Tag: seeds

Appetizer Vegetarian · Vegetable sides · Vegetable-related

Spicy black bean, corn and avocado tacos

Belinda

Ripe summer corn is so delicious, so fresh, and so full of flavor, you can literally enjoy it raw. Filled with black beans, avocado, and raw corn marinated in bright lime juice along with jalapeño, cilantro, and toasted nuts and seeds, these hearty tacos make a great side to your BBQ meat.

Screen Shot 2019-06-23 at 7.44.31 PM

Serves 4

1/4 cup hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
2 ears of corn, shucked
1 medium jalapeño, seeded, finely chopped
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup chopped cilantro, plus more for serving
5 tbsp olive oil, divided
5 tbsp fresh lime juice, divided, plus lime wedges for serving
1 1/4 tsp kosher salt, divided
1 red onion, coarsely chopped
2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed, drained
1 tbsp ground cumin (preferably roasted, but don’t worry if you don’t have any)
12 small corn tortillas
1/2 cup sour cream
1 large avocado, thinly sliced

Toast the hazelnuts and pumpkin seeds in a medium skillet over medium heat, tossing occasionally, until golden brown, 8–10 minutes.

Meanwhile, slice the corn off cobs into a large bowl (you should have about 2 cups kernels).
Add the toasted nuts and seeds, jalapeño, red pepper, 1/4 cup chopped cilantro, 1/4 cup oil, 3 Tbsp. lime juice, and 1/2 tsp. salt; toss to combine.

Heat the remaining 1 tbsp oil in a medium skillet over medium.
Add onion and cook, stirring, until onion starts to release moisture and turns translucent, 4–5 minutes.
Add the beans, cumin, 1/3 cup water, and remaining 3/4 tsp. salt. Cover and cook until liquid is reduced and beans soften, about 5 minutes.
Uncover, add 1/3 cup water, and use the back of a fork to mash up about half of beans.

Working one at a time, warm tortillas with tongs directly over a gas burner over medium heat, turning often, until lightly charred and puffed in spots, about 45 seconds per side. (Alternatively, wrap tortillas in foil and heat in a 350°F oven until warmed through, or wrap in damp paper towels and microwave in 20-second bursts until warm.) Transfer to a plate and cover with a kitchen towel to keep warm.

Whisk the sour cream and remaining 2 tbsp lime juice in a small bowl. Fill the tortillas with the bean mixture, then top with the corn salsa, avocado, and cilantro leaves.
Drizzle with sour cream mixture and serve with lime wedges alongside.

Do Ahead
Corn salsa and beans can be made 3 days ahead; store separately, cover, and chill. Bring corn salsa to room temperature. Reheat beans in skillet before serving.

Baking · Dairy-free · Do-ahead · Gluten Free · Vegan · Whole30 compliant

Purely nuts and seeds bread

Belinda

This is a non-dairy, grain-free Paleo/Whole 30/Keto complaint recipe.

Use a combination of whole nuts and smaller seeds. Use whatever you have lying around, it will work as long as you follow the rest of the directions.
Do not cut the whole nuts, they slice beautifully in the finished product.
Do not omit the flax seed, and if possible use ground flax seeds. These, along with the egg, serve as a binder for the bread.
Cook for the specified length of time.
Be sure to grease the pan well so the beautiful seed bread pops right out.

It’s SO easy to make!

Screen Shot 2019-05-30 at 11.24.26 AM

 
3 cups mixed nuts and seeds left whole, for example;
1/2 cup pistachios
1/2 cup almonds
1/2 cup flax seed (try and use ground flax seed, as it’s a great binder)
1/2 cup walnuts
1/2 cup sesame Seeds
1/2 cup cashews

Other ingredients
3 eggs
1/4 cup oil
1/3 tsp salt

Preheat the oven to 325 F
In a large bowl, mix everything together.
Pour into a greased loaf pan.
Bake at 325F for 45 mins and then let the pan cool for 10 minutes.
Turn out the bread and let it finish cooling.

Baking · Do-ahead · Grains

Chewy, healthy flapjack bars

Belinda

 

Instead of buying cereal bars, these are so much more tasty and nutritious.
They keep in an airtight container for up to 4 days, but you won’t have any left after 1 day.

