Christina Najjar

4 Ingredient Beet Radish Salad (vegan, paleo)

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I’m not the biggest fan of beets, but this beet radish salad is one way I’ll actually somewhat enjoy them. I make it when I need to incorporate raw beets into my diet. Beets and radishes support the liver, and I know that my liver can always take a bit of extra help. Raw beets are also a great food for platelet health, and they have anti-cancer properties. You can read more about the health benefits of beets.

4 ingredient beet radish salad

If your digestive system has been known to cause you problems, proceed with caution. Raw beets can be difficult to digest because of its high insoluble fibre content, or, simply put, “roughage”. If you’re new to beets, it’s also important to note that in 10-15% of people, consuming beets can temporarily alter urine colour. The pigmentation will also show itself in stools, so don’t panic! You could probably make a movie (a funny one, too!) out of all my reactions when I’ve forgotten that I ate beets the night before.

If you haven’t worked with beets before, I will warn you that your hands will be a funky colour by the time you’re done cutting everything. You can wear gloves when cutting beets to avoid that. Otherwise, washing your hands with soap a few times should take care of it.

4 Ingredient Beet Radish Salad

Ingredients
1 large beet or 2-3 small beets, peeled
1 large watermelon radish (aka pink radish) or 2 small watermelon radishes, peeled
1 lime, zested and juiced
1/2-1 tsp chili power (or to taste)

Directions
Peel and chop (or julienne) the beets and radishes. Zest the lime, and then juice it over the beets and radishes. Add the chili powder and mix well. This beet radish salad will store in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days.

Stove Top Flatbread (vegan)

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You may be wondering why I would choose to make a flatbread on the stove top. The most frustrating thing I found when I first moved in to my current place, back in May, is that the oven is so small that none of my nice stoneware pans fit in there. The only thing that seems to fit is those disposable grocery store aluminum pans, but in nutrition school, we’ve been taught that it’s unhealthy to cook on aluminum.

Quick and easy flatbread

I love to eat bread. I get tons of bread cravings, but when that happens, I try to make my own bread as much as possible. However, when I don’t want to take the time to let a loaf of yeast bread rise, I usually opt for flatbread. Thanks to my tiny oven, this has been a bit more difficult to manage.

On Monday, I decided I’d had enough of letting this tiny oven run my life (well, so to speak). I decided I was going to make bread on my stove top, but I couldn’t really find a recipe I liked. I’ve recently noticed that I’ve become so familiar with the vegan/gluten free chemistry that I can invent recipes and get them right on the first try. My only complaint the first time I made this flatbread is that it didn’t look pretty enough to photograph, so I made it again on Wednesday and made sure to “roll” it out in a slightly more attractive manner.

Stove Top Flatbread (vegan, refined sugar free)

Ingredients
1/2 cup brown rice flour
2 tbsp tapioca starch
1 tbsp potato starch
3/4 tsp xanthan gum
1/2 tsp baking soda
sprinkle of salt
3-5 tbsp water (start with 3 and add more, 1 tbsp at a time until everything sticks together)
1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
1 tbsp maple syrup, honey, or agave (optional)
Oil for cooking

Directions
Mix the dry ingredients together. Add in the wet ingredients and mix well. You may need to go in with your hands.

Spread a bit of oil in a frying pan. Spread the dough in the pan until it’s about 1/4 inch thick, or just over 1/2 cm.

Once the dough is shaped how you like it, turn on the heat to medium low. Check the bottom every few minutes. When it looks nice and golden brown, flip the bread and continue cooking until the other side is also nicely coloured.

This recipe makes one medium flatbread so multiply as needed, or split the dough into two smaller breads.

Sesame Noodles (vegan)

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Since I’ve been reading through my first book for nutrition school, I’ve learned a lot. One of the most important things I’ve learned so far is that there is a such thing as a noodletarian diet! Who knew? Reading about this diet gave me such a hankering for sesame noodles. It had been a while since I had made these, so I jumped at the occasion to make them again.

Sesame Noodles

So what is a noodletarian diet, anyway? It involves eating a lot of whole grain noodles. These noodles of course need to be accompanied by the other required nutrients, but they form the base of your meals. Sounds interesting to me!

