Post Cleanse Week

Unfortunately, C accidentally turned off the computer and my post for these images did not save. I'm not sure that I will remember all of the brilliant and witty remarks that I made, but I will do my best to add in something to keep you entertained, dear reader. Smiles.

As many of you may have read about the fun we had with Gillian's Cleanse Day (ahem), we weren't about to start eating chips and chocolate bars the next day as reward. Well, one of us wasn't ready to anyways... Since we spent nearly a day drinking our veggies, I thought that it would be best to continue ridding the toxins from our bodies with a super healthy clean eating regime for a week following the diet. This would include being a relative vegan and cutting out additional salt, sugar, processed foods, cooked oils and other such things that are deemed to be unhealthy.

As one of the meals from Gillian's diet was a raw salad that we had both actually enjoyed (although, we might have enjoyed almost anything following the superfood infused veggie shakes...), we decided to have it again for a number of dinners. Simple to make and refreshing to eat, you could make this at home in a snap. A handful of sprouts (we used broccoli sprouts) became the bed for chopped raw zucchini, shredded organic carrots, chopped rich and creamy ripe avocado and a squeeze of lemon juice. To add a bit of healthy oil to the salad, I pinched open 2 capsules of flax oil and drizzled that on top. Perfect.

clean salad

 One of the meals which Gillian considered a "treat" (no offense, Gillian, but if this is what you consider a treat, no wonder mung beans excite you) was the vegetable potassium broth that had me simmering all the leftover cut-offs of veggies from the day and some that I had saved up in the freezer. If the taste of the soup matched the aroma as it cooked, this would have been an amazing broth. Unfortunately, it was watery and tasteless. We chocked it down with a forced smile on our faces and it was then that I noticed in a side note that if we didn't feel like making a broth, we could have miso soup. Well! Miso soup would have been waaaay better as it's salty tasting, which is what our bodies were craving after the all fruit and vegetable day. I dug out the last of the miso that was hiding in the fridge that a friend had given to me ages ago and took a peek. It seemed to still be good but how can you tell? I decided to risk it and if it was off, well, we'd soon find out.

Instead of just a broth, I thought that it would be healthier and heartier to add some vegetables to the mix. I chopped up some carrots, celery, mushrooms, and we had some leftover cut up green onions already.

Miso soup ingredients

All that needed to be done really was to whisk the miso paste (which was more like crystalized miso now) into some boiling water to make the broth and then dump in the cut up veggies and let it all simmer. For this miso, it was 1 Tbsp per cup of water so I made about 6 cups of soup. In went the veggies, I brought the soup to a boil, then turned down the heat and let it simmer for likely less than 30 minutes. The veggies were tender-crisp and the soup was perfect. Think of this "recipe" as another vessel to use up leftover veggies you might have. You could add anything into this soup. Next time, I will add some BBQ nori sheets that I have, cut into thin strips, and maybe some rice or soba noodles to make it a complete meal. If you wanted to add meat or protein, you could add cooked chicken or thinly slices rare beef, or even tofu. Salmon fillet would be lovely as well but I would recommend adding that just to the serving bowl as the salmon will disintegrate in the pot of soup otherwise and you'll miss out on the nice big chunks.

I would recommend keeping a bag of Miso paste in the fridge for your convenience. I bought my pack at Superstore, found in the Asian food aisle.

Miso soup

Sometimes making one large tray of roasted root vegetables is better than just cooking fresh for that meal. I find that root vegetables like carrots, sweet potato and beets still taste great the next day, reheated or even cold. Roasted veggies are one of my favorite ways to eat them, aside from lightly sauteed. Since I was chopping anyways, adding a few more beets and carrots was easy and extended the carb portion of 2 separate meals.

