Broccoli Cauliflower Soup

This afternoon's lunch.  Many folks prefer a smooth and creamy soup, but I like to have vegetables with a little teeth to them.  If you like the creamy soup simply blend (carefully) and serve.

This one has some real prep time as it took about 10-15 minutes to prepare all the vegetables for this meal. Vegetable prep can be done well ahead of time.  Only 20 minutes cook time though so easy peasy!  Great alone or with some Corn Bread or a Muffin.  We had left-overs so I'm going to add a can of drained and rinsed Red Kidney ( or white Kidney) Beans when we serve it again.  You could add the beans in the beginning to beef up the protein and fiber.  Remember we ALWAYS use organic vegetables, etc.

Serves 3-5

1 cup broccoli florets, chopped small and rinsed
1 1/2 Cups cauliflower florets, chopped small and rinsed
1 cup carrots, diced
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
2-3 cloves minced, garlic
1/4 cup minced red onion
3 cups Chicken Stock/Broth (make your own bone broth for more nutrients)
7 oz jar diced tomatoes
1 1/2 Tablespoon Italian dried herb blend
3-4 slices cooked bacon, chopped (opt)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Fresh grated Parmesan Cheese, for serving
Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for serving.

1.  In a large pot or saucepan, heal olive oil over medium low heat.  Add onion and garlic; cook until onions are translucent and garlic is fragrant, about 3 minutes.  Add carrot and cook stirring occasionally for 3-4 minutes.  Add the brother, tomatoes, herbs, salt and pepper.
2.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes to combine all of the flavors together.
3.  Stir in the rinsed broccoli, cauliflower and bacon.  Continue to simmer until cooked through but still crunchy.  About 5 minutes.
4.  Serve in bowls garnished with shredded parmesan and fresh chopped parsley.

Sweet Potato Broccoli Chicken Bake

This is my favorite go to meal for the three of us (one of us is only 5 yrs old and two of us are seniors).

Ingredients:
1/2 pound Chicken (breast, thighs--I use one of each), cut bite size pieces
1 1/2 cups broccoli florets
1 med (1/2 pound) Sweet Potato, cut small bite size pieces
1/4 cup diced Red Onion
1 clove minced garlic
1 1/2 tablespoons raisins
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped Walnuts
3 tablespoons Olive or Avocado Oil
3/4 teaspoon Italian Seasoning mix
1/8 teaspoon salt (divided)
2 tablespoons soft goat or feta cheese (optional)

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2.  Drizzle 1 Tablespoon of oil in bottom of casserole dish
3.  Place cubed chicken on the bottom of casserole and season lightly with salt and pepper, toss to coat.
4.  In separate bowl combine Broccoli, sweet potatoes, red onion, garlic, raisins, walnuts, oil and herbs.  Toss to coat.
5.  Top chicken with vegetable mixture.
6.  Cover and bake for 20 minutes.  Remove cover and 10 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink and sweet potatoes are soft.  Top with cheese just before serving.

Grandma Farmer New Focus, Yet The Same

Grandma Farmer is reviving her BLOG and posting again!  Our Focus is the same yet very different!

Our BLOG is for you if you......

1. Know someone who is a Senior
2. Are 55+ Yourself
3. You have family members that are Seniors
4. Want to help

The elderly are an extremely frail part of our population.  It is estimated that by 2019 over 29% of the United States population will be over the age of 55 years. Seniors are thrust into a confusing Social Security and Medicare system that is constantly changing.

Changes, Changes, Changes As We Age

• Nutrition requirements Change
• Exercise Changes
• Health Changes, Our Bodies Are Changing
• Society Looks at You Differently
• Relationships Change and We Suffer Losses

We Are Here To Help

We will be BLOGGING recipes and menus, special articles, and guest posts on topics of interest to SENIORS and their FAMILIES. Look for 2-3 post a week so subscribe or join our Facebook page so you don't miss a single post.

https://www.facebook.com/Grandma-Farmer-109967575799429/

Heart Healthy Salmon Patties

serves 3

1/3 cup cooked cannellini beans (white kidney beans)
7 ounces left over salmon or canned salmon
1/3 cup almond meal
1 tablespoon diced onion
1/2 teaspoon Italian herbs
1 tablespoon minced parsley (or 1 teaspoon dried)
1 clove garlic, minced or grated
2 tablespoons grated carrot
2 tablespoons grated yellow squash or zucchini
1 large egg
Coconut oil for frying

1. Drain & rinse cooked beans
2. Drain & rinse cooked salmon
3. Place beans, herbs, onion, carrot, squash, garlic, egg and herbs in food processor and process.
4. Add the beans and salmon together with the almond meal and combine well. 
5. Add coconut oil to warm skillet at med-high heat. 
6. Form into 3 patties and fry 4-5 minutes on each side.
7. Serve on bun as a sandwich, as a salad topper, alone, etc

Day Four - Heart Healthy Menu

BREAKFAST
Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal - Use the recipe from Day One and use diced, peeled apple in place of the raisins.

