mixed bean salad

Yesterday I just threw a few ingredients together and came up with this summery bean salad. I'm not sure of exact measurements but I'll do my best. You can probably use any type of bean and any type of vinegar. Let me know what you think!

Mixed bean salad
Serves about 9

1 can cannelini beans, rinsed
1 can lentils, rinsed
1 can black beans, rinsed
3/4 cup chopped tomato
3/4 cup chopped red/green bell pepper
3 green onions, sliced
4 Tbsp olive oil
4 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Throw all ingredients in a bowl and mix together. Refrigerate and enjoy!

tropical garbanzo bean salad

Here's a summery treat for you bean lovers. With only 5 ingredients it comes together in no time. For best results, let it marinate in the fridge for a few hours. Enjoy!

tropical garbanzo bean salad:

Serves about 6

2 cans garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
2/3 cup unsweetened coconut, shredded
2/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
4 tsp lemon juice
salt to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate. If you make it, please let me know what you think!

almond flour crumble

I've been looking for a grain free granola type recipe that tastes just as good. I think I've found it! It's low glycemic and high in protein. It's also highly addictive.

Almond flour crumble:
1 1/4 cups almond flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup grapeseed or coconut oil
1/4 cup agave nectar
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup sunflower seeds

Mix the dry ingredients in a small bowl and the wet ingredients in a large bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix together until combined. Pour into an 8x8 baking dish and put in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes.

Top your yogurt or oatmeal with this almond flour crumble. Enjoy!

What to do with all of that zucchini from the garden

Ok, admittedly I don't actually have a garden. But lots of people I know have one. And they keep bringing me zucchini. Lots of it. I'm not really the biggest fan of zucchini but I thought, "hey, maybe I'll cook up something healthy with lots of flavor and will enjoy it." So that's exactly what I did. And not only that but I added legumes to make it a meal and not just a vegetable side dish. My inspiration came from http://www.wheatfreemeatfree.com/ but I tweaked the recipe a bit. Want to make it a complete protein meal, just add your favorite grain like rice or quinoa.

Here it is:
Zucchini and sage dinner
serves 4

3 medium zucchini, sliced and cut in half
5 cloves of garlic
4 Tbsp of chopped fresh sage
2 cans of cannelini beans
1 lemon, zest only
3 Tbsp olive oil

Heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the zucchini until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sage, heat for another minute. Last, add the lemon zest and the beans and heat for another 5 minutes. Serve and enjoy!

I also was craving some lemonade so I decided to make my own. Since I only used the zest of the lemon, I squeezed half of the lemon juice into a glass and added ice and water with a few drops of liquid stevia to sweeten it.

Hey! There's mercury in my fish!

Let's discuss heavy metals today, specifically mercury. How many of your order the salmon when you go to a restaurant thinking, "hey, I'm being super healthy and getting my dose of omega 3s today! Go me!!"? Did you know that you are also getting your dose of mercury for the day (or for the year)? That's right, farm raised Atlantic salmon is chock full of the nasty heavy metal that causes a reduction in sensory abilities such as taste, touch, vision, hearing. It also has been shown to increase the risk for cardiovascular disease, fatigue, irritability, among others.  Makes you want to order the chicken, doesn't it?

How do we know which fish is safe? Typically, the larger, predatory fish contain much higher levels of mercury and it's not advised to eat them more than once/month (if at all).  Tuna, swordfish, shark, king mackeral, orange roughy, marlin, Chilean bass, lobster, halibut, snapper are high in this metal due to their size and longevity.

While farm raised Atlantic salmon is unsafe, you are free to eat wild Alaskan salmon (King-Chinook, Red-Sockeye, Silver-Coho). Fish with the lowest mercury content: clam, ocean perch, tilapia, flounder, sole, catfish.

Hope this helps clear up the confusion surrounding mercury toxicity and fish. Below is a basic baked salmon recipe using (obviously) Alaskan salmon. Enjoy!

Baked salmon
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place fish in 8x8 dish and sprinkle with olive oil and any spices. Bake for 10 minutes for each inch of thickness.

Eat food!

