Just made the most delicious dinner from Fine Cooking magazine (p 12 of Cookfresh Spring 2012 issue). Grated carrots, zucchini, mint and lime with spicy peanut noodles – what a tasty meal. Serves 4 easily (actually could serve 6).

1/2 lb. dried 1/4-inch-wide rice noodles (try and find brown rice noodles for more fibre)
2 tsp. coconut oil
3/4 lb. ground turkey (you could easily forget the meat)
1 Tbsp tamari

Sauce
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1/2 cup crunchy natural peanut butter (no added sugar)
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 1/2 Tbs. fish sauce
3 Tbs. warm water

1 or 2 fresh jalapenos, finely chopped (seeded if you like)
2 medium carrots, grated
2 small zucchini, grated
2/3 cup coarsely chopped fresh mint
juice of 1/2 lime

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the rice noodles and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes until just tender. Drain and rinse with cold water, leave to drain in colander.

Meanwhile grate the carrots and zucchini and chop the mint and peppers. Set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together the peanut butter, vinegar, fish sauce and 3 Tbs. warm water until smooth. Set aside.

In a large skillet, cook the turkey in the coconut oil over medium-low heat. When just cooked through (about 6 – 8 minutes) add the tamari. Then stir in the rice noodles, sauce and vegetables. Add the juice of 1/2 lime and serve.

Garnish with lime wedges (from the other 1/2 of the lime!).

This was delicious served with a mango salad.

The morning didn’t go as I had hoped. My teenage daughter often goes off to school without breakfast. As we all know, breakfast is the most important meal of the day. In order to be able to learn and process information, she needs to have vital nutrients and protein in her body. But she’s also a teenager – do I need to say more?

With my shiny new Vita-Mix I made her a smoothie, trying to find a middle point between her need for sweets and my need for her to get some nourishment before school. She had purchased a package of Proteins + Smoothie mix (orange cream flavour), so I thought I could use a scoop of that with ¾ cup of almond milk, ¼ cup of kefir (to get some healthy bacteria into her body) and her daily vitamins (which she rarely takes). Major fight! But she did drink half of it. Small steps.

I’m going to experiment with 1 cup frozen fruit mix, an orange, a banana, 2 carrots and a large handful of spinach. With some water to (1 cup) – and I’ll try adding some of my homemade kefir (1/2 cup) in too. I’ll let you know how it tastes! Delicious – much better than Emily’s smoothie. Tomorrow I’ll add some good flax seed oil (omega-3 essential fatty acid EFA). I would add it today, but I don’t have any right now. My friend and colleague, Sherri Doak, suggests that I add some New Zealand Whey Protein powder, so I’ll pick up some of that too.

Okay, for supper I’m trying something really different. And since it’s a lasagne, I’m going to make it in two pans so that I can freeze one of them for a day when life is crazy.

Lasagna with Roasted Asparagus, Turkey and Cheese Sauce – this recipe from the Holistic Cooking Academy

Accompany any pasta dish with a side salad of mixed baby greens. I’ll be using left-over kale salad from last night.

I’ve chosen to use fresh noodles tonight, you can use them without soaking, but I find that they are a little dry so I usually soak them in boiling water for 2-3 minutes. This dish has lots of steps so maybe it would be best to save for the weekend or an evening when there isn’t a lot going on.

Creamy Chives Sauce (makes about 4 ½ cups)
3 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp flour
2 cups milk (I’ll use almond milk)
½ cup coconut milk
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 Tbsp grated lemon rind
1/2 cup chives, chopped
2 tsp. kelp salt
Dash cayenne pepper

9 lasagna noodles
4 cups asparagus, trimmed and roasted
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp freshly ground coriander
36 oz ground turkey, browned
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Make the sauce. In a medium saucepan, on medium heat, combine melted butter and flour and stir together. Add milk gradually, stirring constantly and then add the coconut milk. Whisk constantly until it thickens (at the boil). Stir in ricotta cheese, lemon rind and chives. Season with salt and cayenne pepper. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Cut the asparagus into 2 inch pieces and toss with oil, salt and coriander. Place in a pyrex dish and roast for 6 minutes until hot and tender. Remove from heat and reduce oven heat to 350°F.

Brown the turkey and garlic with just a touch of oil. Oil a 9 x 13 x 2 inch dish and form the first layer with three lasagne noodles. Top with 1/3 of Creamy Chives Sauce and 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese and ½ of the turkey and asparagus. Layer once again, then on the top layer end with noodles and the remaining sauce and Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 30 minutes at 350°F or until bubbling.

I had a great weekend escape last weekend with 5 friends from high school. While it was wonderful to talk about when we were in high school and catch up on who’s doing what, what I found to be the most powerful was how we are going through similar things together.

Because I love food, everyone had lots of questions about food and healing, food and cancer, food and psychology. It made me realize that everyone is starting to be more knowledgeable about how food affects our bodies and how society’s search for easy, fast food, is actually starting to hurt us – not only from a physical stand point, but also from a family and community place.

I’m thinking of doing another month-long experiment. Each day I’ll write about what I’m making for supper. That way not only do I become accountable, but also it makes me really walk my talk. And you’ll be able to recognize that I have the same challenges as most of you.

I have a teenage son who won’t eat vegetables (but will eat fruit and so he has a Greens + supplement with every meal), a husband who is so busy with work that we sometimes aren’t able to eat together (and he often forgets to eat), and a daughter who is always watching her weight and so juggles what food is put in front of her. Me, I prefer to eat vegetables, but will enjoy white meat and fish. Oh, and cheese. I LUV cheese!

Tonight we’re having a Thai Basil Turkey dish, with saffron rice (white basmati rice), and stir fried vegetables. No doubt my son will pick out all of the vegetables and green things – but I’ll get over it!

I found the recipe idea in the Longo’s magazine on the inside front cover ad for Maple Leaf chicken. I’m using free-range turkey from the butcher instead.

1 turkey breast (boneless, skinless) – I’ve got 2 small turkey scallopini
1 tbsp olive oil
6 green onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 red chilli peppers, deseeded & chopped – I’m using chilli sauce
1/2 cup finely-chopped fresh basil
2 tbsp Hoisin sauce (or oyster sauce)
Saute turkey (cut into bite-sized pieces) in olive oil (with a little vegetable stock) for 3-4 minutes until no longer pink
Add onions, garlic and peppers. Cook until onions are softened. Add basil and hoisin sauce, cook for 2-3 minutes (I’m also marinating the turkey right now in hoisin mixed with veggie stock).
Serve with rice and stir-fried vegetables (I’m doing bean sprouts, snow peas, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, red pepper and red onion).

I look forward to your comments. Let me know what you’re cooking for dinner – it may help me decide what’s on for Thursday dinner!