Below, the meal was finished with a healthy portion of crunchy baked kale and some raw zucchini. Again, the veggies had their oil added after the cooking process only (as well as to the raw portion of the meal. Some fresh lemon juice and safflower oil complete the dish.

vegan dinner

Dinner number 2: the roasted veggies make their second appearance (not soggy and shape maintained) and this time there's a side of couscous plus a salad of de-ribbed sauteed swiss chard and mushrooms with cherry tomatoes. Leafy greens are a fantastic side dish to include in one meal a day: rich in vitamins, antioxidants, flavour, and they have the added benefit of making you feel fuller for longer because of the fibre. This in turn, helps you to eat less and feel more satiated without extra calories.

vegan dinner 2

Zuzuni Cake when he was little). Basically, the cake was made in only one pan. No prep bowls required or sifting of ingredients (what busy mom or wife does that anyways?), just mix all of the ingredients right into the pan and into the oven. The kids are happy with the chocolate, the parents are happy they have stuffed a threatening vegetable into the bellies of their unsuspecting offspring, and all is right with the world. Apparently (which my mom only let on recently), since my mom and great grandma's zucchini patches decided to commit a hostile takeover of their gardens, the vegetable must be served to us children in every form imaginable. Although, I never imagined that my mom would serve us zucchini crisp...

I suppose that apples were not always as plentiful since nobody in the family had an apple tree, it seemed logical that zucchinis could be used in their place. I think she was onto something long before Mrs Seinfeld came along with her "Deceptively Delicious" cookbook. Also, I think that my mom's fascination with wartime cooking and Depression survival spurred her creative side a little too well sometimes. In any case, she apparently peeled the zucchini, shredded it, mixed in a bunch of sugar and cinnamon, and made a crisp topping. Us naive and trusting children didn't stand a chance and I'm sure my parents shot victorious looks at each other as they high-fived under the table while we gobbled up our "just desserts".

If children can be fooled into eating veggies for dinner, I thought, surely husbands can as well! I started peeling apples and zucchini and smiled, thinking at what a very sneaky and healthy wife I was. Unfortunately, I wasn't as cautious as my mom must have been since C walked into the kitchen and asked why I was peeling fruit and veggies. Since I can't lie to C, I confessed to what I was making but assured him that my mom had made it before and he wouldn't be able to tell the different between the apples and zucchini once they were baked. Well, he could. In my defense, I didn't know that my mom had shredded everything instead of cutting it into chunks as I had. Also, the shredded filling soaked up more sugar. Especially more than my recipe since I was eating clean and not allowed to use any...

I mixed in lots of cinnamon and some sliced banana to add sweetness (those babies seem to just turn to sugar as soon as they are cooked) and topped the whole thing with whole rolled oats and more cinnamon before sticking the dish into the oven to bake until tender. Without the added fat of butter or brown sugar (hence, no real "crisp" topping), I had my fingers crossed. I have to say, I actually didn't mind it. C turned up his nose but ate it anyways since it was as close to dessert as we were getting. I found the addition of the bananas to be the winning ingredient. As I've just finished dinner now (I know, I know, it's 9:19pm), I almost want to make one of these right now....minus the zucchini.

zucchini, apple and banana "crisp"

Apparently we can never get sick of spaghetti squash in this house. Somehow another one made it home with us. They must be like sad puppies at the pet store or something, pleading with us to put them in our basket for home. I do recall buying these with a very clear idea of their fate though. Since meat was off the menu, spaghetti (squash) and vegetarian Bolognese was on my mind. First things first, risk life and limb halving the suckers, then into the oven while I worked on the meat(less) filling.

our fav squash

Ok, so there is some processed food here...Yves ground round...but in my defense, I would like to think that it's healthier than ground beef. Much less fat, no cholesterol, plus no animals harmed in the making of this dish. So, you can see by the photo what would make up the meaty sauce...fake ground beef (I highly recommend this product for newbies, testing the vegetarian waters...this stuff is great for tacos, "meat"loafs, etc), chopped onion, red and green pepper, mushrooms, and fresh organic basil (I really REALLY want to grow my own herbs next year). I also love Superstore's Blue Menu Vegetarian Bolognese pasta sauce with little chunks of veggies. This would be what gave my meaty sauce an Italian flavour.

vegetarian/vegan bolognese sauce ingredients

No need to cook the Yves ground round but I decided to add it to the onion, as I would to cook ground beef (which I cannot remember the last time I've done).

saute the onion

Everything else into the pot and mix!

almost done

Followed by enough pasta sauce to make a lovely rich and saucy, um, sauce. Heat through and done.

sauce done

Sauce done. Spaghetti squash, done.

baked squash

A few fork scrapings later and the "spaghetti" was ready to be served.

