Journal Category: Recipes

Sashimi Bowl

This sashimi bowl is quick & easy to prepare, is perfect for cold or warm months (just plus or minus miso soup) and provides loads of nutrition. If you’re pregnant (ie no raw fish) or vegetarian, use cooked salmon, tofu or tempeh instead of raw salmon, and seaweed salad instead of pickled octopus.

Nutritional benefits:

Protein: a variation of animal & vegetable sources, from the salmon, octopus, sesame seeds & edamame.

Good fats: again a variation of sources, from the salmon, sesame seeds, sesame oil & avocado.

Low carb: this is a very low carb meal. If you do need some extra carbs, you could add brown rice.

Prebiotics & probiotics: this provides plenty in the way of good support for your gut bacteria. Miso & apple cider vinegar are sources of probiotics, and purple carrots & black sesame seeds are excellent prebiotics- food for your good gut bacteria.

Antioxidants: different coloured vegetable pigments represent variations in antioxidants. This meal provides you with green, orange & purple pigments- considered the three most important.

Purple vegetables in particular are excellent for antioxidant support, and purple carrots are considered to be one of the best. If you haven’t seen them before, check your local organic grocer, or they are even available at some Woolworths stores in the organic section (mind you, this is an over-packaged and over-priced option…..). If you can’t find them, just use 2 orange carrots.

Phyto-oestrogens: whilst there is a lot of information on the internet about the ‘problems’ with soy, you’ll find the research shows that eating whole-soy sources is associated with positives outcomes for women in relation to hormones and fertility. Miso & edamame are two such foods (along with tofu & tempeh).

Iodine: seaweed is an excellent dietary source of iodine, and integral nutrient for preconception & pregnancy outcomes.

Hope you enjoy the recipe!

 

 Sashimi bowl 2

 

 

 

 

 

Serves 2

Ingredients: 

You may need to visit a Japanese grocer for some of these items. There’s a great one at 279 Smith St Fitzroy, called Hinoki. And try an organic grocer or the organic section of Woolworths for the purple carrots.

2 large handfuls of baby spinach or mixed salad leaves

200g sashimi grade salmon, thinly sliced

100g Japanese picked octopus

100g frozen edamame beans, thawed

1 avocado, thinly sliced

 

Pickled carrots:

1 purple carrot

1 orange carrot

2 tsp black sesame seeds

2 tsp of apple cider or Japanese rice wine vinegar

2 tsp tamari/Japanese soy sauce

1 tsp of sesame oil

 

Garnish:

shredded dried seaweed

2 tsp black sesame seeds

wasabi & pickled ginger (if desired)

 

Serve with: 

tamari

2 tsp of miso pate, dissolved in hot water to make a simple miso soup.

Variations: pregnant (ie no raw fish) or vegetarian? Use cooked salmon, tofu or tempeh instead of raw salmon, and seaweed salad instead of pickled octopus.

 

Directions:

To make pickled carrots, grate carrots into separate bowls. Add half the sesame seeds, vinegar, tamari & sesame oil to each bowl. Mix to combine.

Divide leaves between two large bowls. Divide pickled carrots, salmon, octopus, edamame & avocado between bowls. Garnish as desired, serve with tamari & a cup of miso soup.

Recipe shared by Rhiannon Hardingham, FGHG Naturopath
L9999600Rhiannon is an experienced naturopath and nutritionist, with post graduate qualifications in Fertility Education. Rhiannon is committed to the successful integration of natural and conventional medicine, and believes ideal outcomes are achieved for patients when all their health care providers are working together. She incorporates the use of lifestyle counselling, nutritional supplementation and herbal medicine to achieve optimum results for each individual patient.

 

Rhiannon’s home made baked beans

These nutritious home made baked beans can be served with any combination of toast, eggs, sausages, cheese, avocado … or just deliciously on their own. Beans freeze well and will keep for a few days in the fridge, unless you eat them first (which you probably will). Yum!

This recipe can also be cooked low and slow for a few hours with dried beans, or for a quick fix substitute dry beans for 2 x 400g tins of your favourite beans and simply heat all ingredients until cooked through – about 15 minutes and its ready to eat!

Here’s the recipe from Rhiannon Hardingham, FGHG naturopath and natural fertility expert. She is an exercise enthusiast, an inspired wholesome food cook and a proponent of achieving the best of health in all aspects of life! Enjoy!

