CREAMY BUTTERNUT SQUASH, BROCCOLI + CHIPOTLE ALMOND SAUCE

I still haven't showered today. Apparently it's good for the skin to let your sweat dry after you've been in the sun, because it helps with vitamin D absorption. So I hear. I am using that as my excuse for being smelly and sticky right now. I went to the gym this morning (and sweat out a storm) then immediately made this when I got home. Seriously, I didn't even take off my shoes. Then I laid out in the sun for the afternoon while I listened to Dan Savage's Lovecast. In short: I don't think I need to take a vitamin D supplement TODAY. Hah. I will shower after I write this post though, because I am obsessed with how good it feels to be clean after being sweaty. Yes, I am super privileged because I get to shower everyday. I am also super grateful, not that that matters. I guess I'll talk about the recipe now...

salad, salad, salad: the main meal

Like the title says, salad should be the main meal on the dinner table! It is so important to get tons of greens in your diet, as well as veggies. Both are super low calorie, high fiber and packed with the best quality nutrition on the planet. What more do you need? Well... okay, you need raw brownies too. Note: If you don't like tofu plain and raw, then go ahead and marinate, bake, or prepare it however you like.

Mega dinner salad: serves one to four people

Dressing:
1 tablespoon each of mustard, tahini, miso, raisins
3 tablespoon sun dried tomatoes Water, as needed

Salad:
3 heads of lettuce, washed and ripped into pieces
1/4 cup baby tomatoes, halved
5 olives, halved
1/4 package of tofu, cubed
3 mushrooms, sliced and marinated in tamari
1/2 avocado, chopped

Blend all the ingredients for the dressing until smooth, using as much water as needed. Toss the lettuce with dressing until evenly coated then top with the rest of the salad ingredients. Enjoy!

holy garlic

we bought garlic from the farmer's market on saturday... it is so intense. like, the most potent garlic on the planet. i naively used an entire clove in the dressing of my salad, i have now killed all my taste buds. learn from my mistake - be cautious with your organic garlic. start with half a clove if you've got strong stuff.

besides the garlic insanity, this salad was friggin delish. i had a great workout up at my campus gym and all i wanted to eat afterward was a big salad from my garden. i added some chickpeas for extra protein. hemp seeds would also be a nice addition. we had grilled zucchini from last night and well... that's never a bad thing to throw in. enjoy! i sat in the sun and fought with wasps to eat this.

walnut garlic salad: serves one

dressing:

1 tablespoon mustard

1 tablespoon tamari

3 tablespoons almond milk (or water)

1/2 garlic clove

1 tablespoon miso 

1 tabelspoon honey/maple syrup (or 2 dates)

1 tablespoon hummus (optional... but yum)

salad:

2-3 grilled zucchini slices

1/2 cup chickpeas

4-5 cups kale and/or rainbow chard

2 figs

3 olives

make the dressing by blending all ingredients until smooth. hopefully you like it, it might be a little thick so feel free to add more liquid. chop up the salad topping and tear up the leaves into bite-size pieces. pour on the dressing and mix into the greens, then add your toppings. yummers.

garden herb salad

i beg you, grow your own tomatoes. they're pretty easy as long as you don't over water them... and they taste HEAVENLY. really... they should be golden with holiness, not red. i've been eating them like candy. some of ours are cherry tomatoes and some are larger. either way - ridiculous.

today i made a salad with rainbow chard, oregano, basil, and tomatoes from the garden. i also added some bell pepper, dried figs, avocado, and leftover gardein. the dressing is sooo good. it has mustard, miso, walnuts, garlic and fresh basil in it. sweet basil is probably my favourite herb. i left whole leaves of oregano and basil with the rainbow chard greens too, i think it's lovely when you get a bite and suddenly it's a herb-filled explosion of flavour!

garden herb salad with tomatoes: serves one

salad:

4-5 cups rainbow chard (or your fave greens)

1/4 cup cherry tomatoes

1 bell pepper

1/4 avocado

handful basil leaves

handful oregano leaves

2-3 dried figs/dates

dressing:

