Breakfast Salad

I had the most delicious salad for lunch the other day.  And even though it's a "breakfast salad" I could happily eat it any time of day.

The recipe can be found here.  I think it would also be lovely to add some avocado, tomatoes, dried cranberries, and matchstick carrots.  Maybe even some kale.  I used mixed baby greens instead of spinach and really, any salad greens would work well.  You could skip the croutons (I did) and make it gluten-free and omit the bacon (but who'd want to?) to make it vegetarian.

So, so yummy.

Lomo Saltado

This is not a vegetarian recipe.  This is an authentic Peruvian recipe, made on Mother's Day by my adorable Peruvian sister-in-law with some help from me and our two husbands.

Start your rice.  It's made in a similar fashion to the Brazilian rice, only with 3 to 4 cloves of garlic and no onion.  She used a ratio of 1 cup of rice to 1 1/2 cups water....and we made it for 16 people so it was a HUGE pot.

Next, cut your beef into strips (think stir fry) and place in a bowl.  Add some chopped garlic, soy sauce and salt.  Stir it around until it's all mixed together and then, when nobody is looking, swipe your finger into the blood on the side of the bowl and taste if it's salty enough.  Or not.  You can be 'truly authentic' or not.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.  We used almost 3 lbs of beef for 16 people, 7 of them being children so make your best guess on how much you'll need for the number of people you're feeding.

Start peeling potatoes like crazy.  Enlist the help of the whole family.  As you peel them, put them into a bowl of cold water so they don't get all brown and yucky looking.  When you have a few pounds peeled, slice them into french fry sizes and lay out on towels to dry just a tiny bit.  Heat some oil in a skillet then start the never-ending process of frying the potatoes.  Remove them to a pan/bowl/whatever with some paper towels to absorb some oil.  Salt.  We used almost 10 pounds and ended up hating potatoes by the end.  To make this for my family of 6 I'd probably used 2 to 3 pounds.

While you're frying the potatoes, start chopping some red or green peppers and slicing some onions and tomatoes.  You want the peppers in medium sized chunks, the onions in medium-ish slivers (cut from top to bottom, not across the middle) and the tomatoes in wedges (Romas work well for this).  Chop up a bunch of cilantro while you're at it.  You can also use zucchini cut into slices.

Fry the meat you had marinating in the fridge.  You may have to do this in batches in order to get it browned on the outside.  You want to sear the meat, not boil it.  Remove it to a bowl when done.

Once the potatoes are done, remove any extra oil, leaving a thin layer across the bottom.  Add the peppers and cook for a few minutes until medium soft.  Add the onions and stir them around for another 2 or 3 minutes.  You want them tender crisp, not soggy.  Add the tomatoes and cook for a minute or two.  Now dump the meat and fried potatoes into the skillet with the vegetables.  Throw the cilantro on top.  Make sure it's a big skillet.  Stir around and turn off the heat.

To serve, put some rice on your plate then top with the beef/potato/veggie mixture or lomo saltado as we call it.

Heave a big sigh that you're finally able to get out of the hot kitchen.....then enjoy some seriously delicious food.  Then go back for seconds.  And feel free to grab a bite of food from the skillet every time you walk through the kitchen.  Hug your sister-in-law and try to convince her to move to Nebraska.  Then snitch another bite from the skillet.

Vegetarian Lo Mein

We made this for dinner yesterday and it was super yummy.

Add whatever veggies you want to a large skillet/pan and sauté until just barely cooked or soft, it depends on how you like them.

I used:
broccoli
shredded cabbage (a mixture of red and green)
onion (sliced thin)
matchstick carrots

other great ideas would be:
zucchini
mushrooms
snow peas
yellow squash
asparagus
greens - spinach, chard or kale
bell peppers
bean sprouts
garlic
green onions
Napa cabbage
Bok Choy

I cooked the onions until rather soft, then added the rest and cooked until a littler softer than crisp.  I used a combination of coconut oil and water to keep them from burning/sticking.

When they were done I added cooked, drained noodles to the pan (any kind will do....and for my family I used the full package).  To this I added half a bottle of Soy Vay Veri Veri Teriyaki sauce and stirred until heated through and the veggies were mixed in.

We had enough to feed everyone (with a few seconds) and two helpings of leftovers for lunch the next day.

This was super fast, super easy and very tasty.  Not to mention mostly healthy.

Brazilian Black Beans and Rice

This is my secret recipe for Brazilian black beans and rice.  I learned how to make it looking over the shoulder of many a Brazilian woman so I don't have exact quantities....they don't use them and I never learned how.  So this is a recipe and a cultural lesson.  I should also add that I lived in Rio Grande do Sul so I make southern-style beans and rice.

For the rice - 
Chop an onion (medium to large based on the amount of people you need to feed).  Fry it in a pan with some oil or butter until soft and lightly browned.  If you want to add a few cloves of garlic, do so now and only cook for a minute.  Add the raw rice and some salt.  (To test for saltiness, stir the raw rice with the salt and onions then cool a small amount and place it in your mouth.  If it tastes salty, you're good.  If not, add a bit more salt.)  Stir the rice around until the grains have turned a light brown color.  Add the water, cover and reduce heat.  Allow to cook for 20 to 30 minutes then check to see if liquid is absorbed.  If not, cover and cook another 5 to 10 minutes.  If all the water is absorbed but the rice is still crunchy, add a bit of water, cover and cook until soft.

For my family of six, we use 2 to 4 cups of rice then twice the amount of water.  So if I use 3 cups of rice I use 6 cups of water.

You could just cook the rice in a rice cooker, but the Brazilians I know rarely do this.  Most of you reading this aren't Brazilian so do what you want!

