Category: Recipes
Slow-Cooker Chicken Chili
| June 14, 2013 |
Let’s talk chili. It’s probably one of the easiest things you will ever make (microwave food excluded) but to me, it was one of those things that seemed tough and a little intimidating. There are so many ingredients and most recipes are made to slow cook, what if I add too much of something and then when it’s time to eat my chili is inedible?
Seriously. I have nightmares about making food for a party and ruining it and everyone at the party goes hungry and starves and it’s all my fault … I am a strange one.
Anyways, back to my point: chili is one of the easiest things you will ever make. Put it in a pot and leave it there all day. Come for dinner and it’s ready!
Slow-Cooker Chicken Chili
- 1 cup dry black beans (cooking directions below) OR 2 cans black beans, drained
- 24 oz boneless chicken breast (about 3-4 breasts)
- 2 1/2 cups water
- 1/2 chopped red onion
- 1 chopped jalapeño
- 1 small can of chopped green chilies
- 1/4 cup lime juice
- 2 cloves chopped garlic
- 1 can of corn
- 3 chopped roma tomatoes
- 2 cups of chopped Okra (20 oz.)
- 1/2 cup cilantro (about 1 handfull)
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 tbs cumin
- plain greek yogurt to top it off with
Directions
Put all the ingredients together in a slow-cooker, excluding the Greek yogurt. Cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 3 hours. You may need to add extra water to your chili depending on your slow cooker. Temperatures can vary, making the required water amount vary. Once it’s done, pull the chicken breasts out of the slow cooker and shred the meat. Put the shredded meat back in the pot and stir. Serve and top with a dollop of Greek yogurt – it makes a great sour cream substitute!
Also, chili is so easy to play around with and change things up. If you don’t like okra or want things a little more spicy, this is the dish to experiment with. Feel free to substitute things or add more of what you like and less of what you don’t. It really is harder to mess up chili. As long as you have the right seasonings you are good to go!
**if you want to use pre-cooked chicken, instead of doing 2 1/2 cups of water, use 1 1/2 cups chicken broth and 1 cup water. A lot of the flavor is coming from the chicken, and if yours is already cooked, the chicken flavor wont seep into the chili as much as needed for flavor.
How to Make Your Own Beans
Forget the canned stuff. Yea, you can use it – but making your own is SO much cheaper. A couple pounds of beans cost just as much as a couple cans (generally). So I opt to making my own beans. Another plus is that it doesn’t have all the preservatives that canned beans have.
First, measure the beans. My chili recipe calls for one cup, so that’s where you’d start.
Then you sort the beans. Most of the packaging that beans come in have cooking directions. But “sorting” is where most package directions fail to include or explain. Sorting beans is something you have to do by hand. I think the easiest way to do it is by pouring some of the uncooked beans onto a large cutting board or tray making it easy to see all the beans. It’s even easier if the tray or cutting board is the opposite color of the beans. For instance, it was very easy to see the black beans on my white cutting board.
Then section by section, I drag the ‘normal-looking’ beans off the cutting board, into my colander. The beans you don’t want in your colander are the ones that look deformed or misshapen and rock/dirt clumps. Yea, those rock-like clumps are dirt. If you get it wet and then mush it between your fingers, it turns to mud. GROSS! That’s why we sort the beans. You don’t really need to worry about beans that are halved like some of them in my pile above, but I like to get them out just because I figure I am already going through all the work, I might as well. But most people let those be.
Next, rinse the beans in colander. Rinse them well … we did just pull some dirt out of the pile after all.
Then pour the beans in the pot with the 4 cups of water (1 to 4 ratio). The water doesn’t really need to be exact. You generally just need to make sure the beans have plenty of water to soak up. You always want there to be extra water in there so if you don’t want to measure (I don’t normally measure) just be sure to check on the beans every so often to make sure they have plenty of water.
Bring the water to a rolling boil and let it boil for 2-5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand for 1 – 2 hours until it’s reaches the desired softness or put it in the fridge overnight. When you’re ready to use the beans, drain and rinse the beans again.
You might be asking yourself, do I need to drain the beans? Can I cook with that water? (or at least I asked myself that)
Soaking the beans allows some of the indigestible sugars to be released from the beans themselves. You know why people say beans give them gas? If you drain them after soaking, there’s less of those sugars to give you any digestion discomfort. – Also found out, your plants will LOVE this water. So if you don’t like to waste, introducing your new plant food.
