A Little Bit of Chocolate

Gluten-Free, Vegan

I don't know about you, but it takes everything in me to not stress eat. It's a major obstacle for me. This evening was rough, and after a busy and stressful week my sweet tooth was really aching. I decided to give in, but in a healthy way.

Here's what I came up with:

1 C Unsweetened Almond Milk
1/2 Banana
1/2 T  Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1 t Agave Nectar
1/2 t Coconut Extract

 Blend until smooth. It comes out velvety, just sweet enough, and just a little coconutty. It was exactly what I wanted. I found a quiet corner and savored it. After that, and a few deep breaths, I felt worlds better. Best part? It was about 130 calories. You're welcome, friends.

More posts to come! Up next: a caprese chicken burger!

Superfood Smoothie

Vegan, Raw, Gluten-Free, Light

Cold and flu season is still upon us, which means VITAMINS, VITAMINS, VITAMINS! Few things are better than antioxidants, or superfoods, to help boost immunity; and dark fruits (strawberries, cherries, blueberries, etc) are full of them, and smoothies are a great way to get the nutrients you need on the go. This dark fruit smoothie is like health in a glass. For those who are unfamiliar with what antioxidants are, here's a quick rundown: they are vitamins and minerals (C, E, Beta-carotene, zinc, etc) which, when consumed in moderation, help repair damage to your cells.

While dealing with a cold I made this marvelous vitamin bomb:

Not only did it have what I needed to help me recover, it tasted like dessert...bonus!

Toss these lovlies in to your blender and let it go until smooth:

1/2 C Dark Cherries
1/2 C Blueberries
1/3 C Raspberries
3 Large Strawberries
1/2 Banana
1 T Flax
1/4 C Raw Almonds
1/2 C Natural, Nothing Added, Coconut Water
1 C Fresh Orange Juice

Serves 4

On top of the loads of antioxidants these ingredients provide, you get omega-3's from the flax, potassium and B6 from the banana, calcium from the orange juice, protein and monounsaturated fat (great for weight loss) from almonds, and natural electrolytes from the coconut water. Many of these fruits are full of seeds--which, I know, can be unpleasant-- but give you extra fiber (also helpful for weight loss). How great is that?!

My two year-old was getting impatient, she wanted more smoothie. This is one of her favorites.

I can't guarantee it, but you will probably feel like this when you're done.

In other news, I have signed up for my first 5k! Never did I ever think this is something I would do. Hooray for personal progress!

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Crispy Chickpea Salad

Gluten-free, Vegan, Light

When I made curry fried rice the other night, I made the chickpeas from scratch...and I made a whole bag. TONS of left over beans. When I was making myself lunch the other day I wanted an Asian salad, but I remembered that I had those chickpeas. One of my goals is to be less wasteful with our food, so I challenged myself to make it work.

Here's what I ended up with-- a green leaf lettuce salad with an Asian dressing, mandarin oranges, and crispy spicy chickpeas. The combination of textures and flavors was irresistible.

To make the chickpeas:

Heat 1/2 T Olive oil in a pot
Add 1/2 C Cooked chickpeas
1/4 t Cayenne pepper
1/2 t Cumin
1/4 t Ginger
2-3 Dashes of red pepper flakes
A dash of curry
Black pepper, to taste

Stir occasionally until chickpeas are crispy. If you do it right, they should still be soft inside.

To make an Asian dressing:

1/2 T Liquid aminos (or low-sodium soy sauce)
1 t Toasted sesame oil
A splash of orange juice
3 dashes Ground ginger
A splash of rice wine vinegar
1 drizzle of honey
A sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds
3 chopped cilantro leaves
1/2 T Chopped green onion

Blend in bowl, and toss with greens. (I know, I use extremely precise measuring...)

To put it all together, you toss the greens in dressing in a bowl, add one serving of mandarin orange slices. Top with crispy chickpeas.

Chickpeas contain about 135 calories (per 1/2 c) when you cook them yourself, but in that same serving they have about 1/8 of the protein you need in a day, about 5 g of fiber, and a fair amount of iron and potassium.

I still have some leftover beans, I think that calls for a batch of hummus. Stay tuned...

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Curry Fried Rice

I LOVE Indian food, it makes me very happy. One thing that I really appreciate about it is that it has wonderful vegetarian options. The other night I made one of my favorite Indian-inspired cupboard-cleaner meals: curry fried rice.

