I started out wanting to make some healthed up version of classic peanut butter cookies, then ran into a bag of grain-sweetened chocolate chips in a health-food store this morning and decided to find a way to eat them.  So, here we are.

Like the last post, these are made with whole wheat pastry flour.  Unlike regular whole wheat flour, you can substitute it right into your baking with nary a concern.  (Oops, sorry to go all Gwyneth on you by using pretentious words to describe healthy recipes.  She owns that.)  Maybe someday soon you'll be able to find whole wheat pastry flour in a regular grocery store, but until that day comes -- get it at the health-food store.

*As for the chocolate chips themselves, I've mentioned before that you can buy grain-sweetened (which refers to brown rice syrup, a macrobiotic favorite with subtle sweetness), dairy-free (not necessary, but these cookies are dairy-free in every other way-- so it helps if you want your cookie to stay consistent) chocolate chips in your local (...wait for it...) health food store.  OR you can use regular chocolate chips and remain satisfied with the fact that the dough itself contains no butter, no refined sugar and no refined flour.  Because no one's trying to win a whole food medal, right? 

Prep Time:  7 Minutes
Cooking Time:  10-12 Minutes
Yield:  About Two Dozen Cookies
Ingredients:
1-1/2 Cups Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
½ Tsp Sea Salt
1 Tsp Baking Powder
¾ Cup Maple Syrup
½ Cup Unsweetened, Natural Peanut Butter
1/2 Tsp Vanilla Extract
1 Large Egg
1 Heaping Cup of Chocolate Chips*

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease a large baking sheet.  In a medium bowl, sift together flour, salt and baking powder.  In a large bowl, combine maple syrup, peanut butter, and vanilla extract.  Beat in the egg.  Stir in the flour mixture until well combined.  Stir in chocolate chips.  Shape the mixture into balls, about ¾” in size, then place on the greased baking sheet.  Press them down with a fork, first in one direction, then the other.  Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden.   Let cool completely before eating them, because they taste better that way. 

I received the inspiration recipe for this from a reader named Kristina, who is awesome for throwing me challenges like this. 
It was all about butter and sugar, which I can only assume was delicious...but probably also guilt-inducing, sugar-crash-causing, and straight up fattening.  With this version (as with all healthier versions of things), you can eat more of it!  I am going to be honest and tell everyone that I put a generous slab of butter onto one of my late-night slices, not because it needed it, but more because it was there and I knew there was none inside it.  And THAT is the beauty of healthy cooking -- choice.  Hehe.

Anywho, I'm really happy with the results of this bake-over. (Like a make-over, but with baking!...and I'm shocking myself by both writing this and then -- if I leave it in the paragraph -- actually putting such cheesiness out into the world.)  If you're looking for a breakfast item with subtle but tasty sweetness, a way more decadent texture than should be possible without butter, and a damn nutritious list of ingredients, this is your guy.  

Note:  Whole wheat pastry flour, as opposed to regular whole wheat flour, is a must here.  Find it at your local health food store or well-stocked supermarket.   

Prep Time:  15 minutes
Cooking Time:  40 Minutes
Yield: 1 Loaf
1-1/2 Cups Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
2-1/2 Tsp Baking Powder
1 Tsp Sea Salt
1-½ Cups Whole Milk Ricotta
½ Cup Real Maple Syrup
3 Large Eggs
½ of a Vanilla Bean
1 Tsp Vanilla Extract 

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour a 9-inch loaf pan. 
In medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside.
In a separate bowl, whisk together ricotta, maple syrup, and eggs.  Split the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape out the seeds with the blunt side of a small knife, then beat them into the batter along with the vanilla extract.  Stir dry ingredients into the ricotta mixture, scraping down the sides as you go.  Stir until just well mixed.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth top with a spatula. Tap pan on counter a few times to remove air pockets.  Put cake in oven and let bake for 15 minutes, then turn 180 degrees to ensure even browning. Lower the temperature to 325°F and let bake until cake springs back when lightly touched, the sides of the cake have pulled away from the sides of the pan, and a cake tester inserted in center comes out clean, about 25 minutes more.  Let cool completely, then serve.
  

