Lemon and coconut yogurt cake - I Love Italian Food

Lemon and coconut yogurt cake - I Love Italian Food

Juice Pulp Crackers

Do you hate to see food or nutrients go to waste? If you are an avid juicer, then you know all about the beautifully-colored arrangement of pulp that the machine spits out as the juice is squeezed out of each fruit and vegetable. Most people discard this pulp and get right to chugging their fruit & vegetable cocktail.

Unfortunately, no juicer can extract 100% of the nutrients out of the fruits and vegetables. Plus, what many people don’t consider is the fact that when you juice, you are essentially leaving behind all of the great fiber that the fruits’ and veggies’ skins and peels are so naturally high in.

Fiber serves a very important role in the diet… when consumed in whole fruits and vegetables it helps to slow the body’s breakdown and release of sugar from the produce, preventing blood sugar spikes and crashes; fiber can help you feel full longer; and fiber keeps your digestive system running smoothly and efficiently.

Bottom line, there is value in this often-neglected pulp!

Next time you make a juice, think twice before tossing the pulp! There’s no need for any nutritious part of the fruits and vegetables to go to waste. Here’s how you can transform your fibrous pulp into hearty and delicious Juice Pulp Crackers.

Juice Pulp Crackers – Ingredients

• 3C pulp vegetable/fruit pulp from juicer
• ¼C chia seeds
• ½C chickpea flour
• 1C water

Tips: Feel free replace the chia seeds with flax meal. Add garlic powder or some other of your favorite seasonings for added flavor. Make sure that if you plan to save and use the pulp, properly remove any inedible skin and seeds from the produce prior to juicing!

Juice Pulp Crackers – Preparation Instructions

1. Combine the juice pulp, Chia seeds, and chickpea flour in a food processor. Add some of the water and blend the ingredients together. Repeat until you have added all of the water. You really want to purée the pulp to break up the fibrous threads as best as you can, but let’s remember that it is essentially a bowl of roughage—embrace the raw and hearty texture.

2. Spread the mixture onto a nonstick baking sheet using a large spoon or a spatula. Spread the mixture as thinly as possible to allow your crackers to get nice and crispy.

3. Bake the cracker sheet in the oven at 350F for anywhere from 30 – 40 minutes, or until it is completely dried up and crisp.*

*If you prefer to keep your Juice Pulp Crackers raw, use a teflex sheet and dehydrate at 115F for at least 6 hours. You can even try letting them dehydrate overnight for extra-crispy crackers.

4. Once you have a crispy cracker sheet, remove the sheet from the oven or dehydrator and using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, break the sheet up into individual crackers. Once your crackers are all cut up, you can put the crackers back in the oven for an extra toast under the broiler, or go ahead and serve them as is.

Using the same recipe, you can also try making fruit and veggie pulp patties on the stovetop! 

Be Smart. 

And if the pulp doesn’t look so appetizing to you, there are other ways you make use of it, like making it into garden compost to help your spring garden flourish.

3 Detox Soups to Cleanse and Revitalize Your System

A detox soup takes many of the healthiest ingredients possible and puts them together in one pot. They usually involve pureeing or blending the vegetables up, or at the very least chopping them into bite-sized pieces. This makes the soup easy to digest so your body can absorb and utilize all of the nutrients more easily. The best part about these recipes is that the focus is still on taste, so you’re getting a detox dose of vitamins and minerals without having to suffer through it.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

 Serves 8

Ingredients

2-3 pound butternut squash, cubed in 1-inch pieces
4 large sweet apples (such as Gala or Honeycrisp), cubed in 1-inch pieces
8 ounces mushrooms, cut in half
1 cup (about 4 stalks) celery, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 large onion, cut into fourths
1/4 cup olive oil
4 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup apple juice
2 teaspoons salt + extra to taste
1 teaspoon black pepper + extra to taste
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional (for a little extra kick)
Pumpkin seeds, optional (for garnish)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).

In a large bowl, mix together the butternut squash and onion with 1/8 cup of olive oil. Stir to coat evenly. Place the vegetables in a large baking pan and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until squash is fork tender.

