Category Archives: Main Dish

Southwest Sweet Potato Falafel

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by Quinn Asteak 

For mothers day, I wanted to share one of my mom’s favorite recipes, my Southwest Sweet Potato Falafel.  Moo, this one is for you! (Yes, I call my mother “moo”)

I’ve been making this for years and finally posted it on my website a couple months ago after I made them for a big meeting.  The person we were trying to impress said (and I quote), “these things are stooopid delicious”, which still ranks as one of my favorite food compliments ever.

Since my mom checks my site literally every 2.5 seconds, right after the recipe went live she called being like “I WANT THOSE!”.

The Southwest Sweet Potato Falafel are awesome because they have a great mix of unexpected flavors.  They’re perfect in a pita, on a salad or on their own, dipped in some great cilantro yogurt sauce (recipe below).

You bes’ believe that the next time I was at home I whipped up some of these spicy, sweet balls of goodness and my whole family noshed in delight.  I don’t think my mom called them “stooopid delicious” but they are definitely one of her favorites.

So, Moo, if you weren’t off on a business trip somewhere I’d be coming home on Mother’s Day to cook you anything you desire!  Thank you for feeding me my whole life (even if all I ever wanted was peanut butter on a spoon or chicken teriyaki).  When I’m teaching a newbie cook I always use your classic line “if you can read, you can cook”.  And let me just say: woman, you can READ :)

It goes without saying that as a perfect Jewish mother you made the best Jewish food, but watching you whip up things like Moroccan Tagines, Indian chutneys and roasting a whole goose like it ain’t no thang still serve as my inspiration to get bold and creative in the kitchen.

As I started really learning to cook, you were my first guinea pig and I never would have learned without your constant encouragement and constructive feedback.  These days, you are my favorite sous chef, dish washer and diner.  Not only that, but you’re also my my role model, biggest supporter and best  friend.  I love you like crazy.  Happy Mother’s Day!

And now…FOOD.

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Southwest Sweet Potato Falafel
Total Time: 2 hours
Active Time: 15 minutes
Yield: about 18-24 (serves 4-6)

  • 2 medium sweet potatoes
  • 1 cup chickpea/garbanzo bean flour
  • 1 teaspoon chili flakes/red pepper flakes
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 2 big handfuls of fresh cilantro/coriander, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice
  • 1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • Sea salt and pepper, to taste

Cilantro Yogurt Sauce

  • 1 cup sheep’s milk yogurt
  • Zest and juice of 1 lime
  • 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
  • Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400F degrees.  Scrub the sweet potatoes and stab in them the aid the cooking/heat venting.  Place them on a baking tray in the oven and let them cook for about 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until fork tender.

Allow the potaoes to cool, then peel off the skins.  Put the flesh in a mixing bowl with all of the other ingredients and mash with a fork or potato masher until smooth (no large chunks).  Take a little taste and adjust accordingly.  Maybe it needs more garlic?  More salt?

Stick in the fridge to firm up for an hour, or the freezer for 20-30 minutes. When you take it out, your mix should be sticky rather than really wet. You can add a tablespoon or so more of chickpea flour if necessary (the water content of sweet potatoes varies big time).

Reheat the oven to 400F. Using a couple of soup spoons or a tablespoon scooper, place balls on a parchment lined baking sheet.  Bake in the oven for around 15-25 minutes, until the bases are golden brown.

To make the Cilantro Yogurt Sauce

Put all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

Our Favorite Cookbooks Right Now

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As constant cookers (is that a word?  Quinn’s grandma says it, so let’s roll with it) we are constantly looking for new and fresh ideas.

Sometimes divine inspiration strikes when strolling through the grocery store or farmer’s markets, but sometimes we need to take it up a notch and seek it out at a stellar farm-to-table restaurant or in a kickass cookbook…

And our video below is all about the latter!  Watch to see our current faves for getting our “foodbrain” juices flowing and make sure to stay tuned until the end because we have a special announcement.

We created our own cookbook!

