Healthy Family, Happy Family
Page 12
Remember: always include a bottle of water, and pack a freezer block when necessary.
Day 1: Sunday Leftovers Day
Morning snack: wholegrain rye or wheat crispbread and diced fruit with yoghurt (pack a spoon)
L: Sunday night casserole leftovers or Brainy Grain Sandwich with spread of choice; two carrot sticks
Afternoon/home snack: 1⁄2–1 cup vegie sticks (on the Wishing Plate if desired); New Anzac Biscuits and/or frozen fruit when at home
Day 2: Sandwich Day
Morning snack: Wholegrain rye or wheat crispbread and diced fruit with yoghurt (pack a spoon)
L: Brainy Grain Sandwich with spread of choice; 1 boiled egg, halved
Afternoon/home snack: 1⁄2–1 cup of fruit; (optional) fruit bread, toasted, with butter or Hummus Dip
Day 3: Bean Day
Morning snack: Wholegrain rye or wheat crispbread and fruit with yoghurt (pack a spoon)
L: Leftover spaghetti or 1 serve baked beans; 2xgrainy crispbread; vegie sticks
Afternoon/home snack: 1⁄2–1 cup vegie sticks (on the Wishing Plate if desired); New Anzac Biscuits or fruit bread, toasted, with butter or Hummus Dip
Day 4: Fish Day
Morning snack: Wholegrain rye or wheat crispbread and sultanas with yoghurt (pack a spoon)
L: Leftover Smoked Salmon Frittata or kids tuna pack (or homemade); 1 serve fruit
Afternoon/home snack: 1 cup of fruit and vegetables (celery etc); fruit bread, toasted, with butter or Hummus Dip and/or frozen fruit when at home
Day 5: Grainy Day
Morning snack: Wholegrain rye or wheat crispbread; fruit and cheese
L: Leftover casserole (pack a spoon) or Brainy Grain Sandwich with spread of choice
Afternoon/home snack: 1⁄2–1 cup vegie sticks (on the Wishing Plate if desired); New Anzac Biscuits or fruit bread, toasted, with butter or Hummus Dip
9
Recipes
There are many ways you can express love to your family. Whipping up healthy food is one of them. I hope you enjoy the following recipes—I have designed them to be both enjoyable to eat and nutritious, with a balance of acid and alkaline ingredients to promote good health, strong bones and toned muscles too. There are lots of instructions, where necessary, to make the recipes simple to follow and easy to prepare. Where possible, measuring is freehand (or with your hands!) to make preparation time faster. And there are options to use leftovers so you don’t waste food. You may find there is too much food for you and your family so I encourage you to make notes on the menus and shopping lists to tailor them to your personal preferences. Where a recipe is listed as ‘Serves 4’, it is intended to serve two adults and two children, so again you may need to adjust the sizes of meals to accommodate the appetites of your family members.
The recipe sections are also dotted with kids’ jokes. So if you’d like to tell a joke to the young one as you serve them their greens, you can begin to associate joke telling (and hopefully laughter) with vegie consumption.
You may notice there are codes such as EP on some of the recipes. They are to help people who have food sensitivities or food preferences to quickly identify the recipes that are right for them.
Symbols
V&Vn=this recipe is suitable for vegetarians and vegans, or has vegetarian and vegan options—check notes*.
GF=this recipe has gluten-free options—check notes*.
EP=this recipe is especially suitable for eczema and psoriasis sufferers*. *Always read ‘Notes’, located below the recipe, to see if you need to substitute ingredients to make the recipe suitable for you. Often the recipe won’t need altering but check ‘Notes’ to be sure.
The following guidelines apply to all the recipes in this chapter:
• Where jam is used, ensure you use sugar-free, whole fruit jam.
• Where tamari sauce is used, you can substitute with soy sauce if you do not need the recipe to be gluten free. Note that soy sauce, tamari sauce and any other store bought sauces and condiments should be the ‘salt reduced’ variety (if available) and free of any flavour enhancers such as MSG (621).
• Where eggs or chicken are used in a recipe, always opt for free range.
• Apple cider vinegar should always be of the mild, organic type—not ‘double strength’.
• For eczema and psoriasis sufferers, please replace extra virgin olive oil with rice bran oil for all recipes.
•Oven temperatures are given for regular ovens. Please adjust accordingly if using a fan forced oven, as the temperature will need to be a little lower.
Checking if your oven temperature is correct
It’s advisable to test your oven to see if it is heating up to the correct temperature. You can do this by using an oven thermometer. Set your oven to 200°C (390°F) for 45 minutes then place an oven thermometer into your oven to see if it heats up correctly (or follow the oven thermometer’s instructions). It should not vary by more than 10 degrees but if it does you’ll need to adjust your oven’s temperature to suit the recipes, using your thermometer as a guide. Oven thermometers are available from specialty kitchen shops and large department stores.