To satisfy my noodle craving, I went to the natural food store by my apartment and bought a few different kinds of King Soba brand noodles. I bought a black rice variety, a brown rice/pumpkin/ginger one, and a brown rice and wakame type. They cook quickly and have a great texture. I definitely recommend them! The sesame noodles are great as a side, or can be turned into a whole meal by adding some kind of veggies and preferably a protein. I really gobbled these up.

I have orientation this week for nutrition school, and I’m so excited! Real classes start next week. Wish me luck!

Sesame Noodles

Ingredients
250g (about 9oz) whole grain noodles of choice (I used King Soba Brown Rice and Wakame)
2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
1 tbsp agave nectar (or other liquid sweetener)
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
Sesame seeds to taste
Optional: sliced green onions to top

Directions
Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain and rinse noodles. Add the other ingredients and mix well. Serve right away. Store extras in an airtight container in the fridge (if there are leftovers). Makes 2-3 portions.

Dinner Rolls (vegan, yeast free)

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If you’re wondering just how dedicated I am to following my posting schedule these days, here’s how much. I had class scheduled from 1pm to 4pm, and dinner plans for 5:30. Having not had time to cook anything in advance, between the usual demands (full time work, school, you know the gist), I had to make a decision. Was I, once again, going to post late? I missed the second half of my class in order to run home before my dinner plans to make dinner rolls for you folks.

Homemade dinner rolls

Now, before you frown at me for missing half of my class, let me say this. Today was the first lecture for that particular course. We were only going to cover the introduction for those who had never studied the topic. I have a minor in that subject, so I figured I could miss half of the introduction. You’re probably thinking, “You’re a stranger, why would I care?” so I feel the need to mention that my mom reads my blog (or used to, at least).

Now, about the actual dinner rolls. This recipe comes from my early gluten free days. I was really badly missing bread, but I didn’t feel courageous enough to attack an actual loaf of bread (if you picture that literally, it’s actually quite a funny image). I figured dinner rolls would suit my craving, but I couldn’t find a recipe that fit all of my dietary concerns and which was also yeast free. I just didn’t want to bother with the yeast. Thus, this recipe was born. I’ve brought these rolls to many a potluck, since.

Dinner Rolls

Ingredients
3/4 cups brown rice flour
1/3 cup potato starch
1/3 cup tapioca starch
2 tsp xanthan gum
2 tsp corn free baking powder
1/2 tbsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
1 flax egg (1 tbsp flax meal + 3 tbsp water)
1 cup water
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil

Directions
Preheat oven to 375F. Grease 6 cups of a standard sized muffin pan. I use the 6-muffin aluminum pans you can get at the grocery store.

In a small bowl, prepare your flax egg and set aside.

Combine all the dry ingredients and mix well. In a separate bowl or a larger measuring cup, combine all the wet ingredients. Mix everything together and spoon out evenly into the muffin pan.

Cook for 20 minutes. Take out of the oven and remove the rolls as soon as you can possibly handle them. Otherwise, they’ll get soggy. Makes 6 rolls so multiply recipe as needed.

No Cook Carrot Salad (vegan, paleo)

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Today is probably the hottest day we’ve had so far this year in Ottawa. Like, carrot salad for dinner hot. While I was running around town getting a bunch of stuff done, I stopped into Starbucks to get hydrated. The barista commented that I was a in earlier than usual. When I told her I was just stopping in and that I didn’t have a blog post for today, she said, “But what about your fans?”

No cook carrot salad

So, for my readers, I went home and I made something that didn’t require the oven. My apartment is on the 5th floor, so it’s even hotter in there than outside. I seem to always have carrots and apples in the fridge, no matter how long it’s been since I’ve done groceries. In the winter, when I just couldn’t get to the grocery store, I made a raw carrot salad for dinner out of desperation a few times. It tastes good, but it won’t make a full meal if you’re looking for something protein packed.

I julienne the carrots using my trust Jamie Oliver Julienne Peeler, but you can use a mandoline or buy bagged julienne carrots. If you’re really committed, you can also just chop the carrots into juliennes slices. Let me know if you do that, because that’s pretty hardcore.

