Friday, January 25th, 2013

Non-Sweet Minty Green Smoothie – My New Thang

I’ve been greatly enjoying non-sweet green smoothies for a while now. They’re refreshing, especially if indulging in heavy holiday eating (these were a staple this past holiday season). Perfect for New Year Resolutions in taking health to fresh new levels. They’re light, which gives extra energy during busy times. And, they’re nutritious for getting us back on track after holiday splurges.

Serving them in pretty glasses makes them even more fun (especially for kiddos).

A blender-full of goodness that refreshes my body and feels cleansing.

Here’s the gist of it…

Non-Sweet Minty Green Smoothie

1 to 2 cups water
1/2 to 1 cucumber
2 stalks celery
1 to 2 heavy handful(s) spinach or romaine
juice of 1/2 to 1 lemon or lime
handful mint (Don’t be shy… this is the trick! A heavy handful of mint elevates the flavor brilliantly, and you can also add other herbs – rosemary, basil, or parsley are wonderful)

Blend until smooth and enjoy this brightness in your life.

If you want to add oomph, blend in 1/2 avocado.

******* By the way… Have questions or comments? Use Twitter or my Facebook fan page to chat. Links are on the right-hand side of my blog. —>

Food Journal – The Last Week

by Kristen in cacao brownie, cherry chocolate bomb shake, food journal, green juice, green smoothies, kale chips, kevita, sirova, sun warrior rice protein

I’ve been tracking my food intake for the past week. Here are all of our good eats!

Sunday

All Raw – All Vegan – All Organic

All Delicious – All Nutritious

2 pink grapefruits – fresh from my mom’s backyard (have you been following her blog lately?)
Red pear
1/2 KeVita

Shot of E3-Live
Quart of Green Juice

Large bowl of granola and almond milk

2 small collard green wraps
Apple
2 crackers

Large kale salad
Green Smoothie

Monday

All Raw – All Vegan – All Organic

All Delicious – All Nutritious

1 Banana

1 Grapefruit

2.5 cups Green Juice – cucumber, kale, zucchini, lemon, broccoli, ginger

1 Apple

Granola with almond milk

Purple Passion Smoothie (recipe in current email newsletter going out, sign up here if you haven’t already)

Thai Cole Slaw – this sounds better than it actually was – lol. Sometimes my recipes just don’t fly.

Cherry Chocolate Bomb Shake – video and recipe here!

2oz Wheat grass while shopping at Whole Foods

Protein Shake – Sun Warrior protein, cinnamon, homemade curry powder

Pure Bar - I was up late and ended up getting hungry.

Tuesday

All Raw – All Vegan – All Organic

All Delicious – All Nutritious

Shot of E3-Live
Green Juice – kale, cucumber, celery, broccoli, mandarin orange

Green Smoothie – spinach, water, banana, orange

Kale Chips
3 prunes
1/2 KeVita

Granola with almond milk

Thai Cole Slaw

Apple
Lasagna

3 prunes

Banana Nut Butter Chocolate Ice Cream

Wednesday

All Raw – All Vegan – All Organic

All Delicious – All Nutritious

3 cups Green juice: kale, celery, cucumber, lemon

Fruity Chard Smoothie: 2 cups almond milk, 1 orange, orange zest, 2 big leaves chard, 10oz bag frozen strawberries, stevia

1 Pink Grapefruit
3 Dried apricots
2 pieces dried papaya

2 cups Fresh Herb Green Soup: 1-2 cups water, 2 leaves rainbow chard, 1 apple (cored), juice from 1 orange, 1 zucchini, 2 teaspoons fresh chives, 1T miso, 4-5 romaine lettuce leaves, 1 avocado, 1 yellow bell pepper, handful of sprouts blended in and some more on top, 1T tamari, juice from 1/2 lemon, 1/4 cup fresh basil, 1T fresh dill

Kale chips
Brownie

2 cups Soup (same as above)
Kale chips

Rawtella spoonful
Banana Chocolate Nut Butter ice cream

Thursday

All Raw – All Vegan – All Organic

All Delicious – All Nutritious

3 cups Green juice: cucumber, collard green, lemon, celery

2/3 Pink Grapefruit
Pure Trail Mix bar

3 cups smoothie: almond milk, 2 oranges, orange extract, orange zest, vanilla powder, collard green, 1 teaspoon Greener Grasses

