FoodFash

Adventure Begins in the Kitchen

Archives for December 2011

Distraction

by

One of the most difficult aspects of cleansing, for me at least, is boredom.  So much of a day is spent talking about food, shopping for food, preparing food, writing about food, that when you take meals out of the equation, well… you’ve got a whole lotta time to spare.

So rather than spending seven days writing about veggies and boring you and me alike, I went on a picture taking stroll.

I intended on making my way to the downtown farmer’s market.  I went on their website, checked their Twitter status, read and re-read “Fridays 10am-2pm, October-May”, determined that 1pm on a December Friday fit that matrix, only to find that there was no farmer’s market going on when I arrived.

I suppose it’s better that I wasn’t tempted with yummy street food.  Disappointment was minimal.

Happy New Year’s Eve!!!

Detox

by

I recognize that most people wait until after the new year to get back into the swing of real life, but I just couldn’t wait.  I’ve been off of work since the 23rd and after seven days of acting like a college kid, I’m done.  I was getting lazier by the second, changing out of one pair of pajamas only to jump into another.  It was a problem, this laziness.

I went to Rollin’ Oats last night and stocked up on everything and anything that looked blend-able.  Yup, in pajamas.  Pajamas that I graciously disguised as yoga gear.

Let’s just be thankful that I made it out of the house.

FoodFash Jump Start Smoothie

yield: 32 ounces

2 kale stalks, de-stemmed

1/4 papaya, seeds removed

1/2 lemon, seeds removed

1-2 inches of ginger, skinned and sliced

2 tablespoons honey

1 cup of pure aloe vera juice

1 cup of water

1 cup of ice

I blended the aloe vera, honey, ginger, and lemon (with peels) first to make sure they were completely pulverized before adding the remaining ingredients.  The lemon was definitely potent, but it completely masked any signs of papaya – which is a good thing because I find papaya to be… SO gross.  This smoothie wasn’t delicious by any means, it was merely OK, but with the following health highlights there’s no complaining going on here!

Kale – Contains over 45 flavonoids.  Studies show that flavonoids that have anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, and anti-cancer properties.

Papaya – Contains papain, which is an enzyme that helps digest proteins.  They are also a rich source of vitamin C, flavonoids, folate, pantothenic acid, potassium, magnesium, and fiber.

Lemon – Contains flavonoids that have antioxidant and anti-cancer properties.

Ginger – Has numerous therapeutic properties including antioxidant effects, an ability to inhibit the formation of inflammatory compounds, and direct anti-inflammatory effects.

Raw Honey – Contains phytonutrients that have been shown to posssess cancer-preventing and anti-tumor properties.

Aloe Vera Juice – Aids with digestion.

Source: WHFoods.com

Sriracha Kale Chips

by

Watching the incredibly cute video below reminded me that kale chips were on my baking to-do list.

Cute, right?  I love when he says “it seems to me that we can either pay the farmer or we can pay the hospital”.  So true!

Knowing that I’d want a spicier chip, I added a hefty amount of Sriracha.

Foodfash Sriracha Kale Chips

8 ounces of kale, de-spined and broken into bite sized pieces

2 tablespoons of olive oil

2 tablespoons of Sriracha

salt to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix the olive oil and Sriracha in a small bowl.  Dry the kale completely and then drizzle the olive oil and Sriracha mix over the kale.  Use your hands to massage the kale, making sure that every piece has been coated.  Place the kale on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the kale is crispy.

The kale chips were exactly what I was expecting taste-wise: crispy, spicy goodness.  However, I did not anticipate how addictive they’d be.  I placed the bowl of chips next to me as I was editing photos and by the time I was finished with the photos, the kale chips were finished as well.  Oops!

Do you find kale chips addictive?  Have you tried any surprisingly good flavor combos?

Stuffed Breakfast

by

It’s tough to think about recipes after gorging yourself on Christmas goodies.  I woke up this morning feeling full and fluffy.  Too fluffy for restaurant breakfast and not full enough for a green smoothie.

I cut the crusts off of two pieces of sprouted sourdough bread and hunted around my fridge for stuffing ingredients.

Why hello there, peanut butter and jelly!

While a pan was warming up over medium heat, I dabbed about a tablespoon of each onto each piece of bread, slapped the two together, using a fork to seal the edges for a PB&J ravioli.  I set the little ravioli into an egg/water mixture (I usually use almond milk) until both sides had soaked up most of the mix.  I cooked each side until both were golden brown.

Even though this is a little more caloric than my normal breakfasts, it was definitely better than anything that would have happened had I met up with friends for my first meal of the day.  The warm and gooey peanut butter and jelly inside went so well with the crisp and dense french toast outside that neither butter nor syrup was needed.