Archive for the ‘cooking’ Category
Ah, even more ways and reasons to eat yams….
Filed under: coconut oil, cooking, food, gluten-free, recipes, Uncategorized |
Leave a Comment I’m consistently blown away by how good the Whole Foods website is.
For instance, check out their page on yams.
I’ll be curious to do the slice and steam prep they recommend for maximum health benefits (including blood sugar regulation), but it’s doubtful that I will ever give up my favorite: Candied Yams Without the Candy.
Although I had originally pitched this as a dessert, I’ve recently paired it with black beans, a little bit of forbidden rice (for texture more than anything else though it too is ridiculously good and good for you) and, last but certainly not least, my favorite kale recipe.
I put it all together on a beautiful multicolored, hand-thrown plate/bowl (7″) and I’m good to go. Not only is it super satisfying, it’s also beautiful with the gem-like colors: emerald, not quite ruby, and onyx. Seriously it’s almost as visually appealing as it is delicious.
Chocolate and Cinnamon Socca
Filed under: cooking, food, gluten-free, recipes, Uncategorized |
Comments (2) It’s been a long absence from this blog. I’ve been writing the journey from where I was when I was a regular blogger to where I am now, but the details seem long and convoluted and are of probably no interest to anyone other than myself.
However, I have been in the kitchen, so I may as well share my new discoveries.
Socca.
Socca? What the heck is socca?
I had never even heard of socca until I ran across this post from the Pure2Raw Twins.
Socca is a bread that you make from garbanzo bean (or chick pea) flour, which not only is gluten-free but is chock full of fiber and protein.
As I mentioned in the last post, I am in the process of sugar detox. Part of that means eating protein at every meal, including snacks.
Since I’m just as happy eating big protein-less salads and soups as I am anything else, I decided a little socca seemed in order.
I didn’t have any ground cardamon, so I subbed cinnamon.
Here it goes:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Heat an iron cast skillet in the oven, with 2 1/2 Tbs coconut oil
1 cup chickpea flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill)
1/4 c. raw cacao
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 cups water
1 tsp. sea salt
Pour the batter into the center of the heated skillet and let it run out to the edges.
Bake at 400 for 25 minutes.
I sat the skillet on a rack to cool and then used a baker’s cake decorating spatula to get it out (carefully, as you want it in one piece).
I cut it into 8 wedges. It’s dense and not particularly sweet (I think that next time I might add in some stevia), but it’s a great texture for sandwiches. And I can imagine that I’ll be eating it as a good source of gluten-free, high protein, bread.
Man, if I wasn’t on that no-sugar thing, this would be awesome with a little raw almond butter and honey! But I digress…
If you’re allergic to gluten or know someone who is, I highly recommend that you check out the twins’ webpage.
I think their pumpkin socca recipe is next on my list!
I’ll be sure to keep you updated!
Post Script: Chocolate Cinnamon Socca is phenomenal as a carrier for natural peanut butter!
Pumpkin Pie Smoothie
I love pumpkin. And I love smoothies, so when I saw my friend Ana’s post Winter Pumpkin Pie Smoothie, I was in heaven.
I even had pumpkin, so I was all set! Right?
Wrong. I went to the store without reading the recipe and when I got back I realized I was without carrot juice and without green cabbage. And as it turned out, I didn’t need the pumpkin – fresh and organic from the local farm – as the recipe called for sweet potatoes.
Have I mentioned that I am on a 31 day sugar detox and can’t have sweet potatoes? And technically, I’m only supposed to have 1/2 cup of carrots at a time!
I also needed some protein, because I hadn’t had any at lunch. What’s a girl to do?
Create her own Pumpkin Pie Smoothie. I hope Ana can forgive me for bastardizing her recipe!
KJ’s Version of Ana Poirier’s Winter Pumpkin Pie Smoothie:
1 cup of pumpkin puree
1 cup water
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 tsp vanilla rice protein powder
1 small wedge of red cabbage
1/2 avocado
Liquid Stevia (I put in 4 -5 drops and it was pretty darned sweet; so proceed with caution).
6 ice cubes
Put all ingredients in a high speed blender and puree until smooth.
