What Is It? And, Why You, TOO Should Street-Walk Hollywood & Sunset

June 15, 2009 at 4:50 pm (Diet, Farmers Market, Garden, Greens, RAW Food, What Is It?)
Tags: , , , ,

A_ (2)

I LOVE L.A. Yes, I do. Say what you will about it — and you will be oh-so right — but living in Southern Cali is like no other for the stunning variety of food one can obtain and locally, reducing your chances of contributing to human exploitation (which is ALL around us). Yes, the Farmers of L.A. are awesome, friendly, and generous.

I often mention that I am “Sooooooo lucky!” and, wow, even I marvel sometimes at my good fortune! To have such excellent food at my leisure…it should be this way for every living being on this planet.

Whether you live in L.A. or are visiting, check out a few — at least — of the some of the best So. California has to offer. If you happen to be cruisin’ down Sunset, step on over to the Sunday morning festival that is (just one of) the Hollywood Farmer’s Market(s).

Okay, SO…What is it? :)

Raw_Green_ (12)

*

A-a (24)

Mm, awful purty!

A-a (36)

Little fuzzy, aye? :)

A_ (18)

Any ideas yet?

Raw_Green_ (32)

Ah, hangs out with some friends…on a vine…

Raw_Green_ (31)

C’mon, you green thumbers out there! Ever grown these in yer garden?

A_ (11)

Okay, let’s crack ‘er open…

A_ (22)

She breaches!

A_ (23)

*

A_ (34)

Okay, NO, it’s not my brain…

A_ (26)

Though, I bet mine is greeeeeeeeeeeeeeen!   alien

A_ (25)

Oh, wait…ANOTHER shell??

A_ (33)

Okay, totally nude, you HAVE to know, now…No? ;)

A-a (2)

Yes, Yes!!!

A_ (35)

You got it! Fresh, raw incredibly DELICIOUS Garbanzo Beans!! banana-banjo

Got’em at the farmers’ market! Still on the vines WOW! Forget the Lakers‘ slam dunk — this is a SCORE!!!!grn-wink

Here is a pod holding 2 little ‘peas:

Raw_Green_ (5)

This one was interesting; it had one that was drying out already!

A-a (42)

I was kind of expecting it to be more flavorful, more savory; but, instead it had very little flavor at all. What a shame :)

A-a (43)

Still purty, tho ;)

Where I first learned that they even existed was at a Whole Foods in the refrigerated section, several years ago. I fell in LOVE with them! I recall trying to convince my fellow raw-foodie enthusiasts at the time they existed, but was met with a lot of dismissive resistance! Hmph. Okay, so more for me, Nyahh :P Since that first time, I’ve not found them as often as I’d like; especially since I eat mostly raw. Now they are becoming more known as the blogosphere indicates!

Back to my Sunday …

So as the sun was waning, I took my bag O’ magic beans, and out to the patio…

Bean_Bag (27)

