{"id":48096,"date":"2025-12-05T01:15:47","date_gmt":"2025-12-05T09:15:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/?p=48096"},"modified":"2025-12-04T09:44:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-04T17:44:08","slug":"fresh-healthy-comfort-foods","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/2025\/12\/05\/fresh-healthy-comfort-foods\/","title":{"rendered":"Fresh, healthy comfort foods"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nico Pallota\u2019s Greek Orzo Salad. <\/i>(photo from hilltoprecipes.com<\/a>)<\/i><\/p>\n

<\/i>My house, my rules. And those rules were recently transformed. No more fatty foods, no more carbs, no more booze. OK, an amendment is in order. Fewer fatty foods, fewer and more curated carbs, and still no booze. Apparently, I am my husband\u2019s keeper, as far as food goes. Or, at least, food he consumes in our home. If he sneaks out for a sabich, it\u2019s beyond my control. But, at home, I\u2019m the food boss. Or, at least, while I\u2019m awake. What Harvey does in the middle of the night or when I\u2019m not around is another story. One that rarely ends well.<\/p>\n

Lest I sound like an ogre or a nag-wife, let me assure you that I am both. But in a good way. I only want my hubby to be healthy and live a long life \u2013 if my nagging doesn\u2019t kill him first, G-d forbid. I know, I know, I should stay in my own lane. But hey, don\u2019t the rules of engagement (and marriage) stipulate that we look out for each other\u2019s health and welfare? I\u2019m sticking to that theory like velcro.<\/p>\n

In the service of eating healthier meals, I found a refreshing hearty salad that will not only fill you up, but satisfy your tastebuds. Salads often present as side dishes, but this one can easily stand independently and confidently as a main dish. I found the recipe on one of my forays down the rabbit hole of Instagram. This super-easy recipe for Greek Orzo Salad with Marinated Chickpeas (by Nico Pallotta<\/a>) jumped out at me as something that doesn\u2019t call for a bunch of fancy-pants ingredients. It\u2019s certifiably healthy, contains a respectable amount of protein (thanks to the feta cheese and chickpeas) and is ridiculously refreshing. Note: I omitted the onion, since onions and I have a love-hate relationship. Mostly hate.<\/p>\n

GREEK ORZO SALAD WITH MARINATED CHICKPEAS<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n

1 1\/4\u00a0cup\u00a0orzo pasta
\n<\/b>1\u00a0can\u00a0chickpeas\u00a0(15oz\/400g)
\n<\/b>1 1\/2\u00a0cups\u00a0cherry tomatoes,\u00a0halved or quartered
\n<\/b>1 1\/2\u00a0cups\u00a0Persian cucumbers,\u00a0diced
\n<\/span><\/b>1\/2\u00a0red onion,\u00a0chopped (optional)
\n<\/b>1\/3 cup pitted Kalamata olives
\n<\/b>4oz\/100g feta cheese, crumbled<\/b><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

dressing
\n<\/i><\/i>4\u00a0tbsp\u00a0extra virgin olive oil
\n<\/b>2\u00a0tbsp\u00a0lemon juice\u00a0and lemon zest
\n<\/b>1\u00a0tbsp honey
\n<\/b>1\u00a0tbsp Dijon mustard
\n<\/span><\/b>1 1\/2\u00a0tsp dried oregano
\n<\/b>1\/2\u00a0tsp salt and black pepper<\/b><\/p>\n

In a bowl, whisk\u00a0together all the dressing ingredients \u2013 olive oil, lemon juice\u00a0and zest, honey, mustard, oregano, salt and pepper until smooth. Add the chickpeas (drained and rinsed), toss to coat and let sit 10 minutes. If you\u00a0warm the chickpeas for 15-30 seconds in the microwave before tossing them with the dressing, they will soak up more flavour.<\/p>\n

Boil\u00a0the\u00a0orzo pasta in salted water until al dente. Drain, rinse under cold water for 10 seconds and shake off excess water. Let it cool.<\/p>\n

