Simply Delicious

I made some promises to post some recipes on my quest for vibrant health and going back to my old ways of eating. I’ve incorporated quite of few of the things I wanted to. No more low-fat or non-fat products, much fewer things that come from a can. My decaf consumption has gone way down (I still have 1 small cup of Cuban (or Dominican when I have it because it truly is the worlds best coffee) in the morning because I love it and I mix it with unsweetened almond milk and a splash of organic half and half (this will be a habit that will not easily die). I love the acid warm taste of coffee though so I’ve been using Pero which has a much lower acidity and no caffeine or Teecinno which is delicious and actually good for you since it is alkaline and helps balance your bodies ph (but it’s pricey which is why I’ve added the Pero into the mix). We’ve added a lot more beans and some tempeh and I’ve been making healthy sweets for my sweet tooth. Pretty much the only convenience ‘protein bar’ I’ve had have been Lara bars which are made only with fruits and nuts and are completely raw (i’m going to try making my own home made ones soon, once I figure it out I’ll post a recipe). I’ve also added so many great oils back into my diet, some of my favorites are almond, walnut, grapeseed, avocado (great for cooking at high temps) and coconut (also great for cooking at high temps). There are so so so so many health benefits to coconut oil that I can’t even begin to talk about them now, I need a whole separate post for the fabulousness that is coconut oil. For now I’ll tell you that it has lauric acid in it (which happens to be found in mothers milk) and it’s an antimicrobial and antifungal so it’s a great oil to eat daily during the cold and flu season. For now if you want to read more about all the reasons I’m obsessed with coconut oil take a look at this website. Now I distracted myself and went off track.

Back to recipes. Here are some great ones that I thought I’d share.

Here’s a good one to keep in your files for next Thanksgiving when you have tons of turkey leftovers that you don’t know what to do with and feel like you need to eat something healthy. This is actually a recipe I’ve used with my health counseling clients for detoxing. I love it.

Turkey Salad:

1/4 cup almond or walnut oil

1/3 cup lemon juice

2 tbsp. parsley (use more or less depending on how much you like parsley)

1 tsp. tarragon

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp paprika

1 cup cubed or shredded cooked turkey

2 cups cooked rice of your choice (I like basmati for this)

almonds, pine nuts or sunflower seeds to sprinkle on top

Just toss all the ingredients together, cover and chill for a few hours. The longer it sits the more intense the flavor. Serve over a bed of lettuce in the spring or summer or over steamed kale, chard or mustard greens when it’s cold out and then just sprinkle the crushed nuts or seeds on top. YUM! Even Annabelle loved this blended with Kale (I set hers aside before adding the nut oil and she didn’t have nuts or seeds on top either).

A nutty date

My sweet tooth hasn’t disappeared, it’s gotten healthier. One of my favorites are dates, specifically medjool dates because they are rich, creamy and sweet. You can get medjool dates at any health food store and sunsweet even sells dates nowadays.

Just put them in the fridge to firm up a little and then slice them down the middle to remove the pit.

Fill them with almond butter and put them back in the fridge.

It’s a perfectly sweet little protein snack with heart healthy fats. It’s not low in calories but the healthy fats will satisfy you more than refined carbs that have no fat and are just processed junk.

Annabelle hasn’t tried this yet since I think dates are still too sticky for her and she can’t have nuts yet.

Heart Healthy Home made Ice cream

This is a spin on the frozen banana ice cream my mom used to make with her champion juicer when I was growing up. Since I bought a vitamix I’ve made tons of ‘ice creams’ with frozen berries and yogurt but this is a new version altogether and I loved the way it came out. It has coconut oil in it (because coconut oil is fabulous and it makes it creamy) but if you don’t like the taste of coconut just leave it out

1 large frozen banana

1 tbsp. coconut oil

1 cup almond milk (you can use coconut milk or organic whole milk if you want it creamier or want more calories)

2 tbsp cocoa powder

1 tbsp. raw honey

Whip it all together in a blender, vitamix or food processor and then pour it into an ice-cube tray. Try not to drink too much of it when you’re pouring it. Once frozen just put it back in the blender or food processor and voila! home made chocolate ice cream that’s good for your heart (thank you coconut oil). You can make big batches of this to keep on hand for whenever you have an ice cream craving or you can pour it into popsicle molds or make your own popsicle molds with a paper cup and a popsicle stick.

Annabelle didn’t try this =( Cocoa powder and honey are not recommended for babies under the age of 1. Sorry Annabelle.