for some chick pea pickin.’

~~~ Ahh, yes, just like back in the old country, I do recall ~~~

Just kidding, lol Beans_Peas_pod

So we talked and picked…

A-a (4)

Rambled with hands busy…

A-a (37)

and picked….

A-a (38)

and reminisced some more…

A-a (40)

and the bowl was filling up nicely…

A-a (41)

…till my bowl runneth over…

A-a (56)

…almost ;) And while I cannot claim any “old country,” to my memoirs, relaxing, sharing, and picking over fresh legumes is quite enjoyable, and I now know why it’s so customary in some cultures to engage in such activity :) What a wonderful Sunday afternoon!

That evening, as every, I feasted! We feasted on fresh chick peas, fresh, first-of-season’s-sweet tomatoes (OH LORD, watch out!! I’ll be consuming loads of these cherry-sweet tomatoes through October!)

Tomatoes_FM

a few other simple foods (I won’t bore you further with the details :) ), all fresh from the farmers’ market.

And All was well with the world. :)

~ *** ~

Speaking of the advantages of living in California, I have also the good fortune to have lived in various neighborhoods around Los Angeles, all rich with different ethnicities; ways; and customs. Flourishing and bringing life, culture, and wonderful experiences to us natives, they have contributed so much to Us All :) One such neighborhood had various Peoples from the region of the Middle East — O, the food! The markets! The colors! I recall running past many a group of two or more elderly women, dressed in traditional clothes, obviously brand new to this country, speaking and laughing in their native tongues. Along side them, large, old wooden buckets filled with some vegetable or other… They shelled and trimmed as they socialized, right there in their front yards;  no doubt a custom.

SO, my bowl full…

A-a (65)

…my heart and soul too :D , and I am grateful — and…

Sooooooooooooooo lucky!!! :D

A-a (24)

So you can’t get these locally, you say? :(   Well…

I am so excited to see these *FINALLY* catching on. Trader Joe’s had/has them every-so-often, shelled, in frozen bags, then — pOOf! Gone! One of things about TJ’s I don’t like >:(

There is a brand which is making itself more available around the U.S., “CaliFresh.” You can see they are in several chain markets — click here for those — so, “Yay” for that!! Even though not organic, you may want to give them a try. These are also available in Mexican markets, again, not organic, but why not try some? OR, heck, if you’re into gardening, how about trying to grow your own?! I’d love to. I’ve grown green peas and I can only hope fresh garbanzos would be so ridiculously easy! Those peas, by the way, were the BEST EVER, as I imagine your own,  home-grown foods are ;)

A-a (34)I found fresh to freeze well too. Some may prefer a quick steam, unless one is accustomed to the taste of, say, raw peas — then the raw chickpeas would be quite enjoyable. Either way, it can hardly be argued that these are not the freshest chickpeas you have ever eaten! They are, to my delight, Greeeeeeeeeeeeen :) And a gorgeous green!

If you can find these at a farmer’s market, grab ‘em. The worst that can happen is that you end up blending them into a green smoothie — now how’s that for tipping the odds? But trust me –  You will love these whether steamed or raw. Bean salad anyone?

A-a (47)The flavor, by the way, is much milder than any other raw legume. It has a nuttiness to it which is faintly reminscent of the dried cooked you know so well; however, this is just straight out unique tasting — highly enjoyable. Can you tell I like ‘em? That familiar “raw” taste is also not dominant like so many raw peas and beans; these are softer than you will probably be expecting. Loads of flavor; no spicing required.

To cook these are also quite enjoyable, as it takes mere minutes to simply steam — Yep, minutes! And so delectable. Much like fava beans — another utterly delicious bean fresh, look for them and GET SOME — the quick cooking is a nice change. I have always loved my summer bean salads with fresh favas. DElicious, I promise you!

A_ (32)These green chick peas can be eaten and served just like you would edamame — either in their pods, or shelled — depending how you find them. I prefer in their pods, but shelled are great too. Just steam them or you can drop them in boiling water for a few minutes, if you like. No salt needed, these are delish on their own; however, spicing them, of course, gives you much more variety and you can prepare delectable little delights with the simplicity and ease of marinating in various spice blends.

Seriously, I’ll say it again: I don’t know anyone who eats better than I do _lol.  And you can feel that way too! :D The changing of the tastebuds is one of the more dramatic results from eating healthfully and abstaining from salt, and chemically-flavored and processed “stuff” often labeled as “food.” I’ve never eaten better in my life, not only nutritionally but also taste-wise.

I mentioned this before also: When you are willing to give up the foods you (think you) love, crave, “can’t do without forever,” you GAIN so much more! :D I promise!

Okay, I’m storing up:Garbanzos_Fresh_in-pods

I’m loading up on these babies to take me through the off season –  into the fridge, and into the freezer, sealed extra well for long storage. :D

A-a (69)

So look for these! It’s that time of the year — Right Now! Go get some! Eat simply. No need for complicated meals! Try them in recipes or plain — Mmmmm, fresh chick peas! Give ‘em a try!

Strix

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

13 Comments

Sesame Butter/Tahini Redux…

June 13, 2009 at 3:48 pm (Food, Homemade Products, RAW Food, Recipes, Sprouting, Vegan)
Tags: , , , , ,

