Happy 4th of July: Easy Raw Livin' & New Jane Jewels

Official Business - New Jane Business Cards!

Happy 4th of July Friends!  I hope there are some fireworks in your near future along with a sunny day, some bike riding, maybe a BBQ or two, and lots and lots of smiling faces!  This is one of my absolute favorite days of the year!  I'm a HUGE HUGE HUGE lover of fireworks and for me this day really marks the celebration of summer.  HOLLAH!!!!  Here's a great little Independence Day note my girlfriend Melli sent me earlier this week.  I especially like the second "D" I've highlighted for you.

 I     accept my unique preciousness, loving myself unconditionally
 N    ewness awaits me in every area of my life
 D    oubt evaporates as faith surfaces
 E    ach day brings promises of spiritual surprises
 P    eople in my life are messengers of God
 E    very moment is a gift from God
 N    ever depend on any person for your well being
 D    on't just spend time - invest it by planting positive seeds
 E    njoy your day/week/month/year/life
 N    ever say 'never' - with God everything is possible
 C    hange your 'thinking' - change your Life
 E    very demonstration happens in time and on time

 D    elays are temporary - be patient
 A    lways maintain  an attitude of gratitude
 Y    our first success comes after your last failure

I also wanted to share with you how flippin' AMAZING this month's issue of Whole Living Magazine is.  There is an awesome section with raw food recipes and beautiful photos (i've pasted a few below with links to the recipes).  Reading through the recipes, they are simple and easy for even the kitchen novice to approach. 

Sprouted summer salad:  click here for recipe

Strawberry Oat Bars:  click here for recipe

Zucchini Pasta:  click here for recipe

And news on the Jane Front:  Sculpt Fusion Yoga is now carrying my line of jewels.  All pieces are made with semi precious stones for their healing properties.  New business cards read:

"healing semi precious stones, femininity & sass, and a touch of glamour, Baby."

Though not on my etsy page yet, i do have a couple necklaces:

amazonite and agate

agate is known for it's grounding qualities and helps to dispel negative energy.  Amazonite helps to calm.

 And of course more danglers are online for your shopping, gifting, and wearing pleasure:

meredithgnau.etsy.com

meredithgnau.etsy.com

meredithgnau.etsy.com

meredithgnau.etsy.com

meredithgnau.etsy.com

meredithgnau.etsy.com

meredithgnau.etsy.com

my little vintage box of goodies

The Round Zuchini Challenge Becomes A Vegetarian Feast

Challenge:  To find use of a grapefruit shaped zuchini from my friend's CSA

Result:  A Vegetarian Feast

My friend and fellow yogi, Casey, gave me a huge round zucchini yesterday from her CSA.  She mentioned that not only did she get more food than she can eat this week, but that she was challenged to use some of the produce.  I hear this often from folks that go with CSA.  I too can sometimes stare in marvel at a crazy piece of produce that i can't identify, but that's part of the fun:  figuring out what it is and how to make it something spectacular.

HUGE!

The round zuchini proved hardly a challenge for me since i eat a lot of zuch's and have many recipe ideas for them, however this was the largest and roundest zuchini i ever worked with (about the size of a grapefruit), which actually made it PERFECT for mandoline slices to be used as chips, shells, raw-violis, or wraps.

sliced finer than 1/8 inch

I had picked up some organic corn the day prior at the co-op down the road.  Cut from the cob and mixed with chopped tomato, red onion, cilantro, black beans, cumin, EVOO, and sea salt, it made a great stuffing for my now 'zuchini taco shells'.

i used a spring-form pan to form the corn salad stack

tapatio was great on this

Andy was making his specialty - Guacamole.  He used a trader joes kit and added some cilantro from our garden.

The zuch slices also made great chips for scooping up some guac.

There were still more slices left after all was said and done.  These became the easiest dish ever,  zuchini carpaccio.  Lay out the slices, drizzle with EVOO, some coarse sea salt, and fresh sliced basil from the garden.

so simple - so good.

Andy also grilled some portobella mushrooms and the extra ear of corn i purchased, but by the time we sat to eat neither of us was too hungry from nibbling on the guac.  We managed to make our way through the zuch and the corn salad.  The mushrooms are going to have to be used in a salad tomorrow. 

incredibly fresh and delicous veggie feast!!!

