Potato Dumplings w/ Spinach Tomato Sauce

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Ingredients

• 2 Red potatoes
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose Flour
• 1 cup Wheat flour
• 1 Flax seed egg
• 5 medium Tomatoes(chopped)
• 1 cup Mushrooms
• 1 Garlic clove(diced)
• 1 medium Onion(chopped)
• 1 Green pepper(chopped)
• ½ tsp Basil
• ½ tsp Oregano
• ½ tsp Thyme
• ½ tsp Cane sugar(optional)
• ½ tsp Cayenne pepper
• ½ tsp Sea salt(optional)
• Baby spinach
• 1 Tbs olive oil

Directions

Tomato Sauce

In a pot heat olive oil and add onions, green peppers, mushrooms and garlic. Cook for 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, basil, oregano, thyme, cane sugar, cayenne pepper, salt. Simmer for 1 hour.

In a separate pan cook spinach and drain excess water then add to tomato sauce.

Potato Dumplings

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Peel potatoes, add to pot and boil until tender. Let potatoes cool then run through a cheese grater. If you do not have one mash with a fork. Add flour and flax seed egg. Knead until dough forms a ball. Shape small portions into a snake and cut into half inch pieces.

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Drop in dumplings and cook for 3 minutes or until it has risen to the top. Serve topped with spinach tomato sauce.

Some Health Benefits

Spinach supports blood, brain, nervous system, eye, skin and bone health. It helps repair damaged and swollen cells - so it's useful against inflammation and cancers. Spinach also boosts the immune system.

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Mashed Plantain

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Ingredients

• 2 large Plantains
• 1 large Tomato (chopped)
• 1 tsp Curry powder 
• 1 tsp Onion powder 
• 1 tsp Cayenne pepper
• 2 roasted Garlic cloves
• A pinch of Sea salt
• 1/2 tsp Olive oil
• Vegetable oil

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In aluminum foil, add olive oil to garlic cloves. Wrap in aluminum foil. Bake in oven for 5 minutes or until soft. In a medium bowl, add the chopped tomato, curry powder, onion, cayenne pepper and garlic cloves. Set aside. Heat oil in a pan. Slice plantains 1/2 an inch thick. Fry in vegetable oil. Add to the mixture in the bowl. Mash it in the bowl with a wooden spoon or in a pestle and mortar.

Some Health Benefits

Plantains help the body digest, absorb and release energy from the foods we eat. Their fibers are useful against constipation. Plantains also support cell, eye, skin, done, blood and heart health. They help the organs fight infections.

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Cornbread Dressing

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Taste great with gravy and greens!

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup Cornmeal
• 1 1/4 cup unbleached all purpose Flour
• 1 Tbs Baking soda
• 1/4 Honey
• 1/2 tsp Sea salt
• 1 cup Almond milk
• 1/4 cup Olive oil
• 1 Egg replacers(1 1/2 tsp egg replacer plus 2 Tbs warm water)
• 1 large Onion (chopped)
• 1 large Green pepper (chopped)
• 1 cup Celery (chopped)
• 2 cups Vegetable broth
• 1 Tbs Sage
• 1 tsp Cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp Thyme

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Heat pan with oil. cook chopped onion, pepper and celery for 15 minutes. Set aside.

In a bowl, mix dry ingredients - flour, cornmeal, baking soda and salt. Add wet ingredients - milk, oil, egg replacer and honey. Mix and place in an 8-inch pan. Bake until slightly brown on top (or when if you stick a toothpick in the cornbread, and the toothpick comes out clean)

After cornbread is done, crumble in a bowl. Add vegetables, vegetable broth, thyme, sage and cayenne pepper. Mix together. Place in an 8-inch pan. Bake for 30 minutes. Serve.

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Peanut Butter Cheesecake Cupcake

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Make sure you sit while eating this ... 

might make you weak in the knees. You won't believe how good it is!

