This underrated rated green is a favorite of herbalists though a nuisance to gardeners!  Dandelion is a nutrient powerhouse with calcium, magnesium, loads of vitamins and iron.  Plus, it provides super support for the liver by helping the body eliminate toxins!  Try it in a smoothie and if you like quiche, you’ll love this crustless delicious greens pie! 

1 1/2 pounds swiss chard

1/2 pound arugula

3/4 pound dandelion greens

3 T unsalted butter (or olive oil)

1 T olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 small yellow pepper, seeded, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)

2 small zucchini (about 1/2 pound), grated

1/3 cup chopped, fresh basil

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3 large eggs, lightly beaten

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup grated Jarlsberg cheese

1/4 cup fresh bread crumbs

1. Trim the chard, arugula and dandelion greens.  Discard stems and chop leaves.

2. Preheat oven to 375.  Heat 1 T of the butter with the oil in a medium saucepan, add the onion, cook 1 minute.  Add the garlic; cook 1 minute longer.  Stir in the pepper, chard, arugula, dandelions, zucchini, basil, parsley, salt, and pepper.  Cook, covered, over medium heat until very tender, about 15 minutes.  Remove the cover and cook, stirring frequently, until all liquid has evaporated, about 25 minutes.  Transfer to a large mixing bowl.

3. Beat the eggs into the greens and pour the mixture into a buttered 9-inch glass or ceramic quiche pan.  Sprinkle with the Parmesan and Jarlsberg cheeses. 

4. Melt the remaining 2 T butter in a small skillet over medium heat.  Stir in the bread crumbs and saute until golden.  Spoon them over the pie.  Bake 25 minutes.  Let stand at least 10 minutes before serving.  Serves 6.

Recipe adapted from Healing Wise by Susun Weed

Experiment with other vegetables on hand and add any other greens you’d like!  You can reduce the cheese and use less olive oil and eliminate the butter if you are looking for a healthier version.  You can also try egg substitutes as well!  enjoy!

• From South Carolina!
• At their juiciest this time of year!
• High in fiber, vitamins A and C, niacin, and potassium

Just a few of the amazing things you can do with peaches:

1. Eat them out of hand. They’re perfect alone in their natural state!
2. Can them and make peach jam
3. Grill them
4. Use them in desserts – pies, cobblers, shortcakes, crisps, pound cake, breads, scones, on top of ice cream
5. Chop them up in a salsa or other side dish
6. Drink your peaches! Sangria, smoothies, juices…
7. Puree them and use for dressings
8. Freeze them for the winter
9. Throw a little basket of peaches together to give to a friend!

Recipes

• Chicken with Peach Salsa
• Salad with Peach Dressing
• Peaches with Crème Fraiche, Brown Sugar, Cinnamon and Nutmeg
• Peaches Poached with Basil
• Blackberry and Peach Buttermilk Cobbler

Event More Hot Tips on Peaches

How to Select Peaches
Look for peaches with skins that show a background color of yellow or warm cream. The amount of pink or red blush on their cheeks depends on the variety and is not a reliable indicator of ripeness. Undertones of green indicate the peaches were picked too soon and will not ripen properly and won’t be sweet. Look for plump, medium to large peaches with unwrinkled skins. Choose fruits that are mildly fragrant. Avoid rock-hard peaches and choose those that yield slightly to pressure along the seam, even if they may otherwise be fairly firm. Peaches at this stage of ripeness will soften if kept at room temperature for a few days. Avoid dark-colored, mushy, bruised peaches that are overripe and beginning to spoil. Tan circles or spots on the skin are early signs of decay.

How to Store
Store them in a single layer with their stem end down to prevent bruising. Check them daily. When you sniff the stem end, a ripe peach will smell very sweet and peachy. Use them immediately or refrigerate them.

Using Peaches
Peaches should be washed thoroughly and can be rubbed with a paper towel to remove the fuzz on the skin. Some people prefer to peel peaches rather than encounter the fuzziness or chewiness of some peach varietal skins. Whole peaches can be peeled easily by immersing a few peaches at a time in boiling water for about 15 seconds and then plunging them into ice water. The skin will slip right off.

New York Times Veggie Burgers

1 can no salt added black beans, rinsed and drained

1 can tomatoes with zesty mild chillies, drained

1 garlic clove, minced or pressed

1 tsp. onion powder

2 green onions, chopped

1 cup chooped carrots

1 cup parsely or cilantro

2 cups quick rolled oats

Fresh veggie toppings and healthy condiments

Preheat oven to 450 (or fire up the grill!). Process the first seven ingredients using an immersion or regular blender or food processor. Remove contents into a large bowl and stire in the oats. Form into patties, place on a sprayed baking sheet in baking – if grilling place on lightly sprayed grill or tin foil – bake for 8 minutes, grill for about 4 minutes on each side. Both sides should be nicely browned. Toast buns and pile on those healthy toppings!

Thanks Rip! If this sounds good to you I’ll be doing a demo from 12 – 3 today! Come check it out.

Have a great weekend!

Anabell

-Susanna

Here you go:

Stuffed Roasted Peppers on the grill!

