VEGGIES
Change your food, change your life.
Yes, it may be as simple as that. We all know that many of us are prediabetic because of our food choices.
Together, let’s share recipes that are common and healthy. Let’s learn from each other—life is much easier that way, don’t you think?
Note: Before making any changes to your diet, talk with your healthcare provider and a nutritionist/dietitian to discover what will work for you.
T = tablespoon
t = teaspoon
EVOO = extra virgin olive oil
c = cup
Onions, Green beans, and Tomatoes
Mixing these ingredients for a veggie dish is common enough, but Adeena Sussman, the author of Sababa, decided to add a cooking time that elevated them to another level. We’ve made a couple of tiny changes to shorten the time spent monitoring the dish.
6 to 8 servings
20 minutes prep/4 to 5 hours cook time
Ingredients
3 large or 4 medium onions, roughly chopped
2 lbs washed green beans, whatever kind you like and snip the ends if necessary
8 to 10 tomatoes, sliced
6 t minced garlic
1/3 c EVOO
Salt and pepper, enough to sprinkle on the layers, or to your taste
Red chili flakes to taste
Directions
Pour the EVOO in the bottom of your slow cooker and turn it on to the high setting. This dish is created in even layers. The first layer is half of the onions, followed by a layer of half of the green beans, then a layer of half of the tomatoes. Sprinkle on half of the garlic and some salt, pepper, and chili flakes to your taste. Repeat layers of onions, green beans, and tomatoes, topped with the rest of the garlic, a little salt and pepper and chili flakes. The seasoning amounts are to your taste, so put in as much or as little as you like. If you’re not sure, season lightly the first time you make the dish and adjust next time. Put the lid on and set the timer for 4 hours. Check after three hours, as slow cookers don’t all cook the same. Who knows? This dish might take 5 hours to cook properly. You want to see lots of juice/broth and limp but luscious veggies.
It takes longer in the slow cooker, but once it’s in there, you don’t do anything to it. However, you’ll want to try this on a day when someone will be around, to check the timing the first time you cook it.
Serve this with a roasted chicken breast or salmon. A protein that’s easy to cook!
Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges
4 servings
25 minutes prep and serve
Ingredients
3 sweet potatoes, around 2 lbs
¼ c olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Dipping sauce
¾ c mayo, sour cream, or crème fraîche
3 t minced garlic
Juice of 1 lemon
Zest of 2 lemons
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Wash and slice the potatoes in half lengthwise, slice each half in half lengthwise, and you’ll have 4 pieces. Do a final cut of each piece again lengthwise, giving you 8 wedges.
Place the wedges on a roasting pan, drizzle oil on and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss with your clean hands and put into oven for about 20-25 minutes, until they’re fork tender.
While the potatoes are roasting, prepare the dip by putting all of the ingredients in a bowl and whisking.
Serve potatoes and dip with a protein of your choice. Maybe pork tenderloin?
Cheesy Kale Greens Gratin
(Found on Bon Appétit website, recipe by Sarah Jampel)⠀
4-6 servings
70 minutes prep and serve
Ingredients
1 onion⠀
4-5 garlic cloves⠀
2 cups heavy cream⠀
1 sprig rosemary⠀
Salt and pepper⠀
3-4 huge bunches kale (2+lbs)⠀
2 lemons⠀
Red pepper flakes to taste⠀
6 oz sharp cheddar cheese, or whatever cheese you prefer⠀
½ cup panko⠀
EVOO⠀
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°. ⠀
Cream sauce: Roughly chop onion and four garlic cloves and chuck in a pot. Add cream and rosemary, with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until onion and garlic are soft, 15–20 minutes.⠀
While the sauce cooks, strip the leaves from their ribs and tear into large pieces. Rinse and dab some of the water off. Leave a bit of moisture for wilting later. ⠀
When the sauce is ready, remove the rosemary, add the zest of a lemon and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Put the sauce in a blender and give it a few blasts until you’re happy with the texture. ⠀
Put your kale leaves in two piles. You’re going to wilt one pile and add the rest near the end.
Get out your ovenproof skillet – a big one! Set it on medium heat and add kale leaves until the skillet is full but not overflowing. Put the lid on for a few minutes until the leaves wilt. Scoot the wilted leaves over and add a bunch of new leaves, put the lid on, wilt, scoot over, add more. Continue until all leaves from one pile have been wilted. Spread the wilted leaves evenly around the bottom of the skillet and place the skillet on a baking sheet.⠀
Thinly slice your cheese and set aside. ⠀
In a bowl, stir together panko, zest of a lemon, a mashed or finely diced garlic clove, a teaspoon of EVOO, and salt and pepper to taste.⠀
Take the remaining leaves that you set aside in a pile and lay them on top of the wilted leaves. Firmly press down.⠀
Pour sauce over the greens in the skillet. Crumble the cheese slices over the top of the dish and sprinkle the panko mix over the whole thing.⠀
Bake until cheese is browned and bubbling and panko is toasted, 50–55 minutes. ⠀
Baby Bok Choy
This is a loose recipe. Number of servings depends on how many baby bok choy you have. As a side dish, figure 2-3 per person.
15 minutes to prep and serve
Ingredients
Baby bok choy
Minced garlic to taste
EVOO
Directions
Clean baby bok choy and slice in half lengthwise, with the tips trimmed off.
