Kale Recipe #1: Curried Chickpeas and Greens

The Kale dish I prepared on New Year's Day was from the new book Appetite for Reduction: 125 Fast and Filling Low-Fat Vegan Recipes
by Isa Moscowitz. It's called Curried Chickpeas and Greens. This is actually a popular indian dish made much healthier than what you can get in a restaurant.  I made some modifications including halfing the ingredients to make a smaller amount.  This recipe, when served with rice, makes 4-6 servings.

Ingredients
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic
1 tbspns minced fresh ginger
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tbsp curry powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 12 oz can Muir Glen diced tomatoes (no salt added)
2 bunches of Organic Green Kale (1 pound) stems removed
1 12 oz can Eden Organic chickpeas

Preheat a 4-quart pot over medium heat.  Add the mustard seeds and cover.  Let the seeds pop for one minute, or until poping slows down, stirring once. 

Quarter the onion and place in a blender with garlic, ginger and half of canned tomatoes.  Blend until well shredded but not pureed!  Pour into the pot. Sautee until the onions look translucent.  Add the curry, cumin, coriander, garam masala and salt.  Mix well.

Add the remaining tomatoes and torn pieces of kale into the blender.  Blend until well chopped (you should be able to see stems) but again, not pureed.  If you have a Vitamix you will need to use the tamper to push the kale down toward the blade.  Add to the pot and stir until kale looks completely cooked.  It should take around 7 minutes.

Add chickpeas and cook for another 5 minutes.  I served it with Organic Sushi Rice.  Sushi Rice has 1 gram of fiber per serving, which is better than no fiber in normal white rice. You could also serve this with brown rice.

Eat for Health Friendly?
Absolutely! This is a great Phase II meal. It definitely helps meet performance goals of getting 1 pound of nutrient dense veggies and 1 cup of beans daily. Of course when you break it down per serving you are getting closer to 1/4 pound of veggies and 1/4 cup beans, but still a good amount. If you add a large salad of mixed greens and raw veggies you are really boosting the MANDI score for this meal.

Affordable?  You bet!  $6.00 for the meal or $1 per serving!
Kale was BOGO at Publix (using the Greenwise ad from the internet and getting my store manager's approval), so I got two bundles for $2.99. The beans were Eden Organic and I got them for $1.90 with a coupon. I used Lundberg Organic White Sushi Rice to go with it. The Sushi Rice was on sale at Whole Foods 2 bages for $6. I had $1 off coupons for each bag plus I ordered a case so I got an additional 10% off. This made the per bag cost about $1.75 per bag.

Champagne Grapes Make a Fun Snack

Aren't these beautiful!?  Champagne Grapes are in season and you can get them at Publix and Whole Foods right now.  They are a fun snack for the kids because they are small and easy for them to handle.  They have a very mellow, sweet taste.  Definitely pick some up on your next shopping trip.

Couponing for Health Food? Can it be done?

I took a couponing class from a friend back in April after a group of my health conscious friends had taken the same class and raved about how much money they were saving. I viewed many store receipts from those friends and wondered how on earth they were able to save so much....with coupons?!

Well, I've learned a lot in the past few months...that's one of the resons I've been absent! I've been busy coupon collecting from every website I can find that offers Organic products.

I will admit, in the past I never paid attention to sales flyers or coupons simply because I thought it would take too much time and effort only to save very little money. But, when I found out you really can save up to 50% while buying organic foods, bath and body products, I have decided it is SO worth my time. The food budget at our house had been out of control for several years, starting from the days my babies became toddlers. I'm happy to report as of last month our total food and dining out expense has gone from $1200 a month down to $750 and I'm expecting it to go down to $600 this month.  (Of course a piece of this equation has to do with an amazing harvest from our garden this spring.  Lots of beans, lettuce, eggplant, squash, oakra, tomatoes, onions...we have been well stocked on the veggies!)

Some of the things I can think of off hand that I have saved 80%+ on are Organic Frozen Cascadian Farms Fruit and Vegetables, Seventh Generation Products, Jason Organics Products, Kiss My Face Products, Almond Breeze, Blue Diamond Almonds, and Silk Organic Soymilk! I have also found coupons for Eden Organics products, San-J Organic Tamari, Honest Kids Juice, Earth Friendly Cleaning Products, Rice Select, Publix Produce, and Restaurant coupons!

I was a big Whole Foods shopper, now I am at Publix every week and only once a month at Whole Foods, Chamberlin's Market or Hoover's Essential Health Market to pick up things I cannot find at Publix and catch any monthly sales...with coupons!!

You can get the best deals at Publix because they have the BOGO deals and you can use both a competitor store coupon and a manufacturer's coupon on BOTH the item you buy and the free item!

My favorite blog to follow for the latest deals at Publix is iheartpublix.com. The blog owner will post the Publix sales flyer three days prior to the sale with coupon "matchups" (she tells you exactly where to find the coupons to get the deals).

My favorite blog to follow for Organic Deals is Organic Deals and Coupons.

And lastly, if you'd like to take couponing classes in Central Florida you can join Couponing with Regina on Facebook. If you are outside the Central Florida area you can take classes online at Becentsable.com.

You have been enlightened! Now please do not ignore this post...go SAVE some money!!!