Smashed Chickpea Salad with Peas & Tarragon

This easy springtime spread is great smothered on bread or scooped into lettuce wraps. I suggest preparing it at least an hour before serving for the best flavor.

1½ cups cooked chickpeas (from 1 can or about ½ a cup dry beans)
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup shelled and blanched English peas*
1/4 cup finely diced red onion
1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon

Place chickpeas in a large bowl, along with lemon juice, vinegar, olive oil and salt. Use a potato masher or large fork to gently mash chickpeas until they are a spreadable consistency. Use a silicon spatula to fold in the peas, onion and tarragon. Taste and adjust any flavors as desired. Serve immediately, or refrigerate until ready to serve.

* To blanch peas, place them in a pot of lightly salted boiling water for 40 seconds, then drain and rinse with cold water. Frozen peas may also be used when fresh peas are not in season.

Pumpkin Spice Smoothie

A tasty and delicious seasonal treat!

Prep time: 5m | Total time: 5m | Serves 1

Ingredients:

1 c. almond milk, or non-dairy milk of your choice
1 c. pumpkin puree (canned or fresh, see note below)
1/2 banana, frozen
1 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. vanilla bean powder or vanilla extract
1/4 t. ground clove
1/8 t. ground ginger
Freshly ground nutmeg (optional)

Add all ingredients except nutmeg to a blender. Blend on high until smooth and creamy. Pour into a glass and grate nutmeg on top, if you wish.

If you'd like to make your own pumpkin puree, check out my tips here.

Cabbage Chips with Coconut Cardamom Yogurt

These chips are great on their own, and even better served with a yummy dip! In Ayurveda, springtime is kapha season, a time when excess mucus can easily form and collect in the body, so using a non-dairy yogurt is recommended. Vegetables like cabbage that are part of the brassica family (other members include cauliflower and broccoli) are helpful for dispelling excess kapha energy from the body.

Prep time: 20m | Cook time: 2h | Total time: 2h 20m

Ingredients:

1 medium green cabbage (savoy variety works great)
Olive oil
Salt/Ground pepper
6 oz. plain coconut yogurt (or other preferably non-dairy plain yogurt)*
1/4 t. ground cardamom

Pre-heat oven to 200 degrees.

Peel away each individual leaf of the cabbage. After washing, dry well and cut each leaf into quarters, removing any ribs from the inner leaves. Brush each leaf lightly with olive oil, and sprinkle on salt and pepper. Place on baking sheets either lined with wire racks or parchment paper. Bake in the oven for 2-2.5 hours, until chips are crisp. Let them cool before serving.

Meanwhile, prepare yogurt by mixing it with cardamom and salt to taste. Chill until ready to serve.

Store extra chips in an airtight container.

Notes:

Be sure to pick a coconut (or other yogurt) that is low in sugar. Coconut Grove brand yogurt (plain variety) seems to have the lowest sugar content of any I've found and is available at many Whole Foods Market locations.

Coconut Cardamom Date Balls

These easy, nourishing snacks are great to keep on hand for when a sugar craving attacks. Dates instantly help regulate blood sugar levels, and cardamom suppresses ongoing cravings.

Prep time: 20m | Total time: 20m

Ingredients:

1 lb. (approx 2.5 c.) medjool dates, or other moist date variety
1/4 c. brown sesame seeds
1/2 c. dried unsweetened coconut flakes
1/2 t. ground cardamom

Remove pits from dates, and place them in food processor bowl.

Heat a dry skillet over medium flame, and add sesame seeds once hot. Cook for two minutes, stirring often until seeds are lightly toasted and aromatic. Add toasted sesame seeds, 1/4 c. of coconut flakes and cardamom in with the dates. Run food processor until ingredients are well mixed*, and one solid ball of date dough has formed.

Place remaining coconut on a small plate. Take 1 T. of dough and use your hands to shape it into a ball. Roll each ball in coconut flakes until lightly coated, then place on serving plate. Repeat with remaining dough.

Serve immediately, or store in a tightly-sealed container in the refrigerator.

Notes:

Food processor may "jump" a bit when processing the dates, so be sure it's not near the edge of the countertop while running.