I tried making tahini with unhulled sesame seeds in my 2007 VitaMix. Disaster. I literally spent 46 minutes — yes, I timed it — trying to get it to work, continually scraping and blending, etc.

Here are some pictures on how to easier identify hulled from unhulled:

white-hulled-sesame-seeds_ (12) - Copy ** Brown_sesame-seeds_unhulled_soaked - Copy

white-hulled-sesame-seeds_ (8)Hulled sesame seeds have their outer shells removed. They are sometimes referred to as just sesame seeds or as “white” sesame seeds. This makes the smoothest butter, or “tahini,” and is what is most often found creamed, jarred in stores.

sesame-seeds_quarter-cup (3)Unhulled sesame seeds maintain their shells. Referred to as “brown” sesame seeds or “whole” sesame seeds. More nutritious than white, they also carry a bit of bitterness from their shells. Rinsing and draining alleviates much of that tannic flavor.

The third type of sesame, is the beautiful black

Black-Sesame-Seeds_quarterC (6) - Copy

Black sesame is the most nutritious of the three. It tastes slightly different; some think it’s stronger.

**

tahini_homeprepared_white-sesame

Hulled sesame butter is easy peasy and is actually done quite easily in a food processor, as I demonstrated previously. Above, you see it makes a nice thick butter. The easy flowing tahinis you find in stores have oil added.

Unhulled, with the VitaMix, proved more difficult (The following were unhulled, soaked, with and without added water):

tahini-Brown_fini (3)

This is actually not too bad even with quite a bit of texture; but it still has a lot of whole seeds.

Even tried with unhulled black sesame seeds (VitaMix):

black-sesame-scrape-blender (6)

Tried with my dependable Blendtec…

black_4

Nope…

black_12

Still lots of whole seeds that  just don’t want to blend!

However, the good news is, it’s not really so big a deal to have some texture,  depending on your recipe. You can still use these chunky butters! If, for example, you are making a dressing or hummous, it will blend up quite nicely with the other ingredients, and it seems to lose its texture. I made a  dressing with it and it came out smooth.  But this shows why the nut and seed butters in stores contain added oil — though they do not have to list it as an ingredient — they need it to get that creamy smooth texture. It’s a similar process with my precious, beloved :)   coconut BUTTER (not oil), they add oil in order to cream it because coconut is VERY, VERY fibrous; and it is impossible to get a creamy emulsion from mature coconuts by simply blending the flesh (confirmed via email on several brands, despite how the advertising “sounds”) I’d like to try, however, in my juicer sometime…hmmm…:)

Next, I decided, against the odds, to give the processor a try

10

No go :(

*

~ My recommendation is to not add water or liquids to any, which includes not using wet, soaked seeds ~

The water diminishes the flavor and, in my opinion, does something…well, weird ;) to the texture.

*

Okay, now here’s the zinger –

Tribest_personal-blender (3)

My little Personal Blender did a better job!

Check it out…

Results for unsoaked, unhulled dry brown sesame seeds…

brown-sesame_tahini_sm-blender_no-soak_fini (3)

Pretty darn good! Whoa, much better than the power blenders. No whole seeds left in just a few minutes of blending!

Of course, it makes small amounts only. This is actually better, in my opinion, because it’s not good to keep buttered seeds and nuts stored for long periods anyway. This way, you can make and use small amounts and not have to pay high prices for a large jar, when you only really need small amounts.

The Personal Blender, aka “Tribest Personal Blender” is similar to a “Magic Bullet” and other such small blenders. They are even less powerful than some coffee grinders! If you have such a blender or small  grinder give it a try.

flat-blade_blender~ Be sure to use the flat blade for buttering. ~

Now, don’t expect it to be exactly creamy smooth  like the storebought UNLESS you add oil. And, really, unhulled seeds are, naturally never going to render as smooth as hulled because they have all their fiber in the stead of more seed and oil. Even my store-bought black tahini isn’t completely smooth, and, in fact, one manufacturer even states that because it is unhulled, it is not as smooth (can’t recall which brand that was).

~ * ~

NOW, I don’t particularly like the idea of not pre-soaking because there is the bitterness in the brown sesame hulls, which some don’t like (and which may contribute to inadequate absorption of its nutrients). So I thought I’d try soaking and sprouting to see if this improved the small blender tahini texturally and flavorwise.

The good news about sprouting sesame is that it takes only a few hours of soaking! SproutPeople instructs as short as 2 hours and up to 8. Since they are small, you don’t want to drown them ;) . They also say that just the soak and allowing them to dry is enough to remove the enzyme inhibitors, meaning you don’t have to do the rinse, drain, rinse drain over days to get increased nutrition and remove most of the bitterness, and if you don’t want to sprout them. I decided to soak for 4 hours and sprout them at least a full day, then let them dry. (Note: white, hulled sesame seeds cannot be sprouted)

So it went like so:

Soak for 4 hours.

Drain, rinse; spread onto cheesecloth or other sprouting surface to sprout. Be sure if your surface  has holes such as a mesh, they are not too large that the tiny sesame seeds fall through! You’ll be very frustrated (and curse me!) if you lose them all on the floor :)

Rinse and drain as needed (depending on environmental/weather conditions) 2-4 or more hours till bedtime.

Just sprout until you see a tiny tail emerge or a small bud. They get bitter very quickly; so the smaller the sprout the better.

