I grew up with a 40 acre avocado ranch in my family and we ate avocados during the summer like they were going out of style. That was when everyone thought avocados were filled with fat and that wasn't good in a low fat crazy world. But we know better now that avocados are filled with fats that are GOOD for you! Not only that, but they are rich in antioxidant vitamins A,C and E that protect you from damage from free radicals and help prevent conditions such as heart disease.
Avocados also help you adsorb antioxidants from other fruits and veggies eaten at the same time. They are also a good source of potassium for your blood pressure and energizing B vitamins for anti-stress. So eat up!
There are many recipes that include avocados in them these days. One of my favorite ways to eat them is plain and simple with a balsamic vinaigrette but most people love guacamole.
Here's a very simple recipe for a great guacamole:
4 Ripe Hass Avocados
1/4 cup (of your favorite) Salsa
1 tsp. Fresh Lemon Juice
Sea Salt to taste
Mash together peeled and seeded avocados with lemon juice and salsa, salt to taste and eat. That simple and look at all the benefits you're getting.
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Dairy Free Mango Lassi
A full raw diet is controversial these days. Some say go full raw but I believe in adding as much raw foods as you can. They are healthy and full of live enzymes and vitamins your body needs. I could never give up meat totally and sorry but I do love my pancakes and such.
One of my favorite raw food diet cook books is Ani's Raw Food Kitchen by Ani Phyo. The book is full of great information about helping the environment and good things for your body. I really like her thoughts and the food she has in this book is easy to prepare compared to a lot of raw food books. It's worth picking up and adding some raw food recipes into your diet.
Recently after all the holiday and birthday parties I have attended I decided to go raw for three days, a detox of sorts and allow my body to rest. Mostly juicing I used a few of her smoothies and her green machine juice in her book. As an Indian food lover, I appreciate her recipe for Mango Lassi that is made with raw foods and is dairy free. A mango lassi in Indian cuisine is filled with dairy and yummy stuff but this version is just as yummy and is so good for you!
Mango Lassi - makes 4 servings
By Ani Phyo
3 cups purified water
2 mango's, peeled, seeded and cubed
1/4 cup soaked almonds*
1/2 cup pitted fresh dates
1 vanilla bean (1 tsp vanilla extract can be substituted)
Blend in a high speed blender (such as Vita Mix) 2 cups water with mango, almonds, dates and vanilla bean until smooth. Add remaining water and blend until smooth.
This will keep for three days in the fridge.
*soak almonds over night in purified water, rinse and use.
One of my favorite raw food diet cook books is Ani's Raw Food Kitchen by Ani Phyo. The book is full of great information about helping the environment and good things for your body. I really like her thoughts and the food she has in this book is easy to prepare compared to a lot of raw food books. It's worth picking up and adding some raw food recipes into your diet.
Recently after all the holiday and birthday parties I have attended I decided to go raw for three days, a detox of sorts and allow my body to rest. Mostly juicing I used a few of her smoothies and her green machine juice in her book. As an Indian food lover, I appreciate her recipe for Mango Lassi that is made with raw foods and is dairy free. A mango lassi in Indian cuisine is filled with dairy and yummy stuff but this version is just as yummy and is so good for you!
Mango Lassi - makes 4 servings
By Ani Phyo
3 cups purified water
2 mango's, peeled, seeded and cubed
1/4 cup soaked almonds*
1/2 cup pitted fresh dates
1 vanilla bean (1 tsp vanilla extract can be substituted)
Blend in a high speed blender (such as Vita Mix) 2 cups water with mango, almonds, dates and vanilla bean until smooth. Add remaining water and blend until smooth.
This will keep for three days in the fridge.
*soak almonds over night in purified water, rinse and use.
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Tart Cherries and Your Health
As Washington is starting to see their first cherries appearing in the stores, I thought it a good time to discuss how wonderful this little stone fruit is for you. Tart cherries have an amazing ability to keep inflammation at bay. The sour variety is most beneficial with higher anthocyanin content but sweet does the trick too. The darker the cherry the better they are for you. They are also a great natural source of melatonin to help regulate biorhythms and sleep pattens, and help break down uric acid in the joint of those suffering from gout. An amazing little fruit!
My favorite ways to eat cherries is fresh but they are so yummy in a crisp that I make one every year to celebrate this time of year. This recipe is also fabulous with apples in the fall.
Cherry Crisp
5 cups fresh cherries ~ pitted (I suggest tart cherries for this)
1 tsp. cornstarch
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup old fashion rolled oats
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp fine salt
3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup sliced flaked almonds
2 Tbsp. chopper crystallized ginger
1/4 cup chilled unsalted butter
Preheat oven to 375F
Mix cherries with cornstarch and place in a baking dish with 2 inch sides. In a large bowl mix together flour, oats, cinnamon, and salt. Mix well. Add rest of ingredients and using a pastry cutter or two knives work butter until mixture is crumbly and butter is evenly distributed. Crumble mixture over cherries.
Bake crisp until topping is golden about 50 minutes. Remove dish from oven and let cool.
Serve with vanilla ice cream and enjoy!
My favorite ways to eat cherries is fresh but they are so yummy in a crisp that I make one every year to celebrate this time of year. This recipe is also fabulous with apples in the fall.
Cherry Crisp
5 cups fresh cherries ~ pitted (I suggest tart cherries for this)
1 tsp. cornstarch
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup old fashion rolled oats
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp fine salt
3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup sliced flaked almonds
2 Tbsp. chopper crystallized ginger
1/4 cup chilled unsalted butter
Preheat oven to 375F
Mix cherries with cornstarch and place in a baking dish with 2 inch sides. In a large bowl mix together flour, oats, cinnamon, and salt. Mix well. Add rest of ingredients and using a pastry cutter or two knives work butter until mixture is crumbly and butter is evenly distributed. Crumble mixture over cherries.
Bake crisp until topping is golden about 50 minutes. Remove dish from oven and let cool.
Serve with vanilla ice cream and enjoy!
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