Veggie Mexican Bowl

Ok y'all - this is a really good recipe. Promise.

My hubby asked me to make this every week. It's super easy, even he could make it ;)

An added bonus - it's really healthy. Full of fiber, protein, vitamins and nutrients. Great if you are trying to lower cholesterol or lipids.
It's dairy free, gluten free, and vegan. Even though we aren't completely vegan, we try to eat lots of vegan food and mostly avoid dairy and animal products. Try making one of your meals vegetarian every week. I bet you'll end up eating more veggies!

I came up with this because I wanted to eat at Moe's, but I was already at the grocery store, and figured I'd try to make a burrito bowl (minus the tortilla).

Grocery List:

• Brown Rice
• 1 Cucumber (Chopped in small pieces)
• 1 Avocado (Chopped in small pieces)
• 1 Bunch Cilantro (Chopped)
• 1 Can Olives (Chopped)
• 1 Can Black Beans (with or without sauce)
• 1 Jar Salsa

Cook the brown rice. (boil 2 1/4c. water, then add 1 c. brown rice for 30-45 minutes)
Add the brown rice to the bottom of the bowl.
Add your toppings (chopped cucumber, avocado, cilantro, olives, beans and salsa). I used extra, extra cilantro because I love it. Plus, it has some amazing properties - aids in digestion, anti-inflammatory agents, and even reduces mood swings and cramping associated with PMS. Check out more about the amazing power of Cilantro! Here's another article on cilantro and detoxing.

Easy enough?

Happy health!

I ate it with blue corn chips. YUM                            Hubby ate his in about 5 minutes.

Eating Seasonally and Gazpacho Recipe

Eating seasonally allows you to eat the freshest and tastiest foods, based on where you live. It also helps you sync up with your environment. 
Historically, people grew and ate their own foods, and needed certain nutrients and foods depending on where they lived.  Their gardens and farms provided what they needed. For example, someone living in Alaska may not do so well eating a raw food diet (cooling foods), whereas someone in Jamaica, may feel better eating more raw fruits and veggies. 


Today, we can do that with local farmers markets and growing veggies in our garden. Though we can get just about any food we want from anywhere in the world, it's good to eat locally as much as possible. 
Next time you're grocery shopping, notice where your produce comes from. Try to buy locally - or at least from the US. It will limit your options, but is an interesting experiment. 


I love soup, but  it's getting a little warm to be eating hot soup. Gazpacho is a great option - it's a cold soup and won't make you feel like an inferno when your eating it in the middle of summer. 


Check out this super easy and delish Gazpacho soup recipe from  Grow It First Blog. It's a great way to get in your veggies. 

I could eat the whole pot.

http://growitfirst.blogspot.com/2012/03/grow-it-first-with-ck-worley-gazpacho.html

Gazpacho:

http://growitfirst.blogspot.com/2012/03/grow-it-first-with-ck-worley-gazpacho.html

One seeded tomato, cucumber and pepper chopped
Chopped celery, carrot, onion and bunch of parsley
2 chopped garlic cloves and a bunch of arugula chopped.
1/2 teaspoon of salt and pepper
Splash of olive oil, balsamic vinegar and worcestershire sauce.
Combine the ingredients together - cover and refrigerate 
*You can use any color pepper you’d like
*You don’t have to seed the tomato if you don’t want to
*Use scallions, red onion or sweet onions
*Optional: Add some sweet corn. 
*Use balsamic, red or white wine vinegar
*Refrigerate for a couple of hours or overnight 
*If you don’t like an ingredient - don’t use it


My little Lilly Kate loves vegetable soup!! Kid approved recipe 

"Dirty Dozen & Clean 15" - a guide to savvy shopping

According to EWG.org, below is the list of "Dirty Dozen" and "Clean 15". The dirty dozen are the fruits and veggies with the most pesticide residue. Their website has a lot of great other tips and information. 

Tip: Eating fruits and veggies is more important than not eating them - so if all you have access to is conventionally grown (non-organic) - eat them anyway. This is just a guide to help you in your shopping. Buy organic when possible and affordable. More often than not, I can't bring myself to pay the $6 price tag for organic strawberries (though their price does decrease a little at the peak of their season). 

Do what you can. Do not obsess. 

Note: Corn is a highly genetically modified food (GMO). I recommend buying organic corn whenever possible. 

EWG's Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce

Dirty Dozen

Buy these organic

1

Apples

2

Celery

3

Strawberries

4

Peaches

5

Spinach

6

Nectarines
– imported

7

Grapes – imported

8

Sweet bell peppers

9

Potatoes

10

Blueberries
– domestic

11

Lettuce

12

Kale/collard greens

Clean 15

Lowest in Pesticide

1

Onions

2

Sweet Corn

3

Pineapples

4

Avocado

5

Asparagus

6

Sweet peas

7

Mangoes

8

Eggplant

9

Cantaloupe
- domestic

10

Kiwi

11

Cabbage

12

Watermelon

13

Sweet potatoes

14

Grapefruit

15

Mushrooms

Green Smoothie Time

Banana, Peach & Spinach Smoothie

Here's another green smoothie - it's creamy and really good!