We are SO freaking excited to announce the arrival of our new baby, {Healthy} Cooking Camp’s {Healthy} Basics Cookbook!

It includes over 30 of our most tried and true recipes for mind-blowingly delicious, healthy food, and features some of our signature dishes that can only be found in this cookbook, like:

  • No-Bake Brownie
  • HCC Grab-n-Go Bar
  • Gorgeous Glazed Salmon
  • Mmm mmm Miso Pesto
  • Free Up Your Fridge Frittata

This is the perfect cookbook for someone who wants to start cooking healthier food but needs to know exactly where to begin. 

We totally break it down so you know exactly how many servings each recipe yields, how long it will take AND for each recipe we include 5 suggested “swaps” so you can play around with the ingredients and really make these recipes feel like your own.

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To purchase our brand new cookbook, click here!  

We hope you’ll add {Healthy} Cooking Camp’s: Healthy Basics Cookbook to your list of favorites too.

And a quick lil favor, we would reeeeeally appreciate if you could help us spread the word about our new cookbook so click here tell all your tweeps!  Think of all the recipes you and your friends can make together!  (And as we can tell you, together is oh so fun.)

We’d also love to know, what are your other favorite cookbooks for culinary inspiration?  Please share in the comments!

 

 

Mixed Greens w/ Granola Croutons + Yogurt Dressing

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Usually when you think of breakfast for dinner you think pancake night or bowl of cereal.

But here at HCC we’re taking the breakfast for dinner concept to a whole ‘nother level…and [wait for it...] we’re adding granola on your salad!

That’s right, being the gluten free gurus that we are, we’ve come up with some pretty clever crouton replacers in our time.  Some good ones were, roasted root veggies (aka Root Crouts), popcorn (so fun!) but have landed on Granola as the winner: try this recipe and we think you’ll agree that it’s not just a swap, it’s upgrade!

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Mixed Greens w/ Granola Croutons + Yogurt Dressing

Servings: 2
Time: 5 minutes

  • 2 handfuls of mixed greens (we love kale, romaine or a spring mix)
  • 5-7 mint leaves, finely chopped
  • 1 small handful of sprouts (optional)
  • 1 heaping handful of granola.  We recommend KIND vanilla blueberry clusters

Lemon Yogurt Dressing

  • 1/2 cup plain sheep’s milk yogurt
  • Zest and juice of 1/2 a lemon
  • Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions

In a bowl, combine the yogurt, lemon zest, juice and salt and pepper.  Mix well to combine.

In a medium salad bowl toss together your greens, mint and sprouts.  Top the salad with a heaping handful of Vanilla Blueberry Clusters and drizzle the dressing over top.

News You Can Use: All About the Mediterranean Diet

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It’s awesome news when we find out that foods we already love are also super good for us (and they miiiight even help you live forever)!

When this new study came out (and the NYTimes pimped it out) we couldn’t help but share the news–and our best Mediterranean Diet recipes with you guys!

It turns out that eating a diet full of fatty fish, nuts, seeds, tons of fresh fruits and veggies, plus plenty of good fats like extra virgin olive oil and avocado can prevent heart disease, heart attacks and strokes by up to 30%.  Like, whoa.

Robyn wrote awesome piece all about it for Seamless.com.  Did you know that she’s their national health consultant and official health coach?  We’re so proud!

Love yourself by cooking for yourself, {tweet that!} and start with these winning recipes this week!

Gorgeous Glazed Salmon

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You know when you have someone coming over and you really want to dazzle them with deliciousness but you just don’t have time to get all Julia Child and spend the day in the kitchen?  Yeah, we do too.  That’s why we have this ace in the hole of a recipe.  So simple to execute and it will impress your freind/ date/ in-laws/ boss every time!

White Bean Hummus996

Who doesn’t love hummus?  It works as a dip or spread, heck, we even throw a dollop on our veggies and grains!  The problem?  All those store bought ones can be full of chemicals and preservatives.  Did you know that making hummus at home only takes 5 minutes?  Yup!  Follow our basic recipe and feel free to switch up your bean from time to time.  No need to stay in the garbanzo box.  Branch out, friends!  Try it with cannelloni beans and let us know what you think in the comments! 
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This is one of our favorite go-to recipes because it’s so simple yet so flavorful.  Add in whatever veggies you have around (we suggest lots of tomatoes, onions, olives, avocados) and dig in.

