Immune Boosting Food for Family Health

Seasonal changes in weather, lifestyles, and allergens can bring on various symptoms that could be a common cold, allergies, and any number of viruses we see during autumn and winter. So, now is the time to stock your cabinets with healthy ingredients to make some immune-boosting meals the entire family will enjoy.

Healthy ingredients for building your immune system, gut and heart health, and antioxidants.

As part of Lifestyle Changes’ ongoing virtual cooking series, last week we had the joy of cooking with Granetta Coleman of the Rooted Dish. Our most recent online culinary event featured a tangy Lemony Artichoke Quinoa Salad and a hearty Lentil Salisbury Steak. During the event, Granetta and I shared valuable information about the antioxidant, heart and gut health, benefits of various ingredients we used in these recipes.

Dr. Janine Darby hosts her monthly cooking demos live from her at-home kitchen.

The recipes for these two immune-boosting recipes follow. Bon appetit!

Lemony Artichoke and Quinoa Salad

Makes 4 servings

1 cup quinoa
1 fresh lemon
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
freshly cracked pepper
1 13oz. can quartered artichoke hearts packed in water
1 red bell pepper
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 15oz. can chickpeas

Rinse the quinoa well in a fine wire mesh sieve. Place the rinsed quinoa in a pot with 1.75 cups of water. Place a lid on the pot, turn the heat on to high, and allow the water to come to a boil. Once it reaches a full boil, turn the heat down to low and let it simmer for 15 minutes (lid on).
While the quinoa is cooking, prepare the lemon garlic dressing. Zest the lemon, then squeeze the juice (you’ll need 1/4 to 1/3 cup juice). Add the lemon juice and 1 tsp of the zest to a bowl or jar along with the olive oil, minced garlic, salt, and some freshly cracked pepper (10-15 cranks of a pepper mill). Whisk the ingredients together or close the jar and shake until they are combined. Set the dressing aside.
After the quinoa has cooked, spread it out into a casserole dish or other wide shallow dish and refrigerate uncovered for about 15 minutes to cool it down.
While the quinoa is cooling, prepare the rest of the salad ingredients. Drain the artichoke hearts and roughly chop them into smaller pieces. Finely dice the red bell pepper. Roughly chop the parsley. Rinse and drain the chickpeas. Place the artichoke hearts, bell pepper, parsley, and chickpeas in a large bowl.
Once the quinoa has cooled, add it to the bowl with the other salad ingredients. Toss gently to combine, then drizzle the lemon garlic dressing over top. Gently toss again until everything is coated in dressing. Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 4-5 days.

Immune-boosting Lemony Artichoke and Quinoa Salad.

Lentil Salisbury Steak

Makes 6 servings

2 cups cooked lentils, one can be rinsed and drained
1 cup vital wheat gluten
1 cup breadcrumbs, vegan
1/2 cup vegetable broth
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 Tablespoon liquid smoke
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon olive oil (for frying)
oil spray (for baking)
parchment paper

In a medium-sized bowl, add cooked lentils. Using either a potato masher or a fork mash lentils until they are almost all mashed.

Add all remaining ingredients to lentils and mix. Knead for 3 minutes until gluten strings start to form. The longer you knead, the firmer they will be. Create 6 “steaks.”

In a hot pan, spray with oil or add oil. Fry 2-3 minutes per side to brown.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and on a parchment-lined baking sheet spray both sides of cutlets with oil and bake for 20-30 minutes or until firm. To brown, add “steaks” to a frying pan after and brown on both sides for 1 minute.

Lentil Salisbury Steak from rabbitandwolves.com.

Join Dr. Darby and Granetta for their next virtual cooking class on Wednesday, October 26 at 7 pm. In the spirit of the Halloween season, they will be cooking Healthy Treats that make tricking and treating all that much better for your body and mind. Check back for more information on ingredients and how to register…coming soon!

Yours in health,