Gluten-free, Vegan, Light



Here's how you make it happen:

1 C Cooked brown rice
1/2 C Cooked garbanzo beans
1 T Oil
2 t Fresh grated ginger
1/2 t ground coriander seeds
1 T Curry powder
1/2 t Ground cumin
Chopped cilantro, to taste
Bragg's Liquid Aminos (or soy sauce)
2-3 Dashes of red pepper flakes
Add as many steamed carrots, broccoli, frozen peas, and green beans as you want

Start by "blooming" the seasonings: heat the oil and add ginger, ground coriander, and cumin. Stir for about a minute. Add rice, garbanzo beans, broccoli, and green beans. Stir until broccoli is almost done. Add peas, steamed carrots, curry, liquid aminos (or soy sauce), cilantro and red pepper flakes. Stir until peas are heated through. If the stir-fry seems too dry (curry dries things out sometimes) add some vegetable stock or water.

I like liquid aminos because they have the flavor of soy sauce, but has less sodium and is gluten-free (and we always end up using less because the flavor is stronger). If you haven't tried it, I HIGHLY recommend it.

This also makes a great lunch the next day.

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The Intimidating Green Smoothie

Raw, Vegan, Gluten-Free

When I first heard of green smoothies, they sounded like my worst nightmare. Everything I tried to avoid, green vegetables, blended in to a drink. To me, they looked like pond scum and I thought they would taste the same. Then, one sunny summer day, I was feeling brave (and fat) and decided to give them a shot. Something that healthy looking had to be worth it. That first smoothie was more fruit than vegetable--it was more of a reddish-brown than green, but it didn't kill me. In fact, it was pretty good. I started having them for breakfast every morning. Slowly, I started adding more spinach and less fruit. I couldn't go head-first in to liquefied spinach land, I had to ease myself in to it and worked beautifully.

I have finally reached the point where my smoothies are TOTALLY green. They still have fruit, but I can actually taste the greens now. And, what's even more exciting, I love it. It's delicious, super healthy, and is an excellent alternative to a green salad.

Here's our cast of characters:

2 Leaves of romaine lettuce
3-4 Handfuls (I have small hands) of spinach
1/3 C Pineapple
4 Strawberries
1/2 Banana
1 T Flax meal
1 Inch bunch wheat grass

Cover 1/2 of ingredients with fresh orange juice, 1/4 with coconut water, 1/4 water. (If you aren't ready to taste the greens, substitute the waters with apple juice, or more orange juice.) Blend until smooth.

About these guys:

Flax - High in Omega-3 Fatty Acids, which are important for everyone--and especially people with heart problems or diabetes.

Wheat grass - Full of vitamins, amino acids and enzymes that help oxygenate blood, lower blood pressure, and helps your body absorb important nutrients.

Spinach and romaine lettuce - Excellent sources of anti-oxidants, magnesium, Vitamins K (which helps with bone strength), C and A, and beta-carotene.

Strawberries, orange juice, and pineapple - All loaded with Vitamin C--essential during cold and flu season.

Bananas -- They're well-known for their potassium content, but also have plenty of B6 and fiber.

Orange juice -- We all know how good fresh OJ is for you. Vitamin C and calcium are our friends.

Coconut water - Contains nutrients that help lower blood pressure, helps body replenish electrolytes, and has tons of potassium.

All of that in one glass? SOLD. Most of these ingredients are fiber rich, and fiber = FULL. The great thing about smoothies like these is that they don't need milk or yogurt. They're fine to add if you really want to, but you get enough calcium and protein from the other ingredients. If I feel like I want it to be a little more filling I'll add a tablespoon or so of oats or crushed almonds before I blend and it more than does the trick.

Give green smoothies a try, even if you start using more fruit than spinach. I DOUBLE DOG dare you.

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Soup and Sandwich Goes Vegan

Vegan, Light, Easy to make gluten-free

This is my favorite lunch on my vegan days-- a veggie wrap with curried red lentil soup. It's quick, easy, and SO GOOD. (Side note: a great trick for eating healthy foods is to plate it the way they would at a restaurant. You feel like you're having a treat.)

Here's how I make the wrap: 1 96% Fat Free Whole Wheat Mission Tortilla (they make the tortillas with vegetable shortening, no animal by-products) or a gluten-free tortilla, 1.5 T hummus (my favorite is Tribe 40 Spice), about 3 torn-up leaves of romaine lettuce, 1/2 C julienned carrots, 6 slices of cucumber. I spread the hummus on the tortilla, place the lettuce all over the hummus, arrange the carrots and cucumbers on one side, sprinkle with black pepper, roll, and slice. I love it because it has tons of flavor, plenty of fiber (so important) and vitamins, whole grains, and great texture. Today I ate half of a wrap with my soup and grapes and was satisfied. I'll have to remember that.

I buy Pacific Naturals Curried Red Lentil Soup at WinCo as often as I can. It's smooth, I can't get enough of curry, it's $2.18 a carton (about 4 servings), annnnd it's only 140 calories. Drooling yet?

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