Potato Leek with Watercress Soup

Note: everything will go into a blender to be pureed at the end so a rough chop is all you need. 

2 Tbsp Olive Oil 

2 Leaks roughly chopped, this will give you about 2 cups

1 lb of potatoes cut into 1 inch cubes for even cooking

2 stalks of celery, roughly chopped

1 Bunch of Watercress including the stems

5 cups of water

2 tsp sea salt

½ tsp white pepper

In a large soup pot, heat the oil and add the leeks. Cook about 5 minutes do not brown. Add the potatoes, salt and pepper, then the water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for 35 minutes. Add the watercress and remove from the heat. Let Soup rest for 10 minutes. 

In small batches, puree the soup. Save some of the stock, you will have about 1 cup left over. Pour the leftover stock into a freezer container and freeze for future use. This is a delicious soup that I know you will enjoy. I made it last night and it’s almost gone! It is very alkalizing. 

This is another salad entree. Good for lunch or dinner. 

I simply made a green salad of what I had in my refrigerator. This time it was some cucumber, parsley, celery, radishes, and some grated carrot. 

Then I topped it off with some delicious fresh Halibut that I just put under the broiler for about 12 minutes with a little bit of clarified butter, and the juice of 1 lemon. A 4 ounce portion of fish for a women and a 6 ounce portion for a man is the right ratio for an acid food mixed with an alkaline salad. Especially because I served this with my roast potatoes. 

Sweet Potato FriesServes 4-6

2 Sweet Potatoes, sliced thin

2 Tbsp olive oil 

Salt 

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, tin foil  or if you have a Silpat even better. 

Toss the Sweet Potato slices in the olive oil and arrange on the pan. 

Bake for 40-45 minutes at 400 degrees. Sprinkle with salt and serve!

Potato Leek and Zucchini Gratin

This is a warm and satisfying dish. It can be a main course for a vegetarian diet with a side salad or it can be a side dish to serve with your dinner. You can make it earlier in the day and heat it up for your meal. 

2 cups leeks, chopped (about 2-3 leeks depending on size)

½ yellow onion, sliced thin

2 cups zucchini, sliced thin (1 large or 2 small)

3 large potatoes, sliced thin

¾ cup hot vegetable stock

¼ cup grated Parmesan Cheese

2 Tbsp olive oil 

1 1/2 Tbsp clarified butter

1 garlic clove 

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

Heat oil and ½ tablespoon of the butter in a large skillet and saute the leeks and onions until soft, do not brown. About 5 minutes. Add the zucchini and potatoes and season with the salt and pepper. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. 

Use the other ½ tablespoon of butter to coat a baking dish (8x10). Rub the bottom and sides with the garlic clove. Pour the contents of the skillet into the baking dish. Sprinkle on ½ of the Parmesan Cheese. Stir. Pour in the hot stock. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top. Dot with ½ tablespoon of butter. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven 30-40 minutes. 

Note: if you want to reheat, just dot with butter and put back into the oven for 15 minutes. 

This is a very easy and a refreshing first course. Serves 6

1 cantaloupe melon 

6 radishes, sliced

3 stalks celery, sliced

1 medium size cucumber seeds removed, sliced

2 Tbsp fresh mint, sliced thinly

 Juice of 2 limes

Slice the cantaloupe into generous serving wedges, two per plate.(Save any juice that runs off when slicing)

Sprinkle with the sliced radishes, cucumber and celery. Sprinkle the mint on top. 

Dress with some of  the juice from the cantaloupe, and squeeze some fresh lime juice over the top. 

This is another vegetable basket that I recently made to bring to a friend’s house. It being a holiday weekend, I thought it would be a good idea to introduce it again. For this basket, I lined it with lettuce leaves to bring up the bottom of the basket. 

Then, just start to build as if you were walking through a garden and just picked fresh vegetables. Radish with tops on, cauliflower, broccoli(blanch the broccoli it works better) mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, carrots with the tops on, celery sticks, snap peas, red bell pepper and ½ of a purple cabbage to hold the dip.

 For the dip

1 cup non fat Greek style yogurt

¼ cup mayonaise

1 cucumber, seeded

2 Tbsp. fresh dill

A few sprigs of fresh parsley

¼ tsp sea salt

Place all ingredients in a blender.

Pour the dressing into the ½ piece of cabbage.

corn saute

Last night I made a very good vegetable dish. I’m sorry that I forgot to take a picture. This is the recipe:

2 ears of corn cut off of the cob

½ onion, chopped

4 large mushrooms sliced

1 large zucchini, sliced

½ cup water

2 TBSP olive oil

salt and pepper

Heat a large pan with a little olive oil and saute the onion until soft. About 6 minutes. Then add all of the vegetables and cook another 3-5 minutes so the zucchini and mushrooms can get a little color. Add the water and cover the pan to finish cooking the vegetables. Season with sea salt and pepper.