The other night we had a small Mediterranean feast, which included things like falafel with tahini sauce, hummus, and toasted pita with garlic and olive oil.  For the sake of contrasting, cooling freshness--we also had tabbouleh.  I love all things within this particular food genre, but tabbouleh has had, for me, a tendency to bore the old tastebuds...mostly because it tastes like parsley, which doesn't exactly smack you in the face with flavor.  But you know what's not boring?  Sundried tomatoes in oil.  Not boring at all.  It turns out the combination of flavors is delightfully zingy, quite pleasing to the eye and, perhaps most importantly, easy to throw together.   

As I was making everything, it occurred to me that there are several common ingredients running through this collection of foods...and that this meal would be a bit like drinking a vat of lemon juice and olive oil with some chickpeas for protein.  Except combined in a MUCH more texturally pleasing way.  And, although that may be strangely accurate, the Mediterranean feast was an amazing and delicious dinner for a warm evening.

Prep Time:  10 Minutes, plus about two inactive hours
Cooking Time:  None
Yield:  About 4 Cups
Ingredients:
1 Cup Bulghur Wheat
2 Tbsp Good Olive Oil
Juice of 2 Large Lemons
1 Clove Garlic, minced
1 ½ Tsp Sea Salt
½ Large Cucumber, diced
1 Bunch Scallions, white and light green parts, sliced
½ Cup Chopped Sun-dried Tomato, packed in oil
Sea Salt and Black Pepper, to taste

Directions:
Combine bulghur with 1-1/2 cups of boiling water, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and sea salt.  Stir, cover and let sit for 45 minutes.  Stir in cucumber, scallions, sun-dried tomatoes, sea salt, and black pepper.  Refrigerate for at least one hour (longer is better) and serve.  

There is a strange phenomenon going on in the foreign food aisle of the grocery store and I think we should all take advantage of it: 
The cheaper you buy your salsa, the more likely that will contain nothing but whole foods, all ground up and mixed together.  Expensive, more fabulously flavored salsas not only contain sugar, which seems kind of unnecessary, but they also cost more, which is not so great either. 

The drawback is that cheap salsa will occasionally taste like green peppers in watered-down ketchup.  So, for your consideration, I present a way to take advantage of the benefits of cheap salsa, make a condiment so nutritious you could conceivably eat it as a meal, and impress your friends at parties.  On that third point, I’m not exaggerating.  This mixture brings on the compliments.

As for the benefits...
Lest we forget, cilantro is a leafy green and therefore has all of the goodness of the genre:  fiber, phytonutrients, and -- as an added bonus of this particular herb -- a reported ability to assist in removing toxic metals from our delicate systems.  Like mercury from your fillings. 

Serve it with chips, next to any taco or burrito, over a salad, or – as I did tonight – with simple cheese and caramelized (ok, burnt) leek quesadillas.   

Prep Time:  5 Minutes
Cooking Time:  None
Yield: A Few Cups
1 Jar of Plain, Inexpensive Salsa
1 Cup of Corn Kernels (or one of those little cans, drained and rinsed)
1 ½ Cups of Cooked Black Beans (or one can, drained and rinsed)
1 Bunch of Cilantro, rinsed and chopped
Juice of 2 Limes

Directions:
Dump the salsa into a large bowl and add the remaining ingredients.  Mix well.  Serve immediately or, for better results, let it sit for a few hours in the fridge to let the flavors combine. 

Chutney is good to have around because it turns bites of food that are maybe a little bland into exotic, flavor-filled festivals of zippiness.  This one is inspired from a recipe in Flavors of India by Shanta Nimbark Sacharoff, with several modifications -- like the plumping of the raisins, which makes for a softer texture.  I’m serving it tonight next to a basic stir fry, like the food version of a glittering accessory to a nice but unremarkable outfit.