For the black beans -
You can use either canned or homemade black beans.  Start with cooked, however you get them.  Chop an onion, medium to large and fry in oil or butter.  Yep, do it again!  Once the onion is soft and lightly browned add a garlic clove or two.  Cook for one minute.  Add the black beans and heat through, stirring every few minutes.  Salt to taste.  You can leave these thick or thin them out a bit by adding some water and mashing about half of them.  Some people eat them thin like a gravy or sauce, others keep them looking like beans.  You can alternately use garlic powder instead of the garlic cloves, and onion powder instead of the onion.

Most Brazilians use a pressure cooker for their beans, but I've never owned one so I use the stovetop method.  If you do pressure cook your beans, and want an authentic flavor, add the cooked onions.

To eat it all -
We serve this with beans on the plate, rice on the side.  Sometimes we put the beans on top of the rice like a gravy.  Very often they will fry eggs and put it on top of the beans and rice....usually with a slightly runny yolk so it creates a type of sauce.

Often this is eaten with salted tomato slices or a tomato onion salad.  To make the salada de tomate (tomato salad) slice an onion (yes, another one!!!) and place it in cold water.  Let it sit for 15 to 30 minutes to take out some of the "bite".  Drain.  Add a sliced tomato or three, salt, then add a sprinkling of olive oil and vinegar.  Taste it as you go.  You want a salty, vinegary taste that doesn't overpower.

Another way to eat the beans is to put them over french fries, homemade if possible and usually with a fried egg on top of it all.

Bom apetite!

Vegetarian Recipe Index

I'm on a mission to change the way my family eats....again.  I've spent a lot of time reading about nutrition and watching health videos and still don't have the "answer".  My problem is that I feel that two very different ways of eating have merit - I agree with the vegetarians and I agree with the traditional meat eaters.  What's a girl to do?

As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, we believe that the Lord has given us a modern-day revelation concerning diet called the Word of Wisdom (WOW).  My husband and I have been discussing this for quite some time and have decided that we'd like to make some changes that will (hopefully) help us live more in accordance with the WOW.

= We'll be cutting back on our meat consumption - during winter we'll have meat three times a week.  During the warm months, twice a week.  

= We'll also be increasing our already large consumption of fruits and veggies and hopefully grow our own.  

= Sugar will be reduced to special occasions and rare treats.  

= We've already gotten rid of most refined foods, but we'll continue to see if there are other things we can cut out or make our own.  

= I'd like to decrease our dairy consumption significantly but I'm getting a lot of push-back on that so we're still discussing.  In the meantime, we are slowly cutting back and finding better (healthier, more natural) sources for the dairy we do use.

= And we'll add more properly prepared whole grains and try to find non-grain alternatives for some meals.

I'd also like to focus on foods that are fast, whole, simple and inexpensive.

Since I need to add more vegetarian meals into our diet, I've decided to create a list of dishes I want to try (or have tried) so I have a quick place to look when I'm planning my menus.  (No, I don't do Pinterest.)  Some of the recipes are from my personal collection and not posted online yet....let me know if you want one and I'll get them posted.

Breakfast 
My breakfast philosophy - if it can't be made in 5 minutes (or the night before) then it's a lunch food....

most of our breakfasts will consist of a smoothie (or juice) with something from the "Snack" category - other options include:

Raw Carrot Cake Breakfast Bowl
Eggs (many ways)
Toast
Pancakes & Waffles (I have bazillions of recipes for these)
Oatmeal
Baked Oatmeal - there are many recipes to try
German Pancake
Hashbrowns
English Muffins (Food For Life sprouted varieties)
Fruit Cereal
Russian Custard - we serve this over sliced fruit
Soaked Granola Bar
Cinnamon Vanilla Baked Oatmeal
Muesli
Breakfast Burritos
Crockpot Whole Grain Cereal
Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie Oatmeal
Mixed Grain Cereal with Chai Spice
Toad-in-a-hole/One-Eyed Susans

Granola - I have a bazillion recipes to try, here are a few:
Live Granola Crunch
Crispy Honey Nut Cereal
Pumpkin Granola
Crockpot Granola

Smoothies
Tom's Fruity Medicine Chest
Ultimate Green (juiced)
My favorite smoothie
smoothie template - has ideas for red and green smoothies
Molasses Chocolate Chip
Pumpkin Pie Smoothie
several great ideas here
Hot Pink Smoothie
Citrus Surprise - listed towards bottom
Chocolate Coconut Drink

Main Meal (lunch or dinner)
Falafel or this or this or this or this or this
Azteca Squash Soup
Pumpkin Vegetable Curry Stew
Cuban Black Bean Stew with Rice
Sweet Potato Tacos
Grain and Vegetable Casserole
Spicy Pumpkin Soup
Pasta with White Bean Sauce
Bean and Rice Burritos
Crockpot Sloppy Joes
Red Lentil Soup
Tuscan Bean Soup
Mexican Black Bean Burgers or this or this or this
Armenian Lentils
Bean and Butternut Squash Chili
Stacked Roasted Vegetable Enchiladas
Breakfast Salad .... yes, for dinner
Brasilian Black Beans and Rice (my special recipe)
Curried Lentil Soup
Sweet Chilean Lime Beans and Rice
Sweet Pepper Rice
Fried Rice - there are lots of ways to do this
Lo Mein - again, there are lots of ways to cook this
Quinoa Veggie Burgers
Egg Drop Soup
Eggplant Parmesan
"Chicken" Fried Steak
Green Enchiladas
Moroccan Vegetables
Barley and Winter Squash Chowder
Inside Out Pot Pie
Vegetable Pot Pie (take a chicken pot pie recipe and leave out the chicken)
Bean Tostadas - there are lots of variations you could make
Sweet Potatoes with Black Bean Chili
Moroccan Couscous with Saffron
Millet and Sweet Vegetable Porridge
Inside Out Chinese Spring Roll Salad
Main Dish Salad - all the toppings you can think of
Baked Potatoes
Korma
Black Beans and Quinoa
White Chili
Red Chili (I haven't found a recipe I love so will need to play with this)
Navajo Tacos (in my recipe box)
Greens and Sweets (roasted sweet potatoes on top of a green salad, with or without dressing)
Potato Curry with Rice (in my recipe box)
Reuben Pinto Burgers
Monterey Beans (in my recipe box)
Peanut Butter Noodles
Nachos
Everyday Italian Rice Salad
Lentil Tacos - there are lots of recipe out there
Kale and Sweet Potato Soup
Slow Cooker Red Rice & Beans (in my recipe box)
Barley with Sweet Rice & Corn (in my recipe box)
Adzuki Beans with Kabocha Squash
Nishime
Rice Pilaf with Caramelized Onions (from The Kind Diet book)
Fried Udon Noodles (like Lo Mein)
Rice Waffles with Vegetable Melange
Sweet Potato Lentil Stew
Garlic and Greens Soup
African Sweet Potato and Peanut Stew
Sloppy Col Sandwich
Vegetable Crepes (thin pancake filled with all sorts of fresh or cooked veggies)
Tamale Pie (from World of Wisdom book)
Boston Baked Beans (from World of Wisdom book - possibly as a side)
Italian Pasta Salad
Indian Spiced Lentils (crockpot - leave out the chicken)

