Tacos aren’t generally held up as the world’s healthiest food, but they can be! There’s so much going on in this dish today, healthwise, in a good way, that it’s hard to know where to start. But suffice it to say, these tacos are great for your gut, heart, blood sugars, and more.

You will need

For the chickpeas:

• 1 can chickpeas, drained
• 1 tbsp ras el-hanout*
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• ½ tsp MSG or 1 tsp low-sodium salt
• Extra virgin olive oil

*You can easily make this yourself; following our recipe (linked above in the ingredients list) will be better than buying it ready-made, and if you have strong feelings about any of the ingredients, you can adjust per your preference.

For the tahini sauce:

• ⅓ cup tahini
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh dill
• ¼ bulb garlic, minced
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• ½ tsp black pepper, coarse ground

It may seem like salt is conspicuous by its absence, but there is already enough in the chickpeas component; you do not want to overwhelm the dish. Trust us that enjoying these things together will be well-balanced and delicious as written.

For the mango relish:

• ½ mango, pitted, peeled, and cubed
• 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tsp cilantro, finely chopped (substitute with parsley if you have the “cilantro tastes like soap” gene)
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes

For building the taco:

• Soft corn tortillas
• Handful of arugula
• 1 avocado, pitted, peeled, and sliced
• ½ red onion, sliced

Method

(we suggest you read everything at least once before doing anything)

1) Heat a sauté pan with a little olive oil in; add the chickpeas and then the rest of the ingredients from the chickpea section; cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, and set aside.

2) Combine the tahini sauce ingredients in a small bowl, stirring in ¼ cup water, and set aside.

3) Combine the mango relish ingredients in a separate small bowl, and set aside. You can eat the other half of the mango if you like.

4) Lightly toast the tortillas in a dry skillet, or using a grill.

5) Assemble the tacos; we recommend the order: tortillas, arugula, avocado slices, chickpeas, mango relish, red onion slices, tahini sauce.

Enjoy!

Want to learn more?

For those interested in some of the science of what we have going on today:

• Eat More (Of This) For Lower Blood Pressure
• Our Top 5 Spices: How Much Is Enough For Benefits? ← we hit all five today! Yay!
• An Apple (Cider Vinegar) A Day…
• Coconut vs Avocado – Which is Healthier?
• Lettuce vs Arugula – Which is Healthier?

Take care!

Ragù is a traditional Italian meaty sauce with tomato, and is the base for a number of other Italian dishes. It can be enjoyed as-is, or with very minor modifications can be turned into a Bolognese sauce or a lasagna filling or various other things. Our variations from tradition are mainly twofold here: we’re using nutrition-packed lentils instead of meat (but with a couple of twists that make them meatier), and we’re not using wine.

Traditionally, red wine is used in a ragù (white wine if you want to make it into a Bolognese sauce, by the way), but with all we’re doing it’s not necessary. If you want to add a splash of wine, we’re not going to call that a healthy ingredient, but we’re also not the boss of you

You will need

• 1 large onion (or equivalent small ones), chopped roughly
• 1 bulb garlic (or to your heart’s content), chopped finely or crushed
• 4 large tomatoes, chopped (or 2 cans chopped tomatoes)
• 1 tube (usually about 7 oz) tomato purée
• 1 cup brown lentils (green lentils will do if you can’t get brown)
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 tbsp black pepper, cracked or coarse ground
• 1 bunch fresh basil, finely chopped (or 1 tbsp, freeze-dried)
• 1 bunch fresh oregano, finely chopped (or 1 tbsp, freeze-dried)
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast (failing that, 1 tbsp yeast extract, yes, even if you don’t like it, we promise it won’t taste like it once it’s done; it just makes the dish meatier in taste and also adds vitamin B12)
• 1 tsp cumin, ground (note that this one was tsp, not tbsp like the others)
• 1 tsp MSG, or 2 tsp low-sodium salt
• 4 cups water
• Olive oil for frying (ideally Extra Virgin, but so long as it’s at least marked virgin olive oil and not cut with other oils, that’s fine)
• Parsley, chopped, to garnish

Method

(we suggest you read everything at least once before doing anything)

1) Put the lentils in a small saucepan, or if you have one, a rice cooker (the rice cooker is better; works better and requires less attention), adding the chia seeds, MSG or low sodium salt, and nutritional yeast (or yeast extract). as well as the cumin. Add 4 cups boiling water and turn on the heat to cook them. This will probably take about 15–20 minutes; you want the lentils to be soft; a tiny bit past al dente, but not so far as mushy.

2) Fry the onion in some olive oil in a big pan (everything is going in here eventually if the pan is big enough; if it isn’t, you’ll need to transfer to a bigger pan in a bit). Once they’re nearly done, throw in the garlic too. If the lentils aren’t done yet, take the onions and garlic off the heat while you wait. After a few times of doing this recipe, you’ll be doing everything like clockwork and it’ll all align perfectly.

