On The Eighth Day of Christmas My True Love Made For Me…

Roasted Vegetables are a great pre-dinner dish.  These roasted vegetables are extraordinarily tasty because they are marinated in our homemade balsamic dressing.

Roasted Vegetables with Balsamic Dressing

Ingredients

• 1 red pepper sliced
• 8 baby bella mushrooms quartered
• 8 artichoke hearts marinated in oil
• 10 asparagus pieces –  chopped in 2 inch segments
• 10-15 brussel sprouts
• 1/4 cup balsamic dressing (click here to see recipe)
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• sea salt and black pepper to taste

Directions

• Marinate all vegetables in balsamic dressing, olive oil. sea salt and black pepper for a few hours
• Roast in oven at 350 Fahrenheit for 10-15 min

Grilled Asian Salad

Ingredients

Dressing

• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1 tsp sesame seed oil
• 2 tsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp orange zest
• 1/2 tsp hot sauce
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• Sea salt and pepper to taste

Salad

• 12 asparagus spears, julienned
• 1/4 red pepper, julienned
• 1/4 yellow pepper, julienned
• 1/4 zucchini, julienned
• 1/4 red onion, julienned
• 2 tbsp grape seed oil
• 45 g tofu, firm
• 4 English cucumbers, seeds removed, julienned
• Handful cilantro leaves
• 4 handfuls watercress

Directions

• Preheat barbecue or grill to high.
• For dressing: Place all ingredients in a bowl, whisk together, and adjust seasoning to taste. Set aside.
• For salad: Add asparagus, red pepper, yellow pepper, zucchini and red onion to medium-sized bowl.
• Add 1 tbsp grape seed oil, season with salt and pepper, and toss to coat.
• Place vegetables on grill and grill until vegetables begin to soften
• Cut tofu in half to make two flat pieces. Brush on all surfaces with remaining grape seed oil
• Grill tofu until crispy on all sides. Slice width-wise into 1/2-cm strips and add to grilled vegetables.
• Add dressing, cucumber and half of the cilantro, and gently toss together.
• Place equal amounts of watercress on four plates. Top with equal amounts of salad.
• Sprinkle with remaining cilantro leaves.

Serves 4

Mediterranean Pasta Salad

Ingredients

• 1 package fusilli brown rice pasta
• 1 large bunch asparagus cut into 1-inch lengths, discarding bottom fourth
• 1/2 medium red onion, minced
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 5-6 medium cloves garlic, pressed
• 3 tbsp chopped fresh basil
• 1 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon
• 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• sea salt and black pepper to taste

Directions

• Cook pasta according to instructions on package
• While pasta is cooking prepare rest of the ingredients. Place everything but asparagus in a bowl and set aside
• When pasta is about 3 minutes from being done, add asparagus to cooking pasta. (If asparagus is thick you may want to add 4 minutes before it’s done. Or if it is thin, add 2 minutes before it’s done.) Drain and rinse in cold water in a strainer. Make sure you drain the water well, so it doesn’t dilute the flavor of the dressing
• Toss with rest of ingredients, and season with salt and pepper

Serves: 4

Cook  Time and Prep Time: 25 min

recipe courtesy of whfoods.org

Coconut Spinach Saute

Ingredients

• 2 small shallots finely chopped
• 1 large clove of garlic minced
• 1 tsp coconut oil
• 1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon red chili powder
• 1 cup chopped asparagus (2 inch segments)
• 10 cups baby spinach
• squeeze of lemon
• 1 1/2 tablespoons unsweetened coconut, lightly toasted
• sea salt to taste

Directions

• Heat coconut oil in large skillet over medium heat
• Add the mustard seeds and cumin seeds, cover with a lid, and let them toast a bit
• Remove the lid, stir in the red chili powder and saute for a min
• Stir in the asparagus and let it cook for 3 another minutes
• Then stir in the garlic and shallots and cook for another 2 min
• Add spinach and keep stirring until the spinach starts to wilt a bit collapsing a bit, turn off stove
• Squeeze a bit of lemon and sprinkle the coconut on top

Recipe courtesy of http://www.101cookbooks.com/ with adjustments made by me!

