Ricotta & Herb Stuffed Zucchini

Ricotta & Herb Stuffed Zucchini

I discovered these scrumptious little treats while eating out at one of my favourite vegetarian restaurants, the Coup, and decided I must re-create them at home.  Makes a delish dinner with a grilled chicken breast.  I had mushrooms (cremini and button) that I needed to use up, so I sauteed those with coconut oil and garlic and added layered them on the zucchini before the ricotta - super yum.  Also, I didn't have any fresh herbs, so I did without - and they were just as good as the restaurant/recipe. 

Ingredients

• 2 large zucchini
• 8 tbsp. ricotta cheese
• 6 garlic cloves, roasted OR 1 tsp. fresh garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. chili flakes
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
• 1 tsp. good olive oil
• 4 sundried tomatoes (in oil)
• 1/2 tsp. cumin
• pinch nutmeg
• 1/2 cup parmesan or manchego cheese, grated
• 1/2 cup herb mix, finely chopped (oregano, basil, parsley, or your favourites)
• salt and pepper

Method

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Cut zucchini in half, lengthwise, and scoop out the middle.  Steam zucchini for about five minutes - careful not to over-steam 'em.
• In a food processor, blend ricotta, chili flakes, garlic, dried oregano, pine nuts, olive oil, tomatoes, cumin, nutmeg, s&p.
• Stuff zucchinis with mixture and lay on baking sheet.  Top them with cheese and bake for about 15 minutes or until cheese turns golden brown.
• Remove from oven and top with fresh herbs.
• Enjoy!

http://www.thecoup.ca/

Simple Spiced Spaghetti Squash

Simple Spiced Spaghetti Squash

My last post was a little agressive and I feel the need to calm my nerves with a lovely little recipe.  :)  This is a simple and easy Fall side dish.  And one of my most adored snacks.  Change the spice measurements to your liking.

Ingredients

• 1 (3 1/2- to 4-pound) spaghetti squash
• 4 tbsp. coconut oil or butter
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. ground coriander
• 1/8 tsp. cayenne
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro or flat-leaf parsley

Method

• Cut the squash in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds and roast the halves face-down in a coconut-oiled baking pan for about 40 minutes in a 375°F oven.
• Meanwhile, melt the coconut oil/butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until it is barely golden. Stir in spices and salt and remove from heat.
• Working over a bowl, scrape squash flesh with a fork, loosening and separating strands as you remove it from skin.
• Toss with the spiced butter and cilantro.

GET REAL

Just a brief rant for this Tuesday night.

If you were never going to commit to the Core Plan, attempt the Advanced Plan or even flip through the pages of the Maximized Living Nutrition Plans Book, at least do ONE thing, make ONE change to your diet, that could potentially save your life: EAT REAL FOOD.

I don't mean the low-fat, low-calorie, trans fat free, zero cal, heart smart, added fiber, fortified, enriched, diet foods that we are force fed through glamourized advertisements and media.  I mean REAL food. 

The definition of real is something that is true, sincere, absolute, genuine, and authentic and the definition of fake is deception and deceit - pretending to be something it's not. 

Here's a shocking example of FAKE - The ingredient list for a Burger King Strawberry Milkshake:

Amyl acetate, amyl butyrate, amyl valerate, anethol, anisyl formate, benzyl acetate, benzyl isobutyrate, butyric acid, cinnamyl isobutyrate, cinnamyl valerate, cognac essential oil, diacetyl, dipropyl ketone,  ethyl acetate, ethyl amylketone, ethyl butyrate, ethyl cinnamate, ethyl heptanoate, ethyl heptylate, ethyl lactate, ethyl methylphenylglycidate, ethyl nitrate, ethyl propionate ethyl valerate, heliotropin, hydroxyphrenyl-2-butanone (10% solution in alcohol), ionone, isobuyly anthranilate, isobutyl butyrate, lemon essential oil, maltol, 4-methylacetophenone, methyl anthranilate, methyl benzoate, methyl cinnamate, methyl heptine carbonate, methyl naphthyl ketone, methyl salicylate, mint essential oil, neroli essential oil, nerolin, neryl isobutyrate, orris butter, phenothyl alcohol, rose, rum ether, undecalactone, vanillin, and solvent.

Did you notice something??  There's no STRAWBERRIES listed!!!
There is ZERO food in this milkshake.  It's pretending to be something it's not.
(If you want to read something even grosser, Google the ingredient list for Chicken McNuggets.) 

