Carrot & Zuchinni Fritters

My best recipes mostly turn out to be the ones I throw together last minute and without much preparation. I love creating simple and delicious meals that anyone can re-create. 

This one is a weeknight favorite in the summer when carrots and zucchini are vibrant and abundant.

Enjoy these fritters on their own (they are filling) or with a side salad or vegetables. 

Ingredients

2 medium-large carrots, shredded (by hand or in a food processor)

2 zucchinis (or 1 zucchini and 1 summer squash), shredded

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1/2 cup oat or almond flour

2 eggs, whisked together in a small bowl

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Pinch of red chili flakes

To cook fritters:

2+ Tablespoons unrefined coconut oil

Procedure

1. Place shredded vegetables over a paper towel for a moment and pat down some of their water. Transfer to a large bowl and add remaining ingredients, except coconut oil. Mix until all ingredients are well combined. Note: make sure to lightly whisk eggs in a separate bowl first. 
2. With your hands, form patties with mixture. Heat coconut oil in a pan over medium heat. Add patties and cook on first side until lightly browned (30 sec-2 min depending on heat and pan). Flip and cook on the other side until browned as well. Continue until all mixture is used up. Note: You may need to add more coconut oil throughout cooking so patties don't stick to the pan. 
3. Serve fritters with your favorite dressing or sauce. I love topping them with pesto (You can find some great pesto dressings/sauces in my summer Ebook). 

Makes ~6 large fritters

Happy Cooking! 

Buckwheat Noodle Stir-Fry

I'm all about making healthy food taste amazing while spending little time in the kitchen. I have to say I do a pretty good job at it and love sharing that with you so you too can eat healthy on-the-go. 

As you know, I am a personal chef and prepare weekly meals for my clients. When I cook for private clients, I get to make more elaborate and time-consuming dishes, which challenges me in many ways that I love. 

But when I get home from cooking for 5 hours, all I want to do is eat good food and put my feet up. So I've mastered the art of making quick meals for myself with whatever I have in the fridge without jepordizing my health. 

So much can be done with fresh produce and staple ingredients. It just takes a bit of patience with yourself and some mental relaxation to get the creative juices flowing. 

I encourage you to get creative - really, anything goes! If it tastes good, you've mastered cooking. It's meant to be fun. Play with your food, friends. 

This recipe here is one of those easy and very tasty recipes I threw together last week. Enjoy!

Ingredients

12 ounces gluten-free buckwheat (soba) noodles

1 Tablespoon toasted unrefined sesame oil (or extra virgin coconut oil)

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 white onion, sliced

1 cup brussels sprouts, halved

1 cup wild mushrooms, chopped

1 large red bell pepper, chopped

Splash of coconut aminos or tamari, to taste

Handful spinach

Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Juice of 1/2 lime

Pinch of dried chili flakes

1 teaspoon sesame seeds, for garnish

Procedure

1. Cook buckwheat noodles according to package. Drain and toss with a bit of olive oil in pot or large bowl. 
2. In a pan, heat sesame oil on medium heat. Add garlic and onion, season with a pinch of sea salt and cook for a minute or so. Add brussels sprouts, mushrooms, and bell peppers and continue cooking until tender. Add coconut aminos and spinach and sauté until spinach has wilted. Season with sea salt, black pepper, lime juice, and chili flakes. Taste and adjust to your liking. 
3. Add vegetables to cooked noodles and toss to combine well. Taste and adjust with lime juice and sea salt if needed. 
4. Serve and garnish with sesame seeds. 

Serves 4

Colorful Cauliflower Stuffed Bell Peppers

Cauliflower is such a versatile vegetable and so delicious! So much can be done with it besides roasting, such as cauliflower mash and cauliflower rice. This stuffed bell pepper magic I'm sharing with you today is made with 'rice' made out of Romanesco (green cauliflower) and purple cauliflower.

The natural colors of vegetables blow me away sometimes. Every color pigment has it's own purpose and function in the body. The colors literally give our body specific codes as to what to do. 

Can you guess what green and purple color pigments do?

Here's a quick download of each: 

• Green foods are liver cleansing and detoxifying. Hence why when we think 'detox' or 'cleanse' we think greens. 
• Purple foods protect the central nervous system, the gut nervous system, and nourish the brain. 

Interesting, right? Nature is smarter than we think at times. Nothing is coincidence. 

This recipe is a variation of my first ever blog post over 3 years ago. What a trip it's been. My meals (and life!) are so much more colorful these days. Transformation is real. 

