Nourished Kitchen is one of my sources for health-oriented meal ideas. They just published their list of healthiest foods for 2012. I've tried 5 of these (mentioned below) and can say that they are not just healthy, they are dang good!

#1 on the list is any soup made from the leftover bones of your Sunday dinner (chicken, turkey, pot roast, etc.). The simplest way to prepare a bone broth is to use your slow cooker - keep it full and cooking and you'll always have hearty and healthy broth for whatever soup you're in the mood for.

#2 was Three-Seed Porridge with Fresh Ginger and Blueberries. Buckwheat, amaranth, and quinoa are the stars in this dish. I soak these seeds overnight to make for quick cooking in the morning. It's an amazing flavor combination when sweetened with real Grade B maple syrup! Here's the recipe, if you're interested:

3 Seed Porridge with Blueberries and Ginger

Healthy and so very tasty, this will become a breakfast or snacking favorite for sure.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup oat groats
1/3 cup quinoa
1/2 cup amaranth
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3 tablespoons butter melted
1 cubic inch knob of fresh ginger peeled and cut into matchsticks
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cinnamon stick
3 cups whole milk or heavy cream plus more to serve with
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
pure maple syrup (Grade B is best); honey will also work well


Directions:

The night before you plan to serve the porridge, coarsely grind buckwheat and quinoa in a hand-crank grain grind, a spice grinder, or an inexpensive little coffee grinder. Transfer the freshly ground buckwheat and quinoa to a mixing bowl and stir in amaranth. Cover with three to four cups hot water and stir in one tablespoon lemon juice. Allow the seeds to soak for at least twelve hours. Drain and rinse. Melt butter in a medium-sized heavy-bottom saucepan over moderate heat, stir in ginger and fry until fragrant - about three minutes.

Reduce heat to medium-low and stir in soaked buckwheat, quinoa and amaranth as well as unrefined sea salt and whole milk or heavy cream. Add a cinnamon stick to the pot and simmer, stirring continuously for eight to ten minutes or until the porridge is cooked through and thickened to your liking. Remove cinnamon stick from porridge, fold in blueberries. Sweeten to taste with maple syrup or honey, and serve with additional whole milk or heavy cream to taste.

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#3 is no surprise: NO-knead Sourdough Bread, made with your own starter. All you need to make your own starter is water, flour, and time. Start with filtered water (the chlorine in the city water most of us have access to kills the bacteria and yeasts needed to make a starter). Any flour, provided it's grain-based, will work for making a sourdough starter. Rice flour, rye flour, spelt flour, whole wheat flour, barley flour, sprouted flour, einkorn flour, bread flour - they all work. If you have never made starter or a no-knead bread, go to this wonderful website, https://nourishedkitchen.com/how-to-make-a-sourdough-starter for all the help you need.

#4 lists Kale and White Bean Soup as a winner. This is where you can put that bone broth to work that you've been cooking. There are lots of great recipes for this soup, but whichever one I use, I always use organic ingredients as much as possible - especially regarding the kale.

#5 Chicken and Vegetable Turnovers with sourdough crust keeps 'em coming back for more. Overflowing with leeks, kale, carrots, celery, and onions (besides leftover chicken), this recipe is so worth the time and effort it takes:

Chicken and Vegetable Turnovers

This hearty main dish is an excellent and delicious way to use leftover chicken!

Ingredients:
3 cups whole grain flour
2 teaspoons sea salt, divided
1/4 cup chilled butter cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup sourdough starter
1/4 to 1/3 cup ice water
2 tablespoons clarified butter
1 leek white and light green parts only, sliced thin
4 medium carrots scraped and chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
3 ribs celery finely chopped
1 small bunch kale with rib trimmed away and leaves sliced thin
1 small onion chopped fine
1 1/2 cups cooked and shredded chicken
1 cup chicken stock or broth
1/2 cup cream cheese
1 egg beaten


Directions:

In a stand mixer, or by hand, stir flour and 1 teaspoon salt together, then beat in butter until the flour resembles corn meal. Beat in cheddar cheese and sourdough starter. Slowly add cold water, bit by bit, until the dough forms a ball and becomes pliable.

Wrap the ball of dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 8 hours, then remove from fridge and allow it to warm at room temperature for about 20 minutes. Cut the dough into four equal quarters. Place each ball of dough between 2 sheets of parchment paper and roll it out until it forms a circle about 1/8-inch thick.

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. When the butter froths, stir in vegetables, remaining teaspoon salt, and cook them gently for 6 to 8 minutes or until they release their fragrance. Stir in chicken and broth. Simmer for a further 15 to 20 minutes or until liquid has largely evaporated.

Take a disc of dough, and spoon approximately 1/4 of the chicken and vegetable filling and 2 tablespoons cream cheese onto 1/2 half of the disc. Fold the other half of the dough over the filling and seal with a fork or by crimping the edges. Continue working until all 4 turnovers have been filled. Whisk beaten egg with a tablespoon or two of water to make an egg wash, then brush each pastry with egg wash. Cut a small slit in the top crust of each turnover to allow for escaping steam, then bake at 375 F about 45 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Allow turnovers to cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes before serving.

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#5 And the last I tried was Lentil Stew. Any recipe is wonderful, really. The flavor combo you want is a good broth, garlic, onions or leeks, carrots, celery, and spinach. Adding a couple cups of diced ham is never a mistake.

By now you've noticed the common thread throughout these suggestions: REAL food, prepared by YOU. That's the key to healthier food, and what a great goal for 2013. Let's commit to inserting more wholesome, homemade foods in this year's diet!

Sources
www.blog.radiantlifecatalog.com
www.foodwisenw.com
www.nourishedkitchen.com
www.pinsandthimbles.wordpress.com
www.nourishedkitchen.com
www.tasteofhome.com