The Holy Crap Story!

I love watching Dragon's Den. I try to watch it religiously!  So I tuned in this evening expecting to see people with clothing lines, a few silly products, and I get to be entertained for and hour!  Well to my surprise there was actually a product that was of interest to me!  Holy Crap Breakfast Cereal!  A Chia based wheat free, gluten free, lactose free, and they also offer a sugar free breakfast cereal - Skinny B Breakfast Cereal!

The main cereal ingredient is Chia or Salvia Hispanica L., which typically contains 20% protein, 34% oil and 35% dietary fibre.  Salvia Hispanica L. contains the highest omega 3 nutrient source found in nature with perfectly balanced Omega 3,6,9 profiles and ratios. The next more abundant ingredient is Hulled Hemp Seed, which is low in carbohydrates, contains more protein than milk, meat or eggs and is suitable for those unable to digest gluten, sugar, milk, nuts and meat! 

The vendor indicated that most customers mix 2 tablespoons of concentrated Holy Crap or Skinny B with 4 tablespoons of almond, rice, hemp milk or regular milk or they sprinkle 1 tablespoon on their yogurt, oatmeal, muesli or granola. Then they stir it up and wait 4 to 5 minutes   Hmmm....I'm thinking my Almond Breeze Chocolate Milk! :)  

Wheat free, gluten free, lactose free, vegan, high in iron and dietary fibre, the cereals contain the highest known plant sources of Omega 3, 6 and 9s and are filled with protein and antioxidants. You must try Holy Crap for yourself. I just placed an order and an anxiously awaiting it's arrival!  I'll be sure to post a review once it comes in!

The power behind Kale

Yes, I'm sure all of you who know me are thinking, 'She's going to eat Kale?'. Yes, I am!  And here is why.

It is one of the healthiest vegetables around!  It is a form of cabbage, green or purple, in which the central leaves do not form a head. It is considered to be closer to wild cabbage than most domesticated forms.  It is considered to be a highly nutritious vegetable with powerful antioxidant properties and is considered to be an anti-inflammatory.  Kale is very high in beta carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, lutien, zeaxanthin and reasonably rich in calcium. Kale, as with broccoli, contains sulforaphane (particularly when chopped or minced), a chemical believed to have potent anti-cancer properties. Kale's risk-lowering benefits for cancer have recently been extended to at least five different types of cancer. These types include cancer of the bladder, breast, colon, ovary, and prostate. Isothiocyanates (ITCs) made from glucosinolates in kale play a primary role in achieving these risk-lowering benefits.

Kale is low and calories and inexpensive too! It comes in several varieties but the ones you’ll see most often are curly kale and dinosaur (flat) kale, both in beautiful hues of green and purple. Not only is kale a nutrient-dense, low-calorie food, kale is in peak season during the dead of winter when quality green foods seem impossible to find.  Kale freezes well and actually tastes sweeter and more flavourful after being exposed to a frost.  Tender kale greens can provide an intense addition to salads, particularly when combined with other such strongly-flavoured ingredients as dry-roasted peanuts, tamari-roasted almonds, red pepper flakes, or an Asian-style dressing. 

What do I do with Kale?

Choose a bunch that has strong, crisp leaves with no brown spots, and store in your crisper in a large plastic baggie with a damp paper towel included.  When you are ready to eat your kale, and I suggest that you eat it soon after bringing it home, first wash the kale and then strip out the stems and rip the leaves into small pieces. Then, here are a few ways to prepare kale:

• Saute.  Saute the leaves in sesame oil and garlic until they are limp and bright, and serve sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds.
• Roast. Place the DRY leaves in a baking dish and toss with olive oil. Bake in 450 oven for 5-10 minutes until leaves are crispy, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with salt and serve.
• Soup. Make a soup out of one head of garlic peeled and chopped, one onion chopped, 1 bunch kale de-stemmed and chopped, 2 medium  potatoes chopped, 2 carrots diced, any other veggies you like, and 8 cups veggie broth. Saute the garlic and onions first, and then combine everything in a big soup pot. Simmer until potatoes are tender. As an option, add rice vinegar, salt, and / or pepper and season to taste.
• Smoothie. Make your favorite smoothie, and add in tiny pieces of kale. Start with 1/2 a handful and then add more if you like.
• Steam. Bring about 1/2 cup of water in a large pot or Dutch Oven to a boil. Add a tablespoon or two of Earth Balance, and your kale. Put the lid on the pot and steam until kale is tender, adding water as necessary. Then season with salt and pepper,  lemon juice, olive oil, and / or soy sauce.

Have you tried Kale before? Tell me your favorite way to prepare it!

