Delicious Juices

First things first; my cleanse is going quite well.  I finished week 1 in one piece; I’m feeling ‘clean’, have more energy, and haven’t felt bloated!  I’ve had a headache or two, but this is supposedly normal; and they’ve not been bad at all.  The only major negative I am experiencing is muscle soreness.  As mentioned earlier, I am continuing to exercise as normal.  Due to the minimal protein I am consuming, I guess my muscles are unable to recover as quickly as normal.  Therefore- I am looking forward to adding seafood, soy and beans/lentils into my diet today!

One of the best things so far has been trying out new recipes.  Here are a few of the items on my week 1 menu: butternut squash soup, tomato soup, various salads including slaws including avocado, bell pepper and arugula, roasted cauliflower and peppers, and sweet potato chips.

I’ll share more details on the best ones later.  In the meantime, I’d like to share some juicing recipes!

I got my juicer for my birthday in February, and have had fun experimenting ever since!  I started out with mostly fruits and a little veg.  Slowly, I’ve added more veggies and less fruit.  Typically, I just put whatever produce I have around and see what the outcome is.

The best results have come from some combination of carrots, apples, pineapple, grapes and oranges.  These all taste nice, and yield a relatively large amount of juice.  I was really excited about juicing greens- but they don’t yield as much juice.  Lettuce and kale seem to do alright; spinach and arugula not so much.  However, I do still use these in addition to other produce.

Okay, now for some recipes.  These are some I’ve tried and enjoyed.

Grapefruit-Carrot

2 grapefruits, peeled

5 carrots

1 inch of ginger

Green Machine

6 leaves romaine

4 leaves kale

½ pineapple

1 mango

Fresh parsley

Fresh ginger

Beet-Carrot-Apple

1 small beet

5 carrots

1 apple

¼ cup fresh mint

(Okay, this one wasn’t great, but I think I could modify it to taste better.)

My goal for this week is to listen to my body.  I plan to stop eating when my body tells me it’s satisfied, instead of stuffing it full.  Be watching for some great vegetarian recipes to come!

Cleanse Update

Well,  I had to modify.  Here’s how the first day of my cleanse went:

I had some carrot-grapefruit juice for breakfast in place of my typical oatmeal and coffee.  I felt okay, had some blueberries and almonds for a snack.  The headache and fatigue started, which was expected.  Then I ate my lunch: arugula salad with various toppings and lemon juice/EVOO dressing.  During my afternoon class, I started to feel real bad, and it only got worse.  I felt like I had the flu.  Then, I got sick.  I went home and took a nap (which I haven’t done in years)… went to work and got sick again.  I came home… got sick again… and went to bed at 7pm.  My conclusion is that I ate something bad- because I cannot imagine that simply changing my breakfast would’ve had such a detrimental effect (since the rest of the day’s diet was consistent with my normal).

So, I decided that Friday I would start my day off with a small bowl of oatmeal (with only flax, wheat germ and cinnamon added), and a very small cup of coffee.  The oatmeal I’m okay with; I think my body needs a little something in the morning, since I am continuing my exercise (which includes lifting weights).  Plus, I lost the support of my husband once I started getting sick; he is afraid I’m going to lose weight on this cleanse.  The coffee probably would be better to skip, but here’s my reasoning: coffee has lots of benefits and I therefore had full intentions of adding it back in after the cleanse.  So, I determined that it wasn’t worth the excruciating headaches to cut it out for 3 weeks!  Please don’t judge me

With that being said, I am continuing everything else as originally planned for the remainder of each day.

Yesterday, I made vegetable broth for the first time!  Super-duper easy and I have enough for a few days’ worth of soup.

I used carrots, leeks, celery (mostly the leaves), garlic and onions.  Just chop them up in large chunks and place in a big pot.  Then, fill with water and let it simmer for about an hour.  When ready, just pour through a mesh strainer and there’s your broth!

I used the broth to make tomato soup last night (and aren’t I nice- I made my husband a grilled cheese sandwich).  Tonight or tomorrow, I plan to use it for butternut squash soup.

PS- I will blog with all the juice recipes and how they taste later!  (I’m drinking beet-carrot-apple-mint juice now).

Cleanse

This is what it looks like the day before a cleanse. 

A what?  A cleanse, detox, a challenge, an adventure… call it what you want, I start one tomorrow.