In this era of dazzling food science, supersize portions and widespread dietary confusion, choosing real food can be tough.  Every trip to the supermarket requires precise navigation through a treacherous and deadly food landscape.  But it's manageable if you just focus on the REAL food. 
A few tips:

• Don't buy things with 75 unpronounceable ingredients, and even better, don't buy things with more than ONE ingredient.  How many ingredients would you find listed on an apple?  
• Don't read labels - DO read ingredients.  Dubious health claims and labelling schemes mean NOTHING.  And the amount of calories in a cracker are far less important than the deceptive ingredients used to make it. 
• Don't buy food pretending to be something it's not.  Texturized vegetable protein ot veggie burgers (pretending to be meat), margarine (pretending to be butter), a pink toxic beverage (pretending to be a strawberry milkshake), chocolate "flavoured" sauce that contains no actual chocolate, Splenda (pretending to be sugar), and sorry, but what exactly is soda other than chemicals, colorings, dyes and toxins that ruin your health and destroy your body?  Yeah, that ain't real. 

Confessions

I do my best to lead a Maximized life, but there are times when even THE Domestic Goddess herself breaks down.  (That Domestic Goddess thing was slightly sarcastic).  Between working two jobs, going to the gym and yoga, family events, and maintaining a relationship and some kind of a social life, sitting down to an elaborately prepared meal three times a day isn't always realistic.  In fact, it's quite common that I eat breakfast in the car.  I sometimes even eat dinner in bed while responding to e-mails on my laptop.  Horrifying.  :) 
Anyways, I thought I would share my fave snacks for on-the-go Maximized eating.  All are either store-bought, or can be quickly and easily prepared at home or at the office.  And all are Advanced Plan friendly unless otherwise noted!  Let me know what your favourite healthy snacks are!

Kaia Fruit Leather

• These are easy and delicious and come in fun and interesting flavours - think Lime Ginger, Goji Orange, Vanilla Pear, Spiced Apple, and more! Most are not okay for Advanced Plan eaters though, as the fruits used are too high in sugar.  If you're a Core Plan eater... stock up, these won't last long in your pantry!

 GoRaw Flax Snax

• These are SO addictive.  And they're raw too, which is kinda cool.  My mom and I found them months ago when we were in the states, both on the Advanced Plan, and both ravenous.  We found a health food store and stocked up on these little gems - totally saved the day.  They're now in Calgary - find them at Community Natural Foods.  They make really good "cookies" too, but if you're Advanced Plan eating, the cookies are  a no-go because of the use of dates. 

Kaia Kale Chips or homemade kale chips

• SO good! Satisfies that potato chip craving.  They come in all sorts of neat flavours just like chips- Sea Salt & Vinegar is delish, but I like the original flavour best.  Not cheap to buy at Community, so make your own if you can.  I posted an easy recipe on our South Trail Chiropractic Facebook page under 'Notes.'  Check it out! 

Lara Bars

• Oh Lara Bars, how I love you.  These come is several flavours (my all time favourite is key lime) and most only have three ingredients: cashews, dates, and coconut.  Pretty delish.  Again, dates are not ok for Advaned Plan though.  If you're feeling extra wonderful, you can make these yourself -  just use a food processor to blend all ingredients.  

Hard Boiled Eggs

• Sounds like a no-brainer, but these literally saved my life on my first week of the Advanced Plan.  So easy to grab and go for breakfast or for extra protein on top of a salad.  A little S&P and you've got yourself a perfect snack.  I boil about 10 eggs on Sunday and keep them in my fridge and I'm ready for the week. 

 Sliced Apples with Almond Butter

• Granny Smiths are ok for Advaned Plan!  And switch up your butters too - try cashew, macadamia nut or walnut butters. Sprinkle with hemp hearts for extra goodness. 

Nutty Protein Bars

• A classic.  Make a double batch, individually wrap, freeze and you've got amazing snacks all week long.  Also great because they satisfy those afternoon sweet cravings. 

Coconut Chips

• I love these.  The brand I buy is called Wilderness Family Naturals.  If you think you don't like the flavour of coconut, I urge you to try these.  The natural nutty flavour of coconut is far different from the over-sweetened, artificial flavour we are so used to.  You might be surprised to find out you do like coconut after all! 

Half an Avocado with Lime and S&P

• Sounds like another no-brainer, but oh-so-good!  Love the lime juice for an added kick; a great afternoon snack.

Zevia

• The one bad food that I actually sometimes miss is root beer. Kind of weird, I know.  I think it's just a childhood memory thing.  I can't remember the last time I had root beer, or pop at all for that matter, but I stumbled across sugar-free stevia-sweetened root beer the other day and could not resist trying it.  It's called Zevia, and it comes in several other flavours as well.  It's strange though, it has zero sugar and nothing artificial, yet it tastes almost exactly the same as that good old-fashioned root beer I remember.  Almost too good to be true it seems, but fun for a treat or special occassions.   