Skinny Pineapple Dole Whip
| June 4, 2013 |
You all know I’m a Disney nut – and if you’re a Dole Whip fan, you know how long that line is at Disneyland. The last time I went, there was NO LINE! So, I did what any Dole Whip fan would do: run to the counter all giddy and ready for a nice cold cup of whip. But then reality set in when I realized I had just eaten, was not hungry, and should probably not eat the calories and sugar, so I backed away slowly as my impulsive self was starting to calm down.
This inspired me to make a healthier alternative to the iconic Dole Whip. One that might satisfy my craving without the guilt. My recipe may not ever be the real thing, but for a healthier alternative, I think it hits the mark. (But I still made plans to indulge in the real thing sometime soon. Can you blame a girl? – Included a pic of my iphone convo with my best friend. We are definitely planning a day with a morning run so we can spare the calories for some Dole Whip.)
Dole Whip
- 20 oz can of sliced pineapple
- 6 oz Chobani pineapple greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk or full-fat coconut milk
- 2 tbsp agave nectar
Directions:
Drain the pineapple and put in a high speed blender or food processor. Then whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl. Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer’s instructions. (Alternative: if you don’t have an ice cream maker, put it in the freezer and stir every so often.) The texture of the Dole Whip will be a little airy (unless you used the freezer to make it) so you should use an ice cream scoop to serve, compressing the air out as you scoop. Also, let it soften a little by letting it sit for a few minutes. Then the consistency will be creamier like ice cream if you let it sit. Recipe makes for about 6 scoops.
**If you are willing to add the fat and calories, for a more true Dole-Whip-like recipe, swap the almond or coconut milk for heavy whipping cream. What can I say? They call it Dole Whip for a reason. It will still be healthier than the sugar loaded version from the park.
Happy Cinco de Mayo!
| May 4, 2013 |
Cinco de Mayo is this weekend! That means margaritas and more Mexican food than you should probably eat. Before the fiesta begins, I want to give you a few pointers…
If you’re planning to go out:
Limit your chip eating or just don’t have any at all. Seriously! Chips at Mexican food restaurants are like crack. You eat one – next thing you know the whole basket is gone. Been there, done that! If you are going to indulge in chips, pre-plan how many chips you will eat before you go.
When you order your food, avoid any fried and cheesy items. Go for the fajitas or grilled chicken and skip the tortillas. Try the taco salad without the shell, hold the sour cream.
For drinks, stay away from beer and sugary cocktail drinks. A good restaurant will make a margarita from scratch using lime, versus the cheaper way – using a syrup. It’s a safer bet if the menu says it’s served on the rocks and tells you what type of tequila. Generally, they don’t like to blend a good tequila. But let’s be honest, if you’re going to have a drink, the option with the least amount of calories is the one without any mix-ins. Get a shot of tequila! OLE!
Easy Shrimp Ceviche
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 jalapeno
- 1/2 a cup of lime juice
- 2 roma tomatoes
- 1 red onion
- 1/2 a cucumber
- 1/2 a bundle of cilantro (1.5 cups chopped)
- 1 lb prepped cooked shrimp (small)
- 1 mango
- 2 celery stalks
- sea salt to taste
Directions
Using the food processor, chop the garlic clove, jalapeno, roma tomatoes, red onion, and cucumber. You can add the lime juice if you need a little liquid to allow the processor to do it’s job. Place in a large mixing bowl.
Hand chop the cilantro, shrimp, mango, and celery stalks and add it to the mixing bowl. I hand chop this stuff because: 1) the cilantro will only wrap itself around the blade if you try to chop it with the food processor. 2) The shrimp is generally cut in larger pieces which you cant control with a food processor. 3) It would absolutely kill your mango into mush. 4) Celery strings might mess up your food processor.
Mix all the ingredients together (including any of the lime juice you didn’t already add). Add the sea salt to taste. Now you can stuff an avocado with it, serve with chips, or just grab a fork and dig in.