 

Ingredients

200g dried beans (cannellini, navy and black beans are my favourites)

2-3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

1 large brown onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1-2 dried or fresh chillis, chopped (optional)

2 cm fresh ginger, grated (optional)

1 small carrot, finely chopped

1 stick of celery, finely chopped

2 large tomatoes, roughly chopped

400 gram bottle of tomato passata or puree

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 tablespoon of honey

2 fresh bay leaves

1 handful of freshly chopped parsley

Sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste

 

Soak dry beans in plenty of filtered water overnight (if you use 2 x 400g cans of your favourite beans there is no need to soak!)

Heat olive oil in a large fry pan or heavy based pot and gently cook onion until translucent and tender.

Add garlic, chilli, ginger, carrot and celery, continuing to cook for another 5 minutes until mixture is gently browned and caramelised.

Stir in fresh tomatoes, passata and paste, and cook for another 5 minutes.

Rinse the beans and add to the tomato mixture with honey and bay leaves, along with enough water to cover.

Gently cook over low heat adding more water as you go if required.

Stir occasionally and cook for approximately 2 hours until beans are tender. (15 minutes if using canned beans!) 🙂

Season to taste with salt and pepper and stir through parsley.

Serves 4-6

This recipe and many more delicious recipes can be found in the e-book, The Breakfast Project – a collection of nutritious recipes to change the way you eat. Learn more about The Breakfast Project.

Delicious nutritious chicken broth

Fertility Food

From Tina Jenkins, FGHG Naturopath

One of the things I love about winter is the delicious warming soups! This following recipe is one I make regularly throughout the colder months and freeze in small batches so that I always have it at the ready whenever needed. I love warming it up during the day and having a hot mug of chicken broth instead of a herbal tea. It is not only full of lots of nutrients and healing properties (did you know that there is even research on chicken soup helping to speed up healing and recovery from the common cold?) it tastes delicious too. It is certainly a great one to have on hand if someone is coming down with a cold or winter bug or if recovering from an upset stomach. When I was studying naturopathy, one of my lecturers used to refer to it as “liquid gold for the gut” and it is certainly a lovely, gentle nourishing soup for the digestive system and importantly non-irritating for those with sensitive tummies.

What you will require (apart from the ingredients below) is a good 4 or 5 hours at home. The longer the stock simmers away for on the stove the more flavour and the better the taste. I will often cook this up on a cold wintery Sunday and there is nothing nicer than the lovely smell of the broth cooking filling the house. Whilst I have outlined below what I throw into the stock mix, you can certainly throw in any leftover vegies you have in the fridge that you need to use up.

I also suggest making up a BIG batch (especially considering it takes so long to cook!) and then freezing in smaller batches as mentioned previously.

 

What you need

A massive stock pot

2 free range organic chickens

3-4 bay leaves

4-5 black peppercorns

2 onions (quartered)

4-5 carrots, roughly chopped

4-5 celery stalks, roughly chopped

4-5 sprigs of flat-leaf parsley (I don’t bother chopping this; I just throw it in)

Directions

Pop all the ingredients into your big stock pot and cover with water. Make sure the chickens are completely covered with water. Bring to a simmer. Cook at a simmer for 4-5 hours. Skim any muck off the surface during cooking. You can cook it for longer if you are home; 6 hours of cooking can give the broth a stronger flavour. Strain and enjoy!

 

Tina JenkinsTina Jenkins, FGHG Naturopath

Tina is a highly qualified naturopath bringing more than 20 years of experience to FGHG. After finishing her final year of studies at the Southern School of Natural Therapies, Tina worked as a naturopath in Singapore for 12 years. During her time there, she practiced in multidisciplinary clinics alongside gynaecologists/obstetricians and spent 4 years working as a naturopath in an international IVF clinic alongside a leading IVF specialist. Tina returned to Australia at the end of 2008 where she resumed practice and completed her Masters in Reproductive Medicine through the University of New South Wales.

 

Delicous and nutritious seed crackers

Seed Crackers with Rhiannon Hardingham at Fertile Ground

One of the best things about working at Fertile Ground is all of the fabulous and inspiring people I get to meet. A recent example of this was the fabulous Julia Lette – naturopath, personal trainer and (importantly for us) raw food chef extraordinaire! She has just completed our naturopathic mentor program, and spoiled us rotten during this time! Julia introduced us to some very impressive healthy desserts, but most exciting to me was her simple but amazing seed crackers. Total GAME CHANGER for low carb eating! Not only does it allow you to quickly and easily make your own crackers, but they are packed with great nutrients- good fats, minerals, b vitamins and fibre. And they’re easy and delicious…. I promise. Give them a go and find out for yourself!