Protein Shakes

• Blend some protein powder with almond butter, frozen blueberries and almond milk and you've got a lovely little snack.  We sell some good protein powder at the office; I like the vanilla.  :)

Luscious Lemon Pound Cake

Luscious Lemon Pound Cake

This is sort of a summery dessert recipe, but it's one of my favourites, so I decided to make it this afternoon and share it with all of you!  Coconut flour is a great grain-free alternative to wheat flour.  When used in baking, it doesn't rise as much as regular all-purpose flour, so don't be alarmed when your pound cake only rises to 2 inches!  The yogurt in this recipes makes it moist and delicious, and all of the lemony goodness really masks that stevia flavour.  Top it with organic strawberries, blueberries, or raspberries and stevia sweetened whipped cream or Cashew Cream.  And oh yeah, it's Advanced Plan friendly too! 

Ingredients

• 5 large organic eggs
• 1 tsp. liquid stevia (again, sweeten to your taste)
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup organic plain, unsweetened whole milk yogurt
• 2/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 5 lemons, depending on their juicyness)
• zest of 1 lemon
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) organic butter, melted
• 2 tsp. aluminum free baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. kosher or sea salt
• 1 cup organic coconut flour, sifted (make sure to sift - the texture of coconut flour is a bit lumpier than wheat flour)

Method

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan with coconut oil, and flour with coconut flour.
• In a large bowl beat the eggs with an electric mixer.
• Next add the stevia, vanilla, yogurt, lemon juice and zest. Mix until combined. Taste, and adjust sweetness by adding more stevia if you prefer.
• Add the melted butter in a constant stream, mixing continuously.
• Sift together all of the dry ingredients.
• Using a spoon or spatula fold in the dry ingredients to the wet. The mixture will thicken up instantly once you have added the coconut flour and other dry ingredients.
• Bake for about one hour (time will vary slightly depending on your oven), until a toothpick inserted in the center of cake comes out clean.
• Let cake cool for 5 to 10 minutes in the pan. Invert on a cooling rack and let cool completely.

A Special Request

M's Chocolate Mousse

I was chatting about the Advanced Plan with one of our Practice Members the other day.  After I had finished telling him and his wife that they needed to eliminate all sugar, all grains, and most fruit from their diet, he looked at me with determination written all over his face and said, "Ok Steph, I can do this.  But I would really reaaaalllly love to have chocolate mousse once in a while."  We all chuckled.  But everyone has got their thing.  Their vice.  Mine is muffins.  His was chocolate mousse.  Pretty cute.  So anyways, after some experimenting... here it is, chocolate mousse!  You can still have a life AND eat on the Advanced Plan.  Honest.  :) 

Ingredients

• 2 ripe avocados
• 2 tsp. liquid stevia (more or less, depending on your preference)
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup organic unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted (make sure to sift - there's nothing worse than lumpy mousse!)
• 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1/2 cup organic full-fat coconut milk
• 1 tbsp. brandy or rum (obviously an optional ingredient, and maybe not so Maximized, but live a little!) 
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon (another optional ingredient, but I think it makes a big difference.  It doesn't add a real cinnamon flavour, but it really helps to cut the super-sweet after taste of stevia, which is important in these sweet dishes when so much stevia is used.)

Method

• Place all ingredients in the food processor (a blender can be used in a pinch) and process until completely smooth and creamy.
• Dollop into pretty bowls or ramekins and refrigerate. 
• Garnish with strawberries, slivered almonds, mint leaves, whatever your heart desires!

Saturday Soup Lunch

Cream of Fresh Tomato Soup

I'm on a soup kick lately.  Fall has a tendency to do that to me.  This is a great September recipe when there are tons of yummy vine-ripened tomatoes still in the markets.  It can easily be made dairy-free by simply omitting the cream completely, or by replacing it with Cashew Cream (recipe below).  Garnish it with basil, pine nuts, and parmesan.

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Ingredients

• 3 tbsp. coconut oil
• 2 small yellow onions, roughly chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 5 large tomatoes (organic, of course!)
• 2 tbsp. tomato paste
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• About 4 cups of chicken or vegetable stock
• Salt and pepper
• 3/4 cup organic heavy cream
• Your choice of garnish

Method

• Heat oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add onions and saute for about 10 minutes.
• Add the garlic and basil and cook for one minute.
• Add the tomato paste, tomatoes, chicken stock, salt and pepper.
• Bring the soup to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, uncovered for about 30-40 minutes, until the tomatoes are very tender.
• Pour the soup into a blender (carefully, and in batches) or use a hand-held immersion blender (one of my FAVE kitchen tools) to blend the soup until smooth.
• Put the soup back in the pot over low-medium heat and stir in cream. 
• Leave the soup on the stove until it's hot, then serve, garnish, and enjoy!