Large Salad: 1 avo, coconut vinegar, herbamere, curry powder, basil, 2 olives, romaine, red bell pepper plus 3 dried apricots and 3 crackers

1 Spoonful Rawtella

La La Pasta: Zucchini noodles with red bell pepper, chives, basil, diced avocado, lemon juice, salt

Chocolate granola with raw almond milk

Protein shake

Friday

High Raw – All Vegan – All Organic

All Delicious – All Nutritious

1/2 KeVita

Green Juice: cuke zuke celery collard lemon dill

Green Smoothie: 2 cups nettle tea, 5 oz frozen raspberries, pinch stevia, hefty handful spinach, small portion cilantro, 2 oranges

2 dried apricots

Large Salad with a fabulous Sweet Curry dressing and tomato, carrot, sprouts, and apple on top

The salad was so good that I had another one but this time it was just lettuce, dressing, and carrots

Spoonful Rawtella

Big bowl Chocolate granola

Salad with Sweet Curry dressing

(Cooked meal) Tempeh, with brown rice and baked/mashed butternut squash

Raw Vegan Travel – Pensacola, FL

by Kristen in end of the line cafe, ever man's, florida, green smoothies, horses, New Chapter Organics, pensacola, pregnancy, raw travel

So, I’m going to back track a bit and write about the awesomeness of our stay in Pensacola, FL. We have family there with a farm (horses, cat, dog, huge pond with fish, etc) so we stayed a few days and just relaxed. It was amazing. The day after we arrived we were blessed with warm sunshine so we went to the beach briefly and stuck our feet in the water. The remaining days were filled with pouring rain, but it was magical as we sat on the big porch in rocking chairs and talking for hours and hours and witnessing nature do its thing.

One late afternoon when it wasn’t raining, but the grass was wet after having just been rained on, we went out and blew bubbles. How fun! And! How meditative! Gently blowing into the wand, watching the beautiful bubbles form and then float softly to the ground, where they stayed for many minutes at a time, was soothing. It’s funny… I was telling my mom about it and she relayed a story to me, “Yes..I use to buy you those cheap bubbles in the bottle… When you were done with the bottle, I filled it with water and kitchen soap. It took you two minutes to tell me, ‘ITS NOT THE SAME!!!’”

There were a few highlights to this leg of our trip (in no particular order). First, being on the farm was nurturing to my soul as I awaited the day for my first pregnancy blood tests. The full moon, the fresh air, and the warm night breezes completely relaxed me. Secondly, the horses. I love horses. I really really love horses. When I’m around them, I’m in the moment… I’m under their spell. I don’t think about the past or the future. I’m just calm, mesmerized by their beauty, and in awe. Being around the horses and feeding them organic apples and carrots was enchantment. The third aspect of the trip that was awesome was spending time with family that we rarely see. This was one of the main reasons for taking the drive down south instead of cutting across the Midwest. We laughed so much and had a blast. Lastly… I found out I was pregnant while in Pensacola. I had the first blood draw on Monday morning and received the awesome news of our success in the afternoon, which most of you know by now from my earlier blog posts. It was wonderful to share that exciting time with our family. So, as you can see, Pensacola has a very special place in my heart.

Regarding our food adventures while there, we had access to a fantastic natural foods market called Ever Man’s. It was filled with all kinds of fresh organic produce.

I bought fresh sprouts, pineapple, apples, kiwi, kale, and spinach to make nourishing green smoothies. Yum! There were also two vegan (mostly organic) restaurants that we tried. End of the Line was quite good. I had a sauerkraut Reuben sandwich that was mega tasty and a bowl of lentil soup that I swear was the best lentil soup I’d ever had.