Ingredients
Serves 8

• 1 egg replacer (1 1/2 tsp egg replacer plus 2 Tbs warm water)
• 1 Tbs Almond milk
• 1/2 cup Honey
• 1/2 cup Peanut butter (Natural unsalted creamy)
• 1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
• 1 pinch of Sea salt
• 1 8oz container of Tofutti vegan Cream cheese
• 1/2 cup chopped Walnuts
• Chocolate chips topping

Crust

• 1 cup Flour
• 1 Tbs Cane sugar
• 1 Egg replacer
• 4 Tbs vegan Butter

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Crust

Combine flour, sugar and butter. Mix together until crumbly. Add egg replacer. (Should not be too dry.) In a cupcake pan add cupcake holders press crust mixture about 1 inch thick into each. Add some of the walnuts to each. Save some to place on top of each cake.

In the a medium bowl add. Tofutti (dairy-free) cream cheese, honey, vanilla, peanut butter, egg replacer, almond milk and sea salt. Mix well. Pour into cupcake holders. Top with remaining walnuts and chocolate chips. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool for 30 minutes and serve.

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"Good Food"

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A good diet is always within reach. But making the switch to healthy eating might seem difficult at first. When we decide to eat healthy to shed unhealthy pounds; when blood test results say we have diabetes, and we turn to healthy sugars to balance our blood sugar levels; or when we cut out the sweets and unhealthy salts and fats, we know good eating is within our reach. 

Why then is it that many don't stick to the diet program? True, it's got to do with will power. It's also about finding tasty, familiar substitutes. But effective change must be natural. Some experts tell us to sip on diet pop, eat nicely-packaged diet foods, and pop diet pills - it's really no surprise when people fall off their diet plans while finding "good food." 

You know whether it's really good or not when it doesn't keep you anxiously watching the scale. We are swamped with numbers, terms and expensive programs. There are catchy-named dieting plans that sometimes confuse our efforts when we could focus and cut out unhealthy sugars completely for example. And for substitutes, there are always healthy alternatives you may creatively put together based on available recipes.  

That's when we're defining good food with health improvement in mind. That's when we are saying "good" with a little more meaning. Good diet must be as immunity-boosting, cleansing and nutritious as it should taste good. 

Dairy-Free Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

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It's going to be hard to eat just one of these cookies!

Ingredients

• 2 Egg replacer (1 1/2 tsp plus 2 Tbs warm water = 1 egg)
• 1 1/4 cup unbleached Flour
• 1 cup wheat Flour
• 3/4 tsp Baking soda
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp Sea salt
• 1 stick plus 2 Tbs Vegan butter (softened)
• 1 1/2 cup Cane sugar
• 2 tsp Vanilla extract
• 1 Tbs Almond milk
• 1 cup dairy-free semi-sweet Chocolate chips

Directions

Mix 2 eggs replacers and set aside. In a medium bowl, mix flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt and set aside. In a large bowl, mix butter and sugar very well. Add egg replacer, vanilla extract, almond milk and mix. Add flour mixture and chocolate chips mix till everything is combined. form the dough into 1 1/2 inch balls, place on a cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Check on cookies after 10 minutes. You don't want to over-bake them. 

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Bean Burger

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This sandwich is very satisfying. Even a meat lover would have to agree!

Ingredients

Serving size: 9

• 3 cups of cooked Pink beans
• 1 large Onion(chopped)
• 1 Green pepper(chopped)
• 1/3 cup cooked Brown rice
• 1 tsp Garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp Chili powder
• 1/2 tsp Onion powder
• 1/2 tsp Cumin
• 1/2 tsp Cayenne pepper
• 1/2 Thyme
• 1/2 Basil
• 1 Flax seed egg
• Sea salt to taste
• 3 Tbs Wheat flour
• 4 Tbs of Olive oil( or any oil of your choice)
• 1 sliced Avocado
• Baby Spinach
• Vegan Mayonnaise
• Sliced Tomatoes
• Wheat Bread

Directions

In a large bowl add beans and mash together using the back of a fork. Add onion, green pepper, brown rice, ½ tsp garlic powder chili powder, cayenne pepper, thyme, basil, flax seed egg substitute and sea salt, Mix well. Pour wheat flour with 1/2 tsp garlic powder and 1/2 tsp onion powder onto a plate and mix. Heat pan with olive oil. Use an ice cream scooper into wheat flour mixer and coat completely. Once coated, shape bean mix into the shape of a pattie and add to olive oil. Be careful while handling pattie - it will be very soft. Cook pattie for 3 minutes on both side or until golden brown. Drain on a paper towel and assemble sandwich with wheat bread, sliced tomatoes, baby spinach, avocado and vegan mayonnaise.

