Let's have an Abundelicious SPRING!!

Yippeeeee!!  We get to have Ms. Jane from CLEAN FOURTEEN here again to treat us to a blog post.  ENJOY!

xo, Abundelicious

Good morning sunshine!  Round these parts, we get pretty perked up for Spring... and Spring Break (I teach fifth grade and still say things like "Woo hop SB2K!4 yeahhh!"  My students think I'm a pequeno bit loco.  Obviously I took French in high school.)  No matter if the readers of Abundelicious are headed to Mexico, just returning, or staying put in beautiful MKE - we can all have a fiesta that welcomes clean, fresh, whole food (and pairs nicely with a cerveza (gluten free, of course)!)

To welcome the season (or start training for Cinco de Mayo), start with your favorite beans (black, pinto, refried) hot off the stove, and top with your favorite rice (brown, wild, black) warm from a small pot (or the microwave, if you're a Trader Joe's frozen rice amigo.)


Then, toss in sliced tiny tomatoes (heirloom, grape, cherry), halved olives (eat some while you're slicing, obviously), and a diced up avocado (all three at room temperature.)



Swizzle your favorite oil (olive, grape seed, sunflower seed) over the top, sprinkle with sea salt, pepper, a dash of paprika and !OLE!

                   

Pour yourself a bubbly water with a lime or a citrus juice+tequila+ice concoction, and turn up the Tito Puente!  H&H Jane

Make it a MONSTER

What is a MONSTER SALAD?  I feel like my health foodie friends and I are always talking about monster, huge, massive, big time salads.  It has been brought to my attention by students and clients that we don't ever go into much more detail than that.  So, I'd like to do a better job of showing you exactly what my MONSTER SALAD has going on.

In this case, I am using a few cooked items, which is not the norm.  I had some eggs and rice I wanted to use up, so in the salad they went.

I fried two eggs in some grass fed butter, and then added grape tomatoes, green peas, and cooked rice to steam a little while the eggs finished cooking.

While that was all happening, I put the following into a nice big ol' bowl:
- organic greens
- hemp seeds
- sunflower seeds
- raisins
- dressed with olive oil and lemon juice

When everything was warmed/cooked to my liking, I threw it on top of the greens.  The runny yolk acts as a kind of dressing.  DELICIOUS!!

When in doubt, throw it on some greens... that's what I always say :)  This is a great way to cut down on gluten and starches.  Anything you would put in a sandwich... put it on greens instead!

I LOVE this SUNFLOWER SEED BUTTER

I am in love with BUTTER!!!!  Grass fed, organic, local delicious butter.  However, sometimes there are different kinds of butter that fill my heart and tummy with joy.  NUT and SEED butters!!  Almond butter has grown rapidly in popularity as a more nutrient dense, lower allergen, less inflammatory and more digestible alternative to peanut butter.

However, why stop there?!  Cashew butter, hazelnut butter, 7-seed butter, hemp seed butter are all waiting to fill you up with minerals, healthy fat and plenty of protein!  And, as we know about ALL things nutrition, rotation and variety are key.  Each of these butters offers a unique nutrient profile.  To eat just one is like using just one color of paint... gets the job done, but perhaps a little boring.

All of these butters are available in stores; however, I prefer to make my own: http://abundelicious.blogspot.com/2013/11/how-to-make-almond-butter.html

Okay, so on with the blog post... I just bought some of MaraNatha's sunflower seed butter, and holy cow!  It is so delicious, and much better than some of the other, more lackluster, sunflower seed butters out there.  Only two ingredients (Roasted Sunflower Kernel Seeds and Sea Salt).  BOOM!!  No hydrogenated oils, no cane sugar or refined salt, and can you say MAGNESIUM... 25% daily value!

Whether or not you have a nut allergy, give this butter a try.  I love this stuff, and am going to eat some more right now... ANTS ON A LOG!!!  See ya later, AbundeBUDDIES! xox

MAC 'N "CHEESE" (gluten free and dairy-free, y'all!)

