Healthy Green Smoothies for a Healthy New Year!

Alright, let's start the New Year off on the right foot! Every year millions of people make New Years resolutions involving eating healthier and exercising more. Even dietitians have similar goals. But is eating healthy or exercising really the issue? I cannot speak for everyone, but I say no. The problem may be lack of organization, procrastinating, or lack of motivation. Motivation is not my biggest issue, so I am working on organization and not procrastinating.

I started my New Years resolution a bit early this time around (why wait until January?). As a self-employed business owner, I must create my own work schedule. This requires a lot of organization, and sometimes I can fall behind. So far the past few weeks, I have finished recipes before deadlines, and I have figured out a better way to fit exercise into my schedule. Small start, but a good one, I think.

Another goal of mine: trying new foods. When I quickly went from eating no more than 4 vegetables and zero ingredients that came from sea to eating raw eel sushi, I felt I had met my goal of trying new foods. But recently I continue to hear about new foods and drinks to try. So to kick start that, here are two of my first green smoothie recipes:

High Protein Green Smoothie

This has a few sources of protein, including almond milk and cottage cheese.  Cottage cheese by itself scares enough people (used to scare me too), so I understand that putting it into a green kale smoothie (yikes, another scary food for some) may sound....unappealing. My darling husband may have used a less kind word. The protein in this smoothie is great for a pre- or post-workout smoothie. The flavor is mostly banana and pineapple, with a hint of almond. If you do not own a juicer or heavy duty blender, a regular blender or immersion blender kind of work, but the drink is a little more leafy than smooth.

Recipe makes 2 servings:

1          cup                  Frozen pineapple chunks, defrosted

1          ---                    Banana

3          cups                Kale, torn

1 1/3  cup                    Unsweetened Almond milk

¼         cup                  low-fat (2%) Cottage cheese

Citrusy Kombucha Green Smoothie

I keep hearing: "Have you heard of this Kombucha drink?" Kombucha is made by adding bacteria, yeast and sugar to black or green tea and allowing it to ferment. After fermentation, juice is added to the drink to hide the tangy, earthy flavor and to help make it more palatable. Many of these beverages are pasteurized, because without this process the alcohol content from fermentation can raise from 0.5% up to the level of many beers. Whole Foods actually took the raw product off of their shelves for some time because of this issue. Once the problems was fixed, Whole Foods is now stocking Kombucha teas again. 

What does Kombucha do? Well...who is to say? The hype is mostly from personal experiences, as there is not currently any scientific evidence of its health benefits. That does not mean it is not beneficial, just that it has not been proven. FDA warns not to try home-brewed kombucha due to risk of contamination. CDC advises pregnant women against drinking any kombucha.

All that being said, it was a great addition to my smoothie because it is tangy and citrusy, and does not add many calories. I also added flaxseed oil (I promise there is no aftertaste!) to get some

awesome omega-3s!

Recipe makes 2 servings:

1 ¼     cup                  Kombuca tea

1          cup                  Frozen pineapple, defrosted

1          ---                    Cara Cara Navel orange, peeled

3          cups                Shredded Kale

½        TBSP.              Flaxseed oil

Vegan Brownies and Vegan Frostings

After teaching a Light, Vegan Thanksgiving class at Salud, the Healthy Pantry, I was introduced to a wonderful new product: Soom Chocolate Sesame Butter. This chocolate sesame seed paste is a healthier lower-sugar, higher-fiber, higher-protein delicious alternative to Nutella-like spreads. It is full of heart healthy fats, antioxidants, and helps control post-meal blood sugars.

I quickly started taste-testing this chocolatey goodness with everything- apple slices, graham crackers, toast, plain oatmeal.  It is so versatile. I decided I wanted to try making a vegan dessert using Soom Chocolate Sesame Butter.  I thought I would start with my gluten-free polenta brownies for inspiration, but that is so far from vegan with 12 eggs per recipe.  So I tried replacing the eggs with a can of coconut milk (full fat). These brownies were rich and moist, but so very flat. So I added oat flour and baking soda to increase the volume. Perfecto.

Vegan Polenta Brownies

What you'll need:
-1 can (13.66oz) coconut milk
- 2 TBSP unsweetened cocoa powder
- 3 TBSP agave syrup
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup corn meal
- 1 cup oat flour
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1/3 cup almond milk
- 1/4 cup Soom chocolate sesame butter

What to do:
Preheat oven to 350*F. Grease a 9x9 baking pan. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl using a whisk or electric mixer until well combined. Pour mixture in greased baking pan.  Bake 26 - 30 minutes, until cake tester or toothpick comes out clean.

