Path to Wellness

Recipe from Lola Berry

What you need:

• 1 cup red quinoa wholegrain, rinsed
• 6 roma tomatoes, finely diced
• 100g baby spinach leaves, shredded
• ¼ spanish onion, finely diced
• 1 large beetroot, peeled and grated
• Juice and zest of 1 lemon
• Dried cranberries, small handful
• 1 tbs sunflower seeds
• 1 tbs pepita pumpkin seeds
• Pinch sumac

What you do:

1. Get one cup of red quinoa and cook the same way you would cook rice or according to packet instructions. To do this, simply put your quinoa into a pot and cover it with 1 1/2 cups of water. As the quinoa cooks you’ll notice they look like they grow little tails, this is completely normal. The quinoa gets to about triple its size. When it’s ready, the quinoa will look light and fluffy and there shouldn’t be any leftover water. This cooking process takes me about 15 minutes, leaving 5 minutes to let the quinoa stand and fluff with a fork, but you can soak the quinoa beforehand – this will decrease its cooking time. Add the tomatoes, baby spinach, salad onion, grated beetroot, dried cranberries and sunflower seeds. Toss and add agave dressing. Finish with a sprinkle of pepitas and sumac.

Agave Dressing:

• juice of 1 small lemon
• 3 tbs tamari (wheat free soy sauce)
• 1 tbs agave
• splash of apple cider vinegar

The best thing to do with this salad is use vegetables that you already have in your kitchen. Not only do you get your favourite vegetables, but you save some money and avoid wastage!

Recipe by Adele from Vegie Head

Makes 8 Croquettes

What you need:

• 4 cups diced pumpkin
• 1 tsp coconut oil
• 1/2 cup kale, torn into bite sized pieces
• 1/2 cup almond meal
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• Pinch of salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tsp chilli flakes (optional)
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• 1 tsp turmeric 

What you do:

1. Pre-heat oven to 200ºC
2. Heat coconut oil in a large pan, and cook kale until crispy; about 5 minutes
3. Bake pumpkin for 45-60 minutes or until tender
4. When cool, process or blend pumpkin until smooth, then gently mix in almond meal, chia seeds and sesame seeds
5. Stir in salt, pepper, chilli flakes, cumin and turmeric
6. Cradle a tablespoon sized amount of pumpkin mix in your palm, then press in a few pieces of kale
7. Use a little bit more mix to cover the kale, and continue to make croquettes until finished
8. Bake for 15 minutes on an oven tray until firm
9. Serve with green salad and dip

Recipe by Cassandra Michelin from ChooseLife, Live It, Do It.

What you need: 

• 1 bunch of kale
• 1 cup cashews
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/4 cup Water
• 2 Tbls olive oil
• 1/2 tsp Paprika
• Pinch sea salt

Recipe by Jess Ainscough 

Click here to get her awesome ebook Make Peace With Your Plate

What you need:

• ½ cup rye bread crumbs
• ½ cup lemon juice
• 200g cherries (remove pits)
• 4 small Granny Smith apples (raw, peeled and sliced)
• 1 tbsp sultanas

For the crumb topping

• 2/3 cup rolled oats
• 1/3 cup organic maple syrup

What you do:

1.  Place cherries in a baking dish with apple slices and sultanas.
2. Spread with breadcrumbs and lemon juice.
3. Buzz oats briefly in a blender to make a finer flake.
4. Add the layer of oats and maple syrup to form a crumb topping.
5. Bake in an oven heated to 180°C for 35-45 minutes.

Recipe by Anthia Koullouros from Ovvio Organics 

What you need: 

• 2 whole eggplants
• 3 tbsp of fresh lemon juice
• 2 tbsp of olive oil
• natural salt
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 2 tbsp of hulled tahini
• OVViO Organic Paprika Powder
• extra drizzle of olive oil

What you do:

1. Clean and prick eggplants with a fork.
2. Place in a roasting tin with cloves of garlic and roast in a medium hot oven until skin blackens and eggplant collapses. Leave to cool before you pick it up. The eggplant should feel soft.
3. Cut in half and scoop out flesh. Discard skin.
4. In a food processor add flesh, lemon juice, olive oil, crushed garlic, hulled tahini and season with natural salt and cracked black pepper.
5. Serve with finely chopped fresh parsley and paprika and a last drizzle of olive oil.

