MR/Vegan Quinoa & Veggie Medley Recipe

This vegan, mostly-raw recipe is super simple, but incredibly delicious.The nutrient-packed veggies pair perfectly with the flavorful protein-rich quinoa. (Quinoa is a complete protein - perfect for any meal!) Ready to try it yourself? The recipe is below.

rawveganveggiequinoaphotocopyrightjonanderinstewart2012

Veggie Medley Ingredients

- 1 organic zucchini
- 1 organic head of broccoli (we actually lightly steamed a bag of frozen broccoli for this one, so the broccoli in the photo wasn't completely raw)
- 1 organic tomato
- 1 organic onion
- 3 stalks of organic green onion
- organic minced garlic (we like lots of it!)
- organic lemon
- organic coconut oil
- organic olive oil
- salt and pepper

Quinoa Ingredients

- 1 cup of organic vegetable broth
- 1 cup of filtered water
- 1 cup of organic quinoa, rinsed
- dried oregano

To prepare:

Bring 1 cup of veggie broth and 1 cup of water to boil over high heat. Once the mix is boiling, add your rinsed quinoa, stir, reduce to simmer and cover. Leave covered for about 15-20 minutes, until you can't see the liquid bubbling anymore. Stir to fluff when it's finished.

Chop and mix the veggies and toss them in a large bowl. Add the oils, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper, stir, and serve on top of the bed of quinoa. We added a dollop of hummus for some added texture and flavor (not pictured).

Enjoy!

Quick Avocado Hummus Tostada Recipe // vegan // raw

 written by erin // 

Jon decided he wanted to have homemade tacos for supper on his birthday this year, so we added the ingredients to our shopping list and left for our weekly trip to Whole Foods Market. Our store was out of the organic, gluten-free tortillas we normally buy (perfect texture for tacos), so we bought the Ezekiel 4:9 sprouted corn tortillas. They're still organic, but they have a stiffer texture and don't work well for tacos...so we had "flat tacos" (a.k.a. tostadas) instead. Same fresh, yummy ingredients but without the traditional taco shell shape. They work up super quickly with minimal mess! The recipe is below. (Technical disclaimer - the tortillas aren't raw...we're heating them in oil. You could substitute your favorite raw version, though.)

rawvegantostadaphotocopyrightjonanderinstewart2012


Avocado Hummus Tostada // vegan // raw // Recipe


Ingredients:
- organic gluten-free tortillas
- organic coconut oil
- organic hummus
- organic avocado (1 per person)
- organic tomato
- organic onion
- organic green onion
- organic minced garlic
- organic dried oregano
- organic lemon
- salt & pepper

To prepare:
- Heat 1 TBSP coconut oil in a skillet. Once the oil is hot, crisp your tortillas in the oil. Be sure to flip them and to keep an eye on them so they don't burn. Place them on a paper towel on a plate after removing them from the oil so they can de-grease as they cool.
- Spread the hummus on the crisped tortilla.
- Top with diced avocado that has been seasoned with fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper.
- Chop and mix the tomato, onion, green onion, minced garlic, and some lemon juice, oregano, pepper and a pinch of salt. Add the mix to the tostada.

Optional:
- You can also add chopped romaine for an extra fresh element.
- Make a large batch of the pico-de-gallo-style-salsa (add cilantro...it's perfect...we just forgot it) so you can enjoy the extras for a few more days.


Note: gluten free tortillas will usually be corn tortillas, so be sure to purchase organic ones, as non-organic corn is usually genetically modified and yucky for your body.

rawvegantostadaphotocopyrightjonanderinstewart2012

We loved how they turned out...which means we'll probably have them once or twice a week until we get sick of them. ;) Enjoy!

5 Ingredient Green Drink Recipe

written by erin //

Like most other couples, Jon and I have a list of items we would like to save for and eventually purchase. One of the items on our list is a Vitamix. We've made a lot of lifestyle changes throughout our 3 years of marriage, because of my health, yes, but also because we are addicted to learning about nutrition and healthy living. I recently finished reading an amazing book that inspired me to start drinking green smoothies and/or green juices each day. I've been a fan of them for years, but when I had to remove sugar from my diet, most of the ones I drank became no-no items because of all the fruit in them. Now I am getting back into them again, minus the hoards of sugar (and minus all the processing and pasteurizing and junk that comes along with pre-packaged drinks).