There were no leftovers!

There are so many websites that give you a list of alkaline and acid foods. Have you found that they are all  somewhat different?  That is because there are very different schools of thought on what makes something PH Balanced. Also, every body is different. That is why it is so important to test yourself. I use these test strips to keep my body alkaline. You can order them from Amazon. Let me know when you go green! 

Create Alkaline Meals

Do you have trouble thinking of things to make for dinner? Do you have favorite foods that you would like to eat but you don’t know how to turn them into an alkaline meal? I am happy to help you with meal planning and working your favorite foods into meals that will be satisfying and alkaline. You can contact me through this blog, just hit ASK  or you can email me at cookalkaline@gmail.com and I would be happy to help you with your alkaline cooking needs. Sari

Tortilla Soup

Serves 4-6 

This is an easy soup to make. It should not take more than 30 minutes from start to finish. You can use any vegetables you have on hand. Feel free to substitute. 

3 TBSP Olive Oil 

1 onion 

½ Jalapeno or Serrano green chilies, seeds removed

1 clove garlic 

1 14 oz. can of tomatoes 

1 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. oregano

1 tsp. paprika

2 tsp. sea salt

4 cups vegetable broth

2 carrots 

2 stalks of celery

2 parsnips

1 large zucchini 

1 avocado

cilantro or parsley for garnish

2 corn tortillas

½ cup queso fresca or ricotta salata cheese

 Pre Heat your oven to 375 degrees

Line a cookie sheet with tin foil.  Slice the tortillas into thin strips. Toss with 1 Tbsp of the olive oil and spread them out in a single layer on the foil.  Bake for 12-15 minutes until they have crisped up. Immediately take them out of the oven and place on a paper towel. Set aside. 

In a food processor or blender, place the onion, chili and garlic. Process together but do not puree to liquid. You want a little texture of the onion. 

Heat 2 Tbsp of olive oil in a pot. Saute the onion mixture until softened. About 6 minutes. Add the cumin, oregano, paprika  and salt. mix together. Stir in the tomato and stock. Add the vegetables and cook for an additional 15 minutes or until vegetables are cooked.  

Ladle into bowls. Garnish with avocado slices, a little cheese and cilantro and the tortilla chips.

Alkaline Forming Foods

Hopefully you are enjoying the fruits of summer. I have been shopping at the Farmer’s Market each week and have tasted some delicious fruit.  I wanted to let you know of the highest alkaline forming fruits. Strawberries, Blackberries, and Raspberries. Nectarines, Papaya and Pineapple. Watermelon, Cantaloupe and Honeydew. Think of these fruits when preparing a meal or snack. I like to slice up melon and keep it in the fridge for go to snacks. For breakfast, I have been making fruit smoothies. This you can do with any fruit combination that you favor. I posted a recipe a few weeks ago.  Also, think of eating fruit for dessert. Nectarines are at there finest right now. Slice them and squeeze some lime juice on them and sprinkle fresh mint on top. This is a lovely presentation and a delicious dessert. Pineapple is another fruit that makes a great dessert. You can serve it cold or hot, think about throwing some pineapple slices on the barbeque or under your broiler. You can baste them with a little maple syrup. How good does that sound. Papaya’s are my favorite. I favor the ones that come from Hawaii. All they need is a squeeze of fresh lime juice and I am happy. They also are a great container for holding a small salad. There are many uses for fruit, we have to get creative and work them into our cooking. Try adding some fruit to your green salads. You will be amazed how much better you salad will taste with some fresh fruit added. This is making me hungry, I think I will go into the kitchen and have some fruit. Happy Cooking

These are Padron Peppers. They are extremely mild for those who have sensitive palates. I stay away from spicy foods, but I have to tell you that these are delicious. The majority are very sweet but once in a while you get a spicy one in the bunch. 

Just saute them in a little olive oil until they have softened. About 6-8 minutes. 

Season with salt and serve. They make a great snack. Enjoy!

I was at a friends house the other night and this was served as the first course. 

I wanted to share this with you because it’s easy and a delicious way to start a meal. Serves 4-6

1 cup honeydew melon, diced

1 cup celery, diced

1 cup heirloom tomatoes, diced

½ cup fresh mint, chopped

Juice of 1 lime. 

Mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl. 

That’s it. How easy was that. I know you will enjoy this delicious treat. 

