Thanks for so many sweet words about the wedding photos. I’m glad you got to see how beautiful the ceremony was, and how exquisite Chloe looked. I’ll try to smile with my mouth open more often–in fact, I’m rather ashamed that my insecurities have manifested themselves in quasi-habitual lockjaw.

I definitely second Kathleen‘s request for a guest post from Chloe!

Now that the Choosing Raw epithalamium is compelete, it’s time to get back to our main interest: food. With only a few exceptions, I haven’t prepared much of anything in the last two days that isn’t a salad or doesn’t come in a plastic bag labeled “Food for Life” (i.e., Ezekiel sprouted grain products). Boring. After a long weekend with not enough sleep, I did replenish myself with my nutrient dense salad of the week:

That would be my own spin on Ani Phyo’s almond ginger pate (a similar recipe can be found in the demo here) along with Lydia’s crackers, loads of lemon juice, a touch of flax oil, radishes, and raw kale. Hit the spot!

Do you enjoy Chinese food? I can’t say I’ve ever been lucky enough to try any of the many authentic Chinese regional cuisines, but I, like most people, have tried standardized Chinese American takeout. It’s not my favorite on the whole, but there are one or two dishes I love the taste of–namely, sesame noodles. Now, according to my own fleeting efforts at research, cold sesame noodles don’t use much sesame at all. Instead, they’re made from peanut butter and sesame oil. There’s nothing wrong with this (aside from false advertising), unless you happen to be one of the estimated 3 million Americans with a peanut allergy. Then, the choice to cook with peanuts–or even to have peanut reside on your hands–becomes hazardous. Even if you’re like me, and you have no food allergies whatsoever, you may choose to be leery of peanuts. While I certainly don’t think they’re terrible for you, I do think that they’re a common GMO crop, and that they may be mucous forming. In all, I’m not terrified of peanuts when I happen upon them, but when it’s easy for me to make a choice, I’ll almost always opt for a different kind of nut or nut butter.

This choice becomes really easy in the case of cold sesame noodles, because I happen to be a tahini fanatic! With temperatures climbing up into the 90s, now is a perfect time not only for raw foods, but also for cooked foods served cool. I suggest you start here, with a sesame noodle dish that’s actually full of sesame. It begins with a sauce:

Sesame Noodle Sauce (serves 4)

4 tbsp tahini (I like the raw Artisana variety, but you can use roasted if it’s what you have)
2 tbsp tamari or nama shoyu
3/4 tsp ginger
1 tbsp sesame oil
3 tbsp water

Mix all ingredients by hand or in a blender.

This sauce is quite versatile–it would be just as lovely over a salad or stirfry or brown rice dish as it is over noodles. But over noodles I wanted it, and over noodles it went.

I’m often asked why I don’t eat more pasta, and whether or not I “miss” it. It’s a query founded upon the vexing assumption that I’ve “given up” pasta in an attempt to be a better saint–which I have not–or that I avoid it because of carbohydrate content. Let me quickly bat down that latter idea: I haven’t met too many starches (whole grain ones, that is) I didn’t like. I also don’t shun pasta because I think it’s unhealthy, or because it’s cooked. It’s just not something I think about very often, and I really do prefer zucchini pasta most of the time.

That said, most of the time is not always. Sometimes, I do have a hankering for a whole grain pasta. When I do, I like two brands: Tinkyada brown rice pasta (which is, in my opinion, the best whole grain pasta out there) and my personal favorite: soba noodles. These buckwheat based noodles are my absolute favorite, and I always have some of them in my pantry for nights when I’m not in the mood for quinoa, barley, rice, or millet. They’re terrific with steamed veggies, mirin, and nama shoyu, with my Asian dressing, or tossed in a vinaigrette. And apparently, they’re great with my sesame noodle sauce. Behold:

This was a single serving of soba noodles mixed with 1/4 sliced bell pepper, 1 small grated carrot, 1/3 cup peas, and 1/4 julienned zucchini, dressed in about 2-3 tbsp sesame noodle sauce. Paired with a salad, it was a hearty but light summer dinner.

The next day, I whipped up a raw version of the dish, subbing zucchini pasta, which I lazily made on my mandolin, rather than using (and having to clean) my spiralizer:

Same proportions: 2-3 tbsp dressing for the “pasta.” Again, I served it up with greens. And once again, it was absolutely delicious.

A simple tasty, and seasonally appropriate dish that can make equally tasty raw or cooked vegan dinners–what’s not to like?

I’m slowly easing back into life as usual post wedding, and hope that this week goes quickly. So far, it’s flying by. Have a great evening!

xo

Friday! Friday! Friday!

Thank you so much for the thoughtful responses to my conscious shopping post. What I’m hearing is that most of us aren’t carrying our conscientious food habits into our habits as consumers of clothing, shoes, and accessories. But it’s never too late to start!

Each month, I get countless emails about sprouting. What can I sprout? Why should I sprout it? Do I have to sprout it to get nutritional benefits?  How does one sprout something? Is it safe?

I’m delighted to see such a healthy interest in sprouting, though I also have to confess to you that I’m not an expert. Readers often assume that I sprout all of my nuts, seeds, and grains; they’re wrong! I often don’t. Sprouting is a wonderful practice, but I consider it an optional one. If you don’t do it, I assure you that you’ll survive.

What does it mean to sprout something, and why do it? Simply put, sprouting initiates the growth process of a seed, grain, or seed-grain. When a grain is sprouted, some of its complex carbohydrates are broken down into simple sugars, which are easier for our body to digest that long chains of starch. Some of the grain’s protein, likewise, is broken down into amino acids, which spares our bodies the labor of breaking it down later on. Most significantly, sprouting wicks away a grain, nut, or seed’s enzyme inhibitors and naturally occurring tannins; these are compounds that reside in the skin of the nuts, seeds, and grains, and they’re very slow to digest. The goal of soaking and sprouting is to “de-activate” them, so that our bodies face no barriers when they digest and assimilate the food.

Sprouting, soaking, and germination aren’t the same things. When you soak nuts, seeds, and grains, you break down their enzyme inhibitors. You also reduce phytic acid, a compound that binds with minerals in the grain–such as calcium, magnesium, iron, copper, and zinc–and makes it difficult for our bodies to absorb them. Soaking neutralizes the phytic acid, and “releases” those minerals for our bodies’ use. Soaking initiates germination (growth), and if you then rinse grains and leave them in a warm, damp place, they’ll begin to sprout.

