Sweet Potato & Chickpea Tacos

A dish only takes 30 minutes to make & is loved by everyone I cook it for. It freezes really well if you make extra & then defrost it for 12 hours before reheating it on the hob for 10 minutes.

With roughly 100%* of vitamin C and manganese, and 60% B-6 this dish really helps with dizziness.  With 40% magnesium, some turmeric, 10% B-12 & 30% vitamin B-2 it will aid your memory, but also these levels of nutrients will also aid insomnia, emotional issues and a bit of fatigue.

*Recommended Daily Allowance

Serves 4

Ingredients
300 g x sweet potatoes, cubed
400 g tin x chopped tomatoes
400 g tin x chickpeas (pre-cooked)
1/2 tsp x chilli flakes
2 tbsp x curry paste* (buy pre-made or make your own with recipe below)
100 g x spinach (frozen or fresh)
6 x tacos

Topping either: 
2 tbsp x plain yoghurt
50 g x mature cheddar, grated

Instructions
1. Heat oven to 180C.  Meanwhile, over medium heat, boil sweet potatoes for 10-12 minutes & drain. 

2. In a saucepan over medium heat add curry paste, tomatoes, chickpeas & chilli flakes together & cook for 5 minutes.

3. Add drained sweet potatoes to saucepan with tomato mix.  

4. Add spinach & let it wilt (approx. 3 minutes).

5. While spinach wilts (or melts if frozen), place tacos in the hot oven & cook for 3 minutes. 

6. Serve as separate components for each person to stuff tacos with filling & add preferred topping. 



*Curry paste can be made by grinding or blending the following together:
1 x garlic clove
1 tsp x curry powder
1 x bay leaf
1/2 tsp x fennel seeds
1 tsp x coriander (ground or seeds)
1 tsp x cumin (ground or seeds)
1/2 tsp x turmeric
1 tbsp x tomato puree
1 tbsp x ghee

You can keep the curry paste in a fridge for up to a week.

Peppers stuffed with Baby Beetroot

Oops! I'd eaten it all before I remembered to take a photo - so delicious!  This makes a yummy snack!  Takes 5-10 minutes depending your grill. 

Bell peppers have well over 100% of your RDA for Vitamin C plus 10% RDA of B-6, whilst baby beetroot is rich in B-6 with lots of magnesium and manganese.  This makes this dish great for insomnia, depression, anxiety and dizziness. 

Serves 2

Ingredients

2 x bell peppers, halved

150 g x baby beetroot (pre-cooked), sliced

Instructions

1. Grill the peppers until they are soft & slightly golden on the edges.

2. Place the beetroot inside the peppers & enjoy!

Courgette & Broccoli Soup aka 'Green soup'

A simple and tasty soup full of healthy greens. If you want to make it less healthy you can add in some stilton or parmesan cheese! 

Serves 4

Ingredients
2 x medium courgettes, diced
1 x broccoli head, chopped into 1/4 inch pieces
1 x garlic clove, chopped finely
1 cup x frozen peas
1 tin x cannellini beans, drained
2 tsp x basil pesto
500ml x vegetable stock
1 tsp x olive oil
Salt & pepper 

Instructions
1. In large sauce pan, heat the olive oil over a medium heat & add the garlic for 2 minutes until you can smell the aroma. 

2. Add the courgette & broccoli to the sauce pan for 1 minute. 

3. Add the stock and cannellini beans, bring to the boil & then let it simmer for 12 minutes. 

4. Pour in the frozen peas & let it cook for a further 3 minutes.  

5. Turn off the heat, add the pesto & puree until smooth texture. 

6. Reheat when you want to eat it with some crusty bread.  If you want to add cheese, do it on the reheat phase & allow it enough time to melt into the soup (approximately 3 minutes). Season with salt & pepper to taste. 

Okra and Tomato Stir fry

My sister made this for me to accompany a roast chicken & I'd eaten most of it before I remembered to take a photo! 

Okra is high in vitamin C, magnesium and is 10% of your RDA for manganese (some B6 and lots of vitamin K), so combined with the garlic and tomatoes this makes the blog. 

Serves 2

Ingredients
300 g x okra
2 tbsp x olive oil
4 x garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/2 lemon, juice
200 g x cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 tbsp x chopped coriander
2 tbsp x water
Salt & pepper to taste

Instructions
1. Over a high heat DRY fry the okra until it begins to blister (almost popping seeds).

2. Reduce heat to medium and add olive oil & garlic for 2 minutes. 

3. Add tomatoes, lemon juice & coriander for a further 2-3 minutes, so tomatoes warm through. Season to taste. 

Crustless Tofu Quiches

Super yummy & brain food! I made these to accompany the green bean, broccoli & tomato salad also posted on the blog. 

Serves 3 

Ingredients
1/2 tbsp x olive oil 
1 tsp x garlic, minced
1/2 cup x bell pepper, chopped
1 cup x mushrooms, chopped
1 tsp fresh chives (or one green onion), minced
1 tsp minced fresh rosemary (or 1/2 tsp. dried, crushed)
black pepper to taste

350g firm silken tofu, drained of water 
1/4 cup x plain soymilk
2 tbsp  x nutritional yeast
1 tbps x cornstarch (may sub another thickener such as arrowroot or potato starch)
1 tsp x tahini (preferred) or cashew butter
1/4 tsp x onion powder
1/4 tsp x turmeric powder
1/2-3/4 tsp x salt

Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 190 C. Grease muffin cups/tray with butter or non-stick spay. 

