Nutrient Dense Olive Tapenade

Originating in the Mediterranean tapenade is made with olives, anchovies, capers, garlic and herbs – nutrient density at its best!

Olives are rich essential minerals calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, zin and copper, polyphenols and omega-9 fatty acids that can help benefit heart, brain and mood.
Protein-packed anchovies are rich in omega-3 fatty acids and micronutrients – selenium, calcium, magnesium, vitamins B12, B6, A, K and more.Combined with garlic and herbs this is nutrient density at it’s best.

Use black olives or green olives only. Mix and match herbs. Use sun-dried tomatoes or not. You an also skip the anchovy, but it will give it a boost of flavor and nutrients.

Serving options

  • Make a “tapenade board” with veggie crudites and sliced quality bread for a special occasion.
  • Spread on cooked chicken breasts or roasted fish fillets
  • Use in wraps
  • Add as a generous dollop to green salads
  • Swirl a spoonful into soup
  • Use as a snack with veggies and rice cakes or seed crackers
  • Add it to avocado toast
Nutrient Dense Olive Tapenade
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Servings Prep Time
6 about 1 1/2 cups 15 minutes
Servings Prep Time
6 about 1 1/2 cups 15 minutes
Nutrient Dense Olive Tapenade
Print Recipe
Servings Prep Time
6 about 1 1/2 cups 15 minutes
Servings Prep Time
6 about 1 1/2 cups 15 minutes
Ingredients
Adjust servings: about 1 1/2 cups
Units:
Instructions
  1. in a food processor, place olive oil and 1 cup kalamata olives. Using the pulse button, process until coarsely chopped and well blended.
  2. Add 1/2 cup green olives, and pulse until blended, add remaining 1/2 cup and blend. If it is too thick, add 1 tablespoon water a time as you continue to pulse.
  3. Add remaining ingredients and pulse slowly
  4. Make it chunky or smooth, as you prefer.
  5. Refrigerate in a covered container. Use as needed.
Recipe Notes

To prepare ahead:
Tapenade will keep up to 1 week, refrigerated, in a covered container.

Modified from
Epicurious: Black and Green Olive Tapenade

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Quinoa Pesto Bowl

Quinoa pesto bowls are versatile, nutrient-dense and delicious. Homemade pesto is quick and easy. You can use store-bought pesto for a quick dinner; as always read the ingredient label first.

Variations

  • Use snap peas, green beans, or asparagus instead of broccoli. What other vegetables could you use?
  • Use chicken instead of shrimp
  • Add edamame or garbanzo (chickpeas) and skip the shrimp to make vegetarian bowl
  • Serve over a bed of greens or shredded cabbage tossed with extra-virgin olive oil and lemon or a dash of apple cider vinegar

Double the recipe and use later in the week

  • Tossed with greens and goat cheese into a “meal salad”
  • Mash an avocado onto a tortilla, Swiss chard or collard greens, and add a big spoonful to make wraps.
Quinoa Pesto Bowl
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Servings
4 servings
Servings
4 servings
Quinoa Pesto Bowl
Print Recipe
Servings
4 servings
Servings
4 servings
Ingredients
Quinoa Bowl
Pesto
Adjust servings: servings
Units:
Instructions
Quinoa Bowl
  1. Toast the quinoa in a medium saucepan over medium heat until is starts popping. Add water, bring to a boil. Immediately turn down, cover pot and cook 15 minutes.
  2. Add the broccoli to the pot of quinoa and cook 5 more minutes.
  3. While the quinoa is cooking make the pesto
  4. Cook the shrimp
  5. When the quinoa is cooked, carefully mix in pesto and half of the shrimp. When serving, top with additional shrimp and pumpkin seeds
Pesto
  1. Grind nuts in food processor or blender. Remove and set aside
  2. Put olive oil and water in blender. Add 1 cup chopped parsley, blend well. Add remaining chopped parsley and blend well.
  3. Add ground nuts and blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste
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Crunchy Healthy Broccoli Salad

Some of the most nutrient-dense (nutrients per calorie) foods on the planet are:

  • Greens (including cruciferous like broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage)
  • Beans
  • Onions
  • Mushrooms
  • Berries
  • Seeds/Nuts

Eating lots of these vegetables give us optimal amounts of immune-protective micronutrients that can fend of disease.

This salad combines 4 of those superfoods: broccoli, onions, nuts, and berries. It’s a delicious, nutritious way to eat more broccoli and change up dinner salad from leafy greens. Leftovers make a great lunch topped with some chicken and/or leftover grains.

