Tomato Basil Salad with Goat Cheese

This salad is simple, elegant, and delicious. It's good for date night and yet my kids can't get enough of it.




Tomato Basil Salad with Goat Cheese

2-3 large tomatoes, sliced
fresh basil
goat cheese
extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper

1. Arrange tomato slices on a serving dish.
2. Drizzle with olive oil & sprinkle liberally with salt and freshly ground pepper.
3. Cut ribbons of basil & sprinkle on the tomatoes.
4. Sprinkle goat cheese

Don't tell anyone how easy it was!

Menu Plan Monday-June 8

Another Monday. With all that's going on around here (potty training, new bikes, forest fires causing us to evacuate--you know, the normal stuff), I didn' t even remember that it's Monday, and Monday means "post your menu plan". And all I can say is that I am SO glad that I actually already had it planned out. In fact, if I'd been more on top of things, I could've already had it scheduled to post. Maybe next time.

Ha ha. I have to laugh. I just looked at my calendar and realized that I actually MISSED Monday, and today is Tuesday! Well, better late than never!

So, on with it.

Monday: Eggs scrambled with veggies. Toast.

Tuesday: Chinese Fried Rice. Pictured above.

Wednesday: Sweet n Sour Cabbage Soup. Dark rye bread.

Thursday: Mediterranean White Beans and Rice

Friday: Crockpot Sausage, Peppers, & Onions over pasta

Saturday: Leftover Cabbage Soup

Sunday: Mexican Taco Casserole

Have you made your menu plan yet for this week? It's already Tuesday. What are you waiting for!

Middle-Eastern Rice and Lentils

Middle-Eastern Rice and Lentils Recipe

Another great recipe from my The Occasional Vegetarian book.

1 cup lentils
1 cup canned tomatoes, crushed
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 cups vegetable stock or stock of your choice (I use my chicken broth)
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 cup whole grain rice
1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, sliced

1. Bring the lentils, tomatoes, bay leaf, cumin, stock, & pepper to a simmer over a high heat in a medium sized pot. Stir, cover, and turn the heat to low, and simmer until the lentils are cooked through and have absorbed the liquid, 45 mins to 1 hour. Add 1 tsp of the salt during the last 5 mins of cooking. Remove bay leaf
2. Cook the rice in another pot during this time.
   
3. Meanwhile, in a skillet, saute the onion in the olive oil over medium heat until golden, about 5 minutes (I like to make extra onion. It's yummy)
4. Place the rice on a plate, put the lentils on top of the rice and the onion on top of the lentils. Serve hot or at room temperature.

This recipe is very simple and easy to make. It's filling and tasty. I double it for my family. Enjoy!

Menu Plan Monday-May 30

Here's what's on our menu this week:

Monday-Spaghetti w/ Simply Delicious Spaghetti Sauce, salad, garlic bread (I learned this great easy make-ahead garlic bread trick)

Tuesday-Middle Eastern Rice and Lentils

Wednesday- Potato Leek Soup and salad

Thursday- Pita Pizzas, veggie sticks with guacamole for dipping

Friday- broiled sole, steamed green beans, whole wheat couscous, Apple crisp

Saturday- leftover Potato Leek soup

Sunday- frozen pre-made veggie & tuna noodle casserole

Totally Delicious But Not At All Healthy Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies

I am not going to try to pass this off as a recipe that will help you improve your health in any way. But if you are a chocolate chip cookie snob like I am, you know how hard it is to find one that's made just right. This is one of those cookies, and I just can't keep the recipe to myself since some of you out there just might want to make an unhealthy cookie once in a while, and since there's just no other place to get recipes (ha ha)....well, I'm sharing this one.

It started from FannieFarmer's chocolate chip cookie recipe, but I altered it slightly to suit me.

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar (sucanat would work fine)
1 egg
3/4 tsp vanilla

1 cup flour (I usually use whole wheat, since that's what I have)
1/2 cup oats ( I use quick oats; regular rolled would work for a more textured cookie)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

200 g (2 bars here) of semi-sweet chocolate, cut into chunks*

*Note: the original recipe calls for 1 cup semi sweet chips. I LOVE chocolate, and was amazed to find this to be enough (I usually add more than whatever the recipe calls for). I only switched to the bars for the size of the chunks. If this is not important to you, the chips would work fine.