Let them dry out, and use right away, or store in the refrigerator and use within a couple days. You can also thoroughly dry them with a dehydrator and keep for long storage. I’d probably leave them in the fridge or freezer, but if *completely* dry can be kept in a cool, dry place.

*

Rinse…

sesame_unhulled_rinse (2)

Soak for 4 hours…

sesame_unhulled_soak (3)

Drain

sesame-unhulled_drain

Then rinse well again.  Final drain….

Brown_sesame-seeds_unhulled_soaked (19)

Spread out to sprout for 24 hours or till tiny sprouts or buds appear…

Sesame_sprouts

Here’s a closeup…

Sesame_sprouts (9)

Cutie little sprouts! :D

Same for the Black…

Rinse

black-sesame_rinse (2)

Soak

black_sesame_1-C_soak (5)

Drain

black-sesame_drain (3)

Lay out to sprout –here I used cheesecloth:

Black-Sesame_soaked_sprout_cheesecloth (3)

Rinse

black-Sesame_sprout_rinse_cheesecloth (2)

Sprout…

Black-sesame-seed_sprouts (4)

closer look :D …

Black-sesame-seed_sprouts (9)

Black Beauties!

Dry

After that final rinse, they should be left to dry out before blending or before storing.

If you wish to speed up drying after the last rinse, then you can put them outside (make sure it’s not windy!), covered, or in a place with good air flow. I like to dry my sprouted seeds in the dehydrator at a very low temp — like 80- to 90-degrees — which is just quicker and more convenient.

Okey Dokey, now they’re ready! Let’s see what happens…

Into the small blender with the flat blade go they…

Blend ‘er up…

Couple a scrape downs…

and…

unhulled-sesame_sprouted_fini

Excellent! Within seconds, all the seeds are blended. They seem to have benefited from the sprouting process, as well: The taste was better, having rinsed and sprouted off the bitterness.

Only stones left unturned — I tell ya, this has been a pain! — now are, one, to try large batch of sprouted and dried seeds in the power blenders, and, two, giving the power juicer a whirl.

So here again are the keys to good-tasting, creamier unhulled sesame butter or tahini:

unhulled-sesame_sprouted_fini (2)

Organic, fresh whole unhulled seeds

Rinsing

Soaking

Sprouting*

Drying, thoroughly

Creaming in small batches

Using a small blender with the flat blade

*If you don’t want to sprout, it will still work (as I demonstrated above), following all the other steps, but will render a more “toothy,” textured butter: It will not leave any whole seeds.

There you go. Mystery solved :) The rinky-dink little blender out performs the power blenders! Enjoy your hulled white OR unhulled, brown, or black, home-prepared sesame butters and tahinis!

Strix

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

5 Comments

How Green Was My Smoothie…

May 14, 2009 at 12:36 pm (Eat to Live, Green Smoothies, Greens)
Tags: , , ,

gjgs_2_

Pretty darned green! Another Super Cruciferrific GJGS…

Ahh, never do my GJGS’s fail me. My 36-ounce Green Juicie Green Smoothie consisted of…

Waterbless…

watercress-28Waterbless Gams and Toots (iesPhotobucket )  …

watercress_roots-5

Collard me green…

collards-2

Dino-mo Kale…

chips_fresh-kale_torn-2

Bok’s Choice (Grade A)…

bok-choy_adult

Fruit:

Pome granted

pomegranate_arils

I got them Blues…(the good kind, Y’All)

blueberries_bowl-2

Rasps (Red American Splendor Princesses)…

raspberries_z-15

Oh, Meyers…

meyers_rg_lmns-1-copy_med

No-Flaws berries…

strawberries_fresh-48

HarbinGinger (of health-wealth)

ginger-2-copy

and, of course ;) …

IMG_0014_14


YUMYUMYUMYUMYUMYUMYUMYUMYUMYUMYUMYUMYUMYUM

Greens are  green_moneybag4

Strix

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

13 Comments

Garden Blossom Perfume, and Pixie Dust…

May 13, 2009 at 10:35 am (Homemade Products, Recipes, Vegan)
Tags: , ,

Lavender (42)

*

This was inspired by my love of the scent of — can you love a scent? Okay, my extreme like of – the scent of grapefruit essential oil; but I have never been too fond of lavender. I used to really dislike it, but have come to appreciate its uses with a delicate hand.

I have also come to adore chamomile essential oil. Just hearing about it didn’t thrill me: I thought of cheap chamomile tea, which, from tea bags, dried, ground, and packed who-knows-when doesn’t exactly send me. However, having made chamomile from fresh flowers…Oh, yes, TOtally different taste, fragrance, and experience; so, I had an inkling the e.o. may be different when concentrated. So I tried it. Since then, I have used the essence of chamomile with great success in lotions and personal products, and it is one of my absolute favorites now :) . It seems you can rarely go wrong with it. Following is a very simple but lovely combination.

Garden Blossom Perfume:

Organic ingredients are preferable.

Combine:

18d Grapefruit Essential Oil

10d Chamomile (R.) Essential Oil

Allow to ripen 1 week, shaking gently, daily.

Then add:

60d Jojoba Oil, (or other unscented oil, such as avocado, almond, or grapeseed).

Shake gently.

Makes about 1 tsp perfume

Variation: Add 1d Lavender Essential Oil

*~*

Ginger_blue-ring_sliced (27)


Since I liked the the above fragrance, I decided to build on it. I started this about 1 1/2 months ago as well, and it’s perfect now :)

My internet friend inspired the inclusion of ginger; so this is named after her: So, to Picks, who I hope is feeling better and getting stronger each day!

Purple-Flower (9)

Kelleen’s Garden:

18d Grapefruit Essential Oil

10d Chamomile (R) Essential Oil

Let ripen 1 week

Then add:

3d Ginger Essential Oil

1d Jasmine Essential Oil

1d Lavender Essential Oil

Ripen 1 week (at least), gently shaking daily.

Add

60d Jojoba Oil(or other unscented carrier oil) for perfume.

Store in glass; plastic absorbs and interferes with essential oils.

Makes @ 1 tsp.

Alternate: Use the essential oil mixture(sans the carrier oil) in body spritzer below

Or use to make Pixie Dust Take III ;)

