I’ve been doing a lot of food shopping in Paterson, NJ lately because of their wonderful Middle Eastern stores. One of my favorite reasonably priced items to get there is tahini. I stocked up on it and have been making loads of hummus, tahini cookies and the following salad dressing that I replicated from memory, as best I could, from my friend’s dressing at our book club years ago. I hope you like it!
Tahini Salad Dressing:
1/3 cup tahini sauce
1/3 cup plus 3 tbsp water
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 small garlic clove, peeled
2 tsp maple syrup, agave or honey
1/2 tsp dried thyme
2 pinches Kosher salt
Steps:
In a blender or with a fork, mix all the ingredients until fully combined and refrigerate.
Serve with vegetables, rice, falafel or anything you like!
Take Back the Kitchen: Alma’s Garlic Buckwheat with Coriander and Currants
I love cooking up a lot of grains and then letting the recipes flow from there. I’ve been making a lot of buckwheat lately, something healthy and new for me, and then throwing in some spices, nuts and dried fruit. Using up some vegetables makes this a simple and tasty side dish or main dish. Enjoy!
Garlic Buckwheat with Coriander and Currants
5 cups cooked buckwheat
3 cups kale, chopped
2 tbsp minced garlic
3 tbsp coconut oil or other healthy oil
1 large minced onion
1 tsp salt
2 tsp ground coriander
1/4 cup dried currants
1/4 cup marcona almonds or dry roasted almonds, chopped
Steps:
In a large frying pan over low heat, preferably non stick, heat up the oil.
Add in the onion and garlic and saute until translucent, about 10 minutes.
Add in the kale and saute a few minutes.
Add in the cooked buckwheat and stir.
Add in the coriander, salt stir.
Add in the currants and nuts, stir to combine and serve hot.
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Take Back the Kitchen: Alma’s Healthy Truffles
I’ve been experimenting with a lot of different ways to make healthy desserts for myself and my kids and I must say that this one really satisfies. The cocoa powder gives it the essence of a chocolate truffle without all the sugar. Enjoy!
Healthy Truffles:
2 cups dried figs
2 cups roasted, salted cashews
2 tbsp unsweetened coconut flakes
1 tbsp brown rice syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp water
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
Steps:
Pulse all the ingredients together except for the cocoa powder and press into an 8″x8″ pyrex dish lined with parchment paper or roll into balls.
Slice into 10 bars or roll into about 40 balls.
Roll the balls in the cocoa powder or sprinkle cocoa powder over the bars.
Serve cold or at room temperature.
For more great recipes, please visit: takebackthekitchen.com
Take Back the Kitchen: Alma’s Mung Beans and Brown Rice
It’s the start of a new year so why not make it a healthy one from day one? I whipped this dish up pretty quickly and ate it for lunch for a few days. I used leftover brown rice that I always have prepared in my rice cooker. Treat yourself to a rice cooker in 2015. It will change your life!
Alma’s Mung Beans and Brown Rice:
1 cup dried, sprouted mung beans (can get at Whole Foods and other health food stores)
2 1/2 – 3 cups already cooked brown rice
1 tbsp butter or olive oil, coconut oil or any other healthy oil you like
2 tsp curry powder (more to taste)
1/4 tsp black pepper, ground
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup cashews, chopped
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped finely
Steps:
In a large pot, add the sprouted mung beans and cover with about 1 inch of water.
Boil until the beans are tender, about 20 minutes.
Stir in cooked rice, butter or oil, curry powder, pepper and salt.
Stir over low flame for about 5 minutes until rice is heated through.
Serve and top with chopped cashews and cilantro.
For more great recipes, please visit: takebackthekitchen.com
Take Back the Kitchen: Alma’s Chick Pea Salad For a Crowd
A few weeks ago I had to make a dish for a large pot luck dinner I was attending. I had nothing prepared but remembered my giant can of chick peas. Costco has a huge can that I keep in my basement in case of emergencies and I am so glad I remembered it! With a little browsing through my pantry and fridge, I came up with this very simple and healthy dish that was a hit. I hope you like it!
Chick Pea Salad For a Crowd:
Ingredients:
1 110 oz. can chick peas, about 13 cups
4 cups cilantro, loosely packed, washed and chopped finely
4 cups kale, chopped and sautéed in 1 tsp olive oil until wilted
3 oz. dried barberries, soaked for 15 minutes and drained or 1 cup dried currants (can get Barberries in Middle Eastern stores)
2 cups shallots, minced and sautéed in 1 1/2 tbsp butter until wilted
1 large carrot, peeled and finely diced
2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar and the juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup olive oil
Steps:
Combine all the above ingredients and let marinate for at least 1/2 hour before serving at room temperature.
For more great recipes, please visit: takebackthekitchen.com
Join Us for a Holiday Baking Twitter Party with Honey Maid! #ThisIsWholesome
We’re less than two weeks away from Christmas and you know what that means….time to buy pants in the next size so that you can enjoy all those holiday treats that you’ll be inhaling this time of year. There’s something about the holiday season that puts my sweet tooth into high gear and this year, I’ve teamed up with the folks at Honey Maid Graham crackers to host a twitter party where we’ll be sharing fun recipes and tips for the holidays. Of course, all our recipes will include Honey Maid Graham crackers and we’ve got some of the most talented bloggers I know sharing their amazing recipes! Oh and did I mention there will be prizes too so that you can make sure you can purchase all the ingredients you need to make this holiday extra special!
