This dish is inspired by several tsimmes recipes in Joan Nathan’s “Jewish Cooking in America.” Tsimmes, a Yiddish word that means “fuss,” doesn’t have to be fussy at all. Sometimes the dish contains meat (and is fussier than this one), but sometimes it’s just fruit and vegetables. Warning: You may find yourself eating this for breakfast.
6 medium carrots (about 1 1/2 pounds), peeled and cut in 3/4-inch dice
3 medium sweet potatoes (about 2 1/4 pounds), peeled and cut in 3/4-inch dice
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut in medium dice
1/4 pound pitted prunes, cut in half
1/4 pound pitted apricots, quartered
2 tablespoons mild honey, like clover
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Salt to taste (about 1/2 teaspoon)
1 cup fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon unsalted butter Note: Sweet potatoes may be labeled as yams. Look for dark orange flesh. 1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter or oil a 3-quart baking dish. 2. Place the carrots and sweet potatoes in a steamer set above 1 inch of boiling water, and steam for five to 10 minutes, until just tender. Drain and toss with the remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Combine well, and scrape into the prepared baking dish. Place in the oven, and bake 40 to 50 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes, until the sweet potatoes and carrots are thoroughly tender. Dot the top with butter, and bake another 10 minutes until the top is lightly browned. Remove from the heat, and serve hot or warm. Yield: Serves eight. Advance preparation: You can assemble this dish several hours before baking. You can bake it a day or two ahead of serving; reheat it in a medium oven. Nutritional information per serving: 245 calories; 2 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 4 milligrams cholesterol; 57 grams carbohydrates; 8 grams dietary fiber; 259 milligrams sodium (does not include salt to taste); 4 grams protein Martha Rose Shulman is the author of "The Very Best of Recipes for Health."
Kiwi breakfast smoothie. Photograph: Franck Allais and Ed Johns for the Guardian Almost all smoothie recipes include bananas, so this makes a nice change. Kiwi fruit contains even more vitamin C than oranges, so drink this to keep the winter bugs at bay. If you want something dairy-free, replace the yoghurt with a soy alternative. And to make this even more substantial, add some milk and a handful of oats. Serves 2 2 kiwis
1 tsp linseeds
1 tsp sunflower seeds
125ml natural yoghurt
125ml orange juice
A large handful of berries of your choice
Peel the kiwis and wash the berries. Put all the ingredients into a smoothie maker or food processor, and blend together until smooth.
Super-healthy almond smoothie. Photograph: Franck Allais and Ed Johns for the Guardian
An ideal treat for when you're on a health kick. Serve it in tall ice-cream flutes and spoon it out like a pudding if you've been a bit heavy-handed with the seeds and it is too thick to drink. It is fantastically filling, and can be made a day in advance. You can add any seeds or fruit you fancy; try throwing in some linseeds, or using up any leftovers from your fruitbowl that are starting to go soft. Serves 2 8 almonds, skins on
2 heaped tbsp oats
1 tbsp pumpkin seeds
1 tbsp sunflower seeds
1 medium banana
1 kiwi fruit
2 large handfuls of berries – whatever is in season
3 tbsp natural yoghurt
250ml rice milk, almond milk or soya milk 1. Put the almonds, oats and seeds into a blender or smoothie machine and whizz until fine. 2. Add the banana, kiwi, berries, yoghurt and milk. Blend until smooth.
Henry Dimbleby suggests a simple, quick and healthy combination of flavours for a reviving mid-morning pick-me-up
Ginger and mint steeper. Photograph: Franck Allais and Ed Johns for the Guardian This is really simple, but the combination of flavours provides a lovely mid-morning pick-me-up. To make it even healthier, drop in some echinacea, which has a reputation for warding off colds. Always make sure you submerge the mint completely in the water, otherwise it will go brown. Serves 2 1 inch of fresh ginger
8 mint leaves
Peel the ginger and slice off 6 oval slices as thinly as you can into each mug. Add 4 mint leaves to each and cover with boiling water. Allow to steep for a couple of minutes.
Henry Dimbleby's quick and healthy take on plain old orange juice is pepped up with sweet carrot juice
Carrot, orange and ginger juice. Photograph: Franck Allais and Ed Johns for the Guardian The best way to pep up a plain carton of orange juice. If you like a bit of veg in your juice but shy away from the earthy flavours that greens or beetroot bring, this is a great option. The carrot gives body and sweetness, but the orange adds zing and the ginger brings an underlying warm buzz. The acid in orange juice also stops the carrot from turning brown, so if you make more than you need and leave it in the fridge, it will still be a vibrant orange when you come to drink it.
Serves 23 carrots
1 thumb-size piece of fresh ginger
500ml orange juice (preferably freshly squeezed)
Peel the carrots and the ginger. Juice both in a juicing machine, then pour into a jug. Add the orange juice and mix well.
