How to Make Wheat Grass Juice

I'm behind on posting for this month so I thought I would catch everyone up with a few posts before the new year.  One of the fun activities we did this month was grow our own wheat grass!  It's really so easy.  You can buy Winter Wheat Berries at your local health food store in the bulk bin area.  Bring them home and soak them in water for a couple of days.  Rinse and rehydrate them in between days and store them in the refrigerator if the temperature in your house is above 72 degrees.  Basically you are trying to sprout them before planting.  So as soon as you see a little tiny sprout forming, that's when you want to put them in a tray of dirt. 

You can just lay them on top of the dirt and they will start to grow.  Give them 10-11 days and they are ready to harvest. 

Now, realize that you are not going to get a lot of juice out of that tray of grass.  It's something like 1/2 cup of juice and you probably don't want to drink it straight up on a completely empty stomach.  It's quite bitter and potent.  Most people complain that they get a headache or feel nauseated doing wg shots. We always mix it with three to four cups of purified water, juiced lemons, ice and agave nectar and have it one hour after a meal.

We have an Omega 8005 Fruit and Vegetable Juicer.  I bought it refurbished on eBay back in 2005.  I encourage everyone to check eBay for juicers and blenders before buying new.  If you don't have a juicer, you can use a high powered blender.  Just don't add all the grass in at once.  Do half with two cups of water, juice of half of a lemon and 2 cups of ice and then empty the blender and do the next batch.  Add agave to taste.

I like to use the juicer because my kids and operate it without my help :)  I of course supervise, but they like to do all the work themselves. Now if I can just get them to clean up the mess afterwards!

Mango BBQ Beans with Mashed Yucca with Cilantro and Lime

Now that the winter months are approaching and the weather is cooling down here in Florida I've been enjoying lots of soups, chili recipes and...Mango BBQ Beans!  Yes, it's another delicious and simple recipe from Appetite for Reduction and if you have never tried Yucca, this is your chance.  Be brave, it's not much different from potatoes other than it has roots through the center that you will want to remove after you cook them :)

Mango BBQ Beans

Ingredients
1 tsp olive oil (I used vegan broth)
1 onion, chopped finely
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 mango, seeded and chopped small
1 cup vegetable broth
1/2 tspred pepper flakes, or 1/4 tsp if you want less spicy
1/4 tsp allspice
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp salt
1 (25 oz) can kidney beans
1 tsp liquid smoke
2 to 3 tsp agave nectar

Preheat a 4-quart pot over medium heat. Saute the onion and garlic in the oil (or broth) with a pinch of salt for about 5 minutes, until translucent.
   Add the mango, tomato sauce, broth, red pepper flakes, coriander, salt and kidney beans. Turn up the heat and bring to a rolling boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and cover the pot, leaving a little room for steam to excape and let cook for about 45 minutes, stirring often. The sauce should thincken and the mangoes should cook down a great deal.
   Turn off the heat, mix the agave and liquid smoke, and let the beans sit for about 5 minutes. Taste for sweetness and add more agave if needed. Adjust the salt and seasonings and serve.


Mashed Yucca with Cilantro & Lime

Ingredients
2 pounds yucca peeled and chopped into 2-inch chunks
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt, plus extra for salting the yucca water

Place the yucca in a pot and cover with water until submerged. Add a big pinch of salt, cover the pot, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer. Let simmer for about 20 minutes, until very, very tender. Turn off the heat.
  Reserve about a cup of the hot water by carefully dipping a heatproof mug into the pot. Don't burn yourself, please. Drain the yucca, then return it to the pot. Add the lime juice, cilantro, oil and salt. Mash well with a potato masher. Stream in the reserved hot water little by little, mashing as you go along. You may need up to 1/2 cup. Mash the yucca until nice and creamy and serve immediately.

"Hail to the Kale" Salad

I found this lovely raw kale salad recipe on Dr. McDougall's website.  I think it was in one of his newsletters.  Anyhow, my oldest daughter LOVES this salad and I do too!  It is not "low fat" but if you would like to make it low fat I recently got a message from Chef AJ, the creator of this recipe.  Her notes are at bottom of this post.

Ingredients
1 large bundle curly kale, washed
1 tbsp sesame seeds unhulled (I omitted these)
1/2 cup cup peanut butter or almond butter (I used almond butter)
1/2 cup water
1/8 cup fresh lime juice
1 clove garlic crushed
1 tbsp low sodium Organic Tamari
2 pitted raw dates
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

Place peanut butter, water, lime juice, garlic, Tamari and dates in the blender on high until blended smoothly.  Dump 1/2 of the dressing over the kale and toss with hands, adding more as needed.  You can eat this right away but it tastes better if you let it marinate for at least 30 minutes.  You can even let it marinate overnight and it will wilt the kale nicely.

Enjoy!  And below is a note from Chef AJ on how to make it low fat:

"I am Chef AJ the creator of this recipe.  I am so glad you like it!  To make it lower in fat, simply substitute cooked cannelini beans (drained and rinsed) for the nut butter, than add back in 1-2 tablespoons of the nut butter until the desired flavor is achieved.  You will find many more delicious whole food plant based recipes without sugar, oil or salt in my book UNPROCESSED."

Love and Kale,

Chef AJ
www.EatUnprocessed.com

What a Healthy Family Eats in India again: Part 2

What a trip we had in India!  Each time we go it is a different adventure that unfolds spontaneously.  It's always more of a family visit when we go, but we try to see at least two or three historic sites because there is so much to see and each region in India is completely different.  Here we are at the ISKON Krisha Temple in Vrindivan.  We also saw the Taj Mahal in Agra for the first time.  Now that I know the history behind it, I'm not so impressed with it :(  While it's nice to look at, I can't think of nice things when I see it.

Here is my mother in law's "Chole" with Chapati and Basmati rice.

Big pot of Chole...

Subjiwalla delivered fresh organic local vegetables 7 days a week right to our door in Roorkee.  I wish we had this option here in the US.  You have to preorder everything you want delivered and you usually don't know what you are getting until the delivery day.

"Indian salad".  Look at these beautiful carrots!!