I’m not sure what color the original is supposed to be, but this was a beautiful berry color – thanks to the red cabbage, no doubt, which you really could not taste at all!
So, if you’re in the mood for a little pumpkin pie, check this out. It’s surprisingly delicious. Or check out Ana’s. Or better yet, check out both!
I know I certainly be whipping up a batch of these post-Christmas dinner!
Enjoy, and if you try it, let me know what you thought!
A Dinner That Hit All My Buttons
Filed under: beets, coconut oil, cooking, food, gluten-free, recipes |
Leave a Comment Every once and a while, I surprise even myself. This was so good that I am immortalizing it here…as I will most certainly want to make this again.
Rainbow Salad with Spinach, Kale and Chard (I made a big salad for 1 as my main course):
Baby spinach (2 cups)
Red chard (2 small leaves, finely chopped)
Lacinta Kale (2 small leaves, finely chopped)
Green cabbage (about a 1/2 cup, finely chopped) – adds crunchiness without the carbs!
1 small carrot, finely shredded
1 small beet, finely shredded
1 Tbs shelled hemp seeds
2 Tbs of sunflower seeds
2 Tbs dulse
Dressing:
1 Tb olive oil
1 Tb Braggs amino acid
That was the first course and would have been fine, but I was feeling particularly decadent.
So, onto dessert!
Roasted Delicata Sauce and Tahini
2 Delicata Squash (this way there’s plenty left over), seeded and cubed, unpeeled.
1 Tb Coconut Oil
Cumin to taste
Mix all three ingredients in a roasting pan and roast at 375 degrees. I took it out after 30 minutes or so, but it probably depends on the size of the cubes.
Optional: Serve with 1 Tb tahini to slow the absorption of the sugar in the squash and to add protein.
This was stellar. And gorgeous. Next time I’ll be sure to take a picture.
P.S. When I’m just having the salad, I’ll sometimes add in 1/2 cup of canned organic garbanzo beans.
Reboot Camp Snack: KJ’s Kickin’ Kale Chips
Since part of my reboot involves in drastically limiting the almond and nut butters that cross these lips, I decided that I really had to do something with all of that kale I had in the fridge that didn’t require slathering in it tahini and nutritional yeast before putting it in the dehydrator – no matter how tasty it is that way!
I had tried a couple of other kale chip recipes and wasn’t a fan.
So, last night, I decided to make my own:
KJ’s Kickin’ Kale Chips
1 massive bunch of organic Kale (the big curly kind)
5 Tbs of olive oil (I am actually trying to increase my intake here, so it’s okay)
1 Tb agave nectar
1 tsp of sea salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
ground cumin, to taste
cayenne, a pinch or less, to taste
Braggs Amino Acids, a couple of shakes, to taste
Cut the stems out of your kale, then tear into bite sized pieces. Place in a large stainless steel mixing bowl.
Then add all of the other ingredients, massaging them into the kale. The more massage, the better your flavor will eventually be!
Toss into the dehydrator, directly onto the screens and dehydrate for 8 hours at 105 degrees (or until nice and crispy). I put mine in and left them overnight so I’m assuming it was about 8 hours!
Enjoy!
Recipe: Almond Maca Chia Cacao Shake
Filed under: cooking, food, gluten-free, raw food, recipes, superfood |
Comments (3) More fun with chia seeds! It’s amazing how creative you can get when that’s one of your only three acceptable snack options!
Almond Maca Chia Cacao Shake (2 servings)
2 cups almond milk (I used Almond Breeze, Unsweetened Chocolate)
1 Tbs soaked chia seeds
1 Tbs maca
1 Tbs ground flax seeds
cinnamon, to taste
2 teaspoons of agave nectar (or 5 drops chocolate stevia and 1 tsp of agave nectar).
8 ice cubes
Throw all ingredients into a blender and blend!
I drank one for my morning snack and will have the other as my afternoon snack. Yum-my!
Recipe: Raw Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding
Filed under: cooking, raw food, recipes, superfood, Uncategorized |
Comments (1) This is my new snack option – incredibly filling and incredibly fibrous. In other words, this puppy will fill you up and clean you out!