Ruby Beet & Black Quinoa Salad

Hi all and Happy Monday!  I hope those of you who celebrate Easter had a great day with friends and/or family and hopefully the easter bunny left you some candies, chocolates, or cooked you a fabulous Easter dinner.  We had the boyfriend's parents in town so dinner was at ours.  Lots of fixin's were made and shared, but my fave was the beet salad:  beets, mixed greens, red onion, black quinoa, walnuts, and love.  Yes love....cuz that's what makes food taste good right?  There was a small amount of beets left over today from last night so i salvaged the remains and recreated the dish for lunch. While i didn't add any walnuts or red onion today i would highly recommend tossing both into the mix.  I also subbed spinach in since i was fresh out of mixed greens, but that didn't compromise taste.  Now i will say this salad is slightly involved, but only because you need to cook beets and quinoa.  So when you are going to be at home for a while - say working on your computer, wasting time on FB, edu-ma-cating yourself on good eating here on my blog, or say...shopping on me' new etsy shop (hint hint), you can toss the beets in the oven and let-em cook for an hour.  You'll be so busy you didn't even realize that the hour passed!  Quinoa only takes about 20 minutes to cook, and it's always good to cook up a pot to have on hand for salads and other quick dishes.  It stores well for a few days in the fridge.

Beet and Quinoa salad:

Heat oven to 400.  Trim the tail and the leaves off of the beet.  Leave about a half inch of stem so the beet doesn't bleed out too much.  Rinse and scrub gently, but leave the skin on.  Wrap the beets in foil to create a steam pouch, pun on a rimmed baking dish and cook for about an hour, until soft when pieced with fork.  Allow to cool.  Once cool you can use a towel to help slip the skins off.  Cut off the stem and slice to the size you prefer for your dish.

Cook quinoa - one part quinoa to two parts water or veggie broth.  Heat water/broth to a boil, add quinoa and dash of EVOO, stir, return to boil, cover and reduce to simmer for another 15- 20 min. Fluff with fork.  Allow to cool.

Make your dressing:  1 Tbsp stone ground mustard,  approx 2 tsp EVOO, approx 2 tsp balsamic vig, stevia (or honey or agave) and dash sea salt to taste.

Thinly slice red onion, crush a handful of walnuts, and toss this into a mixing bowl with mixed baby greens.  Toss lightly with dressing.  Add the cooled quinoa and beets, lightly toss and serve.

This would also be great with some soft cheese like feta or goat if you are a dairy do-er.

Oh So Sloppy: Veggie Head Friendly Sloppy Joes

My three favorite foods growing up were kraft mac n' cheese, nestle Quik hot chocolate, and manwich.  Might be hard to believe considering how i eat now, but once upon a time this was my diet.  I drank quik EVERY morning with milk, had mac n' cheese as often as ma would let me (and yes, i'd layer on more salt), and manwich was more of a special occasion treat when dad was out of town.  For so many years (and through so many doctors, specialists, hospital visits, and bills later) we still wondered why i had so many digestive problems?  hmmm...any guesses?  Let's see....maybe dairy?....gluten?...refined sugar?....and let's top that all off with possible nutrient deficiencies.  I blame no one (Ma, if you're reading don't fret...i thought that flintstone vit-y was picking up the loose ends too)!  So clearly given my attention to diet these days, you wouldn't find any of these foods in my house.

So what's my life like without manwich, mac n' cheese, and quik?  Pretty Awesome - i feel a lot better and i never have really missed these foods...well not enough to revert back.  I can still enjoy hot cocoa made with high quality cocao powder and almond milk, and can make a cheese-less version of mac and cheese with nutritional yeast and cashews and rice based pasta (though i never do), but i'd never even considered making manwich, given that it was just a can of high fructose corn syrup'ed, spiced, tomato sauce with a bunch of additives and "natural flavors" to mix with meat - a few things i'm not very partial of.   Well all of that changed yesterday after reading a recipe on how to make lentil sloppy joes.

