The A, B&B trio (Aubergine, Beetroot and Blackberries) group are all in season now. They’re high in fibre, low in calories, rich in minerals, vitamins and the antioxidant phytochemicals that given them their deep colour. The purple of aubergine skin comes from nasunin, a potent antioxidant which was found (in lab experiments only, to be fair) to protect brain cell membranes from damage.
Back to School juice
There are still plenty of blackberries around, so pick them while you can. Blended with frozen berries and grapefruit, this makes a delicious healthy juice with just the right acidity balance. Amounts of berries can be varied,
Serves two
Fresh picked blackberries
Bag of frozen berries, defrosted
Two red grapefruit
One inch ginger root, peeled and chopped
Pomegranate juice
Juice all berries, grapefruit and ginger and top up glasses with pomegranate juice.
Ratatouille
I have been studying ethnobotanist James Wong’s new book 10-a-day The Easy Way and wondered how many veg I could add to my aubergine in a ratatouille recipe. Here goes…
Serves four
One aubergine, chopped
One red pepper, chopped
One green pepper, chopped
One yellow pepper, chopped
Three courgettes, sliced
Handful of runner beans, sliced
Two red onions, chopped
Two red chillis, chopped
Two garlic cloves, diced
Two 400g tins of tomatoes
Two tbsp. tomato puree
One tbsp. dried mixed herbs
100g pot of mixed olives
Fresh basil, torn
Fresh parsley, chopped
Heat some coconut or olive oil and fry the onions, garlic and chilli for a few minutes till soft. Stir in all the other vegetables and soften. Then add tomatoes, tomato puree, herbs and simmer till all the veg are tender. Add the olives. Finish with the fresh herbs and maybe a drizzle of olive or flax seed oil.
This is incredibly versatile. Serve with rice, pasta, baked potato or sweet potato, hot or cold. I put this recipe into my nutrition calculator and it ‘only’ contains 2.5 portions of fruit and veg per serving. Now my challenge is to adapt this recipe to up this total. Fancy joining me in this challenge?
Beetroot and horseradish hummus – new food processor
I have just bought a new food processor. So, to celebrate, I put together a recipe I’ve been meaning to try for a while.
Serves four
Three boiled beets, chopped
One 400g tin chick peas, drained
Two tbsp horseradish
Two tsp spices (many hummus recipes call for cumin, but I used ras el hanout and sumac)
Flax seed or olive oil as required
Process the beets, chick peas, horseradish and spices. Add oil to create the consistency you want.
This beautiful deep pink-purple dip is great with pitta bread, crackers and crudites and keeps in the fridge for up to a week.
Next time: Going nuts in October.