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Spinach, Avocado & Mandarin Salad
Apr 27, 2012

Spinach, Avocado & Mandarin Salad

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OK, here is another one that seems sooo simple that it’s almost not worth writing about – but as always I am compelled to share – what can I say!

As you may have figured out by now, I love salads – love love love salads!!  But one of the things I love most, is you can make a great salad in less than 5 minutes!!  I can’t tell you how many times I have whipped up our lunches in just 5 minutes, and I’m not kidding you it really does take less than 5 minutes.

Spinach, Avocado & Mandarin Salad

Here’s a prime example:

  • a few handfuls of spinach (I usually use the packaged, pre-washed so just throw it directly into the bowl – how easy is that!)
  • 1 Avocado (sliced or scoop out with spoon)
  • 1 mandarin orange (I sometimes use the canned version but rinse well before using)
  • 1/4 cup pumpkin seed
  • Olive Oil (drizzle to taste)
  • juice from 1/2 lemon
  • Fresh ground pepper (to taste)

I love this salad as well as the pumpkin seeds are rich in iron and the vitamin C in the oranges/lemon boost iron absorption big time!!

Mix it all together, toss, et voila!! A less than 5-minute salad!!

Add a piece of fruit, perhaps a few raw vegan crackers topped with raw almond butter and you have yourself a nice, healthy, plant-based lunch.

For those days where you feel the need for more substance you could easily add hemp seed (great protein source and also very filling) or legumes like chic peas or black beans (those are my favourites for salads – I use the canned versions but rinse well before adding to salads).

The most important thing – have fun, be creative and you will be amazed at what you can create in 5 minutes!!

Filed Under: Cool Salads, Gluten Free, Lunch, Nut Free, Raw Food, Recipes, Soy Free, Vegan/Vegetarian ·
Cheesy Cauliflower
Apr 22, 2012

Cheesy Cauliflower

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We love this cauliflower dish, either on it’s own as a main meal or with salad.  The best part is there are variations for the  raw vegan and almost raw vegan!!

Cheesy Cauliflower w/ Basil

Ingredients/Instructions:

Cheesy Sauce:  Blend all ingredients (except green onions) in high-speed blender or food processor.  Stir in green onions.

  • 1.5 cups cashews, soaked 20 minutes
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • Juice from 1/2 lemon
  • 6-8 Tbsp water
  • 3 Tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric
  • 2 green spring onions (I sometimes use basil or cilantro)

Cauliflower Marinade: Toss cauliflower with remaining ingredients and let marinate for at least 10 minutes.

  • 1 head cauliflower, cut into small florets
  • Juice from 1/2 lemon
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric

Assembly:  Mix together the marinated cauliflower with the “cheese” sauce.

  • 1-2 green spring onions for topping

Raw Option:  Add mixture to individual serving bowls and dehydrate for 1-2 hours.  Sprinkle with spring onions.
Almost Raw Option:  Add mixture to casserole dish and bake in 300 degree oven for 15-20 minutes until warmed through (but not too hot). Sprinkle with spring onions.

Filed Under: Cooked Dishes, Dinner, Gluten Free, Processor, Recipes, Soy Free, Vegan/Vegetarian ·
Avocado & Tomato
Apr 11, 2012

Avocado & Tomato

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OK, I realize this is sooo simple that it’s almost not worth writing about – but I am compelled to share – what can I say!

I love, love, love avocado & tomatoes and I have to say in a crunch it is the absolute easiest and tastiest treat to have for Breakfast (yes, breakfast), lunch or even a snack.

Truth be known, avocado & tomato as you see it here is my most favourite breakfast in the whole world!!

Avocado & Tomato

For me, it’s all about simple…. so in a crunch all you need is:

  • 1 Avocado
  • 1 tomato
  • Olive Oil (drizzle to taste)
  • Fresh ground pepper (to taste)

Et Voila!!!  The most simple breakfast, lunch or snack!!

