How to Create Healthy Recipes

Healthy recipes will be this week’s focus. One of our 40-Forwarder’s mentioned in the comments of the last post that she had to change her diet due to health issues and she is reaping the benefits. BUT she is getting tired of having the same thing over and over again. I am sure there may be others in a similar position. My dear, we got you, this post is to lend some support, to ensure you continue to WIN!

Full disclosure, I will be a little biased. The recipes will be made up mainly with items that are in season, and therefore inexpensive and readily available in Jamaica. And they will also be some of my faves! We will use what we have and tun wi han mek fashion! 😉 Let’s make this post yummy!

Kitchen Staples

No offense, but salt and pepper is not our definition of “seasoning”. So in the refrigerator and cupboard of most Jamaicans, you will often find:

The kitchen staples alone tell you our healthy recipes will be yummy. By the way, our neighbours in Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago have a “green seasoning” blend that makes anything taste good!

Let’s Cook

I will not be giving you the “proper” presentation for recipes, that is, detailed listing, quantities, serving size, preparation and cooking instructions, etc., but instead just main ingredients. Remember, it is important that you try the recipes below and make them your own. And do the same as you research other recipes.

Additionally, this is part of your meal planning process.

CLICK HERE for the promised Meal Planning suppen suppen

Healthy Recipe Options

Let’s get your healthy cooking juices following with eight (8) menu categories:

Soups
Sauces
Roasts
Stews
Salads
Leftovers
Wraps
Snacks

Take these recipes, try, taste, and tweak making them into your own healthy recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It’s time to get yummy!

1) Soup

This is the first thing Rona V learnt to cook, soup. So you know this is one of my all-time faves. I kid you not, every week, soup finds its way on my meal plan.

Soup Base: Pumpkin, Garlic, Pimento, Scallion, and Thyme – boil and emulsify/puree (blender or fork).
Vegetables: Carrot, Cho-Cho, Turnip, Corn, Sweet Pepper, Onion, More Pumpkin, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Celery
Starch: Sweet Potato, Coco, Dumplings/Spinners, Irish Potato, Yam
Meat-kind/Protein: Chicken, Beef, Fish, Soup Bone, Pork Bone, Peas
Seasoning: Cock Soup, More Garlic, More Scallion, Scotch Bonnet Pepper, Parsley, Salt (to taste)

Add, remove, mix and match, and enjoy!

Then there are those soups that are broths or purees. Broths are really stocks that can be enjoyed as is, or frozen and added to different menu items.

Healthy Broths/Stocks

Bones – Chicken, Beef, Fish (pick one)
Seasoning mix (fancy term is “bouquet garni”) – herbs of your choice, but from our kitchen staples list, scallion, thyme, pimento, garlic, bay leaves – wrap in a cheese cloth/muslin bag
Vegetables – carrot, celery, onion

Add water, put it on a low, slow, and steady boil for two (2) to four (4) hours.

Healthy Purees

Sweet potatoes aren’t on my favourite list, so this is how I incorporate them in my diet. Boil the sweet potatoes with a bouquet garni and then puree. Kick it up and boil the potatoes in coconut milk. (Yummy! Yum!)

Irish potatoes and pumpkin (individually or together) also make great purees.

Use your favourite vegetables and combine with preferred starch (in the list above), add “cream” of your choice, and make Cream of Whatever. “Cream” of choice for me is coconut milk or unsweetened almond milk.

2) Go-to Sauce

What’s your favourite sauce, or gravy (as we would say in Jamaica)? Here is a tip to making your gravy “healthy”:

Write it down as you prepare it now;
Examine the ingredients carefully – reduce or substitute where necessary to make it healthier;
Cook the healthy version;
Taste and tweak;
Add to your Meal Planning binder/file for future use

Below are three (3) that I have perfected over the years.

1) Curry

I have been accused of having “Indian” in my blood because of my love for curry. My dears, in my book, a cupboard without curry is empty! Curry mixes (herbs and spices used) can be different and therefore tastes may differ.

By the way, the “yellow” in the Indian curry we love so much is turmeric. Turmeric has become popular in the pandemic, but it (powered turmeric) has always been part of my kitchen staple.

A “Jamaican” curry rule is, curry not burned or cooked without ginger gives running belly. True or not, Rona V. don’t question it, ah suh Grandma seh, a suh Mums do it, suh mi falla! 😉

Every vegetable, starch, and/or meat-kind/protein can be curried. Try it for yourself.

Turmeric and garlic rice (whatever kind of rice you have) is tasty! Create another meal option, by adding some frozen mixed vegetables and it becomes Spanish Rice.