The cleanse I am doing is from wholeliving.com.  I got the idea from Daphne Oz (Dr. Oz’s daughter, host of the Chew).  Here’s the plan in a nutshell.  Week 1 you eat only fruits, vegetables, and plant based fats- including nuts, seeds and oils.  Week 2 you add seafood, beans, lentils and soy.  Week 3 you add gluten free grains and eggs.  I chose this one because I don’t think my body would do well with only juice or raw fruits and vegetables.  I like that I can still get my good fats and protein. 

So, why?  There are lots of claimed benefits of a cleanse.  The main one being to rid the body of toxins.  The research isn’t there to prove whether this is actually beneficial (not because it’s been proven otherwise, but because there is little research done in the area).  However, it only makes sense, right?  Either way, I have many other reasons for doing this. 

1. I like challenges.
2. What a great way to practice self-discipline.
3. I can discover lots of new vegetarian recipes!

Tomorrow is Day 1.  I will do my best to keep my blog updated with how it’s going, and especially to share any new recipes or ideas!

Have you ever done a cleanse?  Any advice?

Sweet Potato Tuna Melt

Here’s one of my favorite, go-to quick dinners… Sweet Potato Tuna Melts.  No, I’m not crazy; these little guys are delicious!  My hubbie isn’t a huge fan of sweet potatoes, but even he adores these!  The idea came from The Chew.

Trim the edges off of your sweet potatoes and cut in half length-wise.  Cover and cook in the microwave for about 5 minutes, or until soft (not mushy).

Mix up the topping… you will want about 1 can of tuna per potato.  Here’s the amount for one potato; it should be simple math to multiply by however many you desire!  A spoonful of mayonnaise (I use the EVOO kind), 1 can of tuna; minced garlic (1/2-1 clove); onions (red, green, white, yellow); pepper; a squirt of lemon juice; seasonings (I use some combination of parsley, terragon, basil, and thyme).

Once the potatoes are cooked through, just place on a baking sheet and top with the topping.  Then, sprinkle with a bit of cheese and place under a broiler until lightly browned (no more than 5-7 minutes).

And there you have it.  An easy, healthy, hearty dinner.  The sweet potatoes give some nice texture, and of course sweetness.  The tuna gives some saltiness and meatiness.  The cheese and mayonnaise are creamy.  It doesn’t get much better than this if you ask me!

Do you have any favorite go-to dinners?  Anything ‘unusual’ or interesting?

Busy Bodies

Grad school is intense… and working two jobs doesn’t help the matter any.  With that being said, there has not been a whole lot of extreme cooking going on at my house.  Therefore I will be sharing ideas on how to maintain a wholesome and delicious diet with limited time.

The first, most important thing to do is plan! Think about what you will eat this week, stock up, and prep.  That way, there will always be something available, and you won’t find yourself rushing through a drive-thru!  For example, wash and cut up lettuce, spinach, or other greens, onions, peppers, fruit, and whatever else you like on salads.  Make salad dressing Sunday night, or whenever you have a few free minutes.  Each night you can just throw all of these prepared things into a container and there is lunch for tomorrow.

Make extra.  When you do have time to cook something at home, make extra for leftovers!  Put the leftovers in individual glass containers to take for lunch the next day.  Simple!  And/or, freeze the leftovers.  When you are home, but don’t have time to cook something, just grab one of these ‘frozen dinners’ and warm it up.  Viola; a delicious, homemade dinner in no time!

What I’ve been doing a lot of lately is cooking lots of brown rice, and then using it throughout the week for meals.  Just mix in some fresh or frozen veggies, protein if desired, and some herbs/spices!  Here’s a few combo’s I’ve made:

Pasta with olive oil, peas and carrots, sautéed garlic and onions, tomatoes, pepper and tuna.  It’s like a quick, light tuna casserole!

Pasta with pesto and any vegetables.  For the pesto, just puree any fresh herb of choice (basil is the classic, in this picture I used parsley), garlic, pepper and any other spices, and olive oil.

Rice with sautéed onions and garlic, carrots, red peppers, leftover chicken and eggs.  Quick fried rice!

And don’t be afraid to have a dinner-sized salad! You can make about anything into a salad; even use leftover meat and veggies.

Plan ahead and be creative, and time will not get in your way of a real, good dinner!

Dress With a Friend

Salad dressing: friend or foe?

It can go either way, really.  Kraft Fat Free Zesty Italian Salad Dressing.  Sounds healthy, right?  Free of fats.  That part is true.  First of all, most any ‘light’ dressings have a first ingredient of water.  Therefore, an equal amount has less flavor than ‘full fat’ options, meaning you probably use more of it.  High fructose corn syrup is the 3^rd ingredient.  I stop there. Foe.