Some Health Benefits

Beans support blood, heart and cell health. They are a source of protein and fiber. It is useful in weight loss. 

Avocados also help balance the body's weight. They support blood, brain, heart, liver, kidney, skin, hair and immune system health. They boost good cholesterol and helps repair swollen and damaged cells. Avocados are known to help correct premenstrual syndrome and some other hormonal imbalances.

Spinach is good for eye, blood, heart, brain, bone and cell health. It helps repair damaged cells, It also helps in digestion and counters constipation.

Tomatoes nourish the skin and support eye, heart, blood and kidney health.

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Basmati Rice w/ Curry Vegetables

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The lightness of the rice is delightful!

Ingredients
Serving size: 4

• 2 1/2 cups Basmati rice (cooking according to product's directions)
• 1 yellow Squash (chopped)
• 1 large Onion (chopped)
• 2 garlic cloves (chopped)
• 1 green Pepper (chopped)
• 1 cup mushroom (sliced)
• 1 medium Tomato (chopped)
• 1 cup Asparagus (chopped)
• 1 cup Broccoli
• 1/2 tsp Thyme
• 1/2 tsp Basil
• 1/2 tsp Rosemary
• 1/2 tsp Cayenne pepper
• 1 cup Water
• 2 Tbs Curry powder
• 2 Tbs Fufu powder (or 2 Tbs flour) & 2 Tbs water
• 1 Tbs Olive oil
• Sea salt (optional)

Directions

Cook Basmati rice. Set aside.

Heat pan with olive oil. Add squash,onions, garlic, pepper, tomato, asparagus, broccoli and thyme, basil, rosemary, cayenne, pepper and 1 Tbs curry powder. Cook for 10 minutes. Add water and 1 Tbs curry powder. Cook for 5 minutes. Mix fufu and water until pasty. Add fufu mix in small amounts until thick. Cook until thickens to your taste. Serve over rice.

Some Health Benefits

Basmati rice helps maintain blood health - it is healthy for those countering diabetes. It nourishes the brain and heart systems. It supports skin health and boosts the body's energy production.

Asparagus supports bone, skin, reproductive and cell health in general. It helps heal swelling and damaged cells. It is an energizer and a detox.
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Mushrooms are also a detox. They also support the blood, digestive and immune systems.

Tomatoes support blood, heart, skin, kidney health. They help help repair swollen and damaged cells. Garlic helps secure the immune system. It helps the body fight unhealthy bacteria and infections. It supports blood, lung and respiratory health. Onions have similar, but milder effects, as garlic.

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Influences

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Good food feels good to eat. A good drink too. It becomes routine; it becomes our normal. Feels good. It's entertaining, like playing a game or watching a movie. 

You walk into the store. You find yourself going for what you expect to be "good." In a feel-good culture it's good to remember that it's all about influences. When taste defines "good," it's obviously about habits. What we keep doing. What we're used to. The culture. The examples children see. 

What will a child do with the extra dollar when the sugar-salt-fat taste is in all these foods on the shelf. Will she do what "everybody" does: go to the corner store and buy a candy? Taste buds may be happy but the punishment on the body is too much. That's why in spite of the heavy promotion of fake foods, the culture is steady returning to natural eating habits. 

People are intelligent. You wouldn't even notice the difference when you use honey instead of sugar; the egg replacer or the nutritious ground flax seed instead of eggs; almond milk or soy milk instead of dairy milk, in baking. More hands are reaching for the 100% not-from-concentrate fruit juices, as we read labels.

Food is central to healthy living. So we're mindful of what we are eating. What we're getting used to. As we make our body, tongue and mind used to healthy eating, it becomes easier to let go of that cheese. We're always influencing our normal as our normal influences us. The influences we surround ourselves with determine our food choices. 