This particular chutney is good because:
1. it takes only moments to make 
2. it is extremely yummy 
3. perhaps most importantly, it is made of common ingredients that will go with a variety of meals, snacks, and sandwiches    
  
Prep Time:  10 minutes
Cooking Time:  None
Yield: About 1 Cup
1 Cup Raisins
¼ Cup Water
1 Tsp Fresh Chopped Ginger
1 Tsp Molasses
¼ Tsp Cayenne Pepper
Juice of 1/2 Lemon

Directions:
Submerge the raisins in very hot water and let them soak for 5 minutes, then drain.  Blend all ingredients, including raisins, in a blender or food processor until chunky but well mixed.  Serve as a sweet/spicy addition to meals and snacks, with a cheese platter, over a baked sweet potato, or as an exotic touch to a sandwich.
Keeps for two weeks, refrigerated.

My mission in life is, apparently, to turn every food that I like into a whole-food-ified veggie burger.  I do this because any ingredient combination will become both adorably portable and generally welcomed by humanity once put into burger form.  Today, I made a burger out of macaroni and cheese, so I should probably be ashamed of myself.  

Thing is, these are so much healthier than they sound.  They're mostly beans, yet there's so much surface area on them that the cheese on the top and bottom of each one gets crispy in the same delicious way as the top of a pan of regular mac and cheese.  The whole grain couscous, which is a miniscule little form of pasta, steps in as the 'macaroni' and blends right into the burger.  Dropped onto a slice of whole grain bread, topped with some crispy, fresh vegetables and served with sauteed spinach, they're about as nutritious a context as macaroni and cheese has seen in awhile.          

For extra zing, feel free to add a few cloves of minced garlic and/or some red pepper flakes to the mixture.    

Prep Time:  10 minutes
Cooking Time:  25 Minutes
Yield: Four Burgers
1/3 Cup Uncooked Whole Wheat Couscous
1 Tsp Olive Oil
¾ Tsp Sea Salt, divided
1-3/4 Cups Cooked Cannellini Beans (or 1 Can, drained and rinsed)
1 Cup Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese, preferably organic
1/3 Cup Whole Grain Panko Bread Crumbs (or whatever kind you’ve got)
Ground Black Pepper, to taste
A Very Generous Pinch of Nutmeg

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Generously grease a cookie sheet with olive oil and set aside. 
Bring ½ cup of water to a boil.  Stir in olive oil, ¼ teaspoon sea salt, and the couscous.  Immediately cover, remove from heat, and let it sit for five minutes.  Fluff with a fork when done. 
In a large bowl, combine couscous with remaining ingredients, including the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt.  Mash all of it together with your hands until most of the beans are smashed and everything is well combined. (And may I suggest not mixing in the breadcrumbs as well, so that they end up in only some of the bites-- like a little surprise?) Divide into four parts and form into flat patties.  Place the patties onto the greased cookie sheet and bake for 25 minutes, flipping about halfway through. 
Serve on a whole grain bun or whole grain toast with a slice of tomato, sprouts, baby spinach or whatever other fresh vegetables you’ve got. 
  

This one is by special request (a request that was more specific than "um, could you please post something?" but I guess I'm addressing those too) and I was more than happy to oblige because, after making it, I got to eat it. 

Eggs Florentine is one of my favorite special-treat breakfasts.  However, I've always been sort of amused/horrified by the concept of "Would you like some more egg yolk sauce on your eggs?  With butter?"  It is good, but it is crazy.  So although the concept of a vegan (and optionally soy-free) hollandaise sauce served over an actual egg may seen contradictory, for me it works.  If it doesn't work for you, which would also make sense, then use the sauce over asparagus, steamed cauliflower, or as a topping for luxurious enchiladas (for that, I'd make it thinner with some extra water).  It would also be delicious on whole grain toast with sauteed mushrooms or on a plain baked potato.  

I would say that there are three very important elements to a hollandaise sauce, vegan or not:  rich fattiness, tanginess and creaminess.  Cashews make this stuff both rich and creamy, while providing a fabulous source of copper and magnesium.  For tang, lots of lemon juice.  If you make it with unsweetened hemp milk, oat milk or rice milk, it's also soy free. 

