Food

There’s a bit of work with this recipe, but it’s well worth it. “Falagers” is the nickname we gave to falafels made from legumes soaked in lager beer before cooking. Making them from scratch is a bit of a give-and-take game. Too wet, add flour. Too dry, they’ll need an egg white. It’s all about a feeling and making sure the mixture holds together while still staying moist. Once baked, there’s plenty more yum when served with a smoky garlic tomato beer sauce.

Tips

• Baked falafels can be stored in the refrigerator for a day or frozen for longer-term storage. To serve, heat in 350 F (180 C) oven until piping hot. Serve with Smoky Tomato Sauce.
• Want a heartier serving? Shape into burger-sized patties and, once baked, tuck into a toasted bun, pita bread, or lettuce wrap with avocado slices, creamy hummus, and Smoky Tomato Sauce.

Any of these quick dips would be great on their own. However, put them together and you have something that is way more than the sum of its parts. Lentils are a fabulous source of vegan protein. Just 1 cup (250 mL) of cooked lentils has a whopping 18 g of protein. So get ready, set, dip!

Tip

Socca is a savoury chickpea pancake enjoyed as a street food snack in Nice, France. Here we have repurposed it as a protein-rich pizza base. You could choose to top it like a classic pizza, but this fresh take makes eating your greens a whole lot more interesting.

Tip

Here’s a delicious method to tenderize chicken that’s simple to boot! It’s also great for a crowd—simply double or triple the recipe. Be sure to pass on any remaining wheat beer for the chef to wet his whistle while he works ... over the barbecue.

Tip

This light and dreamy dessert is a tasty alternative to the authentic Italian tiramisu. Not too sweet and made with cashew cream, it’s a contemporary version of an old favourite and equally fits the cliché, “a little pick-me-up.” This version does not include espresso, commonly found in tiramisu. We’ve made this with a coffee- and chocolate-flavoured stout or porter craft beer. Delicious!

Tip

This delicious soup is chock full of vegetarian goodness and packed with hearty flavours. The harissa spices heat the taste buds in a myriad of ways, but the true depth of flavour comes from soaking dried chickpeas in witbier, a delicious brew that’s beautifully smooth and refreshing.

Tips

• Dried harissa spice is a blend of cumin, chilies, coriander, garlic, mint, caraway, cayenne, and salt. It’s found in gourmet food shops or well-stocked grocery stores. Also available online.
• Cooking chickpeas from scratch is well worth the effort, given the results. Double or triple the quantity, adding plenty more water for soaking and cooking. Drain and spread out on a cloth-lined baking sheet. Blot dry and freeze in small containers. Perfect for soups, hummus, or tossed into salads or stir-fries. Don’t forget to add baking soda to the water when cooking, as this helps tenderize the chickpeas.

This fresh and simple dish is perfect for late spring and early summer. A quickly seared tuna loin is melt-in-your-mouth juicy, can be cooked in minutes, and goes a very long way. With the ale-spiked dressing, this dish goes well with a craft lager laced with Citra hops and orange peel.

Tip

Life is often about that little extra that makes something good just that much better. Dipping falafels into Smoky Tomato Sauce needs nothing more than maybe a lettuce wrap to carry it. With apologies to lettuce growers, the flavour is most certainly in the sauce and falafel.  

This delish dish, topped with tropical fruits and shaved coconut, will leave you with one question: can anything this easy be good—and good for you? Actually, yes. Much of this pudding’s nutritional power comes from black rice, which has more protein and fiber than any other rice (take that, jasmine!). Plus, it has the highest amount of antioxidants. If you’re not feeling fancy, this pudding is delicious topped with orange segments, sliced banana and toasted almonds instead of some of the more exotic fruits.

Ceviche is typically made with raw fish or shellfish that is marinated in an acid like lime or lemon juice. This marinating cooks the fish without heat. Substituting with hearts of palm is one of the cleverest vegan swaps you’ll ever make—promise! You simply dress the hearts of palm with the acidic juices instead of marinating them for hours, which makes this recipe a refreshing starter that’s also weeknight friendly.

Sweet potato fries are one of my favorite things to eat, and for a long time I wondered how I could transform them from a side dish into a full meal. The answer is to load them up with lots of fixings, including black beans, avocado and fresh vegetables, and then smother them with a creamy cashew-based queso sauce. The recipe for the sauce is worth doubling and keeping on hand: it’s delicious on baked potatoes, nachos, tostadas or Mexican rice. You can top the fries with any of your favorite nacho fixings, including hot sauce, salsa and pickled jalapeño chiles.