Yes, you heard me right:  Lentil sloppy joes.  These couldn't have come at a better time.  I was looking to add more iron rich foods in my diet and lentils are right at the top of this list.  A 1/2 cup of lentils actually have almost the same amount of iron as 4 oz of beef.  Not bad veggie heads!  I was introduced to this recipe from a friend of mine in Seattle (shout out to Holly!) who posted them on her FB page a while back.  The recipe is from PPK - isa chandra moskowitz's site - she's written a bunch of veggie cookbooks.  While i hadn't gotten around to making them til now, i'm glad to report that they are a perfect beef, ground turkey, or TVP substitution for sloppy joe night.  While i probably won't make them often since they require canned tomato sauce and paste (i try to avoid canned foods, though i have been using canned pumpkin lately in some smoothies), they do make a great special occasion treat.

I went off the PPK recipe for the most part.  Differences in mine were that i cooked up more lentils (1 1/2 cups), added red and orange bell pepper, put in a whole can of tomato sauce (15 oz) and tomato paste (6 oz), added a dash of apple cider vinegar for more tanginess, added half a diced sweet potato, and subbed out the maple syrup for stevia and agave.  I also adjusted the amount of spices a bit.

Since i don't eat gluten i served myself a portion on Rudi's G-free bread.  While my plate could have looked a lot prettier if i had a fancy bun or garnishes, i didn't mind....it was pretty darn tasty and made me feel like a kid again.

Wellness Warriors Feast: Spiced Cauliflower And Potatoes

Wednesday was the last meeting night for my Spring Detox Group at Core Power and we celebrated with a pot luck of delicious 'cleanse approved' dishes.  For the past 20 days these Wellness Warriors committed to taking out soy, dairy, gluten, salt, refined sugars, processed foods, caffeine/stimulants, alcohol/drugs, corn, and chocolate.  Not an easy feat!  I was once again blown away with all of the delicious and healthy foods everyone contributed to the pot luck: there were quinoa dishes, chia puddings, popped amaranth, sensational salads, nopales/cactus, and even frushi (fruit sushi).  When the buffet is 20 platters deep of cleanse approved whole food dishes and gluten free desserts without refined flours and sugars, it makes you realize that you have no need for so much of the other less nutrient dense food stuff that takes up space in our diets (and moreover in our bodies).

One of my favorite dishes of the night was made by Noel, who also teaches at CPY.  Mad props to you Mamacita for making this dish so flavorful and mouth watering!  And props to all of you Wellness Warriors who continue to inspire me to keep doing what i'm doing!  Your testimonials and the self awareness you've gained along your journey is the most beautiful gift one can experience and share.  Keep doing what you're doing, keep educating yourself, and share your knowledge with those whom you love and want to keep healthy too!

Spiced Cauliflower and Potatoes:
1 head cauliflower
1 and 1/4 lb cubed potatoes
EVOO
1 onion diced
4 garlic cloves
2 tsp minced jalapeno
2 tsp minced ginger
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp cayenne

Line a baking pan with parchment paper.
Coat the cauliflower and potatoes with 1-2 Tbsp EVOO and roast in the oven at 400 until done
Saute the rest of the ingredients with the spices
Mix everything together and savor!

'Been Fishing For This: Vegan Ceviche!!

Could it possibly be true?  Vegan Ceviche???  Isn't that a contradiction of words???  According to dictionary.com, it absolutely is a contradiction.

ce·vi·che  /səˈvitʃeɪ, ‐tʃi/ Show Spelled[suh-vee-chey, ‐chee]  

–noun
 

an appetizer of small pieces of raw fish marinated in lime or lemon juice, often with onions, peppers, and spices.

But friends, i am here to tell you otherwise.  Chef Hugo at Hara Mara resort in Sayulita served us a fabulous lentil ceviche that had even the toughest of critics licking their smackers and begging for the recipe.  Hugo was kind enough to tell us what went into the lentil ceviche, but didn't go to deep into the preparation.  Here is what i got from him: 

sprouted lentils marinated in lime, salt, pepper, and olive oil for one hour

mix with chopped cucumber, onion, tomato, carrot, cilantro, and garnished with avocado.

serve drizzled with olive oil, salt, pepper, and lemon.

Sounds easy enough right?  It ABSOLUTELY is!  If you want to impress your veggie head friends, this one is sure to please.  Even the BF enjoyed his veggie ceviche (though he did along side a slab of grilled steak, ha).   Here's my rendition....which, dare i say, blew chef Hugo's out of the water!

