Be Well Blog

Spring Time Recipe: Pasta Primavera With Peas & Asparagus

"Primavera" means spring, and this easy pasta recipe feature two great spring vegetables - asparagus and peas. You can tweak this pasta primavera recipe by adding almost any vegetables you like. Cubed and sautéed chicken or salmon would also be good additions, matching up well with the dish’s lemony flavors.

In only 20 minutes you’ve got a yummy, home cooked meal that’s healthy and sure to be enjoyed by the whole family! Mangi e goda di!

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Yield: 4 Servings

Ingredients:

    * 8 oz dry pasta (tagliatelle, fettuccini, or linguini are recommended)

    * 2 tbsp olive oil

    * 2 cloves garlic, minced

    * 1 cup chicken or vegetable stock

    * 1 cup heavy cream

    * 1 bunch asparagus, cut in 2-inch slices

    * 1 cup shelled green peas (may substitute frozen, thawed)

    * 1 lemon, zested and juiced

    * 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

    * 1/2 cup grated Parmesan

    * salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Preparation:

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to directions. While the pasta is cooking prepare the sauce as follows.

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat, and add the garlic. Cook for 1 minute, being very careful not to brown. Add the stock, cream, lemon zest and turn heat up to high. When it begins to boil, add the vegetables and cook until the asparagus is tender-crisp, about 3 minutes. Turn off heat.

Drain the pasta (do not rise), and add back to the pot. Pour in the sauce and mix to coat the pasta. Add the lemon juice, basil, Parmesan, salt and pepper. Toss again and serve immediately.

Grilled Eggplant & Ricotta Cheese

This is a super tasty recipe for summer that is quick and easy to make, using a plentiful, in season vegetable.  This versatile dish can be served as a vegetarian main course, a side dish, or even as an appetizer.  It’s also healthy for you!

Serves 4 or more, depending upon how you use it.  Adapt the recipe as needed for more diners.

 

You'll Need:

One medium to large unpeeled eggplant (look for wider rather than longer)
3 tbs olive oil
6 to 8 ounces of ricotta cheese
One or two fresh tomatoes
Lots of minced garlic
Salt and pepper
Fresh, sharp parmesan cheese
Fresh basil

Slice the eggplant thinly if using as a side dish, thicker (about ½ to ¾ inch) if using as a main dish. Salt each side liberally and set aside for 30 to 45 minutes, then rinse well and pat dry.  This process removes some of the eggplant’s bitter taste, but also ensures that it doesn’t absorb too much oil. 

Next, brown the eggplant in the olive oil using a heavy bottomed, non-stick frying pan.  You can also brown them in the broiler, placing them in a single layer on a cookie sheet, brushing them with a light coating of olive oil, and then turning them when the first side is brown. 

Once browned, cover each slice of eggplant with a generous layer of ricotta cheese, and then a layer of minced garlic (I love garlic and really lay it on thick here).  Next add a slice of tomato, more garlic, salt and pepper and finally, top with a generous layer of shredded parmesan cheese.  Place on cookie sheet(s), sprinkle on any leftover olive oil and place under the broiler until the parmesan is bubbling hot and browned, but keep it low enough from the flame so the lower layers warm nicely.  Remove from the oven, sprinkle a few pinches of chopped basil on top and serve immediately.

If you’re feeling creative you can make variations of this recipe by substitution or including layers of prosciutto, sausage, onions, roasted red peppers, pesto, and favorite spices.  You can also try slicing the eggplant length wise and assembling it in a casserole dish, baking it until it everything melts into a yummy mixture of the combined flavors.

Do you have a favorite summer recipe you'd like to share with our readers?  Click the "comments" button below and type it in.  Thanks in advance for your input!

Baked Stuffed Apples

 
Serves 6

Dried figs and cinnamon add exotic flavor to this cold-weather dessert.  It’s a healthy and delicious contribution to any holiday meal that’s quick and easy to prepare.

6 baking apples, such as Granny Smith, Braeburn or Rome Beauty
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
¼ cup melted butter
¾ cup chopped walnuts
½ uncooked regular oats
¼ cup diced dried figs (about 4 to 5 dried figs)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter
½ cup apple juice or water
Ground Cinnamon, cinnamon sticks, sweetened whipped cream and fresh lemon balm sprigs, for garnish.

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Cut a thin slice from the bottom of each apple, forming a flat surface.  Cut ¼ to ½ inch off the top of each apple.  Core apples, starting at stem end, without cutting through opposite end.  Scoop out pulp to remove remaining core and to create a cavity for stuffing, leaving most of the inside of the apple intact around this cavity.  Brush exposed inner flesh of apple with lemon juice.
3. Combine melted butter and honey in a medium bowl.  Stir in walnuts, oats, figs and cinnamon; stuff each apple cavity with mixture, filling above the top edge of cavity.  Place apples in a baking dish.  Top each apple with a thin slice of butter; pour apple juice around apples.  Cover pan tightly with aluminum foil.
4. Bake 30 to 40 Minutes or until apples are tender when pierced with a fork. Remove foil and continue to bake 10 to 20 minutes or until apples are soft.  Garnish as desired; dress the plate with a dollop of whipped cream and dust cream and apple with ground cinnamon, place cinnamon sticks and/or lemon balm on plate.

What's For Breakfast?

 

Breakfast is key to starting your day feeling healthy and energetic. Whether you are focused on balancing your blood sugar, lowering cholesterol, losing weight, avoiding gluten and dairy, fighting off yeast or improving your mood and focus...the breakfast recommendations are basically the same!