That's a whole other story. For now, I present to you these very pretty stuffed bell peppers that will color your world.

Ingredients

Cauliflower Stuffing

½ head purple cauliflower, coarsely chopped
½ head green/Romanesque cauliflower, coarsely chopped
1 carrot, diced
1 zucchini or summer squash, diced
¼ cup chopped parsley
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Splash of lemon juice
Pinch of sea salt and black pepper

Bell Peppers

• 3 bell peppers, halved longwise, seeds and core removed (type of bell pepper doesn’t matter, but we used 3 types to make it more colorful!)

Tahini Dressing

• ½ cup tahini
• ½ cup spring or filtered water
• 1 clove garlic
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Pinch of sea salt & black pepper

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. To make stuffing: Place chopped cauliflower in food processor and process until it resembles rice. Transfer to a bowl and combine with remaining ingredients. Toss, taste and adjust seasoning if needed.

3. To stuff bell peppers: Place prepared bell pepper halves in an oven safe baking dish. Stuff each pepper with cauliflower stuffing. Bake in oven for 25-35 minutes, until bell peppers are tender.

4. To make tahini dressing: Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth. If too thick, add more water until you reach desired consistency.

5. Serve stuffed bell peppers warm and drizzle with tahini dressing.

I created this recipe for Oh My Drifter. Photos by Micaela. 

Cozy Winter Vegetable Sauté

I just can't get enough butternut squash and sweet potatoes this winter season. Who's with me? I like preparing meals that pack a punch of flavor and don't take hours to make. It's surprisingly easy to do so when using seasonal vegetables, herbs, and spices.

This can be made as an entree, side dish, or snack. You can enjoy with a side of hummus and crackers as a filling meal like I did (pictured below), or with anything else you please.

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons extra virgin coconut oil

1 clove garlic, minced

2-inch piece ginger, minced

3 green onions, sliced

1 butternut squash, peeled and diced

1 1/2 cups oyster mushrooms, coarsely chopped

1 bunch baby bok choy, ends removed

1 Tablespoon coconut aminos - Coconut Secret

Pinch of sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Pinch of dried chili flakes, to taste

Juice of 1/2 lemon, plus lemon wedges to serve

Procedure

1. Heat coconut oil in a large pan. Add garlic, ginger, and green onion and sauté for a few minutes.
2. Add diced butternut squash, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 8 minutes, until tender but not mushy.
3. Add mushrooms, baby bok choy, coconut aminos, and spices.  Cover to cook until greens have wilted. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
4. Serve and garnish with chopped herbs and lemon wedges.

Serves 4-6

Enjoy and share if you try this dish. What's your favorite quick and flavorful meal?

x,

Giovanna

Miso-Glazed Eggplant with Cauliflower 'Rice'

Eggplant is one of my favorite vegetables, but one that I don't cook often for some reason. This recipe here took my taste buds to a whole other level of goodness. It's a great main or side dish for any dinner occasion. Treat yourself to this miso-glazed eggplant, you won't regret it.

Not only is it delicious, but eggplant has some pretty great health benefits:

• High in fiber and potassium
• Promotes hear health
• Supports brain health

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons white or yellow miso (organic and non-GMO)

2 green onions, sliced

1 Tablespoon unrefined sesame oil

1 Tablespoon grade B maple syrup

Juice of 1/2 lemon

Pinch of black pepper

Pinch of red pepper flakes, optional

1 large eggplant, sliced to 1/2 inch thickness

Cauliflower 'Rice'

1 head cauliflower, roughly chopped

Juice of 1/2 lemon

Pinch of sea salt

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together all ingredients, except eggplant, to make a sauce.
3. Place eggplant on a baking dish and drizzle sauce over it. Use a spatula or spoon to coat eggplant well. Bake for 20-30 minutes, until cooked and tender.
4. Cauliflower rice: place chopped cauliflower in a food processor and pulse until chopped into a rice consistency. Place in a large bowl and sprinkle with lemon juice and sea salt to taste. You may also cook it on the stove for a bit with coconut oil to warm it up and make it tender.
5. When eggplant is done, serve over cauliflower rice and garnish with fresh herbs and seeds. Enjoy!

What's your favorite way to eat eggplant?

Sweet Potato Gratin with Tahini Cream

This is not your typical baked dish. It's a healthy spin on a gratin that is comforting, nourishing, warming, and so satisfying. There's truly so much flavor in it, and so easy to make that it will blow your mind. I created this recipe for Oh My Drifter. 