As you eat more leafy green vegetables, you will experience great mental clarity, increased energy and better overall health. Smoothies are a really good and easy way to get in your veggies. Kale can sometimes be a difficult one for people to get used to in a smoothie, so try spinach. It has a milder flavor and is easier to disguise for those who aren't thrilled about drinking their greens.

Ingredients: 
1 banana
3/4 can of peaches (or more, or less) - can use fresh when they come in season again
3 tbsp. Hemp  seeds
Ice
1/2-1c. coconut milk
big handful of spinach or baby spring mix - 
Note: I love Organic Girl - it's always fresh. I have also used their 50/50, which is 50% spring mix, 50% spinach
water as needed
Blend

Baby approved!

 Who needs a milk mustache when you can have a green one?

Thanks for reading! For more information about how you can add leafy greens into your diet, email me at theplantbasedhealthcoach@gmail.com

Vegan Mexican "Pizza" Rollups

Here's a quick and easy dinner that kids and adults will love... 

Health perks:

• Low fat
• Low cholesterol
• Vegan
• Gluten Free

Grocery list:

Can of refried beans

Organic corn tortillas (I like 365 brand frozen tortillas - no GMO verified)

Can of olives

Avocados

Salsa 

Lettuce

Line a baking sheet with tin foil (for easy cleanup) Place the tortillas and spread the refried beans

Top with sliced olives and bake on 325 for about 10  minutes

Top with salsa (I used a mango salsa from Costco), avocado and lettuce 

Roll them up and eat them! Yum!

Save Time - Make Your Cooking Count

Most people don't have time to cook nutritious foods every day for every meal. That's why it's important to learn how to make your cooking count. When you cook foods, try to multi task and make multiple meals out of a few ingredients.

Here's some ideas of how to do this and make 2 meals in 60 minutes. (Vegetable Bean Soup and Black Bean & Quinoa Burgers with baked sweet potatoes)

Gather all of your ingredients

Chop all of your veggies

Boil 2 cups water and cook 1 cup quinoa for 10 minutes. 

Stick the sweet potatoes in the oven - (pierce them with a fork and cook 400 for about 45 min)

Put the chopped veggies in a big pan to saute for the soup and whatever other veggies left over in another pan for the burgers (I added kale because I had some extra)

Let them all cook at once and keep track of time (but even if you don't, you can't really mess up these dishes too badly). 

Once the quinoa is ready, follow the recipe to make the burgers. And add the rest of the ingredients to the soup pot. 

The more you practice cooking, the easier it becomes. 

I decided to food process some of the soup and sweet potatoes for the baby. 

Once it's pureed, put in ice cube trays, freeze, then take the cubes out and put in freezer bags. Store for up to a month. 

 Happy cooking!

Roasted Veggies 2 Way - Eggplant and Mushrooms

Eating vegetables can help you lose weight, lower cholesterol and feel more energized. They contain vitamins, minerals and fiber. Finding quick and easy  ways to incorporate vegetables into your diet is an important step towards better health! 

Just a little info on these powerful veggies...

Eggplant: 

• helps to lowers cholesterol, which improves heart health. 
• It contains an antioxidant, nasunin, which helps remove excess iron in the body (this is a good thing), and helps prevent joint damage by attacking free radicals. 

Mushrooms:

• have been used for thousands of years as a food and medicine
• Excellent source of potassium
• Rich in niacin, riboflavin and selenium
• Recent research has shown that white button mushrooms help reduce the risk of breast and prostate cancers!

Below are two recipes for roasted eggplant and mushrooms - the great thing is that they are quick and easy and cost effective. Both recipes are low fat, low sodium, good sources of protein, and vegan. They are no guilt meals. Gotta love that. 

Grocery List for both recipes: 1 large eggplant, 1 container mushrooms, 1 can garbanzo beans, 1 lemon, 1 package whole wheat pasta, 1 jar organic tomato sauce, Ezekiel or other whole grain bread

Roasted Eggplant and Mushroom Pasta

Slice the eggplant into 1" cubes and combine the eggplant and the carton of mushrooms into a casserole dish. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper and garlic powder. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. 

Serve with marinara sauce and whole wheat pasta. 

*I highly recommend Racconto Whole Wheat Pasta. It has 8 different WHOLE grains and 8 grams of protein per serving! You can buy it at Whole Foods. Yes, whole wheat pasta can take a little getting used to, but the more you eat more whole foods, the more your palette will change, and the better it will taste. 

Roasted Eggplant and Mushroom Sandwiches with Homemade Hummus

Slice the eggplant into 1" cubes and combine the eggplant and the carton of mushrooms into a casserole dish. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper and garlic powder. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. 

Serve on Ezekiel bread with hummus and sliced cucumbers. 

Homemade Hummus: 

1 can of Garbanzo beans - rinsed - to a food processor. Add a clove of garlic and the juice of 1/2 lemon. Salt and pepper as desired. Blend until smooth. You can also add a few pieces of roasted eggplant to give it a  different flavor. 

Happy eating! 

Sources: 

Winston Craig, "Health Benefits of Mushrooms" http://www.vegetarian-nutrition.info/updates/mighty-mushrooms.php

www.eggplantnutrition.com 

Hummus recipe adapted from: Esselstyn, Caldwell. Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease

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