From my kitchen to yours! Whether you’re new to cooking or have a knack for it, or have food sensitivities or eat everything – explore delicious real food recipes that I have created and photographed over the years.
Fresh herbs really make this dish more flavourful! If you can’t find them all – try for fresh sage in the least.
And since the stuffing is made out of wild rice, it makes it gluten-free friendly for Thanksgiving! I also have a pecan apricot stuffing that’s gluten free and doesn’t require it being cooked inside the bird (making is vegan/vegetarian friendly too!).
Enjoy this neatly packed all-in-one meal and Happy Thanksgiving for those celebrating!
Serves 4
Ingredients
4 cornish hens
4 tsp butter
4 tbsp fresh rosemary
2 tsp paprika
Stuffing
1 cup uncooked wild rice (2 cups cooked)
2 celery stalks, diced small
2 carrots, diced small
1 cup mushrooms, sliced into small lengthwise pieces
½ onion, chopped small
1.5 tsp fresh thyme
1.5 tsp fresh marjarom
1.5 tbsp fresh sage
1/8 tsp sea salt
1/8 tsp pepper
Directions
If leftover stuffing, serve as an additional side.
I made this stuffed acorn squash recipe a few years ago and make it frequently just because it makes great leftovers and can really accompany anything as a side dish or main meal – you pick! It’s very versatile.
It could also be a Thanksgiving side dish – because why not!
I also use this vinaigrette on a lot of things – a spinach and strawberry salad, any other bitter greens – I do love cinnamon 🙂
Serves 4 – 8 (depending if it’s a main meal or what it’s being served with)
Ingredients:
Acorn squash
2 acorn squash
1-2 tsp butter, melted
1 tsp maple syrup
Filling*
1 cup quinoa, cooked according to directions (or 2 cups leftover cooked quinoa)
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
½ red onion, chopped small
2 cups chopped kale, stems removed
1/4 cup dried cranberries
2 tbsp goats cheese, crumbled
Dressing
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1-2 tsp maple syrup
½ tsp cinnamon
pinch sea salt
Directions
*Quinoa mix can be made the day before and the dish can be served warm or cold.
Happy Fall! Fall always gets me thinking about pumpkin, apples, cranberries and of course cinnamon and nutmeg – yum! Thanksgiving is just around the corner.
Cranberry sauce is a typical Thanksgiving/Fall sauce – however it’s either gelatinous-like in a can (gross), or swamped with processed sugar.
This recipe is actually my Grandma’s and I always loved how chunky fibrous fruit was included. Awhile ago I altered it to include maple syrup instead of white sugar just to see what would happen – and it worked really well!
Yields 1.5L of sauce
Ingredients
Cranberry Sauce*
4 cups fresh or frozen whole cranberries (not dried)**
1 cup maple syrup
¾ – 1 cup fresh orange juice
1 cup raisins
1 apple – peeled and diced small
1 orange, zest from ½ and then peel and cut up the whole orange in small pieces
zest from ½ lemon
1 tsp freshly grated (preferably zested) ginger
Optional – more orange zest for garnish
**NOTE – whole cranberries are a seasonal thing. You will only find these fresh in the Fall, and only some grocery stores will sell them frozen throughout the year. So if you love this sauce, stock up on fresh cranberries now and freeze them for year round sauce!
Pork
2 – 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 – 2 pork tenderloins (there is enough cranberry sauce to cover 4-5 loins)
cracked pepper
Directions:
*Sauce can be made 1 – 2 days in advance
Here’s another example of a recipe I so wish was mine, but works out so well there’s nothing that needs to be altered from it! (high fives to the creator of the book Practical Paleo!) They looked so pretty with their bright red popping out I had to capture it and also share this recipe with you. I also love how red works with blue (hmmm I wonder why – hello logo and website branding!).
A few notes – the recipe mentions different fats to use, and I used coconut oil for my fat option. In the book it didn’t say to use tapioca flour so I didn’t use that either even though all of the other ingredient measurements are the same – worked out well and haven’t tried the tapioca version yet because I just noticed that difference 😉
It also has the perfect balance of sweet and tart, they held together well for a grain free muffin (I made them into mini muffins) and they froze well.
Enjoy the recipe here or below for a capture from the book!
I know fish tacos are usually battered and fried and that’s what makes them tasty – but these light and flavourful fish tacos are great too! The freshness of lime, cilantro, cool avocado and spice rub on the fish does not disappoint in flavour!
