Kale is always Kale-yeah

Hola amiguis- I don’t know how it came to be that fruits and vegetables are either in or out of fashion, but let me say KALE is forever in style. Kale is packed with iron, vitamins, calcium, and anti-oxidants while at the same time being low calorie. One of my favorite ways to eat kale is in the form of kale chips. Today I will show you how easy-peasy it is to make kale chips. 

Five ingredients and a dehydrator and you will be in kale chip heaven. I like using the bag of organic lacinato kale from Traded Joes, the Kale is already torn into perfect kale chip size. Place 1 bag of lacinato kale into a big bowl, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast, 1 tablespoon of course sea-salt, and the juice of one medium lemon. Mix this all together until all the kale is coated. You can add more of any of the ingredients to your liking. Next place the kale in a dehydrator at no higher than 115 degrees for 12 hours. After 12 hours turn the dehydrator off and voila you have delicious kale chips. 

I like to add kale chips to my salads, they give the salad a nice crunch and flavor.  I hope you enjoy this easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy kale chip recipe. 

Chao, hugs- Izzy

Something a little extra sweet

I’m a green juice and green smoothie aficionado. Love them both, but sometimes we crave a little something sweeter, which is totally normal. What’s a veggie head to do? Fortunately it’s easy to make any recipe earth-friendly and animal loving.

I always make a fresh batch of almond milk or coconut milk and at the end of the week I typically have about a cup left of the milk. If you’ve ever made your own milk without preservatives, you know that at the end of the week the milk is a little sour. Don’t throw it away! It’s the perfect milk to use in any recipe that asks for buttermilk! I use it to make vegan corn bread, vegan chocolate cupcakes, and my favorite vegan ‘buttermilk’ pancakes. For this post, I’ll be showing you how to make some of the most delicious vegan ‘buttermilk’ pancakes. Yum yum!

First I make 2 flax seed ‘eggs’: 2 tbs grounded flaxseeds and 6tbs water. Mix and set aside for about 5 minutes.

Next I mix 1 & 1/2 cups flour (whole wheat flour, but use your preferred flour), 1/3 cup sugar (I use organic panela), 2tsp baking flour, 1tsp baking soda. Mix well in a bowl.

Then mix 1 cup ‘buttermilk’ coconut milk, 1/4 cup melted coconut oil, and the 2 flax eggs. Mix together in a different bowl. Once the milk mixture is well blended, add this to the bowl with the dry ingredients.

Don’t over mix! If it’s will be a little clumpy that’s okay. Heat up your skillet and make your vegan buttermilk pancakes.

They hit the spot! They’re warm, fluffy goodness that are perfect for a weekend breakfast. The flaxseeds are a good source of omega-3 essential fatty acids, fiber and protein. For an extra treat I top the pancakes with bananas and drizzle a little agave.

Disfruta la fruta and life. Xo- Izzy

 

Cherimoya Chia Pudding!

Hola! I’m back!

Since my last post I was off on a teaching adventure, but now I have returned to blogging and all that I love. Today I want to share with you the cherimoya fruit. It is native to Ecuador and is about the size of a grapefruit, sometimes bigger. Cherimoya has a green skin and large black seeds inside. Both the skin and the seeds are poisonous when crushed, so we definitely do not want to eat those. However, the inside is a sweet,cream-like fruit. The flavor is somewhere between a banana, pineapple and a hint of strawberry.  Cherimoya is a great source of fiber, vitamins (especially vitamin C and B), and minerals.  Since cherimoya has a custard like consistency it’s very easy to make a naturally sweet pudding and that’s exactly what I intend to do most times when I have access to cherimoya.

Cherimoya chia pudding has an incredible taste and is equally simple to make. First cut the fruit, scoop out the sweet fruit, make sure all the seeds are out, and put in the blender. After all the fruit is out, add 3 tablespoons of chia seeds and blend.  I did the same for the mango pudding I added to the top of the delicious creation. Store the cherimoya chia pudding in a glass container and refrigerate,allowing the chia seeds to become gelatinous (do the same for any other fruit). Serve chilled and enjoy this extra smooth and pleasant pudding thanks to the natural creaminess of the cherimoya.

Disfruta la fruta and life!

Love – Izzy

What is a taxo?

As promised, I am on an adventure for vegan delights here in Ecuador. I went to the market and bought a large bounty of fruits and vegetables. As a gift the fruit vendor gave me a little something called taxo, also known as banana passionfruit. I graciously accepted this unique fruit, but I honestly had no idea what to do with it.

Taxo is an common Ecuadorean fruit, it’s looks exactly like a small banana, but let me tell you it’s no where near as sweet. The inside is incredibly seedy and the taste is surprisingly tart. The sourness reminded me of the tangy taste of yogurt. Since I have not had even a spoonful of yogurt in about 5 years, my first thought was to use this interesting taxo fruit to make a vegan friendly yogurt smoothie.