Nutritional yeast is the only specialty ingredient here, but it is well worth finding if you havn't already.  There are not alot of non-animal sources of vitamin B-12, but nutritional yeast is a great one.  It's fabulous with balsamic vinegar on cauliflower and an integral ingredient in cheeseless macaroni and cheese.  Get thee to a health food store and buy it.

Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Cooking Time: 10 Minutes
Yield:  About 1-1/2 Cups of sauce (or enough for 4 Servings)
Hollandaise Sauce:
½ Cup Raw Cashews
1 Cup Milk, non-dairy, unsweetened
¼ Cup Nutritonal Yeast
½ Tsp Dry Mustard
½ Tsp Sea Salt
¼ Tsp Ground Black Pepper
Juice of 1 ½ to 2 Lemons
If making the eggs florentine, you’ll also need:
4 Organic Eggs
4 Slices Whole Grain Bread
A Few Large Handfuls of Baby Spinach

Grind the cashews into a powder using a coffee or spice grinder.  Combine all sauce ingredients, except lemon juice, in a saucepan and bring to a simmer, whisking to combine.  Turn down heat to low and continue to let simmer for 1-2 minutes.  Whisk in enough water to get to desired consistency, which could be as much as ½ cup.  Sauce thickens as it sits, so the quicker you use it the less water you’ll need.  Turn off the heat and whisk in the lemon juice, to taste, until mixture is smooth.

In the meantime, poach the eggs (see here for a great set of instructions on that), toast the bread, and sauté the spinach until just wilted—either in a little olive oil or the water still clinging to the leaves after rinsing.  Season the spinach with sea salt and black pepper.  Smear a little olive oil onto the toast, if you’re feeling naughty.

For each serving, layer toast, then a little spinach, then an egg, then drizzle generously with sauce.  Sprinkle with a little paprika or black pepper for color.  Serve immediately.  

This began as a Weightwatchers recipe, so it is already -- as Ms. Ray would say -- "figure friendly".  What was missing was the cinnamon, for some depth of flavor and to bring out the sweetness of the squash.  And olive oil, to avoid cooking spray and make the fat more beneficial.  And a longer cooking time, because when i left them in as long as originally suggested...they were crunchy.  And not so much in the fun way, but more in the 'raw squash' way.

The final result is scrumptious and, strangely, just as satisfying as a regular fry.  So if you wake up some morning thinking, "I really need a huge dose of vitamin A, plus some vitamin C and a mouthful of fiber...and I also want french fries", then these are the answer. 

Prep Time:  5 Minutes
Cooking Time:  20-25 Minutes
Yield:  4 Small Servings or 2 Larger
Ingredients:
1 Medium Butternut Squash
1 Tsp Olive Oil
¾ Tsp Sea Salt
½ Tsp Chili Powder
Pinch of Cinnamon

Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Lop the long part of the butternut squash off and slice off the outer peel.  (Set the bottom bulb aside for another day.)  Cut into quarters, long-ways.  Then cut each piece into quarters again, long-ways.  Cut each of these long pieces in half, which should leave you with a french-fry shape.

In a small bowl, combine all remaining ingredients (it'll be like dark, wet sand), then toss fries in the mix to coat.  Place on a baking sheet and roast for 20-25 minutes or until fries are soft on the inside and colored on the outside.  Serve hot. 

Today -- I aimlessly wandered the aisles of the Shoprite, looking for a processed product to recreate, healthy style, at home.  And while the project did require me to pay the 79 cents for a packet of taco seasoning that will never be used, I’ve got to think that its worth it.  How often does your taco night require a package of this stuff?  And how freaky are the ingredients? 