Homemade Raw Vegan Meals in New York

by Kristen in daiya, green smoothies, midtown, new hope fertility center, new york, raw, the daily show, upper west side, vegan cheese, westerly market, whole foods market

During our last trip to New York (in June 2009), we stayed at the Excelsior hotel in the Upper West Side. As a result, our room was quite small (I like to remember it as “quaint”) and there was no refrigeration. So, we ate all of our meals out and we referred to the meal part of our trip as a “vegan food safari.”

This trip is a little different. Since we’re staying in a nice apartment with a kitchen (and a huge refrigerator), we’ve been having at least one of our meals “home” everyday. We stocked up once at Whole Foods Market (I was not impressed with their organic produce, or their Raw section, at this location) and another time we shopped at Westerly Natural Market (they have a nice Raw section of goodies and ingredients, and the produce section is OK… what’s with all the fruit flies in these small NY markets???). Both times we walked from the UWS to Midtown for the shopping to get plenty of exercise (I love to walk every chance I get). My legs and butt are definitely getting a workout. Between walking to New Hope Fertility on the Upper East Side and the markets in Midtown, we’re clocking about 4-7 miles a day. It feels awesome!

Here is a picture of a delicious organic salad I made the other night that we gobbled up while watching The Daily Show. It had 2 avocados, 1 red bell pepper, 1 orange bell pepper, 2 stalks celery, 1/4 bunch cilantro, lime juice, and sea salt. It was so damn good!

I’ve been making organic green smoothies almost daily to make sure we still get plenty of greens in our diet. Most of them have been banana, dinosaur kale, and lime juice (the vitamin C in the lime helps the iron in the kale get assimilated). But, for the next couple of days, I’m going to make apple, curly kale, and lime juice. We’ve also been having almond butter / banana sandwiches, Raw cereal (GoRaw) and nut milk, and we’ve snacked on fresh fruit, dates, prunes, sprouted / dehydrated sunflower and pumpkin seeds, and coconut yogurt.

Of course, we’ve been eating some meals at one of our favorite restaurants, Blossom Cafe. It was so fun walking in there the first time. Everyone immediately recognized and welcomed us, as if we hadn’t been gone for even a day. We had lunch there and I enjoyed their Raw Autumn Sweet Potato Rolls and one of their huge green salads. I should’ve taken pictures but I was famished and dove in head first. Even the server marveled at how fast the Raw sweet potato rolls disappeared. My husband gobbled up their soy bacon cheeseburger, and we found out that they are using a new cheese by the company Daiya. Check it out. It’s pretty awesome. It melts great and is dairy free, soy free, and gluten free. I was impressed.

Last but not least, here is a picture of the view from our apartment at sunset. With a view like this, it makes it hard to leave the apartment.

In my next post, I’ll update you on the progress of our fertility adventure.

5 Ways for Living & Loving Raw

by Kristen in fruit, getting started, green smoothies, raw desserts, raw vegan diet

A Great First Step!
Stay focused on an objective to incorporate more fresh whole fruits and vegetables into your diet every day. Once you start doing this, you automatically reduce some of the not-so-healthy foods. This could mean having two green smoothies every day, or eating a salad before every lunch and dinner, or eating Raw breakfasts and Raw desserts (instead of cooked breakfasts and desserts), or all of the above.

Be Flexible!
I’m not a purist when it comes to my diet, and I find that most people succeed with this lifestyle when they take it easy, have fun and remain flexible. This can be very important during those first months of transition (and forever for that matter!). For some, eating 100% Raw is the only way to go, and that’s great. But, for many, to easily succeed with a predominantly Raw vegan lifestyle, it can mean being flexible (yet still super healthy) and that can mean living a High Raw lifestyle (in the beginning, at different times during the journey, or all the time).

Don’t Stress and Don’t Give Up!
Don’t freak out if you have a bad day of eating, and certainly don’t give up. I’m fond of saying, “Every meal is another chance to turn it around.” Over time, as you eat more and more fresh Raw vegan foods, you’ll naturally find yourself avoiding unhealthy foods anyway, so just let it happen naturally and enjoy the journey.

Got Greens?!
When I first went Raw, I found that the more greens I added to my lifestyle, the less I craved unhealthy foods. Now, my attention is naturally focused on great and healthy choices all the time. A super way to get more greens is with green smoothies, salads, plant blood (a.k.a. green juice) and adding green powder to your life (one of my favorites is Vitamineral Green Powder).

