Carrot Peach Smoothie

Ingredients:

3 Freshly Juiced Organic Carrots

Carrot pulp from the juicer

6 Fresh Peaches

2 cups of Ice

We juiced carrots the other morning and had some leftover.  I simply took the juice and the pulp from our juicer.  I put them in the Vitamix that my friend Molly let me borrow.  I added fresh peaches and ice.  It was amazing!  The carrot pulp was completely integrated into the smoothie - no lumps.  It made enough for all 5 of us to enjoy.  The whole family loved it!!

We have been experimenting with the Vitamix (The best way I can describe the Vitamix is that it seems to be a blender on steroids!).  It will make any food so creamy!!  

Red Beans and Quinoa

I like to purchase organic dried beans, soak them, and cook them myself as opposed to buying canned beans.  Occasionally, when I have not prepared beforehand I will use beans from a can.  I prefer soaking my own for several reasons:  When I soak my own, I know they have not been sitting around in a can for who knows how long absorbing the contents of the can itself;  I feel much better about buying them in bulk and eliminating putting another can in the earth once I'm finished with it; It is much more cost effective to prepare them myself and I can get organic ones for even less than the cost of canned non-organic; I think they are much more flavorful when I soak and cook them myself!

Soaking Dried Beans:

2 cups dried red beans

6 cups water

I placed the above in a glass bowl and soaked them for 3 days.  Each day I drained the water off of them and replaced it with fresh water until the water was clear again.  I left them on my counter and put a glass plate on top of the bowl.

Ingredients:

Rehydrated beans

4 cloves of garlic, minced,

1 tsp celtic sea salt

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp cumin

1 white onion, diced

8 cups of filtered water

Chopped cilantro and green onions for the topping

Quinoa (to put the beans on top of!)

Place the first 7 ingredients into a stock pot and bring to a boil.  Turn down to low-med heat.  Simmer beans for 1 - 1 1/2 hours, stirring about every 10 minutes, until beans are tender.

I put the beans over quinoa, but you could use rice as well, and I topped it with green onions and chopped cilantro.  This meal provides a wonderful source of fiber and protein.

We take the leftovers and use them later in the week to put into a tortilla and add salsa, lettuce, green onion, cilantro, and purple cabbage for a lunch or dinner option!

Zucchini and Tomatoes

It is great having a wonderful local market to get fresh fruits and vegetables and herbs.  This dish was one of the ones I served while our family was doing a juice/whole food fast for a week.  The flavor of zucchini, tomatoes, basil, and garlic are amazing together.  I baked this dish for about 20 minutes, but I tried it raw, and it was excellent as well.

Ingredients:

2 fresh whole tomatoes sliced

3 medium zucchini

1 small onion thinly sliced

4 cloves of garlic, minced

4 leaves of fresh basil, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

Place all ingredients in a pan and toss.  Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.  I served this dish with a noodle recipe that I topped with a pureed almond sauce.

Simple ingredients, quick to prepare, little clean up, lots of nutrition!

Apple Cherry Oatmeal Breakfast Bake

Summertime offers the opportunity to enjoy fresh fruits and veggies not in season at other times.  Cherries are one of my favorite fruits, and they are packed with phytonutrients.  My sister-in-law makes a similar dish which inspired the one I made this morning....

Ingredients:

3 cups organic rolled oats

2 red apples (washed and diced - not peeled)

1 cup fresh cherries chopped

1 tsp cinnamon

4 cups filtered water

I simply placed the oats into a 2 quart square baking dish (that had a lid).  I poured the water over it, added the cherries and apples, and sprinkled the cinnamon over the top.  I covered it with the lid and baked it at 350 for 45 minutes.

When I served it, I poured almond milk and a little bit of honey over the top.  It only took 30 minutes for me to turn around and see the pan completely empty.  We all enjoyed it and will definitely be making this one of our breakfast summertime staples.  

After tasting the dish, I thought about using peaches as the fruit and doubling the amount (probably 4-5 cups) to make a healthier cobbler. I would add some raw sugar to the oats.