**And, if you're not into a chunky cookie, you can omit the oatmeal and add 1/8 c flour. A regular chocolate chip cookie with this recipe is delicious.

Oven 375F

1. Mix the butter & sugars together, add egg & vanilla
2. Mix the flour, oats, baking soda & salt together & add to the first mixture
3. Add in the chocolate chunks or chips
4. Chill till firm, then roll into 1 inch balls, placed 2 inches apart on cookie sheet
   

bake 11 mins or whatever works for you depending on how crispy you like them.

And yes, that's a glass of (gasp) cow's milk in the picture. Which I recommend for taste, not for health. And that's also the only reason to make these cookies.

Enjoy! But only once in a while.

The "Musical Fruit"-Frugal Fridays

"Beans, beans, the musical fruit. The more you eat, the more you....."

I always found this little rhyme at least moderately amusing. It makes me giggle even now. I haven't shared it yet with my guys because I just know they will probably not stop saying it & then collapse in hysterics. But, they are boys, after all, It might be time to teach them about armpit "honks". Crass, yes. But some things are just funny.

But I digress.

Beans are extremely nutritious. See bean nutrition facts here. Beans, when combined with rice, provide a complete protein. Many Latin American countries rely on this combination for most of their dietary needs.

But why do I mention it here, on Frugal Friday? Because beans are CHEAP! Really, really inexpensive. Buy the dried beans in a bag, soak them overnight, and then follow any of thousands of recipes. I have some recipes for beans here on my blog;

Chickpeas and Spinach
Lentil and Potato Stew with Spiced Oil
Mexican Taco Casserole
Cuban Black Beans
Amazing Black Bean Burgers
Easy Hummus

Have a good weekend!

Simply Delicious Spaghetti Sauce

I always thought that to make your own spaghetti sauce (and have it be good), you needed to know some deep cooking secret. I was thrilled to find out how simple it is. Here's what I do:

1 can crushed tomatoes
1 tin tomato paste
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
4-5 large cloves garlic, chopped
splash of white wine
about 1 tsp each of basil, oregano, and thyme
1 tbsp honey/brown sugar/sucanat/stevia to taste
2 tbsp butter

1. Saute the onion, green pepper, and garlic in olive oil a nice long 15 mins at least--till soft & sweet.
   
2. Add everything except the butter and sweetener, if you are using them. Simmer at least 1 hour. Longer if you want. (you can use a crockpot if you want to walk away from it all day)
3. Add sweetener and butter (the butter cuts the tanginess of the tomatoes), simmer another 15 mins or so. Taste & adjust seasonings.
   
4. Serve over whole wheat pasta, top with freshly grated Parmesan cheese (if you use it), and serve it up with a nice big green salad. Enjoy!
   

Chickpeas and Spinach

from The Occasional Vegetarian

1 pound fresh spinach, washed & stems removed. (I use a bag of frozen chopped)
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1 cup chopped scallions, white & green parts (I've used onion or leek instead)
1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp lemon juice

1. Steam the spinach until the leaves are wilted, 1-2 minutes. Drain.
   
2. In a heavy-bottom saucepan, saute' the garlic lightly in the oil, about 2 mins. Add the scallions and saute' for 1 minute.
3. Add the drained spinach, chickpeas, cumin, salt, and pepper, Stir, cover, and cook over low heat until the spinach and chickpeas are heated through, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the lemon juice, stir again. Add more salt and pepper, if needed. Serve hot.
   

I like to mix this in with some whole grained rice (about 1 1/2 cups) and some labana cheese (plain yogurt would work fine). I serve this with some good fresh bread and more labana and olive oil for dipping. I've added sauteed mushrooms in a few times and it was delicious.

Food Combining and Stewed Crockpot Chicken with Vegetables

I love using my crock pot. I don't do it very often, because it seems to work best for stewed type meat, and we only eat meat for dinner about once a week. ( I do also use it for soups and beans). But when Friday comes and I have SO much to do before our special family dinner that night, it really takes a load off my mind to make a one-dish-meal that I can start in the morning and forget about until dinner time.