Meanwhile, mix together the apples and mushrooms with the remaining olive oil. Place on another baking pan and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until soft and fragrant.

In a large soup pot, place roasted vegetables and add chicken broth and apple juice. Using a an immersion blender, puree vegetables (alternatively, you may use a blender and puree vegetables with the liquid. This may take 2-3 batches). If the soup is too thick, additional chicken broth or water can be added to thin it out to your desired consistency. Simmer the soup over medium-low heat and season with spices, adding more or less to suit your taste.

Serve warm and garnish with pumpkin seeds, parsley or thyme, and a splash of cream.

Detox Green Soup Recipe with Broccoli, Spinach and Ginger

Broccoli is one of the most healthy foods you can eat, and so is spinach, and both get called to the line of duty on this recipe. Just one would be enough to get the detox job done, but when you have them both working in conjunction with each other, it’s almost too much of a good thing. Since some struggle with the thought of having to eat either broccoli or spinach, don’t fret: there is parsley, garlic, and onions to help with the taste and also to add bonus nutrients, as if it needed any.

This easy detox soup can be thin or thick, depending upon the amount of water you add.

Serves 4.

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons olive oil or coconut oil
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons diced onion
1 inch of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
4 cups fresh broccoli, cut up
1/2 pound of fresh spinach leaves
3 parsnips, peeled, cored, chopped
2 ribs of celery, trimmed, chopped
A handful of fresh parsley, roughly chopped
Fresh water, as needed
Sea salt and ground pepper, to taste
Lemon or lime juice


Instructions:

Using a large soup pot, heat the oil over medium heat and stir in the garlic, onion, and ginger to season the oil. Add the broccoli, spinach, parsnips, celery and parsley, and stir a bit until the spinach wilts and collapses. Add just enough water to cover the vegetables. Remember the spinach will cook down quite a bit, so don't add too much water at first. You can always thin the soup later, if you need to.

Bring to a high simmer, cover the pot, and reduce the heat to a medium simmer. Cook for fifteen minutes or so until the veggies are softened.

Use an immersion blender to puree the soup.

Options:

To make this a creamy (and still non-dairy) soup add a good dash of light coconut milk.

Beans and Greens Soup

Many times beans are overlooked as a detox food, because the thought is that only fruits and vegetables can detox the body. But beans have a good amount of fiber and are usually able to aid in digestion if they are cooked properly and eaten in correct portions. In this case they’re using cannellini beans, but you could substitute those with whichever beans you happen to have on hand. The other ingredients highlight the subtle flavor of the beans, while providing additional textures and tastes.

Serves 5-7

Ingredients

3/4 cup dry cannellini beans
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely diced
4-8 cloves garlic, minced (I like a lot)
1.5 teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
2 teaspoons tomato paste
6-7 cups water
4 cups collard greens, finely shredded
fresh parsley to garnish (optional)
grated parmesan to garnish (optional non-vegan garnish)

Instructions

Cover beans with about 3 cups of cold water. Cover and let soak overnight.
Drain and rinse beans. Set aside. (skip steps 1&2 if using canned beans)
In large stockpot, heat olive oil on medium heat. Add onion, saute for 5 minutes. Add garlic, and saute until mixture starts to turn golden brown. Add salt, pepper, thyme, bay leaf, and vegetable base. Stir, cooking for one more minute.
Add tomato paste, water, and beans. Stir to combine and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low, cover, and cook for 20 minutes.
Add greens, and continue to cook for 20 minutes or until beans are soft. Add water if soup becomes too thick.
Remove bay leaves. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley and grated parmesan. Serve with crusty bread.

Be Smart

It's time for DETOX

My Greatest Probiotic Foods You Should Be Eating

Are you getting enough probiotic-rich foods in your diet? 

Chances are you’re probably not. 

Probiotics are essential for your digestive health, which most people already know.

But did you know there are hundreds of other health benefits of consuming probiotic-rich foods that you might not be aware of?

In this article I want to cover my favourite probiotic foods you should consider adding into your diet today and how they can benefit you.

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Probiotic Foods Benefits Are Amazing

Probiotics are good bacteria that primarily line your gut and are responsible for nutrient absorption and supporting your immune system. 

