Hungarian Chickpeas!

Photo by Janet Malowany

Holy bean love, people...these are insanely delicious! This recipe is one of my favorites from my third cookbook, Radiance 4 Life. It's very quick and easy to put together, but does require smoked paprika. You can usually find this divine elixir of spice in health food stores, many supermarkets, and most international food markets. It's worth the (relatively inexpensive) purchase though - smoked paprika will lend a rich, earthy, complex flavor like nothing else. It's also great sprinkled on babaganoush or hummus, or as a seasoning for a wide variety of dishes.

So, without further delay...

Hungarian Chickpeas!

▪ 15 oz. can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained

▪ 2 tablespoons pitted and quartered kalamata olives (or other Greek olives)

▪ 2 tablespoons each: raisins, chopped cilantro, and minced yellow or white onion

▪ 1 tablespoon each: extra-virgin olive oil and raw agave nectar

▪ 2 teaspoons each: dijon mustard, fresh lime juice, and smoked paprika

▪ 1 teaspoon dried oregano

▪ 2 large cloves garlic, minced or pressed

▪ ½ teaspoon sea salt

Combine all of the ingredients and stir very well. Serve cold or at room temperature. This will keep, refrigerated in an airtight container, for up to a week.

 Serves 2/GF/SF/Green (according to the health guidelines in my books)

30 Minutes or Under!

10 Minute Gluten-Free Pasta with Artichokes!

I have an undying love of artichokes and felt like indulging said love yesterday with a big bowl of goodness. And although I'm not gluten-free, I don't like to overdo any one nutrient - so I take lots of breaks from wheat. One of the best ways to do this is with corn-quinoa pasta. Even if you're like me and don't have to avoid gluten, you'll love the flavor, texture, and visual appeal of this healthy pasta!

8 oz. dry corn-quinoa pasta (I use "Ancient Harvest" brand)
Two 15 oz. cans or jars of water-packed artichoke hearts, drained
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
8 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
1/4 cup fresh parsley, minced
lots of black pepper, to taste
sea salt to taste (I use white truffle sea salt for extra deliciousness)

Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package. While the pasta is cooking, place all of the other ingredients in a large bowl and toss well. Once the pasta is al dente, drain and toss with the "sauce." Serve immediately. Enjoy!

Makes 4 servings
GF/SF/Blue (according to the guidelines in my books)

Lemon-Poppy Seed Muffins with Zesty Lemon Glaze

The most frequent thing I hear when serving these muffins is: "How can you possibly expect me to eat just one of these?" Luckily, these are much healthier than typical lemon poppy seed muffins due to the use of whole grains, flax, and animal-free ingredients.

This recipe is from my book, Radiant Health, Inner Wealth. (photo by Olga Vasiljeva)

Flegg (flax egg replacer)
2 tablespoons ground flaxseed (flax meal)
3 tablespoons boiling water

Dry Ingredients
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
½ cup organic sugar
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon each: baking powder and baking soda
3 tablespoons poppy seeds

Wet Ingredients
¾ cup nondairy milk
¼ cup each: fresh lemon juice, melted coconut oil, and pure maple syrup
1 heaping tablespoon minced or grated organic lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Zesty Lemon Glaze
¼ cup plus 2 teaspoons organic powdered sugar
½ teaspoon minced or chopped organic lemon zest
1 ½ teaspoons fresh lemon juice
⅛ teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 400° F. Whisk the flaxseed and boiling water together in a large bowl. Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes, or until gooey. Real gooey.

2. Mix the dry ingredients together in a medium bowl, using a whisk (or sifter) until thoroughly combined. Set aside.

3. When the flegg has become sufficiently gooey, add all of the wet ingredients to the flegg bowl. Stir the wet ingredients into the flegg mixture until well combined.

4. Next, add the dry mixture to the large bowl with the wet ingredients. Stir them together until well combined, but do not over-mix.

5. Spray a dozen muffin cups lightly with oil (or place paper liners in each cup). Pour the batter evenly into each muffin cup or liner.