A nice hearty helping of bolognese sauce and we had ourselves a vegan meal in a bowl. Healthy, filling, hot and C loved it! What could be better?

vegan Italian dinner

Oh wait, I can tell you...leftovers! Enough for packed lunches for both of us for work, or another dinner or 2. Tupperware is awesome! Actually, Ziplock in this case.

packed up leftovers

Prepping food is like popping a potato chip into your mouth...you can't stop with just one! I find that as soon as I am on a roll with making food for another time, then I just can't stop and make at least 3 dishes. In this case, 4. Case and point below. I had bought as many cans of beans as we were able to carry on our last trip to Superstore and today I was going to use up 2 cans: one of chickpeas and one of butter beans (navy beans work too).

Navy beans first. I decided to make some bean burgers since they hold up so well in the fridge and they are something that we can just pop into a heated pan and cook quickly for dinner. They also happen to be fantastically tasty! These little guys aren't vegan since they contain an egg and some shredded cheese, but I am banking on making a vegan version of them using egg replacer (or ground flax with water) and vegan cheese like Daiya.

For this version, I like using my food processor to pulse the drained and rinsed beans into a fine chop but not a mush, and then add in the egg, a handful of breadcrumbs, a few Tbsp of chopped banana peppers, about 1/3 cup shredded cheese, and this time, some chopped cilantro. Another pulse or so until the mixture began to come together without getting too soft. Be careful not to lose the texture with excessive processing. Then, just remove the blade (or, if you're a daredevil like me, leave it in) and remove handfuls of the mix, shape into patties, and plunk down on a wax paper or parchment paper covered plate. You can either refrigerate these for later, or cook them up right now. I heat a little Pam or high smoke point oil in a frying pan and quickly pan fry them for a few minutes on each side until crisp but not black. You can serve these on their own with a side salad, eating them with a fork and knife, or put these between a bun with some lettuce, mayo (or Nayonaise/Vegenaise) and tomato. I guarantee this as a "yum" dinner or lunch! Man and husband approved.

butter bean burgers

Bean, beans, beans, how I love beans! I needed some sort of snack that would appeal to my salty craving so decided to roast some chickpeas. One can, drained, rinsed (reduces the sodium), and dumped onto parchment paper on a baking sheet. Into the oven to roast. Just keep an eye on the little guys and give them a shake here and there. be careful opening the oven door to check on them as the steam can getcha. If you wanted, you could add some oil to these before they roast to crisp them better, but I prefer not to. Simply season them when they come out of the oven with the spices of your choosing (popcorn seasoning also works well here), or eat them plain as I did. I store them in a Ziplock twist and seal container for easy access whenever I'm peckish and need a little something instead of a whole meal or a binge on junk food. As I write this, I want to make some tonight...but, the tub is running and this stinky girl needs to bathe before going back to work. The chickpeas must wait.

roasting chickpeas

Ok, ok, one more. You see how prepping food can just sneak up on you? Before you know it, you have all sorts of healthy homemade treats at your beck and call! I had really been craving something spicy, and jalapenos were their name. I could hear them calling to me in my dreams so our next grocery visit, we brought home a happy little bag of them. We had tried this amazing jalapeno condiment at Kokeb last time we were there with my parents (it came with the fresh and piping hot samosas). I'm not sure what was in it, but it was spicy and oily and perfect. Again, I didn't want to use much oil so decided to throw the seeded jalapenos, some onion, and a couple chopped tomatoes into the food processor. If only I had cilantro but it seemed Superstore was either hiding them whenever they saw us coming, or there was a shortage. Blend until finely chopped and voila.

fresh ingredients about to be married in the food processor

This mixture went into a Ziplock and into the fridge so that the flavours could blend better together. We used this mix in omelets, on vegetarian wraps...anything that needed a little kick. I will try making this again but with cilantro and maybe some more garlic and a little oil. Also, salt would really bring out the flavours. Maybe even lemon zest to brighten the whole thing up. Remember, recipes are often, if not always, a work in progress. Don't get stuck on how a recipe is supposed to be made, only on how you can keep improving it.

spicy jalapeno salsa