Marinated Green Bean Salad

Roasting is one of my favourite ways to prepare vegetables and lately I have been serving them with a variety of creamy tahini-based sauces such as lemon, lime or orange flavours. However, a marinade is also a great way to intensify the flavour of food with just a few simple ingredients.

What is a Marinade?

Basically, a marinade is a liquid with seasoning for soaking food before cooking to enhance its flavour and texture. The roots of the word marinade come from the Latin word for sea (mare) and early uses of the word referred to steeping food in heavily salted liquid as way to preserve, flavour and tenderize.

However, today, marinades can include mixtures of vinegar, oil, herbs, or similar ingredients and the process of immersing foods in liquids can vary from minutes to days, and even months in unique situations.

Origins of Marinating

The specific ingredients in a marinade depend on the country of origin and also on the particular chefs. According to Slurrp, the concept of marinating food can be traced to the deserts of Ancient Egypt.

Dishes in Asia have been marinated in soy sauce for centuries and in Roman times, marinades were added for flavouring. From the 13th century, the French also began marinating their food and in North America, bottled marinades have been used since the 1800s. 

Recipe

This salad is inspired by Deliciously Ella and is a tasty and crunchy, light summer salad. It is quick and easy to put together although it does need about an hour to marinade in order to infuse the colourful ingredients with more flavours. This recipe will serve 2-4 people and is very versatile as it can be used as a side or a main dish served with other additions such as some crumbled vegan feta cheese.

Ingredients:

• 2 peppers (mix of red, yellow or orange)
• 225g green beans
• 2 spring onions
• 1 TBS sesame seeds
• 1/2 red onion

Marinade:

• 2 TBS tamari
• 1 TBS brown rice vinegar
• 1 TBS toasted sesame oil
• 1 TBS maple syrup
• 1/2 lime, juice
• pinch of salt

Topping:

• 1 TBS almond butter
• 1 TBS toasted sesame oil
• 1 TBS brown rice vinegar
• 1 TBS tamari
• 1/2 lime, juice
• pinch of salt

Instructions:

1. Prepare green beans and chop into bite-sized pieces and add to boiling water and blanch for about 3 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water to prevent further cooking.
2. Add to a bowl with chopped peppers, red onion, spring onion and sesame seeds.
3. Mix the marinade ingredients and add to the salad coating everything in the liquid and cover and refrigerate for at least an hour.
4. Mix together topping ingredients until it is a smooth consistency.
5. When ready to serve, add the topping and a sprinkle of sesame seeds onto the salad mixture.

Closing Thoughts

Although marinades work well with many foods, optimum soaking times do vary. Harder vegetables like potato, carrots and beets need at least 30 minutes and can be soaked overnight, whereas semi-hard vegetables such as green beans, asparagus, and peppers work well between 30 minutes to a few hours. Softer foods like tomatoes and greens only need about 10 minutes and, when marinated for longer than 30 minutes, they risk releasing water and getting soggy.

For a complete meal, don’t forget the vegetable proteins like tofu, tempeh and seitan which marinade well for at least 30 minutes or up to several hours. The only downside of marination is that it does require planning ahead, but it is worth it as an easy way to be creative with adding flavours to everyday foods.

Other Salad Options:

• Farro, Kale and Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing
• Raw Sweet Potato Salad with Curry Almond Sauce
• Spiced Almond and Quinoa Salad
• Millet, Beet, Lentil and Hazlenut Salad

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

“Do you know the muffin man who lives in Drury Lane …” is mentioned by Snopes as a popular nursery rhyme which is rumoured to have been used as a “caution to children, warning them to beware of a 16th-century baker-turned-serial-killer who enticed his young victims by pulling a muffin down the cobblestone streets of London with a string”.

Snopes further says these tales are largely unproven especially considering the rhyme was not recorded until 1820, long after the supposed existence of this “baker-turned-serial killer”. However, a real muffin man of Drury Lane, may well have inspired the rhyme. Drury Lane is a thoroughfare which borders Covent Garden in downtown London and, during the Victoria period, fresh food was delivered door to door by a “muffin man”.  The modern English muffin is the descendant of the “muffin” in this rhyme.

Quick Bread Muffins

Although the English muffin is a yeast-leavened bread, what I have now come to think of as a muffin is the North American style of cake-like treats. These are quick breads, using chemical rather than yeast leavening, with a thick batter and cooked in individual moulds. Anything goes when it comes to different types of muffins whether it be savoury or sweet, large or small, they are really only limited by your imagination. 

Recipe

This recipe is inspired by the Minimalist Baker. They are quick and easy to make and the end result is a “moist, wholesome, perfectly sweet-tart, and delicious” treat which is vegan and can be made gluten free*. The recipe is extremely versatile and the poppy seeds can be omitted or substituted with fruit, nuts or seeds.

This recipe yields 12 small muffins which will keep for 4-5 days and any leftovers are freezer friendly for about a month.

