Veggie Sushi, Miso and Cucumber Salad

My First Attempt at Sushi!

 

It might not be the prettiest, but it was tasty!

Sushi, serves 2:

Ingredients:

1. 2/3 cups short grain brown rice
2. 1 cup water
3. 2 Tbsp rice vinegar
4. 2 tsp sugar or rice syrup
5. 2 tsp soy sauce or tamari (use tamari if making gluten free)
6. Nori sheets
7. 1 cucumber
8. Spinach
   
9. 1 medium carrot
10. Gomasio (sesame seeds with salt or seaweed)
11. Wasabi and pickled ginger (if desired) 
12. Small bowl of water

Directions:

•  Rinse rice and bring to a boil with 1 cup water and 1 tsp soy sauce.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 40 minutes.  Move to a cool burner and let stand for 10 minutes.
• While rice cools mix together rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon soy sauce and 2 teaspoons sugar.
• Transfer rice to a glass or plastic bowl and add rice vinegar mixture.  Mix gently.  Place in fridge until cool, about 15 minutes.
• Peel cucumber and carrot.  Slice both very thinly, length wise.  Making sure the pieces are uniform.  You can place a piece of nori next to your veggies to compare length.  Cut off the edges to match the length of the nori sheet.
• Fold the nori sheet in half (hamburger, not hot dog) and break into two pieces.
• Wrap your bamboo mat with plastic wrap.  This helps your roll not stick to the bamboo mat and also makes cleaning very easy.
• Place nori sheet at the bottom of your bamboo mat.  Add rice and smash down along the nori, leaving 1/3 inch at the top of the nori sheet.
• Add veggies along the middle of the rice.  Grab the end of the sushi mat and roll over the veggies.  Pull back tightly on the mat.  Dip you fingers in the water and moisten the nori.  Lift the mat slighly and continue to roll along the remaining nori.  
• Place roll on a cutting board and cut into 3-4 pieces.
• Repeat until all the rice is gone.

Here is a good You Tube clip on how to roll your sushi:



Cucumber Salad:

Ingredients:

1. 2 medium cucumbers
2. 1 Tbsp sugar or rice syrup
3. 1/2 cup rice vinegar
4. 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
   

Directions:

• You should prepare this before you start the rice.  This way it will be cool and marinated by the time the sushi is ready.
• Peel cucumber.  Cut length wise and de-seed.  You can do this by using a spoon to scape the seeds out.
• Chop into thin slices. 
• In a bowl, mix together the sugar, rice vinegar and toasted sesame oil.  Add the cucumbers and mix gently.
• Place in the refrigerator to cool.  Top with Gomasio.

Serve with instant miso soup (or the paste version). Garnish with wasabi, pickled ginger and Gomasio.

~Yum~

~Hearty Veggie Stew with Dumplings~

Serves 4
Ingredients:

1.  4-5 Tbs olive oil
2. 1 rutabaga
   
3. 4 shallots
4. 2 garlic cloves
5. 1 large carrot 
6. 1 large celery stick
7. 1 lb colored potatoes (red, yellow, blue, etc.)
8. 1 tsp caraway seeds
9. 1 1/2 tsp paprika
10. 1 tsp cumin
11. 1 tsp Italian seasonings
12. 1 tsp bay leave pieces or 1 whole bay leaf
13. Salt & Pepper
    
14. 1 can diced tomatoes
15. 3-4  cups vegetable broth

 Dumplings:

1. 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2. 2 tsp baking powder
3. 1/2 tsp salt
   
4. 1 Tbs dried or fresh chives, chopped
5. 1/2 cup Earth Balance
6. 5 Tbs vegetable broth
   
7. Pepper to taste

 Directions:

• Finely mince the garlic.  Chop celery, carrot, rutabaga, and potatoes into 1/4-1/2 inch pieces.
• Heat oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat.
• Add all chopped vegetables and whole shallots to the heated oil.  Add seasonings. Cook for about 12-15 minutes. 
  
• Add canned tomatoes with liquid and vegetable broth.
• Bring to a boil and cover.  Let simmer for 25-30 minutes.  Add more salt, pepper or any additional seasonings if needed. Vegetables should be turning soft at this point.
• Prepare the dumplings by mixing the dry ingredients in a bowl with softened Earth Balance and vegetable broth.
• Roll into 8-10 dumplings and place onto a cutting board or plate.
• Once the vegetables are semi-soft, add the dumplings to the soup.  Make sure there is plenty of space for the dumplings to expand.  They should not be touching.
• Cover and let simmer for an additional 15-20 minutes.