3) Drain the lentils (if all the water wasn’t absorbed; again, after doing it a few times, you’ll just use the right amount of water for your apparatus) but don’t rinse them (remember you put seasonings in here!), and add them to the pan with the onions and garlic; add a splash more olive oil if necessary, and stir until all the would-be-excess fat is absorbed into the lentils.

Note: the excess fat to be absorbed by the lentils was a feature not a bug; we wanted a little fat in the lentils! Makes the dish meatier and tastier, as well as more nutrient-dense.

4) add the tomatoes and tomato purée, stirring them in thoroughly; add the basil and oregano too and stir those in as well. Set it on a low heat for at least 10–15 minutes, stirring occasionally to let the flavors blend.

(if you happen to be serving pasta with it, then the time it takes to boil water and cook the pasta is a good time for the flavors to do their thing)

5) take it off the heat, and add the parsley garnish. It’s done!

Enjoy!

Want to learn more?

For those interested in some of the science of what we have going on today:

• What Is The Mediterranean Diet, Anyway?
• Four Ways To Upgrade The Mediterranean
• Eat More (Of This) For Lower Blood Pressure ← one more reason for the brown lentils today
• Chia: The Tiniest Seeds With The Most Value
• Black Pepper’s Impressive Anti-Cancer Arsenal
• The Many Health Benefits of Garlic
• Olive Oil: Is “Extra Virgin” Worth It?

Take care!

Today we have a recipe we’ve mentioned before, but now we have standalone recipe pages for recipes, so here we go. The dish of the day is shchi—which is Russian cabbage soup, which sounds terrible, and looks as bad as it sounds. But it tastes delicious, is an incredible comfort food, and is famous (in Russia, at least) for being something one can eat for many days in a row without getting sick of it.

It’s also got an amazing nutritional profile, with vitamins A, B, C, D, as well as lots of calcium, magnesium, and iron (amongst other minerals), and a healthy blend of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, plus an array of anti-inflammatory phytochemicals, and of course, water.

You will need

• 1 large white cabbage, shredded
• 1 cup red lentils
• ½ lb tomatoes, cut into eighths (as in: halve them, halve the halves, and halve the quarters)
• ½ lb mushrooms sliced (or halved, if they are baby button mushrooms)
• 1 large onion, chopped finely
• 1 tbsp rosemary, chopped finely
• 1 tbsp thyme, chopped finely
• 1 tbsp black pepper, coarse ground
• 1 tsp cumin, ground
• 1 tsp yeast extract
• 1 tsp MSG, or 2 tsp low-sodium salt
• A little parsley for garnishing
• A little fat for cooking; this one’s a tricky and personal decision. Butter is traditional, but would make this recipe impossible to cook without going over the recommended limit for saturated fat. Avocado oil is healthy, relatively neutral in taste, and has a high smoke point for caramelizing the onions. Extra virgin olive oil is also a healthy choice, but not as neutral in flavor and does have a lower smoke point. Coconut oil has far too strong a taste and a low smoke point. Seed oils are very heart-unhealthy. All in all, avocado oil is a respectable choice from all angles except tradition.

Note: with regard to the seasonings, the above is a basic starting guide; feel free to add more per your preference—however, we do not recommend adding more cumin (it’ll overpower it) or more salt (there’s enough sodium in here already).

Method

(we suggest you read everything at least once before doing anything)

1) Cook the lentils until soft (a rice cooker is great for this, but a saucepan is fine); be generous with the water; we are making a soup, after all. Set them aside without draining.

2) Sauté the cabbage, and put it in a big stock pot or similar large pan (not yet on the heat)

3) Fry the mushrooms, and add them to the big pot (still not yet on the heat)

4) Use a stick blender to blend the lentils in the water you cooked them in, and then add to the big pot too.

5) Turn the heat on low, and if necessary, add more water to make it into a rich soup

6) Add the seasonings (rosemary, thyme, cumin, black pepper, yeast extract, MSG-or-salt) and stir well. Keep the temperature on low; you can just let it simmer now because the next step is going to take a while:

7) Caramelize the onion (keep an eye on the big pot, stirring occasionally) and set it aside

8) Fry the tomatoes quickly (we want them cooked, but just barely) and add them to the big pot

9) Serve! The caramelized onion is a garnish, so put a little on top of each bowl of shchi. Add a little parsley too.

Enjoy!

Want to learn more?

For those interested in some of the science of what we have going on today:

• Level-Up Your Fiber Intake! (Without Difficulty Or Discomfort)
• The Magic Of Mushrooms: “The Longevity Vitamin” (That’s Not A Vitamin)
• Easily Digestible Vegetarian Protein Sources
• The Bare-Bones Truth About Osteoporosis
• Some Surprising Truths About Hunger And Satiety

Take care!