WELCOME TO THE HEALTHY TEST KITCHEN

1. Simmer the potatoes in water until tender. Drain and place the potatoes on a sheet pan in a warm oven to steam dry, about 5 minutes.
2. Purée the hot potatoes using a ricer or food mill. Allow the potatoes to cool to room temperature and combine with the remaining salmon cake ingredients. Form into 20 cakes weighing approximately 1 1/3 oz / 37 g each.
3. To prepare the cucumber relish, toss the relish ingredients together (see Note).
4. For each portion: Cook 2 cakes in a preheated seasoned skillet until golden brown on each side, about 8 minutes. Serve the salmon cakes on a bed of approximately 1 ½ oz / 45 g of cucumber relish.

Note: Drain any excess liquid from the relish and reserve it to toss with mixed greens.

Reprinted by permission from The Culinary Institute of America, Techniques of Healthy Cooking, 3rd Edition (John Wiley & Sons), 2008

1. To make the vinaigrette, reduce the apple cider by two thirds. Combine the reduced cider, vinegar, Worcestershire, Tabasco, and thyme. Slowly whisk in the oil.
2. Toast the pecans in a 300°F / 150°C oven until golden brown.
3. Grill the chicken breast until thoroughly cooked. Cool and slice thinly.
4. Toss the pecans, chicken, and remaining ingredients.
5. For each portion: Toss 7 oz / 200 g chicken salad with 3 tbsp / 45 mL vinaigrette and arrange on a room-temperature plate.

Reprinted by permission from The Culinary Institute of America, Techniques of Healthy Cooking, 3rd Edition (John Wiley & Sons), 2008

1. Spray the inside of 3-in / 8-cm diameter ring molds with sides 2-in / 5-cm high with oil and dust with powdered sugar. Place the molds on a sheet pan lined with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until needed.
2. Melt the chocolate over a double boiler.
3. Bloom the gelatin in the water for 5 minutes. Dissolve over a double boiler.
4. Combine the dairy base with the warm chocolate and heat very gently over a double boiler. Add the dissolved gelatin and cocoa powder to the chocolate mixture and whisk until smooth. Cool the mixture to room temperature.
5. Warm the sugar and egg whites together to 100°F / 38°C. Whip the mixture to medium peaks and fold into the chocolate mixture. Pipe 3 oz / 90 g of the mixture into the molds, cover with plastic wrap, and chill for at least 2 hours before serving.

Purée the ricotta in a food processor or blender until smooth. Add the remaining ingredients and process until incorporated. Flavor as desired and freeze in an ice cream machine according to the machine's directions.

Reprinted by permission from The Culinary Institute of America, Techniques of Healthy Cooking, 3rd Edition (John Wiley & Sons), 2008

1. Heat your grill to high.
2. Brush the cut side of the zucchini with 1 tablespoon of the oil and season with ¼ teaspoon of the salt and ¼ teaspoon of the pepper. Grill cut-side down until lightly golden brown, 3-4 minutes. Turn over and continue grilling until just cooked through, 4-5 minutes longer. Remove from the grill and cut into small dice.
3. Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in a medium saucepan on the grates of the grill. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until soft, 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the lima beans, corn and stock and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, poblanos, jalapenos, grilled zucchini and remaining ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper and cook for 2 minutes.
4. Remove from the grill and stir in the cheese and cilantro. Serve warm or at room temperature.

1. Heat your grill to medium or a large nonstick sauté pan over high heat.
2. Rub each breast on the top side with the rub, drizzle with the oil and place on the grill, rub-side down. Grill or cook in pan for 3-4 minutes or until slightly charred and a crust has formed. Turn the breasts over, close the cover and continue cooking for 5-6 minutes or until just cooked through (165 degrees F) Remove to a cutting board and let rest 5 minutes.
3. Place the chicken breasts on a platter and drizzle 2 tablespoons of the mustard-green onion sauce over each breast. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve remaining sauce on the side, if desired.

1. Put the vinegar in a small saucepan over high heat and cook until thickened and reduced to about ¼ cup. Transfer to a bowl and whisk in the honey, mustard, ancho powder and salt and pepper until combined. Let rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.
2. Heat a grill to high or grill pan over high heat. Brush the fish on both sides with canola oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill until bottom is golden brown, about 2 minutes. Flip over, brush with glaze and continue grilling until fish is cooked to medium well doneness, 3 to 5 minutes longer. Remove from the grill and brush with more of the glaze.
3. Place the salmon fillets on a large platter and top each with some of the relish. Garnish with parsley leaves.