Ingredients

½ cup sunflower seeds

½ cup pumpkin seeds

¼ cup sesame seeds

½ cup Stoney Creek Flaxseed Meal (from your local health food shop, or pick some up next time you’re in at Fertile Ground).

¼ cup chia seeds

½ tsp salt

1 cup water

Method

  1. Heat oven to 170 degrees Celsius. Place all the seeds and the salt in a bowl, pour in water and mix to combine. Leave for 15 minutes for the chia and flax seeds to soften and bind everything together.
  2. Tip out on to a baking paper-lined oven tray and spread out as thin as possible (around 4mm thick) and sprinkle with some flaky sea salt (if desired). Bake for 30 minutes.
  3. Remove from the oven and slice into crackers, then return to the oven to cook for another 20-30 minutes until crisp and golden. Remove to a rack to cool then store in an airtight container.

written by Rhiannon Hardingham, recipe created by Julia Lette

John’s Buckwheat Pancakes

Recipe by John Fleming, Melbourne Musician, from The Breakfast Project eBook by Charmaine Dennis and Milly Dabrowski

“Coming up with gluten free breakfasts to satisfy everyone in the family is tricky. We ate flat, solid pancakes for a long time before learning about whites whipped and light. Fluffy AND gluten free? Yes it is possible! Our family favorite.” – John Fleming

Makes 10 medium pancakes

2 eggs separated
1 cup buckwheat flour
200mls milk (I use soy)
A pinch of salt
Some oil for the pan (olive or coconut is great, butter for a treat)
Top with any combination of the following: Maple syrup, fresh berries,
lemon, nuts, yoghurt, honey, coconut oil/butter, coconut sugar, jams,
butter – go nuts)
Mix flour, milk, egg yolks and salt.
Whip the egg whites to firm peaks in a separate bowl.
Gently fold in the other mixed ingredients.
Let the batter stand for a few minutes while you heat the pan.
Grease the pan with a tablespoon of the oil of your choice and pour
in batter.
Cook palm sized pancakes on one side until lightly brown, then flip
for a minute or so until the other side browns.
Top with your favourite flavours and

John Fleming is a Melbourne musician, songwriter, presenter and performer. With over two decades of acclaimed work on TV, radio and live shows both solo and with The Scared Weird Little Guys, John is also a father of 2 gorgeous children and loves to cook up delicious healthy breakfasts for his family and friends.

Zucchini, Fetta and Herb Slice

This zucchini, fetta and herb slice is more of a brunch dish, filling your home with a delicious herbacious aroma while this slice is baking. The more herbs the better so feel free to mix it up and try different herbal variations. Dusting the dish with polenta makes an easy crunchy base for the slice.

Ingredients:

Butter and polenta, for dusting the dish

5 medium (700g) zucchini, coarsely grated

5 (60g) eggs

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 bunch chives, chopped

1/2 bunch dill, chopped

1/2 bunch mint, chopped

1/2 bunch basil, chopped

150 g parmesan cheese, freshly grated (use kefalagravera if goats cheese better tolerated than cows)

200 g sheep feta

1 cup buckwheat flour or gluten free flour blend

2 tsp baking powder
Preheat oven to 180°C.

Pile the grated zucchini into a colander and leave to drain.

Grease a 32x22cm ovenproof baking dish with butter. Dust heavily with polenta, tap out the excess, and set aside.

Whisk the eggs into a large mixing bowl with the oil and herbs.

Squeeze out as much liquid from the zucchini as possible before stirring into the egg and herb mixture.

Crumble in the parmesan and ⅓ of the feta (saving ⅔ for the top).

Add the flour and mix in until it is combined (mixing by hand is easier, as mixture gets quite thick).

Spread the mixture into the prepared dish.

Bake for 20 minutes, remove from the oven and and break up the remaining feta for the top.

Bake for another 30-40 minutes or until the fetta is brown and the top of the pie is springy when pressed (insert a knife into the middle if you are unsure and check that the egg is cooked)

Cool in the dish for at least 10 minutes

Serve hot or cold with rocket and lemon.

Serves 4-6

Cooks Tip: use a potato ricer to squeeze liquid out of zucchini if you don’t have much time for draining.

