Light a candle, pour two glasses of wine, put the Asparagus Tapanade on the table and light a fire in the fireplace with the love of your life.

Ingredients:
1 lb. asparagus spears, trimmed and steamed 4-5 minutes
1 ½ T garlic, chopped
½ cup fresh basil
¼ cup pine nuts
½ tsp. sea salt
¼ tsp. fresh ground black pepper
3 T cold pressed olive oil

Steam asparagus until tender but crisp. Chop asparagus and place in food processor. Add remaining ingredients except oil, and process. While processing, add the olive oil and continue until a paste consistency is reached. Spread on Beanitos or Mary’s Gone Crackers. This can also be tossed with cooked quinoa or spaghetti squash.
Makes 1 cup = 16 Tablespoons. 37 calories per Tablespoon

Struggling with getting vegetables into diet? Vegetables need to be a large part of our diet but most of us struggle to eat 5-7 servings every day. This salad is easy to prepare ahead in large quantity and then enjoy during the week. It keeps well in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.

Ingredients:
• ½ bag broccoli slaw
• 1 C baby spinach leaves
• 1 C chopped kale (trim away veins, keeping curly leaves, then chop into small bits)
• 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
• ½ bell pepper diced
• 2 celery stalks, sliced
• 15 sugar snap peas, sliced
• 15 cherry tomatoes, halved
• ¼ cup dried cranberries
• ½ cup whole raw almonds or walnuts
• ½ cup beans (kidney, black or garbanzo)
• 2 T Bragg Organic 24 spice sprinkle

Place all ingredients in a 9-10 cup storage container and refrigerate. Top with your favorite dressing. Avocado, olives and/or feta cheese can be added when serving.

If you love pancakes but are looking to improve your nutrition, try our healthy pancakes recipe.

Ingredients:
• ½ C – slightly short, Whey Protein Powder
• 1 t Gluten Free Baking Powder
• 1/3 C Coconut Flour
• ¼ t salt
• 2 large Eggs, or 3 small, lightly beaten
• ¾ C coconut milk
• 2 T cold water
• 2 T melted coconut oil

Combine protein powder, coconut flour and salt together in a bowl and blend with a fork. In a separate bowl, mix all remaining ingredients and slowly add dry ingredients to wet, whisking until smooth. Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes. Preheat pan, pancake griddle or skillet over medium heat. Lightly oil pan with coconut oil. Stir batter and pour into 4 inch circles, with space in between pancakes. Cook until bubbles form on the surface and edges are cooked, then flip. Top with fresh berries, heated blueberries, all fruit-jam, yogurt or maple syrup. Freeze extra to use later. Two pancakes make great bread for lunchbox sandwiches too! For those with egg allergies, leave them out and increase cold water 1 Tablespoon and Coconut milk by 2 tablespoons. Makes 10 pancakes.

Product suggestions: Jay Robb Whey Protein Vanilla flavor, Rumford Premium Aluminum-Free Baking Powder, Bob’s Red Mill Coconut Flour, Thai Kitchen Organic Coconut Milk – Unsweetened First Pressed, Spectrum or Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil.
Serving Size – 2 Pancakes
Calories – 217, Protein – 14 g, Fat – 15 g, Sat. Fat -12 g, Carbohydrate 6.75 g, Fiber – 3 g, Sodium 92 mg.

Interested in healthy food to help with memory retention? Try this grapefruit and avocado salad.

Ingredients: 
• 1 Avocado
• 1 Grapefruit
• 20-25 Blueberries
• 1/4 C Chopped Almonds
• Field Greens, Romaine or Boston Lettuce Leaves

Cut avocado in half; remove pit, slice, peel, and then set aside. Cut skin off of the whole grapefruit and cut out wedges of grapefruit. Rinse blueberries and drain/dry on a paper towel. Set out 2 salad plates and create a bed of lettuce on one. Alternate a slice of avocado with a wedge of grapefruit in a row on each plate until all avocado and grapefruit is used. Dot both salads with 10-12 blueberries and sprinkle with chopped almonds. Unsweetened plain yogurt or poppy seed dressing are nice choices if a dressing is desired.

When it comes to finding healthy snacks for kids, the prequisites are usually “easy to fix,” and “healthy.” Here’s a list of healthy snacks you can have handy for your children. And oh, portion control does matter!

– 15-20 Almonds, Cashews, Pecan halves, or Walnut halves, Macadamia Nuts, or Hazelnuts combined with 16 60% Cocoa Dark Chocolate Chips and 15 Raisins or Dried Cranberries. (Use snack bags, make 10-15 at a time, and allow children to choose one bag, once a day)
– ¼ Cup of Hummus with carrot and celery sticks, cucumber wheels and/or bell pepper strips.
-1 small to medium piece of fresh fruit and a mozzarella stick
– Celery sticks or apple slices with 1 tablespoon of peanut or almond butter
– One LaraBar™
– Hardboiled Egg
-Cherry Tomatoes and/or Sugar Snap Peas
-2-3 tablespoons of guacamole with 7-10 organic corn or bean chips

The author of this article, Nancy Mehlert, serves as a Nutritional Consultant with TWIHW and is a monthly contributor to the nutrition section of this newsletter.

Kale is not difficult to cook with our one of our favorite kale recipes.