2) Coconut Sauce

In Jamaica, we call this, Rundown. Make your own coconut milk (the drier the coconut you use, the better). Place on low and slow heat to cook until the oil separates. Then add scotch bonnet, pimento, scallion, garlic, and let simmer for another 2 to 5 minutes. Add salt to taste. This sauce can be frozen and reheated as needed.

Here again, you can add this to anything. For most Jamaicans, we add salted/pickled mackerel – Mackerel Rundown. (Yummy!)

Don’t be afraid to simmer any of the following in the coconut sauce:

Ground provisions
Dumplings
Vegetables
Callaloo
Salt fish

Do you have a similar sauce in your neck of the woods, share what it is called in the Comments?

3) Curry Coconut Sauce

Talk about the best of both worlds! Add the curry to the coconut sauce, simmer, and go wild! On extra special occasions, Rona V splurges on shrimp in curry coconut sauce, but on a regular basis, it is chickpeas (garbanzo beans) in curry coconut sauce. (Mouthwatering!)

This curry coconut sauce goes well with:

Deboned breast or thighs
Fish
Vegetable blend (you choose)
Ground provisions

3) Roast

Whether fish or chicken, marinate and bake!

A whole roasted chicken is my preference.

Wash the chicken
Season with garlic powder, onion powder, fresh garlic, scallion, thyme, scotch bonnet pepper, and soya sauce
Place in the refrigerator overnight
The next day, allow the chicken to sit until “chill” is off, then pop it in the oven (covered for about 2 hours then uncovered for the last 30 minutes). Low and slow my dears, low and slow.

Ok, so whole chicken is not for everyone, use chicken parts which will cook much faster.

Roast chicken stores well and can be used in different meals.

If fish is your preference, same treatment (seasoning) minus the soya sauce. Let it sit for about 5 to 10 minutes then pop it into the oven. My fellow Jamaicans may be saying, “Throw it in the pot and make some steam fish.” Add okra, carrot, pumpkin, and cho-cho and the fish becomes a full meal. Can I get a “Yeh man!”

4) Stews

Stews are a way of life in Jamaica. The secret to a stew is slow and steady cooking that causes flavours to marry (well). There are some who argue that stews taste better days later.

1) Stew Meats

Break out the Dutch pot (dutchie), put in your beef or pork (keep it lean and healthy) that has been marinated at least overnight, sauté (brown), add water, slow and steady on the stove. When almost tender, add carrot, Irish potato, and seasonings. Continue cooking until meat is tender and falling off the bones.

2) Stew Peas with Meat

Another popular stew is stew peas. The traditional version is far from healthy – pigs tail, corned pork, corned beef – salt and fat. But, with “soaking” and substitution, this is a winner!

Red kidney beans are the stars of the stew peas show. Be sure to get the right “red”.

Coming in a close second on the stew peas ingredients list is coconut milk. Prepare the milk yourself (healthier option) or purchase the powdered version (read the label carefully for salt and sugar content).

Place meat-kind/protein, peas, coconut milk, pimento, and garlic in your dutchie, bring to a boil, turn the heat to low, and slow cook until meat is tender. If you are using canned peas, cook the meat kind first then add the peas and coconut milk, and simmer. Season with the scotch bonnet, scallion, thyme, more garlic, and salt to taste.

3) Ital Stew Peas

Everything is the same as above MINUS the meat kind. To the pot add string beans, cho-cho, pumpkin, and carrot. (Don’t knock it until you have tried it!)

Another twist for my Ital Stew Peas is, including at least two additional peas or beans (blackeye peas, chickpeas, navy, and/or pinto); whatever is in the pantry.

If you don’t have a “dutchie” to cook your stews, then use a slow cooker.

Stews are usually served with rice (just make it brown or wild rice) and eat a small portion.

5) Healthy Recipes – Salads

This is where one can get really creative – salads. Salad as we know it starts with lettuce. There are times when lettuce “guh pan housetop price” (Translated: Very expensive). When it is affordable, use it as the base, then add your favourite “in-season” vegetables and fruits.

Here is a simple vinaigrette dressing that can be enjoyed as is, or you can “add on”.

Blend together vinegar, lime/lemon juice, dried Italian seasoning, salt (to taste).
Variations: raisins, fresh garlic, marmalade/jam (fruity), or balsamic vinegar

My dears, add to this salad some shredded roasted chicken breast and you are good to go! Up the protein by adding boiled eggs!

Quick, easy, and usually affordable is a tomato and cucumber salad. Cut in chunks and add the salad dressing above and you are done.

Anybody for a carrot and raisin salad – shred your carrots and load in some raisins (check the sugar content). Enjoy as-is, or again, add some of the vinaigrette.

When we think salad, we often think vegetables, BUT don’t miss out on a fresh fruit bowl. If it is within the budget, add some Greek yogurt topped off with nuts.