1. In a coffee grinder, grind 1/4-cup oats for 20 seconds or until it resembles flour. Sprinkle 1-tablespoon oat flour on wax paper lined work surface and save another 1-tablespoon oat flour for sprinkling on top of patties; set aside. Reserve the remaining oat flour for mixing into patty mixture. In a 4-quart or larger saucepan, bring remaining steel cut oats, garlic, water, sweet potatoes, and salt to a boil. Cover and cook on medium high, for 9 minutes. Uncover, adjust heat to high, add black beans, cumin, and red pepper, stir constantly and cook 3-4 minutes or until oats have absorbed water. Pour hot porridge into a large bowl, add baking powder, stir for 15-seconds. Add 1/3-cup cilantro and gradually stir in reserved oat flour. Allow mixture to rest 5 minutes. Scoop 4 heaping 1/2 - cup oat mixture mounds and place on wax paper that has been sprinkled with oat flour. Sprinkle remaining 1-tablespoon oat flour over mounds. Press each mound gently with the back of a pancake turner. Wet hands and shape gently into patties. In a large 10-inch or smaller non-stick skillet, heat safflower oil on high or medium-high. Fry patties on both sides 4-5 minutes, or until patties are brown and crispy. Meanwhile, cut lime in half. Cut one of the halves into 4 slices. Finely grate the peel of the other half to equal 2 teaspoons lime zest. Juice the lime half to equal 2 teaspoons limejuice. In a medium bowl toss together remaining 1/3-cup cilantro, cherry tomatoes, scallions, jicama, sweet red pepper, 1 or 2-teaspoons lime zest, and 2 teaspoons limejuice. Place Black Bean Porridge Patties on 4 serving plates. Top each patty with Pico de Gallo, and dollop with Greek yogurt. Sprinkle with cilantro and scallions. Garnish with a lime slice. Serves 4 patties

1. Place the stock, jalapeno, tomato and garlic in a sauce pan and bring up to a boil. Turn the heat to medium and simmer for 20 minutes.
2. This is a good time to clean and prepare the vegetables.
3. Pat the salmon dry and rub the top with the cumin. Divide the salmon into 4 equal pieces and broil it in a preheated oven for approximately 10 minutes per inch of thickness or until the top is slightly crispy and the inside is opaque.
4. Pour the stock through a strainer into another sauce pan. Taste test for heat, and according to preference, either remove the jalapeno or lightly press it through the sieve along with the tomato and garlic into the stock. Bring up to a boil and add the lime juice and corn and simmer for 1-2 minutes.
5. To serve, ladle the stock with the corn into a deep, wide soup bowl, place a piece of salmon into each bowl and serve with the vegetables to be sprinkled on top. Serve with warm corn tortillas, if desired.
6. Serves 4

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cook 1 cup quinoa in 2 cups chicken stock.
3. Chop onion, green bell pepper, and garlic. Sauté in olive oil for about 5 minutes. Add in ground turkey, spices, parsley, basil, and salt and pepper. Brown meat (about 6 minutes or so). Once meat is brown, add in can of tomato sauce and about half of the cooked quinoa and mix together. I reserve the other half of the quinoa to save for making salads, but if you don’t want extra, then I would say cook about ½ cup of dry quinoa in 1 cup chicken stock.
4. For the bell peppers you are stuffing, chop off the top and clean out the inside to remove any seeds.
5. While the meat is browning, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Once water is boiling, submerge all but the tops of the bell peppers in the water. Let sit in boiling water for about 3 minutes. Remove with tongs. This will darken their color and also soften up the outside quite a bit. Sprinkle bell pepper with a little salt and pepper.
6. Stuff meat mixture into the bell peppers. Place in a Pyrex dish (8 by 8 works fine, or any size you have on hand). Fill the Pyrex up about 1/8 of an inch with water so that the bottom of the bell peppers will be sitting in the water. Sprinkle cheese on top of the stuffed peppers. Bake in oven for about 20 minutes.

