Quinoa Pesto Trapanese

I decided to have some friends over on Saturday night to watch the Olympics and flex my somewhat underutilized entertaining muscles.  Entertaining is one of my greatest pleasures.  I love bringing people together in the hope that they'll become new friends.  To be perfectly honest, I also love all the "oohs, aahs, and yums!"

So, on Saturday morning, I hit the farmers market to get my favorite seasonal goodies:  peaches, blackberries, basil, and tomatoes.  Once I had an idea of what I wanted to make, I hit the grocery store for quinoa pasta, cream, eggs, and cheese. 

Inspired by another recipe from Smitten Kitchen, which was in turn inspired by a recipe from Gourmet, I made some fancy sounding pasta, which - given the response from my guests - was super impressive.

Pesto Trapanese (Pesto with Tomato-Almond Pesto)

1 lb quinoa spaghetti

6 plum tomatoes, quartered

2 cloves garlic

handful of basil

pinch of salt

1/2 cup of pecorino romano, grated

4 tablespoons of olive oil

2/3 cup of almonds, pulsed in the food processor until the shape of grated cheese

Pulse the basil, salt and garlic in the fridge.  Add the tomatoes, cheese, olive oil, and almonds.  Cook the pasta according to package directions.  Before draining the pasta, scoop a cup of the starchy water out and reserve.  Drain the pasta, add the sauce and the pasta water and toss.  Serve with some crusty bread, and top with more pecorino.

If you want to make it vegan, omit the pecorino and put in a little bit nutritional yeast and a squeeze of lemon juice instead.  If you want to make it raw, use zucchinni "noodles."  It will be delicious regardless. I promise.  

I'll post later about the homemade ice cream and peach-blackberry crisp.

Zucchini Cake Waffles

My friend, Gena -- brilliant vegan food blogger, busy post-baccalaureate pre-med student, and all-around awesome person came over this morning. And I decided to treat her to some dessert for breakfast.  Inspired by a pancake recipe posted on Smitten Kitchen, I decided to health up the "zucchinni cake for breakfast concept" a bit by veganizing it and using non-gluten flours. And then I made it a waffle instead, which doesn't make it healthier, but I just happen to prefer waffles.    As a relative newcomer to gluten-free baking/cooking, I was apprehensive to experiment my way into a recipe.  I've had some extremely dense and horribly bland gluten-free baked goods, and it sometimes feel inordinately complicated to substitute for gluten (the protein in wheat flour that gives baked goods their structure) because you're mixing a bunch of different, unfamiliar flours with a little bit of hope.  But I know that Gena would be a pretty forgiving audience and I could just feed her a kale sald if the waffles turned out horribly, So, I decided to try out Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose Flour because I've heard it's pretty good, and Bob does all the mixing for you.  I'm happy to say that the waffles turned out extremely well.  Sweet and fluffy on the inside, crispy and crunchy on the outside.  Maybe someday I'll get the courage to try something more challenging, like a cookie.  For her part, Gena brought an amazing avocado, tomato, mango salad as a side.  She also whipped up a cherry sauce and brought some almond milk yogurt for toppings.   Zucchini Bread Waffles (or Pancakes)  1 large zucchini, grated 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce 3 T olive oil 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/4 cup "soured" almond milk (to sour, add 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar to the measuring cup, then add almond milk to measure 1/4 cup) 2 tablespoons maple syrup or other sweetener to taste 1 - 11/2 cups Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose Flour 1/4-3/8 teaspoon xanthan gum -- according to how much flour you use 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg Coconut oil spray for waffle machine or griddle Heat up waffle machine or griddle.  Mix dry ingredients into large bowl.  Mix wet ingredients into smaller bowl.  Mix wet ingredients into dry ingredients.  Spray the griddle or waffle maker. Cook waffles according to the manufacturer instructions or scoop batter onto griddle in 1/4 cup - 1/2 cup sized dollops -- depending on how large you want your pancakes.   Slather with whatever toppings you fancy and enjoy!

Pesto Kale Salad

Pesto pasta salad is one of my favorite summer treats. Kale is one of the staples of my diet. On Saturday, my favorite summer treat informed one of my dietary staples, almost entirely by accident. I went to the Mt. Pleasant Farmer's market on Saturday morning, where some of the most awesome summer produce (I.e., peaches, basil, melons, tomatoes) was in full swing.  I also picked up some curly kale.  