3 cups cherry tomatoes 

2 tsp thyme, chopped

1 Tbsp olive oil

sea salt and ground pepper

Gluten-free macaroni pasta - I actually prefer rigatoni... just because :)

2-3 tablespoons filtered water

1 cup other veggies - see suggestions in step #7 (optional)

"Cheese" Sauce

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1 leek, finely chopped1 tsp sea salt

1 cup full fat coconut milk, canned (brand without preservatives, such as Thai Kitchen or Whole Food's 365

1 Tbsp olive oil

2-3 Tbs coconut flour

1-2 Tbs dried basil, oregano or other herbs of your choice

Directions:

1.) Preheat oven to 395 degrees.  

2.) Bring large pot of water to a boil (to cook the pasta)

3.) Place tomatoes into a pyrex dish that is large enough to fit the other ingredients (see photo below).  Drizzle olive oil over tomatoes and sprinkle thyme, sea salt and pepper.  Roast for 20 minutes or until the skins split.  Remove and set aside.

4.) Saute the leek and garlic in olive oil until soft.

5.) Add other sauce ingredients.  In this picture, I used a dried chile blend in addition to the dried herbs (that's the red/orange color).  Cook until well mixed and "cheesey" consistency.  Add more filtered water if sauce becomes too thick.

Sauce ends up looking like alfredo sauce.

6.) Drain pasta... return pasta to pot, and add sauce.

7.) Add pasta to the roasted tomatoes (this is why the larger Pyrex dish is necessary).  I also added some more vegetables (optional) at this point.  Chard, spinach, basil, green peas, asparagus, etc.

8.) Place back into oven for an additional 30 minutes

9.) I enjoyed a serving right away, refrigerated some, and even froze about a pint for later :)

10.) ENJOY!

Winter Farmers' Market

It may be sunny outside, but it’s, well, not exactly harvest season.  So, I have always been a little skeptical of what a Wisconsin WINTER FARMERS' MARKET would have to offer.  Especially, as a nutritionist, my standards and expectations were a tad high.

I was blown away by the winter farmers’ market at the Domes.  Not only did I find fresh, seasonal produce (from cold storage or greenhouse, I believe), but there were farm fresh eggs, organic and grass fed meats, mushrooms and even sauerkraut!!  All of my favorite local and nutrient dense foods, as well as herbed butter, adaptogenic soaps, and hydroponically grown micro greens.  This girl was in serious local foodie hippie heaven. 

Even if none of the above is your cup of fair trade, organic herbal tea, what could possibly beat enjoying a cup of coffee while taking a stroll through the tropical dome in the middle of Wisco winter?!  Also, not sure what to do with all of this magnificent food?  There are plenty of great books in the gift shop to show you the way.   The gift shop also has a table conveniently located among all these fabulous farmers.  Be sure to stop by!

Do yourself a favor, and check out the winter farmers’ market at the Domes this Saturday (9am - 1pm).  I know I’ll be there!

GOODY GOODY GUM DROPS... Another post from our vegan in charge Mrs. Jane from Clean Fourteen. YUMMMMM!!!!

Dinner's ready in 10! Chop: broccoli florets, kale, 1 white onion, 1 whole bulb garlic Sautée in oil (coconut, olive, sesame) in a wok or large skillet: broccoli and kale. Sautée in a sauce pan: onion and garlic. Mingle the two in the wok! Pleased to meet you, fancy greens. Pleasure's all mine, sweet onions. Plate, top with crushed roasted almonds, sea salt, cracked pepper. Serve as a tasty side or a full dinner (toss in the black beans or lentils from the night before, or make it a tofu hash!) Mangia. To your health + happiness, Jane

When it comes to healthy living, I am ALL for different perspectives whether they be Paleo, vegetarian, raw food, traditional food... there is no lack of approaches out there, and different approaches resinate with different folks.

We are so lucky to have one of Milwaukee's most fabulous and knowledgable vegans out there joining our AbundeFAMILY.  Mrs. Jane of Clean Fourteen is an athlete, teacher, holistic health warrior, artist, foodie, dog momma, and all around cool lady (always has been - we met in high school!)
She has some fantastic recipes and ideas, and I am excited to have her share them with us!
Much Love,
Sarah

So, in her own words...