Wowie zowie! When it was in the smoothie, the taxo was absolutely delicious. It was such a great transformation! I used homemade-raw almond milk, one taxo, one banana, and 1 tsp on coconut oil mixed it all into my amazing Vitamix.  If you have not had the opportunity to try this fruit before, I can definitely say it is worth a try in a smoothie.

Cheers to delicious nutrients, love and hugs- Izzy

Quito

Hola! It’s been a while, but I’ve been keeping myself veggie. There’s been many changes in my life, and now I find myself in Quito, Ecuador. One of the highest cities in the world, and a country full of biodiversity. Which is a dream come true for a fruit/veggie freak like me. The markets are filled with organic non-gmo fruits and vegetables.

When I decided to move here for a year I was sure of only one thing: I needed my vitamix. I wouldn’t dare go anywhere for more than 2 weeks without a vitamix.  I packed a brand new vitamix (thanks hubby) and came ready for an adventure. I wasn’t sure what fruits and vegetables I would find here or if I would be able to find my raw food staples : bananas, dates, kale, but I came for a food adventure. I want to see what new food (vegan please) I would love here in Quito.  So far I found bananas, lots of them, Ecuador is one of the top producers of bananas, and they’re delicious.   However, no luck with dates.  I’m starting off easy, it’s my second day here, I hope you can follow me on this adventure, and we can learn together what golden foods are available here for a rawsome girl, and make new recipes. 

 – green smoothie cheers to a new beginning & hugs- Izzy 

Enchiladas Vegan!

Mmmmmm, enchiladas! Mexican food is always delicious, there is certainly no doubt about that. Unfortunately, Mexican dishes can be very unhealthy. More often than not the food is fried (hello, clogged arteries), it has meat in it (which we know isn’t good for us in large quantities and I personally believe it’s not good in any amount period), and it’s loaded with dairy products like cheese and sour cream (are we cows? No, so why do we eat baby cow food?). Even when we know the ‘delicious’ food we are eating is harming us, it’s hard to make a change when we have no idea with what to replace some of our favorite dishes. Well, no need to worry anymore, I got it my friends! I made vegan veggie enchilada; delicious and nutritious, made with all natural food, no soy, no processed meat replacement or cheese. It’s all the good flavors you would want without any of the things that are bad for you. The reaction I got to these bad boys was awesome! Nothing but love for every morsel of goodness! Now it’s time for you to try it for yourself.

Enchiladas Vegan!

• Makes 12 enchiladas (4 servings)
• 2 zucchinis
• 1 yellow squash
• 16 oz portabella mushrooms
• 1 red pepper

Thinly slice all vegetables, boil 2 cups of water with 2 tbs Himalayan sea salt, once water is boiling put veggies in and turn off heat. Let sit for 5 mins and then drain.

For green salsa:

• 3 cups green tomatoes (tomatillos)
• 4 Serrano peppers (more or less depending on spiciness)
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/4 of a medium onion
• Himalayan sea salt to taste

Blend and transfer to a sauce pan and sauté

Dip tortilla into sauce, once it’s covered transfer tortilla to serving plate, put veggie mixture in and roll the tortilla up, put three on a plate and pour sauce to cover, then garnish with corn and kesito (get it queso) fresco (cauliflower, lemon and salt)

These enchiladas are so delicious. The best part is that any artery clogging nasty animal fat or cholesterol in regular enchiladas is completely gone from these wonderful enchiladas and NOTHING tastes better than great health! Below I’ve also added a Spanish version of the recipe to share with all our Spanish speaking friends.

MUAH, NAMASTE-
Izzy

Para ver la version de la receta en español, siga el enlace de abajo!

Juice Journey: Day 10 and Beyond!

I know it’s been like a month since my 10 day juice cleanse and I haven’t posted anything. I mean didn’t even post about the 10th day! I feel terrible about that, but don’t worry, I didn’t quit. Thought I must admit, hunger had returned on day 9. I felt genuinely hungry, but I was just one day away from food. I knew that final day would not be that much more of an effort.

On day 10, all those wonderful feeling I had throughout the cleanse grew tenfold. It was so magical! I felt nothing less than all encompassing calmness and peace. My surroundings felt so new. They were clearly the same, but somehow through the cleanse they felt shinier; more vibrant and calming. Perhaps it wasn’t my surroundings, but rather it was me. I think my surroundings were mirroring how I felt. I processed new ideas quicker and what I couldn’t understand before I somehow understood now. With this revitalized energy for life I fell into a month of mad love, of doing everything that I enjoy so much. That’s what kept me away from my blog but not for long!

While on day 10 I continued my green juices, I knew I needed to prepare for the following day.  Whatever I would eat on the 11th day (the first day after the cleanse) was very important. It  had to be something that would do my body justice, so I decided to make myself some energy soup. My version of energy soup is based off Dr. Ann Wigmore’s recipe. I do a handful of spinach, handful of alfalfa sprouts ( you can do any sprout), 1/2 an avocado, a green apple and rejuvalec, I blend that up and then sprinkle some dulse on top. I absolutely love it. I truly believe the energy soup kept the magic I had been feeling going. Energy soup can be helpful in healing many ailments, so if you’re looking to do a cleanse, but think a juice fast is too much too soon, doing an energy soup cleanse is a great idea. Try have energy soup three times a day. It’s a nice middle ground for a cleanse. For starters, you can just add a big ol’ bowl of energy soup to your day. It’ll make a difference!