Snacks
Fresh fruit and/or veggies
Laraballs and this and this or this or this
Raw Veggie Crackers
Goji Power Bars
Zucchini Chips
Sweet Potato Hummus
Thai Peanut Pumpkin Hummus
Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls
Honey Roast Chickpeas
Cranberry Wasabi Trail Mix
Raw Cookies
Granola Bars
Homemade fruit leather
Mookies
Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars
Popcorn
Chips & Salsa
Granola Energy Balls
Paleo Breakfast Bread
Pumpkin Bars
Raw Balls
Soaked and dried nuts
Breakfast Bars (from my recipe box)
Caveman Cookies
Sesame Fruit and Nut Bars

Dessert
Raw Frosted Brownie
Carrot Cake
Chocolate Prune Bar - but I must come up with a better name....
Pumpkin Streusel Pie
Raw Chocolate Pudding
Triple Chocolate Flourless Brownies
Peanut Butter Pong Balls
Nourishing Cocoa Bars
Peanut Butter Fudge

And just for fun, I've read/watched the following (and can't remember a few more):

Nourishing Traditions - Sally Fallon

Maker's Diet - Jordin Rubin

Gut and Psychology Syndrome - Natasha Campbell-McBride

Eat to Live - Joel Fuhrman

The China Diet - T. Colin Campbell

Original Fast Foods - James Simmons

Prime Time Health - William Sears

The Kind Diet - Alicia Silverstone

Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead (video)

Fresh (video)

Forks Over Knives (video)

Food Matters (video)

Food Inc. (video)

Flexetarian Diet - Dawn Blatner

World of Wisdom - Amy Cox Jones

The WOW Diet Words of Wisdom - Michelle Snow

Cashew Almond Butter Chocolately Goodness

This recipe comes from my good friend Misty.  It is one of my favorite smoothies because it tastes like a milkshake.  I save it for a treat, for when I need something sweet.  

• 4 c frozen bananas
• 1/2 c cacao nibs
• 1/2 tbsp cashew butter
• 2 c vanilla almond milk*
• 1/4 c agave (I use raw honey)

Blend all ingredients in high powered blender like my beloved Blendtec.  I should give that thing a name.

*Sometimes I don't have almond milk so I just use raw almonds (soaked and dried) with water or homemade almond milk. I also usually add in a few handfuls of raw cashews (also soaked and dried) and sometimes some almond butter.

If you make your own almond milk and/or nut butters this would be considered a "raw" recipe.

Homemade Lara Bars aka Lara Balls

I made four versions of Lara Bars yesterday.  Here are the recipes and results.  Use nuts that have been soaked then dehydrated and dates/raisins/prunes that have no preservatives.  Because I made most of these into "ball" shapes, my 7-year-old dubbed them "Lara Balls".  The Protein Bars listed at the bottom need to stay refrigerated, the Lara Balls do not.

Coconut Cream Pie
1 1/2 c. dates
1/3 c. almonds
1/3 c. cashews
1/3 c. coconut

I used 1 cup of dates and 1/2 cup raisins.  In a food processor, mix the dates (and raisins) until it forms a sticky ball.  Remove to a mixing bowl.  Process the nuts (with coconut if it's not already shredded super small) until mostly fine, but with a few smaller chunks.  Add them to the mixing bowl.  With your hands knead the mixture around until it's combined.  Shape into bars or balls.  I opted for balls.  Some people use waxed paper or cling wrap to help in shaping the bars. 

This earned 5 out of 6 thumbs up. 

Cashew Cookie
1 1/2 c. dates
1 c. cashews

Again, I used 1 cup dates and 1/2 cup raisins.  Process the dates (and raisins) until it forms a sticky bowl.  Remove to a separate mixing bowl.  Process the nuts until mostly ground, with a few smaller chunks.  Add them to the bowl and mix with your hands (sort of like kneading bread) until combined.  Shape into bars or balls.  I opted for balls.  Some people use waxed paper or cling wrap to help in shaping the bars.

This earned 2 1/2 out of 6 thumbs up, with it being "the favorite" of the 7-year-old.

Apple Pie
6 dates
about 1/4 c. dehydrated apple slices
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. honey
1/2 c. walnuts
1/2 c. almonds

In a food processor, process the dates, apples, cinnamon and honey until it forms a sticky ball.  Remove to a mixing bowl.  Process the nuts until mostly fine, with a few small chunks.  Add to the date/apple mixture and mix with your hands until combined.  Shape into bars or balls.  I opted for balls.  Some people use waxed paper or cling wrap to help in shaping the bars.