For the Frostings

Then it was onto the super fun part: frostings. I made a brownie parfait using a light yogurt "frosting" flavored with coffee, so I thought I would try out a few more frostings- pumpkin mousse frosting, maple frosting, and many more.  You can use many ingredients to make vegan frostings, including coconut milk, soy yogurt, and vegan buttery spreads.

Before you start the frostings, there are some overnight steps you may need to take.  First, for the coconut frostings it is important to refrigerate a can of coconut milk overnight. This separates the water from the creamy white fatty part. When you open the can, pour out any water that is sitting on top (discard or reserve this for another use).  Scoop out the creamy white part. Whip this with a whisk or electric mixer. Use this whipped coconut milk when necessary in the recipes below.

When using yogurt-based frostings, it is important to strain the yogurt. Do this by wrapping it in a cheesecloth over a strainer overnight. This removes liquid and thickens the yogurt. Whipped coconut milk can be added to this to help thicken it more, but for some purposes (ie brownie parfait) you may want to leave out the coconut milk.

Vegan Frostings

*Note: because I made a variety of frostings, I made small amounts of each.  Each frosting spread over 3 or 4 brownies. If you are making only 1 frosting, multiple the ingredients by 3.

Chai Spiced Frosting
This is one of my favorites! I bought some chai spiced black tea that smelled amazing.  I made strong tea by heating 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk and steeping 1 tea bag for 5 minutes. Just a little whipped coconut milk to thicken it and powdered sugar to sweeten it and this is perfect. *Note: I had leftover strong tea, so I used that to flavor my plain oatmeal one morning. Yum Yum Yum!
Ingredients: 1/4 cup whipped coconut milk, 1 1/2 TSP strong chai tea, 1 1/2 TBSP powdered sugar

Chocolate Avocado
It may sound weird to be using Avocado, but this frosting is so rich, creamy, and chocolatey. It is also very simple.  Just add all the ingredients together in a food processor and blend until combined and creamy.
Ingredients: 1/2 and avocado, 1/2 TSP vanilla, 1 TBSP cocoa, 1 1/2 TSP agave, 2 TBSP powdered sugar, 1 TBSP Soom chocolate sesame butter

Zesty Orange Yogurt Frosting
Soy yogurts seem to have a different flavor and taste from brand to brand.  Try a couple and find one that you like best. I used plain yogurt so I could flavor and sweeten it to my liking. This is also a good way to flavor yogurt for a snack! I added a little whipped coconut milk to thicken it to make it the consistency of frosting.
Ingredients: 2 TBSP strained soy plain yogurt, 1 TBSP fresh orange juice, 1 tsp orange zest, 1 TBSP whipped coconut milk. Garnish with orange zest.

Salted Caramel Frosting
Of course this is going to be amazing. Salted caramel anything is delicious.  This vegan caramel is so delicious and buttery. To make the caramel, first melt butter in a small saucepan.  Add brown sugar and almond milk and simmer for about 3 minutes, until mixture has thickened. Remove from heat. Once caramel has cooled, add 1 1/2 TBSP caramel to the remaining ingredients.  Use remaining caramel for garnish.
Ingredients: 2 TBSP buttery spread (no trans-fat spread such as Nature Balance Vegan Buttery Spread), 2 TBSP brown sugar, 1 1/2 TBSP unsweetened almond milk, 2 TBSP whipped coconut milk, 1 TBSP powdered sugar. Garnish with extra caramel sauce.

Light and Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Dishes

I will be teaching a class on light Thanksgiving dishes on Sunday November 9 at 2pm. Class will take place at Salud, the Healthy Pantry in Great Falls, Virginia (see address below). I will show you some tricks to using some winter vegetables in low-calorie dishes. The best part is, everyone will get to taste all the foods that I make and go home with detailed recipes. Seats are limited and sign up will end soon! So sign up now!

RSVP with Salud at sludpantry@gmail.com

Zucchini Cucumber Slaw for Asian-Style Tacos

Using a homemade slaw instead of store-bought salsa, guacamole, and shredded cheese is a great way to flavor tacos without adding a lot of salt or calories.  The slaw is made of several julienne style vegetables, including zucchini, cucumber, carrots, and red bell pepper. For these, you can use a cheese grater, julienne peeler, mandoline, or sharp knife.

These tacos can be vegetarian with black beans and diced avocado.  Or saute cooked pieces of chicken, pork chop, or flank steak in a little hoisin sauce and add to the tacos.