Which grains can be sprouted? The simplest grains to sprout are wheat, kamut, spelt, barley, and rye. The most sproutable “pseudograins” — or “seed-grains,” as some people call them–are millet, amaranth, quinoa, buckwheat, and wild rice. I’ve experimented with sprouting all of these grains at home, and my favorites are quinoa, millet, and wheatberries (spelt and kamut are runners up!).

How often do I sprout grains? I’ll be frank: I don’t much like the taste of sprouted grains — at least not in comparison to cooked ones. And while I recognize the benefits of soaking and sprouting, I also believe that cooked grains still retain a great deal of their nutrient value; soaking and sprouting are means of optimizing absorption, but choosing not to soak or sprout won’t negate the value of your grains.

There are times, though, when sprouting grains becomes my prep method of choice. Surprisingly, I sprout grains most often when I’m busy. Why? Because once the grains are sprouted, they demand no prep time! If I have a sprouted grain on hand, I can literally throw it into a salad, mix it with veggies for a cold grain salad, or eat it plain; if I come home and want cooked grains, on the other hand, I need to put aside 20 minutes – 1 hour for the cooking process. And when it’s 9 pm after a grueling day of work, watching a simmering pot for half an hour is really the last thing I feel like doing. Having sprouted grains in my fridge means access to a meal component that’s versatile and nutrient dense; I can simply plate the grains and go.

As I battle my summer schedule, sprouted grains are making frequent appearances in the CR kitchen. Last week, I whipped up a batch of one of my very favorite sprouted grains: wheatberries. As a rule, whole wheat is less nutrient rich than some of my other favorite grains (such as millet, quinoa, or even kamut and spelt). Still, it’s a terrific source of fiber (which can help to manage cholesterol, contributes to heart health, and keeps us feeling sated), manganese (which is an enzyme activator and an aid in lipid synthesis), magnesium (which helps to keep bones healthy). In other words, it’s got tons of nutrient benefits. It’s also pretty tasty

Soaking and sprouting grains — whatever grains they may be — is far easier than you’d expect!

Today, I’ll offer a short grain sprouting tutorial:

1) Place one full cup of wheatberries in a large mason jar. Fill it with 2 1/2 cups filtered water. Let it sit, open, at room temperature for one full day.

2) 24 hours later, drain the wheatberries and rinse them well.

3) Return the soaked grains to your mason jar. Take a paper towel or cheesecloth, put it over the mouth of the jar, and secure it there with a rubber band. Turn the jar on its side, and leave it be in a room temperature nook of your kitchen.

4) Let the jar sit for 12-24 hours — I almost always give it a full day. At the end of this time period, you can remove the paper towel or cloth, and you’ll see that the grains have sprouted little “tails,” like so!

At this point, the grains are ready for consumption. You should have about 2 cups of sprouted grains at the ready. It’s. That. Simple.

See? No fuss! Sprouting is a cinch, and once you get used to it, you’ll love the process. Right now, I’ve got a jar or two of different grains sprouting or soaking almost all the time; it’s such a relief to have them at the ready when I need to toss a meal together on the fly. Note that different grains take different amounts of time to sprout; wheatberries take a long time, relatively speaking, but grains like quinoa sprout in a jiffy. As you get used to sprouting, you’ll get a sense of the times that different grains demand.

What to do with you sprouted grains? I’m glad you asked. As you know, I’m a big fan of throwing grains+avocado onto a nutrient dense salad. I also love mixing sprouted grains with banana and nut milk for breakfast. Sometimes, I grind sprouted grains and put them in cracker or bread dough.

Most of all, I love to use my sprouted grains in grain salads. These are, quite simply, big batches of sprouted grains mixed with raw veggies, oil, and a hint of acid in the form of lemon or vinegar. Here, friends, is one of my favorites.

Sprouted Wheatberry Salad (serves 4)

2 cups sprouted wheatberries
1/2 cup dried apples, chopped into small pieces
2 cups shredded dino or curly kale
1 cup chopped or grated carrots
1-2 tsp agave nectar or maple syrup
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp flax oil

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl.

Wow. Thank you all so much for the amazing response to my post on coping with unwanted body commentary. One of my main goals for Choosing Raw in 2010 is to have many more conversations about body image, self-perception, self-acceptance, and life with and after disordered eating. I was amazed by the quality of discourse in the comments section after my post (I always am), and I thank you for it.  I hope you’ll keep doing that as I ruminate on these topics, starting provocative conversations with each other and with me.

I thought I’d take a little interlude from body and self-acceptance talk to talk about something far less deep: yesterday’s lunch. Remember my raw, vegan spin on roast beet and goat cheese salad?

I made it, you may recall, because I had a beautiful hunk of fermented macadamia cheese handy, and because roast beet and goat cheese salad was my very favorite goat cheese dish in my pre-vegan days. My second favorite dish was roast vegetable and goat cheese sandwich creations (the finest one of these, I thought, was served at Craftbar here in the city). Yesterday, as I packed my work lunch, I realized that I had an abundance of three things: 1) leftover fermented mac cheese, 2) leftover roast beets, and 3) a big ‘ole tub of my raw, marinated veggies, which I’d also dehydrated for a few hours to soften (making them akin to a raw version of “roast” veggies). Lucky me, I also had some collard greens, so it seemed like a no brainer that my lunch would have to be a high raw, all vegan spin on a roast vegetable and goat cheese wrap.

When lunchtime rolled around at work, I simply layered my marinated veggies, my roast beets, and my “cheese”:

And wrapped it all up. In the end, it looked like this:

Avec salade, it fed body and soul better than any wrap I remember. Hooray for innovative work lunches! I sometimes say that I’m not a fan of leftovers, but every time I do something like this with them, I change my tune.