Raw Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding
2 cups almond milk (I used Almond Breeze, Unsweetened Chocolate)
1/2 cup chia seeds
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 Tbs raw cacao
cinnamon, to taste
liquid Stevia, to taste (I used chocolate)
Mix all ingredients in a mason jar, then put on the lid tightly and shake.
Let sit in the fridge for a couple of hours until nice and thick.
I think I waited about 4-5 hours, though a lot of recipes suggest that you let it sit overnight.
It stays good in the fridge, so I think there’s some wiggle-room.
If you’ve never had chia seeds before, they make a nice tapioca like pudding, and they are incredibly nutritious.
p.s. I’m sure you could make it with Vanilla milk, vanilla stevia, and without the cacao, but why would you want to? 
Recipe: Black Bean and Corn Salad (Gluten-Free)
Filed under: cooking, food, gluten-free, high water-content food, recipes |
Comments (1) The other day I realized that I still had 36 cans of organic black beans left over from the case-lot sale last October – that is, before I decided to go mostly raw.
I also realized I had a ton of fresh corn in the fridge, thanks to the local CSA.
Given that black beans are really good for you and I hate to waste food, I found myself dusting off my cookbooks – you know, the ones where you actually cook – and pouring over the pages until I found something that I thought might do the trick.
The winner: Anne Lindsay’s Black Bean and Corn Salad (slightly modified, of course)!
1 can organic black beans, drained and rinsed
1 sweet red bell pepper
2 cups raw corn kernels
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped green onions
4 tbs chopped fresh coriander (cilantro)
Dressing:
3 Tbs rice or cider vinegar
1 1/2 tsp organic brown mustard (or Dijon)
1/4 tsp each of agave nectar, sea salt, freshly ground pepper
1 tsp each of water and vegetable oil (I actually forgot this part and didn’t notice until I was typing it up, so that leads me to believe that it’s optional!)
1. In a bowl, combine beans, red pepper, corn, celery, onions, and coriander.
2. Dressing. In a small bowl, whisk together vinegar, mustard, agave, sea salt, and pepper; whisk in water and oil. Pour over salad and stir to mix.
Makes 8 servings
calories: 117
protein: 6 grams
total fat: 2 grams (unless, of course, you forget the oil, like I did!)
saturated fat: trace
carbohydrates: 21 grams
fiber: 4 grams
sodium: 204 milligrams
This was quite tasty and I’m sure that I’ll make it again. I mean, after all, I still have 34 cans of beans in the basement!
Regardless, I served it with fresh tomato and cucumber slices. Water-based. Easy. Beautiful. and Tasty! An all around win.
Enjoy!
Refurbishing Old Favorites: KJ’s Raw “Rice” Salad
One of the things that transitioning to a majority raw diet has taught me is that you need to be able to eat at least some of the things that you used to love when you were eating cooked food.
Sometimes that means just going ahead and eating it, as I did the other night when I had a delicious part-cooked part-raw meal at my friend Meg Maker’s house or as I did last night, when I met some former students for dinner at the Elephant Walk.
Other times, however, it means learning to refashion (or even refurbish) old cooked favorites.
A couple of weeks ago, I started thinking about a salad that a friend of mine used to make in graduate school. It wasn’t a traditional salad, as its base ingredient was cooked sushi rice. I believe the ingredients were rice, vinegar, avocado, crumbled nori sheets, and cucumber. I’m pretty sure that it came from one of the Moosewood Cookbooks and may have been called Sushi Salad or something like that.
Well, I’ve been thinking about that salad a lot, and this is what I came up with:
KJ’s “Rice Salad”
Ingredients:
2 cups cauliflower, “riced” in the high speed blender or food processor
1 small cucumber, peeled and diced
1/2 – 1 small avocados, diced
1 medium carrot, finely grated
6 – 8 stalks of baby asparagus, snapped into pieces (optional)
1 tomato, diced (optional)
2 Tablespoons of raw organic dulse flakes (or crumbled nori sheets)
Sesame oil, to taste
Braggs amino acid, to taste
Directions:
Rice the cauliflower by cutting it small bite size pieces, then hitting the pulse button until you have reached desired consistency.
Add all of your other ingredients in layers, then drizzle on the sesame oil and the Braggs amino acids, to taste.
Gently toss to mix the flavors.