This earned 6 out of 6 thumbs up.  I may try it with more dehydrated apples next time to make it a bit more appley.  Many of the recipes I saw online used raw apples for this, but said they were runny.  Some also added 1/2 tsp. nutmeg, but I don't like the taste so I left it out.

Protein Bars
2 c. almonds
1/4 c. flax seeds
1/2 c. prunes (or dates or raisins or mixture)
1/2 c. coconut (I left it out)
1/2 c. almond butter
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. coconut oil
1 tbsp. honey
2-3 tsp. vanilla (I left it out)

Add all the dry ingredients in the food processor (or blender like Blendtec) and process until almost fine. In a small saucepan, melt the coconut oil.  Then add the honey and vanilla if you're using it.  Add to the food processor and pulse a few times to combine.  Press into an 8x8 pan and let chill in the fridge for about an hour.

This earned 4 1/2 out of 6 thumbs up.

Succotash

I can't believe I haven't told you about the easiest meal to make yet.  Bad, Heather, bad.

Anyway....I first made this as part of our Pilgrim celebration.  Everyone loved it and said we should add it into our meal rotation.  It's been over a year and everyone still loves it.  It takes about 15 minutes to make and truly is one of the easiest things ever.

1 lb. beef, cut into bite-size pieces (stew, stir-fry, steak, whatever)
corn - either 1 16oz. pkg frozen (does not need to be thawed) or 2 cans, drained
1 can lima beans, drained
butter
salt
cinnamon

Brown the beef in some butter.  Add the corn and the lima beans.  Sprinkle with salt and cinnamon.  I use about 1/2 to 1 tsp. cinnamon.  I just lightly sprinkle it over the whole dish until it looks dusted, but not covered.  Stir and let cook until corn and beans are heated through (you can add a little more butter here and there if things start looking dry).  Serve.

My kids will CHEER when they see this on the table.  They cheer for LIMA BEANS.  How fun is that!!!

My latest venture

I want to introduce you to a fun project I'm working on.  It started over at my beloved Simply Charlotte Mason forum when someone asked how to stretch your money at the grocery store.  Seven pages of comments later we decided to start a blog to create a one-stop place for all our frugal tips, from scratch recipes, and information about repurposing clothes, gardening, canning and such.

You can find us at Penny-wise Women. We welcome any and all submissions relating to thriftiness, self-reliance, being a good steward and all that jazz.  I hope you enjoy!!

A (Not Gross) Raw Recipe

For lunch today I made a raw "chicken" salad.  It was rather tasty!  If only they all were.....

Raw “Chicken” Salad

1/2 cup sunflower seeds, soaked 3 hours

1/2 cup cashews, soaked 3 hours

2" piece cucumber

1 tablespoon chopped onion

1/2 celery stick

1/4 cup pecans pieces

1 teaspoon dill

1/4 teaspoon curry powder 

1/2 teaspoon salt

 Juice from 1/2 lemon

 lots of ground black pepper

one half carrot (optional)

In a food processor bowl fitted with a metal blade, combine all ingredients. Pulse to combine. It should be a finer texture than regular chicken salad--that helps it to stick together.   The cucumber and nuts and carrot should release water after it sits.  Stuff sweet peppers or wrap with Romaine.

I just pulsed everything in my Blendtec.  I had to stir it around a few times to make sure everything got their turn on the blade.  I didn't soak the nuts because I decided to make it last minute; it turned out just fine.

Raw - Day 4

The big news.....so far I've lost 6 pounds.  Since Friday!  I'm not sure where I'm losing it from because I don't see much of a body change yet.  Well, my belly is a bit smaller, so is my rear end and my double chin is shrinking.  I'm also noticing that I don't have my afternoon crash - the one where I need to take a nap around 3:00.

I've had headaches off and on (but I have a lot normally) so I'm not sure if I'm detoxing or just being me. I'm surprised at how I'm not feeling hungry.  I sort of expected to starve the whole time and feel like I was never getting enough to eat.  But I've felt full after every meal and rarely feel like snacking.  The thing that's the hardest is the temperature.  I miss warm/hot food!  I'll be eating something and think, "This would taste so much better if it were warm."  I hadn't realized that I equate comfort with food warmth.

I ate a late breakfast and my husband came home early for lunch so I ended up eating Pad Thai for brunch.

Breakfast
Pad Thai with Kelp Noodles - recipe by Ani Phyo

1/2 c. almond butter

1 c. coconut oil

1/4 c. Bragg’s Liquid Aminos

1/2 c. lemon juice

2 tbsp. jalapeno

2 tsp. coriander

1 1/2 c. water

Blend.  Toss with:

2 to 4 packages Kelp noodles

½ c. basil

2 c. shredded cabbage

My thoughts...it tastes nothing like pad thai, but was still very good.  Pretty much nothing can taste like pad thai unless it's pad thai from a little restaurant in Seaside, CA called Baan Thai.  They make the absolute best pad thai (and singapore noodles) on the planet.  When we lived in CA we ate there almost every week.  They knew us so well they bought us a Christmas present!  Nothing beats sitting at the beach eating great pad thai.

Um, back to the recipe.  This obviously makes a lot so I halved it.  I soaked the kelp noodles in warm water with some lemon juice.  Within 15 minutes they were nice and soft.  The fresh basil was such an amazing addition.  I now want to grow a basil plant so I can put it on everything.  The sauce was quite lemony so the next time I'd decrease that a bit.  I didn't halve the cabbage though, and I liked having a lot of crunchy veggie with my noodles.

Lunch

1 pomegranate (I'm so loving them right now)

Cream of Zucchini Soup - Jennifer Cornbleet, 'Raw Food Made Easy for 1 or 2 People'

½ cup water

1 zucchini, chopped (about 1 to 1 1/2 cups)

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 tablespoon lemon juice 

1 teaspoon mellow white miso

½ teaspoon crushed garlic (1 clove)

¼ teaspoon sea salt

dash cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

½ avocado, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh minced dill, or 1 tsp dried

Place all of the ingredients except the olive oil, avocado and dill in a blender. Blend until smooth.  Add the olive oil and avocado and blend until smooth. Add the dill and blend briefly just to mix.  Serve immediately.  Serves 2

My thoughts...If I hadn't gone a bit crazy with the raw garlic, this would have been a nice, mellow soup. Don't do as I did and add two large cloves of garlic - more is not always better.