It's simple. And it simplifies. Something that I REALLY like.

I recently listened to this WellWithU radio show about proper food combining and why it's important. I was reminded that meat & potatoes or grains is not a good combo. This I already knew; we don't do it much and seem to tolerate it all right once in a while. But the important thing that I was reminded of was that couscous AND potatoes AND bread all in one meal would be TOO MUCH of the same type of thing in our bodies (even if it were properly combined). So, I made a change in the dinner I was preparing. I usually add potatoes to the stew, but realized that it would be much better to leave those out and fill up with more veggies instead.

Crock Pot Stewed Chicken

About 2 lbs chicken parts*. I've done it with wings, legs, thighs, whole bird cut up. Whatever.
1 large onion, chopped
3 carrots, sliced
4 celery stalks, sliced
Any other veggie that you have laying around and want to use up. I usually add cabbage or zucchini. This time I added 1/2 a bag of frozen green beans.
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 tin tomato paste
About 1/3 c white wine
A big pinch (approx 1 tsp) each of Basil, Oregano, Thyme
1 Bay leaf

Put everything in, turn it on, walk away, come back 8 hrs later to dinner. Serve over rice/couscous/quinoa (whole grain, of course)

*I recommend that you only consume animal meat that is certified organic and free to roam, with no antibiotics or hormones injected. And even then, do so sparingly. Accompanied by lots of veggies.

Lentil and Potato Stew with Spiced Oil

This is one of our favorites. Lentils are about as nutritious and inexpensive as you can get, so those are two big pluses in my book. Make a double batch and stick half in the freezer for a ready made meal.

From The Occasional Vegetarian by Karen Lee

6 cups water
1 1/2 cups lentils
1 red or yellow bell pepper, cut into 1 inch squares
2 med potatoes, peeled or unpeeled, cubed
2 unpeeled carrots, cut into 1/3 inch rounds
1 large Spanish onion, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 celery stalks, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 bay leaf

SPICED OIL
2 tbsp olive oil or butter
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp ground cumin

1. Combine the water, lentils, bellpepper, potatoes, carrots, onion, celery, soy sauce, pepper, and bay leaf in a large pot. Cover and bring to a boil; reduce the heat and simmer for 45 mins.

2. Meanwhile, warm the oil in a small saucepan over low heat, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the ginger, turmeric and cumin. Stir and set aside.

3. When the stew is cooked, add the spiced oil. Season with salt and additional pepper, if needed. Remove the bay leaf. Serve hot.

I like to remove a little and puree it, then return it for a thickened stew.

This stew can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. I recommend doubling it and freezing half. Simple!

Mexican Taco Casserole & Salsa Recipe

As a busy mom of five little ones, I'll take any help I can get; anything that makes life a teeny bit simpler. Enter: The Casserole.

Casseroles can be assembled when convenient and baked later. They freeze well. We lived on soups and casseroles for a while I'd prepped ahead when baby#5 arrived.

And Mexican food....Love it. But once the little guy became 2 guys and then 3 guys (now 4) who all needed help assembling tacos, we knew something had to be done.

Time to combine the two. How to do it? Simple. Take all your ingredients, layer them in a casserole dish, and bake. It's as easy as that.

Ex: salsa first (helps to prevent sticking), rice, salsa, beans or meat, cheese if you're using it, another rice or beans layer, chopped onions & black olives, cracked corn chips w/cheese to brown on top. Serve with lettuce and tomato, guacamole, salsa & sour cream. Yum.

You can sneak veggies in there too. This time I sauteed onion&garlic with eggplant, carrots, and cabbage. Usually I add zucchini but I didn't have any. You just make them taste "Mexican-y" with salsa, garlic, and lots of onions.





Make your own salsa cheap & easy w/canned crushed tomato, lemon juice, chopped fresh cilantro & chopped onion.

Curried Pumpkin Soup

This is one of my favorite soups. It's very rich, so I don't make it very often. But the flavors of these ingredients combined are amazing. I first found the recipe here and it was an instant hit. I've made a few changes/substitutions, and as always, with soup, am not too specific with measurements. I'm attempting to measure so that I can write it down for you here.