Muffins:

• 2 flax eggs (5 Tbs water and 2 Tbs flaxmeal)
• 3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 Tbs lemon zest
• 1/3 cup lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 cup melted coconut oil or avocado oil
• 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1/4 cup maple syrup or agave nectar
• 1/3 cup natural cane sugar
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 Tbsp poppy seeds (optional)
• 1 cup whole-wheat pastry flour (or sub unbleached all-purpose)*
• 1/2 cup rolled oats*
• 1/2 cup almond meal**

Basic Icing:

• 1 cup powdered sugar (sifted)
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice

Cashew Frosting:

• 3/4 cup raw cashews (soaked 2-3 hours and rinsed)
• 2 Tbs melted coconut oil
• 3 Tbs maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 Tbs lemon juice
• zest of lemon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1-3 Tbs water (as needed for blending)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 C) and line a standard muffin tin with 12 paper liners, or lightly grease.
2. Prepare flax eggs by mixing flaxmeal with the water in a large mixing bowl and let rest for a few minutes. While waiting, zest lemon(s).
3. Add applesauce, lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla, oil, almond milk, maple syrup or agave, cane sugar, baking soda, salt and whisk (it will foam up because the lemon juice will react with the baking soda).
4. Add flour, almond meal and oats and stir until just combined, being careful not to over-mix. The batter should be quite thick and scoopable rather than pourable. If the batter appears too thick, add a touch more almond milk. Add the poppy seeds and gently stir once more.
5. Divide batter evenly between muffin tins (makes 12 small muffins).
6. Bake for 22-28 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then remove from tins and let cool completely on a cooling rack.
7. To make the basic icing, whisk the sifted powdered sugar and lemon juice together in a small bowl until a thin, pourable glaze is formed and brush or drizzle on the muffins.
8. To make the cashew frosting, soak the cashews for a few hours and then blend using a high-speed blender with the remaining ingredients until icing has a thick, spreadable consistency.

Notes:

*To make this recipe gluten-free, use gluten free rolled oats and sub a gluten free flour blend for the whole-wheat pastry flour.
**If you don’t have almond meal on hand, just replace it with more whole-wheat pastry flour.

Closing Thoughts

These muffins have the bright, citrusy flavour of lemons and can be enjoyed on their own or with the addition of either a simple icing or a rich cashew frosting. The muffins pictured here have the cashew frosting and, with this level of decadence, they are starting to more closely resemble a cupcake! Although it can be tough to visually distinguish a cupcake from a muffin, apparently there are a number of differences in the ingredients and baking methods. However, the actual differences between a muffin and a cupcake … well, that is a whole other story!!

For more information about the Minimalist Baker and other great whole food, plant-based ideas, see Resources.

Other Muffin Recipes:

• Chocolate Cranberry Muffins
• One Bowl Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins (Vegan and Gluten Free)

Iced Oat Bars

Craving a sweet treat? For as long as I can remember, I have always reached for something sweet at the end of a meal. It has definitely been a time-honoured tradition in our family to enjoy dessert and it is a habit I have never considered giving up. However, what has changed over time is the type of treat that I find will satisfy the sweet craving and it no longer needs to be something full of refined sugars, saturated fats and processed ingredients.

Spiced Almond and Quinoa Salad

We often hear about the benefits of eating a diet rich in plant-based foods such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, pulses, and grains. As this advice is very general in nature, I was interested to read about the suggested goal to aim to eat at least 30 of these plant-based foods a week. Research suggests that the health benefit of this mix will promote a more varied gut bacteria which will ultimately lead to a healthier gut microbiome.

I was curious to see how many of these foods I actually included in my diet and so started to track my intake at the beginning of the year.  On the first day, I had consumed about 12 on the list and by the second day it was up to 19.  This seemed easy and I thought I would have no problem achieving the goal of 30.  However, as the week wore on my total didn’t really budge much. Although I eat plant-based foods, as a creature of habit, it appears they tend to be the same ones!

Introducing quinoa

In an effort to vary my diet, I started to look at adding foods I don’t normally eat and quinoa (keen-wah) was one of them. Quinoa cooks up fairly quickly (about 15 minutes) and can be used in a variety of dishes including soups and salads. It is naturally gluten free, rich in fiber, minerals and antioxidants. It is also one of the plant-based complete proteins which means it contains all nine essential amino acids. In fact, some say quinoa is one of the healthiest and most nutritious foods on the planet!

The origins of quinoa

Referred to by ancient grains as an ancient food, quinoa originated with the Incas in the mountains of Bolivia, Chile and Peru about 5,000 years ago. Although it served as a staple food for the Incas, they also considered it a sacred crop. Known by them as the mother of all grains, the legend states “that the Incan emperor would ceremoniously plant the first quinoa seeds every year”.