Serve with a fresh green salad or a kale salad.  I paired mine with a raw purple kale salad.  Check out this clip for the recipe:



Here is a run down of the ingredients:

1. Kale (I used purple curly kale) de-stemmed and finely chopped
2. Olive oil
3. Fresh squeezed lemon juice
4. Pine nuts 
5. Golden raisins
6. Hemp seeds (optional, I added them to my salad)
   
7. Salt & Pepper
   

You will want to make this salad a few hours before hand so that the kale can tenderize in the fridge.  The dressing of salt, oil and lemon juice help break down the tough fibers of the kale leaves.

~This is a meal that will really stick to your bones~

Healthy Blueberry Muffins

Makes 12 muffins
Ingredients:

1. 2 1/2 cup whole wheat flour 
2. 2 tsp baking soda
3. 1/2 tsp sea salt
4. 1/2 tsp cinnamon
5. 1 scoop whey protein powder (eliminate if making vegan, or use a vegan protein powder)
   
6. 2 medium bananas
7. 2 eggs or 2 Tbs milled flax seeds whipped in 7 Tbs water (use this egg substitute if making vegan)
   
8. 1/2 cup agave nectar (pick this up at Costco, you can get two bottles for the price of one at the health food store, it's about $7.50 for the two bottles)
   
9. 1/3 cup Earth Balance or oil
   
10. 1 tsp vanilla extract
11. 1 1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
12. 1/4 cup water (if needed)
    

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 375.
• In a large bowl combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and protein powder. 
• In a blender mix bananas, eggs (or egg alternative), agave, Earth Balance (or oil) and vanilla.   
• Pour the liquid into the bowl containing the dry ingredients and mix together.  If your mixture is dry, add about 1/4 cup water. Gently incorporate the blueberries into your mix.
  
• Grease a muffin pan (use the wrapper from the butter) and pour the mixture evenly into the cups.
• Bake for 25 minutes.  Remove from the pan once cool.
  

~Berry Delicious~

Roasted Root Vegetable Side Dish

Serves 2-4

Ingredients:

1. 1-2 large carrots
2. 1-2 medium parsnips
3. 1-2 sweet potatoes
4. 1-2 Tablespoons olive oil
5. 1/4-1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
6. 1/8-1/4 teaspoon rosemary
   
7. 1/8-1/4 teaspoon Italian spices
   
8. Sprinkle of paprika
   
9. Salt & Pepper to taste
   

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. 
• Cut sweet potatoes, carrots, and parsnips into 1/2 inch chunks.  Place into a roasting pan.  
• Drizzle with olive oil and spices.  Toss until all pieces are coated.
• Bake for 15-20 minutes.  Flip the vegetables and cook for another 15-20 minutes.

 ~This side goes great with chicken, steak,  fish or pork~

Mayan Hot Cacao~Liquid Superfood

Serves 1
Ingredients:

1. 1 1/2- 2 Tablespoons raw cacao powder
2. 2 teaspoons agave syrup
   
3. 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
4. A sprinkle of nutmeg
   
5. Pinch of chili powder
6. 1/8 teaspoon vanilla
7. Dash of sea salt
   
8. 8 ounces hot water
   

Directions:

• Boil water.  
• Mix cacao powder, agave syrup, vanilla, cinnamon and chili powder in a coffee mug.  
• Add water.  
• You can mix in cream or top with whip cream if you want a more decadent drink.
  

~Enjoy~

Spicy Indian Lentil Stew

Serves 4
Ingredients:

1. 1-2 onions
2. 1-2 garlic cloves
3. 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger (keep your fresh ginger in the freezer, this makes it easier to grate)
   
4. 4 cups low sodium vegetable broth
5. 2 cups water
6. 1 cup red lentils (rinsed)
   
7. 1 can cannellini beans or white beans (drained and rinsed)
   
8. 1 can diced tomatoes
9. 1 large carrot, diced
10. 1 medium parsnip, diced
11. 2 celery stalks, diced
12. 1 teaspoon garam masala (optional)
13. 1-2 teaspoons curry
14. 2 teaspoons cumin
15. 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (add towards the end of cooking)
16. 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
17. salt & pepper
18. Pinch of red pepper flakes
    
19. Kombu Seaweed (remove before eating, cooking with a 1-2 inch piece helps make the beans and lentils easier to digest)
20. 1 tablespoon olive oil  
21. Croutons and cilantro (garnishment) *eliminate croutons if making gluten free or vegan
    

Directions:

• Chop onion and garlic.  Saute in olive oil in a large pot.  Let cook for about 5 minutes, then add a little bit of vegetable broth.  Continue to simmer while you prepare the other vegetables.
• Chop the celery, parsnips,  and carrots.  I cheated and used the food processor, which is much faster than chopping all of those veggies!  You will need to cut in half or quarters before placing in the food processor.  Use the chopping blade.
  