Variations

  • Add leftover bacon, chopped
  • Add avocado, diced
  • Use pumpkin or sunflower seeds instead of nuts
  • Use raisins or other dried fruit instead of cranberries
  • Add 1/2 cup chopped cilantro or parsley
  • Mix in arugula or baby spinach for a more robust salad
  • Add leftover quinoa, brown rice or other grain for a “meal salad”
  • Top with leftover chicken
Crunchy Healthy Broccoli Salad
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Servings
4 servings
Servings
4 servings
Crunchy Healthy Broccoli Salad
Print Recipe
Servings
4 servings
Servings
4 servings
Ingredients
White Wine Vinaigrette
Adjust servings: servings
Units:
Instructions
  1. Toss, broccoli, green onions, half of cranberries and half of nuts with CMF vinaigrette.
  2. Put into serving bowl
  3. Top with remaining cranberries and nuts.
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Zesty Watermelon Gazpacho

Watermelon?! In the gazpacho?!  Afew sips in and you will be entranced.

It’s an easy and delicious appetizer for summer dinner parties or any time.

The secret to its amazing flavor and taste-bud-delight is to make it the day before. The flavors will meld and strengthen. Serve it chilled.

Variations

• Serve it smooth in a chilled glass to sip
• Make it chunky and ladle into bowls
• Put it into a shot glass with a splash of Tabasco and a sprig of cilantro
• Make both non-spicy and spicy options: Make it without jalapeño/serrano peppers. Pour out an adequate amount for children (and those who don’t want spicy food), and then add the jalapeño/serrano pepper and blend again to have both non-spicy and spicy options.
Zesty Watermelon Gazpacho
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Servings
4 bowls or 8 small glasses
Servings
4 bowls or 8 small glasses
Zesty Watermelon Gazpacho
Print Recipe
Servings
4 bowls or 8 small glasses
Servings
4 bowls or 8 small glasses
Ingredients
Adjust servings: bowls or 8 small glasses
Units:
Instructions
  1. Put half of the watermelon into the blender with the tomato, half the cucumber and the garlic. Puree until smooth.
  2. Add the rest of the watermelon, the jalapeño, garlic, Vinegar and olive oil and puree until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste
  3. Refrigerate overnight and serve in chilled glasses.
  4. For the chunky version (after refrigerating overnight), scoop a spoon of diced watermelon and red onion into a soup bowl.
  5. Pour watermelon gazpacho almost to brim of soup bowl. Sprinkle chopped cilantro on top.
Recipe Notes

Make it Chunky:

1 cup watermelon diced into small pieces
1/3 – 1/4 cup red onion, chopped medium-fine
1/4 cup cilantro chopped (optional) Cilantro sprigs

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Chicken and Veggies One Sheet Dinner

I found chicken one sheet dinners on Cooking Classy and have made innumerous variations depending on what vegetables I have on hand.

I prefer to cook the potatoes separately, to have the option of using just chicken and vegetables in other meals (such as tossed with pasta and pesto) so technically it becomes a 2-dish dinner.

Variations:
• Skip the potatoes
• Skip to tomatoes
• Use cauliflower instead of broccoli or both
• Use Brussels sprouts instead of broccoli, quartered
• Add 1 cup of green beans cut up
• Add fresh herbs after cooking, about 1/2 chopped basil, parsley or cilantro. Or 1/4 cup finely chopped rosemary

Check out Cooking Classy for many other Chicken and Veggie One Sheet Dinners.

Chicken and Veggies One Sheet Dinner
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Servings
4 servings
Servings
4 servings
Chicken and Veggies One Sheet Dinner
Print Recipe
Servings
4 servings
Servings
4 servings
Ingredients
Adjust servings: servings
Units:
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place potatoes baking sheet and drizzle with 2 tablespoons. Toss to coat evenly. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, toss again and spread evenly onto baking sheet.
  2. Place in preheated oven and roast for 20 minutes. Toss and roast another 20 – 25 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile chop chicken and vegetables, cut the same approximate size to cook evenly
  4. Toss remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil with minced garlic
  5. Place chopped chicken pieces and vegetables on another baking sheet.
  6. Drizzle garlic olive oil over chicken and vegetables, sprinkle on hers and toss well. Spread evenly on baking sheet and put in oven.
  7. Roast 10 – 12 minutes, toss and roast another 10 – 12 minutes. Remove when chicken pieces are cooked through.
  8. Remove roasted potatoes when tender, test by piercing with a fort.
  9. Toss half of chicken and vegetables with potatoes, reserving the other half for another meal later in the week.
Recipe Notes

Modified from Cooking Classy: Chicken Broccoli Sweet Potato One Sheet Dinner

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Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Pineapple Avocado Salsa

The contrast of sweet and spicy, the textures and colors make this one of my favorite summertime dinner party recipes.

