Vegetarian Diet
A balanced vegetarian diet can be super healthy
Vegetable Soup with Pasta
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium-size onion, diced
1 medium-size, fresh red bell pepper, diced
1 large garlic clove, minced
2 medium-size carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
3 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
1 cup diced tomatoes (from the can)
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cups tiny broccoli florets
3 cups shredded escarole
1 to 2 cups cooked elbow macaroni
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Over medium heat, warm oil in a soup pot. Add diced onions and sauté 3 minutes.
2. Add diced red pepper and carrots. Sauté 3 minutes.
3. Stir in tomatoes, broth and water. Bring to boil.
4. Stir in basil, parsley, salt and black pepper. Simmer for 6-7 min.
5. Add escarole and simmer about 5 minutes.
6. Add broccoli, simmer 3 minutes.
7. Stir in cooked macaroni, adjust seasoning, cover and turn off the heat.
8. Serve hot with grated Parmesan if desired.
Makes 5 to 6 servings.
Vegetarian Tips:
Buy an array of colorful fruits and vegetables as fresh as possible to get the full range of protective vitamins and minerals before they have chance to deteriorate. For this reason, as well as for economy, get into the habit of shopping and eating seasonally when fruits and vegetables are at their best and cheapest.
Experiment with fresh herbs like dill, basil or tarragon. They'll work wonders as seasonings and let you cut back on using salt.
Complex carbohydrates are economical, tasty, and they will fill you up while adding valuable vitamins and minerals to your diet. They should make up about 50% of your daily energy intake.
RomWell Cookbook
Discover various delicious and useful recipes...Did You Know?
Onions are cultivated around the world for over 7,000 years, and their geographic origin is uncertain, but it is thought to be of central Asian origin. Some ancient records of using onions span western and eastern Asia with likely domestication worldwide.
Onion was certainly cultivated by the Egyptians as far back as 3200 BC. Egyptians made offerings of onions to their gods, took oats on an onion, they used onions as part of the mummification process and depicted the onions frequently in their tomb paintings. The ancient Egyptians also traded eight tones of gold for onions to feed builders of the pyramids. The builders of the famous pyramids at Giza were reputed to have been paid partly in onions.
Old folk healers have advocated onions as a "heart healer" and remedy for hundreds of other medical conditions including treatment of infections, wounds, curing baldness and the common cold. There is no scientific evidence to support all the claims, but some new researchers have now confirmed that an organic compound in onions, called ADENOSINE, functions as an anticoagulating agent as effective as aspirin.