6) Leftovers Anyone?

I call leftovers, “fridge raid”. When meal planning becomes a norm, then you plan with leftovers as a “meal” option, but for now, we execute a “fridge raid” and get to work.

These options are particularly good to use up those not so “fresh” vegetables.

Fried rice
Stir fry
Seasoned rice (add salt fish)
Omelet/Quiche/Quesadilla
Burrito

Season with garlic, scotch bonnet pepper, scallion, and/or thyme. And yes, curry and/or turmeric may be added.

To fry, instead of using vegetable oil, reach for a little cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil or coconut oil. If you are using a non-stick or ceramic pot, you could skip the oil altogether and use a drop of water.

Don’t get me started on eggs! Eggs are good by themselves (boiled, poached, fried), BUT omelets, quiches, quesadillas, muffin cups, take them to another level. Anything in the refrigerator/freezer – spinach, peppers, onion, tomatoes, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, green peas, cheese, chicken, pineapples, apples – let your imagination go to town and create your own healthy recipes!

Since we are on the topic of leftovers, any leftover stew gets turned into soup.

Here is another “leftover” idea – take that “stale” whole wheat, multi-grain, or sprouted bread and turn it into garlic bread or croutons for your salad! 😉

7) It’s A Wrap

Whether it be an open wrap, aka pizza 🙂 or a wrap wrap 🙂 :), Rona V. is all over it! Now the wrap wrap can swing two ways, carb or no-carb (or should I say low-carb). Keep reading and you will understand.

Leftovers are great in a wrap! Not seeing it? Let me help …

Chicken salad wrap anyone?

OPTION 1: Toss together whatever is left of your garden salad mix and drizzle with a little homemade vinaigrette. Add the leftover roast chicken, wrap it up in a whole wheat or multigrain grain or spinach wrap.
OPTION 2: Shred your leftover roast chicken breast, dice (small) some celery, sweet pepper (different colours), onion, and scotch bonnet pepper. Mix together with a little mayonnaise. Wrap in lettuce leaves and take a bite. Now that’s how you do a low carb wrap!
OPTION 3: Add pear (avocado) to OPTION 1 & 2
OPTION 4: Add fresh strawberries or apple or grape to OPTION 1 & 2

Make pizza your way. My dears, if you don’t feel like a regular sandwich, make a pizza.

Dough – tortilla wrap, pita, bread, or quick rise dough.
Make your own tomato sauce or fresh salsa.
Add whatever you found in the “fridge raid” or your sandwich ingredients
Cheese (optional)
Sprinkle with pepper flakes (if available)
In the oven it goes

Top off your wrap or pizza with water your way (plain or flavoured). Tell me this is not yummy!

8) Healthy Recipes For That Snack Attack

Here is the secret to snacking, prep it, especially fruits and veggies. Cut them up, place them in containers (preferably glass), and stow them away in the fridge. Have by themselves or tingle your taste buds with something extra – almond butter, peanut butter, hummus, salsa, or guacamole. Dip those fruits and veggies and enjoy! Try making the last 3 for yourself. If you are not into “making it myself”, remember to read the label carefully on the store-bought ones; they are usually loaded with sugar and salt!

Whatever whole fruits are in-season, keep some handy. Enjoy as-is or make your own fruit juice, smoothie, or sorbet.

Feed those hunger pangs with nuts – almonds, cashew, peanuts (raw or roasted), pistachio, etc. Again, whatever is available and within budget.

CONCLUSION

Healthy recipes are far from boring! So, my dear reader who dropped the comment about getting tired of having the same thing over and over again, I hope we have lent some SUPPORT with our sumptuous ideas! 😉

Before I take off my apron and head out of the kitchen …

I have a friend – a member of the 40-Forward clan, of course – who knows how to throw down in the kitchen. On her Instagram feed, she posts her family meals, breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Go on over and fill your eyes and tummy with some of her healthy “Jamaican” eats.

Secondly, SIMPLYRONAV has launched on Pinterest!!! So, I did not post last week because I was determined to figure out Pinterest. (Shoutout to My Ms. Tresha for lending a hand – SUPPORT turn up!) I took the same approach as I did with the blog, “Just start”. Guess what was one of the first Pin created?! Healthy Eating Habits. Remember, it’s the start, but this is where I will find and post (sorry, Pin) some great ideas that will help us (40-Forwarders) to B.L.E.S.S. (Build.Legacy.Encourage.Support. Sway.) each other and our Youngins! So, join me over on Pinterest as we continue to do life together! 😉 🙂

The last thing, CLICK HERE for a Meal Planning brawta 😉

Drop some Healthy Recipes or other healthy recipe tips in the Comments. And as always, SHARE this post!