Mexico, oh Mexico

Vacation started with a long line at Customs, and then a swift move through the agent and into the warm air of Cancun Mexico.  It was in the lows 80s when we arrived on 1/20/2013 and after a long day of travel we were there.

Marley asked me a questions about every building and tree on the side of the road until arriving at the resort. We were greeted with Chocolate chip cookies, bottles of water, punch for Marley and Champagne, which we declined after all that flying.  

The resort was amazing, Dreams Riviera Cancun Mexico, an all inclusive 5 star resort with staff that does EVERYTHING for you.

I spent my mornings teaching yoga (just until 9:45) then spent the rest of the day, swimming, walking on the beach and eating. Oh did we do a lot of eating. I was terrified to get on the scale when I got back, but such is life.

Marley had a blast, her favorite part other than being able to go from one pool to another all day was the swim up bar, AKA, the "juice bar", she had everything from frozen chocolate milk (a virgin Mud Slide) to frozen lemonade, to frozen strawberry banana drink and everything in between. By the end of the week she was walking by staff saying "Hola, Cono sta (Como esta)?" she wants to move to Mexico and cried when we left, I can't say I blame her, I kind of felt the same way.

We had some amazing food, and although I veered slightly (I mean how many days can I look at a chocolate croissant and not eat one?) The staff was really accommodating and had quite a few Gluten Free and Vegetarian Options.  Many things I ordered with no cheese, etc.  The Salad bar was amazing, hummus and guacamole at every lunch and dinner we attended as well as rice noodles and rice at every meal. We certainly did not go hungry at this resort.

The bad news is I left my phone behind, which is where most of my pictures are.  I have some on my phone and will upload them soon.  

This week back to juicing and more Vegan GF recipes.  More to come soon, first stop, the food store..... stay tuned!!

Peace, Love and Namaste!

Eggplant yumminess

Before going all juice this week I had some yummy meals last week, one being a "nightshade" dinner.  For our family Christmas with my side of the family my mom, trying to accommodate my vegan, Gluten Free family decided to make an eggplant dish that was sans cheese and gluten (the family was having Stuffed Shells and Roast Beef).

It went like this- and next time I make I promise to take more pictures, but I was so excited to get to the eating part I forgot - 

Ingredients:

1 large Eggplant

2 Medium Zucchinis

1 cup baby bella Mushrooms (or whatever you like)

1 large colored Pepper

1 Jar of Spaghetti Sauce or 3 cups of homemade

Dairy Free Cheese of your choice

Servings 4-6

1. Start with 1 large eggplant and 2 medium size zucchinis, slice them to about 1/2 inch thick and spread them out on a cookie/baking sheet with Olive Oil and Salt and Pepper, put in the oven on at least 400 degrees for 10 minute on each side.

2. once crisped some, place them in a baking dish and add Mushrooms and Sliced peppers (any color I used red) and cover with Tomato Sauce of some kind, it can be homemade of a jar of your favorite Spaghetti Sauce and cover with your favorite Dairy free Cheese (we used Daiya Mozzarella) and bake on 350 for about 30 minutes.

Just out of the Oven

Serve with dinner with a salad add a Pasta or bread if you feel the need but it is so wonderful without it. You might just make a believer out of your pasta loving friends!  This dinner is one of my new favorites and I have made it several time for different occasions and people seem to love it.

It smelled so good I started eating it before I had take pictures.  But here is what  it looks like on the inside.


Give is a try, you will be amazed.  Coming soon, Pad Thai to die for!
Until then....
Peace, Love and Yoga,
Namaste!

New Years new you.....or me?!

So the Juicing has been going well. I have found a great blog with juice recipes and am loving them, as is the whole family (www.healthycrush.com).  I have officially moved to Juice only for 5 days. I know, I could do longer but I want at least a week to reincorporate solids before going to a mostly cooked menu in Mexico.

So here are some of my favorites:
The Classic Green:
1 bunch Kale
1 cucumber
4 Stalks of Celery
2 Granny Smith Apples
1/2 Lemon (peeled)
a chunk of Ginger Root

This juice is amazing, I know sounds weird which is why I eased into it with a week of juice and food.  But I really like this and I feel AMAZING. No really. I drink 12-14 oz of green juice first thing in the morning and I am ready to go.  I can teach Yoga, I can see clients, I can play hide and seek with Marley, and not the kind where I hide under the blanket on the couch where I am sitting, the get up and find a good spot kind. It's fabulous!!

Some others I have tried:
Green Pineapple (from Healthycrush.com)
1 1/2 cups Fresh Pineapple (chopped)
4 stalks of Celery
1/2 bunch of kale
1 small piece of ginger

This juice is the Bomb!!! so fruity and delicious, made me feel like I was already in Cancun sipping a green juice on the beach. Hmmm, wonder if they have that there?

