Zero Effort Italian: Eggplant & Mushrooms

I came home in complete starvation mode the other day.  You know the feeling when you're so hungry you can't even bare the wait time at a restaurant? This was me.

I was looking for a comforting Italian dish.  But unlike most Italian dishes, I wanted it to be healthy, low calorie, and yet also satisfying and filling. Kind of an impossible dish, but I like impossible.  Of course, for it to be FastBeets Approved it would also have to be super simple and fast.  So enter this dish: My Zero Effort Italian. 

What I love about this dish is that I use zero oil in cooking the eggplant.  The eggplant cooks softly in the tomato sauce. We only add the oil after it's cooked.  By doing it this way you won't damage the fragile Omega 6 in the olive oil.  

FastTip: if serving cold, feel free to swap the olive oil for flax seed oil. You'll get a good serving of healthy, Omega3!

Its so simple and easy and literally takes no effort.  Because when you're in starvation mode, every second counts. 

Ingredients:

• One Italian Eggplant, cut into pieces
• Mushrooms of choice, washed and chopped (or ripped up with fingers)
• One (organic, bpa-free) can of tomato sauce
• Organic garlic granules (can sub garlic powder)
• Organic dried basil
• Organic dried oregano
• Himalayan Salt
• Good quality Olive oil
• Bean pasta of choice (I used Tolerant brand)
• 1/2 cup of filtered water
• (Optional - Nutritional yeast)

Method:

1. In a small pot, boil your pasta.  The amount is entirely up to you.  Make   as much as you're hungry for.  The less you use the faster it boils.  Cook for as long as directed for the specific pasta you're using.  

2. While the pasta is boiling, cut the eggplant and the mushrooms into pieces. 

FastTip: I find that ripping the mushrooms with my hands is a great deal faster than using a knife and making exact cuts, but that's just me! You do you. 

3. In a large pan, heat the tomato sauce on medium high heat.  When the veggies are chopped thrown them into the pan and add in the garlic, oregano, and basil.  I tend to go very heavy handed with the garlic. Feel free to use as much as you'd like. You really can't use too much or too little seasonings. 

“Save your leftovers: This tastes even better the day after on top of toast. ”

4. Add the 1/2 cup of filtered water to the pan and let cook until the veggies are tender and fully cooked.  Should take 10 minutes.  

5. Remove from heat, mix with pasta and top with olive oil and himalayan salt. If using nutritional yeast, feel free to sprinkle some on top. 

Immunity Broth - The Holiday Edition

Tis the season to not get sick! With the weather outside getting frightful, now's a good time to boost your immune system and stay healthy all season long.  So, let the chestnuts roast on an open fire and have yourself a very merry immunity broth! 

(Drops mic...) Seriously speaking though, with the holiday's in full effect, taking some "me" time and making some healthy meals can really save you from getting run-down.  This super easy immunity broth is definitely a Foolproof Eats you can make in a jiffy with a few ingredients.  The onion, garlic and turnips are supercharged foods to strengthen your body's defenses. So bring on the holiday parties!

NUTRITIONAL LOW DOWN

Turnips: Turnips are one of my favorite immune boosters.  For only 30 calories each, turnips will go to bat for you! Its a wonderful  nutritionally dense food, Turnips are chock full of Vitamin C.  Just 2 turnips provide as your daily recommended  amount of Vitamin C.  [They also contain a plethora of B-vitamins, folate, magnesium, and potassium.]

Onions: Onions have certain phytochemicals that allows vitamin C in your body to work.  So the turnips and onion work hand in hand to boost your immune system.  This onion and turnips in this broth are the perfect marriage to give your immune system an edge. 

Ingredients

• 1.5 onions, chopped  (Add more if you wish)
• 2 cloves garlic, cut in half (Add more if you wish)
• 3 Turnips (or 4!) washed and peeled.
• 1 TBL Dried basil (or your favorite herb)
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1.5 liters of filtered water
• 1/2 half cup of broccoli florets

Method

1. Briefly saute onions in a large pot with the olive oil.  Olive oil can't handle high heat, so saute for only a few minutes and keep heat lower so it won't smoke or burn. 
2. Add dried herbs, a pinch of himalayan salt, and garlic cloves. 
3. Add water and bring to a boil
4. Drop turnips in and allow it to boil until turnips become soft (about 30 mins)
5. When the broth is done, add in the broccoli florets and allow to cook for another 3 minutes.  You don't want the broccoli to get mushy, so 3 minutes is enough time.  
6. Enjoy!