Variations:

Sliced fennel bulb makes an interesting addition

Serve with bacon or slices of ham

Chop cherry tomatoes in half press in cut side up on the top before baking

Or bake a vine of cherry tomatoes at the same time as the slice and serve on top

Buddha Brekky Bowls

by Charmaine Dennis, FGHG Director and Naturopath

Variety is the spice of life – so good for getting a variety of micro, macro nutrients and phytochemicals, pre and probiotics for your microbiome, fibre for your digestive health, and keep you interested in breakfast! These Buddha Brekky bowls are super flexible. You can mix and match whatever little tasty bits you feel like on the day. Your kids will love it too!

What have I forgotten here? What else would you add?

1TBS of each… -ish… whatever you feel like on the day… all organic if you can. Soak the nuts and seeds overnight if you can… or buy already “ activated”.

  • Gluten Free muesli – buy a couple of varieties, or simply soak some oats if you need it as a base. You can get GF oats at the health food store if needed. Adding lots of other bits and pieces of wholefoods will reduce any sugar load in a commercial muesli – or delete the muesli altogether.
  • Walnuts
  • Almonds
  • Macadamias
  • Brazil nuts (try to get the ones grown in Brazil as they are much higher in selenium)
  • Sunflower seeds
  • Linseeds
  • Pumpkin seeds
  • Sesame seeds
  • Chia Seeds – you can soak them in coconut or almond milk overnight for a few spoons of a tasty pudding – or just sprinkle them on, but they do love to get stuck in your teeth!
  • Nut butter – peanut, ABC, cashew etc
  • Dried Coconut
  • Cacao nibs
  • Goji Berries
  • Natural cow, goat, sheep or coconut yoghurt
  • Kefir
  • Fresh almond milk
  • Berries/mango/banana
  • Bee Pollen (small sprinkle)

Come and join us for breakfast! We’re over on our FB page sharing ideas, recipes, pics and inspiration as a community of breakfast lovers HERE.

For more nutritious and delicious breakfast recipes check out Charmaine and Milly’s “The Breakfast Project” e-book.

Breakfast Project Cover

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CharmaineDENNISC1

Charmaine Dennis is a naturopath, fertility and health expert, mentor, writer, mother, and businesswoman. She is the founding director of Fertile Ground Health Group, co-creator of the Be Fertile relaxation CD series and co-author of The Breakfast Project, among other health inspired projects. Her greatest gift and inspiration is making health, wellbeing, and passionate living accessible, inspiring and achievable for everyone. Charmaine’s naturopathic career has followed a special interest in working with couples with infertility requiring IVF support since 1999.  She has assisted many in realising their dreams to conceive healthy, beautiful babies in collaboration with GPs and fertility specialists, acupuncturists and other health modalities.

 

 

 

 

 

Char’s Mouth-watering Chocolate Health Cake

by Charmaine Dennis, FGHG Director and Naturopath

Impress your friends and loved ones with health cake.

Super easy, quick to make AND pretty. It’s nutrient dense, high in fibre, good fats, antioxidants, protein and energy as well as gluten, dairy and soy free and fine for vegans too.  Small pieces are satisfying so it is a good idea for afternoon treat compared with a chocolate bar – but if you need something like to get though your afternoon or crave something sweet after dinner, you should probably come have an appointment with one of us to help you sort out your blood sugar balance!

My favourite part is how the thick layer of chocolate on the top cracks when you cut it. Such a satisfying sound.

Ingredients
·       2 cups walnut halves (soaked for 4 hours or overnight, rinsed and dried)
·       ½ cup shredded coconut
·       1/3 cup rolled oats
·       ¼ cup chia seeds (white or black)
·       2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
·       1 tablespoon raw cocao powder
·       pinch chilli
·       pinch sea salt flakes
·       18 medjool dates, fresh, pits removed
·       100g good quality dark chocolate, at least 75% and fair trade or organic
·       Raw cacao powder, sifted over to serve
(Organic ingredients where possible make it taste even better of course)
Instructions
1.     Process the walnuts, coconut, oats, chia seeds, cinnamon, cocoa, chilli and salt in a food processor until all the ingredients are chopped (not too finely) and mixed.
2.     With the blades spinning, add the dates a few pieces at a time, until all the dates are added and mixture is starting to come together. Stop the processer and spoon down the sides a couple of times to mix well.
3.     Press the mixture evenly into a 20cm cake tin, lined with baking paper (no need to grease) pressing and smoothing the surface down firmly with the back of a metal spoon.
4.     Melt the dark chocolate in a bowl over boiling water and poor gently onto the top of the cake to cover completely to the sides
5.     Cover and refrigerate until required.
6.     To serve, dust with more cacao and cut into thin wedges

Notes
This recipe can also be turned into a slice or balls and rolled in cacao or coconut or dipped in the chocolate. If you are gifting the cake, it is nice to make a few balls to keep for yourself too.
Throw in what ever interesting ingredients you have – try other nuts like cashews or macadamias or seeds like sunflower or pipitas, nut butter, tahini, dry goji berries or other dry fruit, puffed quinoa or amaranth, matcha, bee pollen, maple syrup. You can experiment with different interesting tastes every time. Bit of this, bit of that, taste, taste, yum, yum.
It will keep in a glass container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Let us know if you make one – we would love to hear about your variations.