Namaste

Izzy/Isa

Day 9: Nice and Rejuvelac!

I’m just about done with my 10 day juice cleanse health reboot! I am so happy and surprised that it wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. As I have mentioned before, when I started I was very scared. 10 days without solid food seemed daunting, but as I began to consume the green juice my body rejoiced. Now it’s day 9 and I’m already preparing for the first day of eating whole food, fiber and all. This part is just as important as the entire cleanse. After not consuming solid food for 10 days, you have to take it easy on your digestive system. You can’t simply flood it with food,no matter how healthy that whole food is.For the first day of whole food consumption, I will be eating smoothies, especially Dr. Ann Wigmore’s energy soup, or rather my version of it. It will have green sprouts, avocado and apple in it, and most importantly rejuvelac!

Rejuvelac is fermented wheat berries. Some people think it taste nasty. Others think it has a lemony taste. Whatever the flavor, it’s definitely one you have to acquire. It does so much goodness for your body! When you start to reap the benefits from this wonder liquid you won’t mind the taste at all. I call it the healthy beer, it has the same fizzy feel and it’s very refreshing.

To make rejuvelac you take 1 cup wheat berries, soak them for 12 hours, then let them sprout (1-2 days). Once this has happened, crush the berries in the blender a little and put them in distilled water to ferment for 2-3 days. Once they’re fermented, pour the fermented liquid in a bottle and refrigerate. I put rejuvelac in my smoothies and often times I drink it alone like a glass of water, or *ahem* like a bottle of beer. Try it, it’s really not bad. Some people have said it turned their white hair back to its original color. So no more hair dye!

I raise my green juice to healing love for all of us (soon we’ll be toasting with rejuvelac)

Izzy/Isa

My Juicing Journey: Octavo Dia (Yes, I love Shakira)!

I made it through the eighth day!  I’ve been dealing with the tiny hardships very well so far. Luckily, I am now at the point where it isn’t a struggle or a sacrifice to juice every morning. It’s just a part of my living! I have so much more energy throughout the day, which makes me feel lighter and brighter in every possible way. I finally have the energy to wake up earlier and dedicate some time to meditate/pray or as I like to call it, my time to talk to the supreme energy to give shout-outs to all my loved ones. This special time has brought such a beautiful energy to all my days so far, and I am so very grateful for that.

At the end of the eighth day I also realized that as all the toxins leave my body (like that yucky fuzzy film feeling in my mouth which is totally gone), there is room for forgiveness in me. I did something I haven’t been able to do. I forgave myself and everyone, I let it all go. I have been reading books about the subject of forgiveness for years, doing everything they said to help us pardon errs. I simply couldn’t get to that point. I always found that even if I said I forgave myself or someone else that heavy feeling was still there buried deep inside somewhere. I wasn’t living bitterly, far from it. It was just that once in a while a dark heavy energy would stick it’s ugly head out. That seems to be behind me. The past few day have allowed me to rid myself of that dark energy. I’ve been trying to figure out what this feeling of lightness that has been with me for a couple of days really is. I can feel it in every fiber of my body. I truly forgive everyone and most importantly I forgive myself, and I’m so happy to be alive! I’m so thankful for the power of green juices, for nourishing my body, and my soul. When I began this journey, I thought it was going to be all about clearing my skin and looking beautiful. I didn’t have any idea that the green juice would help clear my mind and soul as well as it has. Now I came say this and feel it with my entire being: Namaste

Days: High-5, 6, and 7th heaven! The Juicing Journey Continues!

Hello everyone! I know I haven’t posted lately. Maybe you were thinking I had quit, but no no no! Especially not when all the juicing has me full of energy. I’m really beginning to realize that I was scared of nothing!

Day 5 (Friday) was a breeze. No strange feelings or new cleansing issues.  I made it through the work day and came home to relax.

Day 6 (Saturday) was a little tougher, I wanted to continue my rest, but already had prior engagements. Normally this isn’t a problem, but when those prior engagements involve seeing food, it can get a little tricky.  Here’s the thing with a juice fast, you’re not starving yourself.  Your body is still getting all the necessary nutrients it needs to go on throughout the day, so eating in addition to the juice is a no no. But it’s totally okay to continue your normal day to day plans.  I didn’t let the cleanse stop be from going out and lucky that i didn’t because I had fun. Of course it was a little hard to see everyone eating at a party, but what’s 10 days of 365 days?! It’s only 2.7% of the year! That seems like nothing, but that short amount of time can do wonders. If  I can let my body heal and reboot by giving it 2.7% of the year, my magical body will give me the remainder of the time to enjoy life.

Day 7, I’m enjoying a lazy Sunday full of fresh green juice! It’s an easy, fun, and loving time!

Cheers as I raise my glass of green juice to healing love,

Izzy/Isa