Optional: So I cheated on the shrimp by using pre-cooked cocktail shrimp which I then made sure all the tails and shells were taken off. But if you have the time and aren’t lazy, buy raw shrimp. After removing the shells and tails, place in a bag or tupperware with 1/2 cup of lime juice. Refrigerate until the shrimp turns opaque. Then boil the shrimp and put it in a bowl of ice to stop it from over-cooking. Then use this shrimp in the recipe above instead of the pre-cooked stuff.
Skinny Margarita
- 1 shot of tequila
- 1 shot of lime juice
- 1/4 shot agave
- 1/4 peeled orange
- rimming salt
Directions
In a shaker, add all the ingredients together (minus the rimming salt) and mash the orange into the shaker. Add ice shake, shake, and pour in a glass rimmed with salt over fresh ice. If you think it’s too strong, feel free to add a little water to it. But no more than a shot or two of water, otherwise it will just be a watered down drink.
By using agave, it’s a cleaner way to get the sweet flavor without using a margarita sweet syrup. The orange replaces the Triple Sec, a citrus based liquor in most margarita recipes. Is the Triple Sec really necessary when you can use the real thing? Hope you enjoy 🙂
{Paleo} Coconut Macaroons
| April 29, 2013 |
I never realized how little there was to making a coconut macaroon. Seriously! There aren’t that many ingredients. So I figured the less ingredients, the easier to make a healthier version. Well … I made a Paleo version. So you should always remember: just because it’s Paleo, doesn’t make it healthy. These babies pack a whopping 3 Weight Watcher PointsPlus each cookie (assuming you make them the same size as me). On the bright side, they are clean! So for all you clean eaters out there, these are the perfect sweet treat when you need a cookie fix.
Side note: I brought these to the office to share and about 50% of my nomming coworkers are on Weight Watchers so I did the point calculations for them. No, I am not on WW.
So… regarding Paleo. (I don’t really follow that lifestyle but many recipes I make do follow the plaoe diet just because my eating lifestyle reflects what I learned from the many diets I’ve tried, one being Paleo.) Chocolate is often argued if it fits with the Paleo lifestyle. The strictest of the bunch say no to chocolate. Other Paleo enthusiasts say that if it’s 80% cocoa or more, then it’s A-Ok, so long as eating it isn’t a regular thing. So I took the liberty of following that group of people in saying my macaroon recipe is Paleo. But if you are a strict Paleo eater, then just skip the chocolate. They still taste great without it.
{Paleo} Coconut Macaroons
- 4 large egg whites
- 1/2 cup raw honey
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 5 cups unsweetened coconut
- 10 oz bag of dark chocolate (80% cocoa)
Directions
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Add the eggs, vanilla, etc together and whisk. Then stir in the coconut until everything is well mixed and all the coconut is well coated. If you have any dry patches, your macaroon balls will fall apart. Once well mixed, place in the fridge for 30 minutes to let the mixture set.
Use a non-stick mat (I dream of the day I finally buy a Silpat) or parchment paper (what I used) to line your cookie sheet. Use a little coconut oil to coat the sheet so your cookies don’t stick. If you’re not following the Paleo diet, feel free to just use non-stick cooking spray. It’s so much easier! Make little balls about the size of a quarter. Be sure to press the ball tightly together. If you just roll them in you’re palms, then they will probably fall apart. Bake for 12 min or until the bottoms are dark brown and the tops are golden.
While those are in the oven. Melt your chocolate. You can do this many ways. I found the easiest way was to put the chocolate in a ziplock bag and throw that in the slow cooker with a bunch of water. I put my slow cooker on high, allowing the hot water to melt the chocolate. If you’re gonna use this method, be sure to use a real ziplock and not a fake brand. You need something heavy duty to withstand the heat of the hot water. Just be careful because the bag will be hot. This way is also great, and you can use a honey spoon/dipper to drizzle with.
After taking the macaroons out of the oven, carefully place them on a cooling rack. (I lost a few in this process because they fell apart. Oops!) When they are cooled down, take the ziplock out of the slow cooker. Cut a small hole in the corner of the bag and then use the ziplock as a pipe bag and drizzle the chocolate all over your macaroons. Put as much or as little as you want. Then put them in the fridge or freezer so the chocolate hardens.
**You can pour any extra chocolate on some parchment paper and melt into sheets. Then break apart and store in the fridge for the next time you need some.