Before I sign off, I have two big announcements:

1) Tickets for the 2010 Healthy Living Summit go on sale tomorrow at 9 p.m.! For a recap of last year’s summit, you can read my review here; this year, I’ll be in attendance not as a guest, but as a speaker! Caitlin and I will be hosting a panel on body image and self-acceptance that we call “Stop Staring Over Your Shoulder: How to Avoid the Self Comparison Trap.” Our goal will be to analyze the negative effects of comparing yourself to others (specifically, comparing your body and lifestyle habits to others peoples’). I’ll be talking about the proliferation of healthy eating “trends,” the dangers of eating in a way that’s out of step with your needs, and the rise of orthorexia (a term I still have mixed feelings about). Caitlin will talk about the anxiety created in the media by photoshopping and unrealistic portrayals of the female body, and competitive fitness routines. We hope it’ll be a provocative and inspiring conversation, and we’ll want lots of participation. Which means I’d love to have to have some of my CR readers in the audience! If you’re interested in traveling to the Summit, information on registration will go up on the website tomorrow, so please check in.

2) Since we’re all enjoying these conversations about body image, I wanted to give you a head’s up that I’ll have a guest post up sometime tomorrow and/or Thursday on Kate’s blog, Eat the Damn Cake. The blog, which has been up and running for a few months, is full of daring conversations about body image, food, feminism, and beauty. The post I’m contributing is one of the more intimate ones I’ve ever written on my own relationship with my body, so I’ll be giving you all an invitation to check it out when it goes up. Hope you’ll take a peek!

On that note, I’m off to work and then sleep. But I wanted to let you know that I got through this morning’s workout with my customary friendly exchange with Gina (no hard feelings), and little thought given to my hulky, muscled, strapping lower body

I also had my first physical therapy appointment, which left me momentarily sore, but my pain is a little better tonight. Fingers crossed for some real recovery!

xo

Hola!

GREAT response to my chia seed giveaway! Keep them coming. For those of you who didn’t check in yesterday, I’m giving away a giant bag of chia seeds. Come and get’ em!

Yesterday’s sun and cheery disposition persisted well into today, which was busy, but touched by beautiful weather. Yay! Double yay for the fact that I got to spend a little time in my kitchen—not as much as I would have liked, but just enough to keep me sane.

I often here the same thing from clients, friends, and acquaintances who are thinking about veganism: “I’d love to, but I don’t think I could ever give up cheese.” Cheese, it seems, inspires some  pretty fierce devotion—a fact that’s hard for me to understand, since I never much liked the stuff. Even pizza—most beloved of beloved foods—was never a fave.

I did, though, have one fondness when it came to fromage, and that was for goat cheese. Odd, maybe, given that I’m sensitive to the more fragrant, soft varieties of cow’s cheese, but there you are. I liked to toss it in salads or with roast veggies, and while I can’t say I miss it, I can say that the challenge of finding a vegan simulacrum has been on my mind. Simultaneously, I’ve been meaning to try a fermented spin on nut “cheese”; I adore my nut cheeses, which I’ve written about here and here. And I’ve been curious to see how they would taste fermented.

So this weekend, I was on a dual mission: 1) make fermented vegan cheese, and 2) make it taste like the goat cheese of my memories. Let’s also throw in 3), which was to replicate the goat cheese dish I used to most enjoy: roast beets, spinach, and goat cheese salad with candied walnuts. A few hours later, mission was accomplished!

Fermenting: it sounds so intimidating. In fact, it’s an easy process: making kraut, kimchee, coconut yogurt, and fermented nut cheese is as simple as watching and waiting. You mix your ingredients (sometimes with the addition of probiotic powder), and leave them in a warm place for at least 6-12 hours (in the case of something like sauerkraut, you’ll have to leave them for at least three days). When the fermenting process is done, you’re left with a tangy food that’s loaded with healthy bacteria and is optimal for smooth digestion.

To make a fermented nut cheese—either the one I’m about to share, or any variety—you begin with one cup of raw nuts or seeds. Soak them in filtered water for at least six hours (this will do for seeds, cashews, and pine nuts) and up to twelve (better for almonds, Brazil nuts, macadamia nuts, walnuts, and pecans). If you’re soaking the nuts for more than six hours, stop once to drain, rinse, and replenish the nuts with fresh water.

The next step is simple: when the nuts have finished soaking, you place them into a food processor with 2 teaspoons unpasteurized miso and a few tablespoons of water. You can also add ½ teaspoon of probiotic powder; not necessary, but great for your belly. (You can simply break apart a few probiotic capsules, if you like, to get the powder.) Process the mix till it’s crumbly but still holds its shape: I aimed for my texture to resemble ricotta cheese.

Wash a mason jar with hot water and soap, and dry it thoroughly. Place the fermented nut cheese in the jar, making sure there’s enough room for the mix to expand a bit, which it will as it ferments. Cover the jar with cheesecloth or a nutmilk bag, and secure it, with a rubber band. Place the mix in a warm place—85-95 degrees is optimal—and leave it be for six hours or more. Twelve hours is an optimal fermentation time, but if you let it go much longer than that it may turn a bit sour.

For my raw, vegan “goat’s cheese,” I used a cup of macadamias, and I soaked them about thirteen hours (overnight and then some). I blended them with my miso, processed till smooth, and placed in a glass jar covered with a nut milk bag. The temperature in my apartment is wacky these days—it’s freezing one day here in NYC, stifling the next, so my heat is on and off—so in order to assure that the cheese would ferment properly, I placed the whole jar in my dehydrator overnight and set it at 90 degrees.

It emerged looking something like this:

The top of any fermented nut or seed cheese will be either a little yellow or a little gray. That’s OK – it’s a part of the fermentation process. If you’d like, you can scrape off this thin covering. Then, give it a taste; it ought to be tangy, soft, and a little salty. Yum!

The next part is fun: you season the nut cheese however you’d like. It’s easiest to do this by pulsing the mix in your food processor again, but it’s fine to do by hand, too. I recommend that you add some sea salt and lemon to any fermented cheese; even with the miso, it’ll most likely need it. In addition to giving it flavor, the salt and lemon combination will make it taste far more like actual cheese. I added ¼ tsp sea salt and a good dose of lemon to my mac cheese, but take note: you could add dill, oregano, sundried tomatoes, black pepper, or any combination of herbs and spices you’d like to make the cheese taste better and more authentic.

By the time I was done, I had a cup of tangy, salty “cheese” that was, honest to god, a dead ringer for goat’s cheese as I remember it. I was flabbergasted. And it looked pretty similar, too! Check it out:

Thrilled with my efforts, I brainstormed about my salad. I had roast beets on hand (I usually do) and salad greens. I also tend to keep a tub of traditional French vinaigrette in the fridge, which is what I wanted to dress this salad with; the recipe is below, but any lemony vinaigrette will do. The only remaining components were the candied walnuts I’d planned on. Keep in mind that, if you’re in a rush, you can definitely skip these, and use raw walnuts instead! They’ll simply add a nice touch to the salad.