The second question I can answer right here and now, with a listing of the ingredients in the package I bought:  Salt, Maltodextrin (the second ingredient—so you’re getting a lot of this stuff, which is a sweetener/thickener commonly used in processed items), Chili Pepper (Yay!  A food!), Monosodium Glutamate (Mmmm, nerve damage…delicious), Corn Starch, Yellow Corn Flour, Spice, Contains less than 2% of the following: Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil (transfat…boo!), Silicon Dioxide (this makes me think of my old silicone swim cap, but is meant to serve as an anti-caking agent), Natural Flavor (read Fast Food Nation and you’ll run from “natural flavors” like they’ve got a weapon), and Ethoxyquin (um, what?).

Just listing these ingredients teaches us two things:  1.  There is very little actual food or real spice in there.   2.  Most of what you’re purchasing is meant to keep what little there is un-caked, preserved, thickened, and flavor-enhanced.   Forgetting the health issues, what a waste of 79 cents. 

You can make this in advance and keep on hand like a packet of seasoning (just keep it in something air-tight and label it) or stir it together when called-for.  Whatever --- we’re talking about approximately two minutes of work, so it doesn’t really make a difference.  I used it just like they said I should on the package:  brown one pound of meat (ok, I used crumbled firm tofu), add 2/3 cup of water and seasoning mix, stir, let cook uncovered at a low-flame simmer for 3 to 4 minutes, dump it into a whole grain wrap with some crisp veggies and optional grated cheddar.  Done. 

Prep Time:  5 Minutes
Cooking Time:  None
Yield:  1 “Package” of Seasoning
Ingredients:
1 Tbsp Chili Powder
1 Tbsp Dried Onion
1-1/2 Tsp Sea Salt
1 Tsp Dried Oregano
1 Tsp Corn Starch
¼ Tsp Cayenne Pepper

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.  Use immediately or store in a small, air-tight container.  Use as you would any packet of store-bought taco seasoning.

This recipe, the first of 2009(!), is in honor of the Super Bowl and that trashy (but delicious) old party chestnut—Onion Dip.  I figure, why not make onion dip out of, oh-- I don't know...onions. 
Inspired by the onion soup package itself, this gets even better after chilling in the fridge for a few hours.

I went with drained yogurt (aka “yogurt cheese”) for our creamy base, but vegans or dairy-averse can easily blend up some soft or silken tofu in a food processor.  I would up the amount of spice to disguise the tofu taste (because, contrary to what is often said, tofu really does have a taste) and expect a slightly looser, smoother dip.  Why yogurt over mayonnaise or sour cream or both?  Because 1. Mayonnaise is kind of gross and 2. Yogurt actually has digestive benefits.  And why use the pointless/more fattening substance when you can choose something that has actual benefits?

Serve with crackers, raw or blanched vegetables, chicken wings, or use as a sandwich condiment.  You can plop this version of Onion Dip down on the snack table at your Super Bowl party right next to the other, more obesity-inducing snacks and no one will be the wiser. 

*If you’re not already doing it, may this be your introduction to the wonderful world of making-yogurt-seem-like-cream-cheese (Yes, even if it’s the non-fat or low-fat version).  Click here for instructions.   You'll need to start your dip a day ahead, to give your yogurt time to drain.


Prep Time: 10 Minutes plus cooling time for the onion
Cooking Time:  10 Minutes
Yield:  1-1/2 Cups
Ingredients:
1 Large Vidalia Onion, finely  chopped
1 Cup Well-drained Organic Yogurt* (start with about 3 cups of regular yogurt to get to one cup drained)
1 Small Clove of Garlic, minced
½ Tsp Sea Salt
¼ Tsp Ground Black Pepper
1/8 Tsp Cayenne Pepper
½ Cup Grated Carrot
1 Tbsp Fresh Chives, snipped

In a large pan, warm olive oil over medium-low heat and then add onion.  Cook for about 10 minutes or until well-softened.  Remove from heat and let cool completely.   In a large bowl, combine onion, yogurt, garlic and spices until blended.  Stir in carrot and chives.  Season with additional sea salt and pepper, if desired.  Thin with a little milk (any type of unsweetened that you've got in the house-- even soy), if the consistency is too thick.  Serve.