Weights and measurements in this book
Family life these days can be extremely busy, as I’m sure you know. With this in mind, I’ve tried to make the recipes in this book as simple and hassle-free as possible. That’s why I prefer to use measurements such as ‘two handfuls of spinach leaves’ or ‘a splash of olive oil’. Not only does this mean you spend less time fussing and measuring in the kitchen, but your children can also become involved in the cooking (just make sure you adjust the size of the ‘handfuls’!).
For measurements such as cups, teaspoons and tablespoons I’ve used standard Australian metric measurements. And where more precise measurements are called for I’ve also included the imperial equivalent. The table on the will help you calculate further imperial equivalents if you need to.
Conversion table
Oven temperatures °Celsius © °Fahrenheit (F)
120 250
150 300
180 355
200 400
220 450
Cup and spoon conversions Australian American British
1 teaspoon 5ml 5ml 5ml
1 tablespoon 20ml 15ml 15ml
1/4 cup 60ml 59ml 71ml
1/3 cup 80ml 79ml 95ml
1/2 cup 125ml 119ml 142ml
2/3 cup 160ml 158ml 190ml
3/4 cup 180ml 178ml 213ml
1 cup 250ml 237ml 284ml
Volume equivalents Metric Imperial (approximate)
20ml 1/2fl oz
60ml 2fl oz
80ml 3fl oz
125ml 4 1/2fl oz
160ml 5 1/2fl oz
180ml 6fl oz
250ml 9fl oz
375ml 13fl oz
500ml 18fl oz
750ml 27fl oz
1L 25fl oz
Weight equivalents Metric Imperial (approximate)
10g 1/3oz
50g 2oz
80g 3oz
100g 3 1/2oz
150g 5oz
175g 6oz
250g 9oz
375g 13oz
500g 1lb
750g 1 2/3lb
1kg 2lb
Drinks
Q: How do you find a lost rabbit?
A: Easy: just make a noise like a big carrot.
Vegie Zinger Juice (GF, V&Vn)
Serves 4; preparation time 5 minutes, soaking time 2–3 minutes
Drink your way to glowing skin with this alkalising, antioxidant-rich juice, containing beta carotene, vitamin C, liver-protective naringin from grapefruit and compounds that convert into anti-ageing glutathione.
5 carrots
2 large green apples
1 knob fresh ginger (for children use only a small amount: the size of your thumb nail)
1⁄2 handful parsley
1 grapefruit, halved
Wash and scrub the carrots, apples and ginger (leave sk
ins on) and soak the parsley in water for 2–3 minutes, shake off excess water and trim an inch off the stems. Then using a juicing machine, juice them. Juice the grapefruit with a manual juicer. Add the grapefruit juice to the other juice and mix well. Use within 12 hours.
Jungle Juice for Sensitive Skin (EP, GF, V&Vn)
Serves 4; preparation time 5 minutes
This strongly alkalising and low salicylate drink is designed to calm angry skin and tranquilise hyper kids (for at least 30 seconds).
3 stalks celery
1⁄2 handful parsley
1 handful bean sprouts
5 peeled pears
a sprinkling of soy lecithin granules
Wash and scrub the celery and soak the parsley and bean sprouts for 2–3 minutes (soak the sprouts in water with a splash of apple cider vinegar). Shake off water and trim 1 inch off the parsley stems. Place all ingredients (except for the lecithin granules) into a juicer and juice them, ending by adding a splash of water. Add lecithin granules and mix. Let the drink stand for 5 minutes to allow the granules to dissolve (not totally necessary but recommended).
NOTES
EP: omit the soy lecithin granules if you are allergic to soy.
Lemon and Ginger Tea (GF, V)
Serves 1; preparation time 3 minutes, cooling time 5 minutes
Soothe a sore throat or calm a cough with this alkalising, flavonoid-rich tea.
1 cup boiling water
1 wedge lemon
1 slice fresh ginger root
1 teaspoon honey
Place ingredients into a cup and allow to steep for 5 minutes. Then remove the lemon wedge and squeeze the juice into the cup and discard the rind. Can be strained before drinking if desired.
Soy Dandelion Tea (V&Vn)
Serves 1; preparation time 2 minutes
This tasty caffeine-free beverage is a good coffee substitute, with liver cleansing and digestive properties. It’s alkalising too so it helps to keep your pH balanced.
1⁄2 cup soy milk
1⁄2 cup boiling water
1⁄2–1 teaspoon ground dandelion root (begin with 1⁄2 teaspoon)
1⁄2–1 teaspoon honey (optional)
Heat soy milk in a microwave for 30 seconds, then add boiling water (pre-heating the soy milk prevents it from curdling). Place the dandelion root into a tea strainer (or use a tea bag) and dunk it into the hot liquid for about 5 to 10 seconds (it should darken the milk quickly). Remove the strainer and discard the contents. Add honey if desired.
Dressings, spreads and dips
Q: What did the mayonnaise say to the fridge?
A: Close the door, I’m dressing.
How to sterilise jars
After cooking chutneys, jams and sauces, immediately store them in hot sterilised jars. Scoop the mixture into these jars with a sterilised metal spoon or measuring cup.
