Thanks to Christine Waltermyer & The Natural Kitchen Cooking School!
Christine Waltermyer is a local and renowned Wellness Chef, private chef to celebrities, published cookbook author and founder of the Natural Kitchen Cooking School, which offers an online Plant-Based Cooking Program. She also loves shopping at Basil Bandwagon! Visit naturalkitchenschool.com to subscribe to her email newsletter for new recipes, tips, and FREE access to the Power of Veggies mini-course!
Happy Earth Month! Let’s talk about food waste. Did you know every year, each American throws out about 1,200 pounds of organic garbage that could be composted? There are other ways to decrease this amount (other than simply composting). One way is to use your food scraps to make another recipe! Check out this Earth friendly Broccoli Stem Stir Fry recipe thanks to Christine Waltermyer and The Natural Kitchen Cooking School. All ingredients can be found at your local Basil Bandwagon Natural Market.
2cupscarrotssliced into rounds or "lozenges" (I refer to this as the ribbon cut in my video)
2cupspeeled broccoli stemssliced
½cupscallionssliced
¼cupbroth
2tablespoonscoconut aminos
2teaspoonslemon juice
1tablespoonmaple syrup
Sea salt to taste
Instructions
Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the broth and heat it briefly.
Add the carrots and a few drops of the coconut aminos. Cook and stir for a minute or two. Add the broccoli stems. Cook and stir for another minute or two.
Add the remaining coconut aminos, scallions, maple syrup, and lemon juice. Cook and stir for a minute. Cover and cook for a few more minutes. Continue cooking to your desired tenderness. Depending how long you cook this, you may need to add a splash of water or more coconut aminos to prevent the vegetables from sticking to the pan. If needed, adjust seasoning to taste by adding a little more seasoning.
Plate and serve warm. Enjoy!
Thank you to Christine Waltermyer and the Natural Kitchen Cooking School for working with us to help promote healthy, nutritious meals and products that are affordable, full of nutrients, and simple to make at home!
Christine Waltermyer is a local Wellness Chef, private chef to celebrities, published cookbook author and founder of the Natural Kitchen Cooking School, which offers an online Plant-Based Cooking Program. She also loves shopping at Basil Bandwagon! Visit naturalkitchenschool.com to get your FREE copy of her cookbook, “7 Days of Deliciousness.”
During this quarantine, everyone’s starting to feel a little anxious to get outside and get back to our normal everyday routine. Meals are starting to get dull, home-schooling might be overwhelming at times, and you might feel like the house can’t get any cleaner after scrubbing it down since Quarantine Day 1. So why not switch up your meals with Christine Waltermyer?! Her recipes are absolutely delicious and simple to make at home. Her videos are helpful to follow along with too! Check out some of them below!
Immunity Broth
Makes about 12 cups
Ingredients
2 6-inch pieces of kombu seaweed
8 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms
1 – 2 teaspoons dried astragalus root
3 cloves garlic
A few sprigs fresh thyme
1 onion (red or yellow), chopped into 4 pieces
1 burdock root, cut into a few pieces
4 small carrots, chopped in half
3 stalks celery, chopped in half
1 bunch parsley
Fresh ginger (about 3 inches) (optional)
Sea salt (optional)
Water to cover everything
Method
1. In a large soup pot, place all ingredients. Add enough water to cover everything. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Lower heat to simmer for one hour, covered. Strain the broth through a strainer. Use in soups, cooking rice or as a warm drink on its own!
Creamy Carrot Soup
Serves 6
Ingredients
2 parsnips, peeled and chopped
5 carrots, scrubbed really well and/or peeled
1 bunch scallions
20 ounces chopped butternut squash (or 1 medium butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and cut up)
13.66 ounce can coconut milk
Vegetable broth to cover the vegetables, or about 5 cups
1 teaspoon sea salt
Equipment: Immersion blender or regular blender
Method
1. Place the squash in a soup pot. Chop the parsnips, then the carrots and add both of them to the pot. (Remove any bad spots.) Remove the white bottoms from the scallions. Chop them up and add to the pot. Reserve the green part for garnish. Add the coconut milk to the pot. Then add the vegetable broth, making sure it covers the vegetables. Use more or less to just cover them.
2. Place the pot over medium high heat. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to simmer on low, covered, for 25 minutes or until all vegetables are fork-tender.
3. Chop the green part of the scallions to use for a soup garnish.
4. Add about 1 teaspoon of sea salt to the soup. Blend the cooked soup by using the immersion blender to blend right in the pot. OR, carefully transfer the cooked soup to a blender and carefully blend until smooth.
Mixed Leafy Greens Stir-Fry
Serves 6-8
Ingredients
1 small head napa cabbage, cut in half length-wise
1 bunch scallions
1 leek
1 baby bok choy
5 leaves green kale
1 tablespoon olive oil
Splash of water
Sea salt
Optional Ingredients: Chopped ginger, minced garlic, coconut aminos, crushed red pepper flakes, etc. for added flavor
Method
1. Wash all of the vegetables. Pull the kale leaves from the stems and rip up the leaves. If you want to use the stems be sure to chop them up finely. In this recipe I saved them for later use in making soup stock.
2. Chop off the end of the baby bok choy, and wash the leaves again under running water. Chop up into bite-sized pieces. For the napa cabbage, remove any outer leaves with bad spots. Remove the core from the bottom. Slice across the width into ½-inch slices, removing any bad spots you see. For the scallions, remove the little roots on the bottoms, then slice on a diagonal, about ½-inch pieces.
3. To cut the leek, slice in half length-wise. Rinse again under running water. Lay the flat cut side down on the cutting board. Slice into ½-inch size pieces.
4. Heat a large skillet or deep pan over medium heat. Add the olive oil, then the leeks. Add a little pinch of salt to help them soften. Cook for a few minutes, then add the kale. Cover and cook for another 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add another pinch of salt and a splash of water. Add all remaining ingredients, plus another splash of water if needed. Cover and steam for another few minutes, or just until all of the vegetables are tender but still bright green and not overcooked. Serve as is, or with your favorite dressing or an additional drizzle of olive oil and sea salt.
Thank you to Christine Waltermyer and the Natural Kitchen Cooking School for working with us to help promote healthy, nutritious meals and products that are affordable, full of nutrients, and simple to make at home!
Christine Waltermyer is a local Wellness Chef, private chef to celebrities, published cookbook author and founder of the Natural Kitchen Cooking School, which offers an online Plant-Based Cooking Program. She also loves shopping at Basil Bandwagon! Visit naturalkitchenschool.com to get your FREE copy of her cookbook, “7 Days of Deliciousness.”
1. Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic. A pinch of the salt helps the onions to soften.
2. Cook and stir for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the onions have softened. Add the sliced mushrooms, curry powder, remaining sea salt and turmeric.
3. Cook and stir for a few minutes, then cover for a few more minutes.
4. Uncover and add carrots and the coconut yogurt. Stir and cover, cooking for another minute.
5. Add the cabbage, Pumfu and broccoli. Cover and cook for another 5 minutes, or until the broccoli is tender but still bright green. Serve hot, over cooked quinoa or rice. Enjoy!
Thank you to Christine Waltermyer and the Natural Kitchen Cooking School for working with us to help promote healthy, nutritious meals and products that are affordable, full of nutrients, and simple to make at home!