1 tablespoon mustard

1 tablespoon miso 

1 tablespoon vinegar

2 dates

2 peeled garlic cloves

1 tablespoon nutritional yeast 

handful of walnuts (around 1/4 cup)

handful basil leaves

water, as needed

chop up the greens, tomatoes, pepper, avocado and figs. set aside. to make the dressing, blend all the ingredients together, adding as much water as needed. pour the dressing onto the greens and mix in. top it off with the remaining goodies and enjoy!

garden kale salad

we have so much kale in our garden.

this is not a problem though, i could eat it all day... and i do. i use it in smoothies, wraps, kale chips, soups, and salads! mainly in smoothies though. so yesterday i figured i make it into a salad instead of the usual green smoothie. oh wait - i had a green smoothie for breakfast.

but still.

dino kale is a bit bitter and tough for regular salad greens so what you do to make it all nice, soft and flavourful is massage your dressing in and let it sit for a few minutes. i did that while i cut up my other salad ingredients. they included: THE BEST TOMATOES EVER, grown on our deck. i also added some bell pepper, beans, and gardein because well... i like the taste. my dad thought i had put real chicken in the salad for a second. hah.

garlic kale salad: serves one

salad:

1 large organic tomato

4-5 cups organic dino kale

1 organic bell pepper

1/2 cup cooked chickpeas (or throw in some nuts to keep it raw)

1 serving of tempeh or gardein (optional) 

handful of raisins

dressing:

1 tablespoon miso

1 tablespoon mustard

2 dates

handful of walnuts

3 peeled garlic cloves

1 tablespoon tamari

water, as needed 

chop the veggies and kale, set aside. to make the dressing blend all ingredients until smooth. i hope you like it! then massage the dressing into the kale and let it rest for a 5-10 minutes, getting soft. put the tomato, pepper, raisins, chickpeas/nuts and protein on top and enjoy!

BBQ kale chips

oh my goodness gracious holy cats. the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem. i have already done the hardest part. buuuut... I JUST CAN'T STOP EATING KALE CHIPS!

i could have a worse addiction though; like... almost any other substance actually. kale chips are uber healthy. you know how good kale is for you, and when you dehydrate it - you concentrate all it's incredible life-giving nutrition. just make sure to have them with a big glass of water, because obviously you're also taking out the H20 when you "DE-hydrate".

we bought beautiful kale from the farmer's market on saturday just for kale chips. ain't it perdy?
(the answer is yes.)

the sauce for these is mega good. i used liquid smoke so they taste like barbeque chips. get ready to have garlic breath too - it's totally worth it. as usual, over half of them were devoured (or should i say inhaled) by time they were actually done... like i said: i have a problem.

cheesy barbeque kale chips: makes a huge bowl, but only serves one :)

dressing:
2 cups walnuts
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons mustard
2 tablespoons agave syrup (or 1/2 cup dates)
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons tamari
2-4 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon liquid smoke
1 teaspoon each of chili flakes, paprika, salt & pepper
1/2 cup water

chips:
3 big bunches of organic, local kale!

to make the dressing, blend all the ingredients until smooth. tear up the kale leaves (leaving the stems out) and throw them all in a giant bowl with the dressing. massage in with your hands until each leaf is covered. i eat so many just like this. it's like the greatest salad ever. BUT YOU MUST RESIST. now put them on dehydrator trays and dehydrate for 1-3 hours until they're dry and crispy. you'll have to check on them. you can also use your oven at it's lowest temperature and put them on baking sheets.

i'm always listening to music when i write my posts and - as i should be - in love with whatever song from my library is playing. which is why i HAVE to share it with you. hence, my links to songs lately. i think i'm gonna make that a habit. here's some police and modeselektor.

hippie haven highlights & hemp sauce

Well folks, I have returned from Tofino on Vancouver Island. 

It was an awesome vacation that was much needed, and I wish more than anything I was back there right now... listening to the ocean, walking in the rain, hiking through old-growth forests, laughing til my abs hurt with the fam, and drinking smoothies on the beach. Instead, I'm back here studying for midterms and worrying about trivial matters. 

Ah well. C'est la vie. 