Fruit Smoothie

This is a great Alkaline Snack and a very good way to get your fruit requirement for the day. You can use fresh or frozen mixed fruit. Whatever you have on hand. 

For 2 glasses: 

Approx 5 oz. of fruit (for mine I used strawberries, blueberries, boysenberries and raspberries. 

1 banana

¾ cup orange juice 

Put all in a blender and blend until smooth. It does not get any easier than this. 

Pour into glasses and enjoy!

Gazpacho

This is my version of a mostly alkaline version.  Serves 4

2 Red Bell Peppers

2 Orange Bell Peppers 

½ tsp apple cider vinegar

1 TBSP Olive Oil

½ cup avocado, diced

½ cup cucumber, diced

½ cup tomato, diced

sea salt and pepper to taste

Put your peppers over the flame of your stove or under your broiler. Char on all sides. They will get very black. Place in a brown paper bag about 10 minutes to steam cook. Remove from the bag and peel off the black skin of the pepper. Rinse and take off all of the core and seeds. Place in a blender. Puree until smooth. Pour into a bowl. Add the apple cider and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to your liking.  Stir. Pour into bowls, garnish with the cucumber, avocado and tomatoes. 

I served this as a test to some friends, and they all wanted more! Enjoy

Cabbage Soup

½ onion, chopped

2 carrots, diced

2 stalks of celery, diced

1 zucchini squash, diced

1 small potato, diced

2 cups shredded white cabbage

14oz. can of diced tomatoes

2 Tbsp. olive oil

4 cups vegetable stock

1 ½ tsps. sea salt 

In a large soup pot, heat the oil and add the onion. Cook on a low flame until soft, about 8 minutes. Add the carrots, celery, zucchini, potato and the cabbage. Season with the salt and stir. Then add the tomatoes and the stock. Cover and cook for 1 hour.  

Broccoli Potato Soup

This is a good soup hot or cold.

Serves 4-6 people

Everything will go into a blender so do not worry about the shapes.

½ onion roughly chopped

1 cup white potato roughly chopped

3 cups cooked(left over) or raw broccoli

4 cups vegetable stock (see archive post for recipe)

1 tsp. sea salt

pepper is optional

2 Tbsp Olive Oil

2 Tbsp fresh Basil Leaves (optional)

Heat a pot with the olive oil, add the onions and cook on a low flame for about 10 minutes until onions are soft and sweet. Do not brown them. Add the broccoli, potato and stock. Season with Salt and Pepper. Bring to a boil, cover pot and turn down to simmer until the the potatoes are tender, about 10-12 minutes.

Strain the soup and save the liquid. Put the broccoli and potato mixture into a blender. Pour half of the reserved liquid. Puree. Pour back into your pot. Add the additional liquid, stir. To serve, ladle into bowls and sprinkle a little basil on each one. It really freshens up the soup.

 Vegetable Basket

Great for entertaining. Basket size does not matter. Any basket will do. Just have fun with this.

The amounts do not matter, you can make this with what you have on hand.

I used, blanched cauliflower, blanched broccoli, a bunch of radishes with the tops left on. Baby carrots with tops left on. cherry tomatoes, cucumber slices, yellow bell pepper slices , celery slices, mushrooms and  1/2 of a cabbage(Take out some of the inner leaves) to hold the dip. Place the cabbage in the basket and work around it.

Buy some Kale or other decorative lettuce and line a basket with the lettuce creating a bed.

Start putting your vegetables in the basket, I like to make it looked like a basket of freshly picked vegetables.

For the dip

1 cup non fat Greek style yogurt

¼ cup mayonaise

1 cucumber, seeded

2 Tbsp. fresh dill

¼ tsp sea salt

Place all ingredients in a blender.

Pour the dressing into the ½ piece of cabbage.

Mango Avocado Salsa

1 mango, diced

1 avocado, diced

2 Tbsp. red onion, chopped fine

¼ cup parsley, chopped

Juice of one lime 

Mix all of the ingredients together. Let sit about 15 minutes before using. 

Salmon Cakes with Mango Salsa

Serves 4

½ cup onion

½ cup parsley

Juice of ½ lemon

1 Tbsp. fresh dill

1 medium cooked potato

4 oz. cooked cauliflower

12-15oz. fresh cooked or canned salmon

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp clarified butter

In a food processor, blend together the onion, parsley, lemon, dill, potato, and cauliflower. Pour into a bowl and fold in the salmon. Form into 8 small cakes. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Heat Saute pan with the oil and butter. Fry the cakes until brown on one side. Flip over and place your saute pan in a preheated 400 degree oven and bake for 12-15 minutes. Serve with the mango avocado salsa in the next recipe.