Soy Ginger Peanut Dressing Over Kelp Noodle Salad

Dressing Ingredients:
1 1/2 tablespoon of low sodium soy sauce or tamari. Likely less if using liquid aminos
1 tsp minced ginger
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon date paste
1 tablespoon rice vinegar 
1 tablespoon of low oil smooth peanut butter* 
2 tablespoons of water
1/2 teaspoon chili garlic sauce or 1/4 tsp Sriracha (optional)

Salad Ingredients:
Kelp Noodles (serve 1/2 bag per person)
Hand full of chopped broccoli 
Hand full of chopped cauliflower
Hand full of shredded carrots

Instructions:
Heat dressing in microwave about 20 seconds, then stir until peanut butter is dissolved. 

In a bowl, pour over 1/2 bag rinsed, drained kelp noodles, chopped broccoli, chopped cauliflower and shredded carrots, stir and enjoy.

*Low oil peanut butter is made with raw/nonroasted peanuts, where no additional oil is added. Then pour oil out when first opening the jar before stirring and refrigerating. 

If you do not wish to use peanut butter, you can try a dab of miso to taste. 

 

 

Cucumber Kale Open Face Sandwich

By Ann Esselstyn

​Ingredients:
2 slices toasted whole-grain bread, toasted
2 to 3 tablespoons no added oil Tahini hummus (make your own)
1 green onion, chopped
2 medium kale leaves, chopped into bite-size pieces
½ small cucumber
Mustard of choice
Lemon pepper

Instructions:
1. Spread the toasted bread generously with hummus. Sprinkle the green onion, and kale evenly over the hummus.
2. Slice the cucumber into 8 rounds and spread each round with a thin layer of mustard.
3. Place the cucumber rounds, mustard-side down, on top of the kale layer and press down, if necessary, so they stay in place.
4. Sprinkle the open-faced sandwich generously with lemon pepper, cut in half or quarters, if desired, and serve.

 

 

Olive Tapenade 

(don't make if you are trying to lose weight due to the volume of seeds)

 

Ingredients:
1 dry cup of sunflower seeds
8 kalamata olives, make sure all pits are removed, producer tends to miss some
4 green olives
2 cloves of garlic, remove centers - the centers tend to be bitey/spicy
1 tablespoon capers
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup of water 

 

Instructions:

Place ingredients in food processor and blend until thick and smooth. Add water a little at a time until it just starts to blend. You could need more than 1/4 cup water, or less. Bend until smooth. It will take awhile for the tapenade to smooth out, so you don't crunch on the seeds. The consistency should be that of pate', which when you spoon it, the tapenade stays on the spoon when flipping it upside down. Serve with crackers.

 

 

Tunaless Spread

(don't make if you are trying to lose weight due to the volume of nuts and seeds)

 

Ingredients:
1 heaping dry cup raw walnuts
1 dry cup raw sunflower seeds
1/4 + cup chopped dill or sweet pickles or both (your preference)
1/4 cup chopped red onions
2 squeezed lemons
2-3 cloves garlic 
2 Tbsp. pickle juice (dill or sweet or both, your choice)
1 tsp Braggs Organic Sea Kelp Delight Seasoning or just minced kelp leaves
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup water

 

Instructions: 
Place everything into a food processor BUT the water and blend. Add water a little at a time until it just starts to blend. You could need more than 1/4 cup water, or less. Bend until smooth. It will take awhile for the pate' to smooth out, so you don't crunch on the nuts and seeds. The consistency should be that of pate', which when you spoon it, the pate' stays on the spoon when flipping it upside down. Serve with crackers or make a sandwich. 

 

 

Lemon Quinoa with Roasted Veggies
 

Ingredients:
1cup dry Quinoa - Cook Quinoa based on package instructions
Big handful of Broccoli 
Big handful of Cauliflower 
Any other veggies you want
Onion powder to taste
Garlic powder to taste
Salt to taste
1 organic lemon or more
1 tsp lemon pepper seasoning if desired

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 425. On cooking sheet lined with parchment paper, line the sheet with your veggies. Sprinkle onion powder, garlic powder and salt on the veggies. Pop it in the oven for 25 minutes. Might want to stir the veggies once, while roasting.

In the quinoa, zest the entire lemon, along with adding onion powder, garlic powder, lemon pepper seasoning, and salt to taste. Cook the Quinoa as directed. I use the Instant Pot to make the quinoa. Sprouted quinoa tends to be mushy in the instant pot, which means it needs less time than regular quinoa. 

Cut the lemon in ½ and squeeze the entire lemon into a small bowl. 

Combine veggies and quinoa. Spoon some into your bowl and then pour lemon juice, to taste, over it. Be careful not to over dress with the lemon juice. If you do, add more quinoa in your bowl.

