Ketchup can get healthier, and under 5 minutes!

Ketchup is the mother of all condiments. It’s sweet and salty and pairs with just about anything,  even when the combo seems intuitively odd. I, for instance, have long praised the healing powers of ketchup and white rice, and a friend of mine can’t bear to eat scrambled eggs without it. Ketchup has carved an indelible spot in our food psyches – it’s a classic that some estimates claim can be found in 97% of U.S. households.

Tracing its origins to China, Ketchup was first introduced in the U.S. in 1837. By 1900, ketchup was sold by more than 100 manufacturers. In 1872, HJ Heinz introduced his version of the condiment at the Philadelphia Fair, and to this day, the recipe has remained unchanged. Over the years, first for sanitary reasons and later for marketing’s sake, the FDA has developed strict guidelines concerning the consistency of ketchup and ingredients in it.

Behind the classic lies not so uplifting stats. Ingredients in Heinz Ketchup include tomato concentrate, distilled vinegar, high-fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, salt, spice, onion powder, and natural flavoring. While the list is relatively simple, high-fructose corn syrup is a known culprit, so much to the point that many are beginning to backfire, claiming it is “unfairly maligned.” Truth is, it deserves the flack!

In a 2010 Princeton University study, researchers found that high-fructose corn syrup leads to considerable weight gain, at a rate higher than other sweeteners. According to the study, which was administered on rats, those fed high-fructose corn syrup gained much more weight than those fed table sugar, even with the same caloric intake. The lab animals on a long-term high-fructose corn syrup diet experience abnormal increases in body fat, especially in the belly. Researchers noted that even rats on a high-fat diet don’t gain weight to that extent.

In 1 tablespoon of Heinz Ketchup, there are 20 calories, 160 milligrams of sodium, 6 grams carbohydrates, and 4 grams of sugar. The benefits deriving from the plum tomatoes are outweighed by the compounding calorie, sodium, and sugar dosages. Whoever just stops at 1 tablespoon? A few tablespoons in, and you’ve got yourself a condiment that threatens meal-status.

A condiment should never derail a diet, but many of us don’t know when to stop dipping, because serving sizes are never that clean cut. That’s why I’ve put together this simple homemade ketchup that you can whip up without laboring over the stove, risking your fries going frigid.

Using the same elements – tomatoes, sweetener, and vinegar – I’ve upped the ante on their health benefits. Maple syrup is one of the healthiest sweeteners on the market, with a lower glycemic index than other mainstream sugars. Apple cider vinegar, especially one that is indicated as “raw,” is full of vitamins, minerals, pectin, and beta-carotene. It also boasts many benefits – treats sunburn, helps weight loss, removes teeth stains, cures severe acne, treats digestive ailments, fights allergies, and reduces cholesterol.

Enjoy!

2-minute Homemade Ketchup

Makes just over 1 cup

Ingredients:

• 1 cup tomato paste
• 1 tbsp maple syrup (or agave)
• 1/4 tsp mustard
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 cup water

Directions:

Combine all ingredients and mix until smooth. No cooking required!

Add lukewarm water by the teaspoon to reach the consistency you crave.

Serve aside sweet potato French fries or lather on top of a vegan chickpea burger!

Bon Appetit!

Aylin Erman currently resides in Istanbul and is creator of plant-based recipe website GlowKitchen.

Images: Overthinking Me, Aylin Erman

The post Nutritional Breakdown: Revamping America’s Favorite Condiment: Ketchup [Recipe] appeared first on EcoSalon.

No shame with this figure-friendly vegan cheese dip.

Dips and sauces are dangerous territory. Sure, they seem harmless in that they are technically only condiments, but they often contain too many fats and calories to warrant another tablespoon. One of the biggest party-time offenders is cheese dip. You know what I’m talking about. It’s the kind you squeeze, pump, or ladle onto popcorn, burgers and nachos. It has a tacky light orange color that you know can’t be natural, but despite it all, you’re addicted.

