EASY JUICE-BASED MEALS

  This week I took lunch with me to work instead of eating out (in which cases I mostly eat plain salad with soy sauce and bread). I came up with a simple plan how to fix both breakfast and lunch simultaneously in two steps.

Cucumber-avocado soup with wholemeal spelt flatbread.

Step 1: The previous evening make two juices. One is fruit-based for breakfast the next morning, and the other veggie-based for lunch the next day. Store in air-tight glass jars in the fridge.

Step 2: In the morning Vitamix your fruit juice with a big bunch of green leaves until creamy and smooth. Voilá, your breakfast is ready!
            Now Vitamix your veggie juice with one ripe avocado until creamy and smooth. Voilá, your lunch is ready! Pour back in the glass jar and take to work.

The beauty in juicing is that you can combine nearly anything together, and still come up with a nice taste. Natural tastes of fruits and veggies are so subtle that they mix well. I usually buy whatever is in season in the grocery store, and either make single juices or combinations according to my imagination. It´s all good for me!

  Now that I´ve been juicing mostly every day for a month, I can honestly say I´m feeling the difference. It is simple to put it in a nutshell: I feel satisfied. Never did think a thin cup of liquid could fill me up, but it does! It is a different, new kind of fullness I can feel in my throat rather than stomach. When I´ve had enough, the thought of more food & juice starts to feel repulsive. And it takes a lot longer to feel hungry again than before. I´d like to think it is because of the abundant amount of nutrients I´m getting now. No matter what the reason, I feel better and stronger now.
  I´d had a juicer for  years and years, but never did I drink juices this much and regularly. The biggest reason for that was that my old juicer didn´t extract as much juice from the same amount of produce as my new one, making more go to waste.

This is apple juice blended with two leaves of kale. Kale makes a nice, thick froth.

3/4 cucumber juice, 1/4 apple juice blended with 1 small avocado. Needs no salt.

  I´m impressed by the power of juice!

EATING PLAN FOR YULE

  Evolution has brought me to this:

Breakfast:
1 cup green tea w/ soymilk
2 cups freshly squeezed vegetable/fruit juice
1 banana topped with coconut oil and honey

There´s cucumber, celery, and apple in this glass.

Lunch:
1 cup water w/ Echinacea drops
raw food meal of choice

Tzatziki dip with veggie sticks is a great lunch option.

Dinner:
1 cup green tea w/ soymilk
2-3 cups green smoothie/pudding

Cinnamon-flavored green pudding. Made of spinach, banana, avocado, water, honey, cinnamon, and vanilla. I left the banana a bit chunky for something to bite on.

  If/when I get hungry in the evening after eating all three meals of the day, I´ll grab fresh fruits and veggies to fill me up.

  This plan combines raw foodism and principles of Clean eating by dr. Alejandro Junger (where he recommends eating two liquid meals and one solid meal per day)

  All the above examples happen to be green, but that´s not the intention (except for the green pudding of course =). I use mostly seasonal veggies and fruits as the base of all meals, bulking them up with avocado, coconut oil, and occasional cold smoked salmon or goat´s cheese. I´d love to eat an all-raw vegan diet, but at least for now my stomach doesn´t agree with nuts & seeds. A girl´s gotta do what a girl´s gotta do... which is enjoy this nutrient and enzyme rich fresh diet for the next six weeks or so!

CRAZY GOOD CARROT SOUP

  Don´t let the rawness of this soup fool you, it is delicious! And suits the Halloween table well.

Dreamy and creamy, absolutely suitable for non-raw-foodists too.

No clumps or bumps, only smooth and fluffy delight. No salt is needed in the making, this is a naturally sweet soup.

  The recipe (for 1):

1 lb (500g) carrots
1 avocado
1/2 inch (1 cm) piece of fresh ginger
fresh basil

+ Juice the carrots (makes about a cup). In a high-speed blender blend the juice, avocado, and ginger until creamy smooth. Sprinkle generously with chopped basil.

  The first time I ever made this soup I was lazy and skipped the juicing part. Well, it was edible but far from the deliciousness of this one. Juicing is definitely worth the extra dishes!

ELIXIR OF YOUTH

  A couple of weeks ago I bought a few cans of mild cider at a grocery store, and the cashier lady asked me for id. Me! You need to be 18 here to buy it, and I´ll be 37 next month! Yipee! I thanked the nice lady and told her how she had just made my day. =)

  Every now and then I hear people say how I look younger than my age, including a top photographer (in which case I lost a photo shoot because of looking so young =(, and the head of my modeling agency). My age is not yet an issue to me. 36 is totally young these days. After all, fifty is the new thirty now!

