This salad is so tasty and satisyfing, it can serve as a light lunch all by itself.

1 Small red onion, halved and finely sliced

I bag croutons

4-6 T refined light olive oil (for heating, NOT extra virgin)

1/2 cup Kalamata olives

1 pound of fresh baby spinach

1 clove garlic, finely chopped or shredded

1 T mint leaves, finely chopped

2T sherry vinegar

4 oz feta cheese

Cover the onion slices with cold water and refrigerate (to mellow the flavor). Wash the spinach and spin dry. When you’re ready to toss the salad, drain the onions. Put the spinach in a large metal or glass bowl (to withstand heat of hot oil). toss in the onions, garlic, mint, olives, and viegar. Crumble the feta over the salad. Then heat the olive oil until hot but not smoking. Immediately pour the hot oil over the salad and toss. The spinach will “cook” lightly and wilt. Taste and add sald and pepper if necessary. Serve the salad with the croutons tucked in and around the leaves.

Place in a blender and mix: 2T lime juice; 1 large chopped shallot; 3/4 cup olive oil (use a mix of light and extra virgin); 1/3 cup white wine vinegar (could use rice vinegar instead); 1 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger; 1 tsp salt; 2 tsp sugar; 11/2 tsp prepared dijon mustard; a few grinds of black pepper.

This dressing was a big hit with the pregnant ladies. It was served over a mixed greens with peeled tangerine sections and sliced avocados.

Ingredients:

2 cups coarse cornmeal (stoneground, whole grain is best); 1 1/2 teaspoons salt; 2 or more tablespoons butter, optional; 1 cup of grated Fontina cheese; 2 Tablespoons additional butter; 1 1/2 cups tomato sauce, 1 Tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary; Salt and freshly milled pepper; 1/2 gorgonzola or feta cheese; chopped fresh parsley

The first step is to make the firm polenta with cheese: Bring 6 cups of water to a boil in a heavy saucepan. Add the salt, and then the cornmeal in a steady stream, stirring constantly with a whisk so cornmeal doesn’t make big lumps or seize up in a glob. Once all is mixed in well, lower the heat and cook, stirring more or less constantly, for 30 to 45 minutes. (If the polenta does seize up, you can add small amounts of boiling water to smooth it out.) After 30 or so minutes, stir in 1/2 of the fontina cheese. Taste for salt and adjust if needed.

Second, shape the polenta. Quickly pour the cooked polenta on a baking sheet, large baking dish, loaf pan, or pie plates, and spread it with a spatula into a layer of about 1/2 inch thick or less. Let it cool on the counter for 15 minutes to firm up. (This might take longer if you put it into a loaf pan). Then cut the firm polenta into desired shapes, such as diamonds, circles, or rectangles.  This first step of making the firm polenta may be done hours in advance of serving time.

Now, make the sauce. Heat the tomato sauce with half of the chopped rosemary. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

Preheat oven to 400 and assemble your dish to bake. You’ll need a 3 quart gratin dish or a baking dish that you would use to make lasagne. Spread 3/4 cup of tomato sauce in a the baking dish; then place and overlap pieces of polenta; then add the remaining grated Fontina cheese (see, it IS like making lasagne!). Then spoon the remaining sauce carefully over the bands of polenta, leaving the edges exposed (to crisp up). Crumble the gorgonzola or feta over the top and sprinkle the rest of the rosemary and parsley last.

Bake, uncovered for about 30 minutes or until the gratin is hot and bubbly. Let it cool for 10 minutes. Garnish with more chopped parsley, season with salt and pepper, and serve.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
4 Organic Yams or Sweet Potatoes
Olive oil
Coarse Kosher Salt
Freshly ground Pepper
Garlic Powder

Wash sweet potatoes and peel off the brown spots. Try to retain as much of the “good” skin as possible. Then cut each potato into short halves, and from there slice into wedges and place in a bowl.

Drizzle olive oil, salt, pepper, and a sprinkling of garlic powder over the yams. Mix with your hands so all yams are well coated with oil and spices. Arrange in the bottom part of a broiler pan or a baking dish and put in the oven.

After 20 minutes, check the yams and stir with a metal spatula so they cook well on all sides. Leave in another twenty minutes or so, until they are tender and and the sugars begin to carmelize. Remove from oven, let cool for 5 minutes, and eat!

