Reunited with an old friend

It's been a full two years since I've used my Excalibur food dehydrator. I was in the store today with my hubby and saw a box of raw kale chips for $7.99! I really really wanted them, but I couldn't throw down almost $8 for kale chips. So I bought two large bunches of organic kale and pulled out the Excalibur, and I'm not sorry I did!!

I made two flavors, both are delicious and relatively easy to make. Here they are:

Cheesy Kale Chips

1 bunch kale
1/3 cup raw pistachios
1/3 cup raw sunflower seeds
3 Tbsp nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp garlic salt (I'm in love with Trader Joe's garlic salt grinder!)

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Start by adding all ingredients except olive oil to a food processor and blend to a fine crumble consistency.

Next tear bite size kale pieces from the stem, wash and rinse, and use a salad spinner (or towel) to remove excess water.

Place kale pieces in a large bowl, add olive oil and "massage" the kale until wilted. Add half of the crumble mixture and toss to coat.

Place pieces in a single layer on dehydrator sheet and dehydrate at 110 degrees until crispy (about 4-5 hrs).


Teriyaki Kale Chips

1 bunch kale
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp tamari sauce
1 Tbsp raw honey
1/4 tsp onion powder

Mix ingredients and follow same instructions as above (eliminating crumble steps).

Zoodles

Super simple lunch today, Tomato Basil Zoodles!

1 zucchini, spiral sliced
1 Roma tomato, chopped
3-4 fresh Basil leaves, chopped
10-12 whole raw cashews
2 tsp olive oil
Pink Himalayan salt, to taste

Mix all ingredients and enjoy. Super fresh flavor and so easy :)

Smoothies for Breakfast

I've taken a liking to starting my days with smoothies. This is actually a bit unusual for me but I love the boost of raw energy I get from a good smoothie in the morning. My favorite recipe is super simple:

1 fresh banana
1 packed cup fresh greens
1 cup frozen fruit (I like berry blends or mangos)
1 cup water
1 Tbsp chia seeds

I often double this so I can share with my family. It's the best way I know to get dark leafy greens in my girls' diet. They love it!

2 Week Liver Cleanse

I have owned this book for years and have always intended to do the two week liver cleanse. I'm prepping now to get started BEFORE the new year and can't wait to see how this cleanse goes.

The plan incorporates raw foods, fresh juices and some steamed veggies along with small portions of whole grains to keep detoxing manageable (and hopefully not so miserable!)

I plan to post the plan and execution daily to keep myself accountable and document the results.

Here's to a happy liver!!

Raw Brownies

I have a new favorite raw sweets recipe - raw brownies! These have a mere 3 ingredients and are so wonderfully satisfying.

Raw Brownies

1 1/2 cups fresh pitted dates
1 cup raw pecans
1/2 cup raw cacao powder

Place dates and cacao powder in a food processor and process until fully incorporated and a "dough" forms. Add pecans and process until the nuts have the desired sized chunks (the mixture will be crumbly). Press the mixture onto a 6"x9" glass pan (lightly grease the pan with oil - I used coconut) and place in freezer for about 10 minutes before cutting into squares. Store in refrigerator to keep up to 2 weeks - if they are around that long :)

Enjoy these awesome treats with your friends and family.

Sassy Green Juice

This afternoons juice made by my wonderful husband is tangy and sassy! So good!

5 apples
2 lemons
8 cups spring lettuce mix

We are really enjoying this juice. Makes my mouth happy :)

Reboot - Juice Feast!

Yesterday my husband and I started juicing after being inspired by the film Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead. You can find the movie on Netflix or Hulu for free and if you haven't seen it I would recommend it. I'm inspired most by how ordinary people (many from my home state of Iowa) took charge of their health. I've wanted to try a reboot for quite some time and never have it a go, until now.

So I'm praying for grace to do a juice feast, as I like to call it. I'm choosing to focus not on what I'm missing out on but rather the abundance of nutrients that I'm consuming as I feast on fresh juice. I haven't determined how long I will be juicing exclusively yet. Just taking one day at a time for now.

So some of the combos we've tried so far and loved are:

Apple, beet, pear, kale & broccoli
Carrot, orange, romaine & cucumber
Watermelon, kale, cilantro
Watermelon, cilantro, lime

We've enjoyed all if these so far. I'll post our favorites and some photos as we go.