If you are trying to be more conscious of what you eat and just want to make a few small changes to optimize your health, then my recommendation to you is to eat food. This may sound obvious but unfortunately it's not as obvious as it should be. Let's do a quick what is food lesson.

Food:

• should not have a label (in general) or come in a bag with ingredients that you cannot decipher
• may have a label that reads peanuts or lentils
• may have lived and breathed but now does not and has not had anything added to it such as fillers, preservatives, dyes, or other animal parts like bones, feathers, etc (I know....gross!)
• examples are apples, carrots, almonds, eggs, spinach

Are you with me so far? Good! How about some bullet points of things that are not food.

Not food:

• if it comes in a can that says cheez whiz or imitation this or that or cheese-like product
• if the ingredient list on the label is longer than a novel
• if it's been shaped into a fun animal shape but is not in fact an animal
• if the label has a fun cartoon character on it and your kids want it
• if it contains artificial sweeteners (that turn into formaldehyde in your body...yuck!)
• examples include....wait....there are way too many to name. Let's just say this: if it comes from one of the aisles in the middle of the grocery store, don't eat it!

Think about it this way, food contains things (and by things I mean vitamins, minerals, amino acids, etc) that your body recognizes and can metabolize. Processed food however is the major cause of chronic disease and obesity in this nation. So if you wondering why your belly fat will not go away then look no further than your kitchen. Because chances are you will find more not food than food in those cabinets.

And here is a delicious whole foods muffin that I think you will enjoy! This was copied directly from elanaspantry.com

Gluten Free Carrot Banana Muffins
2 cups blanched almond flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 cup dates, pitted
3 ripe bananas
3 eggs
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
¼ cup coconut oil, melted
1 ½ cups carrots, shredded
¾ cup walnuts, finely chopped

1. In a small bowl, combine almond flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon
2. In a food processor, combine dates, bananas, eggs, vinegar and oil
3. Transfer mixture to a large bowl
4. Blend dry mixture into wet until thoroughly combined
5. Fold in carrots and walnuts
6. Spoon mixture into paper lined muffins tins
7. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes

Makes 18 muffins

Adventures in Detoxing

My spring detox is underway and presenting less of a challenge than the winter detox. Why? Because I’m eating foods my body craves this time of year when it’s hot and muggy: fruits and vegetables. During the winter detox I constantly thought about food as my stomach growled for days on end craving comfort foods in the cold, depressing weather. But the mental challenge of the limited choices are so much easier when I can have watermelon shakes (recipe to follow) and raw, crisp veggies.

Detoxing the harmful fat-soluble toxins from the body several times a year is more important for some than others. If you work, or have worked, with chemicals or if you consistently breathe in the pollutants lots of bigger cities produce, or if you have trouble losing weight, than you are a prime candidate. Here’s a little of what to expect with a 10 day detox based on my experience in the winter and up to day 6 of my current spring detox.

Day one: eliminate “flesh foods” or basically meat (eggs and dairy are acceptable this day), eliminate alcohol, refined sugars, artificial sweeteners, and caffeine. I’m feeling great this day and highly optimistic and excited about the detox. The caffeine withdrawal has not set in yet…oh wait. There it is. Feeling foggy, cranky, irritable, if only I could have just one small cup of coffee….

Day two: continue eliminating. Today is day one of a vegan diet so eliminate eggs and dairy. Start consuming the rice protein mix.* Caffeine withdrawal has set in with a vengeance. Raging migraine. Don’t talk to me, I hate you all, I may bite your head off. Stupid detox…

Day three: Eliminate gluten and corn. Feeling better but still missing my morning cup o java. Slight headache.

Day four: Eliminate all remaining grains, nuts/seeds. I can eat only fruits, veggies, and legumes in addition to the shake. Totally over the caffeine withdrawal. Feeling much better (and my pants are looser…..).

Days five-seven: Drink the shake 4 times daily and only consume cruciferous veggies, dark greens, apples, and pears. Stomach growling, missing food. These days are hell in the winter, not so bad in the spring. Would probably be easier to get through with coffee…

Day eight: Gently adding back fruits and veggies and some rice. I’ve never craved rice more! I feel clear and confident and completely energized. The last three days were totally worth it!