Filed Under: Breakfast, Cool Salads, Gluten Free, Lunch, Nut Free, Raw Food, Recipes, Snack, Soy Free, Vegan/Vegetarian ·
Mushroom, Butternut Squash & Spinach Salad
Apr 9, 2012

Mushroom, Butternut Squash & Spinach Salad

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Spinach, Mushroom & Butternut Squash Salad

I recently purchased Matthew Kenney’s Everyday Raw Express - I already have his earlier book Everday Raw and I love it!!!  So when I saw he had an Express version I just had to have it!!  Yes, I’m also a bit of a book junkie incase you haven’t noticed!!   I highly recommend his book, you’ll see that not only do his recipes look and sound delicious, but they are all very very easy to make and can be made within 30 minutes!!  How great is that?!!  As some of you raw foodies will know, that’s not always the case with raw food meals as there can at times be some pre-preparation (like soaking of nuts, etc).  And well, what can I say – I’m just not always that organized and love to make things on the spur of the moment!!  So, I’m very excited about Matthew Kenney’s Everyday Raw Express.

A few recipes caught my eye – Swiss Chard Reuben Roll, Sauerkraut, Thousand Island Dressing – oh my gawwwd, we loved it!!!  You must try it!!   Next on my list was – Butternut Squash Alfredo, Wilted Spinach, Wild Mushrooms, Savory – how yummy does that sound?!!

My intent was to follow his recipe to the “T”, but my creative juices got the better of me :-) seems to be a recurring problem of mine!! ;-)

My variation is actually quite different than Matthew’s!!  His is more of a noodle dish, where as mine is a salad.   What I can say, is the flavours are amazing and I am ever so grateful for the inspiration!!  Thanks Matthew!!

Ingredients & Instructions (Makes about 4-8 servings – for us we had enough for dinner (very large portions) and also we had lots left for our lunch the next day):

Mushrooms:

  • 4 cups stemmed and chopped mushrooms (I used portobello, but there are so many mushrooms have fun, mix and match!!)
  • 3 Tbsp olive oil
  • 3 Tbsp Bragg’s Liquid Aminos
  • 1/4 cup cilantro

Toss mushrooms together with all ingredients and let sit to marinade for at least 30 minutes.

Butternut Squash:

  • 1 large butternut squash

Well originally I had planned (as per Matthew’s recipe) to create noodles with the squash, but my spiral slicer was NOT cooperating at all (ughhh!!) so instead I ended up cutting the squash into very thin bite-size slivers!!

Creamy Dressing:

  • 1-1/2 cup cashews
  • 1/2 cup pine nuts
  • juice from 1/2 lemon (next time I would add juice from 1 lemon)
  • 1 Tbsp red miso
  • 1 Tbsp agave
  • 1-1/2 cups water (start with 1 cup and add more depending on how thick/creamy you prefer your sauce)
  • 1 Tbsp fresh thyme
  • fresh ground pepper

Blend everything together (hold back some water) in a high-speed blender or food processor until smooth (the sauce will be smoother if using the blender).  I used a food processor, so you can see from the picture the sauce is a little chunky – sometimes I like the added texture.
Variations:  This sauce would be great if you add 2-3 cloves garlic and more lemon juice.  I would say the sauce is more like a caesar dressing sauce, has the same texture and refreshing taste!!  Very delicious – I can see using it with kelp noodles or as we did as a salad dressing.

Putting it all together:

  • 1 box (312g/11oz) spinach
  • 2 heads romaine
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • juice of 1/2 lemon
  • fresh ground pepper

In a large salad bowl, add spinach, romaine, olive oil, lemon and pepper.  Add mushrooms and butternut squash.  Toss well together.  Add dressing and toss again until well mixed.

Et voila!!  Bon appetit!!  Enjoy!!

Filed Under: Cool Salads, Dinner, Gluten Free, Lunch, Raw Food, Recipes, Vegan/Vegetarian ·
Choosing a Juicer
Apr 8, 2012

Choosing a Juicer

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Breville Juice Fountain Plus

I love my Breville Juice Fountain Plus - oh, and since writing this post and researching juicers, I am now the proud owner of the Omega 8006 ;-) . Oh and for the record my most favourite juice in the whole-wide-word is this Cleansing Juice!

