Total Health Counseling

Garlicky Kale Chips

May 18, 2013/in Beneficial Foods, Recipe /by phiggins

Kale chips seem to be everywhere these days. I’ve seen a lot of recipes online and decided to start making them myself. I’m on my third batch of the week, yes they are that good!

These babies come together fairly quickly and go well with grilled fish or your favorite protein.

Krispy and Delish!

Kale is a highly nutritious bitter green vegetable. It’s got Vitamin A, C, K and several essential nutrients. Kale is also a great non-dairy source of Calcium! Bitter greens are beneficial to eat especially in the Spring time when people tend to get congestion and sinus infections. This will help keep your lungs clear so you can breath easier. Keep kale on your menu to help prevent cancer, diabetes, and heart disease!!

Recipe – Makes 2 servings

Ingredients:

half bunch of kale (5 stems full of leaves)

1-2 T. olive oil

pinch of sea salt and black pepper

1/8 tsp. garlic powder

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Remove kale leaves from stems and wash thoroughly. You can chop or tear leaves off stem.

3. Shake water off as best you can. Place paper towel on baking sheet and put kale on top. Put more paper towels on top of kale and dry kale. Discard wet paper towels.

4. Drizzle olive oil on kale and sprinkle on spices. Using your clean hands, mix the oil and spices evenly until kale is well coated.

5. Bake for 8 minutes, remove from oven, turn over kale leaves and bake another 8-10 minutes.

6. Allow to cool a few minutes then serve.

7. Enjoy!

Yummy meal idea: serve with grilled fish.

Sunshine Chicken Dinner

March 23, 2013/1 Comment/in Recipe /by phiggins

This meal makes me think of sunshine, probably because of the way I arranged the sweet potatoes and the natural light pouring onto the plate. It put a smile on my face and it was ready in minutes since I cooked the chicken and potatoes the day before.

Baked sweet potato, baked chicken drumsticks, dandelion greens rubbed with olive oil and pink sea salt.

Baked Chicken Drumsticks

Ingredients:

1# chicken drumsticks (organic, antibiotic free, no hormones added)

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup grapeseed oil

1/8 teaspoon each (or to taste) pink sea salt, black pepper, turmeric, basil, oregano

Method:

1. Measure out and combine vinegar, oil, and spices. Toss in a resealable 1 gallon plastic bag.

2. Add chicken to bag, seal, shake to combine. Let chicken sit in marinade for 20 minutes on counter (this is a short enough duration to not cause food spoilage). If you choose to marinate overnight or for more than 30 minutes, place chicken in fridge.

3. Preheat oven to 375. Place chicken and marinade in baking pan.

4. Bake for 45 minutes or until juices of chicken run clear.

5. Once chicken is fully cooked, set oven to broil and cook another 3-4 minutes to brown chicken skin.

6. Remove from oven and allow to sit for 5-10 minutes then serve with sliced baked sweet potato and dandelion greens.

7. Enjoy!

Spaghetti Squash: Make Versatile Meals With This Winter Gem

March 1, 2013/in Recipe /by phiggins

Spaghetti squash is a versatile winter delight. It resembles spaghetti and pairs well with saucy dishes. It’s super low calorie so you can fill up on a nutrient rich meal without the bloat and discomfort of regular pasta.

Baked Spaghetti Squash

Ingredients:

1 whole spaghetti squash

1/4 cup water

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Remove sticker and wash squash.

3. Break out your sharpest kitchen knife and even take a minute to sharpen it, this will make cutting the squash much easier.

4. Carefully, cut the bottom stem off of the squash, this will give you a flat surface.

5. Sit the squash on the now flat bottom and carefully cut in half. Be careful to keep your fingers and hands out of the way.

6. Once the squash is cut in half, scoop the seeds out. You can set aside for later and roast the seeds as well.

7. Take each half and place cut side down in a glass baking pan, add 1/4 cup water.

8. Roast for 40-50 minutes at 400 degrees or until soft.

9. Allow to cool, then turn over and scrape the flesh with a fork. It should come off the peel and resemble spaghetti.

10. Serve with your favorite grilled meat and veggies, top with turkey chili (try my delish recipe!), or enjoy with pasta sauce.

11. Enjoy!

No Meat Athlete Inspired Breakfast Bars

February 5, 2013/4 Comments/in Recipe, Tips /by phiggins

I landed on the No Meat Athlete website the other day and noticed the side bar with their most popular posts. Number one post is The Perfect Smoothie Formula and number two is The Ultimate Energy Bar Formula. Interesting, I have never seen a recipe called a formula, so I clicked to check it out. I actually love this idea of a formula rather than a recipe because it gives you so many different options. Almost every recipe I pick up, my instinct is to analyze what ingredients I can change out or add to the recipe. I guess it’s from years of kitchen experiments after following recipes to the letter when I first started cooking and baking.