Then I proceeded to have a kind of lazy Saturday.

When dinner rolled around, I was tempted to stay with the lazy Saturday theme and order in, but decided to tap into kitchen intuition instead.  I started with a marinated kale salad base, added a nutritional yeast and walnut based pesto, sprinkled on some tomatoes, and a truly fantastic meal of a salad resulted. Take advantage of the in-season basil right now, and make this salad. 

Pesto Kale Salad

1 large bunch of kale

2 T olive oil

Juice of one lemon

Sea salt to taste

1/4 cup of nutritional yeast

1 handful of walnuts

1 large fistful of fresh basil

Garlic to taste

Heirloom tomatoes, chopped

Rip the kale off the stems into small pieces. Massage kale with olive oil and sea salt. Set aside.  Put remaining ingredients, save the tomatoes, into a mini-food processor and process until pesto-like.  Put the sauce, which might have the texture of a nut pate depending on how many walnuts you use, on top of the kale salad along with the chopped tomatoes. Try to savor instead of inhale.

(Oh, and the brown liquid isn't scotch whiskey. It's home brewed kombucha, which I will post about later, I promise!)

Roasted Strawberry Coconut Milk Ice Cream

  On Sunday night, I attended a truly exceptional gathering of DC healthy foodies.   Gena graciously hosted Anne, Victoria, Valerie, Dasha (who works for my favorite food chain --sweetgreen) and myself in her backyard on a perfect evening.  The District is experiencing some unseasonably temperate weather, so it wasn't muggy or buggy enough to confine us to air conditioning.  We had a spirited and laughter-filled conversation, surrounded by the first fireflies of the season.  Gena provided appetizers and kombucha-sangria (which I will be reproducing in my own kitchen many times this summer), Anne brought a gorgeous barley salad, Valerie brought a fantastic beet-quinoa salad (topped with vegan scallion cheese), and Dasha brought a beautiful arugula salad topped with nectarines in balsamic vinegar and fresh corn.  Victoria brought a mostly raw brownie bottom, peanut butter pie (OMG!), and I decided to bust out the ice cream maker for the first time this season.  The results did not disappoint.  More ice cream will follow.

Roasted Strawberry Coconut Ice Cream (vegan, gluten-free)

2 pints strawberries

2 tsp. evaporated cane juice

2 cans for full-fat coconut milk (light will crystalize in the ice cream maker --gross)

1 c. evaporated cane juice or stevia to taste

about 1/4 c. cornstarch or arrowroot

1/4 tsp. salt

2 t. vanilla

4 cardamom pods (optional) 

Freeze the components of your ice cream maker than need to be frozen.  Preheat your oven to 300 degrees. Quarter the strawberries and put in a rimmed cookie sheet or baking pan.  Sprinkle 2 tsp of evaporated cane juice and toss to coat.  Roast the strawberries for about 25 minutes.  Cool completely and then puree the berries (optional).  

Dissolve the evaporated cane juice in the coconut milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat. (Skip this step if you're using stevia and just gently heat the milk). Add the vanilla, salt, and cardamom pods (if using).  Whisk the arrowroot or cornstarch into the coconut milk slowly.  (You may need to add more to get your desired thickness).  Once the mixture has a texture of a custard, take off the heat, remove the cardamom pods, and chill the mixture completely --in the fridge overnight or the freezer for a few hours.

Once the components are chilled thoroughly, begin freezing the custard according to the ice cream maker's instructions.  About halfway through the freezing process, add the strawberry mixture.  Once the mix has the texture of soft serve, put it into an airtight container and freeze until almost ready to serve.  Try not to get your tongue stuck to the ice cream maker. Really try. 

Orange Olive Oil Cookies

Fresh baked cookies are totally awesome. And whole grain, vegan cookies, made with a healthful oil are even more awesome. If you're willing to try some cookies that are a little out of the box, you are going to love these cookies. Don't get me wrong, these are cookies for grown ups. Not that they contain any booze or other illicit substances, but they are more subtle and lightly flavored than the more in-your-face favorites. The olive oil gives them a hint of savory, and makes the citrus flavor pop. It also gives a crispy, crumbly texture that you usually can't get without eggs. These were the perfect afternoon snack for several afternoons last week, they went perfectly with my afternoon licorice tea.


