More delicious recipes for a vegan lifestyle

Talise Nutrition is loving vegan food & lifestyle. It supports in a great way health and wellbeing. Hence I would like to share one more favorite recipe with you. This dish offers a perfect balance of flavors and brings a wealth of nutritional benefits.
Now in late summer the first pumpkins are available on the markets. The perfect time to make this easy and delicious dish!

Avocado, Pumpkin & Quinoa

2 Portions

What to buy Quinoa Carrot Celery root Zucchini Leeks Tomato Vegetable stock

30g 80g 40g 80g 30g 150g 300ml

Butternut Pumpkin Orange juice Avocado Lemon Pink Grapefruit Coriander Pine Nuts Olive oil Rock salt Pepper

350g 100ml 1pc 1pc 1pc 10g 5g 10ml to taste

How to prepare it
Peel and deseed the pumpkin and cut it into two identic pieces. Simmer the pumpkin in orange juice, adding some water when required until it is soft. Cut the tomatoes in chunky pieces and blend them with vegetable stock or water. Strain through a sieve to remove the seeds and skin. Dice carrot, celery, zucchini and leeks. Simmer in little olive oil, add the quinoa and roast for 30 seconds. Add carefully some tomato liquid and simmer on low heat. Watch the quinoa, stir once in a while and add more liquid when required. This may take around 45 minutes. Stir in the zucchini and the leeks after 40 minutes and allow them to slightly cook for the remaining 5 minutes. Season to taste. Peel the avocado and remove the stone. Slice it thinly. Cut the filets out of the citrus fruits. Pick the coriander leaves. Serve the poached pumpkin topped with Avocado and citrus wedges and picked coriander leaves. Drizzle with some olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Arrange the quinoa next to it.

Chef Gabi’s Tip

Quinoa is a nutritional protein powerhouse, supporting to build a lean figure. Pumpkin and avocado support skin beauty and Vitamin C rich citrus fruits help to burn fat.
With all these benefits on health and wellbeing this dish will be served at our soon to come Yoga Retreat at Madinat Jumeirah. Hope to see you there!

Raw Food Gourmet Dinner

Raw Food is gaining popularity. Not to mention that this is perfect for the hot summer season to stay fresh, hydrated and fit health food enthusiasts know about the benefits of eating raw. Many do so from time to time to detox or to stock up the extra dose of vitamins and freshness, some eat raw only for a lifestyle and some are curious to find out how it feels and ….tastes! Have you ever tried raw bread? A raw soup? Raw lasagna? If not and you wish to do so, you can either sign up for one of my raw food classes (for those who like to prepare it at home) or just sit back and book a set menu with me in any of our restaurants in Madinat Jumeirah.
For me as a chef with profound health food background and lifestyle it is always a pleasure to create and serve food that is thoroughly beneficial and delicious for my guests. There are not many restaurants in the world to serve raw food culinary experience I am proud we at Madinat Jumeirah do. And so I prepared with my team last Friday for a lovely group – all experienced raw food enthusiasts (wow) – a pure RAW FOOD DINNER in five courses, served at the romantic Khaymat Al Bahar:

I hope you enjoy the impressions!                           

              
Botanical Garden Harvest
with sprouted Sunflower Seeds

Chilled Green Pea Gazpacho
with Air Dried Back Olive Crackers

Buckwheat Tabouleh (see similar recipe, just with quinoa, here)

Raw Vegetable Lasagna (see recipe here)

….and the sweet finish: Dessert!

If you would like to learn how to prepare raw dishes, drop me a line and sign up to my next Raw Food Class on June 30, 11 am to 2 pm in Magnolia, Al Quasr. The original date was in May but had to be rescheduled  due to the fact I worked for a short time in our beautiful new Jumeirah Hotel in Rome. But now it is happening, promise. And it will be a perfect hot climate treat.
We will prepare interesting things like raw bread, raw nuts cheese, raw cake…..
Looking forward to seeing you there!

Chilled Green Pea Gazpacho

This is definitely one of my favorite chilled soups – easy, full of flavors, chlorophyll rich and it goes well with Quinoa grissini:

Chilled Green Pea Gazpacho
2 Portions

What to buy
250 gm frozen peas, steamed, chilled
100 ml yoghurt
300 ml chilled still water
25 gm fresh mint leaves
10 gm coriander leaves
2 limes, peeled
1 green apple, cut into chunky pieces
Salt
Pepper
Ice cubes or crushed ice

How to make it
Blend all ingredients in a bar mixer and strain. Serve garnished with mint and coriander leaves.

Chef Gabi’s Tip
This chlorophyll rich refreshing soup is perfect for any occasion. It is very easy to make, and done in 10 minutes, but it can’t be prepared long time in advance. I serve it very often with crispy quinoa grissini.

Click here to know more about quinoa as an ingredient and how to make the Grissini in our previous post.

Quinoa – a complete plant based Protein

PROTEIN

Proteins are essential to the building and repair of the body’s tissues and to basic functions like growth, digestion and excretion. However, where to find excellent plant based protein, if you are looking for an alternative to meat, eggs, and dairy or highly processed soy products as a protein source?

Here is one true nutritional treasure box worth considering in your food repertoire:

QUINOA

Quinoa is a so called “complete protein” containing all 8 of the essential amino acids. One cup of quinoa has around 9 grams of protein, which tops the protein-rich egg with only about 6 grams.   Quinoa is a low-cholesterol source of complex carbohydrates. It is rich in fiber but low in glycemic index. The tiny seeds of a South American grass are high in vitamins, minerals and protein, while low in fat and calories.

I love to sprout quinoa to boost its nutritional value even more. Sprouting activates natural enzymes and multiplies the vitamin content. Quinoa sprouts easily within 3 hours rest in plain water. Other seeds take much more time for example.

Here is one of my personal favorites with sprouted quinoa:

Quinoa Grissini
for around 30 sleek and crispy Grissini

What to buy
20 g quinoa, germinated in 200 ml water for around 6 hours at room temperature, strained
150 ml water
1 teaspoon acacia honey or agave syrup
5 gm fresh yeast
200 gm whole spelt flour
15 ml olive oil
1 pinch of salt

How to make it
For the dough mix gently water, yeast and agave syrup or honey. Then add the flour, and beat the dough with a wooden spoon until it is soft and elastic. Allow the dough to rest and rise for around 10 minutes at room temperature. Add then a pinch of salt and the olive oil. Eventually add some more flour and beat the dough again until it starts cleaning the bowl you work the dough in.
Place a sheet of baking paper on a baking tray. Portion the dough into 30 very small pieces and roll each piece to a thin grissino. Roll each stick in quinoa and place the sticks on the baking tray. Use a ruler or a straight stick to ensure your grissinis are straight.  Allow them to rise again for around 10 minutes. Preheat the oven at 200 degrees and bake the grissinis for 3 – 5 minutes until the dough is golden and crispy.

Chef Gabi’s Tip
These grissinis can be kept for a couple of days – however they taste wonderful when they come fresh out of the oven and I am sure they will be eaten immediately.
I serve it very often with chilled soups like a spicy green pea gazpacho.

Click to view our next post: Chilled Green Pea Gazpacho, which you can enjoy with the Quinoa grissini. You might also want to try sprouted Quinoa Tablouleh.