Written by Emily Edmonds
Loved our last post and looking for more recipes to provide you with restful sleep during the hormone fluctuations of menopause?
Here you go!
Grilled Tofu with Reishi, Shiitake and Wood Ear Mushrooms
INGREDIENTS
Firm Tofu – 1 package
Wood Ear Mushroom – 16 oz
Shiitake Mushrooms – 16 oz
Reishi Mushroom Powder – Dried – 1 tsp
Porcini Powder – optional – 1/2 tsp
Black Sesame Seeds – 1 tbsp
Tamari or Soy Sauce – 1 tbsp
Sesame Oil – 1 tbsp
Ginger – 1” knob – freshly ground
Green Onion – 1 fresh – white rings sliced only
Miso – 1 tbsp
Ume Plum Vinegar – 1 tbsp
Maple syrup – 1 tsp
DIRECTIONS
Make sauce – peel ginger and zest with a microplane. Combine soy sauce or Tamari, sesame oil, ginger, green onion, miso, maple syrup and Ume plum vinegar into a bowl or blender and mix thoroughly.
Slice tofu in 1/2” slices. In a small frying pan, heat sesame oil until hot. Add tofu to frying pan and grill until cooked through. Finish by brushing with sauce. Remove from heat, set aside and brush with sauce.
Wash the mushrooms and dry thoroughly. Add more sesame oil to the pan and sauteé mushrooms until cooked through, about 15-20 minutes. Add a small amount of soy sauce to season and add some black sesame seeds and finish cooking until liquid is boiled off. Add reishi powder and porcini powder while still warm and stir thoroughly.
This makes enough for about 4-5 nights so have one serving and keep the rest in the refrigerator for future use.
Serve warm!
Sardines with Wild Yams and Pumpkin Seeds
INGREDIENTS
Sardines – 1 can – wild caught
Eggs – 2
*Wild Yams – 1 large
Pumpkin Seeds – 1 tbsp
Vinegar – 1/4 cup
Celtic Sea Salt – 1 tbsp
Dulse – optional
Rye bread – optional
DIRECTIONS
This is a simple recipe to put together, but it can be an acquired taste for those who do not like fish. But sardines are the richest source of B12, they are also high in omega 3 fatty acids and quality protein. If you can adapt yourself to the taste, the health benefits you will gain will pay off dividends.
Fill a pot with water and heat on the stove until boiling. Generously season with salt. Score the potatoes around the middle and make a small cut just through the skin around the entire width of the potato. Boil until fork tender, around 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat with a slotted spoon and allow to cool. Set aside.
Keep the water and add the vinegar. Bring water to a boil. Boil eggs in water with the shell on for about 7-10 minutes. Remove from water and allow to cool completely. This is good to make in advance and have in the refrigerator as needed.
Remove the peels from the yams and slice into 1/2” circles. Peel the eggs and slice horizontally into small circles.
Slice the bread in 1/2” rounds an gently toast. Toast pumpkin seeds gently over low flame.
Drain the sardines and allow to dry on paper towels if necessary. Place 1 slice of wild yam, 3-4 small slices of egg, 1-2 sardines on one slice of toast. Top with pumpkin seeds and dulse, if using. Serve warm!
*Note – If you have Hashimoto’s Disease or Graves Disease or if you have been diagnosed with autoimmune thyroiditis – avoid dulse and season with Celtic sea salt. If you have these conditions, eat only the whites of the egg not the yolk (yolk contains a lot of iodine).
If you have an allergy to gluten, avoid the rye bread but I don’t recommend eating gluten free bread.
If you cannot find wild yams, the white yams are the ones that are closest and will work fine in this recipe but the wild yams are best.
Millet with Almond Butter, Figs and Mulberries
INGREDIENTS
Millet – 1/2 cup
Figs – fresh or dried – 1/4 cup
Mulberries – dried – 1/4 cup
Almond Butter – 2 tbsp
Pea Protein Powder – 2 scoops
Date syrup – 1 tbsp
Lavender Flowers – 1/2 tsp – optional
DIRECTIONS
Boil 1 cup of water and add millet. Add figs, mulberries and lavender flowers if using. Stir frequently over low heat until cooked. Sift or sieve in pea protein powder and stir vigorously to combine. Add almond flour and stir until dissolved. Add date syrup to taste. Serve while warm.
Split Pea Soup
INGREDIENTS
Leek – 1 – rinsed and cut into quarters
Celery – 3 stalks – cut into small pieces
Carrots – 2 – peeled and cut into small pieces
Dried Split Peas – 1 cup
Bone Broth – 2 cups
Water – 2 cups
Olive Oil – 1 tbsp
Bay Leaf – 1
Thyme – fresh – 5 sprigs
Celtic Sea Salt
DIRECTIONS
Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Sauteé leeks and celery for 3 minutes. Add bone broth, water and split peas and season with salt. Make a bundle of bay leaf and thyme and tie with a string or cheesecloth, then submerge into the liquid. Cover and simmer for 60-80 minutes, or use in a pressure cooker for 20 minutes. Add carrots to soup. Cover and continue to simmer for about 20 minutes, or until peas have broken down (if using a pressure cooker – 10 minutes is all that is needed). Season with some more salt if necessary.
Adzuki Bean Stew
INGREDIENTS
Ginger – 1” knob – peeled and finely grated on a microplane zester
Leeks – cut and rinsed, minced into small pieces
Celery – 3 stalks
Soy Sauce or Tamari – 1 tbsp
Ume Plum Vinegar – 2 tbsp, divided
Sesame Oil – 2 tbsp
Date Syrup – 1/2 tsp
Adzuki Beans – 1 cup
Water – 4 cups, divided
Reishi powder – optional
Kombu – 1 small piece – optional
Miso – 1 tbsp
Bonito Flakes – optional – 1 tbsp
Celtic Sea Salt – 1 tbsp
Black Sesame Seeds – 1 tbsp
DIRECTIONS
Dissolve Celtic sea salt into 2 cups of warm water, add 1 tbsp of ume plum vinegar and dissolve. Add 1 slice of kombu if using. Soak the adzuki beans overnight. Drain and rinse the beans thoroughly and set aside.
In a large pot, toast the sesame seeds for one minute and set aside. Add sesame oil and heat until warm, then add leeks, ginger and celery until translucent. In a tea kettle, heat 2-3 cups of water. Prepare a large pyrex with a spout or bowl with a strainer on top of it. Place bonito flakes and miso on top of the strainer. When boiling, pour the water over the bonito flakes and miso into the pyrex or bowel cover with a plate for about 10 minutes. Stir the miso on top of the strainer thoroughly and pass mixture through sieve. You want the flavor of the miso and the bonito but not the chunks and you want to make a smooth, brothy mixture. If it is not smooth, pass it through a sieve it again.
Pour the miso / bonito water into the large pot and heat until it gently simmers. Add the beans and kombu slice to the pot and simmer covered over low heat for 45 minutes (or use a pressure cooker for 20). Add the rest of the ingredients and serve warm.
*Note – If you have Hashimoto’s Disease or Graves Disease or if you have been diagnosed with autoimmune thyroiditis – avoid kombu.
We hope you enjoyed this two part series to help you sleep better!
