Category Archives: Multi-Veggie

These recipes contain three or more different vegetables

Go Med 7-Layer Party Dip

May 14, 2017Appetizer, Gluten-Free/Wheat-Free, Multi-Veggie, The Recipe Redux, Vegetarian (lacto-ovo)chefmichelle

Go Med 7- Layer Party Dip

Disclaimer: I received free samples of Sabra Hummus mentioned in this post. By posting this recipe I am entering a recipe contest sponsored by Sabra and am eligible to win prizes associated with the contest. I was not compensated for my time.

May 13th was National Hummus Day. Forgot to celebrate? That’s OK, since hummus can make for a delicious plant based protein source, it’s a great food option on just about any day of the year. With so many different flavor varieties available, it’s hard to get bored with it too. No surprise it’s often a favorite at parties and social gatherings.

health, wellness, diet, dietitian, nutrition, nutritionist, michelle moreau, chef, healthy kitchen, healthcare, medical insurance, Portsmouth, NH, seacoast, celiac, cardiac, diabetes, diet, weight loss, recipe, counseling, healthcare, gluten free — Go Med 7-Layer dip

Layered dips are always a party favorite. Most are made with Mexican-influenced ingredients. This recipe takes a fun Mediterranean spin on the classic. Gluten-free and vegetarian, it will satisfy a greater number of your party-goer’s dietary needs than most other dishes. It’s fast and easy to make, too.

For this recipe I used Skyr yogurt to save a step. Skyr contains much less water than Greek yogurt. If you substitute with Greek, you will want to strain the yogurt a few hours with cheese cloth and a strainer before adding it to the dip, otherwise your dish will become watery.

INGREDIENTS
1 – 15oz can Chick peas, rinsed, dried
2 containers Sabra Roasted Pine Nut Hummus
1.5 cups Romaine lettuce, cut into thin strips
1.5 cups Yogurt, Skyr, plain (about 3 serving containers)
1 large Lemon, zested and juiced
1.5 cups Cucumber, English, diced
1.25 cups Tomatoes, grape, quartered
1 medium Scallion, sliced into rings
.25 cup Feta cheese, crumbled
.25 cup Black olives, sliced

PREPARATION
Add chick peas to small mixing bowl. Carefully scrape out pine nut topping from the center of the Sabra Roasted Pine Nut Hummus and add to the chick peas. Slowly pour the flavor oil from the Sabra Hummus container onto the chickpeas as well. Toss chick peas in the pine nuts and oil to coat. Set aside.

To an 8×8 glass container add the remaining Sabra Roasted Pine Nut hummus. With a spatula, spread the hummus so that it evenly covers the bottom of your container. This is your dip’s bottom layer.

Add the chopped Romaine lettuce, spreading evenly over the top of the hummus layer.

Zest and juice the lemon. To a medium mixing bowl, add the yogurt with all the lemon zest and stir to combine. Evenly spread the yogurt mixture layer over the lettuce layer.

Add a layer of the chopped cucumber on top of the yogurt. Take 2 teaspoons of the lemon juice and drizzle it over the cucumbers. Reserve the remaining lemon juice for another use.

On top of the cucumber add the seasoned chick peas, making sure to spread layer evenly.

Top the chick peas with a layer of chopped tomato.

Top the tomato layer with the sliced scallions, olives and feta cheese.

Refrigerate dip for a couple of hours before serving so flavors can meld.

Serve chilled with your favorite chips.
Makes a boat-load of servings (20)!

What are some of your favorite party dishes?

Roasted Veggies with Carrot-Top Pesto

April 22, 2017Appetizer, Dressing/Rub/Sauce, Gluten-Free/Wheat-Free, Multi-Veggie, Soup, The Recipe Redux, Vegetarian (lacto-ovo)chefmichelle

Roasted Veggies with Carrot-Top Pesto
Recipe Redux – April, 2017: Easy Ways to Reduce Food Waste

Did you know that the most nutritious part of a beet is the is the greens at the top of the plant and not the ruby red root below?!