Makes 12 bars
10 oz jar apple sauce
4 oz (1/2 cup) ready to eat dried apricots, chopped
4oz (3/4 cup) raisins
2oz (1/4 cup) raw sugar
2oz (1/3 cup) sunflower seeds
1oz (2 tbsp) sesame seeds
1oz (1/4 cup) pumpkin seeds
3oz (scant 1 cup) rolled oats
3oz (2/3 cup) self raising wholewheat flour
2oz (2/3 cup) desiccated (dry unsweetened) coconut
2 large eggs

Preheat the oven to 400 F
Grease an 8 inch square shallow baking pan and line with baking parchment.
Put the apple sauce in a large bowl with the apricots, raisins, sugar and the sunflower, sesame and pumpkin seeds and stir together with a wooden spoon until thoroughly mixed.
Add the oats, flour, coconut and eggs to the fruit mixture and gently stir together until evenly combined.
Turn the mixture into the greased tin and spread to the edges in an even layer.
Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes or until golden and just firm to the touch.
Leave to cool in the tin, then lift onto a board and cut into bars.

** Allow the baking parchment to hang over the edges of the pan, this makes it easier to remove the bars from the pan.

Baking · Chocolate · Do-ahead · Gluten Free · Nuts

Easy, healthy homemade fruit, nut and seed chocolate

Belinda

This is the most divine chocolate you can eat, and you choose exactly what you want in it and how dark the chocolate is. Everyone swoons with this chocolate.

It almost doesn’t need a recipe so I will give you the guidelines;

This makes about 40 pieces, at least

You will need;

A double boiler, or a bowl to sit on top of a saucepan without the bottom of it touching the water you put in the saucepan.
A shallow 9” by 13” baking tray lined with aluminum foil (however, you can make as little or as much as you want and vary the size of the tray.

Ingredients

12 x 4oz bars of really good quality chocolate. I use Lindt and use 8 x 85% bars and 4  x 70% bars, sometimes using a couple of the “Lindt Intense orange” flavor, or “mint” flavor but you can put in anything you want.

Salted, skinned peanuts (It’s nice to have something salted against the sweetness of the chocolate)
pumpkin seeds
pistachio nuts
sunflower seeds
toasted slivered almonds
any other nuts you like, chopped very coarsely
raisins
dried cranberries
dried blueberries
dried apricots
crystallized ginger
any other dried fruit

2 fresh oranges, grated zest only (if you like a lovely orange flavor)

Method

You can really improvise with this, but all you do is break up the chocolate and put it in the top bowl of a double boiler.

Cut all the nuts until they are pretty similar in size and sprinkle all the fruits, nuts and seeds of your choice onto the lined baking tray.

Finely grate the zest of the two oranges and add to the chocolate in the bowl over medium heat so the water underneath is gently simmering. Stir occasionally until it has all melted.
Take off the stove and pour over all the fruits, nuts and seeds in the baking tray, shaking the baking tray so it spreads evenly into all the holes and crevices. Sprinkle a few bits and pieces of the fruit, nuts and seeds over the top for decoration and then refrigerate for 4 to 6 hours until set.

Remove the foil from underneath the chocolate, and start cutting it into chunks . Store in a container in the fridge and you will have divine chocolate for weeks!!

Appetizer Vegetarian · Appetizers · Holiday Food · Salad

Roasted Delicata Squash, Pomegranate and Arugula Salad

Belinda

This is a gorgeous show stealer for the Thanksgiving table. You can roast the Delicata squash the day before if there is no room in the oven on the day.

Serves 4 to 8

Salad
2 medium delicata squash, around 1 and 1/4 lbs total
1 tbsp olive oil
Fine grain sea salt
4 heaping cups baby arugula (or mixed greens if you prefer)
2/3 cup pomegranate seeds (or a generous handful of dried cherries or cranberries)
1/3 cup raw pumpkin seeds (pepitas) or pecans
4 oz Greek feta cheese, crumbled

Maple-balsamic vinaigrette
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp real maple syrup
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
Freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 F
Wash the squash and scrape off any tough bits of skin with a knife. Slice the squash into 1/2 inch rounds. Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds from each round. Drizzle the squash with a generous tbsp of olive oil and a sprinkle of sea salt.
Use your fingers to lightly coat all the surfaces of the squash with olive oil.

Bake for about 30 minutes or until the squash is tender and golden, flipping halfway.

