Desert Health News September-October 2024

Pumpkin-everything season is here! Skip the sugary syrups and satisfy that cool fall craving with this healthier option from Rogers’s It’s A No Grainer . Featuring hemp seeds, a powerful super food packed with proteins, essential fats, vitamins and enzymes, combined with seasonal spices and a touch of honey, this dairy-free smoothie will start your day off right. Ingredients: • ½ frozen banana peeled (Be sure to freeze without the peel. If not frozen, add three ice cubes) • ½ cup unsweetened almond or coconut milk • 2-3 tablespoons of canned pumpkin • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract • 1 teaspoon honey • 1 teaspoon hemp seeds • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon • ½ teaspoon ground cloves • ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg Directions: Addall the ingredients toablender. Start toblendon lowspeed, gradually increasing as you watch for desired thickness. Add ice to thicken if you’d like. It’s A No Grainer Cookbook: Over 180 Delightfully Gluten-free, Grain-free, Low-carb and Keto-friendly Recipes is available on Amazon. www.DesertHealthNews.com September/October 2024 Fresh Cuisine The Valley ' s Leading Resource for Health and Wellness 21 Thank you Desert Health is proud to once again be featured in Sprouts FarmersMarket. Thank you for stopping by to pick up your copy! la quinta 79050 Highway 111 at Adams Street indian wells 74895 Highway 111 at Cook Street coming to palm springs in november! 5200 E. Ramon Road at Gene Autry Trail www.freshjuicebar.com Power Pumpkin Smoothie By Barbara Hankey-Rogers Diane Kochilas is a daughter of Ikaria, Greece, a Blue Zones region where people often live past 100. Her cookbook, The Ikaria Way , is filled with easy plant-based contemporary recipes rooted in her Ikarian heritage, steeped in ancient culinary traditions and employing the most prized ingredients of her region: herbs, olive oil, nuts, honey, legumes and more. “The smoky, spicy-sweet flavors of the vegetables are a delicious addition to the earthy flavor of the chickpeas. Orange is one of the ingredients in my secret arsenal of flavor enhancers, up there with lemon zest and a few other ingredients.” – Chef Kochilas Ingredients for the sheet-pan vegetables: • Fresh strained juice of 1 orange • ½ cup extra-virgin Greek olive oil • 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard • 1 tablespoon Greek pine honey, or more to taste • 2 heaping teaspoons ground cumin • 1 pinch freshly grated nutmeg • 1 heaping teaspoon turmeric powder • 2 teaspoons ground ginger • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika • ½ teaspoon cayenne or hot paprika, or more to taste • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste • 1 medium head cauliflower, trimmed and cut into small florets • 2 carrots, pared, halved lengthwise, and cut into 2-inch pieces • 2 large red onions, peeled and quartered For the chickpeas: • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin Greek olive oil, plus more for drizzling • 1 large red or yellow onion, chopped • 4 garlic cloves, chopped • 4 cups cooked chickpeas (good-quality canned are fine), rinsed and drained • 1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste • 1 small seedless orange, preferably organic, cut into 4 wedges • 2 fresh rosemary sprigs • 2 to 4 cups hot vegetable broth or water, or more as needed • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar • Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Directions: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the orange juice, olive oil, mustard, honey, and all the spices including the salt and pepper. Toss the vegetables in this mixture to coat evenly. Spread the vegetables in one layer onto the sheet pan. Roast until tender and lightly charred, about 20 minutes, removing vegetables as they cook to avoid burning them. Set aside to cool and then cut into smaller pieces, a little larger than the chickpeas. In the meantime, prepare the chickpeas: Heat the olive oil in a large wide pot and sauté the onion until translucent. Stir in the garlic. Add the chickpeas and stir. Stir in the tomato paste. Squeeze the orange wedges into the chickpeas to get out their juice and add the wedges, peel and all, to the pot. Add the rosemary and 2 cups of the hot broth or water. Season to taste with salt and pepper, partially cover the pot and cook the chickpeas on low for the flavors to meld, about 15 or 20 minutes. If you want the mixture to be thick and creamy, you can mash a handful of chickpeas against the side of the pot. Add the root vegetables to chickpeas, heat all together for about 5 minutes, stir in the balsamic vinegar and serve. Serves 6. The Ikaria Way is available on Amazon. Copyright ©2024 by the author and reprinted with permission. Chickpea Stew with Honey-Roasted Cauliflower and Root Vegetables Blue Zones approved recipe by Diane Kochilas