That’s right, it is.

The same holds true for other root vegetables, including carrots. The leafy green tops on a carrot are incredibly nutrient dense. Sadly, most people throw these incredibly valuable parts away.

Don’t follow the crowd and toss these nutritious greens out with the trash. Instead, toss them into your recipes in the kitchen!!!

But how exactly do you prepare those carrot top greens?

One way to use them is in your vegetable stock. That’s an really good use for the bottom part of the greens, especially when they are on the tough side.

But an even tastier idea for the softer stems and the leafy green parts: throw those carrot greens into a tasty garlic pesto. You won’t believe how delicious the pesto will be using carrot greens in place of basil. And imagine the money you can save using something you normally throw away in place of expensive bunches of basil! The recipe uses both the lemon juice and zest, so nothing is wasted from your citrus either.

This carrot top pesto tastes great tossed with roasted veggies; it really gives them an extra big punch of flavor. This recipe also yields way more pesto than your veggies will need. Use the extra pesto as a sandwich spread, or as your sauce with regular or zucchini pasta.

A little bonus: I managed to find these beautiful white onions with their tops also attached at the grocery. I took some of its whiter greens, sliced them and added them to the roasted veggies as well. the remaining greens I will throw in a stir fry later this week. Waste not, want not!

INGREDIENTS
2 bunches Carrots, with green tops
2 small Onions, white, peeled, sliced into eighths
1/4 cup Olive oil, divided
1 bunch Parsley, fresh, rinsed
2-3 large Garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 cup Walnuts
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 small Lemon, juiced and zested

PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cut the green tops off of the carrots and rinse the greens and carrots well. Set aside the carrot greens.

In a medium roast pan toss carrots and cut onion in 1 teaspoon of the olive oil. Roast the veggies for 30-40 minutes, or until al dente.

Separate the softer greens from the hard part of the carrot greens. Save the hard green stem parts for stock making at a future time by placing in a sealed ziplock bag in the fridge or freezer.

To a food processor add the softer carrot green tops, plus the parsley, walnuts, Parmesan cheese, lemon juice and zest and process to combine ingredients. Slowly drizzle in the remaining olive oil while processing. Use a rubber spatula to remove pesto from processor container.

Toss all the roasted vegetables in 1/4 cup of the carrot pesto. Serve warm.

Refrigerate the remaining pesto for future use. The pesto can keep 5 days in the refrigerator.

Makes 4 servings roasted vegetables and about 2 cups pesto.

Asian Noodle Zoodle Salad with Peanut Sauce

July 22, 2016Appetizer, Dairy-Free, Dressing/Rub/Sauce, Entree, Gluten-Free/Wheat-Free, Multi-Veggie, Salad/Side, Vegetarian (lacto-ovo)chefmichelle

Asian Noodle Zoodle Salad with Peanut Sauce
The Recipe Redux – July, 2016: Get your Fruits and Veggies in Shape

Here’s the problem with pasta in a healthy, balanced diet: When properly portioned, a single serving is so ridiculously tiny on your plate, you think someone is trying to starve you. That’s why with pasta it is really easy to find yourself overeating your starch portions.

Here’s my easy solution: mix in delicious veggie noodles, or “zoodles,” along with the grain-based pasta. Now you can have your big plate full of noodles, and feel good about it too. It is really fast and easy to make zoodles out of zucchini, as long as you have the proper slicer or spiralizer tool on hand. If fact, you can probably make the zoodles faster than you can bring the pot of pasta water to boil for the noodles!

salad, vegetable, pasta, noodles, zucchini, zoodles, buckwheat, multiveggie, gluten, celiac, nutrition, health, wellness, diet, registered dietitian, michelle moreau, Portsmouth, NH, chef, healthcare, medical, diabetes, celiac, weight loss, multiveggie, fiber, rainbow, healthy kitchen, chef, recipe — Salad and Sauce ingredients awaiting mixing and tossing

