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Archive for the ‘vegetarian’ Category

Quick and Healthy Breakfast Idea: Mung Bean Crepes

Posted on: February 13th, 2023 by TouchStone Health

By Swapna Viswanathan, Holistic Nutritionist

Breakfast is the first meal of the day, and you might want to make it as healthy as possible. Sometimes in the quest for making it very healthy you might observe skipping the breakfast that day and grabbing something to eat on the go. One of the quickest and healthiest breakfast recipes with fat and protein that I give my clients is Moong Dal Chilla (aka green mung beans crepes). Moong dal chilla is a traditional breakfast option coming from India. One of my childhood favourites as well!
Ingredients:
 Split Green mung beans 1 cup
 Water to soak the mung beans.
 Himalayan pink salt/rock salt
 Cumin seeds or grounded cumin 1 teaspoon
 Ginger 1 inch or as per your taste – it is spicy!
 Carrots grated ½ cup (or any vegetable of your choice)
 Cilantro 2 teaspoon chopped.
Direction to cook:
 Soak the mung beans overnight or for 5-6 hours.
 Blend the soaked mung beans with ginger, salt, cumin seeds/grounded cumin with little or few spoons of water to make the batter in the consistency for making a crepe.
 Add chopped cilantro and grated vegetables and mix the batter.
 Heat a pan and apply avocado oil or any healthy oil.
 Once the pan is heated, pour the batter with a deep spoon/ladle, and spread the batter to make the chilla/crepe.
 Once it is cooked on one side, flip the crepe/chilla to cook it from the other side as well.
 You can have it as it is or with a dip or with a green chutney!

  • You can keep the chilla batter in the fridge up until 3 days and use it with different vegetables.

Swapna Viswanathan is a Holistic Nutritionist at TouchStone Health. She loves helping clients with reversing pre-diabetes / diabetes, creating meal plans, fertility nutrition, postpartum nutrition, and general nutrition needs.

Healthy Banana Oat Cookies

Posted on: April 5th, 2022 by Anna Totzke

By Anna Totzke, R.Ac.

I love making these cookies….They are perfect for a snack or for breakfast!

Easy, delicious, healthy and are free of: sugar and flour. The can easily be made gluten-free with GF oats. I usually don’t measure the ingredients when making these cookies but they always turn out!

Base:

2-3 Bananas

3-4 Medjool Dates with pits removed

2 C. (approx.) Rolled Oats

2 Tsp. Cinnamon

Optional Ingredients:

Add desired amounts of:

-Flax Seeds

-Walnuts or other nuts

-Raisins

-Chopped Dried Apricots or other dried fruit

-Hemps Seeds

-Cloves, Ginger, other other spice

Instructions:

Add the Bananas, Dates, 1/2 Rolled Oats, and Cinnamon into a blender. Blend until all ingredients form a thick paste. Pour this batter into a medium bowl.

Add the rest of the Oats and other optional ingredients. Fold the ingredients together. The batter should be a little sticky but should be able to be formed into 1/2” thick patties. If they are too sticky, add more rolled oats. Feel free to make large cookies or smaller, if you like.

Bake in the oven for 16-18 minutes at 350 F on parchment paper lined cookie sheet.

Eat right away or after they are cooled, store them in a container for several days.

Warming Vegan Lentil Dahl

Posted on: September 23rd, 2021 by Anna Totzke

by Jill Jackson, CNP, NNCP 

Hello friends! I bring to you the perfect curried fall recipe. This recipe is easy to make and is vegan, gluten-free, and sugar free. It also works great for meal prepping and will freeze nicely! I hope you give it a try. 

Serves: 6-8 Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 20-25 mins Total time: 40 mins

Ingredients:

  • 1 large zucchini 
  • 1 large red bell pepper 
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic (minced)
  • 1 3/4 cup of dried red lentils 
  • 1 cup of full fat coconut milk 
  • 850 ml of vegetable broth
  • 1 tbsp of fresh minced or grated ginger 
  • 1 1/2 tbsp of curry powder 
  • 1/2 tbsp turmeric 
  • 1/2 tbsp paprika
  • 1 small onion 
  • 1 large carrot 

Directions:

Begin by chopping all vegetables (bell pepper, carrot, zucchini and onion) into very small cubes. 

In a large pot or deep pan, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil (or oil of your choice) over medium heat and add in onion, garlic and ginger. Cook for 3-5 minutes or until onion begins to go translucent. 

Add in the rest of the vegetables and remaining oil and cook for another 3-5 minutes till vegetables begin to lightly soften. 

After rinsing your lentils, add them to your pot along with your vegetable broth. Add in all spices (you can adjust the amounts to your preferred taste) and add coconut milk. Mix everything together well. Bring to a simmer and allow mixture to cook for another 10-12 minutes, stir frequently to prevent the bottom burning. (Lentils should become nice and soft.)

Enjoy warm on its own or served with rice and naan bread! 

5 Ingredient Watermelon Feta

Posted on: June 21st, 2021 by TouchStone Health

Hello friends! This recipe creation is a new favorite of mine!! It is perfect for cooling off in the summer heats. It is crisp, fresh and light with still an abundance of flavor. Since I like to keep things simple, this recipe is only 5 easily accessible ingredients. It is also gluten and grain free. I hope you enjoy as much as I did!

Cook Time: 15-20 minutes
Serves: 4-5 people

Ingredients:

  • 5 cups of cubed watermelon
  • ¼ cup of olive oil (preferably a lighter tasting oil)
  • ½ cup of crumbled feta
  • 1 generous handful of basil
  • Juice from 1 large lime (or 2 tbsp of lime concentrate)
  • Salt and pepper

Instructions:

  • Begin by cubing watermelon into bite sized cubes. Place in a medium to large bowl.
  • Next, crumble in feta and add in basil either whole or torn into smaller pieces.
  • In a separate small bowl add olive oil and lemon juice, whisk together until well
    combined. If you have a mason jar with a lid, vigorously shaking the olive oil and lemon
    juice together in the jar works as well.
  • Season with a salt and pepper, pour dressing over salad and mix all ingredients together
    till watermelon is evenly coated.
  • Plate and enjoy! (Tastes best chilled)

In Wellness,
Jill Jackson, CNP, NNCP

564-572 Weber Street North, Unit 3A
Waterloo, Ontario
N2L5C6