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 large bell peppers, halved, cored, and seeded

4 portobello mushroom caps

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 large onion, thickly sliced

1 small bunch of dill, finely chopped

1 large eggplant

1/4 cup pine nuts

1/2 cup dried cranberries (apple juice sweetened)

1/2 cup Balsamic Vinegar

nutritional yeast and allspice to taste

Non stick spray

Directions:

Pour Balsamic Vinegar on the gill side of the mushroom caps and let marinate about one half hour. Lightly coat your grill with a non stick spray such as Spectrum Olive Oil spray. For the grilling, place the whole eggplant, onion slices, portobello mushrooms and green pepper halves on the grill (the eggplant takes longer and is done when it resembles a deflated tire, so I’d give it a head-start on the onions and mushrooms). Roast the pepper halves on the grill until the skin is turning black and they are soft, but still able to stand up to stuffing. To make the stuffing, have your garlic, dill, cranberries and pine nuts all ready in a bowl.  When the eggplant is done, remove it from the grill and scoop the insides into the bowl.  Mash the eggplant with a potato masher or large fork.  It should yield a smooth, creamy texture.  Coarsely chop the onions and portobello mushrooms, add to the eggplant mixture and stir to incorporate.  Season with allspice and nutritional yeast to taste then stuff this mixture into the roasted pepper halves and dinner is served!

1. Friday night:  Best Bud in Philly becomes new beer buyer for Wegmans in NJ, brings over awesome new beer she just ordered for the roommates. I watched them enjoy while I sipped on my seltzer and pear juice (on sale 2 for $5!). Then I headed to bed early while catching up with a good book (Eating Animals by Jonothan Safran Foer. He’s a great writer, and if you want something a little ligher, check out his earlier novels, Everything is Illuminated, and Extremely Loud and Incredibily Close)

2. Saturday: Roommate’s girlfriend’s birthday party – Which was bar hopping in New Hope. Instead, I organized my closet and desk! I feel fresh on the inside and the outside of my life!

My tip: When temptation is at its worst, tackle a project you’ve put on the back burner. Maybe its cleaning out your email inbox, organizing the kitchen pantry, or calling that old friend you’ve been meaning to for months now – better yet, make them a nice hand made card!

Here’s to one week of awesome eating!!! Keep on keeping on!

Anabell

Anyway, getting back to the point- Food Failures. Its been awhile now that I’ve loved making tons of vegetables my main course but I can’t say I didn’t use the salt shaker and oil pour-er pretty freely.  That said, what I am finding most challenging about this challenge is pumping up the flavor without those two crutches to rely on! After my poor dinner yesterday, I headed out on an early-morning-vegetable-buying spree to redeem myself.  I came home with a rainbow of peppers, kale, carrots, garlic, ginger, and broccoli and set to work redeeming myself.  During the cooking fest I got a text message from a fellow Eat Right America challenge friend complaining that kale was just so yucky and I had the perfect opportunity to find a new and delicious way to use it, try it out, and tell her about it! I left the kitchen with some delicious Carrot Ginger Kale Red Pepper Stew (its cold out today!) and Kale chips.  Both were salt-less and the stew was oil-free, although the kale chips did have a teaspoon sprinkling of oil before being baked.  I seasoned both with some curry powder and man were they delicious! Now lets see…do I have time to bike some to my friend at work?

Baked Kale Chips:

bite size pieces of kale leaves

teaspoon olive oil

curry powder

Preheat your oven to 350 and line a baking tray with parchment paper. Fill the tray up with your kale pieces then sprinkle them with the teaspoon of olive oil and curry powder (or another favorite salt free seasoning!). Place in the oven to bake for 10-12 min, until crispy.  I also sprinkled some tahini paste on mine before devouring them.

However, after becoming the Healthy Eating Specialist at Whole Foods Market, I’ve been trying  to ween myself off of these treats for healthier ones. Trust me, vegan does not equal healthy! Even my favorite “go to’s” like Tofutti “better” than Cream Cheese and store bought Hummus have way too much sodium, oils, and calories from fat!

To get me started to think more consciously about what I put into my body, I’m embarking upon the 28-day challenge to not only help myself, but encourage others. I want to challenge myself to not buy the processed foods, wake up without needing my cup of joe and end my long work days with a healthy refreshing beverage. I’ll admit,  it will be challenging and a big life-style shift if anything, however, I’m excited to live a better more healthier life!

I can’t wait! I’m extremely excited to start this challenge to show myself that being healthy is more than being “vegan”, and that I can do it! Also, I’m so excited for all of the amazing Team Members here at Callowhill who are willing to challenge themselves and support each other. The power of just one person saying, “You can do it” should never be underestimated and I hope I can be that person, and other Team Members will be mine!  We’re in it together,  Lets get this party started!!

No coffee was the first limitation out of her mouth that caught my ear.  You might call me a bit of an addict! But alright, deep breath, I can do it.  Lately, I’ve been reading the China Study and all the evidence T. Colin Campbell is presenting about the benefits of a plant based diet (his optimal levels of animal protein intake are 0-10%) had me!

After taking a closer look at the program myself, I thought the daily emails, helpful tips, abundance of recipes and the always-available social network forum called The Café sounded great, but I think I could use some real life support outside the store.

Lucky for me, I have a strong support from my friends and family. After a little coaxing, persuading and pleading in along the way, my mom, dad and best friend Nike joined me for the challenge! I’m pretty excited, no better way to start something than jump right in eh? But coffee…what will I do without you?!

-

What’s the Eat Right America 28-day challenge? Based on a 15-minute online health and lifestyle assessment, our team members have been given a suggested nutrition assessment and health evaluation. For the next 28 days, they are going to change up their eating habits, increase their exercise and get on the right path to eating better.

Let the challenge begin!