Happy Birthday...and some veggie wraps!

First and foremost, Happy Birthday to my mom who LOOKS like she's celebrating her 25th birthday today:) Sadly, I'm really lame in the "having pictures of us" department...so I'm going to attach one of us from 6 years ago, but you get the point...

Second, I'm really on a roll with this breaking out of the ho-hums of my daily lunch routine (soup). Last post I made a marinated Kale salad that I wrap in lettuce with hummus/tahini. Today I had a WONDERFUL middle eastern "rice" wrap (thanks to the blog Choosing Raw)! This raw food thing (nothing cooked over 115 degrees to preserve essential enzymes) is really amusing me...not so much for the health benefits anymore, but because the meals are so quick and easy to make (and kinda fun too!). Seriously, I buy the produce, stick them in the food processor...and DONE! Washing the dishes after takes longer than the prep and "cooking."

Swiss Chard Leaves (or Collared Greens) Stuffed with Middle Eastern Rice (yields 8-12 wraps)

For the "Rice"

4 cups cauliflower

1/2 cup pine nuts

1 tbsp agave or a sprinkling of stevia

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup raisins

-In a food processor or mixer, process all ingredients, except for the raisins, until finely diced and resembling rice.

For the marinara:

1 very large red or yellow bell pepper, deseeded

3/4 cup cherry or roma tomatoes

1/4 cup sundried tomatoes

1 tbsp olive oil

1/4 tsp salt

generous sprinkling of dried thyme

generous sprinkling of dried oregano

1/4 cup fresh basil

stevia to taste

- Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor until think and smooth.

-To assemble wraps: cut each leave in half and remove the thickest part of the stem. place 2-3 tbsp rice mixture about one inch from the bottom of the leaf and roll the wrap. After you've created your wrap, top with a generous amount of the raw marinara sauce!

Putting The Creature of Habit Down for a Nap

I LOVE my new lunch. I am definitely a creature of habit...and laziness when it comes to food (and some other things too!). What I do 99% of the time is I make myself a huge pot of soup (using all kinds of greens, celery root, a sweet potato, carrots, dried herbs, etc) and then freeze little individual portion sizes and take it to work for lunch for the next 312418923401239 days. Well, I've broken the mold this week...I had an extra weekend day (thanks, presidents) and decided to take the time to get creative. I made a raw kale salad, thanks to Melomeals (it's seriously yummy, folks) and have been stuffing the mix inside lettuce, making a wrap, and then dipping the wraps in hummus. I bet the salad mix would also taste really good ontop of some pita bread...or even all by itself. Making the kale salad was super easy, thanks to my food processor...no chopping necessary. Enjoy this SUPER fast and SUPER healthy pile of raw green mess:) For reminders on why raw is so beneficial, please refer back to my post Unbake Those Brownies.

Marinated Kale Salad

Ingredients:

4 cups kale- de-stemmed and ripped into bite size bits
1 tsp salt (i used sea salt)
2 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice (i have oranges in my yard, so this was easy...but if you don't have access to fresh oranges, go ahead and use whatever orange juice you have in your fridge)
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp orange zest (optional if you don't have an orange to zest)
2 cups shredded carrots
1 cup chopped red cabbage
1/2 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes
2 tbsp miced red OR white onion
1 cup sunflower seeds (remember, RAW is best)
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 cup raisins
4 cups cilantro, chopped
1 tbsp soy sauce (I used gluten free/reduced sodium tamari)
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste if needed


Instructions:

In a large bowl, mix kale, salt, orange juice, balsamic vinegar, and garlic powder. Massage and mix for several minutes.

Add the rest of the ingredients and massage well

Let sit for at least 10 minutes before eating to let the flavors marinate.

The Jury's Out...Waaaaay Out

Confession: not everything that I make is really all that blog worthy (in saying that I know you're not all the surprised, but I'm basically admitting it to myself:> ) I was in the mood for something really healthy and really easy...so I went ahead and made myself a "Broccoli Pie." I'd say, it's definitely edible and maybe the taste will even really grow on me after awhile. Basically, I think I'm still trying to feel it out since it's not quite like anything I've tasted before. It tastes a little like Broccoli soup on top of a crust. Whether I end up deciding that I like it or not, the good news is that I have tons of left over fresh broccoli that I plan on sending through my juicer. I know that sounds disgusting to most people, but I get really excited about adding new greens to my juice. I pretty much have the same juice everyday...I juice carrots, an apple, and some celery. Now, I can add some broccoli to my Jeopardy winning juice. Yep, you heard me. No kidding...since I started juicing my Jeopardy skills have exponentially increased. Now if only I could beat that computer, Watson! K, on to the recipe...I'll let you decide for yourselves...

Crust:

Now THIS was super yummy!
Ingredients:
1 cup raw almonds (soaked for at least 6 hours)
1/2 tbsp tamari (this is gluten free soy sauce), coconut aminos, or Nama Shoyu
1-3 tbsp liquid of your choice (I used water)
1/2 tbsp ground flax seeds

-Process nuts furst until evenly ground, pulse while adding liquide, then incorporate ground fax. Pat down in 9" pan.

Filling:

Ingredients:
2.5 cups of chopped broccoli florets
1/2 tbsp water
1/2 tbsp tamari (soy sauce), coconut aminos, or Nama Shoyu
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup tahini
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 large green onion (white part only)
1/2 tbsp fresh herbs (I used cilantro)
1 heaping tsp ground flax seeds

-Put first 4 ingredients into the food processor, run until there are no chunks. Add the rest of the ingredients and process until creamy.

Fill the prepared pan and let chill for at least an hour.