It’s very easy to make a raw spin on candied nuts: you coat them with agave/raw honey, a touch of oil, salt, and cinnamon. Typically, you should dehydrate the coated nuts for at least 12-24 hours, but it’s also possible to take a little shortcut, as I did. With not a lot of time on my hands (a few hours), I did a quick spin on candied walnuts: I mixed a teaspoon of agave nectar with ½ tsp coconut oil and a dash of cinnamon. Into this I mixed 1 oz of walnuts, and stirred to coat. I popped them into the dehydrator for 6 hours, and they emerged still sticky, but delicious.

With these in hand, I was ready to make:

Vegan Roast Beet, Goat Cheese, and Spinach Salad with Candied Walnuts (serves 1)

For the salad:

3 cups baby spinach (or a spinach + mesclun mix)
1 medium or large roasted beet, chopped
3 tbsp raw, fermented vegan “goat cheese”
1 oz (or so) candied OR raw walnut pieces

For the dressing:

1 ½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon minced shallot (I don’t add this, but it’s very traditional)
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1/8 teaspoon Black pepper
1/4 cup Good olive oil

Whisk all ingredients till smooth and emulsified.

Assembling the salad is a cinch: simply toss the salad ingredients together, and whisk in enough vinaigrette to coat lightly. The resulting salad is as close to a beet and goat cheese salad as any vegan dish could be; I’d even wager that an amateur cheese fan might be fooled.

Or maybe not. Most cheese fans I know (hi bun!) tend to have discerning palates. So if you are a cheese lover, and you have to have the real deal, here are my tips

•    Try goat’s cheese, which has little or no lactose, if you’re prone to bloating or touchy digestion
•     If you like the taste of hard cheese, you might try raw cheddar style goat cheese, which is increasingly available in health stores
•    If you’re going to eat regular, bovine cheeses, opt for a local, organic variety if you can.

But really, you should give this mac cheese a try. It’s a very pleasant surprise!

With that, the work week begins. Nighty!
xo

Happy Friday!

Wow! What an incredible response to my post on building nutrient-dense salads. I’m so, so glad it was helpful. I often fret when clients (or friends) skimp on dressing, toppings, and sources of good nutrition when they make salads, so let’s all vow to load up on energy and volume when we make a salad for a meal. Recently, a reader wrote in to tell me how refreshing she finds it that she sees generous portions and lots of food on CR. “One thing I appreciate about you,” she said, “is WOW YOU EAT A LOT!!!! I am always amazed at how HUGE your meals are. I, like many, have had a very unhealthy relationship with food most my life, and it is very refreshing to find a blogger who celebrates vibrant, healthy food choices.”

Thank you! What a compliment! I love to eat, and I love that you guys love it, too.

Speaking of loving to eat, I have been eagerly looking forward to sharing this recipe all week. I think Indian food fever must be in the air. In addition to a certain bloggie pal who likes to feast on Indian food on the reg, Lori and Michelle posted an awesome Indian recipe a few days ago. And me? I’d had this recipe in my head for weeks, and I finally had a night at home in which to make it! It’s an raw, Indian-flavored wrap, and it’s totally scrumptious.

It begins with a curried cashew pate. This, like my lentil-walnut pate, was inspired by a dip at Angelica Kitchen here in Manhattan. Their version is made with sprouted chickpeas, which I’m not fond of, so mine is a simplified version, made only from cashews, lemon, and spices. It’s so unbelievably tasty that I was tempted to give it a dedicated blog post of its own! The recipe:

Raw Curried Cashew Spread (yields 1 1/2 cups, or approximately 6 servings)

1 1/2 cups cashews (soaked at least one hour, preferably several)
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 1/2 tbsp agave nectar, or 3 pitted dates, soaked
1/4 tsp salt (the next ingredient is miso, so if you’re sensitive to salt, start with a little less and add more as needed)
1 tbsp mellow white miso
1 tsp mild (but high quality) curry
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Blend all ingredients in a food processor, stopping a few times to scrape the bowl. When the mix becomes relatively smooth, add a thin stream of water until it’s very creamy, but still thick in texture — akin to a hearty hummus. Serve on its own, in wraps, on salads, or as a dip!

This spread is a stand alone hit, and you should make it just as fast as you can. If you want to turn it into a meal, though, give this amazing wrap a try!

Gena’s Raw Indian-Spiced Wrap (yields 2 wraps; serves 1)

Along with your spread, you’ll need to make my Indian-spiced veggies. These things are genius! And simple as heck to make. I was inspired by the dehydrated veggies that I made a while ago for my rockin’ hummus wrap. This time, I wanted to dust them with spices before the dehydration process. I began with chopped veggies–about 1/3 cup each of eggplant, zucchini, red bell peppers, and carrots. I tossed them in a few teaspoons of coconut oil; if you like, you might try Spectrum’s coconut oil spray.

Then, I sprinkled them with salt, pepper, a tiny smidge of agave nectar, and 1 tsp garam masala. After tossing them to be sure they were all coated in spices, I stuck them in my dehydrator at 105 overnight. In the morning, they were warm, fragrant, and also drastically reduced in size!

If you don’t have a dehydrator, go ahead and stick them in the oven at a low temperature till they’re soft and fragrant. If you don’t care much about cooking temp, just go ahead and roast them in the same spices!

To put these wraps together, you need to little more than combine your tasty spiced veggies with the curried cashew spread in a collard wrap! Simple, quick, easy. If you’re rusty on using collards, it’s very easy: just slice a V shape at the bottom where the very thick stem is:

Then, use a paring knife to shave down the remaining “vein” in the leaf:

Spread a few tablespoons of curried cashew spread about an inch from the bottom of the leaf, and top it with half of your dehydrated veggies. Tuck in the sides, and roll upwards, and you’ll end up with something that looks like this:

Repeat with a second wrap, and you’re ready for dinner!

I cannot tell you how wonderful this meal was. So simple, yet exotic and unbelievably satisfying. I’d forgotten how dearly I love Indian spices–they appeal directly to my penchant for sweet-savory combinations. This is a good reminder to whip out my garam masala more often!

The meal:

Check out this amazingness:

And again:

Oh yes.