Fresh Fruit Does Wonders!
Keeping fresh organic fruit around all the time is a great way to avoid unhealthy cravings (And! It’s soooo good!). The next time your sweet tooth comes a knockin’, eat a banana or drink a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice or eat a date (or 2 or 3!) or enjoy some berries. The craving will disappear as you gently nourish your body with nutrient dense food that is loaded with antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and fiber.

Beauty and vitality are gifts from nature for those who live by her laws.
~ Leonardo Da Vinci

Fluffy Green Smoothie

by Kristen in apple, green smoothies, Spinach, super drink

One my favorite green smoothie recipes is simply apples, spinach and cinnamon. I love how the apples make it “fluffy” and the spinach adds a lovely creaminess to it. And, if you use red delicious apples (they’re reported to have the highest levels of phytonutrients) then you get gorgeous little flecks of red swirling around as you drink.

We’re going to a party tonight where I’m certain there won’t be anything for me to eat. No problem though! And, certainly no complaints here. I’m simply going to tote along my Fluffy Green Smoothie to drink. (I love the conversation it starts anyway.)

Today’s Raw Vegan Food (so far):
Heavy Metal Nano Detox
Pine’s Wheat Grass Tablets
My Super Drink (I chug it down)
1 cup water
1-2 T hemp protein powder for protein, essential fatty acids and fiber
1/4 t camu powder (or 1 T Fruits of the Earth) for extra Vitamin C and nutrients
1 T freshly ground milk thistle seeds to cleanse my liver
1 T ground flax or chia seeds for more essential fatty acids to convert to DHA (important for pregnancy)
1 heaping T Vitamineral Green for more power greens
*The list above is pretty much how I’ve been starting every morning lately to help get my body ready for pregnancy.

Girly Sun Tea (alfalfa, nettle, raspberry leaf)
Fluffy Green Smoothie (1 1/2 cups water, 2 apples, 1/2 t cinnamon, 2 big handfuls spinach)
Fluffy Green Protein Smoothie (same as above but I’ve added hemp protein powder and Vitamineral Green)
I will likely have chocolate at some point during the day :)

Pure Delight Smoothie & Vegan, Organic Beauty

by Kristen in beauty, green smoothies

Here is a new staple smoothie recipe for the summer. It’s so simple, delicious, delightful, light, refreshing, nourishing, beautiful, and vibrant. And, guess what? That’s how you’ll feel after only one sip (or gulp, in my case!).

Pure Delight
1 cup water
2 med. bananas
2 med. lacinato kale leaves
1 cucumber, chopped

Give this energy filled lusciousness a whirl in your blender and enjoy with delight.

It’s beauty time girls! In my quest for healthy body care products, I came upon an amazing company. Oh my, let me just tell you, their stuff is exquisite. If you’re looking for organic, vegan and living skin care (my kind of stuff!), then hop on over to Raw Gaia. They use only the most natural, pure, and unadulterated ingredients to make products that are truly healthy for your skin. I’m madly in love with their Sun-dried Green Clay Face Pack – It’s a must have.

Fast Food Goes Organic

by Kristen in Fast food, green smoothies, Hemp, organic

Times are changing and it’s exciting. Check out this article about some fast food chains going organic. As a High Raw All Vegan (HRAV), I love knowing that our nation is starting to desire healthier food choices, which, in my book, means more people learning about Raw in the long run. We have to start somewhere and fresh organic food is a great place.

Organic and eating locally grown foods are both “hot” trends for chefs right now, and this means more organic options at restaurants. Yippee! How great would it be to enjoy gobbling up fresh salads and dishes made from organic ingredients when you dine out?

My HRAV Food Today
Organic coconut black tea
1 quart Blueberry Power Packed Green Smoothie (recipe below)
1/4 cup Manitoba Harvest Hemp Seeds
that’s it so far…

Blueberry Power Packed Smoothie
Yield 1 quart

2 cups water
2 cups blueberries
1/4 cup Manitoba Harvest Hemp Protein Powder (the best available)
1 tablespoon Vitamineral Green Powder (my favorite!)
1 tablespoon chia seeds (these are so fun!)
3 handfuls spinach
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Blend this power packin’ goodness up and enjoy some mega energy and fulfillment!