Orange Olive Oil Cookies

Makes 12-16 cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 C whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/8 tsp fine sea salt
• 1/4 C + 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 C granulated sugar
• 2 tbsp fresh orange juice
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp orange zest (zest the orange before you peel it for best results)
  

Directions:

• Line a baking sheet with parchment and preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and sea salt.
• In a large mixing bowl (or stand mixer), beat together sugar, olive oil, orange juice, vanilla and orange zest.
• Slowly pour flour mixture into olive oil mixture and blend until just combined.
• Drop dough by rounded tablespoons onto prepared baking sheet. (be sure to leave plenty of room – approx. 3″ – between cookies as they will spread)
• Bake at 325 degrees for 12-15 minutes.
• Let cool slightly until firm on baking sheet then remove to wire rack.

Vegan Fennel and Leek Gratin

One of my favorite pre-vegan dishes is a vegetable gratin. Something about drowning vegetables in cream sauce and/or cheese and topping it with bread crumbs makes simple veggies company worthy. Normally, I prefer my vegetables simply steamed or roasted. But this weekend, I wanted some Sunday dinner-worthy vegetables. I took it upon myself to veganize one of my favorite vegetable dishes. Since, this was a special vegetable dish, I decided to use earth balance to make my bechamel. (Bechemel is one of the three mother sauces in French cooking.) I don't usually like franken-foods, even vegan franken-foods, but I used the soy free Earth Balance, and only a couple of tablespoons. It was totally worth it!

Vegan Fennel and Leek Gratin

2 cups almond milk, heated gently on the stove
2.5 T soy-free earth balance
3 T wheat flour
salt and nutmeg to taste
1T nutritional yeast
2 heads fennel, chopped
2 leeks, chopped
Vegan panko bread crumbs to taste (I like a lot)

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Melt the Earth Balance over medium-low heat. Stir in the flour, and continue stirring for about 5 minutes. Whisk in the milk and continue to whisk until it thickens. (This will take longer than you think it should). The sauce should coat the back of a wooden spoon. Remove from the heat and add the spices and nutritional yeast.

Pour about a third of the sauce in the bottom of the baking dish. Put the veggies on top. Pour the rest of the sauce on. Finally, top with panko crumbs. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the top is golden brown.

FYI, the leftovers make a great tortilla pizza topper.

Winter Salad with Kale and Sweet Potatoes

Sweet Potato Fries and Massaged Kale Salad. Two of my favorite things. One naughty. One Nice. But when you put them together, they are nothing but sugar and spice. (Yeah, I just rhymed.)

Sweet Potato and Kale Salad (Serves one very hungry person)

1 sweet potato, peeled and diced
3 small shallots, diced
salt, pepper, nutmeg, and cinnamon, to taste
spray coconut oil

1 head of kale
a couple of tablespoons of olive oil
lemon juice

Heat up a saute pan over medium heat, spray with coconut oil and saute the shallots until they are a bit soft. Add the sweet potato cubes and spices. Stir occasionally, until the sweet potatoes are crispy. While the sweet potatoes are cooking, tear up the kale massage it with olive oil, sea salt and lemon juice.

When the sweet potatoes are crispy, dump them on the kale and gobble it all up.

This Salad Will Convert You to Raw Brussels Sprouts

I know that's a bold statement. But if you already enjoy coleslaw, you enjoy the grown up version of brussels (i.e. cabbage). Stay with me, here. I was a late convert to brussels sprouts. Like a late twenties convert. I fell in love with baby cabbage when I tried Heidi Swanson's lightly seared version. But this week, I was in the mood for something fresh and raw. So, I shredded the sprouts on my trusty mandolin, julienned a honey crisp apple, and chopped up some raw walnuts. Then, I made and drizzled on a dressing that will change your attitude towards raw brussels forever.

Raw Brussels Sprout Salad with Spicy Maple Vinaigrette

Dressing:

1 T apple cider vinegar
1 T maple syrup
1 dash cinnamon
salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper to taste
2 T olive oil

Salad:

About a pound of brussels sprouts, shredded on a mandolin
1 honey crisp apple, julienned
handful of raw walnuts, chopped

Reasonably Healthy Comfort Food

Today, I felt like throwing feminine hygiene products at every guy who looked at me funny on the metro. I'm not going to frost dog sh*t and call it cake by saying this is a rare occurrence these days. Much more rare than me being in a surly mood is me indulging in good, new-fashioned, comfort food. Back when I ate the SAD, my favorite sad food was mac n' cheese. Homemade, fresh baked, or out of a blue box. I loved that stuff. Maybe it's because my grandma used to make it for me every time I visited because she knew how much I loved it. Today, I made up a gluten free, goat cheese based version that I love with four ingredients. It's about as clean as mac n' cheese can get. (And along side my mac n' cheese is a creamy, vegan chocolate peanut butter cake from Sticky Fingers --clearly this was a bad day).