  Still taking care of oneself helps to keep the good looks, and makes you feel great. One of the secrets to a lively and healthy (a.k.a. youthful) appearance is raw leafy greens. The darker the better. I prefer fresh greens over dried superfood ones. Now kale is in season, so it is time to enjoy it.
  After getting a high-speed blender (Vitamix) for Christmas last year, I have been able to enjoy super smooth green juices. They say that when food is broken down to such tiny particles, your body can use it up better. So I figure blending raw leafy greens I get the most out of them. I prefer blending over juicing because then the juice still includes all the fiber too.

A fountain of youth, raw green juice with pulp.

    The recipe (for one):

5 leaves dinosaur kale (or any available raw leafy greens as much as your taste buds can tolerate)
4 sprigs of mint (or any fresh herb desired to taste)
20 drops of Echinacea (I use merely for taste, but possible health benefits are only a big bonus. My aunt has used it for decades, and swears on it´s cold-preventing properties.)
water

+ Blend the kale and mint in a high-speed blender with 1 1/2 cups water until all smooth. Add water enough to reach 2 cups. Pour into a glass and add the Echinacea drops. Stir and drink with your lunch for extra boost.
  Shine, radiate, and get ready for compliments!

JUICE OF THE DAY

  My eating plan for Ostara includes one juice a day. This morning I had as follows:

I don´t do juice recipes. I simply grab what´s in the fridge, and throw that in the juicer. It´s difficult to go wrong. In addition to this juice, I had a handful of walnuts. 

  The recipe (about 2 cups):

2 small beetroots
1/3 of a fennel bulb
1 orange
1 grapefruit
1 green apple
a wedge of cabbage
1 stick of celery

+ Peel and juice. Enjoy.

  I love the way fresh juice makes me feel. So full, yet lively, energetic, and simply happy! I believe raw foods possess a magic ingredient, one that science cannot discover, one called love.

EATING PLAN FOR OSTARA

  My goal in eating is to stay healthy, slim, and energetic without having to count calories. Also I loath cooking, so I want to get by as easy as I can. My diet is mostly vegan, of which some is intentionally raw. I have found that juiced and blended foods suit my stomach well, so those are included  in this plan.

 "Daily essentials" make for the stem of my eating plan for this Ostara:
1. 1-2 cups of veggie juice
2. 1-2 cups of green smoothie
3. 1/2 cup of raw dip/sauce

  In addition to the previous I can eat pretty much whatever I want, including unhealthy desserts like milk chocolate.

  Another corner stone of the plan is the time of eating. I will try to finish eating for the day by 5pm. That supports the studies showing that it is in our genes not to eat in the evening or at night, and that only through this daily "mini fast" can our bodies do their job properly.
  After 5pm it is all about drinking water and brushing my teeth, which helps reduce my cravings. =)

Breakfast (by 10am): 
1-2 cups of veggie juice (with some apple or other fruit in it to give a bit of sweetness)
nuts or bread

Lunch (around noon):
1-2 cups of green smoothie (including greens and 1/2 an avocado, the rest is up to the content of the fridge)
pasta, rice, bread, tofu, etc.

 Dinner (by 5pm):
about 1/2 cup of dip/sauce with chopped veggies
1-2 cups of green tea with soymilk
dessert of choice (I´m forever addicted to chocolate...)

  The idea for each meal is to eat the daily essential first, and then have whatever (vegan and quite low-fat) I want according to my appetite.

  Two incredibly inspirational raw-foodists out there are Ms. Tonya Zavasta and Ms. Mimi Kirk. I want to be like them when I grow up!

VEGGIE PATTIES & GREEN JUICE

  My husband inspired me to try these veggie patties by bringing home store-bought ones the other day. He is a big-time meat eater, but praised those veggie patties to heaven and back. Of course I had to try them. Well, not bad, but at the same time I was thinking how they were nothing out of this world, and that I could easily make patties equal to his find. But I would make them even better by keeping them vegan (no dairy or eggs) and gluten-free.
  I made my version of the veggie patties today. They were so good (yet easy to make), that I want to share the recipe.  This is one of those foods you can eat as much as you like without getting fat. (I ate half of the amount the recipe makes  =).
 