• Add water, broth, lentils, washed beans, washed lentils, diced tomatoes, carrots, celery, parsnips, Kombu seaweed and spices.  Bring to a boil.  
• Boil for a few minutes and skim off any bubbles that accumulate at the top.  This will makes the beans and lentils easier to digest.  
• Reduce to low, and simmer for 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours.  Add lemon juice towards the end of cooking.
  
• Remove Kombu seaweed and discard.
• Garnish with croutons and cilantro.
• Serve with a simple green salad.

(This will likely make your house smell while cooking (Indian spices are pungent), but trust me, it tastes really good!)

~Namaste~

Healthier Pub Grub!

Ingredients:

1. 4 slices Ezekiel bread
2. 1 beer (you only need about 1/4 cup)
3. 1 egg
   
4. 1 pound wild halibut or wild cod
5. 1 large sweet potato or yam
6. 1/2 teaspoon sea salt (I used habanero flavored)
7. 1-2 tablespoons unsalted butter 
8. 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
   
9. Paprika, sea salt, pepper, chili powder, red pepper flakes, and parsley
   
10. Lemon, tartar sauce and ketchup (organic, it doesn't have high fructose corn syrup)

Directions:

Sweet Potato Fries:

• Start the sweet potato fries first, as they take about an hour to bake.  My fries were suppose to be curly fries, but they turned out more like hash browns.  I used the spirooli, but usually I just cut into julienne strips (I suggest you prepare them this way).  Place cut sweet potatoes onto a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and seasonings.  I used paprika, salt, pepper, chili powder, and parsley. 
• Bake at 425 for 45-75 minutes, depending upon the thickness of your fries.

Fish:

• Leave bread out over night to dry, or cut into cubes and bake for 20 minutes at 350 in the oven.
• Place dried bread cubes into the food processor and use the "s" blade to break down the bread into fine crumbs.
• Add 1/2 teaspoon habanero sea salt and a pinch of red pepper flakes.  Add 1/4 teaspoon black pepper.  Process again.
  
• Spread bread crumbs onto a plate or brownie pan.
  
• Mix egg and beer in a shallow bowl.
• Cut the fish into smaller pieces, about 3-4 inches long.
• Dunk the fish into the beer/egg mixture and then roll in the bread crumbs until thoroughly coated.
• Heat a non-stick skillet on medium high, reduce to medium once pan is fully heated.  Add 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil.  If you are using a very large pan, heat 2 tablespoons butter and olive oil.  I had to break my fish out into two batches because my pan was a too small.
• Once the pan is heated and the butter melted, add the fish.  Cook for 4-6 minutes on each side.  The fish is pretty fragile, so the less you flip it the better.  I found that coking each side for 4 minutes worked pretty well.
  
• Place the first batch of fish on a baking sheet and stick into the oven to keep warm.  Add additional oil and butter to the pan to cook the remaining fish.
• Once done, serve with fries and garnish with a lemon wedge.  Serve with tarter sauce and ketchup.

~Cheerio~

Half-Bowl? Three-Quarters Bowl? Semi-Bowl?

For those of you from Portland (Oregon),  you have probably heard of Whole Bowl (an amazing food cart that serves up a healthy lunch for only $5.00).

It was a favorite lunch spot for me, but since I left Portland,  I have not stopped craving the stuff.  I came up with a home variation that is pretty close.  It's at least good enough to tide me over until I am back in Portland again!