The last minute meal

We've all been there. Rushing home for a busy day, with lots of things to do around the house, pets to look after etc. The last thing you want to do is take 45 minutes to make a meal. And yes, maybe throwing a processed frozen dish in the microwave is easy and quick. But chances are, and the odds are pretty good here, that frozen dish is packed full of unhealthy preservatives, and the 'meat' in the processed frozen dish, and i use the term meat lightly, is packed full of all kinds of hormones that are not meat to be in our body in the first place. 

I'm here to say that dinner does not have to be a processed frozen dish, or food that is full of unwanted hormones, pesticides, and other toxic items that have no business being in our body at all. Dinner does not have to take a hour to prepare. I came home from work today, with nothing prepared for my dinner (or my non-vegan husband). After standing in front of the fridge for all of 1 minute I knew exactly what I would have. Some corn on the cob (YUM, even though it's a little out of season in this area it was still delish!), and a falafel spinach salad! 

Very simple and easy to throw together. I took some left over falafel, heated it for 5 minutes in our toaster oven to keep it on the crispy side.  Organic carrots, chopped any way you like, organic cucumber, and sliced almonds all layed on a bed of organic baby spinach!  Now, I'm not a big dressing fan but you could add any of your favorite vinaigrette's.  And Voila... you have a wonderful tasty little salad that extremely filling and surprisingly light! 

The corn on the cob took no time at all to be ready!  So it can be done folks! A healthy vegan dinner in less than 15 minutes! 

No need to fret, we can still have chocolate milk!

I'll be the first to admit that I love chocolate milk!  Not on a daily basis, but as a comfort. When I'm not feeling well, I like chocolate milk with some soda crackers! Or sometimes for breakfast, a banana and some chocolate milk!  It's sooo yummy and creamy and full of chocolate goodness. So after reading the dairy information in The Kind Diet, it left me utterly(no pun intended) grossed out about having dairy in my body. 

Now I never was much of a whole milk, or 2%, or 1% drinker. I could take it or leave it. But chocolate milk, I would have to buy at least a 1L each week. I guess we could throw that in the comfort food category.

I was a little saddened that I would no longer be indulging myself in chocolate milk. Then, one lovely day while at a local whole food store, I saw a container sitting on the shelf and it was Almond Breeze Chocolate!  The heavens opened and angels appeared and were signing! Ok, so the angel part didn't actually happen, but I was one happy girl!  Now, so long as it tasted good I would be all set! 

Almond Breeze is made by a company called Blue Diamond Growers.  Blue Diamond® Growers is the world's largest tree nut processing and marketing company. Founded in 1910, the cooperative is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2010. Blue Diamond® led the development of California's almond industry from a minor domestic specialty crop to the world leader in almond production and marketing.



 Almond Breeze contains no lactose or casein and is a dairy-free product. They also contain no animal products, by-products or derivatives and are considered vegan products. Made from real almonds, all natural, smooth and creamy with a hint of almonds; Almond Breeze is a great tasting non-dairy beverage without the thin, chalky after taste of rice and soy beverages.  Besides being lactose and gluten free, Almond Breeze contains no cholesterol, animal ingredients or hormones, saturated fat, or added oils. It's low in sodium and enriched with Calcium and Vitamin D and E, contains a high level of unique phytonutrients, and is a good source of Vitamin A. 

If you’ve noticed I haven’t called Almond Breeze milk!  Blue Diamond doesn’t call it milk either, but it tastes a whole lot like milk to me.  Matter of fact, I like it as well or better than milk with its ever so slight hint of nutty flavour.  Almond Breeze tastes great over some fresh berries or over some low-carb flax based cereal as well. 

I’ve tried Soy Milk and it cannot compare at all!  I have not used Almond Breeze in any recipes that required cooking, but I’ve read of those who have used it successfully in cooking, and the Almond Breeze website recommends its use in cooking.  Hopefully, some of you can chime in with your Almond Breeze experiences and share them with the rest of us.
Yay for Almond Breeze! :)

The Tempeh Attempt - Angel-hair Pasta with Tempeh sauce

So, tempeh.  Yeah!  Well I had been reading a lot online, which may be good or bad I guess, about tempeh. What it is, how to prepare it, make your own tempeh, and different ways to cook it.

So, what is it? - Tempeh is one of those "strange" foods that may cause you to scratch your head wondering not only what it is (!) but how in the world you are supposed to prepare it. For most this highly nutritious food with a flavor that seems to be a mix of mushrooms and nuts can be an acquired taste.

Tempeh is a fermented soy product that comes in patty form. And if you're going to eat soy, fermented is the way to go. Why? Because the fermentation actually helps you to digest it and makes the nutrients far more readily available for your body to use. Also, unlike tofu which is very processed, tempeh is made with the whole soybean with very little processing. It's also very high in protein, which makes it an excellent vegetarian protein source.

.

 

It can be purchased at most natural whole food stores and mostly can be found in the freezers with gluten-free breads etc.  It does come in a frozen state and would need to be thawed in the fridge prior to preparing for a meal.

