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Cashew Stuffed Mushrooms with Pesto

Cashew Stuffed Mushrooms with Pesto

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I made this appetizer for my work Christmas Party.  This is a simple recipe with rich and creamy flavors.  I used the pesto cubes I froze last week.  I make cashew cheese to replace dairy in many of my savory recipes.  Cashews are an excellent source of magnesium, copper, manganese, tryptophan and mono-unsaturated fats.  Magnesium is great for bone and muscle health preventing muscle spasm and low bone density.  Copper is used for antioxidant defense, energy production and bone and vessel health.  Tryptophan is an amino acid that is particularly important in serotonin production for mood stability.  The mono-unsaturated fats found in cashews are very healthy for your heart.  The particular mono-unsaturated fatty acid found in cashews is called oleic acid, which is also found in olive oil.  Research has found these to be extremely cardioprotective, particularly in people with diabetes.  The nutritional yeast I used  is a rich source of Vitamin B12, essential in preventing anemia particularly in the vegetarian and vegan lifestyles.

Enjoy!

Servings: 30 Mushrooms

1 cup raw cashews
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
3 cloves garlic
30 mushrooms
1/2 cup pesto
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.  For the cashew cheese, in a food processor, combine the cashews, water, nutritional yeast, sea salt and garlic and blend until evenly combined.
  2. Remove the stem from the mushrooms and put them cavity up on a lightly olive oiled baking sheet.  Spoon the cashew cheese into the cavity and then dollop pesto on top.  Drizzle the olive oil over the prepared mushrooms and then place in preheated oven and bake until mushrooms are tender and filling is light golden, approximately 20 minutes.
  3. Serve hot or cool.  I thinly sliced basil and sprinkled it over the mushrooms and then drizzled olive oil over the baked mushrooms to garnish.

 

 

 

 

Pesto

Pesto

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Pesto brings back so many summer memories from my  childhood.  Grandma Schilter taught me how to pick the basil so I wouldn’t uproot the plant.  Our fingers would stain green and had the delicious and fresh aroma of basil.  I started making her recipe and now I have modified it to remove dairy and add a variety of different herbs and greens.  I like to add kale, arugula,  and Italian parsley in addition to the basil.  I will also make pesto with just parsley and arugula for the greens.  Use what you have on hand to make it easy.  I often encourage my patients to eat more green leafy vegetables.  These vegetables are rich in calcium, magnesium, and Vitamin K, which are great for bone and muscle health.   I will use pine nuts, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, pecans or cashews depending on the nuts and seeds I have on hand as well.  Nuts and seeds are rich in omega 6 fatty acids, Omega 3 fatty acids, found mostly in walnuts, and vitamins and minerals. This recipe is a great way to incorporate more greens into your diet.  Dollop it over fresh baked cod, halibut, chicken or tofu.  I will also add it to quinoa, rice, or vegetables.  I typically quadruple this recipe and will freeze the extra in ice cube trays for later use.   Have fun with all the ways you will enjoy pesto.

Enjoy!

Yield: 1 cup

1 cup fresh packed basil
1 cup packed arugula, kale (stems removed) or Italian parsley (stems removed)
1/3 cup walnuts
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 large cloves garlic
sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

  1. In a food processor or high powered blender, pulse the walnuts, garlic and greens until coarsely chopped.
  2. Add the lemon juice then slowly add the the olive oil in a thin stream while the food processor or blender is on.  Scrape the sides of the processor occasionally until the pesto is evenly blended.
  3. Sprinkle the salt and fresh ground pepper in the pesto to taste.

 

Tony’s Perfect Protein Smoothie

Tony’s Perfect Protein Smoothie

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In honor of my husbands birthday, I wanted to share one of the recipes he makes for me most mornings.  In addition to being a fast and delicious breakfast, smoothies can pack a powerful nutrient punch. I like to add chia seeds for their great source of omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, fiber, and protein.  If  you have a child or adult in the family that needs to gain weight, substitute canned coconut milk  for the rice milk.  Also, add avocado and more nut or seed butter to increase healthy fat to the shake.  Add other greens such as kale, Swiss chard and beet greens for a good source of iron, calcium, magnesium and Vitamin K.  If you have a high powered blender, put fresh greens directly into the blender after rinsing.  If you do not, just rinse the greens, dry them on a towel, chop them into 1 inch stripes and freeze.  Freezing the greens will cause the cells to expand and burst open, allowing for the greens to blend into a fine powder and also allows you to access the nutrients within the greens much easier.  I also like to add nutritional yeast or Brewer’s yeast buds for a great source of B vitamins and minerals.  Nutritional yeast is an excellent source of Vitamin B12 for those individuals who do not eat meat.

Enjoy!

Serving size: approximately 3 cups

1 1/2 cups unsweetened rice milk
1/2 cup frozen blueberries or mixed berries
1/2 bananna
1 cup packed fresh spinach
1 tablespoon chia seeds
1 tablespoon nut or seed butter of your choice
1 teaspoon nutritional yeast or brewers yeast buds if on hand

Blend all ingredients until smooth and serve.