It’s fast, easy, delicious, healthy, and absolutely gorgeous. What more could you want?
Enjoy!
Finally, a woman who knows how to make a salad!
One of the things I really dislike about trying to eat raw out is the sad definitions that non-raw people have of salads.
Even if you say – without any equivocation whatsoever – that you want a big salad, you’re still likely to get something that looks like something that wouldn’t satiate a six year old.
Indeed, my best results have come when I’ve actually brought my own food (that is, avocados and sunflower seeds) to dress up whatever meager offerings they’ve brought.
My favorite story about trying to order a raw dinner salad is thus:
KJ: I would like a large salad – -I mean huge – with all raw vegetables – anything you have is great. Any and all veggies – as long as it’s raw. Charge me whatever you will. I don’t care if it’s $25.00.
Server: Would you like grilled asparagus?
KJ: No, nothing grilled. Raw asparagus is fine. In fact, it would be great.
Server: You want raw asparagus? As in uncooked? You can’t possibly want that.
KJ: Actually, I do. Raw asparagus would be awesome, in fact.
She looked at me like I had just sprouted raw asparagus from my head!
Salad comes out: no asparagus.
Instead, I am offered a veritable feast of two scant cups of spinach, about a 1/2 cup of broccoli, 4 mushrooms, 4 tomato wedges (not even full quarters), 1/8 cup of grated carrots, and two decorative radishes.
Yum (as an appetizer…maybe).
I whip out my avocado and nuts and the waitress looks downright offended: “We have avocados in the kitchen. Would you like one?”
KJ: “No, I’ll use mine.” What part of any and all fresh vegetables did you not understand?!
Next time, I think I’ll just take a copy of this blog post to show the restaurant industry the difference between a side salad and a dinner salad! It might save everyone a lot of hassle, not to mention a couple of servings of raw indignation.
The Sunburst Salad
Filed under: cooking, high water-content food, Holidays, recipes |
Comments (3) Happy Easter to those who celebrate it and Happy Spring to those who don’t.
Today, which happens to be the last day of my 21Day Sugar Detox Cleanse, I am heading to MJ’s parents for holiday brunch.
Though their menu sounds absolutely scrumptious, there is not a single thing on the menu that wouldn’t put me into toxic shock having had nothing sweet in my system for a full three weeks!
Thank goodness they don’t care if you bring your own so to speak as long as you show up! It is after all – or at least should be – all about the people as opposed to all about the food.
So I am bringing some Black Sesame Seed Bread and Black Pepper Cashew Cheeze (courtesy of Ani Phyo) and my new favorite dinner option now that it’s warmed up: what I call “The Sunburst Salad.”
Recipe:
Several cups of spinach, mescalin, etc.
1 shredded golden beet
1 shredded zucchini
1 shredded red beet
1 shredded carrot (make sure to limit to 1/2 cup per serving if you’re on a sugar cleanse)
1 cup bean sprouts
1 cup sliced mushrooms (optional)
And anything else you might have on hand as long as it’s suitably gorgeous!
Dress with juice of 1 lemon, 2 limes, extra virgin olive oil, and Braggs Liquid Aminos.
It’s seriously delicious!
Something tells me that I am going to love being raw in the spring and summer months and may be looking for work in warmer climates from here on out!
Nine down, one more to go!
Yes, I’m still alive after 8 days of limeade cleansing!
The most incongruous part of this whole process has, ironically, not been the complete absence of food, but my workout shoes that have laid untouched next to the Nordic Track. I can’t even remember the last time I’ve gone 8 – 9 days without exercise.
Now granted, I have done some light yoga (barefoot) and walked from my car to the office (in my regular shoes), but there’s been no sustained activity.
I figure there will be plenty time for that next week, however, as I attempt to restart my metabolism, which has surely slowed during this process.
The next eleven days will be interesting, because, believe it or not, we’re not done!
Tomorrow – while I’m still on the green juice – will involve food prep. Again, it was a shock to open the dishwasher for the first time in a week and see, lo and behold, dishes! Not to mention the forgotten feel of a fork in my hand. I remember laughing with Penni Shelton, the founder of Raw Food Rehab said, when starting her juice feast, “Sometimes it’s a good idea to just step away from the fork for a while.” I think she might be on to something.
