Spinach Pie

The South Arm Older Adults Cooking Club made a Spinach Pie to go with the Leftover Lentil Soup.

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2 cups of spinach provides:

  • more than 100% of your Vitamin A
  • a good source of folate, Vitamin C, iron, magnesium and potassium

Ingredients

  • 1 store bought deep frozen pie crust
  • 1 bag spinach or 1 large bunch spinach, washed and dried
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 medium onion, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 cup ricotta cheese, or more as desired
  • 1 egg
  • 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Flavorings:

Italian:

  • 1/2 cup drained sundried tomatoes, diced
  • 2 teaspoons dried basil
  • 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Greek:

  • 1/2 cup feta cheese
  • 2 teaspoons dried dill
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

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Source: South Arm Older Adults Community Kitchen

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Lentil Leftover Soup

The South Arm Older Adults Cooking Club met again for another cooking session.

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Michelle, the facilitator of the kitchen calls this Lentil Leftover Soup. You can use any leftover vegetables like spinach, rapini, swiss chard, etc in this recipe.

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 3 carrots, diced
  • 3 celery, diced
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 8 cups vegetables or chicken broth or water
  • 2 cups lentils (brown)
  • 1 x 14oz can diced tomatoes
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons salt if using water (a pinch if using broth)
  • 1 teaspoon ground pepper
  • spinach (we used baby spinach) or any leftover leafy vegetables

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Soaking the lentils helps the body to absorb its nutrients more easily.

Michelle shared the health benefits of eating lentils from mindbodygreen.com in the kitchen.

  1. Lower Cholesterol – Lentils help to reduce blood cholesterol since it contains high levels of soluble fiber. Lowering your cholesterol levels reduces your risk of heart disease and stroke by keeping your arteries clean.
  2. Heart Health – Several studies have shown that eating high fiber foods like lentils reduces your risk of heart disease. Lentils are also a great source of folate and magnesium, which are big contributors to heart health. Folate lowers your homocysteine levels, a serious risk factor for heart disease. Magnesium improves blood flow, oxygen and nutrients throughout the body. Low levels of magnesium have been directly associated with heart disease, so eating lentils will keep your heart happy.
  3. Digestive Health – Insoluble dietary fiber found in lentils helps prevent constipation and other digestion disorders like irritable bowel syndrome and diverticulosis.
  4. Stabilized Blood Sugar – Soluble fiber traps carbohydrates, slowing down digestion and stabilizing blood sugar levels. This can be especially helpful for those with diabetes, insulin resistance or hypoglycemia.
  5. Good Protein – Of all the legumes and nuts, lentils contain the third highest levels of protein. 26 percent of lentil’s calories are attributed to protein, which makes them a wonderful source of protein for vegetarians and vegans.
  6. Increase Energy – Lentils increase steady, slow burning energy due to its fiber and complex carbohydrates. Lentils are also a good source of iron, which transports oxygen throughout your body and is key to energy production and metabolism.

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Chocolate Yogurt Snack Cakes

With Valentine’s day around the corner, Michelle shared a Chocolate Yogurt Snack Cake for dessert at the South Arm Older Adults Cooking Club.

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These mini Chocolate Yogurt Snack Cakes is perfect for snacking. These cakes can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for four days.

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Michelle also made some Meringues as a Valentine’s gift to the participants. She calls it “Forgotten” Cookies because you can make these cookies the night before you want them and they turn our perfect when left in a cooling oven overnight!

Ingredients

  • 1 cup buttersweet or semisweet chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup plain yogurt (not non-fat)
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 3 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

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Source: this recipe is adapted from David Lebovitz’s The Sweet Life in Paris by way of Smitten Kitchen.

Makes 12 cupcake-sized snack cakes or 24 mini cupcakes.

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Whole Wheat Biscuits

Michelle served the Farro and White Bean Soup with some Whole Wheat Biscuits.

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This Whole Wheat Biscuits are easy to make. Serve the biscuits with butter or jam.

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Ingredients

  • 2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
  • 1 cup milk

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Source: this recipe is adapted from 100 DaysofRealFood.com

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Butter Lettuce Salad with Gruyere and Walnuts

Michelle shared a Butter Lettuce Salad with Gruyere and Walnuts recipe at the South Arm Older Adults Cooking club.

