All posts in category Recipes

Garden Fresh Ratatouille

If you didn’t know, I have a small vegetable garden. This season, I planted cherry tomatoes. I never DREAMED I would end up harvesting about 100 of these little guys in just one week! Therefore, I shall share one of the recipes I made this week for dinner. Ratatouille is a traditional French vegetable dish that features tomatoes and several other key ingredients like eggplant, zucchini, onions, and garlic and seasoned with various herbs. I used my mini crockpot for this, and it turned out great! I even had some for breakfast this morning. It is a great filling for an omelet!

Ratatouille

2 cups cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
2 cups eggplant, diced
2 cups zucchini, diced
1/2 cup onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 sprig rosemary
1 sprig thyme
1 teaspoon herbs de provence
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese

Place diced eggplant into a strainer. Lightly salt and allow to sit for at least 10 min. Rinse and pat dry. Place all ingredients, except the sprigs of herbs, into a bowl and stir to coat. Pour the vegetables into a crockpot and top with sprigs. Cook on low for about 2-4 hours. Time will vary depending on the cooking temperature of your crockpot and how tender you like your veggies, so it’s best to check after 2 hours and determine if you want them softer or if they are perfect. Serve warm, topped with cheese.

Other Tomato Dishes that we will have had OR will be having very soon:

Tomato and Carrot Balsamic Salad

Green Bean, Tomato and Mozzarella Pesto Salad

Balsamic Chicken, Tomato, and Mozzarella Skewers

3 Comments

by M. Terry on March 10, 2015 • Permalink

Posted in Food, Health and Beauty, Recipes

Tagged clean slow cooker crockpot ratatouille

Posted by M. Terry on March 10, 2015

https://wholetothecore.com/2015/03/10/garden-fresh-ratatouille/

Tangy Kale and Sweet Potato Bit Salad for a “Brown Bag” Lunch

I am going on a field trip tomorrow with my oldest. I always like to pack a salad for my lunch, but a dressed salad can be tricky to take for a “brown bag” lunch. My solution is to use a hearty green, like kale, so it doesn’t get soggy and wilt. It makes the not-so-tender leaves softer and full of flavor.

Here is salad #4 in my “A Salad Each Week” series. This super healthy salad can be dressed and saved for a few days since the kale and raw sweet potato actually need time to absorb the dressing so they are tender when eaten. Make a large batch, separate into individual containers, and you have instant meals to pull out and go!

Tangy Kale and Sweet Potato Bit Salad

4 cups kale, chopped
1 small, raw sweet potato, peeled and diced
2 Tablespoons purple onion, diced
2 Tablespoons Coconut oil
2 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon stone ground mustard
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
Salt and pepper to taste

Place coconut oil, vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, garlic and S&P into a bowl and whisk. Add in kale, sweet potatoes, and onion and toss to coat. Place in fridge to chill for at least a few hours. Enjoy!

1 Comment

by M. Terry on March 5, 2015 • Permalink

Posted in Food, Recipes, Salads

Tagged brwon bag salad, dressed kale salad, grab and go healthy meals, healthy to go salad, quick salad

Posted by M. Terry on March 5, 2015

https://wholetothecore.com/2015/03/05/tangy-kale-and-sweet-potato-bit-salad-for-a-brown-bag-lunch/

Homemade Peanut Butter

Homemade nut butters are not time-consuming to make…the food processor does all the work! It takes about 5 minutes or so for the nuts to grind into the creamy butter consistency. For peanut butter, you need to use dry roasted nuts. BUT BE CAREFUL! Some brands use preservatives (yes, Planters is one of them) so I actually buy the dry roasted peanuts at Aldi because the ingredients are: Peanuts. 🙂

Homemade Peanut Butter

4 cups dry roasted peanuts
Pinch of salt
Additional peanuts, honey, cinnamon, raisins (optional)

Place peanuts and salt into the food processor. Start the food processor and allow it work for about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides and turn on again allowing it to work for another couple of minutes until it reaches the desired consistency. If you would like chunky peanut butter, place in an additional cup of peanuts and pulse. You can add in a touch of honey, cinnamon, raisins, or whatever else you like with your peanut butter. Yields 2 cups. Store in a mason jar in the fridge for one month.

Use this peanut butter to make cranberry and white chocolate cookies!