No Cook Carrot Salad

Ingredients
3 large carrots, peeled and julienned
1/2 granny smith apple, chopped (and peeled, if not organic)
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1 1/2 tsp raw apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 tsp raw honey

Directions
Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Serve immediately or refrigerate for no more than a couple of hours. If you plan to prepare the salad ahead of time, add the sliced almonds when you’re ready to serve it. If kept longer, the almonds will soften.

Black Pepper and Lime Potato Wedges (vegan)

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I eat potato wedges to forget… Have you ever gotten to the grocery store, only to realize that you didn’t have your wallet? I did yesterday. I only realized it after having put all the items on the conveyor belt, so I couldn’t just discretely put everything back and pretend it never happened. So, I decided to do my groceries at a different store today. Since yesterday, every time I’m about to step out, I check my purse about five times to make sure I have my wallet on me.

A good way to forget about these kinds of problems is to eat black pepper and lime potato wedges. I almost always make them using yellow potatoes, but for some reason, this time, I decided I’d go for red potatoes. It didn’t turn out as nicely as the yellow potatoes usually do, so I definitely recommend sticking to yellow potatoes.

Black pepper and lime potato wedges

Black Pepper and Lime Potato Wedges

Ingredients
1 package yellow baby potatoes (About 680g/24oz)
Zest of 1 lime
Juice of 1/2 lime
Loads of ground black pepper
Olive oil to coat
Salt to taste

Directions
Preheat oven to 400F.

Cut potatoes into wedges. To do so, cut them in half. Lay the flat side down and make three wedges out of each half. Mix the potato wedges with just enough olive oil to coat them, salt to taste, and loads of black pepper. And I mean LOADS. Lay them out evenly on a baking sheet and cook for about 40 minutes, or until cooked to your liking, taking them out halfway through to toss them.

While the potatoes cook, zest the lime.

When the potatoes are done, toss in the zest and squeeze half of the lime over the potato wedges. You can add more lime if the lime is small or if you simply like extra lime.

Mushroom and Fennel Seed Pasta Salad (vegan)

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I know it’s so cliché, but pasta salad is honestly the easiest thing to bring to a potluck. When I worked in an office, half the potluck dishes were pasta salads. With my food sensitivities, I usually only get to feast on these dishes with my eyes.

Roasted mushroom and fennel pasta salad

In theory, going vegan sounds really great to me. I don’t like the thought of eating all sorts of antibiotics and hormones. I can’t afford organic meat. Also, it helps to take into consideration the ethical and environmental aspects of going vegan. However, every time I go vegan, I find myself losing too much weight. Because my metabolism works extra hard, I need to eat a lot of protein to keep weight on.

…Oh, the joys of my belly monsters. I would love to eat tons of legumes. However, those little buggers seem to run my life, and I find myself having to avoid lots of decent sources of protein. I manage to sneak all kinds of inoffensive protein into my morning smoothies, but what about the other meals? That’s something for me to ponder for a while.

While brainstorming for weight-gaining ideas with friends and family, the idea of pasta salad came up. I know it’s not as high protein as some other items, but it’s a start. I find that most vegan pasta salad recipes online are rather disappointing. They mostly just use pasta as a replacement for lettuce. I decided to give my pasta salad a different burst of flavour. The fennel seed really complements the mushroom flavour.

Mushroom and Fennel Seed Pasta Salad

Ingredients
150g/5oz pasta of your choice (I used brown rice fusilli)
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
2 green onions, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 tsp fennel seed
Olive oil to coat pasta (the amount will depend on the type of pasta you use)
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
Salt to taste
Oil for frying

Directions
Cook pasta according to package directions. When finished, drain and rinse in cold water. Drain well and add just enough olive oil to coat completely without having it swimming in oil. Set aside to cool.

In the meantime, heat a bit of oil in a frying pan over medium-low heat. Add the mushrooms and the fennel seed and keep tossing them around. The idea is not the make the mushroom toasty. You just want to cook it a bit and have it pick up the fennel seed’s flavour.

When everything has cooled down, combine all the ingredients in a large bowl.

Makes 2 servings, so multiply as needed.

