This breakfast recipe was surprisingly delicious, hearty, and easy to make.  A note about Buckwheat:  you will need to use Raw Buckwheat Groats, not Kasha Buckwheat which has been roasted.  The Buckwheat Groats need to be soaked over night, then rinsed in the morning and whizzed up in a blender.  In terms of flavourings, sweetness, toppings there are many options you can use: any fruit or quality fruit preserve, chopped nuts, seeds: flax, chia, etc.  Here is what I used:

1/4 cup raw Buckwheat Groats, place in jar and cover with double amount of filtered water.  Put the lid on and let sit on the counter over night.  (I actually did mine at noon, and then made breakfast at 6 am being the early riser that I am, but as long as it sits over night that will work. )

1/4 cup milk of choice

1/4 cup plain natural yogurt

1 Tblsp. chopped fresh ginger

1-2 tsp. pure maple syrup - or more to taste

1 small sliced banana

handful of blueberries, fresh or thawed frozen

sprinkle of pumpkin seeds

In the morning strain the buckwheat groats and rinse well.  Place into the blender with 1/4 cup milk, maple syrup and chopped ginger.  I quick pulsed mine about 30 times.

Pour into a bowl, mix in the yogurt, top with sliced bananas, blueberries and pumpkin seeds.

If you love curries, Tandoori flavors are some of the best.  The method here using an air fryer is very simple.  You can make your own Tandoori seasoning, but we recently found a jarred Tandoori paste that is gluten free - and outstanding in flavor.

In this recipe we used whole chicken legs, thigh with attached drumstick, but any chicken pieces will work nicely.  Cooking time will vary, depending on cut and size.

Method:

In a glass bowl, mix 4 Tblsp. natural low fat yogurt, with 1 Tblsp. of Tandoori paste, or more to taste.  Mix well. Cut a few slices on top of the chicken legs (not too deep) and place the chicken legs into the bowl and cover fully in the sauce.  Cover the dish with a lid or cling wrap and marinate in the fridge for minimum 4 hours.

Preheat the air fryer to 375 degrees for 5 min.  Carefully place a folded piece of parchment paper, folded to size into the bottom of the air fryer.  Using tongs, place in the chicken legs, leaving the top portion covered in the Tandoori sauce.

Cook 15-25 min. depending on size of the chicken legs.  Half way through, using tongs, turn the parchment paper to rotate.  Using an instant read thermometer, check the chicken legs intermittently, once the chicken has reached 165 degrees fahrenheight, the chicken is ready to be plated.

We had ours served with Saffron rice and steamed vegetables, but any side dish or salad will be complimentary.

 

I saw an article in our local newspaper showcasing Coronation Salad.  Having never heard of this recipe I discovered there are many versions of Coronation Salad, a salad that has layers of flavors, and a salad that is versatile in how you want to present it.  This is my version, which really is 2 salads in 1.  A rice and vegetable salad topped with the curry chicken salad.

Rice Salad:

1 cup Basmati rice rinsed well and cooked

2 chopped green onions

3/4 cup diced peeled cucumber

1/4 of a small yellow pepper, diced

1 celery stalk with leaves diced

2 seeded roma tomatoes, diced

2/3 rounded cup frozen peas

handful of chopped flat leaf Italian parsley

salt and pepper to taste

juice of 1/2 a large lemon

4 Tblsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Once your rice is cooked, set aside to cool.  Prepare all the chopped vegetables and measure out the frozen peas.  Once the rice is cooled add in the vegetables, peas, parsley and toss with a spoon.  Pour in the lemon juice, EVOO, and season with salt and pepper.

Chicken Curry Salad:

3 chicken breasts - I cooked them in the air fryer, but use your preferred method of cooking

1 1/2 Tblsp. plain low fat yogurt

3 rounded Tblsp. mayonnaise

1 1/2 tsp. marmalade

3 1/2 rounded tsp. Madras curry powder - or more to taste

juice from a fresh wedge of lemon

chopped almonds

steamed fresh asparagus to plate on the side

Once your chicken is cooked and cooled, cut into small cube size pieces, and set aside.  In a bowl, combine the rest of the ingredient except the almonds.  Whisk well.  Add the chicken pieces to the curry dressing and mix well.  Sprinkle the top with chopped almonds.

