It has dawned on me in the last few days, that while diet is very important to healthy hair, no recipes are on this site for eating.  Summer is busy and fun...lots of good food is out there, but do we make quick healthy meals?

I would like to start up a forum for quick, healthy and inexpensive recipes for summer.  I will post a couple tomorrow.  I hope all take interest in this...I would love some healthy quick recipes...so I can have healthy hair and still have lots of time outside enjoying the summer.

As a tip, take asparagus, sprinkle with olive oil or spray with nonstick spray, put on BBQ for 5-10 minutes (depending on thickness), rotating regularily and enjoy asapagus with your meat/fish/chicken  on the BBQ with no extra dishes or hastles.  (keep the woody tips from the asapagus in the freezer over the summer to make great asparagus soup in the winter).

Cold Creamy Cucumber Soup

Serves 6


3 lb English cucumbers (approx. 4) peeled
1 ½ cups well shaken, chilled buttermilk
1 cup chilled sour cream
1/4 cup mild olive oil
2 1/4 tsp chopped fresh dill
2 1/4 tsp sugar
1 ½ tsp salt
1 tsp white wine vinegar
½ tsp balsamic vinegar


‒ Halve cucumbers lengthwise and remove seeds.  Coarsely chop cucumbers.
‒ Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl.
‒ Working in batches, puree mixture in blender approx. 30 secs till smooth.
‒ Season with salt and keep chilled till serving.


If made ahead of time and refrigerated soup may separate - just stir well before serving.

This takes about 10 minutes to make and about the same for clean up.  I love extra dill in it personally!!  And don't forget fresh cucumber sandwiches with light Helmans mayo, salt and pepper make a great, healthy, quick lunch!!!

Mmm, I do love shrimp and I do love watercress.  I see ingredients for next weeks shop to make this!!!  I will have to look up my watercress soup recipe.  It is the BEST, but takes a bit of time to make unfortunately.  It is worth it though...I will look it out.

Can't wait to try your recipe berkanna!!!

Wasabi Crusted Shrimp with Ginger Dip (LCBO recipe)

1/2 cup wasabi peas
1/2 tsp salt
1 lb shelled large shrimp
1 egg white
pinch salt
Freshly gound pepper
3 tbsp olive oil

Grind peas into poweder in a coffee grinder or food processor.

Sprinckle salt over shrimp.

Whisk egg white with a pinch of salt until foamy.  Add shrimp and toss to coat.  Hold shrimp by tails and dip into ground wasabi peas to coat the shrimp.  Season with salt and pepper.

Heat half of the oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add half of shrimp and fry for 1 to 2 minutes per side or until coating is crispy and shrimp are curled.  Repeat with remaining oil and shrimp.  Serve hot or cold with ginger dip.

Ginger dip
1/4 dup pickled ginger chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp chopped green onions
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp soy sauce

Combine all ingredients in small bowl and serve with shrimp.

I make extra ginger dip and keep it in the fridge in a tight jar.  It is great with shrimp rings, fried shrimp and just about any way you make shrimp.    I hope you all enjoy!!

Stuffed mushrooms

1 lb. large flat mushrooms
butter to grease
5 tbsp. olive oil
2 crushed garlic cloves
3 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley
1 cup breadcrumbs
salt and pepper to garnish, parsley to garnish

(optional: you can add seasoned, firm tofu to this to make it more of a main dish than appetizer)

preheat to 350, cut off mushroom stalks and keep them. Arrange mushrooms caps in shallow, buttered dish, gills pointing up. Heat oil in the frying pan and sautee garlic. In a bowl, put the chopped mushroom stalks, and mix in parsley and bread crumbs. Add the sauteed garlic and 1 tbsp. of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Pile some of the mixture into each mushroom cap. Add the rest of olive oil to the dish and cover mushrooms with wax paper. Bake for 15-20 min., removing paper for last five min. to brown tops. Garnish with parsley.

-this is from the Vegetarian Best Ever Recipe Collection Book. Yum

I love this one!

PERSIAN RICE AND LENTELS WITH TAHDEEG

1 Lb. Basmati rice, rinsed and soaked
2 onions, one chopped and one sliced thin
2 garlic gloves crushed
1 cup of green lentils, soaked
2 ½ cups chicken stock
1/3 cup raisins
2 tsp. ground coriander
3 tbsp. tomato paste
Salt and pepper
Few strands saffron
1 egg yoke, beaten
2 tsp. natural yogurt
6 tbsp. Ghee
Oil for frying


Boil rice in plenty of salted water for three minutes only, drain and set aside.  Meanwhile fry chopped onion and garlic in 2 tablespoons of oil for five minutes then add lentils, stock, raisins, coriander, tomato puree and seasoning.  Bring to a boil then cover and simmer for twenty minutes.  Set aside.  Soak saffron strands in a little hot water.  Remove eight tablespoons of rice and mix with egg and yogurt, season well.  In a large sauce pan heat two thirds of the remaining oil and scatter the egg and yogurt over the bottom of pot.  Scatter remaining rice into the pan alternating with the lentil mixture.  Build up a pyramid shape ending with rice on top.  With a long handled wooden spoon make three holes down to the bottom of the pot and drizzle the gee over them.  Bring to a high heat, then wrap the lid of the pot in a clean wet tea towel and place one firmly.  When a good head of steam appears turn down the heat to low.  Cook for about thirty minutes.  Meanwhile fry the onion till brown and crisp, drain well and set aside.  When the rice is down remove from heat, still covered and let stand in a sink of cold water to loosen the base. Remove the lid and mix some rice with the saffron.  Toss rice and lentils together and put on plate.  Break up the Tahdeeg on bottom of pot and put on top of rice and crown with saffron rice.

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No problem!  Ghee is clarified butter.  You can get it at East Indian supermarkets.