Hope you all give this one a try — at least try the cashew spread! It’s truly awesome, and it would work just as nicely in an Ezekiel wrap as it does in a collard or chard leaf. And we all love versatility.

I’m writing from upstate New York right now, where the lilacs and wisteria are blooming. It’s beautiful and peaceful, and I’m so happy to be here. Have a wonderful weekend — I’ll be back on Sunday.

xo

I don’t think it’s any great secret at this point that I love salad. Salads are the foundational food in my diet, the meal I eat more than any other. I’ve shared countless favorite recipes with you here at CR, which fall into numerous categories. There are the kale salads, ranging from my basic massaged kale salad, to the Gena Divine (inspired by Sun in Bloom‘s Bella Divine) and the newly concocted Surf n’ Turf salad. There are the seasonal salads, such as my avocado, fennel, and cherry tomato salad (summer), my root vegetable salad (autumn), and my cabbage and fennel slaw (winter). (Clearly, I need to get cracking on a spring salad). And then, there are my specialty salads, such as the spicy thai, the cucumber and coconut, or the butter lettuce, cherry tomato, and corn medley.

Today, I’d like to discuss another category of salads. This isn’t so much a recipe post as a how-to. What I’m here to show you is how to build a salad that’s meal sized. What does meal sized mean? It means salads that boast enough nutrients and density to serve as an entree.

One of the most common complaints I get from clients is that they’re eating big salads at lunchtime, but that these salads never keep them full. “I’m starving by 3 p.m.!” they exclaim. When a client tells me such a thing, a familiar dialog always begins:

Me: “So. What’s in your lunchtime salad?”

Client: “Wellll. Some romaine, or baby greens, with some shredded carrots or cucumber or tomato, and half an avocado.”

Let’s see: lettuce, shredded carrots, cucumber, and half an avocado. (Sometimes, a client will add that she dresses it with lemon and stevia; no oil, of course.)

That’s lunch?

No wonder my client is starving to death by 3! Lettuce and veggies (which, though nutrient-packed powerhouses, are mostly water, after all) +  half an avocado do not a satiating meal make. If you try to take all of the oomph out of your lunchtime salad, relegating yourself to veggies and more veggies, you’re lucky to crash and burn in the afternoon. And that, friends, is when mindless office snacking, cranky moods, brain fog, and binges happen.

So the idea behind today’s post is this: how can we put together lunchtime (or dinnertime) salads that are light and digestible, but offer us adequate–nay, optimal–nutrition?

You all know by now that I am not a fan of calorie counting, mostly because I believe it emphasizes the wrong values (numbers over quality) in selecting food. But with that said and understood, I’ll also say that there are moments in life when I believe counting can be useful. It’s useful for people who are extremely overweight and looking to lose a significant amount. It’s useful for women who are very underweight, and need to get the scale moving into higher ranges. It can be useful for athletes in training (though I know many athletes who perform beautifully without it). It can be a useful tool for people who have virtually no familiarity with nutrition, who are trying to learn the values of various foods.

And sometimes, it can be useful for women who are perpetually starving to do brief, approximate experiments with calorie awareness, only so that they can figure out whether or not they might be eating far too little to fuel their bodies. So let’s take that client’s salad. Lettuce, and a handful or two of chopped veggies, coupled with half an avocado? Probably someplace between 180 and 220 calories, give or take. Now, if an average woman is eating (as most average women do) between 1600 and 2400 calories each day, then the truth becomes painfully obvious: that lunchtime salad was snack-sized.

Bear with me. I don’t like this numbers game any more than you do. I believe it’s absolutely possible to have certain meals (or even certain days) that are low, calorically speaking, as long as there are other days that are higher than usual, too. If balance is present, then meals or snacks that are exceptionally dense or light don’t matter; the point is that you’re eating enough from day to day, week to week, and so on, not that you get every single plate of food “right” according to a numeric standard. But if you’re finding that salad after salad leaves you ravenous, I think it’s time for you to face the obvious: your salads are probably too light to keep you full. And it’s time for you to rethink your salad formula.

What’s my salad formula? Simple! I like to add at least two or three sources of density to my salads if they’re going to serve as meals. What’s density? Well, I do mean a source of caloric density, but what I really mean is a source of nutritional heft and satiety. This might be a starch, like sweet potatoes or grains; it might be a fat source, like a tahini dressing or avocado; it might be nuts or dried fruit; it might be a bit of tempeh; it might be as simple as a healthy flax oil. The idea is that I like for at least two of these things to join forces, affording me a filling and nutritionally rich meal.

Rather than go on about this methodology, I thought I’d show you what I mean. Over the last few weeks, I snapped photos of salads at home and at work, trying to give you a sense of what a nutrient rich salad looks like. All of these salads, by my own very loose estimates, fall into the 400-650 calorie range, which is about meal sized by typical standards. Again, it’s not the number that really counts: what I want you all to internalize is the idea of building upon your veggies to form a real meal. Let the slideshow begin:

Salad with sweet potatoes? Almost there.

Salad with sweet potatoes, avocados, and my zucchini dressing? Lunch.

Romaine lettuce and veggies? Sad.

Salad with romaine lettuce, veggies, and white bean and spinach dip? Better.

Salad with romaine lettuce and veggies, white bean dip, zucchini dressing and Lydia’s crackers? Yum!

Greens and lentils? Barren.

Greens, lentils, olive oil, lemon, agave, and avocado? That’s more like it!

Spinach, cabbage, and carrots? Grumble, grumble.

Spinach, cabbage, carrots, pumpkin seeds, and raisins? Kind of.

Spinach, cabbage, carrots, raisins, pumpkin seeds, vinaigrette, and a Prana bar? Lunch is served!

Spinach and ruby kraut? A good start.

Spinach, ruby kraut, half a cup of leftover quinoa? You’re getting closer…

Spinach, ruby kraut, quinoa, and leftover kabocha? Almost there!

Spinach, ruby kraut, quinoa, leftover kabocha, and zucchini dressing? We have a winner!!

Spinach and broc? Not.

Spinach and broc, seeds and figs? Better.

Spinach, broc, seeds + figs, zucchini dressing and zucchini slices with walnut-lentil pate? Genius!

Olive-oil massaged kale salad with veggies? An auspicious start.

Massaged kale salad with marinated veggies and Lydia’s crackers? Nom nom.