So, I was planning on putting this tempeh in a stir-fry to try but didn't have enough time to prepare it, so I saved it for a different dish.  So, the first thing I did to prepare the tempeh is removed it from it's packaging and cut it into 3 pieces to prepare it for steaming.  

Now I didn't own an actual 'steamer' so I had to improvise!  So I used a regular cooking pot and filled it with about 1/4 of warm water and used one of my collapsible strainers and placed it on top.  The strained is actually made out of a material that is resistant to heat, so there was no worry of it melting. 

Next step was to actually steam the tempeh for about 15-20 minutes. Now depending on the type of tempeh you are purchasing (pre-cooked or a package that has NOT been pre-cooked) then you may need to pre-pare it a little differently. I made sure to purchase a pre-cooked package (It was the only type sold at the corn crib).  Steaming the tempeh before you cook it allows for it to swell a bit and accept more of the flavours of your dish.

  

Once steamed, I then put each piece of the tempeh into a blender in order to 'crumble' the tempeh.  It actually looked a lot like ground turkey after this step was done.

I then placed the crumbled tempeh in a skillet, and bake the tempeh in the olive oil until slightly crisp while stirring continuously. Then I added garlic, and onion, and saute this for about 5 minutes on medium heat. Then I added a little bit of soy sauce, oregano, and thyme, and let this saute for another 10 minutes. 

The sauce: Now I'm not a good 'sauce' person yet. So for now I'm settling for a bottled sauce, which is organic, has no sugar in it and real 'chunks' of tomatoes.  I will be trying to make my own homemade sauce in the next few weeks, but for now it's the jar.  Now the sauce needs a little bit of spice for my taste buds, so I've added chili flakes to it.  We put the sauce in a slow cooker to simmer on low. If you are serving immediately, you can put the sauce on the stove to heat it quicker. After adding the sauce to the slow cooker, add the tempeh creation you just finished in the saute pan and put the cover on and wait. We let ours sit for about 2.5 hours until supper time. We then prepared some angel hair wholewheat pasta, but you can really use any kind you like.

 Put the boiled and hot spaghetti on individual plates and cover with the spaghetti sauce. Serve the spaghetti immediately. Sprinkle with some grated vegan soy cheese. Enjoy!

I do have to say, tempeh has a very different texture, taste and smell. I did eat my entire meal but needed A LOT of water to get it down!  It is definitely something to be acquired! 

Taste Test Success!

After having a successful week in my journey into a new kinder Mel, I had hoped that my weekend would be just as successful!  Having excepted an invitation to a friends home for their first annual VIP wine fest we were asked to bring a bottle of wine and an hor's d'oeuvres.  So normally I would not be daunted by this invitation and just whip up my trusty creamy cheesy artichoke dip.  While I admit it's yummy, it is also filled with just about everything that is not good for you and all things dairy.  So that was out!  Then I remembered seeing on a Rachel Ray show a quick little dish that was easy to whip up.  Basically it's a baguette cut into small rounds layed flat with garlic butter, tomato, and a big hung of feta cheese. Again, filled with a few things that were not conducive to my new kind life.  So i made a few substitutions and here is the process and end results!

First I cut the baguettes into rounds and placed onto a backing sheet. then I brushed them with Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

The next step was to all a little flavor so I sprinkled Oregano (graciously) on top of the baguettes and the oil.

Here is the final look before being tossed into the oven at 350 degrees F to get a little crisp.  So because I was going to be attending a party with some non-vegans I decided to put some cheese on a few of the baguettes. Some feta on a few and some mixed cheddar and havarti on a few others. They were a big hit at the party and everybody enjoyed them...even the ones without cheese! :)

Saturday Finds!

So out and about today I had a few good finds. Living in Greater Moncton there are a few great shops for all natural organic whole foods for a plant based diet. 

Sequoia - Recently moved to 114 Highfield St.
www.sequoiafoods.ca
sequoiawholefoods@gmail.com
506-386-8518

Corn Crib - 337 Mountain Road

www.corncrib.ca

info@corncrib.ca

Both have a great assortment of whole food needs and some interesting finds.  One thing that I have come across in my jorney, all be it short, is a soy based product called Tempeh.

www.tempeh.info - This website is a great source for information with ways to prepare the Tempeh as well as how to make your own at home.   It is a fermented food made by the controlled fermentation of cooked soybeans with a Rhizopus mold. 

Seeing as I'm new to this whole world and just trying tempeh for the first time, I went to Corn Crib and purchased a package. It comes in a 350g package for $5.89.   So plan is to use this tomorrow in a stir-fry with bok choy, bean sprouts, celery, red peppers, orange peppers, yellow peppers, green onion, red onion and anything else I can find to toss in!  Should be yummy! Stay tuned for more photos!



