Coconut Butternut Squash Soup

• one butternut squash
• one medium onion, peeled and roughly chopped
• three garlic cloves, peeled
• a handful of fresh parsley, washed and leave the stems on
• about five sprigs of fresh thyme, only use the leaves
• one can of coconut cream (about 400 mL)
• salt and pepper to taste
• vegetable broth
• water

1. Wash the butternut squash, then cut in half length wise and scoop out the seeds.
2. Bake in the oven at 375 degrees for about 50 to 60 minutes with the cut side facing up. Times may vary depending on the size of the squash, but the squash should be thoroughly soft.
3. Once the squash is cool enough to handle, remove the skin.
4. Cut the squash so it fits into a blender. Add to the blender the squash, parsley, onion, garlic and thyme leaves. Add equal amounts of vegetable broth and water to the blender so that the liquid covers up to the top of the squash and onions.
5. Blend until smooth.
6. In a large pot, add the coconut cream. Once it is starting to melt add in the contents of the blender. Mix well. Add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste, as well as more vegetable broth or water if the consistency of the soup is thicker than your preference.
7. Let the soup simmer on low to medium heat for about 20 minutes. And then serve.

Raspberry Basil Smoothie

Now that we are deep into summer, this smoothie is a cool summer treat.

• one ripe banana, peeled
• 1/2 cup of frozen raspberries
• a handful of fresh basil leaves, washed
• orange juice

1. Add the banana, raspberries and basil to a blender.
2. Pour in enough orange juice so that it covers the contents in the blender.
3. Blend well. Serves two. Enjoy.

Orange Banana Fizzy Drink

• One super ripe banana, peeled
• One orange, chilled
• 1/2 cup of plain yogurt
• 1 cup of carbonated water, chilled

The following makes two drinks.

1. Before peeling the orange, wash very well and then zest the orange (avoid the white part of the orange just underneath the peel).
2. Peel the orange.
3. Add the peeled orange, yogurt, orange zest, banana and carbonated water to the blender.
4. Blend until smooth.
5. Pour into two glasses. Add ice if desired. Enjoy.

Peanut Butter Oat Snacks

• 1 cup, rolled oats
• 1/3 cup, honey
• 1/4 cup, chia seeds
• 1/4 cup, hemp hearts
• sea salt
• 1/2 tsp, cinnamon
• 1 tsp, vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup, smooth peanut butter

• olive oil

1. In a bowl, mix the rolled oats, chia seeds hemp hearts, cinnamon and a light sprinkle of sea salt.
2. Then add in honey, vanilla extract and peanut butter. Mix well. The peanut butter acts as a glue and a giant ball should form. If there are dry ingredients that did not get combined, add a bit more peanut butter.
3. Place a small dab of olive oil in the palm of your hands, and rub. Then using your hands, form spheres about one to one-half inch in diameter.
4. Place in fridge for about an hour and then enjoy. Makes about one dozen.

Feel free to adjust amounts to your preferences, and add chocolate chips, M&Ms, etc.

Mushroom and Spinach Risotto

• one cup, arborio rice
• one pack (227 g) of cremini mushrooms, sliced; add a few others types of mushrooms like oyster, shiitake, king oyster, portobello etc. if available to you
• 1 to 2 cups, vegetable broth (ideally this should be warm).
• 1 to 2 cups, white wine (ideally this should be warm).
• 2 tbsps miso paste
• 1 medium onion, diced
• sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 cups of chopped fresh spinach
• 2 to 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 4 to 6 sprigs of thyme
• 3 to 4 sprigs of parsley
• juice of one lemon
• 3 to 4 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
• truffle oil and parmesan cheese for garnish (optional)

This is two servings. Normally I like to make four servings (so I double the quantities).