The citrus in this recipe—a combination of orange and lime—adds brightness without being overly sweet or tart. It’s a perfect contrast to the bold flavors of garlic, ginger and tamari, not to mention the earthiness of buckwheat noodles. The salad is easy to pull together for a casual lunch or light dinner. To make the dish even more substantial, you can add marinated and baked tofu cubes, or you can serve it bowl-style, with extra steamed vegetables.

It took me a while to warm up to collard greens. The recipe that turned me around was surprisingly simple: using raw or gently steamed collard leaves as an easy, nutritious wrap. In this version, collard leaves are stuffed with freekeh, lentils, currants and toasted pine nuts. The filling is spiked with za’atar, a vibrant Mediterranean spice blend of oregano, cumin, sumac and sesame. I like to serve them with a creamy pomegranate dressing. Note that the recipe calls for 10 collard leaves; you’ll only use eight of them, but it’s a good idea to prepare a couple of extra ones in case any split or fall apart during cooking or rolling.  

The grilled pineapple in these stacks offers a smoky sweetness, and the portobellos are surprisingly high in healthy antioxidants. To make your stack look like a burger, double down on portobellos and cap each stack with another mushroom.

This is the antithesis of typical soupy potato salads. Crispy spuds, the bitter edge of radicchio, buttery trout, and a tangy dressing create a palate-awakening salad that just begs for social media stardom. And all the flavours will speak to you even at room temperature, so this salad can also accompany you to the office, potlucks, and picnics. (However, it’s best to keep cooked fish chilled.) For a thicker dressing, you can replace 1/4 cup (60 mL) of the kefir with a good quality mayonnaise.

Frozen asset

Put some spark in mealtime with this salad that offers up a riot of earthy, peppery, creamy, sweet, and salty flavours—all enveloped in a savoury-sweet carrot dressing. With each passing forkful, you may find yourself forgetting that it also has off-the-chart nutrients.

Tip

If green is the colour of health, then this artfully prepared verdant salad is the fountain of youth. Vinegary peppers, ribbons of tender seasonal asparagus, crunchy greens, and a herby dressing for a creamy finish all team up to add layers of deliciousness. How to achieve creamy green goddess dressing minus the dairy? Look no further than avocado; when teamed up with punchy herbs, avocado creates a luscious dressing that will elevate salads of all stripes. You can also use it as a dip or strewn over taco fillings and grain bowls. For extra protein, you can include a sliced hard-boiled egg in the salad.

Tip

Close your eyes, take a bite of this salad, and get ready for your taste buds to be whisked to the sunny Mediterranean. Flame-licked mushrooms add meaty appeal, sautéed tomatoes a sweet treat, bocconcini a creamy hit, chickpeas a satiating protein and fibre addition, while herby pesto dressing rounds everything out.

Nutrition boost

This colourful riff on the classic spinach strawberry salad delivers big time from bottom to top. A creamy goat cheese base plays well with the tender chicken and bright strawberry dressing. Millet or sorghum would be good gluten-free stand-ins for spelt.

Steamed and cooled in-season asparagus is a great alternative to other dippers for scooping up this tangy dip. When eaten raw or just slightly cooked, asparagus supplies the prebiotics to help nourish the beneficial bacteria in your digestive tract supplied by yogurt. Look for thicker asparagus spears for easier dipping.

Great white

This Thai-style peanut dressing makes kale even more nutritionally potent. So think of this vibrant salad, full of nutritional bell-ringers such as whole grain sorghum and protein-rich edamame, as a perfect health-giving bring-your-lunch-to-work option. Since kale can be massaged with dressing a couple of days in advance without going limp, this is also a great make-ahead salad. Soaking sorghum in water for several hours in advance will quicken its cooking time. However, quinoa or millet would serve as stand-ins for sorghum.

Give your kale a massage

Rich salmon patties that are topped with a punchy broccoli pesto definitely won’t leave you wondering, “Where’s the beef?” As a perk, arugula and horseradish help make the broccoli an even bigger antioxidant powerhouse. The burgers can also be prepared on an outdoor grill.

Tip

With just the right amount of spice and tang, this tomato sauce anoints your eggs with greatness and takes advantage of eggs’ ability to bolster your absorption of the carotenoids present in tomatoes and spinach. Plus, the dish is just breezy enough to be a candidate for dinner on any harried weeknight. Consider serving over brown rice.

Full steam ahead

Who says dessert can’t deliver clutch nutritional value? Whole grain teff expunges its starch during cooking so it can be whipped into a chocolatey pudding. And teff happens to be rich in plant-based iron, which your body will absorb more easily when it’s paired with exceptionally sweet vitamin C-loaded roasted strawberries. Sprinkle on pumpkin seeds for a bit of crunch and more energizing iron. You can even add a couple dollops of Greek yogurt.

Strawberry fields forever