Suzanne and I talked this morning about how with her new lifestyle change, her dog no longer begs for food from Suzanne’s side of the table. After watching Suzanne spend 40 minutes eating just 1/4 of a lunch she brought in, I could take it no more. Eating food doesn’t need to be a miserable experience and flavor can come from healthy sources. So, I gave Suzanne a list of some of my favorite herbs/spices that are easy to cook with. We got a lot of calls this morning inquiring about those recommendations. I’ll list here what I recommended to Suzanne and I’m including three healthy but very flavorful recipes I like to make.

Some of my favorite herbs/spices: Thyme, Rosemary, Cumin, Corriander, Red pepper flakes, Oregano. There’s so many more, but if you’re not used to cooking with a lot of herbs/spices, I’d recommend starting with these.

This first recipe is one of my favorite salads, and not only is it an unconventional salad, but it looks beautiful:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Spicy-Asian-Noodle-and-Chicken-Salad-230922

(I use chow mein noodles for this recipe and I actually omit the soy sauce. I forgot to add it the first time I made this recipe and since it tasted fine, why add the salt?)

The second recipe I think is a great unique take on tacos.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Spice-Rubbed-Chicken-and-Vegetable-Tacos-with-Cilantro-Slaw-and-Chipotle-Cream-235158

(You’ll want to note that the cilantro slaw is a separate link within this recipe and it’s what makes this recipe so good)

Finally, I don’t even like green beans, but I don’t mind them with this simple recipe:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Green-Beans-with-Coriander-and-Garlic-232278

(Corriander is another name for cilantro. You’ll want fresh cilantro for this)

If you get a chance to make any of these, I’d love to hear your feedback.

Dave