Yummy Healthy Food

This is great as a dip.  It also can be using if you're baking white fish -- just spoon on top.

Ingredients:
-2-3TBS olive oil
-1 medium onion
-3 Japanese eggplants or 1 Italian eggplant
-3 peppers (red, green or hot peppers)
-2 large tomatoes
-2 cloves garlic

Steps:
1) Heat olive oil to medium in cast iron skillet or large frying pan

2) Add onions & saute for 5-10 minutes stirring occasionally until they soften

3) Add eggplants & continue cooking until they are lightly browned

4) Add peppers & saute another 5 minutes

5) Add garlic & saute another 2-3 minutes stirring constantly

6) Be sure to cook long enough so that all the veggies soften into a jam like consistency.

7) Serve with pita or rice cakes.

​8) Enjoy!

Ingredients:
-2 TBS olive oil
-1 medium onion, chopped
-2 zucchinis, chopped
-1 red pepper, chopped
-2 cloves of garlic, chopped
-1 can of sardines
-1/2 can of anchovies
-juice from 1/2 lemon (~2TBS)

Steps:
1) Prep veggies

2)  Heat olive oil over medium heat for a few minutes

3)  Add onions and sauté until soft (~5-10 minutes)

4) Add red pepper & continue sautéing (~5 minutes)

5) Add zucchini & sauté another 10 minutes, stirring frequently

6) Season with salt & pepper

6) When veggies are slightly brown & caramelized, add garlic & continue stirring

7) Add sardines & anchovies, breaking up fish & stirring

8) If you like, you can add some grated parmesan cheese & serve

​There is just enough heat in this recipe so that the spices linger in your mouth.
This takes 45 minutes to prepare start to finish and serves 4 people.

Ingredients:
-1 c of Israeli couscous
-1 eggplant
-1/2 pint cherry tomatoes
-1/2 red pepper
-olive oil for roasting and sauteing
-1/4 c chopped parsley
-2 TBS lemon juice
-2 cloves garlic
-1/4 tsp ground cumin
-1/4 tsp group coriander
-1/8 tsp cayenne

Steps:
1) Roast eggplant, tomatoes, red pepper
-Preheat oven to 400 degrees
- Put eggplant in the oven for 30 minutes
-Remove seeds from red pepper & chop into 1 inch pieces
-Place red pepper and tomatoes in baking dish
-Toss with olive oil & put in oven
-Check on tomatoes and pepper every 10 minutes; stirring to keep from burning
-Remove tomatoes and pepper when they are browned but not burnt
-Remove eggplant when until soft when poked
-Slice eggplant in half & let cool
 
2) While veggies are roasting, prepare couscous
-Boil 1 1/4 c water in a saucepan
-Add 1 c couscous and 1/2 tsp salt
-Lower heat & simmer 15-20 minutes until water is absorbed
 
3) Saute herbs, tomatoes & peppers
-Mince or grate garlic
-Spoon out inside of eggplant
-Chop by hand or in food processor
-Chop tomatoes & pepper in food processor
-Chop parsley
-Add about 2TBS to skillet and heat medium low
-Add garlic & let soften (not brown)
-Add tomatoes, peppers, cumin, coriander & cayenne to skillet
-Saute for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently
-Add eggplant, lemon juice, parsley, salt & pepper
-Remove from heat & mix with couscous
 
Enjoy!

A  good roast chicken makes almost anything possible.  It's great for company or a comfort food meal at home.  This is one of my favorite recipes. It's a whole meal in one roasting pan.

This takes about 20 minutes of prep time, requires 1 1/2 - 2 hours in the oven and serves 4 people.

Ingredients:
-whole chicken
- 2/3 c extra virgin olive oil
-1 lemon
-few sprigs of fresh rosemary, thyme or oregano
-8 garlic cloves, unpeeled
-1 lb small, new potatoes
-1 eggplant
-1 red pepper

Steps:
1) Prepare chicken
-Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
-Rub chicken all over with olive oil
-Place 1/2 of the lemon & 1-2 sprig of herbs inside the cavity of the chicken
-Please bird breast side down in large roasting pan
-Roast for about 30 minutes

2) Prepare vegetables
-Chop eggplant into 1 inch pieces
-Remove seeds from red pepper & cut into 1 inch pieces
-If potatoes are on the larger side, cut into quarters
 
3) Add potatoes to chicken
-Remove chicken from the oven & season with salt
-Turn chicken over
-Paste with juices from pan
-Add potatoes to roasting pan, pour enough olive oil to coat
-Roast for an additional 30 minutes

4) Add vegetables
-Add eggplant, red pepper, garlic cloves, remaining sprigs of herbs to pan
-Slice remaining 1/2 lemon and add to pan
-Drizzle vegetables with remaining olive oil
-Season with salt and pepper
-Return to oven for additional 30-50 minutes
-Baste and turn vegetables every 15 minutes
-Chicken is finished when meat thermometer is at 165 degrees or when juices run clear
 
5) Serve and enjoy!!

What I love about cooking is that it is so forgiving.  You can always add a little more of a little less of an ingredient or tweak a recipe so that it includes a favorite food or spice.  This is true of the recipe listed below.  Don't worry if you don't have the exact ingredients.

It takes about a 1/2 hour to prepare.  Most of the time is for sauteing the onions at low heat so that they are soft & sweet.

I often make couscous with veggies for lunch. You can refrigerate or freeze extra portions.  It's pretty simple to make, and it's good for you.

Ingredients:
2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1/2 red pepper, chopped
1 tomato, chopped; or 1/2 pint cherry tomatoes
3 cloves garlic, minced or chopped
1 TBS lemon juice
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 cup dried couscous

Steps:
1) Saute onions
-heat olive oil in a large skillet over low heat
-add the chopped onions & cook these for about 20 minutes stirring occasionally so they don't brown

2) Make couscous
-in a saucepan boil 3/4 c water
-add 3/4 c dry couscous
-stir well
-remove from heat, cover and let stand for 5 minutes

3) Saute other veggies
-add red pepper to onions; cook for 5 minutes on low heat
-add garlic and stir for 30 seconds
-add spinach & cover pot for a few minutes until spinach starts to wilt
-stir veggies so that spinach leaves melt into the other veggies

4) Mix everything together
-stir in lemon juice & oregano
-stir in couscous and serve