This was actually somewhat of an accident: I did not mean to  add Lavender; instead, I accidentally picked it up when reaching for something else. I did not like the fragrance at first; however, after ripening,  fell for it :D . This is a testament to the need for “ripening” of hand-made products. This actually smells better the longer it sits — meaning, this smells better now at the over 1-month mark than it did at 2 weeks.

Ginger is very difficult to work with, I found! Lots of misses; few hits. It needs to be used lightly; it’s quite strong. However, I’m already thinking of a ginger fragrance for Autumn and Winter, for which I think it is well suited :)

.

~***~

My favorite dusting powder is made with Amber, my absolute, hands-down favorite all-time fragrance — and color! I just adore it. I use my Amber powder regularly, as well as an amber fragrance. But, change is good ;)

So, here is another ginger inspired recipe. This is a much more personal preference recipe — mine, of course, ha!; Fragrance appreciation is such an individual thing ;)



sparkling_twinkling_magicPixie Dustsparkling_twinkling_magic


Or should that be “Picksie Dust”?? ;)

Cornstarch, Arrowroot, Kuzu, and Tapioca Starch can be used interchangeably.

~

1/2 C White Rice Flour/Starch*

2 TB Orris Root Powder

1/2 C + 2 TB Tapioca Starch

10d Chamomile Essential Oil (R.)

1d Jasmine Essential Oil

2d Ginger Essential Oil

Instruction:

Combine powders.

Add the chamomile and whisk well.

Add the Jasmine and whisk well

Add the Ginger and whisk well.

Place in a glass receptacle, cover tightly, and allow to ripen 1  week, shaking daily. (Or, place in a container with powder puff or a shaker powder container)

Shake gently before each use.

***

Pixie Dust, Take II ;)

1 C Cornstarch

1/4 C White Rice Flour/Starch*

9d Grapefruit Essential Oil

4d Myrrh Essential Oil

2d Ginger Essential Oil

3d Chamomile Essential Oil (R.)

1d Lavender Essential oil

Instruction:Combine Powders.

Add Grapefruit Essential Oil; whisk well.

Add Myrrh Essential Oil; whisk well.

Add Ginger Essential Oil; whisk well.

Add Chamomile Essential Oil; whisk well.

Add Lavender Essential Oil; whisk well.

Place in a glass receptacle, cover tightly, and allow to ripen 1  week, shaking daily. (Or, place in a container with powder puff or a shaker powder container)

Shake gently before each use.

*NOTE: White rice flour is encouraged because it has a little graininess which is desirable to disperse the starches more efficiently. Otherwise, it becomes very “dusty,” and concentrated and not easy to apply. An alternative would be finely ground oats; but it’s not quite as fine as rice.

*

*** ~ ***

LUSHS Silky Underwear Dusting Powder

LUSH'S Silky Underwear Dusting Powder - Lushusa.com

*

Bonus Recipe: My “Silky” Sub

A Faux “Silky Underwear Dusting Powder” :D

This is a copycat of Lush’s, luscious ;) “Silky Underwear Dusting Powder” — hated the name; but fell for the scent! So I did my best to recreate it :D

(LUSH – has some nice products — loaded with vegan goodies;  vegan-marked for convenience, as well!)

1/2 C Cornstarch

1/2 TB Oat Flour, finely ground, or white rice flour

3d Jasmine  Essential Oil

1d Vetiver (“Vetivert”) Essential Oil

* Rub in a small amount of fragrant raw, virgin Coconut Oil OR raw Cacao butter (fragrant)

Instruction:

Combine powders.

Add Jasmine Essential Oil; whisk well.

Add Vetiver Essential Oil; whisk well.

Add Coconut Oil/Cacao butter,* melted; whisk well.

Place in a glass receptacle, (or container with powder puff or a shaker  powder container) cover tightly, and allow to ripen 1  week, shaking daily.

Shake gently before each use.

*You can use good-quality, raw, virgin coconut oil (the fragrant kind) or raw (fragrant) cacao butter– either works nicely. As well, a cocoa butter — again, fragrant — would work. Melt gently;Disperse throughout. Start with a teaspoon or so.

You can also leave this out; it’s still fabulous :) . But do try to include it. The vetiver — which is *extremely* potent, will be a bit stronger.

**

Easy Body Spritzer General Recipe (adapted from Herb Companion magazine):

1 C Water, Distilled

10d Essential Oil of choice, or combination (or more, to preference)

Shake well and decant into a bottle affixed with a spritzer top.

Shake well before each use.

*

Enjoy :^)

Strix

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

2 Comments

ETL Friday! Recipes: No-Grain Granola…

May 8, 2009 at 2:17 am (Diet, Disease-Proof Your Child, ETL FRIDAYS!, Eat to Live, Food, Nutrition, Recipes, Vegan, health)
Tags: , , , , , , ,

~ Update: This NoGrainola is actually excellent with plant-milks; the texture is best described as the texture of “Grapenuts Cereal” if you recall ever eating that. Enjoy :D ~

beanola_granola_garbanzo-goji

No Grainola with Goji Berries and Walnuts

Hi, Folks. No grain, no sugar, no acrylamides, and low fat ETL-DPYC granola. I thought I’d share one of my recipes that I created, utilizing the humble but versatile garbanzo bean –  grain-allergy free to boot. Feel free to tweak. Let me know if anyone you serve this can tell this is NOT “cereal” (without informing them what it is first, of course!); so far, no one has thought it otherwise.

Oh, and, you can make this with grains if you wish; oats are excellent, as well as wheat germ (see note below recipe)

This can take a lot of tweaking and be just as good — from spicing to lots of additionals to taste, such as dried fruit, nuts, seeds, oats/grains, flavorings, extracts, etc.

For morning cereals with ‘milks (see update above ;) )– I can’t say with 100% certainty you will like this with nut or seed milk: It will soften, which most cereals do; however, the texture is different, being beans and all. It’s ultimately up to you whether you like it that or not; try it :D . One friend of mine eats this with nut milk, but doesn’t let it sit to get soggy, so….I don’t know. You can spruce it up with berries — fresh and dried — or some banana, of course.