Three Ingredient Mac n' Cheese

1 cup dry quinoa/corn macaroni
3 oz raw goat cheddar, grated
1 Tblsp of butter
Touch of Nutmeg

Cook the macaroni. Drain it. Melt the butter in the pan. Put the macaroni back in. Stir in the cheese. Gobble immediately.

On Being Vulnerable and Kitchen Failures

I generally think too much. Mostly, I think of what it takes to live a happy, full life. Specifically, I think about what I'm not doing correctly in that respect. Today though, I realized that I do a lot of things right, even when I think I'm doing it all wrong. One thing that I think I do particularly well is being vulnerable and embracing the inevitable pain that comes with seeking sweet and wonderful experiences. In the kitchen, this translates to enjoying experimenting even when experiments go bad. For instance, this evening, I tried to make a mock carbonara with soba noodles and spinach. And no cheese. With a soupcon of too much garlic. It didn't turn out well. Then I realized that I handle a lot of things in the same way. Romantic disappointments seem to pile up around me like unread magazines, and yet I still keep trying. (Despite vowing that every time is the last time). Calmness in the face of a very sick pet, not trying to make things certain and refusing to deny pain and discomfort are things that make me stubborn, elusive and messy. But they are also the things that make me beautiful. (And next time I'll taste as I go and make it with quinoa noodles).

TED Talk I love: Thandie Newton on "Otherness"

I think it's time for a non-food related post. I adore TED talks. They are informative, inspiring and usually prompt me to think of things in an entirely new way. Helen Fisher and Brene Brown gave two of my favorites, and I watched/listened to the one below by Thandie Newton earlier today. I'm posting it here because Ms. Newton puts to words what I so often felt as the only racially mixed person growing up in a very white place, one of the few progressives in a sea of conservative Catholics in college and someone from modest roots in a place of great privilege during law school. Like Newton, I lost my "self" in dancing in performing while growing up and found that my "otherness" gave me a great deal of empathy for other misfits. Like Newton, I suffered from disordered eating and struggled with wanting to disappear as the "other" that stuck out like a sore thumb. I now prize the fact that I don't belong in any one group because it leaves me free to surround myself with people who feel right rather than people with the same skin tone (which is biologically meaningless). I could go on about how much this talk spoke to me, but instead, I'll let Newton say it all much more eloquently.

Coconut Orange Scones

I decided to have a very lazy Sunday. From time to time, I need to not do anything but read something trashy, watch some movies, catch up on Jersey Shore and lay like broccoli. I also like to take some time and make myself a snack I wouldn't have time for during the week. Trashy romance novel? Check! Movie? Check!

The only thing I needed was some scone goodness. I started from a recipe in The Art of Simple Food, and riffed a vegan recipe from there, using coconut in lieu of cream, coconut oil in lieu of butter and adding orange zest to up the flavor quotient. After the scones came out of the oven, I paired them with some orange creme dream Talbot tea and had a civilized tea (in my jammies).


Orange Coconut Scones

Makes 4 coffee shop sized scones

2 cups flour (I used unbleached all-purpose, but white spelt or white whole wheat would be even better)
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup evaporated cane juice
1 1/3 cup coconut milk (I just used the kind from the can)
1 orange zest
2 tablespoons coconut oil
2 tablespoon evaporated cane juice

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Measure and mix together the dry ingredients. Stir in the coconut milk and orange zest. Mix until the dough just starts to come together. It will be sticky. Turn it out onto a flour surface and knead briefly until it comes together. Pat into an 8-in circle. Brush with the melted coconut oil. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons evaporated cane juice. Cut into four wedges and put on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake for 17 minutes or until golden brown.

Enjoy! They are great with a touch of butter or earth balance, and I would imagine they would be lovely with some jam.

