Simple Green Juice

I was feeling like I needed some green in my life, so here’s a quick green juice I threw together today! (I didn’t actually throw it… I juiced the food, and drank it.)

Simple Green Juice

 

Ingredients:

• 1 large bunch of baby spinach
• 1 cucumber – skin on
• 2 small pears – skin on, cored

Method:

• Juice all ingredients, and drink up! 🙂 Simple as that.

Yum…

Breville Juicer Review and A Glass of Sass

Hey everyone! This video is a LONG one, but in it I review the Breville juicer that I just got! It deserves a long video! 🙂

I also mention a really cool raw vegan book I got, and use the juicer to make one of the recipes! So if you have the time, check it out! 🙂

Here’s the recipe I used for the Juice in the video!

A Glass of Sass

Ingredients:

• 1 whole bunch spinach
• 1 medium cucumber
• 1/2 bunch celery
• 1 small bunch parsley
• 1/2 inch knob of ginger
• 2 apples, cored
• 1/2 lime, peeled
• 1/2 lemon, peeled

Method:

• Juice all ingredients one at a time in the order mentioned above.
• Serve and enjoy! 🙂

The book title is: “Rawesomely Vegan! The ultimate raw vegan recipe book”, and the author is Mike Snyder. It’s definitely worth a read!

Here’s the juicer on the company website!

PS: Here’s the recipe for the Ruby Red Super Juice that I mention in this video! 😉

Strawberry Banana Parfait Smoothie

One of my favourite things about smoothies is that you can make them taste like dessert. Orange creamsicle smoothies, banana cream pie smoothies, pumpkin pie smoothies, and the list really can go on and on and on… They’re so versatile. As with alcoholic shots/drinks, you can also make the smoothie in layers so that it’s more pleasing to the eye… Today I decided to play around with my smoothie, and came up with a parfait smoothie! The version I made today is a bit of an “adult smoothie”, however you can omit the alcohol all together if you want to make it more kid/non-alcohol drinker friendly. The best part is how simple it is to make!

Strawberry Banana Parfait Smoothie

Bottom Layer Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup frozen strawberries
• 1/4 cup pomegranate juice
• 1/2 shot of vodka

Top Layer Ingredients:

• 1 chopped up frozen banana
• 1/4 cup vanilla almond milk (or milk of your choice)
• 1/2 shot Galliano Smooth Vanilla

Method:

• Blend all bottom layer ingredients together, and pour into a tall glass.
• Blend all top layer ingredients together, and pour on top of the bottom layer.
• Sprinkle the top with a bit of vanilla sugar, and serve with a straw or a stick to stir it all together with!
• Begin happy hour, and enjoy! 🙂

strawberry banana parfait smoothie! 🙂

Strawberry Lemonade

I’m on a bit of a strawberry kick obsession it seems, but can you blame me? They’re so good! I’ve been dealing with frozen strawberries all winter, so I’m pretty anxious for strawberry season to visit us all here in Ontario.

When making things like smoothies or juice, frozen strawberries are actually a pretty good substitute. Not only are they picked and frozen at their freshest point, but they (like other frozen fruit) take the place of ice cubes without watering down your drink. That’s pretty awesome.

To get back on topic here, I usually don’t like things like lemonade to be honest. I’d much rather have a tall glass of water with a few slices of fresh lemon to provide just a hint of lemon flavour. However, there are times where I just want a glass of something sweet. I don’t like store-bought lemonade because it’s usually way too sweet, so I decided to make my own. 🙂 Here’s my recipe for some strawberry lemonade! Enjoy! 🙂

Strawberry Lemonade

Ingredients:

• 3 big lemons
• 1 cup frozen strawberries
• 3 cups cold filtered water
• sugar to taste (I only put about 4 tbsp of sugar into my lemonade because I don’t like it that sweet)

Method:

• Roll the lemons between your hands and the counter a few times before squeezing the juice from them. (This softens the lemons a bit, allowing the juice to be squeezed out much easier. I also keep my lemons in the fridge, so if you do too, take them out of the fridge about 20 minutes prior to making this.)
• Squeeze the juice from each lemon with a juicer (I just have a simple citrus-juicer, and it works great!), and pour the lemon juice into a juice jug.
• Add all other ingredients into the jug, and with an immersion blender simply blend everything together until smooth. (If you just have a regular blender, you can use that too!)
• Pour into a glass, and enjoy!
• Note 1: You may need to shake/stir the juice a bit before serving as juice tends to settle when sitting for a while. Not that it will be an issue, 😉 but try to consume within a few days of making the juice.
• Note 2: Try it with other frozen fruit! Melon, blueberries, raspberries, banana… And for something really interesting, toss in a few cinnamon sticks and a few drops of vanilla extract. There are so many options! 🙂

Refreshing... 🙂

Peppermint Mocha (2)

Last winter, I posted a peppermint mocha recipe. In it, I used the Starbucks syrup, and it turned out pretty darn good! This year, I’ve decided to make one that didn’t use the syrup, and came up with this one! It can be made iced, or hot. This recipe calls for crushed candy canes, so you can either buy a box of candy canes, OR you can get the crushed candy cane powder at a bulk store near you.

