…healthy mind
By: Sharon Lurie
I always find that when food and education are mentioned in the same sentence, my mind immediately starts thinking school lunches, healthy meals, hearty dishes, and a slice of lemon cake, healthy of course, because aren’t lemons enriched with vitamin C?? Still makes it healthy, doesn’t it?? Nutrition education empowers children with knowledge and skills to make healthy food and beverage choices. I hope some of these recipes will educate one to live a healthier lifestyle and help children to create their own exciting school lunches.
Curried sweet potato soup and crispy chickpeas
1 to 1,2 kg sweet potatoes (I prefer the orange variety as it gives a rich colour to the soup)
2 whole onions
4 peeled carrots, roughly chopped
5 sticks celery (I prefer to chop mine so as to prevent celery threads)
1 TBL finely minced garlic
1 TBL finely grated ginger
1 heaped tablespoon freshly grated turmeric
1 hot chilli, seeded and chopped
4 cubes chicken stock (I like Imana)
4 cubes beef stock
1 can coconut cream
Place all soup ingredients (except stock cubes) into a soup pot and cover with water. About 3cm higher than the vegetables. Bring to the boil then allow to simmer until all the vegetables are soft. Preheat oven to 200°C. Meanwhile, drain a tin of chickpeas well and sprinkle with paprika spice, salt, and a little oil. Bake them on a baking tray for 40-45 mins until crisp. Shake them around every 15 minutes. Watch them as you don’t want them to burn. Remove from oven to cool.* Add chicken, beef stock salt, pepper, and coconut cream to soup and blend well until the soup is smooth. Serve with roasted chickpeas and fresh, finely chopped coriander. The secret to keeping the chickpeas afloat on the soup is to ensure they are completely dehydrated and light. You can use salt.
*While shooting my photographer said his wife makes them in her air fryer! So there you go, air fry them if you have one!
Berry smoothie
1 cup mixed frozen berries
1 cup coconut flavoured yogurt
1 banana
1 TBL honey
(Per smoothie)
Combine the above ingredients in a blender until smooth.
Energy balls
125g butter
1 tsp vanilla essence
2 TBLS honey
18 dates, pitted
1 cup finely chopped pecan nuts
2 cups cornflakes, lightly crushed
1½ cups desiccated coconut
In a pot, melt the butter, vanilla essence and honey with the dates. Ensure that they are soft enough to mash with a fork then remove from heat. After mashing the dates add the nuts and lightly crushed cornflakes. Roll into balls and coat entirely with desiccated coconut. Refrigerate.
TEX MEX CHICKEN SALAD
This can be created on a tortilla, in a bowl or on a platter. (This recipe is enough for two)
1 deboned thick chicken breast
2 cups shredded cabbage (I used purple and white for colour)
A handful of baby tomatoes
½ cup corn (defrosted)
Handful of shredded peppers
1 avocado sliced
¼ cup finely chopped spring onion
2 TBLS finely chopped fresh coriander
Salad dressing
Your favourite Salsa and mayonnaise mixed together. I used a jar of Mexicorn Salsa.
OMEGA 3 SALAD (for two)
Omega 3 helps to minimise signs of ageing! So I’ve decided to overdose on it! And to help me on my way is this recipe. As for chopped herring and tuna, they’re my new best friends!
250g hot smoked mustard and pepper encrusted trout
100g asparagus (fresh)
2 boiled eggs
A couple of berries
Lemon
DRESSING
2 teaspoons Chrain (grated horseradish) and ½ cup Bobba Shar’s salad dressing (poppy seed or plain).
School lunch ideas
WRAPS:
Chicken mayo and pickled cucumber
Salami and mustard pickles
Cold meat and pickled cucumbers
Egg mayonnaise
Cream cheese
Cheddar Cheese
Feta and Olives
Avocado
Tuna mayonnaise
Chick pea and tachina
Roasted vegetables
Comforting “Vitamin C” enriched cake!
I was “lemoning” around with the wonderful fruit produced by my lemon tree. But with winter starting to blow through the air, I decided we needed a comforting shot of vitamin C. What could be more comforting than a slice of fresh lemon cake and a hot cup of tea? I had to promote the vitamin C so I didn’t feel to guilty eating it!
250ml sour cream
1 cup oil
4 eggs
1/3 cup lemon juice
1kg vanilla box cake mix
1 box vanilla instant pudding
Preheat oven to 170°C. Whisk sour cream, oil, eggs, and lemon juice in a large bowl and slowly add cake box mix and vanilla pudding. Mix until well combined and pour into a well-greased loaf tin. Bake for 45 minutes or until and cake skewer comes out clean.
Icing
1½ cups Icing sugar (sifted)
125g melted butter
1 TBL fresh lemon juice
1 TBL boiling water
Mix all of the above icing ingredients until well combined and pour over hot cake as it comes out the oven.
First pic of COMFORTING “VITAMIN C ENRICHED CAKE – the pic with leave and lemon in background
2nd set of pics OMEGA THREE SALAD – with fish and eggs etc
3rd set of pics SCHOOL LUNCH IDEAS
4 th set of pics ENERGY BALLS (may be we could put the recipe on the pic, To lift the pic a bit.
5th set of pics CHICKEN TEX MEX – on tortilla salad
6th set of pics BERRY SMOOTHIE – perhaps the recipe could also be printed on pic.
7th set of pics CURRIED SWEET POTATO SOUP AND CRISPY CHICKPEAS