To assemble the Coronation Salad, add the rice salad to a bowl, then place a generous amount of the chicken curry in the middle of the rice salad with fresh steamed asparagus on the side.  A salad packed full of flavor, making a great lunch or dinner.

 

 

 

When you are looking for a hearty breakfast you can not beat Huevos Rancheros.  It is a filling, tasty delight with so much going on.  You can do fried eggs, braised eggs, poached or scrambled any way you choose it will be mighty delicious.

Finally, after many years of searching, we found the best corn tortillas.  They are made by a Canadian company by the name of Casa Bonita.  When heated in a dry cast iron pan, they stay soft, pliable and are delicious.  No more hard, dry, crumbly corn tortillas!

2 free range eggs, I braised mine but cook any way you prefer

1 corn tortilla

1 small green onion, sliced

2 Tblsp. minced cilantro include the stems

1/2 cup re fried beans, canned or homemade

1/2 an avocado, sliced lengthwise

grated cheddar cheese

salsa

Heat up a cast iron pan on medium high heat.  Meanwhile, cook your eggs and keep warm, and heat up the re fried beans on low heat and keep warm.

Place the corn tortilla in the hot cast iron pan and cook about 20 seconds each side, then place on a plate.  Slather on the re fried beans with a sprinkling of green onion, cilantro and cheddar cheese.  Top with the eggs adding remainder cheese, green onion and cilantro.  Top with salsa, and add sliced avocados. Such a hearty, yummy, satisfying, breakfast.

 

Here we are in March, and we can still get organic vegetables from our local farm.  Such a delight, and super fresh and delicious.  This week we got spinach, leeks, purple potatoes and carrots,

2 cups chopped fresh spinach

2 cups chopped fresh leeks (slice ends off then slice lengthwise and rinse well)

2 Tblsp. butter

1 cup chicken stock, 2 Tblsp. reserved

1/2 cup light cream (we use lactose free)

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

1/8th tsp. dried sage

good pinch of nutmeg

salt and pepper to taste

1 1/2 T cornstarch

2 Tblsp. reserved chicken stock

Heat up a braiser or saute pan on low medium heat, melting the butter.  Once it has come to temperature add in the leeks and spinach.  Saute until wilted, 5-8 minutes.  Season with sage, nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste.  Make up a cornstarch slurry with some of the chicken stock and set aside.

Pour in the remainder chicken stock stirring well.  Put on low, and simmer reducing to half.  Pour in  cornstarch slurry, only using a bit to slightly thicken, then add cream and Parmesan cheese, mix well  serve hot along side any main dish.

 

Each night I ask...what to cook tonight??  We had tacos the night before, with this recipe here.  There was about 1 cups worth of taco meat sauce left in the fridge.  With the high costs of groceries, well truthfully inflation overall everywhere, I refuse to throw away good food.  With a few pantry/fridge staples this recipe came together easily enough and was mighty tasty.

Quite often I will cook enough for 4 (there are 2 of us in our household now) and have the leftovers the next night.  This recipe here, worked perfectly for 2.

By the way, with the black beans, I froze the remainder in the canned sauced/water they came in, in an airtight container to use another day.  This made a great dinner, but would be lovely for lunch too and came together in about 30 minutes.

1/4 stalk celery, with leaves finely diced

good handful of fresh cilantro minced with the stems

2/3 cup black beans, rinsed well, separate in half in a bowl and mash one half of beans with a fork

398 can diced tomatoes drained, but reserve liquid

1 cup leftover taco meat sauce

1/4 cup frozen organic corn

1 tsp. chili powder, salt and pepper to taste

grated cheddar cheese

slices of avocado

corn chips

To a sauce pan, add the drained tomatoes with 1/3 cup of juice, celery, corn, cilantro, chili powder, and salt and pepper. Bring to a lite simmer, with lid on and simmer 15 minutes.

