. Many people continue to ask about some of my popular recipes, so instead of emailing them all over the place, I thought it would be best to post them here so everyone could easily access delicious plus nutritious whenever they needed a healthy recipe.

Please get in touch with questions and comments. Enjoy and eat well!

Sarah Johnson
thesarahjohnson@gmail.com