Lunch program - ON PAUSE FOR NOW

   Why should I eat cabbage?  Green cabbage is high in vitamin C and iron, which makes it a great food for people who suffer with anemia.  Pregnant women also benefit from its high folate content. Cabbage is rich in beta-carotene and in potassium.   Even little ones love this slaw! Adapted from Moosewood Cookbook

2 1/2 cups finely shredded organic cabbage

1 cup grated organic carrots

1/2 cup diced organic red/green bell pepper (red makes this salad EXTRA beautiful) 

Combine and set aside.

Dressing:

2 TB organic extra virgin olive oil

2 TB rice vinegar (I used raw apple cider b/c that is what I had)

1 TB soy sauce (Nama Shoyu or Gluten Free Tamari)

2 tsp brown sugar (one good squirt of honey)

1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger root (or 1/4 tsp dried ginger root)

dash of Tabasco or pepper sauce (we used a 1/2 tsp of cayenne powder)

Whisk together and pour over slaw. Toss well.  Let set 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

Optional:  1 TB toasted sesame seeds mixed in with dressing

 1 pkg Rotini or Penne Pasta
1 lb Italian Sausage, no casing
1 medium Onion, chopped
3 cloves fresh Garlic, chopped
2 cans (14 oz. each) diced Tomatoes
1 can (14 oz.) Tomato Sauce
1 can (6 oz.) Tomato Paste
3 cups Water
8 oz. Cream Cheese
3-4 Tb. Basil paste, or a handful of fresh chopped Basil
Salt & Pepper

Cook pasta to al dente according to package directions. Rinse and set aside.
Sauté sausage in 8 qt pot (see notes below if using an Instant Pot), then remove with a slotted spoon. Sauté onion until translucent. Add garlic, diced tomato, tomato sauce, and tomato paste. Use a stick blender to puree everything in the pan, or transfer to a blender. If you prefer chunky, just leave it as it is.
Add water and simmer for 1 hour. In the meantime, cut the cream cheese into cubes. After simmering, stir in basil and cream cheese until melted. Blend again, if needed. Add salt and pepper to taste, then stir in sausage and pasta.

Instant Pot Directions: Instead of using an 8 qt pot, sauté in the Instant Pot. After adding water, set pot to high pressure (or use soup/stew setting) for 8 minutes, then release the steam manually when time is done. 

 1/2 cup flaxseed

2 cups of water 

This mixture works as an excellent substitute for eggs.  Not only does it bind ingredients together, but muffins rise beautifully.   Makes 2 1/2 cups.

1. Grind flaxseed in blender on high speed for about one minute
2. Add water and continue to blend for 2 minutes

Using this Mixture: 

1/4 cup of flaxseed mixture = 1 egg

1 cup of flaxseed mixture = 4 eggs 

This mixture can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. 

To reduce this down to just two eggs, I just put a little extra water and a small amount of flaxseed in one batch of blender pancakes.   

2 Cups: Grind flaxseed in blender on high speed for about one minute.  Add water and continue to blend for 2 minutes.

 If you experiment with this, please let me know exactly what works for you and I’ll pass it along! Thanks a bunch!

Flaxseed is a rich source of fatty acids, which can assist in lowering high cholesterol.  If you do use eggs, please consider using free range, hormone free, etc. 

   1-3 lbs ground meat (depending on how many you’re feeding)

9-12 lasagna noodles

16 oz cottage cheese

2 eggs

3C shredded mozzarella cheese

1C grated parmesan cheese

2 - 8 oz cans of Italian stewed tomatoes

1 – 8 oz can of tomato sauce

1T Italian seasonings

1T chopped garlic

1T onion flakes

Directions:

Boil lasagna noodles per package directions.

Brown ground meat, drain and then season using Italian season, garlic and onion flakes. Salt and pepper to taste.

Add stewed tomatoes and tomato sauce to ground meat and simmer for about 5 minutes.

In a separate bowl, mix together the cottage cheese and parmesan cheese. Beat eggs and fold into the cottage cheese mixture.

Drain noodles. In a large/deep oblong baking dish, start with some sauce from the meat mixture in the bottom of the pan before adding the noodles. Add layers, starting with the noodles, followed by the meat mixture, two or three large spoonsful of the cottage cheese mixture, topped with generous portions of the shredded mozzarella cheese.

I usually do three layers, but you can do as many as four layers if the pan holds it!

Bake at 375 degrees for 30-45 minutes, depending on how many layers you made.

This recipe freezes well and is great warmed up for leftovers!

  2 c. quick oats

1/4 cup of flaxseed (for fiber, optional)
1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. natural sugar (sucanat or organic sugar)
1 tsp. soda
3/4 tsp. salt
1 c. butter, melted (not too hot or it will melt all the chocolate chips)
1 can organic sweetened condensed milk or 1 can of organic coconut milk
1/3 c. organic peanut butter (crunchy or smooth)
1 c. cacao chips, organic, 60% cacao or ghiradelli's dark chocolate chips 60% cacao
Combine quickly, then pour into rectanglular cake pan or jelly roll pan. Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes. Less baking seems to be better, so they are not dry and crumbly.  

  Kale is dark green, and one cup is bursting with approximately 5 grams of fiber!  If you haven’t tried it, please run right out and buy some.  Really. ..don’t wait!  You have no idea what you are missing!  Your body will love you for it.  Kale is exceptionally nutritious and hardy.  When you make kale salad, you can make a large batch, because it will last and last in the fridge and make nutritious eating easy because you don’t have to make a new salad every day.  Spice this one up as much as you like!

Ingredients

• 1-2 bunches organic kale, rinsed and cut with scissors into small pieces (skip the stalks if you want, or cut them very thin, in rounds)
• 1 organic lemon, juiced
• 1/4 cup Nama Shoyu or Tamari (healthier versions of soy sauce)
• 2 Tb. organic onion, minced (or 1/4 medium onion, sliced) Purple onion is great here
• 1 Tb. organic extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/8 tsp sea salt

Instructions

1. Mix ingredients together and toss with kale.  Let marinate for at least 30 minutes.