6. Bake the muffins for 20-30 minutes, or until they are golden brown and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

7. After a few minutes, take a knife and go around the edges of each muffin to loosen them. Gently remove them from the muffin tin and place them on a cooling rack or plate.

8. To make the Zesty Lemon Glaze: Place the powdered sugar in a small bowl and sift or whisk it (if necessary) to remove any lumps. Add the zest, juice, and vanilla to the bowl and stir well to combine.

9. Once the muffins have cooled a bit, drizzle the glaze over them. Now, see if you can eat just one!

Makes 12 muffins; GF (with substitution)/SF/Blue (according to the health guidelines in my books)

Raw Cinnamon Rolls

These are one of my favorite recipes from my third book, Radiance 4 Life. They've been such a lifesaver on my travels! I love how they're so sweet and satisfying, yet devoid of any sweeteners (other than whole dried fruit). Enjoy!

Photo by Olga Eglite

Raw Cinnamon Rolls

Think of these as a quick, delicious, healthy alternative to packaged energy bars. Since they’re so nutrient-dense, just one little roll can be surprisingly satisfying!

▪ 1 cup raw walnuts

▪ ½ cup raisins

▪ ½ cup (packed) pitted dates (about 12 dates)

▪ 2 teaspoons cinnamon

▪ ¼ teaspoon each: sea salt and ground nutmeg

1. Place all of the ingredients in a food processor. Blend until well combined and very crumbly, but don’t over-blend—you want to retain some texture.

2. Pull out small pieces of the mixture and roll into 1-inch balls with your hands. These will store in an airtight container, refrigerated, for several weeks or more.

Makes 18 rolls (9 servings)/GF/SF/Green/R/F/30 Minutes or Under

♥ Superstars: walnuts, dates

Fresh and Fast Thai Tofu Bowl

Here's a recipe from my third cookbook, Radiance 4 Life. All of the recipes in the book are chock-full of superfoods and, as always, vegan. This recipe is one of my favorites, as it's so satisfying and light, but so delish! Hope you enjoy.

(Photo by Olga Eglite)

Fresh and Fast Thai Tofu Bowl

This colorful dish combines cooked and raw items for a fresh, fast, delicious entrée. It may look like a lot of ingredients, but this really does come together very easily, and the entire dish can be prepared while the rice is cooking.

Rice:

▪ 2 cups water

▪ 1 cup forbidden rice (or long grain brown rice)

▪ 2 teaspoons tamari

Simple Sesame Tofu:

▪ 16 oz. tofu, firm or extra firm (use sprouted tofu if possible)

▪ ¼ cup tamari

▪ 2 teaspoons garlic granules

▪ 2 tablespoons sesame seeds

▪ 2 teaspoons coconut oil

Fresh Veggies:

▪ 2 medium carrots, grated (1 cup grated carrots)

▪ 1 cup finely chopped or shredded cabbage, green or purple

▪ 4 scallions, trimmed and chopped

Final Flavors:

▪ ½ cup Thai sweet red chili sauce

▪ ¼ cup dry-roasted peanuts

▪ ¼ cup (packed) fresh basil, cut into thin ribbons

1. Place the water, rice, and the 2 teaspoons tamari in a pressure cooker, rice cooker, or pot with a tight fitting lid. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer until the rice is tender (about 20 minutes in a pressure cooker or 45 minutes otherwise).

2. While the rice is cooking, get the tofu ready for action. Slice into 8 slabs and place on paper towels in a single layer. Cover with more paper towels and place a cutting board or cookie sheet over the top. Weight it down with something heavy such as a gallon of water or a case of strawberry kombucha.

3. While the tofu is pressing, prepare the rest of your ingredients and set them aside. To crush the peanuts (and trust me, you want them crushed), place them in a sealed plastic bag. Roll over the bag with a rolling pin or smash the bag with another heavy object. My daughter finds a large spoon quite fun and effective for this task. Set aside.

4. To finish the tofu: Remove the tofu from the pressing situation it’s in and cut into ½-inch cubes or little triangles—and yes, technically speaking, triangles are cuter. Next, place in a single layer on a plate and sprinkle with the ¼ cup tamari. Turn the pieces so that they’re evenly coated with the tamari. Sprinkle evenly with the garlic granules and sesame seeds. Heat a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat and add the coconut oil. When melted, add the tofu and stir-fry for about 5 minutes, or until the tofu is golden-browned on all sides.