But when it comes to kitchen gadgets,  I do also love my Vitamix Blender, my trusty Cuisinart food processor, my mandoline slicer, my dehydrator and of course my spiral slicer! More about those later… today, I’ll focus on juicers.

Oh but I will stay you can visit my Shop to purchase some of your favourite Kitchen Gadgets!

Juicers are so important for a vegans and non-vegans alike!!  Green juices are especially key and THE best way to ensure you get your infusion of vitamins!!  So whether you are a carnavore, vegetarian, vegan or any where in between, juicing can benefit all.   But the benefits of juicing will have to be a story for another day.

When choosing a juicer, there are several different types of juicers on the market.  The type you choose for yourself will depend on a few factors:

  • Your Budget
  • Prep time available
  • Time for cleanup
  • Importance of shelf-life of juice
  • Space

Centrifugal juicers (like mine) are the most common and they are really the easiest for juicing and for cleanup.  The juicer has a wide mouth and it’s easy to dump in the ingredients with minimal cutting.  For example, I put in my lemon and apple whole, how easy is that :-) ).   The centrifugal juicers finely grate your vegetables & fruits and push against a fine mesh screen and extracts the juice from the pulp – this approach to juicing means the juice oxidizes quickly and the nutrients will disappear more rapidly than with the other types of juicers.  And sure, there are those who say you need to drink the juice within an hour (some diehards say you need to drink immediately!!), but really if you drink the juice the same day, it’s still pretty good!!  These juicers are not suitable for wheatgrass or leafy greens.  The Breville I bought is reasonably priced and was less than $200.

Omega 8006

Omega 8006

Next step up from the centrifugal juicers are the Masticating juicers and Twin Gear juicers (twin gear is the best of the three).  Both the masticating and twin gear use more of a pressing approach to juicing your fruits and vegetables which means your juice oxidizes much slower so your juice can keep easily for two even three days.  And although a little more expensive (about $100 more), the twin gear juicers are very efficient at pressing higher volumes of juice from not only your fruits and vegetables but also wheatgrass, leafy greens and even herbs.  These juicers operate at a lower RPM, so they are slower which means that the vital nutrients and enzymes are retained.  The downside, they do take more time to juice and to clean, but if you can keep juice for 3 days that means you need to juice less often!!  So all in all, I would choose a twin-gear if I were to buy another juicer.

Norwalk Model 275 (Rolls Royce of Juicers!)

Well, I decided to buy a twin-gear juicer and I bought the Omega 8006 which retailed for $299 CDN.  I love LOVE it and I’m really enjoying the juices!!

But there is no denying, if I win the lottery I will buy the Rolls Royce of juicers, the Norwalk 275 Juicer which goes for about $2500,  I would LOVE to have one of those (a girl can dream :-) ))!!

Filed Under: How To · Tagged: , , , , , , , , ,
Cleansing Juice
Apr 6, 2012

Cleansing Juice

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I love my Breville juicer (if you are looking for a juicer check out my thoughts on Choosing a Juicer), I love juice, I especially love green juice!!  I always feel better after a green juice, it’s amazing how wonderful it makes you feel.

Here’s today’s creation – kale provides an abundance of nutrients, cucumber is super hydrating, cilantro is cleansing, garlic and ginger warm our insides, lemon is refreshing and all together a powerhouse juice that will feed your body & soul!!

  • 2-3 stalks green kale
  • 2-3 stalks red kale
  • 1 apple (optional if you prefer fruit/sugar free)
  • 3 stalks celery
  • 1 cucumber (cucumber is very hydrating)
  • 1 bunch cilantro (is a great cleanser)
  • 2 garlic cloves (warm your insides)
  • 1 inch ginger
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 apple

Filed Under: Breakfast, Gluten Free, Juices, Nut Free, Raw Food, Recipes, Soy Free, Vegan/Vegetarian ·
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