LUNCH
Salmon Patties
1/2 pound Steamed Asparagus
Mixed organic salad with Italian dressing - 2 cups
Iced Tea

SUPPER
Bean Taquitos
Fiesta Black Bean Salad, 1 cup
Mixed organic salad, 2 cups
Cherries, Grapes, or berries, 1 cup

SNACK
Apple with peanut butter
Nut Cup (1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds,  2 tablespoons raw almonds and pistachios, 1 tablespoon raw walnuts and pecans, 1 tablespoon raw pumpkin seeds) MANDATORY
1 Banana MANDATORY
Dill Pickle
1 cup Raw Vegetables & Hummas or Black Bean Dip

Bean Taquitos
Serves 2+ the toddler
1 cup refried pinto beans
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste)
1/4 cups Salsa (we love our Fermented Salsa always in our frig)
2 medium peppers, roasted
4 med gluten-free corn tortillas
2 cups shredded cabbage
1 medium avocado, sliced
1/2 medium lime
4 tablespoons grated Mexican Blend Cheese

1. Heat beans and cayenne pepper in a saucepan on med-high heat.  Once the beans bubble stir in salsa and remove from heat.
2. Spread 1/4 of the bean-salsa mixture on each tortilla. 
3. Cut peppers in half and place 1/2 pepper over beans on each tortilla.
4. Add shredded cabbage and sliced avocado. 
5. Drizzle lime juice evenly over cabbage.
6. Sprinkle cheese over cabbage.
7. Roll tortilla into taquito and serve.

Fiesta Black Bean Salad
serves 2 + the toddler
1 1/2 teaspoon virgin olive oil
1/4 cup diced onion
1/8 teaspoon sea or kosher salt
pinch ground black pepper
1/8 tsp dried oregano
1/8 tsp ground cumin
1 green bell pepper, diced
2 med garlic cloves, minced
1/8 tsp red chili flakes (or to taste)
3/4 cups black beans, cooked, drained, and rinsed
3/4 cup frozen corn, thawed
1/2 Avocado, diced
1 med tomato, chopped
11/2 teaspoon lime juice

1. Heat pan to medium-high heat.  Add oil, onion, green pepper, salt, black pepper, cumin, and oregano.  Saute for about 2 minutes until onion softens. 
2. Reduce heat to medium, add garlic with red chili flakes, heat 1 more minute, and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, combine the black beans corn, tomatoes, cilantro and lime juice with the onion-spice mixture. 
4. Serve immediately or serve later chilled.

Menu Plan and recipes on this page adapted from The 30-Day Heart Tune-up by Steven Masley, MD

Oh Nuts!

"Many people shun nuts because they believe them to be too fatty, but this is a mistake.  Nuts are another miracle food, because they decrease your risk of cardiovascular disease.  They are packed with protein, anti-aging compounds, and fiber.  They make you feel full, so you're less likely to reach for an unhealthy snack.  And they contain mostly healthy fats.  Most recently, research published in the NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE showed that adding extra olive oil and nuts (2 handfuls daily of pecans, pistachios, almonds, walnuts, or hazelnuts) to your diet was better at reducing rates of cardiovascular events (especially strokes) than following the traditional American Heart Association-recommended moderate fat diet.  Further, these same nuts have been shown in randomized clinical trials to lower cholesterol levels when you eat 102 ounces a day.  Research published in the AMERICAN JOURNAL OF CLINACIAL NUTRITIONS found that people who ate 1-2 ounces (1-2 handfuls) o almonds daily lost more weight than those who ate other complex carbohydrates, so nuts appear to benefit both your heart and your waistline.  Every study published to date has shown that eating nuts regularly decreases your risk of heart attacks, strokes, and death."  Steven Masley, MD in his book THE 30-DAY HEART TUNE-UP.


Below is an article by Suzanne Robin at http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/health-benefits-nuts-raw-vs-roasted-3920.html

"Nuts, once shunned because of their high fat content, are now recognized as a nutritionally valuable food. The type of processing nuts undergo can affect their nutritional benefit; some alternative health professionals advocate eating nuts raw rather than cooked. Both raw and roasted nuts have benefits and drawbacks; most nuts sold as raw have actually been dried or soaked to remove harmful substances.

The nuts you buy in the store have generally been roasted, often in oil. Nuts naturally contain little sodium, but commercial manufacturers often add salt to their nuts. If you're watching your sodium intake, look for unsalted nuts. Oil-roasted nuts have more calories than raw nuts, but the difference isn't significant. The U.S. Department of Agriculture lists oil-roasted cashews as containing 580 calories per 100 grams, compared to 553 calories for raw cashews. The vitamins and minerals in the two products varied little, except for extra monounsaturated fat in the oil-roasted nuts. Monounsaturated fat is considered heart-healthy, since it helps lower cholesterol levels.  PLEASE NOTE: Make sure the oil is monounsaturated, this is not always the case. Jean

Raw nuts that haven't been soaked or dried contain substances that can cause harm. Plants such as nuts contain enzymes or other substances that protect the plant from germinating too soon or from being eaten by insects. Phytic acid in raw nuts protects the plant but can block your body from absorbing nutrients such as calcium, iron, magnesium and zinc. Soaking the nuts or drying them removes the phytic acid. Getting too much phytic acid in your diet can lead to nutritional deficiencies.