Sweetening can also be adjusted. I think the 1/2 C is a moderate amount, 2/3 C will satisify most; feel free to add more, if needed. Alternatively, if you find it is not sweet enough, or if others need more and others don’t, simple sprinkle in some date sugar, or sweeten your nut-seed milk. You can also spray the granola with water, then sprinkle with date sugar, spray again so it sticks; then pop it back into the dehydrator/oven :)

Here are two basic, simple versions; work widdit :D :

No-Grain Granola

granola_beanola-almond-walnut_garbanzo

1 can of salt-free Garbanzo Beans, plain,drained and rinsed very well (or 1 1/2 C home-prepared, plain)

2  tsp vanilla extract

1/2* – 2/3 C Date Sugar, or to taste

2 TB Ground Golden Flax Seed

1-1 1/2 tsp Spice, such as pumpkin pie mix, cinnamon, Or Ginger if you’re a pea picker ;) ,  etc. (2 tsp Ginger 1/2 tsp Cinnamon is good)

1/2 C Pecans or Walnuts or both, chopped (OR choice of nuts/seeds)

Citrus Zest of 1 fruit (1 orange), Optional

1/2 C dried fruit, Optional

Coconut, flakes, pieces, dried or fresh, Optional

See directions below

I used the entire skin of kumquats for the citrus zest. The skin of kumquats is sweet and edible straight and the inside fruit is tart; so it was easy to just slice up the skin. Use some zest of orange as an alternative. I also threw in chopped up pieces of fresh young coconut and the texture was fantastic; it wasn’t like dried coconut flakes, it was chewy like dried fruit.

*Half cup of date sugar makes this light on sweetness; use 2/3 for a just-right sweetness; more?…at your own risk! ;D .

granola_chickpea_basic_beanola-7

*

Basic No Grainola ;) II

granola_beanola-almond-walnut_garbanzo-2

I like the addition of a bit of tahini in this version:

1 Can Garbanzo Beans, unsalted, drained and rinsed well, (or 1 1/2 C home-prepared, plain)

2/3 C Date Sugar, or to taste

1 – 1 1/2 tsp Cinnamon or more (Or others, such as Ginger, Cardamon, etc.)

2 TB Tahini + 2 TB juice/water, mixed

1/4 tsp Almond Extract

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

2 TB Ground Golden Flax seed

1/2 C Almonds, chopped (or nuts/seeds of choice)

1/2 C Dried Fruit, Other additions, such as coconut, etc., Optional

Zest of 1 Citrus, Optional

1/2 C Creativity ;) Optional

No Grainola Directions

Drain and rinse very well the Garbanzo beans and drain.

Pulse them in the processor

Dump into a bowl.

Combine tahini-water+ extracts

Then with a fork work in the tahini mixture, taking care not to mash — Just toss, but till thoroughly combined.

Add the Date sugar, cinnamon and flax, fork-tossing in as above.

Add the nuts, and mix.

Pour onto parchment-lined dehydrator sheets or baking sheet. Dehydrate at desired temperature till thoroughly dried; Or, bake at 248-degrees (to avoid acrylamide formation) or at lowest temperature you can in your oven till thoroughly dried and crunchy-yum.

I dehydrate 1 recipe in the Excalibur dehydrator at the highest temperature (155-degrees) for 3-or-so hours; it can actually be eaten at @ 2 hours; however it’s not thoroughly dried to my satisfaction at that point for best crunch factor (or for storing). You’ve probably tasted different granolas and some are super hard, others have a softness to them. You decide.

I’ve done lots of variations; so take your pick.

Enjoy!

Note on adding grain and / or Creativity:

If you add the grain, pulse chop rolled oats; if you use quick-cooking oats, you don’t need to pulse them. Start with 1/2 C;  I believe 1/2 C is about right. Try other ingredients such as some carrot pulp, perhaps; or ground nuts/seeds, etc. (Be sure to taste to determine if seasoning needs adjusting.)

And let me know your results :)

*

garbanzo_granola_oats

Above is one using oats (pic before dehydrating). Interestingly, though, those who tasted both had no idea the only-garbanzo one was without any grain.

It has pecans and dried bananas

These mixtures look especially beautiful around the holidays with festive fruits and nuts. Oh, and not to mention a great way to maintain your Eat-To-Live lifestyle during that tough season :) .

Enjoy!

ETA: Have to add this!  If you are having problem with eating nutritionally/snacking; etc, this may be too “snacky” or contain too much dried fruit (dates ) for you;  it is, however, great for children. Eat responsibly ;^)

*

Some pics to help with the directions;

Pulse the beans; don’t cream them:

chickpeas_coarse-ground-processor

*

granola-chickpea_pulsed (8)

*

Granola_chickpea_tahini

**

Granola_chickpea_tahini (3)

**

Granola_chickpea_tahini (4)

**

Granola_chickpea_tahini (5)

**

Granola_chickpea_tahini-walnut

**

Oh, and speaking of crunch…Don’t forget my My Kale Chips recipe! For a delicious savory crispy munch :)

*

kale-chips

~ * ~

Click pic below for a looksee at what else I ETLize to make for family and friends with the incredible, edible chickpea  (and more) ;)

GARBANZO BONANZA! ;^)

**

Got recipes to share?

Send ‘em to me and I’ll post ‘em here on ETL Friday! :D

Strix

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

10 Comments

Chewing Lessons…

May 4, 2009 at 9:43 am (Diet, Eat to Live, Food, Nutrition, health, opinion)
Tags: ,

salad-veggies_layer-42

I think of this every now and then, and thought I’d post a few ideas on it.

Please add some of your ideas! I will add them to this list; it would be a good resource :)

1. Chew thoroughly – Of course we all know this. Easier said than done! It takes a bit of (annoying) monitoring of your eating for a spell to get this down. When you eat, you should not swallow any pieces or chunks of anything; food should be creamed and go down smooth — like a green smoothie!