2 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves
1/3 cup pine nuts (macademia nuts may also be used)
2 large cloves garlic, grated with a Microplane grater
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
pinch of cayenne
Juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 c extra virgin olive oil

Place all ingredients except olive oil into a blender. Have the olive oil ready to drizzle in through the top. Start on a low speed and slowly pour in the olive oil. Increase speed as necessary to mix according to desired consistency, but be careful not to heat the pesto by over-mixing on too high a speed. Serve over pasta or store in the fridge.

This sauce is also great on toasted breads (think bruschetta!) and in soups. Because it contains no cheese, it keeps well and does not get dry and gunky in the fridge. It returns to a liquidy state easily, and you can add parmesan to your dish after mixing the pesto to it. Always a winner!

This recipe is an absolute favorite in prenatal yoga classes.

2 cups organic rolled oats
1 cup almonds
½ cup flour
½ cup maple syrup
½ cup light olive oil
¼ teaspoon salt
A few Tablespoons rose petal jam* and raspberry jam mixed together

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place rolled oats in a food processor or VitaMix blender and grind to a coarse meal and set in a bowl. Grind almonds into a coarse meal and put in bowl with the oats. Then add flour, salt, maple syrup, oil, and salt. Mix by hand.

With wetted hands, shape the dough into 1-inch balls and place on a greased cookie sheet. You may also use a silicon mat without greasing the cookie sheet. The balls should be about an inch apart. Use your finger or thumb to make an indentation, and then spoon a mixture of rose petal jam and raspberry jam into the depression.

Bake for 12-15 minutes, until lightly brown on the bottom. They will still be light on the top, so be careful not to over bake.

*rose petal jam is available at Indian grocery stores

2 Tablespoons light olive oil or ghee
1 onion, divided: ½ finely chopped, ½ coarsely chopped
2 cups boiling water
1 cup quinoa, washed in a bowl and then rinsed in a fine mesh sieve
2 teaspoons curry powder, divided: ½ teaspoon and 1 ½ teaspoons
Kosher salt and freshly milled black pepper
2 ½ cups chopped vegetables: could be finely shredded cabbage; diced zucchini, cauliflower pieces, etc.
1 cup organic apple juice or carrot juice
1 cup frozen peas
½ cup or more roasted cashews, chopped or left in halves
2 Tablespoons chipped cilantro (optional)

Put the water on to boil. Then heat 1 T oil in a medium sauce pan, add the onion, and cook over medium heat until onions are translucent, about 3 minutes. Stir in the quinoa, ½ teaspoon curry powder, and ¼ teaspoon slat and cook for 2 minutes. Add the boiling water and then lower heat. Simmer covered for 15 minutes.

While the quinoa cooks, heat the remaining Tablespoon of oil in a skillet and add the chopped onion, vegetables and remaining curry powder. Stir frequently, so that vegetables are well coated with curry powder, and cook for 5 minutes. Add ½ cup water, the apple or carrot juice, and ½ teaspoon salt. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes.

Add vegetable mixture to the quinoa, and then add cashews. Taste and add salt and pepper if necessary. Serve in soup bowls with chopped cilantro for garnish.

Note: If you have any left over Kale Chips, these are delicious in the quinoa stew and maybe added just before stirring or even in earlier with the vegetables.

Makes ½ cup

3 Tablespoons coriander seeds
2 teaspoons black or white peppercorns
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
6 whole cloves
2 Tablespoons Turmeric powder
1 Tablespoon ground red chili powder

Grind all the seeds and cloves in a spice mill (coffee mill works fine, as does a Vitamix blender) until finely powdered. Place in a bowl. Add turmeric and chili powder and mix with a fork until all spices are blended. Transfer to a jar and store.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Rosemary oil
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 cloves of garlic, grated with a microplane grater
½ teaspoon Kosher salt
¼ teaspoon hot red chili powder or cayenne
Kale Preparation
2 bunches of Kale, washed, de-stemmed, drained, and cut or broken to 2” pieces
Put prepared kale into a large Ziploc bag or bowl; add the rosemary oil and mix well with hands. Spread the oily kale mixture onto 2 cookie sheets in a single layer and place in the middle racks of the oven. Cook for 10 to 20 minutes. After 10 minutes, look at the Kale to see if it is getting crisp, like a chip. If it is soft and wilted, it needs more time. If it is crispy and turning brown, it is overdone. Try to find that perfect happy medium of the dark crispy green chip. Let it cool for a few minutes, then enjoy.

Kale chips can be saved in a baggy and then later taken out and reheated in a toaster oven for a snack. They are also excellent as additions to soup or pasta, without re-roasting. Kale is high in Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Calcium, and Iron.