Ingredients:
1 Bunch of Kale, choose tender young leaves (about 6 cups)
2 Tbsp. chunky all natural peanut butter
1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
1 tsp. coconut oil or butter

Wash and trim away the main vein down the middle of the leaves. Wash leaves and chop or tear into bite size pieces. Steam the leaves for 2 minutes just until bright green, not soft. In a bowl, mix steamed leaves with chunky all natural peanut butter and rice wine vinegar. Toss until well dispersed. (It is fine to allow this mixture to sit for several hours to marinade if desired, so can be done ahead). Sauté in butter or coconut oil and serve.

Per Serving: 107 Calories, 5 g Protein, 5.8 g Fat, 11.7 Carbohydrates, .5 g Sugar, 2.6 g Fiber.

Serves 4

Combine celery and olives for this cute snack that we call Frogs on a Log.

Ingredients:
• 1 stalk celery
• 1 TBS reduced-fat cream cheese (Neufchâtel)
• 5 pimiento-stuffed green olives, sliced

Preparation
Spread celery with cream cheese. Top with olives.

Nutrition Per serving: 62 calories; 5 g fat ( 2 g sat , 2 g mono ); 10 mg cholesterol; 2 g carbohydrates; 0 g added sugars; 2 g protein; 1 g fiber; 289 mg sodium; 131 mg potassium. Carbohydrate Servings: 0 Exchanges: 1 fat

The fruits suggested are not only lower in sugar overall, they are also low fructose fruits and full of valuable fiber and antioxidants, which make them an ideal choice for a healthy heart, weight and body.

Ingredients:
– 1-cup fresh fruit, diced
– Choose one or more of the following: apricots, cantaloupe, raspberries, kiwi, blackberries, cherries and/or strawberries.
– 4 tbsp canned coconut milk
– Use a canned, full-fat, organic, expeller pressed, unsweetened, first pressed. Look for Thai Kitchen for example in the Asian food section at the grocery store. It will be similar in texture to whipped cream.)
– Stevia liquid to taste (recommend Stevita brand stevia)

Dice fruit and divide into two servings. Open the can of coconut milk. Do not stir or shake or mix the contents. The coconut crème will be on top, the coconut water on the bottom. Skim off 4 level tablespoons of coconut crème into a small bowl and combine it with 1-3 drops of liquid stevia and stir. Adjust sweetness to taste. Divide the crème evenly between the two fruit servings. The crème can be blended with the fruit or placed on top of the fruit as a dollop andsprinkled with chopped nuts or shaved 60% or higher dark chocolate for added flair.  (2 Servings)

Contributed by Nancy Mehlert, M.S.

Try this fast, simple and healthy frittatas recipe.

Ingredients:
• 2 Cups raw chopped vegetables (mushrooms, spinach, bell pepper, kale, tomato and/or onion, all work well)
• 1 Cup leftover spaghetti squash or shredded raw zucchini
• 3 nitrate free sausage links, sliced (Applegate Farms, Jones All Natural) – optional
• Herbs of your choice (fresh chopped basil or dill or Herbs de Province)
• Sea Salt & Pepper to taste
• ¼ cup Parmesan or shredded goat cheddar cheese
• 6-7 eggs, beaten

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Use a large muffin tin, individual ramekins or pie dish and liberally oil with coconut oil, butter or non-stick spray.
3. Place a layer of spaghetti squash or shredded zucchini in the bottom of the baking container(s). (Great replacement for hash brown potato!)
4. Top with chopped raw veggie mixture, followed by cheese, then sausage, herbs, spices, sea salt and pepper.
5. Pour beaten eggs evenly over the top. At this point, it can be covered and refrigerated overnight. Bake in the oven until fluffy and lightly browned or set. Enjoy or let cool to room temperature for lunchboxes and quick snacks.
Per Serving: Calories 175, Total Fat: 8 g, Sat. Fat: 3g, Carbs: 8g, Fiber: 4g, Sugars: 3g, Protein: 17g, Sodium: 367 mg. (4 Servings)
Contributed by Nancy Mehlert, M.S.

Ingredients:  
• 1 ½ cups Italian Butter beans, rinsed
• 8 cups vegetable stock
• 2 fresh thyme sprigs
• 2 fresh marjoram or oregano sprigs
• 3 fresh sage leaves
• 6 flat-leaf parsley sprigs
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 T butter or expeller pressed coconut oil
• 1 T cold pressed olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 1 T minced garlic
• 1 medium red pepper, diced
• 1/3 cup white wine
• 10 kale leaves, ribs removed, cut in thick ribbons
• sea salt and pepper to taste
1. Place beans in a pot, cover generously with water and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and set aside to soak for 1-2 hours. Drain and rinse well.

2. Combine vegetable stock, beans, and herbs to a boil. Lower heat and simmer uncovered until beans are cooked through and beginning to break apart, about an hour and a half.

3. While beans are cooking, sauté onion in oil until soft, then add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Stir in carrots, red peppers, ¼ t. sea salt and a pinch of pepper and cook about 10 minutes adding stock as needed to prevent sticking. Add wine and cook until the pan is nearly dry, about 3 minutes.

4. Add the vegetables to the soup pot, along with the remaining stock, and cook about 20 minutes. Add the kale and cook until tender, about 10 minutes more. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove the bay leaf, herb sprigs and sage. Serve in warm bowls and drizzle a little olive oil over each serving.

Per serving (1 cup): 200 calories, 3 g fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 10 g protein, 32 g carbohydrates, 9 g fiber, 300 mg sodium.

Source: December/January 2012 Issue of Natural Health Magazine