Leftovers

This is great the next day and even if cold! Just add some fresh squeezed lemon juice and a dash of himalayan salt. 

5 Min Bowl of Anti-Inflammation

It's faster than fast food and will make a nutritional superhero out of you!

Think of this as the new fast food.  If you're like me, when you get hungry you want to eat and don't really want to spend time thinking about what and how.  What if you could make something in less than the time it takes to tie your shoelaces and it gave your body superhero power? Its not very far-fetched.  

Read The Nutritional Low Down below for all the ways this Fast Lunch will give you a superhero edge!

 

Ingredients:

The amounts of each of these ingredients are up to you.  Its all good for you, so use as much as your hungry for.  Its a foolproof recipe after all, so there are no rules!

*If you're questioning the use of canned beans, fear not! Canned beans are a nutritious way to provide cheap and fast beans. If you buy organic and BPA-free cans, which are becoming more prevalent, then you're fine.  

What about rinsing the beans? You actually don't need to. The liquid contains so many good for you minerals, you don't even need to drain and rinse it.  

Beans cause you digestive issues like flatulence? Not to worry. Canned beans make it easier for you to digest.  So no more flatulence and no more sitting around waiting for the beans to cook!

• Organic and BPA-free can* of lentils
• Organic spinach
• Optional: Any desired herbs 
• Organic flax seed oil 
• Himalayan salt 

Method:

1. Open a can of Bpa-free organic lentils (i know, very challenging) and put desired amount in a bowl.
2. Water sauté organic spinach or leave them raw and washed, then add to lentils. If you're feeling spunky you can add garlic or whatever herbs you have on hand. 
3. Since your lentils are cold, you can add flax seed oil.  Flax seed oil will get denatured if exposed to any sort of heat or light. Which makes it great for this recipe as your lentils are cold. 
4. OPTIONAL: You can lightly heat your lentils with your spinach, it will still only take you 5 minutes, but then skip the flax seed oil.  Try olive oil instead or no oil at all. 
5. Top with a bit of himalayan salt. 
6. CHOW DOWN

---

The Nutritional Low Down

Lentils are a nutritional beast of a legume. Lentils come stocked with loads of fiber and protein for a very low amount of calories. 

The soluble fiber in lentils helps to keep you regular, detoxifies your body, lowers cholesterol, reduces the risk of heart disease, stabilizes blood sugar, and can keep you lean! 

Spinach is a leader in the leafy green category.  It's of the most nutrient-dense foods you can eat.  Meaning per bite of spinach you're getting more nutrients than almost any other food on the planet!

Spinach has phytonutrients and antioxidants that provide anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer benefits. Check this out: These spinach extracts have been shown to slow down cell division in human stomach cancer cells (gastric adenocarcinomas), and in studies on laboratory animals, to reduce skin cancers (skin papillomas). A study on adult women living in New England in the late 1980s also showed intake of spinach to be inversely related to incidence of breast cancer.

Lentils & Spinach are a great plant based source of iron and folate.  Of the many things that your body needs iron for, did you know that iron deficiency could be what's causing your dark under eye circles?  Iron deficiency also causes a lack of energy.  So eat up!

Flaxseed oil is an amazing source of Omega-3 fatty acid which your body is in dire need of.  Omega-3 goes into your body and helps repair inflammation.  This anti-inflammatory property helps prevent chronic diseases like heart disease and arthritis. 

Flaxseed oil also has a 4:1 ratio of Omega 3 to Omega 6 fatty acids.  Your body needs to be consuming more Omega 3 than Omega 6 for a good balance. The typical American diet tends to contain 14 to 25 times more omega-6 fatty acids than omega-3 fatty acids. Many researchers believe this is a significant factor in the rising rate of inflammatory disorders in the United States.

Additionally, Flaxseed oil helps prevents depression and supports good brain health. Who here doesn't want to be happier and smarter?

xx, 

Your Resident Beetmaker, Shaina Simhaee