I have a confession, if you will. While once I was a carnivorous, wild beast of a cook, feasting on delicious animal fats and hearty meat, cheese, and eggs (evidence here)... those days are gone. At least for a little while. Fear not omnivorous friends! I'll continue to post recipes that can have meat, cheese, eggs, or what have you added to them. But for my health's sake, I've decided to go with a largely meat and dairy free diet for a bit. (I won't freak out if some animal product slips in unknowingly or in a pinch).
I'm not here to tell you that you should do the same either. It's purely a personal choice, and the way I've been enjoying eating for almost a month now. It's nice sometimes to step out of one's comfort zone and do something you thought you never (literally NEVER) thought you would or could do. So when you see recipes on this site that use Earth Balance (a vegan butter substitute), or vegan "cheese," please feel free to substitute the real deal. You'll also see some interesting ingredients you might not eat as a part of your regular diet- don't be afraid! In the past three weeks I have discovered that chia seeds, hemp seeds, sea vegetables, and nutritional yeast are awesome additions to any diet and any chef's pantry. Check out the links for more information on these power foods.
Have I lost you yet? Leaping lizards, you're still here?! Then let me tell you about my breakfast obsession. It's big, green, and it's ALIVE! Have you heard of the craze over green smoothies? Google it. It's rampant. And no wonder! Did you know that you can shove handfuls of greens like spinach and even kale into your fruit smoothie and not even TASTE IT?! It's true. The smoothie I made this morning was one of my favorites so far. Behold: The Ecto Cooler...
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| Okay, so it's not the ectoplasmic mucus that Slimer leaves behind in Ghostbusters, but remember that Hi-C juice box?! |
2 handfuls of baby spinach
1 ripe fresh or frozen banana
1/3 cup frozen raspberries
1 cup frozen pineapple
1 Tbsp nut butter (I used almond)
1 cup cold water
Ice cubes (optional)
Combine all ingredients except ice in blender. Blend the heck out of it until it looks like the delicious slime above. Add ice to thicken if needed and blend again. This makes about a 24 oz. smoothie, or one serving.
Just in time for Halloween, this concoction looks disgusting, sounds scary, but tastes amazing and gives me enough energy that I don't even need my morning coffee! Adding a healthy fat like almond butter, ground flax seeds, or hemp seeds gives it staying powder to hold off your appetite until lunchtime. I have had a variation of this smoothie every single morning for the past three weeks, and I'm just getting started. The key is to raid the frozen fruit section of your local Whole Foods or Trader Joe's, and you're always ready for a new combination.
Have you ever tried to go vegetarian/vegan/primal/paleo/etc?
How did it go?
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