Tag Archives: food

Chocolate sesame date balls (vegan and gluten-free)

Chocolate sesame date balls

There are many recipes for chocolate balls. Some of the recipes are not nutritious at all (full of sugar and other health-saddening ingredients) and some are very nutritious (sweetened with fruit and full of nutritious ingredients).

This recipe is nutritious (of course) and yummy! The chocolate flavor comes from cocoa powder (or cacao powder) with a bit of carob powder to up the nutritional value. If you like the flavor of carob, increase the ratio of carob powder to cocoa powder. If you prefer a more chocolaty flavor, add less (or no) carob powder.

Sesame seeds up the nutritional value and add a bit of crunch. If you prefer a smoother texture, leave them out.

If you like coconut, coat the balls in coconut. If you love coconut!, add some to the mixture.

This dessert satisfies the sweet tooth and nourishes the body at the same time. Yumtritious!

Makes 20-24 balls,
depending on size and how much dough you snitch while making them 🙂


1 cup medjool dates, pits removed and cut in halves or quarters

1/4 cup  tahini paste (from whole sesame seeds is best)

1/4 cup cocoa powder or combination of cocoa powder and carob powder

Pinch of ground nutmeg

1 Tbsp sesame seeds (optional)

Unsweetened shredded coconut for coating the balls (optional)


  1. Place all the ingredients in a food processor, and process until they are all combined.
  2. Roll the dough into balls.
    Chocolate sesame date balls 2
  3. (Optional) Roll the balls in the shredded coconut.
    Chocolate sesame date balls with coconut


  • I doubled the recipe, so the pictures show more balls than you will get without doubling it.
  • The dates should be soft when you place them in the food processor. If you keep the dates in the refrigerator, let them come to room temperature before using them.

Beet-rich quinoa (vegan)


Quinoa and beets

Tasty, nutritious side dishes add color and variety to a meal. The combination of quinoa and beets in this yumtritious recipe nourishes the body and entertains the senses.

Makes 8-ish cups


3 Tbsp cold-pressed sunflower oil (or other mild tasting oil)

2 cups white quinoa, rinsed

2 medium size beets, peeled and chopped small

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/4  tsp ginger powder

1 Tbsp fresh ginger, chopped small

4 cups water

1 tsp coarse salt

1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted

1 cup fresh parsley, chopped


  1. In a medium-large pot, heat the oil then add the quinoa and chopped beets. Cook, stirring at regular intervals until the beets are blended in with the quinoa so that the quinoa is a uniform shade of pink (8-10 minutes).
  2. Add the oregano and stir for 1 minute.
  3. Add the ginger powder and stir for 1 minute.
  4. Add the chopped, fresh ginger and stir for 1 minute.
  5. Add the water. As soon as the water boils, lower the heat and cover. Cook for 28-30 minutes. The water should be complete absorbed and the quinoa should be somewhat stuck to the bottom of the pot, without burning. Remove the pot from the heat.
  6. Stir in the salt and toasted slivered almonds.
  7. Wait 5 minutes and then stir in the chopped parsley.


When I originally made the recipe, I used 1/3 cup slivered almonds. The addition of the crunch to the dish is nice so I upped the amount to 1/2. If you prefer less almonds, reduce the amount to 1/3.

If you like fresh cilantro, use 1/2 cup parsley and 1/2 cup cilantro.

Beet-rich quinoa

Peanut-Peanut Butter Sauce (vegan)

Peanut butter sauce

This sauce is smooth and crunchy. The smoothness comes from the peanut butter dressing. The crunchiness comes from the peanuts and fresh vegetables that combine with the dressing to complete the sauce.

Makes about 5 cups sauce, enough to coat 1 pound/500 gr pasta


Peanut butter dressing

1 cup natural, unsalted, unsweetened peanut butter

1 1/2 cups water

1 Tbsp fresh ginger root, chopped coarsely

1 tsp lecithin granules

1 tsp flax seeds, ground

2 Tbsp lemon juice

3/4 tsp coarse salt

2 garlic cloves

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper or other spicy ground pepper

1 Tbsp Tamari sauce


Peanut-veggie mix

1/3 cup peanuts, roasted

3 Tbsp sesame seeds, roasted

3/4 cup green cabbage, shredded

1/2 cup carrots, sliced thinly

1/2 cup green onions, chopped

1 Tbsp sesame oil


  1. Put all the peanut butter dressing ingredients in a a food processor or blender and process until very smooth.
    Peanut butter dressing
  2. Put all the peanut-veggie mix ingredients into a large bowl and mix well.
    Peanut sauce
  3. Pour the dressing onto the peanut mix and stir well to coat.
    Peanut sauce 2
  4. Serve on your favorite nutritious noodles.
    Peanut butter sauce


  • Tofu chunks sauted in olive oil and tamari sauce would be a nice addition.
  • The sauce is unheated so it’s especially nice to eat during the warmer months.