I serve it with CMF Quinoa with toasted pecans and green onion or with Cilantro Rice and a simple spinach salad with peas.

For dessert: Mango Mousse and following the pineapple for a tropical theme I add 1 – 2 tablespoons of coconut to the mousse. Toasting 2 tablespoons of coconut in a skillet and sprinkling on top of the mousse gives it a touch of fancy.

 

Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Pineapple Avocado Salsa
Print Recipe
Servings
4 servings
Servings
4 servings
Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Pineapple Avocado Salsa
Print Recipe
Servings
4 servings
Servings
4 servings
Ingredients
Roasted Pork Tenderloin
Pineapple Avocado Salsa
Adjust servings: servings
Units:
Instructions
Roasted Pork Tenderloin
  1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Brush roasting pan with 1 tablespoon olive oil.
  2. Mix minced garlic with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, brush all over the pork tenderloin. Sprinkle salt over pork tenderloin.
  3. Place in oven and roast 20 – 25 minutes until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center registers 155°F.
  4. Remove from oven. Rest 5 – 8 minutes before slicing. Spoon Pineapple Avocado Salsa over the tenderloin to serve. Or serve the Pineapple Avocado salsa alongside.
Pineapple Avocado Salsa
  1. While the pork tenderloin is roasting, chop all ingredients, placing into a mixing bowl.
  2. Toss together, season with salt to taste.
  3. Place sliced pork tenderloin on a serving platter. Spoon Pineapple Avocado Salsa over the tenderloin and serve.
Recipe Notes

Love the contrast of spicy jalapeño (sometimes I use Serrano peppers for more spice) with sweet pineapple. But when cooking for family dinner or dinner guests that don’t eat spicy foods, I serve the chopped jalapeño (Serrano) on the side.

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White Bean Dip

We usually have hummus or bean dip in our house. It’s a quick snack with rice cakes, pretzels, carrot/celery sticks. Dips make a great sandwich or wrap spread, simply add shredded carrots, spinach (or other green like arugula, baby kale etc) and a sprinkle of pumpkin or sunflower seeds

It’s also an easy appetizer, served with pita or corn chips or to dress it up, spread on toast squares or triangles with a sprig of herb of choice (pending the variation)

Beans are a pantry staple. A can of white beans can be a dip in 10 minutes.

 

Variation 1: White Bean Black Olive Dip

  • Add 1/4 cup black olives, chopped

Variation 2: Southwest White Bean Dip

  • Add 1 teaspoon turmeric
  • ½ teaspoon cumin
  • 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
  • Add half a jalapeño, chopped

Variation 3: Herbed

  • 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary (or basil)
White Bean Dip
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Servings
2 cups
Servings
2 cups
White Bean Dip
Print Recipe
Servings
2 cups
Servings
2 cups
Ingredients
Adjust servings: cups
Units:
Instructions
  1. Place extra-virgin olive oil, lemon juice and 2 tablespoons water in food processor or blender.
  2. Add remaining ingredients.
  3. Pulse until blended. If it is too thick or dry, add water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it has desired consistency. (For sandwich spread, consistency of peanut butter, for a dip, more fluid)
  4. Season with salt and pepper to taste
Recipe Notes

A Color My Food original recipe

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Spinach Citrus Salad

In our garden in Cochabamba lives a wonderfully enthusiastic orange tree. It produces truly an astonishing amount of fruit; we’ll harvest 200+ oranges and the tree looks still fully loaded.
The garden is also home to a grapefruit tree, more modest in its output.
With such abundance, orange and grapefruit ended up in this pretty and delicious combination.