1 large piece pumpkin (5 cups chopped)
2 large onions
3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
2 cans coconut milk (of course, fresh would be the best)
8 Tbsp molasses or 1 cup black rum (I've tried both; I prefer the molasses)
1 stick butter (you could substitute oil, I'm sure. I haven't tried.)
Zest and juice of 2 large lemons (limes would be better)
1 Tbsp (approx) of curry powder
Kosher salt and pepper
2 bay leaves
1/3-1/2 white wine
*brown sugar -- you can substitute a little extra molasses and honey. About 1/2 c or to taste.

You will need 2 pots.

1.Pot 1: Boil pumpkin chunks with stock, rum/molasses, and water if needed to cover until very soft.
2. Pot 2: Saute sliced onions in butter or oil until soft. Add coconut milk, lemon juice & zest, curry, honey, bay leaves. Simmer about 1/2 hr.
4. Combine all and blend or puree
5. Taste and adjust seasonings and thickness (you can add more water or stock or wine or...)

Soup is a very forgiving dish. You can really play around with ingredients and amounts; feel free to experiment! I don't have any white wine today and am making it without it. Never think you can't make something unless you have all of the exact ingredients.

Serve it up with some freshly baked french bread, a salad, and enjoy!

Breadsticks/Baguette/Pizza Dough Recipe

This is my most versatile bread recipe. It came from my BreadBeckers cookbook. I use it for Pizza, Breadsticks, or French bread. Here it is:

1 1/4 c hot water
1/2 c milk (I use fresh almond milk) -makes lukewarm temp. when combined
2 Tbs. oil
1 Tbs. honey
2 tsp. instant yeast
4-5 cups freshly milled flour
2 tsp salt

Combine water, milk, yeast, oil, and honey. Add flour and salt. Stir until well mixed. Knead to make a smooth ball (about 5-10 mins by hand). Let rise until double. Turn dough onto a generously floured surface working with just enough flour to make the dough workable.

For Pizza Dough: Divide in half. Use rolling pin to roll to desired thickness; place on oiled pans for about 20 mins to rise. Bake 15 mins in preheated 400 F oven. Cool, add toppings at convinience, then bake again about 20-30 mins till done. (We use lots of toppings; it takes longer to dry out than it would with few toppings. Nobody likes soggy pizza!)

For French Baguette: Divide for 2 small, or leave together for 1 big loaf. I usually do one. Roll into a rectangle and then roll each side in tightly, tucking under the ends. Placed on greased pan. Let rise until double. Bake at 400F for about 30 mins. May glaze with slightly beaten egg white and sprinkle with poppy or sesame seeds the last 5 mins of baking.

For Breadsticks: Roll out onto oiled pans, and use a pizza cutter to cut into strips. Let rise about 20 mins, then bake at 400F about 15 mins. I like to sprinkle with oregano before final rise, and baste with butter as soon as they come out. I also add 1 tsp garlic powder to the dough if I want them garlicky. Yum.

Whole Wheat Pancake Recipe

From my BreadBeckers cookbook.

3 cups freshly milled flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/3 c oil
4 eggs
3-4 cups buttermilk*

Mix together dry ingredients (or empty your homemade mix into a bowl). Add liquids. Stir just until mixed. Fry on hot oiled griddle or nonstick pan. Serve with fresh chopped fruit and real maple syrup or raw honey.

Sometimes we have some leftover breakfast oatmeal from another day; this can easily be mixed in to the pancake batter. Tastes good and eliminates waste!

*Anyplace I see buttermilk in a recipe, I substitute 1 cup milk (any kind; I use nut milk) + 1 tbsp vinegar. I know some like to avoid vinegar; I am not sure if lemon juice would work instead, but it might.

Sick And Tired of Feeling Sick And Tired

No, I don't get as much sleep as my body wants (although I am SO thankful that my baby sleeps through the night after some training her to do it). No, I don't get much "real" exercise (unless you count chasing after little ones, carrying them and going up and down and up and down stairs all day). I wish I had the time to do better with those things. I'm sure I'd feel better if I did.