Quinn’s Favorite Birthday Meal

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Hi Everybody, Quinn here.  It’s my birthday week so I’m taking over the blog to share one of my all time favorite meals. But first, let’s travel back in time and space to Easton, PA in the 1980s, where I grew up.

Back in the day, when it came to going out for dinner there was just one game in town: Pizza D’Oro.  Pretty much every special event in life started or ended at Pizza D (as the cool kids called it).

Their specialty is Sicilian pizza which had the most perfectly salted, fluffy, thick crust, next came a layer of creamy cheese baked right into the dough and topped with a layer of sweet, sweet tomato sauce.  The whole thing is perfection.

But since I can’t get down with the gluten anymore it’s been nearly 3 years since I’ve been able to partake in a perfect Pizza D slice of heaven.  At first it seemed like special occasions and homecomings were destined to be a little less special [sad face].  That is, until I created this recipe. It’s tastes so close to the real thing it’s like eating a slice of home.  In fact, you know what, it might even taste better!

On my birthday all I want is a little taste of home, a moment to stop and remember the good times and with this meal, I can finally have the pizza party in my mouth I’ve been missing these last few years.

So for all of you GF babes out there– this one is for all of us!

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Quinn’s Happy Place Pizza

Servings: 4
Time: 30 minutes

Socca

  • 1 cup chickpea/garbanzo bean flour
  • 1-1/3 cups water
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • sea salt & pepper to taste
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced (optional)

Pizza Sauce

  • 1 medium yellow onion, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium eggplant, peeled + diced (the smaller the cubes, the quicker it will cook)
  • Water or chicken stock (about 2 cups, depending on size of your eggplant/ pot)
  • 1 can tomato paste
  • 2 tablespoons yellow raisins (or 1 handful)
  • 1 heaping tablespoon Italian herbs
  • Salt & pepper, to taste

Directions

Preheat the oven to 450 F.

Pour 1-1/3 cups water into a medium bowl and slowly whisk in the chickpea flour.  Add salt, pepper and garlic (if using) and allow it to stand at room temperature for as long as possible, at least 30 minutes.

Heat a 10-inch, oven safe (meaning, it does not have a plastic handle that will melt in the oven) non-stick skillet on medium high heat.  Add in the extra virgin olive oil then pour in the chickpea batter and allow it to cook for about 30-60 seconds until the edges harden.  Do not flip.

Place skillet in oven for about 25 minutes, until crisp around the edges and light golden brown.

Allow it to cool for a couple minutes, then place it on a large dinner plate or cutting board before slicing it into pieces.

Have some left overs?  Store any extra pieces in the fridge then pop them in the toaster oven to warm up before eating.

While the crust is cooking, make the sweet tomato sauce

In a medium-sized pot, pour in your extra virgin olive oil and sauté the onions with garlic , salt and pepper over medium-high heat until onions are translucent (about 2 minutes).

Add diced eggplant to the pot, stir to combine then add water/stock.  It should go half way up the eggplant.  I recommend mashing the eggplant with a potato masher or fork to help the eggplant break down more quickly or you can skip this step and it will just take another minute or two to cook.

Cook over medium-high heat until the eggplant browns and begins to soften, about 5-6 minutes.  Add the tomato paste, herbs, and raisins.  Mix well and bring to a boil.  Then turn off heat and allow the flavors to marry as it cools.

To prepare the Pizza,  I recommend pre-cutting the crust then slathering each individual piece with a ton of  sauce.

**RECOMMENDATION** Serve this with some salad greens tossed in Magic Lemon Dressing and a hefty sprinkle of nutritional yeast, this will bring the cheese-y flavor.  Get some greens in each bite and it is a total sweet and savory Italian feast.