Healthy Recipes: A Twist on Traditional Cuisines

Over the past two years, many have been adopting healthier lifestyles, and cooking home meals is key to that goal. At the same time, home cooks also seek variety, looking for new ideas to make healthier eating taste great — and even celebrate culinary traditions.

If you share these goals, you may be interested in the Healthier Traditions Cookbook series — four free, downloadable cookbooks presented by nonprofit Transamerica Institute. All the recipes are crafted by certified dietitians, offering tips for healthier ingredient swaps that don’t sacrifice flavor. Many include vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options to meet specific dietary needs.

The cookbooks showcase four styles: Quick and Easy, Italian, Soul Food and American Classics, including these featured recipes from each book.

1. Healthier Traditions Cookbook: Quick and Easy

Offering 19 recipes that can be made from common pantry ingredients in 20 minutes or less, this cookbook provides recipes like overnight oats, a smashed chickpea avocado sandwich, a Southwest skillet and banana “nice” cream. The recipes are wholesome and plant-forward, encouraging eating more vegetables, legumes and whole grains.

Directions

• Line plate with parchment paper. Set aside.
• Melt 2 tablespoons of butter or oil in pan over medium heat. Stir in pecans, oats, brown sugar and salt.
• Cook until mixture begins to brown, about 5 minutes.
• When topping is done cooking, transfer to parchment-lined plate.
• Melt another 1/2 tablespoon butter or oil over medium heat. Sauté apples 5 minutes, until soft. Stir in sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon; simmer 2 minutes. Top with oat mixture and serve warm. 

2. Healthier Traditions Cookbook: Italian

• Preheat oven to 425°F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Combine cornmeal or almond meal, baking soda, parsley, salt and pepper in large bowl.
• In a few batches, add all calamari pieces to bowl and toss to coat evenly.
• Bake about 20 minutes, until golden brown and crisp.
• Serve with lemon wedge and cup marinara sauce per serving.

Directions for Marinara Sauce

• In medium pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add garlic and sauté 1 minute.
• Add tomatoes, basil, salt, pepper and bay leaf. Cover and simmer about 15 minutes.
• Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Discard bay leaf before serving.

• Preheat oven to 400°F. Prick sweet potatoes several times with fork and bake about 50 minutes, until completely soft and fork can be poked all the way through. Remove from oven and let cool.
  Remove skins and mash sweet potato flesh (saving skins to make chips, to avoid wasting). Form small mound with hole in the middle and fill with flour and salt. Knead to combine, being careful to not overwork the dough to avoid making it tough. Add more flour as necessary to prevent sticking, but avoid adding too much to keep gnocchi light and tender.
• Roll into ball and divide into four small balls. Use fingers to roll out each into a rope, roughly 1 foot long. Use knife to cut each into 1-inch nuggets. Then create classic ridges in each by quickly rolling across the back of a fork.
• Boil gnocchi in large pot of boiling water in 3 or 4 batches, giving quick stir after adding them to the pot. Gnocchi will rise to the top when done cooking, 1–2 minutes. Use slotted spoon to transfer to plate or colander to drain and repeat with subsequent batches.
• Heat butter in large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Allow butter to melt. When butter is just beginning to turn light golden color, add olive oil and heat about 30 seconds, then brown. Add sage and fry until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add gnocchi and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook, tossing to combine, about 3 minutes. Serve immediately.

3. Healthier Traditions Cookbook: Soul Food

• Heat olive oil in large soup pot over medium heat. Once hot, add onions, celery and carrots. Cook 5–7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add garlic and spices, stir to combine and cook 1 more minute.
• Stir in cooked black-eyed peas, diced tomatoes and broth. Bring to boil and then reduce to simmer. Cover and simmer soup about 15–20 minutes.
• Add chopped greens and stir to combine. Just before serving, stir in vinegar. Serve hot in bowls and top with parsley, if desired.

• Season chicken with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. In large heavy pot, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until lightly browned on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. Remove chicken from pan and set aside.
• In same pot, add remaining 1 tablespoon of oil. Over medium-high heat, cook onion, bell pepper and celery, stirring frequently. Cook about 5–10 minutes, until lightly browned. Sprinkle in flour and continue cooking, stirring constantly, until mixture is browned. Add garlic, Worcestershire sauce, remaining salt and pepper, cayenne and paprika. Cook 1–2 minutes, until fragrant. Add sausage and cook, stirring frequently, until browned, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in broth and tomatoes, scraping bottom of pan for any brown bits. Simmer over medium heat about 25 minutes, until soup is thickened.
• Add okra and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Cut cooled chicken thighs and add to pot. Add shrimp and cook until cooked through, about 3–4 minutes. Remove from heat and top with chopped parsley.

4. Healthier Traditions Cookbook: American Classics

• Slice flank steak into thin slices (slicing across the grain helps make meat more tender). Season meat with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Set aside.
• Heat olive oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook about 2–3 minutes, stirring constantly, until translucent. Add mushrooms, peppers, garlic and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and cook until vegetables are soft, about 8 minutes. Add beef and sauté, stirring constantly. Cook 2–4 minutes until beef browns (exact cooking time will depend on thickness of slices). Remove from heat and add Worcestershire sauce.
• Add flour to small saucepan over medium heat. Gradually whisk in milk until blended. Bring to simmer, stirring constantly, and cook 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat and add provolone and Parmesan, stirring until sauce is smooth. Assemble sandwiches. Place one-fourth of the meat and vegetable mixture on bottom half of each hoagie roll (if having trouble fitting it all, scoop out part of the center of the roll). Pour one-fourth of the cheese sauce over each sandwich and top with top half of roll.

• Lightly coat dish of slow cooker with olive oil. Spread all vegetables in bottom of slow cooker.
• Pat beef dry with paper towel, season with salt and pepper, and cover with flour. In large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add roast and cook 4–5 minutes on each side until browned. Remove roast from pot and place on top of vegetables in slow cooker. Pour wine, stock and tomatoes into pot and whisk together while lightly scraping brown bits off bottom of pan. Bring to light boil, then remove from heat and pour over roast and vegetables in slow cooker. Place fresh herbs around roast.
• Cover slow cooker and cook on low 6–7 hours until very tender. Serve with vegetables and sauce.

"As we continue to cope with the pandemic, we can eat in a way that both satisfies our cravings and nourishes our bodies," said Mihaela Vincze, public health expert at Transamerica Institute. "Our cookbooks offer recipes for delicious and nutritious meals to support your well-being.”