I am in a moment that I want to change my health. I know that by simply changing my health, a lot of my life that I want will come naturally. It's not weight loss that I want, but it's the life I've lost because of my weight. I need to move forward and walk the walk. I have a ton of knowledge about health, yet I have bad follow through. This blog will make a difference because hopefully I can make a difference in your life. .
Showing posts with label Spinach. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spinach. Show all posts

Friday, April 30, 2010



April 19th, 2010

For the final recipe on Day 7 of “Hip Hip for Hummus Week”, we visit a classic cheesy dip translated into a healthier (and vegan) alternative — spinach and artichoke hummus!
I thought it would be a fun experiment, but was surprised by how much I loved this recipe!  The classic spin-artichoke combination, paired with the rich tahini and lemon juice proved to be even more flavorful (in my opinion!) than the classic dip I’ve made for years!  And…you get to trade in a bunch of extra fiber for all of that cheese.  :)
I’m sure I’ll still continue to make both, but this is a wonderful alternative for whenever you get the spinach artichoke craving!  And, with no baking required, it can be whipped up in less than 5 minutes.  Perfect!
As a recap, here were the 7 recipes in “Hip Hip for Hummus Week”.  Enjoy!!


Spinach Artichoke Hummus
(Original recipe)
Ingredients:
  • 1 (15 oz.) can chickpeas, drained (juice reserved)
  • 4 cups fresh spinach, loosely packed
  • 1/2 cup artichoke hearts
  • 2 Tbsp. tahini
  • 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
  • 2 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
  • salt and pepper, to taste
Method:
Combine all ingredients in a food processor, and blend until smooth.  If you desire a thinner consistency, add in a few extra tablespoons of the reserved chickpea juice.
Ali’s Tip:
To give this an extra kick, I also tried adding in a seeded fresh jalapeno, and it was fantastic!  You could even add in half of a pepper if you’d like.
Also, to make this taste a little more like classic spinach-artichoke dip, just mix in 1/4 (or 1/2 cup) grated parmesan cheese.

Sweet Pea & Spinach Soup

Find it here: Kayotic Kitchen


Bowl of happiness. That’s what it is.
It’s slowly turning autumn here without it having been summer yet. I was robbed of my summer! But in all honesty, summer heat never did much for me. I just never cared a whole lot.
Autumn has always been my favorite season. Golden leaves twirling down, hearing the wind howl around the house, rain vigorously hitting the window pane while I’m curled up on the couch. I love those long, dark and quiet evenings with a cosy lit fireplace, lots of candles and the scent of vanilla incense. Just give me a good glass of wine, some dreamy soft background music and great company. That’s home and happiness to me.
But the best thing has to be the smoky flavors of autumn. The hearty soups and stews, the sturdy greens, the steaming hot potatoes, the big tins filled with copious amounts of crisp, roasted vegetables. Good, honest and wholesome food with, occassionally, a little modern twist.
Ingredients:
3 cups frozen peas
10 oz fresh spinach, rinsed
large onion
4 cups chicken broth
1 garlic clove
basil/mint
salt
Optional: leftover chicken or turkey
Optional: pasta
Directions:
The greens. Well, part of the greens that is. Here’s 3 cups frozen peas along with some fresh mint and basil.

More essential greens. Roughly 10 oz washed and dried spinach.

Coarsely chop the onion and grate the garlic. The garlic seems to be missing in my photo. Shame on me. There’s no fundamental excuse for this.

Get a large soup or sauce pan (this would be a great time to reinstate your Dutch oven!), pour 2 tbsp olive oil in there and sautee the onions and garlic over medium heat. It’s important to not let the onions brown. Once they’re translucent add your basil, mint (to taste), and spinach. When the spinach has shrunken, add the peas as well. Got everything in there? Good, now pour in the broth.

There they are! My babies! Admit you’re getting used to my spoons making an appearance! Drop 1/2 to 1 tsp of salt in there as well. Or season afterwards, if you like.