 

Garlicky Kale

Ingredients:
1 bunch raw kale, washed, de-stemmed and dried
2 TBSP no oil tahini
2 TBSP apple cider vinegar (or water)
2 TBSP lemon juice
2 TBSP Bragg's liquid aminos (tamari or soy sauce would work too)
4 TBSP nutritional yeast
2 tsp minced garlic (1 - 2 cloves of garlic), remove centers - the centers tend to be bitey/spicy
Sesame seeds, to taste as garnish (optional)

Instructions:

• Break or cut kale into bite-size pieces and place in a large bowl.

• Puree all ingredients except kale and sesame seeds in a blender or food processor to blend the dressing.

• Pour dressing over kale and massage into the kale with your hands until all pieces of kale are coated.

• Let the salad sit in the fridge for an hour or so to marinate. You can skip this step if you need to eat right away, but allowing some time to marinate will wilt the kale a bit and make it a little more palatable - particularly for those who are skeptical of eating raw kale.

• Sprinkle on some sesame seeds before serving if so desired.

 

 

Baba Ghanoush

 

Ingredients:
1 medium eggplant 
1/4 c walnuts
2 Tbsp lemon juice 
2 Tbsp raw sesame seeds 
2 small clove garlic, remove centers - the centers tend to be bitey/spicy
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
1/2 tsp liquid smoke or to taste

 

Instructions:

• Cook over flame until chard. Cut off tops. 

• Over low-medium heat covered, cook for 30 min, turning it 1 time within 15 min.

• No water or oil needed during the cooking process. Take out of the pot. 

• Cut eggplant in half and add to blender or food processor along with the rest of the ingredients, blend until smooth. 

• Taste then add the ingredients you feel is lacking until its just right for your taste.  

 

Quinoa Kale Salad With Lemon-Caper-Shallot Vinaigrette 

Ingredients:
Lemons
Sea Salt
Pepper
Agave
Capers
Shallots
Garlic
Quinoa
Dijon
Mrs. Dash Lemon Pepper Seasoning
Kale
Black Beans or Chickpeas
Onion powder or onion (optional)
Carrots, Broccoli, or fennel (optional)

Dressing Instructions:
2 squeezed lemons
Sea Salt to taste (1/4 tsp maybe)
Pepper to taste (1/4 tsp maybe)
1 tsp maple syrup or to taste
1 tablespoon of crushed capers
2 tablespoons of diced shallots
1 tablespoon of minced garlic
1 tsp Dijon
Stir, taste, add more of what you feel it needs, set aside

Quinoa Instructions:
Cook your favorite quinoa based package directions, but before cooking, add some onions or some onion powder, salt, pepper, and garlic to taste (basically the amounts you want in the quinoa-based on the amount of quinoa you make. Let cool.

Salad Instructions:
Kale on bottom of plate (as much as you’d like)
Heap the quinoa on top of the Kale, as much as you like
Heap black beans or chickpeas on top (directly from can) as much as you like
Add carrot shavings, broccoli shavings, or fennel shavings or nothing on top 
Pour vinaigrette over top, as much as you like
Sprinkle Mrs. Dash Lemon Pepper seasoning on top, as much as you like

Serving size: two for a side dish or one for an entire meal

 

 

Coconut Curry Chickenless Salad
(Don't make if trying to lose weight due to the coconut milk; also tofu is higher than fat on average, so eat limited amounts)

 

Ingredients:
1 pkg organic, Non-GMO extra firm tofu
1 Tbsp Sweet or Mild Curry Powder
1/2 c regular coconut milk from can 
2 tsp maple syrup 
Sea Salt to taste

 

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 350.

• Squeeze as much liquid out of the tofu as possible. I encourage using a tofu press. Use paper towels to soak up liquid. Squeeze hard. This step is very important. 

• Add a sheet of parchment paper to a baking sheet. Crumble tofu in small pieces spread over pan. 

• Place pan in oven 15 min. Take out, flip/scrape tofu, spread it out again. Put back in the oven for another 15 min. Take out. Let cool some. 

• Put Tofu in the bowl. Mix curry powder, syrup, salt and only the coconut paste from the can (1/2 c). 

• If you think the mixture is too thick, add 1/2 - 1 tsp of the liquid part of the coconut milk to thin it some. Add more if needed.

• If you want it sweeter add a little more syrup. If you want more curry flavor, add more curry powder. 

• Spread on your favorite toast and serve. 

• Refrigerate. 

Optional: Finely diced onion and/or celery and add to mixture. 
Note: light coconut milk has little to no coconut paste. Regular coconut milk has quite a bit of paste.