Store them in a cool place and be careful. They are still fragile. This recipe made 3 dozen macaroons but depending on the size of your macaroons, this number will vary.
My Carbo Loading Recipe and the Tinker Bell Half Marathon
| April 7, 2013 |
There are so many different ways and techniques people use their diet to boost their running performance. Having not really thought about a special diet for the Disneyland Half back in September, for RunDisney’s Tinker Bell Half Marathon I wanted to be more prepared. (If you read my post about the Disney Half, you know I wasn’t prepared in any way, shape, or form).
Besides preparing for the run by running, because we all know that’s a must, I was doing my regular healthy low-carb diet with very minimal cheat meals. The month of, I didn’t cheat at all (with the exception of a celebratory glass of champagne for my work’s 25th anniversary).
Here’s where the diet change starts to come in… Like I mentioned, I follow a low-carb diet. I rarely eat breads and pastas and when I do have carbs, it’s usually some quinoa or oatmeal, and this usually only happens once a week. The week leading up to the run, I added carbs into my daily diet routine. I would have a piece of whole wheat bread for breakfast with some almond butter and a banana or a sandwich for lunch.
The night before my run, I had pasta. YUM! A lot of people say you should carbo-load the night before. There’s even a Pasta in the Park party at Disneyland the night before for an additional fee. For me personally, the acidity in traditional marinara doesn’t sit well with any cardio sessions, so I made a pesto!
Note that it’s nut free for all my nutty EpiPen people out there (some of my best friends included). Not to mention that I discovered pine nuts are way out of my budget. Yikes! Sunflower seeds just seemed so much more practical.
{Nut Free} Spinach Basil Pesto
- 1/2 cup packed fresh basil
- 4 cups fresh spinach
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup unsalted sunflower seeds
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
Directions
Put the basil, 2 cups fresh spinach, garlic cloves and half of the extra virgin olive oil in a food processor. Allow the processor to run until the pesto reaches a thick sauce-like consistency. I had to do half the spinach first, then added the other half due to the size of my food processor. Add extra olive oil if needed.
Add your pesto to your pasta or pack for later use. This also tastes great on sandwiches, used as a salad dressing, or even baked on chicken.
Be sure that if you don’t use all of it, you store it with a layer of olive oil on top. Air is pesto’s worst enemy. Think wilted salad, only it’s your pesto that now has a funky wilted flavor. You can store it in a jar but I didn’t do anything fancy – just my tupperware. See how I put about a quarter inch layer of olive oil on top? The next time you use it you can just mix in the olive oil you topped it off with.
Pre-race dieting can really affect your run. The best thing to do is look at your diet. Increase your carb intake based on your current intake. Don’t eat a ton of pasta because another runner said that’s what they do. Eating more than your body is ready to handle can put your digestive system in a funk.
Another thing to look out for is to watch your fiber intake. I generally eat a TON of fruits and veggies loaded with fiber. Pre-race, loading up on fiber can be just as bad as eating too much pasta … maybe worse! Registered Dietitian Tara Gidus recommends you “cut back on those foods three days before a major race.” This doesn’t mean you cut everything out those three days – just reduce the amount of fiber based on your regular daily intake. For me, I eat about 2 cups of veggies a meal so I chose veggies with less fiber and cut it to one cup a meal those 3 days.
The final and biggest mistake new runners make is trying something new. That’s why I recommend you base your fiber and carb intake off your current diet and I don’t just straight out tell you how much you should have. New diets, new products, even new running shorts should all have a trial period before the big day. Don’t decide the morning of that you want to try some new protein shake made for runners. It’s the unwritten law – stick to what you know.
My run itself went great!!! My goal was to keep running or jogging the whole time, no stopping. Last time I didn’t train and wasn’t ready at all, so when walked for a bit I couldn’t get back up and running. That was not going to happen this time. I also made sure I had good shoes, my KTTape and everything else I mentioned in my last RunDisney blog post. When I was running, I just kept telling myself “mind over matter” and thought about how I just spent around $200 for this race so I better not disappoint myself. HA! I shed 30 minutes off my last time and finished with 3:03:26. I call that a win!