1. Heat a medium pan with a tbs. of olive oil on medium-low heat. Toast couscous for about 4 minutes. Then add chicken broth. Bring to boil, then let simmer. This will take about 22 minutes.
2. Chop shiitake mushrooms into vertical strips and mince the cloves of garlic.
3. 3. In another medium pan cook the garlic for a minute, then add the mushrooms and corn.
4. When couscous is done, add it to the vegetable mixture, then season with 1/2 tsp. black pepper, 3 dashes of salt, and green onions. Cook for another 3 minutes.
5. This is for one piece of salmon. Season each side with 1/8 tsp. of black pepper, 1/8 tsp. of cayenne pepper powder, and 2 pinches of salt on each side. Heat a medium pan with 1/4 tsp. olive oil on medium heat. Place salmon skin first and cook for about 6 minutes then flip to other side and cook for about a minute.
6. For mango sals chop half red onion into cube size pieces then chop mango into cube size pieces. Finely chop 3 sprigs of cilantro. Add the mango, red onion and cilantro to a bowl with a tsp. of olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice, and a pinch of salt. Mix salsa well.
7. For tomato salad, chop the cherry tomatos into quarters. Finely chop two sprigs of cilantro. Mix the tomatoes and cilantro in a bowl with a tsp. of olive oil, pinch of salt, and pinch of black pepper.
8. To plate dish, put some couscous on a circular plate first. Make the couscous into a circular shape as well. Then place the salmon on top of the couscous with the skin side facing up. Then put the mango salsa and tomato salad on top of the salmon. Finally drizzle everything with some lemon juice.

1. Bring 1 cup of water to a boil, then add quinoa, reduce heat to medium, and cook about 12 minutes until water is absorbed. Remove from heat, fluff, and cover while proceeding with recipe.
2. Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in 10–12 inch skillet over medium-high heat. Crumble ground turkey into pan and cook until browned and almost cooked through. Add some garlic (optional) and continue to cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Drain any excess fat from pan. Add diced yams, Chinese five-spice powder, raisins. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover, reduce heat to medium, and cook until sweet potatoes are tender, about 6–8 minutes.
3. Add cooked quinoa to turkey mixture and toss to combine. Taste and check seasonings.
4. Spoon about 1/2 cup of filling into each lettuce leaf, 2 leaves per serving. Sprinkle with pepitas and serve immediately.

1. Preheat the oven to 400° F. In a large bowl, toss the butternut squash with the chickpeas, 1 tablespoon olive oil, curry and Garam Masala; season with salt and pepper. Spread on a large-rimmed baking sheet and roast for 30–35 minutes hour, stirring occasionally, until squash is tender and chickpeas crispy. Cool slightly.
2. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, combine quinoa and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 15-18 minutes or until water is absorbed. Fluff with a fork and cool slightly.
3. Grate the lemons and orange to measure 2 teaspoons lemon zest & 2 teaspoons orange zest. Juice both the lemons and the orange. In a small bowl, combine 1 tablespoon lemon juice with the yogurt, 1/2 of the mint, and 1/2 of the cilantro; season with salt & pepper.
4. In a large bowl, whisk the zests, remaining juices, & remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add the quinoa, cranberries, & remaining mint & cilantro, tossing to combine. Season with salt & pepper to taste. Add the squash and chickpeas; gently toss to combine.
5. Arrange arugula leaves over large rimmed platter. Spoon the squash-quinoa mixture on top of leaves. Serve with the herbed yogurt on the side. Makes 6 servings.

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. In a large pot, bring mango nectar to a boil. Stir in rice, cover, and reduce heat to simmering. Cook 30 minutes, until rice is fluffy. Fold in chopped mangoes.
2. Meanwhile, thread salmon chunks, kiwi halves, squash chunks, bell pepper pieces, and onion pieces onto four skewers*, repeating to fill kebabs with alternating color. Place kebabs on a greased baking sheet.
3. In a small bowl, stir grape seed oil, honey, and ancho pepper together. Brush this glaze over the kebabs. Sprinkle with chopped almonds. Bake kebabs for 15–20 minutes, just until salmon is flaky and opaque. Serve over Mango Brown Rice. Serves 4 delighted guests!

* If using bamboo skewers, be sure to soak them for at least 10 minutes before threading. Metal skewers work well, and a fun variation is to use stripped rosemary stems for skewers

1. Steam the collard leaves and set aside to cool. Sauté pepper, onion, garlic, zucchini and herbs in about 2–3 tablespoons of water. Once they are translucent, turn the stove off and add tomato paste. Mix in well with the rice and the beans. Divide mixture evenly into each of the collards, folding the leaf over the mixture and placing it down in a casserole dish. Once all 10 pieces are placed in the dish, pour the sauce over the stuffed collards and bake for 20 minutes at 350° F. Can serve with some grated parmesan cheese.