1. Make sure to include protein. 
2. Minimize carbohydrates.
3. Include healthy fat and fiber if possible.

Ok, with those three points in mind, let's build a breakfast for you. I would like to encourage you to think outside the breakfast box! Forget about cereals, pancakes, waffles and the like. They are simply too high in carbohydrates, have a high glycemic index and, furthermore, tend to contain gluten (an all too common grain that many people can't eat).

Set aside American breakfast concepts, and those advertised on TV and start thinking of breakfast in a whole new way. How about wild salmon for breakfast? (that is one of my favorites) Or left over chicken and roasted vegetables. 

Here are my favorite breakfast choices:

1. Protein shake (Metagenics Sustain or Thorne Mediclear Plus) with flax seed oil, ground flax seeds and ProBerry

2. Turkey Bacon (hormone and antibiotic free)

3. Frozen turkey sausage (hormone and antibiotic free)

4. Wild Salmon, sauteed with onions

5. Turkey Bologna (hormone and antibiotic free)

6. Whole, Organic egg (if you are not intolerant to eggs) poached or sauteed with arugula and goat cheese

How much you ask?

  My recommendation is to eat half. Eat half as much as you think you need or half as much as you usually have. What is the worst possibility? You might feel hungry in an hour or two? Great, then eat a second breakfast. 

It is better to spread out the calories and eat every 3 to 4 hours throughout the day, so for those of you like me, who love breakfast, I don't think it will take much convincing to switch to breakfast twice! That is right, eat half, and eat the other half (or something else) in a couple hours. 

 

To drink? 

Stay away from juices. They are basically sugar, adding to your carbohydrate load and making a tasty breakfast for yeast, encouraging them to stay instead of go away. A much healthier option is green tea. It helps regulate blood sugar and metabolism, and prevents cancer at the same time. 

Otherwise water, filtered of course, is a great place to start your day, especially if you consume caffeine, which is a diuretic. Minimize the caffeine, but at the same time I think you will find that the longer you stick to these breakfast items, you won't be needing that caffeine to boost your energy so much anymore.

  

Do you have a favorite, healthy breakfast plan or recipe?  Share it with us.  Click on "Post A Comment" below.

 

 

Dr. Whyte’s Spicy Southwestern Chicken Chili

(Serves 15-20)

OK, don't let the number of ingredients scare you off.  This recipe is not as difficult as it may appear, and it's SO WORTH THE EFFORT!   Plus, you make it the night before, relieving some party-day-stress. You can also make a batch for just the family and freeze the rest for future dinners.  You’ll become the Chili Champ!

 

8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts –cut into bite-size chunks

1 quart jar sliced Italian cherry peppers

2 large cans peeled and sliced tomatoes

3 cans whole-kernel corn (or sliced from 6 cobs)

2 large cans or 3 bottles cooked black bean (frijoles negros)

3 large red onions –chopped

4 cloves garlic –minced

3 large yellow peppers –chopped

2 sprigs each: rosemary, sage, marjoram –stemmed and minced

¼ cup sea salt

4 tbsp dried cumin powder

2 tbsp garlic salt

2 tsp toasted sesame oil

2 cups chunky peanut butter (***Make sure you announce this because of peanut allergies!)

½ lemon –juiced

2 cups chicken stock

½ cup balsamic vinegar

2 bottles of good ale (e.g. Sierra Nevada Celebration ale)

Ground black pepper to taste

Olive oil for sautéing

Condiments: cheddar cheese, sour cream, avocados, fresh lime wedges, your favorite hot sauce(s), corn or Italian bread a/or crackers are optional.

 

Sauté the onions, yellow peppers, and garlic in a little olive oil and salt –set aside.

Sauté the chicken, herbs, and garlic salt in olive oil until just cooked through (don’t overcook).

In a BIG pot add the chicken, onion/yellow pepper mix, corn, ½ jar Italian cherry peppers, 1 ale, cumin and vinegar –stir and simmer at a slight boil for a few minutes –stir often!

Add the black beans, tomatoes, sesame oil and 1 cup chicken stock –stir and bring to a slight boil –stir often!

Add the peanut butter and the lemon juice –stir and simmer for 10 minutes until the peanut butter is completely melted and mixed in.

Simmer on low heat for 1 hour, stirring often, and adding the last ale and chicken stock a little bit at a time. Add remaining salt and pepper to taste.

Let sit and cool overnight on stove. The next day, simmer another 30 minutes, * but let cool 10 -20 minutes before serving (to re-thicken).

Serve with cheddar cheese, sour cream, fresh lime wedges, and the rest of the Italian cherry peppers. Enjoy!

Have you made this recipe?  Have any comments or tips you'd like to share about it?  Or maybe you have another recipe you'd like to share.  Please click below on "Post A Comment" and let us know what you're thoughts are!  

Immune-Boosting Broth Recipe

     

When you provide your immune system with extra energy it does a better job of keeping you healthy, and if necessary, fighting through a challenge like the swine flu. 

Here’s a recipe for a great immune-boosting broth (Use Organic ingredients whenever possible):

• 2 cups of  chicken or vegetable broth
• 4 chopped shallots
• 5 chopped shiitake mushrooms
• 2 cloves of chopped fresh garlic
• 2 chopped carrots (unpeeled)
• 2 cups of chopped leafy greens (e.g. kale, Swiss chard, collard or mustard greens)
• Optional: Unpasteurized Miso to taste. (South River Miso Company makes the best I’ve found:  www.southrivermiso.com)

Bring the broth to a boil, and then add the carrots, shallots, garlic and mushrooms. Simmer on low heat for 10 minutes.  Next, add in the cooking greens, turn the heat off and let sit for 5 minutes.  Finally, mix in the miso and add salt & pepper to taste.  Never boil miso.  (You can also add chicken, fish, tofu, lean beef, etc. to increase protein, if desired).

Besides being good for you its really tasty, too!