This is my whole lunch today. The content on the white plate ended up in my Vitamix, and became a nutritious green juice. (Oops, I now notice that the frozen nettle I added in the juice is missing from the picture.)

The recipe for the veggie patties: In a big bowl, combine a generous 1/2 cup (1,5 dl) of soy flour, another generous 1/2 cup (1,5 dl) of buckwheat flour, 3/4 tsp Herbamare, and 1 1/2 tsp dried thyme. Pull out any veggies you have in your fridge, including carrots, and grate/grind about 1.5 lbs (700 g) of them finely. (I found carrots, zucchini, onions, and bell pepper in my fridge today.) Mix in with the flour and add about 2 Tbsp olive oil too. Form patties, place on a baking tray lined with a baking sheet, and bake in the oven at 450 Fahrenteit(230 Centigrade) for 15-20 min.

The recipe for a refreshing, and somehow summery, green drink: mix in a high-speed blender one Granny Smith apple, a one-inch (two-centimeter) piece of fresh ginger with peel, a handful of wild edible greens if available, and as much of any salad greens you can tolerate, with some water. I added water enoug to reach 2 cups (1/2 liter) altogether. Even my nearly-two-year-old liked this juice! She has proven to be a hc-raw-foodist.  =)

  Have a happy and healthy day, loaded with positivity!

DETOX MORNING DRINK

  Sometimes I just crave green drinks. The urge comes and goes, but I interperate it as my body´s way of telling me it is time to take it a little lighter for a while. As my body is my temple - my home - I need to respect it´s needs.

  Here is what I had for breakfast the other day:

A large plateful of veggies...

... blended into a smooth green drink. It is amazing how much greens fit into a 1/2 liter pint!

The recipe for "Triple Green Juice" (serves 2) :

3 cups chopped fresh kale
1/2 stalk celery, chopped
1/2 seedless cucumber, chopped
1 carrot, chopped, or 1 apple cut into 4 pieces

+  Place all ingredients in a juicer and squeeze, or puree in a blender with a little spring water.

   I did not have kale, so I used lettuces and some wild edible greens from the garden instead.
  The taste was definitely healthy and surprisingly  pleasant! Another positive surprise was to find out that I did not become hungry until three hours later, only a little before lunch time anyway.

  The inspiration overall, and then the recipe above, came from Mayumi Nishimura´s book, Mayumi´s Kitchen, which I bought recently. She introduces a loose approach to macrobiotism, petit macro. That seems like an easier path into the somewhat confusing world of macrobiotic eating and lifestyle. I´m very excited about the world petit macro opens the door to!

WILD GREEN DRINK

  At this time of year I always start yearning for fresh foods. Root veggies have seen their best days by now, and to be honest, I´m up to my ears full of them.
  So what could be better than digging into my dear old freezer again, and pull out the bags of wild edible greens I collected last Beltane?! They are full of nature´s own vitamins and minerals, just the way it was meant to be, without man´s interference. Perfect.

In this drink I used goutweed as the green.

  The recipe:

a handful of greens (preferably wild edible)
10 cm piece of cucumber, unpeeled
1/2 lemon or 1 lime, juiced
water

+ Blend all in a blender, on the highest speed, until luquefied. Add water to reach 1/2 liter (2 cups).

  When I have this with lunch, I can skip the (sometimes boring) chewing of salad.  =)

GREEN DRINK

  Drinking with meals is not fashionable nowadays. I go against the grain by gulping down 1/2 liter per meal. That just suits my digestion better. I´m all for intuitive eating and eat how and what feels right.

  Plain water is not very attractive to me, unless I´m really thirsty (which is quite rarely). I have tried to learn to drink plain water with lunch, and I have made progress, but overall I want some variety. Squeezing some lemon juice in is an old trick that works. The other day I tried a new trick:

Salad greens in an easy-to-drink form; a blended green juice to go with lunch.

The recipe:

1/2 liter water
1/2 lemon, juiced
handful of greens like kale or spinach (the darker the better)
a few leaves of sage (or any fresh herb you like)

+ Throw all in a blender and process until the greens have nearly dissolved. 

  This is not in my menu every day, but at least twice a week. It much depends on what I´m eating. For example with soup I would choose plain water, because if I didn´t want to drink it all, I could give the rest to my common ivy at the end of the dining table.  =)

SCONES AND JUICE FOR LUNCH

  Simplicity is bliss.

