Day 5 Juicing

The picture above is the Hummus Platter from Omar's Rawtopia where we ate our first meal since Sunday, last nights dinner was a flavor explosion in my mouth. Even though this week has been a challenge I believe it was a worthy experiment for the two of us to do together. We juiced for breakfast this morning and are talking about splitting something for lunch along with a green juice and then having dinner. When bringing food back into the body it is important to take it slow and eat simple clean whole foods. Thanks you to all of our friends who called and checked in with us this week, it really meant alot to us. Also I want to say how proud I am of Billy, he has never done anything like this before and what is great about this is now I think juicing will be part of his life. As his wife and a Holistic Nutrition Educator this makes me very happy. Much Love, B

-Breakfast Blend-

Kale
Pineapple
Beets
Ginger

Day 4 Juicing

We are doing well, yesterday was definitely the hardest day for both of us. So today we have a new plan, we are juicing for breakfast and lunch and going to dinner at Omar's Living Cuisine (the only raw restaurant in SL). I think this will be the plan for today and tomorrow so that we can slowly reintroduce food into our systems. I have to say I am looking forward to dinner tonight. YAY for food.

-Breakfast Blend-

Kale
Carrots
Cucumber
Lemon
Watermelon

Brushetta- Summer Fave

This wonderful, easy recipe is actually my creation, but I have to say that it is a hybrid of a recipe from the cookbook 'Small Plates, Appetizers as Meals' by Marguerite Marceau Henderson (who is actually a SL local). No matter who I make this recipe for they always end up loving it. I have made it with roasted peppers in place of the tomatoes and I've also tried it with fresh and roasted tomatoes, just this last July 4 I added artichokes to the mix. So whatever your preference I'm sure it will be amazing. Enjoy!

-Bruschetta- (measurements are exact but pretty close)

2-4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 shallots or a small onion, diced
1-2 T. capers, liquid drained
1/2 olives, chopped (I think I used a kalamata olive mix)
1/2 c. basil, chopped
8 Roma tomatoes, chopped (I have roasted the tomatoes to add more flavor, in the above pic I used roasted tomatoes in olive oil from Tony Caputo's)
8 oz artichokes in olive oil, chopped (I got my at Caputo's but you can totally used canned)
1 t. salt (I like Celtic gray salt)
1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper
1/3 c. balsamic vinegar
1/3 c. olive oil

1. Place the first 7 ingredients in a bowl.
2. Mix the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper in a bowl. (A little trick I do is put pour the balsamic in first and then slowly whisk in the olive oil. I think it mixes better that way.)
3. Pour the wet mixture over all the other ingredients and mix well.
4. Marinate in the fridge for at least an hour. Serve.

Can be served with:

Sliced baguette (I love Crumb Brothers, or Volkers)
Over grilled fish or chicken
Or made into a sandwich w/ fresh sliced Mozzarella (when I do this I use the roasted bell peppers in place of the tomatoes)

Day 3 Juicing

-Breakfast Blend-

Kale
Blueberries
Watermelon

-Mid Morning or Late Afternoon Blend-

Apples
Carrots
Beets
Beet Greens
Ginger

-Lunch and Dinner-

These two will most likely be just like yesterdays blends. I'll check in later and let you know how we felt today... stayed tuned!*

*UPDATE*

Day three was for sure the hardest day for Master William and me, seriously we wanted to eat each other. It didn't help that we went to visit his dad (Big Bill) for his birthday last night and Billy's mom had bought a chocolate cake for all of us to share. NO CAKE FOR US! We powered through.

On a positive note we feel great, my skin is glowing and Billy has lost 8.5 pounds (he weights himself at the gym, I have know idea about me because we don't own a scale). The goal really was to give our digestive systems a break, gain energy and Billy wanted to see if it would help reduce his sugar cravings. We'll see...

Day 2 Juicing

I picked these beauties out of our garden today and I'm going to use them for a late night juice for my sweetie. Day 2 is going well, Billy was a little cranky this morning and this evening that's why we are going to have an extra juice tonight. Surprisingly I am doing better than yesterday, my energy is good and no headache! Billy and I both agree dinner is the hardest time of the day but for the most part we are doing great. One day at a time. I did the same juice blends as yesterday, the only thing I did different was I added onion and garlic to lunch and dinner- DELISH.

DIY Popsicles- Hurray For Summer

Last summer I picked up some Popsicle molds to make our own (less sugary) Popsicles. Not to mention that Billy is always wanting a 'treat' after dinner and I wanted to make something I could feel good about us having. Well, they were a hit. We had a get together planned with our friends this weekend (Nate & Alisa, and JD & Sadie) whom all have kids (Soren & Jude and Olive & Adelae) and I was in charge of dessert, so Viola Popsicles! I knew the kids would love them. Everyone including the adults loved this treat, I also made sure to pick up some molds for my friends to make their own with the kids, and from what I was told that is the first thing Soren wanted to do the following morning, YAY! These are easy and you should try your own creations, our friend Brittany said she pours flavored yogurt into hers for her kids-great idea! Enjoy!