2. In frying pan heat oil over moderate heat & sauté the garlic, bell peppers, and mushrooms over medium heat until the mushrooms just begin to exude their juices. Stir in the chives, rosemary, and freshly ground black pepper, and remove from the heat.

3. Place the tofu, soya milk, yeast, tahini, onion powder, turmeric & cornstarch  into a food processor or blender. Process until completely smooth and silky. 

4. Add the tofu mixture to the vegetables and stir to combine. Spoon equally into the muffin cups: it will fill regular muffin cups about halfway.

4. Put the muffin pan into the oven and immediately reduce the heat to 175 C. Bake for approximately 25-35 minutes depending on your oven, until the tops are golden and a knife inserted into the middle of a quiche comes out clean. 

5. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool for about 10 minutes. 

Detox Soup

This is a simple soup that you can eat tonnes of & never seem full!  Sometimes I like to add in jerusalem artichokes if they're in season. 

You can forget the parsley & lime juice if you don't have them in stock. I'm posting 2 photos to show it with and without broccoli. 

Serves 4 
Ingredients
2 bunches x spring onions or 1 x large leek, finely chopped
1 x small cauliflower, chopped to bite sized chunks
1 x small broccoli, chopped to bite sized chunks
1-2 tsp x cumin powder
1-2 tsp x coriander powder
4-5 large ripe tomatoes or 400g tinned
2 x garlic cloves, crushed 
1/4 tsp x cayenne pepper
1 litre x vegetable stock
1 tbsp x olive oil
1 x lime, juice
Handful x Flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped

Instructions
1. Heat olive oil in large saucepan over medium heat.  Add cauliflower, spring onion/leek & garlic with coriander, cumin & cayenne pepper for 3 minutes. 

2. Add vegetable stock & bring to boil. Reduce to simmer & cover for 20 minutes. 

3. Add tomatoes & lime juice to saucepan & simmer for 10 minutes. 

Chickpeas with Spinach & Tomatoes

If you stock up your cupboards with tins and dried foods, and your freezer with frozen vegetables, you can save yourself the dreaded grocery shop on bad days when all those lights, items, people & decisions will turn you into the babbling wreck in the corner ('flooding'). 

This is basically a chuck it in a pan & let it cook for 15 minutes recipe. Simple & healthy, but simple to make on your bad days. 

Serves 2

Ingredients
1 x tin chickpeas (pre-boiled)
1 x tin of chopped tomatoes
50 g frozen spinach (fresh if you have it)
1 tspn x cumin powder
1 tspn x coriander powder
1/2 tspn x chilli powder (optional)
1 x garlic cloved, crushed
1 tbsp x olive oil

Instructions
1. Heat olive oil in saucepan & add crushed garlic until lightly browned. 

2. Pour in chickpeas, tomatoes, spices & spinach and stir. Heat it to boiling & then simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

3. Eat with wholemeal bread if you need something a bit more energy. 

Tofu, Tomato, Flower Sprout Rice Salad

Flower sprouts are not commonly found, but are a cross between broccoli and kale - so a dream super brain food! They taste a little nutty and look like flowered sprouts of mini kale bunches. If you can't get flower sprouts you can substitute with kale. 

Serves 2 

Ingredients

200g flower sprouts (200g kale as alternative)

50g silken tofu, cubed

2 tomatoes, chopped into cubes

1/3 cup basmati rice

1 tbsp sunflower seeds

1 tbsp pumpkin seeds

Piri piri lemon sauce: 

1/2 red onion

2 cloves x garlic

1 bird's eye chilli (remove stalks)

1 tbsp x sweet smoked paprika

1 lemon, juice

2 tbsp x white wine vinegar

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Instructions

1. In boiling water, boil the rice for 20 minutes or until soft depending on the packet. 

2. Meanwhile, steam flower sprouts/ kale for 5 minutes and drain. 

3. Mix all piri piri sauce ingredients into blender & whizz until smooth. If you don't have a blender you can cheat with a pre-made piri piri lemon sauce. 

4. Combine tomatoes, tofu, flower sprouts/ kale, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds & rice in a bowl. Mix in piri piri lemon sauce. 

Tofu, Kale & Avocado Salad

For the next 2 weeks I am doing a course, so I need some packed lunches to feed my brain! 

Serves 4 (or 2 big lunches)

Ingredients
2 x avocados, cubed without skin
325g silken tofu, drained & cubed
1 tsp x sesame oil
2 tsp x sesame seeds
1/2 lemon, juice
1 spring onion, chopped 
200g kale, rinsed

1 tsp x salt
Pepper to season
Optional: 
50 g brown rice

Instructions
1. Boil brown rice for 30 minutes until soft. Make sure that there is plenty of water in the pan so it does not dry out and burn (today's lesson for me)!

2. Meanwhile, break kale into smaller chunks and steam it for 15 minutes. 

3. Whilst the rice and kale are cooking, if you haven't chopped the other ingredients then chop them into large cubes and mix all together in a big salad bowl (avocados, tofu, spring onion, sesame seeds, sesame oil & lemon juice). 

4. When the kale is cooked drain it off & chop off the spines of the leaves and then cut the leaves into smaller slices. 

5. Add the rice when it is cooked and mix all the ingredients together thoroughly.