Beloved Ranch?  Interestingly, first ingredient is water again.  Third is sugar.  A little later comes monosodium glutamate.  Yuck.  12 grams of fat.  370 milligrams of sodium.  And remember that these dressings keep for quite some time.  Convenient, yes; but what is in there that makes it keep for so long?  Foe. 

So where can you find a friend?  In your pantry and refrigerator!  Making homemade salad dressing sounds a little intimidating.  It can be done very simply, or more complex for various kinds.  Practice makes perfect.  And as always, experiment and change to suit your tastes!

The basics:  acid, oil, something sweet.

Here are a couple of recipes, beginning with the most simple.

Equal amounts vinegar (my favorite is balsamic) and extra virgin olive oil (EVOO).  Stir in a tiny bit of something sweet (e.g., maple syrup or honey) and some pepper.  This is my go-to.  If I have nothing prepared, this obviously takes seconds to prepare!  It is the base for most others.

Sometimes I will even just squeeze some fresh lemon, drizzle some EVOO and sprinkle some pepper on my salad!  This works especially well if you have lots of ‘yummies’ on your salad like nuts and fruit.

My very favorite salad dressing that I typically always have made is this:

In a small blender or food processor, blend together:

a garlic clove

a few slices of onion

balsamic vinegar

pepper

a spoonful of Dijon mustard

maple syrup

lemon juice and/or zest

Once these are mixed, stir or whisk in some EVOO (about equal amount to vinegar)

Still pretty easy, huh?! But so good I could drink it.

Of course you can get adventurous and make ranch, Caesar, etc. homemade too!  Think lots of flavor to minimize the need for much ‘cream’.  And for the cream, try out plain yogurt and low-fat milk and soft cheeses. 

Here is a prime example of taking something that could be really terrible for you; the bad fats, sugar, salt and preservatives from most  bought dressings, and turning it into something that will make your whole body smile.  Full of antioxidants, omega-3 fats; and vinegar is claimed to have a wide array of healing powers.  Out with the bad, in with the amazing!  The great part is, the amazing even tastes amazing!

Final notes:  the better ingredients you begin with, the better your final product will be.  That being said, I typically buy a ‘mid’ level EVOO, not generic, but not the real fancy stuff either.  My vinegar, I do spend a little more on.  Still not the little bottle that costs $30, but something rich and full of flavor. 

Happy Hearts

Now that it really is Valentine’s Day, I would like to devote another post to our amazing hearts!

I got a free magazine from the local health food store, and read a great article titled, “Eat Well, and Savor Your Life”.  What a great title! It contained a few recipes and interview with cardiologist and chef, Mike Fenster, MD.  Wow, what a perfect match made in heaven!

Here’s a quote that is very quotable:

“What we eat is not just fuel to get us through our daily grind; it contains the building blocks upon which our bodies are constructed…that is why I created the Path of the Three ‘Bes’: Be Aware, Be Fresh, and Be on Time and in proportion.”

Be Aware: basically, junk food is called such for good reason.  Real nutrition is not there, and we are led to seeking something to fill our cravings, losing appreciation for true taste.

Be Fresh:  pretty self-explanatory!  Make what you can from scratch; you know what’s there and have 

control over what goes in and what stays out.  And, this is much more economical.

Be on Time and in proportion: We all love to supersize.  Now, this isn’t a rule I pay much attention to because I was blessed with high metabolism.  Therefore, I do eat a lot.  However, it is good to remember to have a little snack about 20 minutes before eating a big meal to limit overeating.  And, wait a few minutes before going back for seconds!  In Dr. Fenster’s words, “You can have your cake and eat it too- just not at one sitting!”  Just take a moment before consuming and think about what you are about to feed yourself.  This will limit overeating, but also help you to enjoy your food more!

I can’t think of a better way to celebrate this day of love than with a final quote from this chef/physician marriage:

“By using fresh ingredients and controlling portions… there is little that nature offers that is not beneficial to us.  Food, for most of us in this country and many industrialized nations around the world, is more than just nutrition.  It is tied to our memories, feelings and emotions.  We need to be able to feed our souls with great tasting food that also supplies our bodies with the nutrition we require.”

Happy Valentines Day!

Healthy Hearts

(Picture from BannerHealth.com)

Happy Valentines Day (in a week)! 