1. In a large deep pan, add the olive oil. Heat on high and then add in the onions. Once the onions have a bit of colour, add in the rice. Mix well. Let the rice start to colour and then turn down the heat to medium.
2. Add one cup of vegetable broth and miso paste. Blend the miso until it has dissolved, and then add in the mushrooms and a sprinkle of the salt and pepper. Mix well. The dish should be simmering, but not bubbling. Lower the heat if necessary.
3. Once most of the liquid has evaporated, add in one cup of wine, the garlic and thyme. Mix well.
4. Once most the liquid has evaporated, add in the thyme and parsley and more of the wine and vegetable broth (about 1/2 a cup total). Mix well.
5. Once most of the liquid has evaporated, give it a taste. If the rice is too firm, add more liquid.
6. Add the spinach and more liquid if needed (no more than 1/2 a cup as likely the risotto is almost ready). Give it another taste test and add a bit more liquid if the rice is still too firm for you.
7. Once done, dish out into two bowls. Add the lemon juice equally between the two bowls. Mix well.
8. Garnish with the truffle oil and parmesan cheese if desired. Enjoy!

Kale Chips

• 3 to 5 kale leaves, in this case, I used “dinosaur kale“
• extra virgin olive oil
• sea salt

1. Wash kale leaves, then thoroughly dry. Then remove stem and tear kale into large pieces.
2. Preheat oven to 375.
3. Place kale onto a lined baking sheet in a single layer. Brush with olive oil on both sides.
4. Sprinkle sea salt on one side.
5. Bake for about 6 to 10 minutes. Check periodically. The kale pieces will have shrunken and have darkened in colour when ready.
6. Let cool for about five minutes before eating.

Kale washed, placed on a towel, and then thoroughly dried.

Kale with stem removed and broken into large pieces.

Kale oiled on both sides, salted and placed in a single layer on a lined baking sheet.

Kale chips immediately out of the oven.

Orange Pineapple Smoothie

• one 398 ml can of pineapple
• one ripe banana, peeled
• zest of one quarter of an orange
• one orange, peeled

In a blender, put all the ingredients. Blend until smooth and the zest is in very fine tiny pieces. Pour into a glass with ice and enjoy.

Beet Smoothie

• one beet, include the beet tops if they are available
• 1 ripe banana, peel and quarter
• 3 to 4 ripe strawberries, cut in half and freeze for a couple of hours
• skim milk or milk substitute (soy, almond, coconut, etc.)
• optional, a few basil leaves

Thoroughly wash fruits and veggies. In a blender, add the beet and its top, banana, strawberries (basil) and milk. For added nutrition, add a scoop of flax seed, chia sets, oats, hemp hearts, etc. if you wish. Blend until smooth (around 30 seconds). Enjoy! I like to have this beet smoothie for breakfast.

Pictured above are cylindrical beets from my garden.

Basil from my garden. I grew these from seeds that I started in February.

A salad from my garden

Pictured above is a leafy green salad from my garden; that is, everything pictured was grown in my garden from seed. There is a few leaves of lettuce, spinach, bok choy and kale, as well as a radish, which I sliced. I also included the greens of the radish into the salad. For herbs, I added a few leaves of basil and cilantro. These greens were just what was available in my garden today.

For the dressing, I mixed 1 teaspoon each of rice vinegar, soy sauce and sesame oil.

I added a fried egg, which I sprinkled lightly with sea salt, to make the salad more substantial.

For garnish I sprinkled sesame seeds.

It was a great spring lunch!

Lemony Hummus

In the photo above, the hummus has been placed inside a hollowed out yellow pepper and then a few crackers placed on top.

• one can of chickpeas (540mL or 19oz), drain and rinse
• 1/2 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice (reduce amount if you prefer less lemon flavour in your hummus)
• 3 to 4 cloves of garlic
• 1/4 cup of water
• 2 tbsps of extra virgin olive oil
• light sprinkle of sea salt

Add all the above ingredients to a blender. Blend until smooth. Have a small taste test and adjust the hummus as needed. Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator for a day or two before using. Hummus is a dip and goes well with things like pita bread, crackers and crudités.