 

CharmaineDENNISC1Charmaine Dennis is a naturopath, fertility and health expert, mentor, writer, mother, and businesswoman. She is the founding director of Fertile Ground Health Group, co-creator of the Be Fertile relaxation CD series and co-author of The Breakfast Project, among other health inspired projects. Her greatest gift and inspiration is making health, wellbeing, and passionate living accessible, inspiring and achievable for everyone. Charmaine’s naturopathic career has followed a special interest in working with couples with infertility requiring IVF support since 1999.  She has assisted many in realising their dreams to conceive healthy, beautiful babies in collaboration with GPs and fertility specialists, acupuncturists and other health modalities.

Food for Life – a guest post by Petrea King

We are so lucky to have this guest post and recipe by the incredible Petrea King to share with you. Petrea is a naturopath, herbalist and founder of the Quest for Life Centre in New South Wales. She is also author of the wonderful Food for Life recipe book, full of nourishing recipes and now available at Fertile Ground. Here’s Petrea’s post and sample recipe for the book for you to enjoy!…

Petrea’s pumpkin pie

My children, Kate and Simon, were raised as vegetarians and this recipe was their all-time favourite. Even now we rarely have a family gathering where this dish doesn’t feature. It is also a great favourite at the Quest for Life Centre. Pumpkin is a great source of potassium and folate and this recipe is naturally sweet and filling. Other vegetables can be added to the basic recipe for variety.

1 kilo pumpkin, cooked and mashed
1 tablespoon sesame or extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 leeks, sliced or two large onions, diced
3 cloves garlic, diced
8 eggs, lightly beaten
500gm low-fat cottage cheese
1/4 cup honey (optional)
2 teaspoons nutmeg
2 heaped tablespoons dried mixed herbs
1 cup finely chopped fresh mixed herbs
sea salt and black pepper

Preheat the oven to 220˚C. Heat the oil in a frying pan and add the leek or onions and garlic. (A cup of sliced zucchinis, diced broccoli or cauliflower heads or other vegetables can also be added.) Saute until soft. Combine the mashed pumpkin with the remaining ingredients. Pour into an ovenproof dish and bake for 30 minutes covered with foil, then 30 minutes uncovered or until firm and golden. Serves 6–8.

The Quest for Life Centre in Bundanoon, NSW provides residential programs for people living with life’s greatest challenges including mental and physical health issues including grief, loss, post-trauma stress symptoms, depression, anxiety, cancer, chronic pain and other health challenges. Participants travel from all over Australia and beyond to attend our life-changing programs, which are based on the latest research and understanding of neuroplasticity – how we can change our brains by consciously choosing our response to life – and epigenetics – how the environment around every cell affects our genetic predispositions.

Last century we believed that health was dictated by our genetic predispositions. Now, because of epigenetics which means ‘above genetics’, we know our choices about what we eat and drink, our levels of sleep and exercise, our exposure to toxins in the environment and the chemistry of our emotions are modifying, suppressing or expressing our genetic predisposition. It’s inspiring to see people leave the program full of life and possibilities. They are so well nourished and nurtured on the program and they leave with a toolkit of strategies and practical skills for living well in the midst of whatever the challenges are that they have in their lives.

Regardless of whether you have an illness or are dealing with a challenge in your life, your nutrition is vitally important to your health. IF you are living with an illness or a stressful challenge in your life then your nutrition becomes even more important. It is essential you nourish your brain, body and nervous system when under stress as all nutrients are in higher demand at those times.

The Quest for Life Centre is renowned for its delicious and healthy fresh food, much of which is grown organically here at the Centre which is set in nine beautiful acres of grounds and gardens. Our cookbook, Food for Life contains a collection of 100 of the recipes we utilise at the Centre for our participants.

