Sorry for the lengthy delay in posting! The past few years have been a bit of a life crisis. I had to get divorced and leave the state I was living in so that I could be near family and friends. I have since decided to revamp my blog since I still believe fresh ingredients and the highest quality foods are of the utmost importance for everyone’s health. I have since researched juicing, water filtration, UV lights for HVAC unit and other areas of interest which I will write about in the future. I have also discovered that clean food and clean living is not only the key for healing our bodies; but, also for healing our minds.
Squash Pasta
This gallery contains 3 photos.
Banana Shake
From: The Ani’s 15-Day Fat Blast – Page 114
Vitamix Macaroni and Cheese with Summer Blush Smoothie
Summer Blush Smoothie
Salmon with Beet Puree
I am posting the grilling instructions from a previous post again to explain how to grill the salmon:
Serving instructions from the Vital Choice website:
– Before cooking rinse fish quickly in cold, clean water.
-Add the seasonings of your choice to a little olive oil and marinate the fish, refrigerated, for 30-60 minutes or overnight. (We brushed the fish with olive oil then sprinkled it with salt and pepper.)
-Cook on the grill for 7-8 minutes, until only the very center is still translucent. (We put the fish on tin foil and then on the grill. We also kept the grill lid down and cooked the fish for 9 minutes.)
-Remove fish from heat and let it “self-cook” another two to three minutes, until just cooked through to center before serving.
From: Vitamix – Create – Professional Series 750 – Page 161
GINGER BEET PUREE
2 3/4 pounds fresh beets, about 3 large
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup almonds
1 1/2 Tablespoons fresh chopped ginger
1 Tablespoon fresh cilantro leaves
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Clean and cut beets to leave 1-inch of stem. Double wrap beets in foil and roast for 2 hours. Cool.
2. Peel beets, trim ends and cut into quarters.
3. Place oil, beets, almonds, fresh ginger, cilantro, ground ginger, salt and pepper into the Vitamix container in the order listed and secure lid.
4. Select Variable 1.
5. Switch machine to Start and slowly increase speed to Variable 8.
6. Blend for 20 to 25 seconds, using the tamper if necessary to push the ingredients into the blades.
7. Serve as an accompaniment to grilled vegetables, fish, poultry or meat.
Side note: Do not try the Vitamix recipes in any blender that is not high-speed – it will NOT work!! I saw Vitamix at Costco this week for $375 – a very good deal. They also sell reconditioned machine at Vitamix.com for less than they normally are and they provide a 5 year warranty on reconditioned machines.
Farm Fresh Salad Mix with Cashews and Vitamix Raspberry Dressing
The Virginia Green Grocer brought us a beautiful salad mix and delicious fresh onions.
-Wash salad
-Cut up one onion and add to salad.
-Added 3/4 cup cashews from VitalChoice.com (these are outstanding)
-Then I added the raspberry vinaigrette from the Vitamix cookbook (see below). I had a little trouble with this recipe. I used the apple cider vinegar and it overpowered the entire recipe. I also added the full amount of honey. This became a problem because I had to add 1/2 jar of raspberry jelly to counteract the overpowering vinegar. Unfortunately, the honey was also an overpowering flavor and it wasn’t necessary once I added the jelly. By the time I was done it was pretty tasty; however, much higher in sugar than I would prefer between the honey and the jelly…
From: Vitamix – Create – Professional Series 750 – Page 94
Raspberry Vinaigrette
3/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup apple cider or raspberry vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 cup fresh or frozen red raspberries
1/4 cup water
2 Tablespoons honey
1. Place olive oil, vinegar, salt, basil, raspberries and water into the Vitamix container in the order listed and secure lid.
2. Select Variable 1.
3. Switch machine to Start and remove the lid plug. Add honey through the lid plug opening and replace lid plug.
4. Slowly increase speed to Variable 4.
5. Blend for 30 seconds.
Northern Michigan
We had the opportunity to visit the Northville, MI Farmer’s Market on our vacation. The fruit was delicious. I am still waiting for the right opportunity to try the maple syrup we purchased. When we went up North we had the opportunity to check out the beautiful farmer’s market in Charlevoix MI right on the water.