Day nine: Add back gluten-free grains, legumes, nuts/seeds. Feeling energized and several pounds lighter.

Day ten (and beyond): adding back one food item at a time every 48 hours to note any negative reactions. Feeling like I could be a vegan but may add animal protein back anyway to see if I react.

*This detox uses Ultra Clear Renew (Metagenics) and can only be purchased from a doctor or nutrition office. Do not try doing this detox without the shake as you will be weak and protein deficient. The goal is to lose body fat and preserve as much muscle as possible. Without following this plan exactly as prescribed you will most likely lose muscle mass and potentially become ill. Just sayin’….

Here are just a few delicious recipes that I have concocted during my adventures in detoxing:

Watermelon aguas frescas

Serves 1

Blend 2 cups watermelon with juice from half a lime in a blender. Add a few drops of liquid stevia to bring out the sweetness.

Roasted cruciferous vegetables

Cut broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts into small pieces and spread out on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and roast for 20-50 minutes in a 400 degree oven.

Days 5-7 pear smoothie

4 oz pear juice, 2 oz applesauce, cinnamon to taste, 1 whole pear, 2 scoops detox shake. Blend and enjoy!

If you have questions about detoxing or just want more information, please let me know!

Planning ahead with a thai curry recipe

For those of you who need to get your act together and start planning meals, here is a great one. It starts with a marinade that can sit in the fridge doing its magic for up to 24 hours and I suggest you let it sit for at least 6 hours. I'm not the biggest fan of recipes with huge ingredient lists but I promise this is worth the trouble. If you make this ahead of time and even double it, you can have multiple meals for the week. I rarely say this about my cooking but this is a "restaurant quality" meal, people. I've adapted it from one of my very favorite cookbooks, The Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook by Alissa Segersten and Tom Malterre, MS, CN. I highly recommend this cookbook to anyone transitioning to a more whole foods diet. So here it is:

Thai curry with chicken
serves 4

2 large boneless chicken breasts

Sauce:
1 can coconut milk
2-4 small shallots, peeled
1 small stalk of lemongrass (optional)
8 garlic cloves, peeled
2 Tbsp fresh ginger, chopped
2 Tbsp fish sauce
1/2 tsp sea salt
3 Tbsp peanut or almond butter
2 Tbsp agave nectar
1 Tbsp curry powder
1 tsp crushed red chili flakes
1 tsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp black pepper

Cut the chicken breast into small pieces and place in a 9x13-inch baking dish. Place all remaining ingredients into a blender until creamy. Pour mixture over chicken and cover. Refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and cook for 30-35 minutes. Enjoy over quinoa, rice, or another whole grain with a side of broccoli.

Legumes 102: Mujadara (cheapest. meal. ever.)

I'm back with a continuation of my legume lecture. And this one has pictures! I also learned how to chiffonade.  It's a cutting technique that fancy foodies use to uniformly cut any flat leaf such as mint, as shown below. Fortunately, my husband was around as I was preparing this dish and he told me exactly how to do it. He must pay better attention to the chefs on the Food Network than I do.

Mujadara is a complete protein meal. What do I mean by a complete protein meal? Well I'm glad you asked. Proteins are made up of amino acids and there are lots of different amino acid combinations. Animal protein, such as chicken, contains all essential amino acids therefore is considered complete. Legumes on the other hand have several essential amino acids but not all of them thus considered incomplete. Fortunately, grains have the missing link and can be combined with legumes to form a perfect protein source. You do not have to eat them at the same meal but you do need both food sources if you plan to ditch the animals.

If you are looking for ways to save at the grocery store, then look no further than including some vegetarian meals into your week. Since we've cut the amount of animal protein that we consume, we've saved at least $100/month. This is only possible if you have motivation to cook up some tasty veg meals. Lucky for you I plan to share all of the best ones!

Mujadara is a fancy name for an easy meal. It's basically lentils and brown rice with some onions and spices. Here is a version of the recipe that I found on www.wheatfreemeatfree.com.

