Tag: beets

Beet & Basil Hummus

In the spirit of DIY’ing, we’re making a simple favorite: hummus. This colorful version is not only bright and beautiful, it’s also full of flavor, healthy goodness, and only real foods (bye bye, chemicals.) Hummus is a well-rounded staple to enjoy often for it’s plant-based protein, carbs, and fat, but this one adds beets and basil for some serious vitamins and minerals (ie: magnesium, iron, potassium, folate, flavonoids, vitamins B & K, and more.) BEET THAT!

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Ingredients: (makes one large bowl or ~5 single servings)

  • 2 medium-sized red beets (cooked to soften, I boiled mine for 20 minutes)
  • 1 handful fresh basil leaves
  • 1 cup chickpeas or white beans (I used canned organic, washed)
  • 1/3 lemon (skin and all)
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1.5 tablespoons pine nuts (or pistachios or cashews)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • dash of sea salt and pepper

Just blend all ingredients in Vitamix/high-powered blender or food processor until smooth. Serve with crudite and/or whole-grain crackers or chips for the perfect healthy appetizer. Also add to your salads/meals for a colorful boost of healthy flavor!

One Healthy Breakdown: if hummus and pesto had a baby, it would be this recipe 🙂

Food Revolution Day and Beet Slaw For All!

This past Friday was the Food Revolution Day Community Potluck at the Bridgehampton School.  Together with Slow Food East End and The Edible School Gardens, locals gathered to celebrate Jamie Oliver’s National Food Revolution Day. Jamie Oliver’s mission fosters food education in schools so that children understand where food comes from. Food Revolution Day celebrates the act of cooking real food.  Based on the motto “cook it, share it, live it,” meaning that preparing meals from scratch and sharing the gift of food with one another is important, something we should be instilling in ourselves and the next generation.

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It is so important for children to know where food comes from and the importance of consuming real food; this could greatly decrease the obesity rate and make us all healthier across the board.  There are now 22 schools participating in the local Edible School Gardens’ mission by planting their food and integrating food education into the curriculum.  Children get to plant the seeds themselves and then see their own work come to life and grow into usable produce which the students then get to enjoy in their own cafeteria.

On Friday, I got the pleasure of meeting some local farmers, chefs, and other members of the community who share a common interest in real, good food. We enjoyed amazing local dishes, from quiche to quinoa, pea hummus, and an abundance of salad variations made from fresh local greens.  Local chef and health coach Nadia Ernestus demonstrated a few healthy slaw recipes and the aroma of the fresh herbs, spices, and lemon zest spread amongst the field.

Luckily, my friend Megan Schmidt (founder of The Good Farm Delivery & editor of The Good Bowl) has shared a delicious beet slaw recipe adapted from one of Nadia’s previous creations.  This unique beet slaw is full of color, taste, and best of all, is jam-packed with nutrients!  We use lemon juice instead of mayonnaise for a healthy slaw that’s tastier too!

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RAW BEET, CARROT, AND APPLE SLAW

Ingredients:

2 large beets, trimmed and peeled

3-4 large carrots, trimmed and peeled

1 large apple, cored and peeled

the juice of one lemon

1/4 dried cranberries (optional)

Grate the beets, carrots and apple together and combine in large bowl. (Using the grating attachment of your food processor makes this a snap.) Stir in the lemon juice and let stand at least 15 minutes.  Add the dried cranberries and serve.  Serves 6 as a side.

One Healthy Breakdown: Join the Food Revolution – eat and celebrate real food!