All of this beautiful food inspired me to make a fresh pasta dish on vacation (which was the only “dinner-type” meal I had an opportunity to prepare. My mother-in-law grows wonderful fresh herbs in her garden and I was able to use these delicious herbs to create my pasta meal. I used some previously made tomato sauce and Trader Joe’s penne – pretty basic. I then cut up green peppers, red peppers, yellow peppers, and onions and sauteed them. I mixed everything together, added some extra olive oil and pine nuts, and then added the fresh herbs from the garden (I did not cook these). I added basil, parsley, and oregano. Then I topped the meal with parmesan shavings.
Avocado Shake
From: The Ani’s 15-Day Fat Blast: The Kick-Ass Plan to Get Lighter, Tighter, and Sexier… Super Fast – P. 114
Avocado Shake:
1 cup strawberries, fresh or frozen (I used organic frozen)
1/2 cup avocado flesh, from about 1/2 whole
pinch stevia powder, or 1 tablespoon of your favorite syrup, or 1 or 2 pitted dates, optional
1 cup filtered water
1 cup ice
Thermo Charger:
Replace filtered water with 1 cup brewed green tea,
or
1/2 teaspoon matcha powder in 1 cup filtered water.
Super Power Pack:
Add 1/2 tablespoon of a super green like spirulina or wheatgrass powder.
Directions:
Place all ingredients into your high-speed blender, including green tea and spirulina, if using. Blend until smooth.
My comments:
This past trip to MI was not very good for my waistline. I decided to try to take off some pounds using Ani’s book since it using all fresh ingredients and is mostly raw. This is my first attempt from her book and I must admit it was kind of gross. I will include it anyway because there are some things to make it a little more edible to get the health benefit. I doubled this recipe since I was making it for 5 people. This was plenty for our morning snack.
Big Mistake #1: I did not use the optional ingredient of stevia or syrup – this smothie was very bland. I like a good deal of flavor and this smoothie needs the syrup.
Then I added the matcha powder. I did not add the full amount since I doubled the recipe. I added the equivalent of half of what the recipe asked me to add. The smoothie was barely edible when I added the matcha powder; but, I could still get it down.The kids were willing to eat it at this point without the addition of the wheatgrass.
Big Mistake #2: When I added the wheatgrass powder it made me gag! I only added 1/4 teaspoon even though I also doubled the rest of the recipe. The kids were willing to eat it with the matcha and without the wheatgrass. I had to add a whole cup of frozen raspberries after adding the wheatgrass to be able to choke it down.
I will keep you updated about the fatblast. This is a very healthy way to eat if I can make it taste good enough…..
Cucumber Orange Relish Appetizer and My Strange Pasta Creation (with Farm Fresh zucchini)
From: Vitamix – Create – Professional Series 750 – Page 268
Cucumber Orange Relish
1 orange, peeled, halved, seeded
1/4 cup fresh dill
12 ounces English cucumber, cut into 2-inch pieces
4 teaspoons rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
1. Place orange and dill into the Vitamix and secure lid.
2. Select Variable 1.
3. Switch machine to Start and slowly increase speed to Variable 5.
4. Blend for 5 seconds.
5. Reduce speed to Variable 3 and remove the lid plug.
6. Add cucumber through lid plug opening, one piece at a time, until coarsely chopped.
7. Place in a medium-sized bowl and add vinegar, sugar and salt. Mix well.
8. Cover and chill 2 hours or until needed. Relish should be used the same day.
Delicious!!
I sauteed my bunching onions (Farm Fresh) and my zucchini. When soft I added my garlic. I put a fair amount of olive oil into the Vitamix along with my sauteed vegetables. Then I added red pepper flakes, pepper, salt, pine nuts, Basil, and Farm Fresh Oregano to the Vitamix. I pureed this mixture and poured it over my favorite De Bolces Jerusalem Artichoke spaghetti. I added parmesan and Stoneyfield Farm ricotta. Although a strange concoction, my kids loved this one and I had dinner in a pinch!
Farm Fresh Tarragon Frittata and Blackberry Smoothie
From: Vitamix – Create – Professional Series 750
1 cup plain yogurt
2 bananas
1 pear, cored
1 lb blackberries
FarmFreshQuest 