The one major impact on my health (and the health of my family, of course) that I can really influence without trying to find more time in the day is DIET.

Why is it so hard to eat right? Well, for many, it's due to lack of knowledge. We are poorly educated about what we should eat. All we know is from how we were raised. I grew up eating meat of some kind for dinner almost every night. Once I was grown, I continued that habit; the meal just didn't seem complete without it.

It was only in Chiropractic School that I learned to think much more logically about the body and how it works. To respect it as the marvelous machine that it is, and to trust its ability to heal and function properly, given the right conditions. I've continued to learn more since then.

One of the main things I've learned is that most, if not all, illness or sickness results from a toxic environment inside the body. Translation: there's garbage in there. How it got in there is a topic for another day. Just trust me. The garbage needs to come out. And your body knows how to get it out, all on its own. Your body knows how to heal its sick cells, all on its own. It only needs you to not interfere.

One of the biggest way that we interfere with our body's ability to heal is by taking the energy that it wants to use on that healing and forcing it to use it for something else. Like handling whatever we decide to put in (translation: food). Did you know that ONE THIRD of your body's energy is used for digestion? Can you imagine if you were able to use that energy to heal instead?

The best way to enable your body to heal or detox thoroughly is by fasting. Dr. Jeff Hazim, a good friend of mine, has an excellent teaching on this. It is a free 1 hour video available at DetoxOrDie.com I highly recommend it.

But, fasting isn't always practical.

There is something else you can do, not as good, but still excellent. Eat Live Foods (raw).

Imagine your body like a furnace, needing to burn something for fuel. You put the food in, light it, it burns, you go. But it needs to be dry. It needs to be chopped up. It needs kindling, it needs to be lit, maybe lighter fluid, fanned....you get the picture. If you put in a piece of meat or even cooked whole grains, your body needs to supply the necessary help to light it.

BUT....if you put in a LIVE piece of fruit, vegetable, nut, seed, etc, it's like an all in one package. Those live enzymes contained in the live food have all you need-the starter fluid, the kindling, the lit match, everything. Your body gains without needing to spend.

Some people opt for an all raw food lifestyle. I believe this is the most healthful, but I am just not there yet. However, when I or any of my family members are not feeling well, we do eat only raw for a day or 2 or as long as we need to. It really does wonders.

Our 3 year old has been exhibiting symptoms indicating something going on in his body. We have decided that he needs to detox and are going to feed him an all raw diet for at least a few weeks. Today is day 3.

I've been looking around for raw food recipes. I came across this for granola. I am looking forward to trying this, since I always make granola for Saturday morning breakfast, and I didn't know what I was going to make this week. I'm also going to start soaking my almonds before making the milk. They are much more nutritious after they've begun the sprouting process.

I'll let you know how it goes. New challenges, new challenges. I must say I'm a little glad that I'm doing this for our little guy, because it's forcing us to all eat more live foods. Something I've known that we've needed for a while, but just haven't been finding the "extra" time needed to make that salad. So we're all benefitting.

What's something you can do this week to increase your live food consumption?

Cuban Black Beans

I grew up in Miami, eating Cuban food. Fried plantains, guava pastries, cafe' con leche....not the healthiest things, to say the least. But mmm.

Good black beans and rice, though, is a good thing. Arroz Con Frijoles Negros, Cuban style. Healthful, a complete protein (with whole rice only, of course), and inexpensive, you can feel good about preparing this for your family.

And when you make extra beans, you can make my favorite black bean burgers with them later in the week.