Raw nuts can also harbor harmful bacteria. For this reason, raw almonds, which have been implicated in several salmonella outbreaks, are no longer sold in California, the main almond producer in the United States. Roasting, blanching, lightly steaming and heating destroy salmonella bacteria. Peanuts can harbor aflatoxins, harmful fungi that, like salmonella, can cause severe illness. Roasting kills about 50 percent of the aflatoxins present in nuts; hand sorting after roasting to remove discolored nuts further reduces the number of contaminated nuts that make it to market, according to the International Food Safety Network.

Roasting nuts also has its risks. Acrylamides -- chemicals that form in foods during the roasting process -- have carcinogenic effects in animals and could also have harmful human effects. In a Swiss study reported in the 2005 "Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry," researchers noted that nuts highest in free asparagine, a type of amino acid, had the highest levels of acrylamides after roasting. In this study, roasted hazelnuts contained low levels of acrylamides, and European almonds contained less than almonds grown in the United States.

Our Daily Nut Cup: Nut Cup (1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds, 1 tablespoon walnuts, hazelnuts and pecans, 2 tablespoons raw almonds, and 2 Brazil nuts)

Is soaking nuts necessary?

How to soak nuts.....

Day Three - Healthy Heart Tune-up

BREAKFAST
Breakfast Shake: (serves one), 1.5 cups milk or milk substitute (I used a container of full fat, raw milk yogurt and a bit of water, 1 cup frozen berries (or 1/2 banana and 1/2 cup berries), 1 tablespoon ground flax seed (grind in small coffee grinder or spice grinder), 1 scoop protein powder of your choice


LUNCH
Lentil Chili
Mixed organic salad with Italian dressing
Iced Tea

SUPPER
Cod with Hazelnut Crust, Wild Rice with Kale and Wild Mushrooms, Mixed green Salad (2-3 cups), 2 tablespoons Vinaigrette dressing, 1 cup fruit topped with 2 tablespoons yogurt




SNACK
Apple with peanut butter
Nut Cup (1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds,  2 tablespoons raw almonds and pistachios, 1 tablespoon raw walnuts and pecans, 1 tablespoon raw pumpkin seeds) MANDATORY
1 Banana MANDATORY
Dill Pickle
1 cup Raw Vegetables & Hummas or Black Bean Dip

Please note:  USE ONLY US BROWN RICE!  WE USE ONLY LUNDBERG RICE!

Cod with Hazelnut Crust
serves 2 plus the toddler
4 cod fillets (about 3/4 pound)
1/2 cup orange juice
1 large egg (omega-3, free-range, organic)
1 cup coarsely ground hazelnuts
1/4 teaspoon sea or kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon Italian herb blend
pinch ground black pepper
Nut oil (almond or walnut)
2 med garlic cloves, minced
2 Lemon wedges

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
2. Rinse fish fillets, soak in orange juice for 10 minutes, then pat dry.
3. Meanwhile, beat the egg in a bowl.
4. Heat a saute pan to medium, saute the ground hazelnuts with salt, herbs, pepper and garlic for 2 minutes, enough to toast the hazelnuts slightly, but not brown them.
5. Transfer 1/2 of the nut mixture to a plate at a time.  Dip the fish first in the egg, then in the hazelnut mixture.  When dipping fish coated with egg in the nut flour, some of the flour will become wet and will clump.
6. When finished coating the fish, discard all the excess nut mixture that came in contact with raw fish.
7. Coat a baking dish with nut oil and place fish on it.
8. Bake 20-25 minutes, until tender and flaky.  Garnish with a wedge of lemon.

Wild Rice with Kale and Mushrooms
serves 2 plus the toddler
1/2 cup wild rice
2 cups water
1/2 cup chicken stock (homemade preferred)
1 1/2 teaspoon nut oil (almond or walnut)
1/2 med onion, diced
1/8 teaspoon sea or kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon Italian herbs
2 cups wild mushrooms (shiitake, crimini, canterelle, or oyster)
2 cups chopped kale, tough stems removed (thin slices)
7 ounces garbanzo beans (or other white or red beans), cooked, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon rough chopped pecans

1. Combine wild rice, water, and stock in a pot; bring to a boil.  Simmer 50 minutes, until rice is barely firm.  Drain and set aside.
2. Ten minutes before rice is ready, heat a large saute pan to med-high and add oil, onion, salt, pepper and herbs.  Saute 1 minutes, with occasional stirring. 
3. Add mushrooms and saute an additional 2 minutes until mushrooms soften.
4. Add kale and beans, reduce heat to medium, cover, cook 2 minutes, and remove from heat.
5. When rice is cooked and drained, mix with sautéed vegetables.
6. Garnish with pecans.

Vinaigrette Dressing
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons white wine or apple juice
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon tamari sauce
1/2 teaspoon Italian herbs
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 med garlic loves, finely minced
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard (optional)

1. Combine ingredients and serve.

Menu Plan and recipes on this page adapted from The 30-Day Heart Tune-up by Steven Masley, MD