Recipe for Spiced Almond and Quinoa Salad

This quinoa salad was inspired by Deliciously Ella and can be prepared relatively quickly for lunch or served as a side salad to a main dish.  It is a great mix of flavours, textures and colours with crunchy nuts and seeds, soft roasted vegetables and fresh greens. In addition, this one dish will provide a whopping 9 out of the 30 plant-based foods for the week! Serve it with some avocado or hummus and the number keeps rising!

Salad:

• 1/2 cup (100g) quinoa
• 1 x 400g (14oz) can of chickpeas
• 1 large red pepper
• 1 small red onion
• 1/3 cup (50 g) whole almonds
• handful of sunflower seeds
• handful of pumpkin seeds
• handful of rocket (arugula)
• 1 tsp gound cumin
• 1 tsp paprika
• pinch of chilli flakes
• pinch of salt and pepper

Dresssing:

• 2 tbsps olive oil
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1/2 tsp maple syrup
• pinch of salt

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 180C (375F)
2. Drain the chickpeas and pat dry
3. Place diced pepper and red onion on one end of a baking tray with a drizzle of olive oil and salt
4. Place chickpeas, almonds and seeds at the other end of the tray and sprinkle them with the cumin, paprika, chilli flakes and salt and pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Mix well so chickpeas, nuts and seeds are evenly coated.
5. Bake in the oven for about 15-20 minutes (until nuts and seeds go crunchy)
6. Cook quinoa by following instructions on packet (usually twice as much water to quinoa and boil for about 15 minutes until all the water is absorbed and the quinoa is light and fluffy. Remove from the heat and stir the dressing ingredients through.
7. Either serve the salad warm by mixing everything together with a handful of rocket, or wait until the quinoa and veggies and seeds have reached room temperature before tossing them together.

Closing Thoughts

Quinoa was not part of my diet growing up and so, like a lot of the popular health foods today, it almost seems like a “new” addition to our diet despite the fact that it is actually part of ancient history. Quinoa didn’t really become popular in the modern world until around the 1970s but it has proved its worth in the past and, as such a highly nutritious and versatile staple, I imagine it will continue to remain as part of our modern diet.

As it was interesting to see the reality of how little variety I was actually eating, in terms of gut health, I am definitely trying to be more aware of maintaining variety in my diet and am glad to now have quinoa to add to the mix!

Additional information on gut health:

• The Clever Guts
• Eat the Rainbow

Orange and Lemon Sweets (Vegan and GF)

When you think of oranges and lemons, what comes to mind? More than likely it is a vision of a couple of citrus fruits characterized by their leathery rind, white pith and juicy segments! Not at all surprising as these fruits are a common ingredient in baking and cooking and can have many uses for both sweet and savoury dishes. However, when I think of oranges and lemons something quite different comes to mind.

The “Happy Pear” Flapjacks

Although they are not as readily available now, I still have cravings for many of the English puddings from my childhood. One of the popular baked goods I enjoyed was the deliciously chewy and sweet flapjacks made of rolled oats, butter, brown sugar and golden syrup.  Since living in North America, I discovered that a flapjack is actually considered something else entirely and is a widely-known but lesser-used term for a pancake!

One Pot Red Lentil and Sweet Potato Stew with Cashew Coconut Lime Cream

When the weather turns cold and food is scarce, some animals such as bears hibernate to survive. Although people do not have the same metabolic characteristics needed to hibernate, I often feel the inclination to cocoon during the cold months of the year.  However charming this concept seems, the “not eating” aspect of hibernation has far less appeal. In contrast to the fasting bears, during these dark and cold days, I feel that nothing beats the comfort of a simmering pot of a hearty stew.  

Raw Ginger Bites (Vegan and GF)

Ginger is one of my kitchen staples and I appreciate its versatility as a kitchen spice for both savoury and sweet dishes. Although I have heard many words to describe the flavour of ginger such as “hot, zesty, biting, sweet, warm”, it can generally be relied on to add a spiciness, juiciness and pungency to cooking. Ginger is available in several forms including fresh, dried, pickled, preserved, crystallized, and powdered and can be used in many different ways.

Three Variations of Lime Tahini-Based Sauces or Dressings

Front to Back: Lime Cilantro, Lime Ginger and Spicy Lime

Tahini, the paste of crushed sesame seeds, is rich in nutrients, protein and healthy fats and it continues to be one of my most used and versatile ingredients. As well as adding protein and nutrients to a meal, the earthy flavour of tahini lends itself to both sweet and savory dishes making it an easy addition to sauces, dips, dressing or desserts.

Gingerbread and Cranberry Chocolate Cups (Vegan and GF)

Throughout history, winter solstice festivals have been held across the world to celebrate the changing seasons and to mark the longest night of the year and rebirth of the Earth. Interestingly, it is these solstice rituals that mark the origin of baking cookies and treats for holiday festivities such as Christmas.

Since it was often necessary to feast before the winter famine, the solstice celebrations tended to revolve around food. In addition, the festivities and food often had an emphasis on the Earth itself and tended to incorporate natural foods such as nuts, berries, and spices.