This is an easy chicken stew recipe which takes relatively little time to prepare. The secret to make it fast is to cut everything small and to choose vegetables that either can be eaten raw or don’t require long cooking time. The beauty of such foods is that you can discover healthy recipes each and every time by simply choosing a vegetables mix rich in those nutrients you’re most interested in. One of the vegetables that can contribute to preparing a healthy dish is celery root, also known as celeriac, turnip rooted celery or celery knob. When consumed raw, celery root belongs into the low glycemic index group of foods, however when cooked, it’s a high GI food. Despite this, celeriac is still beneficial for diabetes sufferers, because of its low sugar content. The following chicken stew recipe is suitable for people who love potatoes but have to stick with a low-carb diet. It’s an easy recipe for two people, but you can easily adjust quantities if you have more mouths to feed.

Ingredients:

• 1 chicken breast, skinless, boneless, cut in small, thin stripes (the smaller, the better, because the faster it will get cooked)
• 1 big onion, finely chopped
• 2-3 green onions, cut small
• 1 medium sized celery root, peeled, diced small
• 1 medium size potato, diced small
• 1/2 can diced tomatoes in tomato sauce
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• Red hot chili pepper powder (or freshly ground red chili flakes)
• Salt, pepper

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Serves 2

Cooking method:

Take a large pan or a wok, heat the oil, then stir fry the onion with a little bit of added water, so the oil doesn’t get too hot. Depending on your ability to chop onions, you’ll need to stir fry it for 4-8 minutes (even 10 minutes if you’re clumsy and you chopped it really big, but I’m sure that if you got to read this, then you can finely chop an onion, so 4-5 minutes of stir frying should be enough). When the onion gets soft and almost transparent add the potatoes and the celery root pieces and cook everything together for 5 minutes. Add the chicken breast chunks and continue cooking, stirring quite frequently in the first two minutes, then cover the pan and let the food simmer for about 10 minutes. Now add the tomatoes in sauce, the green onion, garlic, chili, salt and the pepper, stir well and continue cooking for another 10 minutes with the pan covered. Serve hot, with a sprinkle of freshly ground pepper on top.

Cauliflower is not only the prettier cousin of cabbage, but also a healthy vegetable and a complete food. Cauliflower is a natural source of vitamin C (good for strengthening the immune system) and folate (important for pregnant women in the prevention of spina bifida and other neural tube malformations in newborns). Cauliflower is rich in dietary fiber, excellent for digestion and for the prevention of colon cancer. Recent research has shown that one of the compounds in cauliflower, the indole-3-carbinol, may have positive effects in preventing or slowing down the development of breast and prostate tumors. Apart from its healthy side, cauliflower also has a tasty side, as it makes delicious meals, be it raw, steamed, stir-fried or roasted.

This cauliflower curry recipe is one of my favorites. Easy to prepare, it’s one of the healthy eating recipes which can make a great idea for a light dinner meal, even at late hours.

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Serves 2-3 people

Ingredients:

• 1 medium sized cauliflower
• 6-8 medium sized mushrooms (champignons or any other sort of your choice)
• 4-5 garlic cloves, finely sliced
• 1 bell pepper (red, green or yellow, whatever you have available), chopped
• 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 cup diced tomatoes in sauce (canned)
• 1 small carrot, grated or Julienne cut
• 1 tablespoon curry powder (either bought or homemade, depending on how much time you’ve got and whether you’re in the cooking mood or just need to feed some hungry mouths)
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Break the cauliflower apart into medium to small florets, discarding the leaves and the core. Put the florets in a pot with salty boiling water and let them boil for 2-3 minutes, then let them drain. Wash and cut the mushrooms into 1/4 inch thick slices. Heat the olive oil in a wok. Stir fry the onions for 3-4 minutes, adding about 2 tablespoons of water, so the oil doesn’t get too hot. Add the mushrooms, the garlic the curry powder and some salt and cook everything for about 5-6 minutes. If you aren’t sure when the mushrooms are done, you can always taste one. Just remember to use a fork and not your fingers to grab the mushroom from the pan.

When mushrooms become soft, add the diced tomatoes, the tomato sauce and the bell pepper and cook everything at medium temperature for 5 more minutes, making sure to keep the wok covered and to stir from time to time. Add the carrot and the boiled cauliflower florets (remember not to overdo the boiling, you don’t want the cauliflower completely cooked, but just a bit softened, when you add it to the vegetable mix). Cook it for 4-5 minutes, stirring gently for a couple of times, in order to make sure that you cover all the florets with the nice, flavored yellow sauce that’s already formed on the wok bottom.

Serve hot with sour cream and freshly ground black pepper on top. If you want a vegetarian meal, you can replace the sour cream with salsa or with a few drops of Worcestershire sauce.