Bring the soup to a boil, but as soon as it’s boiling, remove pan from heat. Now puree it. It doesn’t matter how you do it, but you want to turn the whole thing into a smooth, creamy soup without any bits or parts floating in there. Unless you specifically want them floating in there, of course. I used a rod mixer because I can leave the soup in the pan that way (yes, I’m lazy), but you can also do this with a food processor, blender, or possibly even a hand mixer (never tried that, though). Steam broke the focus a bit. Sorry ’bout that.

Put the soup back on the stove and simmer over very low heat while you move on with the rest of the recipe. Let’s get a bit of crunch in there. Peel half a cucumber and mince it. I used about 2 cups. You can also do this with radish (will give a pretty color contrast to your soup).

Now I omitted this step, but if you have some leftover chicken or turkey -even a small handful of pasta will work beautifully- bake until light crispy and put it in there as well. Give the soup 5 more minutes over low heat. Garnish with cucumber slices, basil or parsley (maybe even a few whole peas) and sprinkle a little chopped chili pepper for a bit of heat and color effect. If you’re feeling particularly adventurous, try a little crumbled feta on top! Serve with warm toasted bread slices.
I just can’t help it. I love bright colored foods.

Thursday, April 29, 2010

Eat a Green Lunch. Hearty Salad
Here are two great choices. 
The start of any amazing salad
  • 3-4 cups greens (baby spinach, romaine, field greens, arugula)
  • 1 diced tomato
  • 1 chopped avocado
  • onion
  • olives
  • 1/2 – 1 cup chickpeas
Dressing Ideas
  • 1/4 cup Hummus, Tabouli, or Baba Ganouj
  • 2 Tbsp your favorite dressing
Optional (non-vegetarian)
  • 2-4 oz grilled chicken breast
  • toasted whole grain bread (Alvarado, Ezekiel 4:9) with 1 tspn olive oil and shredded garlic
Eat a Raw Breakfast Smoothie

Before you cringe, let me tell you this is so delicious. Once you try it, you’ll be hooked.

Green Smoothie

green smoothieIn a blender mix:
  • 2 Bananas
  • 1 Cup berries (any kind, frozen is perfect)
  • 1-2 cups spinach or any other type of green leafy vegetable
  • 1 cup water
Optional (these are not vegetarian)
  • 1 scoop whey protein
  • 1/4 cup yogurt (plain, vanilla, lowfat, no fat, whatever you like)
photo by faster panda kill kill
And if you want to become serious about eating healthier, I can’t recommend anything more highly than a VitaMix blender. It’s a little pricey, but they last a lifetime and they make eating healthy a breeze. I love mine!

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Protein Smoothie Banana and Pineapple

Ingredients:
2 bananas
some strawberries
pineapple
4 raw fertile eggs
blend everything in a blender and drink.
Very nutritious, enjoy.

I'm not sure if this is good, but it may float your boat. When I was younger, my older siblings loved banana smoothies. We called them shakes because it had a large amount of milk in them. I remember that my sister Johanna would prefer her smoothie to at least have one egg because it made the shake/smoothie have a better consistency. I personally don't remember the difference, but I remember loving every shake that my siblings made for me. It's more of a nostalgic item of food with me because of that.  I was the youngest of 3 older brother and sisters, so I pretty much followed them to anything and I owe my love to smoothies to them!

Banana Oatmeal Smoothie Recipe


This is a great breakfast, or a brilliant way to get some essential nutrition into your kids.

Ingredients:
{ This is so delicious!!!!}
1 cup milk
1 cup of oatmeal
1 banana
1 cup orange juice
Cut banana into chunks.
Place all ingredients in blender container.
Blend until smooth.
2 servings


Superfood Smoothie Banana and Blueberries
Ingredients:
½ cup fresh spinach, washed and dried
1/3 cup frozen blueberries
½ large banana (1 small)
½ cup orange juice
¼ cup soymilk
1/3 cup crushed ice

Put all the ingredients in a blender and give it a whirl until smooth. Drink up!
Serves 1-2
 
Ingredients:
1/2 banana
1 cup frozen mango chunks
1 cup orange juice
3 tablespoons vanilla yogurt
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
Optional: *1/2 cup uncooked oats (not instant) Directions: Place all the ingredients in your blender container and blend on high speed until everything is smooth. Blender times will vary depending on the type of blender you have. Enjoy!


Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Top 10 Foods That Will Give You Great Skin

Aside from giving you a lot of benefits health wise, consuming these food items will help your skin remain luminous, elastic, smooth to the feel and healthy.
Take a look at the top 10 foods that will give you great skin:

1. Avocados

This rich tropical fruit is filled with vitamins C and E which works well towards fighting the effects of skin aging.



Although it is considered to be high in fat content, the type of fat that avocados have is monounsaturated.
This means that the fruit is also loaded with Omega-3 fatty acids that help improve the quality of your skin.




2. Berries

Blueberries, blackcurrants, raspberries, cranberries and strawberries are all beneficial for your skin.It is even better if you can consume the exotic Acai berries which come from the Amazonian forests in Brazil.


Acai berries have the most potent antioxidant content among any other fruits in the world, which is the reason why it is called a ‘superfood‘.
When you load up on foods which are rich in antioxidants, the effect on your body is that free radicals will be neutralized.
These free radicals are the culprit behind premature skin aging and cell damage.In addition, berries are a great source of vitamins C and E, Riboflavin and fibers.
More importantly, these tiny fruits have a natural ingredient which helps the body manufacture collagen – which makes the skin supple and smooth. Not bad for really small fruits, right?

3. Dark Chocolate

 

Surprisingly enough, the oh-so-sinful dark chocolates do have a high antioxidant content which helps improve the flow of blood to the skin.
It also gets rid of the rough feel to your skin while at the same time protecting it from sun damage.





4. Green Tea

If there’s one food item in our list which is also considered as the ultimate health drink, it is none other than green tea. This beverage is considered to be healthier than water and when it comes to the health of your skin, it is the one to beat.

Did you know that green tea is even used as a natural remedy for acne? Green tea is also a potent antioxidant. When you drink green tea regularly, you will get the daily dose of vitamins C, D and K that the body needs.
As you can see, there are numerous benefits that you will get to enjoy by drinking green tea while also improving the quality of your skin – so ditch the caffeine and substitute it with a cup or two of green tea now.

5. Mackerel, Salmon, Sardines & Fresh Tuna

You may notice how all of these fish variants are on the oily side.

Don’t think that just because they’re oily, it already means that they will not contribute to the health of your skin at all.
These types of fish actually contain the healthy and essential fatty acids in the form of Omega-3 oils.
What it does for the health of your skin is to decrease the chances of your skin clogging up while at the same time improving its elasticity. All in all, aside from the benefits of Omega-3 fatty acids to your health, it also generally improves the quality of your skin – making it suppler and younger-looking.

6. Oysters

 

Although they are popular as aphrodisiacs, oysters actually are an excellent source of zinc.
What this does for your skin is to help renew and revitalize it, while assisting with the production of collagen at the same time.





7. Pomegranate Fruits & Pomegranate Juice

 

Just like Acai berries, pomegranate is also considered to be a super food because of its high antioxidant content.
Whether it’s the pure juice form or the fruit itself that you will eat, you will get to enjoy a unique benefit to your skin – which is to prevent the appearance of varicose veins.
This is due to the fact that pomegranate contains Anthocyanins which help strengthen the walls of the tiny blood vessels which in turn supply the skin with the nutrients that it needs.

8. Spinach

 

Popeye’s power veggie is something which you should also be eating a lot of.
Spinach is rich in alpha-lipoic acid and lutein – these two compounds work great against skin aging and also have anti-inflammatory benefits.




9. Tomatoes

 

Plump, red and juicy tomatoes are a great source of lycopene.
This does not just work well as an antioxidant to benefit your skin, but lycopene helps prevent the occurrence of certain cancers as well.





10. Walnuts

 

Just like fish oils, walnuts are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids.
The result when you feed your skin with this is that you will have smoother skin, and your body will be more able to battle inflammatory diseases.
Fill your grocery cart with these items the next time that you go shopping and watch nature work wonders on your skin!