2. Put your fork down! – Yes. Try it. After you take a forkful of food, put your fork/spoon down and chew (as in no. 1), swallow and enjoy the flavor! Take a moment. Resume :) Finish that mouthful completely before you even think of lifting up that fork.

3. Fill your fork – with a modicum of food! Yes, take note of just how much you put on that fork/spoon. Surprised? I was — ack! More than enough; in fact, too much. This, leads to a mouth-too-full, which leads to improper mastication (see no. 1 again); poor digestion (eegads — gas/bloating, anyone?); a general rushing; and, actually, less enjoyment. Shoveling food means you’re not really savoring and tasting properly. Try it. I think you’ll find food more pleasurable and flavorful (and better for digestion). The food is in your mouth longer, where all the tastebuds are! The flavor disappears once food is swallowed…how sad ;)

4. Time, as in take your – Yes, this may take what is already more time than you have for eating, but, hey, you gotta do it. If rushed for time, then adjust your meals to accommodate your needs. So, if you have no time for your lunch, make it a more calorie-dense meal to get you through the meal faster — so, focus on beans and fat, and round it out with as many greens as you can get it. Then, make sure you are getting your requirements the other meal(s), like your greens in your smoothies and/or soups, maybe; and the rest of your fruit and veg at dinner, etc.

5. Try not to drink with meals – drink before or after. (this is more about digestion; but I think it also helps to not just flush down a mouthful of improperly chewed food with liquid)

6. Do not eat “mindlessly” – I try not to say this, but do, myself, sometimes, and it’s kind of annoying, lol. I mean, it’s so general, like “Listen to your body” — another one that annoys the heck out of me…I’ll save that for another ramble ;) . “Mindlessly” is just referring to not being conscious or aware of what you’re doing — ever drive and arrive at a destination and have no recall of the journey? Can’t recall getting on and off a particular onramp/exit? Still, who wants to sit and think intensely about food all the time? I mean, it’s fairly impossible if eating with others. Most of us converse with those we sup! So maybe “practice” the above lessons when alone and when you can, being mindful of chewing thoroughly, putting a moderate amount of food on each forkful, and putting down your fork after every entree of food.

7. Count – Well, when you can :) . My Mom always used to say, “Chew your food at least 25 times before swallowing.” Well, that might be okay for the average Western Diet food which is over-processed junk, but for a person eating a nutrient-dense diet, focusing on fresh, whole foods, it’s a whole other ball of wax! With the amount of raw foods we need to consume and generally high fiber foods, we need double that. If it  helps, count how many it takes before food is creamed.

8. Also remember that eating with your mouth closed helps avoid gas and bloating. I won’t go too much into gas and bloating, as I have a post on that already — reference my list of suggestions on this page, Suggestion Digestion Post

9. Avoid Overeating – All of the above will also help you to not overeat. When rushed one does not allow time for the full signal to go from the stomach to the brain. As well, taking it a bit — just a bit, now ;) — slower will help with nutrient absorption because one is creaming the food for the body to better extract the nutrients and digest, so less is needed — you’re more satisfied when your body actually gets the nutrients.  Don’t overwhelm the poor thing! This leads to other goodies, such as true satiety, less food needed, and, as Dr. Joel Fuhrman says, the loss of cravings: Cravings are a sign that the body is improperly nourished.

Personally, I notice that I can still put too much food onto my fork and — this is worse — have another forkful ready to go before I’m even halfway through chewing my last one! That’s, well, embarrassing! Not to mention an indication that I’m rushing and/or eating mindlessly.

Chew Well, All ;)

Strix
Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

4 Comments

How I get My Purple On…

April 28, 2009 at 3:04 pm (Diet, Farmers Market, Food, Garden, Nutrition, RAW Food, What Is It?, health)
Tags: , ,

But first! A “What Is It?” Segment :D

Here we goooo…

Eeoow! Scales

asparagas_purple-28

Ugh

Hm, a long fella…

asparagas_purple-30

Ohhh…but? No. Yes. Well…the colo –

asparagas_purple-27

Ah HA!

asparagas_purple-26

Yes, yes!

asparagas_purple-31

:D …

asparagas_purple-66

Purple Asparagas! And, yes, that is the  real color! I was lucky enough to get 3 bunches of these — hands down, the most delicious asparagus I have ever tasted. I don’t know why, perhaps since it’s been so long –since I’ve had them. My first time having purple; it won’t be my last…I hope :D    They were thicker, which is unfairly rumored, that they are inferior to thin. Not true! Flavor is all that matters. I’ve had equally delicious asparagus thick and thin. Freshness is really the key. No matter how well stored, you simply must eat them as quickly as possible. As for the above, I can only imagine they were fresh out of the ground because the flavor was fabulous.

Since I shopped with my eyes, I had 3 bunches which I could not finish at once — and who’d not want to savor these over a few days? I stored them like I usually do asparagas, with their tootsies in water, not too far up their gorgeous gams :) . I put a bag over it and hoped for the best. Luckily, no loss of flavor was detectable over the next two days — Excellent :D .  I imagine it was primarily the freshness of the asparagus to begin with, then the proper storing.

purple-asparagas_cut2

