These are so good. They are more of a treat than a healthy snack but that hasn’t stopped them from disappearing from my kitchen in less than 2 days! Every time I turn my head another muffin goes missing. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Recipe adapted from Food52.

Makes 20 muffins

• 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1 egg
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
• 1/3 cup molasses
• 1/2 cup buttermilk (if you don’t have buttermilk use just under 1/2 cup milk+1 tbsp white vinegar or lemon juice)
• 1/4 cup candied ginger, chopped
• 1 tbsp vanilla
• 2 tbsp dark spiced rum
• 1/2 cup raisins, *soak in rum/vanilla for 1 hour before using
• 1/3 cup pepitas
• 1 tbsp brown sugar+1 tsp cinnamon for topping

1. Preheat the oven to 350
2. in a large bowl mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg.
3. in a medium bowl whisk together the egg, pumpkin, sugar, coconut oil, molasses and buttermilk.
4. combine the wet ingredients with the dry.
5. add the candied ginger and raisins.
6. stir until just combined. Do not over mix.
7. distribute the batter evenly amongst 2 muffin tins making 20 muffins.
8. sprinkle with cinnamon/sugar mixture.
9. bake for 30-33 minutes.

*Note: If you want to make this recipe into a loaf simply add an extra 2 tbsp coconut oil and bake in a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan. Bake for 40-45 minutes.

Thanks to Antiques on Queen  for the beautiful dishes used in this post.

A few weeks back I had a large amount of limes come into my possession (thanks dad!). We were spending the week at his place; when I mentioned I needed a lime for a recipe I was planning on making, he came home with the biggest bag of limes I had ever seen. They have now been sitting in my fridge for a while and the thought of them going bad was enough to get me searching for the perfect recipes to use up this overabundance of limes. Here was one of my favourites, recipe adapted from the nourishing gourmet

• 3 eggs
• 1-2 tbsp fresh grated ginger
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1/2 cup lime juice
• 6 tbsp coconut oil, melted then cooled to room temp
• splash of vanilla

In a medium pot whisk together the eggs, ginger and honey over medium heat. Stir in the lime juice, coconut oil and vanilla. Continue to whisk until the mixture thickens and small bubbles start to pop to the surface. You now have two options, you can leave it as is or scrape through a fine sieve placed over a bowl. It has a stronger ginger flavour if you skip the sieve but it will not be as smooth.

To serve: This tastes great warm or cold. It will thicken once refrigerated and should last up to a week in the fridge. Serve alone or topped with whipped coconut cream or with some fresh meringue.

This recipe is adapted (barely) from one of my favourite new cookbooks Thug Kitchen. I love every recipe in this book and have been obsessively cooking and eating my way through it.

• 2 cups wild rice blend or brown rice
• 2 tsp safflower oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 tbsp fresh grated ginger
• 1/2 cup green chilies, diced. Can use canned or fresh
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 2 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp chipotle chili powder
• 1 ripe mango, in bite sized pieces
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• zest and juice of 1 lime
• fresh cilantro to top

Rinse the rice. In a medium pot heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until tender about 3 minutes. Stir in the ginger and cook for 30 seconds. Add the rice and cook for 2 minutes, keep stirring every so often. Add the coconut milk, broth, salt, and chili powder. Stir to combine. Bring to a simmer. Give another quick stir then cover and reduce heat to low (you want it to be at a low simmer) cook for 30-40 minutes or until most of the liquid has absorbed. When the rice has finished coking fold in the chillies, beans, mango, lime zest and juice. Let it all cook for another minute then serve topped with cilantro….and maybe a little sriracha.

Where’s the meat? If you are one of those people who don’t think dinner is complete without some meat, this dish would be great paired with chicken or a white fish such as tilapia, halibut, hake, haddock, sole, cod or flounder

I’m so excited about this soup! Not just because it’s delicious but because it marks the beginning of fall cooking in my home. Hello yummy homemade soups and stews and chili and pot pies and and and…..oh how I love cold weather cooking!!!

Serves 6-8

• 1 large cooking onion
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 4 cobs of corn, corn removed from cob
• 2 large red potato, chopped into small bite sized pieces
• 1 tbsp ginger, grated
• 1 jalapeño, seeded and diced
• 1 stalk of lemongrass, minced or grated
• 1 litre of low sodium veg broth
• 1 can of coconut milk
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
• 1 lime, juiced
• safflower oil for frying
• salt and pepper to taste
• pickled jalapeño for topping
• avocado for topping

In a large pot over med-high heat, add the safflower oil. Let it heat for a minute then add the onions. Sauté for about 5 minutes, until tender and beginning to brown. Add the garlic, corn and potato. Cook stirring frequently for about 10 minutes or until the potato is tender. Add the ginger, jalapeño and lemongrass. Cook for 4-5 minutes. Add the broth. Cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes. Add the coconut milk and cilantro. Bring back to a boil then remove from heat. Using an immersion blender give the chowder a few good pulses. Add the lime juice and season with salt and pepper. Serve topped with pickled jalapeño and some diced avocado. Enjoy!