PS – Seeing that it was the Tinkerbell Half Marathon, I thought I’d be original and dress like Tiger Lily. You like? (and you can barely tell but that IS a feather in my hair)
UPDATE(4/9): Just found out that the runner wearing the Fireside Girl costume next to me has a blog too! It’s a small world! I shared my post on one of the Tinkerbell Half Marathon Runner’s Facebook groups and Patty from Margaritas, Miles & The Mouse commented that it was her.
St. Patty’s Pancakes
| March 12, 2013 |
If you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen my photo a while back of my fatal attempt at making paleo pancakes. Once I tried to make the “just add water” Bisquick pancakes, let’s just say they were inedible. Every time I tried to make pancakes on my own, I failed miserably. But I really wanted to make green pancakes for St. Patrick’s Day so I volunteered the time of my handy dandy boyfriend, let’s call him the Pancake King for now, to help me out with this recipe.
My first attempt was just like any other. My pancakes would never end up on someone’s breakfast plate. The Pancake King told me I had two big problems: 1. my batter was too liquidy 2. my flame was too high. So I modified the recipe and lowered my flame and voila! The magic happened. It’s amazing what a little guidance can do!
Spinach Banana Pancakes for St. Patty’s Day
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 2 overripe bananas
- 4 cups fresh spinach
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup almond milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 2 scoops vanilla protein powder
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp baking powder
Directions
Add the oats to a food processor or high speed blender until the oats are finely chopped – borderline powder. Then add the banana and spinach to the food processor until the banana and spinach have blended evenly into each other and there are no more chunks of anything. Then add all the liquid ingredients and blend. Next, all the dry ingredients. You can easily do this with a stand mixer as well. However, the oats, banana and spinach need a blender or food processor to get the right texture and I prefer to only get one appliance messy. My food processor did the job just fine.
Then use your choice of oil, butter, or non-stick cooking spray to coat your pan. Bring flame to medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, pour the batter in the center to make your desired pancake size.
Here’s where the Pancake King comes back in. I had no idea when to flip a normal pancake let alone a green one. A little tip on the flipping green pancakes, you can’t judge it by the golden edges because the green doesn’t really change color the way a normal pancake would. It’s best to watch for bubbles. When you see bubbles form on the top, flip!
If you don’t allow them to cook all the way through, they will be mushy. This was the other hard part to judge. I did it by taste testing the first one. Then I knew for sure the right timing for the right consistency.
This batch made about a dozen pancakes for me. It’s very easy to cut the recipe ingredients in half if you only want to cook enough for 2. You can top it with whatever floats your boat. Photographed, I topped it with fat-free whip cream and sprinkles. The Pancake King chose to top it with peanut butter. The options are endless.
Vegan Oatmeal Protein Cookies
| March 7, 2013 |
So not long ago, my boyfriend and I moved in together. A lot of people asked things like “is it everything you thought it would be?” and “how are you adjusting to living?” Well, the funny part of all this is, my boyfriend’s answer when people asked him what it was like moving in with me, he said “I moved in with a personal chef.”
I’ll admit I’m a kitchen hog. I like to do all the cooking. I made these breakfast cookies with protein in them for those times when I need a quick grab-n-go option. While my boyfriend has liked all my healthy cooking thus far (he didn’t drink the healthy Koolaid like me), I can’t lie – when he ate my breakfast cookies, he told me he’d rather stick to the unhealthy stuff… but I thought these were great, so I am sure you will like them too. They taste like breakfast … in a cookie!
Vegan Oatmeal Protein Cookies
- 3 spotted bananas (overripe = spotted)
- 2 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup coconut oil (melted, measure it in liquid form)
- 2 cups of rolled oats
- 1/3 cup of wheat bran
- 2 scoops of vanilla protein powder
- 2/3 cup chopped almonds
- 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt (I used sea salt because it’s all I keep in my kitchen)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 cup carob chips (you can use chocolate chips if you prefer)
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries
Directions
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Mush the bananas using a fork until smooth. Add all the vanilla and oil and whisk together.
In another bowl, mix the dry ingredients together (aka everything else). I used a food processor to chop the almonds to make things easy. Fold the dry ingredients into the banana mixture.
Roll the mixture into round balls. Place them on a baking sheet lined with a silplat mat or parchment paper. Press the round ball flat onto the sheet to make the shape of a cookie. They don’t change shape during baking so your basically sculpting what your cookie’s gonna look like.