I didn't chop anything.  I just cut stuff into two or three pieces and added it to the blender.  I don't think it serves two.  I came away with one and a half bowls...which I ate myself!  Like the last soup I made it was very, very thin.  I like thick soups.  Even chunky ones.

Dinner

Mushroom Tacos with Mango Salsa

Tacos

Portabella mushrooms

zucchini

olive oil

Nama Shoyu

garlic

sea salt or seasoning salt

lemon juice

I cut up 2 large mushroom caps, after chasing the kids around with them.  I cut the zucchini into small strips.  Then I just sort of drizzled or dashed stuff on top and stirred it around.  I made it at breakfast and let it marinade all day (stirring whenever I walked through the kitchen).  By dinner time they were very soft and seemed almost cooked, albeit not warm.  I was surprised at how much the mushrooms reduced.  From filling a small bowl at the beginning to barely covering the bottom!

Mango Salsa

1 mango

a nice medium tomato or a few small ones

some onion

a bit of garlic (unless you're still burping it up from lunch)

salt

cilantro

a lime 

avocado

I cut up the mango, seeded and chopped the tomatoes, tiny diced about 1/4 cup onion and skipped the garlic.  I added a large handful of cilantro and chunked the avocado, sprinkled with salt, then squeezed half a lime all over it and stirred.

To serve, I used romaine lettuce leaves (I ate 4).  Add the mushroom stuff and the salsa, roll and eat.

My thoughts...these didn't taste like tacos.  But I'm a diehard taco fan (they're my favorite food, followed by pad thai).  But they were tasty.  They dripped a lot (I should have drained the marinade better), but I liked the combination of slightly sweet and salty.  Towards the end I just ate the salsa and mushrooms with a fork and yes, I ate the whole thing by myself.  

Raw - Day 3

Today was a slightly weird day for raw because we had church, and additional church leadership meetings and visits and such.  But, I made it through another day!

Breakfast
Fruit smoothie
1 banana
several cups of frozen strawberries, blueberries and cherries
1 orange
about 2 cups coconut water

Blended in the good old Blendtec and gulped it down before we ran out the door.

Lunch
1 persimmon

Nori Rolls
1 avocado
salt
a tsp. or so Nama Shoyu
a bit of garlic powder
a splash of lemon juice

Smooshed it all together in a bowl with a fork.  That's what us old-fashioned people without food processors do.

On a piece of seaweed we spread some of the smooshed avocado along one edge.  We added:
the leftover "noodles" from last night
broccoli slaw
spinach and butter lettuce, sliced small

Then we rolled it all up and dipped it in the Raw Asian Dressing and Spicy Peanut Sauce (separately), both from yesterday.  The overall taste was very nice - the dipping sauces totally 'made' the meal though.  I don't think I would have been able to eat the seaweed without them.  Thanks Misty!  You totally saved my bacon (except I didn't eat bacon).

My two oldest, once again, decided to try these on their own.  They made up a roll, dipped and had 2 or 3 bites and said they were done.

Dinner
I didn't get home until after 8 so I just made a quick soup.

Thai Vege Soup - posted by Ocean at Raw Freedom Community

1 orange pepper

1/2 tbsp. sea salt

3 carrots

3/4 c. cashews

4 radishes

2 c. warm water

1 tbsp. curry powder

3/4 c. almond milk

1 tbsp.. Nama shoyu

1 tbsp. agave

1/2 tbsp. jalapeño pepper

1/8 cup green onions

Add everything to a blender and blend until blended.  (That's a lot of blending!)

My thoughts....very tasty.  I used two small sweet peppers, one yellow and one orange.  I cut off the end of a jalapeño and used that instead of measuring.  And I didn't use the green onions because I think they're nasty.

The soup was very, very thin.  I'd like to make it again and use less liquid, and possibly add some veggies right at the end so there's some chunkiness.  I ate my second bowl with coconut milk stirred in, which made me think that using coconut milk instead of water might be a tasty replacement.  I love curry, and this definitely had the curry taste.  I might decrease it though because it overpowered everything (in a mostly good way).  

This whole "blended soup" thing has me thinking about all the soups I can make for my family and, instead of using a water or broth base, I can blend a ton of veggies making a smooth base and then add chunks and textures to give the mouth feel that thin, watery soups make me long for.

We finished the meal with another fruit smoothie, at the insistence of my 4-year-old.  Three of the four boys joined in and by the end there was barely enough for me!

Raw - Day 2

Well, I'm not sure I'm going to make it!!!  Eating raw is already starting to annoy me.  Maybe I'm just detoxing lots of negative emotions....

First of all, I hate having my entire fridge full of produce.  It's so full I can't find anything.  And there isn't room for anything except produce.  And it's getting squished.  I only did a one-week shop because there is no way I'd be able to fit more than that.  It was expensive.

Second, if a meal flops, there isn't much you can grab at the last minute so you don't starve.  Most of the meals require quite a bit of prep and many need "marinating" time.  Essentially I'm making 6 meals a day, 3 for my kids and 3 for my husband and me.  It's a deflating thought to have to go back into the kitchen and make something else if the first thing tastes yucky.

That being said, here's what I ate today.

Breakfast
Hot Pink Smoothie - recipe by Green Smoothie Girl
1 1/2 c. young Thai coconut water
1 large carrot, cleaned and cut into pieces (or 5-6 baby carrots)
1/2 medium raw beet, peeled
1/4 c. cashews
1/4 c. chopped dates
2 tsp. vanilla
12 frozen strawberries
2 tbsp. kefir or yogurt (optional)

Puree all ingredients except strawberries for 90 seconds.  Add strawberries and puree on high until smooth.

