The Night Before: Place the dried beans in a large bowl and cover with three inches of water. Soak the dried beans overnight (up to 24 hours) to soften. Drain when ready to use.
Place a large 6 quart pot over medium heat. Add the oil, onions, and garlic. Sauté for 3-5 minutes to soften the onions.
Then add in the drained beans, thyme, ground cumin, crushed red pepper, and 10 cups of water.
Bring the soup to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 60-90 minutes, covered, until the beans are very soft. Uncover and stir occasionally, then place the lid back on top. Add 1-2 cups additional water if the soup is too thick. Taste, then salt and pepper as needed.
Quinoa Salad
Ingredients:
3 cups chilled quinoa
1 large red bell pepper
2 cups diced English cucumber
1 1/2 cups grape tomatoes (halved)
1 medium carrot shredded (1/2 cup)
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1/4 cup fresh minced cilantro
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 garlic clove minced
TSP salt and pepper
Instructions:
Roast red pepper directly over the flame of a gas stove or under broiler, turning occasionally using metal tongs, until charred all over. Transfer to a container and cover and let rest 10 minutes, then peel**, core and seed and chop pepper.
Meanwhile prepare dressing. In a mixing bowl stir together lemon juice, cilantro, garlic and salt. Chill while you prep the remaining salad ingredients or up to 1 day.
In large bowl toss together quinoa, pepper, cucumber, tomato, carrot, onion with the dressing. Serve within about 4 hours for best results.
Grilled Pineapple Salmon
Ingredients:
3 limes juiced
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp. honey
4 6-oz. skin-on salmon fillets
1 1/2 cup chopped pineapple
1/4 red onion, chopped
1 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions:
Make sauce: In a large bowl, whisk together juice of 2 limes, olive oil and honey.
Heat grill to high. Add salmon, brushing with honey-lime sauce, and grill until cooked through, 5 to 6 minutes per side.
Meanwhile, make pineapple salsa: In a medium bowl, combine pineapple, onion, remaining lime juice and cilantro and season with salt and pepper.
Serve salmon warm with salsa.
Grilled chicken avocado Wrap
Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts, cooked and sliced
6 large burrito size tortillas
3 cups lettuce, chopped
1 large tomato, diced
1 avocado diced
1 cup sour cream
3 cups yellow sharp cheddar cheese, grated
Instructions:
Rinse and pat dry chicken breasts. Season with salt and pepper on both sides. Preheat a pan on medium/high heat and add 2 tablespoons olive oil. Place the meat on the skillet and cover with a lid. Cook for about 5-7 minutes, then flip and cook for another 5 minutes. The timing will depend on the size of the chicken. Make sure that the internal temperature will reach 165-170°F.
Assemble the ingredients
Slice cooked or grilled chicken, chop lettuce, tomatoes, and avocado, and grate sharp cheddar.
Put a large burrito size tortilla on a plate, layer with about ½ cup chopped lettuce, ¼ cup tomatoes, avocado, a tablespoon sour cream, few slices of grilled chicken, and top with 1/4 cup grated sharp cheddar.
Wrap them like an envelope. Repeat the same with the rest of the ingredients.
Preheat a pan on medium high heat (you DON’T need to grease it with oil). Place the wraps with edges down and grill for a couple of minutes,until brown/golden color, then flip and grill on the other side.
Seamoss Milkshake
Ingredients for sea moss gel:
100 g of Jamaican Irish sea moss
6 cups warm water
2 tbsp of flaxseed
Ingredients to make single drink
1 cup Almond milk
Coconut condensed milk
1/4 cup of sweetner - coconut nectar
1/8 tsp Nutmeg
1/8 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp of Vanilla
Instructions:
Place the sea moss in a colander.
Use your hands to thoroughly wash any debris and excess sea salt from your moss. Do this several times until the sea moss looks and feels less gritty.
Place the sea moss and flaxseed in a large size bowl with the 6 cups of warm water and leave to soak overnight. The moss will expand in size and the water should thicken slightly
Use a colander to pour and drain off the excess water that was used to soak the sea moss
Place the sea moss into a blender bowl and puree into a gel. The sea moss should be gelatinous in texture (You may need to add some water to your blender to help break it down).
Scoop out the gel and transfer into a jar/bowl and refrigerate.
To make one drink only
Add 4tbsp to ⅓ cup of the sea moss paste along with the almond milk, vanilla, spices, sweetener of your choice into a high speed blender
Blend into a smooth consistency serve accordingly.
Carrot Cake Muffins
Ingredients:
1/2 cup raw walnuts
1 1/3 cups white whole wheat flour
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp kosher salt
2 cups packed coarsely grated carrots
1/3 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup creamy almond butter
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/3 cup honey
2 large eggs
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp unsweetened almond milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 ounces cream cheese
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp finely grated lemon
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the nuts in a single layer on an ungreased baking sheet. Toast them in the oven until crisp and fragrant, about 8 to 10 minutes. Set a timer and do not walk away from the nuts during the last few minutes of baking (this is when nuts love to burn). Transfer to a cutting board and roughly chop. Set aside 1/4 cup for the muffin batter. Finely chop the remaining nuts and save for sprinkling on top.
Increase the oven heat to 400 degrees F. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the white whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt. Add the carrots, golden raisins, and reserved 1/4 cup chopped nuts. With a spoon or flexible spatula, gently fold to combine.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the almond butter, applesauce, and honey until smooth. Whisk in the eggs, milk, and vanilla. Add to the carrot and flour mixture. With a wooden spoon or spatula, fold and stir very gently by hand, stopping as soon as the flour disappears.
Coat a standard 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick spray or line with paper liners. Fill each about three-quarters of the way with batter. (If you have some extra batter, resist the urge to overfill the muffin cups; you can bake the extra as soon as the first batch is out). Bake the muffins for 14 to 16 minutes, or until the muffins are domed, light golden on top, and a toothpick inserted into the center of each comes out clean. Place the pan on a cooling rack and let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then gently remove them from the pan and place them on the rack to cool completely (do not leave the muffins in the pan for longer or they can become too soggy as they start to steam).
For the cream cheese frosting: In a medium mixing bowl, place the cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and lemon zest (if using). With an electric mixer on low speed, beat until the powdered sugar begins to incorporate, then increase the heat to medium and continue to beat until smooth and creamy. Frost the cooled muffins and sprinkle with the remaining finely chopped walnuts.
