Try these new, flavorful, gut-healthy recipes today! From simple veggie side dishes to satisfying grain bowls, each dish below features prebiotic-rich ingredients like garlic, leeks, beans, legumes, and whole grains to support a healthy gut flora. These fiber-rich foods also slow digestion, helping to stabilize blood sugar levels. Plus, all recipes are designed to fit diabetic-friendly eating patterns with balanced calories, carbohydrates, sodium, and saturated fat.
Start your day off right with a high-protein black bean breakfast bowl that’s sure to keep you going, then add garlicky green beans and crispy lemon-parmesan scallions to your dinner tonight for a mouthwatering dish.
Garlic Green Beans
Photographer: Rachel Marek, Food Stylist: Lauren McAnelly, Prop Stylist: Gabriel Greco
These easy garlicky green beans are the perfect side dish to go with any protein. You can cook the beans in advance and reheat and season them just before serving. If you’re not a fan of tarragon, substitute with dill or omit it entirely.
Spiced couscous stuffed peppers
Photo credit
I love the classic dish of peppers stuffed with hashweh, a spicy ground beef dish, but there are plenty of traditional dishes that don’t involve meat at all. Stuffed roasted vegetables are central to Mediterranean cooking, and making a delicious pilaf-like stuffing with couscous and lentils and stuffing it into juicy peppers is deeply satisfying. To take it up a notch, I top the whole thing with a fresh cucumber yogurt sauce. These spicy stuffed peppers are a flavorful and satisfying little package that will please plant-eaters and carnivores alike. Excerpted from THE FEEL GOOD FOODIE COOKBOOK by Yumna Jawad. Copyright © 2024 by Yumna Jawad. Used by permission of Rodale Books, an imprint of Random House, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without the written permission of the publisher.
Spiced chickpea confit
Ali Redmond
This infinitely versatile side dish pairs beautifully with grilled meats or fish and also makes a great plant-based main dish. Serve over rice or pasta for balance, or pair with whole grains or whole wheat pasta for a nutty flavor. It also makes a great salad, served with baby spinach, escarole and arugula. Any leftovers can be blended into a chunky dip that goes well with pita bread or crostini. Or reheat with equal parts vegetable or chicken broth for a soup.
Crispy Lemon Parmesan Leek
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Emily Neighbors-Hall, Prop Stylist: Phoebe Hauser
Enjoy the sweet and delicate flavor of roasted leeks in this elegant and unique side dish. Slice the leeks into rings and top with fragrant Parmesan cheese and lemon zest. They bake to a crisp in the oven. Before roasting, be sure to rinse and dry the leek rings thoroughly to remove any dirt or grit.
High Protein Black Bean Breakfast Bowl
Ali Redmond
Eggs are packed with protein, but you can make a satisfying, high-protein breakfast without eggs. This breakfast bowl with black beans, yogurt, and Monterey Jack cheese provides 15 grams of protein to keep you full and energized throughout the morning.
Bagali Porou and Quinoa (Persian Quinoa with Beans and Chicken)
Ali Redmond
This take on bagali porou, a traditional Persian layered rice dish, substitutes quinoa for basmati rice and is seasoned with fresh herbs and aromatic spices, with three proteins – quinoa, chicken and beans – making this a flavoursome and satisfying dish.
Sauteed Spinach with Lemon, Garlic and Parmesan
Photographer: Stacey K. Allen, Props: Christina Brockman, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf
Adding thin slices of lemon to this versatile side dish adds a festive element to Sautéed Garlic Spinach, but it’s not just for looks. Sautéing the lemon slices brings out the flavor of both the juice and the zest, making this an easy side dish to have anytime. If you’re cooking a large amount of spinach, add it in batches to avoid overcrowding the pan, and wait until the spinach has wilted slightly before adding more.
Roasted Broccolini with Lemon and Parmesan
Photographer: Greg Dupree, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster, Food Stylist: Emily Hall
Broccolini is a cross between regular broccoli and gai lan (Chinese broccoli) and is perfect for roasting. Here, we add a gration of fresh Parmesan, which coats the florets and helps the cheese melt with each bite. If your pan is too crowded, divide the broccolini between 2 large rimmed baking sheets and roast in the upper and lower thirds of the oven, rotating the racks halfway through.
Harira (Moroccan tomato, lentil and beef soup)
Photographer: Rachel Marek, Food Stylist: Lauren McAnelly, Prop Stylist: Gabriel Greco
Harira is a tomato-based soup that is a mainstay of many Moroccans’ diets during the month of Ramadan. It’s often eaten as part of iftar, the nightly fast-breaking meal, with dates, milk, hard-boiled eggs, semolina pancakes and chebakia (sesame cookies). This version features chickpeas, lentils, beef and noodles in an aromatic tomato broth, but variations on the soup are endless.
Sheet Pan Gnocchi with Broccoli and White Beans
Photographer: Fred Hardy, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf, Prop Stylist: Lydia Purcell
This hassle-free dish requires just two baking sheets for easy prep and cleanup. It features a lemon broccoli mix, tender gnocchi, and rich cannellini beans, all tossed in a generous dollop of olive oil. If you’re looking for some extra protein, top it with shrimp or flaked cooked salmon.
Slow Cooker Three Bean Chili Mac
Photographer: Fred Hardy, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf, Prop Stylist: Lydia Purcell
Chili meets mac and cheese in this easy slow cooker dinner. Hot tomato sauce is a Mexican canned tomato sauce with spices and chili peppers to add flavor. If you can’t get hot tomato sauce, you can substitute regular canned tomato sauce mixed with a tablespoon of chili powder. You can also boil the pasta separately and add it at the end of cooking, or use our alternative method to boil the pasta in the slow cooker with a few adjustments listed below.