Okay, here are my thoughts after having made this a bazillion times...the coconut water can be obtained by cracking open a young Thai coconut (look for the white pointy one, not the brown hairy one).  You can also use canned coconut water if needed.  I also scrape out the coconut meat and add that to the smoothie.

I don't add the dates.  I also don't add the vanilla.

I add way more than 12 strawberries.  About a cup or two.  I often add a berry mixture instead of plain strawberries (blueberries, strawberries, raspberries and/or blackberries).

I also just throw everything in at one time.  I love this smoothie and drink it about once a week.  Thai coconuts cost $2.29 each so I don't use them every day.  My husband thinks this tastes "too beety", but I enjoy the taste and don't find it overpowering at all.

Lunch
Romaine Wraps with Sweet Mustard

3 leaves romaine

1 cucumber

1 carrot

1 avocado

2 tbsp raw agave

1 small onion, chopped

1 cup mung bean sprouts

1 tsp mustard powder or 1 tbsp prepared mustard

salt and pepper (to taste … about 1/4 tsp each)

Mix agave, mustard, salt and pepper and set aside. Chop cucumber into sticks, shave carrot curls with a vegetable peeler, slice avocado into strips. Divide all equally between the romaine leaves, drizzle with the sweet mustard sauce and wrap up. These are juicy and messy.  This serves 1 person.

My thoughts....these were fantastic.  My husband and I agreed that we'd eat these again, even if we weren't on a raw diet.  And here's a funny thing about me - I hate cucumbers.  But I loved them in these wraps.

We each ate 3 wraps worth (3 leaves) and felt pleasantly full.  I cut the cucumbers into small matchsticks (and only used half of a large English cucumber).  I used a handheld julienne peeler for the carrots (I used 2, one for each of us).  One avocado per person.  I didn't use the onion and I didn't have any sprouts.  

For the sauce I used agave, but if you like raw honey (like I do) you could easily switch them.  I also used prepared mustard (French's, which probably isn't raw but it was the easiest to find while making lunch).  I added salt and pepper, then some garlic and onion powder.  I kept tasting until I thought it was right.  Then I doubled it because it was so good!  So per person I used 4 tbsp. agave + 2 tbsp. mustard and the seasonings.

Eating these were messy.  Very messy.  But yummy.  I think next time we'll make this into a salad - same ingredients, but chopped up and eaten with a fork.  One of my 10-yr-olds asked me to show him how to make the dressing and he ate a huge plate of salad with it and said it was "one of the best I've ever had".

Dinner

1/2 of a pomegranate

Sesame-Mixed Vegetable “Noodles” with Herbs - 
from Living Raw Food by Sarma Melngailis

Sesame Dressing

1 cup sesame tahini


1/4 cup sesame oil


1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice


1/4 cup mellow red miso


3/4 cup plus 2 Tb. filtered water


1/4 cup black sesame seeds

In a large bowl, whisk together the tahini, sesame oil, lemon juice, miso, and 1/4 cup of the water.  Add the remaining ingredients a bit at a time and continue whisking until smooth. Stir in the sesame seeds and set aside.

Vegetables Noodles

4 cups daikon radish, julienned on a mandoline


2 red bell peppers, cored and julienned


3 medium zucchini, julienned on a mandoline


3 medium carrots,  julienned on a mandoline


6 baby bok choy, leaves thinly sliced on a bias


3 scallions, whites and about an inch of the green, thinly sliced


1 big handful cilantro leaves


Sea salt

In a large bowl, toss all prepared vegetables and the sesame dressing until evenly coated. Season to taste with sea salt. Serves 8-10.

My thoughts....the sesame dressing was disgusting.  I tried the sauce after making it and knew I would never be able to eat it.  That sparked a "discussion" with my husband about how all raw food was gross and I just needed to Cowboy Up and eat it.  We went back and forth for a bit and I just made a different sauce (actually two of them) to serve with the noodles.  At the table my husband insisted on serving himself the sesame sauce, and said "It isn't bad.  Just what I expected raw food to taste like."  A few minutes later he said, "You're right; this is bad."  He then sampled the other sauces and enjoyed them much more!

The 'noodles' themselves were great.  The daikon was a bit peppery, and next time I'd use less.  I didn't use the quantities in the recipe because I didn't want to serve 8 to 10 people.  I just julienned (with my hand-held gadget) the amounts I thought looked good.  I also only used 3 baby bok choy.

For the sauces I used two that Misty over at J&M Ranch shared.

Raw Asian Dressing

1/4 cup safflower or grapeseed oil

1/4 cup of agave

2 Tbsp Nama Shoyu, San J Tamari, or High Quality Soy Sauce

2 tsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp ground ginger

½ tsp garlic powder

½ tsp sesame oil (optional)

Blend on low power in Vita Mix just until blended. Store in a mason jar or salad dressing jar in the fridge.

My thoughts....very good.  I just used a small hand whipper thingy because my Blendtec doesn't like small quantities like this.  I think I added a bit of salt too.

Raw Spicy Peanut Sauce

1/2 cup raw peanut butter


1 teaspoons Chinese hot chili oil with red pepper flakes


3 teaspoons Nama Shoyu or organic soy sauce


1 clove minced garlic


Coconut milk


In a food processor combine everything except the oil until well blended. Add the coconut milk just until the sauce is of the consistency you like. Adjust shoyu and chili to taste.

My thoughts...I don't have a food processor so I just used the hand whipper thingy again.  We all really liked this.

I preferred the peanut sauce on the 'noodles' (the Asian sauce would be better as a dip or lettuce salad dressing).  One of my older sons had 2 servings of the noodles, plain. The other 10-yr-old ate a big helping of the noodles with the peanut sauce.  Neither was required to do so, they just saw it and wanted to try it!   We ate them with chopsticks which made us feel super cool.  