It’s okay to put a healthier spin on a usual favourite especially if it turns out like this 🙂
Serves 4
Ingredients
Fish
4 tilapia filets (or other mild white fish)
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp chili powder
¼ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp onion powder
¼ tsp red pepper flakes
¼ tsp oregano
½ tsp paprika
1 ½ tsp ground cumin
¼ tsp sea salt
¼ tsp black pepper
Avocado Sauce
1 avocado, pitted
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
½ cup fresh cilantro (stems removed)
juice from ½ lime
¼ tsp onion powder
½ tsp garlic powder
pinch cayenne pepper
¼ cup water
Toppings (optional)
Plain greek yogurt
Shredded cabbage – approx. ¼ cabbage
¼ cup diced onion
2 tomatoes, diced
fresh cilantro
1 lime, in quarters (recommended as a minimum)
Serve with soft corn tortillas (8)
Directions
A fresh summery sweet salsa makes a nice addition to this spice rubbed salmon – yum! Another recipe for the grill season 🙂
Serves 2
Ingredients
2 salmon filets with skin
½ mango, diced small, skin removed
2 roma tomatoes, seeds removed, diced small
3 tbsp diced red onion
½ cup cilantro, stems removed, diced – additional for garnish if desired
juice from 1 lime
¾ tsp paprika
½ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp onion powder, thyme and oregano each
1/8 tsp sea salt and pepper
pinch of cayenne pepper for spice
Olive oil for the pan
Directions
Let’s keep with the grilled fruit theme for this week!
I’m not the most exciting salad maker as I tend to keep salads in the “toss whatever you have in the fridge” category, but every now and then I’ll put a little more effort into the flavours and ingredients and actually make it a recipe!
The flavours in this salad help to mask the bitterness of the endive and radicchio making it much more pleasant to eat than on it’s own. Who knows – will this salad turn you into a lover of bitter veggies? You’ll only know if you try!
Serves 2 as a main or 4 as a side
Ingredients
1 bunch curly endive
1 head radicchio
2 barlett pears
2 tbsp goats cheese
2 strips of bacon, raw
3 tsp butter (or 2 tsp if you use bacon drippings)
1 tsp maple syrup
Dressing
¼ cup white wine vinegar
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp maple syrup
1 shallot, chopped
sea salt to taste
Directions
I always crave fruit a lot more in the summer than in the winter – so it’s a perfect time to have fruit based desserts.
No doubt, you’ll be BBQing more than usual during the great weather so why not create a BBQ dessert by throwing on some nectarines or peaches and grill them until juicy and soft!
Yields as many as you want
Ingredients
Nectarines or peaches – very ripe (1 nectarine/peach per person)
1 tsp balsamic vinegar (per nectarine)
2 tsp honey (per nectarine)
dash of cinnamon (per nectarine)
Optional topping – full fat vanilla yogurt
Directions
I don’t know about you, but I’ve pretty much used spaghetti squash only as spaghetti noodles – that is until now! I decided to get creative with it, and since I do love making various fritters – out came these yummy lemon fresh fritters! Finally – something else to do with spaghetti squash!
Makes 12 – 14 fritters
Ingredients
1 spaghetti squash, cooked*
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil, plus more for cooking (approx. 1 – 2 tbsp per batch)
2 green onions, chopped
1 cup chopped spinach
2 eggs
¼ cup almond flour
¼ cup brown rice flour
1 clove garlic, minced
½ lemon zest and ¼ wedge juice
2 tsp dried basil
sea salt and pepper to taste
Optional – plain greek yogurt or sour cream for dipping
Directions
*To cook the squash – slice in half lengthwise, remove the seeds and brush with olive oil. Bake face up for 50 – 55 minutes at 400F until it can be pricked with a fork and “noodles” can be lifted out. Let cool a bit before following the remaining steps or cook the day before.
Serve with plain greek yogurt or sour cream – optional with grated lemon zest in it and chopped green onion or chives.
It is getting HOT out – so I’ve been searching around for the coldest snacks I can find to help cool me down – and these avocado fudgesicles were a hit! They were so creamy and delicious – you won’t believe it’s bursting with nutrients from whole food and healthy fat from an avocado!
Now, I wish this recipe was mine – I really do. It’s such a winning recipe, chalk full of nutrients and real food! It’s from Nourishing Meals (The Whole Life Nutrition Kitchen) and they did a damn fine job with this recipe!
Since I’m also enjoying experimenting and practicing photography, sometimes the recipes I capture aren’t mine – but they are definitely worth sharing (and eating) – this is one of them. Enjoy!
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