I won't give you too many details about the trip because you probably don't care, but here's some highlights: saw a pet pig, watched a fire dancer, played hours of Settlers of Catan, laughed until we all cried, my brother bought me a vegan cinnamon from The Common Loaf, gave my mom a foot massage when she got poisoned by a sketchy calzone, hugged a lot of wise old trees, made delicious veggie meals every night, survived a wind storm, watched my brothers do dishes, visited the all-new vegan health food store/gallery and bought RAW JUNGLE PEANUTS! 

(Only in Tofino will some guy come to your door and say:

"Hey dudes, my buddy's a fire dancer if you wanna watch.")

A couple crazy things that happened - I saw a guy from one of my university classes at The Common Loaf! C'mon, what're the chances. 

Also, avocados are 5 for $5 at the Tofino Co-op!!! ARE YOU KIDDING? That's cheaper than here. How does that happen!?

My mom let me bring the Vita-Mix this year so I was able to make green smoothies every morning =)

The family had some too! You can see their fruit smoothies in the background. Mmm.

This smoothie was a bunch of dino kale, a banana, 1 cup of frozen blueberries, raspberries, peaches and water.

I also ate a lot of seaweed, since it's delicious and stuff... ya know. Plus, we're surrounded by it on the beach so how could I NOT? My brother said it looked like stained glass in the sun - I agree. It amazing how often I have the thought "Wow, I am eating art."

Tofino is such a great place. Everything is local, hand-made, organic and friendly - landscape included.

All the people are so chill, and predominantly hippies. So it's makes sense that the health food store is all vegan, and substantially raw. It's called Green Soul Organics, and they're expanding! This year they added a top floor, which is a total chill zone. It's got funky tunes, tons of old couches, vegan potlucks, 420 Sundays, and a gallery of what residents think "humanity" means to them. 

Yeah. I belong here. 

We bought prayer flags, raw jungle peanuts, and were GOING to buy glass straws; but they were too small for my thick smoothies. So we're gonna buy them online at Upaya. 

Besides our trip to town, we basically just relaxed in our cabin, visited beaches, and went on some hikes. 

Now, on to the stuff you're really interested in: food! While we were in Tofino, I brought along some killer hemp sauce, and used it to make some awesome raw veg wraps for dinner one night. The whole family liked them so I KNOW you will. 

And I have some special news! I am going to be featured in an E-Book! I will give you more details soon =) For now, just enjoy these wraps. 

NOTE: You can use this hemp sauce on ANYTHING. Dip, sauce, marinade, add more water and an avocado to make soup, use it on kale chips, and anything else you could possibly think of. Seriously. This is a go-to sauce. 

Hippie Hemp Sauce: makes about 1 1/2 cups or so

1/4 cup plus 2 Tb hemp seeds

3 Tb nutritional yeast

2 Tb miso

3 garlic cloves, chopped

1 date (or 1 t honey, agave, or maple syrup)

1 Tb mustard 

2 Tb nut butter (or 3 Tb nuts)

2 Tb tamari

1/2 cup water

1/8 - 1/4 t chili powder/cayenne

2 t sun dried tomatoes (optional)  

1 t hot sauce (optional) 

Pinch salt & pepper

3 Tb black sesame seeds 

Blend all ingredients EXCEPT black sesame seeds together until smooth. Also, be sparing with the water; add it only as needed to get a creamy, saucy consistency... you can always add more. Then mix in sesame seeds with a spoon. They add nice contrast and texture. Taste it! Sooooo good, right?

Veggie Seaweed Wraps: serves... ?

Avocado

Corn

Bell Pepper

Mushrooms

Hippie Hemp Sauce

Nori Sheets

Chop all the produce and mix in enough hemp sauce to coat them all. Add salt & pep to taste. Wrap in seaweed. Enjoy! Best served by the ocean.

salad is superior

Your food should make you sing and dance, and want to share your joy with the world. My food does! =)

Every time I make a green smoothie, I want to take a picture of it and show it to everyone 'cause they're so beautiful, health-giving and delicious! It's the same for salads. They're always SO gorgeous and green.

So here's some pictures =) This salad had kale, some bell pepper, tomato, pecans, a little bit of tofu, and I topped it with hemp seed and dried cranberries. The dressing was just miso, water and garlic, blended. YUM!