If you ask yourself why is broccoli good for you, look no further. I’ll tell you why: broccoli is very rich in phytonutrients, vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin E, calcium, magnesium, folate and fiber. Each of those nutrients is important for the good functioning of our digestive system and for our general well-being. Like all vegetables belonging to the crucifers group, broccoli has been proven to reduce the risk of cancer and of cardiovascular diseases. A study by Jed Fahey of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore showed that three-day-old broccoli sprouts help preventing stomach cancer and ulcers by suppressing Helicobacter Pylori, the bacteria which seems to play a major role in the appearance and evolution of the above mentioned conditions (http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/news/20090406/broccoli-sprouts-good-for-the-gut). However, healthy eating is above all a personal matter, therefore one should always be careful and avoid those foods his body responds negatively to. This is the spirit of the following broccoli casserole recipe, in which most ingredients can be replaced with something else in case your idea of healthy recipes is not overlapping mine.

Ingredients:

• 1 broccoli head, fresh, cut into florets (you know the broccoli is fresh when the florets have a dark green color with a possible tint of brown; if it’s yellowish, it’s not so fresh and you shouldn’t buy it)
• 1 teaspoon olive oil (if you use a non-sticky baking dish, you can give up the oil)
• 3 potatoes, sliced 1/2 can peeled and chopped tomatoes in tomato sauce
• 1 cup sweet corn (frozen or canned)
• 1 cup shredded cheese (for a vegan recipe variation, use tofu cheese instead)
• 1 cup bell peppers, chopped (can be a mix of red, green and yellow peppers, for a nicer color mix)
• 3 eggs (vegans can replace eggs with egg substitute)
• 1/2 cup sour cream or low fat yogurt (vegans can use a tofu-based sour cream replacement either homemade or bought)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 45 minutes

Serves 4

Cooking method:

Put the potato slices in boiling water with salt and boil them for about 10 minutes. In another pan, boil the broccoli, the corn and the bell peppers for 2-3 minutes. Drain the vegetables after boiling and let them cool for about 5 minutes. Don’t relax yet, though, because you have other things to do while vegetables cool. In a bowl, mix two eggs with the chopped tomatoes and the tomato sauce, then add the shredded cheese to the mixture. If the cheese is salty, don’t add anymore salt. Add ground black pepper according to your taste. Take a casserole dish and sprinkle it with olive oil, then place a layer of potato slices inside. You don’t want perfection, just try to cover as much as you can of the dish bottom. Add the broccoli florets and the rest of the vegetables on top of the potatoes layer, trying to distribute them evenly across the surface. Pour the egg, cheese and tomatoes mix over the dish. Beat the last egg with 1/2 cup of sour cream or low-fat yogurt, add some water (if you prefer, you can use milk or tomato juice instead of water), salt and pepper to taste, then pour it over the vegetables. Cover the dish and put it in the oven. Bake it for 40-45 minutes at 350F. Serve the food hot with sour cream or salsa on top. Leftovers can be served either cold or reheated at the next day’s breakfast.

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.

Tuna fish is an excellent source of many nutrients such as protein, selenium, Vitamin B1 (thiamin), Vitamin B3 (niacin), Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and Omega-3 essential fatty acids. These last ones are very important, because the human body does not produce them, so we have to take them from external sources. Omega-3 fatty acids are beneficial for the health of the cardiovascular system, by preventing a series of conditions such as high blood pressure, arrhythmias, atrial fibrillation, stroke, heart attacks or embolisms. Beware though when cooking for children, as tuna fish contains mercury, which is a toxin that can have a negative influence of children’s health. This is an article that gives more details and shows how to calculate how much mercury is ingested when eating tuna-based meals. This concerns only children, adults not being affected by the mercury levels found in tuna fish.

Greek salad can be served as a main dish or as a side dish for a meat-based meal and it’s very popular in the Greek cuisine. Based mainly on fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, diced feta cheese, and olives, the Greek salad can also contain other ingredients such as bell peppers, pickles, capers or even beets in some areas of the world. The typical dressing is olive oil, but also vinegar, herbs and other seasonings are used in many Greek salad recipes.

In any of its variants, Greek salad is a healthy food, mainly because of the tomatoes. Tomatoes have a high Vitamin C content, as well as Vitamin A, Potassium and Iron, which are necessary elements in a well-balanced diet. Yet, the best part in tomatoes is the pigment that gives them the red color, which is called lycopene and which is an extremely powerful antioxidant. Another main ingredient in this healthy salad are the olives. Olives are extremely rich in Iron, Vitamin E and dietary fiber. They also have a high content of monounsaturated fats, which act as a protective shield for the human body cells, thus lowering the inflammation risk. When the monounsaturated fats combine themselves with Vitamin E, as in olives, the effect is an enhanced protection and a better action against free radicals, which are amongst our biggest enemies because they cause oxidation processes which are harmful for the body.

Vegetable lasagna is the meatless variant of the well-known Italian dish based on sheets-shaped pasta. Curiously enough, the word “lasagna” doesn’t come from Latin or Italian, but from Greek language. Its initial meaning was “chamber pot”. Later on, the word was imported in the Latin language, with the meaning of “cooking pot”. Today, lasagna refers to the food itself rather than the dish used for cooking it. The plural, lasagne, is also used by many Italian people.

Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 50-60 minutes
Serving: 4 very hungry people or 6 normal ones
 

Vegetable soup is the generic name for thousand soup recipes. If you’re creative, you can experience new flavors and tastes each time you prepare it, by using different spices and vegetable mixes. Depending on the season, you can replace some veggies with others, you can add beef or chicken broth to it, you can even add a nice, big pork chop inside it (although this may not be the healthiest combination of all).

Here’s a vegetable soup recipe you can cook all year round, because what you can’t find fresh in some seasons, will surely be available frozen and ready-cut in small pieces. Of course, fresh is always nicer, yet a frozen vegetable mix can save you some time when you’re in a hurry but still want to cook some healthy meal.

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serving: 4-6 people

This is a yummy recipe for red pepper soup. Healthy and delicious.

Preparation time: 15 mins
Cooking time: 35 mins