Add the beans and meat sauce plus 2-3 Tablespoons of reserved tomato liquid.  Mix well and simmer on low for another 5-10 minutes.

Serve with a topping of grated cheddar cheese, and avocado and corn chips on the side.

 

 

This was a healthy, mighty flavorful vegan/vegetarian stew.  There are a lot of options you could use with this recipe in terms of vegetables: carrots, broccoli, peas, red pepper, cauliflower, spinach to name a few.  I used what I had on hand so by all means adjust this recipe to suit your own needs/tastes.

While we made this Vegan/Vegetarian it could easily be made with chicken stock and cut up chicken breasts - again lots of flavor.  Plus the added tumeric with the ginger gives a good immune boost especially when in the depths of freezing winter.  There is nothing better than a good curry during winter.  Any way you make it, a hearty, healthy lunch or dinner.

2 Tblsp. Avocado oil

1 small onion, diced

2 minced garlic cloves

1 tsp. finely minced ginger

1/4 cup diced green pepper

1 stalk of celery, sliced on diagonal, and add minced leaves

3 small swiss chard leaves and stalk, finely sliced in ribbons

2-3 roma tomatoes, diced

3/4 lb. diced potatoes, we used red fingerling - any potato that holds up well steamed/simmered

1 cup vegetable stock, divided

1/2 tsp. tumeric, 3 tsp. Madras curry powder, salt to taste

big handfull of finely chopped fresh cilantro, and fresh basil

400 ml can full fat organic coconut milk - guar gum, sugar free (we use this brand)

398 ml. can organic chick peas, drained and rinsed well

1 Tblsp. potato starch

Heat up a large pan/braiser with the Avocado oil on low medium heat.  Add the onion, garlic, ginger, green pepper and celery to the pan.  Saute until fragrant and the onions are translucent - about 4 minutes.  Then add the swiss chard, tomatoes, tumeric, and Madras curry powder, salt and continue to saute until the swiss chard starts to welt.  Pour in 3/4 cup vegetable stock, potatoes and stir to combine.  Turn down to low and lid on keep on a low simmer stirring occasionally for the next 15-18 minutes until the potatoes are fork tender.

Next add in the fresh cilantro and basil, and drained chick peas mixing well.  To the remainder 1/4 cup of stock add 1 Tblsp. potato starch stirring to incorporate.  Add to the curry dish stirring well, then pour in the coconut milk, again stirring well until it begins to thicken.

Keep on a low simmer for 5-10 minutes stirring throughout, and serve hot over cooked rice.

 

 

 

This simple dish is a great way to use up some pantry ingredients as well as providing a hearty lunch or dinner.  We usually do 2-3 vegetarian dinners each week to maintain overall health, and it helps with the costs too!

1-1/2 Tblsp. Avocado oil

1 small onion, finely diced

1/2 a stalk of celery with leaves, finely diced

1/2 cup diced red and or green pepper

14 oz. can diced tomatoes with juice

1 Tblsp. tomato paste

14 oz. can drained and rinsed pinto beans

1 Tblsp. Apple Cider Vinegar

1/2 tsp. smoked paprika

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp cumin

1 bay leaf

salt and pepper to taste

grated aged cheddar cheese

chopped green onion

cooked rice

Heat up a 3 quart frying pan, dutch oven or braiser on low medium heat with the Avocado oil.  Add in the onions, green/red peppers, celery and leaves sauteing for 5 minutes.  Pour in the tomatoes, apple cider vinegar and add all the seasonings, bay leaf,  stirring well.

Bring to a good simmer, and after 5 minutes add in the tomato paste, stir well and cover with a lid.  Turn down to minimum and simmer 15 minutes stirring occasionally.  Add in the drained pinto beans, lid on and heat through another 5-10 min.

Serve over rice with a topping of grated cheddar cheese and a sprinkling of green onion.