Category Archives: Healthy Eating

A favourite food amongst many of us is a delicious slice of pizza. However, most people think of pizza as a comfort food and can’t shake that guilty feeling after enjoying a slice or two. But what if you could enjoy pizza without feeling like you were doing your body an injustice?

One of the most effective ways to lighten up your pizza is to forego the traditional wheat crust in favour of healthier alternatives. Here are three healthy pizza crusts you can enjoy, without the side of guilt:

1. Almond Flour Crust

Gluten is proteins that make up wheat and give foods an elastic texture and helps hold the particles together. Foods that contain flour are the biggest culprits for people who get sick from gluten.

To make pizza a little more gut friendly, try a crust that foregoes the traditional whole wheat flour, and uses almond flour instead! Almond flour contains the same nutrients as whole almonds, which we know are great for nutrition. Low in carbs and high in protein, fats, and fibres, almond flour pizza crust will keep you feeling fuller for longer. For a great almond flour pizza crust recipe, try the one over at Ditch the Wheat.

2. Cauliflower Crust

This white, mild-tasting veggie is high in vitamin C and other nutrients as well as antioxidants. When used as a pizza crust, cauliflower becomes crunchy and bread like, the perfect replacement for your average crust.

Cauliflower Pizza Crust Recipe

Ingredients:

• Head of cauliflower
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 3/4 cup shredded cheese (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Wash cauliflower thoroughly and cut into pieces.
3. Pulse in food processor.
4. Place cauliflower in microwave for 4 minutes, or steam until tender (around 15 minutes).
5. Once the cauliflower is tender, squeeze it with a strainer or nut bag. Add in eggs, garlic, salt and pepper to taste (adding cheese into crust is also optional).
6. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and create your desired crust shape. Bake in preheated oven for about 15 minutes, then put on your desired toppings and bake an additional 10 minutes.

3. Mini Zucchini Crusts

Using zucchini as a base for pizza is a fantastic idea! Granted, you’ll have bagel bite-sized pizzas, but it’s no less tasty, and they’re perfect for appetizers and entertaining.

Zucchini Pizza Crust Recipe

1. Cut zucchini into disk shapes, about ½-inch thick.
2. In a skillet, add 1–2 tablespoons of oil and cook zucchini on each side for about 2 minutes.
3. Place mini zucchinis on a parchment lined cookie sheet.
4. Layer on tomato sauce, cheese, and any other toppings of your choosing.
5. Bake zucchini pizzas at 400 degrees until cheese has melted (this will not take long).
6. Enjoy!

Cooking nutritious, light, and tasty meals, to compliment the hot and sunny days of summer is one of my favourite things to do! Today, I am going to share my go-to healthy summertime meal with you – complete with an appetizer, main dish, and dessert!

1. The Appetizer: A Summer Salad

Starting a meal with dark, leafy greens like spinach is a simple and delicious way to increase your intake of protein, fibre, and minerals.

This summer salad makes use of an assortment of fresh veggies, nuts, dried fruit, and a healthy homemade dressing, for the perfect green appetizer.

Salad Ingredients:

• Spinach
• Chopped carrots, onions, snap peas, tomatoes
• Dried cranberries
• Diced avocado
• Sliced cashews

Dressing Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp unpasteurized apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp fresh orange juice

Directions:

1. Mix all dressing ingredients in a bowl and sprinkle over salad.

2. The Main Dish: Salmon

Salmon is a known superfood boasting omega-3 fatty acids, B vitamins, iron, and more.

Perfectly seared, and paired with grilled asparagus and naturally sweet mashed yams, salmon is the perfect summer meal to leave you feeling full and satisfied, but not heavy.

Ingredients:

• Wild-caught salmon
• Asparagus
• Lemon
• Garlic
• Olive Oil
• Yams

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
2. Line a pan with foil and place salmon skin side down. Rub with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. For every ½ inch of salmon, cook for 4–6 minutes.
3. While the salmon is cooking, rinse and chop off the hard ends of asparagus. Mix with olive oil, lemon, and garlic. Let stand for a few minutes to absorb the juices.
4. Reduce oven to 400 degrees and cook asparagus for 15–20 minutes, until easily pierced with a fork.
5. Meanwhile, cut the yams into ½-inch round pieces (skin can stay on).
6. Bring ¾-inch of water to a boil in a pan, place yams into boiling water and cover, reducing heat to low – for 15 minutes or until yams are easily pierced with a fork.
7. Once done, mash yams with a fork and remove the skin (per preference).