I would like to dedicate this post to my beloved father.  He recently underwent triple bypass (open heart surgery) due to occluded coronary arteries.  Considering his father and many other relatives have had similar issues, I am reminded that I must be extra cautious to ward off the Grim Reaper! 

Of course, part of heart disease (and many other ailments) is genetic.  You always hear the story of that man who ran marathons and dropped dead of a heart attack; and the lady who smoked all of her life and lived to be 90.  That leads some to believe that lifestyle really doesn’t affect your longevity.  I believe differently.  I believe that taking care of your body now increases chances of a longer life; and perhaps more importantly, better quality of life.  Of course I am no physician, dietician, or any other expert in the world of health.  So, my disclaimer is to listen to those qualified experts for specific instruction.  Most, if not all, of what I recommend is not radical or dangerous.  Following my advice will at worst do nothing, and will likely improve your life now and later.  Remember, you are in charge of your life.  You can make the decision to feed your body what it needs and deserves.

The single, most important thing I believe you can do for your health is to be informed and proactive.  Know what you are eating.  Read not only the nutritional facts, but especially the ingredients.  Being healthy is sort of a fad nowadays… that is a good thing because it means health food is more readily available.  However, marketers take advantage of this trend and identify their food as healthy, regardless of what the truth is.  They put “Low Fat” on the front of packaging, and many people will pick that food up, assuming it is good for them.  However, you will often find that these foods add lots of sugar, salt, or other additives to make up for the lost flavor.  Most labels such as “low fat”, “low sodium”, “natural”, etc. are not regulated.  The only ones I know of that are regulated are USDA Organic-the green and white circle, and Fair Trade.  Be careful even with these, organic may mean it is free of preservatives, but it still may contain lots of added sugar, salt, fat, etc.

A few other rules I live by, that go along with the above statement:

I shop wisely.  Whatever you buy at the grocery store and have around the house is what you will eat.  If it’s not there, you won’t eat it.  If you plan and read labels at the store, you won’t have to worry about it until your next grocery trip!

I almost never buy foods with high fructose corn syrup or partially hydrogenated oils in them.  I won’t go into the why, but basically these ingredients are a result of extensive processing.

I make sure whenever I buy any grain product; cereal, crackers, bread, tortillas, etc., that the first ingredient is some sort of whole grain; not enriched, refined, or any other variety.  Just because it is wheat bread, or the crackers say “whole wheat” on the front, doesn’t mean it really is.

The farther your food travels to get to your plate, the more chemicals and processing it has likely undergone.  Whenever possible, I buy local food.  Over time, vegetables and fruit lose nutrients.  Local produce has a short time between the ground and your mouth, making the nutritional content so much greater than food that traveled from far away.  Traveling food will also get lots of chemicals so they look pretty at your grocery store.  Local (and organic) is the way to go!

And finally, people become obsessed with what not to eat.  Fat, sugar, salt… Yes, this is important to be cognizant of.  But perhaps we should consider what to eat.  I’ve said it before, and will a hundred more times: the more whole the food (i.e., the closer to its real, natural form), the better it will be for you (99% of the time).  If you stick to what the Good Lord provided for us, and avoid what man has turned that into to… your body will appreciate you.  Not only will this practice result in fewer ‘bad’ fats, sugar and salt, but it will make your body stronger!   A stronger body means better health, no qualms!

It is really great that the general public is becoming interested in health.  Use that to your benefit; we all know that saturated fats should be limited, trans fats avoided completely, sugar and salt limited, antioxidants are little miracles, as are probiotics.  Don’t fall into the marketing scams; actually look at what it is you are feeding your body!  And of course, food was created for our nutritional benefit; and should therefore be consumed in its most natural, whole state!  Now go forth and enjoy some REAL GOOD food

If you feel overwhelmed by all the options of food out there, don’t be discouraged!  Practice makes perfect; a little effort now will result in grocery shopping ease in the near future.  You will be able to more readily recognize what is ‘good’ and what’s devoid of nutrition!  Also, education is very helpful.  Read a book, browse a website or even watch a show.  My personal favorites are Dr. Oz and Jordan Rubin.

 

PS- Next I am going to share how to make the best salad dressing your palate has ever encountered!

I love Italian!

Italian food is my very favorite.  I don’t cook it enough; not sure why!  Another goal of mine this year is to make homemade pasta.  I’ve never attempted before, so any tips would be appreciated!  In the meantime, I would like to share a recipe for my favorite part of Italian; red sauce. 