I love the color contrast between the black rice noodles and the zoodles. They sure do taste great together too.

zoodle, noodle, asian, zucchini, pasta, multiveggie, vegetables, vegan, vegetarian, diet, registered dietitian, michelle moreau, healthy kitchen, health, wellness, cardiac, diabetes, weight loss, celiac, gluten, healthcare, medical, counseling — Asian Noodle Zoodle Salad with Peanut Sauce

Can’t find black rice noodles? Then substitute with buckwheat pasta; you won’t have as much color contrast but it will still have delicious flavor (do make sure there’s no wheat in either noodle variety if you want dish gluten-free). If you are using brown or white pasta noodles I suggest substituting black sesame seeds for the white for more color contrast on your plate.

rice, pasta, zoodles, health, wellness, fiber, multiveggie, diet, salad, registered dietitian, nutritionist, healthcare, insurance, medical, michelle moreau, healthy kitchen, weight loss. diabetes, celiac, cardiac, gluten, vegan, vegetarian — Black Rice Pasta – fresh out of the package!

This pasta salad includes a rainbow in veggie colors. Any meal you can squeeze in a whole bunch of antioxidants I say is a meal put to good use!

pasta, multiveggie, salad, vegetables, vegan, vegetarian, gluten, health, wellness, rainbow, healthy kitchen, chef, diet, registered dietitian, nutrition, nutritionist, medical, insurance, counseling, healthcare, diet, weightloss, celiac, cardiac, diabetes, gluten — Great for your next picnic, lunchbox or group gathering

The secret to the best peanut sauce is using a great Asian spice blend. Here’s the one I usually use:

health, wellness, diet, dietitian, nutritionist, new hampshire, NH, Portsmouth, michelle moreau, chef, wellness, healthcare, diet, medical, insurance, celiac, cardiac, diabetes, gluten, vegan, vegetarian — Shichimi Togarashi (Red Pepper Mix) with Red Pepper, Roasted Orange Peel, Black Sesame Seed, Yellow Sesame Seed, Japanese Pepper, Seaweed, Ginger

I love this stuff! It adds great flavor and heat to practically any Asian dish, and a little goes a long way. It is one of my kitchen’s secret weapons, and now it can be one of yours too. I have seen it for sale in some regular grocery stores down South and out West in the US, but in the Northeast I only seem to find it available in Asian specialty stores. It’s worth the trip to the specialty store to have this included in your culinary arsenal.

INGREDIENTS

peanut, health, wellness, diet, registered dietitian, nutrition, nutritionist, multiveggie, chef, recipe, rainbow, fiber, salad, healthcare, insurance, Portsmouth, NH, medical, diet, counseling — Asian Noodle Zoodle Salad with Peanut Sauce

4 ounces Black Rice Pasta
2 teaspoons Olive oil
2 large Zucchini
1 large Red bell pepper, seeded and sliced
1/2 cup Tomatoes, grape, yellow, sliced
1 large Carrot, shredded
2 large Scallions, thinly sliced
1/3 cup Cilantro, fresh, minced
1 tablespoon Sesame seeds, white

for the sauce:
2 tablespoons Tamari, low-sodium
2 tablespoons Peanut butter, creamy
2 tablespoons Lime juice
1 tablespoon Rice Wine Vinegar
1 tablespoon Water
2 teaspoons Honey
1 teaspoon Sesame oil
1 tablespoon Ginger, fresh, minced
2 medium Garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon Asian spice blend

PREPARATION
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Break pasta in half to shorten, add to boiling water and cook until al dente.

While pasta cooks, cut zucchini into long, thin, noodle strands. Set aside.

Once cooked, strain pasta from water with a colander, then add pasta to a large mixing bowl. Toss pasta with olive oil to coat. Add the cut zucchini, pepper, tomato, carrot, scallion, cilantro and sesame seeds and lightly toss to mix.

In a medium mixing bowl add all the sauce ingredients. Whisk everything together until thoroughly combined.