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From BestHealthMag.ca:

A diet rich in walnuts and walnut oil may help the body deal better with stress. Research published last year in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition found that walnuts and walnut oil lowered both resting blood pressure and blood pressure responses to stress in the  laboratory. The researchers said the study shows that a dietary change could help our bodies better respond to stress.

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup walnuts
  • 1 head butter lettuce
  • 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 oz gruyere cheese, diced
  • 1 tablespoon chopped chives
  • salt and pepper to taste

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Source: this recipe is adapted from The Art of Simple Food II, by Alice Waters

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Farro and White Bean Soup

Michelle prepared 4 recipes for this session of South Arm Older Adults Cooking Club.

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The first recipe is Farro (or Tuscan Spelt) and White Bean Soup. Making soup is a great way to use leftovers. This soup is a complete meal with grains, beans and veggies.

Farro is a grain related to wheat that is lower in gluten and has a different flavour and texture. You can use spelt or barley in place of farro.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups cannellini beans (white beans), soaked overnight and cooked or approximate 3 cups canned
  • 1 1/2 cups spelt or farro, soaked 4 to 8 hours if not pearled
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 carrot, diced
  • 1 celery stalk, diced
  • 1 sprig fresh rosemary, remove stem and chop
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 cup chopped tomatoes, peeled and seeded or 1 can diced tomatoes
  • 4 cups vegetable or chicken stock
  • salt and pepper to taste

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P/S: we substituted the onion with extra garlic as onion was missing from the groceries list.

Source: South Arm Older Adults Cooking Club

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Zucchini Cake

Minoo shared a delicious Zucchini Cake in the South Arm Multicultural Community Kitchen.

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We ate the Zucchini Cake as it is. However, to kick it up a notch, you can frost the cake with a cream cheese frosting.

Frosting:

  • 3 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
  • 1/4 cup butter, room temperature
  • 1 1/2 to 2 cups of powdered sugar

Beat together the cream cheese and butter. Add the powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Frost and serve.

Minoo shared the following health benefits of zucchini to the participants of the community kitchen.

Health Benefits of Zucchini

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups white, granulated sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
  • 2 cups (from about 3 to 4 regular sized zucchini) grated un-peeled zucchini; Place grated zucchini in a sieve and press out some of the excess liquid before measuring.
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
  • 1/2 cup golden raisin

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Source: South Arm Community Kitchen

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Cheddar and Leek Muffin

The second leek recipe which Minoo shared in the South Arm Multicultural Community Kitchen is Cheddar and Leek Muffin.

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The Cheddar and Leek Muffin is a savory muffin.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup cornmeal
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
  • 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 1/4 cups low-fat buttermilk
  • 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 1 cup grated cheddar
  • 1 1/4 cups thinly sliced leeks, white and pale green parts

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Source: this recipe is adapted from Ladie’s Home Journal

Make 12 muffins.

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Leek and Potatoes Soup

Minoo picked a theme of leek for this week’s South Arm Multicultural Community Kitchen.

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The first recipe is Leek and Potatoes Soup from Jamie Oliver. We served the soup as it is. Alternatively, you can pulse the soup using a hand blender or liquidizer until smooth.

Ingredients

  • 2 carrots, peel and dice
  • 2 sticks celery, dice
  • 2 medium onions, chop
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 400g leeks, chopped
  • 400g potatoes, dice
  • olive oil
  • 2 organic chicken or vegetable stock cubes
  • sea salt
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

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Source: Jamie Oliver

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Easy Mango Sorbet

Another dessert which Michelle prepared for the South Arm Older Adults Community Kitchen is an easy Mango Sorbet.

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Due to shortage of time, the mango sorbet was soft but still tasted very good.

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One of the participant added some crumbled Monica’s Almond Thins which we also made in this kitchen as topping to the sorbet. The almond thins made a great cookie for Chinese New Year celebration.

Ingredients

  • 4 cups frozen and slightly thawed mango cubes
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 cup 2% or 10% plain yogurt

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Source: from Ricardocuisine.com

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