As part of Saagara’s Spicy Muse Project, we want to celebrate Stress Awareness Month by helping you conquer your stress. We will be posting one stress-relieving recipe a day we have collected from various sources that have inspired us. Enjoy!

Photo and recipe by Kristen Swensson Sturt on Serious Eats

Oh pasta you tempting muse. Comforting, warm, delicious, and bursting with flavor, it’s hard for me to turn down a bowl of the stuff. With all the cheese, fat, and butter though, sometimes my love affair leaves me feeling a bit betrayed. Enter this savvy entree, with a few subtle tweaks it satisfies the biggest appetites without filling you up with lots of fat and cholesterol . Plus it’s loaded with spinach, one of my favorite foods as it’s packed with tons of vitamins and minerals like Potassium, Copper and Manganese. If you’re hooked, here’s a another great way to prepare gorgeous green.

While I used part skim cheese here you may be tempted to go all the way and use fat free cheese, do not do that. Fat free cheese doesn’t melt well and has all sorts of chemicals, not tasty, but this dish sure is!

As part of Saagara’s Spicy Muse Project, we want to celebrate Stress Awareness Month by helping you conquer your stress. We will be posting one stress-relieving recipe a day we have collected from various sources that have inspired us. Enjoy!

Photo and Recipe by Kristen Swensson Sturt on Serious Eats

“April showers bring May flowers”, that’s great for the tulips and daffodils but what about those of us looking to escape winter’s icy grasp and frolic betwixt rainbows? Well this warm, comforting bulgur dish, studded with sweet potatoes and almonds, will help you get over the winter’s lingering influence and it’s packed with Vitamins E, A, and B6 so you’ll be in great health when the storm clouds leave to go about their shady business. A quick aside about sweet potatoes,  while buying organic produce will lower the amount of potentially harmful pesticides, Organic Diet Buddy tells me bugs don’t like sweet potatoes!  So don’t sweat it if you can’t spring for the organic stuff. Regular potatoes; however, are cherished by insects so go organic for those if you can afford it.

As part of Saagara’s Spicy Muse Project, we want to celebrate Stress Awareness Month by helping you conquer your stress. We will be posting one stress-relieving recipe a day we have collected from various sources that have inspired us. Enjoy!

Photo and Recipe by Heidi Swanson at 101cookbooks.com

I posting this recipe here because it’s so versatile. You can enjoy your greens just like this, crack a few eggs in there for an omelet, or add them to curries and stir-frys for a nutrition boost. You can use any quick cooking green you like, kale, mustard greens, etc. I used spinach here because besides being packed with a long list of nutrients, spinach is a complete protein which means it has all its amino acids. While it is not particularly high in protein, it’s rare to find a veggie that can make such a claim. Feel free to experiment with this and above all have fun!

Ingredients:

• 1 large bunch of spinach
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• fine grain sea salt
• 5 cloves of garlic, crushed and chopped
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese (optional)
• crushed red pepper flakes

 

As part of Saagara’s Spicy Muse Project, we want to celebrate Stress Awareness Month by helping you conquer your stress. We will be posting one stress-relieving recipe a day we have collected from various sources that have inspired us. Enjoy!

Photo and Recipe by Heidi Swanson at 101cookbooks.com

I have whipped this quick recipe up at least 5 times in the last few weeks. It is quick, easy, delicious, and with the addition of tomatoes and cucumbers, both high in vitamin C and vitamin A, it is wonderfully healthy. Couscous is also an important source of selenium,  a mineral that can help repair cells, read more on selnium at the New York Times here.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups cooked couscous
• 1/2 a basket of cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 medium cucumber, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1 cup cooked chickpeas
• 1 lemon, cut in half
• 1 lime, cut in half
• about 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• fine grain sea salt
• freshly ground pepper
• 1/3 cup basil or cilantro, chopped
• 1/3 cup feta cheese, crumbled

 

As part of Saagara’s Spicy Muse Project, we want to celebrate Stress Awareness Month by helping you conquer your stress. We will be posting one stress-relieving recipe a day we have collected from various sources that have inspired us. Enjoy!

Recipe and Photo found in Vegetarian Times Issue: July 1, 2009 p.64

It was hot in Ann Arbor Sunday. I made this entrée and it was perfect for the humid night. Tomatoes are rich in vitamin C and A, two nutrients that are helpful energy sources. Zuchiini is rich in manganese, B-6, and C.
The recipe recommends salting and draining the zucchini and tomatoes before baking, which prevents them from releasing excess moisture as they bake, so the gratin stays firm, not soggy.

Ingredients: (Serves 4)

• 1 1/2 lb. tomatoes, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
• 2 medium zucchini (1 lb.), cut into 1/8-inch-thick diagonal slices
• 1 Tbs. plus 1 tsp. olive oil, divided
• 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 2 Tbs. roughly chopped kalamata olives
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced basil leaves
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (1 1/2 oz.), divided

 

As part of Saagara’s Spicy Muse Project, we want to celebrate Stress Awareness Month by helping you conquer your stress. We will be posting one stress-relieving recipe a day we have collected from various sources that have inspired us. Enjoy!

photo & recipe by: Kristen Swensson Sturt

Simple, comforting, and delicious; soups have a special place in my heart (and stomach) as the ultimate comfort food for a quick and easy meal. This parsnip soup is all of that and with lots vitamin C and fiber, it is as healthy as it is tasty. The humble parsnip is also packed with lots of potassium, a mineral that can reduce the risk of hypertension and stroke. This soup embraces the lovely root vegetable alongside soothing vanilla bean, making a perfect pair that you can feel good about indulging in.
Originally found on Serious Eats here

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds parsnips (not too thick at the top), peeled and chopped into 1-inch chunks
• 8 cold cups water
• 1/2 vanilla bean
• 2 or 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

 

As part of Saagara’s Spicy Muse Project, we want to celebrate Stress Awareness Month by helping you conquer your stress. We will be posting one stress-relieving recipe a day we have collected from various sources that have inspired us. Enjoy!

This is a great recipe for a quick but healthy lunch or dinner. When I made this I used whole wheat tortillas and added some spinach to the quesadilla. Tomatoes are a prominent ingredient in this recipe; they are full of vitamin C and K which helps to fight off inflammation.

Photograph by Frances Janisch

Ingredients:

• 8 8-inch flour tortillas
• 12 ounces grated or sliced mozzarella
• 2 tomatoes, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
• 1/2 teaspoon plus 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 bunch fresh basil, leaves picked
• 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
• 4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil