Spring Greens and Beet Salad with Creamy Maple Dijon Dressing

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Another week has come and gone.  Seriously?  How is it that time is going so quickly lately?  Last weekend my SIL had her baby girl (She's an absolute doll!  Red hair like mama.), and my husband's coworker had her little boy as well.  An old family friend's wife also had twins this last week.  This has truly been the week of the baby, and it made me stop in my tracks and look at little Ben who is not so little anymore.

At 8.5 months, Ben's personality is growing bigger every day.  He started crawling a few weeks ago and is on the move constantly.  Baby gates and serious baby proofing need to happen very soon in our house.  All of the new babies in the world really made me stop this week and savor those baby snuggles and admire Ben's tiny hands squishing his food, and wrapping around my finger when he nurses.  These moments will be gone before I know it.

We have a busy busy month coming up.  I have mostly been a SAHM, but have been kept on by my company as a temporary on-call employee when they get busy and need extra help.  I got a call from my boss last week to see if I would be up for going across the state to the Spokane office to help them with some organizing before the office has tenant improvements.  A company sponsored trip to go home and see family (and work a little I suppose)?  Heck yes!  I'm picking up a rental car tomorrow, and then Sunday Ben and I leave to go to Spokane for the week.  I'm lucky to have a mama willing and happy to watch Ben while I work for the week, and I'm excited to see some of my old coworkers.

After being in Spokane next week, we'll head back home and then spend the 4th of July holiday with Kevin's family on vacation in Ocean Shores, which is 2 hours away.  After we get back from that we'll turn around and leave the next day to go back to Spokane.  Ben will be staying with my parents over that next weekend while I go to Lake Chelan with my girlfriends for a friend's bachelorette celebration.  This will be the first time I'm away from Ben for longer than a half a day.  I'm sure I'll have a wonderful time relaxing and celebrating with my girls, but I know I'll miss him so much.

After the Lake Chelan weekend I'll go back to Spokane and spend the week there helping my hometown church with Vacation Bible School.  The next weekend Kevin will fly into Spokane and we will go to my friend's wedding and then Ben will be baptized on Sunday before we head back home.  It's a lot of travel, and I'm hoping Ben does well with the drives.  We've driven to Spokane once before a few months ago, and he did great as long as we had frequent stops to eat and get some wiggles out.

Anyways, you came here for the beet salad right?

Beets don't tend to be a very regular vegetable in our house, but when I get a craving for beets, I just have to have them!  Beets are high in phytonutrients and anti-oxidants, and have anti-inflammitory properties.  Beets are also high in folate, manganese, potassium, and copper.  I always think when we get plant-based cravings, it is our bodies needing an extra bit of something that that food is high in.  So, I picked up some beets, steamed them in my InstantPot, and enjoyed them in this salad all week.

Spring Greens and Beet Salad
with Creamy Maple Dijon Dressing
Time: 10 minutes 
Servings: 1 serving

Ingredients:
        1 beet - peeled, steamed, and thinly sliced
        4-6 cups mixed spring greens
        3-6 radishes, thinly sliced
        1/2 - 1 cup cooked brown lentils (you can sub in any bean you'd like)
        small handful of pecans (optional)
        Dressing:
            1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
            1 Tbsp almond butter (tahini, cashew butter, or sunflower seed butter would work well too)
            1 Tbsp pure maple syrup
            1-2 Tbsp water to thin

Instructions:
1.)  Prep all ingredients.  See my notes below on how to steam the beets and cook the lentils quickly in the InstantPot.
2.)  In a small bowl mix together the dressing ingredients until smooth and creamy.  Add in the lentils and stir to coat.
3.)  In a large bowl layer the spring greens, beets, and radishes.  Then top with the lentil dressing mixture.  Sprinkle some chopped pecans on top if desired.  Enjoy immediately.

Amy's Notes:
I would suggest steaming several beets and cooking a couple cups of lentils ahead of time to have in salads all week.  If you do this, store the ingredients separately and prep just before eating the salad.

To steam beets - Remove the tops and bottom root with a knife, wash thoroughly.  Place a steamer basket in the InstantPot with the whole beets and 1-2 cups of water.  Set to cook on high for 15 minutes.  Do a quick release or a natural pressure release when the timer is done.  Allow to cool, peel, slice, and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.

To cook the lentils - Rinse and pick through 2 cups of dry brown lentils.  Place then in the InstantPot with 3 1/2-4 cups of water.  Set to cook on high for 10 minutes, and allow for a natural pressure release.  Drain any excess liquid and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.

You can really tweak this recipe to be just how you like it.  Change your type of greens, use golden beets instead of red, use chickpeas instead of lentils, use honey mustard instead of Dijon.  The point is, make a salad and enjoy it!  I sometimes get lax about having a salad every day, but if I change it up from week to week with yummy recipes like this, I really look forward to my greens at lunch.

Health and Happiness,

Amy

Simple Greens and Quinoa Salad

I've been going for simple lately.  After having some tummy issues a few weeks ago (more on that in another post), I've been sensitive to more exotic foods.  To get my system back in normal digesting order, I've been sticking to simple recipes.

Since my actual volume of food I've been able to eat has decreased, I have been having a bit more calorie dense foods, such as nuts, dried fruit, and avocados.  For those of you who are following Dr. Fuhrman's more aggressive weight loss plan, try subbing 1/2 of the avocado in this recipe for the same volume of defrosted and mashed green peas.  You'll still get that avocado flavor, but with less calories.

The recipe below has been my go-to salad for the last week or so.  It has 5 ingredients!  5!  It doesn't get more simple than that.  Plus, I can prep and mix all of this with a cutting board, paring knife, fork, and large bowl.  I'm all for less to clean!

Simple Greens and Quinoa Salad
Time: 5 minutes
Servings: 2 main dish servings, or 4-5 side salad servings
Print this recipe!

Berry Poppy Seed Dressing

My two favorite parts of a grocery store are the produce section (for obvious reasons) and the bulk bin section.  Bulk bins are getting much more popular these days and carry just about everything including dried beans and legumes, whole grains and flours, nuts and seeds, as well as spices.

Buying items in bulk is great for getting as little or as much as you want of an item.  I also appreciate how it cuts down on packaging for sustainability reasons.  I find that when I shop in the bulk bins I save money on items in each section, but particularly on beans, whole grains, and spices.  When bought by the bag, beans can cost $2-$3 per pound, whereas I find them in the bulk bin around $0.50-$1 per pound.  Grains are about the same ratio in price differences as beans.  Spices are often where the biggest difference is.  Some tiny spice jars can cost $4-$8 depending on what you are getting, but in the bulk section can be a quarter of those prices or less.

Some of my favorite items from each section that are staples in our house are as follows (because I love making lists!):

• Dried beans/legumes: pinto beans, small red beans, garbanzo beans, black beans, black eyed peas, brown lentils, red lentils, yellow and green split peas
• Whole grains: rolled oats, steel cut oats, brown rice varieties, wild rice, pearl barley, millet, quinoa
• Flours: whole wheat flour, whole wheat pastry flour, chickpea flour, almond flour, smelt flour
• Nuts and Seeds: (all raw) cashews, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, chia seeds, hemp hearts, and ground flaxseeds
• Spices: cumin, coriander, chili powder, cayenne pepper, dried basil, dried parsley, dried thyme, dried rosemary, dried oregano, dried ginger, dry mustard, onion powder, garlic powder

Last time I loaded up in the bulk bin section, I thought I would try something new and decided to get poppy seeds.  I thought a sweeter poppy seed dressing sounded wonderful and remembered that I had froze some raspberries and blackberries a week ago when they were on sale at the produce market.

Berry Poppy Seed Dressing
Time: 5 minutes
Servings: 6 servings

Ingredients:
        1 cup frozen mixed berries
        1 cup unsweetened plant-based milk
        1/2 cup raw cashews
        4 pitted dates
        3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
        1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
        1/2 tsp ground dried ginger
        1/2 tsp dry mustard
        1/4 tsp cinnamon

        1/4 cup poppy seeds

Instructions:
1.)  In a high-powered blender, blend together all of the ingredients except the poppy seeds.
2.)  Blend until smooth and creamy, adding additional plant-based milk to reach desired consistency.
3.)  Add in the poppy seeds and blend on low to mix.
4.)  Serve chilled over a salad or as a sweet, tangy dip.

Amy's Notes:
In my recipe I used a mixture of frozen raspberries and blackberries.  You could also use blueberries, huckleberries, strawberries, or any mixture of your favorite berries.  I also used unsweetened soy milk, but feel free to use whatever plant-based milk you like best.  Because of the sweeter nature and the acidic ingredients in the recipe it has a slight yogurt-tangy flavor.

For my pictured salad below, I served the berry poppy seed dressing over a bed of green lettuce (from my neighbor's garden, score!), shaved carrots, fresh strawberries, sliced radishes, diced avocado, hemp hearts, and ground flaxseed.  Yum!

Health and Happiness,

Amy

Cilantro and Hemp Seed Dressing

I love Mexican flavors.  My husband will tell you that if anyone mentions Mexican food I immediately perk up and ask where and when are we going, often not dropping the subject until the date has been set.  Since starting the ETL 6-Week  Challenge last week, I realize that there probably isn't much for me to eat at a Mexican restaurant for the next few weeks.  Cheese comes on just about everything, the chips are deep fried, and the sauces, salsas, and beans are heavily oversalted.

BUT, that won't stop me from making dishes with some Mexican flavors at home!  Cilantro is a fantastic herb that can go well with many different cuisines, and I love it in Mexican dishes.  Since on the 6-Week ETL Challenge I have been eating big big salads and lots of steamed veggies daily, I thought I would make a yummy cilantro dressing to use throughout the week.

This recipe features hemp seeds (also known as hemp hearts), which are small seeds from a commercial hemp plant (related to marijuana plant family, but with none of the inebriating side effects).  I buy my hemp seeds in a large bag from Costco and I store it in my fridge next to my ground flaxseed and chia seeds.  To find hemp seeds where you live try Costco or your local health food store.  They can often be found in the bulk bin at the grocery store as well.  If all else fails, order them on Vitacost or another health/bulk food website.

If you don't have access to hemp seeds and HAVE to have this dressing right this minute, the hemp seeds can easily be replaced with raw cashews or raw sunflower seeds.

Cilantro and Hemp Seed Dressing
Time: 5 minutes
Servings: 4-6 servings

Here I enjoyed the Cilantro and Hemp Seed Dressing drizzled over
steamed green beans and topped with raw sunflower seeds.
Best way to get your 1 lb. of raw veggies in a day!

Ingredients:
        1/2 cup hulled hemp seeds
        1/2 cup chickpeas
        1/2 to 1 cup water
        1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro
        2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
        2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
        1 Tbsp your favorite no-salt seasoning blend (optional)
        1 tsp minced garlic
        1 tsp chili powder

Instructions:
1.)  In a high speed blender blend all ingredients starting with 1/2 cup water until smooth and creamy.
2.)  Add more water and blend for the desired consistency.
3.)  Serve on top of steamed vegetables, or chill and serve as a veggie dip or salad dressing.

Amy's Notes:

Now, some people don't have a taste for cilantro, and that's fine, but for those of you who do, check out some awesome reasons to add cilantro to your repertoire today!

• Cilantro helps detox heavy metals from the body
• Cilantro is available all year round in most markets
• Cilantro is inexpensive at usually less than $1 per bunch
• Cilantro is an herb that goes well with Mexican (my fav!), Thai (another fav!), and Indian cuisines (another fav!... ok I just love all food!)
• Eating cilantro can have anti-anxiety activity

On another note, check out the gorgeous lavender I harvested from my garden earlier this week!
Some of it ended up in a vase in my kitchen and the rest is drying in bundles to be saved for tea and aromatic crafts.

Health and Happiness,

Amy

Orange Carrot Cashew Dressing

Have I mentioned that I am making my way through Dr. Fuhrman's new book, The End of Dieting? Probably not.  I'm a gruelingly slow reader and I often cheat abandon take breaks in the middle of books to read short fun things on the side.  Lately I've been switching between The End of Dieting and Are You there, Vodka? It's me, Chelsea, by Chelsea Handler (hilarious!).

Although I have read Eat to Live (thrice?), Super Immunity (twice), and watched most of Dr. Fuhrman's PBS specials, I felt like I wanted a refresher with The End of Dieting book.  It has been just that: motivation to get my butt back into gear with eating more vegetables.  A lot of times I get caught up in the "Oh! This is vegan?" or "Awesome! That is plant-based?", that I forget to make it my focus to eat high nutrient-dense vegetables.  It has helped me to remember that, although foods like one cupful of dates is technically vegan and plant-based (which I have used this amount in a dessert recipe before, yikes!), it is a ton of sugar and I would get so many more nutrients AND feel fuller on a quarter of the calories and five times the volume of cooked and raw vegetables.

Do you find yourself falling into the "well I guess this is vegan and technically plant-based" trap?  What helps you to get motivated to start adding back in more veggies?

I'm a little over halfway through EoD, and I was inspired to make this dressing that is similar to one of Dr. Fuhrman's favorite dressings that he talks about in just about every book he has written. Rather than bothering to look up a recipe this morning, I just threw this together with what I had on hand and sounded good.  In the rush of the morning I let this dressing blend while I was chopping salad ingredients (kale, red cabbage, red onion, carrots, broccoli).  I stopped the blender to check the consistency and taste after a while, and O... M... G... this dressing is amazingly yummy and satisfying!  I just had to share it with you :)

*Note: I have provided an Amazon link to The End of Dieting book below.  If you happen to want to purchase it and you use my link, I get a tiny bit of money from the purchase, which goes towards a new camera for the blog that I have been saving up for.

Orange Carrot Cashew Dressing
Time: 5 minutes
Servings: 6-8 servings

Ingredients:
        1 orange, peeled
        1/2 cup raw cashews (sub white or cannellini beans for less fat)
        1/2 cup plant-based milk, more to thin
        1 raw carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
        2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
        2 tsp ginger paste, or 1 inch fresh ginger

Instructions:
1.)  Throw all of the ingredients into a high-speed blender and blend on high until smooth, adding plant-based milk to thin to your desired consistency.
2.)  Serve chilled as a dip or delicious salad dressing.

Amy's Notes:
Here is my salad from this afternoon that I topped off with the dressing.  I can't remember the last time I looked forward to a salad this much!

How was everyone's 4th of July holiday weekend?  I watched the Spokane fireworks from my downtown office balcony with some friends.

Crisp Cucumber Celery Salad

I swear, I come up with the best recipes when I'm in a rush!  I packed another salad-winner this morning for work and it hit the spot so well that I thought I should share it with you!

Crisp Cucumber Celery Salad
Time: 5 minutes
Servings: 1-2

Ingredients:
        Salad:
                3 celery stalks
                1/2 cucumber
                1/2 cup cooked beans/legumes (I used french lentils)
                1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley (fresh mint would also go well in this salad)
                Mixed Greens
        Dressing:
                1 Tbsp tahini (sesame seed paste)
                1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
                1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
                1+ Tbsp water (more to thin)
                1/4 tsp dried dill

Instructions:

1. Wash all produce very well.  Trim the edges of the celery and cut on the bias (aka in a pretty diagonal).  Cut the cucumber in half, then in quarters length-wise, then slice.
2. In a small bowl or container, add all of the dressing ingredients and stir thoroughly to mix.  Add more water to thin to the desired consistency.  
3.  Place the cucumber, celery, and beans/legumes in a medium sized container.  Pour the mixed dressing over the mixture and toss to coat well.  
4. Serve the cucumber and celery mixture by itself or on top of mixed salad greens.

Amy's Notes:

As I said above, I used french lentils in this salad, but feel free to use any bean or legume you have on hand.  You can, of course, add more beans/legumes if you desire.

Lately, I have been loving super simple, single-serve dressings like this one.  I like that it is quick to throw together and doesn't require the use of a blender.  If you like this one, make sure to check out my even more simple One-Two Dressing.

One-Two Dressing

I don't know why, but this work week seemed to drag on for me.  I had a really bad nights sleep Monday evening and it has seemed to throw off my whole week.  I had one of those nights that I kept throwing off the blanket being hot and sweaty, only to be freezing and grabbing for it again 10 minutes later.  The reason my mother would give me (the reasons she gives me for most things) is: hormones.  Growing up and even now, she would always tell me to "Blame it on hormones."  If I had a day where I just felt like crying - hormones.  If I felt forgetful or unfocused - hormones.  Even if I was clumsy and spilled food on my favorite shirt - hormones.

I don't think I want to blame my bad nights sleep fully on hormones this time.  Spring weather in the inland northwest is my least favorite of all.  It is nice that the weather gets warmer and sunnier, but it still seems to hang on hard to that winter chill.  Probably the reason for my hot sweat-then cold night of sleep was just Spring being Spring..... and hormones ;).

In an effort to catch up on my sleep, I've been going to bed decently early and sleeping in a bit more than usual, leaving little to no time to make or pack much of a lunch.  So, one morning this week I threw together in a large tupperware container some fresh spinach, a whole cucumber, and a whole avocado to be chopped and prepped at work.  For the dressing, I grabbed my jar of almond butter, scooped a bit into my to-go dressing container, topped off with balsamic vinegar, and ran out of the door.

To my surprise, it ended up being a dang good salad!  The best part was the dressing, so I thought I would share with you guys how simple and easy it is to make it.

One-Two Dressing
Time: 1 minute (Ha! Not even!)
Servings: 1

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Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp almond butter
• 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1+ Tbsp water to thin

This was a salad that I made for a good friend and I before we went on an outing together today.  In the salad was mixed greens, shredded carrots, thinly sliced red onions, and french lentils with my one-two dressing.  Yum!

Instructions:

1. Put the almond butter and balsamic vinegar into a small, airtight tupperware container with about 1 Tbsp of water.
2. Secure the lid and shake the tupperware.  Open, and assess if you want to add more water.  Continue to add water if needed and shake until your dressing is smooth and the consistency that you like.
3. Serve on top of a green salad.

Amy's Notes:

I couldn't believe how simple, easy, and delicious this dressing was.  It was easy as one, two... yep, that is it.  These two ingredients go so well together to give a nice balance of savory and tangy.  For those of you who don't have a high powered blender, or don't want to make a big batch of dressing that goes bad before you can use it, give this dressing a try!  The fact that this dressing takes just seconds to prepare (and gives your arm a little work out (haha!) makes it that much better!

Here was the salad that I had earlier this week with this great dressing.  Spinach, avocado, cucumbers and one-two dressing.

How much time do you spend prepping your lunch each day?

Cranberry Dijon Dressing

I hope everyone's week is going well.  We have had a busy whirlwind of the last week or so!  Kevin and I finally (FINALLY!) joined a local gym last week.  We have put this off for a while, (1) because we are still working on paying school loans and trying to save money wherever we can, and (2) we did not want to be part of that notorious "New Year's Resolution" group that get gym memberships and crowd up the gyms at the beginning of the year, but soon lose motivation and get snickered at by the regular gym people.

So far, I love it!  It is a fairly large gym, but not so much so that you feel intimidated.  They have an approachable weight room, mats for stretching and floor exercises, an open cardio area, several basketball courts, a cycling room, a large studio room for Zumba, and a lovely relaxing yoga studio.  I have been doing 3-4 days on, 1-2 days off.  I also alternate between yoga days, and weight and cardio training days.  I have felt moderately sore in certain areas, but the yoga helps a lot to keep me from feeling too stiff.

Since we have started a routine of going to the gym in the evenings (I don't know if we will ever be morning workout people!), much of my nights are eaten up by working out, showering, heating up frozen leftovers or making a quick salad, reading or knitting, and then bedtime.  Yesterday, however, was a rest day and I had one of my best girlfriends over for dinner.  I made us a lovely salad with baked sweet potatoes on the side.  For the salad I decided to create a new dressing (Yay!  Finally a new recipe!).  Hope you enjoy:

Cranberry Dijon Dressing

Servings: 2 cups dressing, approximately 8-10 servings
Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup filtered water
• 1/2 cup raw almonds
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries (craisins)
• 2 Tbsp dijon mustard
• 1 Tbsp miso
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

Instructions:

1. Place all ingredients into a high speed blender and blend until smooth and creamy.
2. If the dressing is too thick for your liking, add water by the Tablespoon and blend until you have reached your desired consistency.
3. Serve as a sweet and tangy dip, or on a nutritious salad of your choice.
4. Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week or so.  Add more water and shake if the dressing thickens after being stored.

Amy's Notes:

I used this dressing on the salad pictured below, which contained mixed salad greens, broccoli, carrots, red onion, chopped almonds, raw pumpkin seeds, and craisins.  So Yummy!
Also, please forgive the lower quality of pictures!  I have been working with my iPad camera, and have been testing out different Photo editing apps to get the best quality for my time and money.  Remember that all my images are Pin-able now too!

Orange Ginger Dipping Sauce

Happy Hump Day to everyone!  This week seems to be going by fairly quickly for me.  Most of our free time this week has been spent relaxing at home watching Netflix or reading on the couch.  Yesterday evening we met up with some friends at our regular bar that sells pints of Alaskan beer for $1, a poor recent-graduate's dream hehe!

Afterwards, we brought the party over to one of Kevin's favorite restaurants in town, Flamin' Joes, a place that specializes in spicy wings.  We've been there over a dozen times in the last couple of months, but this time Kevin finally decided to take their "Code Red Challenge", also known as the "Widow-Maker" (comforting, I know...).  He successfully ate a dozen of their hottest wings in 4 minutes, with a 4 minute waiting period afterwards of not eating or drinking anything.  While this awesome culinary feat won him a t-shirt and his picture on the wall, I couldn't help thinking how terrible this is for him.

Late last night Kevin woke up with horrible stomach pains: "Like someone punched me in the stomach."  I felt so terrible for him and tried suggesting anything I could think of to help elevate the pain.  I finally settled on getting him a glass of water with a bunch of lemon juice in it.  My thoughts were to hopefully reduce the acidity in his stomach with lemon juice, which is acidic outside of the body, but becomes alkaline within.  It made him feel slightly better, but he still tossed and turned all night.

This whole event got me thinking this morning about what foods really do to us inside of our bodies.  When you think about the whole concept of eating, it is actually quite strange.  We are making the conscious decision to take a foreign object, which was once a functioning organism, and put it into our bodies to utilize the caloric energy and nutrients for ourselves.  When someone gets a tattoo, or their hair cut or dyed, usually a lot of thought goes into the permanence of it, and how it is going to affect you in the long-run.  But with food, most of the time we don't think twice about what we put into our bodies or how it is going to affect us long-term.  Nothing can be more permanent than what physically builds us.  Well, just some food for thought!  Now on to the food....

Ingredients:

• 1 c garbanzo beans
• 1 orange peeled
• 1/2 c peanut butter
• 1 to 4 Tbsp rice vinegar (to taste)
• 2 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce
• 2 tsp minced ginger (more to taste)
• red pepper flakes, as desired
• 1 tsp sesame oil (optional)
• non-dairy milk to thin
• sesame seeds

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in a blender, except for the red pepper flakes and almond milk.
2. Blend on high until smooth, adding almond milk to thin if needed to obtain desired consistency. 
3. Lastly, add the red pepper flakes as desired, and give it a quick stir in the blender.
4. Serve chilled and topped with sesame seeds as a dip, or thin with a bit more almond milk and use as a salad dressing.

Amy's Notes:

• Depending on how tangy you like your dips or dressings to be, add as much rice vinegar as you would like.
• 2 tsp minced ginger gave me the small hint of flavor that I was looking for, but others that are more crazy about it can make it more of a stand-out flavor by adding one or two more teaspoons.
• I added about 1/3 cup of almond milk to reach the consistency that is pictured.  I'll be adding a bit more to some of the leftover sauce to create more of a dressing to have on a salad this afternoon.
• This recipe makes a significant amount, so I would suggest maybe trying out a half of the recipe.
• I enjoyed my dipping sauce with some spring rolls I made for lunch yesterday.

Sweet and Savory Wheatberry Salad

Oh my goodness!  I can't believe it has been so long since my last post!  Instead of listing the excuses, I'm going to just get down to updates of my life!  Since I last posted we have gotten a bunch done on wedding stuff including making the display cake, and making and sending out the invites.

My mom has made our display/cut cake for the wedding day and froze it.  Its definitely not enough to feed all of our guests, so we are getting Costco cakes to serve.  I think she did a wonderful job and it looks so professional!  We calculated it out to cost about $20, whereas a cake this size professionally done would be maybe $200.  (Please note that this is NOT nutritiarian food!) Here are a few pictures:

The cake with the base frosting and ribbon encircling.

The cake with all of the detail: large shells on bottom,
swirling lines on the large tier, and pearl drops between the layers.

We have also gotten all of the invites sent out and have already been receiving RSVPs back from those awesome "on-the-ball" people.  Here is our invite that April, one of my bridesmaids who is wonderful at calligraphy made, in which the original was copied and reprinted.  Everyone I've talked to so far has mistaken it for handwritten.  For April's sake, she is very happy she didn't have to make over 80 handwritten invites! Obviously for the sake of privacy, I have blurred out the addresses.  In the reprint of it the red and blue were a bit darker.

Now on to the real FOOD!  I was so happy to get invited by Shelby from Everyday Vegan Girl to join in her blog party that she has recently created with Carrie from Carrie On Vegan and Gabby from Veggie Nook (all are great blogs and you should check them out!).  This is the first ever "Healthy Vegan Friday", I hope it is a success, and I think I will continue to do this every Friday!  Hope you enjoy!

Sweet and Savory Wheatberry Salad

Ingredients:

• Dressing:
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 2/3 cup almond milk
• 1/2 cup almond butter
• 1 lemon juiced (~3 Tbsp) 
• Salad:
• 1 cup uncooked wheatberries
• 1/2 cup craisins (dried cranberries)
• 1 c celery, cut in half lengthwise and roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup red onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup slice almonds
• 2 cups roasted brussels sprouts, quartered (recipe here)
• 4 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped
• pepper to taste

Directions:

1. In a blender, combine all ingredients for the dressing and blend until smooth and creamy.  This will make more dressing than you may desire on the salad, so I suggest storing the rest and using later.
2. Cook the wheatberries on the stovetop:
• rinse the wheatberries in a strainer
• place them in a medium sized saucepan and cover with at least 2 inches of water
• bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer
• the wheatberries will be done between 1 and 1 1/2 hours
• test the wheatberries to be soft, yet chewy before you take them off the stove
• many other websites suggest soaking the wheatberries overnight, but I didn't find this necessary
• pour the wheatberries into a strainer and run cold water over them to cool
3. In a large (seriously, a large bowl), stir together the wheatberries, brussels sprouts, craisins, celery, red onion, and sliced almonds.
4. Add the chopped spinach and stir well to combine.
5. Finally, add the sweet almond dressing and stir, being cautious not to add too much.  Once the salad is well coated, pepper to taste and serve chilled. 

Amy's Notes:  The dressing recipe above definitely makes too much dressing than the salad will need, so make sure not to dump it all on top before stirring it in slowly.  The dressing is great on other salads as well.  I would suggest in order to save time to make the wheatberries and roasted brussels sprouts ahead of time.  Also, this recipe keeps really well in the fridge for up to 5 days.  I think it would be the perfect dish for a picnic or BBQ.... or lunches all week like I've been having it.

Do you have one day a week that you strictly eat vegan?  Are you an everyday vegan?  Are you toying with the idea of going vegan and why?

Vegan Ranch Dressing

I am on a salad dressing roll this month!  Ok, so this is my third one, but since we're only halfway through the month, I'd say that's a lot!  Find my other two dressings featured this month with Vegan 1000 Island at this link, and Miso Ginger Dressing at this link.  Since corresponding with a few new E2Lers, several have asked if ranch dressing is ok to have on their salads since that is their favorite.   My response to this was to extremely limit full fat dressings and shoot to make as many homemade dressings as you can.  Here is my ultimate solution to those of you who want your ranch and eat it too!

Ingredients: (please note that all spices are the dried versions, and not fresh herbs)

• 1 cup raw cashews
• 3/4 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp dill weed
• 1 tsp parsley
• 1 tsp basil
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt (optional)
• 1 tsp nutritional yeast (optional)

Directions:

1. In a microwave, heat a bowl with two cups of water until the water is steaming.  Place the raw cashews into the steaming water and allow to soak for 5-10 minutes before draining the liquid.
2. In a blender, blend the cashews, non-dairy milk, lemon juice, and rice vinegar until creamy and smooth.
3. Next, add all of the dried spices and herbs to the blender, and blend for several seconds.
4. Taste test with a carrot or celery stick and adjust spices to your liking.
5. Store in an airtight container in the fridge and enjoy on salads or as a veggie dip!

Amy's notes:  I like to soak my raw cashews before blending them because I don't have a professional blender and it needs a bit of help processing everything, but if you feel that your blender can handle it, soaking is not necessarily needed.  As a substitute for cashews, raw sunflower seeds or raw pine nuts will work just as well.  For new E2Lers, please keep in mind that while this dressing is much much better for your than traditional Ranch, its base is raw cashews.  If you are limiting your consumption of nuts to 2 oz a day, I would say 3-4 tablespoons should be your limit.

Since I am on a salad dressing rampage this month, are there any salad dressings that you used to love pre-E2L that you would like for me to try to recreate?

Vegan 1000 Island Dressing

I have finally found a way to do it!  I've made 1000 Island dressing that is completely vegan, oil-free, and nutritarian!  I am a very happy camper right now.  Here is one of my new favorite salad dressings, hope you enjoy!