Add the cherry tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, olives and\u00a0feta cheese to the chickpeas and dressing, and toss. Mix in the cooled orzo and serve right away or chill for 30 to 60 minutes for a more melded flavour.<\/p>\n

This salad is a nice break from heavier meals that feature more aggressive proteins like meat or chicken. Never thought I\u2019d anthropomorphize meat, but there it is. Harvey pronounced it \u201cguest-worthy\u201d (his highest accolade). He graciously told me I could make it anytime.<\/p>\n

Colourful and vibrant, you can serve it with a baguette or sourdough bread and you\u2019ve got yourself a complete meal. It keeps well in the fridge overnight, if you happen to have any left over. If you insist on consuming more protein, a light piece of salmon would pair nicely with it, or maybe a bowl of soup. I would rarely consider a salad a full-fledged dinner, as I\u2019m a hardcore meat-and-potatoes kind of gal, but, in this case, it really did fill me up.<\/p>\n

As for other nourishment, I recently stumbled upon an easy and luscious butternut squash soup recipe. It\u2019s basically a sheet pan soup, where you roast the veggies, transfer them to a pot, add broth and then blend. Harvey proclaimed it \u201cthe world\u2019s best soup!\u201d (exclamation mark included).<\/p>\n

BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP
\n<\/b><\/b>(adapted from Sivan\u2019s Kitchen<\/a> on Instagram)<\/i><\/i><\/p>\n

1 medium butternut squash
\n<\/b>3 yams, peeled
\n<\/b>4-5 carrots, peeled
\n<\/b>tiny piece of white onion (since onion hates me)
\n<\/b>1 whole garlic head with top cut off
\n<\/b>2-inch piece of ginger,\u00a0 <\/span>sliced thin
\n<\/b>7 cups chicken broth
\n<\/b>olive oil
\n<\/b>salt and pepper
\n<\/b>cinnamon<\/b><\/p>\n

Preheat the oven to 400\u02daF. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and lightly drizzle with olive oil. Peel the carrots and rub with olive oil. Drizzle the garlic head with oil and wrap in foil.<\/p>\n

Soften the squash by putting it in the microwave for two minutes \u2013 make sure to poke it with a knife a few times to let the steam escape.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Cut the squash and yams in half lengthwise (scoop out and discard the squash seeds), rub with olive oil, then season with salt, pepper and cinnamon.<\/p>\n

Place the veggies cut side down on lightly oiled parchment. Add the onion, ginger and foil-wrapped garlic. Bake for one hour.<\/p>\n

Scoop out the squash and put all the veggies into a large pot. Squeeze out the baked garlic into the pot. Add chicken broth and simmer for about 15 minutes, breaking up the roasted veggies. Let it cool a bit then puree it.<\/p>\n

This soup is so silky smooth that you\u2019d swear there was cream in it, but no cream was poured (or harmed) in its making. I swear. If there was ever a fall comfort food, this is it. According to Sivan\u2019s Kitchen, the soup\u2019s Israeli name is marak katom<\/i> (orange soup). In whatever language, it\u2019s spectacular. I think the cinnamon puts it over the top. So, stop wasting time and get your gourd on!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Shelley Civkin<\/b>, aka the Accidental Balabusta, is a happily retired librarian and communications officer. For 17 years, she wrote a weekly book review column for the <\/i>Richmond Review. She\u2019s currently a freelance writer and volunteer.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nico Pallota\u2019s Greek Orzo Salad. (photo from hilltoprecipes.com) My house, my rules. And those rules were recently transformed. No more fatty foods, no more carbs, no more booze. OK, an amendment is in order. Fewer fatty foods, fewer and more curated carbs, and still no booze. Apparently, I am my husband\u2019s keeper, as far as […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":48097,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[3584,3456,9156,9528],"class_list":["post-48096","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-life","tag-cooking","tag-recipes","tag-salad","tag-soup"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48096","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48096"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48096\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48097"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48096"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48096"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48096"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}