Join us on Tuesday, December 16 from 8-9 pm ET and make sure you follow @Rolemommy, @dawnchats @HeatherM74 and use the hashtags #Honeymaid and #ThisisWholesome. We’ll be sharing great recipes direct from our blogger ambassadors – from crunchy smores fudge pops to Honey Graham’s holiday cheese cake to graham cracker christmas trees to gingerbread cream pie, we will have you salivating for dessert once the party’s over. Better yet, why not bake something in time for the party and in between forkfuls, you can share a few tweets and win some prizes.
Need some more baking inspiration? Then check out the Honey Maid website for these amazing recipe ideas! Can anyone say Frozen Lemonade Squares???
RSVP via the link below and we hope to see you at the Twitter party on Tuesday night!
Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Honey Maid Graham crackers. However, all opinions, especially those involving baked goods are 100% my own.
Take Back the Kitchen: Alma’s Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Hazelnuts
Brussels sprouts are one of those vegetables that can be oh, so bad or oh, so very good. For example, the boiled or steamed, mushy version of my childhood, not so good. These buttery, mustardy roasted ones? Delicious!! Try to find cute, little ones for this recipe if you can. Enjoy!
Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Hazelnuts:
1 lb small brussels sprouts, washed trimmed and cut in half
drizzle of olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp grass fed butter
1 tbs organic Dijon mustard
1/3 cup hazelnuts, chopped and toasted
salt to taste
Steps:
Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees
Lay parchment paper on a cookie sheet.
Take prepped and dried sprouts and lay them on the paper.
Drizzle the oil all over them and then toss them with your hands to evenly coat in the oil.
Place in the oven on the top third rack.
Meanwhile, melt butter and whisk in the mustard until it is completely emulsified and set aside.
Remove sprouts after about 25 minutes or when they are all getting crispy and brown.
Drizzle the butter/mustard sauce over them, toss to coat and top with the toasted hazelnuts.
Salt and serve immediately.
For more great recipes, please visit: takebackthekitchen.com
Take Back the Kitchen: Alma’s Savory Gluten Free Pumpkin Pancakes
Need to take a break from holiday food madness? Try these simple yet healthy and delicious pancakes that can be served for breakfast or as a bread with soup or Indian Dahl. Feel free to add or omit any spice to give them the flavor of any regional cuisine. Enjoy!
Savory Gluten Free Pumpkin Pancakes:
2 cups pumpkin puree
1/3 cup almond flour
7 eggs
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp butter, divided, for frying
Steps:
Combine all the ingredients up until the butter in a blender.
Heat up a large non stick pan or a griddle with a tsp of butter spread all around.
When the butter is hot (should sizzle when a drop of water hits it), pour out 3 inch pancakes.
Fry for about 2 minutes on each side or until they are golden brown on each side.
Fry the rest of the pancakes using more butter as needed so the pancakes don’t stick.
For more great recipes please visit takebackthekitchen.com
Take Back the Kitchen: Alma’s Chipotle Cole Slaw
As crazy as this sounds, I am thinking of replacing cranberry sauce on Thanksgiving with my new cole slaw. Who needs all that added sugar? This tasty slaw will add some moistness to the turkey and give it a little kick. Who’s with me? It’s also a great way to use up that never ending cabbage that is always staring back at you from the fridge.
Chipotle Cole Slaw:
4 cups cabbage, shredded
1 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp chipotle pepper
juice of 1/2 lime
1 inch or more of shredded carrot
Steps:
Combine all the above, stir until fully combined and chill before serving.
For more great recipes, please visit takebackthekitchen.com
Take Back the Kitchen: Alma’s Fried Polenta Rounds with Parmesan
The holidays are coming and I am getting excited to start planning my appetizers. Polenta is a delicious and gluten free dish that I always seem to forget about but then rediscover when I am served it at restaurants. It is so easy to prepare and so satisfying with cheese or anything else you’d like to pile on. You may be stressed to host your holiday events so cut some time and effort corners with this simple app. Enjoy!
Fried Polenta Rounds with Parmesan
One tube prepared Polenta, sliced into 1/4″ round slices (should make about 20 slices)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tsp olive oil, divided
Heat up a medium to large size non-stick skillet over medium heat and add a tsp of the olive oil until hot.
When the oil is smoking a bit, add as many slices as you can to the pan, leaving a little room around them so that you will easily be able to flip them with a spatula.
Wait a few minutes and check with a spatula to see if the underside is getting golden brown. When it turns golden, flip it over and cook until that side is golden brown.
While you’re waiting for the second side to get brown, place a little of the cheese on top.
When the cheese is melted and the second side is golden brown, remove from the pan and loosely cover with aluminum.
Start making the second batch and when they are all done, serve immediately. Enjoy!
For more great recipes please visit: takebackthekitchen.com