Mediterranean Red Pepper Spread/Dressing

I have the day off of work today, and I've spent the morning doing "GGTL" (gym, groceries, tidying up and laundry). All that running around built up an appetite. I have been meaning to try my hand at a Muhammara for a long time now. It's a traditional Middle Eastern spread that I miraculously have never encountered in a restaurant. It's spicy and tart, so I have been dying to put some in my face, but hadn't gotten around to it. In the past few weeks, though, the Universe has been nudging me towards this goodness. I first read about it in Supernatural Cooking, by Heidi Swanson. I opened up the book to that page about a month ago and kept looking back at it. Then, a few weeks ago, my friend Gena made a raw version. So, last night, I looked up an old Gourmet (R.I.P.) recipe and melded that with Gena's and my own special twists. This is what I came up with and it's extremely delicious if I do say so myself. With the walnuts and bread crumbs, it makes for a hearty spread on top of homemade (vegan) spelt flour soda bread (recipe forthcoming). I mixed about a tablespoon of the spread with some olive oil and additional lemon juice to make a dressing for my salad (just green and carrots to keep it simple). The "authentic" version has pomegranate molasses, but I couldn't find it at my Whole Foods. I wouldn't know, but I don't think the spread suffers.

Muhammara (makes enough for several lunches/snacks)

1/3 c. spelt bread crumbs (or Ezekiel) --this should be about half a slice of bread
1 c. raw walnuts
3 roasted red peppers (I used jarred 365 brand in water)
4 sun-dried tomatoes, quickly immersed in warm water to soften
juice of one lemon
1 tsp cumin
1.5 tsp red pepper flakes
1-4 cloves of garlic (I uncharacteristically forgot this, but I will be adding it next time)
2 T. olive oil (as desired for blending)

Put the bread in the food processor and blend until crumbs. Add the other ingredients. Blend until kind of smooth. Try not to eat it all standing at the counter. Dip in veggies. Spread on bread. Throw in a sandwich.

Warming Winter Smoothie

I was really in the mood for something fruity, but still toasty tonight. I also wanted some density. I have to say, it's totally improvised deliciousness:

Ginger-Banana "Nog"

Serves 1-2

1 frozen banana
1 frozen pear
1/4 cup tahini
1.5 cups nut milk
pumpkin pie spice to taste
vanilla stevia to taste (or just plain vanilla)

Blend. Pour. Try not to drink it so fast your brain freezes.

Easy Stock and a Soup Tutorial

Slurping on vegetable based soups is a wonderful way to stay warm and cozy as winter sets in (I'm actually slurping on a soup right now), so I thought I'd share a favorite simple soup recipes with you as well as a simple veggie stock that is worlds better than anything you'll buy in a store.

Veggie Stock (Makes 2 quarts)

1-2 Tbsp of Unsalted Butter or Olive Oil
2 onions, roughly chopped
2 shallots, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, smashed
2 stalks celery, roughly chopped
2 sprigs thyme
2 quarts water
Salt to taste

Saute the onions, shallots, celery, garlic and thyme in melted butter over medium-high heat until everything is softened, about 5 minutes. Add the water and salt, bring to a boil, lower heat, cover and let simmer between 30-60 minutes. Strain and refrigerate for up to a week (or freeze).

Soup Tutorial

A good veggie soup consists of a fat, mire poix, seasoning, a stock and a "star" vegetable. All you have to do to make a great soup is saute any or all of the following: an allium (onion, leek or shallot) with garlic and/or carrots in your choice of fat. I personally prefer unsalted butter, but coconut oil or olive oil will also work. Then you add your "star vegetable(s)." I LOVE cauliflower, asparagus, or even a starchy vegetable like butternut squash. You also want to add seasonings. A squash soup calls out for sage, cinnamon, nutmeg and other fall flavors. You could add a curry for a more international flavor or you could stick with sea salt and pepper. You saute the veggies so that everything is coated in the fat. The fat is important because it carries the flavor of the vegetables through the soup. Even if you add just a smidge of butter, it will elevate your soup, so don't skimp out entirely. Next, you add your stock, enough to cover the veggies. (If you're out of stock, use water. You'll have to add some salt to compensate, but it will work.) Bring the soup to a boil, then lower the heat, then simmer until the veggies are tender. This time will vary, depending on the veggie. (Butternut squash will take longer than a non-starchy vegetable).

Once the veggies are tender, I like to blend my soup. I transfer the soup into my blender in small batches, cover the top of the blender with a towel (very important if you want to avoid hot soup in the face), and blend the soup until it's completely smooth. Enjoy what you want and store the soup for a few days in the fridge for easy reheating. Veggie soup makes a great addition to an office lunch if you're into cooked foods during the day. Here is one of the soups that I'm loving right now.

