Naturally Cured

For those of you who love brownies or have a sweet tooth this recipe is for you! I was never really a big fan of dates until my friend Vishaala got me to try her amazing brownies. Ever since then, I have been hooked. These brownies contain no sugar or no flour and taste AMAZING! This recipe is very simple and is great to snack on or have for dessert.

Ingredients:


2 cups whole walnuts


2 ½ cups Medjool dates, pitted

3/4 cup raw cacao 

1 cup raw unsalted almonds, roughly chopped
 (optional)

¼ tsp. sea salt

Directions:


1. Add walnuts into food processor and blend on high until the nuts are finely ground.


2. Add the cacao and salt then pulse to combine. 


3. Add the dates one at a time through the feed tube of the food processor while it is running. What you should end up with is a mix that appears rather like cake crumbs, but that when pressed, will easily stick together (add more dates if the mixture does not hold well together). 


4. In a large air tight container/pan combine the walnut-cacao mix with the chopped almonds. Press into a container and place in the fridge until ready to serve (it is also easier to cut these when they are very cold).  

5. Sprinkle chopped almonds on the top (optional).

Tip: If you don't have almonds, that's fine the brownies will still taste good and you can use pecans as well. 

Source: http://mynewroots.org/site/2011/04/the-raw-brownie-2/

     Photo by: Emily Freistatter  

Midterm week is finally over! It was a tough ride but here I am ready to go with a new and exciting recipe to shareJ

During the winter months, I always have a craving for hot soup so I am really excited to share my first soup recipe on the blog. When visiting my intern at the Robert Shad Naturopathic Clinic, she gave me a soup recipe, which I was ecstatic about. I went to the grocery store and bought all the ingredients the next day. I had never tasted or cooked with rutabaga or parsnip before so I was a little skeptical, but it turned out to be really tasty. This soup is packed with amazing vegetables and has a good kick to it! Another bonus, the soup lasts the whole week and is great to have when busy with school or work.

2 yellow onions, diced

4 garlic cloves, crushed

3 carrots, sliced

3 celery stalks, sliced

1 parsnip, cubed

½ rutabaga, cubed

½ butternut squash, cubed

½ cans tomato paste

4C Broth – chicken, turkey, or vegetable

2 tbsp. butter

Handful of chopped fresh parsley

4 springs fresh thyme

black pepper to taste

salt to taste

3 bay leaves

1 pinch cayenne

2 tsp. paprika

1. Add butter to a deep pan and set to medium heat.

2. Once heated, add in onions and crushed garlic and allow the onions to become translucent.

3. Add in vegetables, thyme, black pepper and salt. Stir and cook vegetables until they are soft (about 20 mins).

4. Transfer contents into a large pot. Add broth, meat, tomato paste, and remaining spices.

5. Depending on how liquid you want the soup add in enough water so that the vegetables are covered by about 2’’ of water.

6. Stir contents and bring to a boil.

7. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and allow soup to simmer for at least an hour for the flavours to combine.

8. Sample the soup after an hour and add more salt and pepper to taste if needed. We left the soup for about 1-2 hours.

*** You can also add chicken or turkey meat when adding in the water (step 5).

Being at school, around so many health conscious people it is amazing. Everyone has the best food and is always looking for ways to incorporate healthy snacks into their diet. My good friend Vishaala was placed on the elimination diet, meaning she would have to cut out sugar! It is extremely hard to get away from sugar. On average, Canadians consume 110 grams of sugar per day. That is equal to 26 teaspoons!

Almost everything is packed with sugar at the grocery store, including tomato sauce, salad dressings, and especially hummus! So we thought we would find a quick and easy recipe on Pinterest without sugar that we could make on our own. I was very fortunate to make this at V’s house as she has an amazing food processor! In total it literally took us about 40 mins to make, with lots of chatting of course J We split the dip and it lasted me pretty much the whole week (I eat a lot of dip J).

So here it is, try it out and let me know what you think.

Jalapeno Cilantro Hummus to go without the SUGAR!

1-2 Jalepenos (depending on how hot you want it)

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1/4 cup lemon juice

1-2 tablespoons olive oil 

2 cans chickpeas (we used two but I think 1 would have been better for the consistency since ours was a little thick)

1/4 cup sesame tahini (find it in the peanut butter section, or the health food section of most stores- vital to the recipe)

1 teaspoon cumin

1 cup fresh cilantro 

salt and pepper to taste

1. Chop the jalapenos and place in a skillet with garlic on medium heat until golden brown. The more seeds you keep in the skillet the hotter it will be!

2. Add the rest of the ingredients into a food processor or blender. If using a blender, add the ingredients according to the list above so that the liquids are at the bottom.

3. Add in the jalapenos, garlic, salt and pepper to taste.

4. Once you have mixed the ingredients check the consistency, if you want it more smooth add some more olive oil or lemon juice. We added in a bit more olive oil J Place in the refrigerator and serve with vegetables, crackers, etc.

Sources:

http://www.bigredclifford.com/2012/11/jalapeno-cilantro-hummus-recipe-vitamix.html

http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/story/2011/09/21/sugar-eat-statistics-canada.html

Since trying the Paleo Diet, I have been looking for alternative ways to have something sweet. I’ve been experimenting with coconut flour and I have to say it’s my new favourite thing! Coconut flour is definitely a delicious alternative to wheat and has many health benefits.

Health Facts on Coconut Flour

My very good friend Kiran made me lemon poppy seed muffins while I was living with her in NYC and I was craving them again so I thought I would share this recipe I found on Pinterest using coconut flour! They turned out really delicious and moist. Everyone enjoyed themJ

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

¼ cup coconut flour

¼ tsp sea salt

¼ tsp baking soda

3 eggs

¼ cup honey

¼ cup oil

1 tbsp lemon zest

1 tbsp poppy seeds

1. In a small bowl combine dry ingredients, coconut flour, salt and baking soda.

2. In a large bowl, blend together eggs, honey, oil and lemon zest with hand mixer.

3. Blend dry ingredients into wet ingredients with hand mixer.

4. Fold in poppy seeds with spoon.

5. Spoon in 3 tablespoons into each muffin liner. (My batter made about 8 cupcakes)

6. Bake at 350° for 8 to 10 minutes.

7. Cool and Serve!

Sources:

http://www.naturaltherapypages.com.au/article/cooking_with_coconut_flour

http://www.whatkatiesbaking.com/2012/01/06/lemon-poppy-seed-muffins-made-with-coconut-flour-gluten-free/