Dumpling Heaven

The first time I ever had a dumpling was in the fall of 1999. My dear friend Rhonda and I decided to take a road trip from Philadelphia to Amish country. After a long day of sightseeing, we stopped off at

an Amish restaurant for dinner. As this was during my vegetarian phase, I was quite

disappointed that the only options open to me at the buffet were pickled corn and apple dumplings. Thankfully, the dumplings were very pleasing.

Since then I’ve had the desire to make dumplings. So much about the wonder of food is the texture. Texture is the reason why I am enamored with chickpeas, cassava, and grits…and dumplings! Can you believe it has taken me over nine years to make dumplings of my own? I was inspired by this tasty root veggie soup recipe from Eating Well. Root vegetables are very grounding and warming in the winter time. Such an awesome recipe. Aren’t root veggies so pretty?

Let them eat "apple" cake

So, how many of you tried to cleanse this autumn? It can be tricky, but I can not tell you how great it feels to slash processed foods our of your diet. You begin to feel more vibrant, truly. While I rarely eat processed foods, I certainly crave cake from time to time. Not super sweet cake - because I rarely eat sugar, I am annoyingly sensitive to it. It's not the sweetness that I crave, but it's the texture and I'm sorry, but whole grains can not mock cake very well. And there is nothing quite as divine as a piece of cake and tea. So, after some experimenting and blending various recipes together, I came up with a delicious apple cake - perfect for the season! Try it and let me know what you think. Be adventurous and change it up a bit to suit your taste buds!

Apple Cake:
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups diced apples
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 teaspoon of baking soda
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 egg
2/3 cup chunky “sugar-free” apple sauce
1 1/2 Tablespoon vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375. Grease 9” or 10” round pan with olive oil cooking spray. Sprinkle diced apples with sugar. Set aside. In a small bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. In a larger bowl, beat the egg. Mix in the applesauce, vanilla, and maple syrup. Slowly stir the flour mixture into the egg mixture until well-combined.If it's not completely moist, add a little more applesauce. Add the apples. Stir well. Pour into round pan. Bake for 35 minutes.

The Importance of Cleansing this Fall!

Cleansing is a wonderful way to adapt to healthier eating patterns. The winter is on the way! After a fun (and hopefully active) summer, how do you prep your body for winter? First of all, you want to adjust your taste buds to warming foods. Your brain will help you with this. When the cold fronts begin welcoming themselves, your brain will tell you that your body needs warm foods.

Do you notice how, with the coming of fall, you begin craving soups and cooked foods more frequently and aren’t as excited about the idea of a fruit salad or a milkshake? This transition indicates your body’s natural inclination to balance itself with your mind, spirit, and nature.

Seasonal eating is imperative in order to sustain optimal health. So, beginning to incorporate more soups and fall vegetables (cabbage, broccoli, kale, cauliflower, squash, root vegetables) into your diet is an amazingly healthy action this time of year. If you want a more profound transformation, fall is an ideal time to implement a detoxification regimen or simply put, fall is a great time to cleanse! A fall cleanse will also help you lean toward healthier options throughout the winter (which will help you greatly during the holidays!)

Cleansing is a fantastic source of vitality; it removes toxins from your system and helps you to feel vibrant and youthful. Not only does it give your digestive system a rest from having to process chemicals, it also empowers your immune system by pumping an abundant of nutrients into your system from wholesome fruits and veggies.

Asparagus is in season!!!

The last time I was in New York City, I had to pick up some asparagus at the Union Square Green Market and I'm so glad that I did. All I did was simply steam it and it made the tastiest compliment to my grilled cajun catfish dinner.

I found some great asparagus recipes here. I intend to try them VERY soon. I encourage you to do the same!

Asparagus with Lemon olive oil and Parmesan

Asparagus Frittata with red bell peppers

Asparagus Bruschetta

Asparagus Casserole
(I'd lower the fat content in this by using 1/4 cup Parmesan and 1/4 cup wheat germ instead of 1/2 cup Parmesan )

Okay, I'll stop spewing off recipes now. I'm starting to remind myself of Forrest Gump:

"There's, um, shrimp kebabs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo, pan fried, deep fried, stir fried. There's pineapple shrimp and lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp . . . "

Seriously, asparagus is a great great compliment to your spring and summer meals! I recently wrote an article about it. If you want to know more, keep reading:

Asparagus - Your Luxury Veggie

Asparagus is such a versatile vegetable—it’s tasty raw and steamed, it’s delicious in risottos and quiches, and it’s even a popular side at the most esteemed steakhouses in the world! In fact, asparagus has always been considered a luxury vegetable. It was highly prized in ancient Rome, Egypt, and Greece. In Europe, its status thrived under the reign of Louis XIV, who encouraged its production. Here are just some of the reasons why you should welcome this luxury vegetable into your diet:

- Asparagus is rich in iron, boasting about 15 percent of the daily-recommended value.

- Do you know that vegetarian forms of iron are much more absorbable when combined with foods rich in vitamin C? With asparagus, you have no need to worry about finding a food rich in vitamin C in order to absorb the iron because one cup of asparagus has more then 30 percent of the daily-recommended value of vitamin C.

- A rich source of folate (almost 70 percent of your daily recommended value), asparagus is EXCELLENT for women who are pregnant or breastfeeding as folate is essential for the production of new cells.

- Asparagus contains more than 100 percent of the daily recommended value of Vitamin K. Vitamin K is great for the blood and your bones!

- Asparagus has a natural diuretic effect. This means that it can be effective in treating problems involving inflammation like arthritis, bursitis, tendonitis, and PMS-related water retention. Inflammation is also involved in heart disease and cancer – so asparagus can help in prevention!

- Containing health-promoting “friendly” bacteria, asparagus is great for your intestines!

Though asparagus is grown throughout the spring here in Pennsylvania (and throughout most of the USA), it’s peaking these next couple of weeks! Stop by the Easton Farmer’s Market and pick up a bunch. There’s no better time than now to invite asparagus into your home. Buying it local is the way to go—it will stay fresher longer. To make it last close to a week, store it in your fridge, wrapped in a damp paper towel. If you’re feeling especially brave, try white asparagus (milder flavor than green asparagus) or purple asparagus (which has a fruity taste).

(Note: The photo of asparagus was taken by Maria Quiroga)