Sprouted mixed lentils

3 limes, juiced/squeezed

1 small jalapeno or serrano chili

1/2 a cucumber peeled

1 small tomato, chopped 

about 1/8 cup of finely diced red onion

about 1/8 cup of finely sliced cilantro

salt, black pepper, crushed red pepper,

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1/2 an avocado sliced

 I used a couple containers of sprouted mixed lentils (though you could sprout your own if you had a few days).  Mix these in a bowl with the juice from 3 limes, some black pepper, salt, crushed hot red pepper, and a few Tbsp of extra virgin olive oil.  Take a green chili (jalapeno or serrano) and remove the membrane inside and the seeds.  Julienne to the tiniest of pieces.  Using 1/2 a cucumber, slice a cucumber in half lengthwise and remove the seeded center and discard (or eat) those seeds.  Dice the remaining cucumber, red onion, thinly slice cilantro, and finely chop a small tomato.  Add these to the marinated sprouted lentils and mix well.  Taste.  Add additional salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper to your liking.  Serve in a martini glass with sliced avocado. 

We ate this with freshly baked corn tortillas made into chips (click here for the directions) and sprinkled with sea salt and lime, and chopped up some jicama sticks to cool the palette if it gets too hot.  The actual lentil ceviche wasn't crazy spicy, but i got carried away with the tapatio.

Powered By Veggies: What I'm Eating Now.

I'm in the midst of leading a 30 day challenge at Sculpt Fusion Yoga.  I can't express how excited I am about this incredibly inspiring and open minded group, their enthusiasm is contagious!  As part of the challenge we are about to embark on a 7 day whole foods supported cleanse.  Taking out gluten, soy, dairy, salt, sugar, processed foods, canned foods, caffeine, alcohol, and chocolate may not sound like much fun, but there are so many incredible, flavorful, and high powered foods that don't contain any of these ingredients.

Here are a few that i'm really into right now...

Green Juice!!!  I should wear a shirt that reads, "Powered By Veggies".  This is my moto.  I am a vegetable machine, and these green juices and smoothies are my ammunition.   I'm loving drinking this simple green juice each morning that gets my vegetable machine engine gunnin'!

1 or 2 small red apples, lemon, celery,  kale, nub of ginger: all through the juicer.

Papaya!!!  Any reason to eat papaya is a good reason to me!  Here are a few good reasons why you might start lovin' on some papaya too!

*Papayas are a rich source of antioxidant vitamins (vit C, A, and E)
*Full of carotenes, flavonoids, B vitamins, folate, pantothenic acid, potassium, and magnesium.
*They contain the enzymes papain and chymonapapain which help in protein digestion
*Papaya aides digestion, prevents constipation, lowers cholesterol, prevents formation of urinary stones, and prevents infection by parasites. (the seeds taken with honey are known to expel worms. Used in this way you would chew and swallow a couple teaspoons of papaya seeds after your meals). Click here to check out this old blog i posted with a recipe for carrot papaya juice.  It's super slammin'!

Sah - WEEEEEEEEET!

High Raw Veggie Salads!!!  Lunch is typically a high raw veggie salad much like the past two blogs i've posted.  I'll often add a little steamed sweet potato, steamed veggies, legumes, or just some fruit to my salads.

 

 

Grounding Foods In The Evening!!!  My dinners lately have been more grounding cooked veggies and roots.  Last night was bok choy cooked in a small amount of ghee and garlic with steamed sweet potato and broccoli (sorry no pic, devoured happily without thinking about photos).  I've also been diggin' on lentils lately, spicing it up with garam masala, cumin, raisins, sweet potatoes, and whatever veggies are on hand.

thinly sliced kale, cauli, broccoli, sweet potato, raisins, green lentils

Bring a 1/4 cup of green lentils with 1/2 cup of water to a boil, turn to low, cover and set a timer for 30 minutes.  Add the raisins, cumin, and garam masala.  At about 10 or 15 minutes in to cooking add the sweet potato (the smaller you chop it the quicker the cook time), and in the last 10 minutes of cooking toss in any additional veggies.  The greens can wait til the last 5 minutes, they wilt quickly.  Tada!  Need more flavah??  Add some more spices or use fresh cilantro as a garnish.