Sweet & Spicy Kale Chips
Winter Kale is sweeter than any other time of the year. They naturally sweeten up after the first fall frost making Kale Chips taste so good they can be downright addicting and, they are so easy to make!  I like them best fresh from the oven; sweet, salty, spicy, crunchy, warm, oily…who needs potato chips?

My absolute favorite Kale Chips are made with Winter Curly Green Kale, Peperoncini Olive Oil, Salt and Pepper. Curly Green Kale seems to cook evenly and quickly and is SO sweet.  Let me know what your favorite recipe is?

Ingredients:

• 1-2 heads of curly Green Kale. You can also try Red Kale, Blue Kale or a box of Baby Kale (preferably Organic)
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil plus some Peperoncini infused Extra Virgin Olive Oil. You can also try Garlic infused Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Sea Salt and Ground Pepper or any seasoning your prefer

To Make:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. You can use the convection setting if you have one.
2. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
3. Wash your Kale well and dry on paper towels.
4. Strip the kale leaves from the stems and break leaves into small pieces. Discard stems.
5. Sprinkle a few tablespoons of “the Olive Oils of your choice” over leaves and massage to lightly coat.
6. Sprinkle on Salt and Pepper or any seasoning you prefer and mix to coat.
7. Here is the trick: Place the leaves on the lined pan individually and try not to crowd. Leaves crisp better when separated.
8. Bake for 5-7 minutes depending on your oven temperature until the leaves crisp. Don’t burn. You may need to turn the leaves mid-way for even heating.
9. Enjoy with the family as a snack or side dish!

This is probably our favorite soup, we eat this monthly all year round. It is simple to make and totally delicious. When we serve this at parties our guests always want the recipe.

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup Quinoa (rinsed well in a fine sieve/strainer to remove soapy substance)
• 2 Quarts water

• 2 tablespoons Olive Oil, preferably extra virgin
• 2 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon Cumin Seed
• 1 teaspoon Sea Salt
• 2-3 small boiling Potatoes cut into ¼ inch cubes. (Peel them first if they are not organic)
• 1 bunch Scallions, including an inch of the greens, sliced into rounds.
• 3 or more cups baby Spinach
• 1/3 cup or more chopped Cilantro
• 1 teaspoon Hot Chili Sauce (Sriracha Brand) to taste
• ¼ pound Feta Cheese, finely diced (we love Goat Cheese Feta)
• 1 hard-cooked Egg, chopped (Optional)

To make the soup:

1. Put the Quinoa and 2 quarts water in a pot, bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer covered for 10 minutes.
   
2. While it’s cooking dice the vegetables. Drain, saving the liquid. (Here's a quick tip: When it's time to add the quinoa water, pour the quinoa water through a strainer directly into the soup pot and leave the quinoa in it's own pot until later

1. Heat the Olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat.
2. Add Garlic and cook 30 seconds
3. Add Cumin seed and cook 30 seconds
4. Add Salt and Potatoes and cook a few minutes, stirring frequently. Don’t let the garlic brown.
5. Add the Quinoa water and ½ the Scallions and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes
6. Add the Quinoa, Spinach and remaining Scallions and simmer for 3 more minutes
7. Turn off the heat and stir in the Cilantro, Hot Sauce and Feta.
8. Season with pepper and chopped egg (0ptional)
   

Serves 4

Want to enjoy dessert and not feel guilty? This is how! I have tried many versions  of this recipe and this is my favorite so far. If you like your desserts sweet, then feel free to add more sweetener. I prefer mine to have a strong dark chocolate taste. Enjoy the decadence!

Raw Chocolate Avocado Mousse
Makes 4 portions

Ingredients:

• 2 large ripe Avocados
• 1/2 cup Raw Cacao Powder
• 1/3 cup Maple Syrup or Agave Nectar, plus more to taste
• 1 1/2 tsp pure Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 tsp Almond Extract
• ¼ cup unsweetened (canned) Coconut Milk (not light)

• Banana slices, Berries and/or Nuts for garnish

To Make:

1. Using a blender or food processor, blend the first 6 ingredients until smooth.
2. Spoon into ramekin cups or martini glasses and refrigerate.
3. Serve when chilled with garnish of your choice.
   

This Pesto is fantastic spooned over Zucchini Pasta. It has a mild and savory flavor that also makes it a good dipping sauce for vegetables and bread. In this recipe I lightly saute the garlic to mellow it out before adding it in. You can always stay traditional and add it in raw.

This recipe can be modified in many ways! You can replace the almonds with walnuts, pistachios or traditional pine nuts. You can switch out the basil and replace it with cilantro, parsley or arugula. And, you can always add more garlic.

Ingredients:
1 cup fresh basil leaves
1 large clove garlic, crushed
1/2 cup raw almonds
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons freshly grates Parmesan cheese
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1. Place Almonds in food processor and process until finely chopped
2. Add Basil and process until well combined with nuts
3. Lightly saute the crushed Garlic for a couple of minutes in a bit of the olive oil. Do not brown!
4. Add the sauteed Garlic and rest of the oil to the mixture and process
5. Add in the Parmesan Cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Store in a lidded jar in the fridge
   

We frequently enjoy these on weekends as a special breakfast treat.

Oatmeal Pancakes
These make a delicious wholesome breakfast!  These can be made completely Vegan and Gluten Free (GF) by using certified GF Oats and a milk substitute. They will also keep well in the fridge for several days and can be reheated in a toaster oven.

Ingredients:
2 cups rolled oats (Bobs Gluten Free Rolled Oats)
2 cups water or milk or milk alternative (Try Almond Milk)
1/2 cup applesauce
1 tbsp maple syrup or agave (For a healthier sugar substitute try either Lakanto, Erythritol, or Zylitol)
1 tsp vanilla
Pinch sea salt
Cooking oil (I use Walnut)
Directions:

1. Put all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth
2. Let batter stand for 5 to 10 minutes to thicken
3. Heat a skillet with some oil and pour desired amount of pancake batter onto skillet
4. Cook pancakes for 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Pancake needs to be cooked through.

Yield: 2 to 4 servings

Serving options:

1. Cashew butter or Almond butter and your favorite jam (I love Strawberry-Rhubarb)
2. Fruit sauce or fruit sauce mixed with real Maple syrup

Enjoy!

ZUCCHINI PASTA

This is a fantastic, low-cal way to enjoy Zucchini and Yellow Squash. You can even keep this RAW if you are so inclined.

What you will need:

• Zucchini and/or Yellow Squash
• Spiral Slicer, Mandolin or Vegetable Peeler
• Boiling Water
• Sea Salt
• Your Favorite Sauce

Using either a Mandolin or a vegetable peeler, slice the zucchini into linguini or pasta like strips turning the zucchini as you go. Stop when you get to the seeds, they are not used. Place zucchini into boiling water (nice with some salt) for 1-2 minutes. Drain and enjoy with your favorite sauce.

Option 1: You can add in a carrot or two sliced up the same way.
Since carrots take a bit longer, cook the carrot for one minute before adding the zucchini for another minute.

Option 2: For a veggie pasta medley, cut up Broccoli florets into small pieces and cook along with the carrot for one minute before adding Zucchini.

Option3: Cook any or all of the above and mix it together with cooked regular or Gluten Free pasta (Schar brand is one of my favorites). This is another way to cut calories, get your veggies and still enjoy a comfort food favorite!

Let me know some of the ways you have enjoyed this!