This recipe comes from Three Guys From Miami. Here it is:

2 1/2 cups dried black beans
9 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1 1/2 cups chopped green bell pepper
3 cloves garlic, peeled, and mashed with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
Olive oil for sautéing
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 bay leaf
3 tablespoons vinegar
3/4 cup dry Spanish wine (I use Emerald Reisling. Any white wine will do.)
2 teaspoons sugar
Olive oil


Cover dry beans with water and let stand covered overnight. Drain and discard water.
Place the cleaned black beans in a large 6-quart saucepan. Add water and olive oil—this will prevent the beans from foaming. Bring the beans to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until the beans are tender, about 1 hour.
Do not add salt to the beans when they are cooking. Salt at this stage of the game will make your beans very tough.
You may also cook the beans in a pressure cooker. Follow the manufacturer’s directions for exact times, but our pressure cooker takes about 20 to 25 minutes to cook the beans completely.
Whichever method you use, do not drain the water from the cooked beans.
Meanwhile, chop onion and green pepper. Mash the garlic with salt and peppercorns in a mortar and pestle.
Sauté the onions and green pepper in olive oil until the onions are translucent. Add mashed garlic and sauté another minute or so.
Add the cooked beans, oregano, cumin, bay leaf, vinegar, and wine. Cover and simmer over low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove bay leaf.
Some cooks—including us—like to thicken the beans by taking about 1 cup of beans and mashing them to make a thick paste. Mix the mashed beans back into the pot.
Add additional salt and pepper to taste.
Stir in the sugar; then drizzle a couple of tablespoons of olive oil over the beans. Immediately cover the pot, remove from heat, and let stand for 10 minutes.
Serve the by now fantastically prepared black beans over white rice.
You may garnish the beans with cilantro and chopped white onions. Not only do they look good presented this way, they taste even better than they look.

Buen Provecho!

Challah Recipe

When I was growing up, we used to buy our challah from the Publix bakery. (Publix is a supermarket in Florida; I don't know if they're around the country)Publix makes a GOOD challah. (They also make great sheet cake)

Yes! I made this delicious looking challah. Freshly ground whole wheat and delicious!

The name of this bread, "challah" is so due to the word "separate." A challah has a small amount separated and offered to G-d. I never knew this until I moved to Israel; I always thought that challah was just a yummy egg bread.

Here is the Bible reference:

Numbers 15:17-21 The LORD instructed Moses: 18 "Speak to the Israelites and tell them: After you enter the land where I am bringing you, 19 you are to offer a contribution to the LORD when you eat from the food of the land. 20 You are to offer a loaf from your first batch of dough as a contribution; offer it just like a contribution from the threshing floor. 21 Throughout your generations, you are to give the LORD a contribution from the first batch of your dough.

When I learned the importance of using freshly ground flour and started making my own bread, I needed a good challah recipe. I tried variations, but this one has been the best so far.

RECIPE

1 3/4 c water

1/3 c oil

2/3 c honey

1 1/2 tbsp yeast

2 tsp salt

2 eggs, set a little of one egg white aside

6 1/2 c freshly ground whole wheat flour

1/4-1/2 raisins (optional. But I always use them.)

Combine water, oil, honey and yeast, and eggs. Add half the flour and salt, mix. Add the rest of the flour and knead until smooth and elastic (about 10-15 mins). Let rise till double. Shape, adding raisins if desired. Let rise till double again. Bake at 325F for about 25 mins. Brush with slightly beaten egg white for the last 5 mins of baking.

This recipe makes 2 small loaves (usually a regular 3 braid) or one large (4 or 6 braid).

I have better luck getting it to rise and be big and puffy if I do a large loaf, with a braid using 4 strands. Below is a video showing one way to braid with 6; there are many ways. Do whatever you like and enjoy!

If you want to know more about challah, here are some articles and other recipes:

http://www.aish.com/search/challah

Shabbat Shalom!

Easy Hummus Recipe

If you've never tried Hummus, you've been missing out. Hummus is a Mediterranean dish made from pureed chickpeas (garbanzo beans.)It's delicious on sandwiches or as a dip for veggies. There are many varieties and flavors; if you don't like it one way then that only means that you haven't found "your" secret ingredient.

The basic ingredients are:Cooked Chickpeas,Garlic,Olive Oil,Lemon Juice.

Israelis add Tahini, which is a paste made from sesame seeds (like peanut butter, but from sesame seeds). Tahini is a critical ingredient to Israelis; I don't like it, and I make my hummus without it, like the Greeks do.

I can't give you an exact recipe because I don't use one; I just:

1)Put my cooked chickpeas in the food processor and add:

A garlic clove

Some lemon zest, and juice of 1 lemon

Salt

Cumin (optional)

Blend till smooth, adding water as necessary, tasting and adjusting seasonings.