Pour sauce over noodles. Toss to coat salad entirely with sauce. Refrigerate for at least an hour so that the flavors meld. Serve cold or room temperature

Makes 6 servings.

zucchini, zoodles, noodles, pasta salad, multiveggie, gluten, vegan, vegetarian, celiac, diabetes, cardiac, weight loss, diet, registered dietitian, nutrition, nutritionist, michelle moreau, Portsmouth, NH, seacoast, diet, recipe, healthy kitchen, wellness, healthcare, medical, counseling — Making fresh Zoodles with special slicer

Buffalo Cauliflower

July 12, 2016Appetizer, Dairy-Free, Entree, Gluten-Free/Wheat-Free, Multi-Veggie, Vegan, Vegetarian (lacto-ovo)chefmichelle

Buffalo Cauliflower

It’s amazing how some foods seem to pair so perfectly with certain events – like that box of popcorn in the movie theater, the candy apples on a stick at the carnival, or the big tower of cake at any wedding. For many sports fans no gathering is complete without a batch of Buffalo Wings within the food mix. But with all that saturated fat and salt, traditional Buffalo wing recipes can be far from heart-healthy.

This Buffalo Cauliflower recipe gives you the best of both worlds – a spicy, flavorful treat that is also more heart-friendly. There’s much less saturated fat (especially if you leave out the butter entirely), it’s and lower in sodium than traditional Buffalo wings. It’s also nice to have a homemade buffalo sauce on hand of which all of it’s ingredients you can pronounce.

I like to serve this dish with typical Buffalo wing sides: raw carrot and celery sticks and a bit of crumbled blue cheese. But even all on its own, this Buffalo Cauliflower is quite tasty. The Chili peppers give it a really nice heat.

If you want, make the Buffalo sauce ahead of time. Store it in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 6 days. Also, for this recipe you will need to use only about 1/2 of the sauce. So, there will be plenty leftover to turn just about anything Buffalo throughout the week! Toss the extra Buffalo sauce with more roasted cauliflower, or with chicken breasts, shrimp or tofu, or use it as a dip with your favorite corn chips or toasted tortillas.

INGREDIENTS
5 medium Plum tomatoes
1 medium Red bell pepper
1 medium Onion, peeled, sliced in quarters
2 large Garlic cloves, peeled
6-8 Cayenne pepper pods, dried
2 teaspoons +2 tablespoons Olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon Water
1/4 teaspoon Salt
*3 tablespoons Butter, unsalted
*(or substitute another 3 tablespoons Olive oil for butter)
2 large Cauliflower heads, cut to small “wing”- sized pieces

PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Add tomatoes, red pepper, onion, garlic and cayenne pods to a medium roast pan and toss with 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Cook for 1 hour, or until red pepper is soft. Peel and seed red pepper, discarding its peel and seeds. Add roasted veggies, water and salt to blender and blend smooth. Slowly drizzle in 2 tablespoons of olive oil while continuing to blend. Blend in the butter (or slowly drizzle in additional 3 tablespoons olive oil).

Toss the cauliflower with 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large roast pan. Lightly season with salt. Cook in oven 20 minutes, or until cauliflower is slightly softened.

Toss the cauliflower with about 1/2 of the Buffalo sauce. Roast the Buffalo Cauliflower another 15-20 minutes, or until cauliflower is al dente.

Serve alongside sliced, raw carrots and celery, plus blue cheese and/or blue cheese dressing.

Serves 8-12 people.

Summer Zoodles with Creamy Walnut Pesto Sauce

June 9, 2016Appetizer, Dressing/Rub/Sauce, Gluten-Free/Wheat-Free, Multi-Veggie, Raw Food, Salad/Side, The Recipe Redux, Vegetarian (lacto-ovo)chefmichelle

Summer Zoodles with Creamy Walnut Pesto Sauce
Recipe Redux: We Heart Walnuts! Recipe Challenge

Disclaimer: I received free samples of California walnuts mentioned in this post. By posting this recipe I am entering a recipe contest sponsored by the California Walnut Commission and am eligible to win prizes associated with the contest. I was not compensated for my time.

