Can you say “za’atar?” Sure you can. In fact, if you lived in the Middle East, you’d be invoking the name of this herb-and-spice mix nearly every day. Za’atar has long had a reputation as a brain enhancer, and science may be providing a clue; researchers wrote that, in low concentrations, the carvacrol found in oregano and thyme may increase feelings of well-being. Chicken is particularly rich in brain-enhancing nutrients. This recipe makes about half a cup of za’atar, which is a lot more than you need for the chicken; store the extra in a jar and use to sprinkle on top of vegetables, dips, salad dressings, fish, eggs, or anything you would like to add a touch of the exotic.

Back in the days when I was a kitchen serf, I received a great piece of culinary advice from a cook. She said to take a food you wanted to work with and imagine preparing it thirty different ways. That’s a mental exercise that has served me well over the years, because certain foods are so valuable from a health perspective that they need to show up time and again in new and interesting forms. So it is with lentils. They’re so versatile, and they act as a great backdrop for salads and side dishes. In this recipe, they’re the foundation for a wonderful blend of citrus and crunch, with fennel, sweet roasted beets, and walnuts all gleefully playing together in the sandbox. Now I just have to come up with twenty-nine more lentil combinations to satisfy that cook.

I come by making salad dressing honestly, as my dad was in the food manufacturing business. Many a day I’d come to my dad’s office with my latest vinaigrette concoction in a yogurt cup and take it to the lab, where I learned to measure ingredients precisely so we could reproduce the taste in my little yogurt cup when it was scaled up to a two-hundred-gallon drum (talk about the importance of learning how to write down a repeatable recipe!). This airtight dressing is easy to prepare and delicious.

Getting in the swing of eating veggies is like igniting a pilot light on a stove: it may take several tries, but once it’s lit, the flame burns steadily. My challenge is to present important vegetables—and, none is more vital for brain health than kale—in ways that will kick-start your taste for this superfood. Here, I’ve paired kale with an autumn favorite, delicata squash, along with garlic, red pepper flakes, and freshly squeezed lemon juice to create a dish that’s both a delight to the eyes and the taste buds. The chopped roasted hazelnuts take the entire concoction completely over the top. It’s ablaze with flavor and should leave you burning for more.

Talk about counterbalancing tastes: Here the überhealthy kale and coconut milk are a magical pairing, with the sweetness of the coconut neutralizing the natural bitterness of the kale. The ginger and lime are like Fourth of July sparklers on top of the flavor profile. The soup is purposely a bit thin, and many people enjoy it as a broth in a cup or take it to go in a thermos. If you want to give it a little heft, try adding glass noodles or shredded sweet potato.

Am I allowed to say I love this broth? This is like taking your taste buds on a trip to Thailand—infusing Magic Mineral Broth or, if you prefer, chicken broth with lemongrass, ginger, shallots, kaffir lime leaves, and coconut milk.

Sometimes food needs a little love, a little bling to provide some zing to what might otherwise be a bland taste. That’s where this salsa provides both some eye candy and a bright, fresh, crunchy taste.

During the summer months, I take advantage of the abundance of tomatoes and put them in the oven to roast. The heavenly smells take me back to Italy, where I first learned how to make this version of tomato sauce. 

The last thing you want to do on a steamy day is turn on the burners in the kitchen. That’s where this chilled soup comes in. Watermelon is so refreshing and hydrating (not to mention it’s full of the outstanding antioxidant lycopene) that it’s the perfect summertime soup.

Talk about longevity: Pistachio trees can bear fruit for two hundred years, and they’ve been
doing that for a long, long time. Pistachios are even mentioned in the Bible.

Three Smoothie Recipes by Drew Ramsey, MD. Kiwi Green Smoothie, Minty Blueberry Shake & Cashew-Chocolate Smoothie

Hazelnuts get a bad rap in America, and I can understand why. They’re often found in cheap,
packaged nut mixes that are years old and, consequently, rancid. This is a shame, because a fresh hazelnut is a delight to behold. 

Someone asked me why we were doing coffees in this book. Truth is, coffee drinkers love their joe, and a little bit of caffeine is good—and energizing—for the brain’s  opamine receptors.

Often when I’m developing a recipe, I think about texture as much as taste. That is the case here, where there’s a creamy/crunchy thing going between the white beans and the radishes. This is the kind of light fare Italians are known for and that I commonly found served up as antipasti as I traveled across that country. 

Some foods just look like they should be good for the mind. Take cauliflower. Kind of like walnuts, it visually reminds you of the brain. And sure enough, cauliflower is a brain-boosting superstar, filled with B vitamins, omega-3s, phosphorus, and manganese. 

Chimichurri is to South America as salsa verde is to Italy. Or maybe it’s simpler to call it Argentinian barbecue sauce. My version combines parsley, garlic, red pepper flakes, olive oil, lemon juice, and the kicker, mint. The scent of mint has been shown to increase alertness, and the taste is perfect for waking up chicken and other meats. As the Argentines might say, this is a chimichuri that adds destello (sparkle) to a dish.

Of course, sardines are one of the best sources of the omega-3 fatty acids we need.  They are also inexpensive, readily available, and sustainable; in fact, there is a great abundance of sardines in the world today, one of the few choice wild fish populations not in decline.  If you don’t like sardines, I’m not going to tell you that this recipe will change your mind, but I think the mustard-y vinaigrette and herbs nicely offset their fishiness.

I always think it’s wise to carry a small patch and repair kit when you’re out bike riding. It comes in very handy if your bike gets a flat tire. Quinoa (say it with me: KEEN-wah) is the food equivalent, an amazing little grain that rebuilds the body when it needs repair, like after a workout. It can do that because it contains all of the essential amino acids (those we must get from dietary sources), allowing the body to build protein. It’s also full of magnesium, which is great for relaxing muscles and preventing cramps.

I’m not sure what I should call this dish. It’s more than a soup, but not quite a stew. Maybe it’s a stoup (you’re laughing now, but just wait till “stoup” makes its way into the Oxford English Dictionary—take that, mochaccino). Well, no matter what you call it, I think you’ll find yourself singing its praises often, as this is really a hearty, yummy recipe. This is an instance where putting everything into a simmering broth rather than onto a plate lets some culinary alchemy take place. The result is a feast for the mouth and a source of soothing warmth for the body. This is one of my favorite soups to make when I have leftover chicken in the fridge.