back on the sauce

THIS sauce, that is. Not the variety I consumed in excess for three straight days on the beaches of South Carolina last week. Don't get me wrong, it was a great time, but my body has been aching for some of the green, so this morning I whipped up a breakfast juice as well as this little delight that I took to work as an afternoon snack.

Monday juicin

kale (lots and lots)
cucumber
celery
pear
ginger

Pictures of South Carolina to follow. It was my first time visiting this part of the Atlantic coast and I was in awe of its natural beauty. Minus a close encounter with three enormous spiders. Bayou livin', I guess.

thursday juice

This morning I made a loverly juice of the following:

Southern greens (mix of collards, turnip, mustard and spinach)
cucumber
celery
apple
blueberries
ginger

In a nod to Kris Carr, who likes to drink her green juice out of a wine glass, I changed things up today to make my juice a little more fun. Happy juicing!

Image via Raw Food, Right Now

wednesday juice

This morning I went for an all-vegetable* juice of:

kale
celery
yellow pepper
carrot
zucchini
plum tomatoes
garlic

* yes, I know some of these don't qualify as vegetables in the biological sense, but I'm using that term here as these are not sweet like most fruits.

I threw a dash of Kosher salt into the bottom of my glass before I poured the juice and so the last few sips (which are sometimes hard for me to get down), were a nice, savory treat. I was worried about using the zucchini because I hadn't before, but it was a really nice addition.
 

I'm already thinking about my morning juice tomorrow. It will most definitely involve blueberries and the ginger I bought last night.

a green juice a day

For the next few weeks, I'm going to do my best to have a green juice every morning. Aside from the obvious health benefits of giving my body between 4-6 six servings of fruits and vegetables at the start of my day, I'm a bridesmaid in a wedding on Labor Day (see last post), and I want my skin to be clear and glowing on the big day. Many people don't realize that the anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of fruits and vegetables are great for this, so I figure starting my day with a nice jolt of fruits and vegetables will be a great addition to my regular skin routine. And while having a green juice to start my morning won't do a thing to help me lose weight if I don't control my portions and diet for the rest of the day, I've found that when I begin my day on a healthy note, I'm inspired to make better choices throughout the day. So, who knows, maybe I'll be able to shed a few pounds, too.

Despite missing two of my favorite go-to ingredients, ginger and mint, the juice I've made so far this week has been incredible. Here's a quick recap:

Monday
kale
cucumber
celery
apple

Tuesday
kale
cucumber
celery
apple
blueberries - oh man, amazing

While the recipes are almost identical (haven't had a chance to go to the market), the juice I had with the blueberries this morning was delicious. I've added strawberries and raspberries before, but the blueberries made the juice slightly tart. It was still sweet, thanks to the apple, and also nice and light because of the mellow, watery properties of the cucumber and celery.

I'll post again after my morning juice tomorrow and will try to include a photo, although sometimes the color of the juice does not photograph well, if you know what I mean (read brown). One of my favorite things to do is to make a savory vegetable-based juice. I've got a bunch of almost-gone Roma tomatoes that would be awesome with some kale, celery, cucumber, carrots, bell peppers and scallions.

easy and healthy

On my way out of Vermont a couple of weekends ago, I stopped at a farm stand and left with some beautiful collard greens and other fresh produce. I hadn't used most of it by the time I went to Cape Cod last weekend, so I brought them along with me with this easy and delicious beach snack in mind.

Before I share this with you, I have to make a confession. While the recipes I create are usually so simple it's embarrassing, I've learned through writing this blog that I actually HATE to write out the recipes, tell you the quantities and then describe the steps. As I head to culinary school in a little over a month, this could be a problem. I'm hoping it 's something I'll get over (or at least get better at), but until then, here is, yet again, another dumbed down recipe for your experimental pleasure.

Quinoa and Fresh Vegetable Green Wraps

Collard greens (about the size of your open hands, side by side - nothing too monstrous)
1 cup cooked quinoa (I think red is nuttier/more flavorful and a bit more al dente than regular quinoa)
Sliced cucumbers
Sliced bell pepper
Diced scallion
Simple vinaigrette (below)

Other nice additions if you have them:

* cilantro
* avocado
* tomato
* hummus
* jalapeno
* feta
* toasted pine nuts

And away we go:
Flip over a collard green leaf and, using a paring knife, run the blade along the rib of the leaf to remove some of the thickness of the stem. Use the same method you would when skinning a fish. This will help the leaf bend without cracking when you roll it up later. Repeat with however many other leaves ya got.

Boil some water in a kettle, and place 2-3 collard leaves in a baking dish (depending on their size). Pour the boiling water over the leaves to blanch them. Once they've turned a lovely, bright green color (10 seconds maybe?), remove the leaves and run under cold water or place in an ice bath.

Lightly season your quinoa. I normally cook quinoa with vegetable broth to give it a bit of flavor, but for a quinoa/veggie mixture like this, I like to whip up a basic vinaigrette of the following ingredients. Note that I recommend you season the quinoa lightly. It should not be wet, just have enough of this mixture in it to give it some flavor.

2/3 parts olive oil
1/3 part fresh lemon juice (or apple cider or rice vinegar)
Dijon mustard to taste (1/2 tsp maybe)
honey, agave or maple syrup to taste (1/2 tsp or more)
salt and pepper to taste

dash of cayenne

Begin to assemble your wraps a-la burrito style. Collard greens are surprisingly resilient, and after blanching them they become almost stretchy. I like to roll mine nice 'n tight.