Petrea’s Pumpkin Pie is a delicious (savoury) recipe which my children love to eat – and, now they have children of their own, they also love Granny’s Pumpkin Pie! No family celebration would feel right without this dish as it’s one of everyone’s favourite recipes! It’s so easy to make and is full of great nutrition. You can also add other vegetables, like zucchinis or cauliflower florets, to the dish if you want. It’s also delicious hot or cold and it freezes very well too. I hope you enjoy Petrea’s Pumpkin Pie!

Petrea King, CEO Quest for Life Centre
www.questforlife.com.au

Recipe from Food for Life recipe book by Petrea King

food for life front cover

One must prepare the soil before planting the seed: a guest post from Petra Joly

Petra Joly, author of The Fertility Food Map recipe book talks about her passion for educating and motivating others to eat better to optimise their fertility, plus a bonus recipe from the book for you to try. Enjoy!

“ONE MUST FIRST PREPARE THE SOIL BEFORE PLANTING THE SEED”

(Petra proverb)

I am Petra Joly and I am the principal Acupuncturist and owner of Newtown Natural Fertility & IVF Support Centre in Newtown. From my very first day at College 16 years ago now, I knew fertility & gynaecology was the specialised field of health I would work in.  My dream was to create a space for couples to share their hopes, fears and desires to create a family.  Why was that? Because I always had this underlying fear that I wouldn’t be able to conceive myself, and I may need someone to support me one day. I had no clinical reason to suspect I would have difficulty, but the fear was there just the same and became my driving force to create my business.

I have always understood that to want a child and create a family is one of life’s most basic of desires, one of the most innate and driving desires one will ever experience. It is something that many people tend to assume will happen for them, we can feel it is ‘right’ and ‘normal’. However, with the harsh reality of statistics being 1 in 3 couples, over the age of 35, in Australia and New Zealand are infertile, we must be doing something seriously wrong. I am a concerned and passionate health care practitioner, but also a concerned and passionate member of our community.  If we can’t procreate, we don’t survive as a race. Which is exactly why I felt compelled to create this book: to aid you in some way towards creating a more fertile life for yourself and your children. Knowledge is power, something we can pass on to those we love.

I have been urged by many patients over the years to create an easy, affordable, balanced, delicious and nutritious eating plan. Well here it is. Information out there can be so varied and confusing.  What I find some ‘nutrition plans’ lack is an explanation as to why that particular food is good for me. “If we don’t know why we are doing something, then we lose desire and motivation to do so”.

There is so much talk about quinoa, why? Because it is grain-free so less inflammatory and easier to digest, it is a complete protein (containing all 9 essential amino acids) which is a building block for cells and blood, it is packed with nutrients such as Iron, Lysine, Magnesium, Vit B2 and Manganese; which are all necessary for cell development and follicular (eggs in our ovaries) development and will help thicken the lining of our uterus for the embryo to attach to. Now that means something. It gives us clear reasons as to why quinoa is a great fertility food yes?

I am not the most qualified nutritionist, I am not a food scientist, I am certainly not a celebrity chef or celebrity personal trainer.  I am however, a very passionate and caring health-care provider that wants to help couples be able to realise their dream of becoming parents.  I am also an advocate for better nutrition across the board. We all have a responsibility to create a better world for these children we create.  If I can impart any wisdom that will create healthier, more educated people, then my job is done and I am content.

Petra Joly, acupuncturist and owner of Newtown Natural Fertility & IVF Support Centre

Balsamic Snapper

– a recipe from The Fertility Food Map by Petra Joly

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
2 to 3 tablespoons honey, depending how sweet you want it
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 snapper fillets (or any mild-tasting fish)

DIRECTIONS

1. Whisk the vinegar, honey, oil, and garlic in a bowl. Arrane snapper in a baking dish. Pour marinade over the fish, coating it completely. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minsutes and up to 4hrs.

2. Preheat the grill (or BBQ) to medium. Line the bottowm and sides of a baking tray with foil. Sprinkle the foil with olive oil. Remove fish from marinade, reserving marinade, and pour the marinade into a heavy small saucepan.

3. Arrange the fillets atop the baking tray. Cook the fillets until they are just cooked through and caramelized on top, about 12 minutes.

4. Meanwhile bring the marinade to a boil and simmer until it thickens slightly and becomes syrupy, whisking often, about 15 minutes. Spoon off any excess oil from the sauce, if desired.

5. Transfer the fillets to plates. Spoon the sauce over and around the fillets, and serve with basmati rice (or quinoa) and Asian greens and snowpeas.