Marinara Sauce:

It’s always a little different, depending on what I have on hand, but basically here it is:

Sauté an onion in olive oil until tender.  Add about 1 cup chopped carrots and about 3-4 cloves minced garlic.   Add lots of tomatoesJ.  I typically add about 4 cans with juices (or fresh in the summer, when they are tasty); sometimes I just use salt free diced, sometimes stewed, or fire roasted (Muir Glen is the brand I prefer).  Then, I season it all with whatever sounds good… usually some pepper, basil, oregano, thyme, maybe some paprika and red pepper flakes if I want it a little spicy.  (If using fresh herbs, don’t add those yet).  Put 1 can of tomato paste in and stir well.  Then put some chicken broth in; if you like a thick, rich sauce just add about ¼ cup; if you like thinner, runnier sauce add more.  Stir this all together and let it simmer for a while; the longer the better- I usually let it go for about 1 hour to marry all the flavors.  When ready, add any fresh herbs, maybe a little more dried if you aren’t using any fresh to give it ‘layers’ of flavor.  Finally, blend together! An immersion blender works wonders for this, so you don’t have to pour and splatter tomatoes all over yourself. 

PS- I sometimes use this to make tomato soup, as well.  For that, I just take the leftover marinara sauce, add some chicken broth and let it simmer (along with any other flavors, maybe some more garlic or spice).  Stir in some plain yogurt for creaminess; I use 1-2 spoonfuls.

Meatballs:

Stir together fresh bread crumbs, diced sweet potatoes (or carrots), onions, and garlic. Season the mixture with cilantro, paprika, chili powder, pepper and chipotle Tabasco sauce.  Add 1 whisked egg and 1 ½ pounds of meat.  Shape into balls and cook about 30 minutes on 350.  For stuffed meatballs, just shape into a flat disk and put a ball of cheese in the center (goat and mozzarella work great).  Then mold the meat around the cheese, adding more as needed to fill in gaps.  Squeeze it to form, and bake for about 40 minutes.

For the sauce, I just mixed together some tomato paste and basil pesto.  You could also top with a meatloaf sauce or marinara!

These dishes are a great way to incorporate more vegetables into your diet! Both recipes have some carrots or sweet potatoes along with tomatoes.  Don’t be afraid to stir in some chopped spinach!

New Year Part 2

      I previously established my belief that everyone should have a goal to try new foods this year!  But what other goals do you have for 2012?  Here are my food-related ambitions for the New Year.

      Try new foods.  My sister got me a cookbook for Christmas from Kansas City’s refugee outreach.  It contains recipes from all over the world.  Specifically, I’d like to try a new cuisine from a different country at least once a month.  I’m also going to venture into the world of super foods and herbs more.  I tried the burdock root.  Next is spirulina.  This actually comes in powder or capsule form, so it’s not exactly trying something new.  I plan to add it to my juices/smoothies.  Our local health-food store, Mama Jean’s, gets all kinds of ‘adventurous’ produce, such as burdock root!  Next time you’re at the grocery store, pick up something you’ve never tried before. When you get home, research the new food and how it can be eaten or cooked.  Look at it as an adventure!

      Something else I want to try is using more fresh herbs.  I’ve used some basics in the past; basil, thyme, dill.  But, I always find they go bad before used up.  I heard a tip to put chopped fresh herbs in ice cube trays and freeze.  Hopefully that will help.  I also want an herb garden at home.  This way, I won’t have to buy a whole bunch, but can just pick what I need for the day!

      Eat more raw food.  I am going to try to eat at least one raw dish each meal.  Often this will be fruit for breakfast, for lunch this will be a salad or at least raw peppers, carrots, etc.  I will then have a smoothie or juice with vegetables and fruits before, after or with dinner. 

      Make homemade pasta.

      How do you plan to better your health and eating habits this year?  If you need motivation, I encourage you to watch the documentaries I reviewed, or any similar.  Do you want to eat less meat, using beans and other protein sources more?  Maybe incorporate whole grains in your diet, replacing refined ‘grains’; white flour, pasta, depleted cereals.  Eat less sugar?  Think about all the foods that contain hidden sugar; salad dressing, pasta sauce, cereal, granola bars.  How about eating more fresh foods, especially fruits and vegetables; avoiding processed foods.  Perhaps you just want to be more conscious of what goes into your body.  This would include reading labels; not just the calories and fat, but especially looking at the ingredients.  I’d love to hear from you regarding your plans to make your body smile this year!  I can share some tips that may help you achieve these goals, and perhaps you could do the same for mine! 

Here’s to a happy New Year!!