It’s often the case that I make the nicest food discoveries when I don’t have much on hand. Such is the case of this improvised lunch that will now become a very tasty party canapé item.
In the past week I have had a broken fridge and a lot of food to prepare. Once I finished with the supplies that made it through the heat I still didn’t go shopping as I’ve been eating out more and wanted to finish all the fresh supplies I have left before I fly to Romania next week.
With one tomato, half a courgette and a fresh basil pot I could have made a mini salad to keep me going till I hit the shop. However, last night I’ve taken part in a mini talk at Planet Organic with Kate Magic on Superfoods and I felt inspired. So I went along.
As you may have noticed, especially if you’ve attended one of the classes I teach, you know I love tahini <3 Like big love. I love it as it is. I love dipping figs in it. I love it in smoothies. I love it with chocolate. And I love it in my salads.
Sesame seeds and tahini have a lot of benefits. Mind Body Green chose 10 reasons why you should use it. It’s best to use whole tahini, not hulled, as most of the nutrition is in the sesame seed husk. But as I usually say, any tahini is better than no tahini.
10 health benefits of tahini:
- It’s rich in minerals such as phosphorus, lecithin, magnesium, potassium and iron.
- It’s a good source of Methionine, which aids in liver detoxification.
- It’s one of the best sources of calcium out there.
- It’s high in vitamin E and vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5 and B15.
- Helps to promote healthy cell growth.
- Prevent anemia.
- Helps to maintain healthy skin and muscle tone.
- It has 20% complete protein, making it a higher protein source than most nuts.
- It’s easy for your body to digest because of its high alkaline mineral content, which is great for assisting in weight loss.
- It is high in unsaturated fat (good fat!)
As for the recipe, it’s easier to make up things on the spot if you build up your cupboard stash of superfoods. They’re easy to incorporate into your daily life, whether in a glass of water, tonic, smoothie, dressing, dip and spread. And last but not least, chocolate!
To give you an idea, at the moment I have the following “superfoods” in my cupboard: raw cacao, cacao nibs, carob, maca, mesquite, lucuma, raw kelp powder, turmeric (fresh and powder), spirulina, wheat grass powder, flax seeds, chia seeds, vanilla pods, psyllium husks, raw bee pollen (it actually stays in the freezer). I do believe they’re a few more that i’m missing out here but this gives you an idea of my stash. Besides that I keep nuts and seeds, coconut and the aforementioned tahini. These allow me to be creative and pack as much nutrition as I can in dressings, smoothies and whatever else I’m up to.
What do you have in your cupboards/pantry? And which one is your favourite item? As much as I love raw cacao, my choice would be turmeric. Maybe because it has the sun’s colour, maybe because it’s one of the most healthiest and powerful plants, especially if paired right. But that’s a subject for a future post.
For now I’ll leave you with the canapé recipe. I ended up having 6 of them for lunch and they were very filling and satisfying. Enjoy!
- 2 Tbsp tahini
- 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 sundried tomatoes
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp kelp powder
- 4 Tbsp water
- 1/2 courgette/ zucchini
- 1 tomato
- fresh basil
- bee pollen
- cacao nibs
- freshly ground pepper
- Mix the tahini with apple cider vinegar into a bowl and then add the water and continue mixing until it becomes a paste. Add the rest of the ingredients and use a hand blender to make it all a thick paste.
- Cut the courgette and tomatoes in slices. Add the tomato on top and a teaspoon of paste on top. Sprinkle bee pollen, cacao nibs, freshly ground black pepper and a basil leaf on top.
- You can use a normal blender jug for this if you're making a larger amount. I chose the hand blender for mixing because i made a smaller quantity and I didn't want to scrape the blender walls at the end. If you're chopping the sundry tomatoes very small you can even make this paste without any blender at all.
- The recipe makes enough for at least 15 large canapes.