My husbands favorite so far is the Carrot Juice, which I have to say I am drinking as I am writing and it is pretty darn sweet.  Almost sweeter than the Pineapple.  But good enough to get me through my next few sessions.  Here is a version from healthcrush.com

Carrot Juice:
3 Carrots
2 apples 
1/2 lemon (peeled)
piece of ginger

All the ingredients I used are organic, doesn't make sense to detox from toxins with toxins. Just sayin'! 

I am super excited about further juicing experimenting and sharing with you, and I will also share the eggplant dinner from last week, so check back.

That my friends is how I am spending my new year, juicing and packing for our trip.

Peace, Love and Yoga
Namaste!

To Kale or not to Kale

Life has finally settled, I finished teaching at the College, the grades are submitted and the holidays are over.  So it's time to get back on track with everything.  On that note, along with all my new beautiful yoga clothes and fun toys, I got a juicer for Christmas and I am having so much fun creating.

One thing I have learned already is green and orange makes brown.  So when I mixed a batch of Kale, Cucumber, Celery and apples and decided to add Carrots, it went from bright green or a jar of mud....but it tastes pretty good.

After dropping Marley at school I decided to run to Fresh Market and grab some more Kale as I juiced up all the greens in the house this morning for today juice.  While there one of the young men in produce told me there is someone who buys a case of Kale from them a week for juicing.  I love their produce, so fresh and they keep great, and although initially I didn't want to commit to one green, and wanted to try them all I have realized a few things.

1. The whole process can be time consuming, especially when you compare it to grabbing left overs or a bowl of cereal, so although variety might taste good, it is not all that practical.
2. I LOVE  Swiss Chard to eat, I definitely do Not love it to juice.
3. Spinach is great but the bunches are small
4. Kale is great for you and I do love it in juice, and I just plain love it!
5. Did I mention I love Kale?

So it looks like Kale is the winner of the greens contest for me, So since I just bought three large bunches of Kale, which I am confident will be gone by Saturday, I am off to find the perfect complements to the Kale.

I also found a juicing recipe that contains Beets.... interesting for sure. I will try that as well since I just picked some up.

The long and short of it is, I love my juicer, I love my juice and I love my Husband for overcoming the stigma related to buying your wife a kitchen appliance for Christmas and just doing it.

Marley experiencing her first "juice"and she loved it. (I know the face say not so much)

Will have some lovely recipes to come for the juicing for sure and hope to upload some pictures from dinner tonight.  Eggplant and Zucchini Mozzarella So delicious and super easy. 

Until then, 

Peace, Love and Yoga

Namaste 

Auntie Cari's Birthday Spinach Salad and Cupcakes

So it's Saturday and my sister-in-laws Birthday was yesterday so we are gathering with the Godbois family this evening to celebrate.  As we are not gathering at our house, and it's Cari's birthday so she is not cooking, Jeff's dad is preparing dinner this evening, and this always adds an interesting flare to the evenings festivities.  He's a great cook and can barbeque up a mean chicken breast, and mash some potatoes and squash. 

Since we are approaching Thanksgiving, this seems to be the standard for most non-vegans this time of year.  However being both vegan and gluten free, this poses a little problem. Namely I can't eat any of that dinner.  So set out to find something for dinner, not just the delicious cupcakes I am making for dessert. (But we will get there).

In preparation for Thanksgiving, we did a test run last weekend of VegNews' Gluten Free Thanksgiving recipes or Parsnip, Pumpkin and Kale Lasagna and Tempeh Bacon Spinach Salad.  I did decide this is what I will make for Thursday, but literally just finished the leftovers yesterday, so wasn't ready for that.  But decided the salad would be a great addition to the meal for everyone.

Wilted Spinach Salad with Tempeh Bacon:

Serves 8

For Tempeh Bacon:

1 8 oz package of Tempeh, thinly sliced

1/3 cup of red wine

1/2 tbsp liquid smoke

1/4 cup maple syrup

2 tablespoon tamari (I used Braggs liquid aminos in place of it)

1/3 cup olive oil

1 tsp vegetable broth powder

1/8 tsp allspice

1 tsp smoked paprika

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp of freshly ground pepper

For salad:

1 tsp Olive Oil

1 large Vidalia Onion, thinly sliced

5 cups baby spinach

2 tbsp fresh Lemon juice

1 tsp lemon zest

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1.  For tempeh bacon, in a shallow dish, arrange tempeh so strops do not overlap. Combine remaining ingedients in a medium bowl and pore over the top of the tempeh to marinate overnight (or at least 4-5 hours).

The Tempeh ready to bake

2.  Preheat oven to 300 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place strips onto the sheet and bake for 1 hour, or until crisp, flipping halfway through. Let cool them crumble. Set aside.