3 Comments

by M. Terry on February 19, 2015 • Permalink

Posted in Recipes

Posted by M. Terry on February 19, 2015

https://wholetothecore.com/2015/02/19/homemade-peanut-butter/

Mocha Cherry Truffles

Yes, you can enjoy Valentine’s Day without packing on a few extra pounds. I made these with my Valentine baby, Anna, in mind. She LOVES cherries and chocolate. And what’s more “Valentiny” than truffles? Here is our “secret” recipe…from our hearts to yours!

Mocha Cherry Truffles

2 cups raw cashews
1 cup dried cherries
5 dates
1/4 – 1/3 cup brewed coffee
1/4 – 1/3 cup water
1/4 cup cacao powder
1/4 cup whole grain flour (I used millet)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Extra cacao powder
Unsweetened shredded coconut

Place cashews into a jar and pour enough water and coffee (in equal amounts) over them to completely immerse the nuts. Allow to soak at least an hour. After soaking, place cashews (and the liquid) into a food processor and process until ground. Add in cherries and dates. Mix until blended. Add in cacao powder, flour, and vanilla. Mix again, scrape down sides, and mix one last time. Mixture should be thick and moist – like peanut butter. Remove from processor and place in refrigerator to chill for about 30 minutes. Place cacao powder and coconut into two separate bowls. Take mix out of fridge. Line a platter with wax paper. Roll mixture into 1 or 1.5″ balls and then roll each ball around in your choice of cacao powder or coconut until coated all around. Place on lined platter and refrigerate until ready to serve. Makes about 10-12.

The 1905 Salad – “A Salad For Each Week” #52

Well, I made it! 52 salad recipes – one for each week of the year! It took me longer than a year, but I am a wife of a full-time minister and student, the mom to three active kids, an avid exerciser, and a cooking addict. My time is stretched between so many different activities. While I would love to post all that I do and create, it’s just not possible. But I am thankful for what I do find time to share. I think I saved the best salad for last. This for sure is one of my all-time favorites!

If you’ve ever had the opportunity to dine at one of the Columbia Restaurants, then the 1905 Salad will be familiar to you. This salad is served with ham or turkey and swiss cheese, spanish olives and tomatoes and swimming in an olive oil/lemony garlic dressing. So, at home, I typically add artichoke hearts (love lemon and garlic with artichokes!), leave out the cheese, meats, and olive oil. Here is how I make my “1905” dressing:

1905 Salad Dressing

1 large lemon, juiced

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

2 teaspoons coconut aminos

1-2 garlic cloves

1 tablespoon nutritional yeast

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Pepper to taste

Place all ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth. Store in an airtight, glass container in the fridge for 1 week.

Other recipes you will enjoy:

“A Salad For Each Week” Recipes:

3 Comments

by M. Terry on February 5, 2015 • Permalink

Posted in Food, Nutrition, Recipes, Salads

Tagged Columbia Restaurant 1905 salad, healthy clean grab and go salad

Posted by M. Terry on February 5, 2015

https://wholetothecore.com/2015/02/05/the-1905-salad-a-salad-for-each-week-52/

Cranberry and White Chocolate Valentine Cookies

I often make these chickpea cookies for the kids with mini chocolate chips. I place the extra cookies into a container and keep them in the freezer for school snacks for the week. We decided to dress these cookies for Valentine’s Day, and the vote is that these are better than the “plain” chocolate chip ones.

Valentine Chickpea Cookies

3 cups chickpeas (cook your own and freeze the rest for a later use – like another round of cookies!)
1 cup all-natural nut butter (we prefer almond or peanut)
1/3 cup date paste
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Place chickpeas into a food processor and process until crumb-like. Add in nut butter, honey, vanilla, powder, and cinnamon and mix until it forms a sticky dough. Place into a mixing bowl and then fold in cranberries and chips. Form into 1.5-2″ balls and place onto a cookie sheet. Slightly flatten with the palm of your hand. Bake 10 min. Makes 15-20.

1 Comment

by M. Terry on January 31, 2015 • Permalink

Posted in Food, Recipes

Tagged chickpea cookies, clean and healthy peanut almond butter cookies

Posted by M. Terry on January 31, 2015

https://wholetothecore.com/2015/01/31/cranberry-and-white-chocolate-valentine-cookies/