This recipe makes 2 drinks. Enjoy! 🙂

Peppermint Mocha 2

Ingredients:

• 3 tbsp cocoa powder
• 3 tbsp white sugar
• 3 tsp instant espresso powder
• 3 tbsp finely crushed candy canes
• 1 tbsp coffee whitener (Coffee-Mate Double Double is pretty tasty!)

Method (hot version) :

• Mix all ingredients together in a jar.
• Boil some water.
• Place about 2 heaping table spoons of the mixture into each mug.
• Pour 3/4 cup of boiling water into each mug, and stir.
• Add about 2 tbsp milk/almond milk/soy milk  to the mug, and stir again.
• If you like, top with whipped cream and crushed candy cane.

If making the cold version (1 serving) :

• Place about 1 cup of ice in a blender. Pulse until crushed.
• Add 2 heaping table spoons of the mixture into the blender, and 3/4 cup of milk/almond milk/soy milk.
• Blend until smooth.
• Pour into a glass, and top the same way you would the hot version.

mmm...

Green Smoothie – Success At Last!

After MANY attempts at this whole “green smoothie” business, I have finally found the way! Kale. Yes, Kale. The cousin to cabbage. Who would have thought that this leafy thing would work so well? After green smoothie attempts with baby spinach {so many websites seem to suggest this as a good starting point, though it didn’t work well for me}, and iceberg lettuce {which does NOT work… *sigh*}, I turned to the massive amount of kale I had sitting in my fridge. {I had purchased a bunch at the advice of my boss to add to some tomato sauce, which turned out tastier than I had imagined! 🙂 } I had read suggestions saying that kale would be a little bitter for a smoothie, but I actually couldn’t taste the kale at all. I used quite a bit in each smoothie, too… So here it is, a recipe for a fresh and amazing green smoothie! It looks VERY green and questionable, but believe me when I say that your taste buds and insides will be happy to have this! I even got my husband to drink this, and he’s a little reluctant to have things this healthy. 😉 He actually drank his faster than I drank mine, which is always a good sign. 🙂 Enjoy! This recipe makes 2 regular sized smoothies at just over 100 calories each, or 1 large one if you’re feeling really hungry/thirsty. 😉

Green Smoothie With Kale

Ingredients:

• About 1 cup finely chopped fresh kale {rinse the leaves before chopping. Remove the leafy parts from the stems, then discard the stems. You want the leaves without stems. Also, try to go for the smaller leaves as they are less bitter.}
• 1 banana, cut into pieces {I always buy bananas in large quantities, and then freeze them just before they start to turn brown. That way I can use frozen bananas in my smoothies. They make such a nice cool and creamy texture when frozen.}
• 1/4 cup crushed pineapple {you can use canned, or fresh. If using canned, toss in a bit of the juice too!}
• Juice of 1 medium-large orange
• About 1 cup crushed ice
• About 1/2 cup of water {you may need a little more.}
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon {you can also add a dash of nutmeg if you like.}

Method:

• Just toss everything into a blender, and blend until smooth! 🙂
• Serve and drink immediately.

Note: With a green smoothie, the green taste may be a bit too much for some people. The banana in this smoothie helps to tone down the bitterness of the greens, while the pineapple provides enough sweetness. Cinnamon and vanilla are also a great additions to any green smoothie. Green smoothies are great to cleanse the system, so when having one, be sure to avoid dairy or and fatty oils that would be found in nuts and seeds. {So don’t add yogurt, milk, or any almond/rice/soy milk to this.} Try to drink this on an empty stomach, and don’t eat for about 30 minutes after.

Green Smoothie -Drink Up! 🙂

Iced Mocha Drinking Chocolate

Oh chocolate… How I love you so… I love eating it, drinking it, smelling it… A great drink in the winter is hot chocolate, or even better: drinking chocolate. {For drinking chocolate, think “melted chocolate mixed into liquid” instead of “chocolate powder mixed into liquid”. The result is rich, creamy, chocolatey heaven… Devine!} Unfortunately, I don’t really like to sip on hot beverages in the spring and summer months. Luckily there are TONS of iced chocolate drinks that can be made. One of my favourite  chocolate drinks to make is a combination of chocolate and coffee. Anything “mocha” flavoured is just beautiful really… So here it is! Enjoy! 😉
Note: This is not a tutorial on how to prepare “drinking chocolate”. There are methods to making traditional drinking chocolate, and I encourage you all to explore these methods with some research. {I may provide an entry at a later date on this.} You may also want to experiment with different types of chocolate. This recipe is simply for a quick iced drinking chocolate. 🙂