Tasty healthy food eating influences us (and bad food will do its dirt). We pick up good habits the more we do particular things. The more we serve up good meals, the more our taste buds and body get used to it. 

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Dairy-Free Shortbread Cookies

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You won't even miss the dairy in these cookies!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup Whole wheat pastry Flour
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose Flour
• 1/2 tsp Sea salt (optional)
• 1 stick Earth Balance Vegan butter (softened)
• 1/3 cup Honey
• 1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
• 2 Tbs Almond milk
• 2 Tbs chopped dried Cherries
• 1/4 cup chopped Pecans

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine whole wheat, unbleached flour and salt. In a separate bowl, mix butter, honey, vanilla extract, almond milk. Add flour mixture, dried cherries and pecans. Mix well. Form dough into a log. Cover with plastic wrap. Chill for 30 minutes. Cut dough 1/4 to1/2 inch thick and place on cookie sheet. Bake for about 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are slightly golden brown.

Some Health Benefits

Pecans boost good cholesterol and reduce unhealthy cholesterol in the blood system. they support blood health in general and heart health. Pecans also help the body process foods and to release energy from what we eat.

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Dairy-Free Pancake w/ Blueberries

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Ingredients

Dairy-Free Pancake

• 1/2 cup Wheat flour
• 1/2 cup unbleached Flour
• 1 Tbs Honey
• 2 Tbs Baking powder
• 1/2 tsp Sea salt
• 1 cup Soy milk
• 2 Tbs Olive oil

Blueberry Syrup

• 2 cups frozen Blueberries
• 1 cup Honey
• 1 tsp Cinnamon
• 1 tsp Nutmeg
• 1 cup chopped Apples

Directions

Make the Blueberry Syrup first.Combine blueberries, honey, cinnamon and nutmeg in a pot. Cook for 10 minutes. Set aside.

To make the Dairy-Free Pancake, combine dry ingredients add honey, olive oil and soy milk. Drop 1/4 cup of batter into a well-greased frying pan. Cook for 3 minutes on each side. Serve with blue berry syrup.


Some Health Benefits

Blueberries support brain and blood health. They help repair damaged cells. Blueberries also help the organs resist inflammation (swelling) and infections.

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Belonging & the "Smart"

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The pull of belonging to something "smart" is strong. Some turn to plant foods because of kindness to animals. But whether we do it because we love nature and want to protect the environment or not, the simple point is our bodies digest plant foods well. 

It is common knowledge that animal flesh, milk and eggs do not necessarily digest fully. They leaving undigested foods to rot in and block the passages in our bodies. (We feel sick when the body struggles to get rid of the toxins.) 

We have eaten mainly plant foods for ages. It was not the alternative. An exotic sounding term such as "vegan" was coined only about a century ago. Those who introduced the word said their reasons for eating plant foods was mainly moral - You know, nonviolence, kindness. 

It looked like a thing, not just for "smart" people, but, those whose bodies didn't require a lot of physical energy in their daily routines. Then, people started to find out that there are prizefighters and high-performance athletes who identify as "vegan." People read that there were gladiators living on plant-based (vegan) diets battling in Roman coliseums. 

It must feel special to identify as vegan when bad food eating is being widely condemned. Some may belittle those who seem to be hooked on nicely flavored, colorfully packaged and marketed unhealthy food. Some may even feel more "conscious" than those hooked on or struggling to get over junk food. But the difference between those who eat mainly plant foods and those do not is only a split-second decision.

True, knowledge of self means understanding what's happening in and around us. It means understanding the effects of what we're putting into your body. Still, the thing is to have serious fun planning and eating particular foods because they give or help the body release specific nutrients, and not because we think we're better than somebody else. 


It's ok to answer "yes" with pride, when asked "Are you vegan?" But we are simply eating mainly plant foods because that's what's in harmony with our body. That's all. Wearing names doesn't mean very much. We are either eating healthy or we are not.

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Collard Greens w/ Baked Red Potatoes

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A Simple dish. Guaranteed to tantalize taste buds. 