The Tofu Test!

Disclaimer: No drooling allowed!

So all week I have been avoiding meat and products containing meat. I've been slowly going through this book each night reading every word, sometimes twice!  So after purchasing a package of Garlic Tofu today, I decided to give it a try and whip something up!  Here's how it turned out!

Garlic Tofu Pita Pizza

The Garlic Tofu was marinated in a small amount of extra virgin olive oil with a few choice spices, oregano, italian, and parsley herbs. Then grilled until firm. Two whole wheat pita pockets layed flat on a cooking sheet, smothered in organic tomato sauce mixed with red onions, minced mushrooms (i'm a texture freak), red peppers diced, yellow tomato's and topped with a few shakes of oregano!  Voila!

Now, I've made quite a few pita pizza's in my time but always with chicken and LOTS of feta cheese!  I have to say I did not miss either one, and the tofu was a nice texture!  I had one full pita pizza and was not left feeling hungry at all! :)

What the hell is this girl up to?

Well I'm glad you asked actually. I know a lot of you are probably thinking what is up with Mel lately?  All these facebook updates about being 'Kind' and the new 'Kind Life Mel' and pictures of food with tofu.  Well I have not gone loonie my friends - I've gone Kind! No more meat and dairy for this girl folks!  Well actually it will be a journey with many changes.  As it turns out a Kind Life is not the easiest to change over to at the drop of the hat!  While I admit that kicking meat to the curb is pretty easy more or less, dairy is freaking in everything!  Seriously! 

OK before I start a little rant about processed foods (which are bad for all of us anyway) I'm going to back track and tell you what I know and love about The Kind Diet, and The Kind Life we all should be leading.

Contrary to the character Alicia Silverstone portrays in the movie Clueless, she is one of the most intelligent and dedicated advocate on behalf of the planet and our lovely animals and was voted "Sexiest Vegetarian Alive" in 2004. Now some of you may be thinking this is just a fad diet. You may be right!  I may just stick to this til we go on vacation in April, save a few cows, chickens, and a few little Wilbur's a long the way. OR I may just make the decision to change my life and impact on the earth. Hmmm...decisions, decisions! Did you know that in the mid-1600's the definition of diet was "a way of living, or thinking, a day's journey". Funny is it not?  A way of living. Not starvation, not depriving yourself of wonderful whole foods.  I found this interesting and really opened my eyes to the Kind Life just in the first chapter! 

So my reasons for adapting this new "way of living"?  Well, Meat is bad for your ticker!  Heart Disease is the number one killer of women in North America (yes that's right, not breast cancer, not death due to make-up and beauty products - which is a whole other blog....Heart disease!).  It's all the saturated fat which increases cholesterol, causes plaque to clog your arteries which lead to high blood pressure which in turn can lead to a stroke or a heat attack and we all know that these are deadly health concerns and can only end with us in a pine box!  Oh and did I forget to mention that approx 64% of an egg's calories come from fat, chicken contains as much cholesterol as beef and trout is right behind that. 

Still hungry?  Meat contributes to Cancer! Funny how this works actually.  So a sugar molecule, according of the University of California, is showing up in human tumors.  Sounds pretty par for the course eh?  Well what if I told you that the sugar molecule is not one that the human body actually produces. At all. Ever.  Hmmm...wonder where it is coming from?  If you guessed red meat you get 20 points!not only does this sugar molecule build tumors but our human bodies produce antibodies against it (which is their job) but it causes inflammation helping the tumors to grow even more!  And no this doesn't mean that red meat is the only culprit either. Beef, lamb, pork chicken are nasty too. As soon as they are grilled, they create a cancer-causing compound called heterocyclic amines.  And it just so happens that grilled chicken is the worst of them all at 17 times the number of these amines than grilled steak!  Bon appetit!

I could go on and on, literally. So no more meat for me!  Dairy is a whole other story, and while meat is definitely easier (not at all easy, just easier) to kick to the curb I'll be starting there! 

Oh and did I mention that I went grocery shopping and spent $96 on fresh , mostly organic, fruit and vegetables!  YUM!

Becoming Mel

I've known for some time now that I need a change in my life.  With all kinds of medical issues popping up, out of what seemed like no where, I was looking for something that would boost my immune system and hopefully just make me feel GREAT!  What a concept. 

I've been curious about becoming vegetarian and the difference between it and vegan. After a friend referred me to Alicia Silverstone's book The Kind Diet and her Kind Life movement, I knew this was it!  This was the change I needed in my life.  And it was no irony that my friend Katrina referred this wonderful book to me on Monday November 1, 2010, which just happened to be World Vegan Day.  Quelle surprise!  It was a sign, and I took it! :) 

So I've created this blog, yes among the millions that are out there, to tell my journey!