If you've ever really delved into healthy living (or just the raw, vegan diet part of it...or really any part of it), you've probably met the "all this stuff I 'need' to live this healthy lifestyle is expensive!" monster. Or maybe it's just me...but I don't think it is. From expensive blenders, juicers, and special wheatgrass juicers to food dehydrators and dozens of other fun tools, the list can get pretty overwhelming...often so much so that we don't do anything because we don't know where to start (or don't have piles of unallocated funds hanging around). That was me. I didn't think I could start making my own green smoothies every morning until we had purchased our Vitamix. Well, I finally realized that that was just stinkin' thinkin' and changed my mindset! A couple days ago I decided to start simple (5 ingredients + ice), with what I have...our $30 blender. Better to try than not do anything! This was the result (yum!):

photo copyright by Erin Stewart - green smoothies

Now, to be honest, the first day we made our green smoothies, we had a little mini disaster...the carafe of the blender got stuck on the base after the smoothie finished blending. Jon came to the rescue to try to get it off...but I hadn't unplugged the blender after removing the lid...and the boogie monster erupted all over the counter...and my shirt, when he tried to detach it. We actually only lost about 10% of the yummy green goodness, though, and Jon did get the carafe to come off the base, so the disaster wasn't as traumatic as it could have been. We were still able to enjoy our liquid sunshine...after we cleaned up our mess.

Our blender actually did surprisingly well. I thought it would have failed miserably, because it hasn't done such a swell job at some other things we've attempted. Of course, I'm sure the more expensive blenders are far superior, but for now, while we're saving, this works! Ready for the recipe? It's super easy! I've listed the reasons this blend is so perfect for our bodies and our taste buds, along with cost estimates, later in the post, so be sure to keep reading past the ingredients. =)

photo copyright by Erin Stewart - green smoothies

Ingredients for this yummy smoothie (makes two adult-sized servings):
- 1 large organic cucumber (or two smaller pickling-size cucumbers)
- 1 organic pear (or green apple, if you'd prefer)
- 2-3 stalks of organic celery
- 1 heaping handful of organic baby kale (or whatever greens you choose to use)
- 1 heaping handful of organic sprouts
- 1 large handful of ice

Steps: 
- chop your ingredients (if you decide not to use organic ingredients, you also need to peel them)
- place them in the blender, as shown
- alternate pulsing with stirring with a spatula, if your blender needs a little help, until the blender can do the rest of the work on its own - for us, we only had to quickly stir it 3-4 times before the blender caught up
- blend on "smoothie" (or whatever) for 60 seconds, or until you reach your desired consistency

The whole process (including chopping) usually takes us less than 5 minutes.

The next two photos show our ingredients pre-roller-coaster-ride and during the blending process.


Taste & some health benefits:

The smoothie tasted super yummy - completely refreshing and not at all bitter. Mine actually made me feel full! I can't say the same for Jon's man-sized stomach, but that's okay. ;) The cucumber base is perfect for smoothies...but not just because of the taste! Cucumber is extremely alkalizing. The typical American diet is actually very acidic and acidity in our bodies is linked to just about every illness, imbalance, or health problem you can imagine, including cancer. Our bodies need to be alkaline to function properly which means, you guessed it, we need to feed it alkaline fuel (along with adopting alkaline lifestyle habits...but that's another post). Thus, the cucumber is the perfect base for just about any green drink.

The pear is included, mainly, to add a touch of sweetness to the drink. It balances the flavors of the greens, but doesn't overpower the smoothie. You probably won't even be able to detect a pear taste in the drink, as it really just enhances the refreshing cucumber flavor and counteracts any bitterness that might have come from the greens. 