Vinaigrette + baby romaine? Lame.

Vinaigrette, baby romaine, and pistachios? Better.

Vinaigrette, baby romaine, pistachios and figs? Almost!

Vinaigrette, baby romaine, pistachios, figs, and carrots + walnut butter? Bon appetit!

Veggie medley? Nice, but no cigar.

Veggie medley + raw nori bites? Let the games begin.

Veggie medley, raw nori bites, drizzle of flax oil + lemon, and a side of raw almonds? She shoots, she scores!

Kale salad? Step 1.

Kale salad + sea veggies? Step 2.

Kale salad + sea veggies + marinated portobello + hempesan? Bingo!

Veggies galore? Needs more.

Veggies galore, vinaigrette, and crumbled Larabar? Score!

Need other ideas?

How about a big spicy thai salad:

Or a bed of spinach, dressed and topped with my Middle Eastern cauliflower “rice”?

Or dark greens, topped with juice pulp crackers and a giant bed of broccoli hummus?

A picture’s worth a thousand words.

If you’re a food combiner, fear not: the salads above should show you, with a few exceptions, that it’s possible to get enough variety and density without too many miscombinations. Full belly, calm belly.

I hope this little gallery has given you a sense of the rich, nourishing, and filling world of salads, guys! If you’ve been sitting at your desk or table scratching your head as to why a salad simply can’t seem to keep you full, fear not: you are not alone. You are, however, in a position to mix things up. Begin layering your salad with sources of nutrient rich foods, and sources of density. You’ll be amazed at how your perception of “a salad” begins to evolve — and your bodies and bellies will be thanking you in the meantime.

Have a great day!

xo

Happy Sunday, friends. I appreciate your kind words about my mom’s boyfriend’s son — they meant the world to me.

So in my last post, I mentiond that I grew up eating a little differently from most of my Greek fam. They were carnivorous; red meat made me squirm. They liked their veggies cooked through; I liked mine crunchy. They liked dishes that were salty and heavily flavored; I liked my food plain. Of course, there were things we all agreed on: my Grandmother’s spaghetti (which, even though slathered in butter and made from white pasta, was quite tasty); my mom’s wonderful broccoli, made with tons of lemon and olive oil; giant salads, which adorned the table at every family meal, and which, as the resident veg-aholic, I was usually put in charge of; and, in later years, my vegan baked goods, which totally transformed my mom’s conception of vegan sweets and treats.

So while there were things we didn’t all agree on — such as lamb, and the 101 uses my Yaya found for it — we did agree on a bunch of things. One of our main areas of unison was this: there were lots of mainstream American foods we didn’t know much about, and hadn’t tried. I don’t think I ever tasted a sugary cereal growing up. I had my first soda at the ripe old age of ten (ripe, sadly, by mainstream standards). There were no hot pockets or pop tarts at home, no chips or cheetos or even oreos. This doesn’t mean our pantry was perfect: there were other things, like spray margarine and Lean Cuisine, that were, in retrospect, pretty foul. But we were fairly cut off from the cornucopia of processed food that is the American supermarket.

More than that, there were lots of classic American dishes that we never grew up eating. Sure, my Mom made the usual sorts of comfort food dishes on occasion — veggie pot pie, for example, or tuna casserole — but most of our food was Mediterranean in flavor: grilled fish, chicken or zucchini broiled with lemon and tomatoes; pasta with pesto and veggies. And because that’s what we ate at home, that’s usually what we ate when we went out to restaurants, too. So there were tons of restaurant offerings that remained mysterious to me well into my adult years.

One of these was “surf and turf.” Believe it or not, I was twenty the first time I learned what this was, vacationing in a hotel with my father and his family. It sounded like such a fun dish, until I learned what it was: a side-by-side offering of steak and seafood, oftentimes fried. To me, that reeked of an animal protein overdose. Needless to say, it’s not a dish I’ve ever tried — I’d guess that many women haven’t — but the name has always amused me.

This weekend, I found myself with a pantry full of dwindling bags of sea veggies. You know, bags that have less than a real portion left, but are taking up space while I wait to finish them off. I thought I’d whip up some seaweed salad. As I contemplated that prospect, I also realized I had a portobello cap in my fridge that I hadn’t found a good use for yet. Portobellos, of course, are often called upon to represent “meatiness” in a vegan meal. And sea vegetables are just the closest I’ll get to touching fish. So with these two components at the ready, I decided to try my hand at my own version of “surf n’ turf” — vegan, raw, and healthful.

This salad is wonderful. Really. It’s salty, savory, and fun to eat. Mix the seaweed around with the kale and mushrooms, and you’ll happen upon lovely, intermittent pockets of flavor. Mushrooms, along with my hempesan, provide an earthiness, while the seaweed gives it a delicate and salty touch. The kale, meanwhile, is crunchy and a great contrast to the rest of the meal.

Note: every time I post a sea veggie recipe, someone asks if there’s a substitute to be had, since he or she hates seaweed. Sorry guys: the sea-veggie flavor is a fundamental component to this dish. So if you’re not into dulse or wakame, I’d say you’ll be missing out!

The process:

Gena’s Surf n’ Turf Salad (serves one VERY hungry person)

Ingredients:

1/2 bunch curly kale
1/3 cup each: shredded carrot, cabbage, zucchini
7 grams (or so) each: wakame, dulse, arame
1 portobello cap
3-4 tbsp hempesan
1 1/2 + 1 tbsp olive or hemp oil (separated)
2 tbsp nama shoyu
1 + 2 tbsp lemon juice (separated)
1 tsp toasted sesame oil

Directions:

1) The night before eating: mix 1 1/2 tbsp olive or hemp oil, 2 tbsp lemon, 2 tbsp nama shoyu, and 1 tsp sesame oil together. Slice portobello and submerge it in the marinade, leaving it overnight.

2) The next day, remove mushroom from marinade, storing it in the fridge. Reserve the marinade.

3) Soak your seaweed (wakame, dulse, arame) in water for at least 1-2 hours. Rinse. Transfer the seaweed to your leftover marinade, and let it soak for at least an hour. When it’s done, remove seaweed and place it in a sieve; press gently to squeeze out excess marinade. Discard the marinade that’s left, or save it for something you’ll marinade right away; there should still be quite a bit of it.

