CURRY Birthday Dinner

 

Dan made me a birthday feast last night. Red Curry with coconut milk, red curry paste, bell peppers, tomatoes, fingerling potatoes, carrots, scallion, celery, onion, garlic, cilantro, toasted hazelnuts and brown rice. It was delicious... proven by the fact that I had 3 servings.

flowers for my birthday...

TRIP HOME FOR A BIRTHDAY DINNER

Dan, Hugh and I traveled home on Sunday for a family dinner with my parents and youngest sister. My mom texted me earlier in the week asking what Dan would like for dinner....she didn't bother asking the birthday girl... Apparently she knows me so well that she assumed that I would recite my standard request: salad, avocados, tomatoes, baked potato and veggies to sautee. She was right. I have been craving baked potatoes this month so I paired it up with sauteed Portobello mushrooms, Bell Peppers, cherry tomatoes, herbs, extra virgin olive oil and sea salt. It was a very relaxing day and I enjoyed getting out of the city and seeing my family. At the end of dinner when Hugh was working the table with his charming sweet ways, my mom offered to watch him since Dan and I have a busy work week. I couldn't really say no since he will have a lot more fun being busy throughout the day opposed to sleeping in the apartment waiting for our return.... I miss him.

 

On the trip to my parents' house Dan stopped at his job to pick up some wine for dinner... he was gone for at least 10 minutes and Hugh wouldn't take his eyes off the front door waiting for his return...

DELIVER ME...VEGAN LUNCH

 

Today I delivered a vegan lunch to my sister at her office. She requested burritos with a collard green wrap. I made her two wraps and packaged them up for the quick walk to her office. Hugh-man accompanied me, (of course), and thoroughly enjoyed the change of scenery. The wraps included brown rice, salsa, guacamole and black beans. I used organic canned black beans but I prefer to soak and cook dry beans, (I was nervous about my cooking time availability this morning). 

 

 

My sister, who is not vegan, declared that she could eat the burritos everyday. Very exciting... I love to prove that vegan food can be flavorful, satiating and healthy. She ordered flax crackers with guacamole and salsa for Friday...

DATE ME!

If you have a serious sweet tooth and want a healthy alternative to refined sugars (void of nutritional value) you MUST try this RAW VEGAN SWEET TREAT...Coconut date rolls! These 12 flavor bursting rolls are reminiscent of soft caramel chews. The only two ingredients, (soft dates and unsweetened coconut flakes), are RAW, vegan, organic and Nutritious! I went through a hard core crush on this item and could easily eat the entire package in one sitting- guilt free. If you do end up eating more than you planned you will not have consumer's remorse. When I used to eat white sugar I would always get a headache and feel bloated afterwards, automatically feeling gross. Date rolls do not have that negative effect on me,  due to the natural sugar content and fiber of the dates. Also, since they do contain nutritional value you will feel satiated opposed to refined sugar candy that is like a drug...you always need more. DATES are a good source of iron, niacin and potassium. Calcium, magnesium and vitamins A, B1 and B2 are present in small amounts.* So next time you have to have something sweet, go pick up a date to satiate that sugar craving! You won't be disappointed!

*Wood, Rebecca. The New Whole Foods Encyclopedia.

BE MY CLEMENTINE...

RAW vegan Valentines Day treats for Dan!  I got him a FEARLESS RAW Chocolate bar, Fresh Clementines and Dried Mango. I was naughty and opened the chocolate so I could photograph all the layers of packaging. I have to say that this chocolate bar had the best wrapping! When I first opened it I thought that a chunk had broken off and then I realized that it was a manufactured bite mark. Cute but I'm sure Dan isn't going to believe that it isn't my own bite mark. I swear it wasn't me!

 

This flavor contains HEMP, CHIA and FLAX SEEDS for a CRUNCH factor! I THINK Dan will be a fan.

 

I would have been more excited if it contained AGAVE as the sweetener instead of Cane Sugar. Agave is RAW and has a low Glycemic index so it won't spike blood sugar levels.

Before work I made myself a huge salad to hopefully hold me over for a few hours.... notice the festive pink and red colors.

Arugula, Tomatoes, Radishes, Mint, Flax Seeds, Sea Salt, Cinnamon, Cayenne Pepper with Lemon Juice, Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Flax Oil. *IMPORTANT NOTE: Flax seeds must be Ground in order to absorb the nutrients. Flax Seeds in whole form are PURE fiber, therefore I use the oil for the omega 3's. You can  buy ground Flax seeds or grind it yourself in a coffee grinder for optimum freshness.

SOUP AND CRACKERS

I was very excited that Dan had left-over soup for me when I got home at 11 pm. I devoured it! Lentils, Tomatoes, Potatoes, Yellow Onion, Garlic, Thyme, Parsley, Lemon Juice, Olive Oil and Sea Salt. It hit the spot. I added some crunchy Flax crackers and made an Arugula salad. YUM!

Hugh-man loved the potatoes from the soup

FLAX CRACKERS

I have been craving Flax Crackers since my lunch from Prana in Newton last week. The crackers with guacamole were the highlight of the meal. So... I decided to make my own. It's a simple process that is super healthy and will satiate the cravings for crunchy food (e.g. CHIPS). 