Bake in the oven for 15min. If they aren’t cooked all the way, the will fall apart when you take a bite. So it’s OK to eat one to test it 🙂
Note: You can add more or less protein if you choose to. This batch made 2 dozen cookies for me, and with the protein I used it totaled to 40 grams a batch (average 1.5 grams of protein a cookie). I used whey protein which isn’t vegan, but if you’re looking for a good vegan friendly powder option, try SunWarrior.
I bagged the cookies into snack size servings and meal servings. Four cookies and fruit for breakfast or two cookies plain as a pre-workout snack. I go straight from work to the gym so I often don’t eat dinner until 8:30pm after my workout. I have a snack around 5:30 to hold me over so I need a good snack that will keep me full and energized.
Healthy Egg Salad Sandwich
| February 19, 2013 |
I was really craving an egg salad sandwich this weekend. Egg salad used to be a staple in my lunchbox. But I am definitely the type that wants is super creamy (aka covered in mayo). I also am not the type to sit there and stomach fat free mayo. Seriously? If you don’t like it, why eat it at all.
So back to this weekend. I decided to try a few things and see where it took me. Firstly, if you try to limit the mayo to only a teaspoon or so, it’s kinda dry. Does not satisfy a craving for egg salad what-so-ever. Secondly, never swap the mayo for cottage cheese. It’s kinda gross and lumpy (unless you’re really into cottage cheese then I guess you could try it). Thirdly, if all you used to add to your egg salad was mayo and S&P, then you will also learn that after swapping the mayo for a healthier alternative, you will need to add a little more than plain salt and pepper.
Finally, I was able to satisfy my craving and I am IN LOVE with my recipe (not to be tooting my own horn). I used Greek yogurt! The texture is thinner than the fatty-mayo version, so if you’re packing it for lunch, you might want to put it in a Tupperware and assemble your sandwich when your ready to eat to prevent the bread from getting soggy. But it’s really good. My boyfriend was skeptical (he’s not a healthy nutty like me), but even he liked it!
Healthy Egg Salad Sandwich
- 2 hard-boiled eggs
- 2 1/2 tbs plain Greek yogurt
- 1/2 tsp yellow mustard
- 1 tbs chopped celery (about a 1/4 of a stock)
- 1/2 tsp chives
- 1/4 tsp (a pinch) of salt and pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- 2 slices, bread of your choice (I used whole grain wheat bread)
Directions
Mash the hard boiled eggs in a bowl using a fork. Mix in the rest of the ingredients and spread it on your bread. Easy peasy 🙂
(Next time I’m gonna try toasting the bread and see how that comes out.)
Cinnamon Banana Smoothie
| February 7, 2013 |
Ok, many of you have been asking about the perfected smoothie recipe I included on my 2012 recap photo, so here it is! I LOVE this recipe. Bananas are always in the house because I can’t seem to get enough of them.
Bananas are also great if you’re craving something sweet. Only 110 calories each and has about 3 grams of fiber helping you feel full. Cinnamon is rich in antioxidants, and possesses antibacterial, antifungal and antimicrobial properties. Combine these two ingredients with a little extra whey protein and you got a power smoothie in your hands!
Cinnamon Banana Smoothie
- 2 spotted bananas
- 1/2 cup ice
- 3/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 scoop vanilla whey protein powder
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
Directions
Add all the ingredients into the blender and blend till smooth. Garnish with a pinch of cinnamon on top or some chia if you like. For an extra vanilla punch, add the optional 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract. When I’m running out the door I usually don’t add it but when I have the time, it really does add some extra vanilla flavor which compliments the drink.
Tip: For thicker smoothies, freeze the fruit and skip the ice. This works with any smoothie recipe. Just be sure that your blender can handle the frozen fruits. Strawberries and a few other fruits are very tough when they’re frozen and could send your blender to it’s death bed if it’s not build for high intensity blending.