Then, from Monday March 15 to Wednesday March 24, we’re on a ten day deep liver cleanse, which introduces some food, but not a lot.
Breakfast – 2 scoops of NutriClear and 1 scoop of rice protein powder and a package of detox supplements.
Lunch – a clean meal (meaning nothing with anything that even remotely looks like sugar) and another pack of supplements.
Snack – 2 scoops of Nutriclear and 1 scoop of rice protein powder.
Dinner – a clean meal (again, no sugar) and yet another pack of supplements.
Personally, I think this is going to be more challenging than the limeade fast, because at least with the limeade you could get a sugar hit every 10 minutes – whether you needed it or not.
However, I am thrilled to be back in the kitchen tomorrow. First up: Ani Phyo’s Black Sesame Sunflower Bread!
Then, between March 25 – April 3, even though we will be on regular meals (that is, no more Nutriclear and Rice Protein Powder shakes for breakfast and snack) we’ll still be sugar free.
Let me tell you, the term spring cleaning has taken on a whole new meaning at Camp Living Lively!
Four Down, Six to Go
The fast is going by quickly – I guess that’s why they call it a fast!
No real symptoms to speak of.
Though things are obviously still being cleansed (stuff that I don’t even care to know how long has been in my body given that I haven’t eaten in four days!) I’ve decided to take a break from the optional portion of the fast – that is, the internal salt water bath.
The first couple of days it was fine, but today it was the gift that kept on giving. Given that I have classes tomorrow, it’s probably not a good idea to be dashing to the loo every five minutes!
And speaking of classes, before I started this regimen, I had promised mine that I would make them some raw fudge/cookies on the last day of classes. The bad news meant that in order to keep my promise, I was actually cooking tonight. The good news is that I am so sugared out from the local grade B maple syrup in the limeade that the dough wasn’t even remotely appealing. All of the cookies made it into the freezer unmolested and all of the remaining nuts and dough remnants went right down the sink.
Anyway, time for a cuppa (sans the biscuits) and off to bed!
Goodnight!
For Your Viewing Pleasure: Two On The Industrial Food Complex
If you’re at all interested in the politics behind where you get your food, you really can’t afford to miss these two videos! They’re not as graphic as Food, Inc. or King Corn, but they’re incredibly informative.
The first is Jamie Oliver at TED 2010 (21 min). And while I’m here, all of the TED talks are good. If you haven’t checked them out, you’re missing out. I’ve yet to watch one where I wasn’t completely blown away!
The second is Michael Pollen on Democracy Now (59 min). If you’re reading this blog, I assume that you know who he is, but if not, get more information about Pollen here!
I think that the thing that surprised me the most out of these two talks is their treatment of school food! Because I don’t have kids, I don’t think about school lunch programs; but if you have a kid, you can’t afford not to.
If you need an idea for Valentine’s Day….
Filed under: cooking, cultural, food, Holidays, raw food, recipes |
Leave a Comment …or just any old excuse to make chocolate, these may just be your answer!
I made these tonight and I must say that Michael J was particularly appreciative of my efforts in the kitchen.
If you don’t have heart shaped ice trays, they are available – as is everything else you could possibly ever imagine and then some – at Amazon.
Raw Sweet Potato and Leek Soup
When I picked up my local farm share last week, I was a little dismayed to find out that it had THREE sweet potatoes in it! Sweet potatoes?! What the heck can I do with sweet potatoes?
Well, all I can say is thank goodness for the web. After some googling, I found this recipe at SpaFinders.com. Not only is this soup surprisingly gorgeous, it is absolutely delicious!
By far the best raw soup I’ve tried yet!
Raw sweet potato and leek soup
Ingredients:
1 lb sweet potato
1 lb leek
1 avocado
1 tbsp Braggs seasoning
1 small knob ginger (finely chopped)
1/2 white onion
1 vine-ripened tomato
Celtic sea salt and pepper to taste
1 cups charged water
Procedure:
Peel, wash, and chop the sweet potato and leeks.
Place all the ingredients in a high speed blender (preferably a Vita-mix or a Blendtec) and blend until the texture is smooth.
Adjust seasoning if necessary.
