The Sixth Day of Christmas My True Love Made For Me…

This is a great dip to serve with veggies such as celery, carrots, cucumbers and bell peppers or with your favorite flat bread or rice crackers.  Its packed with lots of antioxidants and has anti-inflammatory benefits.

Artichoke and Green Olive Tapenade

Ingredients

• 1 cup artichokes
• 3/4 cup green olives
• 1/2 cup parsley
• 1 clove garlic
• 8 raw almonds
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Directions

• Blend all ingredients in a food processor and enjoy with your favorite veggies, flatbread or crackers!

Basil Spinach Pesto

Ingredients

• 2 cups fresh basil leaves
• 2 cups fresh spinach leaves
• 1 cup pitted green olives
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/2 cup pine nuts
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions

1. Place all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until combined
2. Transfer to a bowl, cover and chill until ready to serve.

Almond Avocado Dip

Ingredients

• 2 scallions finely chopped
• 1-2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 tsp red chili powder
• 1 avocado
• 1 medium tomato
• 2 tsp basil
• 1/3 cup almonds
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

Directions

• Soak almonds for 12-24 hours, discard water
• Pour 1 cup of boiled water over the almonds and let them soak for 30-60 seconds and then discard water
• Peel skin off almonds (they are now blanched)
• Put blanched almonds in food processor until finely chopped
• Add basil and scallions to food processor
•  Then add tomato, avocado, garlic, red chili powder and lemon juice
• Serve this dip with your favorite raw veggies or crackers (we use Crunchmaster’s or Mary’s Gone Crackers gluten free crackers available at Costco)

Recipe courtesy of The Quintessential Recipes for Vibrant Health with modifications made by me!

Fresh Tomato Mint Salsa

Ingredients

• 1 large ripe tomato diced finely
• 1 tbsp fresh mint chopped finely
• 1 tbsp fresh scallion chopped finely
• 1 tbsp fresh cilantro chopped finely
• 1 tsp fresh ginger minced
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• sea salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Mix all ingredients well in a medium sized bowl
• Serve with any mexican dish, or any vegetable side dish
• For those who eat seafood, you can serve this with fish as well

 

Hummus

 

Ingredients

• 1 – 15 oz can of chickpeas
• 2-3 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds or sesame seed paste
• 3-6 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 2 tbsp water
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 tsp red chili powder or paprika
• sea salt to taste
• 2 sprigs parsely chopped

Directions

• Blend all ingredients (except parsley) in food processor until smooth
• Transfer to serving bowl and sprinkle with parsley and paprika
• Drizzle with a small amount of olive oil

Baba Ghanoush

Ingredients

• 1 eggplant
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 8 black kalamata olives
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds
• 1 & 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• sea salt and black pepper to taste

Directions

• Preheat oven to 375 F
• Prick eggplant with a fork several times and place on baking sheet
• Bake turning frequently for 20-25 minutes
• Remove from oven, let cool and peel skin as much as possible
• Combine all ingredients in blendtec blender and blend on “soup” setting to get a smooth puree

Mint Chutney

Ingredients

• 2 cups chopped mint leaves
• 1/4 yellow onion diced
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• 1/2 green chili
• 1 tsp minced ginger
• sea salt to taste

Directions

• Blend well in Blendtec blender on “dips/sauces” setting
• Enjoy with your favorite veggies or crackers

Prep time 10 minutes

Homemade Teriyaki Sauce

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1 cup water
• 2 tsp honey
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1/2 inch ginger minced
• 1 tbsp cornstarch

Directions

• In a saucepan heat water, soy sauce, honey, garlic and ginger and mix well
• Once heated, slowly add cornstarch and whisk until dissolved
• Set aside to use in our Mushroom and Bell Pepper Stir-Fry Noodle Recipe

Artichoke and Green Olive Tapenade

Ingredients

• 1 cup artichokes
• 3/4 cup green olives
• 1/2 cup parsley
• 1 clove garlic
• 8 raw almonds
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Directions

• Blend all ingredients in a food processor and enjoy with your favorite veggies, flatbread or crackers!

Sun Dried Tomato and Green Olive Tapenade

Ingredients

• 1 cup sun dried tomatoes
• 1/2 cup green olives
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tsp capers
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Directions

• Combine all ingredients in food processor until mixture is smooth and slightly chunky
• Enjoy with crackers, pita bread, or with some fresh veggies!