Cauliflower Leek Soup

Unsalted Butter, Olive Oil or Coconut Oil, to taste
1 leek, chopped (wash and drain)
2 cloves of garlic
1 head of cauliflower, chopped
salt
pepper
a couple of pinches of red pepper flakes
enough veggie stock to cover the veggies
garnish with a bit of lemon juice and some sliced leeks or parsley

Follow the procedure above, or get creative. Really, the sky is the limit and you don't ever need to get bored.

A Bottle of Wine is Not a Single Serving (Natural Hangover Cures)

Okay, so alcohol is not an ideal substance. Not one single bit, but when you clean up your diet in a big-picture sort of way, a couple of glasses of wine is not going to set you back. Especially when you're sharing a bottle of wine and some laughs with friends. Drinking a bottle alone on the couch (even when chatting on the phone) is just not a good idea. Trust me. I'm feeling the effects of that bad decision as I type. Nonetheless, sometimes it happens (though a lot less often than it used to). Fortunately for you, that gave me an idea to write about some super healthy, supernatural hangover cures. Yes, you can cure a hangover without Advil, high fructose corn syrup or greasy eggs. Read on to find out how.

1. Water: Alcohol is completely dehydrating. That's why your face looks like a hot mess the morning after a few too many. Slamming a bunch of water is one of the quickest ways to beat the bloat and stop your mouth from feeling like the Mojave.

2. Green Juice: Alcohol is acidic in the body. Green juice is alkaline and hydrating. The green juice will support your eliminative systems in purging your body of the demon drink.

3. Coconut Water: It's nature's Gatorade. You may have seen the packages and cans because they are oh so trendy right now, but if you hack open the white coconuts yourself, you get the real deal (sometimes with little pieces of coconut). It's uber-hydrating and it contains a modest amount of sugar and electrolytes. (And no HFCS). Anyone who knew me in college knows that if they saw me with blue Powerade in the dining hall, I had probably been to the Boat Club (just thinking about that place and sticky muck on the floor gives me the shivers) the night before. Now, if you see me sipping on coconut water from a mason jar, it means I had more than two glasses of wine the night before. (Oh, how times have changed).

4. Healthy Fat: It's no wonder that people tend to gravitate towards fatty food when they are hung over. Ingesting fat slows the release of toxins from the liver because the liver has to process both the fat and the alcohol. (This is why alcohol inhibits fat metabolism, and many weight loss professionals tell their clients not to drink....ever.) Well, when you're hung-over, that bell has already been rung. I liken a dose of healthy fat the day after a party to a homeopathic remedy. In homeopathy, like treats like. So something that needs to be metabolized by the liver will mute the hangover symptoms. My favorite ways to get healthy fat are avocados and raw goat's cheese. With that, I give you the "Perfect Hangover Soup."

Hangover Fruit Soup

1 avocado (healthy fat)
16 oz coconut water (for aforementioned hydration)
A couple of handfuls of spinach for chlorophyll
A couple of cups of blueberries (for sweetness)

Blend in a high speed blender and sip while on the couch.

Suck-it Pinkberry!

I have to admit that I was never a fan of the California phenomenon known as Pinkberry and its progeny. For one thing, cow dairy has never agreed with my digestive system. For another thing, I just didn't like the flavor. That said, I was craving a sweet, frozen treat on Sunday. I had some leftover Coco-gurt which I thought might make a nice sweet treat. I blended it up with a little bit of almond milk, and some vanilla stevia, and came up with my new favorite dessert! Coconuts are full of healthy fat, despite of the bad rap they got during the low-fat diet craze. Coconuts contain a high level of lauric acid, which has anti-viral properties. Combined with the probiotics in the yogurt, my Coconut Fro-yo will actually enhance your health rather than cause bloating, like the dairy version. Enjoy!

Juicing or Blending?

I received a note from a friend and reader this week that many people have when they first become interested in raw foods:

Hey Andrea,

So I read a book that you recommended and have a quick question...in the book, the author includes a number of recipes for juices that she makes using a juicer. I make various fruit and vegetable smoothies everyday (usually for breakfast) but I use a blender. Is there a difference? Do I need to buy a juicer?

Also, at first pass, it looks like there are bunch of different juicers out there, at a wide range of prices...is there a particular model or brand you'd recommend or any certain features I should be looking for? Will a basic, small model suffice or is there anything I should consider that might lean me toward saving up for something bigger?

