Get off to a good start to healthy eating with these recipes from Samaritan Health Services registered dietitians. Check back often for new seasonal recipes.
Italian olive and sun-dried tomato tapenade 
Adapted from a recipe by Giada De Laurentiis
of the Food Network.
This tasty tapenade is great to use as a dip for veggies or crackers. It also makes a wonderful replacement for mayonnaise on sandwiches.
Ingredients:
2 (8 oz.) cans of pitted black olives, drained
1 (8.5 oz.) jar of Italian sun-dried tomatoes (in olive oil and herbs)
8 oz. mixed Kalamata and green olives (a great time to use up any bits you may have in the back of the fridge!)
Extra-virgin olive oil
In the bowl of a food processor, add olives without the liquid, then the sun-dried tomatoes with the oil and herbs they were packed in. Pulse until smooth. Add more olive oil as needed to form a thick paste. Keep refrigerated in an airtight container until ready to serve.Stir before serving, as the oil separates out easily.
Serving size: About ¼ cup. Calories 100; Total tat 9g; Trans fat 0g; Saturated fat 0g; Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 546mg; Total carbohydrates 4.5g; Dietary fiber 0g; Sugars 0g; Protein 0g
Adapted from the "Diabetes Meals in 30 Minutes or Less" cookbook by Jeana VanDyke, RD, CDE
Ingredients
3 small summer squash (combination of zucchini and yellow squash) or other garden vegetables of your choice (carrots, peppers, onions)
Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on grilled veggies (optional)
Basting sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
½ tsp paprika
½ tsp cumin
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
Directions
Halve or cut squash and other vegetables into large chunks. Combine all ingredients for sauce.
To grill (using barbecue or oven) place the squash on a rack over medium heat with the rack set 6 inches from the heat source. Baste veggies with some of the sauce. Grill the vegetables for 5 minutes on each side, basting frequently with sauce.
Optional grilling method: Place veggies in a grill basket and grill for 10 minutes turning occasionally. Toss grilled veggies with basting sauce sprinkle with parmesan cheese. If you don't have a grill basket, cover the grill grate from your barbecue with heavy duty foil and spread veggies onto the foil. Grill as directed above, stirring occasionally.
Nutrition facts for one ½ cup serving: Calories 29, total fat 2g, saturated fat 0g, cholesterol 0, sodium 1mg, total carbs 2g, dietary fiber 1g, sugar 1g, protein 0
Adapted from www.importfood.com
2 cups green (unripe) papaya, shredded
6 cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
6 fresh green beans, cut into one-inch pieces
2 fresh Thai chilies, remove stems or 2 jalapenos with seeds removed
2 cloves garlic, minced, crushed
2 Tbsp roasted peanuts (crush 1 Tbsp, save 1 Tbsp for the topping)
1 cup fresh cabbage, thinly sliced
Dressing
1/2 tsp dried shrimp to taste (if vegetarian,
substitute 1 extra Tbsp soy sauce) (can omit)
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce or 2 Tbsp fish sauce or vegetarian fish sauce (start with ½ tsp, adjust to taste)
3 Tbsp lime juice
2 Tbsp cane sugar (can use brown sugar) or 1 to 1-1/2 Tbsp liquid honey
Many Asian supermarkets have packaged shredded green papaya. To prepare a whole green papaya, peel, rinse the white milk off and pat dry. Shred it with a regular cheese grater, using the large sized holes. Stop grating when you see the white immature seeds
inside, and move onto another part of the papaya.
In a mortar and pestle, gently pound whole fresh chilies, garlic and half of peanuts. (Set aside in bowl.)
Lightly pound cut green beans and sliced tomatoes to release flavors. Add to bowl with chilies and garlic.
Put dried shrimp, soy sauce, cane sugar, olive oil and lime juice to another small bowl. Blend well.
Add shredded papaya to the bowl with chilies and gently mix all ingredients. Pour soy sauce mixture over all and mix gently.
Serve som tum on a dish, sprinkle with remaining peanuts; serve with slivered fresh cabbage on the side. Enjoy! Makes two servings.
Nutrition data: Serving size 1 cup, calories 276, total carbohydrates 16g, fat 11g, protein 5g, fiber 4g, Sodium 550mg
Servings: 6
Provided by Betty Jo Otten
8 cups chicken broth
1 cup onion, cubed
1 cup celery, diced
1 cup green, yellow and red peppers, cubed 3 red potatoes, diced
3 carrots, diced
1 medium butternut squash, cubed
2 lbs true cod
Boil the broth, onion, celery and peppers together for six to eight minutes. Add potatoes, carrots and squash and cook for 15 minutes. Add cod and cook for four minutes. This is a very delicate and hardy soup. Serve with fresh homemade bread.