-Chocolate Almond Butter Popsicles- (this recipe comes from Elana's Pantry)
2 banana's
1/4 c. almond butter
1/4 c. water (I used 1/2 water)
2 T. cacao powder (raw chocolate)
1 T. vanilla
1/4 t. stevia (I used 1 T. agave)

1. All the ingredients go into your vita mix or blender (I used a blender). Mix well and chill in the fridge for about an hour, then pour into molds and freeze. Freeze until ready.

-Sour Orange Popsicles-
3/4 c. fresh squeezed orange juice (I used my juicer, I needed 2 oranges)
3/4 c. fresh grapefruit juice (again I used the juicer, needed 2 grapefruit)
1 c. Whole Foods Blood Orange Soda
1/4. c. fresh lime juice
1/4 c. agave

1. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and chill in the fridge for about an hour, then pour mixture into molds and freeze. Freeze until ready.

-Watermelon Lime Popsicles- (I made these for our week of juice fasting)
2 1/2 c. fresh watermelon juice (I used my juicer)
1/2 c. fresh lime juice (used my juicer)

1. Mix these two ingredients together and chill in the fridge for about an hour, then pour into molds and freeze. Freeze until ready.

Day 1 Juicing- Breakfast

Who loves juice? We love juice! Master William was inspired by a movie we watched called "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead" to partake in a juice fast. At first he wanted to do 10 days, I talked him in to 7 days. I personally do a cleanse twice a year and go through periods of juicing daily before breakfast, but have never done a complete juice fast. If I make it 3 days I'll be happy, but my sweet man is very excited about this adventure. I got the idea for juice blend at the Farmer's Market and think it is a good one to start with. I'm actually drinking this blend while I blog, if you are not doing a juice fast I think this would still be a great juice to try out. Enjoy!

-Breakfast Juice-*

Pineapple

Kale

Ginger

Beets

Beet Greens

Psss... On my way to yoga I could smell bacon  and fresh bread- torture! I almost gave up before I started. Wish us luck!

-Lunch Juice-*

Kale

Celery

Zucchini

Cucumber

Lemon

Lime

Green Apples

Parsley

Ginger

-Dinner... Tomato Soup Juice-*

Tomatoes

Carrots

Onion

Zucchini

Swiss Chard

Fresh Parsley

Fresh Oregano

Fresh Basil

Lemon

*I used my juicer to juice all of these blends today. We also drank Kuckicha Tea and Herbal Tea (recipe for the Herbal Tea is on the blog), and lots and lots of water. I have a really bad headache... other than that I feel good.

-Dessert Juice-*

Watermelon Lime Popsicles (recipe on the blog under DIY Popsicles)

Sweet and Sour Cucumber and Red Onion Pickles

I love pickled anything! When I was a kid I used to drink the pickle juice straight from the jar, I don't partake in that practice anymore but the love for pickled anything still remains. Last summer I pickled radishes and beets, this summer I started with this recipe for sweet and sour cucumbers I found in the July issue of Sunset Magazine. They also have a few other recipes for pickled carrots, green beans and jicama I might just have to try out. But for now, try these yummy cucumbers. Enjoy!

 All the goods, time to get started!

 I love this picture! Those cucumbers are swimming in pickled goodness.

This is what I used my cucumbers on. Salmon cakes over greens topped w/ the sweet and sour cucumber and red onion pickles.

-Sweet and Sour Cucumber and Red Onion Pickles-

1 1b. Persian or English cucumbers, ends trimmed (I used Wyomatoe cucumbers)

1/2 medium red onion, halved lengthwise (I used two small purple onions I got at the Farmer's Market)

1 stalk fresh lemongrass

1/2 sugar (next time I make these I may use less sugar, I like a more sour brine)

2 tsp. sea salt (I like grey Celtic salt)

1 tsp. freshly ground coriander seeds

1/8 tsp. pepper

3/4 c. Champagne vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar)

1. Slice cucumber and onion very thinly on a mandoline or w/ a knife, rinse onion and drain. Put both in a medium bowl. Peel tough outer layer from lemongrass and smash core with the meat mallet or back of a small heavy saucepan until flattened. Mince core and add to bowl. (I used the back of my knife and just tossed the whole stalk into the bowl)

2. Whisk sugar, salt, coriander, pepper, and vinegar together. Pour over cucumber mixture and chill at least an hour, stirring gently a couple of times. serve cold. Keeps chilled up to a day.

Sun Tea- Cosmo Hippie Chef Alert!

When I was a kid my parents would make sun tea in the back yard during the summer. I'm not sure why I loved seeing that ice tea decanter sitting in the sun, but I just thought is was neat. So now that I have my own backyard it's time to make sun tea! It is easy, the sun does all the work and it is cool and refreshing on a hot day. Plus you can make whatever flavor of tea you like. Enjoy!

-Sun Tea-

Glass decanter
7 tea bags, your choice (I used Plum Berry green tea)
handful of mint (I used lemon balm, Thanks Erin Bean)
14 c. water (that is what my decanter holds)
hot sunny day

1. Start by putting the mint in the bottom of the decanter and muddle just a bit w/ a wooden spoon.
2. Next add in the tea bags and water, place the lid tightly on the decanter.
3. Then place the water, tea and mint filled jar somewhere in your yard where it will get the most sun all day, leave it out all day.
4. At the end of the day bring it in and let cool just a bit and then place the jar in the fridge to chill.
5. Serve when cold.