Peanut butter and sesame noodles:

Usually peanut butter contains lots of sodium and saturated fat, but I found a healthy peanut butter (trader Joes- Better n' peanut butter)which is low fat, low in sodium and pretty healthy. This recipe contains lots of veggies and is little spicy, slightly sweet.

Ingredients:

1 pack of whole wheat organic spaghetti

1 inch ginger chopped finely

I small onion sliced

1 carrot sliced in thin strips

1 bell pepper sliced in thin slices

1 bunch kale leaves roughly chopped

1 small bunch baby spinach leaves roughly chopped
1 tsp rice vinegar
1 tsp  soy sauce (low sodium)

2 tbsp sesame seeds

4 tbsp peanut butter

½ tsp sriracha sauce (hot sauce)

1 tbsp organic honey

1 lime juice and zest

2 cloves garlic chopped finely

1 tsp oil

For the peanut dressing: Place the peanut butter in a large measuring cup and microwave to soften (15 seconds). Whisk in with the soy sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, honey, sriracha, and lime zest and juice in a small bowl. Keep it aside.

In a wok, heat oil and sauté the veggies and the garlic till cooked thoroughly. In a separate pot, cook the noodles as per the instructions on the packet. Drain all the water and add the cooked noodles to the cooked veggies. Serve with the peanut butter sauce and garnish with sesame seeds before serving. 

Fig, date and almond meal healthy cake

On our anniversary this year, I wanted to bake a cake, but I wanted it to be something special and healthy. I came upon several recipes without flour. I was interested in most paleo diet special cakes. I stumbled upon the following cake recipe and decided to make it.

Adapted from: greenkitchenstories (chocolate nut and date cake)

1/2 cup fresh soft medjool-like dates, pitted

½ cup dried figs (soaked in water)
1 cup raw almonds or almond meal
1 block 80% dark chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 organic egg
1 organic orange, juice and zest
2 tbsp unsweetened cacao powder
1 tsp extra virgin coconut oil, melted
1 handful fresh or thawed strawberries

Preheat the oven to 340F/175°C. Place raw almonds in a food processor and pulse until you have a fine textured flour. If you are using almond meal, then you can skip this step. Then add the dates and soaked figs and mix until well mashed. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir with a large spoon to combine. Pour the batter in a greased pan and bake for 40-50 minutes. Let the cake cool slightly before removing the pan. Serve with berries.

Healthy quinoa salad:

Ingredients:

½ cup red quinoa rinsed and drained

1 cup water

1 ripe avocado

1 small bunch organic baby spinach leaves

1 small chopped red onion

Lemon juice as per taste

Salt as per taste

1/3 cup feta cheese crumbled

1 small finely chopped tomato

1/3 cup sweet corn

Cook the quinoa as per the instructions on the packet and drain all the water. Keep it in a serving bowl until cold. Now add the chopped onion, tomatoes, corn and roughly chopped spinach leaves. Mix well.

Add salt, lemon juice as per taste. Now add the finely chopped avocado and crumble the feta cheese and serve. You can enjoy this as a pizza side or a pasta side dish.  

Super easy corn and kale rice:

Each time you plan a party, you keep thinking of different kinds of rice dishes. So, I got one super easy, tasty and with a lot of greens dish for you. I am very fond of kale since it is a super green. But, making your toddler eat greens is a big problem. Since kids love corn, this is one recipe where you can make your kids eat greens too J I have replaced kale with fenugreek too and that works great too.

Ingredients:

2 cups basmati rice washed

1 tsp oil

1 chopped red onion

2/3 cloves

3/4 peppercorns

1 cinnamon stick

1 bay leaf

3/4 garlic cloves finely chopped

1 inch ginger chopped finely

2 cardamom pods

1 cup corn (you can add more)

1 big bunch cut and chopped organic kale

1 cup Water to cook rice
salt as per taste

In a large wok, heat the oil and add cloves, peppercorns, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, cardamom and chopped red onion. Saute well and add chopped garlic and ginger. Once the onion and ginger-garlic is cooked well, you can add the washed rice (remove water). Saute it well and then add corn and chopped kale. Now add water as per the requirement of rice. I usually add 1 cup (i.e half the amount of rice). Add salt as per taste. Cover and cook for about 15 minutes or until rice is well done.

Enjoy with a bowl of soup J