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A new year, a new you, with healthy cooking: Delicious and nutritious recipes to energize you in 2025.
As we welcome a fresh New Year, there’s something wonderful about resetting our palette and our bodies with nourishing meals that help make us feel—and look our best. For me, after all the holiday indulgences, I love turning to fiber-rich dishes that support my heart health, keep my energy steady, and help me feel balanced.
Fiber-rich foods are generally lower in calories but more filling, making them ideal for those of us aiming to manage weight without feeling deprived. Now that’s a New Year’s plan in which no resolutions are required!
These recipes are bursting with goodness to keep you feeling vibrant and satisfied.
Black Eyed Pea Soup
Supposedly, eating this soup on New Year’s Day will bring you good luck and prosperity. The black-eyed peas represent coins, and the collard greens represent paper money. Lucky for us, it’s packed with flavor and loaded with nutrients. A perfect, nourishing soup for winter.
Serves 8
1 cup onion, diced
1 cup carrots, diced
1 cup celery, diced
1 red, yellow and orange bell pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
2 cans black-eyed peas
1 can salt-free fire-roasted tomatoes
4-6 cups water or vegetable stock
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3 collard leaves, stripped
Salt-free seasoning and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Sauté the onion, carrot, celery, and bell peppers in a large Dutch oven or soup pot for 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic, herbs and spices, and sauté for 1–2 minutes. Add the black-eyed peas, tomatoes and water or vegetable stock to the pot and bring it to a boil. Lower to a simmer, loosely cover with a lid, and let it simmer for 20 minutes. Add the red wine vinegar and turn off the heat. Strip the collard leaves by holding the thick end of the stem and pulling the leaves up and tearing them off the steam. Discard the stems. Roll up the collard leaves and cut into ribbons, add to the pot and stir into the soup. The collard greens will soften in the residual heat of the soup. Season to taste and serve hot.
Kale Caesar with Butternut Croutons
Kale is my leafy green of choice during the winter months. This fresh take on a Caesar salad is wonderful with the butternut croutons Massaging kale makes the leaves tender and easy to chew, so don’t miss this important step.
Serves 2
1 big bunch kale, de-stemmed and shredded
½ cup pepitas
Caesar Dressing
¼ cup tahini
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon capers
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2-3 tablespoons water, to thin the dressing as desired
Freshly ground black pepper and salt- free seasoning to taste
Butternut Croutons
2 cups butternut, ½ inch cubed
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 tablespoon Herbs de Provence
1 tablespoon hemp seeds
Preheat oven to 425°F and line a baking tray with parchment. Add the butternut cubes to a bowl and toss together with the lemon juice, maple syrup, Herbs de Provence and hemp seeds and then transfer to the parchment-lined baking sheet. Roast for 25 minutes. While the butternut is roasting, make the dressing by blending all the dressing ingredients in a small blender jar until smooth. Thin the dressing with extra water as needed. Strip the kale by holding the thick end of the steam and use your other hand to run your hand along the stem in the other direction tearing off the leaves. Discard the stems and shred the kale leaves by tearing them with your hands. Add the shredded kale leaves to a large bowl and massage 3 tablespoons of the dressing into the kale for a minute or two and set aside. To assemble the salad, add the roasted butternut croutons to the massaged kale, drizzle a little Caesar dressing over the top and toss to combine. Sprinkle the pepitas over the salad and serve with extra dressing on the side.
Sizzling Portobello Steaks with Avocado Gremolata
These juicy mushroom steaks can be as satisfying as beef burgers, especially topped with this zesty garlicy Gremolata.
Serves 2
2 large portobello mushrooms
¼ cup good quality balsamic vinegar or glaze
2 tablespoons water
2 cloves garlic finely minced
½ teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon salt-free seasoning
½ teaspoon black pepper
For the Avocado Gremolata
1 cup parsley, finely minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoons lemon juice
1 small avocado, diced
Salt-free seasoning to taste
Freshly ground black pepper
Heat oven to 450°F. Wipe the portobellos clean using a paper towel and place them in a shallow baking dish. Add all the rest of the ingredients to a small jar or bowl and whisk together. Use a pastry brush to apply the marinade onto both sides of the portobellos. Pour the remaining marinade over the mushrooms and let it sit for at least 5 minutes. Make the Avocado Gremolata by combing all the ingredients in a bowl and set aside. Heat a grill pan over high heat and place the mushrooms top side down on the grill pan and cook for 3-4 minutes. Use a spatula to press the mushrooms into the pan to sear in the grill marks. Place the mushrooms back in the baking dish and roast in the oven uncovered for 7-8 minutes. Serve topped with Avocado Gremolata.
Poached Pears
Pears are packed with fiber, low in calories and are good for gut health. Serve this elegant dessert hot or cold.
Serves 4
4 ripe Bartlett, Bosc or Anjou pears with stems
2-3 cups water
4 cinnamon sticks
2-3 strips of orange peel
4 star anise
3 tablespoons date paste or syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Peel the pears and leave them whole. Use a melon baller or teaspoon to scoop out the core from the bottom. Add all the ingredients to a saucepan and gently simmer the pears for about 15 -20 minutes, turning occasionally to make sure they are covered in the poaching liquid. Use a skewer to test for doneness. Remove the pears from the liquid and set aside to cool. Bring the poaching liquid to a high boil and reduce the liquid by a half, or more, so you are left with a flavorful reduction. To serve, spoon a little of the reduction into the center of plates and then stand the pears in the reduction, garnish with the cinnamon sticks and star anise.
What healthy foods are you trying to eat more of in 2025? Let us know in the comments below.