Enjoy!
p.s. Because this soup seems to get thick, feel free to dilute with a tablespoon or two of hot (though not boiling) water just before serving! Not only will it improve the consistency, it will warm it up for you, making it feel a little more like soup. Also, during the winter months, you might want to try heating your bowls before serving!
The Colors of Health: Red, Gold, and Green
Filed under: cooking, nutrition, raw food, recipes, superfood, Uncategorized |
Leave a Comment As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, going raw has really opened up the world of vegetables to me – well, that and joining a local organic CSA.
Over the last three weeks, we’ve probably gone through four (if not six!) heads of cabbage – some of them green, some of them red (or, technically, purple).
Anyway, I started off using the larger, outer leafs as wraps for burritos and using the smaller, inner leaves for making small batches of slaw.
That was until I made a batch of raw hummus out of tahini and zucchini that was just begging for some chips – hence the habit of tearing red (or purple) cabbage leaves into chip sized chunks was born. Trust me, no one was more surprised than me about how good raw cabbage leaves taste when combined with a little hummus! Let’s just say that life was good.
But then the CSA cabbage started.
I had one head left over from the week before, had just bought a red one, and got two more!
At this point in my life I am committed to two things when it comes to food: don’t waste it and (obviously) don’t cook it!
So, racking my brain for an answer, I hit on a solution: slaw. And lots of it!
Now, if you’re like me and grew up anywhere remotely resembling the south, your idea of slaw probably involves a lot of mayonnaise and other sundry items – none of which resemble anything close to being raw (let alone good for you). But I was determined, and here’s what I came up with:
1 head of cabbage (green), shredded
3-4 carrots, finely grated
1/2 cup of parsley, finely minced (I’ve also used cilantro)
Braggs Liquid Aminos, to taste (at least 3 tablespoons, for those of you who aren’t familiar with Braggs)
2 limes, juiced
1/2 – 1 lemon, juiced
1 teaspoon of cinnamon (or more, to taste)
1 teaspoon of turmeric (or more, to taste)
1 teaspoon of cumin (or more, to taste)
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Himalayan sea salt (pink), to taste
This stuff is seriously delicious. I’ve been eating it by the plate – sometimes alone, sometimes mixed with Shirataki noodles, which aren’t technically raw, but aren’t technically food, since they’re all fiber and are, by design, indigestible.
Since I was eating so much cabbage – as wraps, as chips, and as slaw, I found myself wondering what nutrients cabbage actually contained. I mean, it wasn’t like I didn’t know what cabbage was prior to my latest pro-cabbage phase, but I certainly hadn’t ever given it much thought. I mean, it’s cabbage. Not that interesting. Right?
Well, not really.
Cabbage, as it turns out, is a cruciferous vegetable – as are other well known superstar vegetables (a/k/a super food veggies) such as broccoli, kale, brussels, and bok choy. According to the Whole Foods website:
The phytonutrients in cruciferous vegetables initiate an intricate dance inside our cells in which gene response elements direct and balance the steps among dozens of detoxification enzyme partners, each performing its own protective role in perfect balance with the other dancers. The natural synergy that results optimizes our cells’ ability to disarm and clear free radicals and toxins, including potential carcinogens, which may be why cruciferous vegetables appear to lower our risk of cancer more effectively than any other vegetables or fruits.
For more information about cabbage, go here. And to learn more about the health benefits of cruciferous veggies and how to get more of them into your diet, go here.
Now, some of you might be thinking: Well, that’s all well and good, but I thought cabbage gave people gas.
Well, yes and no.
Personally it doesn’t bother me, but I know it does some people. That’s where the turmeric comes in. And besides it’s wonderful flatulance reducing properties, turmeric is a superfood in it’s own right.
Trust me, if your not getting enough cruciferous vegetables or turmeric in your diet, you might want to consider adding more. Men in particular, should seriously consider increasing their intake of turmeric – especially to any recipe including cauliflower (which is, you guessed it, another cruciferous veggie)!
So, if you’re stuck in a rut on your vegetable consumption, branch out. And whatever else you do, eat your turmeric!
Rawmazing Recipes to Keep
When I first started blogging, I said it was to remind me of that I know was true.
As I age, I’m finding that it’s really more and more about reminding of me that which I don’t want to lose!
