Healthy Herb & Spice Recipes

Try this spinach dip, spiked with fresh dill and briny feta cheese, as a sandwich spread--or serve alongside crackers or crudité.

This vegan soup recipe is chock-full of colorful vegetables. All those veggies give this soup plenty of fiber, upping the satisfaction factor while keeping calories low, which can aid in weight loss and lead to--yes--a flatter belly. Vibrant turmeric adds a golden color to the flavorful broth, while cumin and ginger give it a bright, fresh finish. And the best part? This healthy soup recipe takes only 20 minutes, start to finish!

Fresh blood oranges are so sweet they almost create their own caramel under the broiler--a little brown sugar on top seals the deal. A hint of cardamom enhances their aroma. Once you scoop out and eat the caramelized sections, squeeze the remaining blood orange juice over the yogurt.

Afghans sip this spiced tea throughout the day.

This rendition of a Moscow Mule is made with bourbon instead of vodka and infused with fresh ginger syrup. Using fresh ingredients helps create a healthy cocktail that people will love. Select a sharp, effervescent and not-too-sweet ginger beer, such as Fever Tree.

The crunchy seed topping is the perfect textural juxtaposition to a creamy dressing, soft pears and tender massaged kale salad. Tossing it all with mint, feta and red onion gives it a Middle Eastern flair.

Blanching broccoli florets before charring ensures the broccoli's tender all the way through, helping it crisp up quickly in a very hot pan. Firing up the grill? Cook the blanched broccoli in a grill basket over medium-high heat instead.

How to bake fish perfectly? Wrapping the fish and vegetables in parchment packets creates steam that keeps the tuna moist while it cooks. Plus, it's a fun presentation.

In about 10 minutes, you can prep a week's worth of lunches using 4 simple ingredients from your local specialty grocery store. To minimize prep, we're taking advantage of prechopped fresh veggie mix and frozen quinoa (which heats in the microwave in under 5 minutes). These crunchy chopped salad bowls are high in fiber but lower in calories, making them perfect for those following a reduced-calorie diet.

Looking for a quick, easy dinner? This baked lemon-pepper chicken recipe is it. Chicken breasts are cooked in a skillet, then finished in the oven with lemon slices that soften and become part of the sauce, with a touch of maple syrup and butter to carry the flavor. It's so simple and delicious, you'll be making this healthy dinner again and again.

The Mexican seasoning Tajín, with its mild spiciness and tangy undertones, pairs beautifully with sweet potatoes. Waffle-shaped fries are the perfect vessel for capturing the flavor. A creamy dipping sauce completes the experience.

Cheese and pepper star in this simple Italian dish. While the combo is traditionally tossed with pasta, we toss Parmesan cheese and freshly ground pepper with zucchini noodles instead for a lower-carb dish that helps you get in an extra serving of veggies. To simplify the recipe, look for prepackaged zucchini noodles in the produce section of your supermarket.

Try this quick and easy one-skillet version of the Hungarian classic chicken paprikash. Serve the chicken cutlets, mushrooms and creamy sauce over egg noodles with a green salad on the side.

Use this simple elderberry syrup to create an immune-supporting superfood sipper for cold and flu season. Elderberries offer rich amounts of flavonoids--powerful plant antioxidants shown to help fight inflammation and improve vascular function--in addition to potassium and vitamins A and C. These tiny, yet mighty berries have been used as a natural herbal remedy to help defend against myriad health ailments for over a century. In addition to safeguarding immunity, research suggests that taking the berry at the onset of certain sicknesses may help quell symptoms like coughing and sore throat. To create a soothing, tea-like sipper, mix the elderberry syrup with hot water. Alternatively, pour the elderberry syrup over ice and top off with club soda for an invigorating elixir.

This basic Instant Pot whole chicken is moist and delicious. Plenty of garlic and fresh herbs flavor this healthy chicken recipe that can be enjoyed as a meal on its own or shredded and used in soups or as a topping for salad. In addition to the garlic and herb chicken, see Tips (below) for a lemon-garlic variation and a lemongrass and lime version of the basic recipe. Whichever version you choose, this pressure-cooker chicken requires just 15 minutes of active time.

Oven-roasted fingerling potatoes can be a special holiday side dish, but they're quick enough to enjoy on a weeknight too. The secret to these crispy roasted fingerling potatoes? Getting the baking sheet nice and hot before you spread the potatoes on it.

Both the meat and the sauce are versatile and could work in other applications: Use the slow-cooker lamb for a stew or drizzle the sauce on grilled chicken. If mint is polarizing for your crowd, use parsley. A salad and couscous with toasted sliced almonds make nice accompaniments. Garnish with additional fresh mint leaves, if desired.

Garlic-seasoned slow-cooker pork loin, port-and-tomato-based sauce and creamy mashed potatoes all made with less than 30 minutes of hands-on prep--who could ask for more? Garnish with additional fresh rosemary sprigs, if desired.

Mole sauce is a Mexican condiment primarily composed of fruit, chile pepper, nuts and spices. In our rendition, these ingredients take the form of raisins and tomatoes; ancho chiles; smoked almonds; and cocoa, cumin and cinnamon. The rich mixture coats the browned chicken thighs in the slow cooker, and doubles as a topping on the final dish. Garnish with fresh cilantro leaves, if desired.

The classic pairing of shallots and mushrooms gives this easy slow-cooker chicken recipe a timeless quality that's sure to please everyone at your table. Swirling the stock and flour together at the beginning is a pro tip for creating a thick sauce that moistens the final dish and helps all the ingredients come together.