 Start with a big spoonful of the quinoa, then layer your choice of fresh vegetables and roll away.

 

Place your wraps in a plastic bag or tin foil and throw them in your beach cooler. These crunchy treats are non-perishable so there's no reason to worry if you don't have a cooler. The collard greens stay intact, so if you don't finish them all the day you make them, they'll keep in the refrigerator for a couple of days.

decoding plu stickers

You know those little stickers on the fruits and veggies we buy? The annoying plastic-y ones that are nearly impossible to peel off of things like tomatoes? I've never really paid much attention to them except to see the origin of the item, where it says in small print "Product of Mexico", for example.

 
Recently I've been considering going back to school for integrative nutrition, and while poking around the Hippocrates Health Institute website, I came across this interesting article about PLU codes and what they really mean. A link to the article can be found here, and it discusses in depth the risks associated with consuming food that has been chemically or genetically treated. Allow me to provide you with the main points.

According to the article "The PLU sticker was designed by the Produce Marketing Association and the International Federation for Produce Coding not only as a way to facilitate food identification and source of origin, but also to enable a quicker check out. Most importantly, it tells you exactly how that produce was grown".

To summarize: If you care about eating food that has been grown free of chemicals or pesticides, the number to remember is 9.  If you'd rather not eat something that has been genetically modified (and my dear, I hope you wouldn't), you should pass on anything that starts with an 8.

Here are the rules:

1. Four digit number, usually beginning with a 4 or a 3 = conventionally grown, ie., sprayed with toxic synthetic chemicals including pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides.

2. Five digit number, beginning with an 8 = genetically modified and can also be sprayed with the above toxic chemicals.

3. Five digit number, beginning with a 9 = organically grown; cannot be genetically modified and cannot use toxic chemicals of any kind.

The article provides a good example using a banana.

94011 - organic banana
4011 - banana has been sprayed with chemicals
84011 - banana has been genetically modified (and most likely also sprayed with chemicals)

I know I was surprised by what I learned on the Hippocrates site, not just in this article. I definitely encourage clicking through and reading some of their resources.

On a related note, one of my favorite resources on eating the best produce possible is the Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen list, found on Environmental Working Group's site here. 

brilliant ad campaign about soda

These anti-soda commercials are running in the New York City market and I think they're fantastic. I wonder if any other cities have taken a similar approach to educating their citizens about how much sugar is hidden in the things we eat and drink. To the best of my knowledge, Boston has not. Sugar in soda seems pretty obvious to most people, but what about other products we consume every day, such as "lite" salad dressings, canned tomatoes, even one of the world's most naturally healthy foods: oatmeal?!

NYC was the first city to ban the use of trans fats in its restaurants, but as far as I know, few other cities have followed suit. Note: California gets a thumbs up for totally banning it in the state's restaurants and bakeries. Legislation like this puts a spotlight on these damaging ingredients, which means a hit in sales for their suppliers as well as CPGs who use them in their products. It's a bit scary to think about the government and these large food and agriculture companies being in cahoots, but the sad truth is that they are.

Speaking of unhealthy ingredients, don't even get me started on the High Fructose Corn Syrup ad campaign that we've all seen! I won't even give them the respect of posting a link to one of their ads. Talk about taking steps (more like marathons) in the wrong direction. Convincing kids that it's okay to drink fluorescent-colored bug juice "in moderation" is deceptive and unethical.

And now I shall step down from my soap box....

.... and confess that I've had three cups of coffee and only about two cups of water today. So much for my clean eating commitment.

bedside reading and cleaning shop

I'm off to Florida for a few days and have packed some books to help me stay on track with my eating during my trip. While my parents' kitchen there is fully equipped to cater to a full dinner party, we typically eat out, and I've been known to partake in a poolside wine cocktail or two (in a shatterproof glass, of course).

I've been following the guidelines in Kris Carr's Crazy Sexy Diet for a couple of weeks now, but just got over a surprise three-day bender that has left me feeling puffy and tired. If you've never heard of Kris Carr, just check out her YouTube channel. Her positive spirit literally jumps out and slaps you in the face, and that's saying a lot coming from someone who was given an incurable cancer diagnosis seven years ago. To give you an idea for Kris' disposition, she sometimes spells it canSer, just to poke fun at it. And how cute is her pink hair? The general idea of the Crazy Sexy Diet is to eat more fresh vegetables and other healthful foods as close to their natural states as possible, all while eliminating (or eating very little of) animal products - this includes dairy and fish -, caffeine, alcohol, sugar and gluten. Pretty simple.

What I like about Kris, and particularly her book, is that she doesn't expect anyone to be perfect. Instead, she just recommends that you "lean into" this lifestyle. Try to eat 50% more of the good stuff, even 40%, or 30%. You'll feel better, sleep better, look better, and your body will thank you for helping to reduce inflammation and the toxins flowing through your system. I don't know how far I'll take the Crazy Sexy lifestyle, but if the timing is right sometime this spring I am going to try to do the CSD 21 day adventure cleanse.

The Crazy Sexy Diet also inspired me to invest in a juicer, which I've been having a lot of fun with. I plan to share a few of my successes and (many) failures with this new appliance soon.

My second book is Jonathan Safran Foer's Eating Animals. I've only made my way through the first chapter but I'm already hooked. I'm a fan of his fiction writing, but since this book is a memoir, the family anecdotes he tells really add a special, personal tone. I can't wait to dig into this on the plane.

Have a healthy Tuesday!