Zucchini Cucumber Slaw for Asian-Style Tacos

Recipe makes 4 Servings

What you'll need:
- 1 cucumber, seeds removed
- 1 zucchini, seeds removed
- 1 carrot, peeled
- 1/2 a red bell pepper, seeds removed
- 1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- juice of 3 limes
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 1 1/2  tbsp garlic chili sauce
- 1 tsp mirin
- 1 tsp sesame seed oil
- taco shells (4 large, or 8 small)

What to do:
1. Julienne the cucumber, zucchini, carrot, and red bell pepper using a cheese shredded, julienne peeler, mandoline, or sharp knife.  Set all veggies in a large bowl.

2. To make the sauce whisk together the ingredients: lime juice through sesame oil. Pour over veggies and mix together.  Let sit about 20 minutes to allow the juices to pickle the veggies a little.  Serve cold on a warm taco shell. Top with sautéed meat, beans, and/or avocado slices.

Sweet Potato, Arugula, and Goat Cheese Mini Frittata

I am posting this recipe by popular request.  I made this at the farmer's market, for Easter brunch, and for my class at Culinaria Cooking School.  Everyone has loved it.  It is one of my favorite frittatas! Sweet potato, peppery arugula, and creamy goat cheese are fabulous together.

To make this, you need to cut the sweet potato very very thin.  I used a mandoline, but you can also use a sharp knife to do this.  It is important to par-cook the potato slices first in the oven.  To create the egg mixture, you want to use a hand blender or food processor to thoroughly mix together the egg, goat cheese, and milk.  This will also chop up the red onion and arugula, which creates a good look.  It is very important to butter and flour the muffin pan.  To do this, just lightly coat each muffin slot with butter, then sprinkle flour around the bottom and sides.  Shake out the extra flour.

Sweet Potato, Arugula, and Goat Cheese Mini Frittata

Recipe Makes 12 - 14 Mini Frittatas

What you'll need:

-       1 tbsp olive oil, divided

-       1 sweet potato, peeled, thinly sliced (long, skinny potato is best)

-       ½ cup diced red onion

-       2 cups chopped arugula

-       5 eggs

-       1/3 cup milk

-       4 oz goat cheese

-       1 tsp salt

-       ½ tsp ground pepper

-       1 tsp dried sage

-    1/4 tsp mustard powder

-    1/8 tsp cayenne

-       ¼ cup chopped chives

-    ¼ cup crumbled cooked bacon (optional)

What to do:

1.     Preheat oven to 374*F.  On a baking sheet, toss potato slices with 1/2 tbsp olive oil.  Bake 8 minutes, until soft but stays intact when picked up. olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  In a skillet, heat remaining 1/2 tbsp olive oil. When oil is hot, add onion and cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes.  Add arugula and cook 1 minute. Remove and set aside to let cool.

2.     In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, and goat cheese until smooth.  Add salt, pepper, sage, mustard powder, cayenne, and the cooked onion and arugula.  If available, use a food processor or hand blender to blend everything together; arugula should be blended into small pieces, not pureed.

3.     Prepare a muffin pan with butter and flour (see note above). Spread cooked potatoes slices around the bottom of each muffin slot (should have enough to fill 12 - 14). Some larger slices may need to be cut in half.  Create layer about 1/4- to 1/3-inch high. Add about 2 tbsp egg mixture; you can fill each up almost to the top. Sprinkle each with chives and bacon (if using). Bake in oven for 12 minutes.  Then turn oven to 'Broil' setting; broil for 3 to 5 minutes, until tops are starting to brown.  Remove from oven and let cool slightly.  Use a small rubber scraper to remove eggs.

Yikes! Sooo busy!

My life has changed quite a bit over the past few months.   I have become quite the busy dietitian/chef.  I am doing lunch and learn cooking demonstrations, personal chef services, private in-home cooking lessons.  It's been a little crazy lately.  I am writing recipes constantly, but not finding the time to upload them to my blog.  As I get into a good rhythm with my new schedule, I hope to get back to posting pictures and recipes!

For now, I will be at the Great Falls Farmer's market on Saturday January 18th, and Saturday January 25th.

I am also starting to teach at Culinaria Cooking School in Vienna.  I am so excited about this! I have diabetic-friendly classes, hearth-healthy recipes, and gluten-free cooking techniques and tricks.  If you are anyone you know that may be interested, you can find a list of my classes by clicking this link: http://www.culinariacookingschool.com/organizer/emily-doerman-r-d/

I hope to see some of you at my upcoming events!  Thanks for being dedicated followers!!