Ingredients

Serving size: 2

• 1 bunch of Collard greens (washed, trimmed & chopped)
• 1 large Onion (chopped)
• 10 Baby red potatoes
• 3 Tbs Olive oil
• 2 Tbs Vinegar
• 1 tsp Smoked paprika
• 1 tsp Cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp Garlic powder
• 2 tsp Onion powder
• 1 tsp Curry powder
• 1 tsp Basil
• 1 tsp Thyme
• 3 cups Water (vegetable broth)
• Sea salt (optional - The salt is strong. Use a little at a time)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Pour water into pot. Add chopped collard greens, vinegar, smoked paprika, 1 teaspoon of garlic powder and 1 teaspoon of onion powder. Add sea salt if you don't use the vegetable broth. Cover and let it cook until greens are dark and tender.

Wash and cut potatoes in half. Put pieces in a bowl. Add cayenne pepper, garlic and onion powder, basil, thyme and sea salt. Pour in the 2 tablespoons of olive oil and mix till potatoes are coated. Transfer potatoes to a baking dish and place in heated oven. Bake until inside is roasted golden brown.

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a pan. Add chopped onions and curry powder. Cook for about 5 minutes and set aside. 

When serving collard greens, garnish with the chopped onions and curry powder.

Some Nutritional Benefits

Collard greens support the respiratory (lungs), nerve, eye and skin health. It helps restore bone mass and nutrients (making it useful against osteoporosis) systems. Collard greens also help maintain oral cavity health. The high fiber content aids in digestion, absorption and elimination of what we eat. Also, collard greens help resist infections fight colon, prostate, ovarian and breast cancers. Generally, they help repair and restore damaged cells to health.

Baby red potatoes insure heart. They support cell health and are used against swelling (inflammation). Baby red potatoes are also loaded with fibers (helping digestion and elimination) and healthy sugars for cell energy.
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Herb Fry Bread

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Great with a stew or soup

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup Unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup Wheat flour
• 1 tsp Baking powder
• 1 tsp Soy milk 
• 1 tsp Basil
• 1 tsp Thyme
• 1 tsp Oregano
• 1 tsp Flax seed
• 1 Garlic clove (chopped)
• 1 tsp Cayenne pepper
• *1 cup Olive oil or a slower burning oil (eg. coconut oil)
• Sea salt (optional)
• 1/2 cup Water

*You can also use 3 cups 100% vegetable oil to deep-fry the bread.

Directions

Mix flour, baking powder, basil, thyme, oregano, flax seed, garlic, cayenne pepper, and sea salt. Add water and soy milk mix till the dough comes together (do not over-mix). Cut a piece of dough to the size you would like, flour your hands, stretch and pat. Heat oil. Then add dough. Gently lay dough in hot oil and fry for about 2 minutes on each side or till its golden brown.   

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Blueberry Smoothie

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Blueberries with strawberries, pineapple, pecans, walnuts and dairy-free almond yogurt, soy milk and orange juice... Decent range of nutrients, with a creamy, lovely taste to it! 

Some Health Benefits

Blueberries support brain, blood and heart health. The fibers aid in digestive health. They are known to be useful against constipation and diarrhea. They also help repair damaged cells and fight infections (urinary tract infection, for example).

Strawberries help the organs resist infections, inflammation and other damaged cells. They nourish the brain and heart system and boost the immune system. Strawberries enrich the blood, help dissolve blood clots, support cell growth and helps heal cuts and wounds. Strawberries also support bone and tooth health. They are useful in countering high blood pressure, gout and arthritis.

The Pineapple strengthens the immune system and helps clean our bodies as a natural detox. The fruit is eaten to counter swelling, vitamin C deficiencies, arthritis and indigestion (constipation). It helps break down proteins, sugars and starch. It is therefore useful in weight loss. Pineapples also support eye, skin, bones, the heart and blood vessel health. 

Hemp seeds offer proteins, magnesium, dietary fiber, Omega-3 and Omega-6. They are used as a detox. Hemp seeds favor blood, skin, organ and immune system health. 

Soy milk helps cell, heart, brain and blood sugar health. The Orange Juice nourishes the skin and tissues, and helps the body resist cancerous cells. The nuts also boost heart, bone, blood sugar, brain, nervous system, digestive system and immune system health.

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