Variations:

  • Use only orange or only grapefruit
  • Use orange and beet (roasted or steamed) slices (cut into similar shape as orange segments
  • Use peach or nectarine in place of citrus
  • Add toasted pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds or slivered almonds
Spinach and Citrus Salad
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Servings
4 servings
Servings
4 servings
Spinach and Citrus Salad
Print Recipe
Servings
4 servings
Servings
4 servings
Ingredients
Salad Dressing
Adjust servings: servings
Units:
Instructions
  1. Cut away all peel and pith from grapefruit and orange. Separate segments from between membranes
  2. Place spinach and chopped green onion in large bowl. Toss with 2 – 3 tablespoons salad dressing.
  3. Place tossed spinach and green onions on a platter.
  4. Arrange orange and grapefruit segments on top of spinach.
  5. Drizzle another 3 – 4 tablespoons of salad dressing over the salad
Salad Dressing
  1. Mix salt an apple cider vinegar until salt dissolves
  2. In a slow steady stream add extra-virgin olive oil, whisking
  3. Whisk in 2 tablespoons water. Add 1 – 2 tablespoons water if to strong for your taste. Adjust salt and pepper
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Romesco (Red Bell Pepper and Almond Sauce)

Romesco is a nut and red bell pepper sauce that originates in Catalonia region in Spain where it seems fishermen originally prepared this sauce for fish.

This is so delicious, colorful and elegant, I use it many different ways

  • As a sauce over chicken breasts (roasted or grilled)
  • Or on fish fillets (roasted or grilled
  • As a dip with sliced baguette or pita bread.
  • For a more elegant occasion, I spread the dip on crostini (toasted baguette slices) and place a basil or parsley leaf on each crostini.
  • As tea sandwiches
  • Leftovers make a fabulous sandwich spread turning a simple turkey sandwich with arugula into a gourmet treat
  • Yummy wraps with greens and leftover chicken, or garbanzo or white beans.

The almonds and red bell pepper make this not only delicious but also quite nutritious. Check out the  amazing health benefits of almonds.

For an extra special meal, I’ve made this sauce with hazelnuts…hmmm heavenly.

Romesco
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Servings
1 1/4 cup
Servings
1 1/4 cup
Romesco
Print Recipe
Servings
1 1/4 cup
Servings
1 1/4 cup
Ingredients
Adjust servings: cup
Units:
Instructions
  1. Toast almonds in a skillet over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and cool.
  2. Finely chop almonds in food processor. Remove from processor.
  3. Place extra-virgin olive oil, vinegar, garlic and roasted bell peppers in processor and blend well.
  4. Add ground almonds, salt and pepper, blend again until well mixed.
  5. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
  6. Dip can be made one or two days ahead. Cover and refrigerate.
  7. Bring to room temperature before serving.
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Salmon and Greens over Beans

This originally happened by using leftovers. In my refrigerator I had leftover quinoa and grilled salmon and made it into a summertime dinner with arugula and tomatoes. It was so fresh and zesty, filling and tasty, a feast of color, flavor and texture that a friend asked me for the recipe.

I sometimes plan my weekly menu with grilled fish on the weekend and make sure to have extra to jumpstart a second meal for later in the week. Perfect for a quick summertime dinner or lunch. I use whatever leftover grains I have on hand (quinoa, brown rice, or barley).

Or skip the grains. it’s just as tasty and robust without. The beans, greens, onions make it nutrient-dense.

I’ve even made this with canned salmon.

This can be modified various ways:

  • Capers instead of olives
  • Celery instead of bell peppers
  • Mint instead of parsley (but using mixed greens rather than arugula)

It makes a nice luncheon for girlfriends. Serve with fresh baguette, goat cheese and Epicurious: Olive Tapenade on the side.

For dessert:

Mango Yogurt Mousse OR

Epicurious: Raspberry Buttermilk Cake

 

Salmon and Beans over Greens
Print Recipe
Servings
4 servings
Servings
4 servings
Salmon and Beans over Greens
Print Recipe
Servings
4 servings
Servings
4 servings
Ingredients
Adjust servings: servings
Units:
Instructions
Salad Dressing
  1. Place lime juice, water, minced garlic and red pepper flakes in little bowl and mix with a fork until well blended. Mix in 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, whisking constantly with the fork. Add an additional tablespoon or two of extra virgin olive oil to adjust to taste.
Salmon and Beans
  1. Place quinoa in a medium saucepan over medium heat and toast, stirring occasionally until popping sounds begin. Add 1 cup water and bring to a boil. Immediately turn heat low, cover and cook quinoa 25 minutes. Remove from stovetop, uncover and cool.
  2. While the quinoa is cooking, chop red bell pepper, green onion, parsley, cut tomatoes in half and cut pitted olives into quarters. Mix in a large bowl. Add salmon and white beans, toss together.
  3. Add quinoa and toss just until combined. Drizzle with 3/4 of salad dressing and toss until again.
  4. Toss arugula with remaining dressing and spread on a platter.
  5. Spread the salmon and bean mix over the greens, leaving a green border.
  6. I used the leftovers to make wraps for lunch the next day, spreading a wheat tortilla with plain Greek yogurt. Yum.
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