Daily Conversation Question
If you could have front row seats to any concert, who would you like to see?

Kohlrabi Nasty Green Smoothie

by Kristen in green smoothies, kohlrabi, twitter

If you are following me on twitter then you know that I scored some organic kohlrabi the other day. I made a smoothie with it and thought I’d share the recipe with you, but you might not want to make it. Although eating different kinds of produce is important to ensure a balanced diet of well-rounded nutrition, sometimes I’m tempted to put my foot down and say, “no.” There should be some reward for choking down something that doesn’t taste good (let’s be honest: nasty), apart from the nutrients I’m getting. Perhaps I’ll get some cool super-powers as a result. A girl can dream, right?

So, I’m already imagining ways to improve the smoothie…for starters, leave the kohlrabi out (haha). Hey! Maybe the smoothie is giving me comedic powers or maybe I’m just getting the giggles and laughing at myself.

Reasons to add Kohlrabi to your life: It’s from the cabbage family and can be eaten as crudite or blended into a smoothie, like I did today. All parts of it are game for eating (bulb, stem and leaves). Kohlrabi is low in calories, loaded with cancer fighting phytonutrients, vitamin C & potassium, and packed with fiber.

Kohlrabi Nasty Green Smoothie

Yield: too much

1 1/2 cups water

1 kohlrabi (bulb, stem and leaves)

2 red delicious apples (this variety has the most phytos)

2 tablespoons fresh basil

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Blend it up, choke it down.

Seeing as I have another bulb to force down my throat (and my boyfriend’s), I’m going to make our next kohlrabi smoothie sweeter with bananas (or I’m going to chop it up for our salads).

Boyfriend with Flowers, Praising Kiwi & Feeling Great

by Kristen in green smoothies, kiwi

I woke up today and came downstairs to see a beautiful bouquet of flowers from my boyfriend. He is so sweet. They’re sitting next to me right now and I can’t help but grin at how lucky I am to be loved so much by him. He’s romantic, wickedly brilliant, funny, supportive of all my crazy ways, eats what I put in front of him and loves every bite (he’s usually licking the plate at the end), tells me he loves me at least 15 times a day, adores my dog (now “our” dog), and buys me flowers (and so much more of course, but I have other things to cover in today’s post) – *grin*

In my attempt to have a very balanced diet with a wide array of produce, my attention is focused on kiwi today. It’s not something I eat often, and shame on me for that. It’s an AMAZING fruit with an impressive resume. I’ll point to a few shining aspects here:

~Stimulates cellular repair (Boohyah!)
~Filled with an army of disease fighting phytonutrients (Gotta love that!)
~Loads of vitamin C (Twice as much as oranges!)
~Magnesium, fiber & potassium (Nice!)
~The Journal of Medicinal Food reported that kiwi has an amazing ability to reduce oxidative stress in human plasma. (Enough already! Bring me kiwi!)

See? Pretty darn great!

Here is a fabulously fresh recipe that is perfect for spring. I loved it so much that I’m already drinking my second one!

Cinnamon Kiwi Green Smoothie
Yield 3 cups

1-2 cups water
1 LARGE! handful spinach
1 kiwi (peeled or not, it’s up to you – I peeled 1/2 of mine)
1 whole apple, chopped (yep, core and all)
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Blend this sassy baby up and enjoy the powers of vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients going to work for you. YUMMY!

A Great Day - Well, obviously my day started out wonderfully with flowers from my guy, then it continued with delicious Raw liquids (green juices and the smoothies mentioned above). The sun is shining and I feel awesome. I’m working away at my laptop, switching between Oprah and Ellen on TV, and getting ready to take a great big walk with my dog. Later tonight, I’m going to the bookstore to relax and read (one of my favorite ways to spend time). Hugs to everyone out there reading my blog :)

Daily Conversation Question:
Which long lost childhood object would you most like to find?