Cilantro Jalapeno Pesto

So this pesto is probably one of my favorite things ever. I literally put it on everything and anything..its just that good. Its perfect, a little bit of heat from the jalapeno peppers and the nice cooling of the cilantro (not to mention that plethora of amaaaaazing health benefits cilantro has to offer!). Some of my favorite ways to have it are on sandwiches, chilis, on vegetables, mixed into hummus, and even just as a simple dip. Its not too spicy, but if you really don't like spice the heat level can be brought down by adding a few table spoons of cream cheese. Try this one out, it is a perfectly delicious spring detox recipe!

Homemade Honey Tarragon Mustard

I haven't always really liked mustard. Actually, its only been in the past few years that I've really started liking it. Granted I won't eat it out of the bottle or anything, and I really don't like that suspiciously yellow and smooth stuff that you can get at any fast food joint, but I really like grainy and unrefined ones. Going into the super market its actually kind of scary, even the really nice mustards have actual mustard listed as one of the last ingredients on the bottle! Sketchy...

Dandelion Green and Sage Pesto

So lets do a low-down on dandelions. While some may think of them as that pesky weed that's ruining their otherwise prisitne lawns, they are really one of nature's little gems. There's a reason they grow everywhere, because they're screaming out "eat me, eat me!!" A beautiful little flower, yes, but dandelions also produce quite the array of medicinal and delicious edibles parts. Actually, you can eat every single part of the dandelion plant; flowers, leaves, stems, roots and all. All parts are delicious and super healthy. The flowers are great tossed into salads, the roots are great made into teas or even pickled, but what we're concerned with here is the leaf, or greens as some call it. You can do a ton of stuff with the greens, and with a fresh, yet slightly bitter and astringent taste they add great depth to salads, stir fries, soups, or pretty much anywhere that you'd use something, say...like spinach or arugula. One of my favorite things to do with them, however, is to make a pesto! What a great medicinal combination of medicinal ingredients...raw garlic, olive oil, sage, dandelion greens. Perfect for detoxing and cleansing the body. I put this pesto on pretty much everything, but a few of my favorites were on roasted carrots and sweet potatoes (sage goes phenomenally with root veggies), on sandwiches (especially breakfast sandwiches!) and on rice or pasta. Try this one out, it is truly delicious. (PS your local grocer should carry dandelion greens in their produce section, some don't but I've generally had good luck finding them...or alternatively wait till we thaw out of this cold snowy winter and go pick them yourself!)

Date Raisin Syrup

I had stumbled across a recipe for "date syrup" a while back, but the directions were sort of unclear. I decided to just give it a shot though and the results were great. This stuff tastes almost caramel-y..it would be really good on ice cream, or in oatmeal, or..on pretty much anything! Yum! I think its a great substitute for other natural sweeteners. (If you want to know what to do with the leftover fruit, check out my cranberry coconut protein bars!)

Improv Night: Edamame Spinach Pesto!

So tonight was one of those nights where I felt like making something, came home and found out that I was missing a few key ingredients...kind of a bummer. But luckily there's usually a fridge (and freezer) full of veggies to play with, so options are always available. We had a whole bunch of red cabbage, and parsnips from the farm share this week so I decided to use those up in a soup. And unfortunately it seems like my basil plant is on its way out, so I thought I'd whip up some kale-basil pesto as well. But alas, no kale this week! I then looked in the freezer and found frozen spinach and frozen edamame, and thought that'd all be good together..why not? Spinach, edamame, and basil pesto. Cool, and surprisingly absolutely delicious (with an extra protein kick). See the next post for soup recipe.

Slow Cooker Apple Butter

I'm sort of obsessed with my slow cooker. I just recently discovered this is possible after the classic New England Apple picking excursion this fall. Not only is this recipe jam packed with fiber, it is also delicious on breads, cakes, and in oatmeal. Try it out! (Note: I only have a 1 qt slow cooker, so you can adjust the recipe to the size of yours)

Slow Cooker Apple Butter

3 Cups assorted apples (soft ones such as Macintosh work best)
2 Tbsp dark brown sugar
1 Tbsp Cinnamon

Directions:
1. Peel, core, and chop up the apples. Throw them into the slow cooker with a few Tbsp of water. Put lid on, turn on high and let them cook down.
2. When the apples seem to have the color and consistency of apple sauce ( this took about 3-4 hours for me) open up your slow cooker, mix up the apples to help them break down a bit further, and add the brown sugar and cinnamon. Mix these up, put the lid back on and let the apples cook for another few hours, or until it is very reduced and a dark brown color. Store in an airtight container or a mason jar.

Health Benefits!!
Apple- High fiber helps in digestion and aids in cleaning teeth naturally, helps to generally detoxify the body
Cinnamon-lowers blood sugar levels, increases insulin production helping prevent type 2 diabetes, has an anti-clotting effect on the blood, smelling cinnamon alone improves cognitive functioning, fights E.Coli bacteria, has been shown to alleviate headache 

Sources
http://www.organicauthority.com/health/11-health-benefits-of-cinnamon.html
http://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/fruit/health-benefits-of-apple.html

Kale Basil Pesto

We've been getting so much kale in out farm share recently, if you're in the same predicament or just feel like improving the health benefits of your normal pesto without sacrificing flavor, try this out. Its great on pasta, in sandwiches or paninis...pretty much on anything!

Kale Basil Pesto

-2 Cups Curly Kale, stems removed and roughly chopped
-1 Cup fresh basil
-1/2 Cup pine nuts (or shelled sunflower seeds for a nutless version)
-2 Cloves of Garlic
-Olive Oil
-Salt
-Pepper

Directions: 
1. Place curly kale, fresh basil, pine nuts/ sunflower seeds, and garlic in a food processor. Process a few times until everything is roughly chopped up.
2. Drizzle in olive oil while blending until the basil is smooth
3. Season to taste with salt and pepper

Health Benefits!
Kale- High in antioxidants to help prevent cancer and heart disease. High in calcium to encourage strong, healthy bones and prevent osteoporosis and other bone-related conditions. High in vitamin C, Folic Acid, Vitamin B6, manganese, and potassium. 
Basil-  having a highly disinfecting property, basil can help reduce the symptom of fever, can give digestion relief due to certain components in the essential oil, boosts the immune system, and much more
Garlic- Contains allicin, an incredibly medicinal component, especially in raw garlic (like in this recipe!) Allicin can help prevent high blood pressure, aid in digestion, aid in inflammation reduction, help prevent and cure cold, and much much more!
Sunflower seeds- Sunflower seeds improve digestion, brain power and cardiovascular system; it is rich in magnesium, potassium, selenium, zinc and iron.

sources:
http://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/herbs-and-spices/health-benefits-of-holy-basil-tulsi.html
http://home.howstuffworks.com/kale3.htm
http://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/herbs-and-spices/health-benefits-of-garlic.html
http://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/seed-and-nut/health-benefits-of-sunflower.html