Toasted Coconut Pancakes with Toasted Coconut Sauce

Anyone who loves the sweet nutty taste and aroma of toasted dried coconut will love these thick fluffy pancakes … served with a simple sweet toasted coconut sauce, they're loaded with toasted coconut goodness. Easy to make, this recipe uses coconut milk, coconut sugar and coconut oil to round out the coconut theme.

Baked Quinoa Balls with Peanut Dipping Sauce

Little people like me need lots of protein. And this tasty little appetizer idea provides a good and tasty dose with quinoa, beans and peanut butter. I adore little bites, and these little savory balls can be served as a light meal too, as they are quite filling.

But these baked quinoa balls have more than just protein. Combined with sun-dried tomatoes, jalapeño, tamari, ground ginger and coconut milk, they have a wonderful rich and deep Thai-style flavor, and the zesty peanut butter dipping sauce with lime, tamari, coconut milk and toasted sesame oil is just heavenly. You won't be thinking about how healthy these are!

Hummus With Za'atar

Many people think of hummus as a snack or appetizer, but for a little person like myself it's a meal! And a simple, convenient and tasty meal at that. Hummus is also a terrific canvas for adding or experimenting with your favorite flavors … maybe it's Middle Eastern in origin, but that's no reason not to try adding Indian, Ethiopian or other flavors.

But for this hummus, I've returned to Middle Eastern flavors. This is actually a very basic, light creamy and fluffy hummus made with chickpeas, tahini, toasted pine nuts, lemon juice and garlic. But seasoned with za'atar, it's an extraordinary treat. For those of you who haven't tried it yet — and you should! — za'atar is a unique Middle Eastern blend of aromatic dried herbs, sumac, black salt and toasted sesame seeds that adds a wonderful zesty and salty flavor to dishes. You'll love even just the smell of it.

Roasted Carrot and Azuki Bean Salad

We seem to be starting to climb out of winter here in southwestern Ontario, so it's time to put some color on the plate. Spiced roasted carrots, sweet red azuki beans and pieces of avocado on a bed of baby spinach do the trick here, and they're absolutely delightful on their own — particularly the carrots, which you'll end up snacking on even before you serve the salad. But what really separates this colorful salad from the rest is an astonishingly tasty lime, cilantro and mint dressing that you'll want to remember for serving with any robust flavored salad.

Beet and Strawberry Vanilla Smoothie

I've been topping up my breakfasts lately with quick frozen fruit smoothies, and this bright pink strawberry concoction has very quickly become one of my favorites. Cold, refreshing and creamy, it's not only packed with plenty of sweet strawberry flavor but also with the super vitamin and mineral nutrition of red beets. It's so tasty that I've started buying bags of red beets to have on hand instead of small bunches … and so nourishing, too, that you'll want to serve it any time of day. In fact, I think I'll go make another one right now!