Asparagus and Potato Salad

Ingredients

• 1 bunch asparagus
• 2 russet potatoes or 4-5 small red potatoes
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• red chili powder to taste
• sea salt to taste
• 3 tbsp dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup chopped chives

Directions

• Steam asparagus in steamer pot until firm and slightly tender
• Steam potatoes in steamer pot until cooked
• Whisk lemon juice, olive oil, red chili powder, sea salt and dijon mustard in a bowl
• Toss steamed asparagus and potatoes with above dressing
• Garnish with chopped chives and serve

Recipe courtesy of http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com with adjustments by me!

Pasta Primavera

Ingredients

• 1 red pepper or yellow pepper finely sliced
• 1 medium onion diced
• 1 zucchini diced
• 1 medium carrot sliced in 1 inch strips
• 1/2 bunch asparagus cut in one inch segments
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1 cup fresh basil chopped finely
• 1/2 cup parsley chopped finely
• 3 tbsp fresh sage chopped finely
• 1 -15 oz can diced tomatoes
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp coconut oil
• 1/4 cup vegetable broth
• sea salt and black pepper to taste
• 6 oz brown rice pasta

Directions

• Bring salted water to boil for pasta and cook as directed on package
• In an medium skillet, add coconut oil and heat on low-medium heat
• Add onion and cook until translucent (about 5 min)
• Add bell pepper, carrot, asparagus, zucchini one at a time waiting about 2 minutes between each
• Add tomatoes and broth and simmer until vegetables are slightly tender, about 10 min
• Add fresh herbs and sea salt and black pepper
• Strain pasta and toss with vegetable mixture

 

Oven Grilled Asparagus

Ingredients

• 1  bunch asparagus
• 2  tablespoons  fresh lemon juice
• 2  tablespoon grape seed oil (can cook at higher temperatures with this oil vs. olive oil)
• 1/4  paprika
• 1/2 tsp lemon zest
• 1 clove garlic finely minced
• sea salt and black pepper to taste

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
• Cut woody ends off of asparagus
• Mix all ingredients except asparagus in a bowl
• In a baking sheet, drizzle mixture over asparagus and ensure you coat each stem with dressing
• “Oven Grill” for 15-20 minutes
• You can also cook on grill for 5-10 minutes

Prep time and cook time 25 min

Serves 4

Food of the Week – Asparagus!

Health Benefits

• Asparagus has anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant and anti-cancer properties
• It improve blood pressure, blood sugar and blood fat levels
• It is high in Vitamin K and folate
• It is high in fiber and protein

How to Select and Store

• Stems should be firm and thin
• Wash under cold water
• Chop off woody ends before cooking

Best Way to Cook

• Sauteing Asparagus for no more than 5 min is the best way to cook asparagus

Recipes

• Sauteed Asparagus
• Roasted Vegetables

Sauteed Asparagus

Ingredients

• 1 bunch asparagus chopped in 2 inch segments
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• sea salt and black pepper to taste

Directions

• In a bowl whisk balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, black pepper and sea salt, set aside
• In a medium sized skillet heat coconut oil on medium heat
• Cut woody stems off of bottom of asparagus
• Add asparagus to skillet and cover lid.  Cook for 5 min
• Mix asparagus to bowl with dressing
• Let it marinate and serve

recipe courtesy of whfoods.org, with modifications by me

Roasted Vegetables with Balsamic Dressing

Ingredients

• 1 red pepper sliced
• 8 baby bella mushrooms quartered
• 8 artichoke hearts marinated in oil (we buy ours from costco)
• 10 asparagus pieces –  chopped in 2 inch segments
• 1/4 cup balsamic dressing (click here to see recipe)
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• sea salt and black pepper to taste

Directions

• Marinate all vegetables in balsamic dressing, olive oil. sea salt and black pepper for a few hours
• Roast in oven at 350 Fahrenheit for 10-15 min