Iced Mocha Drinking Chocolate

Ingredients:

• 1 cup vanilla almond milk {you can use regular milk or soy milk if you like. Almond milk is my milk of choice for pretty much everything}
• 1 1/2 tsp instant espresso powder {or 1 shot brewed & chilled espresso}
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1-2 squares best quality dark chocolate you can find {aim for at least 60% cocoa}
• 1/2 tbsp heavy cream/whipping cream {you can really use any type of cream, but I just happened to have 35% whipping cream on hand. You can also use non-dairy cream, or even 1/2 tbsp almond/soy/rice milk.}
• Sugar to taste {I use about 1 tsp of turbinado sugar. This sugar has such a nice, rich taste, and to make it even better: it’s vegan-friendly. More information on sugar at the end of this post.}
• About 1/2 cup crushed ice

Method:

• Place the almond milk in a blender.
• Break the dark chocolate square into small pieces, and place into a small bowl with the cream.
• Heat the cream and chocolate in the microwave on high for 15-20 seconds.
• Remove from microwave and stir until smooth and creamy. {At first it will be somewhat grainy and look as though it won’t mix together, but it will after you’ve stirred it for a minute or so.}
• Add the espresso powder {or shot of espresso}, vanilla and ground cinnamon to the chocolate mixture, and stir until everything is blended together.
• Pour the crushed ice into the blender, then the sugar and chocolate mixture.
• Blend until smooth, and enjoy! 🙂

For more information on sugar, visit:

• White Sugar
• Brown Sugar
• Turbinado Sugar
• Types of Sugar and Substitutes {great info for vegans}

Smoothie Week – {More} Smoothie Recipes

Here is a continuation of my first “Smoothie Week” post, with some more smoothie recipes that I really enjoy! A really interesting smoothie is the “Carrot Cake” smoothie. As my husband describes it: “it’s like you put a carrot cake into a blender, and I’m drinking it!” As with the smoothie recipes on my previous post, you can have the addition of any supplement you may want/need. Also, for the fruit smoothies, using different types of fruit juices will give different flavours.

The Banana Cream Pie smoothie is quite possibly one of my favourites, as it really tastes like you’re enjoying a banana cream pie!!!

Each smoothie recipe makes 1 medium – large smoothie. The method for each smoothie is to simply toss all ingredients into a blender, and blend until smooth! Enjoy! 🙂

Banana Cream Pie Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1 frozen banana cut into chunks
• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
• 1/4 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• pinch nutmeg
• 1 cup vanilla almond milk
• optional: 1 tbsp ground flaxseed

Blueberry Pineapple Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup blueberries
• 1/2 cup crushed pineapple
• 3/4 cup pineapple juice or orange juice
• dash cinnamon
• dash vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup fat-free vanilla yogurt

Summer Breeze Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup frozen grapes
• 1/2 cup frozen peaches
• 1/2 cup frozen pineapple
• 1/2 cup crushed ice
• 3/4 cup orange juice or apple juice
• for creamy: 1/2 cup fat-free vanilla yogurt

Raspberry Banana Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup raspberries
• 1 banana
• 2 tbsp orange sherbert
• 1/2 cup fat-free vanilla yogurt
• 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk

Carrot Cake Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup shredded carrot
• 1 cup vanilla almond milk
• dash each vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg and ground cloves
• 3 pitted honey dates, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup fat-free vanilla yogurt or frozen yogurt

Creamy Chai Tea Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1 cup brewed and chilled chai tea (you can use another flavour of tea if you like)
• 1/2 cup vanilla frozen yogurt
• 1-2 tsp sugar, honey or sugar substitute (to taste)
• 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract dash cinnamon (omit if using green tea)
• 2 pitted honey dates, finely chopped

Smoothie Week – Some Smoothie Recipes

For health reasons, this week I’m unable to eat solid foods. This is a bit of a problem because, well… I love to eat. Especially crunchy or spicy foods…

So this week, a liquid diet is on the menu. I didn’t want to go a week without posting recipes, so I figured I’d write out some smoothie mixtures that will satisfy my tastes along with providing some protein and other nutrients that I need. Each smoothie can have the addition of something such as protein, fiber or ground flaxseed, it just depends on what is lacking and still necessary for that day. Supplements can even be omitted entirely if not needed. If you drink regular milk, you can also use this in place of the almond milk that I’ve written in each recipe.

I get bored of adding just orange juice or apple juice to my smoothies. One brand of fruit juice that I really love to use with these smoothies is the “Sun-Rype Fruit Plus Veggies”. They have a large assortment of flavours, and each juice can add a different taste to your smoothies.