5. To bowl up your entrée: Place some rice in each bowl and top with carrots, cabbage, and scallions. Place some tofu on top of that and drizzle with some Sweet Red Chili Sauce. Sprinkle with peanuts and basil and serve immediately.

Serves 4/GF/Green (according to the health guidelines in my books)

5 Minute Vegan Buffalo Bites!

I was feeling mighty snacky yesterday and wanted something along the lines of the Vegan Buffalo Wings from my favorite vegetarian restaurant, Watercourse in Denver. Speaking of which, please do yourself a favor if you're ever in the Denver area and stop on by that place. Mmm mmm goodness!

However, I wanted a relatively healthy and uber-quick version of their yummy treat (they make theirs with breaded, deep fried seitan). This is what I came up with - it's a keeper in my book and I hope you enjoy it as well!

14 oz. container extra-firm tofu (use sprouted tofu if possible)
3 tablespoons non-virgin coconut oil

3 tablespoons tamari
1/4 cup hot sauce (a basic, inexpensive cayenne hot sauce works well)
1/2 cup cornmeal or dry polenta

1. Cut the tofu into 8 slabs and press with paper towels to remove excess moisture. Cut the tofu into strips, then into small rectangles (about 1/2-inch x 1-inch in size).
2. Heat a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat and add the oil.
3. Sprinkle the tamari and hot sauce evenly over the tofu.
4. Add the tofu to the skillet and sprinkle the cornmeal on top. Stir-fry immediately to coat the tofu evenly with the cornmeal.
5. Continue to stir-fry until the tofu is golden-browned on all sides, about 3-5 minutes. Serve plain, with additional hot sauce, or vegan ranch dressing for dipping. Yeah baybay!!

Serves 4
GF/Blue (according to the guidelines in my books)
30 Minutes or Under!

Tip: For the vegan ranch, I'd suggest using Vegenaise lowfat vegan mayo as the base - I love it because it's made with flax and olive oils (And it tastes great, despite being lower in fat!). If you need a recipe, check out this one from VegWeb - OR buy my new book next month! There's a recipe in it for "Guilt-Free Ranch Dressing" that's yum!

Raw Moroccan Quinoa Spinach Toss

This recipe has been adapted from my book, Radiant Health, Inner Wealth. The recipe in RHIW calls for barley, but I'm loving it with this quinoa variation! I recently demonstrated this at a local health food store, and everyone was really impressed with how delicious it was, given how healthy and easy to make it is!

Raw Moroccan Quinoa Spinach Toss

I could live on this stuff! It’s fat-free, raw, nourishing, easy to make, and tasty! If you haven’t guessed yet by now, I’m a big fan of Moroccan seasonings—sweet, tart, and savory all at once. Yum!


1 cup dry quinoa, soaked overnight, then rinsed and drained well

Sweet-Savory Sauce:
1 teaspoon each: ground cumin and minced organic orange zest
¾ cup fresh squeezed orange juice
4 teaspoons each: fresh lemon juice and very finely minced onion
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons raw agave nectar

Simple Salad:
½ cup raisins
1 cup (packed) baby spinach, cut into very thin ribbons or minced

Optional:
Fresh mint, minced (about 1½ tablespoons)
Sea salt to taste (even I don’t salt this one, though!)

1. If you haven’t yet soaked the quinoa, you will need to do that first.

2. Stir the sauce ingredients together in a medium sized bowl until well combined.

3. Add the quinoa, raisins, and spinach to the sauce and toss to thoroughly combine.

4. Allow the mixture to marinate for at least 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to saturate the sauce into everything. If you do have the time to marinate this for an hour, that’s even better.

5. After the dish has finished marinating, you can add the mint and/or some salt if you like. If you have leftovers, this will keep for a few days in an airtight container, refrigerated.

Serves about 4-6
GF/SF/Green (according to the health guidelines in my books)