1. Put both flours in a large bowl and make a well. Add the eggs to the well along with the oil and salt. Mix with fork blending everything together until you see a crumbly mixture. Mix and squeeze with your hands to bring it together into a ball. Knead for 7 minutes. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, make the vegetables.
2. Slice the yellow squash, zucchini, carrots and all the peppers in julienne strips. Cut the onion into regular slices. (Reserve the tomatoes and beans) Mix with 1/2 cup of olive oil and the italian seasonings along with salt and pepper to taste. Roast in a high sided cookie sheet or pan in the middle of the oven at 450°F for about 20 minutes. (A convection oven works great!)
3. At this time start cutting the pasta into spaghetti. An electric pasta machine takes less time! (Put a large pot of salted water on the stove to boil)
4. Add the tomatoes which have been cut in half. Cook for another 20 minutes or when almost fork tender. They are done! (Add the beans during the last 5 minutes of cooking). Put the cooked, drained pasta in a large bowl. Drain the juices from the roasted vegetables onto the pasta and then put the roasted vegetables on top. (If vegetables seem dry add 1/2 can of the stock or pasta water to the vegetables before putting it on the pasta). Sprinkle with grated cheese. ENJOY!

1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot set over moderately high heat. Add the diced onion, carrots, red bell pepper, garlic and jalapeño, and sauté until the carrots are tender, 6–8 minutes. Add the butternut squash and the spices, and sauté for 2 minutes more. Add tomatoes, water, garbanzo beans, bulgur and vinegar, and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-high and cook, uncovered, until the bulgur and the butternut squash are tender and the mixture has thickened, stirring often, 20–25 minutes. Ladle chili into bowls, garnish as desired (optional) and serve hot!

1. Place shrimp and garlic in a Ziploc® bag. Add all but 2 tablespoons of the lime juice. Massage bag to evenly distribute. Let sit in refrigerator for a few hours, or at room temperature for 20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, mix remaining lime juice with mango, avocado, onion, cilantro and jalapeño in a large bowl. Mix in salt.
3. Heat large skillet over medium-high heat. Spray with olive oil cooking spray. Add shrimp and cook until done, about 4 minutes. Warm tortillas in microwave on a plate covered with damp towel for 30 seconds.
4. Place 3 shrimp on each tortilla. Spoon 1/4 cup shredded cabbage, and a few tablespoons mango salsa on each. Serve with hot sauce if desired.

1. Curry: Sauté diced onion in 3 tablespoons olive oil until caramelized, add ginger and garlic and sauté for 1 minute more. Add curry, turmeric, cumin, 1 bay leaf and oregano and brown for about 1–2 minutes. Add can tomatoes, 1/2 cup water, cauliflower, sweet potatoes and green and red peppers. Bring to boil, turn down heat and simmer about 25 minutes. Add garbanzo beans and raisins, mix, then add can of coconut milk. Bring to a boil, turn down heat and simmer about 5 minutes until thick. Add frozen peas. Remove bay leaf and remove from heat.
2. Rice: Put 1 1/2 cups brown rice in sauce pan with about 3 cups of water, 1 tablespoon turmeric, 1 tablespoon garlic powder and 1 bay leaf. Bring to boil, turn down and simmer on low about 25–30 minutes.
3. Ratia: Peel, seed and grate cucumber, add about 1 teaspoon cumin to taste, juice of about half a lemon, salt and pepper. Taste and adjust flavor.
4. Chop cilantro. Serve curry over rice with ratia and cilantro as garnish.

1. Meatballs: Preheat oven to 350° F. In a sauté pan, cook the garlic and onion until translucent. In a bowl, combine the beef, ricotta and spinach. Add the garlic and onion and mix lightly. Season with salt and pepper (at this point, you can test fry a small piece for seasoning). Form meatballs approximately 2 inches in diameter. Return the meatballs to the pan and brown on all sides, then finish in the oven for 20 minutes.
2. Sauce: In a sauté pan, cook the onions and garlic until translucent. Add the chopped tomatoes and season with salt and pepper to taste.
   
   Zucchini: Steam the zucchini in a steamer basket or in a small amount of water until just barely cooked—"al dente."
3. To serve: In warm bowls, twirl a generous amount of the zucchini pasta. Top with 4 meatballs, the warm tomato sauce and a chiffonade of basil.
4. Shaved parmesan on the side.