Variations include: Adding roasted peppers, fresh herbs such as cilantro, dill, or parsley, cayenne pepper for a little kick. Be creative! There are many things you can do, it just depends on your taste.

For a nice presentation, spread the hummmus on a shallow dish, with an "edge" higher than the rest, and a slight depression in the center. Sprinkle with paprika and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil; add some olives if you'd like.

I serve this with Roasted Eggplant and Couscous Tabouli Salad, with pita bread for dipping or making sandwiches.

Here is a video showing the basic steps for making Hummus. It's not my video; I don't use all of the same ingredients. But it shows the main idea and what it should look like when you're done. Because there are so many variations, you can take some, all, or none of the ones shown here.

Enjoy!

Couscous Tabouli Salad

Living in Israel offers many differences to living in the US. Being here this long, I have begun to really appreciate the flavors of Middle Eastern cuisine.

Most tabouli is made with bulgar wheat; I prefer the taste of the couscous. I had just been introduced to these types of foods before moving here; they are healthful, and neither expensive nor difficult to prepare. I'll add recipies for the accompaniments as I can.

Couscous Tabouli Salad

Serves 6
Adapted from: Chez Christine

2 cups whole wheat couscous
1 garlic clove, minced

2 large cucumbers, peeled, seeded, & finely chopped

3 medium tomatoes, seeded and finely chopped 1 bunch fresh mint leaves 1bunch fresh parsley approx 4 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
Fresh lemon juice (about 3 lemons’ worth)
Salt & pepper

1. In small saucepan with tightly fitted lid, mix DRY couscous with 2 tsps extra virgin olive oil.
2. Add 2 cups boiling water to couscous. Immediately cover and let stand 5 minutes.
3. After 5 minutes, fluff with fork, and leave uncovered to cool.
4. In the meantime, in large bowl, combine chopped tomato, cucumber, and garlic.
5. Finely chop mint (separate from stem) and parsley leaves. Note: I have tried to use the food processor for this to save time, but was not satisfied with the uniformity and size of the results. If your food processor is better than mine, go for it. Otherwise, I find it worth the effort to chop by hand. Add to bowl.
6. Add couscous, and gently mix to combine
7. Add olive oil.
8. Add lemon juice, salt, and pepper to taste. Cover and chill.

9. Add crumbled feta just before serving.

I serve this together with homemade hummus, roasted sliced eggplant, and labana cheese (similar to yogurt) along with olive oil for dipping and some nice bread or pita. Yum!

Quick and Easy Granola

Did you know that between 4am and 12 noon, your body is on its "elimination" cycle? That means it's the time that your body "takes out the garbage". Ever notice you seem to need to use the bathroom in the morning? This is why.

The complicating thing is that anything you eat will slow down this elimination cycle. You definitely don't want to do that if you want to lose weight, or just keep your body from developing toxin-related diseases. Anything will slow down elimination, that is, except for fruit. That is why the best thing you can eat in the morning is fruit. We get our fruit in the form of a smoothie. We have them for breakfast almost every day. Another time, I'll give details on how to make your own delicious, nutritious, filling and easy fruit smoothies.

One day a week we have cereal for breakfast as a treat. The boxed cereals are so expensive, especially if you want to buy some with good wholesome ingredients (no processed sugar!), that I looked for an alternative, and I found one. This granola is easy to make, inexpensive, and tasty. We use it with rice milk for cereal, and it is also delicious with fruit and a little yogurt. I hope you enjoy it!


QUICK AND EASY GRANOLA



1 stick butter
½ c honey
4 c rolled oats
Optional: raisins, about ½ cup
Vanilla, a splash
Dried coconut
Nuts
About ½ tsp cinnamon


1) Preheat oven to 400F. Grease a baking sheet.
2) Melt butter and honey. Add vanilla and ½ tsp cinnamon if desired.
3) Add oats, stirring well to coat
4) Spread on baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes
5) Stir, adding raisins if desired
6) Bake an additional 5 minutes
7) Allow to cool, stirring every so often so it doesn’t harden all together.
8) Store in airtight container and enjoy!