In a medium skillet over medium-low heat, toast the pepitas (or pecans), stirring frequently, until they are fragrant and lightly golden on the edges. Remove from the heat.
In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, maple syrup and Dijon mustard with a pinch of salt and pepper.

Once the squash has had a few minutes to cool, combine the arugula, pomegranate (or dried fruit), pepitas (or pecans), crumbled feta and squash in a serving bowl. Toss with enough dressing to lightly coat the leaves. Serve immediately.

Yields 4 substantial side salads or up to 8 small servings.
To make this recipe vegan, skip the feta or serve it on the side.

Do-ahead · Holiday Food · Meat

Pumpkin seed stuffing with chorizo

Belinda

This is a terrific stuffing as it uses the “pepitas” pumpkin seeds. This recipe was voted best recipe of the year for Bon Appetite magazine in 2008.  Toasted pepitas, fragrant Spanish chorizo, chiles and cornbread. Would could be nicer?
You can make this the day before but only if you’re not putting it in the turkey. I like to cook this separately.

Serves 6 to 8

* Pumpkin seed oil can be found online or in well stocked supermarkets and is worth having. For a little extra heat, roast 2 to 4 jalapeno chiles with the poblanos, then clean, stem, seed and chop them before adding them to the stuffing.

10 cups cubed corn bread, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/4 cup pumpkinseed oil, divided
1 1/2 tsp minced fresh thyme
1 tbsp chopped fresh oregano
1 1/4 tsp salt, divided
freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups shelled pumpkin seeds
4 poblano chiles
6 tbsp (3/4 stick) butter, divided
2 tbsp olive oil
3/4 lb Spanish chorizo, cut crosswise into 1/8 inch slices
1 1/2 cups fresh corn, from about 2 medium corn cobs
2 onions, cut into 1/2 inch dice
2 tsp minced garlic
1/3 cup dry white wine
3/4 tsp cumin (I roast my own)
1/2 tsp Spanish smoked paprika
2 to 3 cups chicken or turkey broth

Preheat the oven to 375 F
In a large bowl, gently toss the corn bread with 3 tbsp pumpkinseed oil, the thyme, oregano,1/2 tsp salt and several grinds of black pepper.

Spread the cubes in a single layer on a large, foil lined baking sheet and toast for 20 to 25 minutes until lightly golden, shaking the pan every 5 minutes for even coloring. Remove from the heat and allow to cool, then place in a large bowl.

In a medium bowl, toss the pumpkin seeds with the remaining tbsp pumpkinseed oil, 1/4 tsp salt and several grinds of black pepper. Place the seeds on a foil lined baking sheet and toast until fragrant, puffed and lightly golden, about 10 minutes. Remove and cool, then add to the cornbread.

Meanwhile, roast the chiles on the stove top directly over a hot burner until charred on all sides, about 5 minutes. Remove to a sealed bag to rest until cool enough to peel.
Peel the charred skin (do NOT rinse under water as this will remove the flavor)
Halve the chiles lengthwise, stem and seed. Cut the halves crosswise into 1/8 inch sttrips. Add to the cornbread.

Heat a large, heavy-bottom skillet over medium high heat. Add 2 tbsp butter and the olive oil, then the chorizo and cook until lightly browned, about 4 to 5 minutes.
Remove the chorizo with a slotted spoon, leaving the fat in the pan, and add the chorizo to the stuffing mixture.

Stir the corn and onions into the pan and season with 1/4 tsp salt and several grinds of black pepper.
Cook, stirring occasionally, until the corn is crisp-tender and the onions have softened and are translucent, about 5 minutes.
Stir in the garlic and cook until it is aromatic, about 30 seconds.
Stir in the white wine and cook, scraping any bits of flavoring from the pan, until the white wine has almost evaporated, 2 to 3 minutes.  Cool, slightly, then add to the stuffing mixture.

*(You are building layers of flavor with all these steps)

Gently toss in the cumin and smoked Spanish paprika, and season the stuffing with 1/4 tsp salt or to taste.
Melt the remaining butter and drizzle over the stuffing. Drizzle 2 cups of chicken or turkey broth over the stuffing and gently toss. Add additional broth as desired.

Place the stuffing in a buttered 13 by 9 inch baking dish, cover and place in the oven. Bake for 20  minutes, then remove the cover and continue to bake for another 20 to 30 minutes until the top is lightly toasted.
Remove and serve.