This recipe is a great way to enjoy a classic cheese dip without the hard-to-digest dairy and the overload of calories and fat concentrated in a small serving.  And with the simplicity and lightness of this recipe, you don’t have to feel guilty about being a cheese dip hog. Cauliflower is a great source of vitamin C and manganese, which help protect from free radical damage and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer. Cauliflower is also a rich source of the anti-inflammatory vitamin K as well as omega-3 fatty acids. It promotes brain and heart health, is packed with fiber, and is also a good source of thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, pyridoxine, folic acid, proteins, phosphorus and potassium.

Feel free to garnish the dip with chopped scallions, herbs, or spices. It’s a basic recipe that is open to experimentation. Have fun with it!

Vegan White Cheese Party Dip

Servings vary

Ingredients:

• 1 head of cauliflower
• 2 tablespoons vegan butter (Earth Balance)
• 2 teaspoons mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

Directions:

Remove the florets and their stems from the cauliflower. Over medium heat, simmer them in water for about 15 minutes. Drain the cooked cauliflower and rinse under cold water. Combine it in a food processor with the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth.

Serve this dip aside tortilla chips or crudités or dollop a few tablespoons into a burrito or on top of nachos.

Bon Appetit!

Aylin Erman currently resides in Istanbul and is creator of plant-based recipe website GlowKitchen.

The post Recipe: Vegan White Cheese Party Dip appeared first on EcoSalon.

When thinking of a healthy french fry, think zucchini. When thinking of eating this at a McDonalds, wait for pigs to fly.

French fries seem easy enough – just a matter of potatoes and frying oil, right? Wrong. The kind of fast-food fries we’re used to aren’t as straightforward as they seem. McDonald’s French Fries contain the likes of natural beef flavor (wheat and milk derivatives), citric acid, dextrose, sodium acid pyrophosphate, hydrogenated oils, stabilizer tertiary butylhydroquinone, and anti-foaming agent dimethylopolysiloxane. Many of these artificial ingredients are dangerous in large quantities and overall toxic in your body.

One medium serving (117 grams) of McDonald’s French Fries packs 380 calories, 19 grams of fat, 270 milligrams of sodium, and 48 grams of carbohydrates. With one serving accounting for nearly 30 percent of your daily value of fat, the 5 grams of dietary fiber and vitamin C calcium, and iron quantities, albeit scant to begin with, are vastly overshadowed. The carbohydrate count isn’t doing any favors to your waistline either.

With these stats, there is room for a serious makeover. To lower the fat, this recipe requires baking the fries, which are lightly coated with olive oil. I also used zucchini as the base to slash the carbohydrate load. Zucchini won’t crisp quite like a potato when baked, but it will firm slightly and taste absolutely crave-worthy. The corn flour helps to achieve a crispy brown coating, but if you want a firmer fry, replace the zucchini with a sweet potato or white potato. Regardless of how you alter the base vegetable or ratio of spices, you are bound to end up with a healthier alternative to the Micky D’s classic.

Spicy Zucchini Fries

Serves 1-2

Ingredients:

• 1 large zucchini
• 1/4 cup corn flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/8 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cut off both ends of the zucchini and slice it along its length into 1/2-inch pieces.

Set aside one of the rounded edge slices and turn zucchini onto its side so it is lying flat. Again, slice lengthwise into 1/2-inch thick pieces to create French fries shapes.

In a medium bowl, toss zucchini strips with corn flour, salt, pepper, turmeric, oregano, red pepper flakes, and olive oil until each fry is evenly coated with the spices and oil.

Lay fries out on a baking sheet so each has its own place.

Bake for 45 minutes or until browned and slightly crisped. Serve with herbs and ketchup!

Bon Appetit!

Aylin Erman currently resides in Istanbul and is creator of plant-based recipe website GlowKitchen.

The post Nutritional Breakdown: Revamping the McDonald’s French Fry appeared first on EcoSalon.

The strawberry comes out of the shortcake and onto your next salad.

As Summer approaches, fresh salads are looking a lot more appetizing. For me, the only way salads don’t get old fast, is if I have a steady arsenal of dressings at my disposal. With strawberries coming into season, what better time to make a homemade version of strawberry balsamic vinaigrette?

For this vinaigrette, I roast the veggies to optimize their flavor before mixing them with the rest of the ingredients. The sweet and savory elements of this dressing work perfectly together, so it’s really no wonder why mass marketing has caught on and packaged it. Sure you could easily snatch this off any grocery store shelf, but nothing beats homemade (especially when it’s this easy to make).