Cabbage Fried Quinoa (vegan)

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Sometimes, I like to be able to take little shortcuts in the kitchen. If you’re a really busy person (who isn’t?), any tips and tricks to speed up cooking can be helpful. For instance, if you’re cooking grains, make a large quantity for the week. Then, use the grains in a few different recipes. For instance, if you cook quinoa, you may want to make a quinoa salad, fried quinoa, and a quinoa stew.

Here’s another help hint. When I don’t have time to chop veggies to fry, I pick up a bag of coleslaw or some variation on it. I find that cabbage is one of the veggies that develops the nicest flavours when fried.

To give you an idea of how much I enjoy this meal, let me put it into perspective for you. Out of all the recipes I’ve posted on here since I started my blog, I can count on one hand the recipes I make on a regular basis. I mostly like to experiment with new meals, but I keep a few tasty and easy meals that I can make when time is not my friend.

Cabbage fried quinoa

Cabbage Fried Quinoa (vegan)

Ingredients
1 1/2 cup dry quinoa, cooked and refrigerated (makes about 4 cups, give or take)*
Bag of slaw mix
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp chili powder (or more)
Salt and pepper to taste (go generous on the pepper)
Oil for frying

*To cook quinoa, bring 1 1/2 cups dry quinoa to a boil in 3 cups water and cook for about 20 minutes, until the water is absorbed. Refrigerate until completely cooled down.

Directions
Heat up a bit of oil in a large frying skillet over medium heat. Add the quinoa and toss around to get it heated up nicely.Since it’ll have been refrigerated, it won’t stick to itself. When the quinoa is nicely heated up (about 4-5 minutes), add in the slaw mix. Cook until it’s done to your liking, tossing every couple of minutes. Add in the rest of the ingredients and keep tossing a bit until nicely coated.

Lemon Garlic Kale Chips

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Lemon garlic kale chips

Farmer’s market goodies tend to go in one day, maybe two if a larger quantity was bought. When I bought kale, I was debating between two flavours of kale chips. I settled on lemon garlic this time, but I’ll probably make the other flavour sometime soon. I’m excited for this other one. Are you excited? *suspense*
These turned out well enough that when doing groceries today, my partner asked me if I could make kale chips again tonight (the ones from this recipe were made a week ago). He doesn’t dislike veggies, but it can be difficult to get him to eat all his fruit and veggie portions for the day, so whenever he asks me for something with veggies, I make sure to make it.
All I had on hand for these was bottled lemon juice, but I’m sure fresh lemons would be ten times better.

Lemon Garlic Kale Chips

Ingredients
1 medium bunch green kale
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp lemon juice
salt to taste

Directions
Preheat oven to 350F.

Rip the kale off the thick stems. Cut it into pieces (similar size as for salads). Sprinkle the rest of the ingredients on the leaves and mix it all together using your hands.

Bake for about 15-20 minutes, turning them halfway through.

Detox salad

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The people around me must be getting tired of hearing about this detox I keep talking about. Unlike lots of other detoxes, it’s not harsh, and doesn’t work by depriving your body of its essential nutrients. The idea is to cut out toxins by going vegan, gluten free, sugar free, and alcohol free for a week, and to eat organic as much as possible. During that week, you eat foods with detoxing properties. Here is the link to the website.

This salad is more than some side dish. The quinoa provides protein, making this a full meal. For added protein (and tons of other nutrients), you could even sprinkle some hemp hearts on there, but I prefer to use hemp hearts in places where I won’t taste them as much.

Instead of cooking one cup of quinoa by itself, I made the salad at the same time as the cilantro lime quinoa, which is also good detox food, and which will keep in the fridge for a few days as well. The good thing about quinoa is that you can make enough of it over the week end and keep eating it for most of the week without having to constantly cook more.

Detox Salad

Ingredients
1/2 cup chopped cilantro, lightly packed
4 large leaves kale, ribs removed
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1 cup cooked quinoa – for raw, soak overnight
1 tbsp + 1 tsp (4 tsp) raw apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil

Directions
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. It will be good for at least three days in the fridge (provided that your greens aren’t already at the end of their lives).

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Christina Najjar - Natural Nutrition

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