INGREDIENTS AND PROCESS

 

Ideally, I would have soaked the pumpkin and sunflower seeds overnight, however it is not necessary for flavor. Soaking destroys the enzyme inhibitors in RAW nuts, seeds, grains and dry beans which makes it easier for your body to absorb the nutrients and also makes the food more digestible. Fax Seeds and Chia Seeds only need to be soaked for an hour. Flax and chia expand in water so I doubled the amount of water. Do not RINSE! I used the entire bag of flax seeds, about 1/2 a cup each of pumpkin, sunflower and chia seeds. Exact measurements are not required. Soaked Flax seeds are the major binder. It becomes gelatinous and is the 'glue' for whatever other ingredients you desire to incorporate into the crackers. I added fresh thyme, lemon zest, a dash of olive oil, sea salt, ground cumin, fresh black pepper and cayenne pepper.

I mixed all of the ingredients together and then portioned out 2 cups of mixture onto teflex sheets. I used an offset spatula to lay out 'dough.'

I placed them in dehydrator at 115 degrees and then flipped the crackers off of the teflex sheet once the crackers dried out enough, (about 1 hour). They were in the dehydrator for 12 hours total. They should be completely dry and crunchy!

Crackers should be stored in an air tight container at room temp.

       HAPPY VALENTINES DAY HUGH!

AMAZINGLY...

This is the most amazingly LARGE Strawberry I've ever seen. It's not ORGANIC...(gasp), which may explain a lot... I purchased 2 containers of conventional strawberries because there was a deal (2 for $4) compared to the Organic Strawberries at $4.99 a box...I should have been a smarter consumer but I was seduced by the price. Needless to say, finding this FRANKENSTEIN berry was not appetizing. BEWARE of the DIRTY DOZEN (Conventional produce with the highest pesticide residue). Here is the list of the Dirty Dozen and the Clean 15 (conventional produce with the least pesticide  residue):

* DIRTY DOZEN
Peaches
Apples
Sweet Bell Peppers
Celery
Nectarines
Strawberries
Cherries
Domestic Blueberries
Imported Grapes
Spinach, Kale, Collard Greens
Lettuce
Potatoes

* THE CLEAN 15
Onions
Avocados
Sweet corn
Pineapples
Mango
Sweet peas
Asparagus
Kiwi fruit
Cabbage
Eggplant
Cantaloupe
Watermelon
Grapefruit
Sweet potatoes
Sweet onions

*Source http://articles.cnn.com/2010-06-01/health/dirty.dozen.produce.pesticide_1_pesticide-residue-pesticide-tests-fruits-and-vegetables?_s=PM:HEALTH

 

This is the most amazingly adorable dog I've ever seen.... Hugh grew tired of the photo shoot this afternoon, hence the paw in my face...still cute.

SUPER-SIZED STRAWBERRY SALAD

I was beyond HUNGRY tonight... and I really did not have the patience to cook nor the desire to wash dishes... so I resorted to my Go TO single dish meal- SUPER-SIZED SALAD. Here are the the HIGHLIGHTS of my almost 100% RAW supper:
-ARUGULA
-VINE-RIPE TOMATO
-CUCUMBER
-AVOCADO
-RED CABBAGE
-GRAPE LEAVES (not raw)
-STRAWBERRIES
-FLAX SEEDS
-FLAX OIL
-EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL
-APPLE CIDER VINEGAR
-SEA SALT

                                         Assembly Time: 5 minutes!

CAULIFLOWER, KALE AND CAPERS

 

I made a quick dinner for one tonight. I didn't have much in the fridge (the horror) but still managed to create something filling and healthy.

INGREDIENTS
-Cauliflower Florets, 2c
-Kale, 1/2 bu, rough chop
-Vine-ripe Tomato, 1 ea, Large dice 
-Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, 1-2 Tbsp
-Lemon Juice or Apple Cider Vinegar, dash
-Capers, 1 Tablespoon
-Sea Salt to taste
-Ground Cumin to taste

1-Sautee Cauliflower and Tomato with Olive Oil and Seasoning in a pot until soft.
2-Add Kale, Capers and Vinegar. Stir. Put lid on pot until kale softens.
   

GRAPE LEAVES

 

I needed to put my jar of sprouted lentils to good use...GRAPE LEAVES. 

Ingredients

-English Cucumber, 1/2 each, diced

-Red Bell Pepper, 1/2 each, diced

-Vine-ripe Tomato, 1/2 each, diced

-Red Onion, 1/4 each, diced 

-Fresh Parsley, 1/4 c, chopped 

-Sprouted Lentils, 1/2 c

-Lemon Juice, 1/2 of a lemon

-Extra-Virgin Olive Oil 

-Sea Salt, Cumin, Cinnamon and Cayenne Pepper

-Grape Leaves (about 6), rinsed and de-stemmed

 

Not a great photo...but they were pretty tasty. Dan was working late so I left him a couple of grape leaves in the refrigerator. He was a fan.