Vegan 1000 Island Dressing

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup unsweetened alternative milk (more to thin)
• 1 cup raw cashews
• 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
• 10-15 dill pickle chips (more or less to taste)
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 Tbsp date sugar (or 1-2 pitted dates)
• 1/4 cucumber, peeled
• 1/4 cucumber, peeled and finely chopped
• 1/4 small red onion, finely chopped
• 1-3 radishes, finely chopped

Directions:  

1. In a medium sized bowl, heat two cups of water in a microwave until steaming.  Place the raw cashews into the steaming water and allow to sit for 10-20 minutes.  Drain.  
2. In a blender combine the soaked and drained cashews, alternative milk, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, pickles, onion powder, garlic powder, tomato paste, date sugar, and the 1/4 peeled cucumber.  Blend until smooth and creamy.  
3. Add more dill pickles for more zing, and add more alternative milk to acquire the consistency you desire.  
4. Scoop the blended dressing into a medium sized bowl.  Add the finely chopped vegetables and stir well.  Store the dressing in an airtight container in the fridge.

Amy's Notes:  I adapted this recipe from the 1000 Island dressing found in Dr. Fuhrman's book Eat to Live.  I've been loving this salad dressing all week, so I decided to make a large batch (what the recipe above will make).  I would suggest that you make half of the recipe before you make the larger one.  Soaking the cashews in hot water softens them up a bit to blend better in the blender.  You can also replace the cashews with 1/2 cup of cashew butter.

One of my old SAD (Standard American Diet) favorites used to be a big savory Rueban with sauerkraut, rye bread, and corned beef.  Oh, and of course, dripping with 1000 Island.  I think I feel a Vegan Rueban recipe coming soon... :)

What salad dressings are your favorite?  Are there any salad dressings you used to love that you'd like to try to "Nutritarian-ize"?

Ginger Kale Slaw

We have been having beautiful weather this week in Spokane this week!  There are clouds here and there with a bit of wind, but other than that it's been warm and sunny.  What better to do on a sunny Saturday than to go to a block party.  Our neighbors behind our house are hosting the blog party, so it is just a hop over the fence away.

Since starting the 6-week Eat To Live Challenge this week, I have been trying to have a large salad with some beans, veggies, and a healthy dressing every day for lunch.  Two days ago I decided to try to recreate one of my favorite dressings from a local fast food teriaki restaurant called The Noodle Express.  It is a thicker creamy ginger dressing that is very fragrant and has a wonderful satisfying zing.  I've never asked what goes into this dressing, but I'm sure it's not very nutritarian approved.  My re-creation attempt actually wasn't too bad.  My mom even dug into the salad while walking through the kitchen and thought it was just great.  She suggested that I make the salad for the block party tonight and to make it perfect as I do, so I thought, "Time for another recipe blog post!"  Hope you enjoy...

Ingredients:

• Miso Ginger Dressing: 
• 1/4 cup white miso (low sodium if you can find it)
• 1 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce or tamari
• 1/4 cup filtered water
• 1/4 c tahini (almond butter would work too)
• 2 inches of fresh ginger, peeled (more or less to taste)
• 2 Tbsp agave (honey works too)
• 1/2 lemon, juiced (more to taste)
• Kale Slaw:
• 1 large bunch kale, stems removed, washed, and very well chopped
• 1/4 red cabbage, sliced thinly and chopped well
• 1 can white beans, drained and rinsed (~2 cups homemade)
• 1/2 cucumber, cut in half lengthwise and sliced thinly
• 1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced
• sesame seeds (optional)

Directions:

• Dressing:

1. Place all ingredients into a high-powered blender or food processor.
2. Blend until creamy and smooth.
3. Adjust amounts of soy sauce, ginger, and lemon to taste.

Salad spinner I got my mom for Mother's Day.  We use it all the time!



My nifty way to chop kale small without as much mess!

• Slaw:

1. De-stem and wash kale.
2. Place in a large bowl and use kitchen scissors to cut the kale into fairly small pieces.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir.
4. Pour in the entire ginger dressing and stir well.
5. Serve cold with sesame seeds sprinkled on top for presentation.

Amy's Notes:  Make sure to taste the dressing as you adjusting the lemon, soy sauce, and ginger to your taste.  Remember that a little ginger can go a long way if you are not a big fan of it.  I used a salad spinner to wash and dry my kale.  If you don't have one yet and plan to be eating many salads (as you should be!), I would highly recommend getting one.  They are great!  I used scissors to chop my kale into very small pieces, but you can easily do this with a large knife and cutting board instead.  The dressing made for this recipe can obviously go on any type of salad and not just the slaw I made here.  I know I'm going to want to put it on more salads than just this!

What non-nutritarian foods from restaurants do you miss eating?  Have you ever tried to recreate a Plant-Strong version?