I loved customizing this recipe using their formula with all of the great options. I did make a change from one of the base ingredients in the formula by using 1.5 cups of cooked millet instead of 1.5 cups of oats. I didn’t have any gluten free oats on hand and wanted to use up some cooked millet.

Check out these beauties, which would be lovely with some tea. I am planning to enjoy a breakfast bar tomorrow morning with a green smoothie to give me energy all morning until lunch time! Can’t wait.

When making bars, I always prefer to wrap them up individually and toss in the fridge or freezer. That way, I don’t need to eat before they get stale. These bars are vegan, gluten free, and dairy free. They are quite filling with their fiber rich secret ingredient of beans, hehe.

Ingredients:

1.5 cups cooked adzuki beans

1/4 cup ground flaxseed mixed with 1/4 cup water

1/4 cup agave syrup

1/4 cup mashed ripe banana (about a half banana)

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

(First set of ingredients will be combined in food processor until smooth then add remaining ingredients and pulse)

***************

1.5 cups cooked millet (I used millet instead of oats from the base formula)

1/2 cup buckwheat

1/2 cup gluten free all purpose baking flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill)

1/4 cup water (if needed)

1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used Enjoy Life mini chips – allergen free)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Grease bottom and sides of 9 x 13 inch baking pan with coconut oil.

3. In a food processor, add beans, ground flaxseed and water, agave syrup, banana, cinnamon, and sea salt. Run food processor until ingredients are blended and smooth.

4. Add the millet, buckwheat, and flour then pulse until just mixed in. You don’t want to puree the batter from this point on.

5. Add 1/4 cup water if batter seems a bit too thick.

6. Fold in mini chocolate chips.

7. Spread batter evenly in prepared pan.

8. Bake until edges begin to pull away from sides of pan and a knife inserted in center comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached, 30 minutes. Check after 20 minutes.

9. Let cool completely in pan.

10. Cut into 8 or 12 bars.

11. Enjoy!!

These are great to individually wrap and throw in the freezer.

For the original formula along with suggested formula options, check out No Meat Athletes website. I know I’ll be back for more great tips!

Easy Roasted Acorn Squash

January 21, 2013/4 Comments/in Beneficial Foods, Recipe /by phiggins

Acorn squash is in season during the Fall and Winter. These babies are quite versatile, a few of my favorite ways to prepare them are to bake and fill them, bake then mash them, or straight up roasted. Okay, I confess, my favorite way to prepare and eat acorn squash is to roast and I even eat the skin because it becomes soft enough to do so and it’s just so good.

Start with one or even two whole acorn squash. Remove the sticker and wash the outside. Scrub with a veggie cleaning brush if you have one. Then break out a really sharp kitchen knife. I encourage you to sharpen your favorite kitchen knife before taking it to the squash, it’s got a tough exterior!

Start by cutting a little off the bottom, then you have a flat end of the squash. Carefully, cut in half, you may need to rock the knife back and forth to get it into the squash and keep your hands and fingers out of the way. BE very careful! I cannot stress the enough! Once the squash is in half, scoop the seeds out. You can set aside for later and roast the seeds as well. About.com has a great recipe to try.

Take each half and place cut side down. Use the ridges in the acorn squash as guidelines to cut into wedges like shown. Place on a backing sheet and brush with a high heat oil such as coconut oil or grapeseed oil. Season with your favorite spices, below I used Himalayan sea salt, black pepper, and dried basil. Roast for 35 minutes at 400 degrees or until soft.

Arrange on a plate and serve!

Roasted Acorn Squash

Ingredients:

1 or 2 whole acorn squash

1 T. coconut oil

1t. dried basil

Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Remove sticker and wash acorn squash.

3. Break out your sharpest kitchen knife and even take a minute to sharpen it, this will make cutting the acorn squash much easier.

4. Carefully, cut the bottom stem off of the squash, this will give you a flat surface.

5. Sit the squash on the now flat bottom and carefully cut in half. Be careful to keep your fingers and hands out of the way.

6. Once the squash is cut in half, scoop the seeds out. You can set aside for later and roast the seeds as well.

7. Take each half and place cut side down. Use the ridges in the acorn squash as guidelines to cut into wedges.

8. Place on a backing sheet and brush with a high heat oil such as coconut oil or grapeseed oil. Season with your favorite spices, such as Himalayan sea salt, black pepper, and dried basil.

9. Roast for 35 minutes at 400 degrees or until soft.

10. Enjoy!

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