Ingredients

Filling

– 1 large sweet potato, thinly sliced by hand or using a mandolin
– 2 zucchinis, thinly sliced by hand or using a mandolin
– 2 cups spinach
– 1 onion, thinly sliced
– 1 Tablespoon coconut oil

Tahini Cream

– ½ cup tahini
– ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
– 2 cloves garlic
– 2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
– Juice of 1-2 lemons
– Pinch of sea salt and black pepper

Topping

– 4 slices gluten-free bread, chopped
– 2 Tablespoons melted ghee or coconut oil
– Pinch of sea salt

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. Prepare filling: chop vegetables as directed and set aside in a large bowl.

3. Prepare tahini cream: Blend all ingredients together until smooth. If cream is too thick, add a bit of water.

4. Prepare topping: Place bread pieces in food processor and pulse until they reach consistency of crumbs. Add melted ghee or coconut oil and sea salt to taste and pulse once more.

5. Assemble: Add tahini cream and half of topping to vegetables. Toss to coat well and spread out evenly in a baking dish. Top with remaining topping.

6. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until vegetables are cooked through and the top has browned.

Photographs by the lovely Micaela.

Creamy Pumpkin Curry Soup

Pumpkin everything is going on in my kitchen these days. I love the colors and flavors of fall. Here's one of my favorite creations this season so far. You can use any variety of pumpkin, squash, or carrots as a base for this. They're all delicious.

Ingredients

1 medium sugar pie pumpkin

1 Tablespoon coconut oil

1 onion, sliced

1 clove garlic

4 cups homemade vegetable stock, spring water, or almond milk

1 Tablespoon curry powder

1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon Garam masala (optional)

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Juice of 1 lemon

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 425 F.
2. Cut pumpkin in half and scoop out seeds with a spoon. Don't discard seeds, you can make use of them!
3. Lay the pumpkin halves face down on a baking dish and add a bit of water to cover the bottom of the dish. Bake for 45-60 minutes, until tender. When fully cooked, pumpkin can easily be separated from skin and scooped out with a spoon.
4. Transfer pumpkin to blender, add remaining ingredients, and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Serves 6

Leave me a comment below to share how your fall curry creation came out!

x,

Giovanna

Summer Mango Salad

Oh, the lovely colors and flavors of summer. I created this refreshing salad for Oh My Dirfter. I whipped it together, and Micaela worked her magic with the camera.

Ingredients

– 1 large mango, diced
– 1/4 red onion or 1/2 cup radishes, sliced or diced
– 1/2 avocado, diced
– 1 cucumber or zucchini, cut in half and sliced
– Small handful of chopped fresh mint
– Juice of 1 lime
– Juice of 1/2 – 1 lemon
– Pinch of chili flakes
– Pinch of sea salt

Procedure

Place all ingredients in a medium-large bowl and mix to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Serve on a bed of greens or as is along with a side of seed crackers.

To learn how to make your own Seed Crackers, click here.

Foods to Eat After Giving Birth to Save Time and Stay Nourished + Rice Porridge Recipe

I had the great pleasure of being this week's 'Fab Friday Feature' at Chloe's blog from Chloe Jackman Photography. Learn what foods are best after giving birth and get the recipe for this beautiful rice porridge: Foods to Eat After Giving Birth to Save Time and Stay Nourished + Rice Porridge Recipe.

Ingredients

1 cup short-grain brown rice, soaked overnight

2 cups coconut milk (I recommend homemade or canned by  ‘Native Forest’ – organic and BPA-free)

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon or cinnamon stick

1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger or ground ginger

½ teaspoon ground cardamom

¼ teaspoon sea salt

Toppings:

½ cup unsweetened shredded coconut, toasted

½ cup hemp seeds

½ cup fresh strawberries, chopped

¼ cup fresh medjool dates, chopped

Extra coconut milk if desired

1 Tablespoons raw maca powder (optional, but will provide great hormonal balancing benefits), you can mix this in before adding the toppings

Procedure

1. Soak rice overnight or for at least 4 hours. Drain and rinse. Place in medium size pot with coconut milk, cinnamon, vanilla, ginger, cardamom, and sea salt.

2. Bring to a boil, lower heat, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes, until rice is cooked and it reaches a porridge consistency. Add water or more coconut milk if porridge becomes too thick.

3. Serve and stir in maca powder if using. Garnish with toasted coconut, hemp seeds, chopped strawberries, and chopped dates.

Serves 4