4) Wash, rinse, spin, and chop the kale. Place it in a large bowl with the carrot, cabbage, and zucchini, and then massage the whole thing with 1 tbsp lemon, 1 tbsp hemp or olive oil, a salt and pepper to taste. Add a little drizzle of agave if you’d like to. Set aside.

5) Top the kale salad with half of the seaweed (you can save the other half for another meal!) and the mushroom. Sprinkle 3-4 tbsp hempesan over the whole thing.

6) Dinner is served.

Talk about treasures from land and sea. This salad is packed with nutrients: rich in iodine, vitamin K, folate, and B vitamins from the sea veggies; vitamins A + K, iron, and calcium from the kale; and protein, essential fatty acids, and more B vitamins from the hempesan, not to mention additional fatty acids if you use hemp oil.

In other words, this salad is a whole lot more nourishing than the fried, butter slathered original dish — at least in my book. So the next time the CEO of your company waxes poetic about the steak+lobster plate at a business dinner, you can smile inwardly, confident that you’ve got an even healthier alternative up your sleeve.

Hope you all get a chance to make this one soon!

Before I go, a lil’ giveaway for you all! I’m sure quite a few of you have seen giveaways for a $50 shopping spree on iHerb already. Well, I’m joining the bandwagon: Abby, over at iHerb, was kind enough to offer me a sample shopping spree of my own ($50 worth) and an additional giveaway to one of my lucky readers! What’s iHerb? It’s a no fuss, no gimmicks online supplement store, featuring everything from “superfoods” to baking goods that are allergy friendly. Other stuff that makes iHerb special:

1) 95% of Orders placed before 1 pm, PST, ship the same day.
2) Free Domestic UPS Ground Shipping for Orders over $40
3) Free International Airmail Shipping for Orders over $60 and 3 lbs or less
4) They sell products for up to 50% off suggested retail prices
5) They carry close to 19,000 products that include vitamins, herbal supplements, health food and personal care items

What did I purchase in my shopping spree? I picked up some of my fave MegaZymes enzymes; some almond flour, which I’ve been meaning to try out; and some probiotics. Basically, my supplements of choice. The items arrived almost immediately, which was a major plus!

If you’d like a chance to pick up some goodies on iHerb, here’s the deal:

1) Leave a comment on this post, saying one supplement or product you might like to try
2) For an additional entry, tweet the contest or link to it on your blog, and tell me you did

That’s it! Winner will be announced next Monday, May 10th. In the meantime, if you simply can’t wait to shop on iHerb, go ahead and use the code UGE458 at checkout, which will get you a $5 discount.

Good luck!

And finally, before I go, Diana recently reminded me that I forgot to announce a winner to my Sun in Bloom giveaway. D’oh!!! I’ve been so distracted lately. The winner of a complimentary entree at Sun in Bloom is #59 – my friend and soon to be hot mama Lauren!!!! I am so happy to pass this on to her. Congrats, Lauren! I can’t wait to hear what you think of the restaurant.

OK, kids. I’ve got lots to do this Sunday. For now, peace!

xo

Hey guys!

Thanks for the lovely words about my travel adventures. It was fun sharing them all with you!

So here I am, back in the rhythms of everyday life. Can’t say it feels anything but wonderful. The next time any of you catching me whining about being overworked, I’d like you to please remind me that I love my two jobs more than anything in the world. Appreciate it. Thanks.

I promised you all a new recipe this week, and I hope I’ll have a chance to oblige. But in case I can’t, let me at least share with you a lovely salad that I munched last week, during my 24 hour hiatus from traveling here in the city. This came to me solely out of convenience. Close inspection of my fridge and pantry revealed that, in the category of salad-worthy items, I had:

• Greens
• Pistachios
• Carrots

…oh wait, that was it. I’d was ready to travel, and thus I’d let my stock of produce evaporate. Then I remembered that I still had some of the lovely Vivapura figs I’d mentioned before. I thought I’d marry them with my other ingredients for a slightly sweet lunchtime creation. As much as I’m not really a dessert person, I love sweet/savory food combos and dishes, so I suspected this would hit the spot. And it did.

The recipe is simple: a clean salad with a sweet/salty vinaigrette. The salad is full of texture, dotted with chewy figs and crunchy walnuts. And although it’s very light, it offers up lots of satisfaction: the figs and dressing satisfy a sweet tooth, while the pistachios provide minerals and vitamin B6, which has proven helpful in preventing anemia. They’re also a great source of healthy fats for satiety.

Gena’s Pistachio and Fig Salad (serves 1)

For the salad:

3-4 cups mesclun greens or spinach
1 oz pistachios
3 dried figs, chopped

For the dressing:

1 tbsp walnut or macadamia oil (if you haven’t got a nut oil, just use olive)
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp agave
Salt/pepper to taste

Throw salad ingredients together. Whisk the dressing ingredients till emulsified, and pour about 1-2 tbsp (I used 2) over salad. Toss gently, and enjoy!

Along with some carrots + Futters walnut butter (thanks, Liz!) this was a lovely and unbelievably simple lunch.

Speaking of sweet and savory, I’d worked that theme into my midweek NYC sojourn breakfast, too. I was torn between my green eggs and hmmm, and chocomole on toast (a spinoff of my vegan Nutella), and so I thought, why choose? I ended up mashing half of a large avocado onto sprouted bread, and mixing the other half with cacao and a bit of stevia to make a quick chocomole. The two variations of avocado mush went onto two slices of bread, for a perfect and satisfying sweet/savory breakfast.

Why choose, indeed!

There are many nice things about returning home after a trip: the presence of friends and family (hi Mom!), the smell of one’s own apartment, lording your tan over pallid coworkers…the list goes on. Right at the top of that list is the joy of fresh, unfussy, and homey food. Being back in my kitchen is very, very sweet.

xo

This is my little tribute to sunflower seeds.

You guys know I love cashews. And why wouldn’t I? They’re the most versatile nut: so mild and creamy that they can be used as a base for nearly any dessert, pate, or sauce. They’re the reason why I love my raw alfredo, and they’re the secret ingredient in my raw whipped cream.

Even so, I’ve gotten some feedback from you guys saying that you find nuts a little heavy, especially in the summertime. I love nuts, and consider them a very important source of fat and protein in the raw diet, but I understand this concern: too many nuts can sit like like a brick in one’s belly. And when it’s 95 degrees outside and as humid as a steam room (as the fair isle of Manhattan is right now), this is no fun.