Add olive oil and minced garlic to a large skillet and turn the heat to medium. Use as much garlic as you like and stir to prevent garlic sticking.⠀
Once the oil gets bubbly around the garlic, but before the garlic changes color, add baby bok choy. Sprinkle salt on top if you like.⠀
Cook 2-3 minutes per side. You want the leaves wilted and the white part tender. But some people prefer the white part a little crunchy, so cook to your preference.⠀
Plate the baby bok choy and squeeze lemon juice on top or perhaps toasted sesame oil. ⠀
Serve with your choice of protein.
Sautéed Swiss Chard
4-6 servings
20 minutes prep and serve
Ingredients
2 large bunches Swiss or rainbow chard
1 onion
minced garlic
EVOO
salt and pepper to taste
sherry or red wine vinegar to taste (optional)
Directions
Wash chard thoroughly and shake off excess water. ⠀
Cut the leafy part away from the stalks and chop the leaves into pieces about half the size of a playing card.⠀
Cut off the end bits of each stalk and toss. ⠀
Dice the stalks into tiny pieces.⠀
Dice up some onion, as much as you like, and sauté it in olive oil along with the diced stalks.
Add some minced garlic to the pan when the stalks are half as tender as you’d like them and continue cooking until stalks are softened. (Although some people prefer the stalk pieces to be a little crunchy. Your choice.)⠀
Toss in the chopped leaves, sprinkle on salt and pepper to taste, and put the lid on for a couple of minutes to let the leaves wilt.
Stir the dish now and then until leaves are cooked and tender.⠀
Add a dash or so of sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar, or leave it out.
Roasted Romanesco
4 servings
25 minutes to prep and serve⠀
Ingredients
4 cups (about 2 heads) romanesco florets
2 lemons
6-8 cloves minced garlic (to your taste)
Salt and pepper (to your taste)
EVOO
Directions
Preheat oven to 425.
Clean romanesco and cut into florets.⠀
Toss on a baking sheet with olive oil, minced garlic, zest and juice from two lemons, salt, and pepper. ⠀
Amounts are to your personal taste. Cook it once and you’ll know what to adjust for next time.
Stir after 10 minutes and check it after 20 minutes or so. It should be golden brown and fork-tender. ⠀
Try sprinkling your favorite grated cheese on top just as it comes out of the oven. ⠀
Artichokes
Figure one artichoke per person
30-60 minutes prep and serve
Ingredients
Artichokes (one per person)
Melted butter (small bowl per person)
Directions
Cut off the stem of the artichoke at the base, and cut about an inch off of the top. Make it a flat top.⠀
Peel off the small leaves at the bottom of the artichoke.⠀
Using scissors, cut the tips off the other leaves on the artichoke—cut off about 1/3 inch. They’re pokey and it makes everything easier if the tips are removed.⠀
Rinse the artichoke under running water. Gently pull back the leaves to rinse hidden dirt away.⠀
Fill a large pot with a few inches of water and get it boiling. Place a steamer basket or temperature-safe colander in the pot, add artichoke to the basket and cover, turning the heat to simmer. ⠀
The artichoke is done when you can easily pull a leaf off. Use tongs to try this as the artichoke will be hot. This takes 25—60 minutes depending on the size of the artichoke and if you have more than one steaming.
When the artichoke is cool enough to handle (but still warm) start peeling off the leaves.
Dunk the uncut end of a leaf into melted butter, turn it so the curve is facing up and put it in your mouth while holding the clipped tip end.
Gently close your teeth around it and pull, scraping it with your teeth. Each leaf has a bit of goodness in its base.
Keep doing this until you work your way into the fuzzy center.⠀
Scrape the fuzz out. That’s the choke and it’s inedible.⠀
Under the fuzzy choke is the artichoke heart. Cut it up and dip it in butter—it’s the best part.⠀
It sounds complicated until you do it once. Then you’ll wonder why you don’t have a garden full of these little delights!
Braised Fennel
2—4 servings
20 minutes prep and serve
Ingredients
2 large fennel bulbs or 4 small ones
4 T olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced (more or less depending on your taste)
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup chicken broth, or 1/2 cup white wine or water and 1/2 cup chicken broth⠀
Directions
Cut off the stalks at the bulb and remove the outer tough skin of each bulb, toss stalks and outer skin.
Keep some of the wispy fronds and chop them into tiny bits, about 2 T
Slice bulbs into halves or quarters⠀
Heat oil in skillet over a medium-high temp, but not smoking hot. Add sliced bulbs and brown nicely for 4-5 minutes, turning as needed.
Turn heat to low and add garlic and salt/pepper, push garlic around for a minute.⠀
Add liquid and when you get a simmer, cover the skillet.
Let it all cook for about 12 minutes, until bulbs are soft. Sprinkle diced fronds on top and eat!
Garlicky Kale (or Spinach) With Lemon
4 servings
12 minutes prep and serve
Ingredients
2 big bunches of kale or spinach
2 T olive oil
2 t minced garlic, or more, to your taste
Salt and pepper to taste
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
Optional: pinch of chili or red pepper flakes
Directions
Rinse the greens and give them a shake, but do not dry. If using kale, tear the leaves from the ribs before giving them a rough chop. If using spinach, just chop.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over a medium temperature. Add the garlic and stir a bit for 30 seconds. Watch that the garlic doesn’t get brown as it may become bitter.
Add about 1/3 of the greens and allow them to wilt a bit, stir, then add another 1/3, let those wilt and stir before adding the last of the greens. Sprinkle in your salt, pepper, and flakes, stir, and cover for 5-6 minutes, stirring a couple of more times as it cooks.
Once the leaves are tender, turn off the heat and add the zest and juice from a lemon, stir and eat!