Ingredients:

Base:

1. 1 cup dried or canned black beans (if dried soak overnight in the fridge)
2. 1 cup short or long grain brown rice (soak for at least 30 minutes to help with digestion of nutrients)
3. Taco seasoning or cumin, paprika, garlic powder, chili pepper and black pepper
4. 1-2 inch piece of Kombu seaweed (this will go in with the beans while they cook)

Toppings:

1. Salsa
2. Cilantro
3. Shredded cheddar cheese
4. Black olives
5. Sour cream (not pictured on mine, because I don't like it)
   
6. Avocado (ditto)
   
7. Sweet Chili Sauce (this could contain gluten, so eliminate if making gluten free)
   

Secret Sauce (my lazy version):

1. 1/4 cup regular hummus
2. 1 Tbs nutritional yeast (this is a great ingredient for vegans to include in their diets because of the B vitamins it contains)
   
3. 1/8 tsp garlic powder
4. 1-2 Tbs lemon juice
5. 1/8 tsp curry powder 

"Yummy Sauce" (from what I have been told this is very close to the sauce Whole Bowl uses)*:

 SERVES 8 , 4 cups

• 1/2 cup canola oil (preferably cold pressed)
• 1/2 cup almonds (for a creamier sauce, use almond flour)
• 1/3 cup nutritional yeast (available at Whole Foods grocery stores)
• 1/2 cup chickpeas or garbanzo beans, cooked
• 1/4 cup soybeans, cooked (not green edamame beans)
• 1/2 cup filtered water (important for flavor)
• 1/2 cup lemon juice (fresh is best)
• 1-2 garlic cloves (small to medium size)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried cilantro

1. In a blender or food processor blend almonds beans and oil.
2. Add all other ingredients and puree until creamy smooth.
3. Cover and let stand in the refrigerator for one hour.
4. Don't cover to tight, remember the yeast.

*Yummy Sauce recipe from http://www.recipezaar.com/Yummy-Sauce-297251

Directions:

•  Soak beans overnight in a bowl of water in the refrigerator.  Keeping the beans cool, helps to stop fermentation.  You can change the water a couple of times while the beans are soaking.  This helps eliminate some of the oligosaccharides which are hard for our systems to digest.  
• After soaking the beans overnight add about 4 cups of fresh water to a pot on the stove with the beans.  Add a piece of Kombu seaweed to the pot.  After cooking, you can remove this like a bay leaf, or cut it up to include in your beans.  I pulled mine out (it doesn't look too pretty).
• Simmer beans for 1-2 hours.  I cooked mine for a little over an hour.
• While the beans cook, start the rice.  You can follow the directions on the package.  Add taco seasonings (1/4 of packet, or the spices listed above).
• Once the beans are finished drain and add back to the pot.  Add salt, pepper and salsa to the beans.  You can add additional cumin or other seasonings.
• While the rice and beans cook, prepare the toppings and secret sauce.  If following my version, just mix the ingredients in a small bowl.
• Once the rice and beans are finished.  Place a scoop of rice in your bowl, then layer with beans, top with secret sauce, cheddar cheese, sour cream, avocado, olives, cilantro and sweet chili sauce.

~It's not Whole Bowl, but it's pretty dang close! ~

*to make this vegan, don't add cheddar cheese or sour cream.

Raw Zucchini Pesto with Pizza Bread

Ingredients:

1. One medium to large zucchini
   
2. Pesto sauce (Costco has a good pre-made sauce if you don't want to make your own)
   
3. Olives
   
4. Pine nuts
5. Crusty french bread
6. Tomato sauce
7. Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese
8. Salt
   

 Pesto Sauce:

• 2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup pine nuts
• 3 medium sized garlic cloves, minced
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

• In a food processor, add nuts and basil.  Pulse.  Add olive oil, garlic and salt & pepper.  Pulse again.  Add the cheese and pulse one last time.

"Noodles":

• Wash zucchini and place in a spirooli vegetable slicer.  If you don't have a spirooli, you can use a vegetable peeler to make long fettuccine like noodles.  
•  You can buy a spiroooli slicer at specialty kitchen stores, or online.  Here is a photo:

•  Place zucchini in a bowl and add about 1 teaspoon salt.  The salt lets the zucchini sweat to reduce the water content of the noodles.
• While the noodles sweat,  prepare your pesto sauce.  If using store bought sauce warm it slightly on the stove.  To be considered "raw" do not heat sauce over 110 degrees.
• Dry noodles off with a paper towel and add to a bowl.  Toss with pesto sauce and top with olives, pine nuts and Parmesan cheese.
  

Pizza Bread:

• Place slices of french bread onto a baking sheet and broil for about 3-4 minutes.  Flip over the bread and toast for another 1-2 minutes.
• Add tomato sauce and cheese and broil until the cheese is bubbling.

Benissimo!