If you don’t have enough probiotics, the side effects can include: digestive disorders, skin issues, candida, autoimmune disease and frequent colds and flus.

Historically, we had plenty of probiotics in our diet from eating fresh foods from good soil and by fermenting our foods to keep them from spoiling.

However, today because of refrigeration and dangerous agricultural practices like soaking our foods with chlorine, our food contains little to no probiotics and most foods today actually contain antibiotics which kill off the good bacteria in our bodies.

By adding more probiotic foods into your diet, you could see all of the following health benefits:

Stronger immune system

Improved digestion

Increased energy from production of vitamin B12

Better breath because probiotics destroy candida

Healthier skin, since probiotics improve eczema and psoriasis

Reduced cold and flu

Healing from leaky gut and inflammatory bowel disease

Weight loss

Sound good?  If you want all of these benefits, then it’s time to start consuming these probiotic foods for better health.

#1 Kefir 

Similar to yogurt, this fermented dairy product is a unique combination of milk and fermented kefir grains.  Kefir has been consumed for well over 3000 years and the term kefir was started in Russia and Turkey and means “feeling good”. It has a slightly acidic and tart flavor and contains anywhere from 10 to 34 strains of probiotics.  Kefir is similar to yogurt, but because it is fermented with yeast and more bacteria the final product is higher in probiotics. 

#2 Yogurt 

Possibly the most popular probiotic food is live cultured yogurt or greek yogurt made from the milk of cows, goats, or sheep. Yogurt in most cases can rank at the top of probiotic foods if it comes from raw grass-fed animals. The problem is there is a large variation on the quality of yogurts on the market today.  It is recommend when buying yogurt to look for 3 things. First, that it comes from goat’s or sheep milk, second, that it is grass-fed, and third, that it is organic.

#3 Cultured Vegetables

(Sauerkraut and Kimchi) – Made from fermented cabbage and other vegetables, sauerkraut is not diverse in probiotics, but is high in organic acids (what gives food its sour taste) which support the growth of good bacteria.  Sauerkraut is extremely popular in Germany today. Kimchi is a cousin to sauerkraut and is the Korean take on cultured veggies.  Both of the fermented formulas are also high in enzymes, which can aid digestion.  

#4Pickles

Pickles are the gateway ferment. Not only do they provide a healthy dose of probiotics, they're a familiar food item and have a taste that many people already love—including those who may hold their nose at the idea of eating fermented foods.

#5 Kombucha –  Is an effervescent fermentation of black tea that is started by using a SCOBY also known as a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast. Kombucha has been around for over 2,000 years originating around Japan. Many claims have been made about kombucha, but its primarily health benefits include digestive support, increased energy and liver detoxification.  

#6 Kimchi 

Think of this spicy Korean dish—typically made from fermentedcabbage—as a beauty food, as well as an energy-booster. It can help "enhance digestion and nutrient assimilation," she explains. "You may also notice, with improved digestion, an improvement in the look of your skin".

I have several great recipes that I want to share with you.

Dip with Raw Cashew Nuts

Quinoa and Kefir Pesto Bowls

Be Healthy

Quinoa and Kefir Pesto Bowls

Servings:2

Ingredients

1/4 cup Kefir1 1/2 cups fresh basil leaves1 1/2 cups fresh kale leaves1/4 cup roasted pistachios1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese1 large garlic clove2 large eggs, softly boiled2 cups cooked quinoa2 Tbsp chopped pistachios1 Tbsp chia seedsKosher salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

To make the pesto: add the kefir, kale, basil, garlic, parmesan cheese, pistachios and a pinch each of kosher salt and black pepper into the pitcher of a high-powered blender or a food processor. Pulse until a few chunks remain, but the sauce is mostly smooth. Set aside.

To prepare the bowls: divide the cooked quinoa or grain of choice into to bowls. Spoon over 2-3 tablespoons of kefir pesto. Chop  each egg in half (or slice as desired) and distribute evenly between bowls.

Add half of the avocado to each bowl, followed by half of the pistachios and chia seeds.Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add additional pesto or kefir to reach desired creaminess.

 

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