Sources: Livestrong.com – “Top Ten Health Benefits of Bananas” and “Benefits of Cinnamon”
A Kale Salad Recipe and Dr. Andrew Weil’s Lecture
| January 29, 2013 |
I’m a HUGE True Food Kitchen fan: food made with purpose and with intent that goes beyond flavor. Food that’s rich in nutrients and good for you. A good friend of mine that introduced me to this restaurant invited me to go hear Dr. Andrew Weil (the founder of the restaurant) speak. WHAT? How could I turn that down? Plus, he would be available to sign my copy of his cookbook after the show. Bonus points!
He spoke about so many things at this lecture I don’t even know where to start. It’s almost hard to pick and choose what to write about in this post. So I am going to pin point what had the biggest impact on me or what I personally found most interesting (and of course I will share the secret to his Kale Salad recipe).
Not only is Dr. Weil responsible for True Food Kitchen, he also has written numerous books about health and happiness. Many people in today’s society see happiness as being associated with luck or wealth. He believes “contentment is integral fulfillment.” What I took from this was not that we shouldn’t strive to better ourselves and reach for our goals, but to be able to stop and look our own life and say, “I am happy.” Sure, there are a lot of things I want to do and accomplish that I haven’t done yet, but it doesn’t mean I’m not content. Ultimately, being happy and content with your present state will only help you live a better life physically and mentally helping you to achieve those future goals.
During his seminar, he gave us a breathing technique to help with anxiety and stress. I tried it and it really does have a calming effect. It’s recommended to do no more than 4 sets of the exercise in one sitting.
- Place your feet flat on the floor. Back straight. Your tongue should be touching the roof of your mouth.
- Breath in through the nose for 4 seconds
- Hold for 7 seconds
- Breath out through the mouth (forcefully) for 8 seconds
And finally, I know this last part is random but I can’t help but to point this out. Leaving the lecture, one thing I found funny was the amount of people taking the elevator. After listening to an hour or two of Dr. Weil talk about being healthy and eating and exercising and all this good stuff, you would think that there would be an influx of people opting for the stairs…nope. I know our seats were more than a few flights up the stairs but seriously, such an inspiring speech I would think would make more people consider stairs as an option. Especially because going down is always easier than the climb up.
True Food Kitchen’s Kale Salad (with a few modifications)
- 1 bunch of kale
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/8 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 garlic cloves, mashed
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- pinch of red pepper chili flakes
- 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
- free range organic eggs (optional)
Directions
To prepare the kale, wash very thoroughly in cold water. Seriously, wash it good: One time I got kale from a farmer’s market and you know it was freshly picked when there were these little green bugs in there. Completely safe but still, you don’t want to eat those. Then slice the kale along the stem. The stems can be tough to eat so when eating raw kale, it’s normal to omit the stems from the recipe. Slice the leaves in smaller bites to your preference.
In a salad bowl, whisk together the oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and chili flakes. Add the kale and toss until evenly coated. Let the salad sit at room temperature for 10 – 30 minutes. (That’s right! This is the secret. There’s something about the lemon and salt combo that pulls some of the bitterness out of kale according to Dr. Weil.) Then add the grated cheese and toss again. Serve into individual bowls. True Food Kitchen’s recipe calls for 1 tbs of toasted whole wheat bread crumbs which they tossed in with the cheese. I omitted this to be gluten-free friendly and I also try to avoid extra carbs when they can easily be excluded.
Pan fry an egg using some of the leftover salad dressing. I did mine sunny-side-up but you can prepare yours how you choose. Then slide it out of the pan onto your salad. The egg is something I added to the recipe, not served at True Food Kitchen. I personally like salads as a meal and thought it needed some additional protein (and eggs are my favorite). I am sure hard boiled eggs wouldn’t be half bad either if you are taking this as a packed lunch.
1. Kale is low in calories, high in fiber and very low in fat. One cup of kale has only 34 calories, 5% of your daily fiber and 0.5 grams of fat.
2. Kale is high in iron. Per calorie, kale has more iron than beef. Iron is essential for good health. Iron deficiency is a leading cause of anemia, common in the vegan and vegetarian communities.
3. Kale is filled with Vitamin K and other antioxidants. Vitamin K and antioxidants, such as carotenoids and flavonoids help protect against various cancers.
4. Kale is great for cardiovascular support. Adding more kale to your diet can help lower cholesterol levels.
5. Kale is high in calcium. Per calorie, kale has more calcium than milk.
Source: Livestrong