Cucumber-Yogurt Salad

Cucumber-yogurt salad

This salad is somewhat like Tzatziki dip. The additions of pumpkin seeds and green onions up the salad’s nutritional value.

Makes 3 cups


(Change the amounts according to your taste. For example, I like onions, so I used 3 green onions.)

6-7 small cucumbers, chopped (2 1/2 cups)

2 garlic cloves, minced (1/2 Tbsp)

2-3 green onions, chopped

3/4 tsp coarse salt

6 spearmint leaves, minced (1/2 Tbsp)

1/2 Tbsp lemon juice (not from a plastic lemon or bottled lemon juice)

1/2 cup (150 gm) plain yogurt, at least 3% fat

1 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp pumpkin seeds

3 Tbsp green olives, chopped (optional)


  1. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl.
  2. Let the salad sit for at least 1/2 hour so that the salt dissolves and the flavors mix.



  • Low-fat yogurt is not satisfying to the body so don’t use it.
  • Try not to use the large cucumbers. They aren’t as nutritious as the smaller ones.
  • If you use the green olives, you can lower the amount of salt.
  • If you like the crunchiness of the pumpkin seeds, add more.

Peach Crumble Tweaked (vegan, raw, and gluten-free)

Peach crumble 3

This version of peach crumble is tweaked with the addition of zucchini and carob powder.  With a food processor, it is a snap to make.

Fills a pie plate


6-7 medium size peaches

3/4 cup almonds

3/4 cup walnuts

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp cloves

2 Tbsp carob powder

1 medium zucchini, peeled and chopped

1/2 cup raisins

1/4 cup figs, chopped

3 Tbsp honey or maple syrup


  1. Chop the peaches, and place them in the pie plate. Set aside.
    Peach crumble 1
  2. Put the almonds and walnuts into the food processor and process on high speed until the nuts are finely chopped.
  3. Add the sunflower seeds, cinnamon, cloves, and carob powder and process until the sunflower seeds are finely chopped.
  4. Add the zucchini and process until the zucchini is mixed in.
  5. Add the raisins and chopped figs and process until they are well chopped.
  6. Spoon the crumble mixture on top of the peaches.
    Peach crumble 2
  7. Drizzle the honey or maple syrup on top of the crumble mixture.
    Peach crumble 3
  8. Let the peach crumble sit for at least 1/2 hour before eating. Letting it sit longer will soften the peaches and make the crumble tastier.


  • If the zucchini is pesticide free, you don’t have to peel it; however, when it is unpeeled there are specks of green in the crumble. The green bits don’t affect the taste, but do make the crumble look unusual. (Notice the green bits in my pictures.)
  • A friend suggested cooking it for 15 minutes to make the flavors blend more quickly. I didn’t try cooking it so I can’t say whether cooking it is an improvement. I did find that the crumble was yummier the next day.

Pasta with Creamy Crunchy Pesto and Tofu (vegan)


Creamy Crunchy Pesto

Tofu for pesto







This recipe explains the assembly of the dish, with exact instructions only for the pesto here:


The tofu is cut into small chunks and sauted in olive oil until starting to brown and then tamari sauce is added, continuing the sauteing until the tofu is nicely browned.

The pasta should be whole wheat or other whole grain so that it adds nutritional value to the meal.


  1. Put a serving of pasta into a bowl or onto a plate.
  2. Top with enough pesto to make your taste buds happy.
  3. Add the tofu chunks, then mix.

I don’t have a picture of the finished product, because I ate it too quickly. 🙂   Enjoy!

Zucchini-Horseradish Mishmash

Zucchini and Horseradish Mishmash

Fried zucchini is often dipped in a horseradish sauce, but that combination is not so nutritious. In the recipe presented here, they are paired to create a nutritious and tasty side dish. The horseradish is not a typical ingredient in a zucchini dish, hence the name “mishmash”.


2 Tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 Tbsp horseradish root, peeled and chopped small

2 large zucchini, chopped (6 cups). Peel if you suspect chemical residues.

3/4 tsp coarse salt

1/2 tsp caraway seeds


  1. In a medium sized skillet or pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Saute the chopped onion until softening.
  2. Add the chopped horseradish and saute until the onions are browning.
    Onions and horseradish
  3. Mix in the zucchini two cups at a time. Then add the salt and caraway seeds.
    Zucchini and Horseradish Mishmash 2
  4. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to evenly brown.
  5. When the zucchini is the right texture for you, remove from heat. (I like the zucchini soft, but not mushy.)

Zucchini and Horseradish Mishmash 3