Thanks & hope you're well!
k

Hey K,

That is such a great question! In fact, I'm going to turn my answer into a blog post this afternoon. While juicing and blending both have an important place in a high-raw diet, juicing is by far the best way to alkalinize the body and deliver high quality nutrients and enzymes to the system. There are several reasons for this.

First, juices require absolutely no digestion, lengthening the amount of time the body has to repair, cleanse and restore itself before expending energy digesting food. In fact, consuming juices on an empty stomach delivers plant nutrition straight to your cells.

Second, the volume of vegetables that you consume through juice is much higher than the volume of vegetables in a green shake. Since vegetables are the one food where the motto "more is better" does apply, juicing wins on volume as well.

Third, blending damages the plant enzymes ever so slightly, whereas juicing does less damages to the enzymes.

Blending still has its place in a raw diet though. Most people really don't chew very well, and this makes even high quality plant foods difficult to digest. Blending takes care of the chewing, giving the digestive system a hand. Raw food counselors dealing with complicated health issues often "prescribe" juicing and blending so that the body can devote most of its attention to healing while still offering some of the emotional/psychological satisfaction of eating. Also, smoothies are just plain tasty and hydrating.

I would definitely suggest buying a juicer, but it's awesome that you're getting smoothies in your diet!

As for what juicer to buy, for the first few months I juiced, I used a small, Waring Pro juicer that runs about $70, and worked fine. It was, however, a pain to clean and I dropped the filter basket down my trash chute. Now, I use a Breville that costs about $149 (but you can usually get 20% off at Bed, Bath & Beyond. It is really, really easy to clean, and handles everything that I juice. Anything fancier or more expensive than that really depends on how much you like juicing. If you want to juice for a few days at once, a masticating juicer like the Omega or Greenstar is a good investment. If you are okay with juicing in the morning and keeping the juice cold in a stainless steel bottle, the Breville is more than adequate.

I hope this helped answer your questions!

-Andrea

A Salad in the Hand....

I love me some salads , but sometimes my usual trough of salad (pictured above) can get a little boring. Still, the best way to detox is to make sure you consume a salad before every meal. When you just can't bear the thought of your tried and true or your same old, same old, it's time to shake things up. Sometimes just eating similar components in a novel way can turn into a whole new salad experience.

A few weeks ago, I decided to combine the beautiful, purple carrots I had in my fridge, roasted red peppers, raw orange peppers and seedless cucumber in a blanched (boiled for 5 seconds then put into an ice bath) collard greens. I prepped the veggies by julienning them. I prepped the collards by dividing them in half and discarding the tough spine.

As a dipping sauce/dressing, I adapted a recipe for Avocado "Mayo" from Living Raw Foods by Sarma Melngailis as follows:

Avocado "Mayo"

1 large avocado
1 tsp dry mustard
1 splash white wine vinegar
1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
2 lemons juice and zest
sea salt to taste
water to assist with blending

Blend all ingredients in a high powered blender. The flavor is not really like mayo, but it has a good tangy, creamy vibe going.

Pictures of the yumminess below:

Recipe: Celery Root Remoulade

I am really excited to share this original recipe. It is inspired by the recipe by the same name in Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food. This is one of my favorite cookbooks for inspiration. Ms. Waters takes the simplest, cleanest, most seasonal foods and elevates them to a sublime level. I took out the olive oil and creme fraiche from the original recipe and replaced them with diced zucchini and a little bit of stevia to offset the acid. I left the white wine vinegar in (not an ideal food because it's fermented) because it lends brightness and bit that would be lacking without it. Feel free to leave it out. I should also mention that I'm having a love affair with mustard right now. In fact, I'm munching on parsnip and sweet potato slices (raw) with my own honey mustard (raw wildflower honey with mustard mixed in, to taste).

Celery Root Remoulade

1 celery root, peeled and sliced to 1/4" in the mandoline and sliced into matchstick pieces
1 tsp white wine vinegar
sea salt, to taste
juice and zest of 1 lemon
1/2 of zucchini, peeled and diced
1 tsp mustard
stevia, to taste
ground pepper, to taste

Toss the julienned celery root with the white wine vinegar and sea salt to taste. Toss the rest of the ingredients in the blender and blend until liquefied. You may want to add a little water or lemon juice to thin the sauce. Throw the sauce on the marinating celery root and marinate. This will keep in the fridge for a few days (if it lasts that long).