Mujadara, serves 4

2 Tbsp olive oil
2 small onions, 1 diced, 1 sliced thinly
5 cloves of garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup brown rice
1/2 cup lentils
2 cups vegetable stock
3 Tbsp fresh mint leaves, cut into a chiffonade

Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil on medium heat and add diced onions and garlic. Saute until onion is soft and then add spices and continue to saute for 30 seconds.

Add vegetable broth, lentils and rice and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cover for 30 minutes or until the liquid had been incorporated. Meanwhile, add the remaining oil into another pan and saute the sliced onion on medium heat until dark brown (about 30 minutes). You may need to leave it alone to get it browned.

Serve lentil/rice mixture with carmelized onions and mint on top. Enjoy!

Legumes 101

I know most of you reading this are so sick of me talking about beans. "My nutritionist loves beans. In fact it's all she talks about...she's obsessed with them!" Not true...well, kind of true. Why do I insist that everyone consume these gas producing legumes? Well, my friend, I'll tell you (unless of course you follow more of a Paleo diet...but that's another lecture for another day). Let's call this little lecture legumes 101. Here are some legume fun facts. Well, they're fun for me anyway. You might already be bored. But stick with me, there's a recipe at the end!

• Legumes are a plant food that include beans, peas, and lentils
• They are nutrient dense and contain iron, magnesium, potassium, and folate, among others
• They are fiber rich!!! How do you get 1/3 of your daily fiber needs? Eat 1/2 a cup of legumes daily.
• They are low-glycemic
• They are a wonderful protein substitute for those on vegetarian or vegan diets
• They taste good...if you know how to cook them correctly

Ok, so now on to the subject of digestability. Have a difficult time digesting my favorite plant food? Slowly increase your intake and over time you can eat your 1/2 cup daily serving. You see, legumes contain sugars that our bodies have a hard time digesting but our GI tracts can easily adapt if you slowly introduce.

And now for a recipe. Chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans) are my favorite legume! Most people have little trouble digesting them and they are neutral in flavor which makes them perfect for many recipes. I have tried to introduce the concept of roasted chickpeas to most of you but just in case I forgot you (I'm sorry!) here is a simple recipe for all of your crunchy, salty, (fiber filled) needs.

Roasted Chickpeas:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Rinse a can of chickpeas and pat dry with a paper towel. Pour the contents of the can on a cookie sheet lined with foil (for easy clean up!). Drizzle extra virgin olive oil on the beans and any spices you desire. My favorite right now is smoked paprika, garlic, salt, pepper. There are lots of spices you could use so just experiment. Place in preheated over for 20 minutes and take out and move the beans around. Then keep checking them every 7-10 minutes until they are golden brown. Enjoy!

Stay tuned for legumes 102. I know you can't wait.

The magical “flour”

In my opinion, almond flour is magical. It’s low-glycemic, buttery in taste and smell, and very versatile. You can use it to make baked goods or savory dishes and it can be used in place of white or wheat flour in most recipes. It can be used for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. So why has this magical flour not caught on in the general public? Seriously, I’m asking. Now granted, it is a bit more expensive than all purpose flour but the health benefits greatly outweigh any negatives.

For those of you looking for great tasting almond flour recipes, please visit my favorite food blog out there: www.elanaspantry.com. Her cookbook is also quite amazing and is getting regular use underneath my Crate & Barrel cookbook holder.

Here is a great chocolate chip cookie recipe using almond flour. In fact, it’s from Elana’s website. You are probably now wondering why a nutritionist would post her first blog entry with a cookie recipe knowing full well that her patients are going to read it.  I will answer this question with something everyone has heard a million times before: everything in moderation. Do not eat cookies every day. But you can eat them a lot more often if they are made with low-glycemic flour and low-glycemic sweetener. Just trust me on this. They rock!

Gluten Free and Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 ½ cups almond flour

½ teaspoon sea salt

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ cup grapeseed oil

1 tablesppon vanilla extract

½ cup agave nectar

1 cup dark chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients. In a smaller bowl, combine all wet ingredients. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Press ½ inch balls onto the parchment paper and bake for 7-10 minutes. Enjoy!

From www.elanaspantry.com