3. For the salad, in a plan over nigh heat, heat oil. Add onion and 3/4 tsp of salt and saute until onions turn translucent.

Reduce heat to medium high and continue sauteing until onions turn a golden brown. Reduce heat to medium and let cook over medium stirring often, until onions turn a deep caramel brown.*

4.  In a large bowl, toss spinach, remaining 1/4 tsp salt, lemon juice, lemon zest, and pepper. Add caramelized onions and stir gently. Top with tempeh bacon crumble before serving.

*When caramelizing onions, be use to take it slow, if you don't watch them and the temp is too high, they will burn and you will loose the sweetness.

And for Dessert: 
Chai Latte Cupcakes with Cinnamon Butter Cream frosting

The cupcakes came from my favorite vegan cupcake book.  Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World

The Frosting, after much experimentation:
For a dozen cupcakes:
1/4 Cup of Vegan Butter(Earth balance Sticks, not spread)
1/4 Cup of Vegan Shortening
1 tsp Vanilla extract
1/2 tsp Cinnamon extract
2 Cup Powdered Sugar
1-2 tsp cinnamon (depends on the strength and preference)

**** Here is the key***** Let the frosting sit in a bowl or pastry bag in the fridge for at least and hour to let the flavors blend.  
I have used this frosting on apple cinnamon cupcakes and pumpkin cupcakes as well.  It is AMAZING and so simple!!

Or my 3 year old just likes to eat it, straight on her tongue is her favorite vehicle for this frosting.

Enjoy, and Namaste!

10 Minute Super Easy Dinner (or lunch)

As a busy mom how works way too many jobs, I often find myself running in or out at dinner time to teach a class or see a client.  As a result I have put together this super easy and delicious meal that can be eaten at home and prepared in 10 minutes.  

I used to struggle to find things that were both Vegan and Gluten Free that I could eat that would give me energy and what I needed to make it through and still taste good.  This recipe is both.

Ingredients:

One medium Onion (I used a sweet onion)

One medium Sweet pepper (I used orange today)

14 oz Can of organic Diced tomatoes (Fire roasted or with green chilies) 

14 oz Can organic Black Beans (or any kind that you like)

Cumin (to taste)

Chili Powder (to taste)

Red Pepper flakes

Sea Salt 

1 Avocado

Pepper Jack Daiya (for topping)

Vegan sour Cream

Makes about 2 servings

I start by chopping the onions and Peppers (You could also add a jalapeno pepper here) and adding them to a hot oiled skillet.  Allowing them to cook down some before adding the drained tomatoes. (You can used frozen onions and/or peppers as well if want it to take less time)  Cook down the veggies and then add the seasoning.  You can use whatever "Mexican Style" seasoning you like, and although I like things hot, I also don't like them over seasoned.

Once combined and cooked down add the drained and rinsed beans.  I used black but any type is fine, I tend to switch each week, and often cook a batch of beans on Sunday to be used in recipes for the week.  This time I did use organic canned beans.

Mix and allow them to combine in flavor, let sit 2 minutes or so. (Just enough time to get out the bowl and toppings.) 

Once combined top with your favorite toppings, mine happens to be avocado,

Daiya, 

And Tofutti Better than Sour Cream.

You can go as heavy or light as you like on your toppings, and could add a wrap or corn chips to this recipe, but this is how I like it.  And it rarely puts up a fight.  I usually eat if for dinner and the left overs the next day for lunch. Truth be told, I could heat this meal 3 meals a day 7 days a week, which is why I decided to share it.

Enjoy and don't forget to comment if you are loving it.  Coming soon, Vegan Chili and some  Vegan, GF Lasagna. Yummy.

Namaste!

Sandy

So it has been over a week since I posted.  With Sandy approaching the east coat, life got hectic. 

Living in the country of NH, we often lose power, so the days leading up to Sandy were marked by frantic cooking and cleaning and preparing to be without power for days.  There were no Generators anywhere so we were resigned to that fact that we would be power less but would have food we could heat on our Jet Boil hiking "stove".  In the end we were without power for 5 hours.  We were very fortunate. And I am grateful for that. 


I spent most of the week chasing my tail, but we did manage to Carve the pumpkin in the dark, that was a great power outage activity.  Marley really enjoyed wearing the head lap and scooping out the pumpkin guts. And she was very proud of her work.  We also hung onto the seeds to replant them in our garden next year.  

We had a wonderful time for Halloween, both parties and trick or treating went well. I am however new to the iPhone so, I forget to take pictures, but here are a few of Marley and Jeff and I on Halloween.

In order to get the top of Scarecrows Hat, he had to duck down, because of course the ruby red slippers had to be in the photo. (The Ruby Reds are finding a new home in Peabody I think)

Enjoy your week and I promise to get that Chili recipe and pictures up, as it was fantastic!

Namaste!