I eat asparagus raw, mostly, chopped up in my salads. Cooking away that gorgeous color and (some) nutrients just makes my head hurt :)   And, of course freezing is out of the question, unless I wanted to add them to a dip at some point.

asparagas_purple-53

Best freezing method for asparagus, by the way, is to blanch first. That is the best shot you have at keeping somewhat of a texture other than soggy — or, eooww, slimy. No. No, asparagus should be eaten fresh and raw, I declare!

Next up…

kohlrabi_purple-13

*

The purple orbs have landed!

kohlrabi_purple-11

*

Probably pretty obvious by now…

kohlrabi_purple-14

*

Yep, purple kohlrabi!

I learned something new last week when I found these: Springtime kohlrabi (very fresh) has a thinner skin that’s edible! Most of the time, it’s best to peel the (very) fibrous outer skin. It’s like that very tough part of broccoli stalks; you have to cut some off to get to the soft part inside. But these fresh, thinner skinned ‘rabis are Sooo good! It is definitely fibrous, though, and oh-so filling. I don’t mind getting that extra purple in me.

Slice through a bulb and it’s light-fleshed:

kohlrabi-purple_slices-4

*

I love how there is always green somewhere in colored foods :D ‘Tis the source of all that is good :D

Here is the butt end which was actually too fibrous, so I had to cut it. You can see the fibrous part still underneath..

kohlrabi-purple_slices-6

Kohlrabi should be sweet and somewhat juicy. It’s most like jicama. If it’s not sweetish, it’s not a really good kohlrabi so don’t totally give up on them! Find a good one and you’ll love them! They can be as sweet as or more than beets, but less heavy, less syrupy than beets and carrots. Beets and carrots are more like a nectar type juice (to me). Kohlrabi is more crispy, clean, and light and refreshing. So great for cool Spring and Summer meals. It goes fantastic in cooked/raw savory or sweet dishes, too. I love it in bean salads and slaws. It’s cruciferous, so you’re getting loads of goodies, plus with the purple, you’re getting those Anthocyanidins!

I like to chop into matchsticks and add to my salads

kohlrabi-purple_slices-81

I love being able to eat the skin!

And best of all is being able to eat the cruciferous leaves of kohlrabi!

kohlrabi_purple-30

Mmm…blackberries. They star regularly (well, when available) in my Green Juicie Green smoothies and are featured in my cultured veggies too!

blackberries_-57

Purple Cabbage, I eat every day. It’s so sweet and crunchy

purple-cabbage-2

Even radishes come in purple…They seem to be less “hot” to me…

yellow-carrots_purple-radishes-3

I have also  been getting lots of royal goodness from cauliflower lately (an older pic)

purple_cauliflower

Blueberries seem to taste best around this time, at least here :)

blueberries_bowl-2

*

Purple Mustards, nice and spicy…

mustard_greens_red-2

**

Purple Curly Kale!

kale_purple_curly-6

***

Other Purpley Stuff:

So far, no purple carrots :D . Would love to try those.

Purple Bells are pretty :) Geez, almost black!

Oh, and tomatoes too! Oh I must resist launching into tomato porn! Oh, how I love thee, to-mah-toes!

Oh, I did use purple potatoes back when I ate them. They didn’t taste any different…thought that was my old taste buds. Not sure how they’d taste now :) Check out the gorgeous color variety of potatoes!Until recently I thought “blue” and “purple” potatoes were the same.

I do like purple corn, but haven’t been incorporating it into my diet  in any consistent way…need to look into using it more :)

Eggplant, of course, has a great purple color; and their are varieties with various sizes and shades of purple. Kenny explains :)

Plums! A great summer stone fruit. These also come in a variety of colors. I can’t say which is sweetest…I’ve had super-sweet ones of all colors. I do think maybe it just depends on how ripe it was at the time of cutting ??

Grapes! I used to grow them. Love green and red grapes, but wow, the purple concords are crazy tasty. I don’t see them often, but grab ‘em when I do! The sweeter ones seem to be champagne grapes; I find the white Muscat grapes I’ve purchased at the farmers market here to be the sweetest I’ve ever tasted. I see black grapes sometimes and can’t resist that alluring silky ebony glow!

Purple Onions or Red Onions – I saw these on a list of  “purple foods” once; though I’m not sure if it belongs there or with “red foods.” I do have these often and like them especially  in my salads when not too harsh, that is :)

Purple Peas!

Purple Beans too. These I’ve had. They taste like regular green beans :)

And, probably the Food of gods…FIGS! Oh, the ecstasy … oh, the divine taste — no, the experience — of the perfect fig…Drooling doesn’t quite do it justice :D .

How remiss can I be, having no pictures of figs! Well, all I do have is an old picture of sushi for fruitarians ;) (Yes, I was a fruitarian at one time too!)

slcd_frsh_frz_sushi_figs-1

I’m waiting for a purple apple to make its debut; I imagine it to be very rich, but not sickeningly sweet. Maybe thick and syrupy :)

Not sure if this qualifies…the beautiful watermelon radish which has eluded me for too long now! It is the most delicious radish I’ve ever tasted. I hope to see it again one day…

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

~ *** ~

So what other purple foods are there? I’m sure I’m forgetting some! How do you get your purple on? ;)

Pick up some fresh asparagus while they’re at their peak — and whatever other purple goodies you find — that’s now, by the way. Green is still king; but try some purple fruits and veggies and add to your rainbow!

*Click pic* for my Somethin’ Good Asparagus stream ;)

Something Good

Poxacuatl
Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

2 Comments

« Older entries