Rather than write up a bunch of individual posts, I’ll keep all of the smoothies to this one post. (However, I will list them separately on the Recipe Index.)

Each smoothie recipe makes 1 medium – large smoothie. The method for each smoothie is to simply toss all ingredients into a blender, and blend until smooth! Enjoy! 🙂

Here’s a nice coffee and chocolate smoothie that I love to have when I’m starting my day:

Café Mocha Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup chilled coffee
• 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk
• 1/2 cup crushed ice
• 1-2 tbsp protein powder, or 1 tsp Benefiber (or any other supplement you may want to use)
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup vanilla frozen yogurt

This smoothie is probably one of my favourites, because it tastes like a peanut butter cup. It definitely satisfies that sweet tooth, while being considerably more healthy:

Peanut Butter Cup Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1-2 tbsp protein powder, or 1 tsp Benefiber (or any other supplement you may want to use)
• 1 tbsp smooth 100% natural peanut butter
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup crushed ice
• 1/2 cup vanilla frozen yogurt
• 1/2 – 3/4 cup vanilla almond milk
• Optional: 1 tbsp chocolate chips

This smoothie is nice and light, and the melon really helps to make the pineapple less tangy:

Melon Pineapple Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup frozen melon of your choice
• 1/2 cup frozen pineapple
• 1/2 cup vanilla frozen yogurt
• 1 cup orange juice
• 1/4 cup vanilla almond milk
• 1-2 tbsp protein powder, or 1 tsp Benefiber (or any other supplement you may want to use)

This one is almost like a creamsicle 🙂 :

Orange Banana Cream Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1-2 tbsp protein powder, or 1 tsp Benefiber (or any other supplement you may want to use)
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 banana
• 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk
• 1/2 cup vanilla fat-free yogurt or vanilla frozen yogurt

I like to consider this one a dessert… It tastes just like a chocolate covered strawberry:

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1-2 tbsp protein powder, or 1 tsp Benefiber (or any other supplement you may want to use)
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup orange juice
• 1/2 cup frozen strawberries
• 1/4 cup vanilla almond milk

This one has a surprisingly pleasant flavour. Dates are really sweet, and have such a nice after taste. You may need to add a little bit more almond milk if the smoothie is too thick though:

Vanilla Date Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup pitted and chopped dates (I like Medjool dates best)
• 3/4 cup vanilla almond milk
• 1/2 cup vanilla fat-free yogurt
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 1-2 tbsp protein powder, or 1 tsp Benefiber (or any other supplement you may want to use)
• optional: 1 banana

This one is pretty tangy, and has such a fresh taste:

Tropical Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup pineapple
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1/4 cup pineapple juice or apple juice
• 1/2 cup strawberries
• 1 banana
• 1/2 cup orange sherbert
• 1-2 tbsp protein powder, or 1 tsp Benefiber (or any other supplement you may want to use)

Similar to the chocolate dipped strawberry smoothie, I consider this one a dessert. It’s so creamy and rich:

Chocolate Covered Banana Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 banana
• 1/4 vanilla frozen yogurt
• 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk
• 1-2 tbsp protein powder, or 1 tsp Benefiber (or any other supplement you may want to use)

**********

I was going to include 3 “green smoothie” recipes below… However, after attempting to drink the “lettuce berry” flavour, I’ve decided that I don’t really like the taste of greens in my fruit smoothies. If you would like to try them, do so at your own risk… 😉 I’ll keep them posted below, but they are crossed out. If you try them, and don’t like them, remember: you were warned! 😉

Mexican Coffee

This creamy little caffeinated gem comes straight out of the Chocolate and Coffee Bible. (One of my favourite books for desserts and coffee!) It has simple ingredients, but the finished product easily tastes like something that you should be purchasing in a cafe for $6+. (Please excuse the poor quality photo, I was eager to drink my coffee… 😉 )

This recipe serves 1. Adjust accordingly.

Mexican Coffee

Ingredients:

• About 1 tbsp chocolate syrup (2 tbsp cocoa powder, 1/2 tbsp sugar, 1 tbsp milk)
• Just under 1/4 cup whipping cream
• Dash ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• Light sprinkle grated nutmeg
• 1/2 cup strong coffee
• Garnish: freshly whipped cream (you can use the stuff out of the can if you like, but I prefer to whip my own), grated chocolate (white, milk or dark), and a dash of ground cinnamon

Method:

• In a bowl, whisk together all ingredients (except the coffee and garnish) until very frothy.
• Add the hot coffee to the mixture, and whisk until blended.
• Pour into your mug, and add the whipped cream with chocolate shavings and cinnamon.
• Enjoy! 🙂

Mexican Coffee