Recipe by Maddy Shaw

What you need:

• 300g almond meal (ground almonds)
• 1 TSP ground cinnamon
• 1 TBSP ground ginger
• 200g organic grass fed butter
• 150g coconut sugar
• 1 TSP vanilla bean extract
• 1 egg

What you do:

1. Cream the butter and sugar together in a blender. Ad the egg, cinnamon, ginger and vanilla. Slowly add in the almond meal. Add a little extra if the dough is too moist.
2. Refrigerate the dough for an hour to allow the dough to firm up. If you are in a hurry, place in the freezer for 20 minutes. Roll out the dough to about 1/2cm on baking paper
. Cut out into shapes with a gingerbread cutter and place cookies onto a baking tray lined with baking paper.
3. Bake at 150 C. for 30 minutes or until golden. 
Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

Recipe by Lee Holmes 

Makes 12 mince pies

Fruit Mince Meat

What you need:

• 1/2 cup grated granny smith apples
• 2 TBS orange rind (about 2 oranges)
• Zest of one lemon
• 4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1/2 cup sultanas
• 1 tsp. powdered stevia or sweetener of your choice
• 11/2 cups dried fruit (blueberries/cranberries/cherries/apricots)
• 4 cup almonds
• 15 gms butter
• 1 TBS apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. mixed spice,
• 1/4  tsp. nutmeg
• 1/4  tsp. powdered ginger

What you do:

• Place all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth
• Set aside to ensure flavours can meld

Short crust Pastry

What you need:

• 2 cups gluten free plain flour
• pinch salt
• 110 gms butter
• 1 large egg beaten

What you do:

• Set oven to 180 degrees Celsius
• Grease 12 cup muffin pan
• With hands mix flour and butter until it resembles breadcrumbs
• Add beaten egg and mix until a dough is formed
• With a rolling pin, roll out dough between two sheets of baking paper and cut into rounds, reserving some for tops
• Place 12 x round in bottom of greased muffin pan and bake in oven for 10 mins until almost golden
• Remove from oven and add mince-meat
• Top with thin pastry crosses and return to oven for 5 mins or until top is crunchy
• Remove from oven and enjoy

Recipe by Sarah Wilson 

Click here to buy Sarah’s I Quit Sugar ebooks

Makes 6-8 gifts

What you need:

• 6 tablespoons coconut oil (or butter; or a mix of both)
• 3 tablespoons rice malt syrup
• ½ cup pumpkin puree (simply roast or steam, then mash with a fork)
• 2 cups rolled oats
• 2 cups coconut flakes
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds
• 1 teaspoon each of: cinnamon, allspice and ginger powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves (optional)
• 2 cups almonds, cashews, pecans, walnuts, pepitas (preferably activated ones), chopped roughly

What you do:

1. Preheat oven to 140 C. In a saucepan, melt the oil/butter, syrup and pumpkin puree and bring to a gentle boil. Remove from heat and stir in the oats until well combined, then stir in the remaining ingredients. Spread the mixture evenly on baking paper on a tray and bake for about 20 minutes, until golden, turning halfway.
2. When golden (I like to make mine quite dark; the darker it is, the crunchier it is), remove and cool immediately to get it crispy. Break up the pieces a little then divide into 6 pretty jars. Decorate as you see fit!

TIP: Present to your guest with little swing tag attached that has the recipe written out, plus serving tips such as “serve with full-fat plain yoghurt for breakfast” or “serve with some coconut cream that you’ve left in the fridge overnight for a lush dessert”.

Click here to enter the 12 days of Christmas Comp