This is very similar to a recipe for Asian Noodle Salad that I tried (and liked) from Pioneer Woman, but which isn't entirely raw.

So final verdict...I'd made the noodle part again and use the Raw Spicy Peanut Sauce or similar delicious sauce.  I might also try the PW salad without the noodles.  Or with them when I'm unraw again.

Raw - Day 1

Today is Day 1 of my Raw for 30 Days.

Breakfast:

3/4 of a persimmon  

Green smoothie consisting of:

1 apple

2 seckel pears

some frozen mangos and pineapple

1/2 frozen banana

4 large handfuls spinach

3 large handfuls "mixed greens"

a little over 1 cup coconut water

Have you folks tried persimmons yet?  I had never tasted one before and I love them!  I've only tried the Fuyu kind which I've read is sweeter.  I just washed it, sliced it and ate it, skin and all.

Lunch:

Uh, I was grocery shopping and skipped lunch.

Snack:

Cauliflower popcorn

This was pretty tasty.  It didn't taste like popcorn, but it was a pleasant way to eat raw cauliflower.  My kids were not impressed, but my husband said it was "okay".  One head of cauliflower made way more than I could eat, and it gets rather soggy if not eaten right away.  If you're making it for just one person, only cut up what you'll eat in one sitting.

Dinner:

Tacos

Salad with guacamole

Pineapple

I have a lovely picture of this, but can't find my camera cord.  I guess tomorrow will be a cleaning day!

Tacos

1 c. pecans 

1/2 c. sunflower seeds

1 1/2 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. chili powder

3/4 tsp. coriander

2 tsp. Nama Shoyu or Bragg's Liquid Aminos

3 tbsp. water

1/2 tsp. sea salt

Pulse until chopped but not blended.  To assemble, place a few spoonfuls of 'taco meat' on Romaine or butter lettuce.  Top with chopped tomatoes and avocados.  This would also be good with chopped cilantro, sprouts and/or cucumbers.

These were actually quite tasty.  The nut meat tasted very tacoish.  I couldn't get my sunflower seeds to crack (I used my Blendtec and it didn't like the small amount of ingredients) so the texture wasn't quite what I wanted.  I only had coriander seeds and I think next time I won't use them, or I'll try to find ground coriander.  I found large chunks of them while chewing and it overpowered that bite (and several after).  I ate 4 lettuce leaves worth and along with the salad and pineapple was rather full at the end.

Fruit Cereal

One of the "raw" recipes we experimented with a few months ago was a huge hit.  We've had it at least once a month for the last little while.  Here's what we do....

I set out a bowl for each person and put whatever fruit we have in the house on the table.  I go around the table asking who wants a banana, or an apple or some strawberries, etc.  I cut up the fruit into smaller-than-bite-sized pieces and put it in the designated bowl for that person.  At the end, everyone has a bowl of their favorite fruits.

I know what you're saying, "Hey, that sounds like fruit salad."  Well, it is, sort of.  But it's different for each person and my kids hate fruit salad.  They love fruit cereal.  (It's all in the sales pitch!)

All of them like it with a drizzle of raw honey.  A part of me cringes at that, but a bowl of fresh fruit with a small amount of raw honey is much better than two big bowls of Cocoa Puffs.  Some of them like to put milk on theirs, others prefer it without.  You could use cow milk or nut/rice milk.  One of my boys loves to eat just bananas for his "cereal".  A bowl with 2 bananas cut up.  Fine by me!!!

Some suggestions for fruit....
Apples
Pears
Bananas
Strawberries
Blueberries
Raspberries
Grapes (green, red or black, just make sure they're seedless)
Cherries
Nectarines
Peaches

I prefer not to put citrusy-type fruits in mine because I think it overpowers the sweet berry flavors, but you could certainly add them to yours.
Oranges
Grapefruit
Kiwi
Pineapple
Mango
Papaya

Any leftover cereal gets recycled into a lunch smoothie!

Stuffing

On my quest to find simplicity and health, I've determined that our "holiday" meals don't need to be quite as extravagant as they have been in the past.  I can't totally downsize because Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners are my husband's favorite meals EVER.  I'm not willing to fight that fight and lose!  

In my pre-planning I have tried to figure out what can be done ahead of time, what doesn't need to be done and what can be done differently.  Today I'd like to share what I do for stuffing.

Growing up, I hated stuffing.  It was soggy and mushy and tasteless and didn't feel good in my mouth.  But I ate it because Grandma made it.  I continued hating stuffing until Stove Top entered my life.  And I'll say this here and now - no matter how healthy I get, or how drastically I change my eating habits I WILL NEVER GIVE UP MY STOVE TOP STUFFING.  I know it's bad for me, but I love it.  

I don't make it as directed on the box though.  Well, sort of.  I do make it as directed (I use 2 packets worth), but then I do this....

chop one medium to large sweet onion and cook until it's nice and soft, almost translucent.  I add finely diced celery (about 3 stalks worth) and some grated carrots (about 2 big ones or 2 handfuls of baby carrots).  I cook them with the onions until they too are nice and soft.  Then I add 3 or 4 leaves worth of diced kale (I cut it super small), and cook just until wilted.  I add all these tasty veggies to the prepared stuffing.  It "takes it up a notch", or several.  It's almost like I made it from scratch!

I like to think that by adding all these healthy things, I'm negating the 'bad' in the Stove Top.  I'm not, really, but it makes me feel better.  And it tastes great.  Now I love stuffing with Thanksgiving dinner!

Mookies

I hate to wash dishes.  Even more though, I hate to wash muffin pans.  I love to eat muffins.  I just hate to wash the pans.  I could use paper liners, but it seriously bothers me that so much of the muffin sticks to the paper, thus wasting a large portion of the muffin.