Summertime is a perfect time for getting active outdoors. Nothing beats a long day of hiking, biking or group sports out in the warm sun and fresh air. On these high activity days I often find myself craving a hearty meal, yet don’t want to fill my kitchen up with a bunch of heat from the stove.

This dish is a perfect and simple solution to this dinner dilemma. The Creamy Walnut Pesto sauce is so rich and satisfying, and everything- even the noodles- need no cooking!

“Zoodles” is my name for zucchini noodles. Making them is super easy if you have a spiralizer peeler. This fun, timesaving tool has blades that run in two directions. With it, you can cut out perfect noodle strips with every slice you make. Serve the zoodles uncooked so that they have a nice al dente texture. Making summer pasta will never get easier than that!

I love using walnuts in my pesto because I know they give my dish a big boost of Omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3s are anti-inflammatory, and especially beneficial on a long, hard day of exercise and play. Just one ounce of walnuts has 2.5 grams of Omega-3 alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) Bonus: they taste delicious in it too. Now that’s something to get nutty over.

INGREDIENTS
1 cup Walnuts
5 cups Basil leaves, fresh, rinsed
3 large Garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, chopped
1/3 cup Olive oil, extra virgin
4 large Summer Squash, cut into noodles
4 large Zucchini, cut into noodles

for the garnish
1/4 cup Walnuts
1/3 cup Cherry tomatoes, sliced

PREPARATION
To a high-powered blender add the 1 cup walnuts plus the basil, garlic, and Parmesan cheese. Blend on high, using a damper to help feed in ingredients as needed. While blending, slowly add in the olive oil. Blend until all the basil is chopped and you have a creamy sauce consistency.

Add summer squash and zucchini noodles to a large mixing bowl. Add Walnut Basil Pesto sauce to noodles and gently toss to combine. transfer noodles to serving bowl(s), top with remaining walnuts and cherry tomatoes and serve.

Makes 4 entree servings.

Quinoa Black Bean Salad

June 4, 2016Dairy-Free, Entree, Gluten-Free/Wheat-Free, Multi-Veggie, Salad/Side, Vegan, Vegetarian (lacto-ovo)chefmichelle

Quinoa Black Bean Salad

This quick and easy salad is a tasty side dish for your next cookout. The quinoa and black beans together make a complete protein, making it a good vegan entree too. Try making this once and it and it will soon become a family staple, as it keeps well in the fridge for days, and it’s also is a delicious lunchbox option.

I made this batch with a blend of white and red quinoa. Black quinoa works great in the mix too. I recommend using a blend of quinoa grains for the variety of texture.

Quinoa Black Bean Salad, health, wellness, diet, dietitian, nutrition, nutritionist, michelle moreau, chef, healthy kitchen, healthcare, medical insurance, Portsmouth, NH, seacoast, celiac, cardiac, diabetes, diet, weight loss, recipe, couneling, healthcare, vegetables, multiveggie, rainbow, whole grain — Quinoa Black Bean Salad

INGREDIENTS
3 cups Quinoa, cooked
1 can Black beans, low-sodium, drained, rinsed
1/2 cup Red bell pepper, seeded, diced
1/2 cup Yellow bell pepper, seeded, diced
1/2 cup Orange bell pepper, seeded, diced
2 large Scallions, thinly sliced
1/3 cup Parsley, flat leaf, chopped
3 tablespoons Lemon juice
1 tablespoon Apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons Honey
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Black pepper
3 tablespoons Olive oil

PREPARATION
To a large bowl add the quinoa, black beans, peppers, scallions and parsley and toss to mix.

To a medium mixing bowl add the lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, honey, salt and pepper and whisk to combine. As you continue whisking slowly pour in the olive oil to dressing.

Pour dressing over salad and toss to combine. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Makes about 7 servings.
Serving size 1 cup.

Healthy in the Kitchen

Every Meal is Opportunity to Nourish your Body