The greens are packed with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants and sprouts are some of the best things you can eat. They're powerhouses of raw, living nutrition (the best kind!).

photo copyright by Erin Stewart - green smoothies

A couple side notes:

- Blending and juicing raw produce helps our bodies to access the nutrients we can't normally absorb by chewing our food. Our teeth don't always break open the cell walls of our produce, which means the nutrients inside those cells never reach our cells. Blending/juicing solves this problem. Cooking breaks open the cell walls, but kills almost all (if not all) of the nutrients and enzymes within the food by the time it reaches 118 degrees. When you can, stick with raw or very lightly steamed food (we're talking non-juicing here...don't steam your juicing/blending produce).

- Choose organic. If you don't you'll need to peel your produce and you'll miss out on all the nutrients and fiber found within the skin, as well as expose your body to toxic substances that will create acidity and other problems.

- Don't drink your smoothie in the late afternoon or evening...I tried that the first day and couldn't sleep. (nutrients = energy!)

- If you want to start drinking green smoothies/juices, but they seem totally unappealing to you, give them a makeover! Serve them in some fancy glasses or add something you love. For maximum health benefits, stay away from protein powders that have any kind of protein isolate or soy listed in the ingredients, artificial sweeteners, sugary items (including fruits high on the glycemic index), etc.

Cost:

We purchased our ingredients at our local Whole Foods Market (except for the ice). $30 per week covers the cost of 1 organic green smoothie per day for two adults with ingredients purchased at WFM. This may seem like a lot, especially when money is tight, but we either invest in our health now, daily, or we pay a lot more to fix serious problems later. I would rather invest in my health now than have a doctor's scalpel anywhere near me in the future. I can't eat out because I'm allergic to things that are found in virtually every restaurant, but if you do eat out, eat out one time less per week and there's your $30. If you still can't fit them into your budget, drink one every other day and the cost drops to $15 per week. =)

photo copyright by Erin Stewart - green smoothies

Enjoy your smoothies! Do you have a recipe you love? Are you going to start drinking green drinks?

11 Ways to Use Sprouts

Our local Whole Foods Market has the most amazing locally grown 'sprouts salad' mix we've ever found....garbanzo bean, multicolored lentil, Chinese red pea, sunflower and alfalfa sprouts...it's incredible. And it looks pretty. And the package includes 12 whole yummy, crunchy, springy ounces of the fresh little guys. It also comes with this green vinaigrette that Jon loves & I can't stand (I like most green things, but apple cider vinegar makes me gag). What can you do with these little babies? Pretty much anything!

photo by Erin Stewart of Jon and Erin Stewart copyright 2012 sprouts
photo by Erin Stewart // copyright 2012 // do not use without written permission

1. Juice/blend them. Raw, living nutrition is the best kind. Juiced/blended raw, living nutrition is even better than the best. When chewing, we don't always break through the cell walls of raw food to get to all the nutrient-dense good stuff. Juicing (with a quality juicer or blender) breaks open that cell wall and releases all that healthy richness so your body can access and distribute all the goodness appropriately.

2. Add them to your salad. Well, obviously.

3. Top your pizza with them. We're pretty health-conscious (and slightly extreme), but one of our guilty "junk food" pleasures is pizza. We bake our mostly-healthy naan pizzas (or cauliflower-crust or zucchini boat pizzas) and enjoy them with plenty of chunky marinara and a sprinkling of sprouts (added after baking). Yummy texture your tummy will love!

4. Layer them into your sandwiches (or pitas, or burritos). This option might not taste too great with that almond-butter-and-fruit (or pb&j) sandwich, but with a veggie or meat-based sandwich, go for it!

5. Add them to your pasta dishes (after the dish has already been cooked).

photo by Erin Stewart // copyright 2012 // do not use without written permission

6. Mix them into that delightful stir fry (again, after the dish has already been cooked).

7. Use them in your rice, along with your cilantro, lime, butter, peas, coconut oil, or whatever else you use (you guessed it...after it's already been cooked...and after it's cooled quite a bit, if possible).

8. Grind and use in a raw sprouted cracker or bread (or other baked-like) recipe.

9. Add to raw soups.

10. Chop them and add them to your favorite dip, salsa, or cream cheese.

11. Use them in or on an omelette.



Do any of these ideas sound appealing to you? What is your favorite way to use sprouts?