Taking a quick break between student meetings, I found this wonderful list of recipes from Rawmazing that definitely fall in the category of that which I don’t want to lose!
I am particularly psyched to try the Baba Ghanoush (something I’ve really been missing since having gone raw) and the Spinach Cashew “Cheese” Spread, which, at the drop of a hat, can double as the filling for a spinach quiche or the sauce for Spinach Cashew Zucchini Pasta! I mean, seriously, in addition to looking absolutely gorgeous, how convenient is that?!
Tip of the Day: Substitute Collard Greens for Tortilla Wraps
Filed under: cooking, food, gluten-free, raw food, recipes |
Leave a Comment The thing that surprises me the most about having adopted a raw diet (28 days raw as of today), is just how many vegetables there are in the world that I just ignored. And I am someone who regularly filled up the basket at the Coop on fresh veggies!
When I was eating cooked food, I usually bought the fixings for a nice spinach salad, broccoli, brussels sprouts, green beans, beets, zucchini and kale. Now, in addition to all of these vegetables, I am routinely eating butternut squash, cabbage (green and red, especially red), turnips, and my most recent addiction, collard greens.
Prior to last week, I had never even seen a collard green (at least not one that wasn’t swimming in bacon grease)!
Now, not only do I put them (raw) in smoothies, I also use them to make burritos! Wide and sturdy, collard leaves are the perfect size for wraps or tortillas.
All you have to do is cut out (or scrape down the stiff stem in the center) and then fill it with your favorite topping. Lately I’ve been filling mine up with cashew cheez (nut butter) and a beet and carrot slaw. It’s delicious. It’s filling. And it’s aesthetically pleasing.
Tonight I am going to make up an Indian pate with walnuts and spices. I haven’t tried it yet, so I can’t vouch for it, but you can check out the recipe here courtesy of The Raw Foods Witch, Nathalie Lussier.
I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for…Zucchini and Bananas?!
I made banana ice cream tonight, because I wanted something a little sweet. It was 99% fruit and vegetable and 1% all natural sweetener and spice.
The recipe (in case you’re interested):
1 cup of sliced frozen bananas
1/2 cup of sliced frozen zucchini
Some chocolate stevia (to taste, though dates would have worked as well)
and a dash (or two) of cinnamon
Enough water to blend (Add 1 tablespoon at a time)
Throw it all in the blender (scraping down the sides when necessary) and voila! It was to die for. And as the die-hard calorie counter in me thought: “Wow, this whole thing is only 139 calories and has absolutely no fat!”
Believe it or not, this blog post is not about the ice cream.
It’s about the fact that I’m just weeks away from forty and I never knew that you could make ice cream without dairy, without sugar, and without fat.
Seriously, what’s wrong with this picture?
How could I have gotten to forty – given all of the years I have struggled with my weight – and not known that you could eat this way?
Seriously, it boggles the mind.
Perhaps it has something to do that there’s no big business money to be made in selling raw food. Maybe it’s because the “food” industry – and I use the quotations meaningfully are more interested in creating “fat-free” and “low carb” options that can stay on the shelf for years than they are in educating people on how to eat!
I mean, for all of the years that I either ate ice cream (and felt bad about it) or didn’t eat it (and resented it) there was nothing stopping me from tossing a couple of bananas and some, er, squash, into a blender and making my own.
Nothing, that is, but knowledge and an unhealthy dose of cultural conditioning.
One of the things that I like about going raw is that it forces you to rethink just about everything that you’ve ever thought about cooking or food. It forces creativity, because if you don’t get creative – fast – you’re not going to succeed.
Today, I am going to make hummus, tabouli, and Pad Thai (all raw). Given that I use zucchini in my ice cream, I’ll let you just think on what today will bring.
By the way, if you’re more of a chocolate ice cream sort of person than a banana ice cream sort of person, you can add raw cacao (2 Tbs) and raw chocolate nibs (1 Tbs) to the base described above for a truly decadent treat! You might also want to change the banana:zucchini ratio to 1 cup of banana and 2 cups of zucchini.
If you try it, drop me a note and let me know what you think! Or better yet, if you make up your own version, let me know! One can never have enough healthy ice cream options!