Strawberries pack more than just taste. They are rich in antioxidants, fight against inflammatory disorders, prevent cancer, promote healthy eyes, contain 136% of the RDA of vitamin C in just one cup, and contribute to bone health. Strawberries are also an excellent source of magnesium, which helps to reduce cardiovascular disease.

Roasted Strawberry Balsamic Vinaigrette

Makes 1.5 cups

Ingredients:

• 2 cups strawberries
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tsp mustard
• 1 tsp honey
• 1 garlic clove
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper

Directions:

Stem 2 cups of strawberries and slice each in half.

Place on a baking sheet and pop into the oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 25 minutes, or until the strawberries caramelize and soften.

Allow the strawberries to cool down. When they reach room temperature, combine them in a food processor with the remaining ingredients.

Blend until smooth. Chill before serving.

It will be hard to refrain from drinking this like a smoothie.

Bon Appetit!

Aylin Erman currently resides in Istanbul and is creator of plant-based recipe website GlowKitchen.

The post Recipe: Roasted Strawberry Balsamic Vinaigrette appeared first on EcoSalon.

Sarah clued us in on the wonders of the artichoke, and since the season’s first spiny lovelies are just appearing in the market, here’s a simple, streamlined recipe to inspire you.

Artichokes make a great appetizer or side dish. These accompanied sautéed petrale sole and roasted potatoes. The roasted artichokes make a great base for risotto, pasta, or pizza, as well.

This recipe calls for small or medium artichokes, not the giant globe kind. These smaller artichokes are easier to prepare, as the choke is not fully developed. When trimming artichokes, it may seem wasteful to take so many of the outer leaves off, but you really can’t eat them, so compost them! This recipe easily expands to serve more people. Green garlic is simply young garlic, picked before the cloves are fully developed. It’s a special, short season treat and it has a milder flavor than mature garlic. Like artichokes it is a harbinger of spring so the two make a great pair. You will need two lemons total. If Meyer lemons are available, use those, as they are perfect for this recipe. And of course, use organic ingredients from your local farmers’ market whenever you can. And for all you anchovy haters (or vegetarians) out there, yes, you can leave out the anchovies if you must but they do add a special something.

Roasted Artichokes with Lemon Anchovy Caper Vinaigrette

Serves 2

For artichokes:

2 medium or 8 baby artichokes
1 lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
Salt

For the vinaigrette:

2 – 3 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely chopped green garlic (use regular garlic if green garlic is not in season, but use only 1-2 teaspoons)
1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot
1 heaping half teaspoon capers, finely chopped
1 anchovy filet, finely chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

To prepare the artichokes:

Ready a bowl large enough to accommodate the artichokes and fill it with water. Squeeze the lemon into the water, reserving the rind. Cut off the bottom 1/2 inch of the artichoke stems and discard. Cut off the top 1/2 inch of the artichokes.

As you work, rub the artichokes with the lemon flesh still clinging to the reserved rind. Working from the bottom up, bend back the outer leaves until they snap off close to base, discarding them as you go, until you reach the tender, light yellow-green leaves. Continue to rub with lemon occasionally.

With a paring knife, trim the dark green outer layer from the base and stem. Halve the artichokes lengthwise if using babies, and quarter if using medium artichokes. If the choke is furry, scoop it out with a spoon. It might not have developed yet. Drop the artichokes into lemon water as you work.

To cook:

When all the artichokes are prepped, drain them, pat them dry and toss them with the olive oil, the sliced garlic, and salt to taste. Transfer them to a roasting pan or baking sheet and roast in a single layer for 15-20 minutes (for baby artichokes) or 30-40 minutes (for medium artichokes), or until they are tender and beginning to brown.

Meanwhile, make the vinaigrette:

Whisk together the lemon juice, green or regular garlic, shallot, capers, anchovies, parsley, olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste.

Serve the artichokes warm or room temperature drizzled with the vinaigrette.

Recipe Copyright 2009 Vanessa Barrington

Note: use organic, local ingredients whenever possible.

Image: FotoosVanRobin

The post Ecosalon Recipes: Roasted Artichokes with Lemon Anchovy Caper Vinaigrette appeared first on EcoSalon.