It's a lose-lose situation making muffins at home - either I have to scrub out each cramped little hole (several times because it never comes clean the first time) or I cry as I throw away half the muffin stuck to the paper.

Enter Mookies.  Many, many months ago I decided to try making muffins on a cookie sheet.  It worked.  My kids loved it.  Mostly because they thought I'd gone crazy and was feeding them cookies for breakfast. Clean up was a snap.  So much so that I gave away all my muffin pans!

I've used a multitude of recipes and almost all of them work beautifully.  If the batter looks really runny, I'll add a bit more flour.

We tried many names for this new creation.  Cuffins.  Cookins.  Muffie.  MuCookie.  Mookies stuck.

My favorite smoothie

I've been drinking smoothies for a while now.  I love them.  My favorite one right now is made like this:

1 banana
1/4 to 1/3 chunk of beet
1 carrot (with the peel)
1 small carton Greek Gods honey yogurt
1 or 2 leaves kale
a handful or two spinach
3 or 4 leaves Romaine lettuce
about 1/3 c. frozen blueberries
about 1/3 c. frozen strawberries
about 1/3 c. frozen raspberries
about 1/3 c. frozen cherries
a small carton coconut water
1 large handful raw cashews
about 2 tbsp. flax seeds (I throw them in unground and the blender takes care of them)
about 2 tbsp. hemp nuts
a few ounces whole leaf aloe vera juice

Oh my delicious!  I'm feeling better and losing weight.  My husband doesn't like this recipe because he says it tastes "too beety".  I honestly don't taste the beet; I think the whole thing tastes yummy.  This makes about 2 quarts - I drink one for breakfast and one for lunch.

I will often switch out the "greens" depending on what I can find at the store that week.  I like collards, chard, kale, spinach, and romaine lettuce for my greens.  Cabbage is a bad idea - it doesn't blend well and ends up tasting chalky.

For my kids I usually make something sweeter.  They haven't fully embraced the smoothie revolution.

1 banana
1 pear
1 apple
about 1 cup frozen berries (a mixture of strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and cherries)
a small carton yogurt (usually a "red" flavor like strawberry or blueberry or cherry)
fruit juice
a small handful greens

We've made a deal that they'll allow me to add in smaller amounts of greens little by little.  So each day we add another leaf or two of spinach.

I use 100% fruit juice and Stonyfield yogurt which has no artificial colors.  I also keep the peels on the fruit.

Winter Menu

Winter Menu

Week One
Monday – White Chili, fruit
Tuesday – 3 Side Dishes, fruit
Wednesday – Chicken Mozzarella, Salad, fruit
Thursday – Korma, Rice, fruit
Friday – Pancakes, Bacon or Sausage, Cottage Cheese or Yogurt, fruit
Saturday – Borscht, Bread/Rolls, fruit
Sunday – Breakfast Casserole, fruit

Week Two
Monday – Tacos, fruit
Tuesday – Chicken & Stuffing, Bacon Green Beans, fruit
Wednesday – Tator Tot Casserole w/peas, fruit
Thursday – New Recipe
Friday – Waffles, Bacon or Sausage, Cottage Cheese or Yogurt, fruit
Saturday – Lasagna, Salad, fruit
Sunday – Shrimpy Soup, Bread/Rolls, fruit

Week Three
Monday – Bean Tostadas, fruit
Tuesday – Monterey Beans, Rice, Salad, fruit
Wednesday – BBQ Sandwiches, Coleslaw, Baby Carrots, fruit
Thursday – New Recipe
Friday – French Toast, Bacon or Sausage, Cottage Cheese or Yogurt, fruit
Saturday – Spaghetti Casserole, Salad, fruit
Sunday – Olive Garden Soup, Bread/Rolls, fruit

Week Four
Monday – Quesadillas w/Black Bean Salsa, fruit
Tuesday – Chicken Ham Curry, Peas, fruit
Wednesday – Cheesy Chili, fruit
Thursday – Hash Browns, Eggs, Bacon or Sausage, Cottage Cheese or Yogurt, fruit
Friday – Make Your Own Pizza, fruit
Saturday – Spaghetti & Meatballs, Salad, fruit
Sunday – Cabbage Soup, Bread/Rolls, fruit

Fall Menu

Once I get the recipes typed up I'll link them to this post.

Fall Menu

Week One
Monday – Fish Tostadas, fruit
Tuesday – Biscuits and Gravy, fruit
Wednesday – Succotash, fruit
Thursday – Chicken Noodle Soup, Bread/Rolls, fruit
Friday – Roast, Potatoes, Green Beans, fruit
Saturday – Make Your Own Pizza, Salad, fruit
Sunday – Chili, Cornbread, Baby Carrots, fruit

Week Two
Monday – Breakfast Burritos, fruit
Tuesday – Pork Chops & Stuffing, Bacon Green Beans, fruit
Wednesday – Make Your Own Subs, fruit
Thursday – New Recipe
Friday – Clam Chowder, Bread/Rolls, fruit
Saturday – Chicken Fried Steak, Mashed Potatoes, Corn on Cob, Salad, fruit
Sunday – Potato Curry, Rice, fruit

Week Three
Monday – Hamburgers, fruit
Tuesday – Lo Mein, fruit
Wednesday – Sausage Barley Soup, Bread/Rolls, fruit
Thursday –
Friday – Tortellini Toss, fruit
Saturday – Hash Browns, Eggs, etc., fruit
Sunday – Ham, Potatoes, Peas, fruit

Week Four
Monday – Chicken Curry (broccoli & cauliflower), Rice, fruit
Tuesday – Asian Pancakes, fruit
Wednesday – Baked Potatoes, Salad, fruit
Thursday – Swedish Meatballs, Rice, Mixed Veggies, fruit
Friday – Grandma Swain Soup, Bread/Rolls, fruit
Saturday – Beef Stroganoff, Bacon Green Beans, fruit
Sunday – New Recipe