1. To sterilise jars, their lids and utensils, boil them for 7 to 10 minutes in a very large pot with enough water to cover them.
2. To remove equipment, use tongs (remembering to sterilise the ends only).
3. Fill the jars three-quarters full with homemade, just cooked jams, chutneys and so on and then seal hot jars with lids to ensure long shelf life of the product. Product should last for 6 to 12 months (or more) if the jars are sterilised correctly.
Tasty Salad Dressing (V)
Makes enough for 5+large salads; preparation time 4 minutes
Who said beautiful skin can’t be gained from a jar? This can’t be smeared on your face. Well, it could, but why don’t you drizzle it on salads instead? It’s rich in anti-cancer antioxidants, alkalising apple cider vinegar (the only vinegar you should use) and soothing honey. Did I mention it turns brats into geniuses and makes husbands kind and thoughtful? Make this in bulk, as suggested, and use it often. See also ‘Salad dressing notes’.
2 tablespoons honey, melted
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1⁄4 teaspoon mild yellow curry powder
1⁄4 teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons fruit chutney (preservative-free)
Using a large jar, combine all ingredients and shake to mix well. Vigorously mix or shake the jar before each use. Store in the refrigerator. Lasts for about four weeks (but you’ll use it in two).
Quick Salad Dressing (GF, V)
Makes enough for 1 large salad; preparation time 2 minutes
This dressing is simple, tasty and has alkalising properties for healthy skin and good digestion. See ‘Salad dressing notes’.
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon honey
Place all ingredients into a jar and shake (and mix/shake the dressing vigorously once again just before serving). Pour half of this dressing onto your salad, then toss your salad lightly and check to see if you need more dressing (you will probably only need to use three-quarters of this dressing).
Harmony Salad Dressing (EP, GF, V&Vn)
Makes enough for 4+large salads; preparation time 2 minutes
With a mix of alkalising ingredients designed to promote healthy skin, this dressing is especially soothing and mild for sufferers of eczema and psoriasis (also suitable for asthma and ADHD). Make this dressing in bulk and jazz up your salads with it. See ‘Salad dressing notes’.
4 tablespoons real maple syrup or golden syrup
4 tablespoons rice bran oil
3–4 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 small clove garlic, minced
In a large jar, combine all ingredients. Vigorously mix or shake before serving on salads. Store in the refrigerator. Lasts for about 4 weeks.
Oil-free Dressing (GF, V & Vn)
Makes enough for 1 large salad; preparation time 5 minutes
An oil-free dressing, rich in skin-repairing, anti-inflammatory ingredients (oil-free dressings are ideal for acne sufferers).
juice of 1 large lime
1⁄2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon honey or real maple syrup dash of ground cumin
1 tablespoon finely chopped mint leaves
Place all ingredients in a jar and mix well. Vigorously mix or shake before serving. Ideal for salads such as 2 handfuls of rocket (arugula), 1⁄2 diced mango and sliced avocado.
Salad dressing notes
• If making a large salad, use 1 tablespoon or less per adult; 1 teaspoon for side salads and 1⁄2 teaspoon or less for children.
• Solid olive oil: olive oil partially solidifies when refrigerated which makes the dressing appear thick and creamy. Mix dressing vigorously before use each time. Or you can leave the dressing on the kitchen bench for 15 minutes before using or heat for 5 seconds in the microwave.
• EP: make Harmony Salad Dressing.
•GF: ensure your salad dressings are gluten free by checking the ingredients if using chutney or mustard (or leave these ingredients out) or make Quick Salad Dressing.
• If you are vegan and do not eat honey, use real maple syrup or golden syrup as a substitute.
• Flaxseed oil: can be used instead of rice bran oil (I recommend half and half). Flaxseed oil must not be heated and must be used within 5 weeks of opening (refrigerate to prevent spoiling).
• If you have acne, favour the Oil-free Dressing.
Parsley Pesto (EP, GF, V&Vn)
Makes 1 large jar; preparation time 5 minutes
This strongly alkalising recipe makes three times more pesto than the store bought varieties. But you’ll wolf it down within a week or two on those grainy crackers that need jazzing up. Use in moderation and don’t forget to share it with everyone. (I have used less oil in this recipe so if the pesto is a little stiff the next day add an extra tablespoon of oil and mix well.)
3 large handfuls parsley (1 large bunch or 2 small)
1⁄2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup unsalted cashews
1 tablespoon apple cider v
inegar
freshly minced garlic to taste (I use 1 teaspoon)
Cut half the stems off the parsley using scissors, and wash the leaves in a bowl of water (don’t fuss; keep the bunch together and quickly cut it). Then place all ingredients in a food processor and blend well. Do a taste test and add more apple cider vinegar for added zing or ground black pepper if desired.
NOTES
I often use 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar in this recipe. You can add quality sea salt but it’s usually not necessary. Store in an airtight jar and refrigerate; it will store well for a couple of weeks.
Apple cider vinegar has natural preserving powers but if you’re planning to use this pesto slowly, you can sterilise the jar and lid.