Here’s the good news. Most people find that seeds–including sunflower, pumpkin, and sesame seeds–are a little bit easier to digest than tree nuts. And yet they boast some of the same wonderful health properties: healthy fats and oils, antioxidants, and (depending on the seed in question) magnesium, selenium, and calcium. Best of all, they’re versatile and easy to transport: you can carry them around in a baggie to throw on salads at lunch, to a restaurant if you want to liven up a veggie plate (sesame seeds on sauteed or steamed veggies is a favorite of mine) or simply to snack on.

Or, if you’re in the mood for something lunch or dinner worthy, you can try a seed pate.

A few nights ago, in the midst of trying to cool down my-apartment-the-sauna, I found myself craving a nut pate. But I wanted one that would be a bit lighter than my old stand ins (pizza cheeze and walnut pate). Fortunately, I had sunflower seeds on hand. I knew they’d make for a light, quick digesting pate, and they (unlike almonds or walnuts) can be soaked quickly.

I’m often asked about precise soaking times for nuts. (If you rawcurious readers are asking why, it’s because soaking nuts before you eat them renders them more digestible, not to mention more tender for blending.) The truth is that I’m not particularly diligent about my soaking times. I rarely go through the trouble of germinating or sprouting nuts before I eat them–I just soak them until they’re tender enough to use. I will say, though, that if you’re going to use almonds in a pate or sauce, they’ll benefit from being soaked eight hours or overnight. Cashews are soft enough to only demand a few hours. And in my experience, while it’s ideal to soak sunflower or pumpkin seeds five hours or more, they’ll be totally fine after an hour or two.

On the night in question, I happened to have an hour of free time (imagine that!). So as I soaked a cup of sunflower seeds, I came up with the following recipe: a light, lemony pate that’s perfect for summer months.

Sunflower Seed and Carrot Pate

Ingredients:

1 cup sunflower seeds, soaked 1 hour or more
1 tsp nama shoyu
1 tsp salt
1-2 tbsps lemon juice
2 dates
1/3 cup water
1/2 carrot, grated
Several sprigs of dill

Procedure:

Blend the first five ingredients in a food processor until it begins to form a paste. Drizzle in the water until it reaches a consistency you like. It should resemble a hummus or any other spread. Next, throw in the carrot and dill, and pulse the mixture until everything is well incorporated. Add more salt and pepper to taste.

I’ve blogged before about the variety of uses for nut pates. Like hummus or cream cheese or guac, they’re perfect for stuffing into wraps or sandwiches, for using as a dip, for layering between stacks of veggies (like a Napoleon) or for simply plopping onto salads. Tonight, I made a feeble attempt at culinary creativity with the green pepper I had on hand. I cut it into slices, filled each with about 1-2 tbsps of the pate, and sprinkled it with some zucchini and carrot. Like nachos. Kind of.

OK. Not so much like nachos. But I get points for trying, right?

I served this alongside one of my typical giant salads: a kale/lettuce, carrot, tomato, zucchini, and pepper mix.

It was a perfect summer dinner: light and refreshing, yet not without substance.

And just in case you’re wondering? Sunflower seeds happen to be an incredible source of Vitamin E (the most important fat-soluble antioxidant), thiamin (or Vitamin B1, which is important for the nervous system and carbohydrate metabolism), and phytosterols (which help to lower bad cholesterol). Not so bad for a little seed.

I hope you’ll all try this–or another pate–soon!

And if you need inspiration, I direct you all to my new and refurbished recipe page! I’ve gone too many weeks (OK, months) without updating it, for which I apologize! Now, you should all be able to search for recipes (cause I updated my tags, too–thanks Mel) and to explore the recipe page for ideas.

And next to it, you’ll notice a new “kitchen tools” page. Please, please check it out! Questions about the appliances I use at home and requests for recommendations are among the most prevalent sorts of emails I receive. I hope this is a useful resource.

OK kids, I’m out. Have a wonderful night!

xo

When you eat a raw diet, there are certain dishes that are easy to explain to people (salad) and certain ones (raw cashew alfredo over zucchini spaghetti) that can be a little tough. The tough ones are fun, if only to show off the tremendous creativity that goes into serious raw cuisine. But the easy ones are…well, easy. And most of the time, these include dishes that most people already know and love in the raw: guacamole, salsa, pickles, sashimi, etc.

How about gazpacho? My readers know by now that I encourage everyone to order proudly and without self-consciousness in restaurants. But if the whole raw thing is a little new to you, and you’re a little shy about restaurant dining, look for a summertime gazpacho on the menu! I guarantee that it won’t elicit any raised eyebrows.

Or, better yet, make your gazpacho at home. This is my favorite gazpacho recipe. It’s sweet, tangy, and delicious. It’s also an easy raw soup to serve to friends or at dinner parties: everyone is used to eating it cold, so the usual complaint (“wait, do you eat that cold??”) doesn’t apply.

Gena’s Perfect Gazpacho

Ingredients

2 large tomatoes, or 1 ½ cups of cherry or other small tomato variety; I used small, round heirloom tomatoes (yum!)
½ large cucumber
1/3 cup basil, packed
¼ tsp salt
Juice of half a lime
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/8 large avocado (or a couple of slices)
1/3 cup water
3 tbsp olive oil

Begin by blending all ingredients in a food processor or a high speed blender on high. Next drizzle olive oil in. Adjust water content to make soup as watery or creamy as you like.

Garnish with additional veggies: avocado chunks, zucchini, cucumber, tomtatoes, basil, etc.

Here is the finished product:

And no meal would be complete without a leafy salad, too:

I hope you all try this soup out: it is a true winner!

And before I go, an announcement: The Fresh Air Fund is looking for runners and sponsors to join their Fresh Air Fund-Racers team for the NYC Half-Marathon on August 16th. The race will be a great way to participate in NYC’s premier summer road race while helping Fresh Air Fund children. I confess that I won’t be running: for one thing, I’m just not confident as a runner, and for another, I will be at the Healthy Living Summit in Boston. But I do encourage all of my gorgeous runners—and I know a lot of you are reading—to sign up if you like! This is a wonderful cause, which raised $125,000 last year, and I give it a huge dose of my support! For more details, check out this link:

http://freshair.org/racers

Goodnight, friends.

xo