Easy Eating and...BUY MY CAR!!!

Nope, no new recipes to post. But, I wanted to get some input from my reader(s):) I got some positive feedback on the ham and beans, which tells me that simplicity (a.k.a. the slow cooker) might just be a must for most households...especially working folks who DON'T want to come home and cook. I want to make sure to post recipes that people will want to make and that make lives easier...but I also want to stay true to my mission to also make bodies healthier! So, with that said, here are some options for the next week...what would you most like to see?

Carrot Bisque (not a crockpot recipe, but no cooking needed either for this 5 ingredient soup...just throw it in the blender or food processor) with or without Carrot Flat Bread

Raw Sweet Corn and Cashew Chowder (also no cooking needed 3 ingredients plus spices...just blend)

Marinated Winter Kale Salad (a few more ingredients than the last 2 options, but no cooking needed and you can shove this salad into a wrap for a heavier meal)

Broccoli Pie (i know, sounds disgusting...but no cooking needed, just a food processor and about 6-ish ingredients plus spices).

4 Beans mix with Mushroom Curry (warm and exotic)

Crockpot Ground Turkey Chili

The healthiest most body fueling girlscout cookies!

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Maybe none of these sound good to you, I don't know...but if you'd like for me to be the guinea pig and try one out, just drop me a line and vote for your choice(s).

Okay, one more thing...my shamless plug: I'm trying to sell my 2006 Jeep Liberty. It's in prestine condition and only has 31,000 miles! Know of anyone in the Los Angeles or surrounding areas that might be interested?

Enjoy your long weekend!

Beans Beans the Musical Fruit...

It's a rare day at my house when my husband and I will both eat the same thing for dinner. We have completely different tastes...I like my food "bland" and he likes the flavor. I could be completely satisfied with a meal full of veggies...and my man needs his meat! He's wants a baked potato and I love yams. So, needless to say, there are always several different things going on for any given meal. "His" and "Hers"...kind of like the towels that newlyweds get...or in my case, the homemade pillow sheets.

Well, we may have found a happy medium with last night's dinner...Slow Cooker White Beans and Ham (the happy medium for me is...i'm not a huge fan of ham...so i could just pick out the ham and chow down on the beans and veggies. YUM!) I'm guessing you could even substitute the ham with chicken if there are other people that have an aversion, like me:)

Servings: about ten 1.5 cup servings

Prep time: 10 minutes (plus overnight soak time for the beans)

Cook time: 6-9 hours in the crockpot

Ingredients:

1 lb dried white beans (I chose Navy beans)

2 smoked ham hocks

2 ribs celery, trimmed and sliced into 1//4 inch pieces (I only used 1 stalk.R emember that compromise thing? well, my husband really doesn't like celery)

1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch dice

1 medium yellow onion (I only used 1/2 onion, for the same reason as cutting down on the celery)

2 cups water

2 dried bay leaves

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/4 tsp dried rosemary

1 tsp garlic salt

1 tsp dried parsley

Directions:

Prep (trust me, this will make your life SO much easier in the morning): without turning on your slow cooker, rinse beans and place in slow cooker to soak in water overnight. Make sure that water is about an inch higher than the beans. Cut up onion, carrot, celery, and refrigerate overnight. In a seperate tupperware, I also pre-combined all of the spices so I could just go go go in the morning.

Cooking: In the morning, empty soaking water, rinse beans again, and set them aside. Place ham hocks in the slow cooker, add the beans, vegetables, spices, and water. Stir to distribute evenly, ensuring that all of the beans are submerged in water. Turn slow cooker on low and cover/cook for 6-9 hours.

Carefully remove the ham hocks and pull the meat off the bones and cut into bite size pieces, discarding the skin. If desires, slightly mash some of the beans to give the soup a thicker texture. Return the meat (and potentially mashed beans) to the slow cooker and give it a taste. If need be, adjust the seasonings to taste and add more water until you reach the consistency you want. Cook on low another 10-15 minutes.

Berry Delicious

Okay, best dessert I've made so far. I want to eat it all in one sitting...but I'm trying to pace myself. It's absurd to me that it's gluten free, dairy free, and RAW! What is it, you ask? It's a Lemon Vanilla Bean Cheesecake (with berry topping)! Super super easy to...besides pre-soaking the cashews and almonds, the whole process took less than 10 minutes. I got the recipe from Roostblog and I'll probably be making it again and again and again!

For the Crust:

2 cups raw almonds (soaked overnight)

1/2 cup dates, pitted (about 6-7). If they're dry, soak them in water for about 10 minutes.

1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

Place almonds and dates in a food processor and mix until chopped and nicely blended. Sprinkle the bottom of a 9 inch spring form cake pan (or really any 9 inch pan) with coconut flakes so the crust doesn't stick to the pan.

For the Filling:

3 cups raw cashews (soaked for at least 3 hours)

3/4 cup fresh lemon juice

3/4 cup honey or agave (preferably raw...but it's okay if it's not)

3/4 cup raw coconut oil (ex- Artisana)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp sea salt

To make the "cheese" filling, blend the cashews, lemon juice, honey, coconut oil (warm it for a few minutes in the dehydrator), vanilla, and salt. Blend until creamy and pour ontop of crust.

For the Berry Topping:

1 bag frozen berries (any kind of your choice...I used raspberries and strawberries. Blueberries would be good too!)

Dates or honey to sweeten (I didn't measure, I just did it by taste...maybe like an 1/8 cup honey??)

1/4 cup water

Place berries, honey, and water in a food processor and blend until smooth. Pour ontop of the crust/cheese mixture and freezer to let set.

Enjoy...and i know you will!!