*Want to mix it up a bit? Try adding any of the following to your chowder-

• shredded chicken
• diced tomato, for topping
• swap out the potato for cauliflower
• sriracha instead of the pickled jalapeño

2 tbsp butter

2 chicken thighs,chopped then shredded

1 medium onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 heaping tbsp fresh grated ginger

3 tbsp Thai green curry paste

2 cups crimini mushrooms, chopped

1 cup kale, chopped

4 cups chicken stock

1-2 large handfuls Thai Rice Stick Noodles

1/2 or 1 can coconut milk depending on how creamy you like it.

1 tbsp fish sauce

1/2 stalk lemon grass, minced

1 1/2 limes, juice of

1 heaping cup cilantro, finely minced

*note: Spice this soup up a bit by adding 1-2 tbsp of thai chili sauce or sriracha.

Melt the butter over med high heat in a large pot. Add the chicken and cook for 2-3 minutes or until the chicken has changed colour, remove chicken from the pot. Let cool slightly and shred, set aside. Add the onions and saute until translucent. Add the garlic, ginger and curry paste. Return the shredded chicken to the pot. Cook for one minute then add the mushrooms and kale. Cook until softened but not mushy. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add the rice noodles, cook for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Add the coconut milk, fish sauce and lemon grass, let it simmer for about 6 minutes. Stir in the lime juice and cilantro. Cook for one more minute then remove from heat and serve.

*Best served with a side of Beer Bread!

Caitlin is my oldest friend. We grew up on the same street and were pretty much inseparable for much of our childhood. We lost touch after high school but reunited by chance years later. Since then we have remained close.

Last year Caitlin moved to the UK with her partner Owen. This past Christmas to my delight they came home for a visit. I decided to take advantage of the little time we had and asked Caitlin if she would come cook with me.

Caitlin is a life long vegetarian and a wonderful cook; I was more than eager to learn one of her regular dishes. The night Caitlin was supposed to come cook with me just so happened to be one of the coldest days this winter has offered us here in Toronto – so of course our pipes decided it was as good a time as any to freeze. Thankfully Danie lives next door and graciously offered her home for us to cook. In the end it worked out to my advantage – I got my cooking lesson and enjoyed an amazing meal along with great company, minus the clean up and dishes! Thank you Caitlin (and Danie) for such a wonderful night.

6 large portions 

1 tbsp coconut oil or ghee

2 medium onions, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp fresh grated ginger

1 tbsp curry paste, hot or mild depending on how much heat you like.

1 tbsp ground coriander

2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp cumin seeds, toasted and ground

1 tsp garam masala

1 can of diced tomato, with juice

2/3 cup water or veg broth

2 cans of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

Heat the coconut oil or ghee in a large skillet. Add the onion, garlic, ginger and saute over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until browned. Reduce heat to medium-low and add the curry paste, coriander, cumin, cumin seeds and garam masala. Cook the onion mixture with the spices for a few minutes then add the tomatoes with the juices making sure to scrape up any bits that may be sticking to the skillet. Now add the water or veg broth and chickpeas. Simmer for 30-45 min, the longer the better.You may need to add a little more water or broth, depending on simmer time ( don't let it dry out )

Rice, cook according to package

Topping:

2 ripe tomato, chopped

1 red onion, diced

1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

1 lemon, juice of

salt and pepper, to taste

In a medium bowl mix together the tomato, onion, cilantro, lemon, salt and pepper.

To serve, On a plate add some rice, dish up the channa and top with a heaping spoonful of tomato, onion and cilantro. Finish it off with a dollop of organic plain yogurt. Oh and don't forget the super easy to make and delisious naan bread! Enjoy.

Recipe adapted from BEARD & BONNET

• 1 package GF rice noodles
• 8 cups sodium free vegetable broth
• 1/4 cup Tamari GF soy sauce
• 2  Tbsp grated or minced ginger
• 4 1/2 cups assorted veg, I used shredded carrot, cabbage, sugar snap peas, crimini mushrooms, thin strips of red pepper, broccoli flouretts, bean sprouts and baby bok choi
• 1/2 cup left over water from cooking the noodles

Garnish:

• fresh chopped cilantro
• sesame oil
• sesame seeds
• hard boiled egg
• sriracha hot sauce

In a med sized pot add the veg broth, soy sauce and ginger. Stir. Over med/high heat let the flavours come together. In a separate pot cook the noodles according to package ( do not over cook ). While the pasta is cooking add the veg to the broth, allow to cook for about 2 min. Once the pasta is finished cooking reserve 1/2 cup of the starchy water then drain the noodles and rinse with cold water. Set aside. Add the starchy water to the veg and broth let cook for another min then remove from heat.

To serve. Divide the noodles into bowls. Drizzle with a little sesame oil now ladle on the broth and veg. Top with a sliced hardboiled egg some sesame seeds, fresh cilantro and a couple dashes of hot sauce. Enjoy!!