3. The Appetizer: A Summer Smoothie

A healthy, fruit smoothie, using your choice of nut milk, is the perfect sweet treat to cap off a great meal.

Ingredients:

• 1 frozen banana
• 1 cup coconut milk or almond milk
• Handful of frozen berries
• Handful of spinach

Keep in mind the fruit-to-liquid ratio. Too much liquid and your smoothie will be very runny. Not enough, and it will be too thick. Depending on how big your banana is and how many berries or spinach you put in – you may need to use more or less – adjust as needed and enjoy!

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Appetizers are a key component to a social gathering! But they can also be a drag if you’re trying to maintain your healthy eating habits and everything getting passed around is deep-fried, cheese-filled or processed. Whether you’re hosting an event, or simply in need of providing a tasty tray for one, these 5 healthy appetizer recipes are ones you’ll want to make over and over again:

1. Pistachio Pesto Baked Mushrooms

To make the pesto, add the following to a food processor and mix until combined:

• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 cup arugula
• 1/4 cup pistachio nuts (raw, shelled, unsalted, or adjust salt)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1. Cut the stalks off two dozen cremini mushrooms and fill the centre of each with the pesto
2. Place the mushrooms on a baking tray and drizzle a little olive oil over them
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes and let cool slightly before serving, or serve cold

2. Baked Chickpea Fritters

An ideal finger food, chickpea fritters are easy to make, easy to store and easy to eat!

Recipe makes around 24 mini fritters

• 1 cup chickpea flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 3/4 cup hot water
• 1 cup chopped spinach (fresh)
• 3 minced garlic cloves
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 cup cooked chickpeas
• 2 chopped scallions

1. Combine chickpea flour, salt, and cumin. Add the hot water, a little at a time util a thick paste forms
2. Let mixture stand for around an hour
3. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
4. Add spinach, garlic, baking soda, cooked chickpeas and scallions to the batter
5. Drop 1/4 cup amounts of batter onto a baking tray lined with parchment
6. Bake for 15 minutes, flip, and bake for another ten minutes
7. Serve with hot sauce or a creamy lemon cashew dipping sauce

3. White Bean and Parsley Dip With Pita Chips

Perhaps the simplest of healthy appetizers, this delightful dip is made by adding all the ingredients to a food processor and mixing until smooth (it’s also fine to leave it a little rustic):

• 1 can of cannellini beans
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 cup of fresh parsley
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

For the pita chips:

1. Bake triangles of whole wheat pita bread on baking trays in the oven for 7-8 minutes at 400 degrees
2. Consider tossing the pita triangles in a little oil, salt, pepper and mixed herbs before baking, for extra pizzazz!

4. Quinoa Tabbouleh

Popular as a healthy food, quinoa is packed with protein and can easily be substituted for the traditional bulgur wheat used when making tabbouleh.

Recipe makes around 24 small servings

• 2 cups quinoa, rinsed
• 1 tsp salt
• The juice of a fresh lemon
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup hemp oil (or 1/4 cup flax oil and 1/4 cup hemp oil for added omega-3)
• 2 medium-sized English cucumbers (ridgeless), chopped into 1/4 inch pieces
• 2 pints of cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1 cup curly kale, massaged and chopped
• 1 cup chopped fresh mint

1. In a large bowl, mixx all the ingredients together.

5. Smoked Tofu, Avocado and Sun-Dried Tomato Tapenade

This one is, admittedly, a little laborious, but it can be a fun activity to keep the kids occupied during party prep. The tapenade can also be made in advance.

• 1/2 cup Kalamata olives, pitted
• 2 tbsps basil (dried)
• 2 tbsps fresh lemon juice
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 tsps olive oil

1. Begin by soaking a cup of sun-dried tomatoes in hot water for 15 minutes
2. Cut 1/4 inch slices of smoked tofu and similarly sized slices of avocado
3. Drizzle a little fresh lemon juice over the avocado to avoid oxidation (browning) and cover with plastic wrap while you process the tapenade
4. Drain the tomatoes, but reserve the soaking water
5. Add the tomatoes to a food processor along with the Kalamata olives, basil, lemon juice, garlic and olive oil
6. Create open-top sandwiches with a slice of smoked tofu on the bottom, a slice of avocado on top of that, and a little bit of sun-dried tomato tapenade to finish