  As a teenager, I remember telling my mom how I liked my foods simple. I never liked sauces and gravies, just plain potatoes or rice with additional, say, slices of tomatoes and a piece of bread on the side. Period.
  To that I still hold. I do eat a lot enough, but the type of food is simple. A good example is my Tuesday lunch I have composed for my Oestara-menu this year: fresh juice with warm scones. Aahhh...

I always need something fresh for lunch, and juice is a great alternative for salads. Straight-from-the-oven-scones are heavenly! These are made gluten free and vegan. You can vary the ingredients endlessly according to the season and your liking. It goes sweet or salty, very versatile!

To make my juices, I always use whatever I happen to have.. This time there were apples, fennel, and beet.

Scones for my taste; gluten free and thin. 3-4 of these will do...

This is a delightfully simple and tasty lunch, which provides good nutrition and doesn´t make me fat!

The recipes:
  
Juice:
 2 Granny Smith apples
1/2 bulb of fennel
1 beet

+ Juice.

Scones:
 4 dl flour (I used home-ground millet and buckwheat, with some corn starch)
2 tsp  baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp oil
2 dl water or milk (I used soy milk)
2  shredded apples (or carrots, bananas, beets, cabbage even, tomatoes, pumpkin, berries... whatever)
cinnamon (or any seasoning suitable for the chosen vegetable/fruit)

+ Mix all and scoop 7-9 scones on baking trays. Bake at 225 Celsius for 15 min. Serve immediately with butter/vegan margarine. Yum!

SUPER LUNCH

  Sometimes I play with the thought of having a café á la Nelland. What would it serve, and what sort of people would come in it? In my remote neighborhood this can never happen, but it´s a fun mind game.
  Today I served myself something so wonderful for lunch, that it would definitely make it in the menu of café Nelland!

A green super lunch packed with nutrition! Main focus is on fresh food, completed with very satisfying and filling mushroom risotto.

A huge green salad with cheesy raw dressing  is the main course...

...after which you can indulge in as much creamy risotto as you can stuff in yourself!

Don´t forget to drink the energy-packed, freshly squeezed cucumber-apple juice as beverage. It is so good, and so good for you!

  The recipes:

Green salad:

1 head of lettuce, shredded
1 green bell pepper, diced

Cashew cheese sauce (by Matthew Kenney "Everyday Raw"):

1 3/4 cups cashews, soaked 1-2 hours
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons water
1/2 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1/4 mediun shallot
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
Pinch cayenne
Pinch turmeric
1/2 clove garlic
Black pepper to taste

+ Blend all ingredients until completely smooth.

  Spread over the salad as much as feels good. This is a rich sauce, which will keep hunger away. The list of ingredients seems quite long, but when combined with such a simple salad, the result is brilliant!

Mushroom risotto:

whole grain rice
vegetable bouillon
water
onions
garlic cloves
mushrooms (any variety, choose to suit your liking and availability)
olive oil
black pepper
sea salt
(vegan) cooking cream/milk

+  Cook rice in vegetable stock.
  Meanwhile chop onions, garlic, and mushrooms. Sauté in a pan with olive oil over medium heat until the onions are soft. Season with salt and pepper.
  Add the mushroom mixture into the cooked rice. Pour in enough cooking cream/milk until the desired creaminess is reached.

  Mushrooms have a great taste to them, and I need to be careful not to overrule that with seasoning too heavily. Often salt and pepper is enough.

Green juice:

1 part cucumbers
1 part Granny Smith apples

+ Press through a juicer until you have 1/2 liter per person.


  This is the base of my lunches nowadays: a juice, a big leafy salad with creamy raw dressing, and a cooked food to complete the meal. I literally stuff my face with all this wonderfulness, and then only need a dessert for supper.  =)
  Thanks to this lunch, I´m full of energy the whole day, although I´m 38 weeks pregnant by now! 

REFRESHING GREEN DRINK!

  Continuing on my path of fresh juices. It feels like I´ve become addicted to them! I´m drinking 1/2 liter with my lunch every day, and each time wish there had been more! Drinking plain water feels merely a task, but drinking fresh juices feels like a privilege!
  I have found good combinations, but will also explore new tastes as the ingredients vary.
  This is one of my favorites:

The recipe :

1 part cucumbers
1 part Granny Smith apples
(ginger, lemon, or lime may be added for variety)

+  Press through a juicer.

  Feel the good vibrations this juice gives you! So simple!